The Investiture: Unlimited Blade Works Nezha-Chapter 299 - 298: Storming the Tower

Lei Zhenzi moved swiftly, rolling the Huntian Silk around the Fire Dog’s neck, tightening it fiercely. Huo Dou let out a horrifying scream, unable to unleash its flames, and instead sprayed Lei Zhenzi with a massive amount of saliva.

Lei Zhenzi didn’t care about the stench and slimy saliva covering him at this moment. He wielded the Fire-tipped Spear, driving it through the dog’s skull. With a powerful twist, the dog’s brain burst apart...

Huo Dou died a truly miserable death, to the strong condemnation of Primordial canine enthusiasts.

Lei Zhenzi couldn’t be bothered by such criticisms. That black dog was ferocious beyond compare, its cultivation seemingly on par with his own. Without his arsenal of Spiritual Treasures, the outcome of the battle might have been uncertain.

Glancing at his disheveled state, he didn’t bother to tidy up but directly hoisted the headless corpse of the black dog and flew out of the tower.

As soon as he exited the tower, Thousand-mile Eye and Sharp-Hearing Ear beside Hao Tian shouted loudly.

"Your Majesty, the first battle is a victory! A great victory!"

Hao Tian smiled faintly, looking pleased. The surrounding Heavenly Soldiers were bolstered with great morale at this news.

Lei Zhenzi placed the headless black dog’s corpse to the side, then knelt down on one knee and declared, "Your servant has lived up to Your Majesty’s trust, triumphing in the first battle!"

The once fearless youth had now had his edges rounded by life’s hardships.

"Stand down!"

"Which minister will break the next array?"

The response to Hao Tian was silence. Everyone had only recently ascended as Immortals. Even with rapid cultivation via the Incense Fire Divine Dao, it still took time. Furthermore, the Incense Fire Divine Dao required increasingly vast amounts of Incense Fire Merit as it progressed. Most of them were still at the level of Profound Immortals, with only a scattered few reaching Golden Immortal.

Lei Zhenzi had fought ferociously to kill the guardian dog, which was clearly no weakling. Asking others to challenge the next guardian in a single duel? It wasn’t guaranteed they could prevail.

Hao Tian calculated that the Demon Tower likely had nine layers, with soldiers facing soldiers, generals facing generals, and kings against kings. If he prematurely entered the tower and exhausted his strength, leading to his defeat against Luo Hou, that would be disastrous.

Thus, he would not make a move until the final layer.

Sweeping his gaze around, he asked, "Where are the Four Grand Marshals before the Palace?"

Long Xuhu, Wu Ji, Nangong Shi, and Tai Dian stepped forward and replied, "Your servant is here!"

"I command you to break the second array."

The four dared not refuse. In their mortal lives, they feared neither heaven nor earth, but after death, most of their time had been spent working, with cultivation serving mainly as a means of improvement.

Magical duels?

Who could they hope to defeat?

Yet the order had been given, and they had no way to refuse.

Then Wu Ji, ever quick-witted, showed his cleverness—a reflection of his role as Jiang Ziya’s disciple.

"Fellow Marshals, none of us are skilled in single combat. Why not mobilize troops for an assault instead?"

Long Xuhu, who knew his thinking wasn’t agile, typically followed this senior brother’s lead. The other two, being longtime associates from West Zhou, also nodded in agreement upon hearing this.

They turned back to the Dou Department to mobilize troops, and Hao Tian squinted approvingly at their plan.

The titles of the four certainly sounded grand—Palace Forefront Four Saints Grand Marshals—but, really, they were nothing more than glorified security captains guarding the Palace of the Polestar’s gates. If it weren’t for Hao Tian’s tacit approval, borrowing troops might not have been possible for them.

The four managed to muster a force of ten thousand Heavenly Soldiers before charging into the Demon Tower.

The second layer’s guardian turned out to be the Jealous Demon King Droljia, who had escaped last time, along with his Demon King Army.

When the two sides met, there was no need for words. The battle commenced immediately. The Demon Army had almost been wiped out in the previous clash, and their newly recruited Demon Weapons were no match for the Heavenly Soldiers.

