Desolate Era

by RWX

  Ning watched it all unfold silently.

  “Senior apprentice-brother Sloppy…” Ning suddenly saw an unremarkable figure located in a distant ‘Nuwa Heaven Repairing Formation’. It was his eldest disciple-brother of the Black-White College. [1. The legend of Nuwa repairing the heavens is one of the oldest legends of Nuwa, and was mentioned previously with regards to how Gonggong damaged the pillars of Heaven, causing the skies to collapse.]

  “I didn’t expect for him to become a Pure Yang True Immortal as well.” Ning sighed to himself. “If he hadn’t broken through, he might’ve been able to avoid this battle.”

  The weaker disciples and family members of the various major powers, such as those who had merely become Celestial Immortals, were generally permitted not to take part in this battle. Ning’s own daughter Brightmoon was one example, and Daofather Crimsonbright’s disciple Adept Woodpass was another. Both were Celestial Immortals, and there was no real point to them taking part in this battle. No matter what, the Nuwa Alliance still had to preserve its next generation, and so its lower-level geniuses were not required to take part in the battle. As for the likes of Autumn Leaf or Bluecliff Xiaoyu, who weren’t even Celestial Immortals, there was of course no point whatsoever for them to get involved.

  However, for anyone who became an Empyrean God or True Immortal, things were different. The Sloppy Daoist and Bodhisattva Eastluck were all geniuses as well, but they were required to take part in this battle.

  There would only be an exception if an extremely important member of the Nuwa Alliance absolutely insisted on protecting them. Someone like Daoist Three Purities, Tathagata, Suiren, or Ji Ning could insist on protecting a particular Empyrean God or True Immortal. For example, if Ning’s daughter had theoretically become a True Immortal and Ning was unwilling for her to suffer any danger, the Nuwa Alliance would be willing to satisfy this personal request of Ji Ning’s.

  Still, even major powers would only rarely make a request like this. Even if they did, they would at most request for one or two of their most dearly beloved family members to be protected.

  Daofather Subhuti, for example, did not ask for a single one of his disciples to be protected! All of them had gone off to war!

  “Those dazzling geniuses of yore have become nothing more than minor chess pieces on this battlefield.” Faced with such a deluge of Immortals and Fiendgods, Ning could keenly sense how irrelevant a single person’s power and ability was. Even most True Gods and Daofathers would feel powerless in the face of a war like this.

  Both sides were using enormous formations, and the attacks from these formations surpassed the power of an ordinary True God or Daofather; the attacks were very close to the power of elite Daofathers!

  The first time the two massive armies clashed, they battled for roughly an hour before both sides withdrew. This sort of battle caused both sides to use up Immortal energy and divine power at an absolutely staggering rate. Virtually every single Immortal and Fiendgod in the Three Realms was taking part in this battle, and so neither the Nuwa Alliance nor the Seamless Gate could possibly provide enough Immortal pills for them to replenish their energy. Thus, their only choice was to battle over and over again.

  Both sides proceeded very carefully with each clash, doing their best to locate the enemy’s weak spots and tear them apart as much as possible.

  On the very first day of battle, the Nuwa Alliance lost a total of 612 Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, more than 3.2 million Celestial Immortals, and countless lower-level cultivators. As for the Seamless Gate, they lost 122 Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, more than 1.89 million Celestial Immortals, and countless lower-level cultivators.

  By the sixth day of battle, the Nuwa Alliance had lost a total of 925 Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, more than 5.62 million Celestial Immortals, and countless lower-level cultivators. The Seamless Gate had lost a total of 531 Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, more than 1 million Celestial Immortals, and countless lower-level cultivators.

  By the nineteenth day of battle…

  By the twenty-sixth day of battle…

  Both sides continued to do their best to seek out the enemy’s weak points, and they proceed tentatively with each clash. Casualties were still fairly light, given that almost all of the Immortals and Fiendgods of the Three Realms were taking part.

