Chapter 21: Fail to Complete a Task for Want of a Final Effort

This was a world of flames, vast and boundless, even more expansive than the heavens and the underworld! This single world was worth a hundred Great Xia worlds.

Here was the sacred land of the human race!

The world created by the oldest and most powerful existence of the human race, 'Suirenshi'.

In the beginning, after Goddess Nüwa created humans, the human race was still weak. Suirenshi was born at that time. In his weakness, he realized 'drilling wood to make fire', unified the then-weak human race into a whole, and led the weak humans to survive the hardships of the ancient era where gods and demons roamed. Suirenshi possessed great enlightenment and great perseverance, and he blazed an incredible path.

He was the most revered sovereign of the entire human race, the foremost of the Three Sovereigns!

Suirenshi was low-key and simple. He roamed the chaos and even excavated it, carving out a vast great world in the chaos—the 'Kindling Great World', which became the true sacred land of the human race. The 'size' of a great world opened by a powerful being could also show their strength, and Suirenshi's Kindling Great World was second only to Nüwa's Great World.

In terms of strength—

Suirenshi was unfathomable. In ancient times, even the highly belligerent Fire God Zhurong, a primal god, had fought with Suirenshi and admitted defeat. If Fuxishi and Shennongshi often appeared in the Three Realms, then Suirenshi was always in seclusion... Yet his existence was a great deterrent. He was the oldest and most powerful existence of the human race. Even if he did not emerge, no one in the Three Realms dared to forget him.

Even the Frivolous Gate was very wary of this strongest human. Once, a powerful chaos alien encountered Suirenshi in the chaos and was directly killed by him! That scene shook the entire Three Realms and made the Frivolous Gate even more cautious of him.

His strength made the human race the undisputed leader of all races, and even the true gods born from chaos had no objection.

...

Atop the towering Flame Divine Mountain.

A man nearly naked, wearing only a beast-skin skirt, sat cross-legged. His black hair was loose, yet each strand seemed like a dragon horn, possessing incredible power. His face was covered with thick beard, and his eyes seemed to see through past and future. Though he sat on the mountain peak, he observed the entire Three Realms.

Though he was transcendent, with the great calamity approaching, he watched everything.

"Guoci." Suirenshi's voice was deep and powerful, reaching the ears of a woman among thousands who were meditating before a towering statue thirty thousand miles away.

"Father."

This human woman with divine patterns on her face stood up. The patterns were from the time when humans tried various cultivation methods; Guoci was one who risked danger to try, and later Suirenshi adopted her as his daughter.

"Lead your unit and go save Ji Ning." Suirenshi ordered.

"Yes." Guoci replied respectfully.

...

Suirenshi was the most ancient human sovereign, so many strong followers accompanied him. In the 'Kindling Great World' alone, there were over ten Dao Ancestors and ten thousand Celestial Immortals and True Immortals! The number of Celestial Immortals was astonishingly high. As the sacred land of the human race, it was arguably the most powerful among the many great worlds of humanity.

The Frivolous Gate did not even dare to infiltrate.

...

A void boat was traveling through the endless void, sometimes tearing through the void to reach another place, sometimes flying at high speed.

On the void boat.

Ji Ning and the Seven Radiance Celestial Immortals dared not be careless.

"The Frivolous Gate's army is powerful. Once trapped, we will surely die." The Seven Radiance Celestial Immortals transmitted.

Suddenly—

"Ji Ning, hold on a little longer. Human Sovereign Suirenshi has sent Celestial Immortal Guoci commanding three hundred and sixty-five Celestial Immortals and True Immortals to support you." Bodhi's voice sounded in Ji Ning's mind.

"Good." Ji Ning breathed a sigh of relief.

Ji Ning looked back. Behind, a black shuttle was chasing at high speed.

...

"Damn, so close." On the black shuttle, nearly three hundred Celestial Immortals and True Immortals gathered. At the lead stood a tall skeleton demon god, flames burning in his eyes as he stared into the distance. "If that Ji Ning had been just a step slower, our Frivolous Infinite Formation's power would have sealed the space-time, leaving him no escape. Just a little short, but now we can't catch up no matter what. Damn, damn it."

"The powerful beings on Nüwa's side are also formidable. We were fast enough, tearing through the void from the Third World to get here, but in that brief moment, they discovered us and notified Ji Ning. He escaped quickly." The man holding a curved knife said solemnly.

"Yes, it's a pity."

"Just one step away."

These Celestial Immortals and True Immortals were all unwilling.

Earlier, thanks to Bodhi's reminder, Ji Ning did not hesitate to drive the void boat and tear through the void to escape! He was just that one step faster... If he had been a step slower, the enemy would have deployed the Frivolous Infinite Formation, completely sealing off an area of ten thousand miles. With the formation's power, even the void boat would have difficulty tearing through the void.

But Ji Ning slipped away before the net was cast.

Now Ji Ning kept fleeing, and the void boat was incredibly fast, making it impossible for them to even close the distance.

"Chase."

"In a life-and-death pursuit, if Ji Ning makes even one mistake, we can trap him." The skeleton demon god growled. In a life-or-death struggle, if panic caused errors, they would be caught.

One fled, the other chased.

