Desolate Era (Book 16 - Book 18)

Scorching flames blazed in the very center of the palace. Surrounding the center, there were three massive thrones, with an azure-robed, white-skinned woman seated in the central throne. To her left sat a fire-robed man, while to her right sat a skinny, monkey-like elder.

“The Mount Stele major world has already been occupied. Only a few scattered pockets of resistance remain.” The azure-robed woman’s voice had a magnetic, soul-penetrating quality to it. “We can begin to transfer our forces over and truly begin to act against the world of the Grand Xia.”

“The power of the world of the Grand Xia…Mount Stele can’t begin to compare to it.” The skinny elder said in a low voice, “Our Bloodcloud Hall has infiltrated the Grand Xia, and I’ve even personally investigated it several times. The power of the Grand Xia Dynasty caused even me to feel shocked! Don’t forget that behind him stands Daofather Crimsonbright and Daofather Raindragon, as well as the Primordial Imperial Clan!”

“The human Imperial Clan…would they truly initiate a final battle against us for the sake of one of their branches?” The azure-robed woman shook her head. “They will not.”

“But the human Imperial Clan of the Primordial Era will send reinforcements,” the skinny elder warned. “Although we’ll be able to send over our forces from the Mount Stele world and many other places, I keep on having this feeling…that it is going to be dangerous, very dangerous. The world of the Grand Xia…this is probably the most powerful major world under the command of Daofather Crimsonbright.”

The azure-robed woman looked at the fire-robed man.

The fire-robed man laughed. “Don’t look at me. My Myriad Demons Cave is only responsible for manufacturing golems. The question of how to attack the world of the Grand Xia is the primary responsibility of your Seamless Gate.”

“Do you think I’m unaware of how hard it will be for us to deal with the Grand Xia world?” The azure-robed woman looked sideways at the skinny elder. “This time…we’ll act against more than half of the commandery cities of the Grand Xia as a test. This will be our first test, our first initial clash that comes before the true war. After the test, after we’ve gathered enough information…the final battle between our sides will begin.”

“Mm. And when do you plan to move?” The skinny elder asked.

“Ten days from now! We’ll send out two thousand units to attack in unison!” A cold light flashed through the azure-robed woman’s eyes.

The Hallmaster of Bloodcloud Hall and the Cavemaster of the Myriad Demons Cave both turned solemn. They had a feeling of tremendous pressure.

Finally…

They were finally going to act against the world of the Grand Xia, the toughest nut to crack of them all!





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Book 17, Chapter 7 - The Grand Army Mobilizes


It was a blazing summer day. The world seemed to have turned into a gigantic furnace; only late at night did things cool down a bit.

Ji Ning and Yu Wei were standing at the top of a tower within their mountain peak estate. From this location, they could see nearly half of the entire Stillwater City.

“It’s been half a year since the Seamless Gate sent out that final note, but they still have yet to move. We have to wait carefully every day…I wonder how long they’ll keep us waiting?” Ning said.

“Right now, Stillwater City doesn’t just have Sword Immortal Unity; it also has you, junior apprentice-brother. You were able to fight back against nine mighty Celestial Immortals and slay two of them. Now that eighteen years have gone past, they probably have guessed that your power has risen yet again. How could the Seamless Gate behave rashly? They naturally need to make many preparations. To spend half a year in preparations to fight a Celestial Immortal who nearly has the power of a Pure Yang True Immortal, and who is supported by a peerlessly talented monster…it makes sense.” Yu Wei continued, “In addition, the more time passes…the more powerful their strike shall most likely be.”

Ning nodded. “I understand.”

“Junior apprentice-brother.” Yu Wei looked at Ning, then said solemnly, “You absolutely must not underestimate the Seamless Gate.”

“Haha. Senior apprentice-sister, don’t worry. Last time, I ended up suffering mightily at the hands of the Youngflame clan. I’ve learned from that. This time…I definitely won’t be overconfident again.” Ning smiled. In recent days, Yu Wei had often reminded him to be careful, to be cautious. It seemed as though the Youngflame clan’s exile of him to the Void had caused her to fear something similar would reoccur.

Ning felt warmed and comforted by this sort of concern.

During the past half year, Ning had more than half-mastered the art of applying heartforce to his Immortal swords. Given a bit more time, he would have fully mastered it. Given that he was experienced in applying heartforce to his sword-fingers, his rate of improvement was quite quick. In addition, Ning also noticed that his rate of improvement in comprehending the Dao of the Sword had been incredibly fast during this past half year. Clearly, his comprehension of the first level of swordforce, which had allowed him to touch upon the innate essence of the sword, had given him a straight path towards fully understanding the Dao of the Sword.

Rumble…

Suddenly, a streak of coresense shot out.

Yu Wei’s face changed slightly.

Seeing this, Ning glanced at the skies. “Is it your turn to stand guard, senior apprentice-sister?”

“Yes.” Yu Wei nodded.

“Sword Immortal Unity truly is cautious; at every moment of every day, he’s using his coresense to cover the entire Stillwater City. Every day, our three Celestial Immortals will rotate in this duty, ensuring there is always perfect coverage.” Ning sighed. “As long as the Seamless Gate dares to draw close…there will be no way they can hide it from us at all.”

“We are in the light, while they are in the dark; we naturally must be cautious,” Yu Wei said. “We are also the weaker side to begin with; if we are overconfident, we’ll be in true danger.”

Ning nodded. “They’ve been preparing for so long. I really wonder what sorts of methods the Seamless Gate is preparing.”

“When they come, they will strike as swiftly as the thunder,” Yu Wei said solemnly.

Ning gave Yu Wei a glance. Of the three Celestial Immortals, Yu Wei was the most pessimistic of the lot. Her attitude had an impact on Ning and the others, causing them to become even more careful. For example, the usage of coresense to keep continual oversight over the city; in truth, this was an extremely tiring thing! Fortunately, their three Celestial Immortals rotated through this duty, which was why they were able to maintain this policy.

While Ji Ning and the forces of Stillwater City were waiting carefully, keeping their coresense spread over the city at all times…on this summer night, the grand army of the Seamless Gate finally began to make their move.

With that black, foggy cave.

Whoosh!

A group of masked, golden-robed figures flew out from the cave, then immediately dispersed into many small squads. They executed a void blink technique and disappeared.

……

A mysterious teleportation array within a gorge…suddenly flashed.

A large group of masked, golden-robed men immediately appeared within the array. They, too, separated into many small squads, then quickly teleported away to various locations.

……

Deep within a region of rippling fog, two golden-robed figures appeared.

……

In almost the same instant, two thousand squads had silently arrived at the world of the Grand Xia. They all dispersed towards their respective targets.

Within a desolate, wild region.