Chapter 3742: The Young Lord of Weak Water
As the Space Divine Temple Hall Master’s divine voice resounded, the floor, ceiling, walls, and bronze pillars within the hall all manifested array light patterns, growing increasingly dense.
Layer upon layer of spatial pressure surged toward Zhang Ruochen from all directions, like entire great worlds pressing down on his body, causing his shoulders and spine to ache.
Zhang Ruochen remained unflustered. “That aura… the black shadow that assassinated me in the Space Divine Temple last time was indeed you.”
The moment the Space Divine Temple Hall Master slightly stirred his spiritual power, Zhang Ruochen’s Truth Heart immediately sensed a familiar perception.
After all, he was not yet a perfect circle without flaw; when still, he could conceal himself, perfectly round and formless.
But when he moved, flaws were inevitably exposed.
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master made no further attempt to hide. “Do you think you’ll be as lucky this time as you were last time?”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Does the Hall Master believe it was merely luck?”
“Of course not. A cultivator who could force Murong Tailai to go all-out is a figure who could shake heaven and earth wherever he goes—how could his strength be weak? But this is the Space Divine Temple!”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master spoke unhurriedly. “Last time, I was too constrained by having to hide my identity, and I hadn’t anticipated that you possessed trump cards like Ancestor Divine Qi and Ancestor Rules. Honestly, I didn’t lose unjustly.”
As the master of a hall, Yu Jingzhen’s control over the various powers of the Space Divine Temple was naturally far beyond Zhang Ruochen’s reach.
Within this temple were profound divine arrays left by generations of Space Divine Temple powerhouses, now fully awakened, transforming into array worlds one after another. Their might was many times greater than last time, continuously compressing Zhang Ruochen’s domain.
Zhang Ruochen smiled bitterly. “Knowing all the trump cards I possess, the Hall Master is still this confident. It seems I truly have no escape today.”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master did not avoid Zhang Ruochen’s presence and directly addressed A Fuya outside the hall. “If the First Queen joins forces with me, Zhang Ruochen’s Xuan Embryo and corpse body are yours for the taking. With the First Queen’s peerless wisdom and insight, you could surely comprehend the true essence of his First-Rank Divine Path on your own—why remain dependent on others?”
Outside the hall, A Fuya’s long hair swayed, her beautiful eyes gazing into the distance, offering no response.
No response meant all possibilities were open.
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master laughed. “Ruochen, it seems you’re still too young. The one you invited may not necessarily be an ally.”
Zhang Ruochen knew the other party was trying to unsettle him, but recalling A Fuya’s earlier words—that when his cultivation far surpassed hers, then she would have to worry—the unfinished sentence did stir some doubt in his heart.
Yet Zhang Ruochen would never let such worry show on his face. Instead, he became even more composed and confident, speaking leisurely. “With the Heaven-Earth Square Array covering this place, the Space Divine Temple’s heavenly secrets cannot be perceived from outside. Hall Master, there’s no need to rush into action. This Elder still has a few doubts I wish to clarify.”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master said, “I knew you would ask. I’ll give Old Nine face and let you die with understanding. Ask away!”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Does the Hall Master know of the Weak Water Clan?”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master’s eyes narrowed, his face instantly turning dark and somber, losing all previous composure. “How do you know that?”
“I wasn’t certain—I was just probing. Now I can be sure.”
Zhang Ruochen continued, “In the Scripture Cave of Starry Sky Cliff, I once saw records about the Weak Water Clan. A million years ago, the Inverse God Heavenly Venerable led the Inverse God Clan—or more precisely, what was then called the Holy Clan. The Inverse God Heavenly Venerable led the Holy Clan army to destroy the Weak Water Clan, taking their Weak Water to form the Heavenly River, guarding the Holy Realm.”
“In ancient times, the Weak Water Clan, once as renowned as the Thunder Clan, vanished from the world.”
