On the table, there were a total of twelve Saints, almost all of whom were descendants of former courtiers of the Sacred Brightness Central Empire, belonging to the topmost powerhouses under the throne of King Ming Jiang.
Of course, there were also some Saints who were too far away from Sacred Brightness City to make it back in a moment.
“Ruochen, is it really you? Eight hundred years, a whole eight hundred years, where have you been?”
King Ming Jiang, who was sitting at the very top, stood up with a sudden, somewhat excited expression and greeted Zhang Ruochen.
King Ming Jiang appeared to be fifty years old, close to eight feet tall, with broad shoulders and a broad body, wearing a carved dragon silver crown on his head and a silver-robed holy garment, his body contained a thick holy qi and blood qi, like a divine dragon hibernating inside his skin.
As he greeted Zhang Ruochen, the aura that radiated out from the Ming Jiang King’s body grew stronger and stronger.
In Zhang Ruochen’s eyes, it was as if there were great waves spreading across the sky, surging towards him.
“A king amongst saints, Twelfth Imperial Uncle has indeed crossed over to the Saint King realm.”Zhang Ruochen secretly said.
If it was another Saint, or even a True Saint, who suffered the onslaught of a Saint King’s Saintly Might, he would inevitably lose his composure, feel fear, back away, bow and salute, or even kneel down.
The difference between a great realm was the difference between a python and a true dragon.
Zhang Ruochen, however, did not change his face as he summoned the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword and thrust it towards the ground, and instantly, an overpowering sword intent exploded out, tearing apart the raging Saint King’s might.
“Twelfth Imperial Uncle, as a Saint King who has been cultivating for close to a thousand years, you still can’t let the might on your body be put away?”Zhang Ruochen said coldly.
Originally, Zhang Ruochen had come to meet King Ming Jiang with the mindset of meeting a loved one.
But the other party, however, did not think that way, and even tried to shock Zhang Ruochen by all means, even trying to suppress him.
Zhang Ruochen naturally had to change his mindset and show a strong side as the Crown Prince.
“Bold, how dare you speak to the Twelfth Master in such a manner, you are too unbridled.”
An old man in holy armour spat out a sound wave from his mouth, chiding Zhang Ruochen.
This person, named Yan Kaixuan, had reached the True Saint realm in cultivation, and was also known as the “Kaixuan True Saint”, and his strength was enough to be ranked in the top three under the seat of the Ming Jiang King.
The Triumph True Saint stood up and said, “In front of a Saint King, you even dare to show your battle armour, it’s fortunate that you might be the son of Emperor Ming, otherwise, you would have already turned into a dead body at this moment.”
Zhang Ruochen glanced towards the Triumph True Saint and said, “What do you mean by possible? In other words, you’re doubting this Prince’s identity?”
“That’s right, this Saint is doubting your identity. As we all know, His Highness the Crown Prince died in the palace mutiny incident eight hundred years ago, and back then, many courtiers and ministers in the dynasty had seen his corpse with their own eyes. Even if His Highness the Crown Prince did not die, he should be over eight hundred years old now, not a brat like you.”The Triumph True Saint said very nonchalantly.
Beside him, another Sacred Mirror figure followed and chimed in, saying, “You’re a prince of a small borderland country, yet you claim to be the Crown Prince of the Sacred Brightness Central Empire, do you think we’re all fools?”
Granny Baisu snorted coldly, “Yan Kaixuan, Wang Silence, your fathers are still alive, and when they see the Crown Prince, they have to bow. The two of you, how dare you speak to His Highness the Crown Prince in such a tone of voice, I will never let you go today.”
Zhang Ruochen stopped Granny Baisu, who was ready to strike, and then, walked towards the Triumphant True Saint, staring at him carefully, saying, “You cultivate the Divine Illumination Heavenly Technique, so you should be a descendant of the Yan Clan, right? Who is Yan Xuan to you?”
The Triumph True Saint was slightly startled, this son had only glanced at him and had actually seen through his cultivation technique, it was somewhat impressive.
