The Fiendgod's War-Array and the Sword of Resolve

In the air above, the nine great Celestial Immortals of the Shaoyin clan took a deep breath. Their expressions were grim.

“Ji Ning, pulling out the copper pillar was merely a convenient act,” Ji Ning said calmly.

Ji Ning understood clearly. This was no longer the Primordial Fiendgod Era. This was the age of the Grand Xia Dynasty’s unification! Conflicts amongst the human race were minor affairs, but any Fiendgod that hadn’t submitted to humanity would be hunted by all. Those free Fiendgods could only flee in pathetic misery, like that ancient Fiendgod from Mount Yujue Wasteland. He was clearly stronger than the Loose Immortals, able to easily crush one, yet he didn’t dare fight back, always escaping in a sorry state.

As for submitting?

These nine hundred-plus Fiendgods had been imprisoned and tortured for endless ages without submitting to the Shaoyin clan. It was unlikely they would submit to any other human.

“We Fiendgods repay kindness with kindness, and enmity with enmity.” The leader, a nine-headed Fiendgod, transmitted mentally. Then he looked at the nine Celestial Immortals of Shaoyin and let out a sky-shaking roar. “Shaoyin! You have imprisoned and tortured us for endless ages. Today is the day of vengeance! Before the Xia Emperor’s Godslayer Guards arrive, we will slaughter them all!”

“Kill!”

“Kill them all!”

A tidal wave of killing cries arose, filled with boundless hatred.

The nine hundred-plus Fiendgods actually formed a war-array. Their divine power surged, becoming one. In the sky, a faint, ancient phantom of a Fiendgod wreathed in flames appeared. The aura was so powerful it shocked even Ji Ning. “So this is a Fiendgod war-array?” He had only heard of it before; this was his first time seeing one.

Fiendgods were beings born for battle.

They fought heaven, fought earth, and would rather die than submit.

Daoist Threelives was a classic example. After an enemy tore off one of his arms, he kept himself one-armed! Many humans considered this incredibly foolish, but Daoist Threelives did it anyway. That was his pride! When facing the great calamity, he could have retreated and hidden. At his level, preserving his life was certainly possible. But he didn’t. Knowing it was extremely dangerous, he still charged forward, dying without regret!

Ji Ning looked up. In the high sky, a vast host of Fiendgods surged forward, all wielding weapons, charging at the nine Celestial Immortals.

On one side was the Fiendgod war-array. On the other was the Eight Immortals Sea-Suppressing Formation.

“Boom~~~”

The violent collision sounded like heaven and earth were shattering.

Around the eight Celestial Immortals—Chixin, Jinzhong, Kumu, and the others—tidal waves surged, completely deflecting the impact. The Eight Immortals Sea-Suppressing Formation… was one of the Three Realms’ true ultimate defensive formations. It sought no merit, but no fault! They knew it was now very difficult to kill this host of Fiendgods.

“Hahaha, is this all you’ve got?” Shaoyin Ancestor sneered. “I advise you to leave quickly. I have already informed the Xia Emperor. I trust the Godslayer Guards will arrive shortly. If you don’t leave now… not one of you will escape!”

“Kill!”

The Fiendgods paid him no heed and charged again.

Boom~~~

The enormous phantom of a flaming Fiendgod formed by the war-array once again crashed into the Eight Immortals Sea-Suppressing Formation. The faces of Chixin, Xuanji, and the other Celestial Immortals maintaining the formation all turned pale.

“Patriarch, what do we do? What can we do?” Xuanji transmitted frantically. “We can’t hold out much longer. Their Fiendgod war-array’s impact is too strong.”

“What can be done?” The single-horned, golden-robed figure glanced coldly at Xuanji. “This is over nine hundred Fiendgods. Over six hundred of them are Void Fiendgods. With them joining forces, heaven and earth shake. You couldn’t use a Greater Teleportation Dao Talisman even if you wanted to. As for hiding in a随身 Immortal estate to use a Greater Teleportation Dao Talisman? With nine hundred Fiendgods joining forces, they could shatter an Immortal estate in an instant. There’s no way to escape now. There’s only one option: stall. Stall for me as long as you can… Once the Xia Emperor’s Godslayer Guards arrive, we are saved!”

