Desolate Era

by RWX

  “Good heavens.” Ning crawled painfully to his feet. The wounds on his body rapidly healed, leaving behind not even a scar.

  “Those Zifu Disciples seemed to have gone berserk. They applied all of those extremely powerful Dao-seals and threw them at me! That fiery phoenix in particular…it even chased after me, and it was also very powerful. It blew a large hole into my chest. I wonder what sort of a Dao-seal that was?” Ning cracked a smile, feeling very confident. “Still, I killed two of them. For me to be able to kill two out of eight of them…only six are left! I’ll keep killing.”

  “Ji Ning!” A voice suddenly rang out.

  “Patriarch.” Ning was startled.

  “Well done, my good fellow! Ji Ning, hahaha, you truly are formidable. You killed two of them at one go. Now only six are remaining. However, don’t be too impatient. Wait for me to finish talking, then attack.” Ninefire sent hurriedly. “Dong Ziqi and the others are terrified by the way you killed them, and so they have set up layers of techniques and are staying on guard. Let me describe these techniques to you. After listening, you can make your decision.”

  * * *

  Book 6, Chapter 14 - Crushed

  Ji Ninefire sent, “We are already familiar with Dong Ziqi and Muse, out of those six. Those two have already set up the Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation and those growing green vines! The hawk-nosed cultivator used a formation to protect the surrounding area! The black-clothed female cultivator released a large amount of venomous bugs. The gray-robed cultivator is holding a large banner which has released a large amount of monster wraiths.”

  “Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation? Green vines? Formation? Venomous pests? Banner? That’s only five; the sixth cultivator?” Ji Ning asked softly.

  “The sixth cultivator hasn’t done anything for now.” Ninefire sent. “I’ve told you everything now. You should consider how you will attack. Remember, don’t let yourself fall into any danger.”

  “Don’t worry, Patriarch.” Ning laughed.

  And then, Ning began to ponder.

  Prior to this, although he killed two Zifu Disciples in his surprise attack, he hadn’t acquired any magic treasures, because as soon as he had charged over, he had been blasted backwards. The items of those two Zifu Disciples were still in the hands of Dong Ziqi’s group.

  “Five types of techniques?”

  “Hmph!” Ning’s eyes had a cold light flash through them. “No matter how they struggle, they will die!”

  Suddenly…

  “Senior apprentice-brother Jadechild, senior apprentice-brother Zidao.” A voice suddenly called out. “We just suffered the attack from the dragon’s tail of the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation! The genius of the Ji clan, Ji Ning, is in command of the dragon’s tail. The power of it is tremendous. He killed two of our fellow apprentices! All we can do for now is stay on guard. Senior apprentice-brothers Jadechild and Zidao, remember, beware the rain…beware the rain!”

  “The six of you need to be careful as well. Delay as long as you can.” A voice rang out from the other side.

  Hearing the distant shouts, Ning frowned slightly. “I have to eliminate those six as soon as possible.”

  Nong Zidao was very formidable!

  He was even able to recognize at one glance that this was the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation. Although Ning was very confident in the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation, he still worried that if they were permitted to slowly analyze it, they might truly be able to break through the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation! If the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation was destroyed, then the Ji clan’s members would, one by one, have their formations broken, and Snowdragon Mountain would easily annihilate the Ji clan’s side.

  “Kill.” Ning, riding on that enormous draconic tail, once more charged towards those six.

  …..

  Venomous pests were flying around the outer perimeter.

  A hazy pyramid of light stood on guard, and atop it was coiled a large number of green vines.

  The pyramid of light had eight blood dragons swimming about within it. It also had various enormous phantasmal birds and beasts moving about, each one of them filled with murderous auras.

  “If we just defend, no matter how powerful they are, they will find it hard to break through.” The black-clothed female cultivator said in her cold voice.

  “Right.” Dong Ziqi nodded.

  These defensive measures were different in nature; they each compensated for the weaknesses of the others. They could be described as an impenetrable wall.

