Earth's Greatest Magus

The Kux formation expert, Riven, stepped forward and produced a high-tier artifact—a bronze, palm-sized circular disc intricately engraved with multiple layers of rotating shapes and arrows. As he activated the artifact, chains of lightning began to emerge, striking the formation barrier. Though the lightning wasn't particularly strong, it methodically crept along the barrier, probing for weaknesses.

Magus Yord's eyes narrowed as he recognized the artifact's purpose. "That is a formation tool," he said urgently. "Its function is to find the flaws in my formation!"

Emery, having some knowledge of formations himself, understood the gravity of the situation. He knew that, aside from brute force, there were other methods to dismantle a formation: understanding its principles, identifying its flaws, and deconstructing it piece by piece. A master with enough talent could even locate the formation's core—its 'eye'—and seize control.

Riven's artifact was precisely the kind designed to uncover and exploit such weaknesses.

To prevent such a catastrophe, Emery called out to VIA, directing her to bombard the magus with the plasma turrets. The turrets swiveled into position, their barrels glowing with energy as they unleashed a barrage of plasma bolts. However, the four ice rhinos moved into formation, blocking the plasma blasts with their massive, armored bodies. The plasma sizzled against their crystalline hides but failed to penetrate.

A moment later, a small spark appeared on one side of the formation barrier. Magus Riven's eyes gleamed with satisfaction. "I found one," he said with a smile.

Swiftly, the gigantic white tiger, along with the remaining four yellow tigers, converged on the area Riven had targeted. Twik's vines erupted from the ground, attempting to block their advance. The vines twisted and coiled, forming a thick barrier of roots and tendrils, but the tigers were relentless. They slashed and bit at the vines, their claws and teeth tearing through the vegetation with ease.

As everyone focused on the tigers, the Golden King Roc suddenly swooped down from above. Its massive wings beat the air, creating gusts of wind that scattered debris across the battlefield. With a piercing screech, the Roc extended its claws and struck the barrier with immense force.

BOOM!!!

The impact was devastating. One of the twelve remaining stone pillars shattered, sending shockwaves through the entire formation. The barrier's shimmering light flickered, its integrity visibly compromised. Magus Yord, the formation master, was immediately on high alert. His hands moved in a blur as he inscribed new runes and channeled more spirit energy into the formation, trying to stabilize it.

"What are you half-bloods standing around for?! Do something!" Edgar, the Kux noble, shouted, his voice high with anxiety and frustration.

Everyone was currently looking at Emery, waiting for his signal. He could feel the weight of their expectations and the gravity of the situation bearing down on him.

He heaved a sigh, his mind racing with the complexity of their predicament. The fact that he couldn't read the grand magus' ability made it difficult to make a decisive move. He took another moment to consider the situation.

His main priority should be preventing Mo Yan from enslaving Grand Magus Ramos. If Mo Yan succeeded in doing so, having another grand magus on the enemy's side would make their chances of surviving this battle extremely low. Despite Mo Yan appearing vulnerable with his full attention on Ramos, Emery knew it would be foolish to charge at a powerful 2-cosmos magus without proper knowledge of Mo Yan's abilities.

On the other hand, Emery needed to prevent the barrier from breaking. If the barrier failed, it would jeopardize Magus Heorgar's ascension and expose them all to the grand magus's spirit attack. Emery might be able to resist a grand magus-level spirit attack, but he couldn't say the same for the others.

With this in mind, Emery quickly communicated with Magus Yord, the formation master, through their minds.

"Senior, how long can you hold the formation?"

"…not long enough…you need to stop that man!"

"Senior, give me a number, how long can you hold the formation?"

Hearing the man's words, Emery assumed they only had minutes, but the formation master's answer surprised him.

"It depends…."

"Depends on what?!"

"Depends on…how many spirit stones you have? ....You see, I have spent so much on the previous formation…if you have more… that would be very helpful"

"...."

Emery was dumbfounded. During such a critical situation, the formation master was calculating his loss. Emery quickly threw the old sorcerer a bag filled with dozens of red spirit stones worth almost 10 million spirit stones. Seeing this, Magus Yord's expression turned into a smile.

"Alright, this should buy us at least half an hour…"

"..."

Emery threw him another bag filled with several million spirit stones, completely changing the formation master's facial expression. With confidence, he said, "With these, even if they have a few more ancient desolate level beasts, we could still hold for an hour."

"...."

Magus Yord's quick change of attitude was concerning, so Emery asked, "What about that formation expert? Can he break your formation?"

"Him…? Nah, don't worry about him. He is just a noob… just make sure you all stay inside the formation."

With a serene smile, Magus Yord took out more flags, each one intricately designed with ancient symbols, and placed them strategically within the formation. Alongside the flags, he retrieved his palm-sized formation tool, a rectangular stone block etched with an array of runes. With practiced precision, he inserted dozens of red spirit stones into the tool and began chanting softly.

As his incantations filled the air, dozens of runes materialized from the stone block, glowing with ethereal light. With a flick of his wrist, they floated gracefully towards the formation barrier. Not only did they repair the previously damaged pillar, but they also created eight additional stone pillars, their sturdy structures reinforcing the integrity of the barrier.

VIA informed Emery that the formation had just undergone a significant upgrade, ascending from tier 6 to tier 7. The astonishment on everyone's faces was palpable as they witnessed the barrier's newfound strength. Now more robust than ever, shimmered with renewed energy. The minor tremors caused by the attacks of the opposing formation specialist seemed insignificant; the barrier held strong and gleaming.

Outside the barrier, Magus Riven's demeanor shifted to one of grim determination. Desperation evident, he threw his blood onto his formation tool, a desperate attempt to enhance its power. However, Magus Yord, ever vigilant, quickly adapted by rotating the formation's flaws, constantly shifting the weak points to avoid exploitation.

It was a mesmerizing combat of wits between two formation masters: Riven, the rank 6 expert, attacking relentlessly, and Yord, the rank 7 master, defending with unmatched precision and speed. Yord's profound knowledge and complex formations were evident in his swift creation of new runes and seamless adjustments. Emery now fully comprehended Yord's earlier arrogance; his skills were indeed spectacular.

Magus Riven, in spite of his best efforts, continued to fail. Each new tactic he tried was swiftly countered by Yord. The difference in their abilities became painfully clear. Frustration etched across his face, Riven poured more of his essence into the attack, yet the shield remained steadfast.

Seeing this, Mo Yan's expression darkened. "Useless slave!"