Chapter 101: Enormous Willow (1/2)
The layout back in Lu Yun’s sect had fallen dormant after the thousand-year-old willow died, but he’d still been unable to see through or even just get a clear picture of it. The texts of his sect, however, had recorded everything about it in full detail.
As soon as he’d laid eyes on the giant willow tree in the courtyard, the thought occurred to him of replicating the mysterious layout in the world of immortals. With the blueprints from his memories, he immediately got to work.
The manor may be already encircled by the Frolicking Dragon Quintet, but Lu Yun could easily set up a layout within the layout.
……
The unknown layout was inordinately complicated to lay down. Even with Feinie’s help, it’d taken Lu Yun seven days to complete it.
Rumble.
Crack crack crack!
The moment the layout was finished, a tremendous noise rang through the manor. The giant tree that had sprouted from Old Willow’s remains spontaneously puffed into ashes, as did the Frolicking Dragon Quintet and its corresponding formation, the Capsizing Dragon Quintet. The impact had demolished the manor again and left only rubble in its wake.
Ge Long struggled out of the ruins with his head in his hands. If his name hadn’t been written in the Tome of Life and Death, he probably would’ve been killed in the destruction of the grand formation.
“What—what happened, milord?” He gaped at Lu Yun with a lost expression.
The governor waved a dismissive hand. “Nothing. I was just testing the formation.”
Thank goodness he’d sent You Tu and the others to Duskwater City to bolster Mo Yi’s forces, or the ninety-nine soldiers would’ve met an untimely demise just now.
Lu Yun flicked out thirty-six soybeans and summoned golden warriors to rebuild the manor.
“Why did that happen?” He frowned. “Because the layout was within another layout? ...no… not because of that. It’s because the willow tree wasn’t sturdy enough! There must be a stronger one somewhere in Dusk Province.”
……
Northern reaches of Dusk Province.
An earth-shattering roar ripped through the Skandha Range. Every living being froze stock-still and held their breaths.
“Bastard! The Dusk governor destroyed my duplicate! Die, die, die! I want him dead!”
There was a giant, furious willow tree that was tens of thousands of meters tall, its large canopy of dark-violet leaves blotting out the sun. The leaves were exquisitely delicate, like sculpted jade, hanging off branches of the same color.
An enormous human face manifested in the tree trunk and furiously snarled, “Thunderbird!”
A giant bird, dark as night, landed before the willow tree. “Thunderbird is here.”
“Go to Dusk City and bring me the governor’s head.” The human face gradually calmed down and its resonant voice boomed through the entire Skandha Range.
“Understood!” Lightning flashed through Thunderbird’s eyes.
“Wait!” An old turtle ponderously crawled out of a pond. It was enormous at a few meters in radius; the passage of time itself could be found in the marks on its shell.
“Elder Turtle, is there something wrong?” The willow looked at the turtle with deference.
It had been the turtle’s idea to send the willow’s duplicate to Dusk City, so that the Skandha Range could interfere in the ancient lord’s heritage.