Ji Ning’s Fifth Layer of Sword Force

“Lu Wu, Feng Ji. Both of you, give up. I will take you into my cave-treasure.” Kua Fu’s voice boomed.

“No.”

True God Lu Wu, despite his usual placid demeanor, was absolutely firm. “Kua Fu, you know full well how terrifying Ti Ming Mountain is. We are only holding on thanks to the formation. The moment I enter your cave-treasure, I might survive temporarily… but without our formation’s support, the rest of you won’t last much longer.”

“My divine body is made of divine power, every shred of my flesh and blood. Though I have no divine power left within me, my body itself can still transform back into divine power. I can still hold on.” Lu Wu’s voice was low.

“Hold on.” Daofather Feng Ji nodded as well, a cold ruthlessness in his eyes. “Kua Fu, don’t be soft-hearted at a time like this. None of the six of us can retreat now. This expedition into the Ancient Ruins… is already the vanguard battle of the final war. In war, people die. If it’s my turn, I won’t retreat either.

Beside them, Kua Fu, Xi Huang, Xingtian, and Kong Xiu all had complicated expressions.

Yet they understood. This was indeed the best decision for the greater situation. The divine bodies of True God Lu Wu and True God Feng Ji were vast reservoirs of divine power. They could continue to endure. Of course, the price of enduring was that Lu Wu and Feng Ji could be slain by the invisible attacks at any moment.

“Hold on!” Kua Fu growled.

“Protect Lu Wu and Feng Ji!” Xingtian roared, then turned his head toward Ji Ning. “Ji Ning, do your best to help Feng Ji and Lu Wu.”

Xingtian had always held favorable feelings toward Ji Ning. Throughout their journey, Ji Ning had rarely taken action, and that had been acceptable so far. But now that they were trapped in Ti Ming Mountain, facing certain death, Ji Ning remained safe within the formation yet had never once made a move. This caused a seed of dissatisfaction to sprout within Xingtian’s heart.

“Swoosh.”

Ji Ning suddenly moved.

In a single step, he shot directly outside the range of the formation. As he did, a sword thrust out from his hand, its tip blazing with a dazzling, seven-colored sword-light.

Kua Fu, Xingtian, and the other six true gods were instantly dumbstruck.

Ji Ning had left the formation? Kua Fu and the others immediately began to shout in alarm.

He was attacking? But why?

Seven-colored sword-light? That… that was…

Ji Ning’s sudden attack outside the formation left the six true gods gaping.

“CLANG!”

An explosive roar echoed.

Ji Ning’s thrusting sword-tip seemed to have struck something, triggering a terribly violent collision that caused ripples in the surrounding space.

“Come forth.” Ji Ning’s sword-arts twisted, transforming into a black hole. An astonishing suction force emerged, forcibly ensnaring the invisible object.

The sword-light coiled around it like silk, completely entangling the unseen entity. Finally, the object began to take form. Within Ji Ning’s sword-light, a peculiar material resembling a horn became visible. It was completely black, with faint purple runes across its surface. One end was sharp, the other blunt.

“Hmm?” Ji Ning reached out and grabbed the object.

“Qi Xuan Sinkstone?” Ji Ning mused to himself. Having roamed the primordial chaos, he had naturally grown familiar with countless exotic materials. The legacy left by World God Northrest contained detailed records of many such things, and Ji Ning recognized this one at a glance. “This is actually Qi Xuan Sinkstone, a precious forging material… but in the Three Realms, no one can refine it.”

Qi Xuan Sinkstone was incredibly tough. Even without any refinement, its mere durability could rival that of a Chaos treasure. It was an extremely valuable forging material.

“In the future, when I venture into the endless Chaos to search for the Heavenly Palace of Azure, it might prove useful.” Ji Ning flipped his hand, storing the object into his cave-treasure.

He turned around.

To his side, the six true gods were still looking somewhat dazed. Xi Huang appeared to want to say something, but seemed unable to find the words.

“Ji Ning.” It was the most straightforward of them, Kua Fu, who finally spoke. “You’ve reached the Fifth Layer of Sword Force?”

“Mm.” Ji Ning nodded.

“Why didn’t you tell us earlier?” Kua Fu asked.

“Before this, we never encountered any true danger. You, Kua Fu, could handle everything easily. There was never a need for me to act.” Ji Ning smiled.

Beside him, Xingtian chimed in eagerly: “Ji Ning, can you already see through the illusions of Ti Ming Mountain?”

Only by seeing through the illusions could one find a way out.

“Mm.” Ji Ning nodded.

Lu Wu and Feng Ji both felt their hearts ease. Though they had been prepared to die, being able to survive was obviously preferable.

“Follow me,” Ji Ning said.

“Stick close to Ji Ning!” Kua Fu ordered immediately. “Do as he says!”

“Understood.”

The six true gods quickly followed Ji Ning, who walked forward with his sword in hand.

