Chapter 16: The Heart of Desolation

On the great ship.

Ji Ning and the others looked at the distant, enormous waves and the overwhelming ferocity they exuded... it weighed heavily on each of their hearts.

“These demons, once I refine the immortal mansion, I will enslave them all, enslave them all!” Shaoyan Nong stared at the distant demons, his face twisted with ferocity. Gritting his teeth, a strange mechanical device the size of a human head appeared in his hand, radiating powerful fluctuations.

Ji Ning and the others couldn't help but look at it.

“Heart of Desolation?” Mu Zishuo exclaimed.

Ji Ning and the others, including Cangjiang Zhenren, Jiulian, and Xue Hongyi, all looked puzzled, clearly unaware of what it was.

“You know of the Heart of Desolation?” Shaoyan Nong nodded. “Yes, this is the Heart of Desolation. It is of the immortal-grade.”

“But your puppet warship is only of the heaven-grade. If you use an immortal-grade Heart of Desolation on this puppet warship, the interior cannot withstand it. Even if the exterior appears intact, many of the internal formation diagrams will begin to collapse, and the warship will be ruined.” Mu Zishuo couldn't help but say.

“It can hold for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.” Shaoyan Nong said calmly, pressing the head-sized Heart of Desolation firmly into the deck.

Whoosh.

The deck split open, revealing a deep passage, and the Heart of Desolation was swallowed directly.

“At least for the time of one cup of tea, my warship can reach the ‘near-immortal’ level. It may not withstand an attack from a celestial immortal, but these demon soldiers cannot breach the ship.” Shaoyan Nong said in a low voice.

“What is the Heart of Desolation?”

“Junior apprentice-brother, what exactly is the Heart of Desolation?”

Ji Ning and the others were all puzzled and transmitted their questions to Mu Zishuo.

Mu Zishuo, highly skilled in the art of puppetry and familiar with the Heart of Desolation, transmitted back: “It's complicated to explain, but simply put... the Heart of Desolation is used on ‘immortal-grade’ puppet warships. It can temporarily boost the power of an immortal-grade puppet warship. Such an overload is something an immortal-grade warship can handle. But an immortal-grade puppet warship is far more expensive than an ordinary immortal-grade magic treasure. Even Young Master Shaoyan Nong probably doesn't possess such a warship.”

“So Shaoyan Nong is using the Heart of Desolation on his current warship. This ship is quite good, of the heaven-grade, and very valuable. But the Heart of Desolation's power is too strong; this heaven-grade puppet warship cannot withstand it. Even if the hull itself is indestructible like a magic treasure, the internal formation diagrams will collapse.” Mu Zishuo said.

Although Ji Ning and the others were laymen, they understood the importance of formation diagrams.

The formation diagrams of a puppet are its core operating system. It is because of the formation diagrams that a puppet can possess intelligence and execute powerful, precise techniques.

Once the formation diagrams collapse, the entire puppet is finished.

“One warship, one Heart of Desolation.” Shaoyan Nong growled. “We must enter that branch hall. We must enter!”

Ji Ning and the others exchanged glances, all feeling Shaoyan Nong's determination.

...

The warship rapidly approached.

Duohe the Immortal, leading over twenty thousand demon soldiers, watched coldly as the warship drew near.

“Kill.”

“Kill that Fiendgod, kill those humans.”

The demon soldiers were all impatient, but without Duohe the Immortal's command, none dared to act rashly.

Finally—

The warship, which had been moving calmly and steadily, suddenly erupted with dazzling golden light. Its aura surged dramatically, and a golden light shield formed over its surface. The ship became streamlined, like a long shuttle, and with a whoosh, it charged toward the towering waves at an astonishing speed.

Too fast! The sudden burst of speed, like lightning, caught the wave demon soldiers off guard.

“Kill!” Duohe the Immortal's voice, hoarse from restraint, instantly rang in every soldier's ear. All the demon soldiers mobilized their primal energies, activating their armor. The combined power of over twenty thousand demon soldiers made them act as one.

Duohe the Immortal was the ‘brain’ of the massive wave of demon soldiers, deciding how to attack, how to dodge—everything was up to him.

“Go.”

Duohe the Immortal growled.

A massive wave crashed down fiercely onto the lightning-fast warship.

“Boom!” The wave and the warship collided head-on.

The golden light shield on the warship only trembled slightly before stabilizing again, but the impact was so powerful that the warship was knocked backward.

“We can't force our way through.” Mu Zishuo shouted.

Inside the warship, Ji Ning and the others stood steady, their faces solemn as they watched the waves battering against them again and again.

“Uncle Fang, go.” Shaoyan Nong gritted his teeth.

"Mm." Xiangliu Fang responded in a low voice, and two long awls emitting a terrifying aura appeared in his hands. With a whoosh, they directly pierced through the golden light shield covering the warship. The light shield offered no resistance at all, allowing Xiangliu Fang to pass through.

"Demon race, get out of the way."

