Chapter 19: Battle Formation Grass

Qu Yi was overjoyed upon discovering the Five Lantern Fruit Tree and quickly flew over. In no time, he arrived beneath the tree, ready to unleash chaotic energy to snatch the five lantern fruits. Beneath his feet lay a lush green meadow. Sensing his arrival, the grass suddenly stood upright like iron nails and shot out in all directions, aiming at Qu Yi. In an instant, his body was pierced by countless blades of grass, turning him into a straw man. Had his body not been tempered in the primal spirit veins, granting it extraordinary strength, he would have been shattered by those grasses. The chaotic energy within him drove out all the grass. “Instrument God, why didn’t you warn me? I hate you!” Qu Yi shouted angrily. Of course, he knew now that the Instrument God deliberately hadn’t warned him, knowing the grass could harm him, just to tease him. After a while, the Instrument God spoke calmly, smiling, “Qu Yi, these Battle Formation Grasses protect the Five Lantern Fruit Tree. It’s your own carelessness—don’t blame me. Around precious herbs, there are usually strange beasts or peculiar objects. The Wanli mist prevents those beasts from surviving at the bottom of this gorge, so you should have guessed there are other protective elements. Since you didn’t consider this, you can’t blame me.” Hearing this, Qu Yi paused, pressed his lips together, and had no choice but to give up. On the ground, the grass that had just shot out quickly grew back again, each blade like a soldier ready to strike. “Qu Yi, don’t worry. That was the strongest attack from the Battle Formation Grasses. The newly grown ones are 10% less powerful and can no longer harm you,” the Instrument God reminded him. Qu Yi nodded and flew up, swiftly picking the five lantern fruits and placing them inside the Dimension Ball. Now, the most important precious herb in the entire Wanli Gorge was in Qu Yi’s possession. With the five lantern fruits taken, the Battle Formation Grasses on the ground immediately drooped as if defeated. Qu Yi grew interested in them—such spiritually potent herbs were quite rare. “Since the Wanli mist above hasn’t dissipated yet and those adventurers still dare not come down, I’ll use this time to thoroughly search the bottom of the gorge,” Qu Yi announced happily. Immediately, he took off again, his hands moving swiftly as waves of chaotic energy erupted, lifting layers of the ground before sending them all into the Dimension Ball.

In ten days, covering 100,000 kilometers, Qu Yi alone had visited every part of the bottom of the Wanli Gorge and moved everything into the Dimension Ball.
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Above the Wanli Gorge, tens of millions of adventurers were shuttling back and forth. Day after day, the aura of spiritual herbs emanating from the bottom of the gorge grew weaker, with some even disappearing entirely. The adventurers were filled with confusion.
“The aura of spiritual herbs in the Wanli Gorge seems quite ordinary now, no different from those of some Soul Demon-level herbs.”
“I’ve talked to other adventurers, and they’ve observed the same thing—the aura of spiritual herbs has vanished. Something must have happened at the bottom of the gorge.”
“Could it be that some Wanli Mist has reappeared at the bottom of the gorge, masking the emission of those herbs?”
“It can’t be the Wanli Mist. Many Earth Soul Demon-level experts have sensed it and confirmed that the mist is fading rapidly and will disappear soon.”
“That’s strange. Could someone have entered the bottom of the gorge and harvested all the spiritual herbs?”
“That’s impossible. All adventure groups searching for the aura of spiritual herbs are also monitoring other groups. No one has entered the bottom of the gorge. Especially in the central area around the Five-Light Fruit Tree, where there are Earth Soul Demon-level groups—no adventurer can hide from them and enter the bottom of the gorge easily.”
……
All sorts of guesses were circulating among the adventurers, as none of them understood why the aura of spiritual herbs in the Wanli Gorge was fading.
Meanwhile, Qu Yi, controlling the Dimension Ball, had flown out of the Wanli Gorge and reached high altitudes. Inside a cluster of clouds, he emerged from the Dimension Ball and headed straight for the mountain where Jin Zun, Long Hu Wei, and the others were.
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The Wanli Mist had faded and was no longer a threat to the lives of cultivators. At this point, countless adventurers were flying rapidly from various parts of the Wanli Gorge toward its bottom in search of spiritual herbs, mineral veins, treasures, and more. What was once a densely populated area above the gorge now had only a few adventurers left.
Qu Yi returned to the mountain where Jin Zun, Long Hu Wei, and the others were.
“Everyone, I’m back,” Qu Yi said, his voice echoing in the air.
Seeing Qu Yi return, Long Hu Wei and the others greeted him with smiles.
“Brother Qu Yi, you’re finally back!” Long Hu Wei shouted.

