Chapter 1228: Twelve Divine Generals

Shi Tianhao's steps became extremely heavy. Every single additional step seemed to have become exceedingly difficult.

As he progressed, the twelve giant figures above his head strode forward together with him, towards the direction of Xiling City.

A massive halo started expanding in every single direction, with the twelve giant figures at the center. Trillions of patterns and runes started to spread through the universe as well.

The power concept, suppressing the Heavens and returning to the roots. With Shi Tianhao and the giant figures at the center, it radiated in every single direction.

The power concept clashed with the terrifying destructive power annihilating Xiling City, and instantly, a massive shockwave was produced.

Shi Tianhao's strides became even slower.

As for the pressure on Xiling City, at this instant, it relaxed slightly, finally allowing Shi Zongtang and the others to divert some attention to observe the events happening around them.

When the Great Qin cultivators realized that the reinforcement consisted of only Shi Tianhao, all of them received an involuntary shock.

Although it was them who invited Shi Tianhao to come previously, although they already knew that Shi Tianhao's power was far beyond the standards of ordinary Immortal Soul cultivators, but they had invited Shi Tianhao originally more for etiquette and symbolic reasons.

After all, although Shi Tianhao has demonstrated extremely great strength, but confronted with the current crisis, his power was still insufficient.

Even if he does come to Xiling City, he will just be going down with it.

What the Great Qin Empire has hoped for the most when contacting the Celestial Sect of Wonders previously was that Zhu Yi could come to their aid with the Higan Golden Bridge. Only the presence of the Destiny-realm magic treasure, the Higan Golden Bridge, could help the Great Qin Empire survive this catastrophe and avoid destruction.

However, Zhu Yi was garrisoning the Southern Wilderness with the Tiangang Swordmaster, and they were in a stand-off with the Shen Dragon King. Everyone in the Great Qin Empire was aware of this too - that Zhu Yi was indeed unable to free himself up - and that's why previously, they lost all hope.

But right now, Shi Tianhao still showed up resolutely. Aside from the gratitude, the new Great Qin Emperor, Shi Zongang, and the Great Qin masters felt a great amount of surprise as well.

Everyone else's power was being used to support the formation, and only the highest-level cultivator, Shi Zongtang, could divert a slight amount of attention to Shi Tianhao.

After close inspection, Shi Zongtang's astonishment only increased.

A hazy and vague legend, at this moment, surfaced in Shi Zongtang's mind from the depths of his memory.

In the Antiquity Age, the Heaven's Gate was on the rise. The Leader of the Heaven's Gate, Tian Dikong, hailed from humble beginnings; as a youth, when he has not yet started his cultivation, he was taken care of and fed by his community.

After he grew up and started his cultivation, he became the pride of his birthplace. He was admired by all in his hometown of Tianyou City, his name passing down through generations.

Tian Dikong was perennially grateful. A later quote of his was, "when one man attains the Tao, even chickens and dogs [close to him] shall rise as well." After he attained the Great Tao, he used his immense power to lift his entire hometown, Tianyou City, from the ground, raising it up to the Nine Heavens. He brought the spiritual water and soil, nurturing the people on the clouds.

With the provision of Tian Dikong's uninterrupted Mana, the massive City long floated above the clouds. In the history books, it was called the City in the Sky.

The City in the Sky became the first foundation of Tian Dikong. After Tian Dikong found an auspicious venue to establish his Sect, the City in the Sky floated above the Sect and was nourished by the spiritual energy of the Sect, and it was no longer needed for Tian Dikong to raise it himself. The City in the Sky was still an everlasting city; through Tian Dikong's magic, it was hidden within the Void, and if residents wished to return to the Divine Lands, there were formations that allowed them to travel there as well.

With the Mana of Tian Dikong and the many Heaven's Gate masters, as well as the nourishment from the spiritual energy of the grand formation of the Heaven's Gate, in addition to unthinkable amounts of precious resources, the City in the Sky eventually transformed from a great mortal city to something akin to the Celestial Palace of the Nine Heavens. Most of the disciples of the Heaven's Gate, as well as their families, moved into the City as well.

Throughout the millennia, the City in the Sky gradually formed a synergy with the Heaven's Gate's grand protective formation, the Celestial Sky Formation. They can fuse and they can be separated; together, they formed one of the strongest fortresses in the history of the Divine Lands, with superb fighting prowess.

Although it wasn't as free as Mount Yujing of the Celestial Sect of Wonders today, but with certain conditions, it can teleport through the Void from point to point.

However, after that War of the Two Worlds that marked the transition from the Antiquity Age to the Middle Age, with the complete destruction of the Heaven's Gate, the City in the Sky and the Celestial Sky Formation met their demise as well.

However, gazing at the twelve giant figures of light above Shi Tianhao's head now, Shi Zongtang was taken aback. "That is...the Twelve Divine Generals of the ancient Heaven's Gate's Celestial Sky Formation?"

The ancient Heaven's Gate believed that all magic eventually returns to the same roots, that they should absorb and integrate anything and everything. They will collect and study any and all Ways and mantras in the Grand Celestial World, regardless of it being Human or Demon; and, with reference to their own Tao, bring forth new inventions through constant improvement and integration.

It was rumored that Tian Dikong once obtained the fragmented plans for the Demons' top formation, the Twelve Sages Heavenly Revolving Formation, and, with that as the foundation, refined and improved it into a formation that can be used by Humans - the strongest formation of his Sect, the Celestial Sky Formation.

This formation forged the energy bodies of the Twelve Divine Generals. It drew on all Tao of the Universe, even the Sky itself, and transformed it into a formation that suppresses the Heavens.