True Saint Kaixuan’s face did not change as he said, “It is none other than my father.”
“Wow…”
Zhang Ruochen grabbed the hilt of the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword, and in an instant, the flow of time in the temple became incomparably slow.
The force system inscriptions in the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword surfaced, causing the weight of the battle sword to exceed ten million jin as it swung down directly towards the Triumphant True Saint’s neck.
Where did the Triumph True Saint expect that Zhang Ruochen would strike at him right out of the blue.
In the Sword Dao Domain and Time Domain, with his cultivation at the early stage of True Saint, he was too late to resist.
“Pfft.”
The Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword splintered the Saint Armour and chopped at the location of the Triumph True Saint’s neck, the body of the sword sinking downwards and chopping off his collarbone, pressing down on the Triumph True Saint’s legs, bending them and kneeling heavily on the ground.
“Boom!”
On the earth, spiderweb-like cracks appeared, and even the underground defence formation was somewhat unable to support it.
Zhang Ruochen’s Time Sword Technique, which was still in the third realm, condensed into a Time Domain that could only last for a breath of time.
After a breath, the flow of time returned to normal.
The hands and feet of the Triumphant True Saint simultaneously spewed out a vast holy aura, shaking the entire temple.
“Zhang Ruochen, you …… how dare you strike at this Saint ……”
With both of his hands, the Triumph True Saint grabbed the body of the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword and tried to get back on his feet.
Zhang Ruochen held the sword in one hand, but it was more powerful than both of the Triumph True Saint’s hands, pressing the body of the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword to continue downwards, as if it was going to split the Triumph True Saint’s body in half.
In the temple, those other Saints, all of their faces changed drastically.
Yan Kaixuan, who had reached the True Saint realm in cultivation, was actually crushed by Zhang Ruochen’s sword to the point that he knelt on the ground, unable to stand up. Zhang Ruochen’s power was too terrifying.
The gazes of all the Saints looked towards King Ming Jiang.
Present, I was afraid that only King Ming Jiang himself could suppress Zhang Ruochen and save the Triumphant True Sage.
King Ming Jiang’s face was a bit cold and heavy, but he did not make a move.
Because, King Ming Jiang knew very well that Zhang Ruochen’s identity would not be false.
The national luck and fortune of Saint Ming City, and even the will of the successive Ming Emperors, had already acknowledged him, so how could there be a fake?
The Imperial Crown Prince of the Sacred Ming Central Empire had just issued a Crown Prince Edict and was suppressed by his Imperial Uncle. When such a matter was spread out, Zhang Ruochen and King Ming Jiang would definitely become the joke of the entire Kunlun Realm.
Originally, King Ming Jiang just wanted to suppress Zhang Ruochen’s temper first, so that he would be more peaceful, so that Zhang Ruochen wouldn’t seize his power. However, he didn’t expect that he had made a mistake, but instead, Zhang Ruochen had found an opportunity to establish his authority.
King Ming Jiang tried to suppress the anger in his heart and walked forward, advising, ”Ruochen, Yan Kaixuan is indeed quite insolent for disrespecting you. However, his father, King Yan XuanXuan, once commanded the 14 million strong army of the Sheng Ming Central Empire, and was also a first-rate great man in the army, following your father’s father into the barbaric wilderness to open up the frontier, and conquering the Immortal Blood Race together, experiencing no less than a thousand battles of various sizes and making world-class feats. The ancestors of the Yan family have also been loyal to the Sacred Brightness Central Empire for generations. For their sake, how about sparing his life today?”
“If it weren’t for the fact that his fathers and ancestors had merited the Sacred Ming Central Empire, does the Twelfth Imperial Uncle think that he would still be alive? This Crown Prince will be able to chop off Mu Kengtian’s crown with just three swords. Twelfth Imperial Uncle, how many moves do you think Yan Kaixuan would be able to walk through in the hands of Mu Kengtian?”
Zhang Ruochen retrieved the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword and swung it towards the ground, and a large swath of holy blood slid down from above the blade, rendering it on the ground in the centre of the great hall.
