# Chapter 821: Ghost King Submits
Zhang Ruochen once again attempted to break open the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin. This time, he even borrowed Hanxue's Void Sword, yet still could not shake it.
In the end, Zhang Ruochen had no choice but to give up and stop trying.
"Ancient records mention that the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin is a sacred artifact of the Moon Worship Demon Sect, passed down through extremely ancient times with many marvelous uses. For this woman to have her corpse placed in the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin after death, she must have been at least a Palace Master or Holy Maiden during her lifetime, possibly even an ancient Sect Leader," Zhang Ruochen said.
Regarding the specific information about the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin, Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei did not know much. To identify her identity, they would have to wait until returning to the Kunlun Realm and look through the files on the Moon Worship Demon Sect.
A figure like her could not possibly be unknown. Finding out who she was should not be too difficult.
Although Mu Lingxi and the Divine Demon Mouse were members of the Demon Sect, they had rarely seen these files. In fact, this was the first time they had heard the name Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin, so they knew even less about the woman inside.
Hanxue tilted her head, curious, and asked, "Master, how are you so sure she is dead? Couldn't she still be alive, just in a deep slumber?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled and shook his head, saying, "From the Middle Ages to now, at least a hundred thousand years have passed. Even a Great Saint would have turned to bones. Only a god might have the slightest chance of living until now."
"What if she really is a god?" Hanxue asked.
Zhang Ruochen patted Hanxue's head and explained, "After the Middle Ages, no one has been able to become a god. All gods have long since disappeared from the Kunlun Realm."
Hanxue pressed on, "Didn't Master just say that this Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin is a sacred artifact from before the Middle Ages? So why couldn't a god be lying inside?"
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen was left speechless.
He dared not imagine such a thing, yet Hanxue dared to. Had he truly become an old stick-in-the-mud?
Zhang Ruochen said, "If my guess is correct, she must be dead. Otherwise, the Blood Moon Ghost King would not have been born from the Blood Lake."
Hanxue suddenly understood and said, "Master means that the Blood Moon Ghost King is her ghost?"
"That should be the case," Zhang Ruochen said.
Hanxue's eyes dimmed slightly, and she said, "So she really is dead. Master, do you think Master's Master could come back to life?"
Zhang Ruochen's gaze shifted to Xuanji Sword Saint's remains, his expression heavy. He shook his head and said, "I don't know."
Zhang Ruochen wished more than anyone that Xuanji Sword Saint could come back to life. But even though his injuries had healed, his body was still lifeless, devoid of any vitality.
With his soul already scattered, how could there be any chance of survival?
Unless, as Xiao Hei had said, they could find a Spiritual Power Great Saint who could use powerful spiritual power to summon the soul back.
But Spiritual Power Great Saints were extremely rare. Legend had it that in the last ten thousand years, only Wen Di, one of the Nine Emperors, had reached that level.
Wen Di was the leader of the Confucian Path. In his time, he had assisted Qing Di and Chi Yao in unifying the Kunlun Realm. It was because of this achievement that after the First Central Empire was established, Chi Yao vigorously supported the Confucian Path, allowing its power to rival that of the Buddhist Path and the Taiji Path.
Unfortunately, after the First Central Empire was established, Wen Di retired and disappeared from the Kunlun Realm, never to be seen again. No one knew if he was still alive.
Even if Wen Di were alive, and Zhang Ruochen could find him, what then?
Would Wen Di be willing to save Xuanji Sword Saint?
Obviously not.
Even a Spiritual Power Great Saint would have to pay a considerable price to summon back the soul of the deceased. Why would he help Zhang Ruochen?
In Wen Di's eyes, what difference was there between Zhang Ruochen and an ant?
For now, Zhang Ruochen could only place Xuanji Sword Saint's remains beneath the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree, allowing the two streams of life energy to continue nourishing him. Perhaps a miracle would happen?
...
...
When the Blood Moon Ghost King entered the Scroll World, she immediately felt that the world was filled with the breath of life. Everywhere was vibrant and green, a completely different world from the deathly stillness of the Underworld.
But she did not like such a world. As an undead, she needed a constant supply of death energy, souls, and yin evil to survive.
Otherwise, even if Zhang Ruochen did not kill her, she would soon die from the loss of ghostly energy.
Today, however, she discovered an incredibly powerful death energy. That death energy emanated from the place with the most abundant life energy.
Thus, the Blood Moon Ghost King had been searching and finally found the location of the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree.
Standing on the mountaintop and looking down, she saw a scene that filled her with shock. A massive, rotten tree stump sat on the ground, about thirty zhang high.