Using a Greater Teleportation Dao Talisman required time, and it could not be interrupted.

“Will the Xia Emperor’s Godslayer Guards arrive in time?” Jinzhong pressed.

“I have already informed the Xia Emperor,” the single-horned, golden-robed figure said.

“What if the Godslayer Guards deliberately delay?” Chixin worried.

The single-horned, golden-robed figure’s pupils constricted. He said in a low voice, “No, they won’t. The Xia Emperor knows I have a treasure that can protect and take you all away. But using that treasure once will shatter it. I won’t use it lightly unless it’s the final moment.”

A treasure that could block the assault of over nine hundred Fiendgods was, to a Celestial Immortal, practically the equivalent of an extra life. This Shaoyin Ancestor was reluctant to waste it.

…...

“You Fiendgods are wasting your time. The more time you waste, the more of you will die when the time comes,” the single-horned, golden-robed figure transmitted, his voice booming across heaven and earth. “Once the Godslayer Guards arrive, you know perfectly well their strength. You’re doomed.”

“Die, but we will destroy your Shaoyin clan first!” a scale-covered Fiendgod roared.

“What is life and death anyway? Shaoyin, you and your eight Celestial Immortals will all die today!”

“Shaoyin Chou, I know you have many clones. But your eight Celestial Immortals beneath you will all perish today!”

The Fiendgods roared.

They once again joined forces to assault the Eight Immortals Sea-Suppressing Formation.

“Quite the brave ones. None of you care about your lives. What a pity. You endured endless ages, suffered endless torment, and never bowed, all for the sake of this day of freedom. Now that you’re free, you’re going to be hunted down and killed by the Godslayer Guards for the sake of so-called vengeance. What a pity. If I were you, I would have scattered and fled long ago, even escaping this Grand Xia world entirely.” The single-horned, golden-robed figure laughed loudly.

Indeed, some of the nine hundred-plus Fiendgods hesitated.

Yes.

Freedom!

If you had never been imprisoned, never been tortured, it was hard to understand how precious this freedom was. They had waited for this day for far too long. Was it worth giving up freedom for revenge?

“If we don’t kill the Shaoyin clan, even if we live, we will live in shame. Today, we will kill these Celestial Immortals of Shaoyin, kill them, and then flee in high spirits,” the nine-headed Fiendgod leader roared.

“We want nothing less than a satisfying battle.”

“Hahaha, Nine-heads, it feels like I’ve returned to the age of the war with humanity. Yes, a satisfying battle is all we need. What is death anyway?”

“A satisfying battle! A satisfying battle!”

They howled one after another.

The stronger the Fiendgod, the more fearless they were of death. The battle-fury they were born with drove them all to a mad frenzy.

…...

Ji Ning, standing below, was shaken.

“Fiendgods…?” Ji Ning murmured to himself.

Although he also trained in Fiendgod Body Refining, he did not possess a true Fiendgod’s heart. After all, he was still human.

If he had been imprisoned for endless ages, suffering endless torment, and after finally escaping saw such great danger, he would probably flee first and then slowly take revenge later! But Fiendgods were different. Fiendgods wouldn’t even wait. In their rage, they wanted revenge immediately. They had no fear of death. This ingrained battle-fury, this inborn fighting spirit, completely shook Ji Ning.

“Kill!”

“Boom.” The sounds of explosions rumbled through the sky. The eight Celestial Immortals would occasionally consume a medicinal pill to replenish their magic power, struggling to hold on. Under this relentless assault, their Golden Cores of the Celestial Immortal stage had already been damaged. They were all barely holding on, while the Fiendgods grew even more maddened.

Time slipped by, second by second.

But not a single Fiendgod left. They all continued their furious assault.

“A satisfying battle.”

“Battle-fury soaring to the heavens.”

“Kill them all until not a trace remains.”

