Watching Zhang Ruochen continuously seize their side’s powerhouses, launching any attack proved futile. Even Feng Guddai, Zi Linglong, Chi Sheng, and Gu Tianyin could no longer remain calm.
“Zhang Ruochen, if you’ve got the guts, fight me openly and honourably,” Chi Sheng roared.
Seeing their side’s powerhouses successively turned into nutrients for the Saint Devourer, Chi Sheng was nearly driven mad. Even if he had to die, he absolutely refused to go out this way.
Zhang Ruochen turned his head, his gaze locking onto Chi Sheng, and said coldly, “What right do you have to speak of fairness with me?”
Feng Guddai’s expression grew solemn as he said, “Zhang Ruochen, don’t you want to know where Shang Ziju went? I’ll tell you now, he’s gone to Peacock Manor.”
At these words, Zhang Ruochen’s face subtly shifted. How could he not know what Shang Ziju was planning?
Feng Guddai continued, “Also, Shang Ziju has captured Chi Kunlun.”
Hearing this, a blazing fury surged in Zhang Ruochen’s chest. Daring to target those close to him, Shang Ziju was truly courting death.
“You’ve lingered in Saintbright City for so long, it’s likely Shang Ziju has already captured Kong Lanyou. Keeping us alive gives you leverage to negotiate with him,” Zi Linglong added.
In their current predicament, they were no match for Zhang Ruochen and couldn’t escape. Their only option was to find a way to preserve their lives.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze grew colder, his body radiating a terrifying killing intent.
Even from a distance, Feng Guddai and the others felt their scalps tingle, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
They couldn’t fathom Zhang Ruochen’s thoughts. If he killed them all in a fit of rage, it would be far too tragic.
“Swish.”
Zhang Ruochen struck decisively, seizing the remaining powerhouses of the Paradise Faction, sealing their Saint Qi and spiritual power.
Except for Feng Guddai, Zi Linglong, Chi Sheng, and Gu Tianyin, all others were handed to Moyin.
In Zhang Ruochen’s viewbyggerspan class=”highlight”>Zhang Ruochen saw only Feng Guddai, Zi Linglong, Chi Sheng, and Gu Tianyin as bargaining chips to force Shang Ziju to negotiate.
After sealing the four, Zhang Ruochen produced four Saint-Binding Ropes, tying them up and storing them in a spatial orb.
With a wave of his hand, Zhang Ruochen recalled the Hidden Mountain Demon Mirror, though the light curtain formed by the Imperial Purple Qi still remained.
While dealing with the Paradise Faction’s powerhouses, Zhang Ruochen had healed his injuries, restoring his strength to its peak.
“Lanyou, Kunlun, wait for me.”
Without a moment’s delay, Zhang Ruochen activated the Streamlight Merit Armour, bursting forth at a thousand times the speed of sound, rushing full force toward Peacock Manor.
“Shang Ziju is heading to Peacock Manor with a large group of powerhouses. Zhang Ruochen rushing there now is simply seeking death. After all, Peacock Manor isn’t Saintbright City, with no Imperial Fortune blessing him.”
“Zhang Ruochen kept Feng Guddai, Zi Linglong, Chi Sheng, and Gu Tianyin alive, perhaps to negotiate with Shang Ziju.”
“Thinking that capturing those four will make Shang Ziju compromise is far too naive. Mark my words, Zhang Ruochen’s trip will yield no good. Forget saving anyone, whether he can escape unscathed is doubtful.”
“To know the final outcome, just head to Peacock Manor and see.”
Immediately, many cultivators observing outside Saintbright City set off, following Zhang Ruochen toward Peacock Manor.
They figured the events at Peacock Manor would be even more thrilling than those in Saintbright City.
Some didn’t follow, having been thoroughly intimidated by Zhang Ruochen’s methods, too scared to join the spectacle.
“Peacock Manor, how interesting,” Rakshasa Princess Luo Ji revealed a sly smile, her figure vanishing from Kongle Mountain.
In another direction, Tianchu Fairy, Thousand-Star Maiden, Butcher, and Fool also set off, their destination Peacock Manor.
Peacock Manor was quite far from Saintbright City. Shang Ziju and his group, aboard a warship, had taken considerable time and were only just approaching.
Shang Ziju stood at the ship’s bow, his brows slightly furrowed. For some reason, he felt an inexplicable unease, as if something bad was about to happen.
“Ziju, what’s wrong?” Da Xi Wang stepped forward and asked.
Shang Ziju, hands behind his back, said softly, “I feel uneasy. Something might have gone wrong in Saintbright City.”
