Chapter 3292: The Secret of Jiusi Yitianhuang
The ruins of the Heavenly Venerable Divine Temple were desolate and extremely perilous.
Not only were there divine patterns left by the Heavenly Venerable and some ancient killing formations, but also, over the past two million years, strange creatures had been born in this region. It could be said that every step was a restricted zone!
More than ninety percent of the area remained unknown.
Zhang Ruochen and Bai Qinger walked toward the direction from which the moonlight emanated, avoiding the Heavenly Venerable's inscriptions and killing formations. All the strange creatures automatically retreated.
The moonlight was bright and sacred.
But the scenes Zhang Ruochen and Bai Qinger saw along the way were like a forest of hell, sending chills down one's spine.
The ground was covered in white bones, the earth was dark red, and the marshes rippled with thick, crimson blood, emitting a foul stench.
Countless people must have died here in the past!
Zhang Ruochen sighed, "One general's success is built on ten thousand bones. Beneath the Heavenly Venerable's feet, there are even billions of skeletons."
Wu Yue had once told Xue Jue War God that Xinghuan Heavenly Venerable had killed the sixth life of Jiusi Yitianhuang, seizing his secret of immortality, thus creating enmity between them.
Whether what she said was true or false, Xinghuan Heavenly Venerable was undoubtedly a figure with great means.
Bai Qinger said, "When the Four Sons Dismembered the Corpse, a world-shaking war broke out, and the Heavenly Venerable Divine Temple was destroyed then. Perhaps this plain of bones was left from that time."
Before long, Zhang Ruochen passed through layers of thick fog and saw a towering mountain on the plain.
The moonlight emanated from the mountain, accompanied by wisps of greenish mist. Golden characters flew through the mountain. It was the aura of the Moon God, but the divine power fluctuations were quite intense.
On the mountain and the plain below, many ragged corpses wandered, their eyes hollow. They were not of the Corpse Clan.
It seemed they had been "revived" by some force.
"Hua!"
The green mist gathered, and the golden characters flew toward the mountaintop, all rushing into the Jade Emperor Cauldron.
The corpses fell to the ground one by one.
A beam of light flew out of the Jade Emperor Cauldron, landed on the ground, and condensed into the Moon God's figure of unparalleled beauty—white robes flawless, with an immortal heart and a Daoist bone.
Although she wore a veil, her brows and eyes still resembled Wu Yue's, but her temperament was ethereal, as if she did not partake in worldly affairs.
If Zhang Ruochen did not know her well enough, he might have truly thought she was a banished immortal, dwelling beyond the nine heavens, not in the mortal world, with a heart like an icy lake, free from desires.
Bai Qinger clearly did not know such a place existed deep within the ruins of the Heavenly Venerable Divine Temple. She transmitted her voice, "I didn't expect the holy and dignified Moon God to cultivate such an evil secret art of corpse control."
Zhang Ruochen was not surprised. The Moon God could be considered the founder of the Kunlun Realm's Moon Worship Demon Sect, proficient in many bizarre techniques.
But many things cannot be judged by appearance alone.
One cannot assume she is detached from worldly affairs just because she appears holy enough.
Nor can one assume she is evil just because she cultivates many strange techniques.
However, Zhang Ruochen did not believe the corpses just now were influenced by the corpse control secret art. There must be another reason.
"Zhang Ruochen, if I had known your cultivation would advance so quickly, I would have borrowed the Sundial along with it back then," the Moon God's celestial voice came, the word "borrow" spoken very naturally.
Zhang Ruochen smiled, "Why would you need the Sundial, Moon God Empress? With your current cultivation, how many below the Infinite Realm can still rival you?"
The Moon God's cultivation had indeed improved astonishingly.
A thousand years ago, she was at the level of Jia Tianxia, Yanyang Heavenly Lord, and Xiu Chen Heavenly God, at the peak of Grand Void or the Body-Stop Realm.
This time they met, Zhang Ruochen could finally see through the Moon God's depth. Her divine power was extremely profound, her physical body and divine soul extraordinary, and her Taiyin Heavenly Moon Divine Body was nearly perfected.
