“What on earth is going on? The Great Sage….”
The warriors of the Beast Region looked on in confused astonishment as the Great Sage transformed into a giant ape. He’d clearly just used his Fiery Eyes of Truth to break the mirage formation, so why was this happening?
He’d lost all rationality. Nothing remained but bestial bloodthirst.
“Didn’t he break the mirage formation? Why is this happening to him?”
They glanced at the Phoenix Clan elder. None of them were particularly skilled at divination so he was still the most qualified to speak.
When they saw his face, they saw that his expression was extremely grim. “A double-layered formation? I never would have guessed the enemy possessed such an expert.”
“A double-layered formation?” they asked in confusion.
“A double-layered formation is a formation in which, after the target breaks the initial formation, the formation master places a secondary formation based on the first,” explained the Phoenix Elder. “In this way, the target subconsciously believes they’ve escaped the formation and will fall into illusion once more. The Great Sage did indeed break the first spiritual formation, but he was tricked by the second.”
“A double-layered formation will dredge up even deeper memories and dig even further into the target’s inner world. The Great Sage is already completely lost within the formation. He no longer has any rationality….. I suggest we give up on him.”
“Give up?” The onlookers froze. Clearly, they were unwilling to abandon him.
“What other choice do we have?” asked the elder helplessly. “I’m already incapable of overcoming an ordinary formation grandmaster. Now the enemy has placed a double-layered formation, so he has to be a peak-level existence even amongst grandmasters. Furthermore, double-layered formations are unbreakable; only the person trapped within can damage it. There’s nothing we can do for him.”
“He’s already lost his rationality. We, too, shall become victims of his fury. If we don’t give up on him…. What, should we just stay here and wait to die?
The others were silent for a while. Finally, someone spoke up. “Let’s retreat! That’s all we can do now. If the Great Sage really….. Well, if it comes to that, we’ll seek revenge on his behalf.”
“Retreat.”
The warriors of the Beast Region and the outskirts of the Immortal Region agreed. Meanwhile, Luo Wei and the others approached Su Liu’er……
She was still embracing Yuan Hong’s body. By now, she was no longer weeping. Instead, her eyes were blank and lifeless as she stared intently at the man in her arms despite the fact that his body had already grown cold.
“Empress, retreat!”
“I’m staying,” said Su Liu’er as if she’d lost her soul. She tightly embraced Yuan Hong, seeming almost as if she’d been embedded in the earth below. “I’m staying here……”
“Empress!”
“I said I’m staying here!”
Rumble.
The Great Sage had already started his attack. He instinctively targeted the zombies first. He let out a terrifying roar so fearsome, even the distant Beast Region soldiers’ felt shaken to the core.
“Empress, hurry up and flee. The Great Sage has gone mad. If we stay here, odds are we’ll all die.”
Everyone tried to persuade her but her gaze remained lifeless.
“I’ll just die, then. I….. won’t leave Yuan Hong no matter what, I absolutely won’t…..”
……
“Brother Su, what’s happening?” asked Black Dragon. He’d left to command his warriors, returning just in time to witness the Great Sage’s transformation.
Black Dragon had gone off to command his soldiers. He cut through their army like a harvester through a field. In his eyes, the zombies seemed like ants.
Rumble.
With one stomp he crushed several zombies into a meaty pulp.
“A double-layered formation,” frowned Su Yiyun.
“Is this your work?”
“It isn’t.” Su Yiyun shook his head, his gaze fixed on the distant sky. “It was an expert.”
Black Dragon followed his gaze. At the same time, he reached out to examine the area with his spiritual awareness…..
“There’s no one there!”
“Even if there were someone there, you wouldn’t necessarily be able to find them,” said Su Yiyun, making no effort to spare Black Dragon’s feelings.
“It’s true that you’ve reached the Supreme level and that there is currently no one in the Lower Three Realms capable of defeating you. Even so, the universe is a big place. There’s always someone stronger. Surely you know that?”
“But this….”
“You’re right. This isn’t the God Realm,” nodded Su Yiyun. “Even so, anyone capable of placing a double-layered formation is at least a Grandmaster. Building upon a pre-existing formation requires an extremely high level of understanding. Furthermore, they didn’t just build on top of any formation – they built on top of a formation I placed myself. That’s exponentially more difficult. They’re extremely capable; if they don’t want to be found, a mere supreme such as yourself couldn’t possibly find them. It’s as simple as that.”
“Then…. Brother Su, what do you think we should do now?”
Despite Black Dragon’s awe-inspiring power, he lost his confidence after hearing Su Yiyun’s words.
“Watch and wait,” said Su Yiyun.
“Watch and wait?”
“Whoever they are, if they build over my formation, they’re clearly targeting that monkey. I’ve been told the monkey’s extremely arrogant. It’s only natural that he’s earned himself a couple of enemies. That said, at the end of the day, that expert isn’t one of us. We can’t possibly know what they’re thinking. It’s safest if we just watch and wait for now,” said Su Yiyun seriously.
“Furthermore,” he continued, “the monkey is currently targeting the zombies. Reducing their ranks is to our advantage, don’t you think? Let’s just wait and see. In the end, we’ll be the one to reap the benefits.”
“Brother Su, you’re absolutely right,” said Black Dragon. He thought Su Yiyun’s suggestion was completely reasonable. Rather, he subconsciously believed everything Su Yiyun said was correct.
He nodded, then ordered his suborinates to stay put and refrain from making any sudden movements.
Su Yiyun sighed inwardly, then gazed back at the distant sky as if searching for that mysterious formation expert.
“That must be the monkey she’s so fixated on.”
Just as Su Yiyun expected, there were people standing there. One was a youth clad in cotton robes. He stood amongst the clouds, his expression sinister. There were dark circles around his eyes.
“Most likely,” said another youth. “It seems they had some sort of relationship before she returned to the clan.”
“Hmph, a yao? What kind of education do you get back in your clan? To think she’d consort with yao!”
“It’s not your place to judge,” snorted the youth. “Enough. I’m here for her sake- that’s the only reason I followed you here. The monkey’s already lost his mind; the result is clear. Let’s hurry up and leave – after all, there’s an expert present.”
“Are you talking about that formation grandmaster?” laughed the sinister youth. “Sure, it’s impressive that he became a grandmaster in a place like this. Even so, he’s already reached his limit. How is he a threat?”
“Hmph, you can stay here then. I’m going back!”
