Chapter 298: Breaking Zhao Ri Mountain

It was no surprise that Amber's roar possessed such power. It could convert malevolent spirits, which are formed from divine souls. Thus, it inherently possessed methods of targeting divine souls that were difficult for ordinary people to comprehend. This might have been its instinct, or perhaps its innate talent.

In the Soul Cleansing Pond, Lu Ye benefited, as did Ju Jia and Yi Yi. Amber also gained advantages, which further amplified the power of its roar compared to before.

As the roar reverberated, the cultivators from Zhaori Mountain, disoriented by its impact, found the power of their various attacks significantly diminished. Moreover, numerous spirit tools fell uncontrollably from the sky.

Taking advantage of the situation, Yi Yi floated out of Amber's body. As she raised her hands, a massive disc of spiritual energy suddenly appeared above her head. The disc was covered in intricate, flowing patterns, appearing exceedingly mystical. The next moment, golden arc-shaped slashes poured down from the disc like a torrential storm.

Outside the defensive formation, Gu Canyang and Zhou Pei watched the scene in a daze. Feeling Yi Yi's spiritual energy fluctuations and observing the massive disc, they simply couldn't comprehend how someone of Yi Yi's strength could unleash such a large-scale spell. Such spells were typically only within the grasp of mages who had cultivated Heaven-tier techniques, as only they possessed such exquisite control over their spiritual energy and such profound spiritual reserves! This impossible sight, now unfolding before their very eyes, undoubtedly had a profound impact on them.

Amber and Yi Yi's cooperation could be described as perfectly complementary. First, Amber's roar assaulted the enemies' minds and souls. Before they could recover, Yi Yi unleashed her Golden Arc Rain. As the golden arcs struck, several cultivators instantly dropped dead, and the rest were in utter disarray.

As the Golden Arc Rain descended, Lu Ye flapped his wings and fearlessly charged towards the Zhaori Mountain Garrison Master, leaving a trail of fiery red light across the mid-air. Four streams of light from his spirit tools weaved and darted ahead, followed by screams. The Zhaori Mountain cultivators, already disoriented by the Golden Arc Rain, were splattered with blood on the spot. Spirit tools were inherently fast, and with the addition of the Wind-Stepping Spirit Mark, their speed became almost impossible to track. Even if Lu Ye couldn't imbue them with further sharpness, these spirit tools were still beyond what inner-circle cultivators could withstand. However, while imbuing spirit tools with spirit marks increased their lethality, the effect was short-lived due to the limited spiritual energy stored within them. It was already sufficient. By the time Lu Ye swooped down in front of the Zhaori Mountain Garrison Master, more than ten of the thirty-odd cultivators had already fallen.

Leveraging his downward momentum, Lu Ye drew the Panguan Blade from his waist and brought it down in a single powerful strike. The Garrison Master was fortunate; though his mind was disturbed by Amber's roar, Yi Yi's attack hadn't harmed him. Additionally, being surrounded by others had kept him unscathed until this moment. Facing Lu Ye's downward strike, the Garrison Master instinctively raised his spirit tool to block. His eyes immediately widened as his spirit tool flew from his grasp, the web of his hand tore, and he dropped to his knees with a thud. Lu Ye's strength was already far superior to his, and he simply couldn't withstand such a ferocious, momentum-driven blow. Unfortunately, Lu Ye couldn't deliver a second strike. The enemies began to retaliate, denying him another opportunity to attack. Forcing another strike would only put himself in peril. Thus, after that single blow, Lu Ye used the recoil to launch himself back into the air.

A rumbling sound emanated as Ju Jia led the remaining few body cultivators forward. They had previously been suppressed and found it difficult to advance, but with Amber and Yi Yi's combined assault, the pressure on them significantly eased. As Lu Ye flew up again, they just happened to charge to the front of the enemy formation. Under the desperate gaze of the Zhaori Mountain cultivators, several body cultivators, led by Ju Jia, violently crashed into the crowd. Chaos erupted as people were knocked off their feet. Amber also moved around the periphery, singling out targets to pounce on, scratching and biting. Yi Yi stopped casting large-scale spells, but each time she raised her hand, a spell of immense power was unleashed.

Amidst this chaos, Lu Ye swooped down once more. The Zhaori Mountain Garrison Master, still on his knees, instantly felt a chill run through him. He hastily rose and looked up, only to see a flash of blade light before his eyes. His spirit tool had been knocked away during his previous clash with Lu Ye, so in desperation, he lunged forward with a punch at Lu Ye. The punch landed on Lu Ye's shoulder. The desperate blow caused Lu Ye's body to sway, colliding with the Garrison Master, and the two immediately tumbled into a heap.

Lu Ye quickly scrambled to his feet, clutching a jade token in his hand. The Zhaori Mountain Garrison Master lay motionless on the ground, blood pooling beneath him. Jade tokens, resonating with the formation's core, had to be carried on one's person and could not be stored in a storage bag. Otherwise, the resonance would be severed, and the formation would cease to function. This particular jade token hung from the Garrison Master's waist; Lu Ye had targeted it during his first attack. Now that the Garrison Master was dead, the jade token naturally fell into Lu Ye's hands. With the jade token in one hand and his blade in the other, Lu Ye brought the Panguan Blade down fiercely. With a shattering sound, the jade token crumbled, and the grand formation hummed ominously.

