Chapter 2182: The Heart of Truth
Zhang Ruochen spent three days healing his wound completely. His physique and Saint Soul had become stronger after some repeated tempering. Even his spiritual power had been condensed again. He had reached a new pinnacle in all aspects.
Zhang Ruochen could feel the changes in him and it seemed to be an endless power within. He felt that even if there was a Primordial Divine Mountain in front of him, he could smash it with one punch.
Yan Wushen, I’m looking forward to fighting you at the pinnacle.’ A strong fighting spirit emerged from Zhang Ruochen.
A fight between two perfect Saint Kings had probably never happened before.
After all, such peerless geniuses were the absolute protagonist of an era. It was difficult for them to be born in the same era.
Zhang Ruochen collected his thoughts and stood up. He moved in a flash and climbed to the top of the mountain. He was more concerned about the Fane of Truth’s reward now than ever.
In any case, he had completed two extremely harsh conditions and was qualified to receive the reward that even the deities were jealous of.
It didn’t take long for Zhang Ruochen to reach the top of the mountain.
At the same time, the steady flowing Heavenly River suddenly moved. It flowed faster and huge waves were rolling.
The Weak Water surged, and a huge water pillar rushed out. It formed a tall and sturdy giant in armor. Its body emitted a majestic divine might that was as vast as the abyss.
The giant cast its gaze towards the direction of the Celestial Domain of Truth, and muttered, “Was it that little fellow who caused the abnormal flow of the Heavenly River? Interesting. He managed to climb up the Mountain of Truth.”
The Weak Water giant took a step and left the Heavenly River. It crossed the vast heavenly domain and rushed towards the Celestial Domain of Truth.
Empress Chi Yao and Blackheart Demonlord were on the shore of the Sea of Truth. There were strange looks on their faces suddenly.
“Not bad. Zhang Ruochen was able to reach the top of the Mountain of Truth,” Blackheart Demonlord said coldly.
Although the Mountain of Truth was shrouded in a golden haze, it was not difficult for a deity to sense Zhang Ruochen’s location.
However, Blackheart Demonlord was not pleased with the outcome.
‘Could that kid be rewarded by the Fane of Truth?’ Blackheart Demonlord thought as he frowned slightly.
With the enmity between the Blackdemon Realm and Zhang Ruochen, Blackheart Demonlord did not want Zhang Ruochen to receive too many benefits.
On the other hand, Empress Chi Yao was very calm. She looked at the Mountain of Truth indifferently. No one knew what she was thinking.
Whoosh
Rays of divine light tore through the sky and transformed into majestic divine figures.
“Greetings, Master.”
Fairy of a Hundred Flowers greeted a divine figure enveloped by a rain of flowers and bowed respectfully.
To be addressed as master by Fairy of a Hundred Flowers, it was naturally the Mandala Goddess of the Qianrui Realm, an extremely powerful ancient god.
Fairy of a Hundred Flowers was surprised to see the arrival of her master. After all, with her master’s status, she rarely cared about these things.
The Mandala Goddess was among the flowers and no one could see her true form. As soon as she arrived, a strange fragrance of flowers filled the air and soothes everyone’s heart.
“The Fane of Truth’s oracle has been issued for more than one Yuanhui Tribulation. Now, someone has finally met the conditions to become the first-tier below the Supreme Sainthood of Celestial Court. Zhang Ruochen is indeed very capable,” Mandala Goddess praised.
Although Zhang Ruochen was still very weak, anyone could see that he had endless potential. As long as he continued to grow, he had a high chance of becoming a prominent figure that could shock the entire universe.
At this moment, a cold divine moon rose in the sky and illuminated the entire Celestial Domain of Truth. Everyone could see it.
“The Moon Goddess has arrived.”
All the deities present turned their heads.
Everyone wasn’t surprised by the Moon Goddess’s arrival. After all, it would be strange if she didn’t come when such a huge event had happened.
Under everyone’s gaze, a peerlessly beautiful figure walked over from the distant horizon. With each step she took, she could travel billions of kilometers.
In the blink of an eye, the Moon Goddess had arrived at the Sea of Truth. Her peerless beauty was breathtaking. Even the gods couldn’t help but take a few more glances at her.
