Zhang Ruochen’s first shackle, located in his right arm, was concealed within the muscle fascia, like an iron chain wrapped around his wrist, restraining the strength of his right arm and locking away the immense divine power contained within his demigod body.
Due to his formidable physique, Zhang Ruochen’s shackles were exceptionally resilient.
It was only after drinking the “Twelve Blossoms” that signs of softening appeared.
An hour had passed since he consumed the Yandao Sacred Fruit. Zhang Ruochen mobilised the Pure Extinguishing Divine Fire to refine it with full effort, while simultaneously practising the *Nine Heavens Bright Emperor Scripture* to absorb it at the fastest rate.
At the same time, he released a portion of the sealed divine energy of the Divine Roaming Pill from his heart.
The pill’s energy merged with his blood, surging like a tide towards his right arm, relentlessly assaulting the shackle.
“Break!”
Zhang Ruochen roared.
*Boom.*
A thunderous sound, like divine lightning, echoed within his body. His bones trembled, and the holy energy and divine fire transformed into ripples, spreading in all directions.
It didn’t break.
The shackle remained unyielding.
“Break!”
Zhang Ruochen struck again, the power within him erupting like dispersing clouds.
The first shackle, stretched like a bowstring drawn to a full moon, emitted a jarring sound.
It failed again, refusing to yield.
“Break!”
Unyielding, Zhang Ruochen continued his assault.
“Break!”
“Break!”
…
By the tenth attempt, even with Zhang Ruochen’s formidable physique, he could no longer withstand it. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
“It’s close now. No matter what, I must break it and ascend to the Hundred Shackle Realm.”
Clenching his teeth, Zhang Ruochen pressed on without giving up.
“Break!”
“Break!”
…
On the fifteenth consecutive attempt, cracks appeared on Zhang Ruochen’s skin, with blood beads seeping from his pores. Even his holy soul was damaged, showing signs of fracturing.
With his extraordinary constitution and prior consumption of divine medicine, Zhang Ruochen’s recovery speed was remarkable.
Thus, unafraid of harming his foundation, he continued his assault.
The first shackle had become extremely fragile. He had to break it in one go, or all his efforts would be in vain.
“Break for me.”
Zhang Ruochen roared again, channelling all his body’s strength into his right arm, striking the shackle.
He had lost count of how many times he had attacked the shackle, but this time, there was a sense of exhilaration, as if a flood had breached a dam in his right arm, surging uncontrollably.
*Snap!*
Like a bowstring snapping, a deafening sound reverberated from within Zhang Ruochen’s body.
Immediately after, his entire body felt lighter, as if the chains that once bound him had broken, leaving his body relaxed and his holy soul free.
The first shackle had finally shattered.
He had successfully broken through to the Hundred Shackle Realm!
From this moment, Zhang Ruochen was a Great Saint of the Hundred Shackle Realm.
Covered in blood and sweat, his right arm was in excruciating pain, its flesh mangled. Yet, it brimmed with power, radiating divine energy that illuminated the world within the Purple Gold Gourd.
His demigod blood boiled, unleashing the divine power of his demigod body.
Zhang Ruochen slowly raised his right hand above his head.
On his arm, glowing with crimson divine light, wounds healed rapidly, restoring it to pristine condition. His skin sparkled like jade, his blood flowing like a river.
“Divine power… I can finally unleash a portion of my divine power. No longer will I possess a demigod body with barely any divine power to wield.”
He felt that a single palm strike could unleash devastating, world-shattering force.
In his right arm, the three Thousand Inquiry Realm elephant souls quieted completely, no longer daring to backlash against their master as they once did.
“Since I’ve broken the first shackle, the remaining ones should be much easier.” Zhang Ruochen looked at his right arm with satisfaction, eager to test his fist against a Great Saint at the peak of the Hundred Shackle Realm.
However, he restrained himself and continued meditating and cultivating.
The Yandao Sacred Fruit was incredibly precious. Its primary purpose was not to aid in breaking shackles but to assist in comprehending high-tier holy techniques.
Having consumed one, he could not afford to waste it.
Since Zhang Ruochen was fully dedicated to cultivating the *Yin-Yang Five Elements Holy Intent*, he focused his efforts on practising Luoshui Fist, Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, Pure Extinguishing Divine Fire, Demonic Suppression, and Flame God Leg, temporarily setting aside swordsmanship, time, and space.
The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm had hit a bottleneck.
Cultivating the Pure Extinguishing Divine Fire required gradual progress, not instant mastery.
Without the subsequent techniques for Luoshui Fist, he could only rely on his own understanding of fist techniques to deduce the next steps.
Thus, Zhang Ruochen ultimately decided to use the power of the Yandao Sacred Fruit to continue cultivating Demonic Suppression.