Accompanied by the fierce assault from the Shenyin Palace and Lingyun Hall cultivators outside, the defensive formation completely shattered. Numerous cultivators surged into the Zhaori Mountain encampment like descending tigers. The surviving Zhaori Mountain cultivators immediately looked panicked and fled towards the direction of the Heavenly Mystery Hall, clearly intending to retreat back to the Nine Provinces. They had no choice but to retreat. With the formation breached, staying meant certain death. Consequently, the cultivators from both sects who had charged in hadn't killed many before looking around to find all the enemies had vanished.

However, another battle was erupting elsewhere, outside the main defensive formation. This was a force of over three hundred cultivators led by the Zhaori Mountain Deputy Garrison Master. They had previously been ordered by their Garrison Master to attack the Lingyun Hall encampment, hoping to relieve the siege on Fenghua Institute. However, shortly after arriving at their destination, they heard that their own encampment was under attack. Rushing back frantically, they saw the eight hundred combined cultivators of Shenyin Palace and Lingyun Hall from afar. The Zhaori Mountain group didn't dare show their faces and could only hide nearby. Nevertheless, upon seeing Lu Ye breach the formation and lead ten body cultivators into the encampment, the Deputy Garrison Master knew he couldn't remain hidden, even if it wasn't the ideal time to reveal their presence. Once their encampment was captured, the consequences would be unimaginable. Therefore, he led his three hundred-plus cultivators in an assault on Shenyin Palace and Lingyun Hall, hoping to divert the attention of both sects' cultivators.

Unfortunately, shortly after their engagement began, the defensive formation completely collapsed. Watching the formation's light barrier dissipate into shimmering motes, the Zhaori Mountain cultivators' hearts sank into utter despair. Their greatest fear had ultimately come to pass, and there was nothing they could do about it. With the formation breached and their encampment lost, there was no longer any point in fighting. Moreover, they were already at a significant numerical disadvantage. At the Deputy Garrison Master's command, the Zhaori Mountain cultivators fought while retreating, attempting to escape the battlefield.

How could the cultivators of Shenyin Palace and Lingyun Hall agree to that? Although this operation involved breaking through the encampments of two major sects, the actual combat time was not long; most of the time, the cultivators of both sects were attacking the enemy encampments' grand formations. When Fenghua Institute's formation was breached, its cultivators immediately retreated to the Nine Provinces under Yue Mei's command, giving the two sects little opportunity to capitalize, so casualties were not significant. Now, with Zhaori Mountain's formation shattered, only a few dozen individuals remained within the encampment, and they had all fled. In essence, the cultivators from both sects were brimming with pent-up energy, and the fact that over three hundred Zhaori Mountain cultivators dared to actively emerge was exactly what they wanted.

For a time, the cultivators from both sects relentlessly pursued them. Along the way, bodies piled up from the Zhaori Mountain side, with fewer than half of the original three hundred-plus surviving. They eventually dispersed, breaking into smaller groups, which finally allowed them to shake off the pursuit of the two sects. Had the two sects not been wary of the enemies fighting back desperately, they could have annihilated them. However, doing so would have incurred heavy casualties on their own side, making it an unfavorable trade.

The Zhaori Mountain Deputy Garrison Master survived, but he must have been consumed by immense regret at that moment. He had led his people out precisely because he feared their grand formation would be breached. Yet, in the end, he failed to preserve the formation and even caused heavy casualties among his subordinate cultivators. Had he known this outcome, he would never have shown himself. If the grand formation was broken, so be it. As long as the disciples' lives were spared, there would always be an opportunity to rise again in the future.

The next task was straightforward: the cultivators from both sects began to loot the Zhaori Mountain encampment. Lu Ye, Gu Canyang, and Zhou Pei split the various enhancements from the Heavenly Mystery Pillar, each earning a considerable fortune. The only downside was that among the ten body cultivators Lu Ye brought in, four died, five were severely wounded, and only Ju Jia's injuries were not serious. This demonstrated the disparity among body cultivators. Those several body cultivators were among the strongest in both sects, and their cultivation levels were no worse than Ju Jia's. Yet, Ju Jia, who led the charge, was largely unharmed, while the other nine were either dead or severely wounded.

It could be said that among the major cultivation paths, the body cultivation path relied most heavily on innate potential. Other paths allowed for accumulation through postnatal effort, but not body cultivation. If one's innate conditions were poor, even embarking on the path of body cultivation would eventually lead to death, because in any major conflict, body cultivators always charged into the front lines. Therefore, major sects gave special care to their body cultivators, allocating more resources to them compared to other paths. This was because only when body cultivators could withstand enemy attacks would their side have a chance to retaliate. If even body cultivators couldn't hold their ground, then retaliation would be impossible. Hua Ci had once told Lu Ye that the body cultivation path was all about enjoying the best resources and enduring the harshest beatings.

An hour later, two large ships ascended into the sky one after another. Onboard, the cultivators were filled with joy and laughter, while below, a raging inferno burned. Setting fire to everything flammable after capturing an enemy sect's encampment was almost a norm on the Spirit Stream battlefield. As two irreconcilable factions, they naturally sought to antagonize each other in every possible way. The two large spirit ships parted ways midway, each returning to its respective base.