Chapter 4001: Zhang Ruochen's Own Ancestor Rules
When Zhang Ruochen had traveled from the River of Time to the Primordial Era, passing through the Chaotic Era, he had been ambushed. It was the Heavenly Demon who had acted, clearing a path for him.
Because of this, even though they were separated by over ten million years of time and space, Zhang Ruochen still harbored a sense of gratitude.
If what Chi Yao guessed was true—that the Heavenly Demon might not be dead—Zhang Ruochen would be quite willing to risk a trip to the God Realm.
But the likelihood of that was too low!
Risking his life on such a gamble seemed too reckless.
At the very least, he needed to learn more about the God Realm first.
Zhang Ruochen thought of the Divine Martial Envoy, "Wu Shi," who was imprisoned in the Xiongxiao Demon God Temple. Perhaps this could be a breakthrough.
With the help of the four ancient Primordial Beast old clan emperors and Chan Bing, Gai Mie and Chi Xingtian should be able to hold the Demon Qi Great World and the Nether Prison, and bring Wu Shi back to the Wuding Divine Sea.
Wen Tianjun and the Lamp of Remnant Elder had long since rushed to the starry region where the Nether Prison was located.
Now, the only thing Zhang Ruochen worried about was Yu Lisheng, the biggest variable.
Had he exposed his identity because he intended to go to the Nether Prison to rescue the Nine-Headed Stone Man?
If he made a move, who there could stand against him?
Zhang Ruochen was deeply concerned. He extended his spiritual power, constantly monitoring the fluctuations of battle in the distant starry sky, calculating the celestial mechanisms, and observing the subtle changes in the situation.
A full three days passed without sensing the power fluctuations of Yu Lisheng making a move.
Instead, six ancient Primordial Beast old clan emperors, who had been missing for many years, appeared and joined the celestial duels in the starry sky.
Chi Yao said, "Strange. Shi Yan and the Great Demon God both belong to the Nether Ancestor Faction. Since Shi Yan has been exposed, why hasn't he made a move to rescue him?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Two possibilities. First, the strong ones within the same faction aren't necessarily that united. They might even hope the other falls sooner."
"Second, someone intervened and intercepted Yu Lisheng."
Chi Yao said, "You mean the God Realm?"
Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly. "The faction of the God Realm and the Nether Ancestor are clearly opposed. They wouldn't allow Shi Yan and the Nine-Headed Stone Man to exist simultaneously. Even the Dark Abyss would never allow the Nether Ancestor Faction to grow too powerful."
Zhang Ruochen had interacted with various forces.
Based on his analysis, the current Immortals could probably be divided into three factions.
They were: the Nether Ancestor Faction, the Dark Abyss Faction, and the God Realm Faction.
Among them, the Nether Ancestor and the God Realm were likely the biggest competitors.
The Dark Abyss had countless connections with Bai Yuan, one of the Nine Grand Witches.
In the ancient era, roughly five million to ten million years ago, the Second Confucian Ancestor, the Time-Space Human Ancestor, and possibly even the Nether Ancestor, had together severely wounded the Dark Abyss, dismembered and suppressed it, making it the weakest faction.
About ten to eleven Eons ago, an unprecedented Ancestral War had erupted, severely wounding all the Immortals.
Forced into a corner, the Nether Ancestor had begun to re-support the Dark Abyss in this era, pushing Him to the forefront.
The God Realm had made the same decision.
They probably felt that the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable was not dead. So, they wanted to use the Dark Abyss to first lure out the potential threat.
Then, the Immortals would fight to the death among themselves.
It was precisely because the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable was too powerful that the three-way game among the Immortals had become a four-way game.
Zhang Ruochen was unanimously regarded as the sword forged by the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable and Xumi Saint Monk, thus becoming the eye of the game. The three sides were all waiting for the other two to make a move against Zhang Ruochen, to lure the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable into appearing.
Looking at the current situation, the Dark Abyss had a deep, blood feud with Zhang Ruochen and had the greatest motive to act. Furthermore, the Qishier Pin Lian under the Dark Abyss had long desired to destroy the Zhang Clan.
Both the God Realm and the Nether Ancestor Faction intended to use the Dark Abyss.
Yet the Dark Abyss was happy to be used, taking the opportunity to strengthen itself.
Yu Lisheng's words before he left had alerted Zhang Ruochen, making him realize that the faction of the God Realm was likely deeply connected to the Kunlun Realm, and very possibly represented the Time-Space Human Ancestor mentioned by the Second Confucian Ancestor.
Any Immortal who wished to live forever had to plunder the world.
Thinking of the Heavenly Demon Ancestor Divine Source in his hand, Zhang Ruochen realized that the Time-Space Human Ancestor might be the most terrifying existence of all.
Granting the authority of martial arts, controlling the life and death of all martial artists under heaven.
Holding the world hostage to command all living beings.
Of course, whether the God Realm was actually controlled by the Time-Space Human Ancestor was something Zhang Ruochen still needed to investigate.
He hoped that the Time-Space Human Ancestor was not an Immortal, but had merely crossed the River of Time in the ancient era and fought alongside the Second Confucian Ancestor.
