Chapter 402: The Ice Peak Camp's Decision

Science Fiction

“Let the war begin! It will be spectacular once they start fighting. I bet the cultivators will lose the first engagement, but the Icepeak Faction probably can't withstand a prolonged conflict!”

“Haha, it would be great if the cultivators’ domain, with its thirty-six hundred world clusters, turned into ruins.”

“Hmph, if it truly becomes ruins, then those eight lords will have nothing left to lose, and that’s the most terrifying prospect.”

“Now that would be interesting!”

In the Eternal Realm, a group of beings who loved to watch chaos gathered. Besides the eight lords from the cultivators’ side and the twelve immortal beings from the Icepeak Faction, immortal beings from the other nine realms also had their avatars present in the Eternal Realm. These included the Infinite Serpent Ancestor, Ancestor Yanhuo, Primordial Ancestor, and Mother of Time and Space from the Innate Chaos Origin Faction, along with five independent beings who didn't join any faction.

These five were Mogus, Kaf Xiu, Feather Emperor, Demon Abyss, and the Hermit. Four of them were among the top ten strongest in the Infinite Chaos Origin Space. The Hermit's power was unknown; they were the only one in the Infinite Chaos Origin Space whose true body no one could find. These five could thrive perfectly well without joining any faction.

“The fiercer the fight, the better!” Kaf Xiu, clad in white battle armor, laughed heartily.

“Infinite Serpent Ancestor, your Innate Chaos Origin Faction and the cultivators’ faction fought for so long before; many ancestors must have died, right? If the Icepeak Faction enters a large-scale war with the cultivators, a few ancestors will probably die too!”

The Infinite Serpent Ancestor replied nonchalantly, “Through the crucible of life and death, one’s strength has the potential to improve! Those who died simply weren’t strong enough. Unlike the cultivator lords, who are all immortal, among the hundreds of ancestors from the Innate Chaos Origin Faction who participated in the past, only a handful were truly immortal. The vast majority faced the pressure of death.”

“Under the threat of death, they fought many battles against the cultivators’ faction. Many of the surviving ancestors gained something from the experience, which they now need time to slowly assimilate.”

“There are too many ancestors!” Mogus, with his chilling aura, also said, “Those weak ancestors should be eliminated.”

“The Icepeak Faction also has 26 ordinary ancestors; some of them deserve to die off.”

“Mogus, if I’m not mistaken, over 95% of your power was destroyed, wasn’t it?” Kaf Xiu asked.

“You fought against Xingmang...” Mogus laughed, “While I couldn’t defeat him, he couldn’t do anything to me either!”

Kaf Xiu shook his head. “Unlike you, he only bullies the weak, yet you were utterly defenseless against Xingmang!”

Mogus snorted coldly.

“Primordial Ancestor!” Demon Abyss, a strange cube, sat beside the perfectly spherical Primordial Ancestor. Their friendship was quite deep. “I heard you recently visited the Wall of Fiery Prison. The Infinite Chaos Origin Space has many mysterious places, and their power varies. Some are so powerful that even particularly strong ancestors have no hope of refining and controlling them!”

The Wall of Fiery Prison was one such mysterious place.

The Wall of Fiery Prison was an endless, majestic wall spanning the length of about a hundred world clusters, and its width was comparable to a single world cluster. Among mysterious places, its height ranked among the top three. Over 99% of ancestors who touched the Wall of Fiery Prison were incinerated to ashes!

Wu Lan had once visited the Wall of Fiery Prison and was severely burned, retreating and never daring to venture deeper. The only one capable of crossing the Wall of Fiery Prison was the Primordial Ancestor. The Primordial Ancestor responded, “Yanhuo, Shazhou, and several other old friends asked me to take them to the Wall of Fiery Prison. Long, long ago, before the factions were divided, Shazhou, Demon Abyss, and I were already very familiar with each other.”

“Did you find the origin of the Wall of Fiery Prison?” Demon Abyss asked.

“No!” the Primordial Ancestor replied.

Ancestor Yanhuo, who was nearby, also said, “This time, we crossed the entire Wall of Fiery Prison, but we still couldn’t sense its origin!”

“If you can’t even sense it, let alone refine it!” Kaf Xiu remarked.

“We’ve cumulatively discovered four types of the highest-level flame power in the Wall of Fiery Prison,” Ancestor Yanhuo mused. “There’s ice-cold fire that can freeze even ancestors, endless scorching fire that incinerates everything, lightning fire that destroys everything, and ash fire that annihilates all things!”

