By the blood lake’s edge, a profusion of beast-shaped sacred herbs grew— some like rabbits, others like snakes, and a few resembling dragons, tigers, or even gluttonous taotie, all radiating potent mental energy fluctuations.
Along the way, the cultivators had subdued numerous beast-shaped sacred herbs, consuming them to greatly boost their cultivation.
Thus, faced with so many sacred herbs now, they couldn’t stay calm. Greed glinted in their eyes as they rubbed their hands eagerly, itching to act, forgetting their true purpose at the polar region.
“If I harvest them, I could surely refine a Path Domain.”
“To break through to Nine-Step Saint King as soon as possible, it’s worth the risk.”
“Fortune favours the bold— the greater the danger, the richer the reward.”
…
Treasures captivate the heart— a saying proven true.
Tianchu Fairy cautioned, “Everyone, be careful. These beast-shaped sacred herbs can attack a cultivator’s saint soul and mind.”
“No worries, Fairy. This prince has the Nine-Orifice Soul-Suppressing Pearl— I fear no assault,” Emperor Ancestor Crown Prince replied.
Confident in his abilities, he led Yue Gongming, Xian Gongming, Que Gonggong, and others towards the divine blood lake, claiming one sacred herb after another.
Other cultivators, envious, joined the harvest.
Tianchu Fairy knew she couldn’t stop them. With a soft sigh, she circulated her saint qi, opening the vertical eye on her forehead to search for traces of the Blood Bee Asura King.
But under the lingering power of the divine corpse, her eye’s potency was severely limited here.
Frowning delicately, Tianchu Fairy murmured, “Something’s off.”
Li Miaohan asked, “Master, what’s wrong?”
Tianchu Fairy replied, “If the Blood Bee Asura King came to War Soul Star, he wouldn’t overlook this divine blood lake. So why isn’t he here?”
“Perhaps he sensed our presence early and fled,” Li Miaohan suggested.
The Butcher nodded, “That’s plausible. We outnumber him, with many experts. Even someone as strong as the Blood Bee Asura King wouldn’t dare face us head-on.”
“If that’s the case, what are we waiting for? Let’s harvest the sacred herbs too. Earlier, a cultivator jumped from Seven-Step to Eight-Step Saint King after consuming one. If we don’t act, they’ll pick the lot clean— we can’t return empty-handed, can we?” an elder from Tianchu Civilization urged impatiently.
Tianchu Fairy’s gaze remained clear as she shook her head, “No, we can’t all go for the herbs. If we’re ambushed, we’ll be caught off guard.”
Li Miaohan’s eyes flicked towards the blood lake, startled, “He… he’s heading to the lake—what’s he doing?”
Tianchu Fairy followed her gaze, spotting Zhang Ruochen’s back. Her brows furrowed deeper as she muttered, “That fellow— looks like he’s after some gains too.”
Li Miaohan smiled, “Divine blood has far broader uses than sacred herbs. Even a lake this vast— taking just one percent, or one thousandth— would be a massive haul.”
Duzi’s eyes lit up, “Your Highness, why don’t we collect some too?”
Tianchu Fairy said, “Divine blood holds immense power. A single drop on an ordinary sacred artifact could pierce it. Without a special vessel, how do you hold it?”
“Besides, this divine blood likely carries impurities. Even if collected, it can’t be refined directly.”
Duzi rummaged through his belongings for a moment but found no suitable container, sighing in disappointment and staying by Tianchu Fairy’s side.
Zhang Ruochen, shielded by six Void Illusion Pearls, approached the divine blood lake slowly.
The closer he got, the heavier the oppressive force grew. Strange illusions flickered before his eyes.
The blood lake stretched endlessly, its red surface littered with floating skulls emitting heart-wrenching screams.
Some skulls exuded auras as mighty as a Great Saint’s, wielding sharp bone spears that stabbed towards Zhang Ruochen’s chest.
He ignored them entirely. As the spears struck, they passed through him, dissipating into nothingness.
All mere illusions!
Only someone with Zhang Ruochen’s ironclad mental will could withstand them. Lesser cultivators would’ve been paralysed by fear at the Great Saint auras alone.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist, nerves taut, stammered, “Zhang Ruochen, are you really so fearless for divine blood?”
“You think I’m here for the blood?” Zhang Ruochen replied.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist asked, “Aren’t you?”
Zhang Ruochen reached the lake’s edge, opening his Heavenly Eye to scan its surface. After a while, he frowned, puzzled, “Did I guess wrong?”
“What are you looking for?” Zhenmiao Little Taoist pressed.
Zhang Ruochen circled the lake’s perimeter, checking every possible hiding spot. Only at the fifth question did he answer, “The Blood Bee Asura King.”
“Tch, I thought it was something else.”
