Chapter 1 The Migration

Mingxin Island.

Ji Ning and the others descended from the sky. The maids and servants on Mingxin Island, upon seeing them, immediately called out respectfully, "Young master."

"Ji Ning, you're back." A black-robed Ji Liuzhen walked over, his face filled with anxiety.

"Uncle Liuzhen." Ji Ning smiled. "What's the matter, such urgency?"

"How could I not be anxious? If I hadn't known you were undergoing the tribulation, I would have come looking for you long ago. Fortunately, fortunately you made it back." Ji Liuzhen said. At this moment, a soldier in armor also approached from not far away. Ji Ning recognized at once that this was a general from the imperial guard of the Great Xia royal capital, a loose immortal soldier.

Ji Liuzhen quickly said, "This general came from the Great Xia royal capital, sent by the Xia Emperor. He has been waiting here for you for two months."

"Waited two months?" Ji Ning was astonished.

"If you hadn't returned, I would have held out for three more days. Even knowing you were undergoing the tribulation, I would have had to go find you." Ji Liuzhen said.

That Ji Ning's second soul was undergoing the tribulation was not a secret. The Xia Emperor knew, the Lord of the Abyss knew... Ji Ning naturally couldn't be bothered to hide it.

"What business does the Xia Emperor have?" Ji Ning looked at the imperial guard commander.

The commander bowed respectfully: "Immortal Beiming, I have been ordered by the Xia Emperor to personally deliver this to you." He held a rolled animal hide in his hands.

Ji Ning waved his hand and accepted it.

"Then I shall take my leave." The commander turned and left without hesitation.

"I'll see you off, General." Clan leader Ji Liuzhen went to see him out.

Ji Ning unrolled the animal hide. The nearby Immortal Diancai, Yu Wei, and the others were all curious—what could be so urgent?

As soon as he saw the animal hide, Ji Ning's expression shifted slightly.

"Ji Ning, what is it?" Immortal Diancai asked. "If it's not to be spoken of, you need not say."

"There's nothing to hide." Ji Ning said. At that moment, Ji Liuzhen returned from afar and asked eagerly, "I only heard the messenger say it was a matter of utmost urgency, that it must be delivered to you before the sixth day of the eighth month. Fortunately, there are still seven days until then, and you've made it back in time. By the way, what is on this animal hide?"

Ji Ning swept his gaze across the room. Mu Zishuo, Xiaoqing, Qiuye, Immortal Diancai, Yu Wei—all of them were watching him.

"The Abyss Gate is about to truly go to war with the Great Xia Dynasty." Ji Ning said.

"War?"

"It's finally about to begin."

"This..."

Each of them felt a sinking in their hearts. In fact, they had long been prepared, after all, some of the major worlds among the Three Realms had already begun their campaigns, and even some of the weaker major worlds had been conquered. Of course, the more powerful the major world... the slower they acted. Take the Great Xia world, for example; it was only about to make its move. For the Gate of Infinity to truly conquer it would hardly be accomplished overnight.

"At this moment, we must choose a side," said Ji Ning. "I believe that soon, the entire Great Xia world will have only two camps: one is the side of Emperor Xia, which is also the side of Patriarch Crimsonbright. The other is the side of the Gate of Infinity. Of course... there is no doubt that we stand with Emperor Xia."

"Mm." Everyone present nodded.

They had long known that Ji Ning had a grudge against the Gate of Infinity. Ji Ning was the leader of their faction, so they naturally followed him.

Ji Ning was certainly following Patriarch Subhuti as well. Whether it was Subhuti or Daoist Three Lives, both stood on the side of Nuwa. Ji Ning, whether from a sense of belonging or personal preference, would stand with Nuwa.

"On the evening of the sixth day of the eighth month, I will go to the Heavenly Mang Hall in the Great Xia royal capital. By then, many Celestial Immortals, and even True Immortals and Gods, will likely appear there," said Ji Ning. "Our Ji clan only needs me to participate in the battle. The others are not required."

"What about our Black-White College?" asked Immortal Diancai.

