Chapter 869: Abandoned City Sacrifice
Four months later, Zhang Ruochen had consecutively refined three drops of Dragon Emperor Blood and consumed a large amount of Silver Moon Dragon Elephant blood, finally succeeding in cultivating the ninth palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm.
His physical constitution advanced further, becoming even more formidable.
It could be said that even the body of a divine dragon cub from ancient times might not surpass Zhang Ruochen's current state.
"Roar!"
Standing on the ground, Zhang Ruochen activated his technique. The sacred qi within his body transformed into the forms of golden horned dragons, bursting forth from his pores and swirling around him in flight.
Pressing his palm toward the ground, thousands of dragon shadows surged downward simultaneously, causing the earth to collapse and form a massive handprint.
Then, he withdrew his sacred qi, and all the dragon shadows vanished without a trace in an instant.
"With my current physique, I should have reached the limit of the Fish-Dragon Realm. It's hard to improve further, so I can begin refining the tenth drop of divine blood."
Other cultivators only undergo the transformation from fish to dragon upon breaking through to the Half-Saint Realm. Although Zhang Ruochen was still in the Fish-Dragon Realm, he had already completed this transformation, becoming a dragon among men, exuding an extraordinary bearing in every move.
Zhang Ruochen stepped out of the Scroll World and reappeared in that abandoned ancient city.
Although four months had passed in the Scroll World, only a little over ten days had elapsed in the outside world.
At the center of the ancient city, the altar, abandoned for centuries, had been repaired by Xiao Hei, with complete sacrificial inscriptions re-engraved, ready for the ritual at any time.
The Devouring Rabbit and the Demon Ape had captured a large number of savage beasts from the city's outskirts, numbering in the thousands, all bound with iron chains and piled atop the altar.
"Zhang Ruochen, have you successfully cultivated the ninth palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm?" Li Min asked, seeing Zhang Ruochen emerge from seclusion, immediately approaching him.
Li Min didn't know where Zhang Ruochen had gone to cultivate, but since he was the Heir of Time and Space, he surely had some extraordinary methods.
Zhang Ruochen, with his hands behind his back, glanced at her and could clearly sense that her spiritual power had reached the thirty-first rank.
The medicinal effect of the Red-Crowned Flesh Ganoderma was quite significant; in just a few days, it had raised her spiritual power by one rank. Once she fully absorbed its potency, she might break through to the thirty-second rank.
"Hmm," Zhang Ruochen said.
Standing before Zhang Ruochen, Li Min was a full head shorter, her beautiful eyes shimmering with light. "Then, you should be able to transform into a dragon form, right? According to records, a Buddhist cultivator once executed the ninth palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, his body turning into a hundred-zhang-long fire dragon, both claws striking simultaneously, tearing the earth for a thousand li into a canyon. Is it really that powerful?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "The strength of a palm technique depends not only on the technique itself but also on the cultivator's cultivation level. A Half-Saint and a Saint executing the same ninth palm will produce vastly different power."
Li Min tilted her head, pondering for a moment, then muttered to herself, "The book didn't mention how high that Buddhist cultivator's cultivation was. Zhang Ruochen, can you demonstrate the ninth palm? Can humans really turn into dragons?"
"No."
Zhang Ruochen didn't want to continue this entanglement and walked toward the top of the altar.
Li Min immediately chased after him, following behind, and said, "Tomorrow night is the full moon night. If we conduct the sacrifice then, it will be easier to open the divine realm's gate and borrow the divine power of the gods."
Zhang Ruochen stopped, "Tomorrow night is the full moon night?"
"Yes, so you should wait a bit. Even if you're eager to refine the divine blood, there's no rush. Right?" Li Min said.
Zhang Ruochen looked up at the sky and used his spiritual power to calculate.
Any cultivator who had read many books knew that not all times were suitable for sacrifice. The winter solstice and the full moon night were the best moments.
As Li Min said, tomorrow night would be more suitable for the ritual.
"Fine, I'll wait then," Zhang Ruochen said.
A hint of joy appeared on Li Min's pretty face. "Zhang Ruochen, since you gave me the Red-Crowned Flesh Ganoderma, I won't take advantage of you. I'll give you something in return."
With that, she took out a bamboo scroll from her sleeve and handed it to Zhang Ruochen.
"What is it?"
Zhang Ruochen didn't reach out to take it, only asking indifferently.
"A sacrifice naturally needs a sacrificial text. This text was carved with great effort by me, and it's also the first sacrificial text I've ever written."
Li Min was extremely excited, looking up at Zhang Ruochen with expectant eyes.
"Is that so? Not needed."
Having said that, Zhang Ruochen walked down the altar, sat cross-legged on the ground, closed his eyes, and began to regulate his breathing.
Any Confucian disciple naturally hoped that the sacrificial text they wrote could be used in a ritual to communicate with the gods and accumulate fortune for themselves.
However, most sacrificial texts in rituals were written and recited by respected sages. Young students rarely had the chance to participate.
Having finally encountered an opportunity, Li Min immediately wrote a sacrificial text. Over the past few days, every time she thought about reciting her own text at the ritual, she became quite excited.
Who would have expected Zhang Ruochen to react this way?
