Chapter 813: Two Evil Monks
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze shifted to the distant Jialuo Lan, and he said, “So this is the power of a third-step Half-Saint?”
Although Jialuo Lan’s cultivation was only at the early stage of third-step Half-Saint, it was still beyond the imagination of Fish-Dragon realm cultivators. The two evil monks simply could not understand how Zhang Ruochen had managed to block that strike.
Jialuo Lan let out a cold laugh. “No wonder you were able to defeat a severely injured Ghost King. I must admit, your abilities are indeed considerable. However, if you think you can contend with me, you are gravely mistaken.”
“Whoosh!”
The Vajra Pestle shot up from the water’s surface, churning up a large wave and dragging a golden tail as it hovered once more in midair.
Jialuo Lan pressed his palms together and chanted a passage of scripture, emitting a “mi mi ma ma” sound.
Immediately afterward, golden Buddhist characters emerged from his skin, leaving his body and flying into the sky, where they connected with the Buddhist characters surging from the Vajra Pestle.
Jialuo Kong did not make a move but instead stood quietly to the side, observing the battle.
First, he had absolute confidence in Jialuo Lan. Could a third-step Half-Saint really fail to handle a Fish-Dragon realm cultivator?
Second, no matter how low Zhang Ruochen’s cultivation was, he was still the sole Heir of Time and Space, and he must be proficient in some time and space attack techniques. Both he and Jialuo Lan were unfamiliar with these two forces. Therefore, they had to proceed cautiously to avoid being ambushed by Zhang Ruochen and capsizing in the gutter.
It must be said that once a Half-Saint was on guard, it was nearly impossible for Zhang Ruochen to catch them off guard and kill them. Just like now, Jialuo Lan was not engaging Zhang Ruochen up close but was attacking from a distance using a sacred artifact. Even if Zhang Ruochen could control time and space, it would be difficult for him to pose a threat.
Through the exchange of that single strike, Zhang Ruochen had gained a general understanding of a third-step Half-Saint’s strength. Overall, it was still much more powerful than he had estimated.
On the surface, that strike seemed evenly matched. In reality, Zhang Ruochen had sustained some minor injuries, though he did not show them.
“I have to get close, fight at close range, to have a real chance.”
With that thought, Zhang Ruochen hesitated no longer. He activated the power of the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, transforming into a streak of light as he shot forward, attacking Jialuo Kong first.
“Such speed!”
Jialuo Kong was secretly startled. He had never imagined that a Fish-Dragon realm cultivator could move at such an astonishing pace. Even if Jialuo Kong used his full movement technique, he would be far slower than Zhang Ruochen.
“Sword One.”
Zhang Ruochen’s body nearly merged completely with the Abyssal Ancient Sword, turning into a light shuttle that dragged a tail dozens of meters long as it struck toward Jialuo Kong’s brow.
Jialuo Kong pressed his palm forward.
The Vajra Pestle descended rapidly from midair, emitting a dazzling light as it blocked Jialuo Kong’s front.
The tip of the Abyssal Ancient Sword collided with the tip of the Vajra Pestle. Two equally matched forces clashed, sending sword qi and Buddhist characters flying in all directions.
The sword qi and Buddhist characters struck the formation surrounding the blood lake, creating ripples and producing a “bang bang” sound.
“This kid’s strength can actually match mine evenly.”
Jialuo Kong pushed both palms forward, channeling Buddhist qi continuously into the Vajra Pestle. For a Fish-Dragon realm cultivator to unleash such terrifying power completely defied his understanding. He had to go all out just to hold his ground.
What he did not know was that Zhang Ruochen was not only using his five saint veins to channel saint qi but also utilizing his thirty-six meridians. In every instant, the amount of saint qi Zhang Ruochen channeled was double that of Jialuo Kong, enough to compensate for the gap in cultivation level.
There was another, even greater reason:
This place was the Underworld.
The greatest advantage of a Half-Saint was that they had cultivated a saint soul, allowing them to mobilize the natural energy of heaven and earth within a radius of hundreds or even thousands of miles, converting it into their own power. In other words, they could use the power of heaven and earth to suppress Fish-Dragon realm cultivators.
But in the Underworld, there was no natural energy of heaven and earth. Whether Fish-Dragon realm cultivator or Half-Saint, they could only rely on their own strength to fight. For Zhang Ruochen, this was undoubtedly the greatest advantage.
If he were in the Kunlun Realm, Zhang Ruochen might very well lose to Jialuo Kong. In the Underworld, however, Zhang Ruochen would never be defeated.
Suddenly, Jialuo Kong discovered something horrifying: the Vajra Pestle was slowly melting, turning into golden droplets that surged toward Zhang Ruochen’s black giant sword.
The black giant sword absorbed the golden droplets into its blade, transforming them into inscriptions.
“His sword is refining my sacred artifact!”
Jialuo Kong’s eyes widened, revealing an expression of both shock and fury.