  The sixty-ninth day of battle. The battle this day was noticeably more vicious than on previous days. More Empyrean Gods and True Immortals died on this day than during all previous days combined. This was because on this day, both the Seamless Gate and the Nuwa Alliance had almost simultaneously revealed their bugbeast armies. The appearance of the dominating bugbeasts armies immediately destabilized the battlefield, resulting in large-scale massacres.

  “Withdraw.” Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan gave the order.

  Both the Nuwa Alliance and the Seamless Gate began to withdraw their troops. The mood on the battlefield was noticeably much grimmer than before, with countless Immortals and Fiendgods having frenzied looks in their eyes. All of the cultivators knew that there was nowhere to run; their only choice was to stake their own lives in an attempt to take the lives of their opponents.

  “They actually have slightly more bugbeasts than we do.” Fuxi frowned.

  “They gained the legacies of the Lord of All Things. It’s not that strange that they also gained his bugbeast techniques.” Daoist Three Purities said coldly, “Although they have slightly more bugbeasts than we do, things are still manageable.”

  “Sword Immortal Evergreen…” Ning shook his head.

  Ning had always been wanting to find an opportunity to kill this traitor.

  However, no one would’ve imagined what had happened. Due to both sides suddenly adding bugbeasts into their armies, the balance between the two sides had been completely disrupted. Faced with critical danger, Sword Immortal Evergreen had actually made a sudden breakthrough! He had mastered one of the Heavenly Daos, causing a resonance that everyone was able to feel. Sword Immortal Evergreen had immediately swallowed Great Firmament Immortal pills to breakthrough to become a Golden Immortal of the Great Firmament (Daofather). After he made a breakthrough, he immediately suffered frenzied, concentrated attacks attacks from the Nuwa Alliance. He became a focal point…resulting in him being slain almost instantly!

  Just a few seconds after becoming a Daofather, Sword Immortal Evergreen had been assaulted by more than ten mighty formations. He had died on the spot!

  In this sort of massive battle, anyone who seemed particularly impressive or eye-catching would immediately draw enormous amounts of concentrated firepower on his or her head. Only someone close to the overlord level of power would be able to survive; anyone else would almost certainly perish.”

  “Too many died in this battle.” Shennong sighed softly.

  “There are no other choices.” Suiren suppressed the pain he felt in his heart.

  Ning felt miserable as well.

  This latest battle was the most vicious battle to date in the final war for karmic luck. As a result of this battle, the total number of Empyrean Gods and True Immortals the Nuwa Alliance had lost had reached more than 8600! As for Celestial Immortals? Celestial Immortal casualties had surpassed a hundred million! Loose Immortals and Fiendgods? Forget about even trying to tell them.

  Things weren’t much better for the Seamless Gate either. Although they were supported by many powerful golems, they were still the weaker side in this conflict. They had lost more than 6900 Empyrean Gods and True Immortals and more than 92 million Celestial Immortals. Their Loose Immortal casualties were also horrendous beyond count.

  These simple, plain numbers represented a hideous loss of life amongst Immortals and Fiendgods!

  Far, far too many had died in this battle…including many of Ning’s good friends.

  “Old brother Buyou. Roughpeak…” Ning couldn’t help but sigh to himself. More than ten of the Empyrean Gods he had rescued from Undermoon Lake had died just now, including Emp
yrean Gods Buyou and Roughpeak. He had been particularly close to those two.

  “And Eastluck…” Ning sighed again.

  That stubborn wastrel of a prince…after his temper had been tamed, he had revealed his tremendous talent and brilliance. He had skyrocketed in power after entering the Buddhist Sangha, causing even Lord Buddha to take notice of him. In this battle, Bodhisattva Eastluck had actually been given full control over a large formation. But…just now, that dazzlingly talented Bodhisattva Eastluck had also died in battle.

  If he had been given enough time, it was entirely possible that the Buddhist Sangha would’ve gained yet another Buddha into their ranks.

  Alas, this was destiny.

  No matter how talented you were or how much of a genius you were, if you weren’t given enough time to grow you still wouldn’t become a ‘major power’. Dying in a titanic battle like this was like a single wave disappearing into the sea, leaving behind no traces of its passing.

