Chapter 691: Thirty-Six Palace-keeping Beast Guardians
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Bird Nine escaped very quickly, but Zhang Ruochen’s pursuit was faster. He struck her back with his sword.
“Poof poof!”
When the Golden Snake Divine Rapier struck Bird Nine’s left wing, sparks flew, and there was an ear-piercing sound of metal scraping against metal.
Although Bird Nine had strong defensive abilities, how could she shield herself from a Holy Sword?
The Golden Snake Divine Rapier sliced off a foot-long section from her left wing and blood started dripping to the ground.
Bird Nine felt tremendous pain on her back, having part of her wing cut off. Moaning with pain, she fled.
Zhang Ruochen exerted bodily movement and charged forward at his fastest speed, saying, “Who exactly are all of you?”
The Golden Snake Divine Rapier, like a golden venomous snake, followed Bird Nine as if it were her shadow. It was about to strike her once again.
Bird Nine clenched her teeth with apprehension as she raced forward, fearing that slowing down even just a bit could cost her life.
“Take me on instead.”
The eight legs of Centipede Eight were seven-meter-long black skeletal bones that propped up his body. He dashed toward Zhang Ruochen to block him.
His hands were razor-sharp like the tips of eight long spears. The tips emitted blue light, signifying that they contained highly toxic poison.
Like the arms of a windmill, Centipede Eight’s arms propelled toward Zhang Ruochen’s chest. One arm struck the top of Zhang Ruochen’s head while another plowed into his legs…
Each of Centipede Eight’s arms had power equivalent to that of a monk of the Ninth Change in the Fish-dragon Realm.
It was as if Zhang Ruochen was simultaneously battling eight masters of the Ninth Change in the Fish-dragon Realm. It was extremely challenging for Zhang Ruochen. He was forced to retreat to ease the great pressure he was facing.
Although he was suppressed by Centipede Eight, he managed to keep his steps steady with his footwork as he retreated.
All of Centipede Eight’s arms were carved with inscriptions that formed a layer of black light around them. Whenever the Golden Snake Divine Rapier struck any part of them, the only reaction was a slight quiver of the black light. It was almost impossible to sever any his arms.
Centipede Eight gave out a bellowing laugh. “You can’t be a nobody since you are able to fight me for so long. Who are you?”
Zhang Ruochen retreated as he wielded his sword and said, “How about we guess each other’s identity? Perhaps I have already guessed your identity and background.”
“Tell us about it,” said Centipede Eight.
“It is said that the Moon Worship Demonic Sect is divided into nine palaces, one of which is called the Beasts Valley. The Beasts Valley cultivated 36 Palace-keeping Beast Guardians who were all offspring of Mythical Beasts. “Breezy Bird was ranked number nine, while Thunderous Centipede was ranked number eight. Am I right?” asked Zhang Ruochen.
“Why don’t you surrender yourself since you know who I am?” said Centipede Eight, loud and clear.
“I’m afraid you don’t have the capability to make me do that.”
Zhang Ruochen turned quickly to exert all the power of the Shooting Star Invisible Cloak. This allowed him to dart far away with double the speed of Centipede Eight.
“Are you thinking of running away after cutting off part of my wing?”
An enormous shadow in the shape of a bird appeared on the ground. Zhang Ruochen was completely under the shadow.
It was Bird Nine who had transformed into her true body of a Breezy Bird. She was cruising in the sky above Zhang Ruochen, attempting to block his way once again.
At the same time, a mist of black poison fog appeared, causing putrefaction of parts of the ground. All the trees and flowers that came into contact with the poison fog withered within seconds.
“Do you think you can still escape after finding out that we are from the Moon Worship Sect?”
A huge black centipede appeared in the midst of the poison fog.
It crawled with an alarming speed. With a sharp foot of steel, huge rocks were slashed into pieces in a matter of seconds as it passed.
Breezy Bird and Thousand-legged Centipede were both offspring of Mythical Beasts. They had massive bodies and high-level cultivation. They were deemed the kings of the great wilderness.
