Chapter 596: The Greedy Man
Zhang Ruochen withdrew his spiritual power, quickly stepped back, and glanced at Red Desire Star Envoy, asking, "Is that true?"
Red Desire Star Envoy's heart rejoiced, knowing he had taken the bait, and immediately replied, "Of course it's true."
Luo Shi and Ji Gui pursued forward, preparing to continue attacking Zhang Ruochen.
Red Desire Star Envoy's eyes turned cold and stern as she scolded, "Luo Shi, Ji Gui, stop this instant."
Luo Shi and Ji Gui had no choice but to halt their techniques and stop.
Luo Shi kept his guard up against Zhang Ruochen while speaking coldly, "Star Envoy, this man killed Fang Jie and Cao Ying. He is a mortal enemy of the Blood Cloud Sect. We cannot let him off so easily. Give me one more breath of time, and I will slay him."
Ji Gui knew that Red Desire Star Envoy had taken a liking to Zhang Ruochen's talent and feared that Zhang Ruochen might steal his position in her favor, so he said, "This man's origins are unknown, and he is closely associated with the Moon Worship Demon Sect. It would be best to eliminate him first."
Red Desire Star Envoy said, "Do I need you to teach me how to handle my affairs?"
Luo Shi and Ji Gui immediately fell silent, daring not to speak further.
Red Desire Star Envoy's gaze shifted back to Zhang Ruochen, and she flashed a charming smile. "Have you decided to pledge allegiance to me?"
"Can you really teach me high-rank sacred arts?"
Zhang Ruochen deliberately pretended to be eager for high-rank sacred arts.
Red Desire Star Envoy chuckled inwardly and said, "My master is the Illusion Saint. Obtaining high-rank sacred arts is as simple as a single word."
Zhang Ruochen pondered for a moment, then said, "Very well. In that case, I can work for you temporarily. However, I have conditions."
Ji Gui snorted coldly, "You dare to negotiate terms with the Star Envoy? Do you believe I can reduce you to a corpse without a burial site right now?"
Red Desire Star Envoy shot Ji Gui an irritated glare, then turned her gaze softly to Zhang Ruochen and asked, "What conditions do you have?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "First, I will work for you, but I am not your servant."
"Of course. Given your strength, you deserve such treatment. From now on, when you see me, you need not kneel or bow," Red Desire Star Envoy said.
Zhang Ruochen continued, "Second, you must provide me with the resources I need for cultivation, including spiritual power artifacts and high-rank sacred arts."
"You are quite greedy! But I like it. Fine, I agree," Red Desire Star Envoy said with a smile.
Red Desire Star Envoy was not afraid of Zhang Ruochen being greedy; she was afraid he would not be greedy at all.
The greedier he was, the easier it would be to control him.
Zhang Ruochen added, "And third, my name is Zhang Shengming. As for other matters, I hope you will not ask me. When I feel it is appropriate to tell you, I will do so naturally. If you can agree to these three points, then from now on, I will be your subordinate and follow your orders."
Ji Gui and Luo Shi stepped forward, wanting to continue persuading Red Desire Star Envoy.
But her mind was made up, and they could not sway her.
Red Desire Star Envoy agreed, saying, "Good. I accept all three of your conditions. From now on, we are on the same side, and all past grievances are wiped clean. If anyone dares to cause trouble, do not blame me for being unkind."
Her gaze deliberately fell on Ji Gui and Luo Shi.
"It is late. Everyone, disperse. Yao Yao, take Young Master Zhang to rest."
From behind Red Desire Star Envoy, a rather charming white-clad maid stepped forward, approached Zhang Ruochen, and gracefully bowed. "Young Master, please follow me."
Zhang Ruochen nodded and followed the maid named Yao Yao out of the formation, heading toward the guest quarters.
After Zhang Ruochen left, Ji Gui immediately stepped forward, his eyes cold and sinister. "Star Envoy, this man's origins are unclear. He should not be trusted."
Red Desire Star Envoy shot him a glare. "Of course, I will not trust him now. I need to observe him for a while. During this time, you will personally investigate and uncover his background."
Ji Gui let out a chilling laugh. "Rest assured, Star Envoy. With the Black Market's intelligence network, we will uncover his identity soon enough. If he is sent by the Earth God Temple, we will not show him any mercy. With the strength of Red Willow Manor, we can tear him apart limb by limb."
Red Desire Star Envoy nodded. "Go now."
After Ji Gui withdrew, Red Desire Star Envoy turned to Luo Shi. "Luo Shi, send a message to Sect Leader Xu. Tell him that Zhang Shengming's life is temporarily in my hands. As for the deaths of Fang Jie and Cao Ying, I will compensate the Blood Cloud Sect in other ways."
"Since the Star Envoy has a plan, I will say no more."
Luo Shi withdrew to send a message back to the Blood Cloud Sect.
...
Leading Zhang Ruochen to the guest room, the maid named Yao Yao flashed a seductive smile. "Young Master Zhang, would you like Yao Yao to keep you company tonight?"
