Desolate Era (Book 22 - Book 24)

While blocking with one sword, Ning continued to charge forward and attack with the others.

“Triult Sword, Second Stance!” The black-haired elder had an ugly look on his face. He had only come up with two stances thus far.

Rumble…

The gold-white sword suddenly began to spin.

Ning’s black hole of sword-light instantly began to tremble. It was only able to resist for a brief period of time before breaking apart, and the white-gold sword immediately stabbed Ning on the chest, knocking him one step backwards. However, it was only able to leave behind a white spot on his skin.

“A protective divine ability?” The black-haired elder was shocked.

Fiendgods were skilled in close combat, causing Ki Refiners endless headaches. Fiendgods who had exceptionally powerful protective divine abilities caused even more headaches!

“Go.” The frozen lotuses in the air suddenly began to smash towards the black-haired elder once more. A black chain instantly flew out from the black-haired elder’s body, coiling around him and blocking all the strikes from the frozen lotuses.

“Kill.” The white-robed Ning once more charged forward, and the black-haired elder’s face instantly turned extremely grim.

A short while later…

“I lost.” The black-haired elder gave up.

The white-robed Ning’s clothes were riddled with holes, but those holes were soon repaired.

“If I wasn’t trapped here and forced to endure your assaults without being able to flee, you wouldn’t be able to do anything to me.” The black-haired elder stared coldly at Ning.

Ning had to admit that this was true. His protective divine ability, combined with his superlative sword-arts, made it so that although the black-haired man worked hard to keep his distance from Ning, in the end he was still caught. The moment that Ning caught up to him was the moment that he lost.

“I can give you the Triult Swords.” The black-haired elder looked at Ning.

Ning stood in front of the black-haired elder, his murderous intent billowing forwards. “Previously, I merely wanted the Triult Swords. Now, your life itself is in my hands. You had best be obedient and submit.”

“Submit?” The black-haired elder’s face changed, but then he let out a snicker. “Even if I was willing to submit and be your retainer, there’s no way for me to leave this place and battle by your side, unless you are capable of releasing me from the prisonworld.”

“I have no way of releasing you. Not now, at least,” Ning said.

“Then why even speak of ‘submission’?” The black-haired elder shook his head disdainfully.

“I need to search your memories,” Ning said.

An Ancestral Immortal would definitely know many things. He might learn something of use to him for the war.

“Impossible!” The black-haired elder’s face changed, and he roared angrily, “I’m willing to submit to you, to be your retainer and to fight to the death in your service! However, don’t even think about shaming me in such a way. I would rather die than let you search my memories!”

Ning couldn’t help but sigh to himself.

It really was going to be quite difficult, as expected.

After gaining the teachings of World God Northrest, Ning understood that when voyaging through the endless primordial chaos, there was a certain custom known as ‘taking on retainers’. Certain extremely powerful cultivators would often have retainers who served them and followed them. True Gods and True Immortals were considered weaklings without power, and so they were often simply captured and enslaved. Of the six servants of Godfiend Witherspike, five had been enslaved in such a manner!

However, there were also retainers such as ‘Saber’ who chose to follow someone in order to repay a debt! They could be described as servants, but they were no slaves.

The black-haired elder was willing to be Ning’s retainer, but he absolutely was not willing to allow Ning to search his memories.

In the endless primordial chaos, Elder Gods and Ancestral Immortals generally were figures who were respected and honored.

“Then I have no choice but to do this.” Ning stared at the black-haired elder, his eyes brimming with killing intent. However, he didn’t take action right away, wanting to instead try and pressure the old man one last time.

“I can make one final concession.” The black-haired elder gritted his teeth. “I can swear a lifeblood oath that I will never lie to you. You can ask me any question you desire. So long as your questions do not impinge on certain personal matters that I cannot discuss with outsiders, I will answer them to the best of my ability.”

“A lifeblood oath?” Ning’s eyes lit up. “You have an oathstone?”

Generally speaking, only World Gods and Chaos Immortals could swear lifeblood oaths. Elder Gods, Ancestral Immortals, and weaker cultivators would generally only be able to swear lifeblood oaths if they made use of an oathstone.

“I was preparing to set up my own school. Of course I prepared an oathstone long in advance!” The black-haired elder waved his hand, causing a jade globe to appear within it. Runes swirled over the surface of the jade globe. “This is an oathstone which was personally forged by a Chaos Immortal. It cost me ninety-nine drops of chaos nectar to purchase it.”

Upon hearing the words ‘chaos nectar’, Ning felt delighted. Ancestral Immortals really were different from lower-ranking cultivators. They had far higher statuses, and they had far better treasures! The only reason why he was able to force this person to bow his head was because he was trapped here, unable to move more than a thousand kilometers away! In the outside world, this Ancestral Immortal would’ve fled long ago.

“It is now an ownerless item. You can bind it.” The black-haired elder offered the jade globe to Ning.

“An oathstone.” Ning waved his hand, causing it to fly over to him. He immediately began to bind it, then activated the lifeblood oath ability.

“Swear your lifeblood oath.” Ning looked at the black-haired elder.

The black-haired elder let out a soft sigh. Retainer? This Overseer was, at best, on par with him in power. If they were in the outside world, he absolutely wouldn’t be willing to be this man’s retainer at all! Still…in the face of death, he chose to bow his head.

The black-haired elder stretched out with his hand, placing it against the oathstone. He could sense the lifeblood oath that had been activated. He didn’t try to fight it; instead, he borrowed from its power, causing his soul to begin swearing an oath. “I swear on my very life itself that I shall forever follow…”

As the master of the oathstone, Ning was able to sense the man’s soul making this lifeblood oath.





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Book 23, Chapter 12 - Triult Swords


“Master,” the black-haired elder said respectfully.

Ji Ning sighed silently to himself. Ning knew himself to merely be a newly ascended Ancestral Immortal; it wasn’t very likely that he would be able to force other Elder Gods or Ancestral Immortals to become his retainers, but he had succeeded in doing so. If he was in the primordial chaos, even if had managed to take on a retainer, it would have been his responsibility to provide his retainers with treasures and weapons. This was an extremely fair relationship; if the retainer was to risk his life for the master, then the master had to provide the retainer with cultivation techniques and treasures. This was the reason why powerful cultivators generally found it fairly easy to acquire retainers.

Ning, on the other hand, ended up extorting his retainers for THEIR treasures…

Still, the black-haired elder was going to remain locked up in here. Only a World God or Chaos Immortal would be strong enough to break his chains! Thus, even though he had pledged his allegiance, there was no way he could really serve on Ning’s behalf.