Although Zhang Ruochen was clad in the Shooting Star Invisible Cloak which enabled him to travel at high speed, it was still a close shave being attacked by two battle beasts simultaneously.
Bird Nine spat out a Holy Weapon wrapped in flames. Shaped like the crescent moon, it spun rapidly as it flew toward Zhang Ruochen’s abdomen.
The Shooting Star Invisible Cloak afforded him strong protection and dissipated most of the impact of the attack. However, Zhang Ruochen still sustained some internal injury and he felt an excruciating pain in his abdomen.
“You’re digging your own grave.”
Zhang Ruochen’s eyes turned cold. He quickly mobilized the power of Sword Comprehension and gripped the hilt of the sword with both of his hands. A glaring sword radiance radiated from the Golden Snake Divine Rapier.
Suddenly, hundreds of Qi swords appeared in the air, centered around Zhang Ruochen. All the hilts pointed downward while the tips pointed upward.
“Sword One!”
Zhang Ruochen thrust the sword up toward Beezy Bird.
With a whizzing sound, the Golden Snake Divine Rapier combined with the hundreds of Qi swords to form a light column that rose all the way up to the vault of heaven.
Breezy Bird kept her crescent-shaped Holy Weapon the moment she felt the strong fluctuation of sword Qi and assumed a defensive position.
After all, Zhang Ruochen had already reached the realm of the Completion of Sword One. How could a mere Holy Weapon withstand his extreme power?
“Pfft!”
The sword Qi light column pierced through the body of Breezy Bird, leaving a big blood hole. The light column shot into the sky and penetrated the clouds.
Seriously injured, Breezy Bird descended into a dense forest and let out a cry of agony.
In the Taoist temple on top of the mountain, the blue-robed man’s expression turned freaky. His mouth curved as he said, “He’s actually a sword hero, this is getting interesting.”
In the next instant, he appeared on the cliff outside the Taoist temple. He looked in Zhang Ruochen’s direction and then punched forward, condensing an enormous hand emitting evil energy in the vault of heaven.
Zhang Ruochen was stepping on the golden Holy Sword and traveling at a high speed when he suddenly felt a suffocating force coming down from above his head.
As he lifted up his head, he saw an arm in black that was tens of meters long. The fingers were thick as columns and they emerged from the clouds emitting chilling icy air.
Under the compression of the evil hand, Zhang Ruochen felt his entire body go numb from the cold. The Genuine Qi in his body was almost frozen solid so there was no way for him to run it.
“Blue-sky Demon Handprint.”
Zhang Ruochen almost lost all hope. Unless he used the Power of Time and Space, there was no way he could withstand this attack relying on his current level of cultivation.
Could he be the Demon Son of the demonic sect?
Zhang Ruochen could not think of any other person who possessed such powerful capabilities other than the Demon Son.
He must not expose the power of time and space. Zhang Ruochen clenched his teeth and began using all of his strength to run the Holy Qi in his body and inject it into the Golden Snake Divine Rapier.
A powerful Sword Comprehension was sent out once again.
“Your sword technique is fairly good, but unfortunately, the level of your cultivation is too low.”
A hundred miles away, the blue-robed man shook his head lightly. He did not think that Zhang Ruochen could break through his Blue-sky Demon Handprint unless he wielded Sword Two.
Seeing that he was about to be captured by the Blue-sky Demon Handprint, Zhang Ruochen suddenly pointed his arms downward and thrust his sword toward the ground.
“Swoosh!”
Instantly, the Golden Snake Divine Rapier penetrated through the oppression of the Blue-sky Demon Handprint and Zhang Ruochen dashed toward the ground.
The blue-robed man squinted and a strange look appeared in his eyes.
What was that?
It should have been impossible for Zhang Ruochen to break through the Blue-sky Demon Handprint even if he had wielded Sword One. However, by wielding Sword One, he was able to break through its power and flee.
Zhang Ruochen never harbored the idea of meeting the Blue-sky Demon Handprint head on right from the beginning.
“Suppress him!”
The blue-robed man increased his power in the Blue-sky Demon Handprint in pursuit Zhang Ruochen, slapping it down toward him.
“Rumble!”
