Desolate Era

by RWX

  When Ji Ning had been travelling alone, he had suffered occasional attacks from the likes of the nine bugbeasts and the Fiendgod formation, but now that he was alongside Kuafu and the rest of the True Gods things were much simpler.

  “Does this feel easy?” Xingtian and Ning were flying shoulder-to-shoulder atop a cloud, and he smiled as he asked Ning this question.

  Ning glanced at Xingtian’s belly-mouth. He was quite calm; he himself had once commanded a Heaven Punisher Formation before, after all. Laughing, Ning replied, “Yes. I haven’t even had a chance to fight.”

  “Kuafu is the fastest person here. None of us can overtake him.” Xingtian chuckled. “And you should know that the alien Outsiders of the Primordial Ruinworld are weaker than the experts of the Three Realms to begin with. This is why they simply don’t dare to fight against us head-on when we attack. Their only recourse is to use some of the more dangerous features of the local terrain to deal with us. The Darkstill world, however, is one of the top-ranked worlds of the Primordial Ruinworld. Worlds like the Darkstill world that were taken over by powerful races are actually the least dangerous worlds of all.”

  Ning nodded. It made sense. The powerful races would want to take over the best places to live. The truly deadly places weren’t suitable for life to flourish. The Three Realms, for example, was a wonderful place to live, but it had been taken over by the Nuwa Alliance and the Seamless Gate.

  “That’s why we can be fairly relaxed here at the Darkstill world. Once we reach some truly dangerous worlds, however, things will become much tenser.” Xingtian instructed, “When the time comes, you’ll need to be very careful. There are some extremely dangerous regions which will spell guaranteed doom for even overlord-class Daofathers who are trapped within them.”

  “Understood,” Ning replied solemnly.

  It was very true that there were some places which would spell certain doom for even overlords!

  The Primordial Ruinworld had ten famous danger zones, and the ‘Voidsea’ was ranked first and foremost amongst the ten.

  The ‘waters’ of the Voidsea consisted of countless shattered pieces of voidspace. The pieces of voidspace all clashed against each other, generating terrifying levels of destructive power. Even top-grade Protocosmic spirit-treasures would be ground to dust by them! Only Chaos treasures would withstand their destructive force.

  To this day, no one had ever dared to enter the Voidsea and face that terrifying destructive force. Not even Mother Nuwa had ever given it a try. Perhaps she gained the power to survive it after becoming a World God, but why would she be willing to take on such an unnecessary risk?

  The squad continued to advance. Two days later.

  “Eh?” Ning stared downwards. There was an enormous city of buildings beneath them. There were even some dazzlingly beautiful palaces amongst the strange alien edifices, but all of them were in wretched condition. Many of those buildings had clearly been chopped or blasted apart.

  Kuafu glanced downwards, then let out a loud laugh. “Judging from those sword-scars, Daoist Jade Cauldron must have come here. He’s quite fast.”

  “It was indeed Daoist Jade Cauldron’s squad which destroyed this ancestral homeland of the Darkstill race,” Graceful Peacock said. One of her clones was in each squad, and so she knew exactly what was going on where.

  “The ancestral homeland of the Darkstill race…” Ning couldn’t help but secretly sigh. This was a war for survival. For the sake of the Nuwa Alliance’s survival, their only options were to force their enemies to flee, to surrender…or to be completely wiped out. There were no other options.

  “Come. We’ve spent five days here at the Darkstill world and have completely scoured it clean. Time to go to the next world,” Kuafu said. “Let’s go.”

  “Let’s go.” Ning and the others immediately continued on their journey.

  This journey was quite an uneventful one. Even when they did encounter some minor problems, Kuafu and the others would deal with them. There was no need for Ning to intervene at all, and Ning was in no rush to do so. He had come to the Primordial Ruinworld to help fight and help them win. When they truly needed him, he would make his move. In fact, if they could win the entire war without him revealing his true power, that would be even better.

  Ning had always been quite calm. Now that he had reached the overlord level of power, he had become even calmer and more self-assured than before.

