Chapter 3710: Two Major Reinforcements
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader and Xun Yangzi unleashed all sorts of techniques, their divine power surging like tides. The ferocious and menacing Skull Head pressed Zhang Ruochen into a perilous situation as various war artifacts were continuously deployed. Even so, Zhang Ruochen still sustained injuries.
These two old monsters had cultivation realms that were far too profound.
At this level of cultivation, trying to fight two opponents of the same realm was no less difficult than crossing realms to battle.
Just moments ago, Yu Dongxuan's aura had suddenly vanished, pulled into a high-level formation, making his fortune uncertain.
"This brat indeed has a backup plan. Who made the move?" Xun Yangzi's state of mind rippled with unease.
"Pfft!"
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader spat out a mouthful of divine blood. The blood fell to the ground, melting large patches of soil, and divine flames burned unceasingly.
It was the pure Yang divine power from the Pure Yang Divine Sword that had been left in his body after being struck earlier, now fully expelled.
After spitting out this mouthful of divine blood, his internal injuries healed, and his divine body felt refreshed.
However, having half of his divine body suppressed caused a massive loss of divine substance, blood qi, and divine soul, severely reducing his combat power.
He urgently wanted to seize the Earth Cauldron to rescue the severed half of his divine body. He said, "Yu Dongxuan must be in big trouble. Stop holding back. Go all out, finish off this junior, and then join forces to deal with that person!"
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader raised the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal high, releasing his divine soul outward. Behind him, the light and shadow of numerous palaces, divine mountains, and demon towers appeared.
"Soul Realm, myriad spirits, heed my command. Ghost Seal holds the souls, four directions seal the realm."
The four characters at the bottom of the Ghost Seal manifested above the Soul Realm.
On the characters, flowing light traces contained a secret power that captivated souls.
"Roar!"
"Growl!"
...
Countless spirits in the Soul Realm, no matter where they were, knelt and bowed.
Then, they transformed into specks of soul light, flying toward the location of the Soul-Suppressing Palace.
The soul light quickly coalesced in the sky, forming a river of light.
The river of light flew beneath the four characters manifested by the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal in the sky, rapidly twisting and condensing into four colossal battle souls, each thousands of feet tall, at the four directions. Inside the battle souls, light flickered like stars, resembling four humanoid star regions.
"Boom!"
The first colossal battle soul, with a human body and a serpent tail, landed on the ground, crushing ten thousand miles of earth.
Its yin qi was abundant, its hair disheveled, and it spat out a mouthful of black qi.
The black qi transformed into a pillar of light, shattering mountains and breaking space, reaching Zhang Ruochen in an instant.
Zhang Ruochen channeled his divine qi and punched out.
"Boom!"
After a stalemate of equal force for a moment, Zhang Ruochen's fist force was dispersed by the black pillar of light. His body flew backward, crashing into a divine formation.
Zhang Ruochen shattered the divine formation, causing space to collapse and merge with the Void World.
Zhang Ruochen's physical body was formidable. With a single breath, his internal injuries healed instantly. He immediately rose and dodged the second pillar of light from the colossal battle soul.
"This Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal is too powerful. It can gather all the living souls and undead spirits of the Soul Realm together. However, it's only this strong because it's in the hands of the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader. If Feng Jin were wielding it, he probably couldn't even unleash one-tenth of its power," Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
Each of the four colossal battle souls was condensed from over a hundred trillion spirits. Their strength was such that even Zhang Ruochen couldn't confront them head-on.
No wonder they chose to set up their scheme in the Soul Realm.
Zhang Ruochen set aside his underestimation of the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader, realizing that these three old fellows, having lived for a million years without dying, definitely had substance. As the schemers, they had clearly considered all variables and were well-prepared.
He wondered how many more hidden tricks they had.
Feng Jin was stunned. Was the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal really this powerful?
No wonder the ancestors of the Soul-Suppressing Clan could shepherd the entire Ghost Clan.
Lian Xi was deeply worried and said, "I remember that the 'Soul-Controlling Divine Scripture' records that the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal can command the Soul Mother, and the Soul Mother can also suppress the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal to some extent. Let's go find the Soul Mother and ask her to intervene and restrain the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader."
The Soul Mother was the World Spirit of the Soul Realm.
