The emergence of numerous spatial rifts divided the vast True Dragon Island into thousands of fragmented regions, scattering the various powerhouses on the island, most of whom had no idea where they ended up.
“Luckily, we’ve already subdued that old fellow, or who knows where we’d have to look to find him,” Xiao Hei said, immensely relieved.
At that moment, Zi Xin, the Saint King of the Three-Eyed Ancient Clan, approached, joining the other awakened ones. Her gaze fell on the Crimson Gold King and Thousand Severance Blade King. Having witnessed them kill two Bone Clan Venerables, she was deeply shocked and asked, “How did you two recover so much strength in such a short time?”
For powerhouses who had slumbered since ancient times, it was impossible to regain their former strength immediately upon awakening; it required a recovery process.
When they arrived on True Dragon Island, neither the Crimson Gold King nor Thousand Severance Blade King had regained their current level of power. During the ambush by the Seven Deadly Gods of the Nether Hall, they had kept a low profile, not acting rashly but instead working with others to activate the Dragon Silver Armor on Ao Xinyan.
The Crimson Gold King chuckled, “We had a fortunate encounter.”
Thousand Severance Blade King said candidly, “On True Dragon Island, we obtained the legendary Sun-Moon Dragon Spring. Its baptism washed away the effects of our long slumber.”
At this, the eyes of all the awakened ones, including Zi Xin, lit up. They too needed the Sun-Moon Dragon Spring for their recovery.
The Crimson Gold King, sensing their thoughts, sighed, “The Sun-Moon Dragon Spring is extraordinary and can appear anywhere. Brother Thousand Severance and I didn’t find its source, only stumbling upon a dozen or so drops, barely enough to restore our strength, with none to spare.”
Hearing this, Zi Xin and the others couldn’t hide their disappointment. If they could obtain a large amount of Sun-Moon Dragon Spring, their strength could return to its former peak.
“The Sun-Moon Dragon Spring is a rare holy spring, sentient and capable of flight. Even a Great Saint can’t pin it down. Whether you obtain its water depends entirely on its whim. Even I, back in the day, failed to capture it—slipperier than that old fellow trapped in the array,” Xiao Hei said through gritted teeth.
It desperately craved the spring’s water. Though it couldn’t fully counter the effects of the Chaos Tower of Sun and Moon, it could likely stabilise its strength at the Great Saint level, rather than relying on unpredictable bursts that didn’t last.
“Wah, wah.”
Suddenly, a piercing wail echoed.
Those who heard it felt a chill, their minds conjuring terrifying images as if plunged into a hellish abyss. Those with weaker mental fortitude would be corrupted, controlled by a strange, malevolent will.
“That crying again—what is it?” Ao Xinyan frowned slightly.
She had heard it before but never seen its source.
Xiao Hei’s eyes narrowed. “It’s Mu Zu, one of True Dragon Island’s overlords. It uses mental infiltration to mutate cultivators into those ghastly forms.”
As it spoke, Xiao Hei conjured an image with holy energy, depicting a sinister child, barely a meter tall, with blood-red eyes, no feet, and dozens of tentacles supporting its body.
Xiao Hei and Zhang Ruochen had encountered such a sinister child before, its eerie mental attacks nearly catching them off guard.
Seeing the child’s bizarre form, Ao Xinyan and the others showed shock. Such a method of mutating cultivators was unheard of.
Fortunately, their mental fortitude was strong, rendering the wail’s effect negligible. As long as they didn’t encounter the unpredictable Mu Zu, they should be fine.
While Xiao Hei and the others were unfazed, weaker-willed cultivators faced disaster. Their minds filled with sinister visions, leading to mental collapse and transformation.
Their pupils turned blood-red, their bodies shrank, morphing into childlike forms—a horrifying sight.
In moments, a large number of Heavenly Court and Hell Realm cultivators were controlled by Mu Zu, turning into sinister children, a catastrophic plague spreading.
As Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Fiend Emperor hurried along, several dark figures burst from the ground, transforming into sinister children. They opened their mouths, revealing sharp teeth, wailing loudly as waves of mental attacks flooded toward Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Fiend Emperor’s minds.
Instantly, a ghastly face appeared in Zhang Ruochen’s mind, trying to devour his mental will.
