A Martial Odyssey

Yi Ping, Yixian, Nuwa, Alice, Asura, Isa, Xiang and the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess walked into the interior of the gigantic monument.

The interior was extremely cold and the ground was covered by semi permafrost.

The passage was wide enough for the eight of them to walk side by side but they had chosen to walk in a formation of three groups.

Yi Ping, the Celestial Fairy Yixian and the Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa walked in front. They were the most powerful of the group and were of the Eighth Immortal Ranking. Therefore they were the vanguards!

The second group of three consisted of the Goddess of Mercy Xiang, the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess and the Goddess Asura.

The third group consisted of the Goddess Celestial Alice and the Goddess Isa.

The Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa said, "We are inside the Pangu Monument. Be warned that our martial strength will not be able to utilize fully here."

Yi Ping turned ashen immediately as he muttered softly, "Isn't this like in the Ten Thousands Celestial Formation?"

Nuwa replied nonchalantly, "Indeed and can be even worse.""

Yi Ping asked, "What do you mean?"

Nuwa smiled, "It seems that the others are aware of it too."

Yi Ping looked at Alice, Xiang, Isa, the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess and Asura, "What is it?"

Alice said coolly, "Indeed as the Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa has mentioned, we are unable to fully utilize our martial strength here. Therefore we are unable to even use our most powerful techniques here and have to reply on our skills more. Unlike the Ten Thousands Celestial Formation where we can't regain back our strength, we can in this place…"

Yi Ping heaved a soft sigh of relief, "If we can get back our strength then we can recover from our injuries. That's good so it is not so bad…"

Alice smiled wryly, "However, the pain that we felt and the afflictions that we will receive will be manifold by ten times."

Yi Ping turned ashen immediately!

Isa chipped in, "That is to say, we can't afford to take any injuries or we will die instantly here."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess said solemnly, "Our opponents are the Heavenly Kings and the Jade Emperor. In this place, they have better advantages than us."

Yi Ping looked at Yixian and Nuwa as he asked, "What do you mean?"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess shrugged her shoulders as she took a glance at Nuwa, "Stop looking at the Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa here. She won't be of much help against the Heavenly Kings here."

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "I have thought that the Lady Nuwa is a Desolate Goddess and much feared."

Nuwa gave Yi Ping a kick, just as Lingfeng would have done so!

This immediately caused the other maidens to think, "She has certainly learnt very fast to get his attention…"

The Goddess of Mercy Xiang was thinking, "Alas! Yi Ping, I can be cute too, you know…"

Nuwa said, "Stop flattering me. Listen first to what she is going to say."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess said solemnly, "The Pangu Monument is actually a fortress to defend against the Desolate Immortals and quite a few of it are scattered throughout the Three Known Realms. I just didn't expect to see it in this place…"

Nuwa interrupted immediately with a hum as she stared coldly at Yi Ping, "Oh really! So the Great God Pangu plans to exterminate us all here. Really, indeed!"

Yi Ping rubbed his nose with a mischievous smile, "That is the Great God Pangu. What does it have to do with me?"

Immediately, Nuwa and all the other maidens laughed, "Everything!"

Yi Ping sighed softly, "You know. I don't like to take in the rap for the others…"

Yixian smiled, "But you don't have a choice."

Yi Ping turned to look intently at Yixian and his heart was warmed. It was because even though he did not say it aloud but he was actually taking in the rap for the White Sage, the Dark Chaos Lord and the Great God Pangu. But he also knew that he was now on the path of divinity and that he had to be careful not to ruin his divine practice or the others.

He sighed to himself, "If I am a mortal and can turn the clock back, I will surely marry you all…"

Yixian and Nuwa heard his accidental thoughts for he was too melancholy in heart to suppress his emotions.

Yixian secretly whispered to him, "Ping'Er, we are together now. Isn't that the most important now?"

She looked dreamily at him. She knew now why she was irrationally drawn to him when they had first met. She had thought that she had only agreed to marry him on the spur of the moment. That was why she had regretted her decision and chosen to avoid it. But now she knew better; it was because they were drawn to each other ever since their past lives…

Yi Ping whispered back, "For us to advance in our divine practice, we have to have as little distractions as possible…"

All of a sudden he had frozen on the spot because the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess was staring coldly at him, "Great God Yi Ping, are you even paying attention or not…"

Isa giggled softly, "So he has become the Great God Yi Ping…"

Asura sighed softly, "She is being sarcastic…"

Yi Ping immediately managed a weak smile, "I am listening…"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess interrupted unhappily as she stole a glance at Yixian and Nuwa, "I hope you are instead of secretly talking to you know who."

Yixian kept quiet immediately while Nuwa protested immediately as she shot Yixian and Yi Ping with an exasperated look, "That is not me! I am all ears! It is them!"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess hummed coldly, "I hope you are because you are the most havoc here."

Nuwa muttered, "What? You are lecturing me…"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess said, "So do you want to hear about the Pangu Monument or not?"

Nuwa swallowed her pride with a soft whisper, I do…"

Yi Ping quickly said, "It is all my fault. Not their fault, alright? Quickly tell me."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess said solemnly, "Do you know Yun Dingzhong? The Great Ascetic Heavenly King?"