Although the Vajra Pestle was not a divine weapon on the Hundred-Inscription Sacred Artifact List, it was still a formidable treasure, definitely among the top-tier hundred-inscription sacred artifacts. Losing the Vajra Pestle would reduce Jialuo Kong’s combat power by at least half. From now on, when facing a Half-Saint of equal strength, he could only flee.
Jialuo Kong was caught in a dilemma. The power of Zhang Ruochen’s black giant sword was terrifying, and it was very close to him. If he withdrew the Vajra Pestle, he would have no way to retreat and would surely be pierced through the body by the black giant sword. If he continued to hold out until the black giant sword completely refined the Vajra Pestle, Jialuo Kong would be even more doomed.
At that moment, Jialuo Kong finally realized that this Heir of Time and Space was incredibly troublesome. He had been far too careless earlier.
Jialuo Lan also saw that Jialuo Kong’s situation was very wrong. It did not seem like he was suppressing the Heir of Time and Space, but rather the Heir of Time and Space was suppressing him.
“Amitabha.”
Without waiting any longer, Jialuo Lan chanted a Buddhist phrase. His skin immediately turned golden, and he formed a hand seal, attacking Zhang Ruochen from behind.
Seeing Jialuo Lan make his move, Jialuo Kong was overjoyed.
Zhang Ruochen, however, frowned. If he were caught in a pincer attack by two evil monks, even if he used all his techniques, he would surely lose.
In that case, he had to go all out and kill one first.
Zhang Ruochen struck the hilt of the Abyssal Ancient Sword with his palm, mobilizing all his sword intent and merging it with the sword body.
“Break for me.”
“Bang!” Cracks appeared on the surface of the Vajra Pestle, which then exploded, sending dozens of golden fragments flying outward.
The Abyssal Ancient Sword did not slow down, passing through the golden fragments and continuing toward Jialuo Kong’s brow.
“Boundless Buddhist Dharma.”
Jialuo Kong roared, gathering a stream of yin-cold corpse qi in his left hand and a ball of bright Buddhist light in his right. He brought them together in the center, actually blocking the Abyssal Ancient Sword with his bare hands.
It must be said that a third-step Half-Saint’s strength was formidable. Zhang Ruochen had gained the upper hand, but he still could not kill him.
In that instant, the hand seal Jialuo Lan had formed reached Zhang Ruochen’s back. Even without turning around, Zhang Ruochen could feel a wave of heat scorching his skin from behind.
With his powerful spiritual power, Zhang Ruochen multitasked. On one hand, he used his sword intent to control the Abyssal Ancient Sword, continuing to suppress Jialuo Kong.
At the same time, he spun around abruptly, mobilizing the power of space, and swept his finger backward.
“Space Rift.”
Silently, space shattered, forming a black rift dozens of meters long.
Jialuo Lan’s expression changed. He immediately withdrew his hand seal and used his fastest speed to sidestep to the right, narrowly dodging the Space Rift.
When Jialuo Lan finally steadied himself, he was still shaken. Beads of sweat dripped from his forehead.
Was that the power of space?
It was incredibly dangerous. He had come within a hair’s breadth of falling into the Void Space.
Not far away, a scream reached Jialuo Lan’s ears.
Just now, after using the Space Rift to force Jialuo Lan back, Zhang Ruochen had used the Space Displacement movement technique to appear behind Jialuo Kong, striking him in the back with his palm.
Jialuo Kong’s back bones shattered. He spat blood and was sent flying.
But before he could fall to the water’s surface, a sword qi slashed across his waist, cutting his Half-Saint body in two. Blood spilled into the lake.
This series of attacks was all completed in the blink of an eye. Every move seemed practiced a thousand times, giving Jialuo Kong no chance to survive.
Another Half-Saint elder of the Dead Zen Sect died under Zhang Ruochen’s sword.
After killing Jialuo Kong, Zhang Ruochen immediately collected his corpse into his space ring and sealed it away.
The moment Jialuo Kong died, a large number of Half-Saint puppets around the blood lake lost their Buddhist power control, collapsed backward, and turned back into corpses floating on the water’s surface.
The formation jointly set up by Jialuo Kong and Jialuo Lan naturally shattered as well.
Thus, Zhang Ruochen had completely resolved the crisis. Even if he could not defeat Jialuo Lan, he could easily retreat.
On the small island, the Blood Moon Ghost King slowly stood up. Her bright eyes fixed on Zhang Ruochen. “Heir of Time and Space? Not only can he tear space, but he can also teleport. It’s true. This person is very extraordinary.”
Even the Blood Moon Ghost King had never seen anyone control space before. So, she felt quite shocked. If she could also control space and time, then other Ghost Kings would likely have to fear her.
The Blood Moon Ghost King’s gaze toward Zhang Ruochen grew deep. She secretly pondered how to capture him and force the secrets of controlling time and space from his mouth.
The Blood Moon Ghost King did not intend to disturb the two humans on the lake. She would let them fight first, while she quietly absorbed the power of moonlight, healed her injuries, and gathered ghost qi.