Leaving the Demon Frog clan, Zhang Ruochen spent the entire journey pondering why the Ancient God of Learning had made such a decision.
First, it must be because the strength and talent he had displayed earned the other’s recognition. The god wished to form good karma and make Zhang Ruochen owe an enormous favour.
Second, Yan Yu and Yan Zhexian’s attitude towards Zhang Ruochen must have carried some weight.
Third, it was to preserve the six small clans and the Yan Luo clan’s interests in the starry domain around Hundred Clans King City.
But was it really that simple?
With just these three points, the Ancient God of Learning had no need to appear personally, nor to involve himself in Destiny Temple’s internal struggles and drag the Yan Luo clan into the vortex.
Soon, Zhang Ruochen saw through the key point. A smile appeared on his face.
It should be related to the changes on the starry battlefield.
The Yan Luo clan feared the hell realm’s war faction truly forcing Xing Huan Tian, Xing Tian Ya, and Hundred Clans King City into the heaven court’s camp. For the hell realm, this would bring only harm and no benefit.
…
An hour later, Zhang Ruochen flew out of Hundred Clans King City into a ruined starry expanse.
Here, life rules and death rules were chaotic and dense. Shocking spatial rifts were everywhere, along with undying divine flames, fragments of supreme sacred artifacts, shattered divine realms…
The entire battlefield spanned billions of li. It must have been cataclysmic before, everywhere proclaiming a clash between peak great god-level powerhouses.
After confirming it was Huang Tian’s aura, Zhang Ruochen’s initially worried heart grew calm.
He searched the starry void for half a day but found nothing. Only then did he return to Hundred Clans King City.
News had already spread in the city.
“It is said Grand Void Great God Pu Chuanqi of Qinglu Divine Hall tried to seize the divine artifact Di Mo Que but provoked Great God Huang Tian. He was struck fleeing in panic across the stars. In the end, even his head was cut off.”
“Exactly! Some divine spirits rushed to watch the battle and saw the headless Pu Chuanqi burning divine blood to escape. All were greatly shocked. Fortunately, Muto War God of Darkness Divine Hall arrived in time. Otherwise Pu Chuanqi would surely have fallen today.”
“You dare directly name great gods?”
“What is there to fear? Pu Chuanqi first offended Blood Absolute War God, then targeted Great God Huang Tian’s daughter. From now on, where in the hell realm can he stand? Best he hide forever in Qinglu Divine Hall and never emerge. Haha!”
…
“Ruochen Realm Venerable, please come to Guan Yun Array Tower to discuss important matters.” The Ye Cha clan leader’s voice rang in Zhang Ruochen’s ear.
Zhang Ruochen entered Guan Yun Array Tower’s gate. Inside, gods had already gathered.
Representatives from over a hundred small clans filled the hall. Divine radiance permeated. Divine realms stood one after another. It was like entering the legendary divine realm.
Over a hundred divine spirits rose together. “We pay respects to Ruochen Realm Venerable.”
Such a grand reception by gathered gods was the first time for a great god-level divine spirit.
The three major clan leaders sat in the three positions facing the tower gate.
Additionally, eighteen great gods were present in the tower, each extraordinary with divine light circling them, from different small clans. Each clan had billions upon billions of cultivators and controlled at least one great world.
Yet even these eighteen ancestral existences in their clans now looked at Zhang Ruochen with dread, solemnity, or depth.
Not only because the Nine Heavens behind Zhang Ruochen were terrifying enough, but the strength he had previously shown was sufficient to prevent any arrogance.
Zhang Ruochen smiled. “Everyone need not be so formal. This venerable is only here at the invitation of the three clan leaders to listen. After all, now Xing Huan Tian and Hundred Clans King City share life and death. In times of crisis, we must help each other.”
He sat in an empty seat close to the three clan leaders, secretly observing the divine spirits in the hall and matching them to names in his mind.
Divine spirits from the six small clans dependent on Yan Luo clan were also present.
Xuan Yi, leader of Fire Ghost clan, said, “If the hell realm wishes to destroy Hundred Clans King City and rule this starry domain, it will not be a prolonged war like on the starry battlefield. It will surely be a massive army arriving for a thunderous strike to end the battle swiftly. To resist, we can only keep the Myriad Stars Prison Cage Grand Array active.”
“But this array is vast, covering billions of li of starry space. Relying only on the cosmic divine veins in the city cannot sustain it. The consumption of divine stones is extremely rapid.”
“We three major clans invited everyone here to think of a countermeasure and, incidentally, gather divine stones to maintain the array’s operation.”
At the mention of divine stones, the divine spirits from various clans immediately grew restless. Discussion arose endlessly.
A divine spirit from Immortal Source clan, a beautiful woman in blue palace attire, said, “Not every great world can produce divine stones. My Immortal Source clan’s ancestral realm cannot. The divine stones this god uses for cultivation are all accumulated bit by bit by the clan selling wine. No fear of ridicule, this god currently has only ten thousand divine stones, enough for one millennium seclusion.”
Immortal Source clan was famous across the world for brewing wine.
