“Whoosh!”
A dark crimson bolt of lightning twisted into the shape of a blade, hovering above Zhang Ruochen’s head before slashing down.
Zhang Ruochen stood motionless in place, the space above his head distorting.
The descending blade slid past his side, cleaving the mountain ridge below and forming sheer cliffs.
Yan Ying’er’s figure appeared, her slender fingers pinching a talisman as she pressed it towards Zhang Ruochen from afar.
“Boom!”
The talisman exploded, releasing countless sharp bursts of energy like thousands of swords flying out.
“The Ten Thousand Swords Cloud-Cleaving Talisman refined by a Talisman Dao Celestial Master.”
Xue Qi’s expression changed. He rapidly retreated using a sacred technique footwork.
Yet he was still struck by one of the energy bursts. His right arm flew off, and Great Saint blood spilled across the ground.
It was truly an undeserved calamity. Xue Qi regretted standing too close to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen remained standing in place without making a move. His gaze was dazed as he looked at Yan Ying’er, thinking to himself, “So alike! Truly alike! What a fateful entanglement, a genuine ill-fated connection!”
Those sword-like energy bursts automatically dispersed three zhang away from Zhang Ruochen.
They could not breach his defence.
“What a heartless and treacherous villain. His cultivation has actually reached such a terrifying level. No wonder Second Great-Uncle holds him in such high esteem,” Yan Ying’er thought to herself, already taking out another talisman.
When Xue Qi saw the profound talisman patterns emerging on the talisman in her hand, his face paled further, turning as white as paper. He cursed inwardly: another Celestial Master talisman?
Flee!
He escaped even farther away!
How humiliating. A peak Great Saint of the Myriad Death Lifeless Realm, the future heir to the Xue Jue Family patriarch, reduced to fleeing at the sight of a talisman.
“Your opponent is me. With your cultivation, you are not yet qualified to fight my father.”
Chi Kongle arrived through the air, swinging her sword horizontally with chilling killing intent.
The sword she wielded was the Supreme Sacred Artifact, the Life-Reaping Sword.
This sword had once been Lan Ying’s war weapon, later given by Zhang Ruochen to Chi Kongle.
Yan Ying’er retreated rapidly while letting out a delicate snort. “I was holding back earlier. Although Zhang Ruochen is heartless and unfaithful, I still acknowledge you as my sister. But don’t go too far! I am very powerful.”
Suddenly, Yan Ying’er’s feet landed on the ground.
With a boom, thick blood-red divine qi surged from her body. Across the land spanning hundreds of li, a vast ocean of powerful divine qi appeared.
She swayed her two braids, raised her right hand, and pointed at Chi Kongle.
“Whoosh!”
The divine qi condensed into a blood dragon dozens of li long, erupting with divine might. Accompanied by a deafening roar, it clawed towards Chi Kongle.
“Boom!”
Across this region, including the skies above Tianlin Ancient City a thousand li away, dark clouds gathered.
As the divine dragon formed, lightning flashed and thunder roared in the clouds, raining down blood-red precipitation.
The cultivators in Tianlin Ancient City and the guards of the Xue Jue Family were all terrified, believing a god was launching a destructive attack.
Yan Ying’er was the reincarnation of the Blood Shadow Divine Mother, a naturally born divine foetus containing extremely powerful divine power within her body. Even if she had been a god from birth, Zhang Ruochen would not be surprised.
However, she clearly did not possess such overwhelming strength.
He did not know whether her divine power was sealed or for some other reason.
On the other side, Chi Kongle was equally unyielding. A ten-thousand-zhang-tall divine soul phantom appeared behind her, radiating divine majesty and drawing the power of heaven and earth towards her.
She had refined a strand of divine soul from Xiu Chen Heavenly God.
In terms of divine soul, she surpassed the former Judgement Divine Envoy. However, without the divine power mobilisation of the Star Soul Divine Seat, her combat strength naturally fell short of a false god.
“What is happening? It feels like two gods are fighting.”
“The younger generation of cultivators is becoming more and more monstrous.”
…
The watching cultivators, frightened by the auras erupting from the two women, retreated farther away.
“It is fortunate we invited Great Saint Ruochen out. Otherwise, with their combat strength, even the patriarch might not be able to suppress them.” Xue Qi had retreated a thousand li away, reattaching his severed arm. His mood was bitter and complex.
Back in the day, he too had been a Great Saint hero who dared to rival Zhang Ruochen. After cultivating for a thousand years and greatly increasing his power, he now could not even defeat Zhang Ruochen’s daughter.
And that was against just one of them.
