The War Council and the Xingtian Formation

When the Grand Xia was first unified, a hundred immortals had come to pay court. But that was after a prolonged, brutal war that had shattered the demonic gods, leaving heavy losses. Very few Celestial Immortals had survived. Now, after long years of peace under the Grand Xia, the number of Celestial Immortals had reached a staggering peak.

“With an unprecedented calamity like this one before us, I wonder how many will survive once it is over?” The Blackstone Xia Emperor gazed down, sighing inwardly. “Even I cannot say for certain whether I will live through it.”

“Rise,” the Xia Emperor said. “Be seated.”

Ji Ning and the others all sat down. Immortal fruits and immortal wines were set on the low tables before them, but none of the immortals had their minds on such things. Every one of them was waiting for the Xia Emperor to speak.

“Junior apprentice-brother, look. Among those five Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, I think I see Dongyan老祖.” Yu Wei suddenly sent a mental message.

“Dongyan老祖?” Ji Ning was startled. He looked carefully.

Indeed.

Among the five Empyrean Gods and True Immortals was a man in plain blue robes who appeared quite ordinary—yet his aura was that of a True Immortal.

Dongyan老祖 was the pillar of the Dongyan clan! Senior apprentice-sister Nine Lotos was the current clan leader of the Dongyan clan. During the last Immortal Fortunes Assembly, Ji Ning had seen Dongyan老祖 with his own eyes, but at that time, Dongyan老祖 had only been a Celestial Immortal. He never expected that now, when he appeared again, he would already be a Pure Yang True Immortal.

Ji Ning suddenly recalled what his master, Bodhi, had said, and he could not help sighing inwardly. “The Grand Xia world truly hides crouching tigers and coiled dragons.”

“Fellow immortals.” The Xia Emperor looked down at them and spoke.

Everyone immediately focused on him. Ji Ning put aside his random thoughts and listened.

“I trust you all are aware of the predicament we now face,” the black-robed Xia Emperor said in a low voice. “The Seamless Gate has set off a calamity that has swept across the Three Realms. At present, they have already completely conquered several hundred of the weaker major worlds. Over a thousand more major worlds are engulfed in the flames of war. Our Grand Xia world is about to plunge into this war with the Seamless Gate as well.”

Every heart below tightened.

Several hundred major worlds, conquered? If the Xia Emperor hadn’t told them, they truly wouldn’t have known. One had to understand that the entire Three Realms only had three thousand major worlds in total. As for the countless minor worlds, they were far weaker. Any random tribe or sect could easily occupy and rule a minor world. For the short term, the ownership of minor worlds was meaningless. What both sides truly fought over was the ownership of major worlds.

“The Seamless Gate is indeed powerful,” the Xia Emperor nodded. “If we were a bundle of loose sand, we would probably have been crushed one by one already.”

“But we are very united.” A divine light blazed in the Xia Emperor’s eyes. “The Seamless Gate’s true strength is unfathomable, but we also have all the Daofathers and Buddha Ancestors of the Daoist and Buddhist paths, as well as a great number of True Gods born from the primordial chaos, and many mighty figures of inscrutable power. Our strength is equally great. If the Seamless Gate could completely overwhelm us, they would have swept across the Three Realms long ago. They would not be attacking one place at a time, being so cautious and probing everywhere.”

Everyone present nodded.

The reason so many Celestial Immortals had come was that they were confident in their own side.

Their faction was indeed very powerful. They were under the command of Daofather Crimsonbright, who was himself under Mother Nuwa’s command. This was an inconceivably terrifying force, made up of so many mighty figures.

“Since it is a war, some things must be given up, and some must be held on to,” the Xia Emperor said. “Our strength is not enough to protect every single one of the three thousand major worlds. So we can only give up some and concentrate our forces to protect what is more important.”

“And the Grand Xia is something we must protect!” The Xia Emperor’s voice carried a terrifying battle intent.

Hearing this, those below felt secretly uneasy.

Q. It was likely that, before the other major worlds were conquered, the Empyrean Gods and True Immortals of those worlds had also told their subordinates that their world was something that must be protected. Otherwise, why would those Celestial Immortals fight to the death?

