The words of the sect leader silenced the strongest beings in this realm. The sect leader of the Grand Luo Immortal Palace was the first to speak.
"Among all the terrible outcomes, this is the only one that isn't so bad!"
The other sect leaders didn't object. They had no other path left. The only thing they could do was choose how they would die. To sacrifice themselves for the beings of this world, or to cower and prolong their lives for another moment.
After a moment of silence, these sect leaders chose the latter path.
"We must seize a glimmer of hope for all living beings," one sect leader whispered. "No matter what, we will fight to our last drop of blood. If those devils want this world, they will have to pay an unimaginable price."
"Yes, fight until the last moment," the sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land roared. "Even if we fall, we will drag enough devils down with us."
After making their decision, the sect leaders no longer delayed. The spiritual energy was slowly being corrupted by the invasion of those devils.
Staying any longer wouldn't allow them to recover their strength.
It was better to directly invade the enemy's realm; perhaps that way, more living beings could survive. The sect leader of the Heavenly Mystery Dao Sect unleashed a world-shaking aura, using a secret technique to burn his vital essence and soul, restoring himself to his peak state.
He used the immortal artifact, the Heaven and Earth Wheel, to open a passage directly to the world suspended in the sky.
Flying up directly might be obstructed by those devils.
Using a teleportation method would be faster, preventing those devils from reacting.
"Kill, advance without hesitation!" the sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land roared.
His body was enveloped in endless colorful light and chaotic energy.
Four beams of light, each of a different color, appeared from the void, solidifying into four immortal swords. The immortal swords contained infinite sword intent; even a sweep of divine sense felt like it would be cut apart. They were incredibly sharp.
Capable of easily slicing through everything in the world.
It was said that these four swords were forged by an ancestor of the Pure Yang Holy Land who ascended to the Immortal Realm, imitating the Four Immortal Slaying Swords from the stories of ancient sages.
When all four swords were unleashed, they could slay immortals and sever the paths of heaven and earth.
After summoning the four swords, the sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land directly rushed into the opened passage. The other sect leaders also took out their immortal artifacts and followed closely behind. They all let out unwilling roars and howls, ready to fight the devils to the death. The disciples of the Immortal Palace, who had retreated to the main peak, watched as the strongest powerhouses of this era took action, and their blood couldn't help but boil.
Perhaps these powerhouses could turn the tide of the battle and bring them a glimmer of hope.
All the survivors prayed, praying that these powerhouses could turn the tide, win this victory, and thoroughly defeat the enemy. The sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land, the first to cross the teleportation light gate, regained his vision after the intense light and saw the world where the extraterrestrial devils lived.
Steel structures stretched endlessly, reaching the horizon. Towering spires, reaching into the clouds, were surrounded by dense electrical arcs, and a glowing core was trapped above the top of a tower. That intense light illuminated a large nearby area. There were also some buildings and pipes glowing with a vibrant green light, incredibly dense. This was precisely the light they had seen on the surface.
Clearly, the extraterrestrial devils and they had taken completely different paths. The green light emitted a strange fluctuation that slowly diminished the power within his body. The sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land realized that the green light and the layer of light on the devils had the same effect. That was to weaken their power.
Four immortal swords, radiating an ancient aura, floated around him.
When manipulating them, there was a sense of sluggishness, as if through an invisible membrane.
No longer could he control them as freely as before. The other sect leaders also emerged from the passage. Their expressions changed drastically the moment they arrived in this world. They all felt the suppression of this world on them. Their connection with the spiritual realm was slowly disappearing.
At their level of cultivation, what they absorbed was no longer just spiritual energy. Their souls would also merge with the spiritual realm, continuously drawing purer and more essential power from it.
If they couldn't connect with the spiritual realm, their power would significantly decrease. The chaotic energy, dense vital essence, and five-elemental light surrounding the sect leaders were slowly dimming. This world had a special power that was weakening them.
Just like how those Orks weakened the Immortal Palace disciples.
Upon realizing this, the sect leaders' faces immediately turned pale. They had intended to sacrifice themselves for the common people, to secure a glimmer of hope for them.
Who would have thought they were seeking their own demise?
One sect leader unleashed a supreme secret art.
In the past, this secret art would have caused heaven and earth to resonate, mountains and rivers to tremble, annihilating all living beings within a thousand li radius.
But in this world, it was utterly ineffective.
Its affected range was only a few tens of meters.
It could only kill the extraterrestrial devils that were close by. Their original plan was directly declared bankrupt. Their combined attack with immortal artifacts could absolutely not destroy this world.
Perhaps in an ordinary world, it might be possible. The problem was that this world had something strange about it.
It would be good if their combined attack could create a giant crater.
But that would inevitably come at the cost of their immortal artifacts collapsing.
"WAAAGH!"
The green-skinned devils recovered from their surprise at the invasion, letting out fierce roars and charging towards them. The sect leaders, wielding their immortal artifacts, met them head-on, smashing them all into mangled pieces.
After slaughtering a group of extraterrestrial devils, those creatures shrieked and fled.
During the battle, one sect leader accidentally destroyed a nearby tower emitting green light.
His suppressed soul immediately felt much lighter.
It felt as wonderful as an elder of the Joyful Union Sect feeling rejuvenated after being imprisoned for several years.
"Destroy those green-glowing things; they are suppressing our power!" the sect leader shouted. The other sect leaders reacted instantly as well. Those strange green-glowing buildings were continuously draining their power like sponges absorbing water.
Preventing their immortal artifacts and precious techniques from exerting their proper might.
Destroying them might restore their power.
But those devils didn't give them time.
Accompanied by a rumbling sound. The largest green-skinned devil since the start of the war appeared before them. This devil was much larger and greener than the others.
Its movements were even heavier than the sounds made by those giant puppets. The axe it held was larger than all of them combined.
Its crimson eyes revealed savagery, cruelty, and ecstasy at seeing them.
A dense row of teeth was like a guillotine.
It wore a thick helmet, whose horns were longer than their swords and also emitted a terrifying light, appearing to be forged from some rare, precious divine iron after being melted down.
On its heavy armor, one could also see shimmering divine iron and immortal gold, all incredibly precious.
Who knew how many worlds had to be destroyed to obtain so much precious divine gold and immortal iron?
The enormous size brought a terrifying sense of oppression, making the sect leaders involuntarily feel fear. Their power was severely suppressed. Their immortal artifacts couldn't exert their original power.
Facing such a behemoth, they truly had no chance of victory.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!" Scarface Tusk roared. The massive sound formed visible sound waves, shaking everything around.
He had never imagined that there would be fools who would actively come to his territory.
Commanding those boys was exhausting him.
But for the greater WAAAGH, he could only endure the pain of not being able to fight personally.
Once this world was conquered and the two-world passage opened, he could descend onto the battlefield without restraint.
He had thought he would be bored for a while, but who would have thought there would be a fight to be had!!
The first to die was the sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land; upon seeing the arrival of the Ork Warboss, he immediately formed a sword incantation, controlling the four flying swords to chop off the opponent's head. The four swords easily pierced into the Ork Warboss' massive body.
But the sword energy and sword intent contained within them had no effect.
A tangible green light appeared on Scarface Tusk's body, forming a shield force field. This was something every Ork Warboss possessed. The stronger the ork, the more they would be augmented by the WAAAAAAAGH force field. This force field would become terrifying as the number of Orks increased.
Such long-range psyker attacks basically had no effect. They would even suppress the opponent's psyker energy in return. The only thing that worked was the sharpness of the four swords, not the mysterious sword intent or sword energy contained within them. The four swords passed through Scarface Tusk's body, creating four penetrating wounds, but they did not affect his movements. The sect leader of the Pure Yang Holy Land was grabbed by one of Scarface Tusk's mechanical arms, while the other mechanical arm spewed high-temperature flames.
It was like grabbing an insect with tweezers and holding it in front of a flamethrower, burning it to charcoal. The second was the Sect Master of the Daluo Immortal Palace.
