Chapter 3513: Nutian Shenzun
Passing through the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest, ahead were no longer temples but uniquely constructed buildings built against the mountain.
On both sides, the mountain walls rose high, with steep cliffs. Numerous stone caves were carved into the mid-cliff faces.
Inside the caves were seated Buddha statues and demonic clay figures.
"Rustle, rustle!"
A stream flowed between the two mountains.
Green bamboo grew densely along the stream bank. The evening wind blew, causing bamboo leaves to rustle, and the candle flames in the forest swayed with the wind.
Zhang Ruochen stopped and looked behind him.
A soul-shaking aura slowly approached, without any sound of footsteps. After only three breaths, War God Mingzun appeared before him.
Clad in white robes!
The face and hands exposed outside the white robes were all dry bones. His hair was very neat, tied up with a green jade crown.
Though clearly ferocious, he exuded a sense of heroic vigor.
This was the Underworld Ancestor's First War God!
In Lihentian, when Zhang Ruochen, Qiangu Nüdi, and Huangtian were assaulting the Infinite Realm, War God Mingzun had made a move but was severely wounded by the Dragon Lord.
War God Mingzun had once beheaded Chi Xingtian with a single slash and had also slain one of the Dragon Lord's elder brothers—truly a ruthless figure.
As he approached step by step, his momentum, aura, and spirit—all kinds of formless oppressive forces—piled up like buildings, crashing down upon Zhang Ruochen.
Ten steps, nine steps, eight steps...
Closer and closer!
Zhang Ruochen's gaze was fixed, his face calm without a ripple, but his momentum, aura, and spirit were also released outward. Every beat of his heart matched the footsteps of War God Mingzun.
The candle flames in the bamboo forest went out one by one.
"Ruochen, the Shenzun is already waiting for you ahead. Come with me!"
Wolf Ancestor had arrived, his voice breaking the confrontation of momentum between the two.
By this time, War God Mingzun and Zhang Ruochen were only three steps apart.
Zhang Ruochen gave War God Mingzun one last look, then turned and followed Wolf Ancestor.
Before long, Zhang Ruochen arrived outside a thatched cottage beside the stream at the foot of the cliff. To the right of the cottage was a dense bamboo forest, with countless large boulders placed among the trees.
To the left of the cottage, close to the cliff wall, stood two stone tablets.
One tablet was engraved with five characters: "Tomb of Kong Faning."
The other was a wordless tablet.
A figure eight feet tall stood before the tablets, facing the cliff. He stood as straight as a towering divine peak, clad in white robes that reached the ground. His hair was tied in a topknot with a bamboo hairpin. Formlessly, he gave off an aura of standing at the center of heaven and earth, as immovable as a mountain.
Bai Zun stood not far away.
Nie Zang Zunzhe was sweeping the thatched cottage.
Before Zhang Ruochen could bow, the figure spoke: "Zhang Ruochen, you should not have come to White Clothes Valley!"
Zhang Ruochen refrained from bowing and said, "Nie Zang Zunzhe and Yanshu Chanshi did not use their full strength, which shows that the Shenzun wanted to see me, and even more so proves that I have value in entering White Clothes Valley. Whether I should have come or not, I am already here!"
"I can see you, but you will never see Juemiao again in this life," the figure said.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze swept over the two stone tablets, and he said, "Can the Shenzun tell me about what happened back then? I want to know how the tragedy occurred."
Zhang Ruochen did not believe that with the cultivation levels of Xumi Saint Monk and Kong Faning at that time, they would not have known they were half-siblings from the same father yet still fell in love.
There must be a hidden reason!
Nutian Shenzun finally turned around, revealing a heroic face without any flaw. His eyes seemed to carry an innate anger, mixed with emotions of joy and sorrow cultivated through the Path of Fate, yet also filled with melancholy and deep affection. This gave him an unfathomable, inscrutable quality.
He was profoundly deep, as if containing infinite wisdom, yet also like a deep pool that had sealed away all his own stories.
He scrutinized Zhang Ruochen for a long time before saying, "You are not qualified to know about this matter."
"Then what am I qualified to know?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Nutian Shenzun said, "There is only one thing you can know: you are about to die."
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, "The Shenzun will not kill me."
"Naturally, I will not kill you. But your actions have been too high-profile, making everyone under heaven know that your wings have grown full and you are about to take flight. Before, you had value to them, so they would not kill you. Now that you are about to slip out of their control, naturally you cannot be kept," Nutian Shenzun said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Them? Is the Shenzun referring to the Quantity Organization?"
Nutian Shenzun glanced at War God Mingzun, who had arrived one step behind Zhang Ruochen and Wolf Ancestor, and without any hesitation, said, "Behind you stand the Kunlun Realm, and you also carry the bloodline of the Undying Blood Clan. You are valued by Heavenly Mother and appreciated by the two elders of Xinghuantian. After the Sword Realm emerged, you gathered the Hundred Clans Royal City and the Heavenly Beginning Civilization under your command. Since then, Divine Ancient Nest, Heavenly Dragon Realm, Thousand Star Civilization... all the major forces have seen a glimmer of hope, with a trend of 'once the storm changes, three parts of the world will belong to the Sword Realm.'"
"You were originally the best pawn to disrupt the cosmic situation, capable of making the Heavenly Court and Hell Realms even more turbulent."
"The stronger your cultivation, the greater your destructive power. Even when you opposed them at every turn, they still could not bear to kill you."
