Chapter 899: A Difficult Battle
“No…”
The demon mink let out a miserable cry as its body flew backward, colliding directly with the spatial rift.
Silently and without a sound, its massive body split cleanly into two halves.
Gradually, the two bloody halves shrank, turning into human-shaped corpse pieces.
A Domain King from the Ministry of War had fallen on the arena, leaving behind only a head and a pair of war boots.
Everyone drew in a cold breath, staring in shock at Zhang Ruochen standing above. Was he really just a first-stage Half-Saint?
“His strength is actually this formidable.” Wang Jie’s expression turned quite gloomy.
“Without using the Thousand Ripple Annihilation Force, he’s still this powerful?”
Wan Zhaoyi furrowed his brow, also somewhat astonished. After all, with his own talent and opportunities, when he was a first-stage Half-Saint, he had been far inferior to Zhang Ruochen as he was now.
If Zhang Ruochen ever broke through to the Saint realm one day, his fame would surely overshadow all the heroes under heaven.
But would Zhang Ruochen ever have that day?
“Whoosh—”
Wang Pu’s Saint Soul flew out from between his eyebrows, charging toward the outside of the arena.
However, Zhang Ruochen acted first, using the Wish-Fulfilling Treasure Vase to draw that Saint Soul into the bottle.
Below, Feng Qin roared loudly, “Zhang Ruochen, aren’t you being too ruthless? Not only did you kill Demon Mink King, but you won’t even let his Saint Soul go?”
Zhang Ruochen held the Wish-Fulfilling Treasure Vase in his hand and said calmly, “I already said it earlier—today, anyone who steps onto this arena will only meet death. You’d all better think carefully before coming up again.”
“If you die by my hand, I will send your Saint Soul into the Silent Extinction Prison, where it will suffer one hundred and eight kinds of torture, never to reincarnate for eternity.” Feng Qin’s eyes were filled with dense bloodshot streaks as he prepared to step onto the arena to duel Zhang Ruochen.
Wan Zhaoyi reminded him, saying, “Zhang Ruochen’s power is only equivalent to a cultivator in the early stage of sixth-stage Half-Saint, but he can manipulate spatial power, shifting positions and tearing space… and so on, making his moves unpredictable.”
“When fighting him, it’s best to be cautious, pay attention to spatial fluctuations around you, and don’t end up like Wang Pu, capsizing in a ditch.”
“Understood.”
Feng Qin acknowledged, then signed the life-and-death contract, stepped onto the ground, and rushed up to the arena.
This time, no one competed with Feng Qin.
After all, everyone had clearly seen the previous battle—Zhang Ruochen was definitely a ruthless character, not someone anyone could easily handle.
Feng Qin’s body radiated a strong crimson sacred light, like a blazing cloud, flying down above Zhang Ruochen’s head.
Immediately after, a crimson fist seal struck down fiercely toward Zhang Ruochen’s head.
The fist technique Feng Qin used was called the Hundred Battles Bull Demon Fist, consisting of one hundred moves—an extremely domineering ultimate skill, only a step below a Sacred Art.
“Jade Scene War God!”
With one punch, a deafening fist explosion rang out.
Fortunately, soundproofing formations were arranged around the arena. Otherwise, the fist explosion alone would have shattered the eardrums of the Zhenyu Ancient Clan cultivators.
It was worth noting that Wang Pu had only just broken through to sixth-stage Half-Saint and was already a tough opponent, forcing Zhang Ruochen to use a spatial rift to kill him.
But Feng Qin was even more formidable, his cultivation reaching the peak of sixth-stage Half-Saint.
At the same sixth-stage Half-Saint realm, Feng Qin would need at most ten moves to defeat Wang Pu.
Zhang Ruochen naturally dared not underestimate his opponent. He summoned the Abyssal Ancient Sword, mobilized his Saint Qi and sword intent, causing the Abyssal Ancient Sword to emit several zhang of black light, and slashed upward.
Without being able to use the Thousand Ripple Annihilation Force, using the Abyssal Ancient Sword was clearly the way for Zhang Ruochen to unleash his strongest combat power.
“Whoosh!”
A sword light flew out.
Though it seemed like a simple slash, it incorporated some of the mysteries of Sword Three, using a precise angle to neutralize Feng Qin’s fist force.
Feng Qin was a king of a hundred battles, each move fluid and grand. He immediately gathered his full strength again and threw a second punch.
“Turning Horse in Chaotic Times.”
Around his crimson fist, dozens of black demon bull phantoms appeared, once again attacking Zhang Ruochen.
The powerful fist force enveloped the entire arena, leaving Zhang Ruochen no room to dodge.
Clearly, Feng Qin was suppressing Zhang Ruochen with speed and power, preventing him from using his spatial abilities.
Zhang Ruochen raised his sword to block, and from the sword body, dense sword qi flew out—thousands of strands—forming a semicircular sword formation.
With a “bang,” the fist seal shattered the sword formation, sending Zhang Ruochen flying backward.
Zhang Ruochen had already released his Space Domain, so he quickly neutralized the fist force.
But before he could land back on the ground, Feng Qin’s third punch had already reached him, crashing down like a crimson meteor.
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen’s face was also reflected in crimson.
“Five Elements Dharma Aspect.” Zhang Ruochen’s body emitted a five-colored radiance, shattering all the demon bull phantoms around him.
At the same time, a sword light flashed.
The tip of the Abyssal Ancient Sword collided with Feng Qin’s fist, producing a loud boom, like two steel demon mountains crashing together.
Feng Qin wore a pair of Sacred Artifact-level fist gloves on his hands. Even after colliding with the Abyssal Ancient Sword, he wasn’t injured.
