The Tribulation Ambush Plans

To be fair, the Azurefox Sect Master couldn’t really be blamed. After all, who among the Seamless Gate wasn’t risking their life? Even she, as a sect master, had to step up at critical moments. Taking on the Tonghe Immortal hadn’t seemed like an especially dangerous mission either—Purplegrass’s death was simply bad luck. In this catastrophe sweeping through the Three Realms, who could truly claim to be safe?

But the Azurefox Sect Master could see that the Wuxiao Celestial Immortal was genuinely furious, so she chose not to argue.

Besides…

Wuxiao belonged to their camp. As a Celestial Immortal, he would normally have to obey orders from above. Only major powers, or those with close ties to major powers like the Withered Grass Immortal, or the most elite Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, could truly be free and clear of tasks. Yet Wuxiao was also free and unrestrained—a very strange thing. This had led many Celestial Immortals to respectfully address him as “Senior Wuxiao,” and it also made the Azurefox Sect Master wary. She had a nagging premonition that if she were to openly break with Wuxiao, the consequences would be dire.

“Wuxiao, don’t blame Azurefox. She never expected Ji Ning to be such a monster,” the Withered Grass Immortal sighed. “When I learned of Purplegrass’s death, I came at once. I believe you came for the same reason—to avenge her. And Azurefox leads the Seamless Gate, so of course she wants Ji Ning dead. We all share the same goal: to kill Ji Ning.”

“Ji Ning must die,” Wuxiao said in a low voice.

“To conquer the Grand Xia World, Ji Ning has to die,” the Azurefox Sect Master quickly added.

“How do we kill him?” Wuxiao demanded. “If it were that easy, Flamboyance would have killed him long ago. Right now, Ji Ning is in the Grand Xia World, on the Xia Emperor’s turf. You all know the Xia Emperor’s foundation…”

In truth, they weren’t too afraid of the Daofather backing Ji Ning.

If they truly feared him, they wouldn’t dare even mention killing Ji Ning.

The reason they dared was simple: the two great camps of the Three Realms had a tacit understanding that major powers would not act lightly. If one side acted, an even stronger major power from the other side would likely appear.

“The Xia Emperor has a deep foundation. Unless we go all-out, there’s no chance to kill Ji Ning,” the Azurefox Sect Master said. “And going all-out would be too costly. The best method is still to have the Grand Xia’s feudal lords attack the Xia Emperor.”

This was exactly what the Seamless Gate was doing.

They were drawing some lords to their side and attacking the others. If their advantage were truly overwhelming, why bother with such stealth? They would have simply swept across and unified the Three Realms. Clearly, the Seamless Gate wasn’t that strong yet.

Wuxiao, the Azurefox Sect Master, and the Withered Grass Immortal could see no opportunity against Ji Ning.

Just as Wuxiao was about to leave in frustration—

“Hm?” The Azurefox Sect Master suddenly stood up.

Wuxiao shot her a confused look.

The Withered Grass Immortal was also puzzled.

“An opportunity has come.” Azurefox broke into a smile as she looked at the other two. “An opportunity to kill Ji Ning.”

“What is it?”

“What opportunity?” the Withered Grass Immortal asked, while Wuxiao was the most eager.

Azurefox smiled. “I just received word that Ji Ning is about to undergo his tribulation. It should be his Primaltwin that is about to face the Heavenly Tribulation.”

“Tribulation?” The Withered Grass Immortal and Wuxiao were momentarily startled, then their faces lit up.

“Indeed, this is an excellent opportunity,” the Withered Grass Immortal said with a smile. “Once the tribulation begins, especially when the Heart Demon Tribulation descends—his Primaltwin and his true body share memories. When the Primaltwin is plunged into a world of heart demons, his true body, sharing those memories, will also be trapped in that world. That will be Ji Ning’s most vulnerable moment, completely unable to resist.”

“That’s right. At that time, he’ll be defenseless; even the Eight-Nine Arcane Art will be useless.” Wuxiao’s expression brightened as well.

The azure-robed woman was indeed excited.

Conquering a major world was extremely difficult; every obstacle had to be removed one by one. Ji Ning was one such obstacle, and she had to deal with him at all costs.

That very day.

The Flamboyance True Immortal, the Withered Grass Immortal, the Wuxiao Celestial Immortal, the Poison Ugly Immortal, and the three leaders of the Seamless Gate, the Ten Thousand Demons Cave, and the Bloodcloud Tower gathered together.

“This time, I’ll rely mainly on you seniors,” the Poison Ugly Immortal said, putting on a humble posture. His already hideous face grew even more grotesque when he smiled. “Just tell me what to do, and I’ll be ready to lay down my life there.”

“Your life?”

The others laughed.

Poison Ugly’s life was worth the least—he had “died” so many times no one could keep count. Killing one of his clones was pointless.

“I’ll also bring six strange insects, bred from ancient times. They’re my finest children,” the Poison Ugly Immortal said cheerfully. The other immortals in the hall nodded and smiled. Aside from his many clones, Poison Ugly was also quite famous in the Three Realms for his insect breeding. Those poisonous insects were all tough and durable, and could serve many purposes.

“Going to the Grand Xia World is a life-risking venture,” the Withered Grass Immortal said. “I’ll only send an avatar.”

“Yes, I’ll send an avatar as well, carrying powerful treasures. It should have about ten percent of my strength,” the Flamboyance True Immortal said.