Seeing the Sect Master of the Pure Yang Holy Land burned alive like that,
fear also emerged in his heart. The methods of these daemons were too terrifying and bizarre.
Seeing that monster look at him, terrifying auras appeared all over his body, and a divine halo emerged behind him. The immortal artifact that suppressed the sect's luck—the pagoda—also spun rapidly under his urging, releasing streams of chaotic energy, incredibly heavy, making space-time rumble.
Even if the power within him was gushing out like a deflating balloon, he didn't care.
Facing such a dishonorable way to die, the Sect Master of the Daluo Immortal Palace was truly terrified.
But his resistance had no effect. The presence of the WAAAGH! field severely weakened his power.
Even the strongest arcane arts couldn't break through the Ork Warboss' defenses.
Only direct, physical attacks could cause damage to these fully awakened ancient sacred weapons, enhanced by Imperial technology. The Sect Master of the Daluo Immortal Palace was slapped into a pulp.
However, that immortal artifact—the pagoda—was exceptionally sturdy; even when its master was turned into a pulp, it suffered no damage, though its radiance dimmed considerably. The other Sect Masters naturally didn't fare much better. The Sect Master of the Heavenly Dao Sect, seeing that things were going awry, tried to escape with the help of the immortal artifact—the Heaven and Earth Wheel—but was disturbed by the Big Meks using spatial-temporal devices, ultimately leading to this Sect Master being shredded by spatial forces.
Even though it was just an insignificant battle, Scarface still felt very satisfied. The joy brought by these four-armed monkeys was far more exhilarating than fighting Grotz. The disciples of the Daluo Immortal Palace waited anxiously, but they didn't get the desperate comeback they wanted. The several Sect Masters went and never returned. The mountain-guarding array barely held on for a while before being breached by these daemons.
What followed was a great slaughter. The Daluo Immortal Palace was thus declared annihilated. The Gambler led his Ork Boyz away from the Daluo Immortal Palace, heading to places that could bring them more fun. There were still some hidden sacred lands and sects in this world that needed to be purged.
He could find enough fun from those guys.
Some Big Meks began to construct an enormous spatial-temporal device. The Imperium had given them the principle design schematics. The Big Meks, along with the Grotz, would build their own spatial-temporal devices in the ork style and open a passage connecting to the Immortal Realm.
Scarface looked forward to this even grander WAAAGH! expedition.
He would smash the heads of those who stood in his way, one by one, to show them his might. The Immortal Realm was vast and boundless, divided into major Immortal Domains, connecting various realms. Those capable of ascending could become Immortal-level powerhouses through the inter-realm passages.
Of course, there were also a large number of native Immortal-level powerhouses.
Including those who ascended and the natives, the Immortals in the Immortal Realm numbered in the hundreds of millions.
Some immortal palaces or sects had ancient inheritances.
Some forces were rumored to have existed since the creation of the heavens and earth, being extremely ancient. The Northern Cold Immortal Palace was the strongest force located in the Northern Cold Immortal Domain.
It was said that an Immortal Emperor resided there. The Northern Cold Immortal Palace covered a vast area, with palaces flowing with radiant light stretching endlessly.
Divine beasts and exotic birds were countless.
Immortal herbs and divine medicines were ubiquitous. The main race of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace was the Ice Dragon clan, who had human bodies and dragon heads. Their cultivation talent was very strong. They were born skilled at wielding ice-elemental Dao arts. The Northern Cold Immortal Palace was connected to numerous lower realms, and the Ice Dragon clan was distributed and lived in various worlds.
Most ascended Ice Dragon clan members would generally join the Northern Cold Immortal Palace.
In the Immortal Realm, competition between different races was also very fierce.
Immortal-level powerhouses without the backing of a strong race were destined to have a very difficult time; they couldn't find suitable trading places for Dao techniques, cultivation methods, magical artifacts, elixirs, and so on.
Without the backing of a strong race, people would dare to deceive you, fool you, take your immortal crystals, and not do their work. The Immortal Realm valued background and influence.
Some human Immortals affiliated with the Northern Cold Immortal Palace deeply understood this.
It was too difficult for humans to cultivate.
Without support, they could only live under the patronage of other forces to barely survive.
After ascension, although generally referred to as Immortal-level, there were still distinctions among Immortal levels. The lowest level was the True Immortal realm, followed by Heavenly Immortal, Golden Immortal, Grand Luo, Immortal King, Quasi-Immortal Emperor, and Immortal Emperor realms.
Humans had branches in various realms, with a vast population, but not a single powerhouse above the Heavenly Immortal level.
Because humans were stuck at the True Immortal level and couldn't advance to higher realms.
No matter what method they used, they couldn't advance to higher realms.
In other words, the True Immortal realm was the end of the human cultivation path.
Without the protection of strong individuals, humans in the Immortal Realm could only be described as pathetic. They could only live in desolate, remote areas.
Or become vassals of other powerful races.
In many places, humans were even treated as slaves and puppets.
Many human prodigies harbored resentment in their hearts but couldn't change anything. They had no Immortal Emperor, Immortal King, Grand Luo, or even Heavenly Immortal level powerhouses. They could only be slaughtered at will. There were some rumors that humans once had the most suitable physiques for cultivation in this world, completing tens of thousands of years of cultivation in just a few hundred years.
Even the myriad realms were created by humans, but later, for some unknown reason, the human cultivation path was severed, allowing them to cultivate only to the True Immortal realm. They couldn't cultivate any higher.
"You useless piece of trash!" An angry roar came from the palace.
A young Ice Dragon slapped a human True Immortal across the face.
"You can't even do this small thing right."
That young Ice Dragon had only just begun cultivating and hadn't even reached the Saint realm.
But that human True Immortal still trembled, not daring to retaliate even when struck.
Simply because the young Ice Dragon before him had a noble status that he couldn't afford to provoke.
Once he offended the other party, not only would he be punished, but his clan members would also be implicated.
"All of you may leave." A noble-looking Ice Dragon woman with feminine features walked in, watching the enraged, pacing young Ice Dragon, and shook her head, "Hao'er, why are you so angry?"
"Father promised to take me out to play, but he hasn't returned after so long. He's clearly lying to me," the young Ice Dragon said.
"Something happened in the lower realm. Your father and his colleagues went to guard the border connecting the Northern Cold Immortal Domain and the lower realm to prevent those enemies from entering."
"Hmph, he's just lying. There are countless Immortal-level powerhouses in the Northern Cold Immortal Palace, and even an Immortal Emperor ancestor. What could possibly threaten us? He's just breaking his word," the young Ice Dragon didn't believe his mother's explanation, thinking his mother was lying to him.
"He'll rush back as soon as possible," the noble-looking Ice Dragon woman shook her head, saying helplessly, "Then you can let him accompany you."
"If you lie to me again, I won't talk to any of you next time," the young Ice Dragon said firmly, looking at his mother. The Gloriana.
Kael'thas, seated on his throne, gazed at the numerous screens suspended before him, extracting useful war information from them. The eldar farseer, Anvil, stood not far from his throne, assisting him in reviewing the psyker readings from various regions. The sound of metal prosthetics hitting the floor echoed as a tech-priest entered from the doorway.
"My lord, one hundred and twenty worlds are ready. Shall we begin immediately?"
"Begin immediately, we don't have much time," Kael'thas clenched his iron fist, a resolute expression on his face, "We must present this universe to the Emperor as soon as possible."
The Forgotten Civilization was the biggest obstacle in Universe 04.
Once it was annihilated, Universe 04 would have no power to resist; the remaining small fries posed no threat at all.
Using what the indigenous creatures called the Immortal Realm as the first major battlefield and launching attacks on other major realms from there was a pre-determined strategy. The End-of-Magic devices were ready; once the war horn sounded, they would be simultaneously activated, releasing resonance to weaken those extraordinary psyker mutants who used supernatural powers.
Kael'thas' orders were relayed by the communications officer to the leaders of each world.
Streams of brilliant light illuminated the dark universe, soaring from the surface into the veil of reality and illusion.
