"I understand. When will I be required to set off?" Han Li asked.
"With the Wood Tribe's 36 backup holy trees, it'll be a lot easier to set up the formation, but it'll still take some time. Most importantly, we have to lure the entire devilish army into the formation first. Hence, Fellow Daoist Ao and I will be setting off with the united army to lure out the devilish army, while you'll be setting off with the second group to set up the formation. Once the formation is complete, you'll stay in the formation core in preparation for the upcoming battle," Mo Jianli replied.
Han Li saw no issues with this, so he nodded and gave an affirmative response.
After that, Mo Jianli didn't remain in Han Li's pavilion for much longer and quickly departed.
......
Half a month later, all types of energy fluctuations suddenly erupted within the entirety of Cottonwood City, and streaks of dazzling light erupted into the air from all levels of the city, accompanied by resounding booms.
The streaks of light contained war carriages and giant arks, and there were countless warriors from all of the races of the united army gathered on those flying treasures. These warriors were all standing ramrod straight on the flying treasures, giving off an astonishing baleful aura.
More and more of these flying treasures began to fly out of the city, and soon, the entire sky had been concealed behind a mass of tens of thousands of carriages and arks.
Right at this moment, the string of resounding booms suddenly ceased, and the entire city tremored slightly before over 100 gargantuan island-like objects emerged.
These objects were all of different shapes and forms, presenting a very chaotic sight to behold.
Chapter 2159: The Second Formation Core
The gigantic objects included massive palaces, mountainous beehive-shaped islands, and massive clouds of green light.
All of them were also filled with troops of the united army, and they stopped momentarily in mid-air before flying away from Cottonwood City, surrounded by throngs of flying carriages and arks.
Close to half of the united army's elite forces had departed, including the three Grand Ascension Stage beings. They were going to unite with the troops deployed by other cities to form a formidable force that could truly contend with the devilish army.
Han Li didn't depart with this group. Instead, he merely looked on as Mo Jianli and the others departed, then returned calmly to his pavilion to continue cultivating.
Five days later, Cottonwood City erupted into a frenzy again as another branch of the united army that was comprised primarily of Wood Tribe beings gathered together in preparation to leave the city as well.
Han Li was currently meditating on the top floor of his pavilion at this point, and his expression changed slightly as he opened his eyes.
Not long after that, the sound of footsteps rang out from the stairwell, and Zhu Guo'er arrived with a respectful look on her face. "Senior Han, the Wood Tribe has extended an invitation toward you."
"I see. You're still too weak, so stay in Cottonwood City for now. Once the battle is over, I'll take you back to our human race," Han Li said.
There was an implacable tone in Han Li's voice, and Zhu Guo'er immediately lowered her head before giving an affirmative response. "Yes, Senior."
Thus, Han Li rose to his feet in an unhurried manner before walking down the stairs.
Upon arriving in the hall on the first floor, he discovered that Daoist Xie was seated in a corner in a completely expressionless manner, while a green-skinned young man from the Wood Tribe was standing at the center of the hall with an uneasy expression.
Han Li immediately detected that this young man was only at the Nascent Soul stage, and had only recently manifested a Nascent Soul.
As soon as Han Li arrived, the young man hurriedly rushed over to him before extending a deep bow. "I pay my respects to Senior Han. I was sent here by our grand elder to invite you to join us."
"Your grand elder? Isn't he resting in the holy tree?" Han Li asked.
"Elder Han has temporarily taken over the role of grand elder," the young man explained.
"I see, lead the way then. Let's go, Brother Xie," Han Li replied before turning toward Daoist Xie.
Daoist Xie offered no response, but he suddenly appeared completely silently behind Han Li in a blur.
The Wood Tribe young man was naturally quite startled by this, but he didn't dare to ask any questions and hurriedly exited the room.
Thus, Han Li and Daoist Xie were led out of the pavilion, where they caught sight of a dozen or so giant azure clouds hovering in mid-air. Each of these clouds was over 1,000 acres in size, and there were some pavilions and buildings that could be seen on them.
Furthermore, there were many warriors from all races rushing atop the clouds, seemingly transporting some things from Cottonwood City onto the clouds.
Han Li merely took a brief glance at the situation unfolding before his eyes before following the young man toward the largest of the azure clouds.
Moments later, Han Li appeared on a platform that was constructed from yellow wood atop the massive cloud. At one end of the platform was a green hall that was over 1,000 feet tall, and at the entrance of the hall were around a dozen fully armed Wood Tribe guards.
"Senior Han, our stand-in grand elder is currently waiting for you inside the hall," the young man carefully explained.
Han Li took a glance at the hall before sweeping his spiritual sense into it, upon which he immediately sensed a few powerful auras. He motioned for the young man to continue leading the way, and the guards in front of the hall granted them passage, clearly indicating that they were all familiar with the young man.
However, they sensed the unfathomable spiritual pressure emanating from Han Li's body as he passed by them, and a hint of fear crept into their wooden expressions.
Some of them even unconsciously bowed and lowered their heads as Han Li was walking past them.
