As the Blood Emperor Bees were unleashed, joining the ghost kings and corpse kings in battle, the situation for Tianchu Fairy, Emperor Ancestor Crown Prince, and the other saintly path cultivators grew dire.
“Your Highness, you go first— we’ll hold off the Blood Bee Asura King!”
The Butcher roared, blindfolding his eyes. Clutching his cleaver, his muscles bulged, golden fur sprouting from his skin, exuding the savage aura of a primordial beast.
The cleaver slashed diagonally, clashing with the Blood Bee Asura King’s sword.
“Bang.”
Sparks flew from the collision.
Ripples of potent saintly power spread outward.
Unleashing his semi-beast form, the Butcher’s physical strength surged, rivaling a peak Path Domain expert. Yet compared to the Blood Bee Asura King, the gap was vast. The overwhelming sword force sent him staggering back, blood spewing from his mouth with each step.
“Not bad strength. Submit to me, and you’ll live today,” the Blood Bee Asura King said.
He dragged a sword arc dozens of metres long, striking the Butcher’s shoulder. Though blocked by the cleaver, it pinned the Butcher immobile.
The Butcher faced two paths: death or submission.
“Submit to your… mother…”
Cursing, the Butcher strained with all his might, teeth gritted, roaring as he pushed back.
But the Blood Bee Asura King’s sword didn’t budge.
“Since you choose death, I’ll oblige.”
Cold and merciless, the Blood Bee Asura King twisted his wrist, slashing horizontally at the Butcher’s neck.
“Butcher…”
Tianchu Fairy unleashed her Rain Silk Divine Sword, wrapping it around the king’s neck— but it couldn’t harm him. A layer of blood light formed scales on his neck.
The king’s sword halted an inch from the Butcher’s throat.
Time froze in that instant.
Zhang Ruochen flashed forward like lightning, striking the sword’s edge with one palm and the king’s chest with the other.
“Bang.”
Taking the palm head-on, the Blood Bee Asura King was unharmed, merely stepping back three paces, landing over twenty metres away.
“You lot go— I’ll cover the rear.”
Zhang Ruochen gripped a handful of talismans in his left hand, staring down the king with full focus.
The Butcher, certain of death, was deeply moved by Zhang Ruochen’s timely rescue.
Brandishing his cleaver, he stood beside Zhang Ruochen, “We leave together or die together.”
Tianchu Fairy retracted her sword, taking Zhang Ruochen’s other side, “He’s right.”
Duzi and another Tianchu Civilization elder joined them.
The Blood Bee Asura King’s gaze settled on Zhang Ruochen, “No wonder I found you odd— a time cultivator. Pity your realm’s too low, or you’d be a worthy foe.”
Before his words finished, his sword darted towards Zhang Ruochen.
A hardened veteran of countless battles, Zhang Ruochen’s reflexes matched the king’s. As the sword struck, he unleashed over a dozen talismans.
The talismans burst, releasing wild energy that not only blocked the sword but engulfed the king entirely.
When the energy faded, the king found Zhang Ruochen and the others gone.
“Who is this man, carrying so many potent talismans? Alas, talismans are mere tools— they won’t change your fate of dying by my sword.”
A bee king relayed that the swarm was pursuing Zhang Ruochen and Tianchu Fairy— they hadn’t escaped.
“Whoosh.”
The Blood Bee Asura King streaked into the blood mist.
The bees’ speed exceeded Zhang Ruochen’s expectations, shadowing them relentlessly.
Tianchu Fairy wielded the *Red Sun Divine River Painting*, its sun and river forces barely keeping the bees at bay.
“Once we’re out of this mist, we can use a spatial teleport scroll to escape,” Zhang Ruochen told them.
The mist-bound region’s space was too stable— neither spatial shifts nor scrolls worked here.
They had to break free first.
The mist thinned, visibility clearing.
Joy flickered on the faces of the Butcher, Duzi, Zhang Ruochen, and Tianchu Fairy.
But it was short-lived— their expressions soon darkened.
At the mist’s edge stood two imposing figures, blocking their path.
“It’s them… Shenya Master’s here too…” Zhang Ruochen’s heart sank.
Ahead, Laiwangren and Quxingzhe, spotting Tianchu Fairy’s beauty, exchanged glances and smirked.
Quxingzhe said, “I told you the Tianchu Civilization’s fairy, with all her life-saving tricks, wouldn’t die so easily to the Blood Bee Asura King.”
Laiwangren nodded, then called out, “Tianchu Fairy, come with us— we’ll spare you. Otherwise, when the Blood Bee Asura King catches up, you and your followers all die.”
“Damn them— how are they here?”
