Chapter 3724: Conditions
The Xuanwu True Ancestor was an existence from who knows how many eons ago. Nine-tenths of the half-ancestor divine qi within its divine source had already been lost, yet the aura it emitted remained dense, containing terrifying energy.
The Dragon Lord slowly approached. The cold air emanating from the divine source caused frost to form on his hair.
He could see that Zhang Ruochen’s state was very wrong and offered words of comfort: “Ruochen, life is a banquet that must eventually end. Nothing is ever perfect. In the future, you will only have to experience more. I too was once young, riding the wind with pride, not believing that separation existed in this world. But separation is something that must be experienced in cultivation. Every parting may be a permanent farewell. Even wanting to see someone one last time is nothing but wishful thinking.”
Zhang Ruochen looked up at the Dragon Lord, the ferocity in his eyes gradually receding. He smiled bitterly: “Uncle Dragon, I understand everything you say. But I find it hard to accept—seeing the people I care about die before my eyes, yet being powerless to change it.”
“That feeling of being bound by fate is too suffocating, too painful. I want to break free from these shackles, but there are always people who appear, layer after layer, placing new chains on you, forcing you to accept the arrangement, forcing you to watch helplessly as she dies before your eyes.”
The Dragon Lord said: “Even the Heavenly Venerable bears layers of shackles. If you truly want to break free and control your own destiny, you must strive to become stronger and seek the path of the Ancestor.”
Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly. Though he was not completely at peace, he felt a little better. He said: “I just searched part of the Xuanwu True Ancestor’s divine soul and found something in its memories. It was able to descend into the real world with the help of the Chongming Ancestor.”
The Dragon Lord was clearly not surprised, having anticipated this, but his brow remained heavy with concern. He said: “The Chongming Ancestor is the number one powerhouse in the Southern Universe, commanding the myriad demon clans. The ten clans and ten demon realms of the Southern Universe may seem to be able to restrain him, but in truth, not a single one can even contend with him.”
“Three hundred thousand years ago, during the war of the heavens, the most powerful demon emperors of the Southern Universe all fell.”
“One hundred thousand years ago, during the divine war with the Hell Realm, several more old-generation demon emperors died tragically.”
“Now, not even an Indestructible Infinite can be found. Only Fifth Brother is closest to the Indestructible Infinite realm. But even if Fifth Brother steps into Indestructible Infinite, he would still be far from being able to contend with him.”
Zhang Ruochen understood the underlying meaning and saw clearly the Chongming Ancestor’s dominant position in the Southern Universe.
Such a figure was not someone he, Zhang Ruochen, could touch.
Even Hao Tian could not touch him.
At least not until the Five Dragon Divine Emperor could support the Southern Universe—only then could the Chongming Ancestor be moved.
The Dragon Lord said: “The Chongming Ancestor may have his own selfish motives, but at most, he simply disagrees with the Heavenly Venerable’s philosophy. He is by no means a great evil. If my guess is correct, he only wants to welcome back the remnant soul of the Demon Ancestor, to strengthen the Demon God Realm and change the weakening situation of the Southern Universe and the demon race.”
Zhang Ruochen did not fully agree with the Dragon Lord’s view. He said: “Then what about Yan Wuque’s matter? Could he have been unaware?”
The Dragon Lord said: “Ruochen, when one’s cultivation reaches our level, everyone carries a burden of sin. Not to go far, just look at this battle in the Soul Realm—how many cultivators have been annihilated in our divine war?”
“Sometimes, it’s impossible to pursue absolute right and wrong. One can only hold fast to one’s original heart and look toward the biggest, farthest goal.”
“In our eyes, Yan Wuque deserves to die. But in the Chongming Ancestor’s eyes, Yan Wuque’s value is what matters most.”
Zhang Ruochen sighed: “I don’t hold complete hostility toward ancient powerhouses, and I believe Uncle Dragon’s assessment of the Chongming Ancestor. But I think the Chongming Ancestor’s biggest problem is still his own narrow vision. If he only cares about the Demon God Realm and his own gains and losses, and opposes the Heavenly Venerable, he will inevitably make many mistakes because of it.”
“A Fuya told me that her greatest worry is that the laws of heaven and earth are beginning to correct themselves. The laws of heaven and earth do not allow her to exist. No matter how strong her cultivation, she will be annihilated. At that point, she can only choose to submit to the one who controls the laws of heaven and earth.”
“The appearance of the Soul Mother suggests that the Nether Ancestor may still be alive. If the Nether Ancestor is the one who stole the way and opened the calamity to destroy the world, then the more ancient powerhouses descend, the more enemies we will have.”
“Could the Chongming Ancestor not have thought of this? Yet he still goes his own way—isn’t that the greatest mistake?”
Zhang Ruochen looked from the Void World to the real world, seeing the broken heaven and earth. He said: “Logically, with such a big commotion in the Soul Realm, the Chongming Ancestor and the Five Dragon Divine Emperor should have arrived long ago.”
The Dragon Lord let out a long sigh: “What you say makes sense. But we cannot interfere in this matter. It can only be left to the Heavenly Venerable.”
“Chi chi!”
Countless vines grew wildly on the turtle’s back.
Multicolored exotic flowers bloomed across the Void World.
The Dragon Lord looked at the half-ancestor divine source in Zhang Ruochen’s hand, showing a strange expression. He said: “The Xuanwu True Ancestor died so many years ago, yet its divine source still contains such strong life energy? No, that’s not right—it’s not life energy, it’s wood attribute qi.”
