Lianxi followed behind Jialin Nan. She wore bright armour. Her aura was no longer as cold as the former “Shadowless Fairy”. It carried more holiness, heroism, and capable charm.
Unfortunately, she bore stains that could never be washed away. Even though she had become the grand palace lord of the Tribunal Palace, few cultivators in the Light Divine Hall truly respected her.
She knew clearly that she could never enter the core of the Light Divine Hall.
The Tribunal Palace was merely a blade of the Light Divine Hall, a blade for killing, doing things that offended others.
Jialin Nan was a true god of the Order Palace in the Light Divine Hall. In Lianxi’s eyes, he was an unattainable existence.
But what shocked Lianxi more was that Jialin Nan told her the one who truly wished to see her was the Heavenly Grandson, that great god who had already stepped into the Taizhen Realm.
“Tribunal Palace Lianxi pays respects to the Heavenly Grandson.”
After Jialin Nan withdrew, Lianxi bowed and saluted Shang Hong.
Shang Hong carefully observed Lianxi’s stunning beauty. Even with his experience, having seen beauties of the world, a trace of amazement flashed in his eyes. But he remained calm and said, “Palace Lord Lianxi is the future lord recognised by the soul realm’s world spirit. She possesses ten souls and ten spirits, and has gained the appreciation of Yao Divine Venerable of the Tribunal Palace. Her future prospects are boundless. There is no need for such courtesy.”
Lianxi said, “The Heavenly Grandson overpraises. Lianxi is merely a damned person who fell into the dust abyss of filth. Fortunately, Yao Divine Venerable took pity and gave some guidance. But the sins of the past still cannot be cleansed.”
Shang Hong said, “This seat knows some of your matters. It is not your fault. It is all because that yuanhui arch-traitor Zhang Ruochen was too brazen. You were able to carry the Sword of Judgment and escape back to Heavenly Court, showing your heart leans toward light. If the heart is bright, what do past matters count for?”
Lianxi said nothing, waiting for Shang Hong to continue.
How could a figure high in the clouds like Shang Hong easily meet a mere Saint Realm cultivator like her? Even if she was the grand palace lord of the Tribunal Palace!
Though Yao Divine Venerable stood behind her, that divine venerable had only appeared with a clone back then, saying one sentence: “Let her stay.” That was all.
However, the weight of a divine venerable was too great. One sentence changed her situation, allowing her to rise rapidly and step by step reach the position of grand palace lord.
But these things were insignificant, not to mention before Shang Hong, even before a mid-level god like Jialin Nan.
Shang Hong saw her so composed and nodded inwardly in approval. He cut to the chase and said, “If there is a chance to kill Zhang Ruochen, would you assist this seat?”
Lianxi knelt on one knee and said, “I wish to eat his flesh and drink his blood.”
Shang Hong said, “But the probability is only one in ten thousand, or even less. Rise quickly. You are the grand palace lord of the Tribunal Palace, and this seat is not a divine spirit of the Light Divine Hall. You need not perform such great courtesy.”
“I only wish to know how to kill that yuanhui arch-traitor?”
Lianxi stood up. Her tone was filled with coldness and killing intent.
Shang Hong gazed intently into her eyes and said, “You should understand Zhang Ruochen very well, right? Do you think… could Qingpingzi possibly be him?”
In Lianxi’s eyes, cold and piercing as bone, shock emerged. Her slender and upright delicate body involuntarily trembled.
Shang Hong was very satisfied with the expression she revealed without defences. It showed Zhang Ruochen and she had no collusion.
Or rather, if Qingpingzi was Zhang Ruochen, he had not contacted her.
This point was very important to Shang Hong.
“How could Qingpingzi be him?”
Lianxi shook her head and said, “Absolutely impossible.”
But in her heart, she instantly recalled the scenes of meeting Qingpingzi thousands of times, searching for flaws, searching for Zhang Ruochen’s habitual tone, actions, gaze, even sword-holding gestures, similarities in divine passages and laws…
She actually found some traces.
Of course, this was because she had followed Zhang Ruochen for a long time, familiar with his daily sitting, lying, rising, and sleeping, the subtle expressions in joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. How could others be as familiar as her?
Shang Hong said, “Actually, this seat has no certainty, but there are too many coincidences!”
“But Zhang Ruochen’s martial cultivation has been crippled. Even if it was not crippled, he absolutely could not become as powerful as Qingpingzi in such short time? The Heavenly Grandson is already a peerless hero, yet cultivated nearly a hundred thousand years to reach current cultivation. Could Zhang Ruochen’s cultivation speed surpass the Heavenly Grandson by ten times?” Lianxi said.
Shang Hong rather liked this woman before him. But thinking of Zhang Ruochen, his gaze darkened. He looked at Lianxi, shook his head, and sighed, “What a pity!”
Jialin Nan walked into Shang Hong’s divine realm world again. Joy on his face, he said, “Qingpingzi has gone to the divine prison.”
“Oh!”
A gleam appeared in Shang Hong’s eyes. He smiled and said, “Originally a possibility of less than one in ten thousand, suddenly risen to fifty or sixty percent.”
“Should we notify the Feng clan and the heavenly venerable’s daughter now?” Jialin Nan said.
Shang Hong shook his head cautiously and said, “Would Qingpingzi entering the divine prison let you see it?”
