Three months had passed since Huang Tian ascended to become an immortal official, and only now had he fully refined the immortal peach and immortal pill sent by Star Lord Jinde.
"After ingesting and refining them, my dharmic power in the True Immortal realm has accumulated by a tenth. If I could do this nine more times, I would reach perfection as a True Immortal!" he thought with joy.
Unfortunately, such fortune could only be dreamed of. Whether it was a purple-veined immortal peach or a three-turn immortal pill, both were extraordinarily rare.
Had it not been to recruit him, a newly ascended True Immortal, Star Lord Jinde would never have bestowed them. Wanting to obtain more now would not be so easy; he would have to amass merits and exchange merit points for them.
*Three months... the soldiers and horses allocated to me should be assembled by now.*
Coming out of seclusion, he walked to the main hall of the True Lord's Residence and sent someone to summon his attendant, Deng Zhangjue.
Before long, Deng Zhangjue hurried over and bowed in salute. "This humble official greets the True Lord!"
"No need for formalities." Huang Tian raised a hand in gesture. "I have been in seclusion for three months. How are things in the residence?"
Knowing the key point of his inquiry, Deng Zhangjue hurriedly replied, "Reporting to the True Lord, about half a month after you entered seclusion, the hundred thousand heavenly soldiers were fully assembled, and the corresponding weapons and magical artifacts were fully supplied. Generals Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin then began drilling the army.
"Star Lord Jinde holds you in high regard; the heavenly soldiers he transferred are all veterans and elite troops from various divisions. Thus, after only two months or so of combined drilling, they have taken great shape, displaying magnificent military might.
"Currently, the two generals are outside drilling the great formations. Would you care to take a look?"
"Let us go see." Huang Tian nodded.
Deng Zhangjue then led Huang Tian as they flew out of the residence and arrived at the drill grounds where the army was training.
As soon as they arrived at the drill grounds, Huang Tian's ears were filled with shouts, the roar of thunder and fire, and the clashing of weapons.
"Greetings, True Lord!" Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin, who were directing the formations, immediately saluted upon seeing Huang Tian arrive.
Huang Tian waved a hand to dismiss formalities, his gaze turning toward the army formations not far away.
Zhao Zhen cupped his fists at once. "This general requests permission to demonstrate the results of our past months of drilling for the True Lord."
"Good."
Having received permission, Zhao Zhen—clad in golden armor with a long saber at his waist—suddenly raised a hand. Thunderous drumming erupted at once.
Upon the drill grounds, a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers stood with solemn expressions, divided into several grand formations. Each soldier wore silver armor gleaming with divine radiance, holding halberds, sabers, and swords that glinted chill and formidable.
*Swish!*
A crimson command flag swept down. Instantly, over ten thousand heavenly soldiers opened the precious gourds at their waists and pointed them toward the vast sky. Out poured tens of thousands of Fire Crow Dao Soldiers from the gourds.
Each of these fire crows was the size of a square table, possessing golden beaks, iron talons, and fire-rimmed wings. A single flap showered down thousands of sparks that bloomed into red lotuses upon touching the ground, and their unified caw shattered dense clouds across a hundred li.
"Go!"
With a shout of command, the tens of thousands of fire crows shifted into a Nine Palaces formation. Their overlapping wings wove an immense screen of flames across the heavens, and together they spewed roaring fire from their beaks. Rolling, overlapping blazes incinerated hundreds of li of clouds and mist into mere vapor!
*Not bad. These Fire Crow Dao Soldiers alone possess the might of a Yang Spirit or even an ordinary Great Ascension cultivator,* Huang Tian praised silently. This was the power of massed forces in formation.
A mere hundred or so fire crows could do nothing against an ordinary Golden Core cultivator, but when tens of thousands were gathered into a grand formation like this, they could unleash Great Ascension combat power in short bursts. No wonder major factions were keen on nurturing Dao soldiers.
*Swish!*
Another command flag, this one black, swept down. Tens of thousands of heavenly soldiers swung their halberds together, igniting flashes of lightning. In an instant, thunder roared and lightning cracked; thousands of lightning dragons surged through the sea of clouds, tearing apart the dense cover into an ocean of thunder.
Immediately after, tens of thousands of heavenly soldiers holding golden cords and silver shuttles bellowed in unison: "Form!"
Billions of golden cords dropped from the clouds, silver shuttles darting like the Milky Way cascading in reverse!
This was none other than the renowned Net of Heaven and Earth!
The Net of Heaven was woven wide yet let nothing slip through, its meshes arranged according to the three hundred and sixty-five celestial degrees. The Net of Earth was laid so tight that not even the wind could pass, its warp and weft matching the count of the seventy-two Earthly Fiends. Every intersection in the net flashed with talismans bearing the power to suppress dharmic power and seal entities away.
