Chapter 514: The Power of the Trapped Formation

As time passed, Lu Ye and his two companions adhered to their strategy of changing locations after each battle. Almost every day brought them success, yielding between three hundred and five hundred hunting points per engagement. Over time, these accumulated points became quite substantial.

The hunting leaderboard rankings remained largely unchanged. It was noteworthy that Xia Liang, originally ranked second, seemed to have encountered something, as his hunting points had increased very slowly in recent days. He was now close to falling out of the top ten. Currently, a cultivator named Tan Sheng held the second position.

Lu Ye vaguely recalled that Tan Sheng’s name was on the leaderboard when it first appeared, indicating that he, too, was a nine-layer realm expert. According to Li Baxian’s recollection, Tan Sheng was a cultivator from Wanmoling, hailing from a second-grade sect. His strength was considerable; in the Spirit Creek Realm, he had once made it into the top ten of the Spirit Creek Ranking.

The formidable cultivators currently active in the Cloud River battlefield were mostly those who had previously ranked on the Spirit Creek Ranking. Li Baxian had spent over ten years in the Spirit Creek Realm, witnessing countless cultivators pass through, so he was naturally familiar with them, having even fought against many. Even some current True Lake Realm experts had once been Li Baxian’s opponents or friends. It must be said that staying in the Spirit Creek Realm for a sufficiently long time provided an unparalleled advantage in connections.

Most of the battles they encountered over the past few days were relatively easy. With Li Baxian, a sword cultivator, launching surprise attacks, it was simple to severely injure one or two enemies. Then Feng Yuechan would strike, and Lu Ye would follow with an ambush, quickly bringing the battle to an end. They did, however, encounter one tough fight against a six-layer realm soldier cultivator. But after Lu Ye eliminated his companions, and with the combined strength of the three, the six-layer realm soldier cultivator met his end. All three had once held the top spot on the Spirit Creek Ranking and possessed the ability to defeat opponents beyond their cultivation level. As long as the enemy's foundation wasn't exceptionally strong, their combined force could overcome them.

After another battle, Lu Ye looked up at the sky. The hunting points next to his name had reached 3,740, almost a thousand points more than second-place Tan Sheng, giving him an undeniable and unwavering lead. Such a gap likely left Tan Sheng feeling desperate.

His gaze was suddenly drawn to a streak of light, which flew directly towards them, arriving in the blink of an eye and landing with a thud. Lu Ye’s eyes narrowed instantly. Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan also reacted as if facing a formidable enemy. Faint blue light began to glow on the backs of their hands, while the newcomer’s hand pulsed with a crimson hue.

An immense pressure descended like a mountain. Lu Ye and his two companions felt as if they had been struck by a lightning talisman, freezing them in place. The reason was simple: Lu Ye recognized the person. It was the same individual who had fought Xia Qianqian earlier. Lu Ye had never known his name, only that he was a nine-layer realm cultivator. Indeed, as the saying goes, "He who walks by the river often, can't help but get his shoes wet." After several smooth days, today they had attracted a nine-layer realm expert! Clearly, the commotion from their recent battle had attracted him.

Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan stood side by side, silently channeling their spiritual power. Lu Ye also wore a solemn expression. As long as Wei Que didn't move, they dared not act rashly.

Wei Que’s gaze swept over the three, resting first on Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan, then on Lu Ye. Though he saw three different masks, his eyes caught Amber on Lu Ye’s shoulder. A smile spread across Wei Que’s face. “Found you!”

He was overjoyed. This was truly "searching high and low only to find it at hand." He had been tirelessly searching for Lu Ye’s whereabouts these past days, but to no avail. How difficult it was to find one person in a hunting ground spanning hundreds of thousands of miles, with countless cultivators pouring in. He had only deduced from the daily changes on the hunting leaderboard that Lu Ye hadn't been idle, as several hundred hunting points were added almost every day. Recently, Wei Que had gained some success in the hunting ground. As a nine-layer realm expert, he naturally disdained accompanying others. Wandering around and searching, he had acquired many opportunities, even seizing some spirit talismans. However, he hadn’t gained many hunting points, currently ranking around twentieth. He didn't expect to achieve a good rank on the hunting leaderboard. For him, finding and killing Lu Ye was the most important objective. While the rewards from the hunting leaderboard were good, they were nothing compared to the bounties issued by the major sects of Wanmoling. Those were resources that could last him a lifetime, far surpassing what a mere hunting leaderboard could offer. His goal from start to finish had always been Lu Ye.

Just moments ago, he was merely passing by, felt the lingering energy from the battle, and came to investigate. Unexpectedly, what he did casually led to an unexpected discovery; he found Lu Ye's trail here. Although their masks were different, Amber was a clear identifier. Moreover, the Panshan Saber in Lu Ye's hand also looked familiar to Wei Que, leaving no doubt about his identity.

