Chapter 949: Subjugation
Zhang Ruochen glanced up at the elephant foot rapidly descending toward him, showing no sign of panic. He remained composed and at ease, extending a finger to point forward.
Twenty zhang above his fingertip, strands of spatial power rapidly converged, condensing into a single point.
At that location, the spatial power reached its peak concentration, then with a thunderous roar, it collapsed outward, forming a shattered spatial zone over a hundred meters in diameter.
Just then, the Proud Heaven Sacred Elephant’s foot stomped down, colliding directly with the shattered space.
“Crunch.”
Struck by the spatial power, the massive elephant leg disintegrated in an instant, turning into a cloud of blood mist.
Having lost one foot, the Proud Heaven Sacred Elephant’s body lost its balance, crashing to the ground with a thunderous boom.
Zhao Shiqi had already mobilized his spiritual power, condensing a gust of wind to lift himself, flying to a height of over a thousand meters above the ground.
“Spatial power… how is that possible… could he be… could he be the Heir of Time and Space…”
Zhao Shiqi stared at the still-chaotic space below, unable to maintain his composure.
Suddenly, he felt a chilling sensation on his neck and looked down.
There, a black ancient sword rested on his right shoulder, emitting a faint layer of sword light.
Zhang Ruochen stood behind Zhao Shiqi, holding the sword with one hand, and said, “Isn’t it a bit too late to guess my identity now?”
“You are Zhang Ruochen.”
Zhao Shiqi struggled to control his shock and fear, trying his best to appear calm and composed.
Zhang Ruochen sheathed the Abyssal Ancient Sword, stepped through the void, and unhurriedly walked to face Zhao Shiqi, saying, “Speak. Who sent you to kill me?”
Seeing Zhang Ruochen put away his sword, Zhao Shiqi felt a flicker of temptation, wanting to mobilize his spiritual power and counterattack.
However, after a careful calculation, he abandoned that decision.
Because at this moment, Zhang Ruochen was too close to him. Killing him would be no more difficult than killing an ordinary person.
A spiritual power half-saint was, after all, only suited for long-range attacks. Once a martial half-saint of the same realm got close, death was the only outcome.
Zhao Shiqi gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice, “Even if I tell you, you’re still going to kill me.”
“Not necessarily.” Zhang Ruochen shook his head. “A forty-seventh-rank spiritual power half-saint, and a skilled beast tamer master—someone like you is still very useful. As long as you don’t play tricks, I won’t kill you. In fact, I might even put you to good use.”
Zhao Shiqi caught the meaning in Zhang Ruochen’s words, his eyelids twitching slightly. “You want me to work for you? Do you know this is the Blood God Sect? If I spread the news of your appearance, even if you had three heads and six arms, you wouldn’t escape alive.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Rest assured, even if I die, you will definitely die before me.”
Gradually, Zhao Shiqi relaxed, no longer so tense.
Because if Zhang Ruochen intended to kill him, he wouldn’t have said so much. Since Zhang Ruochen wasn’t planning to kill him, that meant he had the leverage to negotiate terms.
Zhao Shiqi said, “Zhang Ruochen, you are the Heir of Time and Space, blessed with great fortune, and have cultivated the Tenth Change of the Fish-Dragon Realm, the Divine Fate. You will surely become a ruler of the Kunlun Realm. I, Zhao Shiqi, can follow you, but what can you offer me?”
The Ming Sect had just been established and was in need of talented recruits. Someone as rare as Zhao Shiqi was naturally someone Zhang Ruochen wanted to win over.
If recruitment failed, then elimination could come later.
Zhang Ruochen fixed his gaze on him and said, “You’re almost two hundred years old, aren’t you?”
A flicker of gloom passed through Zhao Shiqi’s eyes.
Indeed, he was nearly two hundred years old.
For both martial half-saints and spiritual power half-saints, two hundred years was a major watershed.
Once a martial half-saint passed two hundred, their blood qi would begin to decline, and their physical body would start to age. Without the aid of sacred pills or sacred medicines, further cultivation progress would be extremely difficult.
Spiritual power half-saints fared slightly better than martial half-saints. Even after two hundred, their spiritual power could still grow, but at a much slower pace.
Given Zhao Shiqi’s age, reaching the forty-eighth rank of spiritual power intensity in this lifetime was already his limit. He might not even be able to cross that threshold.
Zhang Ruochen said, “What if I told you that, in this world, only I can help you cultivate your spiritual power to the Saint Realm? Would you be willing to submit to me?”
“Is that true?”
Zhao Shiqi’s eyes blazed with fervent light, unable to suppress his excitement.
Zhang Ruochen remained perfectly calm, saying, “You must have heard that I found a divine medicine in the Underworld.”
“Of course I have. It’s said you used that divine medicine to allow Xuanji Sword Saint to undergo nirvana and rebirth,” Zhao Shiqi said.
Zhang Ruochen’s reputation in the Kunlun Realm was already on par with some of the older generation of saints. Every move he made drew the attention of cultivators across the world.
The identity of the Heir of Time and Space was no empty boast.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “The divine medicine I found in the Underworld is called Seven Star Divine Lingzhi.”
Zhao Shiqi was clearly aware of the medicinal power of the Seven Star Divine Lingzhi. Hearing this name, the excitement on his face grew even more pronounced. “Legend has it that the first leaf of the Seven Star Divine Lingzhi takes the form of an Azure Dragon. Consuming it is enough to cultivate spiritual power… to the Great Saint level.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Why are you so excited? I never said I would reward you with the Azure Dragon Leaf. At most, I could provide you with some dew from the Azure Dragon Leaf.”
Zhao Shiqi immediately let out a dry laugh, putting on a fawning expression. “Even if Young Master Zhang were to reward the Azure Dragon Leaf to this old man, with my current spiritual power intensity, I wouldn’t be able to digest and absorb it. Just getting some dew from the Azure Dragon Leaf—the power contained in that dew—would be enough to let me cultivate my spiritual power intensity to above the fiftieth rank and become a spiritual power saint. Once my spiritual power reaches the Saint Realm, my lifespan will surely increase greatly.”
“So, have you decided to submit to me? Do you really believe I have the Seven Star Divine Lingzhi?” Zhang Ruochen countered.
Zhao Shiqi was momentarily taken aback, then quickly broke into a smile. “Young Master Zhang has achieved his current realm at such a young age, and his future is bound to be limitless. Even without the Seven Star Divine Lingzhi, this old man would be willing to follow you to the death.”
Having said this, Zhao Shiqi knelt on one knee, placed his hand over his chest, and made a gesture of fealty.