Chapter 958: Fighting Alone
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze was indifferent as he swept his eyes over the four Undying Blood Clan members before him.
All of them were at the Half-Saint realm, but he did not see that imperial uncle of the Undying Blood Clan royal family. That person was likely still hidden in the shadows.
Zhang Ruochen stared into the darkness and said, “Besides you four, there should be one more person, right? Why hasn’t he shown himself?”
This time, it was the Second Prince who felt a shock in his heart. He thought to himself, *This kid is only a third-step Half-Saint, yet he can detect the imperial uncle’s aura? How is his perception so sharp?*
The Second Prince glanced toward Shengshu Cainü and suddenly understood.
It must be Shengshu Cainü who, with her powerful spiritual power, had discovered the imperial uncle. Only she possessed such strong perception.
However, Shengshu Cainü was clearly severely injured and unable to strike, so there was no need to fear her.
“Dealing with the two of you doesn’t require the imperial uncle to act.”
The Second Prince clasped his hands behind his back, exuding a noble bearing, and said, “Lady Cainü, you’d best hand over the *Blood Clan Secret Scroll* now, so I won’t have to use violent methods and hurt you.”
Shengshu Cainü replied, “Unfortunately, the *Blood Clan Secret Scroll* you’re looking for isn’t on me. In fact, I’d also like to know where it is.”
The Second Prince’s eyes darkened. “I thought you were a clever woman, Lady Cainü, but I didn’t expect you to be this foolish. Senluo, search Lady Cainü. Remember to be gentle—don’t injure her delicate body.”
“Refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.”
Senluo Blood General widened his bell-like eyes and strode toward Shengshu Cainü on legs as thick as buckets.
His body was three meters tall, wrapped in chains as thick as a bowl. With every step, the chains clanked against each other, producing a “clatter” sound.
This man’s cultivation had reached the seventh-step Half-Saint realm, and he was no ordinary figure. Moreover, as an Undying Blood Clan member, his physical strength was formidable, far surpassing humans of the same realm.
Senluo Blood General stared at Zhang Ruochen, who stood before Shengshu Cainü, grinned, and bared his sharp fangs. “Kid from the Blood God Sect, with that scrawny frame of yours, you think you can play the hero saving the beauty? Let me teach you how to know your place.”
Senluo Blood General clenched his fists, and the chains on his body began to move, wrapping around his arms completely.
Those chains were clearly no ordinary iron but a sacred artifact, fused with his bones and becoming part of his body.
When he was still ten zhang away from Zhang Ruochen, Senluo Blood General let out a loud roar, kicked off the ground, leaped into the air, and punched down at Zhang Ruochen.
On his fist, cold light flickered.
Electric currents flowed through every link of the chains, and the resulting airwave formed a bottle-shaped phantom that reached Zhang Ruochen first.
Zhang Ruochen shifted his right foot, lowering his center of gravity, then swung the Seven Saints Serpent Spear horizontally.
“Bang!”
The Seven Saints Serpent Spear struck Senluo Blood General’s abdomen, colliding with the chains and producing a harsh metallic sound.
Senluo Blood General was sent flying backward, landing over ten zhang away, and took another ten steps back before steadying himself.
A sharp pain shot through his abdomen, and his internal organs suffered some damage.
In contrast, Zhang Ruochen remained standing in place, as steady as a pine tree, exuding a heroic aura, with only his long hair still fluttering.
Just one strike left the four Undying Blood Clan members deeply shocked.
Even though Senluo Blood General had been careless and suffered a minor loss in that exchange, that human from the Blood God Sect was no simple character.
They had underestimated him earlier.
Another Blood General from the Undying Blood Clan chuckled, “Senluo, are you even capable? Can’t even handle a third-step Half-Saint human? Want me to lend a hand?”
Senluo Blood General snorted, ignoring the taunt, and fixed his blood-red eyes on Zhang Ruochen across from him. “Originally, I was just going to drain your blood dry, but now I’ve changed my mind. I’ll turn you into a blood slave and enslave you for a hundred years.”
“Anyone can talk tough. If you want to enslave someone, you’d better show some real skill first,” Zhang Ruochen said calmly.
Senluo Blood General gritted his teeth, let out a roar, and charged at Zhang Ruochen, his thick arms radiating dazzling electric light.
“Heavenly King Fist.”
He unleashed two fist seals simultaneously, creating a sonic boom.
The Heavenly King Fist was a ghost-rank top-grade fist technique, known for its fierce and domineering power.
Due to the suppression of the first-gradient heaven and earth rules, Senluo Blood General found it difficult to mobilize surging sacred qi, unable to unleash the true power of the Heavenly King Fist.
Of course, even when executed with pure physical strength, the Heavenly King Fist still possessed considerable might.
Zhang Ruochen stood still, observing the trajectory of Senluo Blood General’s fist technique.
When the two fist seals entered within three zhang of him, Zhang Ruochen’s gaze sharpened. He grabbed the Seven Saints Serpent Spear and struck out, the spear arriving before the fist.