  Not even Lord Buddha had enough time to grieve for each individual person. Far too many were dying, and every single major power had to watch as quite a few of their beloved disciples perished. Almost every Empyrean God and True Immortal had taken on a major power as master, after all.

  * * *

  Book 23, Chapter 15 - The Battle for Karmic Luck (2)

  War was a cruel affair.

  The Empyrean Gods and True Immortals were all fighting in massive formations. Each of them commanded many Celestial Immortals and a sea of Loose Immortals and Fiendgods! Each time a formation was broken apart, a huge massacre would follow! Only a few lucky individuals would be able to survive, generally when allied Immortals and Fiendgods who were still in formation managed to scoop them up into estate-treasures.

  Ji Ning’s eyes were bloodshot. When he saw all this happen, he couldn’t help but wish to charge into the fray himself as well.

  However, he knew that he had to remain calm. Although the numbers indicated that the Nuwa Alliance’s losses were heavier than the Seamless Gate’s, that was because the Seamless Gate was losing golems as well! As more and more golems were destroyed, the Seamless Gate began to lose more and more Immortals and Fiendgods as well.

  “Eh?” Ning suddenly relaxed slightly.

  His Primaltwin had been in the Heavengazer Tower the entire time. Just now, it had finally mastered and unlocked the fourth level of the Triult Sword! As his Primaltwin was now also an Ancestral Immortal, he now used up a staggering amount of energy when he sped up time inside the tower. Thus, his Primaltwin now merely maintained a rate of thirty times the normal speed of time.

  At twenty times the normal speed of time, the Primaltwin was able to maintain an energy equilibrium. At thirty times the normal speed of time, the Primaltwin would need to occasionally consume spirit pills in order to stay steady.

  Roughly three months had passed in the outside world, but roughly eight years had passed in the Heavengazer Tower. Finally, the fourth level had been unlocked.

  “Now, the Triult Swords will be slightly more powerful for me than they were for Swordfather Triult,” Ning mused to himself. To be able to increase his own power at such a critical moment in time was something which pleased Ning greatly.

  The war for karmic luck continued. As more and more golems were destroyed, the Nuwa Alliance’s advantage became increasingly apparent. However, the Seamless Gate was quite resolute as well. They triaged their losses whenever necessary, determined to give the Nuwa Alliance no chance at all for a quick victory.

  The battles continued, and the casualties continued to climb…

  By the 179th day of battle, after roughly half a year had passed, the Nuwa Alliance had lost a total of more than twenty thousand Empyrean Gods and True Immortals! The Seamless Gate had also lost more than twenty thousand as well! If this was a battle between mortal armies, such terrible casualties could very well have caused a complete breakdown in moral, resulting in one side collapsing.

  However, the two vast armies continued to fight with utter bloodlust.

  ……

  “It’s about time.”

  The Lord of All Fiends, Keeper Everwood, Daomother Devilhand, Daofather Bloodswan, Old Man Yuan, and the other major powers were all standing in the darkened skies, watching as the battle proceeded.

  “Prepare for the Endwar,” the Lord of All Fiends sent mentally.

  “The Endwar?” Everyone present felt their hearts clench.

  Daomother Devilhand sent frantically, “Windfiend, we haven’t lost the war for karmic luck yet. Our losses in Empyrean Gods and True Immortals are equal to their losses. We can keep fighting.”

  “We can, but can we win?” The Lord of All Fiends asked her.

  Daomother Devilhand instantly fell silent.

  The Lord of All Fiends swept them all with his gaze. He sent mentally, “Things weren’t so bad at the start, primarily because we had so many golems in storage! But more and more of the golems have been destroyed. Over the course of the past half year, we’ve lost nearly 90% of our golem army! The formations of the Nuwa Alliance, however, remain as powerful as ever. They completely suppress our formations in power. We aren’t a match for them in terms of mobilizing True Immortals and Empyrean Gods.”

  The major powers of the Seamless Gate had to admit to this. The Nuwa Alliance’s formations had been left behind by Mother Nuwa herself. Their formations were superior, which meant that their Empyrean Gods and True Immortals were able to join together more effectively.

