Chapter 10: The Vanguard

"Up to the city wall." White Extreme True Immortal immediately ordered.

"Let's go."

This group of Celestial Gods and True Immortals, along with several Celestial Immortals, swiftly left the main hall and flew toward the city wall.

Boundless City was not large, and they soon reached the city wall. The horn call had just been transmitted from this wall. When they arrived, some soldiers patrolling the wall immediately knelt in reverence. Among them were Return-to-Void Divine Demons, and especially those who had mastered abilities like Clairvoyance could naturally see far.

"Hmm?" White Extreme True Immortal and the others all possessed divine abilities and secret arts, and each gazed into the distance.

It was now early morning.

The wild marshes were filled with miasmic fog, but the eyes of Celestial Gods and True Immortals could pierce through the fog to see scenes far away. About thirty thousand li from Boundless City, there was a towering Divine Demon, a full ten thousand zhang tall. He wore only a beast-skin skirt around his waist, the rest of his body completely bare. Barefoot, he strode forward with great steps, yet his speed was astonishing, as if chasing the stars and the moon.

This barefoot, sprinting Divine Demon had no head, but on his chest was a face, with his nipples as eyes and his navel as a mouth, ferocious beyond compare. That face was precisely the face of Tonghe Celestial Immortal—clearly, this was the 'Xingtian Divine Ability Union' formed by the 'Tonghe Army' among the nine immortal legions.

"Xingtian?"

The crowd of Celestial Gods and True Immortals on the wall of Boundless City couldn't help but exclaim in shock. Although the Green Fox Sect Leader had already told them that the Xia Emperor had devised the 'Xingtian Grand Formation,' seeing this headless Divine Demon with their own eyes still made them think of that renowned Xingtian True God, famous across the Three Realms as a war god.

"What do you all suggest we do?" White Extreme True Immortal said calmly.

Green Fox Sect Leader said, "Elder Brother White Extreme, I also know the nine generals of Great Xia. Looking at the face on the chest of that Xingtian Divine Demon, it should be the legion led by Tonghe Celestial Immortal. I know they once shattered the Chaos Goldstone, but at that time, they had not yet obtained the key techniques of the Xingtian Grand Formation. Now, I believe each of them has the key techniques, and their strength has greatly increased. What we need to find out now is... just how strong this Xingtian Divine Demon is! Only by knowing ourselves and our enemy can we hope to defeat Great Xia."

"It's time to let our White-Faced Jiao try," said Sanyang Celestial God.

...

While the Boundless Gate was preparing how to respond, in the central main hall of the Eight Dragon Cloud City, Ji Ning and the other eight generals were gathered.

"Your Majesty."

Ji Ning and the others arrived at the main hall and each paid their respects.

"Sit." The Xia Emperor nodded.

Ji Ning and the others then sat down, and as they swept their gaze around... Eh? Why was Tonghe Celestial Immortal not present? Only eight of the nine generals had arrived?

"We have now arrived at White Extreme Commandery," said the black-robed Xia Emperor. "And I have already set up a grand formation, sealing off the million-li region around White Extreme City. Within this million-li area, no great teleportation is possible, and no mental investigation can penetrate. Of course... as the master of the formation, I can investigate this million-li range, but Boundless City is heavily warded, so my mental sense cannot enter the city. Everywhere else is within my perception."

Ji Ning and the others were all startled.

So fast!

None of them had known about the Xia Emperor's actions.

"Having arrived at White Extreme Commandery, I have already sent Tonghe Celestial Immortal leading his legion to transform into a Xingtian Divine Demon, acting as our vanguard to probe the strength of Boundless Gate," said the black-robed Xia Emperor, pointing into the void. An image immediately coalesced, showing a vast, desolate wilderness. A headless Divine Demon, like a towering mountain range, nearly naked, was running barefoot. The face on the chest of the headless Divine Demon was that of Tonghe Celestial Immortal, but more ferocious.

"Already deployed?" Ji Ning was secretly startled. "It seems the Xia Emperor is very cautious. We know nothing of his every move. But that's fine; in the battle against Boundless Gate, our chances of victory are greater." Ji Ning had great faith in the Xia Emperor. The Xia Emperor's origins meant he could never defect to Boundless Gate.

He was a descendant of the ancient imperial clan.

The ancient imperial clan was the strongest force on the side of the Nuwa Camp! It was the hegemon of ancient times, even more powerful than the Daoist and Buddhist sects. Ji Ning naturally trusted the Xia Emperor's decisions.

"After all, this is a Xingtian Divine Demon formed by a formation," said the fiery-bearded old man seated first on the left side of the black-robed Xia Emperor, laughing. "It's not a true Divine Demon. Its body is formed by using immortal magic power and loose immortal magic power as a guide, then gathering the power of heaven and earth. So this body is immensely strong and runs fast. But if it were to ride clouds and fly, it would be much slower. Thus, the most suitable way to advance is running. Because of its towering form and great strength, running is still very fast."

Ji Ning glanced at the fiery-bearded old man.

The five Celestial Gods and True Immortals beside the Xia Emperor were known to Ji Ning and the others. Three of them came from the ancient imperial clan and were absolute supporters of the Xia Emperor. The other two were Dongyan True Immortal and Tiannong True Immortal, the progenitor of the Tiannong clan. But the Celestial God of the Zhuanshui clan, who had long been heard of, had not appeared at all.

