149: Chapter 149 Strange Movement

"Eight Directions Reversal Formation? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely certain, Master."

"Very well, there's no time to lose. Set it up now."

Ever since offending the Ghost Shadow Sect, Xu Changsheng felt uneasy every time he stepped out of Yellow Ox Immortal City.

Let alone for something like the Hundred Sects Trial.

With so many chosen ones from various Sects gathered here, if he were a Cultivator from an opposing cultivation world, he would definitely not let them go; he would have to nip them in the bud.

Thus, in his view, even with True Man Zhuzhao presiding over this place, it was still fraught with danger.

"Perhaps the Demonic Path has already sent people."

He had to prepare as quickly as possible. The Eight Directions Reversal Formation could not only crush demonic Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage but could even delay those at the False Core or Early Stage Golden Core realms.

A grand heaven-and-earth Formation set up by directly utilizing the natural terrain was much more powerful than a Formation temporarily arranged through a Formation Plate and Formation Flags, at least in terms of range.

With this thought in mind.

He took out eight three-foot-long, smooth-surfaced purple-green short logs from his Storage Pouch.

Using the Object Manipulation Technique, he made them hover around him.

He slowly flew up and looked toward the far end of the Mizong Old Forest.

He took out a compass to survey the feng shui and determine the locations, finding that his current position was exactly at one of the eight directions.

He immediately descended.

Soon, he arrived in front of a withered old locust tree.

Shoveling aside the soft carpet of fallen leaves, he planted a piece of illusion heart wood into the ground.

"Star Pattern, help me set up the Formation!"

"Yes."

Xu Changsheng's hands didn't stop forming hand seals, and his mouth recited obscure incantations.

One spiritual material after another flew out of the Storage Pouch, circling the illusion heart wood.

A dried Heart-Illusion Fruit.

A roll of second-rank Black-Gold Silk Thread...

Strange, twisted patterns suddenly appeared on the surface of the illusion heart wood.

The purple-green patterns took shape, turning into Formation talismans of the same color, which scattered hundreds of feet away, hiding underground and among the leaves.

Until all phenomena were concealed.

The illusion heart wood suddenly emitted a bright purple-green light, and the surrounding scenery abruptly changed.

The originally withered locust tree actually became lush and green.

The vibrant, ankle-high grass around it turned into a desert.

Looking at the scene that was completely out of place with the distant Mizong Old Forest, Xu Changsheng nodded in satisfaction.

"Xiu Position, complete!"

Xu Changsheng nodded with satisfaction and pressed his hand down.

The surrounding image distorted, and all the strange scenes from just now vanished; the place returned to its original, ordinary appearance.

He summoned Ink Shadow, retracted Star Pattern, stood upon it, and flew toward the distance.

Before long, he had flown halfway.

Just then.

Ink Shadow flapped its wings, its speed dropping instantly as it stalled in mid-air.

Xu Changsheng was puzzled: "What's wrong?"

Beneath his feet was still the lush, dense forest; in the distance were overlapping peaks and rising mist, looking unlike the mortal world.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak."

Ink Shadow let out several long cries, its beast head turning toward a distant mountain peak.

Hearing the message from Ink Shadow through his Divine Sense, he was slightly taken aback: "You're saying there's a scent of blood coming from over there?"

It nodded vigorously.

His brow furrowed. It was too far away, and with the swirling clouds and mist, he couldn't see what was happening at all, let alone smell blood.

"It might be trial Cultivators hunting Yao Beasts."

Ink Shadow shook its head angrily, clearly dissatisfied with its master's attitude.

He had no choice but to crouch down and stroke the beast's head: "We have more important things to do right now, let's head out first."

Only then did its emotions calm down.

They continued forward.

...

An hour later.

Xu Changsheng arrived at the center of the Mizong Old Forest.

"Xiu, Sheng, Shang, Du, Jing, Si, Jing—the eight gates are set; only the Formation eye is left."

