Chapter 415: Battle Against the Dharma King
With Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power intensity, he could fully perceive events happening a hundred miles away.
However, just now, while he was comprehending the "Kun Peng Martial Code," he had unknowingly entered a deep cultivation state, immersing his entire mind and body in the subtleties of martial arts, using his martial soul to evolve the martial path.
It was precisely for this reason that he was only abruptly awakened when Huang Yanchen fled to his location, pulling his spiritual power back from the "Kun Peng Martial Code."
"As expected of a King-rank secret manual. Even the first layer is so profound and extensive."
Zhang Ruochen let out a long breath, feeling that his martial path seemed to have made some progress.
Just then, Zhang Ruochen sensed a sharp gaze fixed on him.
Following that gaze, his eyes landed on Huang Yanchen, meeting her stare. Zhang Ruochen immediately offered an apologetic smile.
Huang Yanchen snorted coldly, saying, "Zhang Ruochen, did you deliberately stand by and watch, wanting to see me die at the hands of those native strongmen? That way, you could conveniently dissolve our engagement?"
Zhang Ruochen was nearby. With his cultivation level, he must have long known that the mages of Evil Wood Palace were pursuing her, yet he hadn't come to save her immediately. Naturally, this infuriated Huang Yanchen.
Zhang Ruochen sighed but didn't explain. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the group of native humans in blue mage robes chasing after them from afar.
That group of natives was growing in number. Initially, there were only a dozen or so, but soon they gathered over a hundred.
They drove thirteen war chariots, herded barbarian beasts, raised battle flags, and stood several dozen zhang away, not launching an attack immediately.
Clearly, the might of the demon ape had also intimidated them, making them hesitant to act rashly.
Originally, Huang Yanchen had worried that Zhang Ruochen might not be a match for that group of Evil Wood Palace mages. But upon seeing that Zhang Ruochen had actually subdued the demon ape, that worry lessened somewhat.
Zhang Ruochen's current strength was truly unfathomable.
"Master, that's the demon ape from the Black Water Cold Pool. How did it leave the Demon Ape Ridge?" the Eighth Disciple said, somewhat horrified.
The Black Water Demon Ape was notorious throughout the entire Five Elements Continent.
"Don't chatter. Can't you see the demon ape has already been subdued?" the Senior Brother said sternly.
"Someone can actually subdue the demon ape? Just how terrifying must this person's strength be?"
The Eighth Disciple's body trembled, and his legs involuntarily buckled.
Greenwood Dharma King's eyes narrowed, fixing on the young man sitting on the demon ape's right shoulder. His voice hoarse, he said, "Friend, I am Greenwood Dharma King of Evil Wood Palace. I am capturing this woman. Please do not interfere in this matter."
Greenwood Dharma King hoped to intimidate the other party by invoking the name "Evil Wood Palace," thus avoiding a fierce battle.
When Greenwood Dharma King announced the name of Evil Wood Palace, even the mages standing behind him straightened their backs slightly, a hint of pride appearing on their faces.
Being a disciple of one of the five great mage sacred grounds was itself an impressive feat.
Zhang Ruochen put away the jade book, stood up, and smiled, saying, "You want me not to interfere? Don't you know that the person you are chasing is precisely my senior sister?"
Huang Yanchen rolled her eyes, clearly dissatisfied with Zhang Ruochen's words.
Senior sister? How could that compare to the closeness of a fiancée?
Greenwood Dharma King's eyes turned cold. Mana seeped out from his body as he said, "So you are also an evil demon from beyond the domain. In that case, there's nothing more to say. Today, I will eliminate you as well."
"Boom!"
Greenwood Dharma King raised his crystal divine staff and struck it heavily against the ground. In an instant, thick vines as wide as a bowl grew from the earth. Initially only one meter long, they quickly grew to ten meters, twenty meters... Countless vines, like whips and chains, attacked Huang Yanchen, Zhang Ruochen, and the demon ape simultaneously.
Huang Yanchen immediately held her sacred sword horizontally in front of her, assuming a defensive posture.
Zhang Ruochen, however, appeared very calm, showing no intention of acting.
The demon ape let out a great roar, stomped its foot, and charged at Greenwood Dharma King with a punch.
Greenwood Dharma King swung his crystal divine staff, directing thirty-six vines to wrap around the demon ape's body. Like twisting, writhing green tentacles, they quickly enveloped the demon ape in an airtight cocoon.
"Roar!"
A chilling aura emanated from the demon ape's body, spreading outward in all directions.
A "hissing" sound of freezing echoed across the ground.
Before long, an area three miles in radius was completely sealed by a thick layer of ice.
Most of the Evil Wood Palace mages were frozen solid, their blood and hearts frozen, dying on the spot.
Only seventeen of them, due to their profound mana, managed to escape the calamity, but they were still shivering violently from the cold.
"Boom!"
The massive ball of vines encasing the demon ape was torn apart by a tremendous force, exploding into countless wooden segments that flew in all directions.
The demon ape burst out and punched toward Greenwood Dharma King's head.