Accompanied by unimaginable rumbling and dazzling light from the other shore,
the inter-realm passages connected to the Immortal Realm were forcibly opened by the Imperium. The majestic passes on the path to ascension also appeared before the eyes of the world.
Once the passes were breached, the Imperial army could advance unimpeded into the Immortal Realm.
The area beyond the Northern Cold Heavenly Pass was vast and boundless, stretching endlessly.
It was a very mysterious ancient land.
One could see countless stars suspended in the air, very close, emitting chaotic aura and five-element divine light.
Looking up, one could see the impact craters left by meteorites on those celestial bodies. There were many mysterious ancient lands, where some powerful individuals who disliked conflict lived in seclusion. Traveling through it, while dangerous, also offered many opportunities.
Hidden immortal caves and ancient divine beast lairs were scattered throughout this vast region.
If one could find one or two, it would be no surprise to rise to the pinnacle of life and become a legendary figure. The area beyond the heavens was the periphery of the Immortal Realm.
Its end was the Heavenly Pass. The Heavenly Pass was divided into many sections, connecting different Immortal Domains.
Each Immortal Domain would send people to guard it.
Firstly, it was for communication with the lower realm dao traditions, as the cost of communication between the area beyond the heavens and the lower realm was much lower than in other parts of the Immortal Domain.
Secondly, it was to ensure that the immortal-level powerhouses who ascended from their own dao traditions would be taken in by their own faction.
Some forces were shameless and had no moral bottom line. They impersonated other forces, deceiving newly ascended immortal-level powerhouses. They would offer to lead the way, or promise good ways to earn immortal crystals, and even recommend immortal female companions, acting incredibly enthusiastic.
It was as if the newly ascended immortal-level powerhouse was their father.
Naturally, they worked so hard to gain benefits from those newly ascended immortal-level powerhouses from the lower realms who did not understand the dangers of the Immortal Realm. The better ones would just recruit them, making them work for free for a period. The worse ones would trick them into being sold to other forces, used as raw materials for alchemy or artifact refining.
It was once rumored that an immortal-level powerhouse of the True Dragon Clan ascended.
As a result, they were deceived and swindled by other forces, had their dragon horns sawn off, and were tied up and bled for a long time.
Every ten to fifteen days, a few divine beasts would be brought in for breeding, to cultivate various mounts or divine pets mixed with dragon blood.
In the end, if it weren't for a mighty figure of the True Dragon Clan intervening to rescue them, they would have surely perished.
Given this chaos, many forces could only send people to be permanently stationed here, and when they encountered an immortal-level powerhouse from their own clan, they would guide them to join their sect to avoid being harmed by other forces. The Heavenly Pass was the crucial point of the two-realm passage connecting to the lower realms.
It is said that this majestic pass already existed when the Immortal Realm was born. The Heavenly Pass was incredibly grand and magnificent.
It stood at the edge of the area beyond the heavens. The end of the path to immortality.
Blocking the beings of the lower realms.
Black city walls stretched across the sky, their ends unseen both vertically and horizontally, exuding an ancient aura of long existence. Those giant stars were merely embellishments on the city walls. This place used to be desolate; apart from the wall guardians who needed to receive immortals, or immortals who needed to maintain contact with the lower realms, virtually no other beings would come here. This place was too desolate.
Far less lively than other places.
Even immortals found such solitude unbearable.
After all, the pursuit of longevity is about being unwilling to die, but why be unwilling to die?
It's simply that the vibrant world is too alluring.
If one were hungry three times a day, disgusted by ugly creatures daily, and bullied by other beings, perhaps no one would desire longevity. The pursuit of longevity is to enjoy this world for as long as possible. To live as one pleases, to be a person above others.
Otherwise, what's the point of longevity?
To contribute to the prosperity of the Immortal Realm, to the increasingly low rate of ascension to immortality?
The Northern Cold Heavenly Pass, which used to have no living beings, was now incredibly noisy.
Above the gigantic city behind the Heavenly Pass, tens of thousands of warships floated, obscuring the starry sky. They ranged in size from as large as mountains to as vast as stars, varying greatly.
Dense and myriad in styles, all flowed with mysterious light, forged from immortal gold. They completely covered this part of the world. These warships were led by the Northern Cold Immortal Palace, coming to reinforce the Heavenly Pass.
All of them were powerful forces from various parts of the Northern Cold Immortal Domain. The beings on each warship exuded astonishing auras, with iridescent light illuminating the sky, brilliant and dazzling.
On the city walls, the Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace and the leaders of several other major forces were discussing matters concerning the lower realm. The enemy was coming ferociously, numerous worlds had fallen, and many lower realm dao traditions had been annihilated; even half-step immortal-level powerhouses wielding immortal artifacts had no power to retaliate.
"Daemons are invading, another great calamity. I hope other great realms won't take this opportunity to plunder the Immortal Realm."
The Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace was shrouded in chaotic aura, with countless runes floating behind him.
His eyes were captivating, burning with white light, like a star burning deep in the starry sky.
Sharp and intimidating, if he were to act, he could easily tear apart a True Immortal.
He wore an emperor's robe, flowing with light, adorning his strong and powerful physique, highlighting his extraordinary and naturally imposing demeanor.
On his head, he wore an emperor's crown, flowing with nine-colored radiance, illuminating all beings, sacred and inviolable.
"There's no need to worry too much. With the Heavenly Pass, the Immortal Realm will certainly be fine. Back then, other great realms attacked for years, but couldn't even cross the Heavenly Pass." A person with divine radiance flowing around them, incredibly majestic, possessing an unparalleled aura, spoke. The Immortal Realm was not the only great realm. There were other great worlds, equally powerful, and conflicts between realms were ceaseless. Often, beings from other realms would sneak into the Immortal Realm to wreak havoc, causing immense suffering and destitution.
Some important Heavenly Passes were heavily guarded by powerful individuals to block those enemies.
"If they dare to come, just kill them all."
The speaker was an unparalleled Immortal King, wearing a purple-gold crown, with a purple-gold chest, and a tall stature.
Around him, myriad heavenly imprints appeared, and three thousand worlds emerged behind him.
Within them were countless ancient kingdoms, with innumerable gods and daemons prostrating before him, their chanting echoing, grand and magnificent.
Such a scene was truly shocking. The words spoken were even more domineering, showing no regard for the so-called daemons. The other powerhouses glanced at that person, not daring to speak further. That was an undying Immortal King, impossible to extinguish through the ages. The Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace was about to say something more when a horn sounded, shaking the Immortal Domain. The horn was polished from the horn of an ancient true dragon, placed on the city wall, and had never been blown for millions of years.
Now, it sounded on its own.
"They're here." A voice sounded, and the people standing on the city wall looked into the distance.
Originally, beyond the city wall was the Path to Immortality. The emperors of the Immortal Domain had reached a consensus, ordering all domains to destroy the Path to Immortality to slow down the enemy's advance.
Now, outside the black city wall was a pitch-black abyss.
Streaks of light exploded in the abyss, and cracks were torn open, gushing out bizarre light. The entire space-time structure was torn apart, and under the gaze of numerous Immortal Domain powerhouses, those daemons forcibly opened the closed two-realm passage.
Giant metal warships surged out from the cracks, vast in number, impossible to count.
Some were like colossal cities, others comparable to stars, immense and magnificent.
Golden double-headed eagle insignias were embedded on the side of each warship, or placed at the bow as a ram. The huge muzzles on those warships all glowed.
Upon appearing, brilliant beams of light shot out, illuminating the massive Heavenly Pass.
Projectiles loaded with annihilation matter, black hole cluster bombs, anti-matter beams, dark energy fluctuations, and dimensional weapons all bombarded the majestic Heavenly Pass.
In just an instant, this realm was transformed into a deadly, perilous land.
Destructive aura surged, and the escaping aftershocks could easily kill True Immortal-level powerhouses. The city wall glowed autonomously, countless runes appeared like a vast ocean, and innumerable chains of order intertwined, blocking the dense attacks. The Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace and the other supreme powerhouses all showed expressions of shock.
