Desolate Era (Book 31 - Book 35)

As the black-armored general’s warblade clashed against Ning’s Northbow sword, the other five Northbow swords suddenly appeared as well, having transformed into five streaks of sword-shaped fog that stabbed straight through the three layers of black light.

“What?!” Because his warblade had just clashed against Ning’s first Northbow sword, the black-armored general’s reaction speed was just a little too slow… and Ning’s other five Northbow swords were just too fast.

Whoosh! The black-armored general’s warblade sliced out a beautiful arc in the air. As the defender he always held a certain advantage, because he only had to defend a fairly small area, allowing him to deflect many attacks from the enemy with ease. However… his warblade had been weakened and slowed down by its impact against Ning’s Northbow sword! This had an impact on his defensive stance.

Slash! One of the streaks of sword-shaped fog stabbed straight into the black-armored general’s runic core.

“What?” The black-armored general was stunned. He just stood there blankly. “I lost? I lost that fast?” He had lost so quickly that he couldn’t even believe it.

“B-but…” The six golden-armored warriors and the three crimson-armored warriors who had retreated early on all stared dumbly. The black-armored general was on par with the eight lords of the Sacred Cities! But of course, he had certain flaws compared to the actual lords… with the main flaw being that he only had a single weapon! Most true Emperors would manifest at least six arms to fight against foes, whereas the black-armored general would only use a single warblade against his foes as this was what had been designated by the Sithe.

The difference in power was too great, after all. Generally speaking, supreme Daolords would be crushed by the black-armored general. Many ‘ordinary’ supreme Daolords found it impossible to even penetrate the three layers of black light!

The Shadowless stance made it impossible to predict where the attack would come from. As soon as Ning attacked, his swords would have already gone through the three layers of black light, making it difficult for the general to defend.

The worst part was, Ning’s sword was incredibly fast. All six of them were incredibly fast, and they were also extremely unpredictable! Given that the black-armored general only had a single warblade to deal with the six Northbow swords, and given that the Shadowless stance allowed Ning to close in on him unhindered… alas, he was defeated at the first go.

“I can send you flying with a single blow from my saber.” The black-armored general shook his head in disbelief.

“But your saber-light wasn’t able to touch me, not even once.” Ning shook his head as well. In the end, the black-armored general wasn’t a true Eternal Emperor; he didn’t even have domain-type secret arts. Winedust, for example, was able to use both a heartworld projection and secret arts to prevent Ning from moving too close to him via the Shadowless stance; if Ning attempted to do so, he would be exposed by the domain.

“I’m able to silently approach you without giving you any hint as to where I am! Given how fast my six Northbow swords are… if I’m still unable to touch your runic core despite all these advantages then that would mean I’m ridiculously weaker than the eight lords of the Sacred Cities.” Ning was in quite a good mood, both at how strong he had become as well as at his final success.

“The Voidsea Jadeseal…” Ninedust stared at the jade seal atop the throne, his eyes gleaming with excitement. This was a legendary treasure, the most powerful Daomerge treasure available. It had drawn the attention of virtually all of the supreme Daolords of the Endless Territories. Today, it would become his?

“What are you looking at? Go take it!” Ning barked.

“T-then I’ll really go grab it…?” Ninedust felt rather embarrassed, as Ning was primarily responsible for their success. But in truth, he had played a major role as well. His invulnerable aquaform was very tough for foes to deal with, and the way in which he had transformed into waves that hindered their foes made things much easier for Ning. Otherwise, Ning by himself would’ve taken forever to overcome even the first world.

“We agreed early on that it’d be yours. Stop wasting time! If you delay any longer, I’m gonna fight you for it,” Ning said.

Swoosh! Seemingly panicked, Ninedust reached out with his right hand, moving lightning-fast as he grabbed the jade seal atop the throne.

“Ninedust, you…” Ning stared at him. “Was it really necessary to grab it that fast? You moved more than a hundred times the speed of light!”

“Yeah, just keep laughing. I really don’t care right now. Ahaha!” Ninedust was in quite a good mood. Even if Ning was to stab him with a hundred knives, he’d still continue to chortle.

Ning smiled as well. He had felt quite guilty towards Ninedust this entire time, but now he felt much better.

Whoosh. A streak of light appeared off in the distance, then flew straight towards them. It was Winesage.

“Fellow Daoists.” A sonorous voice boomed out, echoing throughout every inch of the Crimsonwave Temple. “The second of the three final Voidsea Jadeseals has been acquired by Daolord Ninedust!”

Winesage trembled slightly, looking almost like a bloodlusted mortal who suddenly had a bucket of icewater poured over him. He landed on the ground, staring dazedly at Ning and Ninedust and the throne next to them.

“You…” Winesage couldn’t believe it. This was simply too fast! He had just acquired his a short while. Somehow, Ning and Ninedust had successfully acquired one as well?

“Haha, it’s on me. Come and take it, if you can.” Ninedust was quite smug. Given his invulnerable aquaform, he really didn’t fear any Daolords at all.

Ning stood by Ninedust’s side, a smile on his face as he looked at Winesage. “Winesage. You arrived too late.”





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Book 33, Chapter 12 - The Third World


Winesage narrowed his eyes, then let out a smile. “Darknorth, I truly admire you. Without a Universe treasure and with just brother Ninedust assisting you, you were able to defeat all of these warriors… and then you gave the Voidsea Jadeseal to Ninedust!”

The way in which Winesage viewed Ning had changed. During the last competition, the jade seal had ended up in Daolord Solesky’s hands. This time, Ning had been the main contributory to their victory against the black-armored general, but he had ended up giving the Voidsea Jadeseal to Ninedust! Winesage knew that if Darknorth was able to act in such a way despite the allure of the Voidsea Jadeseal, he would definitely be a friend worth making.

“You were literally just a few seconds too late. Otherwise, Ninedust and I would’ve been in serious trouble,” Ning said.

“Palace Lord Dawnstar and the others haven’t taken away their Voidsea Jadeseal yet. Why don’t we join forces to take it from them? Neither of us have any chance if we go by ourselves, but our chances are significant if we join forces. The fastest one shall be the one to win the Voidsea Jadeseal,” Winesage said.

Dawnstar and the other four alone were enough to tie down Winesage! Once you added the three crimson-armored warriors and the black-armored general into the mix, it would be no easy feat at all. Even if he and Ning joined forces, they only stood a chance and were not assured of victory. The main reason why Winesage wanted to try working together with Ning was because he had decided that Ning was a friend worth making.

“No need.” Ning shook his head.

“You aren’t going to take part?” Winesage was surprised.

“Not taking part,” Ning said.

“Once someone ends up with the Voidsea Jadeseal, it’ll be a hundred times more difficult to pry it out of their hands,” Winesage said. Of all the Daolords present, the only one he cared about was Ji Ning.