Zhang Ruochen, who had always remained calm and composed, now found his hands trembling slightly. Bloodshot veins appeared in his eyes, and his mind felt as though a thunderbolt had struck, leaving his ears ringing.
It took him a while to slowly raise his arm and take the Eight Dragon Umbrella, which was intertwined with dragon patterns. His throat felt dry as he asked, “Why… why didn’t he come to see me himself… Why… why…”
The Compassionate Bodhisattva said, “He asked me to bring you a message: now is not the time for you two to meet.”
Zhang Ruochen’s expression was filled with pain. His eyes darkened, and he roared, “Why? I want to go to the Western Heaven Buddhist Realm right now. I must go. I must ask him face to face why he abandoned me all these years. Since he knows I’m alive, why… why hasn’t he come to see me? Take me to him. I want to see him now.”
“If he doesn’t want to see you, even if you search the entire Western Heaven Buddhist Realm, you won’t be able to find him.”
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen’s emotions were spiraling out of control, the Compassionate Bodhisattva clasped her hands together and began reciting the *Heart-Cleansing Sutra*.
Instantly, the emotional wounds in Zhang Ruochen’s heart and the mental scars left by the Shadowless Fairy’s spiritual attacks began to heal. It felt as though a clear spring had flowed into his body, bringing an indescribable sense of comfort.
Gradually, Zhang Ruochen’s emotions calmed down. He cupped his hands toward the Compassionate Bodhisattva and said, “Thank you.”
The Compassionate Bodhisattva stopped chanting and smiled gently. “Only by letting go of all worldly matters can one attain great wisdom.”
“Letting go of all worldly matters? Even the Buddha couldn’t do that!” Zhang Ruochen shook his head with a bitter smile. “When will he finally agree to see me?”
“He said, ‘When the new Ming Emperor is established, and the Qiankun World is settled, that will be the time for us to meet,'” the Compassionate Bodhisattva replied.
“‘When the new Ming Emperor is established, and the Qiankun World is settled.'”
Zhang Ruochen let out a bitter laugh. “So, he really did know about the Qiankun Divine Wood Diagram and the Qiankun World all along. He’s truly ruthless, even to his own son. Fine, fine. I will definitely rebuild the Holy Ming Central Empire. I will definitely transform the Qiankun World into a great world and develop its own civilization.”
The phrase “when the new Ming Emperor is established” didn’t mean that Zhang Ruochen could simply declare himself emperor after rebuilding the Holy Ming Central Empire.
He would have to reach the Great Saint level before he could claim the title of emperor.
After parting ways with Feng Xi, Zhen Yuan, and the Compassionate Bodhisattva, Zhang Ruochen made his way to the Heavenly Capital Saint Market. He was still in a daze, his mind preoccupied with thoughts of why the Ming Emperor refused to see him. Why did he insist on waiting until “the new Ming Emperor is established, and the Qiankun World is settled”?
When the Ming Emperor disappeared all those years ago, was it because he had met with misfortune, or had he always planned to go to the Western Heaven Buddhist Realm?
Zhang Ruochen’s thoughts were in complete disarray.
“Forget it. For now, I should focus on cultivating. He doesn’t want to see me because I’m not strong enough. If I were strong enough, even if he hid, I could find him,” Zhang Ruochen suppressed the negative emotions in his heart and looked up at the sky.
After a while, he fully recovered and began to think about what he needed to do next.
The assassination attempt by the Heaven Realm faction and the Heaven’s Execution Organization had nearly cost him his life. No matter what, he had to make them pay a price.
When he arrived at the Heavenly Capital Saint Market, Zhang Ruochen headed straight for the Moon Goddess Dojo.
The Moon Goddess Dojo had once again become grand and magnificent, with numerous refining pavilions glowing with saintly light. It was a stark contrast to the dark and sinister Yin-Yang Palace of the past.
Unlike before, the Moon Goddess Dojo was now fully protected by time and space arrays. The cultivators inside didn’t dare to step outside. If they needed to leave, they did so through spatial teleportation arrays, leaving quietly.
But now, the gates of the Moon Goddess Dojo were wide open, with cultivators occasionally coming and going.
On either side of the gate stood two beautiful female saints.
Both were dressed elegantly, with faint saintly light emanating from their bodies. They were not only guarding the dojo’s gates but also welcoming visiting cultivators.
Zhang Ruochen reverted to his original appearance and walked toward the dojo gates.
The four female saints saw him and immediately stepped forward, bowing respectfully. “Greetings, Divine Envoy.”
Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly and asked, “Who are you?”
One of the female saints replied respectfully, “We were once unfortunate souls captured by the Yin-Yang Palace. It was you, Divine Envoy, who gave us a new life.”
Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood. He then asked, “What are the other cultivators doing here at the Moon Goddess Dojo? Have the cultivators from the Yin-Yang Realm, Black Demon Realm, and Ten Thousand Evils Realm stopped seeking revenge?”
“Reporting to the Divine Envoy, half a year ago, the Guanghan Realm established a saint shop in the Moon Goddess Dojo to trade and interact with cultivators from other realms. The cultivators who come here to trade are all from the major realms that joined forces to attack the Yin-Yang Palace. This is also thanks to your efforts, Divine Envoy.”
“Back then, you released the female saints from these major realms without demanding any ransom, earning their goodwill. Later, when they were targeted for revenge and assassination, you personally went to their dojos to set up spatial and time arrays for them. They remember your kindness.”