At their level, they could effortlessly control the laws of heaven and earth and utilize the Great Dao.
But the scene before them chilled their hearts. The battlefield tore apart all laws and the Great Dao; even an Immortal King would perish in such dense firepower.
One projectile exploded, forming seven or eight black holes.
A thin golden foil transformed into light and spread out, causing a whole space to collapse. Time flow was chaotic, space was completely shattered and then re-integrated. These powerful weapons were being unleashed as if they cost nothing, which was truly terrifying.
Many True Immortal-level powerhouses turned pale, and their confidence in the Heavenly Pass vanished.
It was too terrifying.
Capable of easily destroying suns, moons, stars, and all things in heaven and earth.
Even if you could comprehend supreme Dao methods, it would be useless.
Even the Great Dao itself would be directly torn apart, terrifying to the extreme.
"Counterattack." The Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace reacted immediately and issued the command. The Heavenly Pass and the Immortal Realm were born together, incredibly sturdy, integrating offense and defense, possessing endless power.
It contained countless grand formations. The command issued by the Palace Lord of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace quickly received responses from various powerhouses.
Numerous powerhouses on the city wall took action, reviving countless terrifying array patterns. The entire city wall absorbed the power of heaven and earth, along with the immortal crystals inserted into designated grooves by the various major forces.
As the array patterns revived, terrifying auras flowed forth.
Immortal light surged, vast and boundless. This caused countless Great Dao in the area to resonate, rumbling loudly.
Blazing rays of light appeared, sweeping towards the battleships with endless killing intent.
Several battleships emblazoned with the Imperial double-headed eagle disintegrated in the void, turning into fiery debris that plummeted into the endless abyss.
A moment later, a bizarre scene unfolded. The debris seemed to flow backward, restoring themselves to their original, undestroyed state.
"Time law?" An Immortal King looked at the restored battleships, his face filled with horror. "These damned fiends can use the Time law to such an extent!"
The expressions of the other Immortal Kings were equally grim. The Time law was the most difficult of the three thousand Great Dao to master. They hadn't expected the enemy to possess it.
"Eradicate all imprints! I don't believe they can recover then!" a powerful figure shrouded in chaotic aura roared, urging those in charge of the grand array to push the array patterns to their limit.
Even the Heaven-Opening Killing Array contained within the Heavenly Pass was awakened. The Heaven-Opening Killing Array was the most offensive grand array among all formations, said to be a peerless array mastered since the time of creation, born from primordial chaos, and an supreme formation. The fierce battle between the two sides was utterly insane.
Auras swept across, tearing apart heaven and earth, and the Great Dao wailed incessantly, like an adorable loli encountering eighteen bronze men, being utterly ravaged.
Several battleships collapsed, then were swept by several light beams carrying destructive aura, pulverizing everything and grinding them down, preventing their recovery. The strategium of the Macragge's Glory was dim at this moment.
Only the faint glow of the tactical projector flickered.
A virtual battlefield map floated on the cold metal table. The massive city wall stretched across heaven and earth.
If Leman Russ, Sanguinius, or the God-Emperor were here, they would undoubtedly associate it with the Warp structures they had seen during the Horus Heresy, on their journey to David.
It was equally colossal. Trampling upon all the laws of reality.
Calgar sat on his throne, his gaze commanding the dynamics of the entire battlefield through the screens and database information.
Vast amounts of text scrolled endlessly.
Massive numbers surrounded these words like glowing strips.
Every second, millions of data points flashed by, captured by Calgar's enhanced brain.
Communication channels for the Raven Guard, Novamarines, Silver Skulls, and Angels of Absolution chapters were already linked. They awaited the fleet to open a path for them.
Regiments from famous war worlds like Cadia, Catachan, and Krieg were ready. Their war vehicles rumbled, their power engines roaring in anticipation.
Calgar, meanwhile, searched for a breakthrough opportunity within the vast data. The enemy's defenses were exquisitely intricate. The glowing runes transferred all Imperial attacks into the Warp, allowing the vast ethereal ocean to digest the world-ending power. The enemy's city wall defenses mostly relied on runes to leverage Warp energy. This was different from the Imperium's use of shield projectors to create protective barriers.
"Their defenses are composed of independent components, which they call 'formations.' Each formation is a shield, and they use these shields to form such a massive defensive wall, deflecting our attacks. Even if we disable one component, only a small hole will appear; the defenses formed by other components will still block that small shield."
Magos Biologis Phila explained the enemy's city wall defenses to Calgar.
"Before their so-called formations are completely disabled, we cannot teleport. Forcibly teleporting would put the warriors in extreme danger, causing them to be torn apart by chaotic spacetime structures or sent to other places."
Calgar listened to the Magos' report, constantly clicking on the screens with one hand.
He issued various commands to different fleet departments, instructing them to test various aspects of the city wall's formations: adjustment, activation speed, energy absorption and displacement, displacement reaction, and displacement trigger, all in search of the weakest point.
"Even from the Imperium's perspective, this city wall is quite perfect," Calgar did not stint on his praise for the enemy.
"But everything has a weakness. As long as we can dig a small hole, we can quickly make it collapse. Those formations all need 'formation anchors' for support, just like our shield generators must have projection components," Magos Biologis Phila said. "I suggest throwing those captives onto the teleportation platform and teleporting them in."
"Such a teleportation will disrupt the operation of their formations. If they see their own kin killed by their own formations, they might soften. With even a one-in-ten-thousand-nanosecond lapse, we can project Imperial warriors inside."
The Imperium launched attacks on numerous worlds, many of which were completely massacred, but some living beings were taken captive to feed daemons accompanying the expeditionary forces.
Magos Biologis Phila's action was cruel, treating those captives as consumables.
Calgar glanced at her, then issued orders to other departments to teleport the captives in.
Large numbers of captives were escorted to the teleportation platform. They cried and screamed, filled with despair.
But the humans were cold and merciless, herding them all onto it.
Not even children were spared, held by their mothers.
"Please, he's just a child!" a creature, whose body resembled a maggot, cried out.
Her body was plump and white, long and round.
She had four legs.
Her appearance was no different from an insect.
Her eyes were as black as gemstones.
She cried heartbrokenly. The armed personnel showed no mercy, forcing them onto the teleportation platform.
One creature tried to say something, but the armed personnel immediately pulled the trigger.
A flash erupted from the smoking muzzle, and the head of the creature who tried to step forward was gone. The tech-priests set the teleportation destination to the city wall and pressed the activation switch. The grand array there was infinite, covering every corner.
As soon as those creatures were teleported within the city wall's range, they were instantly torn to shreds by the rampaging killing array, their souls annihilated. The captives were teleported repeatedly by the Imperium as if they were worthless, thrown into the meat grinder-like array to die.
It was too tragic.
Creatures died in droves. The Heavenly Pass echoed with the desperate wails of the dead.
Countless souls cried and roared, unwilling to accept their fate, their strong obsessions turning them into ghostly figures.
"Shameless."
A powerful figure roared, his hair standing on end in fury. The formation he controlled had slaughtered a group of his own kin.
All of them had been captured in the lower realm, and now they were being used as consumables, thrown into the killing array.
Many other powerful figures also showed expressions of grief and indignation. They watched helplessly as those creatures were slaughtered.
Among them were not a few of their own kin. Those fiends were too cruel. They actually used ordinary living beings to clear the way.
Roars continued ceaselessly, and many powerful figures wanted to rush out of the Heavenly Pass to kill the enemy.
Simply because these fiends had gone too far and were too shameless. The Imperium, however, showed no response. They continued to fire, consuming swathes of living beings.
"I can't take it anymore, these fiends must die." A powerful figure erupted with a terrifying aura. He saw a bloodline he had left in the lower realm.
Before that person was killed, he was still calling for his ancestor to save him, and the ancestor he called for was himself.
He had personally annihilated his own descendants. That powerful figure wanted to control the killing array and rush out of the Heavenly Pass directly, but he was stopped by other powerful figures.