Duzi and the other elder charged, each unleashing a mid-tier saint technique at Laiwangren and Quxingzhe.
“Bang.”
“Bang.”
Both spat blood, flung back to crash on the ground.
Duzi staggered up, clutching his bloodied chest, incredulous, “Your realms… Path Domain…”
“Buzz.”
Drawn by blood, the bees swarmed Duzi and the elder, encircling them.
The Butcher gnashed his teeth, furious, “Those bastards— instead of fighting Hell Realm foes, they rob us in our hour of need. I’d hack them to pieces!”
Zhang Ruochen stayed calm, “Fairy, save the elders— the Butcher and I will handle Laiwangren and Quxingzhe.”
Tianchu Fairy warned, “Be careful— they’re Path Domain. Don’t underestimate them.”
Without the *Red Sun Divine River Painting* to counter the bees, she’d have faced them herself.
To her, Zhang Ruochen’s potent trump cards let him challenge Path Domain foes, but his low realm made it risky.
“Don’t worry, Fairy— if Brother Ruohan holds off Quxingzhe a moment, I’ll finish Laiwangren and help him,” the Butcher said.
He clashed with Laiwangren first, their Path Domains colliding fiercely, shaking the ground as dust thickened.
Quxingzhe, not recognising Zhang Ruochen and taking him for a young Tianchu expert, didn’t take him seriously.
Aiming for a swift victory, Zhang Ruochen summoned the Azure Heaven Pagoda.
Quxingzhe, in monk robes with prayer beads, smiled, “Why seek death, benefactor? Surrender Tianchu Fairy and join the幽神殿— supreme power…”
The pagoda swelled to dozens of metres, radiating azure light, spinning rapidly like a divine peak crashing down on Quxingzhe.
His eyes bulged as if seeing a ghost. He raised his Path Domain and flung his beads.
“Crack.”
The beads scattered, forming thirty-six glowing Buddhist orbs.
Each orb birthed a white-robed Buddha, seated cross-legged, striking varied seals against the pagoda.
A complete supreme sacred artifact, the Azure Heaven Pagoda outclassed Zhenmiao’s mirror severalfold. On contact, the orbs shattered into white fragments.
“Boom.”
The pagoda struck the ground, sinking it into a massive crater.
The shockwave knocked the Butcher, Laiwangren, Tianchu Fairy, and the others back.
At Eight-Step Saint King, Zhang Ruochen’s pagoda unleashed far greater power than before.
Yet Quxingzhe escaped death, retreating a thousand metres with minor injuries.
Losing his thirty-six orbs to a supreme artifact pained him, “How’s the Azure Heaven Pagoda in your hands? Who are you?”
Zhang Ruochen recalled the pagoda, holding it in his palm, taunting, “Want to know? Tell Shenya Master to ask himself— your realm doesn’t qualify.”
“You…”
Quxingzhe realised it must be Zhang Ruochen.
A vast, resonant laugh echoed, “Zhang Ruochen, leaving Eastern Domain Holy City to seek death in Luo Water— haha, don’t worry, I won’t kill you. I’ll make you wish you were dead.”
Shenya Master’s voice rolled in from miles away, drawing nearer.
“We must break out now— help me power the Azure Heaven Pagoda!” Zhang Ruochen knew they had to escape before Shenya Master arrived, or they were trapped.
The Butcher, Duzi, and a Rules Great Heaven elder from Tianchu Civilization infused saint qi into the pagoda.
“Hiss.”
Inscriptions flared on the tower, its supreme power doubling.
Sensing it, Laiwangren and Quxingzhe paled, retreating swiftly.
From the mist, the Blood Bee Asura King emerged, eyeing the glowing pagoda with excitement, not fear, “Another supreme artifact— Kunlun Realm’s full of opportunities. If I seize it, my strength will soar.”
“Whoosh—”
His wings stretched flat, forming a black light shuttle, charging at Zhang Ruochen beneath the pagoda.
Tianchu Fairy sensed him, flicking a crystalline jade talisman. It morphed mid-air into a jade stele.
Over 300,000 runes surged from the stele, forming a hemispherical light shield.
“Boom.”
The king struck the shield, flung back by its force.
Always believing true strength lay within, he scorned talismans and arrays. Yet today, Zhang Ruochen and Tianchu Fairy’s talismans vexed him greatly.
The Azure Heaven Pagoda rose, its dozens-of-metres-thick supreme power scattering the mist. Zhang Ruochen didn’t target Laiwangren or Quxingzhe, instead striking the Blood Bee Asura King.
Unafraid, the king gripped his sword with both hands and slashed.
“Boom.”
The pagoda sent him crashing down, collapsing the earth into a vast pit, raising a hundreds-of-metres-high hill behind it.
