Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery
Chapter 851 - 830: The Bloody Star River Battlefield

Throughout the eons, a decade had already passed.

Atop a third-rank top-tier Spiritual Vein, Jiang Ding opened his eyes.

The kilometer-tall Sun God Wood beside him, which had been absorbing the Heavenly Earth Spiritual Qi and Great Sun Essence, also ceased its activity as he did, its brilliant radiance retracting inward.

The turbulent sea of clouds within a hundred miles gradually calmed down.

"The injuries have initially recovered..."

Jiang Ding conducted an inner view of his own body.

The once devastated Sea of Consciousness riddled with web-like cracks had now stabilized somewhat. The cracks, though still present, had become finer, and the large gaps were essentially mended; the Divine Soul was initially complete, no longer resulting in confused calculations over simple numbers.

The meridians were in a similar state, already capable of tentatively accommodating Mana to flow within them without exacerbating the injuries.

The charred skin had regrown, though still very pale, with some areas semi-transparent, barely revealing blood flowing beneath the skin, but at least it had grown back.

"Combat strength has recovered by a small margin."

"If danger arises, combat strength can be fully unleashed, though the injuries would worsen, further ensuring safety within the realm."

Jiang Ding nodded slightly, calculating the time needed for his complete recovery: "Roughly thirty years are still required to fully recover without any lingering effects."

"During this period, the speed of cultivation will be somewhat affected, but not significantly."

This was the terrifying consequence of Burning Essence Blood, Divine Soul, and the flesh and blood body.

This was still under the condition that Jiang Ding had used a large quantity of fourth and fifth-order healing Elixirs sent by the Immortal Sect. Otherwise, being alive would have been a great fortune, and one should no longer hold extravagant hopes for the path forward.

Jiang Ding looked up at the sky.

In these ten years, the Starry Sky Battlefield had become increasingly brutal and bloody.

The Great Experts of the Eight Great Immortal Sects had started to fight desperately, no longer as cautious as before. The starry sky continued to shatter, and the Star Field Level Great Formations could not withstand it; the Array Bases collapsed, were fought over, and then repaired.

Both sides engaged in life-and-death battles over each Array Base, with the lives of Cultivators falling like raindrops.

From time to time, warships and Starry Sky Fortresses would be broken by the means of Great Experts, their shattered hulls cracking open the Boundary Wall and plummeting toward the inner realm.

During the descent through the Realm Thunder Layer, most Cultivators died, leaving only a few to be rescued and sent into the Boundary Formation to heal.

But as soon as their injuries stabilized slightly, the military personnel of the Starry Sky Troops would fly out to the Outer Realm again, manning the standby warships of the Immortal Sect, and continue to join the battle in the Immortal Sect Army Formation, unstoppable by anyone.

Over the years, a large portion of the Air-Space Troops within the realm had been called up, merging into the Starry Sky Army Formation.

Ouyang Hui, An Siyan, Jin Lingfeng, and other Air-Space Fleet Generals had left, leading their troops to merge into the Starry Sky Army Formation and participate in the Refinement Void Battlefield.

Too many had perished!

Nascent Soul and Nascent Soul Cultivators had died in large numbers, and gaps began to appear in the Immortal Sect Army Formation.

Whether it was the Air-Space Troops, the Conscripted Civilian Fleet, or the Conscripted Research Fleet, even graduate students and doctoral candidates from major institutions were being forcefully conscripted, all thrown into the Void Refining Army Formation.

Every combat-capable citizen of the Immortal Sect had to participate, and indeed, they must participate!

Because if they were to fail, all would perish!

The Eight Great Immortal Sects would never leave any potential trouble unchecked. They would surely exterminate everyone to ensure their dominion and supremacy.

On the day they left,

Jiang Ding didn't say much to dissuade them but simply sent them off in silence, watching as they departed the clouds and disappeared into the Gangwind Layer.

Afterward, he returned to the Boundary Formation here, continued to heal, until today, when he had initially recovered.

