As the battle cries grew louder, Ao Lie increasingly felt his Dharma Power circulating sluggishly, far less smoothly than before.
He narrowed his eyes and murmured to himself, "Whether it's Human Dao Fortune or battle-formation baleful qi, the role Immortals and Gods can play in warfare seems to have diminished. Unless someone possesses great Dharma Power, their power is bound to circulate sluggishly when two armies clash. It seems changing the course of a battle through magic means not only shouldering cause and effect and karmic debt, but overcoming this hurdle as well."
The more he thought about it, the more delight crept onto his face. If this was truly the case, then human effort could influence far more in the war between Shang and Zhou, amid the Investiture Calamity. Reversing the overall situation was not entirely impossible.
This had probably been the case in the original story too. Countless Immortals, Strange Beings, and even Monsters inexplicably took up weapons and fought hand to hand, as though they had completely forgotten how to use magic.
On closer consideration, their Dharma Power must have been disrupted. Casting spells or deploying Magic Treasures took more effort than usual. Since their martial skills were good as well, they simply went into battle and killed enemies directly.
Meanwhile, Lei Zhenzi had already deployed his troops to meet the first wave of the charging Shang Army.
His feelings were complicated, half delight and half bewilderment.
He was delighted that his troops had finally drawn Shang reinforcements. Wherever these soldiers had come from, it meant fewer troops for the Shang Army's Western Expedition. The same held true if they came from a pass: its weakened defenses would make it easier for Great Zhou's Infiltrators to stir up the people.
What bewildered him was the carriage amid