Chapter 465 Steady Hands
Chapter 465 Steady Hands
What was unique in their combat was that the eight people fought in four distinct groups of two with seamless cooperation, which also then had a good teamwork between the couples.
Wu Long mainly watched as no one was brave enough to approach him, and soon even Hua Ziyan had to chase after people as no one wanted to fight her either.
As she came to his side he nodded with a smile.
"Your technique improved nicely, and you are even able to conjure almost 30 fists at the same time now"
"Hehe, it is all thanks to your teachings and training"
She spoke humbly but was visibly pleased with the praise as he chuckled, giving her a kiss on the forehead.
"Don't minimize your hard work"
"Hehe"
As she closed her eyes for a moment in bliss there was a look of horror in the eyes of the remaining Phoenix Sword Sect members who saw the two sharing a tender moment in the middle of this carnage.
"Hmm, what do you think?"
He then asked as he turned to watch Lian Zhiqiu's 'hidden dagger' and the couple he mentored a little fight.
"Ehm... a little underwhelming?"
Hua Ziyan hesitated in consideration, but still spoke her honest feelings as Wu Long nodded as well, expecting more of them.
If even a third of the enemies launched a well-coordinated attack at once they would have been mowed down without a doubt. And even as they managed to take down a large number of the severely demoralized and disoriented enemies there was still a point when the other side reorganized and Hua Ziyan had to intervene.
"Then again they do lack combat experience which they are getting now... hmm, though I guess we do have to use a more robust method of training after all.
Not to mention that the number of people we would have to train is quite substantial with the Liugwei Escort Agency and the Feng army included"
Wu Long then spoke with determined expression as he seemed to have decided the next course of action.
As they cleaned up the bloodied passage between the two rocks Wu Long retrieved spatial rings of both the Grand Elder and Prime Disciple, the rest handed to him by Xia Jung who thoughtfully collected them for him.
"Heh, it seems this formation has a hard time distinguishing death of a Demonic Beast, it counted their deaths so I guess we're ahead of everyone"
Wu Long chuckled as he observed the formation beneath their feet.
Hua Ziyan shook her head with a wry smile while the eight disciples lightly laughed.
"I will leave this temporary formation in idle state, and the controlling talisman in your hands. Don't wing it, at the first sign of trouble make sure to use it and retreat to safety"
Wu Long then turned to Xia Jung as the barrier around them became pale, letting through the snowflakes again which were stopped by it before.
The latter received the talisman with reverence as he saw what this formation was capable of against even a Grand Elder.
"Also, you all only have three emergency talismans, don't rely heavily on their protection"
Wu Long said as the disciples nodded with a resounding "Understood!!!".
"Wu Long, I remember that when you talked about temporary formations before you said that they could not be active without the formation master nearby..."
"That's true, but have Min'er ever told you about our talk about formations after the Supreme Master Pavilion?"
"Mm"
Hua Ziyan nodded with a curious look in her eyes.
"Then this should be easy to understand.
Since Formations can be enhanced by natural Feng Shui, I have used the natural Formation conjured by this terrain to power this temporary formation and strengthen it"
"Huh? But then wouldn't that mean that this temporary formation is in fact permanent?"
"Not really, as the talismans used for the anchor points are made of paper, even if it a special kind, so they would gradually wear.
And there are no permanent arrays, only Spiritual Qi connections between them which will further decrease how long this Formation can last, but it should still hold for at least two-three days without me here"
Wu Long shook his head with a smile, as she chuckled, saying "and here I thought it would only last for a few hours".
As they talked they soon felt the formation laid out by the Frozen Garden Palace to slightly buzz as the others were all connected. At the same time the tremor they felt earlier was now very distinct.
It meant that the Demonic Beast tide has reached the positions of the hunt parties of the Five Great Sects in the forefront and the kill count began.
"You will soon face the Demonic Beasts. Me and Hua Ziyan will help you deal with the first collision and stay a little to stabilize, but we have to move out after so you will be on your own from then"
He spoke up, as the disciples braced themselves. He intentionally picked out a small number since this would put them into overwhelming odds.
He predicted that there would be many occasions when the situation would be stacked against their side in the future. And subordinates who needed constant looking after were not someone he needed. Instead what he required were people who could pull their own weight and a little more on top.
He gave them everything necessary for them to come out victorious in this situation, it was time for them to use that.
They could soon hear the distant dull noise which rapidly grew louder. And then, as the numerous hard objects clashing with the hard ground began to be distinguishable among the rumbling, they saw distant silhouettes appear at the far side of the distant passages in the blizzard.
The disciples widened their eyes as they saw four-legged beasts about as tall as an average human's chest on all fours, with two glowing eyes on either side of an elongated skull and crystal-like protrusions making it seem like big chunks of ice were growing out of their bodies.
"Look at your opponent closely. What do you see?"
Wu Long said as the disciples watched the beasts close in.
"Their form looks agile and aggressive but not very well protected, designed to overwhelm with attack rather than endure"
Xia Jung reported back as Wu Long nodded with a smile.
"Very good, you can also see what tier each one is quite easily, see if you can spot it"
"...the protrusions on the back, the largest ones seem to increase with each tier, as there are only three out of every one we can see that have four protrusions, and they exude the aura of a 4th-tier Demonic Beast"
Wu Long made another satisfied nod as it seemed their surprise did not overwhelm their senses and thinking.
He deliberately did not disclose the type of Demonic Beast to them as this was in a way a preparation rather than a simple event for them.
The disciples stood in pairs and readied their weapons as Spiritual Qi techniques were activated.
And as soon as the tide streamed into the passage they commenced their attacks.
Hua Ziyan went forward cutting into the tide and lessening the burden of that initial clash as her Spiritual Qi fists crashed the beasts, each only needing one strike to put down.
"Haha, if she improves at this rate there would be hardly anyone in her realm who could take her head-on"
Wu Long chuckled as he looked at her onslaught.
The relatively narrow passage gave the disciples an advantage much like in the earlier fight with the larger force of the Phoenix Sword Sect, and as they were now only worried about one side their defense held strong.
And even though corpses piled up and blood flooded the footing they steadily climbed the pile of corpses to get a better position.
As Wu Long and Hua Ziyan helped them to get used to the continuing tide of Demonic Beasts, they started stabilizing, steadily holding their spot.
After several hours, when he saw that they were dealing with the occasional 4th-tier and sometimes appearing 5th-tier beasts without needing any help, he nodded to Hua Ziyan, and after giving the disciples a sign they both moved forward, Hua Ziyan opening a path for them without any trouble.