The Xia Emperor swept his gaze across the immortals below, understanding their thoughts, and immediately said, “The qi of fortune of our Grand Xia world ranks among the very top of the entire three thousand major worlds. Now that the calamity has descended, the contest for qi of fortune is even more important. Ten of those weaker major worlds, even if conquered, are probably not worth as much as a single Grand Xia.”

Everyone below nodded. This was true!

“Thus, the Grand Xia must never be lost,” the Xia Emperor said solemnly.

“This time!”

“Our side has eleven thousand Celestial Immortals and over a million Loose Immortals!” the Xia Emperor said. “Several True Gods and Daofathers and I have already discussed the strategy for defending the Grand Xia.”

The ten thousand immortals’ hearts immediately tightened. Several True Gods and Daofathers? They all listened carefully.

Eleven thousand Celestial Immortals, over a million Loose Immortals—everyone had already known this when they saw the sea of Loose Immortals gathered here.

“A plan has been set,” the Xia Emperor said. “Of the Grand Xia’s eleven thousand Celestial Immortals, two thousand will be under my direct command! The remaining nine thousand Celestial Immortals will be divided into nine armies. Each army will have a thousand Celestial Immortals and a hundred thousand Loose Immortals. They will all train in the ‘Xingtian Formation’! During our discussions, Xingtian the True God personally gave his assent and bestowed this formation upon me.”

“Xingtian?”

Everyone showed delighted expressions.

Xingtian the True God had an extremely great reputation throughout the Three Realms. He was a legendary figure. In the ancient times of the primordial Pangu world, Xingtian had still been an Empyrean God, a powerful general under the ancient human imperial clan. Although the human race was powerful in ancient times, and the human imperial clan was recognized as the true imperial clan.

In reality, the power of the other myriad races was not weak either. Races like the Yaosect were second only to the human race. Thus, the many mighty figures had established a Heavenly Court. The Celestial Thearch of that Heavenly Court… could be considered a mediator between all parties, bringing stability to the ancient world.

The human imperial clan of that time was the true hegemon.

The Celestial Thearch was merely a mediator.

Back then, Xingtian had a conflict with the Celestial Thearch of that time. He had directly charged into the Heavenly Court. Xingtian was a general under the imperial clan, extremely skilled in battle. Although the Celestial Thearch had some Empyrean Gods and True Immortals by his side, they could not stop Xingtian. In the end, the Celestial Thearch had to fight with all his might, with the help of other Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, before they could suppress Xingtian. They even cut off Xingtian’s head!

However, as a Fiendgod, having one’s head cut off was not enough to kill them. But Xingtian was too proud. Just as Daoist Threelives, after losing an arm, disdained to regrow it, Xingtian, after losing his head, also refused to grow a new one. Instead, he used his nipples as eyes and his navel as a mouth. Who would have thought that after this mad battle, Xingtian would break through from Empyrean God to True God? He immediately killed the Celestial Thearch of that time.

The ancient imperial clan had gained another True God and was naturally overjoyed. They did everything they could to protect Xingtian. The other mighty figures did not make too much of a fuss either, since Xingtian was already a True God. Afterwards, a new Celestial Thearch was established.

Xingtian the True God was a member of the ancient imperial clan. His bestowal of the ‘Xingtian Formation’ upon the Xia Emperor was clearly a sign that he stood on the Xia Emperor’s side.

The Xia Emperor’s backing by the ancient imperial clan was also one of the reasons so many Celestial Immortals were willing to risk their lives for him. After all, the ancient imperial clan was far too powerful! They had a whole host of mighty figures. In particular, the oldest few Human Sovereigns of the ancient imperial clan, like Suirenshi and Shennongshi, were absolutely at the peak of the Three Realms. Even the leaders of the Daoist and Buddhist paths were on good terms with the human race. One could see how strong the ancient imperial clan was.