  “Even though he is a Fiendgod Body Refiner, and even though his swordplay might be formidable, he can forget about entering.” The gray-robed elder clutched that large banner and spoke in an icy voice.

  Rustle…

  Thin, sparse droplets of rain began to fall. The rain was as fine as silk, gentle and breezing. Drizzling rain and fog…these two were beautiful things, but the rain that fell in the midst of this black fog made the faces of Dong Ziqi, Muse, the gray-robed elder, the black-robed woman, the hawk-nosed man, and the skinny man change. They grew nervous.

  “He’s coming.”

  “The rain came.” Dong Ziqi’s group of six held their breaths.

  Prior to this, when the rainwater fell, two of their comrades were silently ambushed and slaughtered.

  “Chopchopchopchop…” The large number of venomous pests that had been swirling around the outside were suddenly chopped apart by the rainwater, one after another. The silk-like rain…every single strand of rain was as sharp as a knife. Countless lines of rain flew about, wildly chopping apart these pests. Rainwater was everywhere. Although there were many venomous pests, because they were outside the perimeter, many of them were instantly slaughtered.

  Every single line of rain contained a hint of the power of the Dao!

  Waterflame Lotus; this technique was developed based on control over natural fire and water, which Ning gained through his comprehension of the Dao.

  These lines of rain were also formed from natural water. Given Ning’s comprehension of the Dao, their killing power approached that of the Waterflame Lotus now! To use them to break through the formation and kill these Zifu Disciples wasn’t practical, but to kill the venomous pests was simplicity itself. The venomous pests swarmed about in dense clusters; naturally, each of them were individually weak. When Ning had battled against Bei Zishan in the past, he was able to effortlessly crush and kill many venomous pests with his Waterflame Lotus. Ning’s insights into the Dao were now far greater than they had been in the past.

  “Rustle…” The rain continued to fall.

  “Chirpchirpchirp…” The flourishing swarm of venomous pests let out agonized cries, but then they were annihilated. The outer perimeter, which had been guarded by those dense clusters of venomous pests, had now become very clear. All of the venomous pests had been annihilated.

  The black-robed female cultivator’s face was ashen. She said frantically, “Why didn’t you let my bugs return?” Prior to this, when her bugs suffered the initial attacks, she had immediately wanted to control her bugs to make them fly back and hide within the pyramid of white light.

  “The pyramid formation has been set up. How can we possibly disperse it for the sake of your venomous pests?” The hawk-nosed cultivator shouted. “The rainwater has already descended. Ji Ning can appear at any moment! How can I disperse the pyramid? And even if I did disperse it, only a small portion of your venomous bugs would be saved. Since that was the case, it was best not to disperse it.”

  The black-robed female gritted her teeth in rage.

  “Junior apprentice-sister Lu, don’t be angry. It is true that the pyramid cannot be dispersed.”

  “The power of this rain is too formidable. Every single line of rain actually has the power to attack.”

  “Can it be that this is some sort of rainwater technique? Generally speaking, water-based techniques are used for defense. This sort of rain which descends from the heavens…rain which is com
pletely formed from nature…how can it be used in a technique?!” They were stunned at the power of the rainwater. Those venomous pests were able to bite through a Zifu Disciple’s protective armor, after all. Although they were individually weak, to kill them wasn’t that easy either.

  “Can it be a Dao Domain?” The gray-robed elder suddenly said slowly.

  “Dao Domain?”

  “Rainwater Domain?”

  The other cultivators all called out in shock.

  “How can that be possible? Impossible. Ji Ning is only sixteen! He’s merely a Zifu Disciple. How can he have developed a Dao Domain? Many Wanxiang Adepts are unable to do this.”

  “Impossible!”

  These Zifu Disciples didn’t dare believe it.

  Right at this moment…

  The black fog in the distance began to grow sparse. An enormous draconic tail slowly began to move, and right in the middle of it was a fur-clad youth. The fur-clad youth was surrounded by more than seven hundred flying swords. Smiling slightly, he walked forward, step by step, towards them.

