Chapter 154
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Chapter 154: Battlefield of the Heavens
As dawn approached, the faint light of morning began to spread, and a thunderous roar, carrying the force of a thousand thunders, echoed mightily through the silent expanse of the universe.
A golden curtain of light stretched across the five regions, spanning thousands of miles, visible to all living beings on the Tianwu Continent, extending throughout its entirety.
This luminous veil was draped among the sparkling starlight, and at its heart were two striking black characters, resembling splashes of ink, embodying the spirit of sword cultivators, and standing as steadfast as towering mountains.
The sound stirred all beings in the world to wakefulness.
Ming He.
These two words had only just reached their ears the day before, amidst the clamor of a bustling crowd, carrying the title of the young leader of the human race, embedding themselves deeply in their hearts.
Today, they once again roused the world.
Even ordinary mortals, who had never ventured into the path of cultivation, now understood that their young leader of the human race was set to ascend to the battlefield of the heavens, prepared to fight with all her strength to protect the Tianwu Continent, risking her very life.
They stepped out of their homes, lifted their heads to the sky, and faintly discerned a blue figure standing atop the highest peak of Tianwu Peak, stepping forward into another realm, accompanied by light and shadow.
Indeed, it was another realm.
Ming He traversed the void for a considerable time before she beheld a sky of blood-red, starkly different from the pristine blue of the Tianwu Continent. Here, only hues of blood and darkness, akin to spilled ink, filled the space.
The sun, moon, and stars were absent from this realm.
Even from a great distance, she could sense the tangible scent of blood enveloping her, silently and gradually eroding her spiritual energy, which was then quelled by the pure, natural power of those at the Human King stage.
Ming He finally halted, her gaze narrowing as she surveyed the fragmented battlefield below.
The battlefield of the heavens was a realm distinct from the Tianwu Continent.
It stood as a barrier between the Tianwu Continent and the myriad worlds, serving as a defensive line.
The Myriad Races, aiming to sweep across the Tianwu Continent, first needed to secure the battlefield of the heavens.
At this moment, she stood in the rear void of the battlefield, poised to move to the forefront.
Ming He redirected her gaze and continued her journey, stepping over the undulating void, moving with the swiftness of wind towards a stone staircase that linked the void to the battlefield of the heavens. As she descended, she noticed a ghostly gate formed by a blood-colored shadow, barely visible amidst the darkness.
This was the entrance to the battlefield of the heavens.
It was also the exit.
The sole portal located in the western part of the battlefield of the heavens.
Ming He crossed the black threshold and encountered a practitioner clad in black heavy armor, his presence sharp and his demeanor respectful, evidently awaiting her arrival.
This was not a privilege exclusive to the young leader but a rite of passage for every new practitioner arriving at the battlefield of the heavens, a form of guidance.
The battlefield of the heavens was a sealed realm, born of conflict, yet the toll of the Eastern Heaven Bell could still be heard.
Each chime signified the arrival of another comrade to fight alongside and entrust with life and death, a matter not to be taken lightly.
"Young Leader," the young practitioner bowed slightly, offering a gesture of camaraderie, "I am Chen Huang, dispatched by the commander to escort the Young Leader to Tianwu East City."
As he spoke, he handed Ming He a set of black heavy armor, identical to the one he wore.
Ming He gave a slight nod, aware that the fierce energy and the blood of alien races were eroding the very essence of the practitioners on the battlefield. This heavy armor was the human race’s countermeasure, crafted by the Palace of Artifacts.
While the defensive capabilities of a Human King stage practitioner could withstand such erosion, the battlefield of the heavens was devoid of spiritual energy. The energy they expended could only be replenished through pills, which were not only slow to restore but also challenging to produce.
Spiritual energy was a precious commodity, reserved solely for use on the battlefield.
The brutality of the battlefield of the heavens defies simple description. As Ming He stood there, her gaze stretching into the distance, her heart felt heavy, her thoughts stagnant, catching only a glimpse of the bloody iceberg that was the battlefield. Compared to this, the purging of alien races on the Tianwu Continent seemed like a mere training game for the gifted. The battlefield of the heavens was an endless hell where life and death teetered on the edge.
Ming He donned the heavy black armor, her breath catching as an uncomfortable pressure enveloped her body, even her spiritual energy feeling constrained. The armor was excessively heavy, impeding her movements. She waved her hand and stomped her foot, then sensed something different. It seemed this heavy armor was tailor-made for her. Once clad in it, her steps became unsteady and her movements sluggish, yet it was still within her capacity to bear. Any heavier, and it would bend her back; any lighter, and it would feel insubstantial.
"Every practitioner who steps onto the battlefield of the heavens is given their own unique heavy armor, crafted by the artifact masters of the Palace of Artifacts after observing the essence of the Eastern Heaven Bell and assessing the practitioner’s strength," Chen Huang explained softly. "The armor not only shields against violent energy and chaotic spatial currents, maintains spiritual energy, but also tempers the practitioner’s physique and enhances their understanding of the Daoist path, aiding in breaking through realms."