Even though they were from different races, a respect for power was something that was universal across the entire Spirit Realm.
Right at this moment, Han Li suddenly said something to Daoist Xie through voice transmission, and Daoist Xie immediately stopped in his tracks before making his way toward one side of the hall's entrance.
The Wood Tribe guards were all quite surprised to see this, but they didn't dare to ask any questions.
Meanwhile, Han Li followed the young man through a corridor and entered the hall before casually inspecting his surroundings, upon which he discovered that there were only three people in the hall, which was several hundred feet in size.
The one sitting on the main seat was a purple-haired elderly man from the Wood Tribe. This was a thin late-Body Integration cultivator who was wearing a set of green robes and a golden and silver belt around his waist.
On either side of the elderly man were seated a silver-armored burly man from the Wood Tribe and a tall and lithe young woman in black, both of whom were at the mid-Body Integration Stage.
The burly man was very imposing and significantly taller than the average Wood Tribe being. There were several deep wrinkles on his forehead, and his eyes were completely wooden and soulless.
As for the young woman, she appeared to be around 18 years of age with a pair of short black horns on her head. She was quite beautiful, but she currently wore a cold expression.
All three of them immediately fell silent and turned toward Han Li upon his arrival.
Upon verifying that Han Li was indeed at the late-Body Integration Stage, a wide smile appeared on the elderly man's face, and he stood up before cupping his fist in a salute. "Brother Han, I've heard much about you from Senior Mo; our Wood Tribe is immensely fortunate to have you on our side."
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Han; my name is Cao Ji."
"So you're Han Li. As expected, you seem to be far more powerful than Fellow Daoist Cao and myself. I am Fei Xiaoxi of the Yaksha Race."
Upon detecting Han Li's culti
vation base, the other two beings in the room also stood up before extending salutes.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, fellow daoists," Han Li replied as he returned a salute of his own.
"Please take a seat, Brother Han; we are currently discussing the protection of the formation core. Fellow Daoist Cao and Fairy Fei will team up with you to protect the same formation core," the elderly man said with a smile.
As for the young man, he had already backed out of the hall in a respectful manner.
"With Fellow Daoist Cao and Fairy Fei's assistance, I'll be better equipped to protect the formation core," Han Li replied, clearly already treating Cao Ji and Fei Xiaoxi as his subordinates.
His cultivation base was superior to theirs, so there was no need for him to be overly polite. Otherwise, it could lead them into thinking that they could challenge his authority.
Cao Ji displayed no reaction to this, but Fei Xiaoxi's expression changed slightly, and she couldn't help but give a cold harrumph.
"Haha, with your powers, I'm sure the formation core will be safe. However, aside from protecting the formation core from devilish attacks, the three of you will have another important task to complete," the elderly man said.
"Another important task? Why did I not hear about this from our grand elder? Did you add this task on a whim?" Fei Xiaoxi asked as her brows furrowed slightly with displeasure.
"Of course not. The important task I'm referring to is something that Fellow Daoist Cao will have to complete; you and Fellow Daoist Han will still only be responsible for protecting the formation core," the elderly man explained.
"Oh? Would you be able to elaborate on what exactly this task is?" Han Li asked in an intrigued voice.
"Due to the intricacies of the formation, our united army will most likely have to borrow some power from the three formation cores. When that time comes, the people situated at the three cores will have to cooperate with the united army. I've already informed Cao Ji of how to do this, but he'll require your protection while he's activating the power of the formation core," the elderly man said.
"I see, that's not an issue. The formation was set up by your race in the first place, so it's only right for Fellow Daoist Cao to operate it," Han Li replied with a nonchalant smile.
"I also have no objections to this," Fei Xiaoxi chimed in with a nod.
"Great! I knew you two would be willing to lend Cao Ji your assistance. Once the formation is set up, the second formation core will be left to the three of you," the elderly man said as he rose to his feet before extending a salute toward Han Li's trio.
Han Li's trio naturally also stood up and returned the salute. "Rest assured, Elder Han, we'll be sure to do our best."
After that, Elder Han informed them of some other matters that required their attention, then gave each of them a jade slip, within which were contained some of the different forms that the formation could take on.
If enemies were to make it to their formation core, they would be able to use the power of the restriction to oppose them.
Elder Han then summoned three Wood Tribe beings to organize a place to stay for Han Li's trio in the buildings on the giant cloud. After all, there was still quite a long journey ahead, and prior to arriving at their destination, Han Li and the others naturally had to prime themselves into the best condition possible.
Half a day later, a burst of rumbling rang out in the air once again, and the dozen or so giant clouds also departed from Cottonwood City, accompanied by thousands of flying carriages and battle arks, heading directly toward the territory that had been taken over by the devilish army.
Chapter 2160: Completion of the Formation
Over half a month later, Han Li was standing expressionlessly atop a pagoda on the giant azure cloud, looking down toward a lush mountain range.
Fei Xiaoxi and Cao Ji stood slightly behind him on either side, and they were also casting their eyes downward.
Aside from over 100 flying carriages and battle arks patrolling the nearby area, all of the other giant clouds were nowhere to be seen.
