According to the Yasha Clan Leader’s estimation, the most likely course for the Darkness Temple would be to kill him and the Ancestral Realm Venerable as the chief culprits, imprison the Jade Spirit God, and then install a god willing to submit as the new clan leader.
In this way, they could use the Yasha Clan to control the entire City of Hundred Clans.
However, the deaths of the Human Skin Lantern and Devouring Earth within the Yasha ancestral realm were an earth-shattering event that utterly humiliated the Darkness Temple.
Even if the Darkness Temple had previously been reluctant to exterminate the Yasha Clan, now they would have no choice but to declare war.
The Yasha Clan Leader asked, “Who made such a foolish decision? The Jade Spirit God?”
Lord Ailian shook her head. “It should be the intervention of a third party, one with unimaginable power, capable of killing two great gods in an instant. Moreover, even my master could not sense how they were killed.”
“Where is your master now?” the Yasha Clan Leader asked.
“In the Yasha Ancestral Temple.”
Lord Ailian and the Yasha Clan Leader turned into two streaks of divine light and sped through the void. The anxious gods across the ancestral realm, seeing the Clan Leader’s return, converged one after another towards the Yasha Ancestral Temple.
The Yasha Ancestral Temple had existed since the ancient era when the Yasha Clan was still one of the Ten Great Clans of the Hell Realm. The temple was majestic, like a vast mountain range, no less grand than the Temple of Truth or the Temple of Merit that Zhang Ruochen had seen.
The territory for hundreds of thousands of li around the temple was enveloped in countless divine patterns. Divine qi surged abundantly, and arrays were densely layered.
This was the foundation of the Yasha Clan as an ancient great clan.
It was precisely because of this temple that the Yasha Clan had survived more than ten life-and-death catastrophes over billions of years and had never been wiped out.
The Jade Spirit God sat alone at the highest point of the temple, elegant and noble, her figure graceful, yet her face was unusually weary. Only when Lord Ailian and the Yasha Clan Leader entered did she straighten her delicate frame and release her aura.
In her starry eyes, brimming with spiritual mist, cold light flashed. She said, “Zhang Ruochen, you still have the face to come before this god?”
Lord Ailian looked bewildered and glanced behind her.
Zhang Ruochen stepped out from concealment. “Miss Han has truly remarkable perception. Worthy of a great god of the Taixu Realm.”
Yet inwardly, the Jade Spirit God marvelled at the subtlety of Zhang Ruochen’s concealment technique. If they were not inside the Yasha Ancestral Temple, she might not have detected his presence so quickly.
The Jade Spirit God said coldly, “Speak. Did you kill the Human Skin Lantern and Devouring Earth?”
“What an injustice. A tremendous injustice. The Clan Leader and I had only just left the Dark Triangle Star Domain. We know nothing of what happened outside. I came to the ancestral realm solely to gather information.”
Zhang Ruochen found a seat and sat down directly. He continued, “When we joined forces against the Darkness Temple, there was always risk. I thought that Miss Han, having lived four hundred thousand years, would at least have anticipated the consequences of failure. I never expected that now you would try to shift all the blame onto me.”
“I killed Li Xiao the Great God. I killed Zhao Wuyan. I killed the Frost City Demon. I admit to all those. But the share that belongs to your Yasha Clan, I absolutely refuse to accept.”
Lord Ailian’s eyes were filled with shock. She had never imagined that the fall of three great gods of the Darkness Temple in recent years had all been Zhang Ruochen’s doing.
Even on the Jade Spirit God’s flawless, exquisite face, a trace of surprise appeared. She said, “The Frost City Demon actually died by your hand? He was at the peak of the Tai Bai Realm and wielded the Darkness Divine Sword.”
Zhang Ruochen showed no humility at all. His gaze was domineering. “So what? If this Realm Venerable wants him dead by the third watch, he will not live to see the fifth.”
From ancient times to the present, no man has ever refrained from boasting in front of a woman.
If the Frost City Demon had not been gravely injured at the time, and if Zhang Ruochen had not simultaneously possessed the Universe Cauldron and the Earth Cauldron, killing a great god at the peak of the Tai Bai Realm would hardly have been so easy.
