Chapter 3910: Divine Star Sovereign
"Thank you for your kind offer, Empress! But every family has its own difficult scriptures. If I were to marry Yuansheng now, many troubles would surely come knocking. Zhang Ruochen owes too many debts of the heart." Zhang Ruochen gave a wry, bitter smile.
Whether intentionally or not, the Black-and-White Daoist chimed in very cooperatively: "That is true! I've heard that the daughter of Desolate Heaven Hall Master has long had a marriage contract with Imperial Dust, yet it remains unfulfilled to this day. Then there's that newly ascended Rakshasa Empress, the Yama Clan princess, Feng Tian's disciple—if he were to marry a Primordial Being clan emperor first, it would certainly stir up no end of trouble."
"If it were all done together, given the current situation, who knows what accidents might occur?"
"Beixi and Yan Jun have yet to be refined and killed, Luo Tongluo has been captured, Ming Zu and Kui Liang Huang have fallen. Those hidden disruptors have suffered heavy losses—how could they possibly not retaliate?"
Zhang Ruochen said: "The Clan Leader has only recently returned; he will investigate my information thoroughly when the time comes."
The Black-and-White Daoist, eager to display his abilities before Lady Shiji, said calmly: "For a clan, the Hall Master is responsible for transmitting the Dao and cultivating deities, while the Clan Leader must scheme for the clan's survival and interests. If this Clan Leader cannot even understand a figure as prominent as Imperial Dust, how could he govern a clan?"
Zhang Ruochen nodded: "The Clan Leader speaks rightly. Our first priority now is to guard against retaliation from those disruptors, make full preparations, ensure we can fight when attacked and win when we do, minimizing losses. Matters of romance can be set aside for now."
The Black-and-White Daoist spoke eloquently: "The enemy is in shadow, we are in the light; we can only adopt a strategic contraction. All cultivators of the Middle Three Clans in the Santu River region—those with potential or above the Great God level—should gather at the World Tree, try not to be too scattered, and build Fengdu Ghost City into a super divine city. One that can withstand even a Half-Ancestor's attack."
"Gods below the Great God level without potential can be dispersed to guard the various nether realms and main stars, gathering resources and sending them continuously to Fengdu Ghost City. In extraordinary times, extraordinary measures must be taken!"
Zhang Ruochen said: "The Clan Leader truly has unique insights. However, there are at least three points the Clan Leader cannot resolve."
"First, although the Quantity Organization has been destroyed, figures like Huangquan Great Emperor and Jiusi Yitianhuang have penetrated deeply into the Hell Realm. If all the gods gather and one of them self-detonates their Divine Source, the casualties would be unimaginable."
"Second, the more cultivators there are, the easier it is for those with high cultivation to infiltrate the city using their Divine Realm World."
"Third, the Middle Three Clans currently lack top-tier All Heavens. A Heavenly Venerable-level infiltrator could potentially slaughter through Fengdu Ghost City. What of a Half-Ancestor like Ba'er?"
The Black-and-White Daoist snorted coldly: "If a god wishes to enter the city, they must naturally submit to this Clan Leader's personal inspection, including their Divine Realm World. They can have no secrets!"
"As for the third problem Imperial Dust mentioned, this Clan Leader has his own solution."
"The Space-Time Altar will be rebuilt, and the Great Emperor must be retrieved as soon as possible. Before that, with Imperial Dust and Feng Tian helping to guard, I trust no major chaos will occur!"
"Furthermore, this Clan Leader will integrate the resources and gods of the Middle Three Clans, extract all our foundations, and train a divine army to deal with unknown variables."
"Additionally, the Middle Three Clans are not without top-tier Boundless cultivators. Has Imperial Dust forgotten that old senior of the Bone Clan?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled: "The Clan Leader is truly shrewd. Unfortunately, this Emperor and Feng Tian have already left Fengdu Ghost City; it would be inappropriate to return."
"Imperial Dust, rest assured. This time, this Clan Leader sincerely invites you and will surely reward you generously. Besides, you have already promised the Empress to help resolve the strange blood spring in Wuchang Ghost City—that is no simple task, is it?"
Then the Black-and-White Daoist added: "As for Feng Tian, she owes the Empress a great favor this time. As long as the Empress speaks, she will certainly help guard Fengdu Ghost City."
This great favor naturally referred to Lady Shiji currently sitting guard over the star domain where the Nether Prison was located.
After all, with Kui Liang Huang and Ming Zu fallen, the Fate Esoterica and Fate Rule Divine Marks they left behind would surely interest Ba'er. Without Lady Shiji here, it would not have been Feng Tian's turn to collect them.
The Black-and-White Daoist looked upward, gazing at the moving figure on the curtain.
Lady Shiji's voice rang out: "The Ghost Clan Leader is indeed a renowned elder; his thoughts and considerations align with mine!"
"Earlier, this Empress discussed with Qingcang. In the current Hell Realm, strategic contraction is indeed necessary. It can be divided into three parts: the potential elites and strong ones of the Lower Three Clans and the Yama Clan will gather at the Starry Sky Battlefield front line, responsible for meeting challenges from the Heavenly Court Universe."