Zhang Ruochen knew Chi Kongle’s state was extreme, heavily influenced by Xiu Chen Heavenly God’s divine soul and filled with killing intent. Naturally, he would not let them continue fighting.
After all, Zhang Ruochen still regarded Yan Ying’er as his daughter and did not want to see either of them injured.
As the blood-red divine dragon flew towards Chi Kongle, she slashed out with the Life-Reaping Sword.
But suddenly, the space around them froze.
All power ceased movement.
The blood-red divine dragon’s claw stopped above Chi Kongle’s head, shattered by a single finger from Zhang Ruochen, turning into blood qi divine mist. The sword qi Chi Kongle had unleashed was deflected by a sweep of Zhang Ruochen’s sleeve.
“The space across hundreds of li is frozen, as if solidified in ice. We cannot move at all.”
Yan Ying’er watched Zhang Ruochen approach step by step, utterly shocked. She absolutely refused to believe he was still merely a Great Saint. The power he commanded could only belong to a god.
Zhang Ruochen came before her, and the frozen space loosened slightly.
“How is your mother?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Yan Ying’er raised her chin and looked away, refusing to meet his eyes.
Once she realised she could move, she immediately tried to escape, only to find her legs felt as if they no longer belonged to her, fixed in space. Her arms were the same.
“My mother is now a Talisman Dao Celestial Master and will soon achieve divinity through mental strength. You had better release me at once, or you will be in big trouble,” Yan Ying’er said with pursed red lips in a threatening tone.
Zhang Ruochen said, “I will release you, but I think there is some misunderstanding between us that must first be cleared up.”
“There is no misunderstanding!”
Yan Ying’er’s round apricot eyes glared at Zhang Ruochen. “My mother said that when she was pregnant with me, you wanted to kill me. Fortunately, she risked her life to protect mine.”
Zhang Ruochen frowned. “How could your mother tell you such things?”
“So you admit it?” Yan Ying’er said angrily.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. “In truth, it was your mother who wanted to kill you. I used some methods to preserve your life.”
“Hmph! I do not believe you. Fifth Great-Uncle said you, Zhang the Great Villain, are heartless and unfaithful, abandoning my mother after toying with her affections, causing her to suffer alone for a thousand years amid the world’s scorn and mockery. You are no man at all.”
Yan Ying’er spoke eloquently and cursed freely.
That last sentence imitated Yan Huangtu’s tone.
“Fifth Great-Uncle… you mean Yan Huangtu?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
“Hmph!” Yan Ying’er replied.
Zhang Ruochen could not help clenching his fists, his mind filled with images of Yan Huangtu.
Outrageous, truly outrageous.
Yan Zhexian might indeed have suffered grievances over the past thousand years, or perhaps she had let slip a few complaints to Yan Ying’er under questioning. But what business was it of Yan Huangtu’s?
Did Yan Huangtu not know the truth? How could he mislead a child like this?
Was he seeking revenge for past events?
Zhang Ruochen truly did not care how outsiders judged him, whether as a cosmic villain or a romantic sword god. As long as his conscience was clear, it was enough. But having his own daughter view him this way left him feeling rather bitter.
He very much wanted to go to the Yan Luo Clan right now, drag out Yan Huangtu and Yan Zhexian, confront them face to face, and clear everything up.
He, Zhang Ruochen, could take the blame and be Yan Ying’er’s father.
But he absolutely refused to bear the stain of being heartless, unfaithful, and abandoning her after seduction.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to continue explaining.
“Crackle!”
Lightning-like talisman patterns emerged on Yan Ying’er’s purple divine robe.
With a boom, she shattered the frozen space.
Her body turned into a bolt of lightning and shot away, her speed reaching an extreme. Even without using divine steps, Zhang Ruochen could not match it.
With this divine robe, there was truly nowhere in the world she could not go.
“I will chase her.”
Chi Kongle’s gaze was cold, like two sharp swords.
Zhang Ruochen suddenly had an idea and called out, “Kongle!”
“Yes?”
Chi Kongle stopped.
Zhang Ruochen said, “She is your younger sister.”
A trace of confusion flashed in Chi Kongle’s cold, sharp eyes.
Zhang Ruochen sighed deeply. “Her mother and I do indeed share a fateful connection. Had I not been trapped in Sumeru Temple for a thousand years, it is very likely we would have married.”
“Back then?” Chi Kongle asked.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Back then, it was her mother who did not wish to marry me.”
“In that case, Father cannot be blamed,” Chi Kongle said coldly.
Zhang Ruochen continued, “No matter what, the affairs of the previous generation should not involve the next. Ying’er does not know many truths, and it is difficult for me to explain clearly. As the elder sister, you should be tolerant of her.”
