Chapter 14 The Struggle for Fortunes (Part 1)

The vast armies of immortals and demons from both sides charged at each other! Like two torrents colliding, those skilled in close combat rushed forward to fight, while some ancient formations cast large-scale spells from afar, blotting out the sky and shattering the void time and again.

Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan solemnly and carefully deployed his forces.

Buddha Tathagata, the Three Pure Ones, Suirenshi, Shennongshi, Fuxishi, Ji Ning, Houyi, and the gray-robed hunched figure watched the battle while also keeping an eye on the movements of the powerful beings from the Frivolous Gate, ready to prevent any sudden attacks from them!

For the struggle for fortunes had already begun, and the powerful beings of the Frivolous Gate might launch the final decisive battle at any moment.

"We currently hold the advantage," said the Three Pure Ones coldly. "We won't rush into a final battle, but the Frivolous Gate is different... They are slightly at a disadvantage now. Once they see no hope of victory, they will act. Suirenshi, Ji Ning, you two are the fastest; at the critical moment, you must prevent the Frivolous Gate from launching a sneak attack."

"Mm." Suirenshi nodded.

"Alright." Ji Ning also nodded.

Both of them possessed the Nine-Angle Lightning Serpent Escape Art; even if the Frivolous Gate made a move, they could react after the fact and arrive before them.

"Casualties are starting to appear on our side," said Tathagata softly.

"Casualties are unavoidable." Suirenshi's eyes blazed with divine light, his battle intent soaring. He said in a low voice, "Sometimes, victory must be forged with blood." In the past, humanity rose from obscurity under Suirenshi's leadership, and countless blood and bones had built the glory of humanity today.

Ji Ning watched silently.

"Senior apprentice-brother Slovenly." Ji Ning suddenly spotted an unremarkable slovenly Daoist within a distant 'Nuwa's Mending Heaven Formation'—it was his senior apprentice-brother from the Black-White College.

"I didn't expect he had become a Pure Yang True Immortal," Ji Ning sighed inwardly. "If he hadn't broken through to become a True Immortal, he might have avoided this battle."

The disciples or relatives of the powerful beings.

If their strength was not great, merely at the Celestial Immortal level, they generally did not have to participate in the war. For example, Ji Ning's daughter 'Mingyue' and Patriarch Redwood's disciple 'Mu Chuan' were at the Celestial Immortal level; their participation would be meaningless. Regardless, the Nuwa camp had to preserve some sparks for themselves, so these geniuses did not need to fight. As for those like Qiuye and Qingya Xiaoyu, who were not even Celestial Immortals, they were even less required to participate.

But if one reached the level of a Heavenly God or True Immortal, it was different. Figures like Senior Apprentice-Brother Slovenly and Bodhisattva Dongji were also considered geniuses, but they had to fight.

Unless a highly influential powerful being in the Nuwa camp insisted on protecting them—for instance, the Three Pure Ones, Tathagata, Suirenshi, Ji Ning, and those of their level... If they insisted on protecting a certain Heavenly God or True Immortal, say if Ji Ning's daughter became a Pure Yang True Immortal and Ji Ning didn't want her to take risks, the Nuwa camp would fully accommodate Ji Ning's selfishness.

But even among the powerful, few did this, and even if they did, they would protect at most one or two of their own relatives.

As for Patriarch Bodhi... he did not protect a single one of his disciples; all of them went to the battlefield!

"The dazzling geniuses of yesteryear are now just insignificant pawns on the battlefield." Ji Ning felt the powerlessness of an individual in the vast war. Even ordinary True Gods and Patriarchs were helpless in the face of this struggle for fortunes.

For some of the large-scale formations on both sides could unleash attacks that surpassed ordinary True Gods and Patriarchs, approaching the level of top-tier Patriarchs.

...

The first clash of the two armies lasted half an hour before they ceased fighting and withdrew. Such intense combat consumed a great deal of magical power and divine power. Since nearly all the immortals and demons of the Three Realms were participating... neither the Nuwa camp nor the Frivolous Gate could supply a vast amount of immortal pills, so the battle had to be fought over many rounds.

Each round, both sides were cautious, trying to tear a piece of flesh from the other, diligently seeking the opponent's weaknesses.

On the first day of war, the Nuwa camp lost 612 Heavenly Gods and True Immortals, over 3.2 million Celestial Immortals, and countless ordinary loose immortals and gods... The Frivolous Gate lost 122 Heavenly Gods and True Immortals, over 1.89 million Celestial Immortals, and countless ordinary loose immortals and gods...