“I once asked the Truth Hall Master about you. She said you were born lowly, neglected and ostracized in the Holy Clan during your youth, unable to access advanced cultivation methods, forcing you to turn to spiritual power cultivation instead. Throughout the entire Holy Clan, only Nine Heavens had a good relationship with you. Most of your spiritual power cultivation methods were passed down by Nine Heavens.”
“Consider this: with Nine Heavens’ status, even if you were merely a collateral descendant of the Holy Clan, a single word from him could have changed your circumstances. But he couldn’t change them.”
“For someone of your exceptional talent, you would have quickly shown your brilliance in youth. Why would the Holy Clan internally suppress and ostracize you?”
“You became the Holy Clan’s Third Elder three hundred thousand years ago, after the Inverse God Heavenly Venerable fell.”
“So I boldly speculate that the one who kept suppressing you in the Holy Clan was the Inverse God Heavenly Venerable himself, and he never revealed your identity to anyone. The reason he suppressed you must be related to your mysterious birth!”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master said, “This is pure speculation. Where do you see any connection between me and the Weak Water Clan?”
“In the Destiny Temple’s Heavenly Guard Tower, I perused countless ancient scrolls and found a record about the Weak Water Clan: ‘Mother of Weak Water, Father of Thunder, one son together, the Young Lord of Weak Water, Lord of the Future.’”
Zhang Ruochen continued, “When we fought in this hall last time, you, a spiritual power cultivator, could completely ignore the power of lightning—isn’t that too unbelievable? The Earth Thunder Pearl and Wind Thunder Pearl embedded in my Qilin Fist Gloves are at the artifact level.”
“Moreover, aside from you, the Young Lord of Weak Water, who else could cross the Heavenly River undetected and come and go from the Heavenly Court? You can do what many cannot.”
“With this information, it’s enough for me to bluff you.”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master fell into deep thought, closing his eyes. “Zhang Ruochen, I truly envy you. Your Zhang family also went from prosperity to decline, nearly exterminated, but your luck has been too good. Too many people have helped you—the Scripture Cave, the Truth Divine Temple, the Heavenly Guard Tower. I’m afraid you’re the only one in the world who could enter all three places.”
“I understand now!” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master said, “What do you understand?”
“I understand why you kept saying I was lucky from the start. You’re jealous. Because your own experiences were too tragic, you can’t bear to see someone with a similar fate to yours enjoying such glory as I do now.” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master let out a piercing, cold laugh, glaring angrily. “You’re right. I am that Young Lord of Weak Water. Yu Nishen, in a moment of misplaced kindness, adopted me. I bore the hatred of clan extermination, with a rage in my heart that even Weak Water could not quench, yet I had to hide myself, day and night playing the role of a filial adopted son to my enemy.”
“But I eventually waited for my chance, making Yu Nishen, his descendants, and even the entire Holy Clan turn to ash. Haha!”
Zhang Ruochen’s heart stirred. “I once heard that the disastrous defeat of the Twenty Heavens in the Unknown Expedition three hundred thousand years ago might have been due to a traitor. Was that your doing?”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master shot Zhang Ruochen a cold glance but did not answer.
Zhang Ruochen pressed further. “Did you collect the hair or blood of the Holy Clan elders and hand them over to the one who triggered the Minor Calamity, enabling them to cast the Blood Curse? Right? Who was that person? Was it the Nether Ancestor?”
“With your cultivation at the time, you couldn’t take revenge alone—you had to rely on external forces. Who contacted you? Qishier Pin Lian?”
“Even if the Inverse God Heavenly Venerable, in a moment of misplaced kindness, wanted to preserve a bloodline of the Weak Water Clan, he would certainly have erased your memories, not raise an enemy within the clan. Who restored your memories? To restore memories severed by the Inverse God Heavenly Venerable, one’s mastery of the Path of Fate must be terrifyingly high—was it Ba’er?”
One question after another struck like piercing clouds and splitting rocks, Zhang Ruochen’s aura growing stronger, suppressing the Space Divine Temple Hall Master’s momentum.
