Lord of the Earth

"puff!"

With a muffled bang, the last alien deity, who resembled a winged tiger and was surrounded by the fierce power of the wind god, was smashed into a pulp by Pei Yuanqing, the "Third Fierce General of the Sui and Tang Dynasties," whose pair of silver hammers, wrapped with ferocious silver dragons and as heavy as mountains!
Flesh and blood, along with the shattered essence of divinity, scattered and flew everywhere.

In the end, its remaining divine body was completely annihilated by the domineering destructive power contained in the pair of silver hammers, turning into a large amount of golden light that dissipated into the air.

This was an unprecedented "war of a thousand gods" since the creation of the Eternal Land.

Finally, the battle ended in an absolute victory for Qianxia and his allies.

The thousands of alien gods who had been revived under the spiritual power of the "Jianmu" tree and attempted to block the entrance to the East Heavenly Gate have all been annihilated, not one of them left alive!
Sitting atop the "Frozen Throne of Swords," a vessel that combined the characteristics of the Lich King's "Frozen Throne" and the original "Sword Throne," radiating a chilling aura and sharp, weapon-like presence, Xia Tian did not personally intervene throughout the entire ordeal.

This was because the battle was progressing far more smoothly than expected, and the enemy's resistance was quickly disintegrating under the thunderous offensive of Qian Xia and his allies.

Moreover, it's not yet his turn as a human emperor to use his trump cards.

"Kongming, tally the battle results and casualties... Hall Master Hua Tuo, arrange for the 'Heavenly Physician Hall' to do everything possible to treat the wounded."

"Palace Master Hua, I trouble your Heavenly Physician Hall personnel to help those injured on the battlefield."

"Lord Wu, I entrust you with the task of leading the 'Mount Tai Prison Suppression Army' to carefully collect the fallen soldiers and the remnant souls of these alien deities. There must be no failures!"

Xia Tian's calm voice, carrying an undeniable authority, echoed over the battlefield where the killing intent had not yet completely dissipated.

"Your Majesty, take the order."

Zhuge Liang and Hua Tuo bowed and accepted the order, and immediately set to work.

Hua Tuo's divine realm flickered with light and shadow, and numerous elite disciples of the "Heavenly Physician Hall" appeared, carrying various medical instruments and elixirs that exuded life energy. They quickly applied healing magic to the wounded soldiers, and gentle life light rose and fell across the battlefield.

"Gentlemen, please temporarily reside in the 'Lord of Mount Tai' seal."

Meanwhile, the soldiers of Wu Song's "Taishan Prison Army" all had solemn expressions, and in their hands appeared rune chains burning with ghostly blue karmic fire, precisely binding those soul fragments that tried to escape or still remained.

It was then temporarily stored in the "Seal of the Lord of Mount Tai" in Wu Song's hands, which exuded a heavy aura of reincarnation.

A short while later, the preliminary statistical results were reported.

With a calm expression and holding a feather fan, Zhuge Liang reported clearly: "Your Majesty, our army suffered a total of 2,575 casualties in this battle."

His voice was steady, but when he read out the number, the atmosphere around him froze.

"Among them, twenty-eight were god-level experts who perished."

He paused briefly, his voice slightly lower.

"Of these twenty-eight fallen gods, twenty are heroes of our human race, and the remaining eight are gods of loyal subordinate races."

"I understand..."

Summer nodded slowly, her gaze sweeping across the battlefield.

This casualty figure does indeed sound quite high.

It should be noted that those qualified to enter this "Heavenly Court Ruins" must have started with a Saint Realm cultivation level. Two thousand five hundred and seventy-five Saint Realm and above powerhouses have perished. In the Eternal Land, any Saint is enough to guard a major town and prevent ordinary alien races from invading.

The loss of twenty deities would be enough to destroy many dynasties on the spot.

Even some weak "quasi-imperial dynasties" might not be able to gather so many gods even if they exhausted all their national resources!

However, when comparing the results, the cost seems...

Not only is it acceptable, it's even remarkable.

"In this battle, our army killed a total of 1,032 alien gods who were in special condition or whose strength was incomplete!"

Zhuge Liang's subsequent report instantly dispelled the previous somber mood.

At the cost of less than thirty gods, over a thousand gods perished. Such a battle casualty ratio can be described as "unprecedented and unparalleled"!
More importantly, these alien gods, who were judged to be "catastrophe beings," not only left behind various strange "divine weapons" they used in life after their deaths, but also extracted precious "catastrophe treasures," which are all genuine divine resources and treasures.

Each one of them is priceless.

It should be noted that even with the production capacity of Qianxia's "Divine Weapon Forge" and "Soul Spring," plus the efforts of top craftsmen such as Gan Jiang, Mo Xie, and Ou Yezi, the number of "Divine Weapon Embryos" produced each year is only around one hundred.