Any cultivator or demon caught within the net found their internal dharmic power suppressed and stilled. If one possessed great ability, one might barely mobilize a fraction of their power or even break free; but if one lacked strength, they would instantly be bound and subdued like a mortal, completely at the mercy of others!
"Well done," Huang Tian praised with a nod. "To achieve such military majesty after only two months of drilling proves the care both of you have put into this."
Pleased by the praise, Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin quickly replied, "This is merely our duty, True Lord."
Brushing past their modest words, Huang Tian asked, "Having reached this level of proficiency, can they be deployed to battle? Or do they require further training?"
Tao Xin answered first: "Most of our troops are veterans, and they have trained together for months. They are more than ready for battle!"
Zhao Zhen concurred. "They are thoroughly familiar with the battle formations. Further drills offer little benefit. It would be better to descend to the mortal realm to suppress and slay demons. It will both earn merits and temper the troops."
Huang Tian said approvingly, "Precisely my thoughts. Deng Zhangjue, have you finished compiling the list I requested?"
Deng Zhangjue drew a jade slip from his sleeve. "Everything is recorded here. However, the Southern Continent is exceedingly vast, home to over ten thousand kingdoms and hundreds of millions of li of mountains and deep valleys. The heterodox fiends and demons are far too numerous for this official to catalog completely, so I have only recorded those with great renown and formidable power..."
"No matter. Those with great renown are precisely the ones I want."
Huang Tian sent his divine sense into the jade slip. A wealth of information flooded into his mind, which he sorted out in an instant. He smiled faintly. "Whether in mortal dynasties or the Heavenly Court, there has always been a saying that a new official lights three fires upon taking office. I have been in this post for three months; it is time to light the first fire."
Zhao, Tao, and Deng grew solemn, listening intently.
"I see noted in the jade slip that down in Zhaoyun Kingdom, a Yang Spirit tree demon is causing havoc, slaughtering orthodox cultivators. Furthermore, there is an Old Demon of Black Mountain acting as the tree demon's backer, committing even greater evil by consuming the entire population of a prefecture. Cultivators from all around sought to eliminate him, yet his dharmic treasures and divine abilities proved so formidable that they were killed instead. Hmph! Such fiends ought to have been eradicated long ago!"
Hearing this, Deng Zhangjue's thoughts stirred. The so-called tree demon was trivial—a mere Yang Spirit creature could be slain by sending a single roving general, or even subdued by dispatching ten thousand heavenly soldiers without any general at all.
Only this Old Demon of Black Mountain was a problem. As early as a thousand years ago, he had already cultivated to the Great Ascension perfection realm. Moreover, because his true form was the embodiment of a thousand-li black mountain range, his physical body was extraordinarily tough and his combat prowess immense. He had also refined a Black Mountain Dharmic Seal that struck with millions of jun of force. Ordinary Great Ascension cultivators could not withstand two or three moves against him, which had fueled his growing insolence.
Yet it was precisely because his arrogance knew no bounds—believing himself so capable that even a True Immortal could hardly kill him—that he had no interest in attaching himself to any major faction. He was content ruling as a petty tyrant in Zhaoyun Kingdom, enjoying absolute freedom!
*Formidable strength, no background—the perfect target to make an example of!*
Deng Zhangjue's thoughts turned as he seconded Huang Tian's decision, simultaneously explaining the Old Demon of Black Mountain's strength and background to Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin.
Hearing that the Old Demon of Black Mountain had no powerful backers, Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin exchanged a glance, breathing a quiet sigh of relief. But when they heard that he was the transformation of a thousand-li mountain range, both of their brows furrowed.
With such a colossal true form, the Old Demon of Black Mountain would be difficult to deal with even if he knew no dharmic arts or divine abilities—let alone that he had reached Great Ascension perfection, wielded divine abilities, and possessed dharmic treasures. Subduing him would be no simple feat.
"True Lord, this Old Demon of Black Mountain is exceedingly powerful. While I am confident that taking the heavenly soldiers could bring him to heel, it would require a prolonged battle..." Zhao Zhen hesitated.
Since this was meant to be the True Lord's first fire, it needed to strike with thunderous swiftness. If it took months or even years to subdue the demon, they would only invite ridicule.
Huang Tian did not rebuke him. Instead, he produced a dharmic whip. "Within this whip resides the power of a single strike from me. If you cannot capture the wicked demon, lash out with it to suppress and slay him."
Zhao Zhen carefully took the dharmic whip, a trace of doubt rising in his mind. Although the True Lord was a True Immortal, the Old Demon of Black Mountain was top-tier among Great Ascension cultivators. Killing him in a single strike might be difficult...
