Chapter 917: The Key Figure
"Boom!"
Zhang Ruochen rode the Devouring Rabbit as he charged out from beneath the collapsed mountain, sending dirt and rocks flying in all directions.
He stretched out his arm, retracting the Abyssal Ancient Sword into his grip, and stared intently at the Blood Sword with a look of extreme caution.
Beside him, the Demon Ape let out a low growl as it slowly climbed to its feet and sat down on the ground.
"Demon Ape, enter the Scroll World first to heal your injuries."
Zhang Ruochen took out the Cosmic Divine Wood Map from his Qi Sea and opened the scroll. Its surface emitted a soft, radiant light, drawing the Demon Ape inside.
"Whoosh!"
The Blood Sword flew through the air and landed in the Second Prince's hand.
The Second Prince stood more than ten miles away, not daring to approach. He was quite worried that Zhang Ruochen might still possess pills containing Death Evil Qi.
Once contaminated by Death Evil Qi, even with his cultivation and physique, it would be extremely difficult to dispel.
The Second Prince hovered dozens of feet above the ground, clad in a suit of blood armor, standing atop a dense mass of blood clouds like a world-dominating demon emperor.
Even from more than ten miles away, Zhang Ruochen could smell the bloody scent emanating from him.
Zhang Ruochen chuckled and said, "With your strength, if I wanted to leave, could you stop me?"
The Second Prince sneered contemptuously, "Do you think that by wielding Xuanji Sword Saint's sacred decree, you can escape my grasp? Let me tell you the truth—I also possess a sacred decree, but mine comes from the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor. No matter how powerful Xuanji Sword Saint is, can he be stronger than the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor?"
"Is that so? If the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor is so powerful, then why doesn't he dare to go to the Central Imperial City to deal with Empress Chi Yao?" Zhang Ruochen retorted.
Eight hundred years ago, the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor was one of the Ten Great Blood Marshals under the Blood Queen. Even then, he was a mighty figure who shook the world, known as the "Azure Heaven Blood Marshal," having slaughtered countless human sages.
Now, eight hundred years later, the Azure Heaven Blood Marshal had become the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor, and his cultivation had surely reached a level that even saints could only dream of.
The Second Prince's gaze turned heavy, "Do you think that Empress will live much longer? Once the Underworld King escapes from the Nether Prison, the first person he will deal with is her. Once the Empress dies, the Kunlun Realm will fall to our Undying Blood Clan to rule everything. All humans will become livestock for our clan, providing us with blood, serving as slaves and beasts for generations."
Zhang Ruochen's fingers unconsciously tightened around the sword hilt, "Do you think the Nether Prison is a place anyone can break into? If the Undying Blood Clan could rescue the Underworld King, he would have escaped eight hundred years ago."
"Do you think the situation now is the same as eight hundred years ago?"
The Second Prince clearly believed he had Zhang Ruochen cornered, so he spoke without restraint, "Eight hundred years ago, the Undying Blood Clan failed because the Blood Queen underestimated the strength of the six sword bearers."
"Who would have thought that within that Sword Grave, the six sword bearers could borrow the power of their ancestors from successive generations? Each sword bearer was like a fusion of more than a dozen sword saints."
"When the Blood Queen invaded the Underworld King's Sword Grave a second time, she was blocked by the Ming Emperor and the Green Emperor, and she failed again."
"Now, the Ming Emperor is missing, and the Green Emperor has retired. Moreover, after those two fierce battles eight hundred years ago, the Undying Blood Clan learned of the six sword bearers' power and focused on dealing with them. A hundred years ago, our clan began secret preparations."
"Besides dealing with Xuanji Sword Saint, we also used other methods against the other five sword bearers."
"Let me tell you the truth—except for Ling Feiyu, who sensed danger and killed the Undying Blood Clan experts sent after her, the other sword bearers are either dead or have been captured personally by the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor."
"Aside from the Burial Heaven Sword and the Annihilation Heaven Sword in Ling Feiyu's possession, and your Skyward Sword, the other three sacred swords are all in the hands of our Undying Blood Clan."
Hearing this news, even Zhang Ruochen was deeply shocked.
No wonder only Ling Feiyu had returned to the Underworld King's Sword Grave. It was highly likely that the other sword bearers had been assassinated by the Undying Blood Clan.
If the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor acted personally, even a sword saint would be in grave danger.
Zhang Ruochen tried to suppress his intense emotions and spoke calmly, "You only have three sacred swords. What good does that do? Can you rescue the Underworld King?"
Zhang Ruochen had learned a secret from the ancestors of successive generations of the Skyward Sword: the six sacred swords were actually six keys.
Only by holding all six sacred swords simultaneously could one open the fifteenth layer of the Nether Prison and release the Underworld King.
The Undying Blood Clan must have known this secret, which was why they were desperately trying to seize all six sacred swords.
In other words, as long as the Undying Blood Clan didn't obtain all six sacred swords, they couldn't rescue the Underworld King.
