In the distance, dark shapes began bouncing toward them. They weren't moving very fast, but their approach carried an oppressive force. As they drew nearer, the Corpse Qi grew thicker. Every now and then, the shapes let out a low growl. As time passed, more and more appeared, and the growls joined into one, deepening the somber mood. Those with lower cultivation among the group had begun to tremble. They watched their surroundings nervously, some looking utterly at a loss.
"Senior Sister Yun Ying, what should we do? Should we fight our way out?" Yao Yu seemed to have seen this kind of situation before. She asked Yun Ying without a hint of concern, looking ready to charge out and slaughter the zombies the moment Yun Ying gave the word.
"No. We have all our junior sisters here. Let's form a sword formation and conserve our strength while we wait." Yun Ying rejected Yao Yu's suggestion, then addressed the junior sisters behind them.
"Yes!"
At her command, everyone summoned their flying swords and formed a circle, then swiftly arranged themselves into a sword formation. Under Yun Ying, Yao Yu, and the others' direction, the formation gradually took on the force of wind and thunder. The women felt a little more at ease and were no longer afraid. They had clearly practiced this sword formation many times and knew it like the backs of their hands.
"Uh, Senior Sister Yun Ying, what about me?" As he watched everyone form the sword formation, Ling Tian was the only one left out. He felt like a chicken standing among cranes.
"Hehe, Ling Tian, you can move freely. With your speed and abilities, you should be fine." Yun Ying giggled, but she wasn't worried about him. She had seen how fast Ling Tian was; if he couldn't win, he could always run.
"Hehe..."
The women all burst into laughter, easing their tension a little.
"Uh, all right." Ling Tian felt both amused and exasperated, but there was nothing he could do.
"Brother Ling Tian, be careful." At that moment, only Hua Min'er offered him a little comfort.
"Mm, I know, Min'er. Don't worry. I set up so many formations—will they come in handy this time?" Ling Tian felt a little warmth in his heart and smiled.
"Formations? Ling Tian, you know formations?" Yun Ying asked in surprised delight.
"Yeah. I set up a lot of them around us." Seeing Yun Ying's astonishment, Ling Tian felt a little smug.
"Oh, then this should make things much easier. Um, how many formations did you set up?" Yun Ying clearly knew how powerful formations could be, but the number mattered a great deal. Hopeful, she asked.
"Oh, only a few hundred." Ling Tian had no idea how astonishing his words were.
"A few hundred? And you say 'only'? You really know how to make a person feel inadequate." Yao Yu chimed in, clearly taken aback.
"Haha, now I can really relax. I thought you'd set up, at most, a dozen or so formations. I never imagined there'd be this many. Ling Tian, you've done us a great service." Yun Ying finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Of course. Who do you think I am? Hehe." Ling Tian grew even smugger, puffing himself up in a way that was very much like his father, Lingyun.
"Tch, so you're not a 'good-for-nothing' after all. I never knew you could do so many things. Seems I underestimated you, little brother. I'm impressed!" Yao Yu was quick to speak and couldn't resist teasing Ling Tian. But there was no malice in her voice when she called him a "good-for-nothing."
"Uh, Senior Sister Yao Yu, I was wrong. I shouldn't have gotten carried away." Ling Tian could tell she meant no harm and was just annoyed by his showing off. Since she was Hua Min'er's senior sister, he couldn't very well take offense, so he quickly admitted his mistake.
"Senior Sister Yao Yu, don't talk about Brother Ling Tian like that. Hmph!" Hua Min'er's little face turned cold as she scolded her.
"All right, all right. You're already taking his side so soon? Sigh, and you're not even married yet." Yao Yu couldn't help teasing her.
"Senior Sister..." Hua Min'er blushed with embarrassment.
"All right, stop fooling around. The zombies have entered the formations. Ling Tian, keep them under control. Junior sisters, stay alert too." Seeing flashes of light in the distance, Yun Ying knew the zombies had entered the formations' range.
"Yes!" Everyone answered, bracing themselves for battle.
The dark shapes in the distance gradually came into focus: stiffly shuffling human corpses—zombies. Their faces were pale, and two sharp fangs protruded from their mouths. Their tangled hair hung loose over their ragged clothes—or perhaps what they wore could no longer be called clothes. A few strips of fabric covered some of their more private parts, and thick black Qi rolled off their bodies. They growled softly as they shuffled forward, the stench of corpses growing stronger with every step.
The zombies drew closer. The first stepped onto the Alert Formation. It flashed, and a streak of white light shot toward Ling Tian. That must have been the Alert Formation's signal. Then more and more zombies came from every direction. At a glance, there were over a hundred.
"Eh? Why aren't the formations doing anything? Ling Tian, don't tell me your formation skills aren't up to par. No wonder you set up so many. I heard formations are incredibly intricate. How could you possibly set up this many in such a short time?" Yao Yu asked, puzzled, then began to doubt Ling Tian.
"Yeah." The others echoed her.
"Hehe, that's the Alert Formation. It's already sent me a signal. These formations don't deal damage. The real killing formations come next." Seeing everyone's doubts, Ling Tian didn't rush. He explained calmly.
Before he had even finished speaking, a zombie stepped forward—and a flash of fire burst beneath its feet. In an instant, its whole body erupted in blazing flames. It howled and struggled with all its might, but after taking a few steps, it began staggering around in circles like a headless fly, unable to escape that spot. Moments later, thick black smoke rose from its body. It fell to the ground and convulsed violently before going still. It was surely dead beyond any doubt.
