Chapter 763: Hidden Crisis
With Garuo Ancient and the Undying Blood Clan’s Third Prince—one dead, one wounded—finally retreating, the commotion gradually subsided, and the Realm Son Banquet finally got back on track.
Although Lidi Heshang had deliberately killed someone, violating the rules of the Realm Son Banquet, Shengshu Cainü did not expel him from the Book Mountain.
“The Buddhist path cleansing its traitors is inherently reasonable and justified; it does not count as a violation,” Shengshu Cainü said.
Clearly, Shengshu Cainü had already been in contact with Lidi Heshang and had confirmed that he would become one of the nine Realm Sons.
Thus, regardless of whether Lidi Heshang’s actions were reasonable or not, he was certain to secure one of the Realm Son seats.
Next, a steady stream of cultivators began climbing Book Mountain, vying for the “Outstanding Talent Seat,” “Heavenly Proud One Seat,” “King Seat,” and “Realm Son Seat.”
On the Second King Seat, Beigong Lan suddenly stood up and headed toward the mountaintop, embarking on the path to compete for the Realm Son Seat.
Her injuries had completely healed.
Beigong Lan carried a healing sacred pill refined by the Holy Academy, known as the Withered Wood Pill. This pill was concocted from a withered ten-thousand-year-old sacred tree and contained immense restorative medicinal power.
As long as one still had a breath left, no matter how severe the injury, taking the Withered Wood Pill would allow the wounds to fully heal within an hour.
Beigong Lan’s strength was actually quite formidable; she was the number one expert of the Holy Academy. If not for the Undying Blood Clan’s Third Prince wearing the Hundred Saint Blood Armor, he would have been no match for her.
At the same time, other young cultivators originally seated on the King Seats, confident in their own abilities, also left their seats and headed toward the mountaintop to compete for the Realm Son Seats.
A grand feast of dragon-and-tiger struggles had only just begun. Who would ultimately secure the Realm Son Seats remained an unknown variable.
Zhang Ruochen, however, remained exceptionally calm. He sat cross-legged on the ground, focusing solely on circulating his cultivation technique to heal his injuries with all his might.
“What’s going on?”
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen felt the world spin around him. Sensing something amiss, he slowly opened his eyes.
The scene before him had undergone a earth-shattering transformation. He could no longer see Book Mountain, nor any human figures. It was as if he were inside a scroll painting of ink and wash.
Initially startled, Zhang Ruochen quickly understood what was happening and regained his composure. Still sitting cross-legged, he said, “As expected of a Spiritual Power Saint. With just a single thought, you can transform heaven and earth. One can’t help but admire it.”
“Whoosh!”
Not far away, a mass of ink-like smoke flowed rapidly, coalescing into a gentle, jade-like woman. She wore a simple Confucian robe, cinched with a belt that accentuated her slender waist, forming a beautiful curve.
It was Shengshu Cainü.
Shengshu Cainü’s eyes were exceptionally bright, her eyelashes distinct and clear. Yet, her gaze was quite complex as she said, “With your talent and strength, one of the nine Realm Son Seats would surely be yours. Why are you willing to settle for being a guard?”
“Did the Saint bring me here just for this matter?”
Zhang Ruochen let out a self-deprecating laugh. “As the saying goes, even heroes struggle to resist a beautiful woman’s charm. Although Lin Yue is no hero, he still can’t get past this hurdle.”
“Having witnessed Princess Yanchen being ostracized and humiliated by the three heirs of the Eastern Domain Saint King Manor, as her suitor, how could I stand by and do nothing?”
Shengshu Cainü’s sacred eyes, black and white distinct, stared unblinkingly at Zhang Ruochen, as if trying to see through him. “Is loving someone truly worth giving up everything? Is it worth it? Do you know what ‘Realm Son’ truly represents? Do you understand why the Empress ordered the selection of nine Realm Sons?”
Zhang Ruochen shook his head with a dismissive smile.
Shengshu Cainü sighed but did not give up. She continued trying to persuade Lin Yue, because Lin Yue was one of the three people she had long determined must become Realm Sons.
She said, “At your level, you probably don’t know some hidden secrets. In recent centuries, the Imperial Court has repeatedly dispatched the Ministry of War’s armies. After countless great battles, they finally drove the barbarian beasts of the Five Domains out of human territory, expanding human lands to an unprecedented extent.”
“On the surface, it seems the Kunlun Realm has entered a golden age of peace—hundreds of saints singing in unison, geniuses emerging in droves, martial arts flourishing, and human strength becoming greater than ever before.”
“In reality, beneath this prosperous facade lie many hidden crises.”
“For example, the Netherworld in the Fallen God Tomb Forest. According to ancient records, that land is vast and boundless, filled with countless undead spirits and malevolent entities. Even a Saint who steps into it may never return.”
“If the undead spirits and malevolent entities of the Netherworld were to escape, can you imagine the catastrophic consequences?”
Zhang Ruochen nodded. He was well aware of how dangerous the Fallen God Tomb Forest was.
Fortunately, a mysterious force within the Fallen God Tomb Forest suppressed all the undead spirits and malevolent entities; otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.
“Another example is the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm. Although the barbarian beasts of the Five Domains have been eradicated, the barbarian beasts in the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm are even more numerous and countless.”
“If not for the Empress venturing into the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm three hundred years ago, slaying eight Beast Emperors in a row, and intimidating the various beast clans, the Five Domains would not be as peaceful as they are now.”
