Sovereign of the Three Realms

"Forefather, some men have spotted an anomaly in the south. A spirit bird's circling the sky and spying on our camps."

"Forefather, we've suffered an attack in the north. A demigod commander is missing!"

"Forefather…"

Many reports suddenly poured in all at once, not long after Goldenhowl issued his orders and while Cloudrumble was still busy assembling the troops, few of them favorable to the golden demons.

The disappearance of a demigod commander in particular, made Goldenhowl's saber-like eyebrows crease heavily.

He was supremely confident in his tribe's battle prowess. A demigod commander was at least comparable to a second level human divine.

At the very least, a hard-fought battle should have caused a great disturbance. Being slain without a trace implied the opponent was certainly not a mere second level.

He looked at Silverhammer. "How are our camps configured?"

"We have camps in the four cardinal directions, each less than a thousand miles away from the others. It should be compact enough, " Silverhammer answered.

"Rather dividing our force in four, I hereby order it to be merged into one!" How could Goldenhowl fail to realize the enemy was harassing them on all sides, to impede their attack on Immortal?

It wasn't a genius stratagem by any means, but quite annoying nonetheless. Unless he took to the field in person, there was no practical way of stopping it.

Silverhammer left to carry out his commands.

A moment later, Cloudrumble was finished assembling the headquarter's troops. "Brother daoist, everything is ready. I'm just waiting for your word."

Goldenhowl gravely said, "Begin the attack!"

He ignored the skirmishes on the outskirts. They were insignificant tickles at best. With Immortal in their possession, they could use its fortifications to ward off all harassment.

His arrangements completed, he entered his own tent and entered meditation, his mind solely focused on the offensive on Winterdraw.

The rest could be left to Cloudrumble and Silverhammer.

"Silveredge, Silveredge. Your soul lamp hasn't gone out, so you must be alive. Are they keeping you prisoner on Winterdraw?" he surmised. He valued Silveredge very much. The demon was much more reliable than Silverhammer.

The latter was by no means weaker in raw power, but he didn't possess the same degree of intrepid courage.

In other words, Silveredge always plowed forward no matter the dangers. Goldenhowl most appreciated this trait, so he wanted to rescue Silveredge if possible. But how exactly had he been captured? Deep down, this question niggled at the demonic forefather.

According to available intelligence, a full-strength attack from the humans was capable of killing the three forefathers. But to capture Silveredge alive? It sounded ludicrous no matter how he thought about it.

"There must be something I'm unaware of. A new development in the human domain in the last twenty years, perhaps?"

There were profound doubts in his mind.

But he was an existence close to advanced divine realm, after all. In bearing and in insight, he was vastly superior to his tribesmen.

When demons invaded other planes, strategy was oftentimes not that useful, but intrepid momentum and martial prowess were the foundations of every success.

Raw strength always prevailed, and that was precisely the golden demons' strong suit. Rather than overthinking things, he might as well set his plan in motion.

"If I can capture Winterdraw and force my way into the human domain, I might find an opportunity to reach advanced divine realm. Why should I take orders from the celestial demons then? Who can stop me in this vast world?"

Celestial demons had always reigned over the ten tribes.

Golden demons were brave, but had to submit all the same. Even so, power was paramount in the world of cultivation.

At advanced divine, he would face the celestial demon forefathers as an equal. He might not match their overall power, but as long as he could rival them in battle strength, his authority would certainly increase.

The ten tribes cooperated with each other, but also competed with each other, especially when it came to such a juicy piece of meat like the Divine Abyss Continent. Everyone wanted a bigger bite. No one was satisfied with leftovers.

As for Silverhammer, he'd gone to reorganize the army. But before he could complete his task, something suddenly flitted across his consciousness. With loud, drawn-out howl, his figure shot towards the south as fast as the wind.

In the southern sky, like an azure hole in the void, belching celestial fire from the heavens, a fiery-red figure spat a long tongue of flame that crossed the sky and wrapped itself around the demonic forefather.

Silverhammer sneered, "I'd be embarrassed to show off this kind of weak trick!"

A golden demon's unparallelled physique wasn't just for show. A fire attack of this magnitude was just a gentle scratch.

But when the flames swallowed him whole, he realized there was more to them than met the eye. They possessed a fearsome corrosive ability, as if they could melt all things living. He could dimly sense the power of creation from them.

"Is this the fire of creation?" But he didn't panic. His figure shone silver as he shot out of the fire like a bolt of lightning.

He clutched the air at the same time, materializing a large hammer in his hand. He smashed it mercilessly toward the clouds.

Boom!

The strike caved an enormous pit in the air and fissured the sky. Like an arrow, the Vermilion Bird shot out of the crack, dodging the horrific attack.

At the same time, it opened its beak and breathed skyfire that ignited the air around the forefather.

"As I thought, a sacred beast. You must be one of Jiang Chen's companions?" Silverhammer stayed inside the sea of fire, utterly unfazed.

As a fourth level divine realm cultivator, his cultivation was higher than the bird's, just like his battle strength. So while a threat, the skyfire couldn't pin him down entirely.

However, since the Vermilion Bird had gone into action, the other sacred beasts were bound to be lying in wait nearby.

Clouds shifted and winds blew. Long Xiaoxuan's Claws of Crushed Mountains and Rivers stretched out from nothingness and clutched viciously at Silveredge's head.