Ji Ning murmured. Sword-light naturally appeared around him. Surrounded by countless streams of sword-light, Ji Ning was like a Sword God.

Ji Ning closed his eyes.

Inspirations continuously gathered…

Ever since Ji Ning had decided to truly battle the Shaoyin clan, his heart had grown clearer, and his battle-fury had grown stronger.

And seeing these Fiendgods who had been imprisoned and tortured for endless ages, disregarding their own freedom for the sake of a satisfying slaughter, further stirred the battle-fury within Ji Ning’s heart.

His battle-fury grew ever stronger.

His heart grew ever clearer.

All of his past insights floated up before him.

…...

In the high sky, over nine hundred Fiendgods madly besieged the nine great Celestial Immortals. The nine great Celestial Immortals were doing their utmost to stall. The Shaoyin Ancestor was also gnashing his teeth. He was extremely reluctant to use his life-saving treasure. In his heart, this life-saving treasure was far more important than the lives of one or two Celestial Immortals. But if all eight of his subordinate Celestial Immortals died, he would truly become a leader without followers. He still didn’t want that to happen.

“Hold on a little longer. Hold on. Hold on.” The Shaoyin Ancestor anxiously encouraged them.

The eight Celestial Immortals were also struggling with all their might. They couldn’t let this breath of energy disperse. They were all barely holding on.

“Boom~~~” Suddenly, a fluctuation appeared.

It was a Greater Teleportation fluctuation.

“Hm?” The Shaoyin clan’s nine Celestial Immortals all looked up at the same time.

The nine hundred-plus Fiendgods all looked up at the same time.

In the high sky, an ancient great ship appeared, seemingly condensed from waves of blood. On this blood-wave great ship stood guards wearing blood-red armor, each with an incomparably powerful and terrifying aura.

“Godslayer Guards!” The nine Celestial Immortals of Shaoyin were overjoyed.

“Quick, flee!”

“Escape!”

“Scatter!”

The nine hundred-plus Fiendgods immediately abandoned their assault. With a booming sound, they directly tore through space, rapidly fleeing through spatial rifts.

“Pursue.” A tall general on the blood-wave great ship cast a cold glance at the Shaoyin clan’s nine Celestial Immortals, then gave his order coldly.

Instantly, a vast amount of bloody light chased after them through the spatial rifts.

Heaven and earth returned to calm.

The Fiendgods had vanished.

The Godslayer Guards had also vanished.

“Whew.” The nine Celestial Immortals all breathed a sigh of relief.

“Good, good.” The single-horned, golden-robed figure nodded to himself. “Good thing I didn’t waste my treasure.”

“That Ji Ning didn’t escape!” Xuanji pointed downwards, sneering coldly. “Although we are heavily injured, with the three venomous insect beasts, we can completely suppress this Ji Ning.”

The other Celestial Immortals, including the Shaoyin Ancestor, looked down.

Standing in the ruins below was Ji Ning, his eyes closed. There was even a faint smile on his face—the joy of comprehending the Dao.

“Where the Dao lies…” Ji Ning opened his eyes and said softly, “Though millions stand against me, I shall go!”

Hum!!!

The countless broken stones, severed grass blades, and drops of water in the ruins around Ji Ning all began to levitate. Sword-light faintly gathered around them all. Everything, the myriad things, seemed to have become swords! Even the large number of Immortal swords and Northsea swords suspended within the Violet Palace in Ji Ning’s body simultaneously let out a sword hum.

“Although my natural talent is high, and my comprehension of the Dao has long surpassed Senior Beixing’s, in terms of Sword Heart… only today have I barely managed to compare with Senior Beixing.”

Ji Ning felt a sword-intent surging within his heart, wanting to burst forth. This sword-intent was so powerful, so majestic.

“Where the Dao lies…”

Ji Ning murmured to himself. “This new sword I have comprehended… I shall call it ‘I Shall Go.’”

The Tenth Stance of the Three-Foot Sword — I Shall Go!

Ji Ning looked up at the high sky. The Fiendgods were gone. Only the nine great Celestial Immortals and the three strange beasts remained.