How could the Jade Spirit God believe Zhang Ruochen’s arrogant words? With her own cultivation, even killing the Frost City Demon would not be simple.
The Jade Spirit God said, “It was the Dragon Lord who acted, wasn’t it?”
Earlier, the clash between the Dragon Lord and the Scarlet Marquis King had shaken the starry sky with mighty divine power. How could the Jade Spirit God not have sensed it?
The Dragon Lord had only just appeared, and now Zhang Ruochen had come to the Yasha Clan. How could the two be unconnected?
Zhang Ruochen said, “Miss Han still has the leisure to concern herself with such matters? With great calamity looming over your Yasha Clan, should you not think about how to break the deadlock?”
“To break this deadlock is too simple. We need only capture you and deliver you to the Darkness Temple. That would resolve most of the crisis.” The Jade Spirit God stood up. Her voluptuous, alluring figure was revealed, and with it, a heavy murderous aura enveloped the entire temple.
Lord Ailian and the Yasha Clan Leader paled, thinking the Jade Spirit God truly intended to act against Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen remained calm and composed. A Taiji circle appeared around him, dispelling the Jade Spirit God’s divine might and murderous qi. He smiled. “Jade Spirit God, if you dare do such a thing, the Yasha Clan would truly be beyond saving.”
“Deliver me to the Darkness Temple? Even if surrendering me could buy a slim chance of survival for the Yasha Clan, you would still be bled dry by the Darkness Temple and reduced to lowly slaves. Moreover, the lives of the Clan Leader and the Ancestral Realm Venerable could never be preserved. Even if you, Jade Spirit God, could keep your life, you would certainly pay a price heavier than death.”
“That is only secondary. You had best understand clearly who truly holds sway in the border regions of the Hell Realm. Can the Darkness Temple truly dictate terms here?”
“Is this not looking down on our Xing Huan Tian and Xing Tian Ya?”
“Oh, right. You asked earlier whether Uncle Dragon killed the Frost City Demon. To tell you the truth, the Frost City Demon was not yet qualified to die by Uncle Dragon’s hand. You, Jade Spirit God, would barely qualify.”
With a humph, Zhang Ruochen finally turned to Lord Ailian. “Brother Ailian, this Realm Venerable has come as a guest. Is there not even a cup of tea? Is this the Yasha Clan’s way of treating visitors?”
Lord Ailian gave a wry smile and glanced towards the Jade Spirit God.
How could the Jade Spirit God fail to consider the consequences of capturing Zhang Ruochen? Releasing her murderous aura and divine might earlier had only been to test his strength.
She had not expected that, in just a few short years, this young man’s cultivation had grown even more profound. He could now dispel her pressure with ease and nonchalance.
How could his cultivation speed be so astonishing?
The Yasha Clan Leader recovered his senses and hurriedly said, “Realm Venerable Ruochen has come to the ancestral realm naturally to lend the Yasha Clan a helping hand. We are allies who advance and retreat together. Senior Jade Spirit God was only joking earlier, right?”
Though he was the Clan Leader, he was still her junior, and there was a vast gap in both cultivation and strength.
The Jade Spirit God smiled charmingly, as if returning to her youth, transforming into a mischievous little demoness. “Though you, Zhang Ruochen, are merely a junior who has emerged in the world for one or two thousand years, your boldness exceeds this god’s expectations.”
“You guessed correctly. The Darkness Temple has made exorbitant demands, wanting the Yasha Clan to surrender ten great worlds, one thousand mining planets and one thousand life planets each, and thirty million divine stones. They intend to bleed the Yasha Clan dry.”
“Now that Devouring Earth and the Human Skin Lantern have died in the ancestral realm, even if we handed you over, their conditions would only grow harsher.”
“You, Zhang Ruochen, have come to the ancestral realm. Do you truly intend to aid the Yasha Clan?”
Zhang Ruochen said, “In my life, what I hate most is betrayal. Naturally, I would not betray allies. With the Yasha Clan in peril, how could I stand by?”
