Xiao Hei and the others acted discreetly, concealed by the array, so they drew no attention.
More importantly, everyone’s focus was almost entirely on Zhang Ruochen, leaving little room to notice anything else.
Flapping its wings, Xiao Hei collected the array along with the short, thin old man, then said, “Let’s help Zhang Ruochen first, then interrogate this old fellow later.”
With the Child of Darkness dead, the Hell Realm’s morale was low, presenting a prime opportunity to crush them.
Ao Xinyan, Dead Zen Ancestor, Destiny Corpse Emperor, and the awakened ones didn’t hesitate, swiftly charging toward the retreating Hell Realm army.
The situation on True Dragon Island was highly complex, and the awakened ones seemed extremely mysterious. Even though the Seven Deadly Gods of the Nether Hall had encountered them, they couldn’t discern their origins. It was hard to link them to the declining Kunlun Realm; instead, they might be mistaken for ambush forces sent by the Heavenly Court.
After all, the awakened ones hailed from eras long past, some dating back hundreds of thousands of years. None were beings born within the last ten thousand years, and nearly all traces of their existence had been erased by time.
Thus, they could act freely without much restraint.
“Roar.”
Suddenly, ferocious beast roars echoed, rising one after another.
Over a hundred divine power monsters, each with a unique form, charged from all directions, tearing into the Hell Realm army.
“Pfft.”
In an instant, hundreds of Hell Realm powerhouses were ripped to shreds, unable to resist.
Given the monsters’ strength, resistance was futile anyway.
These divine power monsters possessed strength comparable to Immortal Great Saints. Though lacking intelligence, their mastery of time, space, darkness, and origin techniques meant even top-tier Nine-Step Saint Kings risked death.
“Damn it, where did so many terrifying monsters come from?”
The Hell Realm powerhouses were both shocked and furious.
The Heavenly Court powerhouses were equally stunned. First, a dragon-headed, wolf-bodied monster had appeared, killing the Child of Darkness who had reached the Great Saint realm. Now, a horde of them emerged, seemingly intent on annihilating the Hell Realm army.
Many Heavenly Court powerhouses retreated further to avoid being caught in the fray. The monsters’ ferocious aura was too daunting to ignore.
Qianxing Heavenly Maiden’s eyes glinted with a smile as she whispered, “The Hell Realm is in for a rough time.”
In the underground world, she had witnessed these monsters’ terror firsthand. Without Zhang Ruochen’s protection, she might have perished.
“I never expected Zhang Ruochen to command such a terrifying force. On True Dragon Island, he’s practically unstoppable,” Nether Tiger True Lord thought, secretly alarmed.
He felt fortunate not to have clashed with Zhang Ruochen directly, as it would have brought great trouble to him and the Beidou Civilization.
His thoughts racing, Nether Tiger True Lord fought more ruthlessly, deciding to fully support Zhang Ruochen in wiping out the Hell Realm powerhouses.
The Hell Realm had many powerhouses. Besides the Seven Deadly Gods and the Bone Clan’s Three Emperors and Ten Venerables, there were numerous top-tier Nine-Step Saint Kings. Without Zhang Ruochen summoning the Monster King, they wouldn’t have fled.
The Seven Deadly Gods, when forming their array, were nearly on par with the Heavenly Palace’s Four Heavenly Kings. Even powerhouses like Ao Xukong and Nether Tiger True Lord could only temporarily hold them back.
The Bone Clan’s Three Emperors wielded diamond-like power, their combat strength astonishing. The Ten Venerables could form a fearsome battle array, nearly as formidable as the Seven Deadly Gods.
Yet now, they were retreating steadily, wishing they could flee True Dragon Island immediately.
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen stood atop the Monster King’s head, relentlessly pursuing the Seven Deadly Gods.
When he first entered the Yin-Yang Sea, he had encountered three of them. Later, on True Dragon Island, all seven ambushed him. Now, it was time to settle old scores.
As the Monster King charged, it unleashed powerful divine attacks, causing the nether lotus formed by the Seven Deadly Gods to tremble incessantly.
“Damn Zhang Ruochen, how could he tame such a terrifying monster?” Die Bushou fumed.
Xuanming Wushang said grimly, “Retreat from True Dragon Island. Above the Yin-Yang Sea, our Hell Realm’s patrol angels are stationed. If that monster dares to follow, it’ll be slain instantly.”
“Without that monster, even Zhang Ruochen, no matter how strong, is no threat,” Blood Ripple said, eyes glinting with killing intent.
Though they had seen Zhang Ruochen defeat the Child of Darkness, the Seven Deadly Gods remained confident, showing no fear.
With their plan set, they didn’t hesitate, driving the nether lotus toward the island’s edge.
