Chapter 3893: White Jade Red Mane Lion
Zhang Ruochen had always trusted his instincts, so he did not recklessly barge into the Bone God Temple just because he possessed a Spiritual Power of the ninetieth rank.
About three million miles away from the Bone God Temple lay the renowned Ten Thousand Bone Cave.
Every major clan in the Hell Realm had an absolute stronghold belonging to their clan.
The Undying Blood Clan had the "White Pale Star," the Shura Clan had the "Shura Battle Soul Sea" and "Ashura Mountain," the Underworld Clan had the "Nether Purgatory," the Yama Clan had the "Nightmare Land" and "Life-Death Line of Sky"...
And the most important place for the Bone Clan was the Ten Thousand Bone Cave.
Between heaven and earth, there were twelve Bone Seas, each hundreds of times broader than an ordinary major world, true white bone oceans. The vast majority of Bone Clan cultivators lived in these twelve Bone Seas, which served as the clan's twelve territories.
However, the total number of Bone Clan members born from the twelve Bone Seas each year did not match that of the Ten Thousand Bone Cave.
From this, one could see how extraordinary and mysterious the Ten Thousand Bone Cave was.
The Ten Thousand Bone Cave was thirteen thousand miles long and eight thousand miles wide, seemingly boundless, white as a sea, but compared to the twelve Bone Seas, it was merely a small lake.
Arriving near the Ten Thousand Bone Cave, Zhang Ruochen planned to capture a Bone Clan deity, hide within their Divine Realm World, and then sneak into the Bone God Temple to investigate.
Around the Ten Thousand Bone Cave stood many temples, with dozens of deities and numerous false gods and Saint Realm cultivators stationed there year-round, responsible for educating the newly intelligent white bones and continuously nurturing new members for the Bone Clan.
Someone had acted before Zhang Ruochen, sneaking into one of the temples and subduing a Bone Clan Upper Deity in the form of a bone bird.
It was Soul Seven.
Zhang Ruochen, covered by a black robe, followed him in.
"Who?"
Soul Seven summoned his war blade.
The blade automatically slashed toward Zhang Ruochen, but when it was still three feet above Zhang Ruochen's head, all the light on the blade's edge dissipated, and it froze in place.
Soul Seven found that he had lost control of the war blade, and his heart was filled with shock.
How high must the cultivation of this newcomer be?
"It's me."
Zhang Ruochen spoke in the voice of Nutian Shenzun, pushing back his hood to reveal a cold, frost-like face.
"Greetings, Nutian Shenzun."
Soul Seven was both surprised and delighted, immediately sheathing his blade and bowing to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at the bone bird deity subdued by Soul Seven and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Zhuque Huowu is likely trapped in the Bone God Temple. I wanted to borrow the Divine Realm World of Jueyi Shen to sneak in and investigate the situation."
Soul Seven then detailed the entire sequence of events.
It turned out that they had arrived here two days ago. They had acted separately, one openly and one covertly. Zhuque Huowu, holding the Imperial Seal of Zhouqi Ghost Emperor, had gone to the Bone God Temple to seek help from the Temple Master.
Soul Seven, on the other hand, had concealed his aura and conducted a secret investigation.
Two days had passed, and Zhuque Huowu had not emerged from the Bone God Temple. Worried for her safety, Soul Seven had decided to sneak in and check.
After all, the Bone God Temple was the supreme center of power for a clan. Without a thorough investigation, Soul Seven did not want to send word back to Fengdu Ghost City. If a misunderstanding caused conflict between the two clans, it would only add fuel to the already turbulent situation in the Santu River region. Perhaps the clan leader, who already suspected him, would imprison him again.
"You came to the Bone Clan to rescue the captured Ghost Clan deities, including Mingye Shenzun. It's an urgent matter. Zhuque Huowu couldn't possibly stay inside for two days without coming out," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Exactly, so I'm certain something has happened to her. Nutian Shenzun, the Bone God Temple likely harbors evil. You cannot ignore this. I beg you!"