  “Ji Ning.”

  “It is Ji Ning.” Dong Ziqi and the rest of the six stared at the fur-clad youth. At the same time, they felt astonished that Ji Ning dared come walk over openly.

  Dong Ziqi shouted, “Ji Ning, ambushing us is one thing, but you come openly…you are seeking death.”

  Ning slowly strolled forward. Suddenly, beneath his feet, a lotus flower appeared. A beautiful, enormous Waterflame Lotus suddenly bloomed, making Ning appear to be the seed within the lotus…the Waterflame Lotus petals swiveled around him, and around the petals were the seven hundred-plus flying swords. Beyond even them was the enormous shadow of a draconic tail. And beyond the tail…was the boundless rainwater.

  In this moment, Ning seemed to have become the center of the universe.

  Even Dong Ziqi and the others felt as though their souls had been stirred.

  “Junior apprentice-brother Muse, stop him.” Dong Ziqi shouted.

  “Leave it to me.” Muse’s normally cold face was filled with a murderous aura. Instantly, many of the thick, sturdy vines began to wildly coil about and fly towards Ning. These vines weren’t the vines that Ning had encountered when he had fought against Muse the first time. Those vines had been suddenly grown, but the vines that Muse was now using against him had been growing for quite some time; they had already reached an astonishing degree of toughness.

  Ning continued to smile.

  “Rustle…” The enormous Waterflame Lotus swiveled about him. After gaining insight into the Dao Domain level, the power of Ning’s Waterflame Lotus had risen yet again.

  Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Countless lines of rain seemed to chop down like countless blades, wildly chopping at the vines. Countless thin vines were shattered and minced into peaces, leaving behind only the thick main vines, which had many wounds atop them. But upon touching the Waterflame Lotus, they were instantly ground apart.

  “Rustle…”

  One lotus flower after another bloomed, with Ning at the center. The lotus flowers continuously bloomed freely, and even the leaves of the lotus flowers continuously expanded.

  The swiveling, crushing power continued unabated.

  Those vines weren’t able to draw close to Ning at all.

  “Break.” Ning looked at the white pyramid of light, then spoke in a soft voice.

  Roar…

  A faint draconic roar rang out. The enormous draconic tail suddenly swept forward, smashing viciously against the white pyramid of light. The draconic scales on the draconic tail were all clearly visible, and the power of the tail was astonishing. With an exploding sound, it smashed against the white pyramid of light, crushing it and shattering it. As soon as it did, the rainwater instantly fell down upon and uprooted the three formation flags.

  Ning had already effortlessly broken through the third layer of the five layers of defenses they had set up.

  “Go. Devour his soul.” The gray-robed elder waved the banner in his hands. This banner wasn’t like Bei Zishan’s, which had been created through refining countless mortal souls into dread wraiths. He used the souls of powerful monstrous beasts, and so comparatively speaking, the amount of sin he had accumulated was much smaller. The power of this banner, although inferior to a dread Myriad Wraiths Banner, was still much more powerful than Bei Zishan’s half-complete banner.

  These monster wraiths emitted soundless shrieks as they charged towards Ning, completely ignoring the rainwater and the blocking Waterflame Lotus flowers, instantly invading Ning’s body.

  Ning continued to smile.

  Within his consciousness, an image of Lady Nuwa emitted boundless light. When the light touched those monster wraiths, smiling looks of relief appeared on the faces of the formerly incomparably savage wraiths. They all bowed towards Ning and towards the divine image of Lady Nuwa, expressing their gratitude, and then disappeared, returning to the cycle of reincarnation.

  …….

  “What?!” The gray-robed elder watched as the colors of his banner began to grow dim and dull. His face instantly changed. “The monster wraiths were all killed?”

  The others, including Dong Ziqi, had been eagerly looking at the gray-robed elder. Hearing this, though, their hearts turned cold.

  Ning strolled forward.

