Within the Sumeru Dojo, the saints of the Kunlun Realm gazed at Zhang Ruochen, who seemed almost divine, and felt an urge to bow in reverence.
Such a feeling had only ever arisen when they faced Empress Chi Yao.
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen was the embodiment of invincibility.
Wielding the lotus, he swept aside all formidable foes with a flick of his finger.
Shang Ziyan’s three corpses merged into one. As he surveyed the ground littered with Saint King corpses, his gaze stretched to Zhang Ruochen. Instantly, flames surged from one eye, while icy mist billowed from the other.
From birth, he had been the pinnacle of heaven’s chosen, excelling beyond his peers in every endeavour, always striving for perfection. When had he ever suffered such a crushing defeat?
Unwillingness, shame, and rage churned within him.
Yet, in the end, Shang Ziyan’s rationality prevailed over his emotions. With a loud shout, he commanded, “Withdraw.”
The remnants of the Paradise Realm’s forces retreated like a receding tide.
Zhang Ruochen descended from the top of the Buddha statue.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady raised her Heaven-Burning Sword, declaring, “Now is the time to press our advantage, everyone follow me and slaughter them until not a single one remains.”
“Hold on,” Zhang Ruochen interjected.
The Kunlun Realm cultivators present didn’t rush out of the Sumeru Dojo, their eyes turning to Zhang Ruochen.
Clearly, his influence among them now surpassed even that of the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Though the kings of the Paradise Realm have fled, their strength still far exceeds yours. Without the equality of all beings, you’d stand no chance against them. That’s the first point.”
“Second, after this battle, the Kunlun Realm has suffered devastating losses, and everyone is wounded. Stay here to recover, let’s avoid any more sacrifices.”
“Third, this time, hundreds of Paradise Realm Saint King prodigies have fallen, each with powerful backgrounds and the potential to become Greater Saints. This will undoubtedly trigger a seismic upheaval.”
“While it’s not enough to cause a complete collapse of the Paradise Realm’s cultivation world, after such a defeat, Shang Ziyan will likely face tough days ahead upon his return.”
“Our priority now is to immediately set up defensive arrays for the Sumeru Dojo. The Paradise Realm’s forces in the Truth Heavenly Domain are immense, they could return at any moment.”
After hearing Zhang Ruochen’s words, the Kunlun Realm cultivators gazed at the corpses strewn across the ground, falling into silence.
The bodies weren’t just those of Paradise Realm kings, but also of Kunlun Realm cultivators.
In this battle, nearly half of the Kunlun Realm’s saints and Saint Kings had perished, a truly harrowing toll. They indeed needed time to recuperate.
Had the Paradise Realm kings not sought to extract cultivation techniques and saintly arts from the Kunlun Realm cultivators, the latter might have been entirely wiped out already.
Had the cyan lotus seed left by Saint Monk Sumeru not rapidly healed the cultivators’ injuries, the Kunlun Realm’s casualties would have been even greater.
Seeing the group’s fighting spirit wane, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady slowly lowered her Heaven-Burning Sword.
In truth, she too felt Zhang Ruochen’s reasoning was sound. The Kunlun Realm was already gravely weakened, and continuing the fight might exhaust their last reserves.
Yet, watching Wan Zhao Yi burn through his lifespan and die before her eyes, and seeing Kunlun Realm cultivators fall one by one into pools of blood, the fire of vengeance and fury in her heart refused to be extinguished.
In the end, the Kunlun Realm was still far too weak to contend with the Paradise Realm, even with all the advantages of timing, terrain, and unity.
The disparity in strength was simply too vast!
Zhang Ruochen approached Chi Kunlun and Chi Kongle, frowning deeply as he examined the sword wounds on their abdomens. He then glanced at the Buddha statue’s brow, reaching out with a spatial grasp to retrieve the lotus seed.
The seed had lost all its lustre, turning a withered yellow.
With a slight squeeze, it shattered with a “crack,” crumbling into lifeless fragments that scattered on the ground.
“The life essence of the lotus seed has entirely transferred into the lotus flower. Does this lotus possess the power to heal injuries?”
With this thought, Zhang Ruochen took a deep breath, pressing his palm against the lotus and channeling the scant saint qi remaining in his body into it. Sure enough, a surge of vital essence flowed from the lotus into Chi Kunlun and Chi Kongle.
Moments later, the sword wounds on their abdomens healed, and the sinister power left by the Crimson Child Sword was expelled from their bodies.
Luo Xu approached Zhang Ruochen, his expression grave, “Zhang Ruochen, over a dozen Kunlun Realm saints are severely injured, even saint healing pills aren’t helping. Could you save them too… What’s wrong?”
Zhang Ruochen’s body pitched forward.
Chi Kongle, who had just regained consciousness and stood up, was right in front of him. She quickly stepped forward to support him, her voice tense, “Zhang… Zhang… What’s wrong with you?”
The Kunlun Realm cultivators all jumped in alarm.
Zhang Ruochen’s brows were tightly knit, his face deathly pale, lacking even the strength to stand.
How could the same Zhang Ruochen, who moments ago had dominated the battlefield and sent the Paradise Realm kings fleeing in terror, suddenly become so frail?
There’s no such thing as power without a price.
Controlling the lotus and harnessing the spatial inscriptions left by Saint Monk Sumeru to wield spatial power was no easy feat, it consumed an immense amount of saint qi.
Even more taxing was the toll on his spiritual power.
