Boom!
The five-colored light of the Five Elements Unification and the Divine Thunder of Creation covered the sky and earth like a five-colored lotus blooming slowly between heaven and earth.
The void trembled, the earth cracked open, and terrifying smoke and dust surged up.
When everything finally quieted down, the original hills had vanished completely, leaving only the nearly unrecognizable Golden-Feathered Immortal lying at the bottom of a massive crater.
“You… you are not a Celestial Immortal!”
Watching Wu Ming descend indifferently from the void, the Golden-Feathered Immortal painfully turned his head, speaking in a tone that was both certain and despairing.
He naturally understood the difference between a Golden Immortal and a Celestial Immortal. If Wu Ming hadn’t held back just now, he would have already turned into dust, his form and spirit utterly destroyed.
“I also find it strange… Didn’t Absolute Heaven mention me to you?”
Wu Ming approached the Golden-Feathered Immortal, a trace of confusion on his face.
“Supreme One…”
The Golden-Feathered Immortal’s expression suddenly became very strange—pain, regret, unwillingness… finally transforming into a strange smile.
Buzz!
A layer of black divine light instantly erupted from his crown, devouring his immortal body and transforming into a purple-black hand covered in dense runes, which suddenly struck out!
As this hand struck, the entire heaven and earth changed!
An aura of decay, destruction, and ultimate annihilation spread out, as if dragging the entire world into the end times in an instant.
Wu Ming, as the target, felt this most acutely!
A layer of filth appeared on his fine robes, and even his Immortal Body Without Flaw showed faint traces of sweat, carrying the scent of decay and aging.
The Five Decays of a Celestial Being!
A calamity said to appear only during the great disasters of an era upon immortals, now clearly manifested upon Wu Ming with this strike!
But he was ultimately not a Celestial Immortal, but a Golden Immortal whose status would not fall as long as the world remained unbroken.
Moreover, his Daoist World was not the Great Zhou. Even if the Great Zhou fell into an era-ending disaster, he could still escape unscathed.
“The Gold Nature is Eternal! Free from all calamities!”
Wu Ming smiled slightly, slowly uttering these eight words.
In an instant, a layer of golden light, seemingly eternal, emerged from his body, completely dispelling all traces of the Five Decays.
Crack! Crack!
At the same time, dark clouds suddenly gathered in the sky, and a massive aura of authority descended.
Lightning danced wildly, then abruptly coalesced into the shape of an eye, as if carrying Heaven’s wrath!
Heaven’s Eye Opens!
Indeed, a blue Celestial Eye now floated in the void, seemingly also alarmed and enraged by the aura of the Five Decays and world annihilation.
Zhi la!
Purple lightning fell, unlike Wu Ming’s earlier lightning techniques. This was true lightning, representing heavenly punishment! Divine retribution!!!
Once struck, it would mean being at odds with the entire world, opposing its will, with consequences so terrifying they were beyond imagination.
After all, the Great Zhou world was still in its prime, like the most vigorous youth at his peak. Yet this black hand sought to drag the world into destruction, aging and killing the entire world… any normal world will could never tolerate this!
Not to mention there was a cunning Heaven Emperor orchestrating things behind the scenes.
In the next moment, the black hand was torn into countless fragments by the lightning, completely dissolving in the electric light. The Golden-Feathered Immortal was utterly destroyed, his form and spirit completely erased, all traces of his existence wiped from the world.
But neither Wu Ming nor the lightning stopped. The terrifying force struck directly into the void, as if opening some kind of passage.
“Go!”
The Heaven Emperor’s figure instantly appeared beside Wu Ming. Both emitted Golden Immortal radiance and suddenly rushed into the passage.
Buzz!
Heaven and earth instantly shifted. Before them now lay a ruined, decaying realm constantly shrouded in disasters.
“This is… the domain of the Absolute Heaven Sage? Truly…”
Wu Ming looked at the gray-black disaster aura around them and immediately shook his head.
Both he and the Heaven Emperor emitted bright light, pushing back the disasters, as if creating a pure land within this realm.
“Pity… the Absolute Heaven Sage’s main body is not here!”
The Heaven Emperor scanned the area, a slight expression of regret on his face.
“It seems… our plan to lure the snake out of its cave has failed…”
Wu Ming sighed softly.
“It may be even worse than that… Absolute Heaven Sage must have already suspected our secret alliance. The Golden-Feathered Immortal was merely a test!”
As an old rival, the Heaven Emperor’s understanding of Absolute Heaven Sage was unmatched by anyone else: “The Golden-Feathered Immortal was just a pawn. Now that he has confirmed everything, Absolute Heaven Sage will definitely hide deeper, plotting schemes in the shadows!”
“In the art of war, the orthodox is the foundation, while the unorthodox is the supplement!”
Upon hearing this, Wu Ming shook his head slightly: “With the two of us working together, no one in the Great Zhou world can oppose us. As long as we steadily support Wu Zhi in ascending as the Human Emperor, then unite the forces of the Central Plains to attack the four regions, coordinating human and immortal powers to destroy the overseas demon immortals’ strongholds, restoring righteousness and eliminating corruption. Under such overwhelming momentum, even if Absolute Heaven Sage struggles, he will be no more than an ant!”
“Friend Dao, your words resonate deeply with me!”