Yet doubt though he might, he could hardly voice it aloud; doing so would undermine his superior's dignity. Besides, even if one lash failed to kill the Old Demon of Black Mountain, it ought to wound him severely, making capturing him relatively easy.
"Slaying demons is best done sooner rather than later. Assemble the troops at once and proceed to Zhaoyun Kingdom. Slay the tree demon and the Old Demon of Black Mountain to restore peace and stability to that nation," Huang Tian instructed. "I shall await your report of victory in the residence and record your merits."
Two demons below the True Immortal realm were naturally unworthy of his personal intervention; handing down his dharmic whip and awaiting the outcome was more than sufficient.
"Understood!"
Zhao Zhen and Tao Xin acknowledged the command. They immediately mobilized seventy-five thousand heavenly soldiers, divided them into six formations, mounted auspicious clouds, and set forth in grand fashion toward Zhaoyun Kingdom in the mortal realm.
***
Zhaoyun Kingdom, Guobei County, Lanruo Temple.
The once-grand ancient temple of a thousand years was now utterly decrepit. For dozens of li around the temple, hazy demonic mist blanketed the land. At the center of the mist, a tree demon a hundred zhang tall wildly flailed its branches.
Thousands of branches thrashed like flood dragons. Beneath their lashing, the temple's crumbling walls turned to dust, tiles from the main hall's roof splattered like torrential rain, and the ear-splitting groans of snapping beams and pillars echoed without pause.
"This monster is too strong!"
Yan Hongxia leapt aside, narrowly dodging a thick branch lashing down at his head, and held his longsword across his chest.
"Go!"
Biting the tip of his tongue, he spat a mouthful of essence blood onto the blade. Sword radiance flared brilliant at once. He slashed straight down at the tree demon, the sword qi swelling with the wind until it was over ten zhang long.
The tree demon showed no panic, gathering hundreds of branches to whip against the sword qi. At first, the sword qi cleaved through like splitting bamboo, cutting several zhang deep. Yet its momentum exhausted itself, unable to breach the remaining barrier and strike the tree demon's trunk.
Yan Hongxia had no choice but to unleash another strike with all his might, shouting loudly, "Brother Ning, I cannot hold out much longer! You two take the chance to flee!"
The man addressed as Brother Ning was dressed as a scholar, his face resolute. "How could I, Ning Jianchen, ever be someone who clings to life? If we leave, we leave together!"
With a wolf-hair brush in his right hand, he swiftly penned four large characters in midair: "Sacrifice Life for Righteousness." Instantly, thousands of sword glints bloomed from the brush tip, showering like rain toward the tree demon.
The demon had long been on guard against Ning Jianchen. Seeing this, it immediately whipped dozens of branches forward, violently shattering the sword glints and slamming directly into Ning Jianchen's chest.
*Boom!*
Ning Jianchen cried out in agony. Like a cannonball, he was hurled backward, smashing through several walls before being half-buried beneath collapsing dust and rubble.
"Big Brother Ning!" A frail woman in plain robes flew over with tears in her eyes. Kneeling beside Ning Jianchen and looking at his bloodstained face, she wept inconsolably. "You... you and Big Brother Yan must leave quickly! My life is truly not worth pitying..."
"Miss Nie, do not say such things!" Yan Hongxia shouted sternly from not far away, cleaving another arc of sword light. "Slaying demons and defending the Dao is our solemn duty! What matter if we die?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a branch as thick as a giant python burst from the earth, whipping heavily across his back and sending him crashing face-first into the ground, his vision spinning.
"Still thinking of leaving? All of you, stay behind for Granny!"
On the trunk of the tree demon, the face of an old crone appeared. She gave a cold sneer as thousands of branches, like dragons and serpents, lashed violently toward the three of them, making the air shriek and churning up turbulent shockwaves!
"Get out of the way!"
Ning Jianchen shoved Nie Qian, and both rolled to opposite sides, barely dodging the frenzied branches.
Though seeing stars, Yan Hongxia was a veteran of a hundred battles after all. Sensing the chill wind rushing at the back of his neck, he struck the ground without thinking, rolling and leaping back to the left.
*Rumble!*
The earth ruptured in countless fissures, gravel spraying like bullets as a dense cloud of dust rose into the air.
*Cough, cough!*
The three coughed incessantly; Yan Hongxia and Ning Jianchen both coughed up blood, their faces deathly pale.
The tree demon cackled wildly, her laughter echoing continuously through the demonic mist. "With such clumsy skills, you dare speak of subduing demons! Laughable, utterly laughable! Just resign yourselves to becoming food, and merge into one with Granny!"
