Reinforcements

The clay figure standing in the water formation sneered, "We're only stalling for time at best. What are you so smug about? If you get wiped out later and I'm left with half a spirit body, I'll really look like a bloody idiot." The fiery clay figure refused to back down and bellowed, "Why would I be the one wiped out? You're the one who needs to watch out! I'm stronger than you!" Meanwhile, the members of the Mountain Ghost faction were each trying to break out of the Yinyang Formation. For the moment, no one attacked the two avatars; they merely kept their guard up against them. *Buzz, buzz, buzz...* The three-meter-tall A-Yi hammered relentlessly at the barrier with his bone-spurred fists, setting off ripples of light waves. All Under Heaven Is White, Nothing Is Taboo, and the others were all attacking the barrier in their own ways. Without exception, every one of them failed. Only I Am Supreme raised the Water God Seal high in his palm, unleashing a surging torrent of river water in an attempt to douse the fire formation. *Sizzle, sizzle...* Dense steam billowed upward, and the fire formation was instantly extinguished. Chilly river water washed over every teammate trapped in the fire formation, bringing relief and soothing their scorching burns. Robbed of the fire's empowerment, the fiery clay figure's aura plummeted instantly. The water clone, however, burst into laughter. "Just what I needed!" He stomped his foot, swapping water and fire. The water formation took in the river water that flooded past everyone's knees, gaining true, physical water. In midair, the Yinyang Robe continued spewing searing flames, reigniting the fire formation once more. The fiery clay figure let out a breath of relief and gave an eerie, grating cackle. "It's useless. Within ten minutes, no one gets out!" *Ten minutes...* Nothing Is Taboo's expression flickered slightly. In ten minutes, the three orthodox faction teams would undoubtedly have reached the summit. The twenty-two enemies of the Mountain Ghost faction, seeing their attempts prove fruitless and confirming they could not breach the cage, were forced to accept reality with thoroughly grim faces. "Damn it! Damn it!" A Fire Specialist roared in fury, "How does he have so many items? Why does he have so many infuriating items?!" The Yinyang Robe was the cream of the crop among Extraordinaire-grade items, and the Houtu Boots were a Saint-grade item. Although these items could not truly threaten this group of evil classes, creating trouble and stalling for time was more than within their power. And for the evil classes, time was the one thing they were fighting for. They weren't afraid of Yuanshi Tianzun putting his life on the line. In a straight, head-to-head fight, they could slaughter Level 4 Saints. Although Yuanshi Tianzun had displayed combat prowess comparable to a weak Level 4 just now, A-Yi and the others had still dispatched him with ease—without even resorting to items. Yet this guerilla-style tactic of Yuanshi Tianzun using items to tie them down made them deeply uncomfortable. *He actually had a trick like this up his sleeve? Impressive...* Kou Beiyue was secretly delighted, though on the surface he wore a look of burning rage. He let out a furious roar: "You scoundrel! "Don't get cocky! Even if I have to throw away my life, I'll take your dog head!" That roar drew glances from everyone around. *What guts this kid has! He was so quiet earlier, none of us realized he was such a brave young hero.* The chubby guy, A Good Subject Chooses His Master to Slay, shouted loudly, "My boss is right! Kill Yuanshi Tianzun, and the formation will break on its own! Why bother clashing with items? My boss is truly the smart one!" Kou Beiyue's expression froze instantly. At once, the crowd swarmed forward. Led by top powerhouses like Only I Am Supreme and A-Yi, they clashed fiercely with the two clay figures. Among them, several Fire Specialists and Water Ghosts were like fish in water inside the Yinyang Formation, unleashing combat strength that surpassed even the evil classes. In less than a minute, without suffering a single casualty, they shattered both clay figures. *Clatter!* Pieces of clay broke apart and scattered across the ground. Those in the water formation dissolved into silt, while those in the fire formation fractured into dry sand. Just as looks of delight spread across the Mountain Ghost faction's faces, a figure of fire with blurred features stood back up amid the raging blaze, resting hands on hips and laughing wildly: "Surprised, fools? Daddy's back!" The water clone merely gave a chilly, haughty snort toward the enemies without uttering a word. Without wasting a single breath, A-Yi kicked the fiery figure apart, while on the other side, All Under Heaven Is White smashed the water clone's head to pieces with knuckleduster-clad fists. Yet a moment later, both clones reformed again. Only I Am Supreme said in a heavy voice, "Don't waste your energy. Physical strikes are useless against these two clones, and poison won't work either." He paused, then added, "I can only suppress that water clone, but I can't refine it, because their source is that item hovering outside." Speaking of that item, a flicker of longing flashed through Only I Am Supreme's eyes. Such a formidable item that also aligned with his class attributes was a treasure that Water Ghosts and Fire Specialists dreamed of acquiring. Possessing it would elevate one's combat power by a whole tier. *Unkillable?