"But now it is different. You no longer have value, and instead, you might become their greatest obstacle in a short time."
Zhang Ruochen said, "As long as I am willing, I can quickly persuade all parties to join the Sword Realm, allowing its power to reach a level where it can protect itself against the Heavenly Court Universe and Hell Realm, becoming a third cosmic force. Why would I have no value?"
Nutian Shenzun said, "Because you have grown too close to the rulers of the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm. What they need is a troublemaker, not someone who embraces all rivers and encompasses everything."
Zhang Ruochen frowned and said, "Feng Tian is not the ruler of the Hell Realm! My relationship with her is merely a cooperation of interests."
Nutian Shenzun revealed a deep, domineering, and contemptuous gaze and said, "If Heavenly Mother plus the Destiny Temple cannot be called the rulers of the Hell Realm, who can? Yan Renhuan? He still falls short. Yan Huanyu might qualify!"
"You have already met with Hao Tian, haven't you? The fact that he did not kill you already means you have grown too close. This does not meet those people's expectations!"
Zhang Ruochen remained calm and composed, saying, "If I truly hold even a little weight in the hearts of the rulers of the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm, I would be very willing to come forward and stabilize the current situation. As for the Quantity Organization... the more they dislike me, the more it proves I am doing the right thing!"
Nutian Shenzun said, "This is the biggest reason you are about to die. You are far too ignorant of the vastness of heaven and earth! A figure like Fengdu Dadi, playing chess with the Quantity Organization, only ended up with a draw where both sides suffered losses. If the Quantity Organization is determined to kill you, you will surely die."
Zhang Ruochen was not without a sense of crisis. That was precisely why, ever since leaving the Destiny Temple, he had been cautious and careful.
After hearing Nutian Shenzun's words, his sense of crisis grew even stronger!
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Shenzun does not want me to die?"
"If you die, the Sword Realm, which has already taken shape, will immediately collapse and fall into internal strife. At least for now, that would not be good for the Hell Realm," Nutian Shenzun said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Hell Realm currently faces internal and external troubles and needs the Sword Realm to check the Heavenly Court. As long as the Sword Realm exists, it will give the Heavenly Court's heavens a sense of crisis, forcing them to constantly guard against major worlds like the Heavenly Dragon Realm, Kunlun Realm, and Thousand Star Civilization joining the Sword Realm."
"Has the Shenzun ever considered leading White Clothes Valley and Nutian Divine Palace to join the Sword Realm?"
Nutian Shenzun's gaze was as cold as frost, and he said, "Your Sword Realm has no faith, no central authority, and no long-term planning. It is merely a motley crew of people gathered together—some harboring hatred, some destitute and helpless, some seeking profit."
One had to admit that Nutian Shenzun's words struck at the heart, hitting Zhang Ruochen right in his weak spot.
For a world where ten thousand races coexisted, faith was extremely important. Back then, Xuanyuan Qing had repeatedly explained this to Zhang Ruochen.
As the daughter of the Heavenly Venerable, her understanding of power and the various races' beings clearly surpassed Zhang Ruochen's.
As for a "central authority," the Heavenly Court had the Heavenly Palace, and the Hell Realm had the Destiny Temple. Though their control over the top major powers below was weak, they could maintain basic stability and unity.
But what did the Sword Realm have?
Did Zhang Ruochen truly have the ability to control the major forces of the Sword Realm?
The few older-generation figures above each had their own thoughts and wills.
As for "long-term planning," the current Sword Realm only wanted to survive under the pressure of the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm.
Nutian Shenzun spoke again: "If you die, they won't even count as a motley crew. I alone could destroy them all. With a little manipulation, they would slaughter each other for profit."
"You cannot blame them. After all, cultivators under heaven only recognize profit. Whoever can restrain their desires and guide their desires is the master of all living beings."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Is the Shenzun telling me to return to the Sword Realm?"
Nutian Shenzun raised his head and looked upward.
Between the two mountains was only a narrow strip of sky, dotted with sparse stars, like a river inlaid with gems.
He said, "Xumi saw farther than I did. His choosing you means you are still worth hoping for. Your ability to climb the stone steps and pass through the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest shows that your heart is strong enough and you will not be fooled by the illusions before you. What you lack is only time. One generation will eventually die out. Who knows if they can live until the day of the Calamity of Quantities? The next generation needs someone to carry the banner."
Anyone could see that Nutian Shenzun's mood had grown heavier, and his aura had weakened.
It gave off an infinite sense of desolation.
Zhang Ruochen knew the reason and asked, "Who exactly injured the Shenzun?"
After a moment of silence.
Nutian Shenzun said, "In the past, Yinshui Tian destroyed many forbidden domains, dug up a large number of divine corpses, and refined the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army. This included the previous lives of some ancient powerful remnants' souls. Now, many of these divine corpses and divine armies are in White Clothes Valley, making it a target for everyone."
"To deal with White Clothes Valley, naturally, they had to kill me first. Unfortunately, Void Heaven arrived in time, and they failed."
Though Nutian Shenzun spoke lightly, Zhang Ruochen could feel the danger involved.
"No wonder Nutian Shenzun is certain I am about to die. Perhaps this is empathy," Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
War God Mingzun walked over and said, "Valley Master!"
"Shouji, you have been away from the valley for three hundred thousand years, guarding the Starry Sky Battlefield. Why have you returned today?"
After asking this, Nutian Shenzun walked toward the thatched cottage.
(Chapter End)