The spear’s trajectory was not a straight line.
Like a living snake, it slipped between Senluo Blood General’s fists and precisely pierced his throat.
“Pfft!”
The serpent spear passed through the back of Senluo Blood General’s neck, bringing out a spray of blood.
Senluo Blood General’s eyes widened in disbelief. The next moment, his arms erupted with immense power, clamping down on the Seven Saints Serpent Spear as he stepped back with his left foot.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly and exerted force with both arms, twisting the spear.
“Whoosh.”
The spear burst forth with golden light, generating a spinning force that severed Senluo Blood General’s neck.
A massive head flew into the air.
Knowing that a Half-Saint-level Undying Blood Clan member had strong vitality, Zhang Ruochen struck out with a hand seal at lightning speed, hitting Senluo Blood General’s head.
“Bang!”
The head, still midair, exploded into a cloud of blood mist.
Even Senluo Blood General’s saint soul was utterly annihilated.
In an instant, a high-ranking Half-Saint of the Undying Blood Clan fell beneath Zhang Ruochen’s spear, leaving only a headless corpse.
The Undying Blood Clan’s Second Prince clenched his teeth in fury, his arms trembling. “No one in the younger generation of the Blood God Sect has such strength. Who are you?”
Zhang Ruochen, holding the Seven Saints Serpent Spear, didn’t answer his question. “Your Highness, the Second Prince, your cultivation has already broken through to the seventh-step Half-Saint. With your physique, you might even match a ninth-step Half-Saint. Care to spar with me?”
Back when Zhang Ruochen was only a first-step Half-Saint, he had crossed paths with the Second Prince. But at that time, the gap in their cultivation was too great, and Zhang Ruochen could only flee.
Now that Zhang Ruochen’s cultivation had reached the third-step Half-Saint, his strength had greatly increased, and he naturally wanted to fight the Second Prince again.
This time, the Second Prince didn’t act impulsively. Instead, he snorted coldly. “I won’t give you the chance to pick us off one by one. Yunyi Blood General, Yunluan Blood General, attack together. First, kill that kid from the Blood God Sect, then deal with Shengshu Cainü.”
“Whoosh.”
The three Undying Blood Clan members unfurled their blood wings simultaneously, lifting off the ground and flying low, encircling Zhang Ruochen from three different directions.
All three were formidable figures.
If they were on the ground, with Zhang Ruochen’s current cultivation, even going all out, he could at most hold off one of them.
Yunyi Blood General and Yunluan Blood General were both eighth-step Half-Saints. In the first gradient, their strength even surpassed Wuliang Banner King.
The Second Prince had now broken through to the seventh-step Half-Saint, his power surging. Combined with his special physique, his strength was even greater than that of Yunyi and Yunluan Blood Generals.
Zhang Ruochen fixed his gaze on the three opponents, remaining calm in the face of danger. He struck first, swinging the Seven Saints Serpent Spear to attack both Yunyi and Yunluan Blood Generals simultaneously.
“Bold.”
Yunyi Blood General raised his round shield to block.
At the same time, he mobilized the thin sacred qi within him, activating the inscriptions in the shield.
“Whoosh——”
The round shield immediately emitted rings of blood-red light, covering an area ten zhang in diameter and forming a circular light barrier.
Yunluan Blood General shrank his body to the size of a fist, flew over the Seven Saints Serpent Spear, and extended a sharp blood claw toward Zhang Ruochen’s head.
The icy blood claw grew longer, carrying a dense wave of blood, as if it would tear Zhang Ruochen to shreds.
One attacked, one defended—their coordination was flawless.
If they were on the ground, even a ninth-step Half-Saint would struggle to counter their assault.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t retract the Seven Saints Serpent Spear. Instead, he continued to exert force, striking the circular blood-red light barrier.
With a “bang,” the barrier shattered.
The power of the Seven Saints Serpent Spear collided head-on with the shield in Yunyi Blood General’s hand, sending him flying diagonally and crashing into the ground.
The arm holding the shield broke, and Yunyi Blood General spat out a mouthful of blood, looking quite disheveled.
*How is his physical strength so terrifying? Compared to some saints, it’s not much weaker,* Yunyi Blood General thought to himself.
Although Zhang Ruochen had injured Yunyi Blood General, it put him in a dangerous position.
Yunluan Blood General’s claw, carrying a sharp, cold wind, swept past his neck.
Even though Zhang Ruochen retreated quickly, three bloody claw marks were left on his neck.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t check the wound on his neck. He immediately steadied himself, then charged forward even faster, using his body to ram into Yunluan Blood General.
“You’re asking for death.”
Yunluan Blood General bent his legs, lowered his waist, and planted himself in a horse stance, gathering all his sacred qi into his claws.
His blood-red claws, like red jade liuli, were not only hard and sharp but also covered with icy inscriptions.
Each claw was a sacred artifact. (To be continued.)