"Fire Cloud is right," said the Xia Emperor, nodding. "You must learn to better utilize the power of the Xingtian Divine Demon. Watch this battle carefully; it will be the first real engagement between Great Xia and Boundless Gate. And remember, never, ever be careless. Because you represent a thousand Celestial Immortals and a hundred thousand loose immortals. If you suffer a severe defeat, it won't be just you dying, but over a thousand Celestial Immortals and a great many loose immortals."

Ji Ning and the others felt their hearts grow heavy.

"Tonghe, you can stop now," the Xia Emperor suddenly said.

His voice was transmitted directly to the ears of the Xingtian Divine Ability Union.

In the void image, the running Xingtian Divine Ability Union had stepped from the wilderness into a vast lake. The lake was broad and expansive, probably a thousand li wide. Although the lake was deep, it only submerged the Xingtian Divine Ability Union up to his calves. At the Xia Emperor's command—

The barefoot-running Xingtian Divine Ability Union took only a few more steps before stopping. His long strides had caused the lake water to churn into towering waves, but to the Xingtian Divine Demon, these waves were merely small splashes that wet his leg hair.

"This place is only ten thousand li from Boundless City," said the Xia Emperor. "Tonghe, wait. The attack from Boundless Gate should arrive soon."

...

The Xingtian Divine Ability Union stood silently in the lake, as if he had stood there since ancient times, an aura that even heaven and earth could not shake. It made one's heart tremble. This was the powerful battle intent of the ancient Divine Demons... After all, this Xingtian Divine Demon was modeled after the 'Xingtian True God,' and this battle intent that defied heaven and earth, fighting heaven and earth, could surpass that of many Celestial Gods.

Suddenly, the lake water trembled slightly.

The Xingtian Divine Ability Union gazed into the distance toward Boundless City. A black dot was rapidly approaching, growing larger as it neared.

It had a white human face, a body covered in black scales, standing upright with two arms and two legs. It was ten thousand zhang tall, but it also had a tail, over thirty thousand zhang long, like the body of a dragon or snake.

...

In the early morning, the thousand-li-wide lake was shrouded in thick mist. A headless Divine Demon, ten thousand zhang tall, wearing a beast-skin skirt and naked, stood in the lake. In the distance, another ancient ferocious beast, the White-Faced Jiao, also ten thousand zhang tall, came sprinting and soon charged into the lake. Each of its steps shook the entire thousand-li lake, churning up endless waves.

This scene was clearly visible to the Xia Emperor and the others in the main hall of the Eight Dragon Cloud City.

"The ancient ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao?" Dongyan True Immortal murmured.

"Boundless Gate must be using a similar formation to create this White-Faced Jiao," said the Xia Emperor, seated high above, frowning. "It seems the White-Faced Jiao is as real as can be, with no flaws at all. Clearly, this formation must be very perfect, something only a True God or Dao Ancestor could create. But we don't know its power yet."

"Watching this Xingtian Great God about to battle the ancient ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao, haha, it feels like being back in ancient times," laughed Tiannong True Immortal. "Back then, when I was still in my clan, following the elders and surviving cautiously, I also saw ancient Divine Demons and ancient ferocious beasts fighting. The scene is exactly the same."

"Yes," said the Xia Emperor, nodding with a smile. "When our human race had just multiplied and our status was not yet high, in ancient times, it was still the world of those ancient Divine Demons, divine beasts, and ferocious beasts."

Divine beasts and ferocious beasts were actually a type of Divine Demon.

Those in the form of beasts were called divine beasts.

If they were vicious in nature, loved killing, and slaughtered madly, they were called ferocious beasts.

The ancient ferocious beast 'White-Faced Jiao' was born with the strength of a Celestial God, famous and extremely skilled in battle.

"A battle between an ancient Divine Demon and an ancient ferocious beast?" Ji Ning looked at the void image. On the vast screen, the ten-thousand-zhang headless Divine Demon and the ten-thousand-zhang White-Faced Jiao faced each other from afar, their battle intent soaring to the heavens. Ji Ning couldn't help but imagine scenes from ancient times.

"They're moving. Watch carefully," the Xia Emperor suddenly said.

...

On the vast, silent lake, the towering Xingtian Divine Demon and the White-Faced Jiao faced each other from a distance.

"Heh heh..." The ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao crouched, making strange sounds as it carefully observed the Xingtian Divine Ability Union.

The Xingtian Divine Ability Union also stared at its opponent, cautious.

The two faced off for only a few breaths.

Suddenly, the ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao moved!

Boom!

The lake water exploded, the entire lake trembled, and the distant earth faintly shook. The ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao lunged forward, instantly crossing the hundreds of li between them. Its hands had extremely sharp claws... like the claws of a flood dragon. The reason ancient ferocious beasts were called beasts was because they had many beast-like features, such as their claws and other body parts, which were no less formidable than powerful magic treasures. With this lunge, the ancient ferocious beast White-Faced Jiao's claws directly aimed at the abdomen of the Xingtian Divine Ability Union, intending to tear open a wound and rip it apart.

The Xingtian Divine Ability Union merely took a step back, raised his right arm, and formed a blade edge with his right hand, striking down like lightning, with the might of Xingtian wielding his shield and axe.

...