On the sixth day of battle, the total number of Heavenly Gods and True Immortals lost in the Nuwa camp rose to 925, the number of Celestial Immortals lost rose to over 5.62 million, and loose immortals and gods were countless... The Frivolous Gate's total Heavenly God and True Immortal deaths reached 531, while Celestial Immortals numbered over 7.55 million, and loose immortals and gods were countless...

On the nineteenth day of war...

On the twenty-sixth day of war...

Both sides carefully probed each other's weaknesses, each engagement cautious, with relatively light casualties, considering that nearly all the immortals and demons of the Three Realms were participating.

On the sixty-ninth day of war, the engagement became noticeably more violent and intense. The number of Heavenly Gods and True Immortals who died that day exceeded the total of all previous days combined, because both the Frivolous Gate and the Nuwa camp revealed their secretly cultivated insect beasts one after the other. The insect beast armies, with overwhelming momentum, immediately upset the balance of the battle, leading to large-scale slaughter.

"Retreat." Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan began to give orders.

Both the Nuwa camp and the Frivolous Gate began to withdraw. The atmosphere on the field became much more brutal. Countless immortals and demons had madness in their eyes; these beings who had cultivated to become immortals and demons understood there was no retreat, and each was determined to kill the other at all costs.

"Their insect beasts are even more numerous than ours," Fuxishi frowned.

"They obtained the puppet techniques from the Lord of All Things; it's not surprising they also obtained the insect beast cultivation methods," said the Three Pure Ones coldly. "Although their insect beasts are slightly more numerous, everything is still under control."

"Evergreen Sword Immortal..." Ji Ning shook his head.

That traitor Evergreen, Ji Ning had always wanted to slay him.

But unexpectedly, in the previous battle, due to the sudden addition of large-scale insect beasts from both sides, the balance was broken. Evergreen Sword Immortal faced a perilous situation and actually broke through! The Heavenly Dao responded, and he comprehended a Heavenly Dao. Evergreen Sword Immortal immediately swallowed a Grand Rejuvenation Pill to quickly advance to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal (Patriarch) level. As soon as he broke through, he became the focus of a frenzied attack from the Nuwa camp. Surrounded and attacked... Evergreen Sword Immortal died even faster!

Having become a Patriarch for only a few breaths, Evergreen Sword Immortal was besieged by over a dozen formations and killed on the spot!

In a war where nearly all the immortals and demons of the Three Realms were gathered, whoever shone brightest and attracted the most 'firepower' would be close to death unless they had near-leader-level strength.

"Too many died in this battle," Shennongshi sighed softly.

"There's no other way." Suirenshi suppressed his heartache.

Ji Ning also felt pain in his heart.

That previous battle was the most brutal in the struggle for fortunes so far, causing the total number of Heavenly Gods and True Immortals lost in the Nuwa camp to rise to over 8,600! The number of Celestial Immortals was even greater, exceeding 100 million! Loose immortals and gods were not worth mentioning... The Frivolous Gate also fared poorly. Although they had many puppets to assist, they were at a slight disadvantage. The total number of Heavenly Gods and True Immortals who died reached over 6,900, Celestial Immortals over 92 million, and loose immortals and gods were likewise countless...

These seemingly ordinary numbers of deaths represented countless lives of immortals and demons!

Because too many had died in this battle...

Many of Ji Ning's close friends had perished in it.

"Brother Feiyou, Xiuke..." Ji Ning sighed inwardly. Among the Heavenly Gods he had rescued back then, more than ten had died in that very battle, including Feiyou Heavenly God and Xiuke Heavenly God, who had been on good terms with him.

"Dongji."

Ji Ning sighed again.

That former frivolous prince Dongji, after shedding his impetuousness, had shown remarkable talent, advancing rapidly in Buddhism. Even Buddha Tathagata took notice of him, and this time Bodhisattva Dongji commanded a formation alone... But in that previous battle, this brilliant Bodhisattva Dongji also perished, his soul extinguished.

If Bodhisattva Dongji had been given enough time, perhaps Buddhism would have gained another Buddha.

Such is fate.

No matter how brilliant one's talent, how monstrous one's gifts... without enough time to grow, one still could not be considered a strong figure. In such a vast war, death was like a splash of a wave, followed by silence, leaving no trace.

Even Buddha Tathagata had no time to grieve, for too many had died. Every powerful being had some familiar or highly regarded disciples who perished... Almost all Heavenly Gods and True Immortals had taken powerful beings as their teachers.