Hearing the words “elder sister”, a hint of softness appeared in Chi Kongle’s eyes that held boundless killing intent.
Seeing this, Zhang Ruochen nodded. “I will tell you the truth from back then. You go and talk to her. You are sisters; she should listen to some of what you say. Remember, do not fight.”
“Alright!”
Chi Kongle sheathed the Life-Reaping Sword.
Zhang Ruochen recounted what had happened on the Hunting Heaven Battlefield that year.
Of course, he did not go into detail about how Yan Zhexian became pregnant with Yan Ying’er. He could hardly tell Chi Kongle that Yan Zhexian had absorbed his blood and thus conceived Yan Ying’er.
Such an absurd matter, once spoken, would be believed by no one.
“She misunderstands Father because she does not know the truth. I will explain it to her.”
Perhaps sensing Zhang Ruochen’s low spirits, Chi Kongle said this before pursuing in the direction Yan Ying’er had fled.
Zhang Ruochen had Chi Kongle interact with Yan Ying’er to use sisterly affection to dissolve her murderous aura. At the same time, if Chi Kongle could truly clarify the matter, it would save Zhang Ruochen much trouble.
It was killing two birds with one stone.
“Yan Zhexian! Yan Huangtu!”
Zhang Ruochen uttered these two names, beginning to consider how to retaliate.
Having his own daughter come knocking with attacks and insults, making such a spectacle that it would soon spread throughout Hell Realm, was not just a loss of face. It also left him deeply frustrated.
“Since you have made me take the blame, how can I receive no compensation at all? It seems I must visit the Yan Luo Clan. Yan Zhexian, whether you marry or not, I absolutely must wed you now. Otherwise, I would lose out far too much!” Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
…..
Tianlin Ancient City was the nearest grand metropolis to the Blood Slaughter Family’s territory, reaching the level of a holy city.
Looking out, pavilions and towers layered endlessly within the city, with no end in sight.
The Wujian Pavilion had a secret outpost in the city, located underground.
In the underground’s utmost secret space.
Zhang Ruochen and the Xuanji Sword Saint stood facing each other, both with grave expressions, discussing a matter that could shock the entire cosmic starry sky. Even gods would change colour upon hearing their conversation.
The current leader of the Wujian Pavilion was precisely the Xuanji Sword Saint.
“This matter is no trivial affair, I must immediately transmit the news back to the Kunlun Realm and inform the Supreme Elder.” The Xuanji Sword Saint’s heart was shocked, his face ashen like iron plating, with a sense of impending catastrophe.
Zhang Ruochen cautioned, “The great war between the Heavenly Court and the Infernal Court has begun, with turbulent winds and clouds, and the heavens and earth in turmoil.”
“Master! Be exceedingly careful in all matters.”
“Ruochen, you are now at the centre of the storm, so you must be even more cautious. Before breaking through to the divine realm, try not to leave the Blood Slaughter Family.”
The Xuanji Sword Saint was about to depart when he suddenly thought of something, halted his steps, and asked, “Having seized the Xingtian Jar, does the great god Xingtian truly have a chance to escape from the Luo Zu Yun Shan Realm?”
For a great god like Chi Xingtian, if he could return to the Kunlun Realm, the Kunlun Realm would gain even greater voice in the Heavenly Court.
“This matter is not urgent, the Wujian Pavilion must absolutely not get involved, leave it to me to handle.” Zhang Ruochen worried that the Xuanji Sword Saint might take desperate risks to rescue Chi Xingtian.
At present, the most important thing was to let the Supreme Elder know of the Kunlun Realm’s situation, to avoid being caught unprepared in the future.
As for rescuing Chi Xingtian…
Zhang Ruochen felt that waiting until he stepped into the divine realm, then slowly devising a plan, would not be too late.
Leaving the underground space, Zhang Ruochen returned to the bustling streets of Tianlin Ancient City, where passing cultivators were numerous, but the vast majority were young juniors, making it rare to see saint-level powerhouses.
Zhang Ruochen secretly followed behind the Xuanji Sword Saint until he personally witnessed him safely leaving Tianlin Ancient City.
“It seems I was overcautious! With Master’s current cultivation, even though Tianlin Ancient City is teeming with experts, none can match him. Discovering him would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens.”
This thought had just emerged in Zhang Ruochen’s mind.
Beside him, from a pavilion shrouded in faint blood mist, a clear and resonant voice rang out: “Saint Ruochen, the secular myth, the amorous sword god, unparalleled under heaven. Seeing you today, you truly exude an imposing spirit, handsome and extraordinary.”