  “Those words I heard in the past were true. Only when one has become truly powerful does one have the right to be relaxed and self-assured in dealing with all things,” Ning murmured to himself.

  ……

  The Three Realms. Allclans Palace, the imperial palace of the Primordial Imperial Clan, also known as the imperial palace of the Yu the Great’s clan.

  During the Primordial Era, the human clans had summoned all of their major powers to come here. When the human clans had reached the true zenith of their power, they had been the rulers of the entire Primordial World. Many Fiendgods such as Xingtian or the Raindragon had long ago opted to stand alongside the human race.

  Inside the palace were the Three Sovereigns of Mankind, the leaders of Daoism and Buddhism, Patriarch Subhuti, great divinity Houyi, various elite Daofathers of the Daoist Path and Buddhist Sangha, and a number of unaffiliated Daofathers. They had gathered here more than half a year ago. Ever since the war against the Primordial Ruinworld had started, they had gathered here.

  But of course, most only sent incarnations or clones! The reason they were gathered here was to ensure that they could all mobilize together at a moment’s notice.

  “Fuxi’s squad has already entered the extremely dangerous ‘Thousand Mountains’ world,” Suiren said. “This is the most dangerous world they have encountered since they launched their assault against the Primordial Ruinworld!”

  “Those alien Outsiders are quite crafty.” Daoist Three Purities nodded. “They’ve been unwilling to fight head-on, and we haven’t been able to find any of their true headquarters. We’ve already finished destroying the easy targets, those safer worlds. Now, our only option is to assault the extremely dangerous ones.”

  “As I see it!” Suddenly, a muscular, black-armored figure seated below him boomed out in a deep voice. “Ji Ning’s sudden addition to the strike team of Daofathers is going to be a problem. Things were fine in the first few months because they were only dealing with the safe worlds; in fact, he didn’t even need to help out, as my old brother Kuafu and the others dealt with everything! But now they are entering the Thousand Mountains world, and that is a dangerous place indeed. When something dangerous happens, Kuafu and the others might not even be able to protect themselves, to say nothing of Ji Ning. When that happens, Ji Ning will end up slowing them down and exposing them!”

  “Although I dislike Thundergod’s personality,” a skinny old man with an extraordinary demeanor said, “His words aren’t unreasonable. We sent out those squads after careful discussion, and every member of the squad can join together into a combination formation. But with Ji Ning thrown into the mix…no matter which squad he joins, he won’t be able to work with their combination formations. At this point in time, he really could easily become a burden to them. I’m worried that he’s going to make things harder for Kuafu and Xingtian’s team.”

  The major powers seated below all began to speak their thoughts.

  A few months ago, when Ji Ning had first entered the Primordial Ruinworld, they had discussed this matter. However, things weren’t quite so dangerous back then as the squads hadn’t encountered any of the more dangerous worlds. None of them opposed Ji Ning’s presence; his master was Subhuti, after all, while his senior apprentice-brother was Houyi. They had to give these two figures some face.

  “Subhuti.” After being silent for a long moment, Daoist Three Purities turned his head to look at Patriarch Subhuti.

  Shennong turned to look at him as well.

  Although they all liked Ji Ning very much, this wa
s an extremely important undertaking. Personal feelings could not be allowed to interfere with their decisions. They had to make the best decisions possible for the alliance.

  “Haha…” Subhuti began to laugh.

  The major powers present all looked towards Subhuti in confusion.

  “Subhuti, what are you laughing at?” Exalted Celestial Thundergod frowned.

  Subhuti glanced sideways at Thundergod, then said, “Ji Ning definitely won’t become a burden.”

  “Oh?”

  Shennong, Daoist Three Purities, Suiren, and the others all revealed curious looks on their faces. The major powers seated below them began to whispers amongst themselves as well.

  Subhuti chuckled again but said nothing else.

  “As inscrutable and mysterious as ever.” Daoist Three Purities shook his head.

  “When the time comes, you will know.” Subhuti raised a white eyebrow at the group. Houyi, seated next to him, revealed a hint of a smile. He had known Subhuti for far, far too long. He knew exactly what type of a personality his master had.

