Chapter 282: with translation of chapter title

282. Chapter 282: Retreat, the Heavenly Court's Foundation

Teng Hao held his hands clasped before his chest, standing tall above the clouds, with a hundred heavenly soldiers riding clouds behind him, gazing down at the massive goat-headed person leaning against the cliff below.

The goat-headed person's body was covered in bloodstains, towering over ten thousand feet, his hair all over his body in disarray, his legs vanished below the knees, unknown where they scattered.

Bright red blood flowed, gathering along the rocks into a stream that wound downward, nourishing all things.

From its mouth constantly welled thick blood foam, one goat horn had broken, exposing the inner bone to the air.

With each breath the goat-headed person made a tearing sound like a bellows, short and hurried; from the violent heaving of its chest one could see its lung vessels were already damaged.

Its long tail lay lifeless on the ground; if not for the occasional twitch, one might think it had already been severed, now it was merely a person sitting beneath it.

"You do have some skill; if you hadn't happened to crash into another of our encirclements, you would really have escaped."

"Having been beheaded over seventy times by this divine general and suffered the agony of ten thousand swords piercing the body, yet still clinging to life, one cannot but call it tenacious."

The goat-headed person stared with wide eyes, trying to look fierce again, but could only reveal its weakness; its scattered gaze could not sustain this appearance.

"You will surely invite disaster; the Heavenly Court's persecution of us will also surely not end well!"

Blood foam sprayed from its mouth, yet the goat-headed person still forced itself to speak, its words muddy and incoherent, obviously it had little time left.

Teng Hao then gave a cold chuckle and said:

"Persecution? You act against reason, neglect merit, never pay tribute or taxes; you are all rebels, with no achievement in the Primeval Wasteland—what use is keeping you?"

The goat-headed person was about to speak when a flash of spiritual light appeared; its head flew up again into midair, its eyes grew dim, and its fallen flesh breathed no more.

The spiritual light, like a swallow returning to its nest, fell into the hand of one beside Teng Hao, turning into a spiritual sword that he embraced; this person was the Divine General Feng Ze.

After beheading the goat-headed person with a single sword, Divine General Feng Ze then spoke softly:

"Why waste words on these ignorant and insensible lot? They merely rely on cultivating the demonic undead arts, thinking we cannot kill them."

"A frog in a well, gazing at the sky from the bottom. They do not realize this is merely a minor path; in one aeon, the Thunder Division slays thousands of such demons and evil spirits—no less than eight hundred."

"Taking the lives of living beings as a lure, gaining a bit of spiritual light, they grow arrogant, daring to defy heavenly might; thus the Immortal Court must be a foul miasma, deserving extermination."

"If you show mercy to these rebels, you had better leave the Heavenly Court soon, lest we part ways and later I must gather your corpse."

Divine General Feng Ze has always disliked conversation, especially with those about to die; Teng Hao is one of his few friends in the Heavenly Court.

Therefore he speaks thus; otherwise, for ordinary people, Feng Ze would gladly see them like this, and there would be less competition.

Facing an enemy trapped in death's grip yet still hesitating, long thus, its end either dies from its cornered beast struggle, or from mercy sparing its life.

Ultimately either retaliated against, or discovered by the Heavenly Court and placed on the God-Slaying Platform, it cannot escape death, possibly dragging down comrades.

Feng Ze also valued this friend, thus his advice today; Teng Hao knew it was his own fault, so he could only offer an apologetic smile and not rebut.

"Let's go, let us sweep again to see if any remnants of the Immortal Court remain."

"Losing a few shrimp is trivial, but we must not let them alarm several Majesties, or else we both face countless deaths we cannot escape."

"If our defense zone encounters trouble, under military law as firm as a mountain, Lord Morning Star will not show leniency beyond the law."

"Moreover, not only that; even if the adult covers for us, the gaze of comrades alone would strip us of all face."

Feng Ze's words fell, he turned into a streak of escaping light vanishing at the horizon, his subordinate heavenly soldiers following closely, turning into flowing light and disappearing.

Teng Hao gazed at the corpse left behind by Feng Ze's departure, said nothing more, merely waved his hand casually; the heavenly soldiers behind him then voluntarily descended and began to dismember it.

After all, the other party was also a Great Luo Immortal, having attained the Dao through unconventional means, and possessed plenty of fine spiritual materials.

For myself it was ordinary, not worth such effort, but for my heavenly soldiers it was also a considerable income.

Those in command must always seek benefits for their subordinates; battlefield spoils must be handed over, but these spiritual materials taken apart will not be entered into the Heavenly Court's storehouse.

