Chapter 615: Preparing for Battle, Awaiting the Enemy

The Celestial Wind Sect made its move unexpectedly fast.

Li Tianyao's master brought with him four Heavenly Immortals from the North-River Sword Sect. Combined with the two already stationed at the Celestial Wind Sect, their total reached seven, shattering the balance between them and the Fengli Sect.

Still, though such a force was enough to heavily impact the situation across the thirteen qi planets, it was nowhere near strong enough to make the North-River Sword Sect bat an eye. Its decision makers didn't pay attention at all to a mere few of their own Heavenly Immortals' movements.

Seizing the advantage, the Celestial Wind Sect launched an all-out offensive against the Fengli Sect. Instead of bothering to contest marginal territories or ancient battlefield holdings, they headed straight to the Fengli Sect's main stronghold to force a decisive battle and crush them.

The Fengli Sect received the news in advance through its secretly planted spies. It urgently requested reinforcements from the Xinghai Sect several times a day while gathering all of its forces across its qi planets.

Several minor celestial sects also tried to threaten the Celestial Wind Sect's three planets, but with the sect master personally holding the main stronghold, chaos failed to engulf their rear. The grand army marching against the Fengli Sect showed no intention of retreat.

The Fengli Sect's storm clouds grew increasingly thicker as the massive force swiftly approached. The flaws behind its rapid expansion also started to appear. It had already lost all contact with many off-heritage Protectors, along with the female disciples who traveled with them.

At the Xinghai Sect's front palace, Yao Xingzi had already gathered his elders and Protectors.

They couldn't just abandon their allies now. After all, the Xinghai Sect still upheld the value of trust. However, just before they were about to depart, several Celestial Wind Sect disciples arrived at the Xinghai Sect's mountain gate, handed over a letter, and hurried away. The elders quickly read and passed it around.

The letter urged the Xinghai Sect not to wade into these troubled waters or continue associating with the Fengli Sect. Moreover, it claimed that the Celestial Wind Sect would not target the Xinghai Sect after it destroyed its sole enemy.

Naturally, this was pure deception.

Once the Fengli Sect fell, the Celestial Wind Sect would expand without restraint, unifying the thirteen qi planets' immortal forces and turning the ancient battlefield into their private domain. They would then exploit countless unaffiliated practitioners to embark on a path of total rise.

Once one of their members became a Golden Immortal, they would finally possess the qualifications to become a true great sect.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Wang Sheng had already escorted Mu Wanxuan back to Xinghai City. Due to the fierce momentum of the Celestial Wind Sect's advance, Huai Jing and his group feared that their location had been exposed. Remaining extremely cautious, they moved to a different hideout again.

Mu Wanxuan herself had proposed the idea to seek out Huai Jing and the others. Though she naturally wished to march out alongside Wang Sheng, she had not attained immortality yet. Even if she went all out, she would only drag him down, forcing him to fight with one hand tied behind his back.

She didn't hesitate, cling, or offer words of encouragement. On the contrary, she simply handed Wang Sheng a communication talisman and then hid with the other cultivators from Earth.

This battle would determine the thirteen qi planets' future distribution of power and also shape the road ahead for Earth's cultivators. Well aware of its importance, Wang Sheng discussed plans with Yao Xingzi, Lishang, and the others more than ten times before finally settling on the support strategy.

The Xinghai Sect could not commit all its strength at once. After all, it still had to defend itself from the possibility of the Celestial Wind Sect simply feigning an assault on the Fengli Sect to wipe out the still-developing Xinghai Sect.

Wang Sheng would lead the first wave of reinforcements, which was composed of twelve elders at the middle to late stage of the True Immortal Realm, thirty-two Protectors, and six hundred disciples and celestial soldiers. Compared to the Celestial Wind Sect's grand army, they truly seemed like a drop in the ocean.

Their primary task was to secure the teleportation array. Once it was confirmed that the Celestial Wind Sect's experts had reached the Fengli Sect's territory, the second wave of reinforcements would immediately pass through the array. It would consist of nearly all of the Xinghai Sect's elite forces, with Lishang leading them.