Today, the turbulent starry sky, struck by the afterwaves of Void Refinement attacks, swung from side to side as the frequent natural disasters within the realm began to settle, no longer presenting the appearance of doomsday.

Tranquility was also restored in the starry sky.

Not temporarily, but rather for the months to come, such quietness prevailed, and the Boundary Wall was no longer under attack.

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"How is it?"

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Jiang Ding held his breath, his heart pounding uncontrollably, unable to be stilled by his Sword Intent.

Subconsciously, his Divine Sense touched the broken sword tip.

If the battle was going poorly and the situation was irretrievable, if the Xianmen Starry Sky Troops were completely wiped out, if Yuan, Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch, Heavenly Monarch Wanji, and others had all fallen in battle, and the Dharma-Ending City Imprint of the Xianmen couldn't help him escape.

Then, he would leave this place, enter the Northern Plains, and not return for thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands, of years.

Until he advanced to Refining Nothingness.

At that moment, Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch's voice came.

"Jiang Ding, we..."

"...Wuu...wu wu..."

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch was sobbing, and many cries could be heard around him. After a long pause, he wept, "We've won, but my wife, Yun'er, is dead."

"We've won."

"We've, won."

He repeated, struggling to suppress his own crying.

Jiang Ding remained silent.

Who says Heavenly Monarchs have no feelings?

High-Level Cultivators often appear emotionally indifferent because, during the course of their growth, their own loved ones, friends, and children had all passed away from exhaustion of life.

In later life, no matter how stunningly beautiful or extraordinary in conversation and wisdom they were, it's difficult for them to reach the hearts of old cultivators who have weathered the vicissitudes of life.

If from a young age, from the time of being Low-Ranking Cultivators, one has been accompanied by a partner for thousands of years, hands held, how could one be indifferent?

Jiang Ding pursed his lips and grasped the sword hilt.

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch's wife, also a Divinity Transformation Heavenly Monarch and his high school classmate, was an enviable celestial couple among the Xianmen Sect, always supporting each other until this day.

Unexpectedly, today marked their eternal farewell.

"It was the work of a Great Expert from the Shadow Demon Abyss."

"Many friends perished by his hand; he is indeed powerful. Like a ghost, elusive, without a shadow or a trace, our Immortal Sect Refinement Void Army Formation cannot lock onto him at all times."

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch barely managed to calm his emotions.

"The casualties among Nascent Soul Cultivators from the Eight Great Immortal Sects were at least ten times ours. Out of the eight Great Experts, four suffered serious injuries."

"The one most severely wounded, a Great Expert from Xuanwu Heavenly Palace, was nearly at death's door. Taiyi Green Wood Qi Fluid from Green Wood Immortal Sect couldn't heal the Law-Extinguishing Radiation Poison from the Immortal Sect's Forbidden Nuclear Weapons."

"They sensed that if the fight continued, they might die and perish along with the Xianmen Sect, sacrificing their lives for the other four Immortal Sect Great Powers."

"Under such circumstances, they were unwilling to continue fighting and thus retreated."

"Jiang Ding, you must promise me one thing."

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch went on and on about many things.

He was especially vulnerable now, his Dao Heart heavily shaken, nearly shattered, no longer the stern and ruthless commander of the Xianmen Sect's Northern Star Sky Army.

Like an extremely hunched over old man with little life remaining.

"Jiang Ding, you must promise me, once you advance to Refining Nothingness, you must capture the Great Expert from the Shadow Demon Abyss. Kill him, annihilate all of the Shadow Demon Abyss, and take the heads of all Shadow Demon Abyss disciples. Lay them before my wife's grave to comfort her spirit in heaven."

"...Even so, she is gone..."

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch could no longer control himself and burst into loud wails.

His gray-white hair scattered, tears trickling from his eyes, wetting the damaged deck of the Starry Sky Fortress, flowing into the depths through the cuts made by the Immortal Sect's Treasure.