“Hmph.”
Zhang Ruochen snorted coldly, rallying his mental strength to shatter the ghostly face.
Simultaneously, he unleashed spatial power, instantly forming a spatial cage to trap all the sinister children.
Then, he sent a strand of mental energy into one child’s mind to investigate.
But as soon as his mental energy entered, it was engulfed by a blood-red sea, faintly targeted by a terrifying, colossal entity.
He didn’t see the entity’s true form, only a pair of blood-red eyes filled with boundless killing intent.
“Master, these are Mu Zu’s children, bearing its will. Don’t probe with mental energy, or you’ll easily attract Mu Zu’s attention,” the Dragon Fiend Emperor warned.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t hesitate, severing his mental energy.
With a clench of his hand, the spatial cage collapsed, annihilating the sinister children within.
The Dragon Fiend Emperor said, “Master, Mu Zu usually slumbers. Its active release of children means it’s fully awakened. We must be cautious.”
“What exactly is Mu Zu?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Dragon Fiend Emperor replied, “Mu Zu’s true form is a heart from a Hell Realm deity. On True Dragon Island, it absorbed endless resentful energy, gaining sentience and an innate ability to control minds.”
“Over the years, True Dragon Island has birthed more than just us five overlords, but the weaker ones were almost all controlled by Mu Zu. It has collected the most treasures.”
The Dragon Fiend Emperor clearly feared Mu Zu, especially now with its diminished strength, making a confrontation disadvantageous.
“I see. No wonder Mu Zu is so malevolent. But with our combined strength, we needn’t fear it too much,” Zhang Ruochen said calmly.
Their mental fortitude was robust, resistant to corruption, and their spatial abilities ensured self-preservation.
Additionally, when Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei last encountered the sinister children, they noticed the children seemed wary of pure, righteous energy—possibly Mu Zu’s weakness.
With the sinister children cleared, Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Fiend Emperor continued, knowing deeper penetration into the Dragon God Hall ruins increased their chances of finding treasures.
Along the way, Zhang Ruochen killed any Hell Realm cultivators he encountered.
He had already collected many Hell Realm cultivators’ holy souls, including a wisp from the Child of Darkness, which could be exchanged for substantial merit points.
Per the Merit God Hall’s rules, killing even the weakest Immortal Great Saint yielded 30 million merit points, while top-tier ones could yield over 100 million.
The Child of Darkness, killed after reaching the Immortal Great Saint realm and far surpassing ordinary Great Saints, would surely yield impressive merit points.
Passing through another spatial rift, Zhang Ruochen’s eyes lit up, spotting four familiar figures.
Two he knew well: Ao Xukong and Nether Tiger True Lord.
The other two, though unfamiliar personally, he recognised: Xing Wuji, the First Young Emperor of the Thousand Stars Civilization, and Jin Yu, the Giant Spirit King of the Giant Spirit Civilization.
The Thousand Stars Civilization had a thousand young emperors, and ranking first made Xing Wuji exceptional.
The Giant Spirit King title was the Giant Spirit Civilization’s highest honour, reserved for the top powerhouse below Great Saint, a supreme glory.
Throughout their history, nearly all Giant Spirit Kings became peerless Great Saints or even deities.
Like the Great Venerable, Jin Yu was a golden giant, 99 meters tall—the Saint King realm’s limit.
Meeting Ao Xukong, Nether Tiger True Lord, Xing Wuji, and Jin Yu here was surprising, as even spatial rifts hadn’t separated them.
The four noticed someone approaching and turned their gazes.
“Zhang Ruochen.”
Seeing him, Nether Tiger True Lord’s expression grew uneasy.
He had previously clashed with Zhang Ruochen and naturally feared retribution.
Zhang Ruochen leapt from the Dragon Fiend Emperor’s head, landing beside Ao Xukong, with whom he was most familiar.
“Crossing spatial rifts so easily, Brother Ruochen, your skills are truly enviable,” Ao Xukong said with a smile.
Clearly, Zhang Ruochen’s battle with the Child of Darkness, showcasing supreme strength, had subtly shifted Ao Xukong’s attitude, treating him as an equal with a hint of respect.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. “If I could truly cross rifts easily, the Seven Deadly Gods wouldn’t have escaped.”
