Chapter 1548: The Strategy to Break the Formation
“Gu Que, have you identified the true Formation Cores among the chain fragments?” Song Wen’s voice echoed urgently in his sea of consciousness.
Besides brute force, Song Wen had another strategy for breaking the formation:
The Divine Eye of Annihilation!
By severing the connection between Lu Ling and the chain fragments serving as the formation’s foundation, breaking the formation would be effortless.
However, Lu Ling’s Blood Hell Rakshasa Formation differed from ordinary formations.
In typical formations, disrupting a single Formation Core would destabilize the entire structure, potentially causing it to collapse.
Yet Song Wen had clearly observed during the formation’s initial deployment that only a small fraction of the chain fragments were sufficient to establish the formation.
This indicated that among the hundreds of chain fragments comprising the formation, only a select few served as true Formation Cores, while the rest merely reinforced the structure.
Without identifying the true Formation Cores, prematurely activating the Divine Eye of Annihilation would only alert Lu Ling, revealing the Divine Eye’s existence and prompting him to treat Song Wen as an imminent threat, eliminating him swiftly with overwhelming force.
Moreover, despite its miraculous nature, the Divine Eye of Annihilation possessed a fatal flaw.
Casting this spell would damage his eyes, preventing him from maintaining it for long.
This meant Song Wen couldn’t sever the mental connection between Lu Ling and the hundreds of fragments scattered across the sky.
Therefore, Song Wen’s claim to be a hidden agent of the Divine Blood Gate was merely a stalling tactic to buy time to locate the true Formation Core.
However, lacking expertise in formations himself, he had to rely on Gu Que for assistance.
Gu Que wasn’t a master of formations either, but he was far more knowledgeable than the utterly clueless Song Wen.
After all, he had personally forged the Crimson Nether Blood-Drinking Chain.
Forging spirit treasures inevitably involves inscribing formation patterns. While a formation master could assist, as the forger, Gu Que needed to understand the core principles behind the restriction’s arrangement and the flow of Spiritual Qi within it.
Though the Crimson Nether Blood-Drinking Chain was a failed creation, it was still a high-grade spirit treasure, and the formation patterns it contained were far from simple.
This offered a glimpse into Gu Que’s proficiency in formations.
“Ji Yin, stall for a little longer. We’ll find it soon,” Gu Que said.
Despite the urgency in his heart, Song Wen’s expression remained calm.
His gaze, sharp as a blade, pierced through the barrier, locking onto Lu Ling with unwavering intensity.
Seeing that Song Wen didn’t respond, Lu Ling immediately assumed he was too afraid to take a heavenly dao oath, a sinister smile curling across his face.
“What’s this? Afraid to swear by the Heavenly Dao? You really are a fake!”
Before the words had even left his mouth, three crimson spears slowly materialized within the blood-red eye at the apex of the Entrapment Formation’s barrier.
Previously, even a single crimson spear had required Song Wen and Rong Shao to combine their efforts to withstand it.
With this attack, Lu Ling was utterly confident he could kill the two trapped within the formation.
“Senior Brother Lu Ling, hold on,” Song Wen suddenly called out. “Who said I was afraid to take a heavenly dao oath?”
“Oh?” Lu Ling drawled. “Then swear it now. I’m waiting.”
As he spoke, the three crimson spears, now fully formed within the blood-red eye, hovered in the air, poised but not yet descending.
Song Wen glanced sideways at Rong Shao.
“Fellow Daoist Rong Shao,” he transmitted telepathically, “prepare to strike with me. Unleash your strongest attack.”
Rong Shao’s pupils constricted slightly at the message.
During Gu Huang’s conversation with Lu Ling, the man had spoken with such conviction that Rong Shao had already begun to believe Gu Huang was indeed a member of the Divine Blood Gate.
After transmitting his message, Song Wen raised his head, gazing half-upward at the sky. His aura shifted, becoming solemn and reverent.
“In my name, I swear before the Heavenly Dao…”
Song Wen’s voice boomed like a bronze bell, each word ringing with resolute force. The spiritual energy within and beyond the Entrapment Formation surged, as if some unseen power were listening.
“If I am not a hidden agent of the Divine Blood Gate, may I be struck by heavenly thunder…”
The heavenly dao oath abruptly ceased.
Gu Que had suddenly spoken within Song Wen’s sea of consciousness, revealing the location of one of the Formation Cores.
In an instant, Song Wen’s aura transformed again, becoming savage and violent.
“Rong Shao, attack!”
Before the words had even faded, Song Wen’s pupils turned blood-red.
Two crimson beams erupted from his eyes, striking one of the shattered chain fragments on the Entrapment Formation’s barrier.
Simultaneously, the Nine Calamity Heaven-Measuring Sword in Song Wen’s hand glowed with an intense black light, transforming into a dark, swift arc that trailed closely behind the crimson beams, hurtling toward the same chain fragment.
Rong Shao acted immediately as well.
His Blood Qi surged within him. He spat out a mouthful of blood essence onto his natal flying sword.
Instantly, the sword’s cold radiance intensified, its Sword Qi soaring skyward!
After absorbing the blood essence, Rong Shao’s natal flying sword emitted a piercing shriek and, with unwavering resolve, surged forward, following closely behind the dark arc.
The sudden turn of events ignited Lu Ling’s fury.
“You were never one of the Divine Blood Gate!” he roared. “Daring to distract me while attempting to break the formation? A fool’s delusion!”
With a furious bellow, three crimson spears descended, targeting Song Wen and Rong Shao.
No matter how swift Lu Ling’s reaction, Song Wen had seized the initiative, striking first and gaining the upper hand.
Lu Ling had initially dismissed Song Wen and Rong Shao’s attacks, confident in the invulnerability of the Blood Hell Rakshasa Formation.
But when two crimson beams struck the shattered chain fragment, Lu Ling was stunned to find the fragment spiraling out of control. The mental connection between him and the fragment had inexplicably weakened. Though the link hadn’t been completely severed, he could no longer command it with the ease of moving his own arm.
Lu Ling’s face twisted in alarm.
He suddenly sensed the entire formation faltering, on the verge of collapse.
“This is… the Divine Eye of Annihilation!”
“How is this possible?!”
“How did you discover the true Formation Core of the Blood Hell Rakshasa Formation?”
Song Wen’s possession of the Divine Eye of Annihilation paled in comparison to his ability to pinpoint the true Formation Core, leaving Lu Ling utterly stunned.
Among the hundreds of chain fragments that constituted the Blood Hell Rakshasa Formation, only eighteen were the true Formation Cores—the linchpins of the entire formation.
Lu Ling couldn’t fathom how Song Wen had managed to identify these crucial cores with such precision in such a short time.
Yet, regardless of his shock, the combined full-force strikes of Song Wen and Rong Shao had already struck the uncontrolled fragment.
The Nine Calamity Heaven-Measuring Sword and Rong Shao’s natal flying sword, arriving in quick succession, converged on the fragment.
The chain fragment was instantly blasted away, causing the entire formation to shatter.
The three crimson spears that had been descending from the sky vanished without a trace.
(End of the Chapter)