Chapter 4042: Wind and Thunder Eighty Thousand Towers
In the vast void of the universe, stars were rare, shrouded in darkness, cold, and silence. Only the broken Great Wall stretched across heaven and earth, telling the world that a prosperous civilization had once flourished here.
The Nether Kingdom, Nether River, Nether Sea, and Nether City were the four parts of the Nether Ancestor's Divine Realm World.
In the battle eleven eons ago, the four parts separated. Among them, the "Nether River" and "Nether Sea" even gave birth to independent consciousness, borrowing the Nether Ancestor's residual power to reach the Half-Ancestor level in combat strength.
The Nether City was unknown.
As for the Nether Kingdom, it now appeared before Zhang Ruochen's eyes, located on the other side of the North Marsh Great Wall.
At a glance, the land of the Nether Kingdom was filled with rolling mountains, thick clouds, and dense fog.
In the cold darkness, lightning could faintly be seen flashing, with thunder rumbling lowly.
The aura was very similar to the Nether River that Zhang Ruochen was familiar with, but the netherworld energy was even denser.
Zhang Ruochen gazed into the distance, seeing that among the mountain valleys, wilderness, and forests, ancient towers with lights shining brightly were scattered every few hundred thousand miles.
The architectural styles of the ancient towers varied, but they were all grand and towering, standing like perilous peaks. Their carvings, casting materials, eaves, and corners... all were different from today's structures, exuding an ancient charm full of historical sedimentation.
In these ancient towers, Zhang Ruochen saw blazing netherfire and sensed powerful energy fluctuations, giving off an infinite sense of mystery.
Peacock Heavenly Queen stopped, no longer moving forward, her eyes filled with caution. She said, "Wind and Thunder Eighty Thousand Towers, Corpses and Ghosts Forge the Nether City. Yan Wushen said that the Nether Kingdom is the main body of the Nether Ancestor's Divine Realm World, and there are the legendary Eighty Thousand Towers here. One tower, one nether general!"
"One tower, one nether general?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God was shaken inwardly but still held doubts. "The nether general we saw earlier was comparable to a mid-level god. If it's one tower, one nether general, doesn't that mean there are nearly a hundred thousand gods in this Nether Kingdom?"
"Before the sundial was activated on a large scale, the total number of true gods in the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm combined might not have reached that number, right?"
True gods were rare; one person could support an entire realm.
During the fifty thousand years when the sundial was activated on a large scale, although there was no specific count, the number of true gods in the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm had at least doubled, and their overall strength had skyrocketed.
It was precisely because of Zhang Ruochen's selfless act that he established a position in the universe where he could sit on equal footing with Hao Tian, Heavenly Mother, and others.
Many cultivators fell into a misconception, thinking that as long as one's strength was great, they would be respected.
In reality, strength only inspires fear.
Only by being upright in conduct, making outstanding contributions, benefiting the world, and allowing everyone to gain advantages and benefits, can one earn respect.
Once that level was reached, whether one was sanctimonious or hypocritical no longer mattered.
Although the Sword Realm was sandwiched between the Heavenly Court Universe and the Hell Realm, no one started a war.
This was partly because the gods of the Heavenly Court and the gods of the Hell Realm had a certain respect for Zhang Ruochen.
Especially the younger generation of gods!
Chi Yao said, "Although the number of true gods is limited, the number of false gods is several times that. Not to mention the Heavenly Court Universe and the Hell Realm, even the Sword Realm has up to a hundred thousand false gods. The nether generals don't have divine sources in their bodies, which is very strange. Most of them probably have strength at the false god level."
"Even if the Nether Kingdom has eighty thousand towers, one tower, one nether general, one general, one god, it might not necessarily be stronger than the Sword Realm."
Zhang Ruochen observed the layout of the towers one by one, his expression growing more solemn. "Yao Yao, you stay here and take care of Zangjin Baihu. There's no need to enter the Nether Kingdom."
This time, Chi Yao agreed.
It wasn't that she was unwilling to enter the Nether Kingdom with Zhang Ruochen to take risks, but the Nether Kingdom was indeed too strange. If there were really many nether generals, and both she and Zhang Ruochen were trapped inside, it would be extremely difficult to escape.
Leaving one person outside could serve as a surprise force, able to break the situation from the outside in.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God said, "I'll stay here too, so as not to hold back Imperial Dust."
"You come into the Nether Kingdom with me."
Zhang Ruochen ignored whether Xiu Chen Heavenly God agreed or not, wrapping her with rules divine patterns and flying out, stepping onto the land of the Nether Kingdom.
Peacock Heavenly Queen looked at Chi Yao standing proudly to the side, secretly relieved, but also felt strong worry.
"There's no need to be so nervous. As long as you don't have any ill intentions, I won't kill you. Chen Ge made a promise, so I have to help him keep it," Chi Yao said.
...
They were not in a hurry to rush to Demon Ancestor Ridge.
Zhang Ruochen investigated the energy of heaven and earth along the way, and also analyzed the rules of heaven and earth within the Nether Kingdom. "The stability of the spatial structure is even better than that of the Heavenly Court."