Regardless of the situation, as long as Yu Lisheng didn't make a move, the Nine-Headed Stone Man was doomed.
Therefore, Zhang Ruochen did not rush to the starry region where the Nether Prison was located. Instead, he first dealt with the hidden dangers within his Divine Realm World.
The three heads of the Nine-Headed Stone Man—the Male Head, the Female Head, and the Dharma Seal Head—were suppressed by Zhang Ruochen in his Divine Realm World using the three cauldrons.
After all, the Nine-Headed Stone Man was not a perfected Ancestor. A single head, though containing Ancestor Rules, Ancestor Demon Qi, and Ancestor Divine Soul, was far inferior in combat power to the Dark Hand, only reaching the Heavenly Venerable rank.
In Zhang Ruochen's current severely injured state, suppressing three Heavenly Venerable-rank entities was no easy task.
He had only managed it by borrowing the Chao Tian Que, the Ancestor Blood Wings, and the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable's eighteen-layer Celestial World.
"Hua!"
The Witch Cauldron opened, and a thunderous roar echoed.
The Male Head flew out, carrying rolling Demon Qi.
From within the stone head, boundless Ancestor Rules and Ancestor Demon Qi were released, condensing into a translucent, majestic body that attacked Zhang Ruochen directly.
His steps were like a dragon's or tiger's, his aura intimidating.
"I can sense that you are heavily injured, your aura very weak."
The Male Head condensed Ancestor Order in his palm and struck out with a palm print, its power overwhelmingly domineering.
In front of the palm print, space twisted into a vortex.
"Do you think I would release you without absolute certainty?"
Zhang Ruochen stood still, channeling the Nine-Colored Chaos Divine Light from the eighteen-layer Celestial World to firmly suppress the Male Head. Even the palm print that was struck was sealed within the Chaos Divine Light.
The Male Head's gaze was firm, his voice cold and deep: "With your cultivation, even if you can use external forces to suppress me for a time, you will never be able to annihilate me. When the Ancestor's main body arrives, a single finger will crush you."
"Shua—"
Zhang Ruochen moved his finger.
A bright sword light flew out from behind him and slashed onto the Male Head.
The Male Head let out a miserable scream, a pain that originated from his soul. He said incredulously, "How is it possible... how can you possess the power to wound the Ancestor's divine soul and spirit?"
"Of course, it's not my power. It's the Sword Ancestor's Sword Heart."
Zhang Ruochen controlled the Sword Heart and slashed down again.
After seven consecutive slashes, the Male Head finally quieted down. The translucent body he had condensed had shattered.
Many Ancestor Rules and Ancestor Demon Qi drifted around the Male Head.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged, observing the Ancestor Rules inside the stone Male Head, feeling that unparalleled and profound Dao resonance, learning and studying.
In terms of Dao methods, the Nine-Headed Stone Man was countless times more profound than Zhang Ruochen, with much worth learning.
As he entered a state of contemplation, a Taiji Four Symbols Diagram Seal with a radius of eighteen zhang appeared beneath Zhang Ruochen. Twenty clusters of Dao Light flickered within his Xuan Tai, alternating between black and white.
Using his hands as brushes, he traced and copied, learning the Dao that the Great Demon God and the Nine-Headed Stone Man had left within the Male Head.
After repeated failures, Zhang Ruochen finally traced out the first Ancestor Rule. Although it was identical to the Ancestor Rules inside the Male Head, it was entirely Zhang Ruochen's own.
Zhang Ruochen's very first Ancestor Rule!
Days passed.
The Ancestor Rules Zhang Ruochen traced did not dissipate. They flowed above the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram Seal. As their number increased, these Ancestor Rules twisted together, forming a faint cluster of Dao Light.
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen sensed something and stopped.
Looking at that faint, almost non-existent cluster of Dao Light, he was both delighted and surprised.
The reason it was so faint was that there were too few Ancestor Rules.
As long as Zhang Ruochen had enough time, the quantity was not a problem. The key was that this unexpected action had allowed Zhang Ruochen to find the path to break through to the Heavenly Venerable rank.
"Am I learning from the Ancestor, or am I stealing the Ancestor's Dao?"
"It shouldn't be considered stealing, since I comprehended and traced it myself, which is similar to learning from heaven and earth. Very good, this is my twenty-first cluster of Dao Light!"
Zhang Ruochen was about to continue comprehending and tracing Ancestor Rules to complete this cluster of Dao Light when he noticed Chi Yao standing at the edge of the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram Seal. He made a quick mental calculation and was secretly startled.
A hundred years had already passed.
He put away the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram Seal and stood up.
That faint cluster of Dao Light automatically flew to the top of his head, appearing and disappearing, sometimes gathering, sometimes dispersing.
Chi Yao's beautiful eyes held a smile. "Congratulations, Chen Ge, on taking your cultivation to the next level."
"It's still far off. I've only found a path." Zhang Ruochen said. "Why didn't you wake me?"
Chi Yao said, "I saw you had entered a state of enlightenment. Without something absolutely important, how would I dare disturb you?"