With that, Soul Seven, as a God King, knelt on one knee and bowed to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen said, "You think the Bone God Temple Master, White Jade Red Mane Lion, has detained Zhuque Huowu?"
"It could also be the white-haired skeleton that Feng Tian put a bounty on in Wuchang Ghost City. Whoever it is, since Zhuque Huowu fell in the Bone God Temple, the Temple Master cannot escape responsibility," Soul Seven said.
The subdued bone bird deity, Jueyi Shen, said, "Nutian Shenzun above, I am willing to cooperate with you to root out the traitors in the Bone God Temple."
Soul Seven sneered, "With Nutian Shenzun's cultivation, he could storm the Bone God Temple and sweep everything away. Why would he need you?"
Jueyi Shen, fearing he would be silenced, said, "I will absolutely keep my mouth shut and never reveal your secret. Nutian Shenzun can erase my memory. I am also a member of the Hell Realm. I..."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Open your Divine Realm World."
Jueyi Shen thought he had misheard, stunned for a moment, then ecstatic, immediately opening his Divine Realm World.
As long as he had value, he wouldn't die.
Soul Seven was curious, "Nutian Shenzun, are you worried that White Jade Red Mane Lion might harm Zhuque Huowu, so you plan to sneak in?"
"The Bone God Temple may be more dangerous than you imagine. Don't go. Stay here and wait for someone for me."
Zhang Ruochen took out a wisp of Xiao Hei's Divine Soul and handed it to Soul Seven, saying, "She will find you based on this wisp of soul. Just tell her I entered the Bone God Temple. Don't ask anything else."
Zhang Ruochen could sense Xiao Hei's Heavenly Mechanism, and Yuansheng, who held half of Xiao Hei's Divine Soul, would surely sense it too. So, he was certain Yuansheng would come here.
If the Bone God Temple truly held great danger and he fell inside, Yuansheng would surely find a way to rescue him. This was Zhang Ruochen's backup plan.
After Zhang Ruochen hid in Jueyi Shen's Divine Realm World, the latter spread his wings and flew toward the Bone God Temple.
"Even Nutian Shenzun senses danger. Could it be that Qishier Pin Lian and Ming Zu are in the Bone God Temple?" Soul Seven's expression changed repeatedly.
...
Inside the Divine Realm World, Zhang Ruochen closed his eyes, using his Truth Heart and Wuji Divine Dao to subtly sense the various Heavenly Mechanisms within the Bone God Temple.
Just as Jueyi Shen landed outside the Ghost God Temple, he seemed startled, his wings flattening to the ground, his claws bending as if kneeling.
There, the Bone God Temple Master, White Jade Red Mane Lion, stood upright in human form, sporting a massive white jade lion head with a bony face and a thick, fiery red mane around his neck.
He was accompanying another Bone Clan cultivator as they walked out of the temple together.
That Bone Clan cultivator was surrounded by black mist, and Jueyi Shen couldn't see what he looked like, nor did he dare to look. Because the aura emanating from this Bone Clan cultivator seemed to have the support of heaven and earth, pressing down so heavily that even a deity found it hard to lift their head.
Inside the Divine Realm World, the feeling of danger grew even more pronounced. Zhang Ruochen sealed off his Truth Heart and Wuji Divine Dao, afraid of being detected.
White Jade Red Mane Lion seemed to think of something, releasing Death Divine Light that enveloped him and the mysterious Bone Clan cultivator, saying, "How long will this journey take, Venerable Ancestor?"
"Since Kong Fan Nu has truly come to the Santu River region, the Abyss of Darkness must be empty. This is the perfect opportunity to provoke the Primordial Beings into launching a full-scale war. Don't ask me how long I'll be gone. You need to gather the quantity as quickly as possible. The faster, the better. When it's done, you'll be rewarded."
The mysterious Bone Clan cultivator had an extraordinary bearing. Despite his bony face, it gave no sense of ferocity, only a spirit of firmness and decisiveness.