“Only their luck, catching True Dragon Island’s upheaval. But henceforth, wherever you are, the Seven Deadly Gods will likely steer clear,” Ao Xukong said.
Xing Wuji, Nether Tiger True Lord, and Jin Yu approached. They couldn’t ignore Zhang Ruochen, especially with the Dragon Fiend Emperor at his side, inspiring caution.
Xing Wuji smiled. “The Kunlun Realm’s Merit Battlefield will now be led by Brother Zhang. The Hell Realm will have a headache.”
He spoke truth. Zhang Ruochen’s defeat of the Child of Darkness meant few in the Hell Realm below Great Saint could match him.
His rise would greatly hinder the Hell Realm’s invasion of the Kunlun Realm.
With his current strength, including mastery of space and time, the Hell Realm had little chance of eliminating him. Who below Great Saint could stop him if he chose to flee?
“Brother Zhang…”
As Jin Yu began to speak, the ground shattered, thousands of auspicious energies bursting from below.
“A treasure has emerged.”
Instantly, Zhang Ruochen and the others reacted.
From the commotion, they could tell the treasure was extraordinary.
“Swoosh.”
With a refreshing, exotic fragrance, dragon shapes flew from the ground, scattering in all directions.
“Heavenly-grade holy pills.”
Nether Tiger True Lord’s eyes gleamed.
Zhang Ruochen and the others saw that the dozen or so dragons in the sky were holy pills, each possessing immense power comparable to a Nine-Step Saint King.
Heavenly-grade holy pills were incredibly rare, craftable only by master alchemists and difficult to mass-produce.
One such pill cost tens or hundreds of millions of holy stones, unaffordable for most Saint Kings.
Typically, only Great Saints used them for cultivation.
Without hesitation, Zhang Ruochen and the others acted swiftly to collect the pills.
Even at their current level, these pills were valuable.
Despite their power, the pills couldn’t resist Zhang Ruochen and the others.
In a blink, the pills were claimed: Zhang Ruochen took five, Ao Xukong and Xing Wuji three each, Jin Yu two, and Nether Tiger True Lord one—all gained something.
This was because Zhang Ruochen didn’t let the Dragon Fiend Emperor intervene; otherwise, the others might have gotten none.
Since the four had helped earlier, the pills were a token of gratitude.
Suddenly, another disturbance came from below, and a bronze alchemy furnace flew out, ancient in appearance, its surface etched with vivid azure dragons, seemingly ready to take flight.
“Bang.”
As if controlled, the furnace smashed through space and vanished.
“Chase it.”
Zhang Ruochen reacted instantly, appearing atop the Dragon Fiend Emperor and giving the order.
“Swoosh.”
The Dragon Fiend Emperor used its spatial abilities to the fullest, chasing the furnace through fractured space.
Though Ao Xukong and the others reacted quickly, they didn’t dare follow recklessly like Zhang Ruochen and the Dragon Fiend Emperor. As non-spatial cultivators, getting caught in a rift would be troublesome.
“Those heavenly-grade holy pills likely came from that furnace. There might be higher-grade pills inside—what a pity,” Jin Yu sighed.
Ao Xukong said, “Whether it contains royal-grade holy pills is uncertain, but the furnace itself is an extremely valuable treasure. With seven dragon etchings, it can refine royal-grade holy pills.”
Hearing this, Xing Wuji, Nether Tiger True Lord, and Jin Yu’s expressions shifted. Such a precious furnace slipping away was regrettable, and they wondered if Zhang Ruochen could claim it.
Dragon Clan alchemy furnaces bore dragon etchings, their number indicating quality.
The lowest had one etching, the best nine.
Legend held that a nine-dragon furnace could refine divine pills, the dream of all alchemists.
Even with the Kunlun Realm Dragon Clan’s heritage, they possessed only one nine-dragon furnace, possibly destroyed in ancient divine wars.
A seven-dragon furnace, though inferior, could still craft royal-grade holy pills, rare in many great worlds, its value immeasurable.
A royal-grade holy pill’s spirit could match a Great Saint in combat, its medicinal power astonishing.
Ordinary Saint Kings attempting to collect or consume such a pill would be akin to seeking death.
