The super gu formation deployed in the Shadow-Treading Gully, though destroyed, had at least served as a warning to Fang Yuan and the others.
Right now, the Righteous Path Gu Immortals of the Southern Border were still in pursuit, but there was still some distance between them and this location.
Fang Yuan could have used the Supreme Sky Eagle to flee immediately.
However, after careful consideration, he decided to rehearse the ancient battle formation Four-Pathed Passage, equipping himself with this method ahead of time, as a precaution.
Because as things stood, Fang Yuan's current abilities could not dispel the tracking killer move on his body — meaning his location was perpetually exposed.
While on the run, there was a high likelihood of running head-on into enemies.
Just like moments ago — Fang Yuan's group had encountered the Yi Family's immortal gu house, the Sea Corner Pavilion, while retreating.
Under those circumstances, fleeing on the Supreme Sky Eagle was actually extremely risky.
The Supreme Sky Eagle was not an immortal gu house. The Gu Immortals riding it and the eagle itself were not a unified whole — it lacked the integrated offense and defense that an immortal gu house provided. This meant the Gu Immortals on the eagle's back could easily be targeted by outside forces.
But if he mastered the ancient battle formation Four-Pathed Passage, they could instantly teleport across vast distances and escape danger in the blink of an eye.
Shadowless Evil and the others had possessed precisely this kind of ability — they had even managed to evade pursuit from Heavenly Court. Fang Yuan had failed to catch them time and again, and this ancient battle formation deserved the lion's share of the credit.
Now, Fang Yuan had become the Master of Shadow Sect, and the enemy's advantage had immediately become his own.
Fang Yuan summoned all the Gu Immortals before him and taught the contents of the ancient battle formation to every single one of them.
Among them, Bai Ningbing, Black Loulan, and Shadowless Evil had already mastered this formation-type killer move.
But Fang Yuan, Miaoyin, and Black Rabbit were encountering it for the first time.
No matter how you counted, at most only three of them had mastered Four-Pathed Passage, and of those, Shadowless Evil was in terrible condition — completely unreliable. That was why everyone had to be gathered together to practice in unison.
This type of formation technique required cooperation between Gu Immortals; practicing alone held little meaning.
While Fang Yuan and the others were urgently rehearsing the ancient battle formation, the Righteous Path Gu Immortals of the Southern Border, led by Wu Yong, were marching toward the distant lands in full force.
"Fellow Immortal Wu, based on the intelligence you've gathered, the enemy is very likely in the Shadow-Treading Gully at this moment. We are now not far from the gully — may I ask you to issue orders and coordinate the overall situation?" Chi Quyou said.
He was also an Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal, with cultivation equal to Wu Yong's. By seniority, he was even a contemporary of Wu Duxiu, slightly older than Wu Yong.
But the Wu Family's prestige remained at its peak, while the Chi Family had always settled for a corner of the land, their reputation far inferior to the Wu Family's.
Moreover, the intelligence about Wu Yong that the Iron-Faced God had leaked to the public had truly caused the Gu Immortals of the Southern Border to develop a sense of wariness toward this Supreme Elder of the Wu Family.
Some even felt a trace of fear.
After all, in the past, many Righteous Path forces had made things difficult for the Wu Family, and several had even openly seized the Wu Family's external resource points.
Had they known Wu Yong's combat strength — as well as the Wu Family's fourth Jade Clarity Dripping Wind Bamboo Tower — they would have certainly kept themselves in check and would not have been so brazen.
"The Wu Family has lost many territories. With Wu Yong's strength, he will definitely settle the score once autumn comes."
"After the Shadow Sect remnants are eliminated, I fear the moment Wu Yong makes his move will be soon upon us."
"Sigh! We all misjudged him. This Wu Yong's mind is deep and unfathomable — completely unlike Wu Duxiu. He managed to hide his true nature so well. Looking back now, I suspect this was his plan all along: first feign weakness, then seize the moral high ground, strike back, and reap even greater rewards."
During the march, the Gu Immortals of the Southern Border exchanged whispers among themselves continuously.
A conspiracy theory about Wu Yong quickly rose to prominence.
As for Fang Yuan and the other Shadow Sect remnants — Purple Mountain True Monarch had already perished, and even the Spectral Soul's true body had been captured by Heavenly Court. The only thing capable of catching the eye of the Righteous Path Gu Immortals of the Southern Border was Fang Yuan's Supreme Sky Eagle.
This time, the Southern Border Righteous Path had deployed no fewer than six immortal gu houses. What was there to fear of a single Supreme Sky Eagle?
Shadow-Treading Gully.
"Mm!" Bai Ningbing suddenly let out a soft hum, a flash of pain crossing her face before vanishing.
The rehearsal of Four-Pathed Passage had failed once again.
Bai Ningbing suffered the worst backlash. However, she quickly composed herself.
As Before Gu — an Immortal Gu!
Fang Yuan repeatedly activated this Time-path Immortal Gu to heal himself and the others.
Experiencing the curative effects of As Before once more, a complex emotion flickered in the depths of Black Loulan's eyes.
The As Before Immortal Gu still existed, and she herself had once again found herself on the same side as Fang Yuan. The pity was that Tai Bai Yunsheng had already perished.
And it was Fang Yuan who had killed him with his own hands.
The rehearsal came to a halt.
Fang Yuan used As Before on himself — his injuries were completely healed — and he began to think through and summarize the reasons for their recent failure.
As for the others, they continued recovering.
As Before had been used on them as well, but the effect was far less potent than on Fang Yuan.
The Dao marks on the Supreme Immortal Body did not repel one another. While this afforded Fang Yuan some weakness in defense, it simultaneously granted him exceptional efficacy in healing.
Everyone's injuries were not severe, and with their own True Inheritances being of excellent quality, they all recovered quickly.
"Good. Let's try once more," Fang Yuan called out.
Ancient battle formation — Four-Pathed Passage.
From each person's body, radiance bloomed. The light quickly linked together into one, but then it began to waver, losing its former stability.
Pop.
A soft sound rang out as the light scattered, dissolving into countless tiny motes that drifted through the air like fireflies.
Fairy Miaoyin let out a delicate cry, her face flushed crimson — this time the most serious injuries fell upon her.
Fang Yuan, on the other hand, was largely unscathed, so he activated the As Before Immortal Gu to treat Fairy Miaoyin first.