Rather than spreading himself thin, it was better to master one holy technique to its fullest.
A single perfected move could dominate all.
Demonic Suppression had reached the fifth level, a high-tier Thousand Inquiry holy technique. Advancing to the sixth level in a short time was unrealistic. Therefore, Zhang Ruochen aimed to combine Demonic Suppression with the Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect.
He clasped his hands together.
*Whoosh—*
A torrent of holy light surged from Zhang Ruochen’s body, radiant and blazing, resonating with the destructive golden sun within the gourd’s world, as if forming twin stars.
The Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect, towering a thousand miles high, appeared majestic and divine. Above its head, nine layers of celestial domains formed from the rules of heaven and earth and holy energy, resembling divine palaces or immortal abodes.
Since his bloodline power was awakened, a divine shadow of the Motionless Bright King’s will had emerged within Zhang Ruochen’s body. Simultaneously, the Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect had undergone a transformation, becoming far more powerful than before.
“Now that I’ve reached the Hundred Shackle Realm, I should be able to merge my Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect with the divine shadow of the Motionless Bright King’s will, making the holy aspect even stronger.”
With this thought, Zhang Ruochen activated the divine shadow of the Motionless Bright King’s will within his holy heart.
The divine shadow took the form of the Motionless Bright King, sacred and imposing, like an unrivalled celestial deity.
In contrast, the Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect resembled Zhang Ruochen himself, youthful and striking, with a sharp aura.
From a distance, it was as if Zhang Ruochen stood opposite the ancient Motionless Bright King, one small as dust, the other towering like a mountain. Yet, despite his size, Zhang Ruochen showed no fear, his heart brimming with the resolve to devour the heavens and earth.
During the Ascension Banquet, shortly after breaking through to the Great Saint level, Zhang Ruochen had defeated Yu Huang and Gu Chenzi’s combined forces by briefly merging his holy aspect with the divine shadow.
But that was only a fleeting moment.
Now, Zhang Ruochen sought to fully refine and integrate the two.
No matter how powerful the divine shadow of the Motionless Bright King was, it was merely a wisp. Zhang Ruochen was confident he could refine it.
Moreover, with his lofty ambitions, he would never allow another’s will to influence him. Only by refining it into a part of himself could he find peace.
As the Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect and the divine shadow began to merge, Zhang Ruochen unleashed the Pure Extinguishing Divine Fire, enveloping them in a sea of flames.
During the refining process, Zhang Ruochen’s consciousness entered a profound state.
Obscure and complex knowledge flooded his mind—fragmented techniques, holy arts, spells, witchcraft, and secret methods.
It was bloodline inheritance.
Typically, only higher beasts or divine beasts possessed bloodline inheritance. As they matured, this inheritance would awaken, allowing them to naturally master innate divine abilities.
Some could wield lightning, others could breathe fire, and some could travel thousands of miles in a day.
For humans, obtaining bloodline inheritance was far more difficult than for beasts, unless their ancestor’s bloodline was exceptionally potent, enabling the transmission of knowledge through bloodline memory.
For example, a son resembling his father is a superficial manifestation of bloodline inheritance.
However, bloodline memories dilute over generations, making it increasingly difficult for descendants to inherit.
Even when inherited, the knowledge is often incomplete.
The bloodline memories Zhang Ruochen gained from merging with the Motionless Bright King’s divine shadow were fragmented, mostly scattered pieces, difficult to form into complete techniques.
Yet, faintly, he glimpsed the subsequent cultivation methods of the *Nine Heavens Bright Emperor Scripture*.
Zhang Ruochen had already cultivated the scripture to its highest level, the ninth heaven, “Crimson Bright and Yang Heaven,” which was sufficient to support his cultivation to the Supreme Realm.
However, to achieve godhood, he needed a higher-level technique.
If the *Nine Heavens Bright Emperor Scripture* only had nine heavens, he would need to switch to another divine technique upon reaching the Supreme Realm. This would be time-consuming and less compatible.
From the bloodline inheritance, he learned that “Crimson Bright and Yang Heaven” was not the final stage of the scripture.
There were the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth heavens…
For now, Zhang Ruochen set aside thoughts of the scripture’s complete techniques and their whereabouts. The Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect and the divine shadow had fully merged.
The divine shadow vanished, leaving only Zhang Ruochen’s Motionless Bright King Holy Aspect standing in the air.
The holy aspect, a thousand miles tall, radiated blinding holy light. Its aura was so powerful that the Undying Blood Race Great Saints cultivating in the gourd’s world felt immense pressure.
It was as if they faced a Supreme Realm Great Saint or a demigod, instinctively evoking awe and reverence.