But ten billion sacred stones exchanged for one divine stone.
One sacred stone required ten million spirit crystals.
Even exhausting the entire Immortal Source clan’s power, relying only on selling wine, how many divine stones could they accumulate?
“Yu Li True God, stop complaining. Your Immortal Source clan at least has a business spanning the world. This god is truly miserable, personally spending vast time condensing divine crystals and refining sacred pills to sell for small amounts of divine stones, severely delaying cultivation. Otherwise how would I still be mid-middle god now?”
A divine spirit from Ghost Horse clan added, “This god is not whining. I am truly miserable.”
Instantly, it became a misery-sharing session among the divine spirits. Each poured out their woes. Some even claimed to have sold their divine blood and scales for one breakthrough seclusion.
Though deliberately exaggerating misery to avoid donating divine stones, these small clan divine spirits were genuinely poor.
Without divine stone veins in their ancestral realms, every divine stone required immense effort to earn. For example, pill refining, artifact forging, talisman crafting…
But pill refining needed sacred medicines. Artifact forging needed ores.
Talisman crafting required even greater investment. Slight carelessness meant losses.
Spending too much time on these inevitably delayed cultivation, slowing progress. Even earning large sums of divine stones, they could not save them.
Divine spirit cultivation consumed divine stones like a bottomless pit.
Forging one’s own supreme sacred artifacts and protective treasures required pouring in massive quantities of divine stones. If a supreme sacred artifact was seized or damaged in battle, one could go bankrupt instantly.
It was perfectly normal for these small clan divine spirits to lack the wealth of those extraordinary great sacred heavenly prodigies.
But claiming they had truly reached the point of selling divine blood, Zhang Ruochen did not believe at all.
No matter how thin these small clans’ foundations, they always had some presentable treasures. At worst, ambush a divine spirit close friend and sell the divine corpse or divine source for a huge profit.
The three major clan leaders sat above, utterly helpless. They could only turn their gazes to the eighteen great gods.
The races behind these eighteen great gods had inheritances over ten million years. Their foundations were far thicker.
One great god said, “Now is a time of life and death for Hundred Clans King City. We naturally bear responsibility without shirking. Ma Yi clan has two supreme sacred artifacts passed down from ancestors. This god is willing to sell one to exchange for divine stones.”
A complete Heaven-Suppressing level supreme sacred artifact was worth nearly a million divine stones. A massive fortune!
“This seat is willing to dig up an ancestor’s divine body to sell for divine stones. This seat is not joking! Dead already, it should be put to use.” A unconventional great god said so.
“My clan has a false god with truly low combat power. This god will seize his divine source upon return. It should exchange for quite a few divine stones.”
…
Though Zhang Ruochen found these small clans’ ways of raising divine stones unusual, he did not find it amusing at all. Instead, he greatly admired them. No matter how poor, facing life and death, they did not hesitate.
From start to finish, Zhang Ruochen remained silent, letting them handle the current crisis themselves.
Though with the Earth Cauldron he could quickly obtain vast divine stones, it would easily expose the secret of possessing it.
Hundred Clans King City had one hundred thirty-seven small clans in total. Yet only one hundred eleven gathered here. Where were the divine spirits of the other twenty-six small clans?
Simply selling those small clans’ divine spirit corpses would yield enormous divine stones.
Moreover, the wealth those twenty-six small clans possessed would surely be divided entirely.
External crisis could unite all small clans.
But this massive profit could make all small clans willingly unite.
The three major clan leaders understood these small clan divine spirits’ minds far better than Zhang Ruochen.
The Ye Cha clan leader inviting Zhang Ruochen here was more to let the gods meet him and let Zhang Ruochen better understand the internal situation of Hundred Clans King City.
They never hoped Zhang Ruochen would help solve their own problems.
At least, not in the short term.
After discussions ended, the gods departed one by one.
Yu Ling Shen returned to Hundred Clans King City with an extremely ugly expression, heavy killing intent on her body. She said, “Still one step late. Ye Cha clan had four great worlds destroyed by them. Life in Yun Fa Realm was refined by the Ghost Lord into a soul pill. Yang Realm was struck by Muto’s Soul-Suppressing Hammer, shattered into fragments. Corpses everywhere. Countless billions of Ye Cha clansmen tragically… died…”
Speaking, Yu Ling Shen’s voice trembled. Her eyes reddened, as if tears would fall.
After all, these Ye Cha clansmen died because of the decision she made. Yu Ling Shen was not the kind of utterly heartless divine spirit. How could she not blame and feel guilty?
Too many clansmen died. The scenes seen were too tragic.
This would surely form a heart demon in Yu Ling Shen!
Zhang Ruochen could not bear seeing a woman so sorrowful. He walked over, reached out wanting to embrace her, lend his shoulder for support. But Yu Ling Shen’s gaze cold as a sword glare stopped his hand.
Their eyes met close. Zhang Ruochen could even see the mist in Yu Ling Shen’s eyes and his own handsome reflection in her pupils. The fragrance from her nose tip was very tempting to err.