"The Middle Three Clans will gather at the World Tree and Fengdu Ghost City, responsible for guarding the heartland of the Yellow Spring Star River."
"The Upper Three Clans will gather at the Abyss of Darkness, responsible for confronting the Primordial Beings."
"These are only the broad directions. Within each clan, power must also be consolidated, preparations made for the great changes of the era. Speaking of which, Zhang Ruochen, there is one matter on which this Empress would like to hear your opinion."
Zhang Ruochen said: "Empress, please speak freely."
"Upon the recommendation of Desolate Heaven Hall Master, this Empress intends to bestow the World Spirit of Shiji Divine Star upon Bai Qinger. What do you think?" Lady Shiji said.
Zhang Ruochen was slightly taken aback: "I don't quite understand the meaning of the Empress's words! Does the Empress want Qinger to join the Stone Clan?"
A World Spirit was the will of a divine star, akin to the existence of heaven and earth.
Some World Spirits could even develop independent consciousness.
Shi Hun Mu, for instance, was the World Spirit of the Soul Realm.
Lady Shiji said: "It would be best if she is willing to join the Stone Clan. If not, I will not force her. I know what puzzles you in your heart; some things indeed exceed common understanding."
"Do you know why Desolate Heaven Hall Master's cultivation could reach the peak of Great Unbound Infinite in such a short time?"
Desolate Heaven stood up, space trembling around him.
With the surge of life and death qi, a corner of his Divine Realm World manifested within the divine hall.
Through this corner, Zhang Ruochen saw that Desolate Heaven's Divine Realm World had expanded to boundless proportions, filled with chaos.
Deep within the chaos floated a ninth-level rocky main star, releasing endless spatial energy.
And Desolate Heaven's original Divine Realm World had turned into fragments of continents, orbiting that rocky main star.
Moreover, Zhang Ruochen could sense that Desolate Heaven's Divine Realm World and that rocky main star were slowly merging. Countless Half-Ancestor rules shuttled between the two.
"This is one of the Stone Clan's Ten Divine Stars—Bo Star! I understand now. Desolate Heaven Hall Master absorbed the World Spirit of Bo Star, hence his cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds. Now, Desolate Heaven Hall Master's divine soul is the World Spirit of Bo Star. He is both Bo Star and its sole sovereign. Half-Ancestor methods are truly extraordinary; Ruochen admires them!"
Zhang Ruochen finally understood why Desolate Heaven held Lady Shiji in such high regard. Such methods and boldness were indeed unmatched.
The methods were secondary, as the Stone Clan itself was very special.
Any planet could potentially develop intelligence and become a member of the Stone Clan.
Bo Star could also be considered a member of the Stone Clan.
The fusion and mutual devouring of Stone Clan bodies was not unusual, just as a star would continuously devour the planets orbiting it.
The key lay in the boldness of staking the entire Stone Clan.
One must understand that a World Spirit of a great world could exist eternally, but once it embarked on the path of cultivation, it was no different from other cultivators. It would suffer Eon Calamities time and again until its divine form was utterly destroyed.
In other words, Desolate Heaven had absorbed the World Spirit of Bo Star, making Bo Star a part of his body. Even if Desolate Heaven's future achievements were immense, after ten or twenty eons, Bo Star would be destroyed along with him.
On Bo Star lived countless trillions of Stone Clan cultivators.
Even if Desolate Heaven chose to sit in meditation and die peacefully when his time came, without enduring the Eon Calamity, Bo Star—having lost its World Spirit—would decline even more severely than the Kunlun Realm had after losing its World Spiritual Root.
After all, the Kunlun Realm had only lost its World Spiritual Root, not its World Spirit.
This was still a catastrophic disaster!
The key point was not how high Desolate Heaven could reach or how many eons he would live. Rather, in this era full of crises, once his Divine Realm World was breached, it meant that trillions of Stone Clan cultivators would fall together.
One lives,
then one world lives.
One dies, then one world dies.
"Zhang Ruochen, do you think this Empress must be mad? That the entire Stone Clan will perish at my hands?" Lady Shiji's cold voice rang out.
Zhang Ruochen did not hypocritically deny it, speaking frankly: "For a moment, I did think so. But I just deduced that this might be the best way for a clan to survive. I can only lament that I was still too young back then, thinking that the world was already in turmoil, slaughter everywhere, so cruel that one could only cultivate desperately."
"Now I realize how beautiful those times were—at least relatively stable, with forces able to check each other, all with scruples, unwilling to break the balance."
"Now, the disaster of extinction could come at any time, forcing us to adopt extreme methods to continue civilization. An era has truly ended!"
Lady Shiji said: "That you can see this level shows you have risen to the height of the cosmic pattern. Not bad. But your understanding of the cruelty of the future is still far from sufficient."
"Do you think that after ten or twenty eons, the Stone Clan will be exterminated or decline because of this? In reality, the time left for us is not that much at all."