As he finished speaking, Wei Que raised his hand and unleashed a spell. Though this attack was casual, a nine-layer realm cultivator's casual strike was something Lu Ye couldn't withstand. The spell, almost as soon as it formed, shot towards Lu Ye. Spiritual power surged, and a thick defensive spirit pattern appeared in front of Lu Ye. At the same time, sword sounds resonated, and streaks of flying swords flew through the air, arriving before the spell and striking it, weakening its power. Li Baxian instantly saw that Lu Ye couldn't block this strike, so he didn't attack Wei Que directly but prioritized saving Lu Ye's life. Not only did he act, but Feng Yuechan also joined in. However, even with their combined efforts, they could only weaken the spell's power, unable to completely destroy it.

With a bang, spiritual power erupted, and the defensive spirit pattern in front of Lu Ye shattered directly. The huge impact sent him flying backward, landing heavily. Wei Que snorted. He opened his other hand towards Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan. A huge spiritual power disc appeared, with arcane patterns swirling within it. From the disc, streaks of pale green wind blades swept out, striking down on Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan. He had held back when attacking Lu Ye because he feared pulverizing him. After all, he still needed Lu Ye's head to claim the bounties. He had no such concerns when attacking Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan. This move was executed with full power.

Numerous flying swords returned, forming a sword barrier in front of them. Feng Yuechan also channeled her spiritual power, and amidst steaming mist, a nine-foot-tall cloud-mist giant blocked in front of them. The wind blades pierced through the cloud-mist giant's body, destroying the spell in an instant. Li Baxian's sword barrier also struggled to resist, breaking after only a moment. At the critical moment, Feng Yuechan summoned an umbrella-like spiritual artifact. The umbrella opened, spiritual power surged, forming a protective barrier, which finally blocked the wind blades.

“An artifact!” Wei Que immediately recognized the spiritual umbrella's significance, secretly guessing Feng Yuechan's identity. After all, being able to use an artifact at the Cloud River Realm cultivation definitely indicated an extraordinary background. He laughed wildly in his heart. This was truly heaven's favor! Not only had he found Lu Yiye, but he also gained two good prey. As long as he could kill these three, he would never have to worry about cultivation resources again. Prioritize killing Lu Yiye!

With that thought, Wei Que ignored Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan and rushed directly towards Lu Ye. As a spell cultivator, he should have attacked from a distance. However, his cultivation was a full six layers higher than Lu Ye's, and Lu Ye was of great importance. How could he risk it? What if a spell truly pulverized Lu Ye, leaving no evidence for him to claim the reward? To be safe, close-quarters combat was better.

However, just as he ran out about ten feet, he saw the fallen Lu Ye leap up. At the same time, a formation flag appeared in his hand, and he fiercely waved it. A buzzing sound arose, and a layer of light curtain suddenly appeared, instantly forming a barrier like an inverted bowl, covering a radius of dozens of feet. Wei Que was completely unprepared and was caught squarely inside.

“A formation!” Wei Que cursed silently. A formation had been set up here in advance! Judging by its appearance, it seemed to be a trapping formation! He absolutely couldn't let Lu Yiye escape! As his thoughts spun, Wei Que raised his hand and slashed a golden arc towards Lu Ye's position. However, Lu Ye had already turned and rushed out the moment he activated the formation. Holding the formation flag, he passed through the light curtain barrier without hindrance. The chasing golden arc hit the light curtain but was blocked by it, only creating ripples.

This trapping formation was very similar to a defensive great array but entirely different. When cultivators are inside a defensive great array, the array's light curtain can block attacks coming from outside. But if cultivators are inside a trapping formation, the array's light curtain doesn't block attacks from outside, but rather attacks from inside. In short, a defensive array defends against outside threats, a trapping array against inside threats. The two types of arrays look similar from the outside, but their effects are completely opposite. To escape, one must break through the great array. And Lu Ye, as the array setter, holding the array flag, was naturally not restricted by it. This was also his confidence in competing for the hunting leaderboard at the three-layer realm.

Cooperating with Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan, ordinary Cloud River Realm cultivators were no match for them. Even if they encountered an overwhelmingly powerful expert, as long as they could activate the trapping formation set up here, they could delay the enemy for a while. And the three of them could use this opportunity to escape. The moment the trapping formation appeared, Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan had already taken flight and fled into the distance. Lu Ye's movements were slightly slower, but not by much. He followed closely behind the two. With his wings constructed and Windwalk active, his speed was even faster than Li Baxian's, and he quickly caught up.

Wei Que was stunned. He watched Lu Ye escape, feeling his heart bleed. He was so close, just a little bit more, and he could have killed Lu Yiye and enjoyed a lifetime of wealth! Spiritual power surged, and fierce spells bombarded the light curtain barrier, causing ripples to appear all over the trapping formation's light curtain, and its glow rapidly dimmed. Such a huge commotion naturally couldn't escape the perception of Lu Ye and his two companions, who fled even faster. Although the trapping formation was effective, it certainly couldn't completely trap a nine-layer realm expert. At most, it could only delay them for a while. How long it could trap him would depend on Wei Que's methods.