Zhang Ruochen’s heart was secretly startled as he looked towards the third floor of the pavilion.
The pavilion was built like a miniature mountain, over a hundred metres tall, its exterior lush and verdant, covered in exotic flowers and grasses, appearing quite unique.
Even standing on the street, one could smell the tea fragrance wafting from inside.
In the Undying Blood Race, such tea pavilions were exceedingly rare.
Zhang Ruochen did not see who was speaking, but with his sixty-ninth order half-step spiritual power intensity, for the other to see his true form clearly indicated an extraordinary individual.
What worried Zhang Ruochen even more was whether that person had discovered the relationship between him and the Xuanji Sword Saint?
“Would the Saint like to come up for a cup? This establishment’s tea is purchased from the Heavenly Court, rare and fragrant, not something one can savour just anywhere in the Infernal Court.”
The man’s voice was warm and pleasing, magnetic as if drawing one in.
“He is indeed coming for me.”
Zhang Ruochen felt no fear and entered this tea pavilion named “Heaven Comes Earth Goes”.
In the tea pavilion, the cultivators sipping tea were sparse and few.
After all, the Undying Blood Race preferred drinking blood.
Ascending to the third floor, Zhang Ruochen’s gaze fell upon a man in red robes seated by the window; he could confirm that it was this person who had spoken to him earlier.
Because Zhang Ruochen sensed no power fluctuations from him at all.
The red-robed man appeared to be in his twenties, with jet-black long hair neatly combed, clear brows and bright eyes, a straight nose bridge, elegant and spirited, possessing a captivating handsomeness that seized the heart.
Zhang Ruochen had seen countless handsome men: the gentle warmth of Shang Ziyan, the cold austerity of Yin Yuanchen, the ethereal detachment of Zhen Yuan, the scholarly grace of Nan Sheng and Yan Yu, and the domineering aura of Yan Wushen.
Yet, compared to the man in red before him, they all seemed to fall short.
This was a figure who could make those heavenly proud daughters throw themselves onto his bed with just his looks alone.
Zhang Ruochen walked to the seat opposite him, sat down, and said, “How should I address you, sir?”
“Qie Sanqian.”
The red-robed man was exceedingly refined, gesturing towards the clay jar teapot on the table with an inviting motion, a faint smile playing on his lips.
This smile alone was enough to intoxicate women the world over.
Zhang Ruochen was not one to stand on ceremony, lifting the clay jar and pouring a full cup.
Tianlin Ancient City was the Blood Slaughter Family’s domain; Zhang Ruochen was unafraid of anyone daring to harm him here.
Taking a sip, Zhang Ruochen furrowed his brows and said, “It hardly seems like fine tea; the tea tree probably hasn’t even grown for a single aeon.”
“In the Infernal Court, being able to drink tea at all is already quite good!” Qie Sanqian appeared utterly contented, pouring another full cup and holding it to his nose, gently inhaling, lost in the aroma of the tea.
Zhang Ruochen observed him closely.
Suddenly, beside him, against the wall, he spotted a sword adorned with glittering jewels propped there.
The scabbard was garishly ornate, appearing flashy yet insubstantial.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Have you come to Tianlin Ancient City specifically to find me?”
“Not a god, yet sealing the sword as divine; which sword cultivator in the world would not wish to see you with their own eyes? Legend has it that you have cultivated a third-grade sword dao holy intent; is this true?” Qie Sanqian asked.
Zhang Ruochen replied, “The legend may be true, or it may be false.”
“Saint Ruochen is already invincible in the secular world, yet you remain so reserved?” Qie Sanqian said.
Zhang Ruochen responded, “I still do not know your identity, nor whether you are friend or foe; how could I not be reserved?”
Qie Sanqian set down his teacup and smiled, “I have invited you for tea, so naturally I am a friend, not an enemy.”
“Then, what sort of friend are you, precisely?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Qie Sanqian brushed back the long hair from his forehead, about to speak, when suddenly he sensed something and turned his gaze towards the stairwell.
Zhang Ruochen lightly sniffed and caught a faint fragrance.
It was a woman’s scent.
A fragrance of grasses and woods; just a gentle whiff made one feel as if immersed in a vast verdant grassland or an ancient forest shrouded in drifting white mists, mysterious and fresh.
A tall woman wearing a veil slowly ascended from the stairwell.
At first, what was visible was her headdress.
Her hair was styled in a divine goddess-like cloud bun chignon, adorned with seven emerald-green jade hairpins, each tip carved with a different divine beast, crystalline and translucent, containing points of light like a starry sea within.
The veil was light and airy, her face faintly visible.
