Zhang Ruochen asked, “How long have we been cultivating in this divine sea?”
“I cultivated for seven days, and you cultivated for thirteen,” Li Miaohan replied.
Zhang Ruochen stepped out of the divine sea and gazed into its depths, asking, “Hasn’t Your Highness emerged yet?”
Li Miaohan shook her head. “Master must have encountered an extraordinary opportunity—she won’t come out anytime soon. Young Master Ruochen, do you want to stay here and wait?”
“No, I have important matters to attend to.”
Zhang Ruochen and Li Miaohan exited the divine gate, returning to Jiuqu Heavenly Star.
He wrote a letter and handed it to Li Miaohan to pass on to Fairy Tianchu. Then, Zhang Ruochen, Murong Yefeng, Ji Fanxin, and Zhenmiao Little Taoist departed from Jiuqu Heavenly Star.
Piloting the White Jade Sacred Ship, the group headed beyond Luo Shui.
“Leaving without a farewell—are you sure that Tianchu Goddess won’t be upset?” Ji Fanxin asked.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist chuckled mischievously. “A lofty and powerful goddess like her—if she gets angry, she’s capable of anything.”
Zhang Ruochen replied, “No need for alarmist talk. Even a goddess is still a woman, not some ferocious beast.”
“Sometimes, a woman can be more terrifying than a ferocious beast,” Murong Yefeng said, approaching from the ship’s bow.
His body radiated dazzling five-coloured holy light, within which a faint silhouette of a qilin could be seen, emitting low, resonant roars.
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve refined the Qilin Supreme Perfection Fruit?”
“It’s only a preliminary refinement—it’ll take more time to fully absorb it. Even so, my physical constitution has undergone a tremendous leap, comparable to a sub-perfection physique. It’s truly incredible,” Murong Yefeng said, his mood buoyant, a constant smile on his face.
The generous gift Zhang Ruochen had given Murong Yefeng was the Qilin Supreme Perfection Fruit, harvested from the God-Sealing Platform.
Murong Yefeng’s physique was top-tier among ordinary cultivators, but it paled compared to the mightiest prodigies of the Heavenly Realm.
Limited by his constitution, despite his profound cultivation and peerless mastery of holy arts, he couldn’t defeat powerhouses like Master Shenya.
With the Qilin Supreme Perfection Fruit, Murong Yefeng’s combat strength was bound to soar.
Murong Yefeng said, “With my current strength, if I wield a Supreme Holy Artefact, I could stand toe-to-toe with Master Shenya at his peak.”
Zhang Ruochen laughed. “You’re only at a sub-perfection physique now. Once you fully absorb the Qilin Supreme Perfection Fruit, you’ll at least achieve a perfection physique, maybe even a slim chance at a supreme perfection physique. Your combat strength will surge again then.”
Murong Yefeng clearly knew this and nodded with a smile.
On the way to Qianshui Royal City, Zhang Ruochen released Qu Xingzhe, who had been imprisoned in the Qiankun Realm, tossing him onto the White Jade Sacred Ship’s deck with a thud.
“Tell me, where are Cang Long and Ruan Ling?” Zhang Ruochen demanded.
Qu Xingzhe, bound tightly by the Saint-Binding Chain, couldn’t stand and collapsed on the deck. Facing Zhang Ruochen’s interrogation, he remained expressionless, his gaze indifferent. “You’d best not hope to see them, or you’ll regret it.”
You God had personally ordered the cultivators of You God Hall to kill Zhang Ruochen.
As the most formidable experts of You God Hall, Cang Long and Ruan Ling posed the greatest threats to Zhang Ruochen. Knowing their exact locations would allow him to strike first and eliminate them.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist said, “Why waste words on a Dao Domain realm expert? You think interrogation will make him spill everything? It’s better to search his soul directly.”
With a flash, Zhenmiao Little Taoist transformed into a purple light, landing atop Qu Xingzhe’s head. His hands turned into countless fine purple threads, pressing into Qu Xingzhe’s skull.
The purple threads glowed increasingly bright, piercing into Qu Xingzhe’s head.
“Ah…”
Qu Xingzhe endured immense pain, letting out a guttural roar.
After a while, he stopped screaming, fainting as blood streamed from all seven orifices.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist withdrew his hands, his expression grave and solemn. “Just now, I searched Qu Xingzhe’s memories and saw scenes of Cang Long and Ruan Ling fighting. Their strength might be beyond what we can handle right now.”
Ji Fanxin said, “Cang Long and Ruan Ling are top-tier powerhouses, their cultivation surpassing the Dao Domain realm. Whether it’s their techniques, physiques, holy arts, or artefacts, they’re all at the pinnacle. Even against an Indestructible realm Great Saint, they can hold their own.”
Zhang Ruochen asked, “What realms lie beyond Dao Domain?”
“The Connecting Heaven and Near-Path realms,” Murong Yefeng answered.
The Nine-Step Saint King realm comprised five sub-realms:
Rules Small Heaven and Earth, Rules Great Heaven and Earth, Dao Domain, Connecting Heaven, and Near-Path.
Rules Small Heaven and Earth meant that once the number of holy path rules reached a certain threshold, they’d transform, circulating within the qi sea to fill it, forming a small heaven and earth.
