Desolate Era

by RWX

  “Hahaha! If the Flamewing God comes out…” Azurefiend was absolutely overjoyed and excited by this prospect. “You really will be able to do whatever the hell you want. That is a Chaos Primordial! Hahaha! With a Chaos Primordial at your beck and call, who would dare cause trouble for you? If you gave the order, the Chaos Primordial would charge straight into the Icepeak Army’s base and wreck it. The Lonely King would be able to do nothing but stare, dumbstruck, as it happened. There’s nothing he can do to the Flamewing God. Why didn’t you tell me earlier?! I was so afraid that I thought we’d have to go wandering through the cosmos.” Azurefiend stared at Ning.

  “Without Flamewing, I wouldn’t have dared to take such a tough line against them.” Ning smiled as well. “Let’s cut the chit-chat. Starting today, I’m going to put all of my time and effort into solving the formations and breaking them as soon as possible.”

  * * *

  Book 38, Chapter 10 - Lord Wulf

  An area at the borders of the Flamedragon Realmverse. Countless bolts of thunder were crackling throughout this region. Suddenly, three onyx humanoids appeared and moved towards that area at high speeds. “Hegemon Thunderstar,” the skinny onyx humanoid called out.

  Whoosh. The countless bolts of thunder merged together into a humanoid shape, finally resolving into a violet-robed man. This was Hegemon Thunderstar, who had brought them here via the realmship.

  “So do you have the realmship?” Hegemon Thunderstar smiled at them.

  The three onyx humanoids had no traces of amusement on their faces. Previously, they had spoken so confidently… but who would’ve thought that they’d come slinking back in disgrace? They had to once again ask Hegemon Thunderstar to bring them back.

  In truth, Hegemon Thunderstar had asked them that question on purpose. He could clearly tell that they didn’t have the realmship! He was quite pleased, however, to have the chance to mock a few Black Emperors of the Icepeak Army.

  “We do not.” The skinny onyx humanoid said coldly, “Hegemon Thunderstar, your guesses were spot-on. That puny Daolord truly is fearless. He actually dared to defy our will.”

  The cyclopean onyx humanoid growled, “Daolord Darknorth is far too arrogant. He actually dares to make an enemy out of the Icepeak Army! I’ll definitely report this to the general. Hmph. We ran all the way for nothing. In the end, we’ll need to ask the general to personally intervene. He’s definitely going to die, and that Vastheaven-whatever will be annihilated as well!”

  “We have to make sure that he regrets this.” The muscular onyx humanoid was filled with a killing rage as well.

  Hegemon Thunderstar couldn’t help but mutter beneath his breath. You failed in your attempts to take it by force, but you still act with such bravado. The Icepeak Army really did live up to its reputation. Who would’ve thought that Daolord Darknorth truly was made of such stern stuff?

  “Where to next?” Hegemon Thunderstar asked.

  “To the general’s residence, Mount Doom,” the skinny onyx humanoid said.

  “And where is Mount Doom?” Hegemon Thunderstar was puzzled.

  “It is the general’s estate within the Skywolf Realmverse.” The skinny onyx humanoid said rather unhappily, “Hegemon Thunderstar, don’t you know already?”

  Hegemon Thunderstar didn’t argue. He truly hadn’t been to the Skywolf Realmverse before, but he had heard that ‘Lord Wulf’s mountain’ was within the Skywolf Realmverse. However, the true name of the place was ‘Mount Doom’; ‘Lord Wulf’s mountain’ was nothing more than a nickname for it.

  “Come, I’ll send you over there.” Hegemon Thunderstar waved his hand, causing the realmship to appear.

  “We need to travel quickly. We need to report this to the general as soon as possible. Otherwise, I don’t know how I’m going to get this taste out of my mouth,” the muscular onyx humanoid said rather angrily. They had long ago grown accustomed to acting as they pleased. As a result, when they occasionally encountered someone who resisted them they couldn’t help but feel annoyed. In this case, the person in question was a mere Daolord! This made them feel truly insulted.

