Chapter 508: Dragon Shadow Nine Pillars
Ning Zhuo heard Song Ji’s evaluation and his heart stirred slightly.
The first thing he thought of, however, was not the Dice-Bone Demon God, but the marrow of that Void Evil God.
A mere Demon God was only at the Golden Core level, but the marrow of a Void Evil God was of Soul Formation rank.
“The marrow is actually the greatest gain that consumed my fortune!”
“Before reaching Azure Sky Mountain, I even impersonated the Stone Dwelling Old Monster and robbed Liangzhu Kingdom’s transport convoy, obtaining countless military supplies. Even now, that treasure-grade Storage Bag still hasn’t been opened.”
“There must be many good things inside!”
“On top of that, I later used talismans to teleport to the Red Flower Camp, helped Mu Lan shoot and kill Di Slaughter, and forced the Cangyue Ancient God to retreat. That military merit should also count as my gain.”
“Calculating it this way… hiss…”
Ning Zhuo could not help but secretly draw in a cold breath.
The more he calculated this muddled account involving fortune, the more alarmed he became.
This surge of great fortune had brought him far too many benefits. Even after the fierce battle at Moon-Hook Mountain, there were still many remnants left.
“When it first appeared, just how enormous must that fortune have been?”
“Who exactly is so kind as to secretly support me like this?”
“If I ever find that person in the future, I must repay them somehow.”
Even now, Ning Zhuo still did not know the truth.
Song Ji’s divination had also verified Ning Zhuo’s previous guesses.
“My fortune is declining. I must remember this change. If I become careless and rely on luck alone, I could easily suffer a setback.”
“So humility and caution are the best policies for someone who walks the world year-round.”
“I must continue maintaining this good habit!”
Ning Zhuo silently reminded himself.
After learning about Ning Zhuo’s fortune, Du Tiechuan set aside some of the hidden concerns in his heart.
He spoke calmly, “Song Offering Officer, take Ning Zhuo away and question him about the enemy army’s internal details.”
Hearing this, Ning Zhuo immediately stood and clasped his fists.
“Marshal Du. In this battle, I assisted General Mu Lan—killing one Nascent Soul and forcing another to retreat, earning some military merit.”
“Now that a great battle is imminent, if I could spend that merit to draw some rare medicinal pills in advance to strengthen my body’s foundation, I would be able to serve the army more effectively!”
“Hmm?” Du Tiechuan raised his eyes toward Ning Zhuo. His gaze was cold, his expression displeased.
“My army has always been governed with clear rewards and punishments, strictly enforced.”
“According to military discipline, this is not the time to discuss rewards.”
“The entire army, including myself and all the soldiers, must strictly obey.”
“This is no trivial matter! If I agreed, I would be undermining the kingdom’s system, damaging military discipline, treating other officers and soldiers unfairly, shaking the army’s morale, weakening its fighting spirit, and causing serious harm.”
Ning Zhuo smiled bitterly.
“Marshal, it is only the advance withdrawal of some medicinal pills to strengthen my body’s foundation.”
“You may know a little about my situation.”
“As you can see, I only have Foundation Establishment cultivation. Entering the battlefield like this is extremely dangerous.”
“If my physical body could advance rapidly in a short time, I would be able to add a quasi–Nascent Soul level combat force to our army!”
Du Tiechuan shook his head slightly, his expression icy.
“A mere quasi–Nascent Soul level—how much influence could that have on the entire battle?”
“Do not bring this up again.”
“Leave.”
Ning Zhuo had no choice but to bow.
“Yes, sir. I take my leave.”
Song Ji bowed as well and prepared to depart.
Du Tiechuan used his spiritual sense to transmit a message, secretly communicating with him.
“Who granted Ning Zhuo such powerful fortune? Can you calculate it?”
Song Ji secretly replied, “Extremely difficult.”
“I am also puzzled.”
“Under normal circumstances, such a vast external fortune enhancement would require the caster to pay an extremely heavy price.”
“Who would sacrifice so much just to support Ning Zhuo?”
“Even if he were a favored disciple of a great clan, it still shouldn’t reach this extent.”
“There is also another strange point.”
Du Tiechuan: “Hmm?”
Song Ji continued, “Normally, externally bestowed fortune like this would be consumed extremely rapidly and could never last long.”
“But when I calculated earlier, I discovered that the fortune around Ning Zhuo is not being consumed so intensely.”
“In fact, there are even signs that it has been nourished recently.”
Du Tiechuan asked, “Why would that be?”
Song Ji shook his head.
“Fortune is part of hidden studies. My knowledge is only superficial.”
“The methods for nourishing external fortune are countless and varied. Each has its own peculiarities. I cannot determine the cause.”
Du Tiechuan said, “Then forget it.”