“Zhang Ruochen has crossed the ten regions of the sea and reached the Mountain of Truth. From now on, the Guanghan Realm will have a spot to cultivate in the Celestial Domain of Truth every day. Congratulations, Moon Goddess.”
“Congratulations, Moon Goddess.”
A group of deities came forward and congratulated the Moon Goddess one after another.
“It’s a shame that Zhang Ruochen—who belonged to Kunlun—was forced to leave and join the Guanghan Realm. Otherwise, Kunlun would have a large number of places to cultivate in the Celestial Domain of Truth.” Blackheart Demonlord shook his head.
Blackheart Demonlord’s words were meant for Empress Chi Yao.
However, Empress Chi Yao didn’t react at all. It was as if she hadn’t heard anything. Her eyes were still calm.
Boom
The void shook violently as an extremely majestic blood-red temple building appeared in the Celestial Domain of Truth.
At the same time, the Weak Water giant in the Heavenly River also appeared out of thin air.
“The guardian of Heavenly River and Jiatianxia has come as well. The Celestial Domain of Truth hasn’t been this lively in a long time.”
Many deities had strange looks in their eyes.
The deity guarding Heavenly River had a special identity and was extremely powerful. It had authorities in the Celestial Palace, and not many people dared to provoke it.
Jiatianxia was the lord of the Fane of Bloody War. He was a powerful ancient god of the same era as the Moon Goddess. He was also very frightening.
“Moon Goddess, you do care about Zhang Ruochen and protect him no matter what. You’ve even shown your presence in the Celestial Domain of Truth with your true form.” A vast and ancient voice came from the blood-red temple building.
The Moon Goddess said calmly, “It is not your place to question my affairs.”
Then, she looked around and exclaimed, “From this day forward, Zhang Ruochen will be the fourth prominent figure of Guanghan Realm. His status is equal to Wu Zu, Emperor Ji Mie, and Supreme Saint Jiu Ling. Anyone who dares to touch him will be my enemy.”
Many gods were shocked by Moon Goddess’s exclamation. Anyone could tell that the Moon Goddess was showing her attitude. She was desperate to protect Zhang Ruochen.
Making a Saint King the fourth prominent figure of the Guanghan Realm was something that most people didn’t dare to think about. But the Moon Goddess had made such a decision.
All of a sudden, those gods who were hostile to Zhang Ruochen, such as Blackheart Demonlord, couldn’t help but frown. With the Moon Goddess’s domineering stance, it would be more difficult to lay a finger on Zhang Ruochen in the future.
‘No matter how strong the Moon Goddess is, she is only one person. If Zhang Ruochen did not receive the reward from the Fane of Truth, it would be fine. But if he succeeded, I’m afraid the Moon Goddess would not be able to protect him,’ Blackheart Demonlord thought.
A reward that could make even gods jealous, no matter how strong the Moon Goddess was, it would not be able to intimidate everyone.
At this moment, so many gods gathered in the Sea of Truth to see if Zhang Ruochen could succeed.
There was no doubt that there were very few gods who wanted Zhang Ruochen to succeed.
Zhang Ruochen stood on the top of the mountain. He knew nothing about what was happening in the outside world.
The top of the mountain was very flat. It was a Bagua-shaped square. At the edge of the square, there was a house made of black rock. It looked very rough, but it was covered with natural Path runes.
As soon as Zhang Ruochen reached the top of the mountain, the tall figure came into his sight.
It was not until now that he finally saw the appearance of the tall figure. He had a strange and shocked expression.
The reason was that this deity of the Fane of Truth was very similar to Qing Sixue in terms of body shape, appearance, and temperament. It was as if she was carved from the same mold.
No one would believe that this deity had nothing to do with Qing Sixue.
“Are you surprised? Qing Sixue is my daughter,” the tall figure said with a smile.
Zhang Ruochen came back to his senses. He quickly bowed and said, “Greetings, senior. How should I address you?”
“I am the lord of the Fane of Truth,” the tall figure said.
Zhang Ruochen was shocked and surprised upon hearing that. He did not expect the identity of the deity in front of him to be so amazing.
As the lord of the Fane of Truth, she must be extremely powerful. Her power shook the world and she had an extraordinary position.
Zhang Ruochen finally understood why Xiang Chunan and Qing Sixue could cultivate the Path of Truth without coming to the Celestial Domain of Truth and had such high attainments.