Transformed into a thousand-zhang-tall nine-headed human-bodied snake-tailed form, Xiangliu Fang roared and charged directly toward the towering waves, launching his attack.

The long awls, a thousand zhang in length, shot like thunderbolts and lightning, stabbing straight into the waves.

"You, a mere divine demon, think you can shake me?" The voice of Duohe Immortal boomed. The endless surging waves crashed wave after wave, striking the divine demon Xiangliu Fang.

Boom!

Boom!

His skin split open, blood scattered, and one of the long awls was sent flying. Xiangliu Fang tumbled backward. Although he had fought against Duohe Immortal and his demon soldiers before, that time Duohe Immortal had led only ten thousand demon soldiers. But now, Duohe Immortal had united many minor forces, forming over twenty thousand demon soldiers. Their power had increased severalfold, leaving Xiangliu Fang with little ability to resist.

"Come." Xiangliu Fang stretched out his hand, which turned into large snakes, and grabbed the flying long awl again. His wounds healed rapidly, and he charged fearlessly once more.

Boom. Boom. Boom.

The collision between the divine demon and the waves shook heaven and earth.

Although the divine demon Xiangliu Fang was at a complete disadvantage, he still helped to bear a large portion of the power of the 'Wave Demon Soldiers.' Meanwhile, the tiny boat, which seemed minuscule before the giant waves, took the opportunity to drill forward repeatedly.

"Damn it." Duohe Immortal grew anxious. Dealing with Xiangliu Fang left openings for the warship to exploit.

He didn't know why the warship was so powerful, with such strong impact that ordinary waves couldn't repel it.

"Zhenbao, you take command of my Duohe tribe." Duohe Immortal transmitted. "Split into two Wave Demon formations."

"Yes, Master."

Zhenbao was Duohe Immortal's most trusted disciple, second only to him. He had now reached the perfection of the Primordial Spirit stage and was very powerful.

"Split!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The towering waves in the sky instantly split apart into two. One part, led by Duohe Immortal himself and composed of mixed forces from various factions, went to block the divine demon Xiangliu. The other part, consisting of ten thousand demon soldiers led by 'Zhenbao Daoist,' went to intercept the warship.

...

Ji Ning and the others were inside the warship, watching the thousand-zhang divine demon battling the giant waves as the ship desperately charged into them.

"Haha, it can block Uncle Fang, but not me." Shaoyan Nong's eyes were wild with madness. "Keep charging. When we get close to the branch hall, I can enter."

Waves surged all around.

The warship continued to charge inward with unstoppable force.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, the towering waves split into two parts. One part completely blocked the divine demon Xiangliu Fang, suppressing him entirely. The other, slightly weaker part, began to obstruct the warship layer by layer.

The warship's advance immediately became difficult.

"Split?" Shaoyan Nong gritted his teeth. "Charge! Charge! Charge! Heart of Desolation, burn!"

Boom!!!

The surface of the warship blazed with light, its impact force becoming even fiercer. The ten thousand demon soldiers led by 'Zhenbao Daoist' could suppress loose immortals and earth immortals, but facing the warship now in its berserk state, they couldn't stop its advance. The ship pushed forward relentlessly.

"Stop it! Stop it, Zhenbao!" Duohe Immortal transmitted.

"Master, rest assured. Leave it to me!" Zhenbao Daoist went berserk as well.

The giant waves grew even more violent, suddenly tinged with a bloody glow. The warship pushed forward with insane desperation.

"Faster, faster, faster." Shaoyan Nong ground his teeth.

"Dangerous, too dangerous." Mu Zishuo's eyelids twitched as he transmitted to Ji Ning and the others. "Senior apprentice-brother, senior apprentice-sister, be careful. This Shaoyan Nong has gone completely mad. This Heaven-grade puppet warship can't take much more, and he's burning the Heart of Desolation to unleash its power in a short burst. The warship's formation diagram could collapse at any moment. If it does, the ship is finished, and we'll have to face the attack of these ten thousand demon soldiers directly."

Ji Ning, Yu Wei, Cangjiang Zhenren, and the others all tensed up.

"Charge! Charge! Charge!" Shaoyan Nong's face was flushed red, madness flickering in his eyes.

"Madman, a true madman." Xue Hongyi watched with a pounding heart. Outside the warship were the terrifying Wave Demon Soldiers. Their impact could tear the divine demon Xiangliu Fang's skin and make him spit blood. If the warship broke, the waves would hit them, likely crushing them to dust.

"Crack... crack, crack, crack..." Suddenly, the warship emitted sounds.

The warship's impact force began to drop, and the golden light shield on its surface flickered unsteadily, trembling.

"It's going to collapse! It's going to collapse!" Mu Zishuo shouted. "Young Master Shaoyan!!!"

Zhenbao Daoist, commanding the ten thousand demon soldiers, naturally noticed that the warship's impact force was weakening and its golden light shield was flickering. Overjoyed, he roared, "Destroy them! Kill them! Seize the key to the immortal mansion!" Immediately, an even more violent wave rose and slammed fiercely toward the warship.