Chapter 168 Sealing the Cave_1 Just as Qian Hong felt he had the situation under control, the Monster Hunters had sealed off the entrance to the tunnel. Rubble piled up to form a wall, Mo Hua drew Formation Patterns on the wall, blocked it with more rubble, then drew the Patterns again, blocked again, and Mo Hua drew yet another time. Inside and out, there were three walls in total, with three sets of Formations. Mo Hua obtained hundreds of Spirit Stones from Elder Yu, crushed them, and channeled the spiritual power into the Formation to activate the Earth-Wood Compound Formation. The Formation Patterns interwoven with earthy grey and light green merged with the rubble, mixing earth and stone together into a formidable barrier. “Will this Formation be able to hold?” Elder Yu was still not at ease. Mo Hua internally felt there was no issue. The Earth Fire Formation used paper as the media and could only be used once, whereas the current Earth-Wood Compound Formation employed earth and stone as the media, which was durable and long-lasting. It would be time-consuming and laborious to break through this Formation. Moreover, it was a First-grade Compound Formation, which should be enough to deal with Qi Refinement Realm Cultivators—unless Foundation Establishment Realm’s Qian Hong and Qian Zhongxuan decided to take action. But without trying, it was difficult to make a definitive conclusion. Thus Mo Hua could only vaguely say, “It should work, I suppose.” At this juncture, Elder Yu did not hesitate, ordering all Cultivators to focus on digging the escape tunnel, leaving the remaining Spirit Stones unmined. It was imperative to complete the escape tunnel before the Qian Family could breach the mines. The Qian Family had also taken note of the Monster Hunters’ activities. Qian Hong sneered, “Just as expected, Yu Changlin has sealed the entrance and is digging a tunnel.” After speaking, he ordered the Qian Family Cultivators to scout. Having investigated, they reported back to Qian Hong that the entrance had been sealed by a wall of earth and stone. Qian Hong was unconcerned; a wall made of dirt and rubble, even if it sealed the entrance, could be broken within two days. However, after the Qian Family Cultivators toiled at the entrance for quite some time, they returned, reporting: “To inform the Family Head, we couldn’t make a dent.” Qian Hong frowned, “What do you mean you couldn’t make a dent?” The disciple looked down and said, “The entrance has been sealed with earth and stone, and we couldn’t budge it…” Qian Hong’s brows furrowed even deeper. Upon hearing this, Qian Zhongxuan was slightly taken aback and felt some joy in the misfortune of others, a hint of a mocking smile playing on his lips. Qian Hong said, “Let me take a look.” Qian Hong approached the sealed entrance and naturally detected the fluctuations of the Formation on the earth and stone. This… has Formation Patterns drawn on it? Qian Hong had a bad premonition and ordered, “Try hitting it.” Several Qian Family Cultivators stepped forward; some used swords, others knives, some struck with bare hands, and some used spells. Although they could chip away at the rubble and make some gaps, the stones would quickly come together as if alive, fusing back together. It was as if the stones grew together like earth and wood, capable of self-repairing. The Qian Family Cultivators struck it again and again, exhausted and panting, yet with little effect. Unable to contain himself any longer, Qian Hong drew his sword and slashed at it. This sword was infused with the power of the Foundation Establishment Stage, and the spiritual power was so condensed, the sword qi sheared off a layer of the rubble. However, Qian Hong was inwardly shocked, “A First-grade Formation Method?” Qian Zhongxuan wasn’t lying? There is actually someone among the Monster Hunters who can draw a First-grade Formation! Qian Hong’s look of surprise was noted by Qian Zhongxuan, who felt deeply satisfied inside. “A Formation with seven patterns, after all, is just so. I’m sure the Family Head will soon be able to break this Formation and capture all these Monster Hunters in one fell swoop!” While Qian Zhongxuan maintained a serious face, there was a slightly sarcastic tone to his words. Qian Hong kept a composed expression but inwardly felt a touch of anger, though he couldn’t refute it. The Formation Master among the Monster Hunters was just an ordinary one, capable of drawing seven patterns. He had said this himself, and to deny it would mean contradicting his own words. Qian Zhongxuan’s ridicule, he had to endure for the time being, planning to settle accounts with him later. The most pressing issue at hand was how to break through the entrance, storm into the mines, kill the group of Monster Hunters, seize the Spirit Stones, and occupy the spiritual mines. Qian Hong was about to take action himself when suddenly Elder Yu’s voice came from above: “We had agreed that those at the Foundation Establishment