Yi Ping trembled lightly at the mention of his name as he muttered, "I remember…"

Even Asura trembled at the mention of his name and there was a sudden watery expression in her eyes. It was because she still remembered the vile touch of his hands. She was an Immortal of the Sixth Immortal Positioning and her Mystica Intricacies Force was almost unrivalled in the Immortal Realm. Moreover she had the divine aid of the Symphony of Destiny but she was still no match for Yun Dingzhong or the Old Man Xuantian!

She muttered, "I saw him killing an Immortal of the Fifth Immortal Positioning outright with just his Divine Scattering Impact…"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess nodded, "That is right. His Mayhem Divine Force is one of the strongest martial forces in the Immortal Realm. Even the Jade Emperor and the Western Paradise Heavenly King dare not trifle with him. His Divine Scattering Impact is just one of his epitome techniques. I am more worried about his unique Triple Trinity Invocation that can triple his attacking powers. When use with his Mayhem Divine Force and his Absolute Endless Mayhem, even a Desolate Immortal may not be able to handle him."

The Desolate Goddess Nuwa lifted her head, "Are you kidding me?"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess replied, "Do I look like I am joking with you? Especially in a place like this, you won't be their match!"

Nuwa asked with a smile, "What do you mean? If I am unable to empower my strength, they can't too. They may not necessary have an advantage over me!"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess smiled coldly, "Who says anything about them losing their martial strength here?"

Nuwa stared at the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess, "What do you mean?"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess gave a wryly smile, "This is the Pangu Monument Fortress. Not only will they not be affected by it but the Heavenly Kings are able to draw strength from it."

Nuwa turned ashen immediately as she asked quietly, "How much more?"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess touched the wall with her palm, "Hmmm, around 10% more."

Nuwa was trembling and she had turned very pale, "That much…"

The difference between each Immortal Positioning was 10% of their raw martial power, making a huge difference in battle. Moreover, the amount of raw martial power that she was able to use was halved now…

Nuwa smiled weakly, "Can we turn back now?"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess gave her an astonished look, "The Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa will actually suggest backing off. It is indeed a surprise!"

Nuwa replied with a soft sigh, "This place is not to my liking. I prefer somewhere beautiful…"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess stared at her, "Oh really?"

Nuwa smiled weakly, "I don't wish to die in this accursed place."

Yi Ping said solemnly, "Lady Nuwa, we will be alright. Why don't you wait for us outside first? Go and look for Lele…"

Nuwa smiled all of a sudden, "I may not want to die in this accursed place but who says anything about leaving? This is so infuriating. We still got the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess here. In theory now, she is now the most powerful in the group. We mustn't let the Green Dragon Sacred Sword falls into the hands of these Heavenly Kings and if the Jade Emperor is dead then we must retrieve it."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess said quietly, "Don't depend too much on me. I may not help you later and may even join the other side. Don't say I didn't warn you first."

Yi Ping nodded, "Don't worry. Until then, we are still friends. To each of our own destiny. I won't force you to be on our side."

Nuwa said, "If this Jade Emperor and these Heavenly Kings are thinking of killing me then they are a million years too early. If they have the guts then they will have the decency of dueling me outside."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess was amused while Yi Ping and the rest were smiling weakly.

Yi Ping could not resisting muttering, "More like they want to eat your guts more than having the guts."

Nuwa asked him coldly, "What do you mean?"

Yi Ping smiled weakly, "Nothing. Let's us be on our way first."

Nuwa nodded reluctantly as she took a forlorn glance at the entrance while the rest of the group nodded.

The Goddess Celestial Alice said, "Let's us exercise extreme caution…"

The interiors were a series of long winding passages but they were walking like they knew the passages pretty well.

They had never been here before naturally.

They were simply following the direction of the malevolent aura that they had picked up!

Ever since Yi Ping had reached the Eighth Immortal Positioning, his senses and perceptions were greatly enhanced. He knew that he was following the Green Dragon Sacred Sword and he could pick up minute traces of its aura from the passages.

That was the reason why they seemed to know where they were going!

Before long, two hours had passed as they hurried through the passages…

The Goddess Isa sighed softly as she looked at Alice, "Funny isn't it? The two of us walking side by side with each other."

The Goddess Celestial Alice smiled, "Given our past enmities, I thought that this is something that is really impossible to happen."

The Goddess Isa looked at Alice and gave her a wry smile, "Alice, we are both on the Seventh Positioning now. I wonder if you are better or I am better. Wanna try it?"

Alice smiled coldly, "If you are not afraid of getting bloodied, I don't mind trying at all."

Isa hummed coldly, "Speak for yourself first."

Yi Ping quickly turned around as he gave them an exasperated look, "Alice, Isa…"

Alice and Isa were smiling as they gave Yi Ping a playful look in return!

The Goddess of Mercy Xiang sighed softly, "So they got Yi Ping's attention…"

The Goddess Asura shrugged her shoulders and smiled.

The Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa said, "Yi Ping is feeling exasperated at your antics, Alice and Isa. So watch out!"