The Heavenly Court had always been the one among the major worlds Zhang Ruochen had seen with the most stable spatial structure and the densest sacred energy of heaven and earth.
It could be called the number one plane.
Perhaps only the legendary God Realm could compare.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God followed behind Zhang Ruochen, wearing a set of nether soldier armor, looking unwilling, and sneered, "If we're talking about when the Heavenly Court was still the Sacred Realm, its plane level was definitely above the Nether Kingdom. The Sacred Realm was nurtured by the energy veins of the entire universe. The title of 'Heart of Ten Thousand Realms' wasn't just for show. Although the Nether Ancestor was strong, could he be stronger than the universe itself?"
"Rumor has it that the Eternal Heavenly Kingdom established by the God Realm in the Formless Realm has an even more stable spatial structure and better cultivation environment than the Heavenly Court. There are rumors that the Eternal Heavenly Kingdom is a corner of the God Realm."
"If the Nether Kingdom can really nurture eighty thousand towers of divine-level nether generals, how terrifyingly powerful must the God Realm be?"
"Don't you think these nether soldiers and nether generals are very problematic?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God nodded. "They are all soul bodies, using netherfire to condense their bodies, containing fluctuations of 'quantity' energy. Hey, Zhang Ruochen, do you think they could be the souls of those gods who followed the Nether Ancestor in the Nether Ancient Era, preserved?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Getting smarter, aren't you? In the Nether Ancient Era, driven by the Nether Ancestor, it reached an extremely prosperous height, so naturally there were many gods. Think about it, the residual souls of the successive hall masters of the Time Divine Temple and Space Divine Temple were all preserved in Lihentian. With the Nether Ancestor's methods, it's possible that he opened up a realm in Lihentian for the residual souls of his former followers."
"Legend has it that the Santu River was created by the Nether Ancestor, and with the special function of the Santu River, it can nurture the Corpse, Ghost, and Bone clans. I have reason to believe that the Nether Kingdom can use residual souls to nurture eighty thousand nether generals."
Zhang Ruochen had genuine awe for the Nether Ancestor, like looking at a divine mountain in the fog, majestic, mysterious, and unreal. Even ancestors like the Nine-Headed Stone Man and Corpse Nightmare couldn't give him such a feeling.
At least for now.
Perhaps only when his cultivation was stronger and his state of mind deeper could he break this awe.
"What's so impressive about nurturing eighty thousand nether generals? If the Nether Ancestor is truly immortal, what can't He do?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God changed the subject. "But still, the Great Venerable is formidable. Someone like the Nether Ancestor was beaten until his divine realm world split apart. How badly do you think the Nether Ancestor was injured in that battle eleven eons ago?"
Zhang Ruochen recalled his meeting with Ling Yanzi and what she had said, and his emotions became extremely complicated.
"Old Void can't hold out much longer. We need to hurry to Demon Ancestor Ridge. Once the Nether Sea Spirit returns, who knows if he'll sense us entering the Nether Kingdom?" Xiu Chen Heavenly God urged.
But Zhang Ruochen wasn't in a hurry. He came to a nether tower deep in the jungle, a full eight hundred zhang tall.
Outside the nether tower, nearly a hundred nether soldiers stood guard, all with netherfire bodies and various forms.
Zhang Ruochen and Xiu Chen Heavenly God swaggered past the nether soldiers, passing through a layer of formation barrier and entering the nether tower.
No one could see their figures; all heavenly secrets and auras were hidden.
At the center of the nether tower was a well about ten zhang in diameter, its mouth built from the stone materials of the North Marsh Great Wall.
At the bottom of the well, netherfire continuously surged out, forming a pillar of light shooting upward.
After rising, the netherfire gradually dispersed into strands, covering the entire nether tower.
This was the truth behind every nether tower being brightly lit!
A nether general in the form of a skeleton, seven meters tall, sat cross-legged at the well mouth, continuously absorbing the netherfire into his body, gradually solidifying it.
Zhang Ruochen could tell that he was cultivating the "Nether Soul Scroll" from the eight volumes of the *Nether Book*.
His energy fluctuations remained at the false god level.
Clearly, Chi Yao's guess was correct.
The Nether Ancestor was definitely not at his peak and had been hiding all along. How could a single Nether Kingdom, a single Nether Sea, and the Nether Prison possibly nurture eighty thousand true gods?
Zhang Ruochen didn't disturb the nether general. He walked to the edge of the well and ran his fingers over the stone.
"Whoosh!"
Profound and mysterious formation inscriptions appeared, then disappeared.
"Just as I thought."
Zhang Ruochen took a deep breath, somewhat understanding why Peacock Heavenly Queen was so terrified.
"Bang!"
The nether general sitting cross-legged was struck on the head by Xiu Chen Heavenly God's palm.
The head cracked, spreading throughout the body, then exploded into strands of netherfire.
Zhang Ruochen was startled. "What are you doing?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God took a deep breath, absorbing all the netherfire into his body, then picked up the empty armor on the ground and put it on. "You're wearing nether general armor, so why should I wear nether soldier armor?"