"I believe the news has already reached the Black-White College," said Ji Ning. "I don't know the details either. Master, when you return to the Black-White College, you will immediately find out."

"Mm, I'll go take a look now." Immortal Diancai nodded, then immediately rode a cloud and swiftly disappeared into the sky.

Ji Ning continued, "On the sixth day of the eighth month, I will go to the Heavenly Mang Hall. Before that, our Ji clan needs to relocate."

"Relocate?" Qiuye, Ji Liuzhen, Uncle Bai, and the others were all startled.

"Ji Ning, relocate where?" asked Ji Liuzhen.

"This is the Pure Yang法宝 Violet Mist Bead." Ji Ning turned his hand over, and in his palm appeared a purple bead with mottled colors. This bead was one of the six Pure Yang treasures he had obtained when dealing with the eighteen Celestial Immortals of the Gate of Infinity. Although a few of those eighteen Celestial Immortals had Pure Yang treasures, none of them had a top-grade Pure Yang treasure!

The Violet Mist Bead was a treasure used to confuse and capture enemies. It contained a small world, no smaller than the Earth of his previous life. It would be easy for the members of the Ji clan to live within it.

"A Pure Yang treasure?" Ji Liuzhen was somewhat shocked. To many cultivators, Pure Yang treasures were legendary. Even using a Pure Yang treasure required at least being a Celestial Immortal, showing how demanding the requirements were.

But Yu Wei, Uncle Bai, and the others were very calm. Their horizons were relatively broader.

"In this Great Xia war, we cannot ensure the safety of Mount Yan. We have no choice but to relocate," said Ji Ning. "Uncle Liuzhen, rest assured. I will naturally protect the safety of our Ji clan."

"Alright, I'll go give the orders and make arrangements. Let the clan members prepare," said Ji Liuzhen.

"Very well. I will carry out the relocation in three days," said Ji Ning.

……

Night.

Ji Ning, Immortal Diancai, Yu Wei, and Immortal Tonghe met at the Black-White College.

"By the Xia Emperor's order, both Celestial Immortals of our Black-White College and all the Loose Immortals must report to the imperial palace in the royal capital on the evening of the sixth day of the eighth month," said Immortal Diancai.

"The same goes for our Anchan Northmont clan—both Loose Immortals and Celestial Immortals must go," Immortal Tonghe sighed. "The Xia Emperor is merciful enough not to force Returned Void Earth Immortals, Primal Daoists, and the like to join the battle."

Then Immortal Tonghe smiled. "By the way, the Undying Sect sent someone to invite me to go to Whitepeak City on the sixth of the eighth month. If I go, I'll be a friend, not an enemy."

"They dare to invite you?" Immortal Diancai was surprised.

"In the Undying Sect's eyes, perhaps they think Senior Tonghe might be impulsive enough to join them," Ji Ning said with a smile.

"It seems both the Xia Emperor and the Undying Sect are making no secret of it, both choosing the sixth of the eighth month," Immortal Tonghe mused. "One is the imperial palace in the Xia capital, the other is Whitepeak City. It seems... the Whitepeak clan has already defected to the Undying Sect!"

Ji Ning, Immortal Diancai, and the others all looked solemn.

The Whitepeak clan...

They were a very low-key clan, so low-key it was almost absurd; in the entire Xia capital, one rarely saw any activity from the Whitepeak clan. Yet the Whitepeak clan was one of the top ten ancient tribes in the entire Xia Dynasty. They kept to their corner, never holding any official positions in the Xia capital, but they had long since fortified their fief, Whitepeak Commandery, to an impregnable degree. The power of this clan even surpassed that of the ostentatious Shaoyin clan. Who would have thought they had quietly defected to the Undying Sect, even becoming the sect's headquarters for gathering forces from all sides? The fact that they could use Whitepeak City to gather everyone showed that the Whitepeak clan was highly trusted by the Undying Sect.

"Back then, the Xia Emperor had the backing of the ancient imperial clan, which allowed him to attract various tribes and eventually unify the realm," Immortal Tonghe said. "But in truth, several tribes had once vied with Xiamang clan, and the Whitepeak clan had also contended with them. However, lacking sufficient foundation, they ultimately submitted."