  Alas, the Flamedragon Realmverse was incredibly far away from the Skywolf Realmverse. There was no way for them to contact the Skywolf Realmverse directly! Not even a Daolord’s true body and Primaltwin would be able to sense each other from such a vast difference. One had to at least be an Archon-class Eternal Emperor with an incredibly powerful soul in order for your true body and Primaltwin to be able to sense each other from such a great distance.

  Alas, it was far too difficult to convince an Archon-class figure to follow them like a retainer. Most would prefer death to such a life of servitude.

  Whoosh. The realmship tore through spacetime, departing at high speeds towards the Skywolf Realmverse.

  ……

  18 million years later. Hegemon Thunderstar’s realmship had finally reached the Skywolf Teritory.

  “That over there is Mount Doom.” The three Black Emperors stared from afar at the towering mountain that jutted within the void. Looks of delight were on their faces. This was their base.

  Mount Doom was completely gray and covered with countless runes and patterns. At the very tip of Mount Doom was an area that glowed with blurry silver light. The silver light illuminated the beautiful palaces below. This was where Lord Wulf resided with his subordinates.

  “General.”

  “General.”

  “General.” The three Black Emperors called out loudly after exiting the realmship, their voices echoing in the air above Mount Doom.

  “Ah, Sealaw and the others are back.”

  “It is brother Sealaw and the others.” Figures began to fly out of Mount Doom. All of them were onyx humanoids, their bodies covered with silver diagrams and emanating auras of boundless cold.

  Hegemon Thunderstar couldn’t help but mutter to himself. They had all been ordinary cultivators, but they had all chosen to undergo the Ritual Sacrificium. They had abandoned their bodies, becoming freakish creatures. Still, he understood that these Black Emperors had originally been fairly mediocre Eternal Emperors. Now that they were Black Emperors, they at least had Hegemonic levels of power.

  “What’s that? Is that a realmship?”

  “Is that our new realmship?” The onyx figures all turned to stare at the distant realmship. Realmships were incredibly valuable; not even their general, Lord Wulf, had access to one. Hegemon Thunderstar had dared to come here because the three onyx humanoids had long ago sworn lifeblood oaths guaranteeing his security. If they did not, all three of them would die! Hegemon Thunderstar was also certain that he would be able to escape safely.

  “Cut the crap. Hurry up and take us to the general! Where is he? There’s something important we need to report to him.”

  “What do you need to speak to me about?” A cold voice rang out, followed by a golden figure emerging from the peak of Mount Doom. His entire body seemed to have been composed out of gold, and his body was similarly covered with silver diagrams. The aura emanating from him was so powerful that it vastly outstripped the auras of the Black Emperors serving him. He was one of the legendary Golden Emperors, someone who had undergone the most powerful Ritual Sacrificium the Sithe had to offer.

  As for the so-called ‘Exalts’? That level could only be reached through a mixture of cultivation and luck. They were supreme amongst the Sithe and were the most powerful members of the entire race. Hegemons could become transformed into Golden Emperors with ease and ‘manufactured’ in large numbers; there was naturally no way they could be compared to the Exalts. Despite that, Golden Emperors still had a level of power that was comparable to that of Otherverse Lords, and their bodies were even tougher. To destroy their bodies was nearly impossible.

  “General.” The three Black Emperors who had just arrived immediately bowed respectfully.

  “Speak. You actually rushed over here in a realmship. What is this all about?” Lord Wulf’s gaze was icy-cold. He glanced at the d
istant realmship, then at his three subordinates.

  “General, we were on patrol as ordered,” the skinny onyx humanoid said respectfully, “And we suddenly heard that in the Flamedragon Realmverse, there was a Daolord named Darknorth who somehow managed to take control over a Sithe site known as the Jadefire Realm. He even managed to convince a Hegemon to serve him as his retainer.”

  “A Daolord with a Hegemon as a retainer?” Lord Wulf was quite shocked, as were the Black Emperors by his side. Although this news had spread quite far, it hadn’t quite made it to the Skywolf Territory. These two territories were simply too far away.

  “More importantly, Daolord Darknorth actually has a realmship!” The skinny Black Emperor said hurriedly, “The Hegemons of the surrounding territories all wanted to take it from him, but in the end, he actually managed to use the Jadefire Realm to take one of them under his control. Once we heard the news, we immediately travelled to the Flamedragon Realmverse. We wanted to force him to hand it over so that we could offer it to you, General.”