Miraculously, each direction of the Eight Directions Reversal Formation happened to be a withered old locust tree.

Recalling the legend of the Thousand-Year Locust Demon he had read in books, he began to feel a bit paranoid: "The very center here... it couldn't be another locust tree, could it?"

He slowly descended.

"Holy crap, it really is a locust tree."

This was a river valley; at the deepest part of the valley floor, a withered old locust tree wide enough for three people to embrace stood quietly.

The trunk was hollow, and most of the bark had peeled off, revealing the grayish-white wood.

Eerily, even though the locust tree had clearly been dead for who knows how many years, at the very tip of the withered branches at the top of the canopy, a single verdant leaf still hung.

It trembled in the cold wind at the bottom of the valley.

Xu Changsheng felt more and more that the Thousand-Year Locust Demon might actually exist, or at least it had existed a long time ago.

*Whoosh.*

Cold wind whistled through the valley as he placed the Formation Plate inside the hollow trunk of the locust tree.

His fingers were twisting.

Suddenly, his expression turned cold.

The poison scorpion sword unsheathed and pierced straight toward the ground beneath his feet.

*Swish!*

Rocks crumbled and soil disintegrated as dust billowed everywhere.

A huge silhouette appeared on the ground, writhing; its earthy-yellow body was covered in purple spots.

"I originally saw you were being well-behaved and wanted to let you go, but since you don't know what's good for you, then just die."

In the next moment, he used his full power to drive the poison scorpion sword, hacking this Rank One Perfection giant python into several pieces.

He reached out and stored the snake's body into his Storage Pouch.

"Hmm?"

A chill ran down his spine, and he turned around on the spot.

The valley was as usual; the withered locust tree stood quietly by the stream, the water gurgling as it flowed toward the distance.

"Strange."

Xu Changsheng always felt like someone was spying on him from behind, but when his vast Divine Sense, comparable to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, swept over, he found that the place where the special sensation came from was just a rock.

He rubbed his forehead, thinking to himself that he had indeed been too exhausted lately and was becoming paranoid.

He continued working on the Eight Directions Reversal Formation.

He struck out several streams of spiritual power, and thousands of Spirit Stones piled up into small mountains, distributed around the locust tree.

Finally, fifteen minutes later.

The ground beneath his feet began to tremble. The eight pieces of illusion heart wood buried in the Mizong Old Forest resonated with the Formation Plate in Xu Changsheng's hand, simultaneously emitting a deep green-purple glow.

The surrounding scenery began to distort.

Another tree that was clearly only thirty feet away suddenly slid to fifty feet away.

The sunlight he could see just by looking up earlier suddenly disappeared, and the surroundings turned pitch black.

Xu Changsheng looked delighted: "The Formation is complete."

By utilizing the special Formation layout of the Mizong Old Forest, he successfully set up a Pseudo-Third Rank Formation.

Once he finished using it, he could find a way to store the Formation's power into the Formation Plate and Formation Flags, allowing him to set up this Formation anywhere and anytime in the future.

In fact.

Xu Changsheng's Formation attainment had already reached Pseudo-Third Rank back at Duanyun Ridge, but because he could never find a place with a special Formation layout like the Mizong Old Forest.

He had only been able to simulate it in his mind; today, he finally set it up.

This way.

He could finally set his heart at ease; as long as he was within the Formation, he was basically invincible.

The original Eight Directions Reversal Formation was a standout even among Rank Three Formations; even if his strength was insufficient and he could only set up a weakened Pseudo-Third Rank version, it was already enough.

He leaned against the old locust tree to rest for a moment, recovering the Mental Energy and spiritual power consumed by setting up the Formation.

Suddenly, his brow furrowed.

He took out a crystal-clear jade token; it was a specialized Warning Talisman he had given to Crimson Glow. She only needed to inject a sliver of spiritual power into it to send him a warning.

And at this moment, the color of the jade token had already turned completely red.