A strange smile appeared on the Second Prince's face, "While the Zhenyu Ancient Clan's army was attacking the Undying Blood Clan's Eight Cities and Twelve Ridges, the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor led another army to attack the Underworld King's Sword Grave. If nothing unexpected happened, the Sword Grave has already fallen by now. The two sacred swords in Ling Feiyu's hands have likely fallen into the Blood Emperor's possession."
"However, the Blood Emperor miscalculated one thing. He didn't expect that a small fry like you wouldn't obediently stay in the Underworld King's Sword Grave but instead managed to escape by sheer luck."
"But it doesn't matter. As long as I seize the Skyward Sword from you, our Undying Blood Clan will have all six sacred swords, enough to open the fifteenth layer of the Nether Prison."
Zhang Ruochen stared into the Second Prince's eyes and could tell he wasn't lying.
If the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor had truly attacked the Underworld King's Sword Grave personally, with his terrifying cultivation and the Undying Blood Clan's years of preparation there, it was entirely possible they had broken through.
In that case, the Skyward Sword in Zhang Ruochen's hands had become crucial. It must never fall into the Undying Blood Clan's hands.
Without any hesitation, Zhang Ruochen immediately took out the sacred decree given to him by Xuanji Sword Saint and infused it with Saint Qi.
"Whoosh!"
The light emitted by the sacred decree formed a protective barrier, completely enveloping Zhang Ruochen and the Devouring Rabbit.
Then, the barrier transformed into a streak of light, speeding toward the horizon.
"Already a turtle in a jar, and you still want to escape?"
The Second Prince sneered coldly, also taking out a sacred decree and using the sacred power within it to quickly catch up to Zhang Ruochen.
"Whoosh."
The Second Prince flew above Zhang Ruochen, raised the Blood Sword, and dragged a long sword light downward.
Zhang Ruochen stared at the descending sword energy, gritted his teeth, and immediately mobilized his spatial power, silently chanting, "Space Freeze."
The entire space suddenly froze, as if locked in ice. Everything became still except for Zhang Ruochen.
Even the sword energy the Second Prince had slashed downward paused briefly before piercing through the spatial power.
However, during that brief pause, Zhang Ruochen shot forward.
The sword energy landed a few dozen feet behind him, striking the lush forest and leaving a sword scar hundreds of meters long.
"Spatial power again."
The Second Prince felt both wary and envious of spatial power.
If he could seize Zhang Ruochen's physical body and become the new Heir of Time and Space, how much stronger would his strength become?
A fervent light flashed in the Second Prince's eyes as he gave chase again.
However, after chasing for several thousand miles, he no longer saw Zhang Ruochen's figure. Even Zhang Ruochen's aura had completely vanished.
"Vanished into thin air?"
The Second Prince immediately retreated, carefully tracking the traces of Zhang Ruochen's aura.
He firmly believed that no matter what concealment method Zhang Ruochen had used, he would have left some clues.
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen had already jumped into a river a hundred zhang wide, activating the power of the Meteor Invisibility Cloak to completely mask his aura.
The current carried Zhang Ruochen downstream, taking him away from Golden Sparrow City.
It wasn't until nightfall that Zhang Ruochen rose again from the river, standing on the water's surface. Vast amounts of Saint Qi surged from his entire body, forming a five-colored chaotic cloud.
Earlier, while hidden in the water, Zhang Ruochen's cultivation had already broken through to the Second-Step Half-Saint.
"Whoosh."
Zhang Ruochen opened his mouth and inhaled, drawing all the Saint Qi floating on the water's surface back into his body.
His thirty-six meridians and five saintly veins rumbled like dozens of great rivers flowing within him.
Returning to the shore, the Devouring Rabbit asked, "Master Chen, what do we do now? Should we rush back to the Underworld King's Sword Grave?"
The night was moonless, pitch black, so dark that one couldn't see their own fingers. Only the cold wind on the river howled mournfully.
Zhang Ruochen pondered for a long time before shaking his head, "If the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor has truly captured the Underworld King's Sword Grave, then he already has five of the six sacred swords. I absolutely cannot return to the Sword Grave. If the Skyward Sword is also taken, the consequences would be unimaginable."
"Then where do we go?" the Devouring Rabbit asked.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I'll find a place to lie low for now. Once news about the Underworld King's Sword Grave arrives, I'll decide what to do next."
Even if the Azure Heaven Blood Emperor had captured the Underworld King's Sword Grave, as long as he couldn't find the Skyward Sword for the time being, Empress Chi Yao in the Imperial City, the Martial Venerable of the Martial God Mountain, and even the leader of the Moon-Worshipping Cult might rush to the Sword Grave.
After all, none of the top experts of the Kunlun Realm wanted the Underworld King to escape. That would be a disaster for all of humanity.
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen had clearly become the most critical figure. Countless Undying Blood Clan experts were likely searching for his trail right now. (To be continued.)