However, his impulsiveness caused the array patterns of the defensive city wall to briefly halt. This was a weakness. The data model of the divine brain calculated the intensity of the attacks on the Heavenly Pass every moment, scanning for weaknesses in the city wall from the feedback data. The gap caused by that powerful figure's impulsiveness was instantly captured. The muzzles of the battleships all erupted with bright light, fiercely bombarding that position.
A penetrating gap appeared.
Even though those powerful figures patched it up in time.
However, the change had already occurred.
Accompanied by a teleportation light beam, a squad of heavily armored Primaris Marines appeared on the city wall of the Heavenly Pass.
"In the name of our Emperor, purify this realm." The voice of the leading Primaris Marine came through his faceplate, utterly cold.
Any creature that dares to obstruct the Emperor has no other choice but death.
Argentius of the Silver Skulls Chapter and many battle-brothers seized a brief loophole in the protective city wall's grand formation. They successfully completed a spatiotemporal transfer and descended upon the city wall.
Many chapters attempted this, but ultimately, they were the ones who earned this honor.
Spatial transfer requires target parameters for accurate and error-free transmission.
Otherwise, it's easy to be transported into a wall or some other place.
Within such a short time, even a divine mind couldn't calculate the disturbed spatiotemporal parameters.
Many Primaris Chapters could only gamble on successful transfers using random parameters. The Silver Skulls Chapter was the lucky one.
Chapter Master Argentius, standing on the city wall, smiled.
"This will be a battle worthy of remembrance for the Silver Skulls; we will secure victory in this war," Argentius roared over the comms. The other Silver Skulls warriors were also exceptionally excited, venting their joy through battle cries.
Even in such a dangerous situation, they weren't thinking about whether they would die in battle, but whether such honor would allow them to stand in the Hero's Plaza on Terra. To enter the Emperor's domain after death without regret.
"For the Emperor!"
Battle cries echoed continuously through the communication channel. They raised their weapons, unleashed their abilities, and struck at the nearest enemies.
Argentius led the charge, wearing a heavy, latest-model Primaris Terminator suit of armor.
His massive physique made him look like a rampaging heavy tank. The xenos' psyker powers hitting him were like mere splashes of water.
He wielded his weapon with incredible speed.
Only after the enemy died did his weapon's phantom appear in the air.
Argentius' objective was clear: the xenos' shield generator closest to them. These were what the xenos called their "formation anchors."
The grand formation was an advanced application of psyker power. The xenos used these grand formations to leverage the power of the Warp, weaving them into shields. To be honest, such shields were incredibly powerful. They could even block the Imperium's world-ending weapons.
A terrifying radiance swept past Argentius' body, and a xenos with a bird-like head shrieked at him.
Its entire body glowed, and during the fight, sounds reverberated in the void, along with strange flashes of light. These things were exactly like those Warp daemons.
But they could move freely in the real universe and even build civilizations. This was slightly different from daemons.
It was hard to say; Argentius had discussed it with an Inquisitorial official during a mission.
Warp daemons also establish civilizations. The Inquisition had clear archival records.
Several civilizations were established by the unliving entities that emerged from the Warp.
And some collected relics were sealed away in high-level Inquisitorial secret black cells.
As Argentius slaughtered these xenos, he compared them to daemons. There was no difference.
When daemons emerged, they were enveloped in light. These xenos were also enveloped in light.
daemons could easily manipulate the power of the Warp. These xenos could also easily manipulate the power of the Warp.
When daemons emerged, there were eerie whispers.
When these xenos emerged, strange sounds would also emanate from the air. That xenos, glowing with light, flew towards Argentius.
After dodging the attack, Argentius directly lopped off its head, and the disgusting body fell to the ground.
Even its blood flowed with an eerie radiance. The corpse's glow lingered for a long time.
"Abomination," Argentius muttered with disgust.
Other battle-brothers were also fighting fiercely. The cogitators built into their armor and the deployed probes pinpointed their target for them.
A tall tower inscribed with blasphemous runes, emanating evil, twisted radiance.
"Hurry!" Argentius shouted. "Brothers, follow me! Mura, Tyrian, cover us!"
A battle-brother, whose body was enveloped in light and exuded terrifying psyker energy, was knocked over by a xenos.
Other xenos swarmed him, stabbing at the battle-brother's armor with their strange, glowing weapons. Those weapons carried psyker power, and even the anti-Warp field attached to the armor was useless.
Water can extinguish fire.
But pouring a spoonful of water into an active volcano won't put it out.
It will only evaporate the water.
Anti-Warp fields also have limits; exceeding them causes overload. The dense attacks of the xenos ultimately caused cracks to appear in the battle-brother's armor.
With a mournful roar, his limbs were torn apart.
Other battle-brothers, while slaughtering xenos, were struck at close range by high-intensity psyker blasts to their heads, which exploded directly. That terrifying psyker energy even distorted spacetime, preventing nanobots from repairing it, and he fell immediately.
One by one, battle-brothers fell, yet the fighting passion of the Silver Skulls warriors grew even more fervent.
Death was not an end, but the path to honor.
Argentius strode forward across the battlefield of strange glows and fierce combat.
His heavy iron boots crushed enemy heads and remains. They were getting closer and closer to their target. They could already see the blasphemous runes and evil radiance on the tall tower.
Mysterious whispers echoed in the air, filled with ominous and eerie sounds.
A terrifying radiance swept away his personal guard; the explosive sound of the armor's anti-Warp field colliding with that dreadful psyker power was deafening.
As if it would tear a rift in spacetime.
When the radiance vanished, the battle-brother fell.
Only his combat boots and the hand gripping his axe remained in their original position.
A xenos held a strange longsword, its evil runes flowing with various glows, the malevolent echo around it particularly strong, and various blasphemous light-lotuses appeared at its feet. Those evil illusions appeared behind it. That xenos killed a Silver Skulls warrior with a single sword strike, cleaving him and his armor in half.
But the next second, the xenos' head was cut off.
Crimson blood gushed out like a fountain, splashing everywhere.
Argentius transformed his rage into strength.
"Accelerate!" Argentius shouted. "For the Emperor, we fear nothing!"
Some of the Silver Skulls Chapter's new recruits came from their homeworld, Savia, while others were selected from children born on stellar-class battleships. There was no difference between the two; they received the same treatment. This practice was not uncommon.
Many chapters adopted it.
With the expansion of the Imperium, expeditions away from the homeworld had become commonplace.
If they stayed on battleships for too long, they could easily lose their original chapter traditions, culture, and spirit. These things should not be underestimated; the Imperium's armies are constantly at war.
Even without suffering fatal injuries, they can experience soul attrition, becoming numb, even bloodthirsty, and developing various war syndromes. These symbolic elements can heal them spiritually and compensate for any lack in their faith in the Emperor.
Symbolism is a very important concept in the Warp, possessing extremely mysterious power.
If used cleverly, it can greatly help warriors avoid illusory harm from daemons, psykers, or practitioners, and also gain a certain degree of psyker resistance. To compensate for this, various chapters regularly recruited qualified warriors from their homeworlds to protect their traditions and faith.
Attigenus, the First Company Captain, was a Primaris warrior from the homeworld. The previous First Company Captain was ambushed in a skirmish and had died by the time reinforcements arrived. The outstanding and beloved Attigenus thus became the First Company Captain.
He was leading his battle-brothers, protecting Chapter Master Argentius' flank.
He was a burly warrior who had undergone four Primaris upgrades.
His steel-colored power armor bore signs of long service and wear.
Even with four generations of upgrades and equipped with the Imperium's most advanced weapons,
Primaris warriors were not invincible. Those who wielded super powers could still pierce their armor, sever their heads, and destroy any means of their resurrection. The only reassuring thing was that the Emperor would take their souls, place them in His divine realm to slumber, until the time was right for them to be reawakened.
Attigenus had a metal patch on his face.