This stirred in Zhang Ruochen and Qie Sanqian a strong curiosity, a desire to lift her mysterious veil and behold her true countenance.
She wore a deep purple-blue long skirt, paired inside with a moon-white ruqun collar and shan, her long snow-white neck as delicate as congealed fat, pure and clear yet imparting a subtly captivating sensuality that seized the eye.
In her arms, she cradled a strange creature resembling a cat, a dog, a marten, or a lion-dog, with three eyes, all golden.
“Graceful as a startled swan, sleeves like flowing clouds.” Zhang Ruochen could not help but recite.
Qie Sanqian followed with a line: “Lightly she treads, so graceful and full, her jade arms congealed as if drifting clouds.”
The veiled woman with the cloud bun had wisps of mist ever swirling about her form, making her difficult to discern clearly; she walked to a table beside Zhang Ruochen and Qie Sanqian and sat down.
“Another existence whose cultivation I cannot fathom.” Zhang Ruochen inwardly grew vigilant, finding it far too unusual.
How could Tianlin Ancient City suddenly produce two such remarkable figures?
Moreover, they had all gathered in a single tea pavilion.
Zhang Ruochen withdrew his gaze, no longer looking at the woman, and turned to Qie Sanqian, saying, “You have yet to answer my earlier question!”
“What question?” Qie Sanqian said.
Zhang Ruochen replied, “If you continue to be so evasive, I shall take my leave; I have many pressing matters to attend to.”
Zhang Ruochen had just risen when Qie Sanqian pressed him back down.
He smiled and said, “We are both amorous wanderers of the mortal world; why ask of each other’s past when we meet? Saint Ruochen, I know you harbour troubles in your heart, which is why I wish to speak a few more words with you.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “I am no amorous wanderer, nor do I harbour troubles.”
“No, you do; otherwise, why would your own daughter come storming to your door? You are also an amorous wanderer; every cultivator in the Infernal Court knows it. Life seldom brings a true confidant; come, let us share a cup.”
Qie Sanqian raised his teacup.
Zhang Ruochen felt rather helpless, sighing inwardly; as expected, the news had spread.
Good deeds do not travel far, but scandals fly a thousand miles.
Zhang Ruochen clinked cups with Qie Sanqian absent-mindedly, the tea entering his belly yet tasting of nothing at all.
Qie Sanqian said, “You need not feel dejected; the reason such a thing occurred is actually because you do not know how to manage those women of yours. I shall pass on a few techniques for taming wives to you, guaranteeing no more such headaches in the future.”
“Why did your daughter hurl harsh words at you and even resort to blows without hesitation?”
“It was all taught by her mother.”
“If her mother had told her from a young age that you are a righteous and affectionate hero, how could she possibly treat you that way?”
“So, you must subdue her mother to prevent such things from happening again in the future.”
Zhang Ruochen looked at Qie Sanqian with eyes full of astonishment and interest, then asked, “You… do you truly possess some ways to tame wives?”
“Of course; back in the day, I had three thousand concubines, all perfectly managed, utterly compliant, obedient to my every whim, not one daring to step out of line. You have but a few women, yet they cause such chaos, the whole world knowing and mocking you. I simply cannot bear to watch; that is why I wish to teach you a few tricks to your endless benefit.” Qie Sanqian was utterly confident.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen realised that Qie Sanqian was a false name.
From nearby came a light snort.
Zhang Ruochen and Qie Sanqian glanced sideways at her, then raised their cups and clinked them again, drinking in mutual companionship.
Qie Sanqian said, “The way of taming wives: the great dao lies in the heart, next in affection, then in righteousness, and lastly in law.”
Zhang Ruochen pondered deeply and asked, “Heart, affection, righteousness, law; what do they signify?”
“The great dao lies in the heart, meaning that you must treat her with single-minded devotion, understanding her heart. When you know what she desires, what she dislikes, what she thinks of at every moment, then naturally you can live in mutual respect, as harmonious as sharing a meal on raised trays.” Qie Sanqian said.
Zhang Ruochen replied, “The most difficult part is single-minded devotion.”
“Not difficult at all!”
Qie Sanqian waved his hand and lowered his voice: “When with someone, devote yourself wholly to her. Do not think of other women; they do not exist, they are illusions, only the one before you is real. Remember, do not be with two women at once; do not even let them meet. Your level is too low; you cannot handle it.”
Zhang Ruochen was left dumbfounded.
He had to admit, what Qie Sanqian said did hold some truth.
In the past, the conflicts between Zhang Ruochen and the women around him all stemmed from being with one woman while his heart yearned for another.
Even on the night of his wedding, during the bridal chamber festivities, it was the same.