Greenwood Dharma King's pupils dilated. He immediately raised his crystal divine staff horizontally, forming a green protective barrier five meters in front of him.
"Boom!"
The green barrier was shattered by the demon ape's punch.
Greenwood Dharma King flew backward, his aged face turning deathly pale.
"Quickly set up the combined attack formation!"
At Greenwood Dharma King's command, sixteen Evil Wood Palace mages immediately rushed forward, moving their feet to form a circle, standing at sixteen positions around Greenwood Dharma King.
"Bang!"
The sixteen simultaneously thrust their crystal divine staves into the ground. Under the impetus of their mana, the sixteen staves transformed into sixteen formation pillars, each shooting up a green beam of light.
The sixteen beams converged toward Greenwood Dharma King at the center.
The aura on Greenwood Dharma King's body continuously rose. Under the impact of a powerful force, the ground beneath his feet cracked open, forming strange patterns.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes narrowed. He said to Huang Yanchen, "Lend me the sacred sword."
Zhang Ruochen's two fingers flicked lightly. The white sacred sword originally held in Huang Yanchen's hand flew out, heading toward Zhang Ruochen.
"Whoosh!"
Zhang Ruochen released his martial soul. Instantly, the world's spiritual energy formed a massive vortex, converging toward the sacred sword.
The water-attributed spiritual energy surged the fastest, continuously pouring into the sacred sword.
A sacred power surged forth from the sword.
With the sacred sword in Zhang Ruochen's hands, the power it unleashed was many times greater than when Huang Yanchen wielded it.
"Break!"
Zhang Ruochen controlled the sacred sword, charging forward and striking the surface of the combined attack formation set up by Greenwood Dharma King and the sixteen mages.
The combined attack formation, not yet fully formed, was struck by the sacred sword and immediately shattered into pieces.
"Whoosh, whoosh!"
Streams of sword qi flew from the tip of the sacred sword, piercing through the bodies of seven mages.
They flew backward, falling into pools of blood.
The other nine mages also suffered varying degrees of injury from the sword qi, fleeing in all directions in a sorry state.
They were all at the Heavenly Extreme Realm in cultivation, with considerable strength, and their escape speed was naturally very fast. In the blink of an eye, they had already fled several hundred meters away.
"Trying to escape?"
Huang Yanchen immediately chased after one of them. In the span of a breath, she caught up and struck down with her palm.
"Slap!"
Her hand struck the man's head, shattering his skull.
Then she went after another. Just as she caught up to him, a flash of sword light flew past her, piercing through his back.
With a "pfft," the man lunged forward and fell to the ground, a bowl-sized bloody hole exposed on his back.
"Whoosh!"
The sacred sword spun in midair and flew back into Zhang Ruochen's hand.
Just now, standing in place and using the flying sword technique, Zhang Ruochen had already killed eight people in succession, accumulating over a hundred military merit points.
Moreover, because he used his martial soul to mobilize the world's spiritual energy for his own use, even when wielding the sacred sword, he only consumed thirty percent of his true qi.
"As expected of a sacred sword. The power it unleashes is truly formidable."
Zhang Ruochen gently stroked the jade-white sword body with his fingers. Pointing the sword forward, the sacred sword immediately let out a cheerful cry.
Having reached Sword Heart Illumination, Zhang Ruochen could form an affinity with any sword in the world, even communicating with the sword, becoming its best friend.
"Such a profound realm of the sword path. If only I could also reach Sword Heart Illumination."
Huang Yanchen had already refined the Sword Heart Pill, yet she was still far from Sword Heart Illumination.
Staring at Zhang Ruochen holding the sacred sword, a hint of admiration arose in Huang Yanchen's heart. Zhang Ruochen's talent was indeed far superior to hers, making her feel as if she could never catch up.
In another direction, the demon ape and Greenwood Dharma King were still engaged in battle, having already shifted the fight a hundred miles away, creating a tremendous commotion.
Clearly, the demon ape's strength far surpassed Greenwood Dharma King's, forcing him to retreat continuously.
"That young man's strength is too great. With a single sword strike, he broke the combined attack formation. If he and the demon ape join forces, I will surely die."
Greenwood Dharma King thought to himself.
Although Greenwood Dharma King was far from a match for the demon ape, he was still a Dharma King of mages and had some trump cards. Escaping was not difficult.
But now, he wasn't just facing a demon ape.
There was also Zhang Ruochen, standing not far away, watching him like a hawk. Escaping was nearly impossible.
"It seems I can only send a distress signal to Evil Wood Palace."
Greenwood Dharma King retreated rapidly, took out a purple scroll, and launched it into the air.
Under the impetus of his mana, the purple scroll opened, gathering wood-attributed spiritual energy. With a "whoosh," a beam of light shot up, piercing through the clouds, as if it could reach beyond the nine heavens.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes fixed on that purple scroll, sensing a most primal wood-attributed power.
Could that scroll be refined from one of the five spiritual treasures, the Purple Cloud Agarwood?
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to seize it, "bang," the purple scroll exploded, turning into a cloud of purple mist that dissipated into the air.
The beam of light connected the ground and the sky, clearly visible even from a thousand miles away.