In one campaign, he killed enough xenos, but half of his face was shattered and contaminated by those foul powers, forcing him to abandon regenerative stimulation therapy and replace it with blessed holy mechanical parts.
Adrenaline surged through his body, and his roar echoed from the vocoder on his faceplate. The arcing longsword swung in his hand.
He was incredibly fast, not just in speed, but also in his influence over time. The Imperium's primaris space marines did not cultivate powerful arcane arts like the beings of this universe.
World-destroying was the Navy's business.
Long-range strikes and saturation bombing were the artillery's business. Their job was to handle close-quarters combat.
Every ability they possessed, every weapon they wielded, served this single objective.
A xeno, its face contorted in shock, had its head severed by him.
A xeno's head must be much like the dragon's head Saint George slew in ancient myths.
Its hands were scaled claws.
Its eyes were vertical slits, and as its head was cut off, the yellow-brown pupils slowly glazed over. The headless corpse fell to the ground.
Perhaps, he hadn't yet adapted to such simple warfare.
A swing of the sword, a strike to the head, and death.
No unnecessary words, no time for elaborate spells.
Only the simplest, purest form of killing. The opponent's soul was shattered by the Anathema property of the weapon.
If one thought that a battle with an Immortal-level expert would last a long time, or that they would instantly revive after being killed, then they were thinking too much. The Anathema property would shatter their souls, rendering their resurrection methods ineffective.
Even if they could reassemble their souls, it would be countless eons later.
By then, the Imperium would have already conquered this universe.
Even if they revived, it would be meaningless.
In some ways, the methods possessed by these Immortal-level cultivators were even more exaggerated than those of daemons.
Regeneration from a drop of blood, undying and imperishable, untouchable by heaven, unburial by earth.
Due to the presence of reality anchors, if the cultivator's soul power was not exhausted,
the opponent would continuously leverage the power of the Warp, distorting the laws of reality to regenerate severed limbs.
Losing an arm or having one's head cut off were minor matters.
As long as they could still tap into the power of the Warp, those severed limbs would continuously regrow. The sword in Artiganus' hand carried the power of various concepts; as long as the physical body was destroyed, its soul projection would also be destroyed. This meant instant death for an Immortal-level expert, preventing them from regenerating from a drop of blood or returning through the thoughts of living beings.
A fierce battle erupted on the city wall, incredibly brutal. The appearance of the primaris space marines caught many of the wall's defenders off guard. They couldn't fathom how these individuals had appeared. They just 'whooshed' onto the city wall. The Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace and several other sect leaders were stunned for a few seconds by the sudden battle.
A few seconds is a very short time.
In the Immortal Realm, this was not a fatal flaw.
In ordinary duels, just exchanging harsh words took a considerable amount of time.
Especially for Immortal King-level experts like them, a fight would last for thousands of years. They would have to slowly wear down the opponent's spirit until it withered to achieve final victory.
Even against ordinary Immortals, Immortal Kings would still have to slowly wear them down, perhaps just at a faster pace.
But those devils were different.
By the time these Palace Masters and Sect Leaders regained their senses, the Immortal Dao experts on that section of the city wall were almost completely slaughtered.
Killed in one blow, without even time to cast any Daoist arts, they were gone. The time was as short as a few milliseconds.
No resurrection, no limb regeneration.
Just like uncultivated beings, once killed, they stayed killed.
A rare trace of horror appeared in the brilliant eyes of the Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace.
He watched as those figures wielded arcing blades and swords, severing the heads of those Immortal-level experts.
Piercing their chests, tearing open their bodies.
Crimson immortal blood dripped onto the black city wall, forming glowing pools in less than a few breaths.
If cultivators from the lower realms were to see this scene, they would surely go mad.
Such precious immortal blood was being wasted like this.
An Immortal Dao expert saw the opponent's blade and axe coming and instinctively waved a hand to block.
He wanted to use his indestructible Vajra Glass body to block this attack.
As a result, his entire body was cut open as if it were cheese. The entire process was incredibly smooth.
Blood and intestines flowed out together. This scene made the Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace feel a chill in his heart; death was too swift. The most brutal aspect of war was laid bare before this Immortal King-level expert.
Regardless of their past stories, sacrifices made, or achievements attained, in war, they were merely expendable individuals.
Which Immortal Dao expert hadn't spent countless years growing, fighting, and finally becoming an Immortal Dao expert?
Yet, killing them, destroying everything they had fought for, took less than a second. This was war.
"Kill!" The Half-Step Grand Luo Realm Sect Master of the Extreme Desire Dao Sect roared, his hair standing on end, "Defend the Immortal Realm, kill, fellow Daoists!"
His entire body was enveloped in brilliant immortal light, emanating boundless divine power like a god, radiating endless divine radiance that made it impossible to look directly at him.
Holding the supreme immortal artifact he had nurtured for countless years, he charged towards those devils. Then, one of the devils raised its strange weapon.
A flash of fire appeared. The Sect Master of the Extreme Desire Dao was dead, without a world-shattering battle or the tragic heroism of fighting to the death.
His head exploded directly, and his body, enveloped in divine light, was torn to shreds by the immense impact like a rag doll.
Death came so swiftly that the various phenomena surrounding him had not yet faded.
He remained enveloped by a sacred and auspicious halo. The Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace saw an expert who was only one step away from advancing to Immortal King being killed just like that, and what little courage he had left vanished.
"Quick, go, all of you, don't let them escape!" The Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace shouted, "Kill the enemies for the Immortal Realm!"
He dared not go himself, only putting on a show, sending other Immortal Dao experts to their deaths.
Fleeing was not an option.
As the dignified Palace Master of an Immortal Palace, a powerful figure who held sway over the Northern Cold Immortal Domain, if he fled from the battlefield, who would still respect him?
At that point, he would truly become a laughingstock.
With a resounding boom,
the towering structure, serving as a node for the grand formation, collapsed amidst a deafening roar. The city wall trembled. The grand formation covering the city wall flickered a few times, then erupted in a brilliant light.
A chaotic aura appeared in one area, and the runes interwoven in the sky flickered a few times before disappearing.
Several quick-witted experts, responsible for overseeing the grand formation, immediately took remedial measures. The speed of those devils was equally swift, and a dense barrage of attacks directly slammed into that spot.
After only a brief resistance, several beams of light pierced through, triggering a series of massive explosions. This affected another tall tower, causing the overlapping grand formations to become chaotic once more. The breach was gradually widening.
More flashes of light appeared in the air, and those heavily armored devils appeared one after another on the city wall of the Northern Cold Heavenly Pass.
An Immortal King-level expert led numerous Immortal Dao experts to try and stop them.
Within a few minutes, they were completely slaughtered. That Immortal King-level expert continuously slew more than a dozen powerful enemies, but ultimately, due to being outnumbered, he was cut down.
Even his head was severed.
Immortal King's blood splattered across the sky.
A generation's supreme prodigy, only a sorrowful roar echoed, utterly desolate.
Another Immortal King, who was close to the fallen warrior, waved his hand, releasing a battle banner that wrapped around the deceased's body and tore through space to depart.
Clearly, it was meant for the immortal artifact to carry his corpse back to the Northern Cold Immortal Domain to warn and seek help.
An Immortal King bled, only a battle banner returned with his corpse. The brutal battle between the two sides for the Heavenly Pass made the Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace tremble with fear.
He no longer cared about his reputation or the power of the Immortal Palace.
"We've lost!" he yelled, then quickly sped off into the distance.
It was too brutal; he couldn't bear it. He had to go back and find the Old Ancestor.
An Immortal King-level expert, moreover, the Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Domain's foremost power, leading the retreat from the front lines,
caused many of the formerly courageous experts, who had been prepared to fight to the death, to panic.
Some of the more astute ones took a few steps back, then whooshed away.
Chaos erupted at the North Cold Immortal Pass.
Even on an immortal battlefield, morale is extremely important.
Once a rout occurs, it triggers a chain reaction.
Large numbers of immortal beings turned and fled. Immortal experts who were far away, unaware of the situation, would also follow suit out of self-preservation.