Yi Ping turned ashen and froze on the spot immediately!

He had just received a blow that dealt him harder than any battle blows that he had ever received in his entire life!

Yi Ping muttered, "That is not…"

Nuwa hummed coldly, "I can sense what you are feeling. You are denying it?"

Yi Ping muttered with a weak smile, "No…"

Nuwa replied immediately, "No? You know I don't lie. I am just echoing what you are feeling. Don't forget that we are linked heart to heart. The Great Goddess Fantian can be my witness."

Alice demanded with an indignant expression, "Great Goddess Fantian, is that true?"

Yixian looked at Nuwa, Alice and Yi Ping before nodding quietly…

Yi Ping received the second hardest blow that he had ever received!

And this time he had broken out in cold sweat!

He immediately exercised his Great Translucent Emptiness as he realized that he was leaking his emotions too much while he chanted to himself, "Empty the heart from distractions, be as still as water…"

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess was giggling all of a sudden, "He is so cute…"

This caused Yi Ping to flush uncomfortably…

The Goddess of Mercy Xiang gave the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess a stern look, "Even if you are one of the Heavenly Kings, I warn you not to have any designs on him. And don't you have any feeling of gratitude towards him."

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess hummed coldly as she raised her hands, "Young lass, I am afraid that you are still one million years too early to lecture me."

Xiang's expressions flinched immediately and she had immediately raised her Heavens Sundering Mirror in a defensive stance as she raised her voice, "Yi Ping, help me!"

Yi Ping was panicky as he had immediately sensed that his group was going to suffer from infighting even before they had encountered their opponent. And moreover, he could sense that their opponents were very near!

He quickly stepped between them even as he looked at Yixian and Nuwa to help him to restraint them, "Xian'Er, Lady Nuwa…"

But to his utter surprise, Yixian and Nuwa had suddenly come to blows with each other as the vicinity exploded furiously with their martial force!

The Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa said coldly to Yixian, "Dare you not to use your Heavenly Tears Divine Sword!"

Yixian flashed next to Nuwa as she let loose of her Heavenly Tears Divine Sword and let it flew into the walls at the other side of the passage as she hummed coldly back, "You are trying my patience already! I don't need any immortal swords to defeat you…"

At the same time, her Icy Heavenly Tears had exploded with an explosive impact that shook the entire passage walls!

Yi Ping quickly shouted, "Xian'Er, Nuwa! What are you doing? Stop this!"

As he ran to them, he was to startle to witness another series of explosive martial force flying behind him!

He turned around to see Alice and Isa raising their swords with each other!

He panicky said, "Asura, Xiang'Er! Stop Alice and Isa for me!"

He was stunned when they simply stood on the same spot as though they had never heard him!

"Xiang'Er, Asura? What is wrong?"

Xiang said quietly, "They are Seventh Immortal Positioning immortals. You are asking me to court my own death?"

Asura smiled weakly, "The Great Goddess Celestial Alice is my mistress…"

Yi Ping caught the hint immediately so he said panicky, "Alright then, go help me stop Xian'Er and Lady Nuwa. I will go and stop Alice and Isa then…"

But again, they made no move as they looked away!

Yi Ping looked at their expressions as he sighed with a surrender realization, "Right, right. They are the Great Goddess Fantian and the Great Desolate Goddess Nuwa…"

As he ran to and fro to the front and to the back, he shouted panicky to the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess, "You can help me to stop them…"

But the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess simply smiled coldly, "I am not going to fall into their trap. The instant I step in, I will be attacked by them like a common enemy. Why don't you stop them yourselves? I am staying put as it is…"

All of a sudden Yixian said, "Someone is here!"

Yi Ping was about to ask who when he spotted a shadowy wizened figure had quietly sneaked into the passage and he had already laid his hands on the Heavenly Tears Divine Sword that was pierced into the walls!

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess gasped aloud, "Old Dragon Heavenly Sage! Why is it here? Be careful! He is one of the Eleven Great Heavenly Kings!"

Old Dragon Heavenly Sage had a long silver beard and he was clothed in a beautiful silver elaborate robe.

Old Dragon Heavenly Sage laughed aloud as he rubbed his palms before he grabbed the hilt of the Heavenly Tears Divine Sword with an eerie laughter, "This is the Great Goddess Fantian's divine sword! To think that it will fall into my hands! This must be my freaking days. And to think that they are now fighting over the Green Dragon Sacred Sword now, heehe!"

His sharp eyes had now turned murderous and he seemed to be in no hurry as he looked at Yi Ping and his group before he smiled patiently, "What have we here? So it is the Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess. You are just a second tier Heavenly King. I have only one advice for all of you. Surrender your divine swords and swear by blood to be my slaves or face my wrath."

Yi Ping had already stepped forward and raised his swords when he was suddenly alarmed; it was because the formidable aura of the Old Dragon Heavenly Sage had suddenly increased several manifolds!

The Sacred Embodied Heavenly Goddess panicky gasped to Yi Ping, "Be wary! This is his Formidable Dragon Fear. Not only that, he is protected by his Impervious Dragon Silver Robe!"