The Proclamation of War

Daofather Crimsonbright stared at Patriarch Subhuti. “Truly?”

“Would I deceive you on such a matter?” Subhuti sat calmly, drinking his wine. “There’s no need to be so alarmed. As things stand in the Three Realms, there have already been several Realm Wars between us and the Seamless Gate. It should come as no surprise that it is now your Crimsonbright Realmverse’s turn.”

Daofather Crimsonbright nodded slowly and sat back down. “Yes… I always knew it would come. But when it actually lands on my doorstep… it is still a bitter pill to swallow. These disciples of mine, these disciples’ disciples… I have taught them for I know not how many eras. Each one is like a child to me. And now I must watch them march into a Realm War, watch them fall one by one…”

Subhuti nodded gently.

He too had many disciples. He understood Crimsonbright’s feelings perfectly.

Both of them were Primordial Chaos True Gods. They had no biological offspring. To beings like them, the disciples they had poured the most love and effort into over the span of countless years were the equivalent of children to mortal parents. A great power’s Dao-heart might allow them to watch a single disciple fall without intervening. But when an entire flock of their children was threatened… true pain and panic set in. What great power truly wished to be utterly alone?

“Subhuti.” Daofather Crimsonbright nodded gravely. “I owe you this time. If not for you, Xiamang and his forces would have been in dire straits.”

Subhuti merely smiled, lifting his wine cup and drinking slowly.

“Right.” A gleam entered Daofather Crimsonbright’s eyes. “Since they wanted to ambush Xiamang’s side, could I not send a small force as an open reinforcement while secretly laying a trap of my own? Strike back hard?”

“Impossible.” Subhuti shook his head. “You know very well how formidable the Seamless Gate’s intelligence network is. Moving your troops without them finding out… it would be nearly impossible. And even if, by some stroke of luck, they didn’t notice… do you know how many Empyrean Gods and True Immortals the Seamless Gate has truly dispatched to support this war?”

“How many?” Daofather Crimsonbright pressed.

“Sixty-six.” Subhuti’s voice was calm. “Including the Six Beast Gods of Tenglian Mountain, the Nine Cloud Fairies of Cloud Mist Grotto…”

Daofather Crimsonbright’s expression turned grim.

“And the Three Beast Gods of Tunlong Mountain, who recently inflicted such heavy losses on the Buddhist Sangha.” Subhuti added.

“What? They went as well?” Daofather Crimsonbright’s face changed dramatically. “This is merely a war against my Crimsonbright Realmverse! The Seamless Gate mobilizing the Six Beast Gods of Tenglian Mountain and the Nine Cloud Fairies of Cloudmist Gorge is one thing, but the Three Beast Gods of Tunlong Mountain as well?”

If the Daofathers themselves did not intervene, those three Beast Gods would be virtually unstoppable on the battlefield.

“I do not know their full reasoning.” Subhuti shook his head. “But the Three Beast Gods of Tunlong Mountain are indeed going.”

What Subhuti did not know was that the Godking had specifically arranged for the Three Beast Gods of Tunlong Mountain in order to cleanly and swiftly eliminate the threat of Ji Ning. In the Godking’s eyes, Ji Ning had already comprehended a Heartforce-Soul technique. Once he became a Pure Yang True Immortal and led an army, his threat alone might not be inferior to those three Beast Gods.

In truth, the Godking was mistaken. The number of beings in the entire Three Realms who had truly comprehended a Heartforce-Soul technique could be counted on two hands. Ji Ning, monstrous genius though he was, and even with the transmission of the Heart Sutra from the Ancient One, had only just crossed the threshold. He was not even considered to have achieved minor mastery, let alone great success.

Still, eliminating Ji Ning was indeed the correct strategic move for the Seamless Gate. Since he had already entered the door, as time passed, his accomplishments in Heartforce-Soul techniques would only grow higher and higher, and his threat would become greater and greater.

“That is all I have to say.” Subhuti said. “Crimsonbright, handle it as you see fit.” His figure vanished into thin air, and the distorted spacetime around them returned to normal.

Daofather Crimsonbright waved his hand, dismissing the table and wine. He looked down.