However, that fist glove cracked with numerous fissures, rendering it useless.
“Even a Thousand-Mark Sacred Artifact can’t be this sharp.”
Feng Qin stared at the Abyssal Ancient Sword in Zhang Ruochen’s hand, a wary look in his eyes, and dared not clash directly with that sword again.
If even a Sacred Artifact couldn’t withstand it, a Half-Saint’s body certainly couldn’t either.
After the direct clash with Feng Qin, Zhang Ruochen wasn’t in good shape either. He flew straight out, crashing with a “bang” into the formation light wall at the edge of the arena, causing the light wall to dent slightly.
Landing back on the ground, a trickle of blood flowed from Zhang Ruochen’s right arm, seeping along his fingers into the sword body.
In that exchange, Zhang Ruochen’s strong physique allowed him to endure, sustaining only minor injuries.
If it had been another first-stage Half-Saint, taking Feng Qin’s punch would surely have resulted in complete annihilation.
“Whoosh.”
The Abyssal Ancient Sword absorbed Zhang Ruochen’s blood into its body, emitting faint rings of red light.
This was…
Zhang Ruochen also noticed the change in the Abyssal Ancient Sword and was overjoyed—this was a sign that the Abyssal Ancient Sword was about to advance to a Thousand-Mark Sacred Artifact.
Once it advanced, the sword spirit of the Abyssal Ancient Sword would awaken.
The sword would not only become sharper, but the sword spirit could also assist Zhang Ruochen, making his sword techniques more perfect and powerful.
Moreover, in his previous life, the sword spirit of the Abyssal Ancient Sword had been Zhang Ruochen’s best friend.
Now that the sword spirit was about to awaken, how could Zhang Ruochen not be happy?
Zhang Ruochen swept his sleeve, rolling up Wang Pu’s four hundred-mark Sacred Artifact-level blood blades, sending them flying toward the Abyssal Ancient Sword.
The Abyssal Ancient Sword, being sentient, immediately began refining the four blood blades, eager to reach the Thousand-Mark Sacred Artifact level as quickly as possible to help Zhang Ruochen in the upcoming battle.
“It can actually refine other Sacred Artifacts.” Feng Qin stared at the Abyssal Ancient Sword, feeling even more astonished.
The black sacred sword in Zhang Ruochen’s hand could destroy a hundred-mark Sacred Artifact in one strike, which was already quite bizarre.
It was practically the bane of all Sacred Artifacts.
If it refined those four blood blades, wouldn’t it become even sharper?
“Execution Command.”
Feng Qin took out an iron token and infused it with Saint Qi.
The Execution Command transformed into a black giant stele over ten zhang tall, emitting a domineering Sacred Emperor aura, and crashed down toward Zhang Ruochen at the edge of the arena.
“Take it in.”
Zhang Ruochen sent the Wish-Fulfilling Treasure Vase flying out, hoping to use its power to draw the Execution Command inside.
But the Execution Command was extremely domineering, manifesting an Empress’s mark, directly knocking the Wish-Fulfilling Treasure Vase away.
Although the Wish-Fulfilling Treasure Vase failed to collect the Execution Command, Zhang Ruochen took this opportunity to activate the Luan Phoenix Divine Seal’s extreme speed, charging forward abruptly to dodge the Execution Command’s attack.
“Boom.”
The Execution Command’s power struck the edge of the arena, causing the suspended platform to shake violently, as if it were about to fall to the ground.
Zhang Ruochen’s speed was very fast, surpassing that of a seventh-stage Half-Saint.
However, Feng Qin, who mastered the Wind Dao rules, was also extremely fast—on par with Zhang Ruochen.
Just as Zhang Ruochen charged out, Feng Qin had already calculated Zhang Ruochen’s evasive trajectory and launched a second strike, aiming to seize the initiative.
“Every king in the Ministry of War is a battle-hardened figure who has undergone many life-and-death trials. They’re indeed hard to deal with,” Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
The Execution Command’s power enveloped the entire arena, leaving Zhang Ruochen no way to dodge.
The arena was too small, putting Zhang Ruochen at a significant disadvantage.
Forced into a corner, Zhang Ruochen had to steady himself, his hands emitting a five-colored radiance as he pressed them forward simultaneously, clashing head-on with the Execution Command.
“Bang!”
Zhang Ruochen flew out again, crashing into the formation light curtain at the edge of the arena.
This time, the impact was even more violent. His spine felt as if it had snapped, and his entire body went numb, as if it no longer belonged to him.
“Pfft.”
Zhang Ruochen landed back on the arena. As soon as he stood up, a mouthful of blood spewed from his lips. Gradually, a sharp pain surged from all over his body.
His vision went dark and blurry, and he swayed unsteadily, as if about to collapse to the ground.
Seeing this, a loud cheer erupted from below the arena.
“I thought Zhang Ruochen could hold out longer, but in front of Feng Qin, he only lasted a few moves.”
“This lackey of the Undying Blood Clan is finally going to be killed. How satisfying. Haha.”
“Kill Zhang Ruochen, tear him to pieces.”
“Trying to infiltrate the Zhenyu Ancient Clan and secretly work for the Undying Blood Clan—this is the fate he deserves.” Wang Jie squinted with a smile, then looked toward Shi Ren.
He saw Shi Ren clenching his fists tightly, eager to rush onto the arena, but held back by a group of Shi family elders.
Li Min bit her lip hard, tears glistening in her clear eyes. She couldn’t bear to watch Zhang Ruochen die on the arena.
Because she firmly believed that Zhang Ruochen could never be a bad person, let alone collude with the Undying Blood Clan. He should rise powerfully, becoming the most dazzling and remarkable Great Saint, not end up like this. (To be continued.)