Rules Great Heaven and Earth meant the holy path rules broke out of the qi sea, spreading through meridians, blood vessels, and holy veins across the body, forming a great heaven and earth.
Dao Domain meant the holy path rules extended beyond the body, constructing a personal domain within the heavenly rules, allowing one to wield their power and unleash unparalleled strength.
Connecting Heaven meant a Nine-Step Saint King could draw heavenly power into their body, tempering their flesh and blood to prepare for forging an indestructible holy frame.
Near-Path meant the body had been tempered to a certain degree, just one step from an indestructible holy frame. A Near-Path cultivator could cross that final threshold whenever they chose.
A Nine-Step Saint King who cultivated a Dao Domain had at least a one-in-ten chance of reaching the Great Saint realm.
A Connecting Heaven Nine-Step Saint King had a three-in-ten chance of becoming a Great Saint.
A Near-Path Nine-Step Saint King was guaranteed to reach the Great Saint realm—it only depended on whether they were willing to take that last step.
Even the Blood Bee Asura King was only at the Dao Domain realm.
However, as a top-tier Dao Domain expert, he could effortlessly slay peers of the same realm. Likewise, if Zhang Ruochen reached Dao Domain, he could kill other Dao Domain experts with a flick of his finger.
Zhenmiao Little Taoist said, “I found Cang Long and Ruan Ling’s whereabouts. Cang Long went to the Fallen God Mountain Range to vie for a demi-god herb. Ruan Ling went to the Savage Secret Realm to seek an ancient divine relic. Zhang Ruochen, since they’re separated, should we take them down one by one?”
Zhang Ruochen pondered for a moment, then shook his head. “The Fallen God Mountain Range and Savage Secret Realm are vast and boundless—finding them would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Even a Great Saint might not kill them. With our current strength, we’re still lacking.”
Zhang Ruochen tossed Qu Xingzhe to the evil spirit.
The evil spirit devoured Qu Xingzhe’s holy soul, further refining its cultivation.
The group arrived at Qianshui Royal City, entering a holy shop established by Qianrui Realm.
The cultivator delivering the divine stones to the Kunlun Realm was Ji Fanxin’s senior sister, Dan Ling King.
Dan Ling King had once been captured by the Yin-Yang Hall and tortured mercilessly. Zhang Ruochen and Ji Fanxin rescued her. Later, pursued by assassins from the Heaven Assassination Organisation, she retreated to Qianrui Realm to hide.
Being an old acquaintance, Zhang Ruochen didn’t stand on ceremony and directly asked how many divine stones she’d brought to the Kunlun Realm.
Dan Ling King smiled charmingly. “Zhang Ruochen, why the rush? As long as you can pay, the number of divine stones will satisfy you.”
Zhang Ruochen, flush with wealth, shrugged nonchalantly. “How many holy stones per divine stone?”
“Ten billion,” Dan Ling King replied.
At that price, even Murong Yefeng frowned.
Zhang Ruochen calmed himself, a smile spreading across his face. “Miss Dan Ling, with our deep friendship, can’t you lower it a bit? Ten billion holy stones is just the market rate, isn’t it?”
“Friendship is friendship, but the price isn’t up to me,” Dan Ling King said, her beautiful eyes twinkling as she glanced at Ji Fanxin for her opinion.
Ji Fanxin said, “Zhang Ruochen, I’ve already given you three divine stones. If you want more, you’ll need to buy them with holy stones. Since we’re allies, I’ll offer you a friendly price—nine billion holy stones for one divine stone. Of course, you can also trade with holy medicines or the Spring of Life.”
For Ji Fanxin, who cultivated the Path of Life, the Spring of Life held great appeal.
“Then nine billion holy stones it is,” Zhang Ruochen agreed.
The battles at Eastern Region Holy City and Battle Soul Star had yielded him immense spoils—high-grade holy artefacts, medicines, techniques—enough to make him richer than some Great Saints if sold.
However, he wouldn’t part with truly precious treasures.
This time, Dan Ling King had brought ten divine stones to the Kunlun Realm.
Zhang Ruochen sold off various holy artefacts and medicines to Qianrui Realm and added a batch of Spring of Life, securing all ten divine stones.
With these ten divine stones in hand, breaking through to the Nine-Step Saint King realm was within reach, and Zhang Ruochen’s heart surged with excitement.
Yet he didn’t activate the Sundial immediately, planning to use it when forging a Dao body for Chenyuan Ancient Sword’s sword spirit.
Forging a sword spirit’s Dao body was a lengthy process, requiring the Sundial’s aid.
“Shall we head to the Northern Region now to seize the Heaven-Connecting Divine Tree?” Ji Fanxin asked.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. “The Heaven-Connecting Divine Tree lies on the frontlines between the Heavenly Realm and the Infernal Realm—a place teeming with experts and extreme danger. We need more preparation. I want to visit the Nether King Sword Tomb in the Central Region first, to forge a Dao body for Chenyuan Ancient Sword’s sword spirit. While there, I can also ask the Nether King Sword Tomb cultivators to refine a batch of Blood-Suppressing Talismans for me.”
“What are Blood-Suppressing Talismans?” Ji Fanxin asked.
Zhang Ruochen smiled. “You’ll see their purpose once they’re refined, Fairy.”