Lishang had wanted to go first, but Wang Sheng found it too risky. It would be far more effective to use her as a trump card that could turn the tide at a critical moment.

Moreover, Wang Sheng was brimming with confidence.

He had the Dragon Sword on his back, Spiritless in his hand, and their sword spirits aiding him through the unity of man and sword. Right now, he was as strong as an early-stage Heavenly Immortal.

With the gap in cultivation gone, Wang Sheng had nothing to fear, especially not in large-scale combat. After all, he had the Ziwei Heavenly Sword.

He didn't have to hold back anymore. Even if it meant allowing his "nameless sword immortal" and "Sword Heart Pi Kachew" identities to overlap, it would still be ideal to seize the opportunity to severely weaken the Celestial Wind Sect.

As the departure time drew near, Yao Xingzi summoned Wang Sheng forward, giving him careful instructions on matters requiring attention. He then divined the fate of Wang Sheng's group in front of all his sect's immortals.

"Though you'll face danger, I see no sign of catastrophe. Act with great caution."

Wang Sheng smiled as intense battle intent flickered in his eyes. "Don't worry, Sect Master."

With his two spiritual swords, he turned and walked toward the teleportation array before the palace. The immortals in his regiment followed right behind.

He had only taken a few steps when Lishang said, "Wait."

Her tail swayed lightly as she slithered to Wang Sheng's side. She handed him a square plate.

"Elder Pi, place a drop of life essence on this."

Wang Sheng felt somewhat puzzled, but the solemn look on Lishang's face stopped him from hesitating. He touched his chest with his left fingertip, drew forth a drop of life essence, and let it fall onto the center of the plate. The item instantly blossomed into a stream of earthy yellow light and swiftly flowed into his chest.

The plate then crumbled into a handful of fine sand and drifted away.

Meanwhile, Wang Sheng felt as if a soft quilt had been wrapped around his Primordial Spirit. A gentle warmth spread outward from it and flowed through his entire body, leaving him thoroughly relaxed. His pores even seemingly opened a little.

The immortals around them all smiled faintly. Though none of them knew what Lishang had given Wang Sheng, what they had witnessed still exuded a rare sense of warmth.

Wang Sheng cupped his hands. "I'll be going now."

Lishang's gaze softened slightly. She nodded gently and watched him lead his regiment toward the teleportation array.

Before entering it, Wang Sheng took out and wore the Eastern Kang Star Deity's armor. Since it had traces of its appearance back in the blood mine, the Celestial Wind Sect could easily confirm his identity if they so much as gave him a closer inspection.

Wang Sheng no longer cared whether the North-River Sword Sect still harbored intense interest in his Heavenly Dao of the Sword. After all, he didn't expect such a powerful enemy to spare his life in a head-on battle.

Standing at the palace's entrance, Linyuan shouted, "Activate the array!"

Around the circular array, which spanned more than ten meters in diameter, over a dozen disciples simultaneously planted their command banners into the ground. They formed complex hand signs as layers of dense array patterns lit up one after another inside the circle. Streams of spiritual power then surged upward from beneath the great palace, pouring into the teleportation array.

Right after, the space in the center of the array seemingly tore open and revealed a doorway. Two elders and several dozen immortals of the Xinghai Sect could already be seen waiting on the other side of it.

Wang Sheng did not dare delay. After all, maintaining the array for even an instant longer would consume a considerable number of Spirit Stones.

He strode forward and leaped straight in. The twelve elders behind him followed closely, while the remaining hundreds transformed into streaks of flowing light and rapidly passed through the doorway.

When they emerged, they found themselves inside the Fengli Sect's mountain gate.

Wang Sheng gazed up. The array was positioned at the peak of a mountain, with other summits surrounding it like bamboo shoots after rain. A pillar of light crowned each of the dozens of mountains within a two-hundred-li radius. Above, the beams converged and formed a massive dome that enveloped the region.