"Wow, that's powerful! What kind of formation is that?" The crowd marveled, and several couldn't help asking.
"The first one is the Earth Flame Formation. It draws on the earth's fire to kill enemies. The second one is a Confinement Formation, which is why it kept going around in circles without being able to leave that area." Ling Tian was quite pleased with himself as he cheerfully explained the formations.
Before everyone could celebrate, several more zombies stumbled into the formations. Flames rolled across the ground, and the zombies' roars rang out over the land. The sight filled everyone with excitement. Even Yun Ying's dimples appeared as she smiled faintly.
"Wow, they're doing real damage. They've already killed at least ten zombies in no time. But there are too many zombies, and quite a few have already broken through those formations. What do we do now?" Yao Yu was also left wide-eyed. It was her first time seeing the power of formations. But the zombies kept surging forward, and the Confinement and fire formations couldn't hold back so many. Some had already broken through.
Seeing Yao Yu's concern, Ling Tian smiled. "There are more formations behind those. Senior Sister Yao Yu, don't tell me you're afraid of zombies now. That doesn't sound like you."
"Hmph, who said I was afraid? It's just that these zombies are so ugly, and their Corpse Qi is so strong. If I can avoid killing them, of course I will." Yao Yu blushed, but still tried to defend herself.
"Oh, really?" Ling Tian gave her a strange, teasing look. The other women also chuckled.
"Ling Tian, you..." Yao Yu flushed with embarrassment and was about to lash out.
"Eh? Those zombies are sinking into a swamp!" Before Yao Yu could snap at him, Hua Min'er cried out and pointed into the distance.
Everyone followed Hua Min'er's finger. Some zombies seemed to have stepped into a swamp. In moments, they had sunk halfway down their legs. No matter how they struggled, they couldn't get free; they only sank deeper. Soon the mire had swallowed them up to their chests. But that was as far as they sank—they didn't go any lower.
"This formation is good too, but it can't kill the zombies. It can only trap them." Yun Ying nodded slightly as she spoke, looking at Ling Tian for an explanation.
"That's the Mud Puddle Formation. It's mainly meant to trap people. They won't be able to get out, so they're no threat." Ling Tian explained.
"Mm, we'll deal with them later." Yun Ying nodded in understanding.
"Hehe, Brother Ling Tian, so many zombies have already been killed without us even needing to use the other formations. Looks like we won't have to lift a finger this time." The zombies were hideous, and Hua Min'er was happy to avoid fighting them.
"There are still plenty of formations behind those—the Golden Spear Formation, the Illusory Killing Formation, the Wood Binding Formation, the Ice Formation, and so on. We probably won't need to lift a finger." Seeing Hua Min'er's delight, Ling Tian felt that even the backbreaking work of setting up the formations had been worth it.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a roar rang out. It was low, yet carried an astonishing piercing force and oppressive weight. The zombies charging toward the group stopped in confusion, as if questioning the roar. Then the low growl came again, this time sharper and more urgent. At last, the hesitant zombies turned around and slowly retreated. A short while later, they vanished into the night, leaving behind only a dozen charred corpses and the zombies trapped in the mud.
"Uh, th-they ran away?" Ling Tian stared in disbelief, then looked at Yun Ying in confusion.
"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Yun Ying's brows knitted as she sank into thought.
"Should we pursue them?" Hua Min'er looked eager, waiting for Yun Ying to give the order.
Yun Ying didn't answer. She only thought hard, her brows drawing tighter. Helpless, Hua Min'er looked to Yao Yu instead. As the deputy leader, Yao Yu had some say in the matter too.
"I'm afraid this has turned into something serious," Yao Yu murmured, lost in thought, her voice grave.
"What is it, Senior Sister?" Hua Min'er asked, at a loss.
"I never thought these zombies were being controlled by someone—or rather, by another zombie. This really is a troublesome situation." Yun Ying came back to herself and picked up the conversation.
"Controlled? So what?" Hua Min'er was even more confused.
"A zombie capable of controlling other zombies must have formed a Corpse Core at the very least. In other words, it's the equivalent of a Golden Core Realm expert." Yun Ying explained.
"Golden Core Realm? Then aren't we in danger?" Ling Tian had heard his father talk about it. He knew it would be a struggle for him to deal with a Golden Core Realm zombie right now, so he understood just how powerful one could be.
"Not necessarily. This zombie has probably only just formed its Corpse Core, so its cultivation isn't very high. Otherwise, it wouldn't have sent other zombies to test us." Yao Yu had also gathered her thoughts and offered her analysis.
"Mm, that's true. With the six of us at the thirty-layer Qi Solidification Stage or higher, we should be able to handle it. We can also form a sword formation, whose power should be no less than a mid-stage Golden Core Realm expert's. And then there are Ling Tian's formations. I was worrying too much before." Yun Ying's tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed.
"Oh, should we notify our master?" Hua Min'er asked, feeling a little reassured.
Yao Yu looked to Yun Ying for her opinion. When Yun Ying nodded, she replied, "No need. Master sent us out this time to gain experience. A little danger will help us learn even more."
"Oh, that's true." Hua Min'er nodded. She hadn't even had a chance to fight since they left.
"All right, clean up the battlefield," Yun Ying ordered.
"Yes!" Everyone nodded in agreement.
Before you continue