“Ziju, you’re overthinking. With Senior Brother Feng and the others holding Saintbright City, Zhang Ruochen couldn’t possibly stir up any trouble. Just wait for them to bring him to you,” Si Han laughed.
Shang Ziju said, “I hope so.”
As Shang Ziju pondered, space rippled violently, and a figure streaked across the sky like a meteor, vanishing in an instant.
Yet the aura it released made everyone on the warship tremble.
Before Shang Ziju and the others could recover, four more meteors streaked across the sky.
To be precise, they were four people, heading in the same direction as the first, seemingly in pursuit.
The auras of these four were equally terrifying, nearly collapsing the heavens.
“Who were those people?”
Almost everyone on the warship was filled with curiosity.
Shang Ziju’s expression shifted, his gaze fixed on the direction the five figures had gone, a few guesses forming in his mind.
Be it the powerhouses of the Heavenly Realm or the Infernal Realm, he knew most of them. Those with such formidable auras couldn’t be nobodies.
“Look ahead.”
A powerhouse suddenly spoke.
At that, everyone on the battlefield looked up, their gazes fixed forward.
Ahead of the warship lay a vast lake, at the centre of which stood a steep, towering peak, shaped like an unsheathed sword piercing the sky.
Atop that peak stood a man, tall and burly, clad in dark red battle armour, faint bloodstains still wet, as if fresh from a fierce battle.
The man’s face was resolute, though marked by fatigue, yet he casually sipped wine.
On his forehead was a strange mark, resembling a deep starry sky, like a black hole capable of swallowing all light and heat.
Any light reaching the man was absorbed by the mark on his forehead.
Perhaps because of this, no one could clearly see his true appearance.
The battlefield halted, not daring to proceed.
Anyone could tell the man was deliberately blocking their path.
“May I ask who you are, sir, and why you bar our way?” Shang Ziju clasped his hands, asking politely.
Until they knew the man’s identity and strength, it was best not to provoke him.
The mysterious man ignored Shang Ziju, his gaze shifting to Chi Kunlun beside him. Grinning, revealing two rows of stark white teeth, he said, “True God Body, plus a Space Controller, quite a promising seedling.”
Chi Kunlun met the man’s gaze, his eyes resolute, showing no trace of fear.
Tempered by the Merit Battlefield, Chi Kunlun had grown much, his will steadfast, a far cry from his days in the Truth Heavenly Domain.
“Not a bad look, suits my taste. Kid, come with me,” the mysterious man chuckled.
At this, Shang Ziju’s face darkened. “Sir, taking someone by force is a bit too overbearing.”
The mysterious man stepped forward, appearing on the warship in an instant.
His speed was so fast that no one on the ship had time to react.
He fixed his gaze on Shang Ziju and said lightly, “Shang Ziju, leader of this generation’s Merit Temple, I’ve heard of you. A decent talent. If your cultivation reached the Near-Path Realm, I might give you a chance to challenge me.”
“Pity, you’re still too weak to pique my interest.”
With that, the mysterious man turned to Chi Kunlun.
Clearly, compared to Shang Ziju, he was far more interested in Chi Kunlun.
Hearing this and seeing the man’s attitude, Shang Ziju’s anger flared. Since his debut, he’d never been so belittled.
A cold glint flashed in Shang Ziju’s eyes as he conjured a terrifying flame in his palm, striking fiercely at the mysterious man.
The man didn’t even glance at him, merely tilting his head to drink. As wine spilled, a single drop landed on his fingertip, which he flicked.
“Swish.”
The droplet shot out at astonishing speed, nearly tearing space apart.
“Boom.”
Shang Ziju’s body was pierced by the droplet, a gaping hole left in his chest, and he was sent flying backward.
“Pfft.”
Shang Ziju crashed onto the deck, spitting blood.
Instantly, he summoned the Streamlight Merit Armour, donning it to guard against further attacks.
Seeing the armour, the mysterious man’s eyes lit up. “The highest-grade Streamlight Merit Armour, no less. As the Merit Temple’s leader, you’ve got some fine treasures. This armour will come in handy, perfect for evading those four pests chasing me. It’s exhausting.”
As he spoke, the man extended a hand, releasing a dark cyan gas that enveloped Shang Ziju, stripping the Streamlight Merit Armour from him in an instant.
The other powerhouses on the warship wanted to help Shang Ziju but were paralysed by the man’s terrifying presence, unable to move.
Seizing the armour, the mysterious man smiled with satisfaction. “Right, time to go, or those four nuisances will catch up.”