* Nothing Is Taboo and the others frowned. Against ordinary Extraordinaires, the strength of the two clones was indeed formidable, but to the combatants present, it was nowhere near enough. Yet lacking targeted countermeasures, the situation was stuck in a stalemate. Were they really going to be delayed for ten minutes like this? At that moment, the intellectual, refined "My Fate Is Mine, Not Heaven's," her long dark hair falling loose, reached into the roaring flames and scooped out a lance radiating scorching heat, hurling it straight at the fire clone. "Playing with broadswords in front of Guan Yu—wielding an axe before Lu Ban!" The fiery clay figure gave an eerie chuckle, casually swatting at the fiery lance. The flame did not explode. Instead, it passed straight through the fire figure's body, eliciting a muffled grunt. The flames forming its body trembled violently, nearly guttering out. This was a mental attack launched by My Fate Is Mine, Not Heaven's—who called herself Hongwei—and not real fire at all. "Idiot, the phrase is 'wielding an axe before the door of Lu Ban,'" the water clone standing amid the rushing torrent sneered. "Use your head more and don't be reckless. I don't want to end up an idiot." *Just as I thought...* Hongwei's hypothesis was confirmed. She said loudly, "Both of these clones are Yuanshi Tianzun. He split his spirit body in two! Physical means are ineffective, but we can destroy his soul directly. "Also, that fire figure doesn't seem very bright—probably just like a Fire Specialist. Let's take him out first." At those words, everyone's eyes lit up, but two Fire Specialists flared in fury: "Bitch, what's that supposed to mean?!" "If you're looking to die, we don't mind butchering you first!" Standing inside the fire formation, the two Fire Specialists had plenty of confidence. Hongwei said with a smile, "My apologies, my apologies! Please calm down, brothers!" She couldn't be bothered to argue with Fire Specialists. You could engage in petty squabbles with experts of any class, but there was truly no point getting angry at a Fire Specialist. After soothing the Fire Specialists, she opened her inventory and retrieved a smooth, jet-black xun. It had six holes, its surface etched with abstract patterns. "Cover your ears!" Warning the others, Hongwei brought the egg-shaped xun to her lips and began to play. A desolate, gentle melody arose, echoing through the formation of water and fire. Even though they had covered their ears in advance, illusions still sprang up before everyone's eyes. Their emotions rose and fell with the notes—sometimes sorrowful, sometimes agonizing—as past memories rushed forward like a tide. It threw minds into turmoil and dragged willpower into a downward spiral. The water and fire clones clutched their heads, letting out pained low growls. Their consciousness rapidly faded under the song of the xun; once they lost consciousness completely, their souls would perish. The clones were in an elemental state, so covering their ears was useless. They absorbed the full brunt of the xun's effects. Hongwei hadn't used this item outside the temple precisely because everyone had physical bodies then. Her teammates could cover their ears, but Yuanshi Tianzun could too; using it would have hurt her own side far more than the enemy. At that moment, Dropout Fish, who couldn't intervene in spiritual combat, said in a deep voice, "You'd better finish off Yuanshi Tianzun quickly. Zhao Chenghuang and his group are almost at the summit." The spirit walkers of the Mountain Ghost faction looked in shock, discovering that Zhao Chenghuang's team was indeed very close to the mountain peak. According to their own experience, though the distance was short, the maze paths twisted and turned, so they would still need several minutes. The emotion in the chubby guy's eyes receded, turning cold and hollow. Immediately, deep within his gaze, a vortex capable of devouring souls began to churn. He looked "indifferently" at the fire clone, seeing the bizarre array of colors upon it, each color representing an emotion. Among them, the black that symbolized fear was virtually nonexistent, while the red that symbolized rage practically overwhelmed all the other emotions. The chubby guy raised his hand and abruptly clenched his fist, as if snuffing something out, whispering softly: "Extinguish!" At the same time, the remaining five Illusionists made the same gesture, whispering in succession: "Extinguish!" Illusionists could magnify certain emotions in a target, but they could also snuff emotions out. Emotions were an extension of the mind, an extension of the will. Snuffing out emotions was a method of dealing severe damage to the soul. And once all emotions were snuffed out, it was equivalent to death; even if one survived, only a walking corpse remained. The fire clone shuddered, the flames forming its body quivering violently like a candle in the wind, threatening to extinguish at any moment. Seeing this, Kou Beiyue tightened his grip on his dagger, quietly drifting toward the Illusionists. With his strength, ambushing a few physically frail Illusionists wouldn't be an issue. Once he killed the Illusionists, the members of the Mountain Ghost faction certainly wouldn't let him off. *Consider it repaying the debt...