The spoils of this battle are enough to raise the level of military equipment in Qianxia to a new level!
"Furthermore, during this battle, sixty-two soldiers of our army broke through on the battlefield and officially advanced to the level of gods! In addition, two hundred and fifty-three people condensed 'divine sparks' and laid the foundation for becoming gods!"

Even the composed Zhuge Liang couldn't help but reveal a hint of excitement when he spoke of these words.

This is the truly inspiring outcome of this battle.

Under normal circumstances, even with Qianxia's profound foundation, it would take countless years and resources to cultivate such a number of divine seedlings.

The primary condition for becoming a god is to be a "genius," which is an extremely high threshold for billions of living beings.

Even if Qianxia could "confer divine titles" through the flow of fortune, such deities are often limited by the scope of the nation's fortune and require continuous consumption of fortune to maintain.

But now, in just one skirmish, the Qianxia camp has gained over three hundred newly promoted gods or quasi-gods who have been officially recognized by the Eternal Land! In comparison, the losses from the previous battles seem insignificant.

Moreover, these fallen soldiers were not truly "annihilated in spirit and soul".

Wu Song stepped forward at the opportune moment and added in a booming voice.

"Your Majesty, the remnant souls of all the fallen soldiers have been gathered and are being nurtured by the divine power of the 'Seal of the Lord of Mount Tai.' Once they return, they will be sent to the Divine Kingdom of Houtu, where the Goddess Houtu will arrange their reincarnation as appropriate, ensuring that my heroic souls of Qianxia will not be left to wander aimlessly and that their true spirits will not be tarnished!"

One of the important reasons why Xia Tian chose to build the "Houtu Divine Kingdom" as the cornerstone of the Qianxia Dynasty was that even though this powerful true god had fallen, his remaining divine kingdom still retained the extremely mysterious characteristic of "reincarnation".

This ensures that even if the core citizens of Qianxia perish on the battlefield, their spirits will not be extinguished and they will have a chance to return in the future. Moreover, a careful analysis of casualties shows that the loss rate of Qianxia's core forces is far lower than that of its allies.

Of those twenty-eight fallen gods, only five truly belonged to the direct line of Qianxia!

Behind these brilliant achievements and relatively low core casualties lies the concentrated manifestation of Qianxia's profound foundation.

"Shennong Herbal Elixir," a truly divine-level medicinal liquid, can push a cultivator's state to its peak in a short period of time.

All the Qianxia prodigies who entered the Heavenly Court had reached the peak of the first level of cultivation, with more than fifty experts at the second level. Each of them had a solid foundation, thanks to the time difference between the "Twelve Yuan Chen Secret Realm" and the "Tai Xu Illusion Realm" and their comprehension of the laws of the "Reincarnation Dao Fruit".

Most importantly, all the "divine kingdoms" of the Qianxia gods are built on the foundation of the vast and magnificent Qianxia national fortune, which is comparable to the level of "quasi-true gods". Its stability far exceeds that of ordinary gods, and it is difficult for enemies to shake it.

"Is this the true strength of Qianxia? The number one imperial dynasty of the human race truly lives up to its reputation..."

The leaders of allied forces, including Cao Cao and Sun Ce, were deeply moved by this scene, and their resolve to deepen cooperation with Qianxia and even to regard it as their superior became even stronger.

Summer hovered above the throne, her gaze sweeping across the battlefield.

Although some soldiers looked tired and were wounded, their morale was high, and their eyes were filled with the excitement of victory and boundless hope for the future.

"As expected of the generous gift left by the ancient sages of the human race, the benefits of this battle at the entrance alone are comparable to the hard work accumulated over the past year..." Xia Tian was filled with emotion.

“Mass creation of gods, and even the future establishment of a Heavenly Court, using ‘gods’ as soldiers… This trend may actually be realized.”

His eyes shone brightly, and his conviction grew ever stronger.

"The battle flag of my Qianxia will surely be planted all over this battlefield of our ancestors, and we will seize the earth-shattering fortune that will leap forward the destiny of humankind!"

"However, Your Majesty, there is something rather strange..."

At this moment, Wu Song frowned slightly and presented his discovery.

"Logically speaking, this place was the final battlefield in the past, and there should be many remaining heroic souls of our human race's heavenly soldiers and generals... But after repeatedly searching with the secret method of 'Lord of Mount Tai', I could hardly sense their presence... It's as if they were taken away by some force in advance, or completely dissipated."

"Hmm, perhaps it's part of a scheme by the human gods... or perhaps..."

Summer's gaze swept over the grayness that enveloped the entire "Heavenly Ruins," and she seemed to have gained some insight.