She had probably already broken through the Soul-Stop Realm, though it was unclear if she had reached the Heart-Stop Realm.
"Shua!"
The Moon God vanished from the mountaintop and appeared before Zhang Ruochen and Bai Qinger.
Without warning, the Moon God's jade-like, snow-white hand struck toward Zhang Ruochen.
Space was pressed inward, both speed and power reaching the pinnacle.
Zhang Ruochen swung his left arm, sending Bai Qinger a thousand miles away, while his right arm erupted with chaotic light as he punched out.
Fist and palm collided, and the earth for a thousand miles was lifted layer by layer, spreading outward like waves.
A large number of corpses were shattered into powder by the divine power.
The Heavenly Venerable's divine patterns and killing formation inscriptions were activated, and streaks of blood-red lightning appeared in the distance. A low, rumbling sound came from the clouds.
The two withdrew their hands simultaneously, and the divine power surged back into their bodies like a tide.
Mud, stones, and broken bones continuously fell from the sky.
Zhang Ruochen noticed that the divine mountain behind the Moon God remained intact, shrouded by a mysterious force.
The Moon God gave Zhang Ruochen a deep look, then turned and walked out of the ruins of the Heavenly Venerable Divine Temple.
Zhang Ruochen followed, "Moon God Empress, have you forgotten something?"
"The Jade Emperor Cauldron is of great use to me in my breakthrough to the Infinite Realm. I need to borrow it for a while longer," the Moon God suddenly stopped, her expression cold and clear. "You are my divine envoy. It seems I don't need to say 'borrow' to you."
Zhang Ruochen was about to speak.
The Moon God added, "By the way, the Jade Emperor Cauldron was lent to me by Jie Venerable. You are just a junior of the Zhang Clan and have no right to interfere in this matter."
Bai Qinger walked over, looking at the various fissures on the plain, forming a rough guess about the cultivation levels of Zhang Ruochen and the Moon God.
With an outsider present, the Moon God appeared even more aloof, as pure as a lotus after rain, speaking lightly, "Zhang Ruochen, today you can already match me evenly. As your divine master, I am very gratified. I look forward to the day you surpass me, excelling beyond your teacher!"
What else could Zhang Ruochen say?
The dignified Moon God being so shameless was too subversive, completely lacking the aloofness and holiness of a peerless goddess.
If it were any other deity, Zhang Ruochen would have simply taken it by force!
But back when he was weak, it was entirely thanks to the Moon God's protection that Zhang Ruochen could grow step by step. Although the Moon God had swindled many things from him in the past, and openly stated she would never repay her debts, the favor was still there, making it hard to fall out.
Besides, who could bear to fall out with the world's number one goddess?
Not for the favor, but for the face.
One who steals by relying on their face cannot be called a thief, because the one being stolen from enjoys it.
This, of course, did not refer to Zhang Ruochen, but to Jie Venerable!
Zhang Ruochen said, "It can't be borrowed indefinitely, can it?"
"When I step into the Infinite Realm, that will be the day of return. But I must return it to Jie Venerable, after all, he lent me his own divine blood, allowing me to fully activate the Jade Emperor Cauldron and use its power to quickly elevate my cultivation to the current realm," the Moon God said.
"Wretch!" Zhang Ruochen cursed directly.
Too sycophantic!
Even giving away his own divine blood—how did the Zhang Clan produce such a wretch?
"Jie Venerable is passionate and sincere, very straightforward, with the broad-mindedness of a divine venerable. Zhang Ruochen, you should learn from this," the Moon God said.
Learn from this?
Zhang Ruochen could only lament the misfortune of his clan. With Jie Venerable, this wretch, around, getting back the Jade Emperor Cauldron seemed far off without a date.
Although he had lost many treasures, it was because he couldn't win and they were taken. Or it was mutual affection, given voluntarily, like tokens of love.
Unlike Jie Venerable, who was merely seen by the Moon God as a very straightforward good person.