“No escape.”
Zhang Ruochen shouted, wielding the Ancient Abyss Sword, slashing out sharp sword beams.
After his fierce battle with the Child of Darkness, his time-space swordsmanship had matured further. Each casual strike seamlessly blended the powers of time and space.
Elsewhere, Xiao Hei and the others charged into the Bone Clan army. Though few in number, each was a top-tier powerhouse, their destructive force surpassing even the hundred divine power monsters.
“You pile of rotten bones, where do you think you’re escaping? Watch me smash your bones to pieces,” Xiao Hei bellowed.
Its wings, like two razor-sharp heavenly blades, cut through everything. Wherever they passed, Bone Clan powerhouses’ bodies shattered.
With its Great Saint body and immense strength, the Bone Clan stood no chance.
“Boom.”
A massive Bone Clan body collapsed, its Great Saint bones scattering, its holy soul extinguished—one of the Bone Clan’s Twelve Venerables.
The Twelve Venerables all had Great Saint bone bodies, making them extremely hard to destroy. Ordinary Great Saints couldn’t do it, but their holy souls weren’t as resilient and could still be annihilated.
The one who killed the Venerable was a lean, red-haired man, only one and a half meters tall, covered in crimson-gold scales, exuding a fierce, beastly aura. He was an awakened one, the Crimson Gold King.
In the Silver Dragon Palace, he sat in the first seat on the left, his strength unquestionable.
Even so, it took nearly a thousand exchanges for the Crimson Gold King to destroy the Venerable’s holy soul after a surprise attack—a difficult feat.
Soon after, another Bone Clan Venerable’s body was shattered, its holy soul extinguished, also by an awakened one.
This was a white-haired old man, frail in appearance, but with eyes sharp as knives, impossible to meet directly.
Thousand Severance Blade King, a peerless Saint King equal to the Crimson Gold King, his blade techniques ruthless, designed for slaughter. Ordinary Nine-Step Saint Kings couldn’t withstand a single strike.
Seeing the two kill Bone Clan Venerables, Xiao Hei’s eyes gleamed. “These awakened ones are impressive, their strength barely at the top tier below Great Saint, comparable to the combined Golden Sun Twin Kings. I don’t even know what era they’re from.”
“Thousand Severance Blade King lived 200,000 years ago, slaughtering countless beings with his killing blade techniques, ultimately sealed in the Yin-Yang Sea. The Crimson Gold King, from 100,000 years ago, late Middle Ages, of the Dragon黎 Clan, tempered his body to the extreme with ancestral blood. One unmatched in blade techniques, the other in physical prowess, both invincible in their eras,” Ao Xinyan explained.
As an eternal great world, the Kunlun Realm birthed extraordinary talents in every era. For various reasons, some were sealed by special means, only reawakening now as the realm’s precious reserves.
Ao Xinyan longed for such strength, but her cultivation time was short, her foundation lacking. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have allowed the Hell Realm army to set foot on True Dragon Island.
Seeing two Venerables fall, the leading Eight-Armed Venerable roared in fury, “Damn it, who are they? How are they so strong?”
Though the Seven Deadly Gods had mentioned Zhang Ruochen’s dozen or so mysterious powerhouses, their origins were unknown, as if they appeared from nowhere.
The Eight-Armed Venerable was filled with grief and rage. The Twelve Venerables had come for rare treasures, but instead of gaining anything, four had already fallen, driving him to madness.
“Form the array.”
The Eight-Armed Venerable roared, rallying the remaining seven Venerables.
The battle array of eight Venerables was still formidable.
Empowered by the array, the black-gold long staff grew enormous, unleashing supreme destructive power.
Facing the supreme holy artefact’s attack, the Crimson Gold King and Thousand Severance Blade King retreated, avoiding a direct clash.
“Let me handle this.”
Xiao Hei moved, charging at the black-gold staff.
Its wings, blazing with immortal divine fire, collided with the staff.
“Bang.”
The staff’s power was overwhelming, forcing Xiao Hei back over ten steps.
But Xiao Hei was unscathed, not even a feather lost.
“Too weak to even scratch me,” Xiao Hei scoffed.
Once a supreme Great Saint, its unmatched Great Saint body could withstand even the Chaos Tower of Sun and Moon’s attacks. A few Saint Kings wielding a supreme holy artefact that hadn’t passed a cosmic tribulation couldn’t harm it.
Supreme holy artefacts didn’t possess peak power upon creation; they needed cultivation and cosmic tribulations to grow stronger, potentially even evolving into divine artefacts.
But that was exceedingly rare, almost legendary.
Otherwise, with the Kunlun Realm’s heritage over eons, it wouldn’t have only ten divine artefacts.