Zhenmiao Little Taoist continued, “This poor Taoist thinks the Blood Bee Asura King must’ve fled long ago. How could he still be here? Could he hide in the lake? A lake of divine blood— its power isn’t something a Saint King can withstand. Any creature jumping in would be melted into pus.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” Zhang Ruochen conceded.
“We’re here now— how can we ignore such a vast lake of divine blood?”
Zhenmiao Little Taoist produced his Purple Gold Eight Trigrams Mirror, activating it and sending it hovering over the lake.
Drops of divine blood rose, flowing into the mirror’s surface.
Zhang Ruochen raised an eyebrow, “The Purple Gold Eight Trigrams Mirror has an internal space?”
“What’s so surprising? A supreme sacred artifact having an internal space isn’t odd, is it?”
Then, Zhenmiao Little Taoist added, “This chance is rare— quick, use your Azure Heaven Pagoda to collect divine blood. To cultivate your body to Great Saint level, you’ll need heaps of it. Miss this, and where will you find more?”
Zhang Ruochen still felt unease, as if dangerous eyes were watching him.
He pulled out three talismans, concealing them in his left palm for emergencies, before retrieving the Mercury Gourd. Wrapping it with a Seven Radiances Ten Thousand Inscriptions sacred chain, he tossed it into the lake.
Instantly, the Mercury Gourd swelled to the size of a palace, divine blood pouring endlessly into its mouth.
A vortex of blood formed at the opening.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist yelped, “Using the Mercury Gourd? That’s unfair!”
The gourd was a bottomless pit— impossible to fill.
By comparison, his mirror could only take dozens of drops at a time— far too slow.
The cultivators harvesting sacred herbs noticed Zhang Ruochen collecting divine blood, their hearts stirring with desire to join in.
Then, a massive crisis erupted.
A scream pierced the sacred herb thicket.
“Blood Emperor… bees…”
A Nine-Step Saint King under the Emperor Ancestor Crown Prince burst from the herbs, dozens of crimson bees clinging to him. Some had burrowed into his body, leaving finger-sized blood holes.
He circulated saint qi, using his physical defences to resist.
“Splurch.”
But before escaping the thicket, his head exploded.
A fist-sized bee— a bee king— burst from his skull, its crimson body laced with golden patterns, exuding an aura rivaling a Path Domain expert.
“Buzz, buzz.”
From a dragon-shaped sacred herb, a swarm of crimson bees erupted, forming a blood cloud that spread in all directions.
“Blood Emperor Bees— it’s the Blood Emperor Bees!”
“It’s a trap— get out of the herb thicket, quick— ahh!”
In moments, five or six saint-realm cultivators were swarmed, their bodies riddled with holes like honeycombs, blood drained dry.
The bees numbered over a thousand, catching them off guard.
Tianchu Fairy and the four Tianchu Civilization elders unleashed the *Red Sun Divine River Painting*, attacking the swarm. The red sun’s power shattered dozens of bees into blood mist.
Gradually, the fleeing saint-realm cultivators steadied, counterattacking the bee swarm.
At the lake’s edge, Zhang Ruochen saw the bees and sensed danger. With a fierce tug, he yanked the Seven Radiances chain back.
“Whoosh.”
The Mercury Gourd soared from the lake, arcing through the air.
At that moment, a black radiance flared on the central stone pillar, thirty metres above the lake’s surface.
The black light unleashed a mountainous force, streaking like an arrow towards the Mercury Gourd.
“I knew it— he was hiding nearby.”
Zhang Ruochen locked onto the black radiance, pupils shrinking as he flung a talisman from his left hand.
The talisman shot forth like a flying sword, clashing with the black light.
“Boom.”
It shattered, unleashing over a hundred bowl-thick lightning bolts that crackled above the lake, shaking the air.
Behind the lightning, a towering figure in black armour emerged, wielding a broad heavy sword. Black wings sprouted from its back, its cold gaze fixed on Zhang Ruochen.
“It didn’t even scratch him— his defences are absurd,” Zhang Ruochen marvelled inwardly.
He’d retrieved the Mercury Gourd. With two swift motions, he launched the second and third talismans from his left hand.
The black figure, charging towards the Purple Gold Eight Trigrams Mirror, was intercepted by the talismans, blocking its path.
“Boom.”
“Boom.”
Two more thunderous roars echoed above the lake.
The black figure burst through the lightning, its blood-red eyes glaring at Zhang Ruochen.
It was the Blood Bee Asura King.
“For the Heavenly Court to have such a shrewd cultivator— twice anticipating my moves and striking first with attack talismans— interesting.”
Flapping its broad black wings, the Blood Bee Asura King hefted its heavy sword and flew towards Zhang Ruochen at blinding speed, like a shuttle of light, intent on eliminating him to prevent further interference.