Compared to the magnificent North Cold Heavenly Pass, the Imperium had only just opened a breach. They had never imagined they could take the North Cold Heavenly Pass so quickly. Their only stroke of luck was perhaps choosing an excellent location. The section of the city wall they invaded was precisely the one the Lord of the North Cold Immortal Palace was responsible for. The Lord of the North Cold Immortal Palace was born with abundant resources and was hailed as the foremost prodigy of the North Cold.
During his growth, everything went smoothly. Wherever he went, everyone showed him deference.
Even long-secluded experts would emerge to greet him. They feared angering the North Cold Immortal Palace and being instantly killed by a slap from the Immortal Emperor ancestor of the Immortal Palace. The Lord of the North Cold Immortal Palace had never experienced any brutal battles.
Much less had he ever fought over cultivation resources.
As long as he lived well, he could continuously grow by utilizing the resources of the North Cold Immortal Palace.
Having grown up in such an environment, he did not want to die.
He did not want to sacrifice his precious life for such a meaningless cause.
He was born high and mighty, looking down on all beings.
Whatever he desired, someone would always offer it with both hands.
Having everything go his way was his privilege; this world existed for beings like him.
He thought this conflict would be like previous ones.
Prodigies clashing in one-on-one battles.
Immortal King level experts overseeing the skirmishes.
By presiding over the battlefield, he would win rounds of cheers.
Even in danger, he could return to the Immortal Palace to seek help from his ancestor.
But who could have imagined that on such a battlefield, Immortal Kings died worse than dogs?
He cowered.
He fled. To make his escape seem less disgraceful, he shouted loudly and even used the power of laws.
He just wanted to tell all beings that he was forced to retreat due to a battlefield setback, not out of fear. The Immortal King level expert's shout caused morale to completely collapse.
Many experts, not understanding why, saw others run and followed suit, no longer willing to resist the powerful enemy. The Imperium's Primaris warriors, however, pursued relentlessly. The battle quickly turned into a one-sided slaughter.
Argentius and others let out furious roars, attacking the fleeing immortal experts. They cut them down with their swords and axes.
Soon, a large number of corpses littered the ground.
Many had wounds on their backs, all killed while turning to flee. They would rather die than turn back and resist.
After several core arrays protecting the city walls were toppled,
a massive gap appeared in the supreme-powered magical formation protecting the city walls.
Large numbers of Knight Mechs and Titans were released from the transport ships' hangars. The weapons carried by these mechs were even more terrifying. They existed precisely to dismantle enemy fortifications and suppress their firepower. The muzzles of the Titan weapons flashed brilliantly, their dazzling light capable of blinding anyone who looked directly at them.
Beams of light and cannon shells streaked across the sky, bombarding the surface of the city wall. The pilots did not participate in the battle to wipe out the defenders on the wall.
Instead, after approaching the wall, they used their equipped Titan weapons to destroy the gigantic wall, which stretched between heaven and earth, at close range.
Not only were they to annihilate the defenders, but they were also to directly destroy the city wall, preventing any potential countermeasures from the enemy. They continuously bombarded the wall with their Titans. The sturdy and indestructible city wall became riddled with craters.
Gaps appeared in the city wall. The magical formation protecting the city wall also experienced problems in its operation as the wall was destroyed.
Some warships, utilizing the gaps, bypassed the North Cold Heavenly Pass' city wall. They then launched attacks on the warships behind the city wall.
Dense beams of light swept across the sky.
Countless cannon shells, powerful enough to annihilate stars, flew out in a fan shape, unleashing a saturation strike on the densely packed warships.
Initially, the warships that first encountered the enemy managed to remain calm and counterattacked the Imperium.
Huge runes on the warships glowed, rising one after another. These were the runes of myriad races, powerful innate profound truths of these mighty races living in the North Cold Immortal Domain. The runes and the power of laws fluctuated, as if portending the end of the world.
Blazing flames, dazzling divine light, and streaks of immortal radiance converged into beams that soared straight into the clouds. The symbols on the warships even resonated terrifyingly with heaven and earth, forming supreme scriptures. The sound of the Great Dao echoed in the air, shaking the heavens.
Some experts controlled the power of their warships to attack the enemy, sending out surging beams of light that seemed capable of cleaving heaven and earth. The intense battle between the two sides escalated to a fever pitch within mere minutes. The Immortal Realm warships quickly fell into a disadvantage.
Large numbers of warships were destroyed instantly. Their hulls exploded in mid-air, turning into countless fragments. They simply could not withstand the Imperium's bombardment. The Imperium had made preparations before the invasion. They had specifically brought out weapons designed to counter them.
No matter how strong they were, it was useless. Being deliberately targeted by the Imperium, many of their advantages could not be brought to bear.
Even when they occasionally managed to destroy an Imperial warship, the troublesome time-reversal ability shattered their confidence.
Previously, with the aid of the city walls, they could unleash attacks capable of annihilating space-time.
Now, with the city walls lost and the great heaven-opening arrays gone, relying solely on the power of their warships made it difficult to contend with the Imperium's technological might.
Swathes of dead bodies fell from the sky, all prodigies of various races, whose potential would have been limitless if they had grown up.
Yet now they died like ants. This allied army of the North Cold Immortal Domain had not undergone any integration; many factions were mixed together, each with their own agenda. They could fight a winning battle, but once they fell into a disadvantage, they were bound to collapse.
Now that the battlefield had become a meat grinder, how could they possibly throw all their resources into it?
Even if they won, too many casualties among their powerful experts would cause their factions to decline irreversibly. They might even be openly contended for and secretly schemed against by other factions, ultimately leading to the extinction of their legacies. That was certainly not the outcome they desired. There had been many factions in the past that, when confronting foreign invasions, poured all their sect's strength into the fight. Their ancestors died in battle, and many sect masters also bled out on the battlefield.
Yet, after the war, they were not treated kindly.
Sects that lost the protection of their powerful experts were annexed by other sects. Their blood relatives were displaced, even becoming playthings for others.
When questioned, the invading sects would self-righteously declare, "The cultivation world is inherently about the strong preying on the weak. If their ancestor wasn't strong enough and died in battle, what does that have to do with me?"
Over time, naturally, their hearts grew cold.
With the battle going poorly, everyone naturally sought to preserve themselves. They watched as numerous immortal experts scrambled to retreat from the city walls, using magical artifacts to flee into the distance. The warships also rushed to retreat, fearing they would become part of the slaughter.
Even though there were only about a hundred Imperial warships that had entered beyond the city wall, compared to the overwhelming number of Immortal Realm warships, they were completely outmatched numerically.
Yet, they had no resolve to fight to the death.
Instead, they ruthlessly attacked their allies who obstructed their escape. The Imperial warships pierced through like spears, with hardly any enemies engaging them; all were fleeing.
"Dare to block the path of my Heavenly Extreme Sect? Are you seeking death??"
"Get out of the way, all of you! Anyone who dares to obstruct Daoist Longhai will be killed without mercy!"
Occasionally, roars would erupt.
Ironically, they were not directed at the Imperium.
Instead, they were rebuking other allies for blocking their path.
Some factions even threatened each other, vowing to kill their opponents. There was a strong tendency for them to resort to violence at the slightest disagreement.
Numerous Imperial captains ordered the bombardment of all enemy ships. They unleashed their anger at these aliens who dared to impede the Imperium's advance with unstoppable cannon fire and missiles.
Large numbers of ships were destroyed.
Massive debris splattered across the sky, and the mournful wails and cries of the dead echoed through the heavens.
Furthermore, some large Immortal Realm warships, in order to survive, even attacked their own comrades, carving out a bloody path for themselves. This led to an utterly chaotic scene.
Far more beings died at the hands of their own kind than at the hands of the Imperium.
A star-sized Immortal Realm warship, desperate to survive, directly crashed through several warships blocking its path, ignoring the curses of its allies.
However, it hadn't fled far before it was torn apart by the ensuing beams of destruction.