For Mysterious and Golden Immortals, a Great Luo body counts as a treasure; even for impoverished Taiyi, they would value it greatly.

As for Heavenly Immortals and those below, such fortune rarely falls to them; those with better luck might dig up blood-soaked earth on the ground themselves.

This too can be called a great opportunity; with poor luck, one cannot find it.

Feng Ze serves in the Thunder Division, where even his lowest subordinates are Golden Immortals, so disregarding these is normal; he differs, for his heavenly soldiers still need to accumulate cultivation resources.

Previously Teng Hao was the same, he originally looked down on these things, but later after committing a few minor mistakes he was transferred to the Combat Division.

His cultivation resources and fortune have diminished greatly; after all, the Combat Division has many people, and the share allotted to him is truly little, so now he naturally values them.

After his heavenly soldiers all wore satisfied smiles and had cleanly dismembered it, Teng Hao then led them to patrol the defense zone, for after all, reaping the harvest and completing work must be done.

Such scenes repeated endlessly around Mount Sumeru, yet Great Luo Immortals like the goat-headed person were nowhere to be seen.

After all, the Immortal Court is not foolish; now that the Heavenly Court has descended upon Mount Sumeru, it naturally knows to avoid.

However, this goat-headed person relied on his own immortal technique and excelled at ascension, merely wishing to provoke the heavenly soldiers a bit; but the outcome exceeded his expectations, and in the end he became a merit of the heavenly soldiers.

Many heavenly soldiers and generals capturing Immortal Court persons proved extraordinarily lively.

As for the Heavenly Court's Quasi-Sages or Primordial Dao Supreme Gods, at present they are utterly quiet; this is merely a skirmish, just to warm up the heavenly soldiers below.

The half of the Western Continent occupied by the Immortal Court is merely an appetizer; their target has always been placed upon Penglai Immortal Island.

Only by conquering Penglai Immortal Island and utterly destroying the Immortal Court could they receive a share of merit extremely satisfying to themselves.

After this battle, if they lack a Quasi-Sage's head in hand, it is insufficient to gain the reward they themselves expected.

What Taiyi does not know is that the Immortal Court's fourteen Quasi-Sages have already been divided between the Thunder Division and Combat Division; among them, not a single one of the Five Emperor Lords was considered. Thus, if Qi and Di Jun do not voluntarily speak up to request, not even five, Taiyi fears he might not even receive one.

In the Western Continent's Fen Yun Mountain, this place gathered more than ten Great Luo Golden Immortals of the Immortal Court; the atmosphere was heavy, only hearing one speak gloomily:

"Bo Yang Jun's aura has vanished; transmissions show no response, his fate tablet shattered, likely he met foul play, and even his true spirit was not left behind."

Another spoke helplessly:

"I had earlier advised him, but regrettably failed to persuade; he insisted on lingering near Mount Sumeru, wishing to let the Heavenly Court witness the Immortal Court's power."

"Who would think the Heavenly Court could occupy the Primeval Wasteland for so long, nor be an easy opponent? Gathering the elite of all tribes, sustained by the three realms and the heavenly starry expanse, how could it be lightly provoked?"

"I have heard that the Heavenly Court's soldier recruitment is extremely strict, far beyond outside imagination; though heavenly soldiers may contain Heavenly Immortals, they are truly those of outstanding talent."

"Those who enter the Heavenly Court as Heavenly Immortals are all persons the Heavenly Court has seriously examined; when their cultivation suffices, they may directly enter the Thunder Division's reserves."

"They consider background, talent, aptitude, and origin; none may be lacking."

Boyang Jun encountered misfortune today; I'm afraid it's just bad luck, having encountered people from the Thunder Department.

Otherwise, with his art of soaring leaps, it is only that Mister Moxuanzi has approved it, openly stating that few under heaven can match him; if not so, Lord Boyang would not have such confidence.

After his words fell, there was not a single person in the field who responded; they merely continued in silence, the atmosphere utterly still.

After a long while, the one seated at the head could no longer endure this atmosphere, and thus spoke:

Enough, Lord Boyang's death is already settled, cannot be changed; but we still need to preserve our useful selves, not sink into oblivion here, for the Immortal Court still needs us.

Penglai Island has already given orders over there, letting us temporarily retreat first; Xifang Dalu is vast in area, and if we divide our forces, we are no match for the Heavenly Court in a single engagement.

For now, let us first endure, gather our strength, and return first to where the Immortal Court resides; then, relying on Penglai Immortal Island, we will set up formations and oppose it again.

Right now, our gathering will inevitably draw too much attention; moreover, the Immortal Court is numerous, and it will inevitably attract the Heavenly Court's gaze.

