No one was born with the duty to save the world, let alone the fact that this battle was still decided by the top figures. All of these cultivators were just cannon fodder, at most. If possible, Ye Futian was not even willing to have them participate in battle. Letting the Great Emperors fight in the ultimate battle was enough.

However, the Human Ancestor wanted to control the seven realms. He ordered all the realms to go to war, sweeping everyone into the battleground.

Thus, there had to be a force like this in order to resist the invasion. Otherwise, the three realms would be like a handful of sand. It would be conquered and invaded by the other side.

The group of strong figures was silent for a moment. Then someone stated loudly, “I’m willing to go to war with the Heavenly Emperor.”

“I’m willing to go to war with the Heavenly Emperor.” All the voices resounded in the air. Many of the cultivators here were from emperor-level forces. The majority were all willing to do this.

Ye Futian’s gaze looked around below. The deafening voices sounded in the heavens. However, he realized that many people still did not speak out. The spirited voices seemed to have covered those who were swayed, but they were still under Ye Futian’s stare.

He extended a hand, signaling for the people to be quiet. Then he continued saying, “I am not choosing those who are willing this time. Instead, I am giving people a chance to step back. You all can be rest assured. You’ve all contributed in the earlier battles. Those who are willing to step back today will not be questioned.”

There were still no voices. It seemed that no one dared to take the lead.

After a moment, someone finally stepped out, but he still did not speak. Instead, he took a few steps toward the back, separating from the great army.

Gradually, others retreated after him. Their cultivation had improved greatly in the past few years. Many thought that this was already enough, and after calming down, they indeed felt that there was no need to continue fighting.

For them, whether it was the Human Ancestor ruling the seven realms or Ye Futian, it had a great influence on the seven realms, but it probably would not be too different for them personally. There was no need to gamble.

If they lost the battle, they would lose their lives.

More and more people stepped back. There were quite a few from the six legions. Many of them were the ones who had joined later. They had joined the army passionately when they had been invaded and felt hatred and anger.

Other than that, many people from the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture also withdrew. Some of the Divine Prefecture’s top forces were among them, including strong figures of domain chief’s manors, such as the chief manor of the Shangqing Domain.

The most loyal were the believers of the Ziwei Imperial Palace who had always followed Ye Futian and the Buddhists. There were also direct forces under the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They all had their own beliefs.

Ye Futian watched all of this quietly. As more and more people withdrew, this gradually reached a certain scale. It did not stop until sometime later.

“As expected, those who benefit but lack faith are more likely to betray,” Ye Futian thought when he saw this scene. For example, some of the domain chief’s manors and top forces of the Divine Prefecture had been the upper level of the Divine Prefecture, but still, many of them withdrew.

“Anyone else?” Ye Futian continued. Some more scattered people stepped back. Finally, a moment later, no one moved again.

Ye Futian was a bit disappointed but also glad.

He was disappointed that many people had withdrawn; he was glad because, compared to the overall group, they were still the minority.

He was not perfect. Even though he did not wish to see people die in battle and gave them a chance to withdraw, deep down, he was still disappointed in the people who withdrew. This was unavoidable as a human.

With a thought, countless beams of divine light shone down from the sky, transforming into many imprints. They fell onto the cultivators who had chosen to leave.

“Your Majesty!” someone yelped.

“Heavenly Emperor, you promised not to question us.” They were a little panicked at this scene. Earlier, they had believed in Ye Futian’s words, which was why they dared to step back. But now, Ye Futian left an imprint. This was…

“Do not worry,” Ye Futian said, his voice resounding in the void. This caused everyone to quiet down and let out a breath. In that previous moment, they had thought that Ye Futian would punish them. Even though they believed that Ye Futian was not that kind of person, they were still a bit afraid.

“Your Majesty, why did you…” someone opened their mouth to ask.

“There will only be two results after this battle—victory or defeat,” Ye Futian said. “If this battle ends in defeat, then those who choose to fight may very well die. They will die for their own faith while you all can live and continue cultivating.

“If it is the other result and we win this battle, then I will reform the world law, and the divine positions will belong to the cultivators with faith.”

When he finished speaking, countless beams of light fell again, landing on the cultivators who had chosen to stay.

Those who chose to stay clearly had their own beliefs. They were willing to gamble their lives and continue to fight.

If Ye Futian managed the world law in the future, then the people who sat in the divine seats would be chosen from them.

This meant that those who chose to leave would forever lose the chance at a divine position.

Their hearts seemed to be struck by lightning at that moment. The Age of Gods was coming, while the Great Emperor Plane was a mutual goal that everyone pursued. Did they lose the right to that?

“Go now.” Ye Futian waved his hand and a spatial door opened in the ninety-nine heavens. Many cultivators felt a little muddled as they stepped into the spatial door and left the Micro World.

They knew that Ye Futian was not just trying to intimidate them. If Ye Futian won this battle, he would be the ruler of the world law. Of course, he would determine who possessed the divine positions.

Those who had already reached the top of Ye Futian’s Micro World felt even more complicated emotions inside.

Not too long after, that group left the Micro World. Other than those who did not dare to leave, all that remained had their own beliefs.

“Next, what you all must do is focus on cultivating. It’s best if we don’t need you to participate in battle,” Ye Futian announced. Everyone felt emotional in their hearts. The Heavenly Emperor really did have a fresh personality.

“I was not trying to scare people with my words. If we lose, you all might die. Thus, if we die, then you all should abandon the fighting and live on,” Ye Futian said. “Go now.”

The strong figures all bowed and then retreated gradually.

Of course, some people were still on the steps because of their close relationship with Ye Futian, even though they were not Great Emperors.

Ye Futian’s eyes fell upon someone and asked, “Qingyuan, why did you not step onto the Path of the Emperors?”

Xia Qingyuan could definitely step onto the Path of the Emperors with his help, but she still had not stepped onto that path.

“Heavenly Emperor, I won’t be able to change the battlefield of the Great Emperor Plane even if I do step onto the Path of the Emperors. On the other hand, if I stay below the Great Emperor Plane, I can save many people if war erupts,” Xia Qingyuan replied. She cultivated the Path of Life and Death.

Ye Futian nodded slightly and looked at her. It felt a little strange to hear her call him “Heavenly Emperor!”