  The major powers continued to chat and jest with each other. For people as long-lived as them, a conversation or a debate about the Dao could easily last for thousands of years. In the past, before the war had begun, two of them might spend a century on a single game of chess.

  Just half a day later.

  “Not good.” Graceful Peacock was seated below them, and in this moment her beautiful, gentle face changed dramatically. “Everyone!”

  Instantly, all the major powers turned their heads to look at Graceful Peacock. Four of her clones were with the four squads while the fifth one was here at the Allclans Palace. She was responsible for sending and delivering messages.

  Upon seeing the heavy look on her face, all the major powers felt their hearts clench.

  “Just now, Kuafu’s team was trapped inside a danger zone, the ‘Earthmoan Mountain’.”

  “Earthmoan Mountain?” All of the major powers were shocked. Earthmoan Mountain was an extremely famous danger zone. Long ago, when the Daofathers of the Three Realms had entered the Primordial Ruinworld to test themselves, some had died there!

  “Earthmoan Mountain is extremely dangerous.” Daoist Three Purities immediately said, “I’ve been there before, and I ended up being trapped for more than three thousand years. Have Tathagata go to them right away. Tathagata has the best chance of them all for overcoming Earthmoan Mountain.”

  “Alright.” Graceful Peacock nodded frantically. “I’ve already informed Lord Buddha. Lord Buddha and the other three are heading there right now.”

  ……

  The Primordial Ruinworld. The Thousand Mountains world.

  Ning had spent more than three months here in the Primordial Ruinworld. He had followed Kuafu’s team this entire time and had experienced no real danger thus far at al.

  “This is the Thousand Mountains world. We have to be careful,” Graceful Peacock warned.

  “Ahahaha, if any danger appears, I’ll smush it with my foot!” Kuafu hoisted up his wooden staff as he laughed loudly, but after laughing he still said to Daofather Windfate, “Windfate, keep a close watch on things.”

  “Right.” Daofather Windfate nodded.

  The seven of them were flying atop a cloud, and the land around them was filled with countless mighty mountains.

  “Why do I suddenly have the feeling that we just went past this mountain a while ago?” Ning suddenly pointed towards the front.

  “Eh?!” Kuafu stared at him, then took a close look as well. He then nodded repeatedly. “Right. We just went past this place.”

  “Not good.” Daofather Windfate concentrated for a moment, then the look on his face completely changed. “This is a formation that uses mountain ranges as the base. This is an extremely large formation, and it is extremely hard to detect. They must’ve switched just a few of the nearby mountains. Even I didn’t notice anything at all earlier.”

  “We are already trapped inside a formation?” Xingtian was surprised.

  “We are already inside.” Daofather Windfate nodded.

  “What should we do?” Kuafu hurriedly asked.

  “Two options,” Daofather Windfate said. “One, we forcibly destroy the formation by wrecking all those mountain peaks. If we do that, we’ll be able to leave. But this should be a formation that was set up by Keeper Everwood, and he’s extremely skilled in the usage of plants and rocks. If he was the one to make this formation…judging from how large it is, we probably won’t be able to break it apart. The second option is to solve and break the formation itself, but we can’t do that either. Perhaps only Fuxi would be able to do that.”

  As soon as his words came out…

  Thump. It was like a heartbeat that rang out from deep within the ground.

  Thump. Thump. Thump. One deep heartbeat after another rang out, echoing throughout the area. The ‘mountain ranges’ around them suddenly disappeared, transforming into endless amounts of foul water that flowed out in rivers and creeks.

  The cloud which Ning’s group was on had actually been completely surrounded by the reeking water.

  “T-this…this is Earthmoan Mountain.” Daofather Windfate’s face instantly turned completely ashen. “Too late. It’s all too late.”

  “We actually ended up being drawn into Earthmoan Mountain without even knowing it.” Luwu’s face had changed as well.

  All of them felt their heartrates quicken.

  “What a profound formation.” Ning said softly, “We didn’t notice anything at all earlier…and by the time we did, we had already been lured into Earthmoan Mountain.”

  “Lord Buddha has already been notified. He’s on his way right now,” Graceful Peacock said hurriedly.