Stage would not take action, so don’t be shameless.” Qian Hong looked up to see Elder Yu at the only unsealed entrance halfway up the mountainside, looking down at them with a mocking expression. Qian Hong scoffed, “We agreed not to strike against Cultivators, but we said nothing about striking against the mountain and stone.” Elder Yu appeared to smile but not smile, “Then go ahead, I’ll be watching you.” Qian Hong frowned, yet he dared not make a move. If he were to break through the entrance and consume too much spiritual power, there was a real danger that Yu Changlin might launch a sneak attack he couldn’t withstand. If the matter reached the Taoist Court, Yu Changlin could argue that it was the Qian Family’s Foundation Building Cultivators who had struck first. Indeed, if Qian Family Cultivators broke the Monster Hunter’s Formation, it could be considered that the Qian Family had made the first move. Besides, there was Qian Zhongxuan nearby; by acting rashly, he might give him the opportunity to benefit. After hesitating, Qian Hong stopped his actions. “Fine, I’ll stick to the agreement and only let the Qi Refinement Cultivators take action,” he agreed. Yu Changlin breathed a sigh of relief but looked down on Qian Hong even more in his heart: “Then don’t just stand there doing nothing. Scram and make room for your low-level Qi Refinement thugs to try their luck at breaking through this mining tunnel,” he said. Qian Hong gave Elder Yu a venomous look and waved his hand to give a signal. The Qian Family Cultivators stepped forward one by one, attacking the rocks at the tunnel entrance with swords, Martial Dao, and spells. One cultivator exhausted his strength before another took his place. As for the entrance where Yu Changlin appeared, it was impenetrable, and they had no chance of breaking through. Only by creating several more entrances and attacking in unison could they possibly overwhelm the Monster Hunters. Though the Earth-Wood Compound Formation was strong in defense, it still relied on the Spirit Stones to bolster the Formation’s effect with their Spiritual Power. Each time it was damaged, the Spiritual Power would be depleted a bit more. The Qian Family Cultivators, attacking day and night for several days, finally succeeded in breaking through one of the Earth-Wood Compound Formations. Accompanied by a thunderous sound, the first earthen wall, deprived of the Formation’s enhancement, crumbled into rubble. The spirits of the Qian Family Cultivators were lifted, and they showed joy on their faces. But their joy didn’t last long because they found another wall of stone behind the broken one. They tried to chop it, but the earthen Pattern on the wall didn’t budge, evidently protected by another Formation. The Qian Family Cultivators wore faces of despair, and even Qian Hong’s eyelid twitched uncontrollably. He hadn’t anticipated that Yu Changlin would be so ruthless, to construct two stone walls with two sets of Formations. No, it couldn’t be just two… Grinding his teeth, Qian Hong ordered the Qian Family Cultivators to temporarily halt and rest before continuing the assault. At this point, there was no turning back for him. When the Qian Family began their attacks on the mining tunnels, Elder Yu was inside, listening intently. However, to his confusion, he noted that suddenly, there was no more noise from the Qian Family: “Why have they stopped attacking?” he wondered. “They must be too exhausted to continue,” came the response. After a few days, Mo Hua finally confirmed that the First-grade Earth-Wood Formation was difficult for Qi Refinement Cultivators to break through. Especially since Mo Hua had wrapped it with three layers. Elder Yu still didn’t understand, “Why can’t they keep attacking?” he asked. “This is a Compound Formation; after breaking through three layers, it will exhaust them to death!” someone explained. “Compound Formation?” Elder Yu, unacquainted with the term, was puzzled. “It’s a type of Formation that is just a tad more formidable than the First-grade Formation Method,” Mo Hua explained. Elder Yu’s eyes widened, more powerful than a First-grade Formation Method? He then said, “This Formation could hold for a very long time then?” After making a rough estimate, Mo Hua nodded in agreement. If no Foundation Building Cultivator intervened, it could indeed last a very long time. Assuming there is no shortage of food and drink. Elder Yu froze, then felt a deep regret. If he had known how useful Mo Hua’s Formation was, he wouldn’t have rushed to dig the mining tunnel. There were still many unmined Spiritual mines in the tunnel… Which meant many Spirit Stones! Elder Yu, always frugal, showed an expression of pain. Seeing this, Mo Hua came up with a thought, eyes lighting up with an idea: “How about we be merciless? We don’t give them even a sip of soup!” This suggestion struck a chord with Elder Yu, and after pondering for a moment, he nodded, “Indeed, waste should be met with divine punishment!”