237: Chapter 237 Want to Leave? Impossible

Inside the Formation, the situation was far more tragic than what could be perceived from the outside.

The moment the Ghostly Realm Delusion Kill Array was activated, gray mist swept in, instantly scattering the Formation of the Five-Party Coalition.

Directions became skewed within the mist, Divine Sense was compressed to less than ten zhang, and communication between Cultivators was almost entirely severed.

Tao Qianfang and the other nine, bolstered by the Formation's enhancement, launched their first wave of attacks amidst the chaos.

The results were immediate.

In less than half a tea's time from the start, three Foundation Establishment Mid-stage Cultivators were ambushed by shadows suddenly lunging from the gray mist. One was killed on the spot when a Flying Sword pierced through his back, while the other two were corroded by the delusion power. Their spiritual energy circulation lagged for two or three breaths, and they were promptly finished off by Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators who rushed over.

Another Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator became separated from his companions in the mist and was intercepted by Tao Qianfang himself. Within three moves, his protective spiritual light shattered; half his shoulder blade was crushed by a palm strike, and after falling to the ground, his remaining spiritual energy was drained by the Formation's devouring power, preventing him from ever getting back up.

In the first hour, the coalition lost six people.

However, fifteen Foundation Establishment Peaks were not just for show.

After the initial panic, the leaders of each faction steadied their ranks.

One of the leaders reacted first, shouting as he activated his long saber Magical Artifact. The saber's glow, wrapped in golden spiritual light, swept out, forcibly carving a gap in the gray mist within a twenty-zhang radius.

The gap lasted for five or six breaths before closing again, but those few breaths were enough for the seven or eight people around him to regroup and form a back-to-back defensive Formation.

The other four factions also had their own methods.

Someone sacrificed a High Grade Tier 2 Wind-Settling Pearl, propping up a clear spiritual energy zone around them to isolate the delusion power.

Another slapped down a Sect-specialized Array-Breaking Talisman. Once ignited, the runes transformed into dozens of golden threads that pierced into the ground. Although they failed to destroy the Formation's Foundation, they caused the Array Inscriptionss in that area to temporarily fail, buying a moment of respite.

There was also a Foundation Establishment Peak Cultivator with a copper bell Magical Artifact hanging from his waist. The clear, resonant sound produced when the bell shook could penetrate the gray mist's interference, allowing allies within fifty zhang to identify their positions by the sound.

Relying on these trump cards, the coalition finally stabilized the situation after the chaos of the first hour.

Life wasn't easy for Tao Qianfang's side either.

It was true that the Formation could suppress Cultivators below the Golden Core stage, but suppression and slaughter were two different things.

It was unclear whether they had overestimated the Formation's power or underestimated the people from those five great factions.

The fifteen Foundation Establishment Peaks trapped in the Formation were all veterans who had survived on the edge of life and death.

Once the initial alarm passed, they began to systematically test the Formation's weaknesses: where the mist was thinnest, which area had the weakest devouring power, and roughly where the nodes of the Array Inscriptionss were located.

The price of testing was lives, but spread across the five factions, losing two or three people each was still manageable.

By the morning of the second day, the two sides had reached a stalemate.

The coalition was still losing people, but the rate had slowed down.

Tao Qianfang's ten people were also being worn down. During one ambush, two Foundation Establishment Mid-stage Cultivators were counter-killed by three of the coalition's Foundation Establishment Peaks working together; one died on the spot, and the other was heavily injured and forced to withdraw from the fight.

The Formation gave them a massive advantage, but it wasn't omnipotent.

Those Foundation Establishment Peaks applied pressure in turns, with Magical Artifacts flying everywhere and Talismans filling the sky as wave after wave of attacks came.

Someone else slapped down a Sect-secret Restriction-Breaking Talisman. After the runes hit the ground, they turned into a circle of golden ripples that spread outward; wherever the golden ripples passed, the Array Inscriptionss flickered unsteadily.

Although it failed to dismantle the Formation, every time it happened, the Formation's delusion effect weakened for several breaths, forcing Tao Qianfang to divert spiritual energy to repair it.

Furthermore, two Foundation Establishment Peaks joined forces to activate an ancient bronze shield Magic Treasure. The inscriptions on the shield's surface were self-contained, propping up a small spiritual energy purification zone around them that isolated both the devouring and delusion effects, allowing them to advance step by step toward the Formation's core.