Another female saint added, “With Lord Su Jing, Lord Hei, and Master Zhen Miao overseeing the Moon Goddess Dojo, any cultivators who dared to cause trouble were all killed. Now, even with the dojo’s arrays open, no one dares to attack us. It’s because we’re strong enough that cultivators from realms friendly with the Guanghan Realm come here to do business with us.”
Zhang Ruochen nodded. He was about to ask them if the other dojos of the Guanghan Realm had been conquered when he saw Xiao Hei and Zhen Miao rushing out from inside.
Clearly, they had sensed Zhang Ruochen’s aura and had come out to greet him.
However, they were looking at him with strange expressions, circling around him.
“It’s so similar. How can it be this similar?” Xiao Hei muttered to himself.
Zhen Miao said, “I told you there was a big problem. There must be a big problem.”
Zhang Ruochen frowned. “What’s wrong with you two? Have the remaining dojos of the Guanghan Realm been conquered? And what about the Emperor’s Saint Jade?”
“Don’t worry, don’t worry. Those are small matters. Right now, you’re facing a huge problem,” Xiao Hei said.
Zhen Miao chimed in, “That’s right. You’re in big trouble!”
Even after surviving the assassination attempt by Shang Zihang and his group, what could possibly be a bigger problem?
Zhang Ruochen’s frown deepened. “What are you talking about?”
“Someone wants to kill you,” Xiao Hei said in a low voice.
Zhang Ruochen said, “There are countless people who want to kill me.”
“But this time, the people who want to kill you are quite special. They want to avenge a blood feud,” Xiao Hei said.
“A blood feud?”
Zhang Ruochen had killed many cultivators, and the relatives and friends of those cultivators all had blood feuds with him.
In his opinion, this wasn’t a big deal.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Zhen Miao and said, “If I’m not mistaken, you’ve already broken through your bottleneck. With your current cultivation level and the Purple-Gold Eight Trigrams Mirror, you should be able to easily suppress my enemies, right?”
Zhen Miao quickly shook his head. “You weren’t here. How could we dare to suppress them? What if we hurt them and ended up angering you?”
Zhang Ruochen grew more and more confused. He felt that Xiao Hei and Zhen Miao were speaking incoherently, as if they had lost their minds. He asked directly, “Where are my enemies?”
“They’re inside the dojo,” Xiao Hei said.
Zhang Ruochen walked into the dojo while saying, “If they’re enemies, just kill them. If I don’t kill them, they’ll kill me. The cycle of vengeance never ends. One side has to die first.”
Xiao Hei and Zhen Miao exchanged glances as they watched Zhang Ruochen’s cold and aloof back.
“He talks so coldly and ruthlessly. Let’s see if he can really be decisive when the time comes,” Zhen Miao said with a sly smile.
Xiao Hei also showed a strange expression. “Based on my understanding of him, he’s really in big trouble this time.”
As Zhang Ruochen entered the Moon Goddess Dojo, he immediately sensed two waves of killing intent.
However, both waves of killing intent were weak, almost negligible compared to the assassin kings of the Heaven’s Execution Organization.
A young, childish voice shouted, “Zhang Ruochen, you’ve finally returned. Today is the day you die!”
A dazzling sword light appeared out of nowhere, descending from above and aiming for Zhang Ruochen’s head.
Zhang Ruochen stopped in his tracks and casually reached upward. A giant handprint materialized, piercing through the sword light and slamming it to the ground.
**Boom!**
A young girl, around eleven or twelve years old, fell at Zhang Ruochen’s feet.
When Zhang Ruochen realized that his attacker was just a young girl at the Saint level, he withdrew over ninety percent of his power. Otherwise, that single strike would have annihilated her.
Looking at the small, delicate body on the ground, Zhang Ruochen let out a long sigh. “At such a young age, to have such cultivation is truly remarkable. Unfortunately, you’re still far from being able to kill me. Who are your parents? Why do you want to kill me?”
At only eleven or twelve years old, she had already become a Saint. This was something Zhang Ruochen would never have imagined before.
After all, becoming a Saint before the age of a hundred was already incredibly difficult.
In other words, this little girl’s talent was terrifyingly high, and she must have an extraordinary background.
“You… you murderous demon…”
The little girl raised her pretty face, her star-like eyes glaring fiercely at Zhang Ruochen. However, her words trailed off as she suddenly looked shocked.
Because she and the “murderous demon” Zhang Ruochen looked incredibly alike.
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes widened in shock. For a moment, he wondered if he was hallucinating. How could there be a little girl who looked so much like him?
What… what was going on?
Had this little girl used a transformation technique?
Behind him, a young boy’s voice rang out. “Zhang Ruochen, you traitor of the Kunlun Realm, today is the day you die!”
A fierce wave of killing intent surged toward Zhang Ruochen as a sword struck at his back.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze remained fixed on the little girl. He didn’t even bother to turn around, standing still and unmoving.
**Clang!**
The sword struck Zhang Ruochen’s back.
The sound of metal clashing rang out, and a powerful surge of saintly energy erupted from the point of impact between Zhang Ruochen’s back and the sword, creating ripples in the air.
With Zhang Ruochen’s current cultivation level and the defensive strength of his physical body, how could a mere Saint possibly harm him?