After the Celestial Sky Formation became synergistic with the City in the Sky, when the two became one, controlled by Heaven's Gate masters, it could switch between the City and the energy bodies of the Twelve Divine Generals through countless transformations.

For reasons related to the Great Zhou Empire and the East Heaven's Gate, the Great Qin Empire has tried its best to find out about the ancient Heaven's Gate. These information were all recorded in the ancient scrolls; although they were limited, but, gazing at the twelve giant figures of light above Shi Tianhao's head now and feeling the Tao and concept within, Shi Zongtong could see some inklings.

Especially because Shi Zongtang could sense that the Twelve Divine Generals energy bodies above Shi Tianhao's head weren't in perfect condition. They betrayed a sense of weakness and fragility, as if they were dilapidated due to severe damage.

"Not because he obtained the plans of the Celestial Sky Formation and reconstructed it...this is the original formation of the ancient Heaven's Gate?" Shi Zongtang thought. "Even though it was destroyed by the Emperor of Extremity, Shenyuan, remains survived through sheer luck? It was rumored that due to that battle, the dimensions between the Ancient Desolate Galaxy and the Greater Worlds were forever changed, and the Galaxy passage was shattered into the six gates to the Starry Sea as well. The situation was extremely chaotic..."

"If so, the City in the Sky that became one with the Celestial Sky Formation then...although it was also crumbling and in disrepair, might it have survived as well?"

As Shi Zongtang was thinking, he saw the figures of the Twelve Divine Generals above Shi Tianhao's head suddenly started to blur, like they might disappear at any moment.

Shi Tianhao's brows scrunched together as he ramped up his Awareness and Mana, and the figures above his head became clear once more.

However, seeing this, Shi Zongtang's heart, already returning to calm, became nervous once more.

Obviously, Shi Tianhao was unable to freely control the power of the energy bodies of the Twelve Divine Generals above his head. It was currently an unstable state, sometimes responsive and sometimes less so.

This sort of state was, doubtlessly, very dangerous. He might very well be unable to save Xiling City, or even go down together with it.

However, Shi Tianhao did not falter. He strode forward with his head held high and his steps wide, amidst the world that seemed to be on the verge of annihilation. Above his head, the energy bodies of the Twelve Divine Generals flickered in and out of existence.

When the giant figures materialized, the pressure on Xuling City relaxed somewhat, and so did Shi Tianhao himself.

However, when the figures started to disappear, not only did the pressure surge for Xiling City, but Shi Tianhao himself seemed to find himself inside a violent storm. Even with his incredibly strong martial body, he felt the pressure to be immense, as if he was about to be ripped apart.

The incredible strength that backblasted along the Draconic Energy was aggressive and violent, but it didn't actually last for exceedingly long.

However, this short period of time was incredibly long for those of the Great Qin Empire and Shi Tianhao. Every moment, every instant, was like a thousand years.

The energy bodies of the Twelve Divine Generals above Shi Tianhao's head weren't stable; they trembled and shook within the instants, sometimes there and sometimes not.

Every single time one of the Twelve Divine Generals disappeared, for Shi Tianhao, it was like absorbing a blunt, direct strike.

His gaze darkened somewhat; it was obvious that the damage and shock to his Immortal Soul were worsening constantly. Blood was even beginning to appear at the corner of his mouth.

Meanwhile, inside the Imperial Palace of the Great Qin Empire, the Immortal Souls of some of the slightly weaker cultivators were already starting to crumble under the repeated strikes. Some Virtual Entity masters have long since materialized their Virtual Entity, however, at this instant, the Virtual Entity was like a fragile porcelain vase that was starting to crack.

In effect, the Way of the Virtual Entity-level Shi Zongtang bore the greatest part of the pressure at the Great Qin Imperial Palace. Right now, his Immortal Soul was almost going to snap out of human form.

Sighing, he wanted to tell Shi Tianhao to leave, but he could not even send out the Mana voice projection, and his Awareness could not explore further either.

Xiling City started to crumble in its entirety. The buildings and roads within the City were almost completely destroyed, and even the tall, proud city walls that had resembled a soaring mountain range was starting to crack and shatter. Massive cracks were spreading along the walls, like long, savage dragons.

Shi Tianhao could only feel an immense weight bearing on his body, causing his entire body - the bones, the blood vessels, every single pore - to groan in pain together.

Now, he could be considered an experienced, battle-hardened cultivator. Many times, he had engaged in bloody battles with the enemy and even been gravely wounded.

However, facing an enemy so much stronger than himself like today - that was a rare experience.

However, there was not even a hint of fear in Shi Tianhao's heart. Instead, a look of careful thinking appeared on his face. "I have had some thoughts previously, but they were like flashes of brilliance that disappeared after an instant - it was hard to capture that inspiration."

"The energy bodies of these Twelve Divine Generals seemed to have achieved a mysterious balance with the physical City in the Sky. If I want to freely control it, I need to create a corresponding balance between my physical, martial power and the power of my Immortal Soul. The strength does not have to be completely equivalent, but I need to understand the mechanisms and transformations within."

"The thousands of Tao, thousands of Ways in the Universe are too wonderful for words indeed. The conversions between the Twelve Divine Generals energy bodies and the City in the Sky...the mysteries within are different in approach, but also, rather similar to the principles that I was meditating on these few days."

Although danger is near, instead, a slight smile appeared on Shi Tianhao's face. As he walked, his body started to change as well.

Sometimes, it was a body of flesh and bone, and the power of Qi and blood swelled and rolled. Sometimes, it took the form of an ancient Taiji Diagram, covering the skies and rotating slowly.