Zhang Ruochen was even more curious about Xiang Chunan’s master who was also Qing Sixue’s father now more than ever.
To be able to marry the lord of the Fane of Truth, this person must be extraordinary.
“I’d waited for your arrival for a very long time since I’d issued the oracle of The Fane of Truth. Although you are not a Divine Scion trained by the Fane of Truth, the reward will still be yours since you have completed the trial.
“In the past, every Saint King and Supreme Saint who ascended the Mountain of Truth could directly become an Envoy of Truth. However, it is no longer possible now.” The lord of the Fane of Truth said calmly.
Zhang Ruochen looked puzzled and asked, “Why?”
Although Zhang Ruochen had not figured out what an Envoy of Truth was, surely it was not something ordinary. Otherwise, even the Moon Goddess would not pay so much attention to it.
“Do you know why you can get the Canons of Truth after crossing the Sea of Truth?” The lord of the Fane of Truth asked.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, “No.”
He had indeed thought about it before. The canons were so mysterious that they were scattered throughout heaven and earth. Only the extremely powerful gods couldn’t find a small part of it.
But the Canon of Truth was an exception. As long as one was good enough, even if he was only a saint, he could get it after crossing the Sea of Truth. It completely broke the rules.
“It’s the Mountain of Truth under our feet that gathers all the ownerless Canons of Truth in the world. Once a cultivator passes the trial of the Sea of Truth, the cultivator of the Path of Truth will get the Canon of Truth.”
“The Fane of Destiny—which is opposite to the Fane of Truth—also has similar methods. Some amazing cultivators of the Path of Destiny have a chance to get the Canon of Destiny. They can become the Envoy of Destiny after getting one percent of the Canon of Destiny.” The lord of the Fane of Truth explained.
Zhang Ruochen was not too surprised. The Fane of Destiny and the Fane of Truth had always been opposite. Their methods countered each other. Since there was the Canon of Truth, how could there not be the Canon of Destiny?
There was a big difference between condensing the same level of the Realm-frame of Truth and not having the Canon of Truth.
Zhang Ruochen estimated that the ten Divine Scions of the Fane of Truth should have a lot of Canons of Truth. After all, they were excellent. At the very least, they had passed through eight regions of the Sea of Truth.
‘Pan Ruo and Lord Xue Chen should have both gotten the Canon of Destiny,’ Zhang Ruochen thought.
Pan Ruo was the goddess candidate of the Fane of Destiny, while Lord Xue Chen could beat Nie Xiangzi by half a level. If neither of them had the Canon of Destiny, who else would have it?
Pausing for a moment, the lord continued, “After a long time, the ownerless Canons of Truth gathered by the Mountain of Truth have been given out. The ten out of ten thousand of what you have just received after crossing the tenth region of the sea were the last of them.”
Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood what the lord of Fane of Truth said. No wonder he couldn’t even get one out of ten thousand of the Canon of Truth after crossing the seventh, eighth, and ninth regions of the sea. It turned out that there wasn’t anymore.
This wasn’t very good news for him. He didn’t get the rewards he deserved, and now that he couldn’t become an Envoy of Truth, he didn’t know what to say.
“Senior, I’m curious. What exactly is an Envoy of Truth?” Zhang Ruochen asked seriously.
The lord of the Fane of Truth said, “I’m telling you too much right now, and you won’t understand. Simply put, an Envoy of Truth is a cultivator who can use the Path of Truth as he pleases. He has great power and a Supreme Saint that can rival even a god.
“At the same time, if you become an Envoy of Truth, you’ll be protected by the Fane of Truth. You’ll have authorities in the Fane of Truth, and you’ll have a chance to become the lord of the Fane of Truth.
“Since the establishment of the Celestial Court, there have been a total of fourteen Supreme Saints who have become Envoys of Truth by ascending the Mountain of Truth. They are all candidates for the next lord of the Fane of Truth.”
A strange light flashed in Zhang Ruochen’s eyes. He said, “Shouldn’t there be thirteen Supreme Saints who have climbed up the Mountain of Truth?”
He was sure that he had heard correctly. The lord of the Fane of Truth had indeed said fourteen. This was inconsistent with the information circulating in the outside world. Was there some hidden reason behind this?