The stump was like a huge, flat circular platform, its edges beyond sight. On the platform were densely packed growth rings, numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Each ring was like a volume of history, recording the changes of wind and rain throughout heaven and earth from ancient times to the present.
It was hard to imagine how enormous that tree must have been when it was alive.
This stump was the root of the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree.
According to the Blood Moon Ghost King's estimation, the root's diameter was over two hundred li, or more than ten thousand meters. If the tree were still alive, an ordinary person would need a month to walk around its trunk.
Other cultivators who came here could only feel the rich life energy emanating from the new sapling. But the Blood Moon Ghost King detected an incredibly vast death energy within the tree root.
It was the power left behind after the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree died, hidden deep within the root, interwoven with the life energy.
The Blood Moon Ghost King had never seen such immense death energy, and its quality was terrifyingly high.
"If I could absorb all the death energy in this tree root, how far would my cultivation advance? Even the Divine Beginning Ghost King might not be my match. I could become one of the most powerful existences on the outskirts of the Underworld."
Flames flickered in the Blood Moon Ghost King's eyes. She spread her arms, transforming into a light bird, and flew toward the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree's root.
But before she could land on the root's surface, a figure flashed and appeared first at the edge of the root, materializing into a spirited young man with his hands behind his back. He was looking at her with a smile.
"Zhang Ruochen."
The joy on the Blood Moon Ghost King's face vanished instantly. She landed and stood opposite Zhang Ruochen, saying, "I have thought it through. I can submit to you."
Zhang Ruochen was slightly surprised and asked, "What made you suddenly change your mind?"
The Blood Moon Ghost King countered, "Do I have any other choice? Even if you don't kill me and just imprison me in this world, I will soon die completely. For now, I don't want to die."
Zhang Ruochen nodded and said, "A very wise decision."
"But your cultivation is too weak. If I submit to you, I will surely be mocked by other Ghost Kings. So you must agree to two conditions."
The Blood Moon Ghost King had already prepared her words, so she appeared quite calm.
That the Blood Moon Ghost King would propose conditions was within Zhang Ruochen's expectations. As long as her conditions were not too excessive, Zhang Ruochen would agree.
After all, for a Ghost King to choose submission was no easy feat. Pressuring her too hard would backfire.
Whether dealing with people or ghosts, one must be both strict and merciful. Too strict, and subordinates would rebel. Too merciful, the same result.
Whether the Blood Moon Ghost King's submission was genuine or false, as long as Zhang Ruochen could first become her master, he could use many methods to train her and truly win her over.
One day, Zhang Ruochen would make her understand how wise today's decision was.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Speak."
"First, even if I submit to you now, before your cultivation surpasses mine, we must be equals. I can carry out your orders, but I can also choose not to execute unreasonable ones. If you cannot agree to this condition, there is no need to mention the second." The Blood Moon Ghost King raised her chin, looking quite proud.
"Equal status?"
A powerful yang energy erupted from Zhang Ruochen's body, turning him into a blazing sun that forced the Blood Moon Ghost King to retreat continuously. "What is a reasonable order? What is an unreasonable order? Without a clear boundary, what meaning does your so-called submission have? If you try to play tricks with me, keeping you around seems pointless."
The powerful yang energy continuously evaporated the ghostly energy from the Blood Moon Ghost King's body, making her face turn deathly pale. But she still refused to concede, saying, "If your order carries great danger, I naturally will not execute it."
However, her words were no longer as tough as before.
Zhang Ruochen, carrying his powerful yang energy, walked toward the Blood Moon Ghost King, forcing her to retreat further.
At this moment, the Blood Moon Ghost King did not look like a powerful king at all. She was like a weak girl backed into a corner by a burly man. No one knew what would happen next.
The Blood Moon Ghost King was already very weak. Under the close-range intimidation of the yang energy, she could not resist, as if she might turn to ash at any moment.
After a while, Zhang Ruochen felt it was enough and retracted his yang energy, saying, "Rest assured. If even you find something dangerous, I will certainly not do it. I agree to the first condition for now. Speak. What is your second condition?"
The Blood Moon Ghost King let out a long sigh of relief. She looked down at her feet and said, "I want to absorb all the death energy in this tree root to increase my cultivation."
The Sky-Connecting Divine Tree was known as the last god of the Kunlun Realm, having lived from the beginning of the Kunlun Realm until the end of the Middle Ages.
When the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree was cut down, it was like a god falling, naturally leaving behind a vast amount of death energy.
Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood. He thought to himself, No wonder the Blood Moon Ghost King suddenly changed her mind and chose to submit to him. She was after this death energy.