The Blue-sky Demon Handprint hit the ground in an instant, leaving a 33-meter-long imprint. Powerful evil energy exuded in all directions and flattened an area of over ten miles.
Centipede Eight and the seriously wounded Bird Nine hurried over to the edge of the enormous pit made by the handprint, searching for Zhang Ruochen’s aura.
“This man must have turned into ashes, having been hit by His Excellency, Divine Son.” Centipede Eight let out a chilling laugh.
Bird Nine pressed her hand on her bloody chest. Her face was drained of color. She used two light columns shooting out from her pupils to search for Zhang Ruochen’s dead body.
Just moments ago, she had been defeated by Zhang Ruochen. Knowing that he was not small fry made her more determined to find his dead body.
Actually, Zhang Ruochen was half squatting in the center of the handprint pit at that moment. He was using the invisibility power of the Shooting Star Invisible Cloak, which concealed even the aura on his body. Both Centipede Eight and Bird Nine were unable to detect his presence.
“As I thought, he is indeed the Demon Son of the demonic sect.”
Zhang Ruochen was severely wounded. He knelt with one of his knees and pressed down on the ground with his palms. The skin on his entire body was covered with bloody cracks as if his body was a ceramic vessel. If he were to come into contact with any external force at this moment, his body would break into pieces.
Fortunately, the Shooting Star Invisible Cloak had blocked most of the force. At the same time, the Dragon Pearl in his body had protected him. All of these had helped defend him against the Blue-sky Demon Handprint.
Otherwise, he would have walked down the same path as Xu Changsheng.
The body of the blue-robed man seemed weightless as he flew into the air and remained suspended 33 meters above the ground.
Centipede Eight bowed in salute to him and said, “Greetings, Your Excellency, Divine Son. That man has been pulverized by your handprint. Not even a bone is left.”
“Really?”
The eyes of the blue-robed man were focused on the bottom of the palm pit as he smiled and said, “But how is it that I am seeing him right in front of you?”
Both Centipede Eight and Bird Nine were taken aback. They looked in the direction that the blue-robed man was looking but did not see anyone there.
“You are indeed sharp—a trait befitting your status as the Demon Son of the Moon Worship Demonic Sect. I suppose you have successfully cultivated the Omen Eyes?” Zhang Ruochen said with a laugh.
There was no more need to hide since he had already been found out.
In the middle of the large handprint pit, Zhang Ruochen revealed himself.
Centipede Eight and Bird Nine were stunned when they saw Zhang Ruochen standing right before them. They had not detected his presence before that.
They were dumbfounded by Zhang Ruochen’s strange means of defense.
The blue-robed man stared at Zhang Ruochen in the pit and with a look of admiration. He smiled and said, “I would not have detected your whereabouts were you not seriously injured. You are indeed outstanding in the Tao of the sword as well as Spiritual Power. Would you consider becoming a high achiever in the Moon Worship Sect?”
Zhang Ruochen, sitting cross-legged on the ground smiled and said, “First you injure me seriously, then you try to cozy up to me. This is like offering candy after giving me a tight slap, thinking you could force me into submission. You have underestimated me.”
The blue-robed man, nonchalantly replied as he remained in mid-air. “Your life is in my hands. I can crush you simply by moving my finger.”
“I don’t think so.” Zhang Ruochen responded, shaking his head.
The blue-robed man sighed and said, “You could choose to live. Why do you choose to die instead?”
“Are you sure it’s that easy to kill me? I’m afraid someone may not agree to it.”
Zhang Ruochen turned his eyes to the woods in the east.
The blue-robed man followed Zhang Ruochen’s eyes and saw a burly man clad in a robe, emerging from the woods.
The eyes of the burly man were full of life and his steps were firm and steady. His entire body exuded a burning hot aura like the scorching sun rising in the horizon.
“Ouyang Huan, don’t you need to seek my permission if you wish to kill someone in the territory of the Yin and Yang Sect?”
Gai Tianjiao put her hands behind her. Her entire body started burning and the flame and sparks coming from her chased away all the darkness within an area of a hundred square miles. Even the rain on the ground and in the air evaporated.