“There’s also fire of the violent period, and so many kinds of flames covering the area simultaneously that only the Primordial Ancestor could traverse it!”

“If the Wall of Fiery Prison has an origin, it must contain at least twelve types of the highest-level powers. To refine it, one would need to master nearly half of those highest-level powers!” the Infinite Serpent Ancestor said. “Throughout the entire Infinite Chaos Origin Space, most beings can master at most two types of the highest-level powers, so the Wall of Fiery Prison cannot be refined.”

“It’s impossible!” Ancestor Yanhuo nodded.

Any ancestor skilled in fire and flames harbored ambitions for the Wall of Fiery Prison! Such a terrifying mysterious place, once controlled, would greatly enhance one’s strength. For instance, Ancestor Yanhuo was now one of the Nine Emperors, with hopes of becoming the strongest in the Infinite Chaos Origin Space. Of course, notorious powerful places like the Wall of Fiery Prison, the Eternal Realm, and the Abyss of Destruction offered no hope of refinement.

At this moment, inside the colossal, majestic palace!

Icepeak Ancestor and twelve other beings were gathered here!

“Look!” A massive figure pointed, and the scene of the eight cultivator lords hurrying appeared in mid-air. “The eight lords from the cultivators’ side are on their way. Their message is clear: if we forcibly occupy these world clusters, they will immediately go to war.”

The massive figure, with a body like yellow rock, glared around. “I haven’t encroached on a single world cluster in the cultivators’ domain, nor have I claimed any resources. Regardless of whether you participate in this war... I, Xiu Saivei, will absolutely not participate.”

“Xiu Saivei, the twelve of us are one unit! Once a collective decision is made, you must participate!” The Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea immediately burst out in anger.

“We are, after all, a unified body!” Ancestor Wugu also spoke. He was the only one whose true body was present, as his interests here were the greatest.

Xiu Saivei chuckled, “If I don’t participate, what can you do to me?”

Icepeak Ancestor also found this scene quite vexing.

The Icepeak Faction comprised twelve immortal beings and another 26 ancestors. While it seemed like a formidable force, precisely because the high-level members were immortal, they were incredibly difficult to control! Even the weakest, the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea, were prone to causing trouble. “Compared to the cultivators’ eight lords, our twelve are evenly matched. We also have 26 additional ancestors. Once a full-scale war officially begins, we’ll have an absolute advantage! We can crush them overwhelmingly and even seize a wider territory!”

“We need to teach the cultivators’ faction a lesson, make them understand that our alliance with the Icepeak Faction means we are dominant.”

“The two of you are just fools! When the cultivators’ faction was weak, we were dominant, but now they can wage war against hundreds of Innate Chaos Origin ancestors. Why would they still fear us?”

“I haven’t encroached on the cultivators’ territory, nor have I plundered resources. My stance is clear: I definitely won’t participate!” A slender figure said this, then simply vanished.

“Gone? Pu Sheng actually left early!” The Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea were furious.

“Shut up.” Icepeak Ancestor glanced at the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea. He had considered expelling them from the Icepeak Faction, but since the twelve Eternal Realm beings had formed an alliance without sufficient reason, it wasn’t easy to simply expel anyone.

“Pu Sheng has left,” Icepeak Ancestor surveyed his surroundings, his stance clear: he would not participate. “What are your thoughts, everyone?”

“I won’t participate either!” Xiu Saivei stated. “Our Icepeak Faction, like the Innate Chaos Origin Faction, needs many resources for our core to grow, but the eight cultivator lords follow the Dao; they don’t care about resources. I don’t know why we must fall out with them over occupying world clusters.”

“The cultivators’ faction has always relied on us, but now that they’re strong, they’re turning on us. I think we should fight. Those ancestors who pledged allegiance to us only enjoy resources; it’s time to make them fight tooth and nail!”

Many still wanted to go to war, which gave Icepeak Ancestor a headache, so he quietly sent a telepathic message to Shazhou.

Shazhou, the grey-robed woman who had been silent, glanced at Icepeak Ancestor and then at her surroundings before finally speaking, “This war is meaningless. I will not participate.” The great hall immediately fell silent!

Shazhou was not participating.

Shazhou and Lord Xingmang were ranked second in strength in the Infinite Chaos Origin Space. If Shazhou didn't participate, and Pu Sheng and Xiu Saivei also declined, this war might very well be lost.