  Lord Wulf narrowed his eyes as he continued to listen.

  “But… he actually refused!” The skinny Black Emperor gritted his teeth and growled, “He actually dared to refuse! We attacked him, but he was so incredibly powerful that he was at the Hegemonic level of might.”

  “A Daolord comparable to Hegemons?” No matter how calm Lord Wulf normally was, he couldn’t help but feel stunned. He nodded slowly. “It seems he must have mastered one of the legendary Omega Daos, and has had some other lucky experiences as well. Hmph… even if he is a Daolord who is comparable to a Hegemon, he is still nothing compared to our Icepeak Army. Are you sure that he dares to make an enemy out of us?”

  “Yes.” The skinny Black Emperor nodded, as did the other two. The cyclopean Black Emperor explained, “He holds us in no regard at all. He actually dared to say that he was willing to give us the realmship, but only for treasures of equivalent value.”

  “Does he have some sort of special status?” Lord Wulf frowned. “For example, is he an Autarch’s disciple? The Flamedragon Realmverse should be under Realmslord Windgrace’s command. Could it be that he has some sort of connection to Realmslord Windgrace?”

  “We haven’t heard of him having any special status. He shouldn’t be connected to Realmslord Windgrace at all! Previously, he attracted an entire host of Hegemons and Emperors who attempted to kill him and take his realmship, but Realmslord Windgrace didn’t intervene. Clearly, there isn’t much of a relationship there. In the end, he only survived because he took control over the Jadefire Realm,” the skinny Black Emperor said.

  “If he doesn’t have some sort of special background… no Daolord, no matter how monstrously talented, is anything more than an ant in the face of our Icepeak Army.” Lord Wulf swept the three with his icy golden gaze, then turned to stare at the distant realmship. “If my guess is correct, it should be Hegemon Thunderstar in command of that realmship.”

  “Thunderstar greets you, Lord Wulf.” Hegemon Thunderstar flew out of the realmship and bowed.

  “I wish to lead my Black Emperors to the Flamedragon Realmverse. I’d like to trouble you to send us over there,” Lord Wulf said. “Of course, we’ll make it worth your while.”

  * * *

  Book 38, Chapter 11 - Chain Weapons

  “Helping you make a trip is a minor matter,” Hegemon Thunderstar said. The Hegemons and Emperors of the Sixteen Realmverses Alliance had been in a race against time to reach the Flamedragon Realmverse first, which was why they had all been forced to pay exorbitant prices! Going by normal prices, travelling the great distance from the Skywolf Territory to the Flamedragon Realmverse was still going to be quite expensive, but it was nothing to someone like Lord Wulf, who had massacred and looted countless people.

  “All Black Emperors, assemble and move out alongside me!” Lord Wulf ordered. “We are going to the Flamedragon Realmverse to take that realmship.”

  “Acknowledged!”

  “Let’s take that realmship.” A total of nine onyx humanoids flew out from Mount Doom by his side.

  Aside from their supreme leader, the Lonely King, the Icepeak Army only had a total of three generals! These three generals each commanded a total of twelve Black Emperors. Normally, they would each have six Black Emperors accompanying them. The other six would be assigned into two squads responsible for patrolling the Chaosverse. Once they heard anything important, they were to immediately come and report it to their general!

  The three generals and the Lonely King operated in the same way. They would have part of their soldiers with them, with the rest patrolling the Chaosverse on a long-term basis. This ensured that the Icepeak Army had a strong information network and was able to get involved in any of the momentous events within the Chaosverse on short notice.

  This time, Lord Wulf had the three returned patrolling Black Emperors and his six personal Black Emperors with him, making for a total of nine Black Emperors.

  “One Golden Emperor and nine Black Emperors. A force like this is enough to massacre the Flamedragon Realmverse ten times over.” Hegemon Thunderstar mumbled to himself, “All I’m doing is earning a bit of treasure by sending them over. Even if I declined, there would be other Hegemons willing to help out. Daolord Darknorth, you are nothing more than a Daolord but you dare to make an enemy out of the Icepeak Army. I admire you for your courage… but the reason why the other major powers were unwilling to act as you do is because the consequences are too terrifying to bear.”