Below, the gathered Empyrean Gods and True Immortals found that they could see their master again. They were all puzzled but dared not ask.

“You have all seen the war in the Jiuyang Realmverse,” Daofather Crimsonbright said, pointing to the Water Scrying Mirror.

The Empyrean Gods and True Immortals were confused. Were they being sent to reinforce it?

“Your days of peace and comfort are over.” Daofather Crimsonbright’s voice was cold. “The great powers of the Seamless Gate have already dispatched a large group of Empyrean Gods and True Immortals to descend upon the Grand Xia. I will not list all of them now—the Six Beast Gods of Tenglian Mountain and so forth—but you need to know that their reinforcements include not merely the Jueming Twin Immortals, but a full sixty-six Empyrean Gods and True Immortals. Among them are the Three Beast Gods of Tunlong Mountain.”

The faces of everyone below turned ashen.

Sixty-six?

Adding True Immortal Baiji, Azurefox, and the others who were already in the Grand Xia… that was nearly eighty Empyrean Gods and True Immortals! What a terrifying force that was!

Were they…?

“This is a Realm War!” Daofather Crimsonbright looked down at them. “No one can escape it. All of you, make arrangements for your respective major worlds. Implement a strict defense. All remaining forces are to gather and prepare to head for the Grand Xia.”

“Yes!” The Immortals and Fiendgods replied with solemn respect.

The Xia Emperor broke out in a cold sweat. So… the Jueming Twin Immortals had merely been a decoy. A full sixty-six Empyrean Gods and True Immortals? The mere thought of it sent chills down his spine.

“Those who do not need to mobilize their armies or arrange their rear defenses are to depart immediately,” Daofather Crimsonbright commanded. “Go directly and openly to Xiamang’s Eight Dragon Cloud City. Let the Seamless Gate give up any thought of a sneak attack.”

“Yes.”

…

Daofather Crimsonbright commanded over a hundred Empyrean Gods and True Immortals. However, other major worlds also had their own skirmishes, requiring some of his forces to remain stationed. If he left none behind, the Seamless Gate would easily seize those entire worlds. Thus, the force he could truly mobilize was much smaller.

Of course, independent cultivators such as Evergreen Sword Immortal, Snowdance Fairy, Hechen True Immortal, Fufang True God, as well as those whose major worlds were relatively secure, could head directly to the Grand Xia.

That very day, twenty-six Empyrean Gods and True Immortals formed the first wave, proceeding directly to the Grand Xia.

In the Grand Xia’s Baiji Commandery, black chains of power were already permeating the void. Within the black Seamless City, a deathly silence had settled.

To avoid arousing the Xia Emperor’s suspicion, True Immortal Baiji and his forces did not immediately launch their assault. They held a normal welcoming banquet for the Jueming Twin Immortals first. Their plan was to formally challenge the Xia Emperor after the banquet. Impatience spoiled the broth; when the stakes were highest, one had to be steady and calm.

“Come, drink.” True Immortal Baiji laughed heartily. “With the Jueming Twin Immortals here, our spells can suppress those on the Xia Emperor’s side. The power of our Heavenly Fiend Puppets and Bloodcloud Puppets will increase dramatically. With this, victory is within reach!”

“Yes. Spells put too great a restriction on the puppets. We have far more puppets than they do. We truly needed the Jueming Dual Immortals.”

“This battle will surely be won.”

The Empyrean Gods and True Immortals laughed and drank together.

Suddenly—

“Hm?”

Every single Empyrean God and True Immortal in the hall felt their expressions change. The massive spatial ripples tearing through the void were impossible to miss. The source was very close to their own location.

“Let’s go have a look.” True Immortal Baiji remained calm, still holding his wine cup. Smiling, he rose and took a single step, disappearing from the hall.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. True Immortal Baiji and the others all left the hall, flying up to the high skies above the Seamless City. They gazed into the distance.

In the distance…

The Eight Dragon Cloud City had completely materialized. Eight divine dragons circled the cloud city, its aura even more imposing than the Seamless City. At the same time, a spatial rift had appeared above it. Empyrean Gods and True Immortals emerged one after another, flying down toward the Eight Dragon Cloud City. They chatted and laughed with each other, appearing quite relaxed.