Seeing Xiao Hei, the Eight-Armed Venerable’s hatred intensified. “Owl beast, die!”
More immense power poured into the black-gold staff, fully awakening it. A black violent ape appeared, swinging the staff at Xiao Hei.
“Boom.”
The ground shattered, and Xiao Hei was smashed into the earth.
“You think I’m just an owl if I don’t show my power?”
With a low roar, a demonic light shot from the ground, forming a towering demonic mountain that crashed toward the eight Bone Clan Venerables.
Xiao Hei had unleashed the Heavenly Demon Mountain, a top-tier kingly artefact, nearly as powerful as the black-gold staff.
The mountain shook, releasing vast demonic energy, faintly revealing countless demonic shadows.
“Bang.”
Lacking four Venerables, the array was flawed and collapsed under the mountain’s strike.
Without hesitation, Xiao Hei, the Crimson Gold King, and Thousand Severance Blade King attacked three Venerables.
They held nothing back, using their strongest techniques to swiftly kill the three.
“Roar.”
The three Venerables roared, fighting back fiercely. They weren’t weak and wouldn’t just stand there.
With their second-tier strength below Great Saint and Great Saint bone bodies, even Yan Wushen couldn’t easily kill them.
“Bang.”
In an instant, Xiao Hei’s group struck hundreds of blows, sending the three Venerables flying, each heavily injured.
The Venerable targeted by Xiao Hei suffered most, his bone body cracking after repeated clashes, facing destruction if it continued.
“Rumble.”
As Xiao Hei’s group prepared to strike again, the ground trembled violently, the rules of heaven and earth becoming chaotic, forcing them to pause.
Everyone on True Dragon Island was alarmed, even those in fierce combat stopping.
An inexplicable sense of unease gripped many, as if something terrible was about to happen.
“Crack.”
Space shattered on a massive scale, forming jagged black fissures stretching hundreds or thousands of miles, a terrifying sight.
Some unlucky ones were caught, swallowed by the fissures before they could react.
“What’s happening?” Zhang Ruochen asked quietly.
The Monster King quickly replied, “Master, every so often, the divine power left from ancient divine battles erupts, shattering the island’s space, forming countless spatial rifts, dividing True Dragon Island into numerous regions. It takes a long time to restore.”
As one of the island’s overlords, the Monster King had experienced this many times and wasn’t surprised.
Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly. Ahead, a massive spatial rift blocked his path, and the Seven Deadly Gods were no longer in sight.
He could sense the rift’s danger. Even as a space controller, entering it would be troublesome.
Scanning around, he saw over a dozen rifts appear in moments, space becoming chaotic, even hard for him to see through.
With such a massive upheaval, many would suffer. He wondered how Xiao Hei and the others were faring.
“Master, though divine power eruptions are dangerous, they’re also a chance to acquire treasures. Each time, many hidden spaces appear,” the Monster King said suddenly.
Zhang Ruochen’s heart stirred. He and Xiao Hei had previously found a hidden space, obtaining a Heavenly Demon Stone Carving and Mountain.
Hidden spaces preserved from ancient divine battles were extraordinary, containing rare treasures. Finding one could yield immense rewards.
His mind racing, Zhang Ruochen said, “Let’s head back.”
Chasing the Seven Deadly Gods had led them out of the Dragon God Hall ruins. If they didn’t return quickly, they’d miss any emerging hidden spaces.
Despite the spatial rifts covering True Dragon Island, Zhang Ruochen and the Monster King’s spatial abilities allowed them to return to the ruins swiftly.
“Master, after each divine power eruption, the five overlords move to collect emerging treasures. Be wary of Mu Zu, Dan Huang, and the others,” the Monster King warned seriously.
Since the Middle Ages’ divine wars, True Dragon Island had birthed five powerful overlords, each formidable. Even Great Saints might not escape unscathed.
The Monster King, known as the Dragon Fiend Emperor, was a divine power amalgam, its core essence derived from a dragon’s fiendish energy post-death.
Besides the Dragon Fiend Emperor, the other four overlords were Mu Zu, Stone Emperor, Dan Huang, and Sword Emperor, each with unique origins and unpredictable methods.
Previously, the Dragon Fiend Emperor feared none of them, matching their strength.
But now, weakened by the Reverse God Monument and Zhang Ruochen’s extraction of rule chains, it would be at a disadvantage against them.
A glint flashed in Zhang Ruochen’s eyes. “If I get the chance, I’d like to seize all the treasures the four overlords have collected.”
The Dragon Fiend Emperor had amassed over a hundred million treasures, and the others likely had no less.
Without lingering, Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Fiend Emperor turned and sped toward the Dragon God Hall ruins.