  The Waterflame Lotus continued to swivel…the rainwater continued to fall…

  “You can die now.” In front of Ning, a sword light suddenly formed. When it flew out, it merged into the rainwater and vanished. And then, yet another sword light appeared. Ning was releasing one blast of sword light after another, without stopping.

  Bang!

  How powerful was Ning’s sword light now? A single sword light was enough to pierce through the eight blood dragons and annihilate them all. As for the others, such as the gray-robed elder and the hawk-nosed man, they all began to howl savagely. They saw that their death had come. They all took our their Dao-seals or unleashed their magic treasures, preparing to go all out.

  “Bang…” “Boom…”

  The rainwater that swirled around them seemed like an crushing wall of copper or a rampart of steel. The Waterflame Lotuses continued to expand in layers as it attacked them.

  Ning had used everything available to him, and he completely crushed these six Zifu Disciples.

  “Bang!” Accompanying a miserable, unwilling screech, Muse’s head was the first to go flying. Ning had, at one go, unleashed nine blasts of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] sword light, transforming them all into rainwater and merging them into the boundless rain of the surrounding region. He began to easily kill them, one by one.

  * * *

  Book 6, Chapter 15 - Spare No One

  “Junior apprentice-brother Muse!” Dong Ziqi and the others, upon seeing Muse’s head go flying, all turned cold. Prior to this, two of their group of eight Zifu Disciples had been killed despite being in formation by Ji Ning. And now, their six-man formation…Ning had shattered their layered protections, and for him to kill them now was indeed quite easy.

  “Kill.”

  “Go all out against him.”

  The hawk-nosed man, the gray-robed elder, the black-robed female cultivator…they all seemed to have gone mad. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to flee; trapped within the grand formation of the Ji clan, where could they flee to? Only by staying here did they have a chance to live.

  “If you struggle, you’ll just die tired.” Ning walked forward, and the formerly savage, wildly coiling thick vines seemed to rapidly transform into nothingness.

  Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

  The rain dropped down like lines of silk. Within the rain, there were strands of [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] sword light that had transformed into incomparably sharp ‘rain’.

  “Ahhh!” Although her body had been protected by that golden light, the black-robed woman’s eyes suddenly widened as a sword light chopped straight through her neck, sending her
beautiful head flying.

  Yet another one had died!

  “Go die.” The Dao-seal in the hands of the gray-robed elder suddenly transformed into an enormous fiery phoenix which once more spread its wings and flew towards Ning. But a curtain of water formed from the rainwater around Ning blocked the advance of the fiery phoenix. Bang!!! An violent explosion blasted apart the watery curtain, and even Ning’s Waterflame Lotus trembled.

  Ning himself, however, continued to walk forward.

  “Die.” Ning stared at the gray-robed elder, whose face changed. He swung the banner in his hands backwards, because yet another strand of rain was striking towards him.

  Slash!

  A different strand of rain whipped past the gray-robed elder’s forehead, piercing straight through his head. His eyes were filled with a look of terror, shock, and rage…and then, he collapsed.

  “I simultaneously attacked you with two strands of sword light. Did you think you wouldn’t die?” With a thought, Ning then controlled the strands of sword light to strike towards the others.

  “Junior apprentice-sister Lu, senior apprentice-brother An, junior apprentice-brother Muse.”

  “Junior apprentice-sister Lu!”

  The remaining three, the hawk-nosed disciple, Dong Ziqi, and the skinny man, all had ashen looks on their faces. The six of them had lost three of their number in a flash! The power of those rain lines formed from sword light was simply too great, especially with the support of the formation and the Sword Domain. These were attacks of the Wanxiang Adept level. For them to face these attacks by themselves was impossible.

  “Ji Ning! You will definitely die!” Dong Ziqi had gone berserk. He stared at Ji Ning. “You killed the disciples of Snowdragon Mountain. Snowdragon Mountain will not let things end here!”

  “You will definitely die.”

  “Snowdragon Mountain has many more disciples. We will definitely eradicate your Ji clan.”

  The three of them had all gone berserk.

  Slash!

  Slash!