The Birth Of The Unrivaled Ruler

9.

Yao Chen offered a thin smile, sensing the presence of the cultivators who were tailing him. Yet, he remained just as he had always been. He would not make a move unless someone crossed his line first!

"Only one thing matters most... According to the scorpion's memories, all the inhabitants of the Blood Rain Forest worship an ancient altar located deep within its center. And the behavior of those demonic beasts I witnessed upon first arriving—that was their way of fighting to the death as an offering to the altar..."

Swoosh!

With a single stomp of his foot, Yao Chen soared into the depths of the Blood Rain Forest with the aid of his Qin wings. Before long, a suffocating atmosphere, heavy with the dense aura of countless demonic beasts, washed over his body.

For many cultivators below the Five-Star Grand Dao stage, the depths of this forest would be a nightmare zone where one could not carelessly trespass.

But to Yao Chen, the greater the danger, the more likely a truly rare treasure awaited.

Swoosh!

He spread out his Divine Soul consciousness, tracking anything within reach. However, two minutes later—

Pfft! Wooooosh!

A fierce backlash from a mysterious soul slammed squarely into his Divine Soul consciousness! Golden-red blood sprayed from Yao Chen's mouth.

"A Divine Soul consciousness exists here? This..." Yao Chen hesitated, debating whether to advance further or retreat.

Yet, a deep curiosity surged within his heart.

"If I don't see it with my own eyes, I will never crack the secret behind the Blood Rain Forest..." Motivated by his own resolve, Yao Chen pushed forward.

Soon, a bizarre sensation enveloped his mind. Strangely, a vast number of demonic beasts were active right beneath him. Yet, not a single one attacked; they behaved as though they were utterly indifferent to his presence.

Thud!

His steps suddenly came to a halt. His eyes narrowed, and his hearing sharpened instantly as he spotted two Five-Star Grand Dao practitioners kneeling in worship before the ancient altar mentioned in the scorpion’s memory.

"Who are they..." Even as he muttered to himself, the altar began to vibrate violently.

Wooooosh!

Black smoke erupted, followed by a supreme demonic aura that blanketed the entire depths of the forest.

"Th-this aura..." Yao Chen swiftly waved his hand, suppressing his internal aura to the absolute best of his ability.

"Greetings, Demon General..." The two practitioners bowed their heads deeply.

"HAHAHAHAHA?!" The smoke silhouette laughed maniacally, its gaze initially locking onto the two men before it.

However, a sinister smirk played on its face as it sensed someone hiding behind a massive tree trunk nearby.

"We have a guest here. Why haven't you welcomed him?"

"Eh..." The two practitioners exchanged bewildered glances, and the Demon General immediately pointed toward the tree where Yao Chen was concealed.

Swoosh! BOOM!

Suddenly, a black, laser-like beam shot forward at the speed of light, obliterating Yao Chen's hiding spot.

Instinctively dodging to find safety, Yao Chen—startled by the flawless tracking—stared at the black figure that looked hauntingly familiar in his memory.

"Blood King Demon General..." Yao Chen muttered, recognizing the dark entity.

In contrast, the Blood King Demon General briefly thought the youth's face resembled an enemy from his past. However, upon sensing his current cultivation aura, he instantly dismissed the thought.

"Who are you?" a heavy voice demanded, weighing down oppressively on Yao Chen's body.

"I-I merely stumbled upon this place by accident..." Yao Chen fabricated a plausible excuse.

The Blood King Demon smiled sinisterly. "To be able to reach this deep means your capabilities are far from shallow... How about you worship me and join the forces I have hidden across this entire continent?"

"Senior... I am merely a rogue cultivator who accidentally lost his way here. Therefore, I will not align myself with anyone."

The Blood King Demon General nodded slowly several times. Then, his thin smirk returned, signaling the two men standing before Yao Chen. They understood the gesture instantly.

"Refusing to submit... equates to death!"

Swoosh!

Both men unsheathed swords from their spatial rings. They blurred forward with blinding speed, forcing Yao Chen to instantly conjure a sword from his own Qi energy.

BOOM!

His sword successfully parried the twin blades of his opponents. However, the resulting shockwave of energy fluctuations caused the Blood King Demon to narrow his eyes in suspicion.

"He possesses a weak Divine Soul and Ancient God Blood... yet his aura carries the traits of my race—ruthless, and saturated with hatred... Who is this youth? I have never encountered an anomaly like this before," he muttered, continuing to observe the clash closely.

"You are exceptionally young, yet your abilities cannot be underestimated at all..." one of the masked men snarled through gritted teeth, seeing all of their attacks completely neutralized. In fact, the youth even managed to execute sharp counterattacks from time to time.

Yao Chen paid no heed to their banter. His mind raced, recalling that the entity behind his two opponents was a Divine Soul whose original true body he had personally slaughtered in the past. But how had such a terrifying figure ended up sealed within this altar?

"Demon Sword Slashing Technique!"

The duo amplified their swordsmanship, their strikes growing increasingly rapid. This relentless assault forced Yao Chen into a defensive display of dodging and parrying from every conceivable angle.

"If I use my signature swordsmanship... I'm afraid..." Catching a glimpse of the Blood King Demon, Yao Chen narrowly dodged a series of lethal strikes that almost hit his vital points.

"No... Even if he realizes who I am... I must find a way to escape this cursed place immediately..."

"Phoenix Sword Dance!"

Instantly, the tide turned from defensive pressure to absolute equilibrium. Yao Chen’s movements became incredibly fluid as he danced through the air, wielding the sword formed from his Qi energy. After a furious exchange of strikes, Yao Chen began to seize total control of the battlefield!

"H-how is this possible..."

"His swordsmanship is terrifying... It's constantly changing, and—"

Slash!

Yao Chen spotted a flaw. He instantly capitalized on the opening, severing his opponent's arm with a single, swift swing of his blade.

Dark blood splattered. This severe blow forced the two men to retreat instantly and form a synchronized killing array.

"We cannot underestimate him at all..."

"Demon Finger?!"

Swoosh!

The two converged their formation rings into a single focal point. Realizing he could not break away from the combat zone immediately, Yao Chen quickly executed a series of hand seals to manifest his own killing formation.

"Nirvana Arrow of Destruction?!"

Swoosh!

Suddenly, a formation eye taking the shape of a massive bow materialized in front of Yao Chen. Along with it, a massive surge of potent energy swelled drastically like a tidal wave. Yao Chen's two opponents had also prepared their ultimate strike.

A colossal finger erupted from their formation eye and shot forward, locking onto Yao Chen, who was currently pulling the bowstring back.

"DESTROY!"

Swoosh! Crack! Wooooosh!

The atmosphere vibrated violently as the shockwaves of energy rippled outward like a tsunami in all directions. The moment the arrow was released, the two cataclysmic energies collided, completely leveling the entire dense area of the inner forest at an invisible speed.

BOOM!

Amidst the swirling clouds of dust, Yao Chen's two opponents were sent flying backwards, crashing violently into a massive hill behind them.

Struggling back to their feet, they stared toward the source of the blast as the dust began to clear.

"Where did that youth go?"

"Damn it, he escaped..."

"Pfft!" Both men coughed up a thick mouthful of dark blood.

Thump!

Witnessing and remembering the exact technique unleashed by the youth, the Blood King Demon's eyes suddenly flew wide open in shocking realization.

"YAO CHEN, IT'S YOU?! NO MATTER WHERE YOU RUN, OUR GRUDGE AND THE VENGEANCE OF THE HEAVENLY DEMON RACE WILL HUNT YOU DOWN TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH!" HE ROARED IN ABSOLUTE FURY.