“Empyrean Gods and True Immortals?”

“They are the forces under Daofather Crimsonbright.”

“So many of them?”

“How many have already entered the Eight Dragon Cloud City? Regardless, it looks like at least twenty. At most… hard to say.” Every one of them watched with a pale face.

The two fat immortals known as the Jueming Twin Immortals, who had been all smiles and affability, finally lost their composure.

Azurefox’s eyes blazed with fury.

As the commander, True Immortal Baiji, who had always maintained his calm, could no longer do so.

Crack. The wine cup in his hand shattered into pieces. The wine splashed through the air, freezing into ice crystals before it could even touch his body, then fell to the ground.

“Damn it! Damn it all!” True Immortal Baiji roared, unable to hold back.

As the supreme commander, he had already disappointed the Godking with his previous request for reinforcements.

This ambush plan had been critical. Once both sides began an open Realm War, killing ten Empyrean Gods or True Immortals would be an immensely difficult task, requiring tremendous cost. An ambush, however, could have easily wiped out the Xia Emperor’s entire group in one fell swoop. But now, it was clear the ambush plan had failed.

“How did it fail?” True Immortal Baiji ground his teeth. They had been so close. So close to annihilating the Xia Emperor and all his forces!

Within the Eight Dragon Cloud City, from various barracks, many Celestial Immortals and Loose Immortals emerged to watch the sky.

Ji Ning and Yu Wei flew out of their barracks as well, hovering in midair.

Celestial Immortal Tonghe, Celestial Immortal Floatdust, Celestial Immortal Madman, Flying Rain Fairy, and Celestial Immortal Ten Thousand Beasts were all watching the sky.

“What is this?”

The enormous rift in the sky, and the figures flying down from it… their auras were unmistakable.

They were definitely Empyrean Gods and True Immortals.

“So many Empyrean Gods and True Immortals?” Ji Ning was stunned.

“Come to the main hall, immediately!” The Xia Emperor’s voice rang out in the ears of Ji Ning, Celestial Immortal Tonghe, and the others.

“I need to go to the main hall.” Ji Ning said to Yu Wei.

“Go.” Yu Wei nodded. As a commander, Ji Ning naturally had to attend such an important meeting.

Soon—

Inside the main hall, the Xia Emperor sat at the head. Over thirty Empyrean Gods and True Immortals were present, along with Ji Ning and his four fellow commanders, all seated separately.

“There are twenty-six more Empyrean Gods and True Immortals now. What happened to cause so many to arrive at once? If they were planning an ambush, why didn’t they come in secret? The formation covering millions of square kilometers is under the Xia Emperor’s control. They could have come silently and launched a fierce attack on the Seamless Gate.” Ji Ning was utterly confused.

The Xia Emperor sat high above, looking down at them. “I imagine all of you are wondering what is happening. Our master dispatched so many Empyrean Gods and True Immortals to reinforce us because… a full-scale Realm War between the Seamless Gate and our Crimsonbright Realmverse is about to begin. And it will be fought here, in the Grand Xia world.”

“A Realm War?” Ji Ning and the others were all shocked.

“True Immortal Baiji’s side did not receive only the Jueming Twin Immortals,” the Xia Emperor said solemnly. “A full sixty-six Empyrean Gods and True Immortals have arrived.” He paused, letting the weight of the information sink in, then continued, “However, we have already discovered their scheme. Our master sent these twenty-six Empyrean Gods and True Immortals as the first wave. More armies will follow.”

“My fellow disciples already know of your identities,” the Xia Emperor said with a smile. “But many of you probably do not know them.”

Ji Ning and the others nodded.

“Allow me to introduce you. This is my senior apprentice-brother, Qianxu. Senior Apprentice-Brother Qianxu was the first to follow our master, and his self-created Qianxu Grand Formation is truly extraordinary,” the Xia Emperor said. “This is my junior apprentice-sister, Snowdance…”

However, the gazes of the newly arrived twenty-plus Empyrean Gods and True Immortals kept flickering between Evergreen Sword Immortal and Ji Ning.