At this moment, all the saints present were realising that the young man in front of them was not just as simple as the Sacred Brightness Imperial Crown Prince, but also a Sword Saint capable of defeating Mu Kengtian and suppressing Yan Kaixuan, and was not something that they could casually take down.
Yan Kaixuan stood up again, and in his eyes, a scornful look appeared, not daring to belittle Zhang Ruochen like he did just now.
Zhang Ruochen carried his bloody battle sword and walked step by step to the uppermost position in the palace and sat down.
That position originally belonged to King Ming Jiang.
The corners of King Ming Jiang’s mouth twitched slightly, and in the end, it transformed into a laugh, ”Ruochen, something unimaginably strange must have happened to you. Right now, it is rumoured throughout the Kunlun Realm that it was the Sacred Monk of Sumeru who saved you and brought you to this day, eight hundred years later. In short, Twelfth Uncle is just very happy that you were able to come back. However, this time, you did something a bit presumptuous, you shouldn’t have laid this Prince’s Edict, you should have discussed it with Twelfth Uncle first.”
Zhang Ruochen asked, “Why?”
King Ming Jiang said seriously, “The current situation is not the same as before! The Empress has become a god and is powerful in the world, all the ten Blood Emperors have died under her sword, none of the major races in the Four Seas and Barbarian Wasteland dare to disobey, and the Devil Sect, Black Market, and Deadly Zen Sect have either chosen to submit or withdrawn from the Kunlun Realm. By announcing your identity in such a high-profile manner, and also releasing the Crown Prince’s Edict, aren’t you not pushing yourself and the old parts of the Sacred Brightness Central Empire into the limelight?”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Is Twelfth Imperial Uncle worried that the imperial court will annihilate us? That we should continue to hide in the east and live a life of darkness, homelessness, and precariousness?”
Yan Kaixuan said in a cold voice, “This is called biding our light to keep the peace!”
“Bide your time? Chi Yao has already become a god, living for another hundred thousand years would be a breeze. How long is everyone preparing to bide their time?”Zhang Ruochen asked.
The crowd was dumbfounded.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Instead of biding their time, wouldn’t it be better to take the initiative to defect to the imperial court and submit to the First Central Empire?”
“Impossible. The Yan Family has an undying hatred with the First Central Empire, even if we die, it is impossible to submit to them.”Yan Kaixuan said.
Wang Silence snorted coldly, “For eight hundred years, we have been fighting and battling with the imperial court, and our hatred is getting deeper and deeper, taking the initiative to defect to them would be tantamount to folding our hands, and our fate would only be worse.”
“Our Bai Family, I don’t know how many elders, were brutally killed by the imperial court. I don’t know how many female family members have become playthings on the beds of court officials. Even in death, it is impossible to submit to them.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “In other words, everyone is just going to continue to hide inside the dark corners to live a miserable life? That is, there is no way to take revenge, and they cannot surrender or submit, and if they are captured, they will end up worse than death. Isn’t that so?”
The entire room was silent.
Some people wanted to retort, but in the end, they just moved their lips but could not utter a single word.
It had to be said that Zhang Ruochen had pierced their sore spots.
“How difficult it is for you to live, why don’t you follow this Prince, perhaps this Prince can give you a different future. Perhaps the Sacred Brightness Central Empire can be rebuilt, and it will be even more glorious and prosperous.”Zhang Ruochen said.
Yan Kaixuan clenched his lips and said, “Your Highness, you are too confident, aren’t you? Grandiose words can be said by anyone, but it doesn’t mean that anyone can do it.”
“If, within ten days, this Crown Prince is able to destroy the Ling Xiao Heavenly King’s Mansion. Do you still believe in me? Do you still submit to me?”
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes, somewhat stern, stared in the direction of the Ling Xiao Heavenly King’s Mansion as the Sinking Abyss Ancient Sword in his hand radiated an intimidating cold light.
Hearing these words, all the saints present were all shaken inwardly.