Among the twelve immortal beings, the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea were at the bottom, but the others were increasingly powerful. Pu Sheng's strength was comparable to that of a cultivator lord, which was why he dared to leave first, showing no regard for anyone's prestige. Xiu Saivei's strength also ranked among the top thirty in the Infinite Chaos Origin Space.

“With Pu Sheng, Xiu Saivei, and Sister Shazhou not participating, I believe this war is not winnable and unsuitable for initiation!” Icepeak Ancestor’s gaze swept over his surroundings.

“All previously occupied world clusters shall be returned to the cultivators’ faction. Does anyone object?” There was no dissenting voice in the great hall!

“They’ve decided to back down,” Lord Xingmang suddenly announced while Lord Luo Feng and the others were still on their way.

“Backed down?” Yuan’s face showed delight. To be honest, the lords genuinely cared about the countless beings in their territories!

More than half of the twelve immortal beings in the Icepeak Faction were warlike and completely indifferent to the lives of the lower beings.

Xiu Saivei and Pu Sheng were among the few who cared about their own race; they also worried that a full-scale war would affect their people.

“When we negotiate with Icepeak Ancestor later, follow my instructions.” Xingmang could glimpse countless future possibilities, and once certain possibilities were set in motion, they were almost certain to become reality.

“Alright!” Yuan nodded, following Xingmang’s lead.

Half a day later, led by Lord Xingmang, the eight lords arrived together at the border of the fallen territory.

Six figures also appeared from the Icepeak Faction’s side, including Icepeak Ancestor and five others, coming to greet them.

“Brother Yuan, don’t be angry.” Icepeak Ancestor approached, smiling. “You threatened war, which helped me effectively unite our internal opinions!”

“What opinion?” Yuan asked.

“Of course, to return the occupied territory,” Icepeak Ancestor said with a smile. “There’s truly no need for a war between us! Just returning it... I’ve checked carefully, and your Icepeak Faction acted quite brutally, wantonly plundering and even devouring the origins of many source worlds!” Yuan said coldly. “Do you think simply returning the territory is enough now?”

Icepeak Ancestor frowned slightly; he was a bit displeased.

He had secretly facilitated avoiding the war, but Icepeak Ancestor also needed to save face.

“What do you want?” Icepeak Ancestor looked at Yuan.

“I don’t demand much compensation from you. Just return all the resources plundered from the cultivators’ domain,” Yuan said. “Then this matter will be dropped. Otherwise, for whoever plundered, I will take back double.” Icepeak Ancestor nodded expressionlessly. “I can agree to that.”

“Icepeak!” Ancestor Wugu and the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea, who were nearby, became anxious. They were the ones who had plundered the most, and they were definitely unwilling to give it back.

“I said it, I’ve agreed!” Icepeak Ancestor swept his gaze over them. “Anyone unwilling can go negotiate with the cultivators’ faction themselves.”

Ancestor Wugu and the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea could only endure it. Facing the eight cultivator lords alone, they would be utterly torn apart.

“Brother Yuan!” Icepeak Ancestor looked at Yuan and smiled faintly. “Your cultivators’ faction is different now!”

“I also have to account to the other seven lords,” Yuan said, looking at Icepeak Ancestor. “I trust you can understand, Icepeak!”

“I understand!” Icepeak Ancestor nodded.

They looked at each other, both understanding that some things had changed.

Soon, all members of the Icepeak Faction departed.

Ancestor Wugu and the Three Sovereigns of Wind and Thunder Sea also returned all the plundered resources within a short time.

“Making them retreat and return the plundered resources after invading our cultivators’ domain is already letting them off lightly!” Jin said coldly. “According to my temper, for everything they plundered, we should plunder ten times back.”

“Our strength isn’t enough yet!” Xingmang stated. “Forcing them to return the plunder is already the maximum we could achieve. If we demanded more, Icepeak’s arrogance would surely lead to war, and if he decides to fight, Shazhou would definitely participate!”

Luo Feng, having just become a lord, hadn’t had much dealings with the Icepeak Faction. He simply watched everything silently. Regardless, all thirty-six hundred world clusters of the cultivators’ domain had been recovered!

Yuan smiled and looked at Luo Feng beside him.

“It’s fortunate that Luo Feng broke through and became a new lord; otherwise, who knows what would have become of the cultivators’ domain!”

The other lords were also in a good mood at this moment.

Only now could this war be considered a complete victory!