“The thirteen you know belong to the Celestial Court, but there is one who came from the Infernal Court,” the lord of the Fane of Truth said.
Zhang Ruochen said, “How can a cultivator from the Infernal Court become an Envoy of Truth?”
He knew that the Infernal Court had a powerful disguise that could hide in the Celestial Court, but an Envoy of Truth was no small matter. The Fane of Truth would go through an extremely strict screening. How could it let a cultivator from the Infernal Court get away with it?
In his opinion, the cultivators of the Infernal Court dared to plot against the Canon of Truth. They were simply courting death.
However, he did not expect that there was a cultivator of the Infernal Court who succeeded. Moreover, he became the Envoy of Truth and took away one percent of the Canon of Truth.
“Even I did not expect that Huang Tian’s guts and methods were indeed impressive. He managed to hide it from everyone in the Fane of Truth, including me. He was outstanding. After he became the Envoy of Truth, he used only a few hundred years to become a god, and he was much stronger than ordinary gods.
“It was not until he sneaked into Kunlun and cut off the Divine Sky-connecting Tree that his identity as Infernal Court’s Stone Clan cultivator was exposed.”
The lord of the Fane of Truth sighed with a complicated look in her eyes.
With the talent that Huang Tian had shown, many prominent figures of the Fane of Truth, including her, thought that he could become the next lord. However, they did not expect that he was a spy from the Infernal Court placed in the Celestial Court.
This was undoubtedly a huge stain on the Fane of Truth, which was why it was erased.
When he heard the word “Huang Tian,” a terrible killing intent flashed in Zhang Ruochen’s eyes. This person was one of the causes of Kunlun’s decline.
If Huang Tian hadn’t cut off the Divine Sky-connecting Tree, Kunlun wouldn’t have entered the 100,000 years of Godless era.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t expect that it was the Fane of Truth that made Huang Tian so strong. It hadn’t been long since he’d become a god, and he had the terrifying power to cut off the Divine Sky-connecting Tree.
According to the lord of the Fane of Truth, a Supreme Saint becoming the Envoy of Truth would be comparable to a god. How powerful would a god-level Envoy of Truth be?
Zhang Ruochen would personally kill Huang Tian and make him pay for what he’d done in the past if he had the chance. At the same time, he would take back one percent of the Canon of Truth.
After adjusting his mind, Zhang Ruochen looked at the lord of the Fane of truth and asked, “Senior, since I can’t become an Envoy of Truth, what will the reward be?”
The Canon of Truth had been exhausted. Even if he couldn’t accept the fact, there was nothing he could do. It was pointless to argue with the lord of the Fane of Truth.
The only thing he could do now was to see if he could get other rewards as compensation.
“When I issued the oracle, I prepared a reward for those below the Supreme Saint. However, whether you can get it depends on your abilities. Are you ready for it?” The lord of the Fane of Truth said seriously.
Zhang Ruochen nodded. “I’m ready.”
He had a strong sense of anticipation and he didn’t know what this special reward would be.
The lord of the Fane of Truth released a powerful divine force with a wave of her hand and infused it into the Mountain of Truth.
Countless complicated patterns instantly appeared on the square, each containing the truth of heaven and earth.
These patterns interweaved and formed a huge and mysterious Bagua diagram that illuminated the sky.
Fortunately, this space was completely isolated from the outside world. Otherwise, such a huge disturbance would alarm all the cultivators in the Celestial Domain of Truth.
Buzz
A brilliant divine light flew out of the Bagua diagram.
A shapeless and strange fluctuation spread out, causing the entire Mountain of Truth to tremble slightly.
“What’s going on?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Zhang Ruochen’s expression changed slightly. He felt that the Canon of Truth in him was showing signs of flying out.
It wasn’t easy for him to obtain forty-nine out of ten-thousand Canon of Truth. If it was taken away at this time, he would be devastated.
Zhang Ruochen immediately integrated the Canon of Truth into the Realm-frame of Truth and finally stabilized it.
Zhang Ruochen looked at the ball of divine light. Unsurprisingly, this should be the reward that could make even gods jealous.
Slowly, the divine light dimmed and revealed a strange object wrapped in it.