The Heaven Emperor looked around and suddenly smiled: “How about we work together to first restore order to this realm? Although Absolute Heaven Sage walks a strange path that doesn’t rely on domains, destroying this place will still be a moderate blow to him!”
“Exactly my thoughts!”
Wu Ming nodded. In the next instant, purple lightning and pure light suddenly filled every corner of the entire realm. Wherever they passed, the aura of the Five Decays was completely eradicated, as if the realm were being reborn, experiencing a rebirth from ashes…
…
On Hongtao Lake.
“West… west wind!”
Ma Meng stood at the railing of the flagship, staring blankly as the wind shifted direction. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest and cried out: “Heaven has forsaken me! Heaven wills my downfall!”
With a sudden cry, he spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted.
“General!”
The sudden collapse of the commander, especially in the middle of battle, threw the subordinates and personal guards into chaos.
“Capture and kill that Sun Xiezhi! He has doomed us!”
After being revived, Ma Meng’s first words were these.
Sun, the advisor, was also on the flagship, with nowhere to run. Seeing the guards approach, he could only sigh bitterly and surrender.
Knowing his sect’s plan had utterly failed, he couldn’t even imagine how to face the aftermath.
“General… if you would heed my advice, there is still a chance to save the army!”
When escorted before Ma Meng, Sun Xie Zhi tried one last desperate plea, but Ma Meng was already consumed with hatred and simply waved his hand.
Two guards beside him grinned cruelly, drew their waist knives, and struck in one motion.
Puh!
Blood spurted like a fountain as a noble head rolled off, landing on the deck, bouncing a few times, revealing Sun Xie Zhi’s wide-open, unblinking eyes.
Strangely, after venting his anger by killing Sun Xie Zhi, Ma Meng felt even more hollow inside, as if a vital part of him had been torn away, nearly causing him to faint again.
Just as the physician finally stabilized him, a horn suddenly sounded from the opposing side.
“The enemy… the enemy fleet is attacking!”
Indeed, in the chaos, Wu Zhi’s navy seized the opportunity, using fire ships to break into the heart of their fleet.
Several ironclad ships charged wildly, like wolves spotting prey, directly heading for the flagship.
On the battlefield, what military achievement could surpass capturing the enemy’s supreme commander?
“We… retreat!”
Ma Meng gritted his teeth, finishing this sentence before his eye twitched.
Because behind the flagship, several ironclad ships suddenly extended dozens of oars, their speed surging instantly, blocking the flagship’s escape route.
“Kill! The King commands: whoever kills Ma Meng will be promoted three ranks and rewarded with a thousand gold!”
A group of Dingshi naval soldiers rushed forward, swords and blades swinging, eyes bloodshot.
“Protect the General!”
The soldiers aboard the flagship were all Ma Meng’s personal guards, sharing his fate. Even at this critical moment, they did not abandon him, instead igniting their fighting spirit to resist fiercely.
Bang bang!
At this moment, another change occurred on the enemy ironclads.
With a tremendous roar, thick crossbow bolts and heavy stones rained down like hail, instantly causing heavy casualties among the flagship’s guards.
The sounds of blood and fire, cries of battle, and clashing steel filled the air.
Ma Meng steadied himself, gripping his sword tightly, determined to make a final stand, when heavy footsteps approached.
The last few guards were cut down, and he soon found himself staring into a pair of burning eyes.
“Die!”
Ma Meng had long been known for his bravery on the battlefield of Lingzhou, his martial skills no mere show.
At this moment, seeing the enemy, he tried to draw his sword to fight back, but immediately a whizzing sound reached his ears.
“It’s crossbow fire, retreat quickly!”
This thought flashed through his mind, but his aging, weakened body could no longer keep up with his thoughts.
A sharp pain shot through his legs. With a scream, Ma Meng fell to his knees in a pool of blood, quickly bound tightly.
“Good! Set the enemy flagship ablaze; let’s see how they resist now!”
Chen Xun, seeing the enemy commander captured, was overjoyed. He immediately ordered his men to launch incendiary bombs, setting Ma Meng’s flagship alight.
Roar!
As the flagship was gradually consumed by flames, the entire Ma Meng fleet immediately lost all fighting spirit, collapsing into a full-scale rout.
Several ships that had risked their lives to rescue the flagship upon seeing it surrounded, upon witnessing this scene, immediately turned tail and fled in haste.
After all, the burning of the flagship meant that Ma Meng was either dead or captured. What was the point of continuing the battle?
…
The naval battle at Hongtao Lake ended in a decisive victory for Prince Ding’s navy.
Ma Meng, the last rebel leader of Lingzhou, was captured on the spot. Half of the naval forces were killed or wounded, the rest surrendered, and even the naval fortress was seized.
With the waterways secured, the 50,000-strong land army surged into the two prefectures, riding the momentum of Ma Meng’s defeat. They faced practically no resistance, and Ma Meng’s remaining troops immediately mutinied and scattered. Although there would be future troubles with public security, there was no longer any organized military resistance.
By the eighth year of the Peaceful Reign, November, the entire Lingzhou region had been completely pacified, submitting under Wu Zhi’s banner.
Thus, Wu Zhi became the first to unify two prefectures, emerging as one of the most powerful feudal lords in the realm. With the capital’s secondary city of Xuzhou within reach, she had seized the early advantage in the race for supremacy!
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