Zhang Ruochen had already calculated many things and directly asked, "So, what major event has brought you here this time?"
Chi Yao said solemnly, "After a hundred years of struggle, the Ancestor calamity has completely settled. Wen Tianjun and the Lamp of Remnant Elder have just arrived at the Wuding Divine Sea with the Nether Prison and are discussing important matters with Tai Shang. Tai Shang asked me to check on your condition. If possible, he hopes to invite you over."
Although Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power was now extremely high, the celestial mechanisms of many top-tier experts were not so easy to calculate. He could only grasp a general outline.
The hundred-year struggle had been extremely tortuous.
The battle for the remnants of the Nine-Headed Stone Man's body had been particularly brutal, with many top-tier experts participating.
Even for figures like Wen Tianjun and the Lamp of Remnant Elder, taking away the Nether Prison had required several fierce battles.
Of course, it had not escalated to a life-or-death struggle, nor had any cultivators self-detonated their Divine Sources. It was precisely because of this that the battle had lasted a hundred years.
On the way to the Sword Realm, Chi Yao told Zhang Ruochen all the information she knew. "It is said that apart from the eight heads that were separated, the Ancestor's main body of the Nine-Headed Stone Man shattered into thirteen pieces."
"When Heavenly Mother left, she took two of them."
"Jiusi Yitianhuang and Gu Yanluo each obtained one. Ba Er seized three."
"Some Divine Martial Envoys made a move and took two. Lady Shiji used the Dark Cauldron to take two."
"The last two were suppressed by Hao Tian and handed over to Meng Ge. The Ancestor Divine Source and the Nine-Headed Ancestor Mark seem to have also been taken by Hao Tian."
"This chaotic battle involved a great many top-tier experts. Void Heaven of the Destiny Temple, Yan Huanyu, the patriarch of the Yama Clan, Meng Naihe of the Meng Clan, Chongming Laozu, the number one of the Southern Universe, the ancient Primordial Beast old clan emperors, Qishier Pin Lian... anyway, it was a huge melee. The entire starry region was reduced to desolation, tens of millions of planets were annihilated, and over a hundred great worlds collapsed."
"Fortunately, the strong ones of the Heavenly Court, Hell Realm, and Sword Realm all tried their best to prevent the battlefield from spreading to the core areas of the universe. Otherwise, the destruction and turmoil would have been more than ten times worse."
Zhang Ruochen could imagine the brutality of this battle. He sighed, "When a whale falls, everything thrives, let alone when an Ancestor falls? The remnants of a living Ancestor's body are treasures. What about the White Clothes Valley side?"
Chi Yao said, "The Dark Remnant did make a move once, but was repelled by the Fate Twelve-Phase Divine Formation. It has been quiet there for a hundred years. Tai Shang speculates that the Dark Remnant, the Dark Abyss, and the Dark Hand are fusing. Once the fusion is complete, they will definitely make a move again. By then, the White Clothes Valley will surely fall."
"A hundred years already!"
Zhang Ruochen felt a sense of urgency.
He knew very well that they had been able to dismember the Nine-Headed Stone Man both because the Nine-Headed Stone Man was not a perfected Ancestor and because of the stone blade left by the Heavenly Demon.
After the three Dark entities fused, their strength would definitely reach the level of a perfected Ancestor.
What power would be left to stop Him then?
Could they pin their hopes on the Nether Ancestor Faction and the God Realm to check Him?
At least on the matter of attacking the White Clothes Valley, the Nether Ancestor Faction and the God Realm would not stop them. They were still waiting for the Dark Abyss to do so, to test whether the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable was still alive and whether he would appear.
"By the way, how is the Star Heaven Cliff Master?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Chi Yao said, "I've been watching! For a hundred years, the storm's vortex has been in the starry region where the Nether Prison was located. No one has made a move against him. Only Bai Qinger, Xu Wenzhi, and others have visited him. In my opinion, he should have already overcome his inner predicament."
"Someone who can cultivate their spiritual power to the eighty-ninth rank is not someone fragile. If he can walk out on his own, it means breaking through to the ninetieth rank is just around the corner." Zhang Ruochen said.
...
Outside the Sword Pavilion in the Sword Realm.
Zhang Ruochen called out from a distance, "Gongming War God, why have you come?"
Zhao Gongming, clad in battle armor, stood tall and imposing. Beside him was a sturdy black tiger. He seemed to have been waiting for a while.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen, Zhao Gongming was overjoyed. "Haha, Emperor Chen, it's been a long time! I asked Empress Chi Yao earlier, and she said you were in seclusion in the Kunlun Realm, so I came to seek an audience with Tai Shang."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Is there something?"
Zhao Gongming looked around and lowered his voice. "Didn't you send a divine thought message to Prince Lian a hundred years ago, asking him to investigate the Space Divine Temple and Buzhou Mountain? There are results, and it turns out to be a huge matter."
It was during that meeting with Yan Wushen that Zhang Ruochen discovered he had been to the Space Divine Temple, which was why he had asked Xuanyuan Lian to investigate.
Every single thing a person like Yan Wushen did had to be taken with the utmost seriousness.