Chapter 670 : A Web of Shadows and Strategy

At this moment, Netherdeep the Sacred Venerable gazed at the map before him, remaining silent for a long moment before finally speaking. "What is the situation?"

"The old fellows of the Human Race are not weak in strength," the woman replied after a moment of contemplation. "Furthermore, the Sun and Moon Twin Islands are bolstered by both the Sixth RankMountain Guardian Grand Formation and the Sun, Moon, and Stars Grand Formation. I fear it will be difficult to breach them in a short time."

The woman spoke these words after a moment of thoughtful silence.

Netherdeep the Sacred Venerable nodded, having anticipated this. "What of the task I entrusted to you? How does it proceed?"

"He has already agreed," the woman stated flatly. Then she inquired further, "However, we cannot make it too obvious. We must at least sacrifice some Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator, representing a high level of cultivation] cultivators."

"Whom should we send?"

Netherdeep the Sacred Venerable pondered for a time before replying, "The mid-to-late stage Primordial Spirit cultivators of our Sacred Race have long been thorns in the side of the Human Race. Those Clan Elder old bastards would never allow them to break through the encirclement."

"Have the several newly-advanced Primordial Spirit cultivators from the Millennium [a term referring to a specific era or generation] hide within the main army. They must ensure all four of the Star Palace Archipelago are completely overrun."

"Understood," the woman said, then added, "This subordinate will go and make the arrangements immediately."

From that day forth, the situation on the battlefield shifted. Finding it difficult to quickly breach the Sun and Moon Twin Islands and the Triple Ring Archipelago, the demonic forces began to mass their troops and surge towards the periphery, aiming to break through the blockade and slaughter their way to the outer Twenty-Eight Mansions Archipelago. Experience the full epic at audio-novel dot com.

The Human Race naturally would not allow their ambitions to be realized. For a time, the Cosmic Starry Sky Grand Formation [a vast defensive array harnessing stellar energies] unleashed its full might, and one Nascent Soul Great Power [a supreme expert at the Nascent Soul stage] after another took action, forcing the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon [demonic invaders from beyond this realm] horde to struggle for every inch of ground.

Amidst this brutal and grinding warfare, a full three months passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Eldrin Chen returned from his patrol of the various island chains and received a summons from Magnus the Virtuous. When he arrived at the Grand Hall, he found the assembly already gathered, each face etched with grave solemnity.

Seeing this, Eldrin Chen inquired, "What has happened? Has some great calamity befallen us?"

The gathered True Lord [a title for powerful cultivators] all wore heavy expressions. It was then that Magnus the Virtuous spoke, "Not long ago, a weak point in the Formation [a magical defensive or offensive array] surrounding the Celestial Market Enclosure Archipelago was torn open. Several demonic armies surged through the breach."

"One of them," he continued, his voice low, "is heading directly for our Vermilion Bird Star Palace."

Eldrin Chen's countenance shifted. The Zhou Heavenly Stars Grand Formation [the Grand Array of the Zhou Heavenly Stars] enveloped tens of millions of Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] of land and sky—a peerless Formation unprecedented in all antiquity.

Yet, precisely because the territory it covered was so vast, vulnerabilities were inevitable. For a force of the demons' magnitude, tearing open such weak points was not an insurmountable task.

This was an unavoidable compromise. The world's spiritual energy was finite; without such an expansive domain, it would be impossible to nurture so many high-grade Spirit Island [islands rich in spiritual energy].

The Human Race could only marshal the power of the Formation to defend against the main thrusts of the demonic Clan Lord [a powerful demonic leader] forces. The notion of blocking all the Demonic Monsters [creatures twisted by demonic energy] within the inner perimeter was a fantasy.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen spoke, "The demonic horde seeks to breach our Four Directions Star Palace Archipelago. Once they uproot these Formation Eye [the core nodes that power a grand formation], their main force will surge forth."

Upon hearing this, Lyra Jiang and the others nodded in agreement, clearly understanding the enemy's stratagem.

Should the islands of the Four Directions Star Palaces fall, the power of the Zhou Heavenly Stars Grand Formation [a grand defensive array harnessing stellar energies] would plummet. The demonic legion could then storm the Sun and Moon Twin Islands, shattering the main force of the Human Race into a rout.

Grasping the pivotal nature of the situation, Eldrin Chen declared, "If that is the case, we must issue orders immediately. Mobilize all forces on every Spirit Island [islands rich in spiritual energy] and prepare for battle at a moment's notice."

"All Treasure Ship [massive enchanted vessels used for war and transport] are to enter combat readiness and stand prepared to join the fray."

Not long after, the main host of the Extraterrestrial Demons arrived within the bounds of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace archipelago. Their primary force, to everyone's surprise, directly encircled the territory of Water Chariot Island.

The Water Chariot Island region was defended by only the Verdant Enchantress Palace Master, a cultivator at the Nascent Soul Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm], and three others at the Nascent Soul Late Stage. Their strength was relatively frail, making it unexpected that they would become the specific target of the demonic onslaught.