“Another one coming.” Ji Ning swung his sword again. The sword-art was ethereal and elusive, instantly clashing against another invisible object. His sword-art immediately turned into a black hole, ensnaring it.

“This Ti Ming Mountain should be a ‘Qi Xuan Realm,'” Ji Ning mused. He snatched another Qi Xuan Sinkstone, examined it, and stored it in his cave-treasure. “I suspect that throughout the Three Realms, few understand this mountain better than I do.”

The endless Chaos was filled with countless, infinite dangers. World God Northrest’s legacy had recorded many of them. Roaming the Chaos blindly and blundering into certain death zones was simply asking to die, and no one could save you.

The Qi Xuan Realm was merely one of the deadly peril zones recorded by World God Northrest.

By cross-referencing various clues, Ji Ning had deduced that Ti Ming Mountain was a type of ‘Qi Xuan Realm.’

“Ji Ning, how long until we can get out?” Xi Huang’s gaze toward Ji Ning had completely changed. The Fifth Layer of Sword Force… surpassing the limits of the Heavenly Dao… with just these two things, Ji Ning was already approaching the level of a leader! In terms of pure offensive power alone, he was even more terrifying than Kua Fu!

“Relax,” Ji Ning said. “Ti Ming Mountain is practically its own independent world. Without seeing through its true nature, there’s simply no way out. Of course, ‘seeing through its true nature’ doesn’t mean actually seeing the real scenery. Even I can barely sense those objects’ attacks and use them to judge our position.”

“Judging our position through those objects?” Feng Ji, Kong Xiu, Lu Wu, and the others were all puzzled.

“Mm,” Ji Ning nodded. “The objects that attacked us were nurtured within Ti Ming Mountain itself. They are ejected from the mountain’s depths, and their power is astonishing. The closer we are to Ti Ming Mountain’s core, the more powerful those objects become. The farther we are, the weaker their power.”

“I’ve heard Daofather Three Purities mention that,” Xi Huang nodded. “But that’s only the most basic sense of direction. And the danger of Ti Ming Mountain is not limited to those invisible objects.”

“Right. I’ve also heard about a terrifying suction force that can swallow even major powers whole,” Kong Xiu added.

Ji Ning nodded. “That is indeed the case.”

During ordinary times, a Qi Xuan Realm would mostly eject objects. But sometimes it would also inhale! The closer you were to the core, the stronger the suction. If you were pulled in… even an Elder God or Ancestral Immortal would almost certainly die, unless they possessed extraordinary means to survive. If you could make it deep inside and survive safely, you could obtain a massive amount of ‘Qi Xuan Sinkstone,’ a precious forging material tempered by countless cycles of ejection and suction.

What had been ejected to attack Ji Ning and the others was merely a tiny fraction of the Qi Xuan Sinkstone deep within Ti Ming Mountain.

“So we have to move quickly. Right now, it’s ejecting. If it starts to inhale… things will get far more dangerous.” Ji Ning was fully confident. Moreover, only the very heart of Ti Ming Mountain posed a true threat to him. The outer areas were simply no danger for someone at his level of strength.

After walking for only a short while.

Ji Ning had been moving swiftly the entire time. Suddenly, they all felt their vision change. The forest illusion vanished, replaced by a vast, unending chain of mountains. In the distance, the mountains were collapsing. Three gigantic figures wreathed in dazzling golden light could be seen, madly swinging their Buddha palms. Each palm-strike seemed capable of annihilating everything, crushing mountains into dust.

“It’s Tathagata!” Kua Fu shouted with joy.

“Tathagata!” Xingtian bellowed.

Ji Ning smiled as well. “We made it out.”

“So this is Tathagata’s Dharmakaya?” Ji Ning gazed at the three giant Dharma bodies of Tathagata, particularly the main body of Sakyamuni himself. “He is merely a True God and a third-class Ancestral Immortal, yet his level of Dao-comprehension is so profound that he can unleash the power of an Elder God.”

In the distance, the Buddha Tathagata noticed the seven tiny figures.

“Excellent.”

Tathagata finally smiled. His other two Dharma bodies merged back into his main form. Behind him, the other three Buddhas also flew over.

Tathagata and the other four Buddhas flew over as Kua Fu, Ji Ning, and the other seven rode clouds to meet them.

“You managed to get out on your own,” Tathagata said with a smile. “How did you do it?”

“It was all thanks to Darknorth,” Kong Xiu, who was among Ji Ning’s group, spoke up.

“Darknorth?” Tathagata looked at Ji Ning in surprise.

Kua Fu added, “That’s right. Ji Ning’s strength is terrifying. I’m afraid I might not even be a match for him. Three Purities was trapped inside for over three thousand years back then, yet Ji Ning led us out in a short span of time. Hahaha! I wonder what that old Daoist Three Purities’ face will look like when he finds out!”

At this moment, Kong Xiu was already transmitting everything that had happened here to the anxious major powers of Nuwa’s camp throughout the Three Realms.