508: Chapter 508 Guarding

"Wow! So beautiful!"

Several female students from the academy squeezed into a corner at the edge, marveling repeatedly at the scenery below.

"Young Master, is this Biyou Pool?" a girl named Yao Qian turned back to ask.

These female academy students had recently been brought to the Liu Manor by Song Shulian. For now, they could only be considered candidate Concubines, and they addressed Liu Xuan as Young Master Liu.

Yao Qian was tall with perfect proportions. She didn't come from an ordinary background either; her father was a member of the academy. Having grown up there since childhood, she was very familiar with the Gentlemans Academy at the Main Mountain of the Beast Taming Sect.

The journey was dull, and seeing that she was quite knowledgeable, Liu Xuan had chatted with her a bit more.

Liu Xuan nodded. "Indeed, this is the place."

"Biyou Pool, a special water vein. It really is different from ordinary territories!"

The warship flew to the edge of a precipice. A great river thousands of meters wide poured down, yet it merged silently into the emerald-green water surface without even a single splash.

The area of Biyou Pool wasn't particularly large; it was an almost perfect semi-circle with a diameter of about a hundred miles.

The waterfall formed by the pouring river alone was nearly ten miles wide. In comparison, the surface area of Biyou Pool did seem somewhat small.

It was small in area, but it was said to be extremely deep, connecting to underground water veins and being nearly bottomless. Despite the pouring of such a massive waterfall, the water level never changed in the slightest.

"Halt!"

A barrier rose in front of the fleet. An army of Cultivators flew over through the air, and a leading academy Cultivator stepped forward to shout a challenge:

"Which unit are you from? You don't know the rules at all. Produce your passage token."

Before Liu Xuan or Peach Blossom Demon Lord could step forward, Yao Qian flew to the front and said, "This is the vessel of Peach Blossom Demon Lord and Young Master Liu. Go and report this immediately!"

"Peach Blossom Demon Lord?"

The leader of the army Cultivators was stunned. Was it for real? Why would Peach Blossom Demon Lord be riding a standard military warship? He had thought it was a reinforcing army of Cultivators!

Just as he was wondering, a Nascent Soul Demon Lord flew over and cupped his hands toward the position of Peach Blossom Demon Lord and Liu Xuan.

"I am Yun Xu. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Peach Blossom!"

After a brief pause, he looked at Liu Xuan and slightly cupped his hands. "Junior Brother Liu, long time no see."

Yun Xu waved his hand to signal the army to retreat, then opened the Formation barrier. "True Lord Guanxin sent me to welcome you. Please follow me."

In front of outsiders, Peach Blossom Demon Lord regained her noble queenly aura. She nodded slightly and led Liu Xuan as they flew out, entering the range of Biyou Pool in a few flickers.

In just a few short months, countless Human Race buildings had appeared at Biyou Pool, making it look like an ultra-large city.

Most of the buildings were in the standard academy style, neat and orderly. Many were pre-refined Magical Artifacts that didn't need construction; they could be used immediately once transported over.

The city wasn't just inside Biyou Pool; the vast ground on the periphery was where the Cultivators were most densely packed.

Most of the army Cultivators, Flying Boats, warships, shops, and markets were located on the periphery.

There were also buildings on the surface of Biyou Pool, and even underwater, but these were the territory of high-level Cultivators. Ordinary Cultivators had no right to enter.

Yun Xu led the way, bringing Peach Blossom and Liu Xuan to the center of Biyou Pool.

An ordinary-looking small pavilion that carried a hint of tranquility floated quietly on the water's surface.

'Questioning Heart!' Liu Xuan looked at the two large characters on the plaque and recited them silently.

"Fellow Daoist Peach Blossom, you've finally arrived!" True Lord Guanxin came out to welcome them, cupping his hands. "With your Divine Ability and you guarding Biyou Pool, my worries are finally gone!"

Peach Blossom looked around and returned the gesture. "You are too kind, Fellow Daoist. Having left the Star Academy, I am but an ordinary Peak Nascent Soul Demon Lord, not comparable to your Divine Ability."