Zhang Ruochen still refused to give up, wanting to outwit the Moon God for the Jade Emperor Cauldron. He said seriously, "In this era, the Nine Cauldrons have been appearing one after another. I suspect the Jade Emperor Cauldron is one of them. Moon God Empress, could you lend me the Jade Emperor Cauldron temporarily for me to examine?"
The Moon God's starry eyes were misty, "No need to examine. It is indeed one of the Nine Cauldrons—the Witch Cauldron! The Great Venerable refined it with his divine blood, so using the blood of Zhang Clan descendants can activate part of the Jade Emperor Cauldron's power. Divine blood works even better! Jie Venerable's divine blood has been used up... Zhang Ruochen..."
Zhang Ruochen took a step back, cautiously, "Since it was refined by the Great Venerable, I suppose even without Zhang Clan blood, it can still unleash some of the artifact's power."
"But it cannot unleash the power of the Witch Cauldron," the Moon God said.
Zhang Ruochen valued his blood very much. Not looking at the Moon God's world-stunning eyes, he turned to Bai Qinger to shift the topic, "If I'm not mistaken, the power that just permeated the mountain and awakened the corpses is the power of the Witch, right?"
"I'm very curious, Moon God Empress, why did you come here to cultivate? What is your relationship with the ancient Moon God, the wife of Xinghuan Heavenly Venerable?"
Bai Qinger saw Zhang Ruochen looking at her but asking the Moon God, feeling quite contemptuous. But she had to admit, the Moon God was extremely beautiful, with a perfectly controlled temperament, possessing the strength to steal by relying on her face.
Even she, a woman, was attracted by the Moon God's beauty, admitting she was slightly inferior.
The Moon God's gaze swept over Zhang Ruochen and Bai Qinger, "With your cultivation levels and special identities, you are worthy of knowing this secret. To speak of this matter, we must trace it back to very distant times. Qing'er, do you know the origin of the Holy Clan?"
Bai Qinger said, "It is said that the Holy Clan is likely the descendant of the ancient Witch Clan."
The Moon God nodded slightly, "In fact, there is no such thing as the Witch Clan. All beings who cultivate the Way of the Witch can be called the Witch Clan. The Holy Clan merely inherited the bloodline of the last Ancestral Witch and a large number of secret treasures and codes left by the Way of the Witch."
"Over hundreds of millions of years of inheritance, as the rules of heaven and earth constantly changed, the Holy Clan's cultivation methods also evolved, becoming vastly different from the ancient Way of the Witch."
Zhang Ruochen said, "In fact, all cultivation methods evolved from the Way of the Witch. It's just that the geniuses of each era continuously improved them to align with the rules of heaven and earth."
"And what does all this have to do with the ancient Moon God? Was she also a member of the Holy Clan?" Bai Qinger asked.
The Moon God said, "About two or three million years ago, the ancient Moon God was the ruler of the Moon Division of the Holy Clan. Speaking of her, one must mention a person!"
"Who?"
The Moon God said, "Jiusi Yitianhuang! Although that period of history was deliberately erased, with many gaps and alterations, some traces cannot be erased, like this plain of bones!"
"These bones are all from the beings of the Moon Division back then."
Speaking of this, a look of pity and sorrow appeared in the Moon God's eyes.
Bai Qinger couldn't help asking, "What calamity did the Moon Division suffer back then, that even the Holy Clan couldn't protect them?"
"Was all this done by Jiusi Yitianhuang?" Zhang Ruochen also asked.
The Moon God said, "I don't know the specific events of that year, but I vaguely remember someone telling me when I was very young. All of this was done by Jiusi Yitianhuang, more precisely, her sixth life. At that time, she was still called the Moon God! To live to her seventh life, she refined the blood and souls of the entire Moon Division's people."
Zhang Ruochen's heart was severely shaken, "The ancient Moon God was the sixth life of Jiusi Yitianhuang?"
The Moon God said, "I don't know if the truth is so! But one thing is certain—Jiusi Yitianhuang was very powerful in each life. Logically, there should be at least eight superpowers related to her that have been passed down, but in reality, there are none."
"From this, it can be seen that to live to the next life, she must pay a huge price. Just like the people of the Moon Division, they were merely the supplements she raised."