Jialin Nan smiled and said, “He probably fears Mr Mo’s perception, so dares not use any invisibility dao laws or spiritual force. He only restrained his aura. Wanting to enter the divine prison to save someone, he must be restrained, show flaws, and be discovered by this god. Consider him unlucky.”
Shang Hong was still not reassured. But after glancing at Lianxi, he said, “We shall go to the divine prison together to see. If we can catch him in the act, that would be the best evidence.”
…
In the divine prison, prison cells stood one after another, all covered in divine inscriptions.
Though Xuanyuan Qing had rescued Xiao Hei and the ancestral realm venerable, she had only broken the divine inscriptions on those two cells.
The cell imprisoning Blood Butcher was eight hundred zhang high. In the centre stood a stone array tower. All chains were fixed to the eaves of the array tower, seventy-two in total, piercing through Blood Butcher’s divine body, locking him to the divine iron prison wall behind the array tower.
The underground corridor was three or four hundred zhang from the array stone tower, quite dim, with iron walls blocking. Blood Butcher could not see whom Feng Yan was reprimanding. He only heard the other say “this poor Daoist”. He did not think of Zhang Ruochen at all.
After all, he had personally seen Zhang Ruochen chased by Feng Yunba with no way to heaven or earth. He thought that senior brother had likely turned to ashes, going before him.
Blood Butcher glanced at the Pure Yang Divine Sword suspended at his neck. The divine flames emitted from the sword body burned his divine body charred black, pain splitting.
Feeling the threat of death, Blood Butcher was anxious as if burning, yet had no countermeasure. He roared, “Feng Yan, if you have ability, release this emperor. We fight fairly. This emperor can let you use one hand!”
“Shut up.”
Feng Yan walked out from the dark shadows, revealing his heroic and imposing figure. Though with three heads and six arms, it was not strange. Instead, it added a domineering momentum.
Zhang Ruochen finally stopped his steps. He knew clearly he must have exposed a flaw.
In fact, the flaws were originally large.
Zhang Ruochen encountering Qingpingzi while fleeing was too coincidental.
Moreover, after Qingpingzi appeared, Zhang Ruochen disappeared upon breakthrough!
Because the Feng clan owed Qingpingzi a favour, with Feng Xuan and Feng Xi viewing Qingpingzi as a Dao friend, plus Qingpingzi truly accomplishing several extraordinary deeds in Tianchu Civilization.
How could the yuanhui arch-traitor Zhang Ruochen do those things?
This was why Feng Yunba and the Feng clan gods did not suspect his identity!
Zhang Ruochen walked toward Feng Yan and said, “When did you guess?”
This voice…
Blood Butcher’s ears perked up like a rabbit’s.
Feng Yan stared tightly at him. His eye rims red, he said gravely, “You have too many flaws. Fooling those who have not seen you is fine. But who am I? I long suspected you. But Seventh Uncle and Sister trust you greatly. I could only believe them.”
“But how can there be so many fools in the world, willing to sacrifice themselves to protect an unrelated person through tribulation?”
Zhang Ruochen walked before him, removed the “Qingpingzi” mask, and said, “I was forced helplessly. I did not intend to deceive you all.”
Blood Butcher was wildly joyful and shouted, “Senior Brother, save me!”
The seventy-two iron chains shook.
Feng Yan and Zhang Ruochen gazed at each other. He clenched his teeth tightly.
Zhang Ruochen smiled faintly and said, “You truly are different from before, matured too much. In the past, you would definitely confront me immediately, not block me here, forcing me to reveal my true appearance myself.”
“Senior Brother, save me. Do not waste words with him. He is merely a lower god… ah…”
Halfway through Blood Butcher’s roar, the Pure Yang Divine Sword sliced down. His neck was cut halfway. He could not shout, convulsing in pain. The charred smell of cooked meat filled the entire cell.
Zhang Ruochen said, “I must take him away.”
“On what grounds?” Feng Yan said.
Zhang Ruochen said, “On the grounds that you will not become my enemy.”
“On what grounds do you think I will not become your enemy? On you helping me through divine tribulation? On the Feng clan owing you an enormous favour?” Feng Yan said gravely.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, “No! Not because of these, but because I have always viewed you as a brother, the kind I would give my life for. You, Feng Yan, perhaps would not give your life for me, perhaps no longer view me as big brother. But you absolutely will not treat me as an enemy.”
“Boom!”
Feng Yan punched out, striking hard on Zhang Ruochen’s chest, sending him retreating three steps. He roared, “Zhang Ruochen, no one has ever humiliated like you so ruthlessly. Back then, the sworn brotherhood, though initiated by Chu Nan on a whim, seeming childish, yet we said to each other, through mountains of knives and seas of fire, insert knives in both ribs for the other.”
“I cannot give my life for you?”
“For you, I knelt, knelt before everyone. Is Feng Yan’s face not a face? You should know, I would rather die than kneel to anyone. Moreover, kneeling to…”
Zhang Ruochen knew whom he thought of. Moved in his heart.
A person as unyielding as Feng Yunba, his hatred toward the traitor Zhang Ruochen was no less than Huang Tian’s toward Duotian Divine Emperor.
If Zhang Ruochen were close to Duotian Divine Emperor and knelt to beg Huang Tian to spare him, not killing him with one palm would be strange.
“Shua!”
Feng Yan reached out virtually, recalling the Pure Yang Divine Sword. He said, “You wish to save him. I will not stop you. But you must promise me one condition!”
