Chapter 584: Preparation

At Li Baxian’s residence, Lu Ye shared a drink with him by candlelight. As Lu Ye recounted the details, Li Baxian slowly grasped the Fox Immortal Valley’s various upcoming plans.

“So, the plan is to surround and kill that overlord-level beast,” Li Baxian said, suddenly enlightened. “No wonder I’ve felt a strange atmosphere in the valley recently, and Fellow Daoist Yu seems preoccupied.”

The “Fellow Daoist Yu” he referred to was Yu Daiwei, who had frequently sought out Li Baxian recently to practice swordsmanship.

It was evident that Yu Daiwei harbored a fondness for Li Baxian, but his Fourth Senior Brother appeared uninterested, simply treating her as a like-minded companion.

“Junior Brother, such confidential matters must not be discussed privately with anyone before the Revered One makes an official announcement,” Li Baxian cautioned Lu Ye.

“I understand,” Lu Ye replied. “I’m only telling you, Senior Brother. When the operation truly begins, please be careful.”

Li Baxian nodded. “I will be careful... Junior Brother, do you know when the operation is scheduled to begin?”

“It should be within the next few days,” Lu Ye said, his expression solemn. “I’ve received word that I’ll be going out tomorrow to set up arrays. The operation will likely commence once the formations are properly in place.”

“Then you must also be careful, Junior Brother. An overlord-level beast... Heh, I never thought I’d have a chance to face one,” he remarked, sounding not at all nervous, but rather a little excited.

The following morning, Lu Ye exited his residence and headed directly toward the entrance of the Fox Immortal Valley.

From a distance, he saw more than a dozen figures waiting, led by Zhou Yuntian.

Lu Ye approached and greeted the group. Zhou Yuntian nodded and said, “Let’s depart.”

With that, he took the lead, and the others followed closely.

Among the dozen or so individuals, Xie Yunhan was also present, in addition to Zhou Yuntian. The remaining members were all strong, each at or above the seventh cultivation level, primarily tasked with ensuring the safety of Lu Ye and Xie Yunhan.

After all, in terms of cultivation, Lu Ye was merely at the fourth level and Xie Yunhan at the seventh, which wasn’t particularly high. Should they encounter a powerful beast, they might not be able to resist. The success of this operation hinged on whether these two array masters could set up sufficiently potent formations. While they were deploying the arrays, Zhou Yuntian and his group needed to remain nearby for protection.

As they journeyed, beasts occasionally appeared along the path. Despite their utmost caution, some skirmishes were unavoidable.

However, with a contingent of over ten people, several of whom were at the ninth cultivation level, the journey, though eventful, proceeded without significant danger.

After a day’s travel, Zhou Yuntian, who was leading the way, finally halted. He took out a detailed map, cross-referencing his current position, and announced, “This is the spot. Fellow Daoist Lu, Fellow Daoist Xie, you two must establish various large formations centered here, in the shortest possible time. As for the specifics of how to set them up and what types of formations to deploy, you may decide among yourselves. The rest of you, split into pairs and spread out to guard all directions. If you detect anything unusual, issue a timely warning!”

“Understood!” the group responded, then dispersed.

Only Lu Ye, Xie Yunhan, and Zhou Yuntian remained at the spot.

Xie Yunhan looked at Lu Ye expectantly.

His mastery of array formations was inferior to Lu Ye’s, so for this deployment, Lu Ye would take the lead, with Xie Yunhan assisting.

Instead of immediately starting on the formations, Lu Ye turned to Zhou Yuntian. “Fellow Daoist Zhou, I have a question.”

“What is it?”

Lu Ye asked, “How far is the Violent Ape from here?”

“Its location isn’t fixed,” Zhou Yuntian replied, “but generally, it confines itself to its own territory. This spot is approximately fifty li from its domain.”

“In other words, the Revered One intends to lure the Violent Ape out of its territory and ambush it here?”

“Precisely.”

“Since the Violent Ape is an overlord-level beast, its intelligence shouldn’t be too low. How can we ensure it’s lured to this specific location? The valley’s cultivators have engaged it more than once; won’t it be wary?”

“Fellow Daoist Lu, if that’s your concern, you needn’t worry. It’s true that the beast possesses significant intelligence, almost human-like. However, it is, after all, an overlord-level beast, revered throughout the Cloud River Battlefield. Therefore, even if it senses something amiss, it won’t pay it much mind. We’ve employed the same tactic in the past two attempts; though the process had its difficulties, we always managed to draw it into the intended range.”

Hearing this, Lu Ye nodded. “Then there’s no issue.”

He mused to himself that if this were truly the case, the Violent Ape’s intelligence might not be as high as he’d imagined.

He suddenly recalled an overlord-level beast he had encountered on the Spirit Stream Battlefield; even after transforming into human form, it was still easily deceived. It seemed this was an unavoidable inherent flaw of beasts.

With his doubts resolved, Lu Ye ascended into the air to survey the terrain below. A moment later, he had a concrete plan in mind.

Many of the spirit patterns he now commanded were well-suited for array deployment.

However, if the goal was to counter an overlord-level beast, some less effective auxiliary formations wouldn’t be necessary.

To successfully defeat the opponent, offensive killing formations would need to be prioritized.

Among the killing formations he could now deploy, the most potent was undoubtedly the Blasting Array. While a single Blasting Array might not pose a significant threat to an overlord-level beast, a sufficient number of them could still prove immensely effective.