Tao Qianfang was forced to personally intervene, clashing with the two for seven or eight moves before pushing them back, though his own spiritual energy was also significantly depleted.

If this continued, they would be the ones unable to hold out.

The thing underground wasn't finished yet, but the Formation's spiritual energy supply was being consumed rapidly. The five sentries on the periphery desperately pouring Spirit Stones in was merely a drop in the bucket.

Worse still, the coalition's patience was much better than he had expected. They weren't rushing to break out but were instead methodically eroding the Formation's Foundations, using a war of attrition.

Tao Qianfang had already prepared for the worst.

He pulled a pitch-black communication talisman from his robes. A special Restriction was placed on this Talisman, given to him personally by an Elder before the mission began, to be used only as a last resort.

Spiritual energy was injected, the Restriction was undone, and he lowered his voice to briefly explain the situation and the current state within the Formation.

The communication talisman lit up for a moment and then went dark.

The wait wasn't long; after about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a response came back through the Talisman.

The voice was low and deep, and even through the communication talisman, one could feel the Golden Core-level spiritual energy fluctuations contained within.

"Arriving in three days. Hold out even if it means death."

Tao Qianfang tucked the communication talisman back into his robes. He didn't intentionally lower his voice; the space inside the Formation was only so large, and spiritual energy fluctuations traveled far. He couldn't hide it even if he wanted to, and besides, it served to intimidate the enemy.

Sure enough, after a few breaths, commotions of varying degrees broke out across the Formation.

The people of the coalition had heard.

A Golden Core Cultivator would arrive in three days.

The entire atmosphere of the coalition changed. Their confidence before coming was that there were only Foundation Establishment Cultivators in the valley; now that a Golden Core True Person had appeared, Foundation Establishment Peaks wouldn't even have the power to fight back before a Golden Core. No matter how many people came, they would just be lambs to the slaughter.

It was as if a group of children were playing at a table when an adult was suddenly about to arrive. Wasn't this a setup? If they had known an adult was coming, would they have even bothered?

Some people began to waver, wanting to break out.

But Tao Qianfang wouldn't give them the chance. The Formation was still running, and the exit was sealed tight by the gray mist.

Want to leave? Impossible. Everyone has to die here.

The two sides continued their stalemate.

The coalition fought with more urgency, but despite their desperation, they still couldn't break the Formation's core in the short term.

Tao Qianfang's side was also suffering. Their numbers dwindled as they fought, and their spiritual energy grew thinner, but they could only grit their teeth and hold on.

Another day was spent in this manner.

...

At noon on the third day, a muffled boom echoed from the bottom of the valley.

Su Chengyuan's back was pressed against the rock wall, the vibration traveling from the stone into the marrow of his bones.

He opened his eyes and looked down.

The gray mist suddenly contracted during the tremor, its outer edge receding nearly twenty zhang and revealing a section of the valley floor that had been obscured.

The patterns on the ground were flashing wildly, and a dark red glow converged deep along the lines, like countless tiny blood vessels pulsing beneath the earth's crust.

The Formation deep underground was accelerating its operation.

The thing beneath should be nearly finished.

The five sentries also sensed this change, their expressions varying.

A flash of excitement crossed Liu Feng's face, and he gestured to the other four.

The young Foundation Establishment Mid-stage Cultivator to the east pulled a black jade bottle from his Storage Pouch, uncorked it, and poured a clump of thick, dark red liquid onto the Formation Flag.

The moment the liquid touched the flag's surface, it was absorbed by the patterns, and the gray spiritual light of the Formation Flag suddenly brightened by a level.

The gray mist expanded back out, becoming even denser than before.

The spiritual energy fluctuations within became more chaotic, occasionally punctuated by human voices. They couldn't be heard clearly through the Formation and heavy mist, but Su Chengyuan could distinguish them as screams.

More people had died.

Whether it was the coalition or the others, it was hard to say.

(I don't want to write a one-sided plot. Although Tao Qianfang's side has the Formation, those Foundation Establishment Peak Cultivators aren't useless either. Everyone has their own methods and skills; things are full of uncertainty, and no one can say for sure what the final result will be. It just depends on whose trump cards are more numerous and stronger.)

(The author's writing ability is limited; I can only try my best not to be idiotic.)