"If all the tribes in the world united, the Xiamang clan would be unable to resist," Immortal Tonghe continued. "There were even rebellions by feudal lords in the past, which is why the Xia Emperor later built one Xia city after another, making his rule much more stable."

"I wonder... how many feudal lords have defected to the Undying Sect," Immortal Tonghe sighed.

Ji Ning nodded.

There were differences among the feudal lords.

For example, the Xiamang clan and the Zhuanshui clan were all branches of ancient great clans.

The Whitepeak clan, however, was founded by the ancient solitary cultivator 'Celestial Immortal Whitepeak' after the primordial Pangu World was destroyed, in the newly born Great Xia world. Later, Celestial Immortal Whitepeak broke through to become a Pure Yang True Immortal. Naturally, the Whitepeak clan flourished and grew powerful. Unfortunately, the Whitepeak clan lacked a powerful backing; the clan was solely created by the Whitepeak True Immortal, unlike the Xiamang, Zhuanshui, and other clans that had ancient great clans behind them.

"The Whitepeak True Immortal has always kept a low profile. After the unification of the Great Xia, he never made a move in the Great Xia world again," Immortal Tonghe said. "And I know of two other Heavenly Gods and True Immortals—one from the Zhuanshui clan and one from the Tiannong clan—who have also refrained from acting in the Great Xia world. Clearly, they are unwilling to become enemies of the Xia Emperor."

Ji Ning was surprised.

The Tiannong clan?

He knew that the Zhuanshui clan had a Heavenly God behind it, but that the Tiannong clan also had a Heavenly God and True Immortal—this was the first time he had heard of it. Immortal Tonghe, who had lived through the Primordial Era, indeed knew many more secrets.

……

Ji Ning and his group were undoubtedly on the Xia Emperor's side, but they were also worried—worried about the strength of the Undying Sect's side.

Two sides vying for supremacy.

Would the Xia Emperor's side suffer a crushing defeat, or would the Undying Sect's side flee in defeat?

Everything was still unknown now. What could be predicted was that this time would certainly be brutal. After all, many major worlds had already been occupied, and many more were engulfed in war. The power of the Undying Sect had long made all sides in the Three Realms tremble.

……

Ji Ning's second true body easily refined the Pure Yang magic treasure 'Purple Mists Pearl' and began to relocate the entire Ji clan. The Ji clan had few members, so relocation was easy; in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they were all moved away.

High in the sky.

Ji Ning, Yu Wei, Uncle Bai, Xiaoqing, Qiuye, Mu Zishuo, and Ji Liuzhen stood on the clouds, gazing down at the boundless earth.

"We're leaving Mount Yan," Ji Liuzhen sighed. This was the land where generations of the Ji clan had lived and multiplied.

"We'll come back," said the black-robed Ji Ning.

Whoosh.

Ji Ning suddenly waved his hand, and his Celestial Immortal power surged as he cast the 'Move Mountains and Drain Seas' spell. In the sky, a giant hand formed from the power of heaven and earth, hundreds of miles in size, appeared. The hazy giant hand, made of flowing air, reached down and grabbed fiercely!

The hundred-mile range of Yichuan Lake, including the Brightheart Island at its center, was all caught, not a single drop of water leaking out.

"Collect," Ji Ning cast the spell and directly stored the entire Yichuan Lake into the Purple Mists Pearl.

Yichuan Lake meant a great deal to him; he didn't want to leave it behind, only to have it destroyed—that would be a regret too late to remedy. Now he was only a Celestial Immortal; if he had the power of a Pure Yang True Immortal, he could move the entire ten-thousand-mile Mount Yan in one go!

……

The underwater estate.

Ji Ning's true body emerged from the Hall of War. He had successfully passed the tenth and highest floor of the Hall of War.

"War is about to break out. I should choose a Pure Yang magic treasure suitable for me," Ji Ning said as he headed to the Treasure Hall.

……