The battle outside Peacock Manor was exceptionally fierce, with significant casualties occurring in a very short time.
The twenty-six Nine-Step Saint Kings, originally controlled by Feng Gudao’s Soul-Holding Technique, were all immensely powerful, but six had already perished, and several others were gravely injured.
The Paradise Realm faction, while having some injuries, had not lost a single member thus far.
If this continued, the situation would undoubtedly become increasingly unfavorable for Zhang Ruochen’s side.
Zhang Ruochen strained to hold up the Five-Colored Merit Stele, yet his body continued to sink.
Had his physical body not been so resilient, anyone else would likely have been crushed into a pulp by the stele.
Shang Ziqi moved, appearing atop the stele, gazing down at Zhang Ruochen with contempt.
“Get down.”
With a roar, Shang Ziqi unleashed a terrifying force, amplifying the stele’s power.
Instantly, the stele radiated even more dazzling five-colored holy light, with vast and heavy merit qi spreading outward.
Zhang Ruochen’s body trembled violently, fine cracks appearing on his arms, accompanied by faint sounds of bones fracturing.
The next moment, the cracks on his arms became more pronounced, with copious amounts of holy blood seeping out.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze turned razor-sharp.
All the seeping holy blood coalesced, and he even forced out more from his body, transforming it into a surging blood qi.
Simultaneously, immense holy qi surged forth, containing 500,000 palm dao rules.
A colossal phantom of the Nether King formed, exuding overwhelming blood qi.
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen spared no expense, consuming vast amounts of his holy blood to push the Seven-Orifices Blood Nether Palm to its limit.
Moreover, he mobilized nearly 100,000 truth rules to amplify the palm’s power.
The Five-Colored Merit Stele was indeed miraculous, capable of suppressing Eternal Daos, but not absolutely.
Zhang Ruochen’s mastery of the Dao of Truth was profound, especially with his possession of 1/12,000th of the Truth Mystery. Unleashing his full strength now, though unable to achieve his usual eightfold attack power, he could still muster two to three times the force.
“Boom.”
The power within Zhang Ruochen erupted like a volcano, unstoppable, forcibly sending the Five-Colored Merit Stele flying.
This allowed him to temporarily break free.
However, that strike came at a steep cost—significant loss of holy blood and severe damage to his arms, nearly crippling them.
“Under the suppression of the Five-Colored Merit Stele, you can still wield the Dao of Truth. Zhang Ruochen, you continue to surprise me. But precisely because of this, you must die,” Shang Ziqi’s killing intent intensified.
The more extraordinary Zhang Ruochen proved, the greater the threat he posed to Shang Ziqi, necessitating his elimination to prevent future troubles.
In that situation, even Shang Ziqi would have struggled to wield the Dao of Truth.
In terms of talent in the Dao of Truth, Shang Ziqi was also exceptional, capable of sevenfold attack power—less than Zhang Ruochen but far surpassing most who cultivated the Dao of Truth.
At that moment, a disturbance erupted at the battlefield’s edge.
A dark figure appeared abruptly, striking with lightning speed, killing several Paradise Realm faction Saint Kings and devouring all their refined qi and rules.
Simultaneously, a cold swordsman emerged, wielding lethal swordsmanship, slaying several more Paradise Realm faction Saint Kings in an instant.
Zhang Ruochen was all too familiar with these two—Han Qiu and A Le, who had joined the Death God Temple.
Soon, the Paradise Realm faction’s powerhouses reacted, with top-tier experts moving to intercept Han Qiu and A Le.
“Zhang Ruochen, do you see? Two more have come to die for you,” Shang Ziqi sneered.
He actually hoped more of Zhang Ruochen’s allies would arrive, allowing him to wipe them all out at once, saving the trouble of hunting them down later.
As he spoke, Shang Ziqi continued his assault, deploying both the Ten Thousand Refinements Tower and the Crimson Child Sword.
Zhang Ruochen had no time to check on Han Qiu and A Le, hurriedly unleashing the Hidden Mountain Demonic Mirror.
Unfortunately, the Azure Sky Pagoda had been taken, or his situation wouldn’t be so dire.
The Hidden Mountain Demonic Mirror, though a damaged Supreme Sacred Artifact without a spirit, couldn’t unleash much power, no matter how well it resonated with him.
“Bang.”
The mirror was sent flying back, striking Zhang Ruochen and knocking him back as well.
“Pfft.”
Zhang Ruochen spat out a large mouthful of blood, his aura weakening significantly.
Seeing this, Shang Ziqi’s face lit up with a brilliant smile. The feeling of dominating Zhang Ruochen was immensely satisfying, allowing him to vent the frustration pent up in his chest.
As time passed, Shang Ziqi’s realm gradually stabilized, and his strength steadily grew.
The Earth Soul Liquid and holy pill he had consumed not only facilitated his breakthrough and consolidation but also significantly boosted his cultivation, with his holy dao rules now reaching 12 million.