After all, with limited pills on the battlefield, what would one do when they run out of pills and their spiritual energy is depleted during a life-and-death situation? Would they simply discard their armor and await death? Of course not. At such times, all a practitioner could rely on was their raw strength.
Chen Huang glanced at the Xuanyuan Sword at Ming He’s waist and the Jing Ying Sword and Blue Sea Sword on her back, noting the sharpness she couldn’t fully conceal, and realized she must be a sword cultivator. Sword cultivators were always the most outstanding figures on the battlefield of the heavens. Their combat prowess was unmatched, relying not on pills or heavy armor, but on their long swords. As long as the sword was in hand, they could still fight.
"Practitioners who have just donned heavy armor always appear this way. You will get used to it, Young Leader," Chen Huang said with a smile, observing Ming He’s somewhat awkward movements. "With your talent and strength, it will take you no more than five days to overcome the armor’s hindrance. The young master of the Qin Clan managed it in five days."
The young master of the Qin Clan—was he Qin Chu Yi’s older brother? Ming He paused, her mind wandering. She suddenly remembered a long time ago, when she first heard about the battlefield of the heavens from her Shishu, Xie Dan Chen, a clear bell sound had resonated through the heavens. According to the time on the Tianwu Tablet, it must have been that young master of the Qin Clan.
"The young master of the Qin Clan is now the captain of our 17th team in Tianwu East City. His long sword is sharp, and he has undoubtedly slain countless alien races. He is now completely different from the gentle and refined young man he once was; he is a pride of Tianwu East City and a primary target for the Alien Race Hunting Hall," Chen Huang continued, his demeanor animated, a stark contrast to his initial reserve.
As Ming He walked, she adjusted to the pressure of the heavy armor while mentally organizing the information revealed in Chen Huang’s words, gaining a preliminary understanding of the battlefield of the heavens. The violent energy and blood of alien races ran rampant, and the human race could only defend, with no means to attack. This battlefield was an embodiment of the Sword Master, where formations laid down by the Soul Clan and other emperors tightly sealed the alien race’s strength, completely blocking the gaps of the battlefield, leaving only the ghostly gate that led to the Tianwu Continent that Ming He had come through.
If the alien races wanted to conquer the battlefield of the heavens, the human race needed to defend it. Thus, the human race’s formation masters and artifact masters, distributed across the four corners of the battlefield, laboriously established four makeshift cities that barely provided shelter and defense against the alien races, all bearing the name of Tianwu, divided by direction. The place that Chen Huang was taking her to was Tianwu East City.
In Tianwu East City, practitioners at the Human King stage formed teams of ten, ranked by their strength.
Qin Huai Yuan led the seventeenth-ranked team.
Ming He pursed her lips, a faint smile playing on her face as she glimpsed the faint light of dawn breaking through the darkness.
Even as the alien races wreaked havoc, the human race had to advance through battle, slaying their foes while preserving the spirit of their practitioners, lest they lose their resolve in the endless darkness.
Ming He admired those who had established the rules and order of the battlefield of the heavens.
They ensured that the human race was not consumed solely by the violent urge to kill amidst the blood and chaos, but retained a steadfast heart devoted to the path.
They contended with heaven and earth, and also with their comrades.
Teams of ten were tasked with hunting down the alien races, while groups of a hundred supported the formation masters in reinforcing the seals, taking turns in rotation, with those not on duty defending the city.
As for the Alien Race Hunting Hall, it was a part of the battlefield of the heavens.
The human race could form teams of ten to hunt down the nearly numb alien armies, and in turn, the aliens could send their elite forces to slaughter the humans.
It was a matter of give and take.
As Ming He walked, she waved her hand, sensing that the influence of the heavy armor would soon fade, her gestures becoming more frequent.
She was testing how much strength she could still muster under the oppressive bloodthirsty energy and violent energy of the battlefield.
Chen Huang, however, mistook her actions for impatience and smiled as he explained, “Once the young leader breaks through to the Earth Emperor Realm, you won’t need to wear this heavy armor anymore.”
Ming He was momentarily taken aback, her brows furrowing in confusion. “Why?”
“Because practitioners at the Earth Emperor Realm must either channel their blood energy into the formation seals on the battlefield to block the alien invasion or guard the central pavilion to protect the seals. At that point, the heavy armor will no longer be of much use.”
The central pavilion.
Ming He lowered her gaze, her expression gentle as she recalled the meaning of those words from Chen Huang’s earlier enthusiastic explanation.
The battlefield of the heavens had Tianwu East City, Tianwu West City, Tianwu North City, and Tianwu South City, but no Tianwu Central City.
The alien blood energy and violent energy grew increasingly intense from the outer regions inward, and the dangers at the very center were too great for practitioners at the Human King stage to endure.
Yet it was the formation seals there that were of the utmost importance.
Thus, they could only be entrusted to the practitioners of the Earth Emperor Realm.
When the sky falls, the tall must bear the weight.
Ming He reflected on this saying, and the pale, bloodless face of Fu Yao surfaced in her mind. She pressed her lips together, her resolve steadying as she gripped the Xuanyuan Sword, her gaze sharpening. “Is that Tianwu East City ahead?”
