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Chapter 416: Confronting the Enemy
Chapter 416: Confronting the Enemy
With this idea in mind, Chu Ning could no longer contain his excitement. He quickly began to sort through the items in the cold-faced Nascent Soul cultivator's storage bag once more.
When he was searching for the Yellow Wind Banner earlier, Chu Ning had already taken a cursory glance at the contents of the man's storage bag.
At this moment, aside from spirit stones, materials, and other treasures, several black bottles adorned with intricate talisman patterns caught his attention.
"If I'm not mistaken, these are the type of bottles often used by demonic cultivator sects to seal evil spirits. And such high-quality items also have another important use—they can be employed to seal Nascent Souls."
Thinking about how he frequently engaged in battles with Nascent Soul cultivators, and that it wasn't always necessary to annihilate them, Chu Ning realized that these bottles could be quite useful to him.
After organizing everything in the storage bag, Chu Ning took out the Snow Crystal Rejuvenation Elixir and consumed it, refining and replenishing the spiritual energy he had expended earlier.
Then, he picked up the Yellow Wind Banner and began to study the talisman patterns and formations inscribed upon it.
In fact, during his previous analysis of the talisman source, Chu Ning had already gained a certain level of understanding of these eighteen talisman patterns.
However, without putting them into practice, his understanding wasn't yet profound.
Now that he had a direction to apply them, Chu Ning found it much easier to comprehend their intricacies.
He started by analyzing the talisman patterns and formations preserved on the Yellow Wind Banner through the method of deciphering the talisman source.
This process brought him no small amount of surprise.
"The talisman patterns and formations on this banner aren't actually that badly damaged. It's just that the damage happens to be in a rather crucial part, causing a significant loss of spiritual harmony, rendering the entire banner unusable.
Moreover, judging from the talisman patterns and formations on this banner, it should be a dual-attribute wind and earth treasure. It's not merely an imitation that utilizes only earth attribute like the one used by that cold-faced cultivator."
With this newfound understanding, Chu Ning began to meticulously perfect the formations at the back of the banner using the eighteen talisman patterns.
As he worked, his understanding of the eighteen talisman patterns deepened.
Although they were referred to as eighteen talisman patterns, Chu Ning felt that they encompassed an endless array of heavenly principles and laws.
Time ticked by slowly, and in front of Chu Ning was a stack of talisman papers, recording the results of his deductions each step of the way.
Half a month later...
"Finally done!"
Chu Ning looked at the several talisman papers in front of him, his eyes gleaming.
The deduction of the talisman patterns and formations on the banner had gone much faster than he had anticipated.
Just as he had discovered earlier, the damage to the formations and talisman patterns on the Yellow Wind Banner was far less extensive than imagined.
Consequently, the time he spent on it was also much less than he had expected.
After carefully reviewing the talisman patterns and formations recorded on the talisman papers, Chu Ning was finally confident that he had fully comprehended the complete formation inscribed on the banner.
Chu Ning casually picked up the banner, his eyes shining.
"If it were an ordinary cultivator, even if they knew how the talisman patterns should be inscribed, they wouldn't be able to restore this ancient treasure. Perhaps a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator could do it, but an ordinary mid or early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator would definitely be incapable.
Because their Nascent Soul fire simply wouldn't be able to re-consecrate this ancient treasure."
As Chu Ning thought of this, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly.
"I possess the Earth Vein Essence Fire. Although it isn't ranked very high among the heavenly spiritual fires, this Earth Vein Essence Fire is the most suitable heavenly spiritual fire for pill refining and artifact crafting.
Even if this banner is an ancient treasure, I believe that if I use my Nascent Soul fire in conjunction with the Earth Vein Essence Fire, I should be able to consecrate it without any issues."
With these thoughts in mind, Chu Ning cultivated the Refining God Technique to restore the spiritual sense he had expended during his deductions, and then prepared to take action.
Just then, a hurried voice suddenly rang out.
"Elder Chu, we've discovered cultivators from the Demon Path Alliance! Elder Qin requests your presence to discuss strategies for repelling the enemy."
Hearing this shout, Chu Ning's eyebrows twitched slightly.
He casually swept his sleeves, storing all his belongings into his storage bag, and then stepped out of the quiet room.
Outside, a Golden Core cultivator from the Tianyu Pavilion stood with a worried expression.
Upon seeing Chu Ning, the cultivator immediately bowed and said, "Elder Chu, Elder Qin requests your presence at the mountain gate. The other Nascent Soul elders have already headed there."
Hearing this, Chu Ning nodded slightly.
With a flicker of his figure, he vanished from his original spot.
At the mountain gate of the Tianyu Pavilion, Chu Ning arrived through flight. Qin Yangzi and Wu Changdong were already there, their faces grave.
Chu Ning's gaze penetrated through the mountain gate, looking into the distance, while his spiritual sense spread out to sense the surroundings.
The next moment, his expression turned even more solemn.
"Eight Nascent Soul cultivators, including two mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators.
Together with the three Nascent Soul cultivators we've already lost, that's over ten Nascent Soul cultivators.
The Demon Path Alliance is truly bold to launch such a large-scale attack. Don't they fear that the Heavenly Extreme Alliance will take advantage of their absence?"