  “Perhaps certain tactical schemes and traps can turn the course of battle, but the enemy commander is Xuan Yuan. His control over their armies is completely flawless; he doesn’t strive for brilliant victories, he only seeks to make no mistakes. He fights against us in a frontal, aboveboard manner, slowly draining our armies! He relies on his superiority in numbers and his superior formations rather than compete against us in tactical brilliance!” The Lord of All Fiends shook his head. “Traps and schemes might be useful against another commander, but we can forget about using them against Xuan Yuan when he’s commanding troops in such a manner.”

  “But our karmic luck is weaker than theirs. The situation is disadvantageous to us.” The black-robed Godking spoke out in worry as well.

  The Seamless Gate had lost many of the important Realmwars, resulting in their karmic luck weakening. They were at a disadvantage in this battle as well. If their karmic luck was to weaken even further, then during the Endwar it would be much more difficult for them to use certain formations to summon enough energy from Heaven and Earth. The Nuwa Alliance, however, would find it easier to summon and maintain those formations. It would be as if Heaven and Earth were both trying to assist the Nuwa Alliance.

  “Yes, our karmic luck is a bit weaker right now…but if we keep fighting like this, we’ll probably lose all of our karmic luck,” the Lord of All Fiends said.

  “Everwood?” Daomother Devilhand looked towards the silent Keeper Everwood.

  “I agree with what Windfiend said.” Keeper Everwood said slowly, “No matter what…we have to start the Endwar at some point. Although it does seem as though we still have a chance at winning the war for karmic luck…that’s precisely why, if we attack now, we might be able to catch the Nuwa Alliance off their guard. If we wait until we completely lose the war, not only will we have even less karmic luck, the Nuwa Alliance will be fully prepared as well.”

  “Fine.”

  “Then let the last battle begin.”

  “I haven’t had the chance to make the Nuwa Alliance pay for my child’s death yet.”

  “The Three Realms was created by the collision of our Seamless Chaosworld and their Pangu Chaosworld. Why, then, have they always put on airs of being the ‘true masters of the Three Realms’? I’ve been pissed off about this for eons.”

  “Fight!”

  The major powers of the Seamless Gate cast aside all their doubts and worries. Only one path existed before them…that of battle!

  The Lord of All Fiends se
nt mentally, “Daoist Yuan, don’t end up becoming soft-hearted when the battle starts.”

  “Don’t worry.” Old Man Yuan chuckled calmly.

  “Witherspike.” The Lord of All Fiends sent a mental message deep into the darkness of the Void, to a location where a dark-golden castle was located.

  Inside the castle, Godfiend Witherspike was seated atop his throne as always. Smiling coldly, he made his reply. “Don’t worry, Allfiend…if I don’t intervene, your chances of winning the Endwar would be pathetically low. I’ll definitely take part.”

  “Good.” The Lord of All Fiends looked calmly at the two vast armies battling before him. “Transmit my orders.”

  All of the major powers of the Seamless Gate turned solemn, preparing to enter battle at a moment’s notice.

  The battle between the Immortal armies turned increasingly vicious.

  Ning and the other major powers of the Nuwa Alliance all held their breaths, unable to breathe as they saw so many familiar faces perish. They felt tremendous pain in their hearts, but all they could do was watch!

  Although he felt pain, Ning was still continuing to focus on attuning to his own body. He continued to train in accordance with the [Solitary World God], seeking to find that spark of insight in his own body so that he could break through to become an Elder God. If he could become an Elder God…given how he had the [Taowu Eighteen Fiendgods] and [One True Body] divine abilities, he would become a half-step World God. In all the Three Realms, most likely only the mysterious, inscrutable Lord of All Fiends would be a match for him.

  Alas…

  Ning desperately wanted to make the breakthrough, and he had mastered the Heavenly Dao of Water, but mastering a Heavenly Dao was just one of multiple prerequisites for becoming an Elder God. In the Three Realms, quite a few True Gods had mastered Heavenly Daos, and a good number of them had been taught the [Unbound Elder God Visualization] technique. However, Suiren was the only one to break through to become an Elder God! From this, one could see how hard it was to become an Elder God.