Through the crimson haze, a blood-stained city came into view.
Though it was called a city, it was little more than a long wall that completely blocked the path leading further back.
Ming He’s piercing gaze seemed to penetrate the wall, revealing nothing beyond it.
The visible crimson blood energy and dark violent energy relentlessly eroded the wall day after day, striving to bring it down.
And then tear apart all the humans within.
Dust swirled, obscuring the battlefield; the darkness revealed no trace of sunlight, only an endless expanse of wilderness and bloodied corpses, surrounded by crumbling walls and an unbearable sharpness.
Storms and chaotic currents swept across the battlefield of the heavens, indiscriminately dragging living beings into the abyss.
The suffering of the practitioners here was a hundredfold greater than the hardships endured in the Northern Wilderness.
Ming He followed Chen Huang through the dim, damp passage that reeked of blood, its walls embedded with formation symbols, clearly designed to allow only the human race to pass.
She straightened her back and took in the sight of a dense crowd of cultivators. Some were paired off, sparring with each other, while others sat cross-legged on the ground, their brows furrowed in concentration. A few stood atop the city wall, their gazes fixed on the distant horizon, their expressions grave.
Without exception, they were all clad in heavy armor.
This was the general state of Tianwu East City.
It was even more rugged and perilous than Qing Shi Town in the ninth prefecture of the Eastern Region, where Ming He had just come from.
“Young leader, the commander is currently inspecting the city walls and repairing damages. He won’t have time to meet you right now,” Chen Huang said cautiously, though his expression showed little fear.
After all, the young leader was also a cultivator at the Human King stage, here to slay the alien races.
Chen Huang was a rogue cultivator, and his journey to the Human King stage had been one of steady, deliberate progress. He didn’t know the significance of the Star Lock to the human race.
Even if he had known, it wouldn’t have weighed on his mind.
Ming He smiled faintly. “What were the cultivators like when they first arrived at the battlefield of the heavens?”
“When they first arrive, they must adapt to the constraints of the heavy armor. Only once they can fight while wearing it are they assigned to a team of ten, a group of a hundred, or the city’s armored guards, and allowed to enter the battlefield to fight.”
The teams of ten were tasked with traversing the battlefield to slaughter the alien races.
The groups of a hundred escorted formation masters to the central pavilion, where they would engage in battle.
The armored guards were responsible for defending Tianwu East City from being breached.
So, the source of the conflict on the battlefield of the heavens lay in the formation seals.
Ming He was about to ask Chen Huang where she would be assigned when a burst of golden fireworks erupted in the distant sky, stark against the blood-red and dark hues of the horizon.
Chen Huang’s face instantly turned pale.
Ming He frowned slightly as she watched the previously occupied cultivators spring into action, grabbing their black spears and charging toward the city walls.
In teams of ten, they moved in perfect unison, their steps orderly, their voices ringing out as they positioned themselves in formation, much like the armored guards Ming He had seen in Chang Gui City.
The only differences were their cultivation levels… and the enemy.
“What’s happening?” she asked Chen Huang.
Chen Huang clenched his fists. “The golden fireworks are a distress signal. Each city has a specific color for its fireworks; East City’s is blue.”
“Gold represents the central pavilion.”
He spoke slowly, his voice heavy. “The formation seal is in danger!”
Ming He fell silent for a moment. “What can I do?”
Chen Huang shook his head. “What the young leader can do now is adapt to the resistance of the heavy armor.”
“The four cities have strict orders. Even during rescue missions, a fixed number of cultivators must remain to guard the city. The armored guards cannot be moved.”
“So, only the teams of ten and the groups of a hundred will be deployed.”
In times of crisis, even Earth Emperor Realm experts couldn’t handle everything alone. They needed the assistance of Human King stage cultivators.
But a city wall couldn’t be defended by armored guards alone; that would be unreasonable.
The alien races were cunning. No one knew if this was a ploy to lure them out or divert their forces.
The formation seals at the central pavilion were crucial, but the four cities were no less important.
If the formation seal in any of these five places were breached, it would be a devastating blow to the human race.
The human race knew this was a blatant alien conspiracy, but they couldn’t afford to take the risk.
Chen Huang wanted to go, but he belonged to the armored guards.
“Adapt to the resistance of the heavy armor?” Ming He smiled faintly, her gaze falling on a passing team of ten.
She ran her fingers along the hilt of her Xuanyuan Sword and asked Chen Huang, “If I follow them, can I go to the central pavilion?”
“Yes,” Chen Huang replied instinctively, only to see her lips curve into a bright smile as she patted his shoulder and said, “See you later.”
Chen Huang: “?” Isn’t this just asking for trouble?
He watched as Ming He walked away with an air of grace, her figure almost floating. He scratched his head, feeling a bit overwhelmed, before it suddenly dawned on him—Ming He had just… flown off the ground?
Fly?
But she was wearing heavy armor!
The young man’s pupils dilated, and shock washed over his face.
How long had she even been wearing the heavy armor?
At most, it had only been an hour, right?
Heavens!
Their young leader was truly defying heaven!