Countless light pillars and torpedoes pierced through the warship's hull, reducing swaths of cultivators to dust.
Several Grand Luo-level immortal experts burst out of the warship, but none of them managed to escape far before being annihilated.
One was obliterated by a light beam streaking across the battlefield. The others were swept by a killing array from another warship and exploded directly in mid-air.
Such incidents unfolded continuously.
On the chaotic battlefield, the allied forces of the North Cold Immortal Domain collapsed and fled. This led to the fall of the North Cold Heavenly Pass, which was capable of resisting Immortal Emperor-level experts, in an extremely short period of time.
Most of the strong chose to flee.
Only a few Immortal Kings, along with some courageous powerhouses, fought to the very last moment.
Unwilling roars echoed through the heavens, but they couldn't change the predetermined outcome. They fell in mournful cries, their heads severed by the Imperium's Primaris Marines.
Some Immortal King-level powerhouses were mixed in with the piles of corpses. The bodies of some Immortal Kings were also carried away by their magical artifacts, returning to their homelands.
As the Gloriana-class battleship, the "Light of Macragge," crossed the city wall's formation and entered the Immortal Realm, Calgar rose from his throne.
Protected by his Honor Guard, he walked out of the throne room.
He was eager to bring death to those enemies in the name of the Emperor – Guilliman.
His azure power armor was polished to a shine, and the double-headed eagle emblem on his chest gleamed. The teleportarium deck was already prepared.
By the time Calgar arrived, the Champion warriors of other companies had also joined his ranks.
In a dazzling flash of teleportation, they descended to the surface.
Many xenos had already fled, but some foolish ones were still resisting the Imperium's advance.
On the vast, boundless city walls, there were countless corpses.
Many were xenos, but a portion belonged to Imperial warriors. They were severely wounded, and even the Heart of the Imperium couldn't heal such grave injuries. The Silver Skulls Chapter, who had arrived first, had already shifted their combat objective, turning towards the giant city behind the wall, beginning a massive slaughter of the xenos races.
Corvus and the Nova Marines were attacking a tower.
It was a psyker nexus, the core of the formation.
If it could be captured, the Imperium would gain more initiative.
Calgar chose his own target: a magnificent floating island suspended in the air.
Grand palaces were built upon it, radiating brilliant light, appearing full of hope.
When they used short-range teleportation to land on that floating island,
hundreds of enemies charged at them.
Each was shrouded in an evil glow, with the eerie echo of whispers in the void. The weapons in their hands also emitted light. Their twisted and grotesque faces disgusted and defiled Calgar. These impure beings should be thoroughly purged.
Calgar raised his power fist, and with a thunderous roar, the first few enemies were torn to shreds. The members of the Honor Guard also opened fire.
It was like a massacre. Those creatures were quickly cut down.
"A holy purification." Calgar stomped the head of a creature trying to grab his boot into a bloody pulp, then led the Honor Guard into the palace on the floating island. They walked through the grand palace gates.
Some sporadic battles erupted here and there, quickly subsiding.
It wasn't until they entered the magnificent main hall that another brief battle broke out.
When a warrior of the Honor Guard blasted open the doors of that great hall,
a brilliant light, like a supernova, burst forth from within, instantly vaporizing the warrior.
Even Calgar, who had undergone the fourth-generation Primaris upgrade and received the Sacred Body modification, had to temporarily retreat from the onslaught.
Once the light dissipated, he and numerous members of the guard began firing into the hall.
Screams and cries emanated from within.
After confirming that most of the occupants were dead or severely wounded, and no longer capable of launching an attack like the previous one, Calgar and his men emerged from cover.
Inside the great hall were also a group of strangely shaped xenos. Their limbs were shattered and scattered on the ground.
Some who were fortunate enough not to die lay on the ground, wailing.
On the high platform of the hall, a skeletal xeno sat enthroned.
It possessed four emaciated arms, a face like a locust, and a writhing proboscis that was nauseating.
Seeing Calgar and his men enter, the xeno on the throne displayed terrifying rage.
"Invaders!" the xeno roared.
"Monster." Calgar didn't want to say much and simply pulled the trigger. The xeno's power was a little stronger than Calgar had anticipated. The bolt round, with a 105% hit probability, did not strike the target.
Instead, it directly impacted the throne from which the xeno had moved. The xeno's psyker power was already strong enough to transcend the probability of fate.
"With such a method, you wish to kill a Quasi-Immortal Emperor?"
The xeno erupted in boundless light amidst its roar, its body rapidly recovering to its peak state.
Its skeletal arms became strong, gleaming with crystalline radiance.
Strange halos enveloped it. Terrifying echoes reverberated in the air, as if countless unseen ghosts were whispering something.
Even after recovering to its peak state, the xeno's physical transformation didn't stop.
Large amounts of flesh and blood tissue swelled from its body, and its hands transformed into claws.
Huge tumors appeared on its body, writhing.
Multiple fanged mouths emerged from its tumor-covered body.
Above the True Immortal level, the more powerful one became, the more terrifying the mutation. This was the price paid for pursuing immortality.
Calgar activated his scrambler, filtering out the monster's roars and the eerie whispers in the air. The creatures of this universe had embarked on a terrifying path of evolution. The further they went, the more horrifying they became. They were no different from those damned Warp daemons. The monster lunged at Calgar. The ominous and eerie light it emitted also surged, filling the entire hall. The whispers, which these xenos considered the voice of the Great Dao, also grew louder. The aura of the surviving xenos also became terrifying, their bodies undergoing various horrific mutations, and their strength increased significantly.
Calgar activated his power fist, sending the lunging monster flying with a single punch.
It felt like punching a pile of mud.
A foul stench permeated the air.
Even with the helmet's filter, it was no use. The Quasi-Immortal Emperor-level xeno shrieked through its hundreds of mouths. The entire palace trembled. The floating island was slowly disintegrating.
Calgar fired a bullet into its mouth, and the bolter round exploded within its fanged maw, causing it to howl.
Before the xeno could react and launch a second attack,
a dark, sharp blade extended from his power fist. The jet-black blade was like a black hole in the realm of souls, capable of sucking everything in. The monster's body, covered in faces, contorted in pain. When it saw Calgar charging, and the black, pointed blade on his massive power fist, it let out a tortured shriek.
It desperately swung a fist covered in writhing flesh, and the eerie whispers grew even more terrifying, echoing throughout the entire floating island. The palace was cracking, and bricks engraved with profound runes, crafted from divine materials and immortal gold, were falling one by one.
"Die, monster." Calgar was faster than his opponent; the sharp blade in his hand pierced the xeno's throat.
A scream of agony ripped through the air. The grotesque flesh instantly rotted, and hundreds of faces contorted in agony.
Black liquid spewed from its disgusting body. The monster collapsed to the ground, twitching.
Black liquid, replacing blood, gushed from its wounds, flowing across the floor.
"No!" the xeno shrieked, "I am a Quasi-Immortal Emperor, immortal and indestructible! How can I die?!"
No one gave it an answer.
Its body rapidly decayed and disintegrated, ultimately leaving behind a putrid puddle of viscous fluid.
All other xenos had also been executed by this point. They were all dead. The floating island also began to crumble at this moment.
Calgar and his men departed before the palace completely collapsed. The city walls of Beihan Tianguan and several adjacent giant cities were officially declared fallen three days later.
Vast numbers of xenos were slaughtered, their bodies piling up like mountains, and blood flowing like rivers.
Some xenos were also captured and imprisoned, awaiting their fate. The fate of these xenos was generally to become food. The daemons pledging allegiance to the Imperium also required sufficient souls and flesh to be appeased.
Calgar ordered the demolition of the towering city walls, activating all the End-of-Magic devices to create a resonance that suppressed the xenos.
At the same time, he commanded the Imperial army to accelerate their advance towards the various factions of the Immortal Realm, aiming for a lightning campaign to wipe out all resistance in the Immortal Realm within half a year and then proceed to other major realms.
Within a century, the entire Forsaken civilization must be destroyed.