  Hegemon Thunderstar couldn’t help but sigh a bit. He felt as though he could see the end of the line for this genius Daolord. Golden Emperors were all at the Otherverse Lord level of power! Nine Black Emperors working in concert were equivalent in power to an Otherverse Lord as well! How could the Flamedragon Realmverse possibly withstand this level of power?

  ……

  The Flamedragon Realmverse remained as calm as always. Ning didn’t make public the fact that he had faced off against three Black Emperors belonging to the Icepeak Army. There was no point. Hegemon Brightshore and the others wouldn’t be of any use, and so it was best not to bother them about it.

  The Terror Starsea. The Jadefire Realm.

  “Darknorth, it’s been twenty million years. The Icepeak Army could arrive at any moment. How much longer is it going to take for you to break these formations?” The skinny old man, Hegemon Azurefiend, was seated in the lotus position on the deepfire blackstone floor, a frantic look on his face.

  “I was just estimating the time earlier!” Ning was standing atop the Flamewing God’s back, focusing his efforts on the black chains in front of him. “I wasn’t exactly sure as to how long it would take for me to break these formations. I thought it would be quite fast, but I ran into a few problems. Don’t be impatient and relax! The Icepeak Army hasn’t even arrived yet. By the time they do arrive at the Jadefire Realm, I’ll first use its defenses to tie them down for quite some time.”

  “This is Lord Wulf we are talking about! He’s supposedly a Golden Emperor with an entire group of Black Emperors serving him. Your flaming passageways won’t be able to withstand a force like his,” Hegemon Azurefiend said hurriedly. “Why don’t we leave the Jadefire Realm for now? Once you’ve fully mastered the formations, we can return here. Otherwise, we’ll be caught here with nowhere to run.”

  “Just look at how freaked out you are. You are a Hegemon!” Ning raised his head to glance sideways at Hegemon Azurefiend. “You look scared out of your mind!”

  “I’m just trying to be cautious,” Azurefiend immediately rebutted.

  “Don’t worry. The flaming passageways might not be able to kill them, but they’ll definitely be able to slow them down.” Ning smiled. “When I’m in the flaming passageways, I’ll be able to travel unimpeded. I can shake them off with ease and escape as I please.”

  Ning no longer paid any further attention to Auzrefiend, focusing all of his efforts on the countless formations covering the black chains
before him. Although he had memorized them all long ago, when he viewed them in person and saw how the formations changed and flowed, it was still of some help to him.

  Time continued to flow on. Azurefiend could do nothing but wait. The feeling that the Icepeak Army was about to arrive at any moment was quite an uncomfortable one. “Actually fighting to the death would be better than just waiting here like this,” Azurefiend muttered.

  “Not even my master is as worried as you,” the nearby Whitethaw said.

  “You…!” Azurefiend glared at him. “H-he’s completely focused on his formations, while I have nothing to do. Of course I’m going to be miserable!”

  “To put it plainly, you are a coward. You are scared.” Whitethaw glanced sideways at Azurefiend.

  “Puny golem, how dare you mock me!” Azurefiend glared at him. Whitethaw just shut his mouth, paying Azurefiend no heed. Azurefiend was so angry that his teeth hurt. Whitethaw only obeyed Ning’s orders and didn’t seem to care about Azurefiend at all. There really was nothing Azurefiend could do to the golem. He might be able to completely dominate Whitethaw in a fight, but he wasn’t able to actually injure Whitethaw.

  ……

  Ning’s true body and Primaltwin were both consumed with their meditations. Countless formations were flashing through their minds, circulating nonstop and merging together. Some of the formations would then vanish, replaced by other formations.

  The art of formations relied heavily upon visualizations and divinations! This was why the Dao of Formations was a legendarily complex one. Anyone capable of becoming a Hegemon via the Dao of Formations would definitely have a far higher level of status than ordinary Hegemons.

  Whoosh. The countless formations were tweaked again and again. Suddenly, the black-robed Ning in the Azureflower Estate and the white-robed Ning within the hidden room in the Jadefire Realm both opened their eyes. Their eyes were gleaming with shocking levels of light.