If over four hundred level-100 powerhouses gathered and combined their strength to resist the music, they might just manage it—but two hundred were far from enough.
Ning Fengzhi had anticipated Qian Xunji's tactics, which was why he made his move as soon as the enemy split into two separate forces.
He'd even prepared follow-up plans. If it were him commanding, he wouldn't have split the troops evenly; he'd have sent only fifty to scatter.
In that case, Ning Fengzhi could only have the Guqin Spirit Master Corps appear in waves: first control fifty enemies, then draw a portion of the remaining three hundred-plus over and fight a positional battle.
He hadn't expected that the dull-witted Qian Xunji would split his force into two equal halves. Ning Fengzhi immediately concluded he was finished; the battle was already decided.
"Entire army, hear my command: at any cost, slaughter the Divine Guard Legion controlled by the Evil Sword Immortal!"
At Ning Fengzhi's order, thousands of spirit masters shifted their tune to an exalted, fierce battle anthem—an order forcing the controlled divine attendants to charge, a suicide assault.
Countless divine attendants ignited their divine power and rushed toward those not yet controlled in the center of the battlefield, each one as deathless as Tang Chen detonating nine rings at once.
They were all level-100 powerhouses. Even with thousands of spirit masters amplifying Huan Yin's melody, they couldn't be controlled for long. Better to send them all to their deaths now—dragging their comrades with them—than let them break free later.
Boom, boom, boom!!!
Explosions of self-detonation thundered in the sky. Such frenzied attacks couldn't be stopped even by an eight-winged angel at the God-King level. In moments, charred corpses rained from above.
Four hundred divine attendants—annihilated!
"Good. Hongjun, Rongrong, assist Uncle Sword and Senior God of Lust. Encircle Qian Xunji on all sides. New Emperor Battle Team, seven-in-one fusion skill. Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan—unleash Ice-Fire Thunder Dragon. Huan Yin, mass support!" Ning Fengzhi commanded.
"Yes!" everyone responded in unison.
Though most of those under Ning Fengzhi's command now far surpassed him in strength, none hesitated. They obeyed him wholeheartedly.
Qian Xunji was boxed in on all four sides by first-rank gods; above him, the Ice-Fire Thunder Dragon at true god level; below, Shui Bing'er as Ice Phoenix, barely reaching god-level threshold under the seven-in-one fusion.
"How is this possible?" Qian Xunji was shocked. A worshiper of raw power, he always looked down on the weak—but now, four hundred level-100 powerhouses had been maneuvered into total annihilation by a support-type Titled Douluo in the nineties.
And he himself was now sealed off on all six sides with no gaps. The Ice-Fire Thunder Dragon and Ice Phoenix might be weaker than him, but under Huan Yin's Yaoguang Score not far off, their power was surging while his was suppressed. He'd need at least two moves to decisively defeat them.
But in this situation, the four first-rank gods wouldn't give him a second move.
Break out? Impossible. Force it? He couldn't beat so many god-level foes. Chen Xin alone matched his offensive power.
"This is our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect master, Ning Fengzhi. Qian Xunji, when it comes to strategy, you're leagues beneath our Fengzhi," Chen Xin said with a faint smile.
More furious than Qian Xunji at this moment was the Evil Sword Immortal. He hadn't expected so many obstacles to a plan he thought would be easy.
First, Qian Renxue's rule-type divine technique kept the gods who had surrendered to him from leaving the God Realm, ruining ninety percent of his plan. Now this ant, Ning Fengzhi, had wrecked his army through sheer stratagem.
He only wanted to reclaim his missing seventh of the Seven Deadly Sins. Why was it so hard?
In both strength and influence, he clearly had the advantage.
"In that case, don't blame me for getting rough. Even if I have to destroy Douluo Continent ahead of schedule, I will reclaim the God of Lust," the Evil Sword Immortal snarled.
He still had two cards left, though neither was entirely controllable, which was why he'd avoided using them. But now, without them, he couldn't take back the God of Lust. He hadn't fully seized the God Realm's core, so he couldn't act personally either.
"Heh, ready to send me and that other guy?" a bold male voice sounded behind him.
A massive golden dragon appeared, its scales gleaming with gorgeous light. Each diamond-shaped scale had a raised center where two diagonal lines crossed, forming four ridges—thick, solid, and razor-sharp.
The number of scales was incalculable. Great wings spread from its back. From its head and jaw sprouted spikes; those on the head continued down the spine to the tail. The tail was long and bristled with spikes, like a gigantic spiked mace.
This terrifying dragon was nearly a thousand zhang long. Its eyes were ruby-red, filled with ferocity and rage.
"Golden Dragon King, I've broken your seal. It's time you repaid me," the Evil Sword Immortal said.
"Heh, fine—can't beat you anyway. And I sense the Silver Dragon King is on that continent. I'm going to devour her," the Golden Dragon King replied. As the embodiment of the Dragon God's evil side, he didn't care about gratitude. He obeyed because the Evil Sword Immortal was strong—and because he desired to avenge himself against the God Realm and devour the Silver Dragon King to become the new Dragon God.
The Golden Dragon King turned and flew toward the God Realm passage. As for the "other guy" he mentioned, that one had already headed to Douluo Continent.
…
Above Seven Treasure Mountain, the fierce battle had become one-sided suppression. Qian Xunji was besieged by seven god-level powerhouses, including four first-rank gods—he was no match.
Crucially, all four first-rank gods wielded divine weapons; Ning Rongrong's Sea God Trident was even a super-artifact. Without an artifact himself, he could only use body and divine power to clash, taking heavier and heavier injuries.
If not for his current God-King-level divine power, Chen Xin would have taken his head long ago.
Just then, a bolt of purple-black lightning slashed down from the sky toward Huan Yin, the strongest support who wasn't directly fighting.
"They're here," Ning Fengzhi said coolly. "Huan Yin, Heavenly Sound Formation."
He'd anticipated this scene and warned Huan Yin to prepare for a sneak attack. Huan Yin deployed the Heavenly Sound Formation and, using four tonal avatars, blocked the strike.
"Lord God of Destruction, please show yourself," Ning Fengzhi called.
A man in purple robes descended, his expression complicated. "Human, it seems you knew I would come."
"Yes. From the God of Lust I learned the temperaments of the five God Kings. The Evil God King is dead; the Asura God is likely wishing for death; the Goddess of Life and the Goddess of Kindness would never aid the Evil Sword Immortal. Only you—you care too much for the God Realm. With him controlling the God Realm's core, one word from him can decide the fate of the realm. For the God Realm, you have no choice but to comply," Ning Fengzhi explained.
The God of Destruction was not a human ascendant, but a god born in the God Realm. To him, the realm was home; he could not watch it perish.
"You do understand my predicament. Forgive me, human. I cannot allow the God Realm to be destroyed—so your lower world must be sacrificed," the God of Destruction said coldly.