"Your Majesty! The Jianmu tree... the roots of the Jianmu tree seem to be actively drawing upon the divine power and remnant souls of those fallen alien gods!"

However, at this moment, Li Ru, who was in charge of monitoring the channel, sent an urgent report, interrupting his thoughts.

As everyone looked, they saw the towering Jianmu tree that ran through the Heavenly Gate and supported the passage. Its roots, like a living emerald network, silently spread to all parts of the battlefield, especially to the places where many gods had fallen. Strands of pure divine energy and the essence of souls were being slowly absorbed by it.

Then, the entire Jianmu tree became even more lush and verdant, and the radiance flowing through its veins became even more dazzling. The passage formed by its branches also gradually extended deeper into the ruins!
"So that's how it is... The imperial dynasty's fortune was merely the catalyst that revived this ancient divine tree, this spiritual plant of heaven and earth. The power of all gods that has accumulated in these ruins is the true 'fertilizer' that the Jianmu tree needs to grow..."

Summer seemed lost in thought; perhaps this was also part of the grand plan devised by the ancient sages.

Let the bones of the enemy pave the way for future generations!

"Your Majesty, although the spiritual energy here is somewhat thin due to the ten thousand years of sealing, the laws of heaven and earth are relatively stable, and there is not much chaotic and violent aura invading. The traces of the Great Dao can still be faintly discerned. It is an excellent place to go into seclusion to consolidate one's realm and break through bottlenecks."

After observing the surrounding environment, Wang Yangming offered advice to Xia Tian.

This area, sealed for millennia, is now relatively safe after the initial "guardians" have been removed. It also possesses an environment that blends with the rules of the Eternal Land, imbued with ancient Taoist principles.

It can serve as a solid forward base and a sacred place for cultivation for the army in the early stages.

"Pass down the order! Using this place as the center, and taking advantage of the terrain, establish a fortified camp. Each unit will take turns guarding, exploring the surrounding area, and engaging in secluded cultivation! Lord Bai, you are in charge of the overall arrangements. Make sure that before we delve deeper into the core area, we can elevate our army's overall strength to a new level!"

Summer nodded, and then gave the order.

The efficient war machine of Qianxia started running again. The sacred craftsmen who came out of Luban's divine kingdom began to build camps, and the "military chefs" who came out of Paoding's divine kingdom used local materials to cook some of the spoils left by the dead gods directly into food, which emitted an enticing light!
Those who slew the gods in the previous battle entered deep seclusion to fully digest the merits and combat insights they had just gained. The remaining elites formed exploration teams and cautiously explored outwards in a fan shape from the camp, clearing out any remaining enemies along the way!
Xia Tian himself, along with key ministers such as Bai Qi, Zhuge Liang, and Wang Yangming, turned their gaze to the deeper part of the ruins, which had turned gray and seemed to be shrouded in endless mystery.

There, the outlines of an even more majestic and magnificent palace complex could be vaguely seen rising and falling in the chaos.

Like a sleeping behemoth, it quietly awaits a truly qualified successor to knock on the door sealed for eternity!
Thus, nearly three years passed quietly in this intense period of training, exploration, and vigilance.

When the Qianxia army had basically digested the huge gains from the "Battle of Dongtianmen" and its overall strength was renewed.

Summer finally gave the order, and the army set off again, following the path cleared by the branches of the "Jianmu" tree in recent days, to explore the interior of the Heavenly Court ruins more deeply.

As the group ventured deeper, they increasingly felt the grandeur of this former "First Celestial Court of Humanity."

Spanning thousands of miles, the dilapidated yet still magnificent palaces stretch endlessly. Broken immortal islands, suspended in the misty immortal aura, appear and disappear. The broken chains of laws, like huge scars traversing the heavens and earth, tell of the past tragedy.

Based on some surviving inscriptions found along the way, and combined with the joint deductions of Zhuge Liang, Guo Jia, Yang Yunsong, and others, it was gradually confirmed that the ancient layout of "thirty-six heavenly palaces and seventy-two treasure halls" did indeed exist in this place.

Each of these palaces, in the distant past.

They all seem to represent the authority over heaven and earth and the supreme Dao of a certain side.

Even though most of them are now ruins, the supreme majesty deeply rooted in time and space still inspires awe!

"Hmm, look ahead..."

The Qianxia army marched through the ruins of the Heavenly Court, surrounded by crumbling palaces and broken rainbow bridges, exuding an ancient desolation. On this day, when the elite troops led by Zhao Yun, the vanguard, passed through a distorted void barrier, the scene before them made everyone gasp for breath.

It was a vast and boundless wasteland, but not entirely desolate.

The dim starlight, like a thin veil, shrouded the entire area, seemingly flowing along some mysterious trajectory, filled with an aura of mystery! (End of Chapter)