“Yet you yourself are hardly safe. Once news of your appearance leaks, do you know how many would come to kill you? Do you realise what terrible price the Blood Absolutes Family and the Divine Maidens’ Twelve Mansions have already paid because of you and Wuyue?” the Jade Spirit God said.
A trace of sorrow flashed in Zhang Ruochen’s eyes, but now was the best moment to win over the Yasha Clan. He absolutely could not show the slightest weakness. “So what? The louder they make their clamour now, the greater the price they will pay later. Since I dared to walk out of the Dark Triangle Star Domain, I will fear none of them. At worst, we fight a proper battle.”
Zhang Ruochen continued, “You must think I am only boasting, but to tell you the truth, with Tianmu’s protection, no one in the Hell Realm can touch me.”
“What about the Lord of the Darkness Temple? He is currently in the City of Hundred Clans, residing in the Seven Peaks Linked Mountains,” the Jade Spirit God said.
Zhang Ruochen sneered coldly. “If Wubian stays hidden in the Darkness Temple, he can still preserve his life. Coming to the City of Hundred Clans is simply courting death. The Ice Emperor has long wished to kill him.”
Wubian was one of the chief culprits in the death of Little Black’s mother.
Not only the Ice Emperor wanted to kill him. How could the Dragon Lord not want to?
It was only because the Sword Realm was of great importance that the Dragon Lord had restrained himself in the Dark Triangle Star Domain.
“What about Xutian? This time you have utterly humiliated him,” the Jade Spirit God said.
Zhang Ruochen looked at her until the Jade Spirit God began to feel somewhat uneasy. Only then did he say, “Who says Xutian has lost face?”
The Jade Spirit God smiled. “Xutian sealed Wuyue as Heavenly Concubine, yet Wuyue consorted with you. Whether she abused you or you abused her, in Xutian’s eyes, you deserve death.”
Zhang Ruochen smiled. “On that day, apart from Xutian, only four people knew the truth: I, the Nether King, Que, and Wuyue. Wuyue had lost her memory after all. Even if her memories suddenly returned, her words would carry no weight.”
“Therefore, in reality, there was never any sealing of a Heavenly Concubine that day. Everything is mere rumour.”
Zhang Ruochen could even guess how the news had leaked.
It must have been after the Nether King informed the gods of the Undying Blood Race, and then one of their gods spread the information.
As long as he could convince Xutian, turning the situation around would not be difficult.
The reason the Jade Spirit God had asked so many questions earlier was naturally to first confirm that Zhang Ruochen could protect himself. If he could not even safeguard his own life, why should the Yasha Clan cooperate with him?
The Jade Spirit God’s red lips curved slightly. She smiled charmingly. “Go fetch a pot of this god’s treasured Rainy Night Jade Spirit Tea for Realm Venerable Ruochen.”
“Rainy Night Jade Spirit. Truly a name of boundless poetic charm,” Zhang Ruochen sighed.
The Jade Spirit God ignored Zhang Ruochen’s impertinent boldness. Yet this young man’s talent was too extraordinary, and his cultivation speed was astonishing. Even though he had a reputation for romantic exploits, if he could resolve the Yasha Clan’s crisis, yielding herself to him would not be unacceptable.
The Jade Spirit God valued Zhang Ruochen’s terrifying potential and the vast power behind him.
An ancient god who had lived four hundred thousand years could, if she wished, assume any personality.
The Jade Spirit God’s voice softened considerably, sweet and endearing. “Realm Venerable Ruochen, how do you plan to help the Yasha Clan through this crisis? The Darkness Temple has already issued an ultimatum, ordering the Yasha Clan to deactivate the protective realm arrays within twelve hours and for this god to bring the Ancestral Realm Venerable and the Yasha Clan Leader to the City of Hundred Clans to accept punishment. Otherwise, they will first destroy the Night Rain Sea, then annihilate the Yasha Clan’s thirty-seven great worlds outside the ancestral realm.”
Zhang Ruochen’s aura soared to the heavens. “What other way is there? We march straight on the City of Hundred Clans.”
