14: Chapter 14 Xuanwu Killing Formation, One Strike to Decapitate

Lu Hu ordered in a deep voice, "Xuanwu Killing Formation, advance."

Fifty Dao soldiers pressed forward simultaneously, ten small formations interlocking with one another. Spiritual power circulated within the formations, condensing into a heavy, mountain-like, semi-transparent phantom of a turtle shell. It was a wall that would roll forward.

The first wave of Water Apes charging down the highland slammed directly into this wall.

Bang!

Spiritual light rippled, and flesh and blood flew everywhere.

The five Dao soldiers in the front formation did not retreat, while spiritual power from the rear formation poured in. Long halberds and flying blades weaved back and forth through the gaps in the formation, like a heartless meat grinder, tearing apart the Water Apes rushing toward them in droves.

Although the Water Apes were numerous, they had no military formation to speak of.

Their ferocity, in front of the formal Dao soldiers of the great families, was nothing more than a savage chaos.

The Mortal Martial Artists on both sides also charged up at this moment.

They did not dare to charge directly into the center of the ape pack, so they focused on delivering the killing blow to the Water Apes that had been knocked over, crippled, or had their limbs severed by the Xuanwu Killing Formation. Some had their shoulders gashed by ape claws, yet they still pressed their iron spears forward; others fell into the mud, crawled back out, and threw themselves back into the fray with faces covered in blood.

Shi Jian was among them.

He watched with his own eyes as an injured Water Ape lunged at him. Almost instinctively, he dodged to the side, then gripped his blade with both hands and slashed at the creature's neck three times in succession. Only when the blade wedged into the bone did he violently kick the thing away.

Hot blood sprayed onto his face. He was stunned for a moment, but his eyes grew redder by the second.

For the first time, he realized that he, too, could kill a Yao Beast.

In the center of the highland, the Ape King was finally enraged.

It raised its head and let out a furious roar, the sound wave causing the treetops to rustle. Immediately, its massive body lunged from the air like a giant boulder crashing down from the mountain peak, slamming heavily into the center of the Xuanwu Killing Formation.

Boom!

The five men in the front formation retreated in unison, leaving five deep furrows in the ground. Two of the Dao soldiers had blood spilling from the corners of their mouths, and the formation showed its first sign of disorder.

Lu Hu shouted furiously and personally filled the gap.

However, the Ape King's strength far exceeded that of an ordinary Tier 2 Yao Beast. It slammed down three consecutive punches, forcibly causing the phantom turtle shell to ripple with layers of cracks.

Lu Changyuan stood at the rear of the battlefield, his eyes as calm as water, while his Divine Sense had already sunk into his Sea of Consciousness.

The next moment, the heavenly secret jade slip flashed with golden light.

[Jade-Scaled Ape King, the old wound under the third scale on the left rib has not healed; a Geng Metal strike can break it.]

Lu Changyuan's gaze sharpened, and a Tier 2 supreme-grade Geng Metal Sword Talisman from his sleeve slid into his palm.

He did not strike immediately, but instead locked his eyes onto the Ape King's movement trajectory. When it raised its arm again to strike the Xuanwu Killing Formation, he pressed his two fingers together and infused them with spiritual power.

"Go."

As the words fell, the Geng Metal Sword Talisman transformed into a slender golden beam, as fast as a needle shot from the Void Realm.

The Ape King seemed to sense it and twisted its body violently, but the golden beam had already accurately plunged into the old wound under the third scale on its left rib.

Pfft!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a very light yet extremely sharp sound of flesh being pierced.

The next instant, the Ape King's entire body shuddered violently.

It froze in place and looked down at its left rib. A thin line first split open there, and then the entire scale armor collapsed inward, with thick, black Yao Beast blood gushing out like a fountain.

This Tier 2 Ape King, which had been so ferocious just moments ago, let out a low, unwilling roar from its throat before crashing to the ground.

The entire battlefield fell silent for a moment.

All the Dao soldiers saw it.

All the Mortals saw it too.

The Ape King, which had made their scalps tingle just moments ago, had actually been nailed to death by the Young Lord with a single talisman from across the battle formation.

"The Master is mighty!"

Someone shouted, though it was unclear who.

The next moment, the entire battlefield exploded.

The Dao soldiers' morale soared. The Xuanwu Killing Formation seemed to be refilled with iron and fire, pushing the remaining ape pack all the way back up the highland. The Mortals were even more like madmen, charging up with the crudest weapons to deliver the killing blow, their eyes filled only with thoughts of military merit, farmland, and that glimmer of hope for cultivation.

With their leader dead, the Water Ape tribe collapsed instantly.

They began to flee, trampling over the corpses of their companions as they scrambled wildly toward the forest and the reef area.

Lu Changyuan stood at the edge of the highland, watching this scene with a cold expression.

He did not bask in the cheers, but simply raised his hand and waved. His voice was not loud, yet it clearly spread across the entire battlefield: "Leave none alive. Raze their nest overnight."

