Chapter 1305: Xuanwu Strikes

"Consider the first round a loss for us. If you win the next two rounds, our Berserk Lion clan will leave this desolate battlefield and never oppose you again."

Xu Yang chuckled at this. "That's not necessary. We don't wish to conflict with you, nor do we intend to drive you away. We merely wanted to teach you 'lions blocking the path' a lesson. Our true goal is to challenge the Berserk Ox clan, the leaders of your wilderness region."

As soon as he said this, the Berserk Lion warriors' expressions underwent a noticeable change, and then the lions burst into laughter.

"Brothers, let me advise you: challenging our Berserk Lion clan to gauge the strength of the wilderness's guardians is one thing. But if you're still fantasizing about challenging the Berserk Ox leaders, I strongly urge you to abandon that idea quickly. Not even top beast tribes with hundreds of thousands of warriors would dare provoke the Berserk Ox clan easily, let alone you few humans."

Qing Long scoffed, taking over the conversation. "What, you're hyping up the Berserk Ox clan's strength to the heavens, yet we haven't seen anything extraordinary about them. If they're truly as powerful as you claim, why haven't they become the rulers of all beasts?"

"Forget it, brother, stop wasting words with them. Proving ourselves with sheer strength is enough. If these few humans want to court death, that's their choice and none of our concern."

The Berserk Lion elder beside him directly spoke, effectively distancing themselves from Xu Yang and his group. His demeanor suggested he possessed some skill.

"Heh, you white-haired one, your words are quite arrogant! In that case, I'll take on the next round. Send out any twenty people you like; I'm eager to see how formidable you truly are."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Black Tortoise clone soared into the air. The compass he held in his hand gleamed with a brilliant, dark green light. Where the light enveloped, the aura emanating from the Black Tortoise clone was significantly stronger than before.

Sure enough, the white-haired Berserk Lion, who had just spoken arrogantly, led twenty elite Berserk Lion warriors to the center of the desolate battlefield under everyone's gaze, accepting the Black Tortoise clone's challenge.

"Human, you'd best use your most powerful abilities, or you'll die a miserable death."

The Black Tortoise laughed heartily. "Things are different now. The former me certainly wouldn't have had the ability or confidence to survive this life-and-death battle. But the current me, I'm afraid, you're truly no match."

The Black Tortoise clone's profound confidence stemmed from the power surge he received from Xu Yang's inheritance, which significantly boosted his personal strength. More importantly, unlike Qing Long, he excelled at positional warfare, often employing tactics where a smaller force defeats a larger one. This was due to his mastery of formation cultivation, which, besides offering various beneficial augmentations, primarily focused on the ultimate evolution of large-scale offensive and defensive array properties.

At this moment, the Black Tortoise clone stood alone before the twenty Berserk Lion warriors, his expression calm and unmoving. With a slight wave of his hand, a powerful aura emanated from him, quickly flowing into the surface of the compass in his palm.

As the Black Tortoise clone infused his power, countless totem phantoms rapidly materialized around him. In essence, each phantom was a further differentiation of the Black Tortoise's own clone power.

This wasn't the first time he had used this technique in front of Xu Yang and the others. However, this time, when he deployed the same move, Xu Yang and the others noticed a transformative improvement in its quality compared to before.

"Wow, his clones actually possess their own independent life force! That's incredible!" The White Tiger youth quickly pinpointed this crucial detail, exclaiming in awe.

Xu Yang, beside him, nodded repeatedly in disbelief. "It seems his growth is the fastest. He has further uncovered the second layer of profound meaning within the Ghost Valley Odd Gate Formation and can utilize it remarkably well. That's truly rare!"

Xu Yang was deeply gratified by the Black Tortoise clone's development. At the same time, the Berserk Lion warriors facing the Black Tortoise clone fixed their gazes, filled with a desire for slaughter, intent on reversing their disadvantage in this round.

"This is nothing but a bluff. I'd like to see if your clones can withstand a wave of attacks from us brothers."

As he spoke, the lions erupted with astonishing bloodlust, pushing their speed to the limit as they charged towards the location of each of the Black Tortoise clone's phantoms.

After a frantic wave of attacks and bites, it appeared that the phantoms released by the Black Tortoise clone had indeed served no substantial purpose.

"Damn, no way, they all died so easily? So, this guy just summoned a bunch of paper tigers?"

The White Tiger youth was exasperated, expressing his disapproval of the old man's fighting style. Only Xu Yang had already seen through the opponent's true intentions and leisurely spoke to his teammates.

"Don't worry, you should know how cunning this old man is. How could it be that simple? He would never volunteer so readily if he wasn't completely confident."

Xu Yang had clearly understood the old Black Tortoise clone thoroughly, articulating all his thoughts in just a few words.

Not long after, when the others witnessed what unfolded next on the battlefield, they realized how precise Xu Yang's judgment had been.

"Hahahaha! So that's it! This is truly fascinating! Boss, did you figure out the Black Tortoise's real strategy a long time ago?"

Xu Yang smiled and nodded. "Precisely. These clones aren't meant for combat at all; they're a system designed to apply negative effects. Once opponents mistake them for tangible combat energy bodies, they truly fall into the trap."

Indeed, on the battlefield, the twenty elite Berserk Lion warriors, led by the white-haired one, all fell into a state of extreme exhaustion. Not only was their movement speed significantly reduced, but even the power within their bloodline was greatly diminished.

"That's incredible! I truly can't imagine how he managed it!"

Qing Long was astonished by the scene. He had originally thought the Black Tortoise clone wouldn't achieve greater battlefield success than himself, but now it was clear he had been mistaken.