It was a clear diamond-shaped crystal, only the size of a fist. There were 129,600 facets in total. On each facet, there were exquisite patterns. It was natural and aligned with the Path.
“What is this?” Zhang Ruochen asked curiously.
Zhang Ruochen was experienced and knowledgeable, but he had no impression of this thing. He had never even heard of it, let alone seen it.
The lord of the Fane of Truth stared at the diamond-shaped crystal and said solemnly, “This is The Heart of Truth. It can attract and contain the Canons of Truth. If you can refine it, you can use it to sense the Canons of Truth in others and even forcibly seize it.
“More importantly, with The Heart of Truth, you can control the Canon of Truth’s power indefinitely. Even if you can control all of them, it’s not impossible. “The others, including the thirteen Envoys of Truth, can only grasp one-tenth of the Canon of Truth’s power. This is their limit.”
“Also, with The Heart of Truth, the efficiency of comprehending the Precept of Truth can be doubled. Moreover, if other people cultivate with you, they can also comprehend the Precept of Truth. The effect is no less than cultivating in the Fane of Truth.”
“In short, The Heart of Truth has many wonderful uses. When you refine it, you will find out more of it.”
As soon as the lord of the Fane of Truth finished, Zhang Ruochen immediately understood and knew the function of this item.
The Canon of Truth was something that everyone wanted to fight for, but no one knew whether it had fallen into the hands of those people.
If one could sense it, it would undoubtedly be a great advantage.
It also had an amazing cultivation effect. Whoever could refine The Heart of Truth was like a moving Fane of Truth.
Not only could it help him, but it could also make the cultivators around him, and even the cultivators of a world, stronger quickly.
Such a precious treasure could indeed make gods jealous.
It would certainly attract a group of gods to fight for it if it was revealed to the world.
“Senior, how should I refine The Heart of Truth?” Zhang Ruochen asked again.
The lord of the Fane of Truth said, “Use the Precepts to bind it, and use the Realm-frame of Truth to contain it.”
“I see.” Zhang Ruochen nodded.
Zhang Ruochen finally understood why the lord of the Fane of Truth wanted him to condense the Realm-frame of Truth first and complete the cultivation of Saint Kinghood. These two points were the basic requirements to refine The Heart of Truth.
The lord of the Fane of Truth said seriously, “I need to remind you that refining The Heart of Truth is very risky. If you are not careful, you may explode and die. Even if you have condensed The Heart of Truth and completed the cultivation of Saint Kinghood, the rate of success is still less than thirty percent. Whether you choose to refine it or not is up to you.”
Zhang Ruochen’s heart sank upon hearing that. He didn’t expect that refining The Heart of Truth would be so dangerous.
After thinking for a while, Zhang Ruochen let out a light breath and walked forward.
The opportunity was right in front of him. No matter how difficult it was, he had to try it.
Zhang Ruochen stopped when he was 30 meters away from The Heart of Truth and he stared at it intently.
A moment later, Zhang Ruochen activated his techniques and released all 100 million Precepts that he had cultivated. They turned into a river of Precepts that wound around The Heart of Truth.
Bang
Before he could get close, The Heart of Truth released a strange power that shook Zhang Ruochen’s river of Precepts into pieces.
“Don’t worry. You need to slowly merge with The Heart of Truth and eliminate its rejection. Even ordinary gods can’t do anything to The Heart of Truth by force,” the lord of the Fane of Truth warned.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen couldn’t help but readjust his state of mind. He condensed the river of Precepts again and circled The Heart of Truth.
At the same time, he unreservedly released his spiritual power and seeped into The Heart of Truth. He wanted to comprehend some mysteries.
However, the mysteries contained in The Heart of Truth were too profound. Even with the strength of Zhang Ruochen’s spiritual power, he could not bear it. It was very difficult to understand.
Each pattern on it was like a sacred book of Path. It could derive endless truths. Even a Supreme Saint had to slowly comprehend it.
Although Zhang Ruochen was already standing at the pinnacle of the Saint Kinghood, he was still far from cultivating the Path.
Involuntarily, Zhang Ruochen completely relaxed. He focused all his attention on comprehending The Heart of Truth.
His cultivation had improved too fast, so it was inevitable that there would be some hidden dangers. He could take this opportunity to consolidate it and better grasp all the Precepts that he had cultivated.
…