The Wuxiao Celestial Immortal gave a cold snort.

Though he was the most eager to avenge Purplegrass, he too was only dispatching a doppelganger. His expertise lay in unorthodox methods, and sending a doppelganger was nearly as effective as his true body. As for the Flamboyance True Immortal and the Withered Grass Immortal, their avatars were Celestial Immortal techniques; even if killed, their strength wouldn’t be greatly affected. But their true bodies could not die—if they did, they would truly perish.

The Poison Ugly Immortal was different. He had no true body in the strict sense; each of his numerous doppelgangers could be considered a “true body.” To kill him, every single doppelganger had to be wiped out. As long as one survived, he could rapidly recover.

“Our Seamless Gate will send two Empyrean God doppelgangers,” the azure-robed woman said.

“Our Bloodcloud Tower will dispatch a team of Hell Death Warriors,” the gaunt old man said with a smile.

“I’ll provide a golem for those Hell Death Warriors,” the red-robed man added.

As soon as these three spoke, the strength of the team increased dramatically.

“Now it all depends on where Ji Ning undergoes his tribulation,” the Wuxiao Celestial Immortal said in a low voice.

“Unless he runs to his Daofather master’s place, we can do nothing. Otherwise, even if the Xia Emperor protects him… when Ji Ning is defenseless during his tribulation, we only need to break in and spend a little time to kill him,” the Azurefox Sect Master said confidently. “Wuxiao, your Yin-Yang Mysterious Qi Bottle could easily grind Ji Ning to dust.”

Wuxiao nodded. “I’ll naturally bring the Yin-Yang Mysterious Qi Bottle.”

The others glanced at him.

Wuxiao truly had too many treasures.

Some were innate spirit treasures; others were merely strange magical artifacts, yet their power was extraordinary. Once, Wuxiao had set a trap and caused an Empyrean God of the Heavenly Court to unknowingly enter his Yin-Yang Mysterious Qi Bottle… the Empyrean God nearly died inside. In the end, the major powers negotiated and secured his release.

Night.

The Grand Xia capital, Heavenly Awn Hall.

“Your Majesty, Ji Ning requests an audience,” the pale-faced old servant said respectfully.

“Ji Ning? Let him in.” The black-robed Xia Emperor was seated cross-legged on a jade bed. He opened his eyes.

Soon, a young man walked in from outside.

“Your Majesty.” Ji Ning bowed politely.

“Ji Ning, what brings you to me in the middle of the night?” The Xia Emperor smiled.

Ji Ning said, “I have a favor to ask of Your Majesty.”

“Oh?” The Xia Emperor listened.

“I plan to have my Primaltwin face the Heavenly Tribulation nine days from now,” Ji Ning said. “But I suspect the Seamless Gate has long marked me as a thorn in their side. It seems they know the time and location of any cultivator’s tribulation in the world. No matter how cautious I am, they will likely find out. And during the tribulation, when the Heart Demon Tribulation descends, even my true body will be helpless. That will be my most vulnerable moment. The Seamless Gate will not let this opportunity slip. So I have come to beg Your Majesty for protection.”

The Xia Emperor laughed. “Haha, rest assured. Undergoing a tribulation is a major affair; I will naturally do my utmost to protect you.”

Ji Ning was resigned to this.

His master, Patriarch Subhuti, never contacted him unless he chose to, and Ji Ning had no way to reach his master. He couldn’t return to the Tristar Crescent Major World either. If he could undergo the tribulation there, it would be much safer—after all, the other major powers of the Three Realms could not find the Tristar Crescent Major World.

There was also the ‘Starseizing Major World’ left by Daoist Threelives, which was equally safe, but Ji Ning had not yet been acknowledged and could not enter.

In the end, he had to turn to the Xia Emperor.

Earlier, Ji Ning had revealed his sharpness precisely in preparation for this day.

“But my protection alone may not be enough,” the Xia Emperor said with a frown. “When you undergo your tribulation, you cannot fight back. The Seamless Gate may not be able to defeat my forces, but they could tear open space, teleport directly to your tribulation site, hold off my people for a short while, and then kill you. It’s still possible.”

Ji Ning nodded.

There were indeed those in the Three Realms who could kill him. For instance, some treasures containing True Fire or True Water could be pushed to their extreme, reducing him to ashes.

But normally, when he could fight back, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to be captured.

“How about this: I’ll take you to my master’s Dao-field,” the Xia Emperor said with a smile. “At my master’s place, you can undergo the tribulation with absolute safety.”

Ji Ning was both surprised and delighted.

The Xia Emperor’s master? Daofather Crimsonbright?

To be sheltered by a Daofather during his tribulation—that was truly as safe as could be. Having backing really made a difference. His own master, Patriarch Subhuti, was different: even his own disciple couldn’t return to the Tristar Crescent Major World without his permission. Daofather Crimsonbright, by contrast, openly ruled over dozens of major worlds and countless minor worlds.

It was precisely because of his secrecy that Patriarch Subhuti was called the most mysterious Daofather of the Three Realms.

“But would the Daofather allow it?” Ji Ning hesitated.

“I’ll inform my master first. If that doesn’t work, I’ll take you to my elder brother,” the Xia Emperor said with a smile.

Elder brother?

Ji Ning immediately thought of the Xia Emperor’s sworn brother—Daofather Yinglong! Another Daofather!