In a single instant, the battle had begun.
As the Celestial Clan's Martial God Realm expert slew the war beast with a single blow, a dark aura suddenly rose from the ranks of the Heavenly Sin army. A burly, black-armored Celestial Sin warrior, wielding a massive black axe, confronted the Celestial Clan's Martial God.
The Celestial Clan's Martial God showed no fear. His over-three-meter-long Sky-Surveying Sacred Weapon erupted with dazzling golden holy light as he engaged the Celestial Sin's Martial God.
Metal and stone clashed, light shone, and the air shook. Vast streams of energy surged in all directions.
In just a few breaths, the two sides were completely engulfed in a chaotic battle, occupying both the ground and the air. Many of the Celestial Sin army's powerful, airborne warriors had already taken to the skies, engaging the soaring Celestial Clan warriors.
On the ground, countless Savage warriors and Celestial warriors surrounded the war beasts, attacking them fearlessly. Although these beasts were covered in hard scales, making them difficult to injure, on this battlefield, even a Martial God-level warrior could be defeated if caught in an endless siege!
The battle needed no preparation, instantly entering a white-hot state.
Both sides clashed fiercely, a life-and-death struggle on the ground. The distinct battlefields of heaven and earth no longer had a clear dividing line. Vast swathes of blood streamed from the air constantly, and dozens, even scores, of mutilated corpses fell from the sky almost every second.
Freed from the suppression of divine punishment, the Celestial warriors immediately displayed their unique fighting talents. They completely suppressed the Heavenly Sin warriors, also at the Innate Realm, and practically swept them cleanly.
The divine punishment's suppression severely limited Celestial Clan members of any realm. Once the restrictions were lifted, the Celestial Clan's numerous powerful warriors naturally stood out the most. Even the Celestial Clan's Martial God, despite his brazen attack, maintained the upper hand against two alone!
The battle seemed to be drawing to a close. In less than a quarter of an hour, the dozens of war beasts of the Celestial Sin Camp had been utterly annihilated.
Is it over just like that?
Looking at the one-sided battle below, Ming Qi was even somewhat bewildered. Although he had anticipated a surge in Celestial Clan combat power after the divine punishment was lifted, he hadn't expected it to be so much stronger!
The tens of thousands of Celestial Clan warriors at this point could easily rival the Celestial Sin army, ten times its size!
However, the Celestial Sin Camp's combat power should not be underestimated. Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, the radiance of several powerful figures quickly rose from the Celestial Sin Camp. Two more Martial Gods soared into the air to join the battle against the Celestial Clan's Martial God. Seven or eight Martial Emperor-level warriors also charged into the battle, unleashing a devastating slaughter.
The battle on the ground was drawing to a close. With the Ancient God Lord and Teng Hui in command, and the immense amplification effect of the Celestial War Drum, the Savage Warriors swept through the entire Heavenly Sin army with unstoppable force.
Although Liuli was only at the Martial Emperor level, after the divine punishment was lifted, she was now fully capable of competing with a Martial Emperor cultivator. However, the two Martial Gods of the Celestial Clan remained close to Liuli, protecting her from sudden attacks from the opposing forces.
The battle unfolded without incident. Ming Qi remained in the air throughout, maintaining the Supreme Diagram's operation. However, he was also not idle, closely observing how many powerful members of the Heavenly Sin Camp fell in this battle. The energy of these warriors would eventually belong to him, allowing him to rapidly enhance his strength in these chaotic times.
The battle lasted for nearly an hour. With the slaying of a powerful Martial God from the Heavenly Sin Camp, the few remaining Heavenly Sin warriors retreated.
"No need to pursue."
Liuli decisively abandoned the idea of pursuing the defeated troops and quickly ordered a team of Celestial Clan warriors to gather the powerful Heavenly Sin warriors who had died in the battle and deliver them to Mingqi. The other warriors quickly buried their fallen comrades.
In this battle, the Celestial Clan lost fewer than 500 warriors, and the Savage Clan warriors lost fewer than 1,000, yet they had nearly annihilated the over 100,000-strong Heavenly Sin Camp, with only a few powerful warriors escaping.
Shortly after the battle, Mingqi returned to his tent and began to refine the several enemy corpses that had been brought to him.
Although Mingqi could not yet comprehend the true mysteries of the Eight Trigrams Seal, he had a vague feeling that it was connected to heaven and earth, and very likely involved the realm of the Dao. If he could comprehend the Eight Trigrams Seal to a certain degree, he would have a strong chance of giving rise to his own Dao.
Ming Qi had deeply experienced the power of the Dao in the Land of Heroes. He was deeply moved by the deicide techniques of the Tiger Wood Divine Lord. He even fantasized about combining the Dao of the Tiger Wood Divine Lord with the mysteries of the Eight Trigrams Seal.
However, this involved the elusive path to godhood, which naturally wouldn't be achieved overnight. Ming Qi wasn't in a rush for the moment. His immediate priority was to rapidly elevate his strength to the late Martial Emperor realm. This way, once the opportunity arose, he could immediately ascend and enter the realm of the Martial God. Reaching the Martial God realm marked the beginning of a complete journey through the heavens and earth.
After three to five days, Ming Qi finally refined all the corpses and restored the power of the God-Slaying Idol. Now, the God-Slaying Idol possessed the power to contain the Martial Emperor.
Strolling out of the tent, Ming Qi spotted a Celestial Clan warrior waiting outside. Upon seeing him approach, he immediately stepped forward respectfully, saying, "The Marshal invites you."
Ming Qi nodded. Liuli had probably called him to discuss the next steps.
Soon, they arrived at the commander's tent. Besides Wei Wuming, there were two Celestial Clan Martial Gods and the Ancient God Lord, apparently engaged in a discussion.
Seeing Ming Qi enter, Liuli gestured for him to sit at the side.
After this battle, even the Celestial Clan's Martial Gods now treated Ming Qi with respect. They knew that with Ming Qi's presence, the Celestial Clan would maximize their combat effectiveness in the subsequent battles and minimize casualties. Judging by his role in the battle alone, Ming Qi was no less powerful than a powerful Martial God.
"In your opinion, what should we do next?"
After Ming Qi sat down, Liuli asked.
Ming Qi didn't shirk his responsibility. After a moment's thought, he spoke, "We won this battle, but the strength of the Tianzui Camp should not be underestimated. The Tianzui army is currently besieging the Divine Realm, and the two sides are at a stalemate. We shouldn't advance into the Divine Realm for now. Fighting on the periphery for a while will naturally put pressure on the Tianzui Camp."
Liuli nodded slowly, but said nothing.
"Our morale is high now. Why not march directly into the Divine Realm and lift the siege? Those gods of heaven and earth who have been observing the situation will surely take action."
One of the Celestial Clan's Martial Gods spoke out his thoughts.
Ming Qi didn't elaborate further. The Tianzui Camp was incredibly powerful, and this battle wasn't enough to reveal their true strength. Rashly advancing into the Divine Realm would be premature.
A long silence fell in the general's tent. Liuli finally made his decision. Next target: Xilan Xiongfeng City!