White Jade Red Mane Lion asked, "How should we deal with Zhuque Huowu?"
"Her only value was providing me with the exact information that Kong Fan Nu had come to the Santu River region. Now, as a mere Qiankun Wuliang, she has no value left. Do with her as you wish. But make it clean. Don't leave any evidence pointing to you."
The space around the mysterious Bone Clan cultivator trembled, and his form vanished from the world.
The pressure on White Jade Red Mane Lion dissipated, and he let out a long breath of Death Qi. His gaze then fell on Jueyi Shen, saying, "Little Jue, what brings you to the temple?"
"Reporting to Grandmaster, I dug up an ancient Indestructible Bone from beneath the Ten Thousand Bone Cave and have come to present it," Jueyi Shen said.
White Jade Red Mane Lion's red eyes gleamed with delight, "For your level of cultivation to dig up an Indestructible Bone is quite rare. Come in."
Jueyi Shen followed White Jade Red Mane Lion into the Bone God Temple, then spread his bone wings and flew through the temple's inner world.
After flying an unknown distance, White Jade Red Mane Lion descended between two towering peaks.
The two peaks were wrapped in divine chains crackling with lightning. The other ends of the chains were locked onto a Vermilion Bird, binding its wings, claws, and neck.
Every time the Vermilion Bird struggled, countless bolts of lightning struck it, eliciting painful cries.
White Jade Red Mane Lion laughed loudly, "What's the use of struggling with your mere Qiankun Wuliang cultivation? After being soul-searched by the Venerable Ancestor, your potential is greatly diminished. There's no need for you to live in this world any longer. You might as well help me. Devouring your Divine Soul will bring me one step closer to Indestructible Infinite."
Zhuque Huowu's voice rang out, "The Ghost Emperor knows I came to see you. If I disappear in the Bone God Temple, you won't escape death either."
White Jade Red Mane Lion took out Zhouqi Ghost Emperor's Imperial Seal and toyed with it, sneering, "A mere Zhouqi? I don't take him seriously at all. The Ghost Clan has its own troubles now. No one will care about your life or death. I'll just tell them you went to the Zangjin Bone Sea and died there. What does that have to do with me?"
Zhuque Huowu did not reveal that Soul Seven had also come to the Bone Clan. Doing so might temporarily save her life.
But if Soul Seven were captured by White Jade Red Mane Lion, the secrets of the Bone God Temple might truly be buried, never to be known.
Now, Zhuque Huowu could only hope that Soul Seven, sensing something was wrong, would immediately flee and return to Fengdu Ghost City to report.
Her strong suggestion to rescue Soul Seven and have them act openly and covertly had been a wise decision.
Upon entering the Bone God Temple and sensing danger, the first thing Zhuque Huowu did was sever her own memories of Soul Seven's presence in the Bone Clan, leaving no trace.
White Jade Red Mane Lion noticed Jueyi Shen's unusual expression and laughed, "Little Jue, what are you afraid of? You're my grand-disciple. I trust you completely. As long as you obey, you'll get your share of the benefits in the future. Where's the Indestructible Bone? Take it out and let me see."
A voice rang out from the space around Jueyi Shen: "White Jade Red Mane Lion, no wonder your cultivation hasn't reached the level of the Heavens. You're too arrogant and conceited, even more so than the Black and White Daoists. Did you really think only Zhuque Huowu came to the Bone Clan?"
Space trembled.
Zhang Ruochen, clad in a black robe, stepped out of Jueyi Shen's Divine Realm World, radiating an overwhelming aura that pressed down on all directions, saying, "Speak. What are you doing for Gu Yanluo?"
Among the Bone Clan cultivators, the only one who could command White Jade Red Mane Lion's absolute obedience was none other than Gu Yanluo.
Jueyi Shen, already crushed to the ground by Zhang Ruochen's aura, trembled, "Grand... Grandmaster, turn back from the wrong path..."