How could inscriptions left by a god be so easily manipulated?
Though he had only activated the spatial inscriptions for a single breath, it had overdrawn Zhang Ruochen’s spiritual power. He had been holding on by sheer will to intimidate the Paradise Realm kings into retreating.
To save Chi Kunlun and Chi Kongle, he had forcibly activated the lotus once more.
Now, he could no longer hold out.
The Devourer Saint Flower, Xiao Hei, Xie Chengzi, and Zhen Miao rushed over, fearing Chi Kongle might harm Zhang Ruochen. They snatched him from her grasp and carried him into an ancient temple.
The Devourer Saint Flower stood outside the temple, looking down at the Kunlun Realm cultivators, “From now on, this temple is forbidden ground. Anyone who dares step inside will be killed without mercy.”
Inside the temple.
Xiao Hei extended a claw, pressing it against Zhang Ruochen’s wrist to check his condition, “It’s just excessive spiritual power depletion, good, good.”
“Swish, swish.”
Xiao Hei’s spiritual power was formidable. He channelled a portion of it, striking Zhang Ruochen’s chest and infusing it into his saint heart.
Zhen Miao’s gaze fixed on the lotus in Zhang Ruochen’s hand, licking his lips repeatedly. After hesitating for a moment, he stealthily reached out a small hand to snatch it.
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen’s fingers tightened, his arm lifting as he glared at Zhen Miao, “What are you trying to do?”
Zhen Miao’s hand froze midair, startled, “Nothing, this poor Taoist just wanted to take a closer look at this wondrous treasure of heaven and earth, no ulterior motives. How could a cultivator of the Dao covet such vulgar objects, so crude, utterly distasteful.”
With that, Zhen Miao turned away, muttering under his breath, “How did he wake up so quickly? My move was still too slow.”
Zhang Ruochen’s head throbbed painfully, his vision blurred, and his body felt profoundly weak. Yet he forced himself to stay conscious, there were critical matters he needed to address.
“In this battle, many Paradise Realm Saint Kings fell, leaving behind numerous precious treasures. Xie Chengzi, you and Mo Yin head out immediately to collect them. Be careful not to clash with the Kunlun Realm cultivators while doing so.”
Next, Zhang Ruochen produced a black soul orb and handed it to Xiao Hei, “The Yi Emperor Evil Spirit absorbed Young Master Yan’s saint soul, greatly boosting its strength, now capable of challenging a Nine-Step Saint King. This soul orb I control likely holds only a fifth of its total soul power at most, it can restrain it but no longer kill it.”
“Xiao Hei, you and Zhen Miao take this soul orb and suppress it. If it tries to escape, kill it outright. Only if it willingly surrenders half its soul power can you bring it back.”
Xiao Hei asked, “If we all leave, what about you? In your current state…”
“Don’t worry, though some Kunlun Realm cultivators might covet the lotus in my hand or even want my life, Senior Brother and Princess Bai Li are here, they’ll surely protect me,” Zhang Ruochen said.
Xiao Hei, Zhen Miao, Xie Chengzi, and the Devourer Saint Flower rushed out of the temple, vanishing into the night.
Left alone in the temple, Zhang Ruochen lowered his head, silent for a long while before speaking, “Are you here to kill me?”
A petite figure leapt down from the temple’s roof, landing in front of Zhang Ruochen, startled, “How did you notice me? Your spiritual power… isn’t it exhausted…?”
This petite figure was Chi Kongle, who bore a seven-part resemblance to Zhang Ruochen.
Under the bronze lamp, her shadow stretched long, her delicate face glowing with a soft white sheen. Holding a saint sword, she looked like a little sword immortal carved from sacred jade.
Zhang Ruochen smiled, “You’re wearing Buddhist beads refined by the Buddha Emperor, aren’t you? Those beads can conceal all traces of your presence, even fooling Xiao Hei and the others. But the Buddha Emperor’s beads sense each other.”
He raised his arm, revealing a string of ten Buddhist beads.
Around Chi Kongle’s neck hung a silver thread. Lifting it, she revealed five smooth, white Buddhist beads hidden beneath her saint robe.
Zhang Ruochen said, “My saint qi is nearly depleted, and my spiritual power is almost entirely exhausted, I’m extremely weak now. One strike from your sword could kill… me…”
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen’s eyes sharpened, fixating on the five beads around Chi Kongle’s neck.
More precisely, on the jade pendant nestled between them—a swallow-shaped pendant.
“The Swallow Pendant!”
The pendant drew his gaze like a magnet.
Zhang Ruochen’s expression grew deeply complex. Propping up his frail body, he slowly stood.
Chi Kongle blinked, “How do you know it’s called the Swallow Pendant?”
“I not only know it’s the Swallow Pendant, I also know it was originally one of a pair.”
Standing beside Chi Kongle, Zhang Ruochen pinched the pendant between his fingers, a bitter smile crossing his face, his eyes glistening as if lost in memory.
In his mind echoed a teasing voice from eight hundred years ago, “I gift you this Swallow Pendant, may we never part in life. Yao Yao, don’t lose it, these pendants have an extraordinary origin, a matching pair, our token of love!”
Then came a girl’s voice, “I gift you this Creation Sword, together in life and death. Brother Chen, catch! The sword in your hand and the one in mine were both forged from Creation Divine Iron, a natural pair. Let’s keep practising, using these swords, we might unlock even greater power with the Yin-Yang Dual Sword Formation.”