“Compared to the Ascension Banquet, the aura of Zhang Ruochen’s holy aspect is worlds apart.”
“A thousand-mile-tall holy aspect, with unimaginable power within. A single palm strike could easily shatter stars.”
“Now that Cousin Ruochen has reached the Hundred Shackle Realm, who in the Hunting Heaven Battlefield can match him?”
“The aura Zhang Ruochen exudes doesn’t seem like that of a Great Saint newly entered into the Hundred Shackle Realm. Even Thousand Inquiry Realm Great Saints may not have such formidable presence.”
…
Within the gourd’s world, the Undying Blood Race Great Saints marvelled and discussed fervently.
Some were filled with envy, others with deep respect, and some had eyes gleaming with excitement.
The moment the divine shadow merged with Zhang Ruochen’s holy aspect, the divine shadow of the Blood Absolute Ancestor flew from his holy heart, merging with the five pairs of golden wings on his back.
The Blood Absolute Ancestor’s divine shadow had also emerged during his baptism in the Eternal Blood Pool, where it had clashed with the Motionless Bright King’s divine shadow.
The Blood Absolute Ancestor, with twenty-four pairs of golden wings, was a legendary figure in the Blood Sky Tribe and the Undying Blood Race, with cultivation nearly reaching the pinnacle of the divine realm.
As it merged with the five pairs of wings, Zhang Ruochen felt them grow immensely heavy, as if transformed into ten golden demonic mountains.
*Hiss.*
Strange crimson patterns appeared on the five pairs of wings, emanating an eerie glow.
A searing pain burned through his back, as if half his body were melting.
*Roar!*
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes turned blood-red, crimson demonic patterns emerged on his face and body, and two sharp fangs grew from his mouth as he let out a long roar.
The deafening sound reverberated through the gourd’s world, causing the Undying Blood Race Great Saints’ eardrums to ache.
More terrifyingly, the aura Zhang Ruochen exuded caused their blood to gradually solidify, making it harder to flow.
Even their mental will was suppressed.
“What a terrifying aura. Is Zhang Ruochen the reincarnation of an Undying Blood Race ancestor?”
Two Nine-Step Saint Kings, unable to withstand the bloodline and mental suppression, trembled and nearly knelt before Zhang Ruochen.
*Whoosh.*
Transforming into a streak of blood light, Zhang Ruochen flew out of the gourd’s world, soaring like a blood pillar into the sky. His immense energy instantly swept across the entire Blood Sky Continent.
Breaking through the planet’s atmosphere and ascending a thousand miles above the surface, Zhang Ruochen finally stopped.
His long hair turned blood-red, his face pale as paper, both strikingly handsome and menacing. The five pairs of golden wings on his back grew massive, interwoven with countless blood patterns.
Each flap of the ten wings unleashed a blood-energy storm, hurling space debris and forming tidal waves.
The sky above the Blood Sky Continent turned crimson, with rolling clouds pressing towards the ground.
On the continent, thirty million Undying Blood Race members knelt, trembling in awe.
Gu Chenzi, guarding the Blood Sky Continent, stood in the city lord’s mansion of Cloud City, looking up with a smile: “He’s finally reached the Hundred Shackle Realm. Who dares to challenge the Blood Sky Tribe now?”
In the planet’s clouds, Yu Huang was leading a team of formation masters, inscribing formation patterns.
Sensing the spatial tremors and disrupted heavenly rules, she looked up into the distance. Thousands of miles away, at the planet’s other end, a surge of blood light formed a colossal energy storm.
Her eyes narrowed: “Just breaking through to the Hundred Shackle Realm, and he causes such a commotion? But… now that you’ve reached the Hundred Shackle Realm, this emperor can finally have a proper rematch with you.”
Since breaking through to the peak of the Hundred Shackle Realm, Yu Huang had been eager to face Zhang Ruochen again to reclaim her honour.
Previously, Zhang Ruochen was only at the Immortal Realm. Defeating him then would not have restored her lost face, so she had waited for him to reach the Hundred Shackle Realm.
“Why is the fluctuation of his aura so strange? It seems to carry an ancient, powerful divine might. Even from thousands of miles away, my blood feels affected. Could it be the aura of one of the Undying Blood Race’s ten ancestors?” Yu Huang muttered, uncertain.
The ten ancestors of the Undying Blood Race, founders of the ten tribes, were the most ancient and powerful beings.
Due to the immense time since their era, their identities were debated. Each clan claimed their ancestor was among the ten, resulting in dozens of supposed ancestors.
The true ten ancestors were nearly impossible to verify.
But even if an ancestor’s bloodline awakened, why would it manifest in Zhang Ruochen, who was only half Undying Blood Race, with human blood diluting his lineage?
…