On the highland, a thunderous roar of acknowledgement erupted.

After the order was given, the Dao soldiers did not scatter in pursuit but continued to press out toward the flanks in groups of five, like a net slowly closing. The young Mortals were roared at by their squad leaders to follow closely, focusing on delivering the killing blow to the injured Water Apes that had fallen, dragging away corpses, and recovering weapons. Though there was chaos, after truly seeing blood for the first time, this team, temporarily cobbled together from Dao soldiers and Mortals, had begun to show a bit of order beyond the military formation.

When Shi Jian followed two fellow villagers into a patch of bushes, he happened to run into a Water Ape that had lost its right arm as it lunged out. Half of the creature's face had been sliced open by a halberd blade, yet its ferocity was not dead; it roared and lunged to bite the neck of the person in the front. Shi Jian barely thought, throwing his entire body forward to knock his companion out of the way, though his own shoulder was torn by three bloody gashes from the ape's claws.

The excruciating pain made his vision go black for a moment.

But the next instant, he backhanded his firewood chopper into the open throat of the Water Ape, twisted his wrist, and rolled into the mud while pressed against the creature. When he climbed back up, his face, chest, and hands were covered in blood, and he couldn't tell if it was his own or the Yao Beast's.

Yet he suddenly smiled.

Because he knew, this was another head.

On the other side of the highland, Lu Hu personally led two small squads to crash into the perimeter of the Ape King's nest, forcibly driving back several Tier 2 Water Apes that were still trying to protect the young apes. Leng Feng roamed with his sword, a flash of sword light leaving a trail of blood. Whether it was an old ape trying to gather the remnants or a Water Ape scout hiding in the treetops preparing to ambush, none could survive a second strike from him.

By this point in the battle, the outcome was no longer in doubt.

What remained was merely to solidify the victory and turn this first true battle for a foothold on the island into a standard that no one would ever forget.

Lu Changyuan clearly thought the exact same thing.

He did not let everyone swarm into the depths of the ape nest but ordered Lu Hu to split the pursuit team into even smaller units. Dao soldiers pressed forward, Mortals followed behind. Every time they took a mountain path, a patch of forest, or a stone slope, they immediately planted a flag to mark the position and transported the corpses and spoils of war to the rear.

This manner of advancing was not the fastest, but it was the steadiest.

Those Mortals who had originally been blinded by the bloodlust were forcibly pulled back into order by the military commands. Anyone who dared to leave the formation to grab a few more ape ears was immediately struck by the squad leader with a rod; anyone who proactively dragged an injured companion back to the rear line was immediately credited in the roster. Rewards and punishments were swift, so the whole team fought better and better, actually managing to choke off all the mountain paths leading to the ape nest before sunset.

By the time twilight descended, the last of the ape pack's resistance had retreated into the depths of the nest.

It was a natural cave area half-hidden by loose rocks, old trees, and thick moss. The entrance was wide, but the interior was a labyrinth, clearly the old lair where these Water Apes had entrenched themselves for many years. If the remnants were allowed to regroup under the cover of night, another battle would be needed tomorrow.

Lu Changyuan stood outside the cave entrance and took a look, then calmly ordered: "Lamp oil, smoke, block three sides, leave only the front entrance."

Lu Hu was stunned, then immediately understood.

There was no need to stuff everyone into the cave to fight the Yao Beasts to the death; as long as they were forced out of their most familiar nest, outside awaited the Xuanwu Killing Formation and rows of Mortals waiting to deliver the killing blow.

Soon, a dozen jars of lamp oil were brought up and lit, mixed with wet firewood and green leaves. Thick, rolling smoke was funneled into several side tunnels. In less than a quarter of an hour, a chorus of angry and panicked ape roars erupted from inside the cave.

When the first Water Ape, driven mad by the smoke, rushed out of the cave entrance, it slammed head-on into the already tightened battle line.

Shields rose, halberds fell, and spears thrust out in unison.

That Water Ape didn't even have time to see the light of day outside before it was nailed to death on the spot in front of the cave entrance.

The ones behind were the same.

If they hid in the cave, they would be forced to death by smoke and fire; if they rushed out, they would be shredded by the human formation. At this moment, the battle was no longer just simple slaughter; it was Lu Changyuan using the discipline of the entire team to inch by inch crush the last path of survival for the ape pack.

Shi Jian stood guard behind the second wooden shield on the right, listening to the increasingly urgent beast roars from the cave, his palms sweating as he gripped his blade.

But when another Water Ape, covered in flames, lunged out and had half its body knocked askew by the front shield formation, he still rushed up with his squad members and stabbed fiercely at the creature's exposed underbelly.

With that stab, he suddenly understood one principle completely.

The Young Lord ordering them to raze the nest overnight was not just to cut weeds and eliminate roots.

It was even more about letting everyone on the island who survived truly drill the same set of rules into their bones during this night.