"When the Calamity of Extinction descends, everything will end."
"This Empress intends to select ten strong ones from the Stone Clan to absorb World Spirits and become the Ten Divine Star Sovereigns. In the shortest time possible, I will cultivate them to the height of All Heavens, or even stronger."
"And this is the unique advantage of the Stone Clan—no other race can learn it."
"When cultivators of other races absorb a World Spirit, they can only strengthen their own divine soul, while that great world will lose its cultivation environment, wither rapidly, and turn into mortal soil, unable to replace it."
Lianxi had been able to replace Shi Hun Mu and dominate the Soul Realm because her ten souls and ten spirits—seven souls and three spirits—belonged to Shi Hun Mu. After her divine soul shattered into fragments, with Lady Shiji's help, the ten souls and ten spirits completely fused into one soul and one spirit.
Zhang Ruochen said: "The Empress wants to cultivate ten All Heavens-level Divine Star Sovereigns, but I fear it won't be that easy. A cultivator's potential is limited."
"A cultivator like Desolate Heaven Hall Master appears less than once in a hundred million years in Stone Clan history. For other cultivators, even with the Empress's Half-Ancestor methods to assist in absorbing World Spirits and fusing with divine stars, it would still be extremely difficult. The Stone Clan's divine stars are a hundred times more massive than great worlds."
"According to my estimation, across the entire Stone Clan, those barely qualified for this—including Shi Tian—number no more than five."
"As for Qinger, I can talk to her, but I respect her wishes. Additionally, I have another candidate I can recommend to the Empress."
Lady Shiji said: "You mean the Sundial?"
"Correct! Xiuchen's current cultivation has already reached the peak of Great Unbound Infinite. Plus, she has cultivated a flesh-and-blood body and comprehended the path toward life, giving her the potential to impact Indestructible Infinite." Zhang Ruochen said.
The Black-and-White Daoist glanced at Zhang Ruochen, jealousy in his heart.
Such a tremendous opportunity—he wanted to get a piece of it too. If he could absorb the World Spirit of one of the Ten Divine Stars, his soul power would surely surge, and impacting Indestructible Infinite middle stage would be a certainty. He might even have a chance at Indestructible Infinite peak in the future.
If he were to devour the World Spirits of other great worlds, he would need to consume a hundred of them.
Unfortunately, he was not of the Stone Clan and could not use Lady Shiji's secret techniques to become the World Spirit of a divine star.
Zhang Ruochen saw this clearly. Integrating a divine star into one's Divine Realm World indeed meant bearing immense karma and infinite risks. But the benefits were also considerable.
Not just the rapid elevation in cultivation, but also the defensive power inherent in the divine star itself.
Once the divine star's formation was activated, gathering the power of billions of Stone Clan cultivators, the defensive and offensive power it could unleash would be extraordinary.
One could say that although Lady Shiji's move was risky and had certain hidden dangers, before long, the Stone Clan might become the number one super clan in the Hell Realm.
So Lady Shiji was not just cultivating ten All Heavens-level strong ones; these were ten armies far more powerful than All Heavens.
The Stone Clan—every member was a soldier.
Suddenly.
Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power and divine soul simultaneously sensed a subtle heavenly opportunity fluctuation in the distant depths of the universe.
Not good!
A catastrophic disaster was occurring in the Hell Realm.
"Hmph! They finally made a move. They are unwilling to accept this!"
Behind the curtain, Lady Shiji flicked her finger.
"Whoosh!"
Above this glazed divine hall, the sea of stars was torn open, spanning east to west for who knows how many billions of miles.
The entire universe seemed split in two.
Zhang Ruochen, the Black-and-White Daoist, Desolate Heaven, and Lianxi rushed out of the divine hall one after another, looking up.
They saw that the spatial rift, like a black river connecting north and south, divided the starry sky. Along the rift's edges, countless spatial inscription patterns flowed, as if a thousand billion spatial formations were operating simultaneously.
Through this spatial rift, they could see another universe.
In that universe, a ninth-level main star with a yellow-brown atmosphere was covered in countless cracks, magma surging from the ground, its star body nearly collapsing. Over a trillion Stone Clan cultivators had been reduced to ashes.
It was one of the Stone Clan's Ten Divine Stars—Zaohua Divine Star.
"Ba'er, this time, don't you leave!"
The Dark Cauldron, "Xuan Ding," was sent flying by Lady Shiji, passing through the spatial rift to that universe where Zaohua Divine Star was located, striking the place where the demonic qi was thickest.
Zhang Ruochen looked at the countless spatial formations around the spatial rift and had reason to believe that Lady Shiji had long anticipated Ba'er would retaliate against the Stone Clan. Otherwise, she would not have made such arrangements in advance.
Previously, Ba'er had acted, but only from an unknown location, shooting the Hongtian Arrow, his true body always hidden.
Otherwise, Lady Shiji would not have been waiting here.
Waiting for Ba'er to reveal his true form.