  “Be careful, everyone. No matter what, don’t let yourself get separated.” Kuafu growled savagely, “This is the most dangerous place we have encountered since entering the Primordial Ruinworld. Even if Lord Buddha comes, he’ll still need time to break apart Earthmoan Mountain! We need to hang on and endure until he manages to break us free. If we cannot…then we will die in here.”

  “Right.” Ning and the rest of the six all nodded. They now all had solemn looks on their faces. At a time like this, no one dared to be overconfident.

  “The cries of the earth have already begun,” Graceful Peacock said. “When the cries of the earth reach a crescendo, deadly danger shall descend upon us.”

  Thump! Yet another earthen heartbeat rang out, this one even louder than the previous ones. Even the endless flows of foul water around them seemed to shudder.

  * * *

  Book 22, Chapter 14 - Earthmoan Mountain

  Lord Tathagata the Buddha and his three companions were flying through the air like an enormous streak of golden light as they rapidly advanced towards Earthmoan Mountain.

  “Graceful Peacock, can they keep holding?” Tathagata sent mentally.

  There were countless beings living in Tathagata’s [Buddha-Realm Within the Palm], with one of Graceful Peacock’s clones being there as well.

  “The heartbeat sounds are rapidly becoming stronger and louder. When the sounds reach a crescendo, the attacks will begin. Right now all of us are waiting carefully, but we have yet to be attacked,” Graceful Peacock replied from within the Buddha-realm.

  “You have to be careful.” Tathagata said a few more words, then turned to the three Buddhas by his side. “You should also enter my Buddha-realm for now as well. I’ll be able to travel more quickly that way.”

  “Yes, Lord Buddha,” the other three Buddhas replied. Tathagata was the undisputed leader of the Buddist community.

  Tathagata waved his hand and collected those three Buddhas. Immediately after doing so, the midair golden streak of light surrounding him became even quicker as it flew towards Earthmoan Mountain.

  ……

  Within the castle located deep inside the Primordial Ruinworld.

  “Master, success! Kuafu’s squad has already been lured int
o Earthmoan Mountain,” the skinny elder said jubilantly.

  Godfiend Witherspike, seated atop his throne, let out a soft chuckle. “When we make a move, we have to make a big one! We let these bumpkins from the Three Realms have too easy a time of it earlier. Now, it’s time to give them a hard hit.”

  “The Thousand Mountains world is a world which both we and the Seamless Gate have spent enormous time, effort, and resources building up. The entire world is a huge trap. The Nuwa Alliance obviously knows that, but they still have to charge straight inside.” The red-bearded elder let out a laugh. “They can’t locate us. All they can do is wreck the entire Primordial Ruinworld in their hunt. They have to assault and destroy every single world. It’s very possible that we’ll be able to wipe out two or three of their squads here at Thousand Mountains world.”

  “Kuafu’s squad should be done for, at least.” Godfiend Witherspike nodded slowly. “As for the other three…let’s see how talented they are.”

  “Ji Ning.” Celestial Immortal Blackheaven remained standing on his feet, staring at the scene being played out in midair. It was a scene showing Earthmoan Mountain, with Kuafu’s squad having already been trapped inside of it. Celestial Immortal Blackheaven let out a cold laugh. “Now that you’ve entered Earthmoan Mountain, I want to see just how you’ll survive this one!”

  “Master, Buddha Tathagata is advancing rapidly towards Earthmoan Mountain,” the towering, muscular, golden-armored figure suddenly said.

  “Hmph. Keeper Everwood personally set up the formations around Earthmoan Mountain, and the formations are already activated and constantly transforming. Once Tathagata charges into the formation, he’ll virtually have no chance of locating Earthmoan Mountain unless he actually destroys the formation itself. Given his power, he might actually be able to do that…but he’ll need time. By the time he succeeds, Kuafu’s squad would’ve died long ago.” Godfiend Witherspike smiled, licking his lower lips with his bright red tongue.

  He, the exalted Godfiend, had been biding his time for far too long. This title, ‘Godfiend’…it was a title that had been won through countless seas of blood and mountains of severed flesh!