Xu Ao stood at the peak of the mountain, influenced by the aura emanating from him. The cold wind between heaven and earth grew increasingly fierce, howling with a “woo-woo” sound.
The strong wind automatically transformed into wind blades, coalescing into whirlwinds.
Unlike before, Xu was now completely serious, his momentum as sharp as a heaven-slashing sword.
“Shua.”
A black patterned line condensed in front of him, interweaving into a mysterious design.
It resembled a rune, yet also a ghostly sketch.
“Abandon Heaven Ghost Pattern,” Zhang Ruochen murmured.
While reviewing Xu’s information, Zhang Ruochen had read about the Abandon Heaven Ghost Pattern.
The Abandon Heaven Ghost Pattern was a ghost pattern created by the Ghost Lord, capable of harnessing the power of heaven and earth through the pattern, controlling myriad ghosts and seizing heavenly might. All nine of the Ghost Lord’s sons were exceptionally talented, yet only the second son, “Yuan,” had successfully comprehended it.
There were rumours that Xu had also mastered the Abandon Heaven Ghost Pattern, though he had never formally used it. Or perhaps, those who had witnessed him use it were all dead.
“Shua—”
The second, the third…
In an instant, 13,500 Abandon Heaven Ghost Patterns condensed, floating in the void, emitting a dim glow.
The air, ghostly qi, and the rules of heaven and earth formed vortexes around the Abandon Heaven Ghost Patterns.
The wind stopped, the clouds halted.
At that moment, space and time seemed to freeze, with only Xu’s hands still forming finger seals.
Within the concealed formation.
White Jade Mad Lion’s eyes narrowed sharply, saying, “Xu has actually cultivated the Abandon Heaven Ghost Pattern, and he can condense 13,500 at once. His mental strength must have reached the sixty-fourth tier.”
Four-Eyed Ghost Emperor sneered, “In terms of mental strength, Xu holds an overwhelming advantage. Even if Zhang Ruochen’s combat power can rival Xu’s, the gap in mental strength will be his fatal flaw.”
“Heh heh, right from the start, Xu has revealed his trump card. It seems he plans to defeat Zhang Ruochen with overwhelming force,” Winged Ghost Emperor said.
Ye Changzai said faintly, “Defeating a Yuan Hui-level genius is a glorious feat worthy of being recorded in the *Ghost Canon*, with the battle preserved for eternity. If I were Xu, I’d also aim for the cleanest, most decisive victory.”
“Xu and Zhang Ruochen have clashed three times already. There’s no need for further probing. This battle will determine the victor and settle life and death,” Yan Hong Great Saint said.
The 13,500 Abandon Heaven Ghost Patterns flew toward Zhang Ruochen at the centre, compressing space as corrosive forces pressed down overwhelmingly.
The ground beneath Zhang Ruochen’s feet cracked, his body completely enveloped and swallowed.
“Rumble.”
Ten wings unfurled on his back, ten golden rays tearing through the darkness, rushing toward the ten directions of heaven and earth.
The five golden rays that struck the ground shattered it, forming five rifts that extended a thousand miles. The continent, spanning tens of thousands of miles, shook violently, with dense, yellowish dust rising from the five rifts.
Such a breathtaking scene left the cultivators watching the projection trembling.
From Zhang Ruochen’s small frame erupted such terrifying power.
The 13,500 Abandon Heaven Ghost Patterns shattered, turning into wisps of ghostly mist that dissipated into the air.
Xu’s eyes sharpened, and he took a step back, thinking to himself, “He can counter a combination of Abandon Heaven Ghost Patterns comparable to an early Thousand Questions Realm Great Saint, just like that. Zhang Ruochen’s ten golden wings have indeed changed, truly carrying the aura of a Primordial Ancestor.”
Suddenly, Xu caught a glimpse of a golden ray amidst the rolling ghostly clouds.
The golden ray was incredibly fast, reaching him in the blink of an eye.
It was Zhang Ruochen.
The golden ray was the radiance from the ten golden wings on his back.
“Bang!”
The ten golden wings struck Xu, producing a deafening clash.
In that instant, Xu formed a lotus seal with his hands, and the holy rules within him transformed into a black ghost lotus that enveloped his body, clashing with Zhang Ruochen’s golden wings.