True Lord Guanxin smiled and shook his head, not continuing the pleasantries. "Let us go inside and talk in detail."

Inside the pavilion, True Lord Guanxin was alone, without a single subordinate.

Peach Blossom Demon Lord and Liu Xuan took their seats. True Lord Guanxin personally used his Divine Sense to pour wine for them, then began to professionally introduce the current situation to Peach Blossom.

"Biyou Pool has now fallen into the hands of our Beast Taming Sect. Half a month ago, Demon Saint Xuanyu personally led the Yao Race army here, only retreating three days ago."

"From the current perspective, Demon Saint Xuanyu has no intention of forcibly attacking Biyou Pool. He likely wants to force us to concentrate our forces here while he takes the opportunity to reclaim other spiritual lands to minimize losses."

"However, that is only the most likely scenario. We cannot rule out the possibility of Demon Saint Xuanyu continuing a forceful assault. For us, the most important task currently is to hold Biyou Pool."

After listening, Peach Blossom asked, "The Demon Court has lost Biyou Pool, so the entire northern territory will eventually be indefensible. Even if Demon Saint Xuanyu takes this chance to reclaim some spiritual lands, it only delays the inevitable. Can he truly be content with that?"

"What else can he do if he's not content?" True Lord Guanxin said calmly. "From the moment Biyou Pool fell into our hands, Demon Saint Xuanyu was put completely on the defensive. Delaying for time is his best option."

Peach Blossom stared intently at True Lord Guanxin, trying to see how much of what he said was credible from his expression.

She could see nothing. The human heart is hard to fathom, let alone that of a Peak Nascent Soul True Lord like Guanxin!

"In that case, my task is to assist in guarding Biyou Pool, without having to participate in external conquests?"

True Lord Guanxin nodded and took out an emerald-colored token from his sleeve. "This is one of the four core tokens of the Biyou Pool Great Formation. It allows control over the southern quarter of the Formation and the army. I must ask you to put in some effort, Fellow Daoist."

Peach Blossom took the token and swept it with her Divine Sense. Inside were basic introductions to the Formation, various details that needed to be arranged later, and the tasks she needed to perform.

The entire purpose was to strengthen the defensive power of the Biyou Pool Great Formation. The entire Formation was led by the academy. Peach Blossom Demon Lord was responsible for the south, Demon Lord Chixia for the north, a Peak Nascent Soul Cultivator from the Azure Profound Sect for the east, and a Late Nascent Soul True Lord from the academy for the west.

Although Demon Lord Cangyuan had defected, he hadn't gained full trust yet and had no control over the Formation; he could only assist Demon Lord Chixia in guarding the north.

Leaving the Questioning Heart Pavilion, Peach Blossom and Liu Xuan came to the south, where there was an elegant and refined cluster of buildings on the water.

It was still the neat academy style. At the center of the buildings was also a pavilion, but the place for the plaque was empty, as it didn't have a name yet.

Liu Xuan looked at the plaque space for a moment, then used his fingers as a sword to write two large seal script characters with Sword Qi from a distance: Fangcun.

"Fangcun?"

A Nascent Soul Cultivator who had originally been guarding this place was confused. She glanced at Peach Blossom and Liu Xuan. What confused her even more was why Peach Blossom Demon Lord would tolerate such insolence from a mere Golden Core minor Cultivator!

"You must be Peach Blossom Demon Lord?" She ignored Liu Xuan and cupped her hands to Peach Blossom. "I am Ding Shaoxia of Gentlemans Academy. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Peach Blossom."

"I was previously responsible for the southern side of the Biyou Pool Great Formation. If there are any issues in the future, please feel free to instruct me."

The Gentlemans Academy was the main force of the high-level battlefield. Flying all the way here, Liu Xuan discovered that eighty percent of the Cultivators on the water were from the academy. The number of other local Cultivators from the Southern Borders was extremely small, and they were also working under the academy.