At her words, the ruins of Lanruo Temple shuddered violently. The ground split open, and countless thick roots reached out from the cracks, writhing like living creatures. At a glance, it was as if countless black pythons were burrowing up from the earth, savage and rampant!
Surrounded by tree roots, all three revealed looks of despair and a resolve to fight to the death.
"To die alongside Brother Ning leaves me with no regrets!" Yan Hongxia roared, his sword shining brightly.
Ning Jianchen took a deep breath, his trembling right hand gripping the brush to write once more, while Nie Qian supported his left arm, her eyes resolute.
"Die!"
Roots like giant pythons spanned the sky, dense as a forest, nearly blotting out all of Lanruo Temple as they moved to strangle and crush the three alive!
Yet, at that very moment—
The heavens split open!
A beam of golden light spanning the sky pierced through the dense demonic mist. Wherever the golden light passed, the demonic mist melted like snow before a blazing sun, revealing brilliant sunlight and an unimaginably magnificent golden radiance!
The tree demon looked up in shock and fury, only to see an immense golden cloud hovering above Lanruo Temple, upon which countless figures flickered into view.
As the brilliance dimmed slightly, she finally saw clearly: there were tens of thousands of heavenly soldiers!
The heavenly soldiers stood in strict formation, silver armor reflecting the sun, halberds like a forest, a chilling aura of slaughter permeating heaven and earth.
Leading them were two Divine Generals in golden armor. One had a square face, cold eyes, and a long saber at his waist—Zhao Zhen. The other was burly and thick-waisted, carrying a pair of purple-gold war hammers on his back—Tao Xin.
Zhao Zhen looked down from above, staring coldly at the terrified Tree Demon Granny. "Fiend, you plague the world and poison the living. You deserve to be slain!"
He raised a hand and gently swept it down.
Ten thousand heavenly soldiers opened the precious gourds hanging at their waists in unison, pointing the openings downward.
*Boom!*
Tens of thousands of fire crows poured out, instantly forming a sea of crimson flames that veiled half the sky!
*Caw—*
Tens of thousands of fire crows opened their beaks together, spewing raging fire that coalesced into a scarlet-gold pillar of flames nearly a hundred zhang across, pouring down recklessly from the ninth heaven!
"Why are there heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals?!"
The tree demon was terrified out of her wits. As a mere Yang Spirit minor demon, how could she possibly warrant so many heavenly soldiers and generals attacking together? This was utterly preposterous!
In panic, she hastily pulled all her branches together, weaving them into a wooden shield over ten zhang thick. Atop the massive shield, dense demonic qi swirled, attempting to block the scarlet-gold flames.
Yet the moment the fiery pillar met the wooden shield, the demonic qi vanished rapidly. The vast pillar of fire breached the shield with unstoppable momentum, striking directly at her trunk.
"Ahhh!"
Shrill screams resounded across the wilderness as the tree demon's hundred-zhang body twisted frantically in the flames.
Terrified, she rapidly shrank her body, intending to burrow into the earth to escape. But at that moment, the Net of Heaven and Earth cast down from the heavenly soldiers' formation, completely trapping her trunk. Whether she shrank or expanded, she could not escape the net's restraint.
By then, the scarlet-gold flames raged even more fiercely, engulfing her entirely like an immense fireball.
The screams grew increasingly shrill, then fainter and fainter.
At last, her colossal trunk was reduced to a pile of charcoal before collapsing into a flurry of ash drifting through the air.
The golden light slowly receded. The heavenly soldier formations remained disciplined and orderly, as though they had merely performed a trivial errand.
Yan Hongxia and the other two felt as if they had been transported from hell to heaven. Overjoyed beyond measure, they bowed deeply. "We thank the Divine Generals for saving our lives!"
Zhao Zhen replied indifferently, "Slaying demons and eliminating fiends is our duty."
Yan Hongxia looked up, filled with profound gratitude. "May I ask the Divine General's honorable title and which division of the Heavenly Court you serve under, so that we may remember your benevolence?"
Hearing this, Zhao Zhen exchanged a glance with Tao Xin, adjusted his armor, turned toward the south, and cupped his hands. A look of reverent respect naturally surfaced on his square-jawed face. "My own humble name is not worth mentioning. As for our allegiance, I am a warrior general under the True Lord of Demon-Quelling of the Southern Heavens. Having descended to the mortal realm under orders, our sole purpose is to sweep away the demonic miasma of Zhaoyun and restore peace to the realm.
"The True Lord decrees: In bright heaven and earth, how can monsters and demons be allowed to run rampant? Through the manifest Heavenly Dao, His awe-inspiring, vast brilliance shines forth!"
Chapter 196