Zhang Ruochen said: “The Xuanwu True Ancestor’s mastery of the water path is unmatched by few throughout history. In the five elements, water gives birth to wood. Such strong wood attribute qi is within my expectations. With this divine source, my cultivation realm will surely advance by leaps and bounds in a short time. Within ten thousand years, I will stand shoulder to shoulder with the current heavens!”
“Come, let’s go suppress the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor first! No one will escape today.”
…
When Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Lord arrived, the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor had not fled far.
In the void, hundreds of millions of miles were dyed blood-red. Countless ancient talisman patterns floated and operated like stars in the sky.
Each talisman pattern contained profound dao rules.
A Fuya’s methods were even more extraordinary. Using some kind of blood, she constructed a starry sky blood river, enveloping all the talisman patterns, making it impossible for the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor to escape.
Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Lord stopped at the edge of the starry sky blood river, not immediately entering the battlefield.
The Dragon Lord stared at the blood river: “It’s ancestral blood! Such a large amount of ancestral blood suggests that A Fuya’s ancestral physical body still exists and is in her own hands.”
When A Fuya used ancestral blood to seal the Eternal Spear, Zhang Ruochen had already suspected this.
The Dragon Lord said: “If she were to seize her own ancestral physical body, the risk would be much lower, and she could quickly gain combat power at the Indestructible Infinite level. But she didn’t do that.”
Zhang Ruochen analyzed: “She probably doesn’t want to walk the path of the Corpse Clan. After all, her ancestral physical body primarily cultivated the path of life and the path of light, which conflict with the Corpse Clan’s cultivation path and would greatly affect her future achievements. She is inherently proud and ambitious, unwilling to submit to anyone.”
The Dragon Lord said: “This is the spirit an Ancestor should have. In any case, you must be wary of her. The hidden cards she holds are certainly not few.”
Zhang Ruochen sighed: “Figures like A Fuya and Lady Shiji have too deep a scheme. Only with strength can one suppress them. If you try to outmaneuver them, you will surely suffer a great loss.”
A Fuya’s voice reached Zhang Ruochen’s ears: “Join forces to suppress the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor. We cannot wait any longer, or something unexpected may happen.”
Zhang Ruochen did not act immediately. He said: “I can help the Queen suppress the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor, but I need to know first—what do I get in return?”
A Fuya was silent for a long time, clearly not expecting Zhang Ruochen to negotiate terms with her.
However, she quickly let it go.
After all, her relationship with Zhang Ruochen was far from the life-and-death bond he shared with the Dragon Lord or the Truth Hall Master. They were merely united by mutual interest.
So, only interest could be discussed.
“You want a share of the spoils? Apart from that divine heart, the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor has nothing of value on him,” A Fuya said.
Zhang Ruochen said: “I don’t want his divine heart. I want the Eternal Spear.”
“Impossible! The value of his divine heart is not even close to that of the Eternal Spear. If the Great Elder is unwilling to act, I can only let him go before he self-destructs his divine heart,” A Fuya said.
Zhang Ruochen said: “No rush. The Queen can think it over. There’s no need to let a single spear create such a rift between us.”
Zhang Ruochen believed that A Fuya would compromise.
For someone as cautious as her, if there wasn’t great profit to be gained from the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor, why would she expose her ancestral blood?
What secret was hidden on the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor? Zhang Ruochen was also curious.
After all, this was the first ancient powerhouse he had encountered who primarily cultivated spiritual power.
Before long, A Fuya’s voice came: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Since the Great Elder has me cornered, how could I possibly keep the Eternal Spear? But all the treasures on the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor belong to me.”
“Agreed.”
Zhang Ruochen summoned the God-Defying Stele and waved his arm.
The God-Defying Stele shattered into pieces, flying into the thick blood mist ahead.
The talisman patterns in the blood mist were struck by the stone fragments and immediately dissipated.
Zhang Ruochen crossed the blood river, following behind the stone fragments, flying rapidly toward the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor.
The Dragon Lord did not act but stood guard outside, ready to intercept the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor if he tried to escape using forbidden arts.
Sensing Zhang Ruochen’s intrusion, the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor’s eyes turned cold. His body transformed into a blood-red fireball, fleeing into the distance.
Dealing with A Fuya alone was already difficult enough.
Adding Zhang Ruochen would mean certain defeat.
Zhang Ruochen’s body leaped through space, catching up to the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor. He reached out his hand into the void, and the shattered God-Defying Stele reassembled.
“Boom!”
The stone slab crashed down heavily.
Countless protective talisman patterns on the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor’s body were ground away.
“Bang! Bang!”
Zhang Ruochen clenched his fist and struck out again and again, forcing the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor’s body downward, his protective talisman patterns growing even dimmer.
With Zhang Ruochen’s strength, relying solely on his physical power, he could contend with figures like Zhao Gongming. Adding the ferocity of the Immovable Wisdom King Fist and the Qilin Fist Gloves, the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor had no chance in close combat.
“Queen, your spatial sealing secret art should be able to prevent him from self-destructing his divine heart, right?” Zhang Ruochen said.
A Fuya’s graceful and tall figure emerged from the blood mist, constantly closing the distance between herself, Zhang Ruochen, and the Blood Talisman Evil Emperor. She said: “I’ll need to borrow the Space Essence as well.”
(End of chapter)