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master quickly steadied his mind, no longer evading, meeting Zhang Ruochen’s gaze. “Some things you don’t need to know. All you need to know is that Yu Nishen and the entire Inverse God Clan deserved their fate. They are not worth sympathy, not worth pity. This was the retribution they deserved.”
“Then what about Chi Kunlun?”
When he didn’t answer, Zhang Ruochen deliberately provoked him. “Your father was the Thunder Punishment Heavenly Venerable, wasn’t he? Since the Thunder Punishment Heavenly Venerable colluded with the Quantity Organization, it’s easy to imagine that the Mother of Weak Water was no good person either. Perhaps your Weak Water Clan deserved to die?”
“Silence!”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master’s eyes blazed with fury, and a tempest of spiritual power surged from his mouth along with his voice.
Zhang Ruochen dared not be careless. He swept his arm.
The Earth Cauldron flew out from his sleeve, erupting with dazzling Origin Divine Light, forming a thick light barrier.
At the same time, he activated the Blunt Void Stone embedded in the Qilin Fist Gloves, releasing a billion-fold spatial gravity, shaking loose the layers of space pressing down on him.
“Clang!”
The spiritual power tempest collided with the Earth Cauldron, producing an explosive roar.
Countless Origin Divine Lights on the cauldron’s body shattered, and the Earth Cauldron flew back toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen, having completely broken free from spatial suppression using the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram Seal and Space Essence, struck forward with a palm.
“Boom!”
The moment his hand touched the cauldron’s body, a wave of spiritual power attack energy invaded his body, rushing straight toward Zhang Ruochen’s divine soul.
“Sword Soul!”
A sword cry rang out as a sword-soul blade flew forth.
One sword strike, like splitting towering waves, completely cleaved through the spiritual power tempest.
An existence at the peak of the eighty-ninth level—the spiritual power tempest exhaled from its mouth was terrifyingly powerful. Xiao Hei, Quanzhongsheng, and Dai Xue Queen, who were also in the hall, all spat blood. After resisting for only an instant, they collapsed, blood flowing from their seven orifices.
Fortunately, the Space Divine Temple Hall Master still intended to keep them alive to restrain Zhang Ruochen; otherwise, even if they didn’t die, their spirit and divine soul would have been destroyed.
“Move!”
Zhang Ruochen shouted this to A Fuya, separating his Sword Bone Doppelganger to rescue the others, while he himself raised the Earth Cauldron in one hand and clenched a fist with the other, activating the Qilin Fist Gloves’ artifact power, charging straight toward the Space Divine Temple Hall Master seated at the highest position.
Eighty-three thousand nine hundred and ninety relic light points appeared on Zhang Ruochen’s body, forming eighty-three thousand nine hundred and ninety dense Buddhist rings to protect him, guarding against further spiritual power attacks.
“Boom! Boom!”
One spatial divine array after another was shattered as Zhang Ruochen charged through.
“Earlier you said my Ten Thousand Realms was far from enough. Try it again now!”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master stood up, and the space within the entire hall seemed to expand infinitely.
The ceiling was no longer visible.
The ceiling had become the sky.
“One realm suppresses one god; ten thousand realms suppress the heavens.”
The Space Divine Temple Hall Master’s body seemed taller than a star. He raised a palm, and layer upon layer of array light patterns appeared in his palm.
Each array light pattern was the form of a great world, with great rivers, mountains, and lakes distributed within.
As if holding ten thousand worlds in hand!
Last time, Zhang Ruochen had been crushed by this very move, his body shrinking to only three inches tall, nearly having his internal space destroyed.
And this time, wielding the Space Divine Temple’s inherited artifact, the Four Directions Universe Seal, the Ten Thousand Realms he manifested was even more complete, perfectly merging with the spatial power within the temple, its might enhanced to an unimaginable degree.
(Chapter End)