The mountain range wasn't a very large one and only had a radius of less than 100 kilometers, but there were countless humanoid figures traversing through it as one tall platform after another rose up from the ground.
These stone platforms were all of different heights with silver spirit patterns engraved upon them, and there were green flags that were shimmering with faint spiritual light situated all over them.
However, upon closer inspection, one would discover that all of these platforms had risen up over the few spirit veins in the mountain range.
At the center of the mountains was a valley, within which a gigantic tree was growing rapidly at a rate that was discernible to the naked eye. With each passing moment, it would grow by around a foot, and it was already virtually as tall as the mountains around it.
On the ground around the giant tree was a green formation that was around 100 acres in area, and there were over 100 Wood Tribe beings seated within the formation. All of them were at or above the Nascent Soul stage, and they all had their eyes closed while making different hand seals.
All of the stone platforms were connected around the valley, causing all of the world's origin Qi in the entire mountain range to converge toward the valley in a frenzy, forming a series of extremely exuberant five-colored rainbows in the nearby air.
There were several small mountain ranges close to 100,000 kilometers away, where a series of massive trees were also rapidly growing in obscure locations, and there were countless tall platforms being erected near them as well.
If one were to look down from a high altitude, they'd discover that there were 36 of these formations that had been set up within an area with a radius of around 500,000 kilometers.
Even though they weren't all complete yet, they had been arranged in an extremely profound configuration to form a super formation that presented a spectacular breathtaking sight.
At this point, all of the world's origin Qi within the super formation had already been activated, and all types of energy fluctuations were beginning to appear in the air, filling the entire area with a sense of menace and peril.
Standing atop the azure cloud, Han Li suddenly said, "At this rate, the formation core will be complete in a few days. Once it's completed, we'll descend this Azure Light Island into the formation core and activate all of the protective restrictions to adopt a fully defensive stance."
Fei Xiaoxi cast a glance toward Han Li before replying in a slightly cold voice, "I have no objections to that. However, it's rather surprising that the formation is taking so long to set up. I've heard that the progress at the other two formation cores is even slower than in our one; that's not going to be an issue, is it?"
"According to the information I received yesterday, the battle between the united army and devilish army has just commenced, and they're trying to lure the devilish army into our formation. At the very least, it would take the devilish army over 10 days to get here, and by then, the formation will definitely already be complete. What I'm worried about is whether the formation will actually be powerful enough to deal the devilish army a heavy blow," Han Li replied.
"Rest assured, fellow daoists; even without using the backup holy trees, the Wood Realm 36 Extremes Formation possesses unfathomable power. Now that the 36 holy trees are being used, even a Grand Ascension Stage being would struggle to escape from the formation on their own. As for the ordinary devilish beings, they stand no chance in the face of the formation's power," Cao Ji reassured with a confident smile.
"I'm sure the 36 backup holy trees will significantly bolster the formation's power, but at the same time, the devilish army is nothing to be scoffed at. In particular, all of the Sacred Ancestors possess immense power and many clones, all of which will be very difficult to deal with," Han Li said.
"The Sacred Ancestors are indeed powerful, but the grand elders will be responsible for facing them, so what's there for us to worry about?
" Fei Xiaoxi countered.
"Hehe, Senior Sang and the others would perhaps be able to hold off the true bodies of the Sacred Ancestors, but they most likely won't be able to deal with the clones; those clones will most likely be deployed by the devilish army to break the formation cores," Han Li replied with a smile.
"Sacred Ancestor clones?" Both Cao Ji and Fei Xiaoxi's expressions changed slightly upon hearing this.
"Have the two of you crossed paths with Sacred Ancestor clones in the past?" Han Li asked as a meaningful look appeared in his eyes.
A hint of hatred appeared on Cao Ji's face as he replied, "I had once encountered a Sacred Ancestor clone with a fellow daoist of roughly the same cultivation base as myself, and that fellow daoist perished during the battle, while I managed to escape with severe injuries."
"I haven't encountered a Sacred Ancestor clone in person, but many of my loved ones have perished by their hands. If they're sent to our formation core, I'll be sure to give them a taste of their own medicine," Fei Xiaoxi also said with a cold expression.
"Fairy Fei, if you were to encounter a Sacred Ancestor clone on your own, then I'd advise you to turn and run. Otherwise, you'll only be sacrificing yourself for nothing," Cao Ji advised with a wry smile.
However, Fei Xiaoxi merely gave a dismissive harrumph, clearly not intending to heed Cao Ji's advice.
"There's no need to be alarmed, Fellow Daoist Cao. If this formation really is as powerful as you say, then we should be able to contend with those Sacred Ancestor clones by drawing upon the formation's power. Of course, if too many of them come here at once, then we'll have to think of some other way," Han Li said in a calm voice.
"Think of some other way? Have you prepared some type of trump card, Fellow Daoist Han?" Cao Ji asked as his eyes lit up, and Fei Xiaoxi was also rather taken aback to hear this.
"I have indeed made some preparations, but I can't guarantee that they'll be effective," Han Li replied in a nonchalant manner.
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