After Chu Ning's words, Wu Changdong's face turned slightly green as he spoke up, "The two factions must have reached some sort of tacit understanding. Although most of their cultivators remain to deal with each other's attacks, the news from Yunxiao City a few days ago indicates that the Heavenly Extreme Alliance has been biding their time recently.
Perhaps both sides are planning to launch an attack on our alliance in the next day or two.
But the conflict between the two factions isn't far from Yunxiao City, and the sect master and the others dare not leave Yunxiao City unattended. They're worried that the two factions might suddenly join forces to attack Yunxiao City."
Just then, he noticed two figures flying towards them.
"There are a few friends who arrived a couple of days ago," Wu Changdong said. "We didn't introduce them to you, Chu Ning, as you've been in seclusion."
As they spoke, the two figures reached the valley entrance.
Chu Ning recognized them both. One was Lu Yuezhang from Guiyuan Zong, and the other was Shi Tianjing, the early Nascent Soul cultivator from Haoyuan Zong whom he had met in Yunxiao City.
"So it's Fellow Daoists Lu and Shi," Chu Ning said, cupping his hands in greeting.
Lu Yuezhang returned the gesture. "Fellow Daoist Chu, we've heard about your heroic deeds during these past few days while you were in seclusion."
As the group exchanged greetings, Qin Yangzi's face remained creased with worry as he eyed the approaching Demon Path Alliance cultivators, who were now within a hundred li of their location.
"Fellow Daoists, I have already activated the sect's defensive formation," Qin Yangzi said. "However, with eight Nascent Soul cultivators on the opposing side, I'm afraid our formation won't be able to withstand their attack if we simply defend. We need to take the initiative and engage them. But with six Nascent Soul cultivators on our side, if we each tie down one of them, the remaining two might break the formation. And if they don't break the formation but instead join forces to attack the others..."
Hearing this, Wu Changdong turned to Lu Yuezhang. "Fellow Daoist Lu, it seems we have no choice but to try and hold down one of them ourselves."
"Very well," Lu Yuezhang replied solemnly, his face grim.
Although both he and Wu Changdong were powerful, the task of engaging a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator while also holding off an early Nascent Soul cultivator was not going to be easy.
"In that case, let's go out and meet the enemy," Wu Changdong said.
"This formation is our fallback option, so it's best to avoid causing too much damage to it during the initial confrontation," he added.
With that, the six Nascent Soul cultivators, along with numerous Golden Core and Foundation Establishment cultivators, flew out towards the formation's perimeter.
The two Golden Core cultivators from Baihong Zong had recovered from their injuries, and Lu Yuezhang had brought over a dozen Golden Core cultivators with him as well.
Combined with the Golden Core cultivators from Tianyu Ge, their side actually had a numerical advantage at this level of cultivation.
Suddenly, Chu Ning spoke up. "Fellow Daoists, I sense that among those eight, there is one early Nascent Soul cultivator whose aura is slightly weaker than the others. How about we leave him to me? If I can defeat him quickly, I may be able to relieve some pressure from you."
Hearing this, Wu Changdong, who was about to fly out with the others, looked at Chu Ning with a puzzled expression. He had been planning to assign Chu Ning to face the strongest early Nascent Soul cultivator among the Demon Path Alliance.
But now, seeing Chu Ning's current state, Wu Changdong was taken aback.
Chu Ning was clearly not exuding the aura of a Nascent Soul cultivator, but rather that of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator at the pinnacle of his power.
While it was not uncommon for high-level cultivators to conceal their aura, Wu Changdong knew that such deception was often seen through by cultivators of the same stage or higher, especially at close range and when there was intent to probe.
Yet, at this moment, the aura Chu Ning was projecting felt undeniably like that of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator.
If Wu Changdong hadn't known for a fact that Chu Ning was a Nascent Soul cultivator, he wouldn't have had the slightest doubt.
The other Nascent Soul cultivators also noticed Chu Ning's unusual state, and their faces reflected their surprise.
"I can temporarily suppress my cultivation base," Chu Ning explained. "Although it won't last long, and the other party may detect it after I use spells. But if I time it right, I might have a chance to land a fatal blow."
Although Chu Ning had not fully revealed his talent for concealing his spiritual body, his words sparked excitement among the group.
Even at the pinnacle of the late Golden Core stage, there was still a noticeable gap between a cultivator at that level and a Nascent Soul cultivator.
Even they, if unaware of Chu Ning's true cultivation base, would not immediately go all out when facing a late Golden Core cultivator.
With Chu Ning's powerful abilities, this presented a perfect opportunity for a decisive strike.
Thus, the group readily agreed to Chu Ning's plan.
The Demon Path Alliance arrived swiftly, and in less than half a quarter of an hour, their massive force was upon them.
At this point, all words were superfluous.
"Kill!"
A voice, thick with murderous intent, rang out from the Demon Path Alliance's formation, and eight Nascent Soul cultivators surged forward.
On the Yunxiao Alliance's side, the Nascent Soul cultivators also rushed out to meet them.
As for the rest of the cultivators, they held back, knowing that their role would come later, or they would simply be cannon fodder.
Chu Ning's target was a forty-something-year-old man in purple robes. This man had the weakest aura among the eight Nascent Soul cultivators from the Demon Path Alliance.
The purple-robed man was initially surprised to see a late Golden Core cultivator flying towards him, but his surprise quickly turned to a mix of hidden joy and disdain. He immediately flew forward to engage Chu Ning.
(End of Chapter)
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