Xu’s reaction speed was astonishingly fast.
Unfazed, Xu locked eyes with Zhang Ruochen at close range, saying, “Your speed is impressive, and the power from your golden wings is strong, but I’m not White Jade Mad Lion. To challenge a top-ten powerhouse in the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection, this level of strength is far from enough.”
“Is it?”
Zhang Ruochen unleashed his spatial rules, forming a gravity space that pressed down on Xu.
“Rumble.”
Xu’s ghostly body trembled slightly, the pressure mounting as cracks appeared in the ghost lotus.
At that moment, vines from the Saint Devourer Flower surged from Zhang Ruochen’s back, cascading like thousands of threads toward the northern cliff of the mountain.
On the northern cliff, Barbarian Sword Great Saint was pinned by five ice pillars, holy blood flowing.
“Chi chi.”
The Saint Devourer Flower’s vines released Purifying Divine Fire, wrapping around the five ice pillars, attempting to refine them.
As soon as the Purifying Divine Fire was unleashed, the stone surface of the northern cliff lit up with dense Great Saint inscriptions. The inscriptions emitted a dazzling glow, condensing icy energy that froze and extinguished the Purifying Divine Fire.
The Saint Devourer Flower’s vines quickly retracted, leaving the northern cliff.
“Agh…”
Barbarian Sword Great Saint clenched his teeth, but a pained cry still escaped, enduring agony even a Great Saint’s mental will could hardly bear.
The Great Saint inscriptions on the northern cliff surged into Barbarian Sword Great Saint’s body, freezing him inch by inch.
Standing at the mountain’s peak, within the centre of the ghost lotus, Xu laughed, “Think it’s that easy to save someone? Before you arrived, this mountain was already inscribed with millions of Great Saint inscriptions.”
The ten-thousand-metre mountain suddenly radiated dazzling light.
All the Great Saint inscriptions activated.
“Roar!”
“Howl!”
…
From Xu’s back surged countless ghostly shadows—lion and tiger forms, human forms, Rakshasa forms… a total of 12 million ghostly shadows, transforming the area into a chilling ghost realm.
The 12 million ghostly shadows condensed into twelve Thousand Questions Realm Ghost Emperor soul bodies, each exuding immense presence and holy might, containing one-tenth the power of a Thousand Questions Realm Great Saint.
The power of the twelve Ghost Emperor soul bodies merged with Xu’s own strength.
Xu struck with his palm, hitting Zhang Ruochen’s golden wings, sending him flying backward.
Having gained the upper hand, Xu pressed his advantage, delivering a second palm, a third… an unrelenting barrage of palm strikes.
Like rolling thunder, fifty-seven palm blasts resounded.
Zhang Ruochen was forced back five thousand miles, relying on the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, three Thousand Questions Realm dragon souls, and three Thousand Questions Realm elephant souls to counter Xu’s palm strikes.
Their clashing forces shattered the earth, reduced mountains to dust, and turned rivers into bands of ice.
This was a clash of raw power, ferocious and domineering.
The entire Hell Realm, including the various Hunting Heaven battlefields, trembled at this moment.
Who could have imagined that Zhang Ruochen would single-handedly storm the Ghost Clan’s home star to fight Xu?
“Is Zhang Ruochen mad?”
Countless cultivators shared this doubt.
No matter how powerful a cultivator, no one could single-handedly invade a clan’s home star. Especially since Zhang Ruochen had enemies throughout the Hell Realm, with countless cultivators eager to kill him.
His actions were tantamount to seeking death.
Only the Heaven Realm cultivators on the Hunting Heaven battlefield noticed a clue. In the projection, they faintly saw Barbarian Sword Great Saint pinned to the northern cliff.
“Zhang Ruochen must have gone to the Ghost Clan’s home star to save Barbarian Sword Great Saint,” a Guanghan Realm cultivator said excitedly.
“It must be. Zhang Ruochen and Barbarian Sword Great Saint are close friends. With the Ghost Clan’s Great Saints threatening Barbarian Sword Great Saint’s life, Zhang Ruochen would surely go to save him.”
Cultivators who had deep ties with Zhang Ruochen, seeing this, felt both worry for his safety and a strange sense of relief. At least, Zhang Ruochen’s true nature hadn’t changed.
He still valued loyalty above life and death.