“Next, I will trouble you to thoroughly probe the enemy’s situation.”
“With your methods, if the Dice-Bone Demon God or Ning Zhuo are hiding anything, you should be able to detect it.”
Song Ji immediately accepted the order, stating he would certainly do his utmost to carry it out.
Song Ji then led Ning Zhuo alone into a tent.
Ning Zhuo released the Dice-Bone Demon God.
“Old Dice, you should answer everything you know. But if it concerns your own safety, do not force yourself.”
Ning Zhuo deliberately reminded him.
The Dice-Bone Demon God replied, “Master, this old servant was not close to the people of Thousand Peaks Forest. Everything I know has already been told to you.”
Ning Zhuo nodded.
“This time, simply repeat it here in front of Lord Song.”
Immediately afterward, Ning Zhuo transmitted a message to Song Ji with his spiritual sense.
“Please trouble yourself to use spells to test him carefully and prevent the Dice-Bone Demon God from providing false intelligence that could mislead our army.”
“To be honest, I subdued him purely by chance.”
“Even now, I still feel somewhat uneasy.”
Seeing Ning Zhuo take the initiative to request this, Song Ji did not conceal anything and openly used numerous divination methods.
After about the time it took to drink two cups of tea, Song Ji escorted Ning Zhuo out.
Ning Zhuo had failed to obtain the treasure pills to strengthen his body from Du Tiechuan, but he was not disappointed.
After returning to the Three Generals Camp, he briefly informed the three generals of the situation.
All three breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Hei said, “So we managed to muddle through?”
Guan Hong shook his head without speaking.
Liu Er said instead, “Shen Qinghe has been secretly following us all along. It’s just that this time we subdued the Dice-Bone Demon God and returned victorious, so Marshal Du chose not to pursue the matter for the sake of the greater situation.”
“Based on my understanding of Du Tiechuan, this matter will eventually be settled.”
Ning Zhuo nodded, quite agreeing with Liu Er’s analysis.
Among Liu, Guan, and Zhang, Liu Er was the most perceptive in judging people.
After parting with the three generals, Ning Zhuo returned to his own tent, entered the Puppet Dragon, and began manufacturing Mechanical Puppets again.
Sun Lingtong studied at the side and gained a great deal.
By the afternoon of the next day, Sun Lingtong could already operate one of the Mechanical Work Platforms, saving Ning Zhuo considerable time and effort.
Ning Zhuo entered the Fetal-Breath Spirit Vessel. Using the restrictions of the Innate Earth-Nurturing Fetal-Breath Great Method, he was wrapped in thick stone garments and began strengthening the foundation of his physical body.
Late at night, he shattered the stone garments and regained freedom.
He wasted no time and immediately began repairing Yuan Dasheng and Meng Yahu.
Although these two Golden Core–level Mechanical Puppets had been chopped into several pieces, their spirituality had not been damaged, so the repairs were not particularly difficult.
“As expected, the results are astonishing, boss!” After finishing his first round of cultivation, Ning Zhuo clenched his fists, feeling unprecedented power brewing within his body.
He sincerely praised Sun Lingtong.
“To invent this cultivation method, boss, you truly are a genius!”
Sun Lingtong beamed with pride, hands on his hips as he laughed loudly.
“Of course, of course! I’m your boss after all, Little Zhuo.”
After cultivating like this for several days, Marshal Du issued a new military order.
He ordered the Red Flower Camp, the Three Generals Camp, and other units to pull up their camps and relocate several li outward.
Then he commanded the demolition of Woodwheel Town’s four city walls. Using more than a dozen armies as defensive lines, they began large-scale construction.
Within the logistics army, many formation masters, refiners, and even a few Mechanism Masters cooperated together, employing every possible method.
With sufficient resources, hundreds of cultivators worked day and night, quickly building the foundation of a massive structure.
Because Du Tiechuan did not forbid others from observing, this construction project attracted the attention of the entire army from the very beginning.
Anyone would be curious—what was the purpose of such a grand and imposing undertaking?
By evening, Ning Zhuo also found time to leave the Three Generals Camp and observe the structure’s foundation.
He saw that the foundation was square and expansive. Even with only the base completed, it already exuded a majestic aura.
It was paved with large quantities of Dragon Roar Stone.
On the surface of these stones, dragon patterns appeared and shifted. If one placed an ear against them, faint dragon roars could be heard.
As the stones were stacked together and the scale grew larger, the dragon roars became clearer and more powerful.
Around the foundation, thick railings had been installed.
These railings were made of Thunder Firmament Iron, extremely sturdy and capable of absorbing and storing lightning.
At the center of the foundation stood a giant pillar.
At its top was embedded a dragon soul pearl the size of a basin. Even with the naked eye, Ning Zhuo could see a dragon soul roaming and roaring within the pearl.