With that, he grabbed Chi Kunlun, stepped forward, and vanished, leaving no trace of his direction.
Not far behind the warship, a shuttle-shaped treasure, cloaked in invisibility, trailed leisurely.
On it stood a woman, the seductive Heart Demon Qiu Yichi.
At that moment, Qiu Yichi felt uneasy, her eyes filled with shock.
Suddenly, a thought struck her, and she whispered, “Could it be him?”
Thinking of that person, Qiu Yichi shivered involuntarily. Such a being was far beyond her ability to provoke.
On the Paradise Faction’s warship, it took a while for the powerhouses to regain their mobility.
Da Xi Wang and Si Han appeared beside Shang Ziju, helping him up from the deck and feeding him a healing Saint Pill.
“Ziju, are you alright?” Da Xi Wang asked with concern.
Shang Ziju clenched his fists, his eyes blazing with fury. Not only had the man gravely injured him, but he’d also stolen the Streamlight Merit Armour—capable of a thousandfold sonic speed—given by the Flame God, and taken Chi Kunlun. It was utterly humiliating.
“Hell Yama Qi, it’s someone from the Hell’s supreme Yama Clan,” Shang Ziju said gravely.
When the mysterious man stripped the armour, he’d used Hell Yama Qi, a power exclusive to the Yama Clan.
“Terrifying. I’ve never encountered someone so frightening,” said a four-winged Scarlet Angel with a gruesome scar, named Chen Hu, a veteran Scarlet Angel from the Blood War Temple, already at the Near-Path Realm, his strength profound and unfathomable, one of Shang Ziju’s top powerhouses.
That such a top Near-Path Realm powerhouse felt fear spoke volumes of the man’s terror.
Though furious, Shang Ziju was helpless. That being was beyond his reach for now, though vaguely, he suspected the man’s identity.
This time, he could only swallow his misfortune.
On a cliff not far from Peacock Manor, the mysterious man appeared silently with Chi Kunlun.
“After such a long journey, I’m starving! Kid, you hungry?”
With a wave, a fire appeared. He took out the leg of some unknown Saint Beast and began roasting it.
“Who are you? Why did you save me?” Chi Kunlun asked boldly.
The man sat by the fire, sipping wine and eyeing Chi Kunlun. “You think I saved you? If you want to see it that way, fine. Kid, you’re Zhang Ruochen’s son, right?”
“What nonsense! Zhang Ruochen is my sworn enemy. My parents died by his hand,” Chi Kunlun snapped.
The man laughed heartily. “Sworn enemy? Kid, are you genuinely clueless or playing dumb? You’ve got a True God Body and are a Space Controller. As far as I know, your sister has a Five-Element Chaos Body and is a Time Controller. In Kunlun Realm, only Empress Chi Yao and Zhang Ruochen could produce siblings like you.”
At this, Chi Kunlun’s face twisted, shaking his head fiercely. “Impossible! You can’t deceive me. How could I be the son of Master and Zhang Ruochen?”
In truth, Chi Kunlun had harboured doubts about his origins, especially after seeing Zhang Ruochen’s face in the Truth Heavenly Domain.
But Empress Chi Yao told him his parents died by Zhang Ruochen’s hand, forcing him to believe her.
“Kid, you’re too naive. The Chi family, apart from Empress Chi Yao, hasn’t a single Great Saint. How could they produce a True God Body and a Five-Element Chaos Body?” the man pressed.
Chi Kunlun’s mind roared, recalling how, at Daluo Dojo, Zhang Ruochen risked everything to save him and his sister. Would he do that for an enemy?
“No.”
Chi Kunlun’s face contorted in pained struggle, his blood surging, and he spat a mouthful of blood.
The man patted Chi Kunlun’s shoulder. “Easy, kid. Don’t get so worked up. I’m still waiting for you to take me as your master.”
Chi Kunlun looked up, dazed. “Why should I take you as my master?”
“Because I’m strong. You think Zhang Ruochen’s impressive? Let me tell you, ten Zhang Ruochens couldn’t match me.”
“Forget ten Zhang Ruochens, even if the Truth Temple’s ten divine disciples attacked together, I could take them all down. Take me as your master, and I’ll make you stronger than Zhang Ruochen and those disciples combined.”
The man boasted brazenly.
Chi Kunlun said flatly, “I’m not interested.”
Surprisingly, the man wasn’t angry but laughed. “Got spirit! You don’t want me as your master? Well, I’ll make you take me. Kid, you’re not escaping.”
Chi Kunlun fell silent, ignoring the man, his mind consumed by the man’s earlier words. Could Zhang Ruochen truly be his father?