The seven souls and three spirits among Lian Xi's ten souls and ten spirits had been granted by the Soul Mother.
Feng Jin was shocked by Lian Xi's audacity and said, "Don't you know the Cult Leader's methods? If we dare to oppose him, the entire Soul-Suppressing Clan will be utterly annihilated. And death might be the easiest outcome; he has plenty of ways to make us wish we were dead."
Lian Xi's gaze was sharp. "If you don't do something, will Zhang Ruochen let you off? By then, I won't even know how to plead for mercy on your behalf."
"Wait a little longer, until the situation becomes clearer. Right now, the Cult Leader and the others clearly have the upper hand," Feng Jin said cautiously, unwilling to make a hasty decision.
"Fine. You stay here. I'll go find the Soul Mother."
Lian Xi turned into a streak of light, disappearing into the ground and heading deep into the earth's core.
...
Xun Yangzi's body was ablaze with intense solar divine power, igniting the yin moon with a diameter of a million miles, turning it into a blazing divine sun.
He clasped his hands together, and a golden divine gate appeared at his brow.
The first war artifact of the Tianquan Great World, the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel, slowly rotated out from within the divine gate.
The Tianquan Great World ranked fifth in the Western Universe. Though not an Eternal Undying Great World, it could be called a Millennial Undying Great World, having once produced a Half-Ancestor in its history.
Legend had it that the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel was a divine artifact forged by that Half-Ancestor.
Under the influence of the metal-type Heaven and Earth Rules and the Gold Dao Esoterica, metallic rules continuously gathered, held aloft by Xun Yangzi above his head.
Xun Yangzi kept building up power, his arms trembling. The heat and light emitted by the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel gradually escalated from the level of a single star to that of ten thousand stars.
This strike was intended to kill Zhang Ruochen.
"Tap, tap."
Footsteps came from behind.
"Xun Yangzi, you've strayed from the path."
Xun Yangzi was struggling to maintain his stance. Hearing the voice behind him, his expression changed slightly.
Without even turning around, he knew who it was. He said, "You've betrayed the Heavenly Realm Faction and defected to the Heavenly Venerable."
The Blade Venerable, dressed in coarse linen like an ordinary old farmer, sighed. "The Heavenly Realm, as the ruling world of the Western Universe, issues war orders. As long as they are correct and beneficial to the Heavenly Court, I naturally follow them. But the Blade God Realm is by no means a vassal of the Heavenly Realm. If the Heavenly Realm does something that harms the interests of the Heavenly Court Universe, I will have my own stance."
Xun Yangzi knew very well that the one standing behind him was not the Blade Venerable's true body.
Even if the Blade Venerable were stronger, he hadn't reached the Indestructible Infinite realm. He couldn't have silently broken through his Nine Radiance Divine Power and appeared behind him.
But if he launched the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel to attack Zhang Ruochen, he would fall into his weakest state. Then, how could he block the Blade Venerable's blade?
Just as Xun Yangzi was caught in a dilemma, the Blade Venerable chose not to hide any longer and actively appeared in the void ten thousand miles away. Behind him was endless darkness and emptiness, giving him an extremely thin and aged feeling.
"Please enlighten me, Blade Venerable!"
Seeing the Blade Venerable so arrogant, Xun Yangzi no longer hesitated. He controlled the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel and struck it at him.
The Blade Venerable did not dodge, intending to gauge Xun Yangzi's strength. "Is this your strongest strike?"
"Whoosh!"
The Blade Venerable drew the short blade from his chest and, without any flourish, slashed horizontally.
"Boom!"
In the starry sky, a large area of space collapsed. The blinding light it emitted made it impossible for many deities to open their eyes.
When they opened their eyes and looked at the sky, they found that the yin moon where Xun Yangzi had been standing was split in two by the blade. Half of the sphere shattered, turning into countless meteorites and falling toward the Soul Realm.
Xun Yangzi and the Blade Venerable, like two meteors, flew one after the other through the shattered space.
"Did the Blade Venerable actually withstand that strike head-on?"
Zhang Ruochen had been sensing the changes in the starry sky, and his heart shook violently.
When the destructive aura emitted by the Immortal Gold Bright Sun Wheel had locked onto him earlier, he had felt immense pressure. The only countermeasure he could think of was to hide inside the Earth Cauldron.
Yet the Blade Venerable could face it head-on with a blade strike.