“Dragon Roar Stone originates from dragon veins. After long-term exposure to national power, its nature evolved. That makes it an excellent carrier for national power.”
“The dragon soul inside that pearl must have been at least Soul Formation level when alive. Dragon souls are also the most effective at stimulating dragon vein power.”
“Judging by this setup, it seems like an altar—to sacrifice a Soul Formation–level dragon soul?”
“As expected of the supreme commander of the three armies. The moment he acts, it’s with grand scale.”
Ning Zhuo sighed inwardly and returned to his tent to continue his bitter cultivation.
In just three days, his strength increased more than tenfold. His flesh became tough yet resilient, as though his entire body were wrapped in a magical instrument–grade armor.
Hearing that the “altar” was already sixty percent complete and that speculation within the army had reached a fever pitch, he once again went to observe it during a rest period.
The massive structure was now more than halfway finished, and its overall trapezoidal shape could already be seen.
Dragon Roar Stone remained the main building material, rising layer upon layer from the foundation.
At the base of the structure, cultivators began laying large amounts of Glazed Golden Radiance Bricks on the Dragon Roar Stone surfaces.
These tiles were usually used in royal palaces. Their glazed surfaces gleamed with golden brilliance—magnificent, splendid, and filled with imposing authority.
Ning Zhuo felt puzzled.
“Using Glazed Golden Radiance Bricks… this doesn’t seem like the construction of an altar anymore.”
He also saw eight giant pillars erected around the structure. Each pillar was half the height of the central dragon soul pillar.
Each was carved with intricate and ornate patterns, while the tops displayed carvings of auspicious clouds and golden roc birds.
Ning Zhuo narrowed his eyes. From the various patterns on the pillars, he barely recognized some talismans and traces of formation pathways.
“There are at least eight defensive talismans and twelve auxiliary talismans coordinating the formations.”
“As for the formations… I can’t see the full structure. But there are at least four layers of formations.”
At this point, Ning Zhuo realized his formation knowledge was far from sufficient.
But he remained calm.
“Although I’ve read many books, the level was only that of the family academy and the public sections of the clan library.”
“Among the hundred cultivation arts, formations are famous for their complexity, profundity, and difficulty.”
“I’ve only learned a little. My accumulation in this field has only just begun.”
Though Ning Zhuo still could not see Du Tiechuan’s intentions, he was already certain that Du Tiechuan’s move was becoming larger and larger.
He had made a massive investment in this project.
“What exactly does he intend to do?”
Not only Ning Zhuo—many soldiers were speculating endlessly.
Three days later.
The enormous structure that had drawn the entire army’s attention was finally completed.
The trapezoidal platform had a smooth upper surface, with the central dragon soul pillar standing tall.
Heavy railings surrounded the platform, while the eight Cloud-Roc Pillars guarded it.
When the formations activated, the Glazed Golden Radiance Bricks merged seamlessly into a single surface. The dragon shadow projected from the dragon soul pearl glided across the golden bricks, agile and powerful.
As the dragon shadow moved, every soldier nearby could hear dragon roars echoing deep within their hearts.
If one focused carefully, the roars sounded majestic and powerful. If distracted, they became almost inaudible.
Two military flags were planted atop the platform, standing on either side of the dragon soul pillar.
The flags fluttered in the wind. Layers of formations operated in harmony, and the entire structure radiated overwhelming military might.
At last, the answer was revealed.
This was a parade platform.
The Dragon Shadow Nine Pillars Parade Platform.
On the very day the parade platform was completed, Du Tiechuan ordered the entire army to conduct a military review.
The next day, fully armed, Du Tiechuan stood atop the platform and activated the military art within it.
With his hands behind his back, he looked down from above as army after army marched past the Dragon Shadow Nine Pillars Parade Platform before him.
The Three Generals Camp and the Red Flower Camp were among them.
Ning Zhuo, as Military Advisor and Sacrificial Wine, rode a horse beside Liu Er, Guan Hong, and Zhang Hei.
During the parade, he could clearly feel wave after wave of invisible force sweeping over him, stacking layer upon layer.
After the review ended, Ning Zhuo was drenched in sweat, his muscles sore and weak.
To resist the accumulation of those invisible forces, he had struggled with all his strength.
“If I hadn’t recently been pushing my physical cultivation to the limit, this parade alone might have knocked me off my horse in front of everyone.”
While feeling relieved, Ning Zhuo also gained a clearer understanding of Du Tiechuan’s intentions through this personal experience.
And not just him—many generals had already guessed it.
“So that’s how it is!”
“Marshal Du is about to use his trump card.”
“I never expected the commander to go all out before the great battle has even begun. Truly something to look forward to!”
“Iron Flow Across the Plains! How many years has it been since Marshal Du last used this move?”