In this state, Shang Ziqi was brimming with confidence, his casual attacks too much for Zhang Ruochen to withstand.
In another part of the battlefield, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady and the Demon Toad were locked in a fierce stalemate.
At a certain moment, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady revealed a slight opening.
The Demon Toad seized the chance, striking with a palm.
“Bang.”
The toad’s palm hit her left shoulder, leaving a dark imprint.
But at that moment, a sharp glint flashed in her eyes. Wielding the silver kitchen knife, she slashed at the Demon Toad, who was now within reach.
“You…”
The Demon Toad was shocked, immediately attempting to retreat.
It realized too late that the opening was deliberate, baiting it into a trap.
“Pfft.”
A silver flash, and a gruesome wound appeared on the Demon Toad’s chest, black, foul-smelling blood spraying out.
That single slash nearly cleaved the toad in two.
A cunning divine force burrowed into its body, wreaking havoc and causing excruciating pain.
This was a prime opportunity to finish the Demon Toad, but the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady didn’t press the attack, instead darting toward the central battlefield at top speed.
“Stop her.”
Noticing her movement, top-tier Paradise Realm faction experts moved to intercept.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady was incredibly fast, reaching Zhang Ruochen’s position in an instant.
“Zhang Ruochen, here’s the complete Fire God Armor. Consider it a gift,” Canglan Martial Saint’s icy voice rang in his ear.
A ball of flames shot toward him, too fast for even Shang Ziqi to stop.
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes lit up. He immediately stowed the Streamer Merit Armor and released his holy qi to envelop the incoming flames.
The next moment, the flames reached him, transforming into a crimson armor that covered nearly his entire body, including his head.
“Fire God Armor.”
Zhang Ruochen was inwardly shocked.
This armor had an astonishing origin, personally forged by the Fire God. When the Fire God was consumed by divine fire due to cultivating domineering flames, the armor remained perfectly intact.
The Fire God Armor was originally stored in the court’s treasury, sealed away because no one could use it.
Due to the unique nature of Wutong Autumn Rain, Empress Chi Yao had granted her the Fire God Armguards and Gauntlets.
After Zhang Ruochen defeated Wutong Autumn Rain, those items fell into his hands.
Initially, Zhang Ruochen couldn’t use them either, only activating them with the Truth Mystery.
In his view, even ordinary deities likely couldn’t wield the Fire God Armor. Only powerful deities who had mastered the Mystery of the Dao of Fire or one of the Nine Eternal Daos could use it perfectly.
Zhang Ruochen had always coveted the full Fire God Armor, never expecting to obtain it under these circumstances.
“This is a gift from Lord Blood Dripper, no need to return it to the court. Lord Blood Dripper is currently held up by strong enemies and can’t come to your aid.”
Another voice, soft and melodious, belonging to Saint Book Talent, sounded in Zhang Ruochen’s ear.
Zhang Ruochen instantly understood. With Chi Yao absent from Kunlun Realm, Lord Blood Dripper was undoubtedly the highest authority in the court, the only one with the power to gift him the full Fire God Armor.
This meant he owed Lord Blood Dripper another favor.
“What a treasure, the Fire God Armor. I’ll take it,” Shang Ziqi’s eyes gleamed as he looked at the armor on Zhang Ruochen.
A Yanluo Clan powerhouse had taken his top-tier Streamer Merit Armor, and this Fire God Armor would serve as perfect compensation.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze was sharp. “You want it? I’m afraid you won’t live to enjoy it.”
As he spoke, crimson flames rose from the Fire God Armor, forming a vast fire domain centered on Zhang Ruochen.
The flames were terrifyingly intense, their heat distorting a wide expanse of space, as if melting it.
Shang Ziqi snorted, “Zhang Ruochen, do you think the Fire God Armor makes you my match? Next, I’ll show you true despair.”
Wielding the Crimson Child Sword, Shang Ziqi channeled his immense holy qi, activating the sword’s sinister divine power, unleashing a towering wave of fire that slashed toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen showed no fear. With a shake of his arms, a dragon and an elephant appeared, their bodies covered in roaring crimson flames.
“Dragon-Elephant Transcending Heaven.”
Unleashing the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, a flame divine dragon and flame divine elephant flew out, both radiating powerful divine might.
“Boom.”
The fire wave was unstoppable, instantly engulfing the flame divine dragon and elephant.
A terrifying ripple of force spread outward, causing the arrays outside Peacock Manor to tremble violently.
“Retreat!”
The observing cultivators were alarmed, hastily retreating.
Zhang Ruochen, caught in the brunt, was forced back a dozen steps before stabilizing himself.
Though his blood qi churned fiercely, he forcibly suppressed it, avoiding spitting blood.
“How is this possible?”
Shang Ziqi was shocked.
That strike was his full effort, meant to cripple Zhang Ruochen and rob him of his combat ability. Yet, Zhang Ruochen had withstood it, an almost unbelievable feat.