* he muttered inwardly. At that very moment, the water clone acted a step ahead, snapping his fingers. *Snap!* With that snap, the slowly rotating Taiji fish paused, then spun in reverse, drawing back the flames and illusory water. Once the elemental powers returned into the robe, it drifted slowly downward. Zhang Yuanqing's physical body appeared below, donning the robe. He couldn't hold out any longer and had proactively dispelled the formation. *Hiss... My head feels like it's being ripped apart. I'll just have to use the consumable from Mute Village...* Zhang Yuanqing pressed one hand against his brow, his temples throbbing with sharp pain, while his other hand retrieved a translucent, carved jade figurine. He stared vigilantly at the enemies inside and outside the temple. Behind him stood Guan Ya, propping up her rifle. As he rubbed the cold jade figurine in his palm, a sudden question flashed through Zhang Yuanqing's mind: *Why did I recall the Yinyang Robe? Why didn't I just use this while the formation was deployed?* The moment that question surfaced, he found the answer. *—Honest Man!* If he said he would use the Yinyang Formation, he would only use the Yinyang Formation, without resorting to other items. The drawback of the Houtu Boots! On the other side, seeing Yuanshi Tianzun recall his item, the spirit walkers of the Mountain Ghost faction were overjoyed. Though it was a pity they hadn't slain the fire clone and crippled his soul, their goal was achieved. Once they claimed the staff, Yuanshi Tianzun would die all the same. Meanwhile, though the three orthodox faction teams were already very close, they clearly wouldn't make it in time to provide support. Only the chubby guy and Hongwei found it somewhat odd: *Where is Yuanshi Tianzun's spirit servant?* It hadn't appeared from beginning to end. "Out of tricks, aren't you? Let's see how you stop us now!" a Witch Doctor sneered. Even as he spoke, no one hesitated. A-Yi, Nothing Is Taboo, All Under Heaven Is White, the chubby guy, Hongwei, and the others either charged into the temple or lunged toward the Mountain God statue, intent on seizing the staff. Zhang Yuanqing showed no panic whatsoever. Instead, he seemed relieved, chuckling: "My help has already arrived!" The moment his words fell, an overwhelming tide of yin energy surged in from outside the temple. A shadowy figure draped in a vibrant red bridal gown drifted in at high speed. A red bridal veil covered her head, and in her arms rested a chubby, adorable infant. Behind her followed a whole contingent of reinforcements. Leading them were Zhao Chenghuang, Sun Miaomiao, and the others. They had arrived. Faster than expected. Although Zhang Yuanqing possessed many trump cards—especially an item capable of mandatory confinement like the Yinyang Robe—he still had to consider what to do if he couldn't hold the line. After all, the Yinyang Formation had weaknesses. Splitting his spirit body in two was the biggest vulnerability, and the enemy camp included Illusionists skilled in mental control and mental attacks. Therefore, Zhang Yuanqing had prepared two contingency plans. Before the battle outside the temple even began, when the Ghost Bride's illusion successfully baited out the enemy's Moving Forest reward item, he had sent the Ghost Bride and Little Doubi into the labyrinth forest to search for Zhao Chenghuang. Little Doubi's Treasure Seeking skill could guide her through the maze to locate Zhao Chenghuang's group. After all, whether yin corpses, items, or even dungeon bosses, in a certain sense, they were all valuable things. Navigating the maze properly involved a winding, tortuous route that took considerable time, because straying from the correct path risked getting lost in the labyrinth. So Zhang Yuanqing had exploited a loophole: leveraging the connection between a spirit servant and her master, he provided Zhao Chenghuang and the others with a coordinate. They only needed to follow the Ghost Bride to take the shortest route, reaching the summit at maximum speed. "They're already here?! That's impossible, they clearly were still a distance away..." Seeing Zhao Chenghuang and the others reach the summit, the faces of everyone in the Mountain Ghost faction changed dramatically. Aside from the emotionless A-Yi, even top-tier experts like Only I Am Supreme and Dropout Fish couldn't help feeling a wave of exhaustion and gloom. A burst of vigor on the first drumroll, waning on the second, and depleted on the third. "Yuanshi Tianzun..." Nothing Is Taboo gritted his teeth and made a split-second decision: "Retreat!" He knew his teammates' mindsets had been shattered. Although they weren't wounded and hadn't suffered physical exhaustion, their morale was gone. Worn down to nothing by that damned Yuanshi Tianzun. Nothing Is Taboo judged that retreating now was the right choice. At worst, they would forfeit the rewards from the Mountain God Temple stage. This dungeon didn't consist solely of the virgin forest. Main Quest Two was to find the Lost City. Their opportunity lay in the Lost City.