Li Min was unwilling to give up. She walked over to Zhang Ruochen and continued chattering, "How can a sacrifice be without a sacrificial text? Without it, how will the gods know your request? Zhang Ruochen, if you don't even have the sincerity to recite the text, how can the gods bestow divine power to help you refine the divine blood?"
For an entire day and night, Li Min approached Zhang Ruochen five times, speaking very seriously and persistently, almost wearing down his ears.
In the end, Zhang Ruochen couldn't stand her anymore and agreed.
The sky gradually darkened, and the moon's imprint could already be seen in the sky.
The temperature of the entire world began to drop rapidly, with howling cold winds blowing into this dilapidated, ancient city, making sounds like ghostly wails.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged atop the altar, his hands resting flat on his knees, beginning to adjust his state, preparing to refine the tenth drop of divine blood and charge toward the legendary Fish-Dragon Tenth Transformation.
For him, this was a very important moment that required careful handling.
Li Min stood below the altar, holding the bamboo scroll, and began to recite the sacrificial text: "Times past and present, all ages follow. Hearts differ, yet we revere the holy spirits."
...
A full hour passed before she finished reciting the text, evidently quite satisfied, rubbing her dry, sore throat. Finally, she mustered her breath and said, "The sacrifice begins."
"Bang, bang."
On the altar, the bodies of all the savage beasts burst open, gushing crimson blood that formed bloody streams, flowing into the grooves of the altar.
Immediately after, the world's spiritual energy trembled violently, surging outward in all directions.
A blood-red pillar of light shot up from the center of the altar, piercing through the clouds and reaching beyond the heavens.
The entire sky turned completely blood-red. Only a huge bright moon still hung among the blood clouds, casting down pure radiance.
A mysterious force descended from above, entering Zhang Ruochen's body and connecting with the divine marks in his qi sea.
"Whoosh—"
The divine marks flew out from his body one after another, hovering above the altar, emitting beams of sacred light.
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen took out a drop of divine blood, holding it between his hands, and began to refine and absorb it with the help of the divine power.
"Zhang Ruochen is only at the Fish-Dragon Realm, yet he's so powerful, able to defeat Half-Saints. Could he really be aiming for the legendary Fish-Dragon Tenth Transformation?" Li Min clenched her small, jade-white hands, holding her breath, watching the top of the altar without blinking.
It was conceivable that if Zhang Ruochen broke through to the Fish-Dragon Tenth Transformation, it would cause even greater shock than reaching the Supreme Extreme Realm of the Heavenly Extreme Realm.
Six hundred li from this abandoned ancient city, a troop of soldiers riding savage elephants spotted the blood-red clouds on the horizon, faintly sensing a slight tremor in the world's spiritual energy.
They were a group of elephant soldiers sent by King Wanxiang to find Zhang Ruochen, and they had coincidentally searched this area.
"That direction should be the former Wild Goose Return City. Wasn't it already in ruins? How could such a startling phenomenon occur?"
"It feels like someone is conducting a sacrifice. Strange, why would anyone choose to sacrifice there?"
"Something unusual must be happening. Report to the king first."
...
After the soldiers reported the news, King Wanxiang sensed something was off and rushed over immediately.
Standing in the center of the wilderness, King Wanxiang held the Octagonal Sacred Eye. On one of its facets, the image of Zhang Ruochen appeared. At that moment, Zhang Ruochen was sitting cross-legged at the center of the altar, actually refining divine blood.
"Haha! Right now, all factions in Qingli Commandery are looking for him, yet he dares to make such a grand show of sacrificing to the gods and refining divine blood. He's truly seeking death."
King Wanxiang knew that Zhang Ruochen was extremely powerful, and he also had several formidable beast battle pets under his command. Although he wanted to claim all the battle merit for himself, he was well aware that he couldn't capture Zhang Ruochen alone.
Therefore, King Wanxiang immediately sent out several message light talismans, spreading the news of Zhang Ruochen's reappearance.
To avoid alerting the enemy, King Wanxiang didn't act rashly but stayed put, quietly observing Zhang Ruochen.
Gradually, he noticed something unusual.
Zhang Ruochen's aura was rapidly growing stronger. Some of the divine marks that had been hovering in the air were actually flying into his body.
Above the sky, the blood clouds spread outward, growing wider and wider, as if turning into a sea of blood.
"Your Majesty, I hear faint divine sounds coming from beyond the heavens?"
In an instant, the soldiers around King Wanxiang were affected by a strange force, falling to their knees in large numbers, bowing toward the ancient city.
"How can this be? Even if Zhang Ruochen were breaking through to the Half-Saint Realm, he couldn't cause such a phenomenon. Could it be..."
King Wanxiang's burly body shook violently as he guessed a possibility.
Thinking of this, a blazing light surged in King Wanxiang's eyes. He no longer waited for other experts to arrive. Mounting a Silver Moon Dragon Elephant, he galloped ahead toward the ancient city.
...
(Finally managed to update before 12 o'clock, not easy! There's another chapter coming up, and I'll try to get it in before 12 as well, so you don't accuse me of deliberately skipping updates and pushing today's chapter to tomorrow. Once I adjust, I'll stabilize the update schedule.)