Through endless void, great worlds, small worlds... they fled madly. Ji Ning drove the void boat, while the Frivolous Gate side drove the innate supreme treasure 'Witch Sky Shuttle', both excelling in speed and void traversal. For a time, they were evenly matched.

"Not good." The skeleton demon god and the other Celestial Immortals and True Immortals on the Witch Sky Shuttle changed expression.

Ahead, above the vast ocean, a flame mountain floated. On the mountain stood figures, each with ancient auras, all human strongmen from ancient times. At the lead was the murderous female Celestial Immortal Guoci, followed by three hundred and sixty-five Celestial Immortals and True Immortals.

The void boat flew to the side of the flame mountain, and two towering divine demons emerged.

The two armies faced off from a distance.

Both sides were elites of their camps. One side had long mastered the 'Frivolous Infinite Formation' created by the 'King' of the Frivolous Gate, while the other could form the powerful 'Zhou Tian Star God Formation'. In ancient times, Celestial Immortals and True Immortals using this formation could fight against True Gods and Dao Ancestors.

"Shall we fight?" The female Celestial Immortal Guoci looked coldly over, her voice icy, resounding through heaven and earth.

"Beiming." The skeleton demon god pointed at Ji Ning and said coldly, "You were lucky this time, escaping by just one step. But what you're doing is seeking death."

"Seeking death?"

Ji Ning looked over, his voice equally cold. "If you have the skill, kill me. I'm right here. All your harsh words are useless."

"Good." The skeleton demon god gritted his teeth.

The flames in his eyes rolled. He swept his gaze over the powerful Celestial Immortals and True Immortals on the flame mountain and could only swallow his unwillingness. Ji Ning's actions were risky... but as long as he held out a little, he could get reinforcements from Nüwa's camp. Before the final battle was decided,

facing the enemy's army, the Frivolous Gate camp had no choice.

"Withdraw." The God King's voice sounded in the skeleton demon god's mind.

"Go."

The skeleton demon god said unwillingly.

Boom~~~

The Witch Sky Shuttle directly tore through the void and flew away.

...

In the Third World, the God King and碧幽 Dao Ancestor stood in the void, watching.

"Damn." A cold light flashed in the God King's eyes.

"Pity, just one step short."碧幽 Dao Ancestor said coldly. "One step short, and we couldn't catch him. This Ji Ning has the innate supreme treasure 'Void Boat'. This void boat existed before our Frivolous Chaos World fought with the Pangu Chaos World. It originally belonged to San Shou Daoist. San Shou... he was truly a fierce warrior, brave and ruthless, and hard on himself."

"Yes."

The God King nodded.

He also remembered that fierce and powerful San Shou Daoist. Though he hadn't mastered the Heavenly Dao, with his True God body and the terrifyingly powerful divine ability 'Star Picking Hand', he had felled several True Demon Dao Ancestors from the Frivolous Gate. The Star Picking Hand's power was too great.

"Ji Ning has the void boat. To kill him, one must either seal space-time first, set traps, or use a better flying treasure. Something stronger than the void boat... only chaos treasures." The God King frowned. "We only have one chaos treasure good at flying, with Demon Hand Dao Ancestor. Demon Hand Dao Ancestor is very reclusive; she may not be willing to hand over such an important chaos treasure to some Celestial Immortals and True Immortals."

"Yes, Demon Hand's personality makes it hard to get her to agree."碧幽 Dao Ancestor nodded.

Demon Hand Dao Ancestor...

She was a terrifying great demon who had once caused massive slaughter in the Frivolous Chaos World. Just hearing her name made countless strong beings in the Frivolous Chaos World tremble. Her power also lay in her hands, but unlike San Shou Daoist, Demon Hand Dao Ancestor's hands were powerful because she obtained a pair of glove chaos treasures in the chaos. Since then, she studied divine abilities and created the 'Great Extinction Demon Hand' technique. In escape, she might not match the Myriad Demon Lord, but in direct combat, she was no less. It was the 'Heart Demon Lord' who finally subdued this true demon among demons.

"This Ji Ning is really seeking death." The God King grew angrier the more he thought. Ji Ning killing fifteen Celestial Immortals and True Immortals had little effect on overall strength, but it affected his layout in the Three Realms. If he kept the current layout, Ji Ning's next ambush would succeed again.

But changing the layout would require altering the entire arrangement across all great worlds of the Three Realms, at too great a cost.

...

At that moment, Ji Ning was thanking Celestial Immortal Guoci.

"Fortunately, Daoist Guoci and everyone came; otherwise, I, Ji Ning, would have been in grave danger." Ji Ning had already dispersed the Punishment Heavenly God and moved the million immortals into the Star Picking Great World. Beside him stood only Hong Xue and the other seven Celestial Immortals and True Immortals.

"I am merely following the orders of Human Sovereign Suirenshi to save you. If you want to thank someone, thank the Human Sovereign." The female Celestial Immortal Guoci smiled and nodded at Ji Ning. Behind her, the ancient human Celestial Immortals and True Immortals also nodded at Ji Ning, all very kind to him. Because Ji Ning was also of human origin, and these strongmen who had risen when humanity was weak valued the human race even more.