Yao Yao knew that Red Desire Star Envoy had sent her precisely to use her beauty to seduce Zhang Ruochen, ideally to uncover the mask on his face.
This woman had a beautiful face and an exceptionally alluring figure. Though not as stunning as Red Desire Star Envoy, she was still top-tier.
On the surface, Yao Yao was merely Red Desire Star Envoy's maid, seemingly low in status. In reality, she was a disciple of a Half-Saint from the Black Market, skilled in seduction arts and had reached the sixth transformation of the Fish-Dragon Realm.
That Red Desire Star Envoy sent her to seduce Zhang Ruochen showed how much she valued him.
"Keep you company?"
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Yao Yao and shook his head. "No need. Go back and tell the Star Envoy: do not try to use beauty traps on me. Unless she comes herself, such tactics will have no effect on me."
With that, Zhang Ruochen stepped into the room and slammed the door shut with a bang.
Yao Yao, rejected by a man for the first time, gritted her teeth, snorted coldly, and turned to leave.
Beneath Red Willow Manor, there was a black altar. On the four walls around the altar hung a painting of a saint's sacred intent.
Red Desire Star Envoy sat cross-legged atop the altar, studying the painting to cultivate her spiritual power. When she saw Yao Yao enter, she withdrew her spiritual power and paused her cultivation.
"Greetings, Little Master Uncle," Yao Yao said, bowing to Red Desire Star Envoy.
Red Desire Star Envoy looked at Yao Yao with some surprise and smiled. "Back so soon? It seems you failed to seduce him."
Yao Yao said coldly, "He did not even look me in the eye. I wonder if he is even a man. Also, he asked me to deliver a message to Little Master Uncle."
"What message?"
"He said that if you want to use beauty to seduce him, you will have to come yourself for any chance of success."
Red Desire Star Envoy was momentarily stunned, then chuckled. "This man is indeed unusually greedy. You may go now."
After Yao Yao withdrew, Red Desire Star Envoy shook her head with a smile before resuming her spiritual power cultivation, aiming to break through to the forty-third rank soon.
...
...
Entering the room, Zhang Ruochen summoned the Devouring Elephant Rabbit from the Scroll World and instructed, "If anyone comes looking for me, notify me immediately. If anyone tries to break in, kill them without mercy."
The Devouring Elephant Rabbit nodded. "Rest assured, Master Chen. With me, Guo Guo, here, whoever dares to enter, I will devour them."
Its mouth opened wide, large enough to hold a washbasin, before closing again.
"Good."
Having arranged everything, Zhang Ruochen opened a space gate and entered the Scroll World.
The Devouring Elephant Rabbit stayed behind to guard the Cosmic Divine Wood Map, shrinking its body to the size of a palm, its fur emitting a white glow as it lay on the table, occasionally raising its head to scan the surroundings warily.
After all, this was Black Market territory, and Zhang Ruochen had to be cautious. With the Devouring Elephant Rabbit's current strength, breaking into Zhang Ruochen's room would not be an easy task for ordinary people.
"Let me first test the power of the Refinement Warrior."
Entering the Scroll World, Zhang Ruochen took out a black iron ball, held it in his palm, and infused it with true qi.
The upper and lower halves of the iron ball rotated relative to each other, creating a gap in the middle. With a click, a metal support extended from the gap.
Moments later, the black iron ball transformed into a three-meter-tall Refinement Warrior.
Zhang Ruochen took out a top-grade spirit crystal and placed it into the groove on the warrior's chest. The spirit crystal spun rapidly within the groove, releasing strands of spiritual energy that activated the inscriptions inside the warrior.
"Whoosh!"
Blue flames flickered in the warrior's eye sockets as it came to life, kneeling on one knee. "Greetings, Master."
Zhang Ruochen had been pondering how to control the Refinement Warrior but was surprised to see it voluntarily acknowledge him as master. He asked, "Why do you call me master?"
The Refinement Warrior replied, "The War Saint has already imprinted your information into my soul sea."
The War Saint it referred to was undoubtedly Senior Brother Qingxiao.
But what was a soul sea?
Zhang Ruochen released his spiritual power to examine the Refinement Warrior closely. In its head, he discovered a spherical mass of holy light.
"The Refinement Warrior's soul sea is generated by the mutual activation of holy light and inscriptions. Such remarkable refining techniques."
Zhang Ruochen withdrew his spiritual power. "Rise. Strike me with all your strength so I can see your power."
The Refinement Warrior stood up. "With your cultivation, Master, you cannot withstand my full-force strike."
Zhang Ruochen felt somewhat unconvinced. After all, with his current cultivation, using all his strength, he could already fight weaker cultivators at the ninth transformation of the Fish-Dragon Realm.
Could he not even block a single strike from the Refinement Warrior?
"Then use one-tenth of your power to strike me. Let me see what you are truly capable of," Zhang Ruochen said.
Upon receiving the command, the Refinement Warrior clenched its five fingers into a fist, the fist as large as a human head.
It charged forward and threw a punch.
Both the speed of the punch and the power unleashed left Zhang Ruochen astonished. He even began to wonder if the Refinement Warrior had truly only used one-tenth of its strength.