Better to break up into parts, each taking his own men back to Penglai; if we encounter the Heavenly Court, it will also help divert attention from our comrades.

By dividing our forces, we can preserve more useful people for the Immortal Court; as for fallen comrades, we will eventually avenge them, making the Heavenly Court pay with blood!

Scattered responses sounded within the hall, the low spirits brewing unease and chaos.

Seeing this, the one seated at the head could only let out a helpless sigh, then led the way out; those remaining in the field soon after scattered and left.

A defeated general is always like this.

Facing the hegemonic lord of this primordial heaven and earth, not everyone can muster spirit, raise their vigor, and contend with it.

Like them, having lost the courage to resist and having no confidence in war, from ancient ancestors to the present, from birth to now, they have grown under the Heavenly Court's long-lasting peace; this is their normal reaction.

They grew up hearing the legends of the Heavenly Court, their conduct regulated by heavenly statutes, and they also accepted the morality and values emanating from the Heavenly Court.

Yet now we ask them to oppose the Heavenly Court, even though they have long known this day would come, they still find it hard to raise a spirit of resistance; this is the current state of the primordial world.

Like Lord Boyang, facing the arrival of the Heavenly Court, he deliberately stayed and stepped forward to provoke; such are the few among the primordial world.

And those ambitious ones who harbor thoughts of resisting the Heavenly Court's rule are for the most part those who have lived through the era of the Three Tribes, even the era of the feral beasts, as innate divinities.

As for those born during the Heavenly Court's reign, they may harbor thoughts of resisting the Heavenly Court, but when they truly face it, their hearts actually falter.

Moreover, such people are mostly western beings, for the Heavenly Court's majesty is least displayed in the west, and its treatment of the west is also the thinnest.

As for the remaining three continents, those who possess ambition, talent, and ability more often wish to join the Heavenly Court, dreaming of becoming a supreme deity.

Then, upon the Heavenly Court's stage—the greatest in the primordial world—they display their talents, realize their self-worth, and gain honor and status.

They pursue power and influence, yet they do not entertain thoughts of challenging the Heavenly Court's position, nor do they violate heavenly statutes; they often observe these even more strictly than ordinary people.

As for those who dare to defy heavenly statutes, what awaits them is often not success, but thunderous strikes from the Heavenly Court's Thunder Division and Combat Division.

This is also why the Heavenly Court, facing the myriad tribes and various forces of the primordial world, holds its advantages, its overall supremacy and legitimacy, drawing countless talents into its midst.

If it were not for the enormous resources required to sustain a Great Ultimate or Golden Immortal, then today's million heavenly soldiers would likely not include any Heavenly Immortals or Mystic Immortals.

Even the current scale of heavenly soldiers and generals is deliberately reduced under the Heavenly Court's control, not due to inability to support, but to suppress the entire primordial world; the present strength is sufficient.

The resources used to sustain heavenly soldiers and generals amount to less than a tenth of the Heavenly Court's total tax revenue, with much more being reinvested into the primordial world.

This is also why, despite only a little over a hundred aeons having passed, the Heavenly Court commands such prestige in the primordial world, causing those tribes that have endured several great calamities to willingly bow their heads.

Merely repairing the earth's veins, relocating spiritual mountains, and excavating river channels already consumes over half of it, and even affects the migration of those tribes, everywhere bearing the imprint of the Heavenly Court.

Otherwise, if we merely sustained these heavenly soldiers and generals, even if their scale were doubled, the resources of the Nine Heavens would be more than enough to be self-sufficient, with surplus remaining.

Moreover, with the resources accumulated by the Heavenly Court, it is sufficient within a single aeon to nurture over a hundred Great Luo Golden Immortals like the ancient Ao Xing.

But at present there is utterly no need for that; if required, a single order can dispatch the elite of myriad tribes as it sees fit.

Moreover, quasi-sages and Grand Primordial Dao Great Gods are not achieved merely by possessing ample resources; to date, throughout the primordial world, the number of those who have reached this realm does not exceed a few hundred.

The accumulation of life and cultivation cannot be filled by resources alone; the existing quasi-sages and Grand Primordial Dao Great Gods have all undergone two calamities before attaining their accomplishments.

Moreover, those existing quasi-sages are all transmuted from innate divinities; although they now follow the Dao of Immortals, the primordial world remains, in fact, under the governance of the Dao of Gods.

Regardless of how heaven and earth change their appearance, the innate divinities from beginning to end remain the ones standing at the pinnacle of the primordial world.

PS: The bonus chapter for rewards should come out after 12:00, before 2:00 AM! (End of chapter)