This demonic legion boasted over a hundred Fifth Rank Treasure Boat [powerful enchanted warships], a force even mightier than that of the Three Veins Ancient Domain. The defenders of Water Chariot Island simply lacked the power to hold their ground.

Under the assault of so many Treasure Ship, the island's defensive Formation [a complex array of magical barriers and traps] began to buckle. In merely three days, a great number of low-ranking cultivators maintaining the formation perished, their life force drained by the formation's violent backlash.

Upon receiving this dire news, Magnus the Virtuous urgently gathered the commanders. "The main force of this Extraterrestrial Demon God legion besieges Water Chariot Island. I fear Ivy the Verdant Enchantress and her defenders cannot hold for long."

"That Water Chariot Island, as one of the twenty-eight Formation Eye [a crucial node that anchors and powers a large-scale formation], must absolutely not be breached easily. Therefore, we must immediately prepare to dispatch troops to reinforce it."

Lyra Jiang's brow furrowed slightly, and she spoke, "If we are to mobilize forces for battle, we must clearly coordinate with the other five domains of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace to act together. Otherwise, sending a lone army would likely result in grievous losses."

"I have already considered this," Magnus the Virtuous shook his head and stated. "The great war has just begun, and I fear the Extraterrestrial Demon God [demonic beings from beyond this world] are feigning an attack in the east while striking in the west."

"I have discussed this with the various Fellow Daoist [a respectful term for fellow cultivators] from the Three Veins Ancient Domain. For this battle, Maris the Sea Steader and I shall go to provide support."

Hearing this, Eldrin Chen felt reassured. Both Magnus the Virtuous and Maris the Sea Steader possessed Pure Yang Spiritual Treasure [powerful artifacts imbued with the pure essence of the sun]. Once they joined forces, they could even hold their own, if briefly, against an opponent at the Primordial Spirit, Early Stage [the initial stage of the Primordial Spirit realm, where a cultivator's spiritual core achieves a higher form of existence].

Although the Extraterrestrial Demon God forces that had reached the Vermilion Bird Star Palace numbered over a hundred Fifth Rank Treasure Boat [massive, fortress-like flying vessels of great power], breaching Water Chariot Island in the face of those two would still be a formidable task. Dive deeper into the Dao at http://www . audio-novel.com.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen said, "Go ahead, Senior. I will channel the power of Star Sun Island to converge upon Water Chariot Island, activating the Vermilion Bird Star Formation [a grand celestial defensive formation] to lend you its strength."

"Then my mind is at ease."

Magnus the Virtuous nodded and departed for Water Chariot Island.

After Magnus the Virtuous had left, Eldrin Chen pondered left and right, a lingering unease prompting him to seek out Lyra Jiang. "Something feels off," he confessed. "What scheme do you think the Extraterrestrial Demon God are plotting?"

Upon hearing this, Lyra Jiang could not help but frown. The twenty-eight Spirit Island of the Star Mansions were all locations of the Formation Eye [the core node of a large-scale defensive or offensive array]. At critical moments, they could activate the Four Directions Star Formation [a powerful stellar defensive array], capable of withstanding attacks from Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator, representing a high stage of cultivation] Demonic Monsters.

According to the conventions of previous years, the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon [powerful demons from beyond this realm] would first focus on uprooting all the subsidiary Fifth Rank Spirit Island and lower-grade Spirit Island. Only after the power of the Four Directions Star Formation had significantly diminished would they then launch a concerted assault on the Star Mansion Formation Eye.

Once a Star Mansion Formation Eye was destroyed, the power of the Four Directions Star Formation would be greatly reduced, further weakening the entire Zhou Heavenly Stars Grand Formation [the overarching celestial defensive formation encompassing the region].

For the Human Race, this strategy bought a significant amount of time. As long as they could hold out until the Extraterrestrial Demon God [the supreme commander of the demonic invasion] could no longer sustain the Celestial Rift, the Extraterrestrial Demon God armies would be forced to retreat if they failed to break through.

Thinking this, Lyra Jiang mused thoughtfully, "If the Extraterrestrial Demon God intended this as a diversionary tactic, then their objective has already failed."

"That is true."

Eldrin Chen nodded in agreement. This time, only Maris the Sea Steader and Senior Harlan had gone to provide support. The forces of the seven Star Mansion Islands of the Vermilion Bird Star Palace remained largely intact. Even if the Heavenly Demons launched an attack now, they had nothing to fear.

At that very moment, the Old Patriarch hurried over, his expression grave and solemn. "News has just arrived," he said with a heavy tone. "Three Fourth Rank Spirit Island in the southern region were attacked simultaneously and have all been overrun."

Eldrin Chen's expression tightened. "How many came?" he asked, unable to hold back the question. Experience the full epic at audio-novel dot com.