But Droljia himself proved incredibly strong. In the end, the four marshals paid a heavy price—a total annihilation of the ten thousand Heavenly Soldiers and leaving Long Xuhu gravely injured and on the brink of death—to breach the second layer.

Hao Tian was displeased but didn’t show it. Instead, he rewarded Long Xuhu a healing Elixir for his injuries and gently comforted the group.

"Who among the Immortal Gods wishes to break the next array?"

Wen Zhong, with decades of experience in office, stepped forward.

"Your servant volunteers."

"Well done."

Wen Zhong immediately led thirty-six True Gods of the Thunder Department into the fray. His motive wasn’t an eagerness to serve Hao Tian but rather a keen awareness that the challenges would grow exponentially more dangerous.

Getting injured in the morning was one thing; losing one’s life by evening was entirely another.

Wen Zhong’s strategic thinking proved accurate. The third layer consisted of the remaining two Demon Kings: the Greedy Demon King Indra and the Gluttony Demon King Baal.

When the two sides met, both were masters of thunder magic, and their animosity towards one another was palpable. The Thunder Department, regarded as one of the Heavenly Court’s most formidable combat divisions, immediately summoned Heavenly Thunder to attack.

But Indra remained unfazed by the lightning strikes, controlling it to launch counterattacks. Meanwhile, Baal transformed into black mosquitoes, continuously draining the mana of the Thunder Department Gods.

Wen Zhong had poor luck but swift reflexes.

Though Hao Tian’s order for him to train troops had borne some fruit, he quickly handed out slightly damaged Array Flags to the others, shouting for them to arrange a formation.

A small-scale Star Formation was set up amid the battle.

The starlight suppressed both Indra and Baal, but the cultivation disparity made it impossible to finish off the two Demon Kings quickly.

Outside, Hao Tian waited and waited but received no results from within the tower. After half a month, it was painfully evident even to a fool that things were not going well.

At this moment, Yin Shou stepped forward. He had deep feelings for Wen Zhong and couldn’t sit idly by.

Hao Tian didn’t stop him—why would he object to someone willing to take on the task?

Yin Shou was among the Heavenly Court’s top-tier ascended Immortals in the new wave. With his cultivation reaching the level of Golden Immortal, he rushed into the Demon Tower wielding a Divine Sword radiating with lightning. Soon, he encountered the two entrenched forces.

No words were exchanged—he charged forward with his sword.

Wen Zhong immediately shouted, "Rearrange the formation! Support Emperor Gouchen in eradicating these demons!"

Both sides were in poor condition, but Yin Shou remained unscathed. With Wen Zhong’s cooperation, they finally claimed a double kill.

It’s fair to say the many rushed Immortals of the Incense Fire Divine Dao indeed came with flaws.

After conquering the third layer, Yin Shou did not leave immediately. He chose instead to have the Thunder Department rest and recover before advancing to challenge the fourth layer together. Yin Shou was someone who pushed himself to the limit in any task he undertook.

The guardian of the fourth layer turned out to be a bizarre creature, its form resembling that of an ox, but with a human face, horse hooves, and a crimson body.

Yin Shou didn’t recognize it, nor did Wen Zhong. The others were even less likely to know it. There was no choice but to fight.

Wen Zhong didn’t hesitate, immediately launching a Big Move by setting up the Star Formation and summoning Divine Thunder to strike the creature.

The creature’s name was Yayu, a monstrous being revived by Luo Hou after having been slain by Da Yi during the calamity of the ten suns in ancient times. Now, it was more vicious than ever.

Its crimson skin resisted the attacks of lightning strikes and water flows, showing no sign of damage. Instead, more water surged from beneath its four hooves to launch counterattacks.

Normally, Divine Thunder should counter water-element magic, but exceptions always exist.

As an authentic third-generation disciple of the Jie Sect, Wen Zhong had broad knowledge. Seeing how Divine Thunder failed to affect the water flow, he immediately shouted, "Retreat quickly! This is Weak Water — any contact is fatal to us!"

He grabbed Yin Shou by the arm and bolted out.

The Thunder Department Gods reacted swiftly, fleeing at full speed after hearing Wen Zhong’s warning.

The crimson-skinned monster released an infant-like cry as it chased after them, but not one was caught.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