Furthermore, spirit patterns such as Lightning Lure, Blazing Fire, and Earth Spikes could be individually constructed and cast as spells. However, by using them as the core of formations, they would become the Lightning Lure Formation, Blazing Fire Formation, and Earth Spike Formation, respectively. When combined with Blasting Arrays, they could achieve extraordinary results.

Thus, Lu Ye and Xie Yunhan began deploying the formations together.

Array flags were consumed as one formation after another took shape. To amplify their power, Lu Ye even placed spirit stones within many of them, allowing the formations to activate beforehand and accumulate energy.

Given that the valley’s cultivators would need to engage the Violent Ape in combat, most of the formations deployed this time were manually controlled, with very few being trigger-activated.

For three full days, Lu Ye and Xie Yunhan hardly rested, establishing hundreds of formations within a ten-li radius, transforming the entire area into a perilous zone.

In deploying these formations, Lu Ye poured out all his knowledge, holding nothing back.

Although a weakened Fox Immortal Valley would benefit him, and he had even planned to have his wolf pack encircle and kill the Fox Demon after this major battle, this hinged entirely on winning the fight against the Violent Ape.

If even this battle were lost, his and Li Baxian’s safety would not be guaranteed. Therefore, Lu Ye dared not tamper with the formations during their deployment, no matter what.

He lacked a clear understanding of the full strength of an overlord-level beast from the Cloud River Realm, but judging by the current state of the Fox Immortal Valley, the Violent Ape’s power would undoubtedly exceed his expectations.

The day after all the formations were perfectly set, the Fox Demon arrived, leading all the cultivators of the Fox Immortal Valley.

Every single individual from the entire Fox Immortal Valley was mobilized, with not one left behind. Over eighty cultivators assembled, and Zhou Yuntian stepped forward to report on the situation.

After hearing the report, the Fox Demon looked at Lu Ye and Xie Yunhan with approval. “You two have worked tirelessly. If this endeavor succeeds, the primary credit shall be yours!”

Both Lu Ye and Xie Yunhan displayed expressions of joy and excitement, proclaiming that serving the Revered One was merely their duty as subordinates. This humble demeanor clearly pleased the Fox Demon.

“Revered One,” Lu Ye spoke again. “Before we commence the operation, I would like to guide our fellow daoists to familiarize themselves with the surrounding formations. This way, during the grand battle, they will know where to seek refuge, where to hinder enemies, and potentially reduce casualties.”

The Fox Demon nodded. “You are thoughtful. In that case, proceed as you suggest!”

“Understood. Fellow Daoists, please follow me.” With these words, Lu Ye ascended into the air and flew toward the area covered by the formations, a vast procession of cultivators following behind him.

“Here, we have deployed a trapping formation,” Lu Ye explained, pointing to a spot below. “Later, if any fellow daoist finds themselves unable to escape from enemies, they can come to this location for safety.” Everyone silently made a mental note.

“This entire area is comprised of Blasting Arrays, controlled by Fellow Daoist Xie and me. You must not linger when passing through here, especially if pursued by enemies. Fellow Daoist Xie and I will activate these formations at opportune moments to aid you in dispatching foes.”

“Here, a Lightning Lure Formation has been set up...”

“And over here is a grand Illusion Formation...”

As Lu Ye continued his explanations, the layout of the entire area’s formations became clear in the minds of the many cultivators. Their potent memories, combined with their observations, allowed them to quickly mentally construct a detailed map of the formation deployments.

Zhou Yuntian’s eyes sparkled as he listened. He had participated in two previous operations against the Violent Ape, where Xie Yunhan had deployed the formations. However, Xie Yunhan’s formations had never boasted such an array of complexities and uses. The assistance they had provided to the Fox Immortal Valley was modest at best.

In contrast, the various formations Lu Ye had deployed, while perhaps not exquisitely intricate, certainly offered a multitude of functionalities. This couldn’t help but instill a greater sense of confidence in the upcoming operation.

Furthermore, Lu Ye ensuring they familiarized themselves with the formation layouts before the operation was clearly a thoughtful gesture on his part, as they might genuinely need to rely on this knowledge for survival when the time came.

An hour later, the group returned. Zhou Yuntian stepped forward, cupped his fists, and declared, “Revered One, we are prepared.”

A cold killing intent flickered in the Fox Demon’s enchanting, misty eyes. “Proceed,” she commanded. “This time, no matter the cost, we must kill it!”

“We will not disappoint you, Revered One!” the cultivators affirmed, their fighting spirit surging.

Lu Ye sighed inwardly. Regardless of whether this operation succeeded, these cultivators were sure to suffer heavy casualties. Their minds were controlled by the Fox Demon, making her commands an inviolable mission. Even if she ordered them to their deaths at that very moment, they wouldn’t so much as frown.

From the assembled crowd, a dozen or so figures stepped forward. Under Zhou Yuntian’s lead, they ascended into the air and swept away in a single direction, clearly intending to lure out their target.

This location was on the outskirts of the overlord-level beast’s territory, thus showing no signs of other beasts. Flying here, they had no concerns about being attacked.

Time continued to pass.

Then, at a certain moment, Yu Daiwei, who had been standing by the Fox Demon’s side, spoke up after checking a message from a battle mark. “Revered One, Fellow Daoist Zhou and his group have successfully lured it out!”