The grand defensive arrays of celestial sects naturally differed from each other.

Considering the Fengli Sect's array mobilized nearly all of the spiritual power coming from the planetary vein, forcibly breaching it would be no different from trying to hit the planet itself. The array alone made it clear that this place was the sect's final line of defense.

Wang Sheng extended his immortal perception, sensing tens of thousands of immortals on the peaks. There were many Primordial Immortal, countless True Immortal, and no fewer than eight Heavenly Immortal auras.

The Fengli Sect clearly didn't rely solely on the Xinghai Sect for support. They had also requested the assistance of other Heavenly Immortals. Even so, their strongest combatants still faced a precarious situation.

Most of the Celestial Wind Sect's Heavenly Immortals had firm foundations and had been at that cultivation realm long ago. In contrast, the Fengli Sect's Heavenly Immortals had only reached the same realm in the past ten thousand years. They were naturally far behind in cultivation.

At that moment, Wang Sheng remembered the true form of the Fengli Sect's sect master. It made him feel as though the most unfortunate major force in all of the thirteen qi planets was not the Fengli Sect or the Xinghai Sect, but the Celestial Wind Sect.

The Celestial Wind Sect sought to eradicate the Xinghai Sect, the vice sect master of which was a descendant of Nuwa. Now that she was a Heavenly Immortal, her innate divine ability rendered her nearly invincible, turning her into a serious threat.

Earth's cultivators, whom Wang Sheng represented, also supported the Xinghai Sect. If the Celestial Wind Sect truly drove him into a corner, he could simply take the jade disk that his forefather had bestowed upon him and invite a Heavenly Court expert. They didn't even have to be particularly famous; eradicating the Celestial Wind Sect would still hardly be difficult.

Meanwhile, the Fengli Sect's sect master was essentially a "product of Daoist arts." Though they were yet to show themselves, whoever made her was an undoubtedly powerful and terrifying being.

Currently, they could very well be gazing upon the thirteen qi planets through the eyes of the Fengli Sect's sect master. If the Celestial Wind Sect proved too irritating, snapping their fingers and wiping them out would not be out of the question.

Wang Sheng shook his head and smiled wryly.

That's how it is, huh? Having a privileged origin is so much better than a lifetime's worth of hard work. That's true back home, in Earth's cultivation world, across the Three Realms, and throughout the endless space. Even when the world changes, I suppose human nature remains the same.

"Elder Pi!"

Several calls came from ahead. Wang Sheng stopped surveying the area and stepped forward, standing at the Xinghai immortals' forefront.

An elderly woman waited there with two True Immortal Realm maidens. They bowed at him, and Wang Sheng returned the gesture.

"Will you all be waiting here?" the old woman asked. "When will Vice Sect Master Lishang arrive?"

Wang Sheng calmly replied, "Once the Celestial Wind Sect's experts arrive, the vice sect master will come immediately."

The old woman visibly relaxed. What the Fengli Sect truly desired was Lishang's support.

She smiled gently. "Do you need anything? I have already ordered wine and dishes to be prepared. Since the enemy's still at least half a month away, why not move to the neighboring peak for a banquet for now?"

Wang Sheng shook his head. "Thank you, but we'll have to decline. We have to stay here at all times. After all, we came to support the Fengli Sect, not for a feast. Let's save the banquet for later instead, to celebrate our victory."

A glimmer of approval flickered in the old woman's eyes. "Well said!"

After stating that she would remain nearby, she led several disciples to a quiet courtyard not far away and sat down.

At least another half a month? Should I take this chance to probe the paper figure?

After pondering for a moment, Wang Sheng dismissed the thought. Maintaining distance and avoiding contact was still the wiser choice.

He raised his left hand. "Everyone, rest up and recover."

His regiment responded affirmatively in unison. Looking at the young sword cultivator, who was clad in armor and had a sword strapped to his back, eliminated even the slightest trace of unease in their hearts.