Zhang Ruochen lightly slapped his forehead, gritting his back teeth. "Then did you consider that its death might be sensed by the Nether Sea Spirit?"
"So what if it's sensed?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God had his own reasoning. "In the Black Battlefield, when those nether soldiers and nether generals die, the Nether Sea Spirit naturally has to go there. Because a chaotic battle of gods just broke out there."
"But it's different in the Nether Kingdom!"
"Wherever there are cultivators, there will be conflicts, killings, and struggles. Besides, with eighty thousand towers and eighty thousand nether generals, losing one or two is too normal!"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Do you know why, despite the time being tight, I still had to enter this nether tower to investigate?"
"Why?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Because I discovered that every nether tower in the Nether Kingdom is a formation platform. Once the formations of the eighty thousand towers are activated simultaneously, the Nether Kingdom will immediately turn into a heavenly prison. Not to mention us, even if the Eternal True Ruler came, he might not be able to escape."
"Wind and Thunder Eighty Thousand Towers! These eighty thousand towers were forged by the Life Ancestor and the Thunder Lord, and they contain the Nether Ancestor's methods. I've been careful all along, but you're incredibly bold."
Xiu Chen Heavenly God's face had already turned pale. "Since you saw the danger of the Nether Kingdom, why did you still come in?"
"To save people, of course."
Zhang Ruochen quickly walked out of the nether tower.
He had already investigated; destroying the formation of the eighty thousand towers was simply impossible.
Even if one tower's formation was destroyed, the other formations could still operate normally.
This time, he didn't linger any longer. Zhang Ruochen rushed at top speed toward the location of Demon Ancestor Ridge that Peacock Heavenly Queen had mentioned.
On the way, many nether soldiers and nether generals flew through the sky.
Each one was pulling a section of the North Marsh Great Wall's broken wall, a spectacular sight.
Their direction was the same as Zhang Ruochen's.
"There it is, Demon Ancestor Ridge," Xiu Chen Heavenly God said.
On the dim land of the Nether Kingdom, a long line of light appeared on the distant horizon.
Demon Ancestor Ridge lay across that line of light, shrouded in ten thousand kinds of radiant light. At the northernmost part of the ridge, cyan light was thick, turning into light rain.
A divine tree taller than Demon Ancestor Ridge grew between the real world and Lihentian.
It spanned both realms.
The broken sections of the Great Wall pulled by those nether soldiers and nether generals weren't headed for Demon Ancestor Ridge, but for a nether tower at the foot of Demon Ancestor Ridge.
This nether tower was dozens of times larger than the others.
From time to time, large amounts of lightning were released from the tower.
These lightning bolts were like dense rivers, flowing rapidly through the clouds in the sky, then quickly disappearing.
"Thunder Altar."
With the light of the lightning, Zhang Ruochen saw the two characters on the plaque of the nether tower.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God said, "Could this be the nether tower of the Thunder Lord, one of the four great powerhouses under the Nether Ancestor in the Nether Ancient Era? What are these nether soldiers and nether generals doing sending the broken walls of the North Marsh Great Wall to the Thunder Altar? There must be a great secret hidden here."
"Let's go see and find out," Zhang Ruochen said.
Xiu Chen Heavenly God said, "I sense the aura of Indestructible Infinite in the Thunder Altar. Your First-Rank Divine Path can fool other cultivators. But if we get too close, an Indestructible Infinite will definitely detect something off. We can't expose ourselves; it's too dangerous!"
It was impossible to persuade him.
Zhang Ruochen quickly walked past the nether soldiers and nether generals, arriving at the foot of the Thunder Altar, just in time to encounter the Indestructible Infinite stationed there.
This Indestructible Infinite was over a hundred zhang tall, with two divine chains slung over his shoulders, a large chicken head, and a bright red comb, giving off an imposing aura without anger.
"It's him."
Seeing that the one stationed here was Xu Kun War God, Xiu Chen Heavenly God immediately relaxed.
When Xu Kun War God saw Zhang Ruochen and Xiu Chen Heavenly God suddenly walking out from among the nether soldiers and nether generals, he was naturally greatly startled. After glancing toward Demon Ancestor Ridge, he quickly stepped forward.
"Imperial Dust, you... why are you here? Have the armies of the Sword Realm and the Hell Realm arrived?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "No army, just me alone."
Xiu Chen Heavenly God looked sideways.
Xu Kun War God clearly knew the purpose of Zhang Ruochen's visit. "The gods of the Destiny Temple have been imprisoned by Chongming Ancestor in the Wind Tower."
"Wind Tower?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Xu Kun War God said, "It was once the nether tower of the Life Ancestor. I haven't been inside, but even from the outside, I can feel the powerful force of fate within. The Life Ancestor was the most powerful existence under the Nether Ancestor, and even among the ancestors of all ages, he was of the first rank."
Zhang Ruochen looked at the Thunder Altar, where thunder and fire intertwined, and asked, "What's going on here?"
Just as Xu Kun War God was about to answer, Third Adult walked out of the Thunder Altar, looking at him suspiciously. "Xu Kun War God, who are you communicating with across the void?"
The moment he saw Third Adult, Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood many things.
(End of chapter)