At that moment, hundreds of adventurers at the Earth Soul Demon level suddenly appeared around them. Forming a circle, they flew from all directions toward the mountain where Qu Yi and the others were, their presence filled with ferocity and murderous intent.
“Everyone, it seems we’re trapped again. Get ready to fight,” Qu Yi said with a calm smile as he watched the people approaching.
Long Hu Wei’s eyes immediately gleamed as he drew out his Fuhu Sword. By now, the hundreds of Earth Soul Demon-level adventurers had landed and surrounded Qu Yi and the twelve others.
“Long Hu Wei, we’ve let you escape twice. This time, you won’t get away,” shouted a middle-aged man with a gloomy expression.
They declared their intentions right away!
Long Hu Wei scanned the group but didn’t spot any familiar disciples from the Storm Dragon Sect among them. Doubt arose in his mind—he guessed these might be powerful figures from the Storm Dragon Sect who had secretly sent some strong warriors from other planets to stop him here.
“Who sent you?” Long Hu Wei demanded fiercely.
Hahaha!
The hundreds of Earth Soul Demon-level warriors burst into mocking laughter. If they came to assassinate him, why reveal their identities?
“Enough, Long Hu Wei. Here’s your chance. If you commit suicide, we’ll leave your body intact. If we have to kill you, not even a shred of your flesh will remain,” the leader snarled coldly.
Long Hu Wei smiled faintly and then used his Fuhu Sword to release a wave of yellow dust, directing it at the leader.
“Hmph! Refusing the gift and forcing punishment—die!” the leader cried scornfully.
He then drew a blue long sword and waved it lightly, creating a cloud of white mist. The white mist collided with the yellow dust, and the forces of Water Origin and Earth Origin clashed violently before both disappeared quickly.
Seeing this, Qu Yi chuckled softly. “Not bad. You, the leader, have reached the level of a six-star Earth Soul Demon.”
The leader smiled and waved his sword, signaling everyone to attack.
The hundred Earth Soul Demon-level warriors immediately drew their magical weapons—various in type and attribute—their eyes filled with malice as they prepared to attack Qu Yi, Long Hu Wei, and the others.
But at that moment, Qu Yi acted first.
“Battle Formation Grass, come out!” In an instant, he threw all the Battle Formation Grass from the Dimensional Sphere into the surroundings.

As soon as these spirit herbs recently collected by Qu Yi touched the ground, they immediately absorbed the life essence of the surrounding herbs, leaving only the Battle Formation Grass growing on the ground. Meanwhile, the roots of those Battle Formation Grasses were like thorns, arranged in a tactical formation, and in an instant, they all broke off and flew toward the powerful beings at the Earth Soul Demon level above. Seeing the strangeness of these Battle Formation Grasses, those powerful beings immediately grew suspicious and dared not use their magic spells against Qu Yi and the others, instead focusing their defenses on the Battle Formation Grasses. Indeed, when those grasses flew over, their impact force was no less than that of a three-star Earth Soul Demon. Among these hundred Earth Soul Demon-level beings, there were forty below the three-star level. As they tried to form defensive shields with their magic energy, they were shocked to find that the Battle Formation Grasses penetrated the shields entirely and continued to strike their bodies. The number of those Battle Formation Grasses was as numerous as cow hairs. Those forty Earth Soul Demon beings had their entire bodies shattered like sieves, losing all their magic energy. At the same time, more than twenty of the beings at the three-star Earth Soul Demon level and above also failed to withstand the attacks of the Battle Formation Grasses, sustaining severe injuries with blood flowing profusely. “What is this thing? How can it have such devastating power?” The leader shouted angrily upon seeing the losses on his side, his face showing panic. Qu Yi smiled faintly and said, “Why should I tell you?” The leader froze for a moment. At this time, Long Hu Wei looked at Qu Yi excitedly and laughed loudly, “Brother Qu Yi, this treasure you’ve brought out is truly amazing. Great! Let those grasses attack them again and bury them here.” Qu Yi was taken aback. The Battle Formation Grasses weren’t that powerful! However, Qu Yi still had even more formidable treasures. He decided at that moment to reveal some of his skills to capture all of them. The one billion ice bees were still kept in his Dimension Ball. “You guys don’t think that just because you have some strange gadgets, you can defeat us. Today, Long Hu Wei, you must die!” The leader’s anger grew as he shouted loudly. The nearly sixty remaining Earth Soul Demon beings with combat capabilities all showed fierce expressions, glaring at Qu Yi and the others with cruel smiles. Seeing this, Qu Yi laughed heartily and shouted, “Brother Long Hu Wei, let me show you my ultimate weapon to wipe out these bastards.” Suddenly, two mountain-sized ice bees appeared—the queen bee and the queen consort!