In truth, during the Primordial Era, the entire Kunlun Realm was a vast wilderness.
Even after humanity emerged, they existed only as scattered tribes. Later, some tribes grew and expanded, carving out small territories from the wilderness, developing into cities and nations.
Even now, the Five Domains that humanity had carved out together occupied only a relatively small portion of the land. Most of the Kunlun Realm remained covered by the boundless wilderness, known as the “Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm.”
Eight hundred years ago, the territory occupied by humanity’s Five Domains was only half of what it was now. Not only were there constant internal conflicts, but they also had to constantly worry about barbarian beast attacks.
In recent centuries, human development had been quite rapid.
Zhang Ruochen certainly understood that the threat of the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm was terrifying. A single misstep could overturn human civilization.
Eight hundred years ago, humanity had Nine Emperors and Three Empresses, but the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm had dozens of Beast Emperors.
Fortunately, the barbarian beast races in the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm were constantly fighting among themselves and were not united. Thus, humanity became the dominant force in the Kunlun Realm.
If the various barbarian beast races were to unite, it would be a nightmare for humanity. The prosperous and flourishing Five Domains would instantly turn into a hell on earth.
Three hundred years ago, Empress Chi Yao discovered that a dark force within the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm was trying to unite the barbarian beast races to attack human territory.
Therefore, she ventured into the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm, slaying eight Beast Emperors in a row, nipping the rebellion in the bud and forcing the barbarian beast races to submit.
Shengshu Cainü said, “With Empress Chi Yao overseeing the Kunlun Realm, there’s naturally no need to worry about threats from the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm. But what if the Empress herself faces a crisis?”
Zhang Ruochen smiled. “With the Empress’s current level of cultivation, who could threaten her?”
“The Heavenly Dao,” Shengshu Cainü said.
Zhang Ruochen squinted his eyes, beginning to understand the meaning behind Shengshu Cainü’s words.
“During the Middle Ages, when the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree was cut down, no human or barbarian beast in the Kunlun Realm could become a god. Some say it was because the rules of the Heavenly Dao had changed. Any living being on the verge of becoming a god would be struck down.”
“Now, the Empress’s cultivation has approached that of a god…”
Shengshu Cainü did not finish the second half of her sentence.
Zhang Ruochen’s expression turned grave. His fingers clenched tightly. “The Empress ordered the selection of nine Realm Sons—could it be because she senses that the crisis from the Heavenly Dao is imminent?”
All along, Zhang Ruochen’s greatest motivation was to grow stronger and then take revenge on Chi Yao.
If Chi Yao were to be struck down by the Heavenly Dao, who would Zhang Ruochen take revenge on?
Shengshu Cainü did not answer Zhang Ruochen’s question. After a long silence, she continued, “It’s not just the Fallen God Tomb Forest and the Barbarian Wilderness Secret Realm. There’s also the Endless Abyss. Overseas, there are many uncertain factors, such as the Death Zen Sect and the Undying Blood Clan. On the Ruins Realm battlefield, there are also unknown crises that could threaten the very existence of the entire Kunlun Realm.”
“The Empress’s order to select nine Realm Sons is to pour all of the Kunlun Realm’s cultivation resources into nurturing nine pillars that can hold up the sky for humanity. Even if she is no longer there in the future, someone will be able to support a world for humanity to survive.”
Shengshu Cainü’s eyes once again turned to Zhang Ruochen. “Lin Yue, do you now understand the importance of the nine Realm Sons? Don’t you want the cultivation resources that even Saints dream of?”
“For example, the opportunity to cultivate in the ‘Heavenly Wheel Seal,’ thousand-mark sacred artifacts, ten-thousand-mark sacred artifacts, sacred pills, sacred medicines—if you can obtain these resources, your cultivation speed will surely advance by leaps and bounds, leaving everyone else far behind. If you miss this opportunity, the gap between you and the nine Realm Sons will only widen, eventually becoming as vast as the distance between heaven and earth.”
“Moreover, even if you don’t care about cultivation resources, don’t you want to do something for all of humanity?”
Shengshu Cainü extended a snow-white, delicate hand. With a whoosh, a white sacred light flashed.
The next moment, a pea-sized pill appeared in her palm.
“This is a Withered Wood Pill. As long as you agree to compete for the Realm Son Seat, I will give it to you now to help heal your injuries.”
Her beautiful sacred eyes held a hint of expectation as she extended her hand toward Zhang Ruochen, waiting for his choice.
Given her status, doing this for a Fish-Dragon Realm cultivator was unprecedented.
Part of it was her eagerness to recruit talent, but there was also some other emotion involved.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head, shifting his gaze away from the Withered Wood Pill. “I’m sorry to disappoint the Saint’s favor. Since I have already become Princess Yanchen’s guard, I will not compete for the Realm Son position. My mind is made up; the Saint need not persuade me further.”
Shengshu Cainü was both deeply disappointed and puzzled. She had said so much, yet still couldn’t move him?
Why?
However, she could see that Zhang Ruochen was genuinely averse to the identity of “Realm Son,” so she said no more.
Shengshu Cainü let out a soft sigh. Her voice was gentle as she pursed her lips and said, “You are badly injured. Take the Withered Wood Pill first.”
Even if Zhang Ruochen did not compete for the Realm Son Seat, Shengshu Cainü had already planned to give him the Withered Wood Pill.