That was the gap!
Whether or not the Blade Venerable was injured, it was enough to show that his cultivation had reached the third level of the Great Unbound Infinite peak, not inferior to the Twenty Heavens.
From now on, Xun Yangzi could only choose to flee.
"The Blade Venerable has come!"
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader's mind was in turmoil, sensing an ominous feeling of falling into Zhang Ruochen's trap.
"Cult Leader, I sense your fear. Hiding behind layers of formations is no way for a hero. Come out and face me."
Zhang Ruochen held the Pure Yang Divine Sword, running his finger along the blade. Countless Sword Dao rules flowed around him, dragging a fiery sword light hundreds of miles long, sending one colossal battle soul flying.
Where the colossal battle soul's waist was struck, a deep, fiery wound appeared. The soul body burned, and over a hundred million screams echoed from within.
"It seems the Soul Realm is destined to be destroyed today."
Zhang Ruochen no longer held back. He struck out two more sword strikes, wounding the other two colossal battle souls. He then unleashed the Earth Cauldron, smashing the fourth colossal battle soul away.
Afterward, he charged toward the Soul-Suppressing Palace, entering the sea of formations composed of countless divine arrays.
Capture the leader first.
Unless he refined and killed all the spirits of the Soul Realm, he couldn't eliminate the four colossal battle souls.
Alternatively, he could face the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader directly and seize the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal.
"Boom!"
The God-Defying Stele flew out of Zhang Ruochen's Divine Realm World and slammed heavily into the sea of formations.
Instantly, a large area of divine formations collapsed.
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader said in a deep voice, "I wield the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal. Even if the Blade Venerable comes, it won't change the outcome."
Zhang Ruochen sensed that Xun Yangzi hadn't fled. Instead, he was burning his divine blood to boost his combat power, stubbornly resisting the Blade Venerable and gradually retreating toward the Soul-Suppressing Palace.
The God-Defying Stele indeed possessed the mysterious power to break all formations in the world, but it was blocked by the Soul Realm's foundational divine formation, the "Ghost Tuo Yin Sha Array." This array had been set up by an ancient Formation Tai Shang, with intricate and complex formation inscriptions.
The God-Defying Stele couldn't break through it in a short time.
The four colossal battle souls and Xun Yangzi were rapidly approaching. Once surrounded, no matter how high Zhang Ruochen's combat power was, he couldn't withstand it.
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader transmitted to Xun Yangzi, "First, join forces to kill Zhang Ruochen, then deal with the Blade Venerable."
Xun Yangzi had already been struck several times by the blade, his divine body shattered three times. Even burning his divine blood, he was no match for the Blade Venerable. He said, "Let me enter the formation first. That old Blade Venerable's cultivation has reached the third level, just one step away from Indestructible Infinite."
"First, kill Zhang Ruochen," the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader insisted.
With his Truth Heart, Zhang Ruochen could perceive their transmissions. He said, "No need to argue, you two. Today, you'll both go together. Uncle Long, it's your turn!"
From within the Divine Realm World of one of the Soul Realm deities activating the Ghost Tuo Yin Sha Array, the Divine Dragon Sun-Moon Chaos Tower flew out and heavily collided with the Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal suspended above the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader's head.
"Bang!"
The Soul-Controlling Ghost Seal flew away, smashing the Soul-Suppressing Palace into ruins.
How could the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader have imagined that the Dragon Lord had been hiding in the Divine Realm World of a Soul Realm deity?
Before he could recover, a dragon roar approached from afar.
"Boom!"
The Dragon Lord's upright, handsome figure appeared before him, his golden hair swaying like a waterfall. His five fingers transformed into dragon claws, wreathed in blue flames, striking his protective divine light.
"Sizzle!"
The protective divine light continuously broke apart, the dragon claws drawing closer to his head.
"Ji Wang, weren't you at the Ghost Gate Pass?"
The Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader raised his arms, and within his protective divine light, numerous continents, divine mountains, and palaces materialized. In an instant, a world appeared within the span of a foot.
"This is your Ghost Gate Pass!" the Dragon Lord said.
The divine mountains collapsed, and the palaces shattered.
The golden dragon claws broke through like a hot knife through butter, striking the Immortal-Worshipping Cult Leader's head. Instantly, his head exploded into a cloud of blood mist.