“The Xingtian Formation requires a commander and one thousand Celestial Immortals and one hundred thousand Loose Immortals, all working together to form the formation,” the Xia Emperor said. “Such a formation will resonate with the power of Heaven and Earth. With the one hundred thousand Loose Immortals as the foundation assisting it, it will be enough to draw upon the power of Heaven and Earth from a range of a million kilometers. Under the guidance of the Celestial Immortals, this power will coalesce into a single, great Xingtian divine spirit. This divine body will be so powerful that even an Empyrean God or True Immortal will find it difficult to destroy.”

Ji Ning and the others listened, all of them secretly amazed.

What a grand scheme.

If the Loose Immortals were left without a commander, scattered and chaotic, they would be completely slaughtered. But when a hundred thousand Loose Immortals were used to draw upon the power of Heaven and Earth, the range of that influence became enormous. It was not difficult for a single Loose Immortal to draw upon the power of Heaven and Earth from a range of ten thousand kilometers. A hundred thousand Loose Immortals could easily draw upon the power from a range of a million kilometers. How terrifying would that power of Heaven and Earth be? Even an Empyrean God or True Immortal could not match such a scale!

Of course, the Loose Immortals could draw upon this power, but they could not control it. Thus, a thousand Celestial Immortals would act as the skeletal framework to direct it. A commander was still needed to act as the brain, issuing unified commands. Only then could the might of the Xingtian Formation be unleashed.

“I will teach all the Loose Immortals the basics of the Xingtian Formation,” the Xia Emperor said. “They will be the foundation of this formation.”

“All Celestial Immortals present will receive the complete Xingtian Formation,” the Xia Emperor said. “Of course, they will be missing the most crucial secret arts.”

“The commanders of these nine armies will also be selected from among you.” The Xia Emperor looked at the assembled immortals, and a stir immediately ran through them. Command a thousand Celestial Immortals and a hundred thousand Loose Immortals? Who wouldn’t want that? Everyone wanted to be a leader; no one wanted to be a common soldier. They had originally thought that the commanders would be Empyrean Gods or True Immortals. Who would have thought they would be chosen from among the Celestial Immortals?

“The Xingtian Formation relies on the Loose Immortals to draw upon the power of Heaven and Earth. Even if an Empyrean God or True Immortal were the commander, the boost to the overall formation would be limited,” the Xia Emperor said. “Thus, the commanders will still be chosen from among the Celestial Immortals. As for the Empyrean Gods and True Immortals, they will aid you at critical moments and can also severely weaken the Seamless Gate.”

“I will give you all half a month,” the Xia Emperor said. “Within half a month, those who have completely mastered the Xingtian Formation I have taught you will be eligible to compete for the position of commander.”

“At that time, I will dispatch one thousand Celestial Immortals and one hundred thousand Loose Immortals, and let each contender attempt to command the entire formation.” The Xia Emperor said. “The nine Celestial Immortals who are most skilled at commanding the formation and make it unleash the greatest power will be the nine commanders this time.”

Everyone listening felt this was fair.

Whoever could make the formation unleash more power should be the leader. That was only fair.

“The final nine commanders will receive the most crucial key techniques of the Xingtian Formation,” the Xia Emperor said. “Without those crucial key techniques, the formation can still be used, but its power will only be comparable to that of other ancient formations. With those techniques, however, its power will be multiplied dozens of times over.”

This was also a secret of the ancient imperial clan. Naturally, these key techniques would not be taught to everyone.

…

Bamboo slips were delivered to the low table before each Celestial Immortal. The ten thousand immortals all sunk their divine sense into them, easily obtaining the complete Xingtian Formation. Of course, mastering it would take time.

“You all only have half a month. Half a month from now, only those who have completely mastered the formation will be able to compete for the position of commander,” the Xia Emperor said. “Alright, everyone, begin studying the Xingtian Formation now.”

That night.

The million Loose Immortals sat cross-legged in the palace square, learning the basics of the Xingtian Formation.

The ten thousand Celestial Immortals were in the main hall of the Tianmang Palace, all sitting cross-legged, comprehending the entire Xingtian Formation. Ji Ning, Yu Wei, the Tonghe Immortal, and the Diancai Immortal were also sitting cross-legged in silence, comprehending it as well.