Yu Hong was extremely frightened because he found signs of the collapse of the Great Sword Formation, and it had reached the point where it had to be stopped.

If it wasn’t stopped, the formation could only hold on for a few more days before irreversible collapse occurred. Even if the senior who set up the formation appeared, they wouldn’t be able to save the Mountain-Protecting Great Sword Formation.

Once the sword formation stopped, the enemy’s attacks would directly fall on the cultivators of the sect. Yu Hong was caught in a dilemma. After a while, he called the other elders and said, “The Great Sword Formation is no longer working. If it continues to operate, the Mountain-Protecting Sword Formation will completely collapse. What should we do?”

Mu Hengyuan said, “Yes, I also noticed that the formation can’t hold on any longer. The core is damaged, and even though our counterattack wasn’t the strongest, it still caused significant damage to the Great Sword Formation. If we continue, collapse is inevitable.”

Mo Chentian looked up at the sky and said, “I wonder if this attack can kill a few opponents… If we can kill one or two of them, even if we stop the formation, we can still handle it.”

Mu Xiaoyin said, “Instead of waiting for a few more days for the formation to collapse, it’s better to stop it now. We must face them anyway!”

Yu Hong nodded and said, “Yes, a few more days won’t make much difference.”

“I agree to stop the formation. What do you all think?”

Yu Hong said solemnly. He knew very well that if they stopped the formation, there would still be a chance to repair it. If they didn’t stop it, the formation would be completely useless. The most terrifying thing was that the formation was built on the Nine Peaks. Once the formation collapsed, the Nine Peaks would collapse as well, destroying everything.

Mu Xiaoyin immediately said, “I also agree! Close the formation!”

Mu Hengyuan hesitated for a moment and said, “I agree too. Close the formation!”

As the sect leader, Mo Chentian made the final decision and said, “Alright, let’s close it. When I issue the sect leader’s order, everyone should prepare for battle! Get ready to fight the enemy!”

Mo Chentian crushed a large red jade pendant in his hand, and a sound wave instantly spread.

The sect leader’s order echoed in the ears of all the cultivators, with only four words: “Prepare for battle!”

Mi Xiaojing also heard it. At first, he thought it was Wang Weijun speaking, but then he noticed that Luo Bo and the others had strange expressions. Wei Fu even said, “Who is talking in my ear… What does ‘prepare for battle’ mean?”

Mu Xiaoyin understood. Even though she wasn’t a cultivator, she grew up in the sect and knew more than Wei Fu and the others. She said, “It should be the sect leader’s order, which all the cultivators in the sect can hear!”

Luo Bo said, “I heard it too!”

Zhang Ke nodded and said, “Yes, I heard it too.”

Mao Tou and Da Zhu vigorously nodded, indicating that they also heard it. Only Mu Xiaoyin felt a bit disappointed because she didn’t hear any sound at all. She was the only one here who wasn’t a cultivator.

Mi Xiaojing became nervous. What did this mean? Prepare for battle? Who are they fighting against? Could it be that people from the Vast Gold Sect have invaded? Now he also knew that the sect’s enemy was the Vast Gold Sect. Of course, he had no animosity towards the Vast Gold Sect. The sect he used to be in was destroyed by the Heart Sect, so he wouldn’t have any sympathy if the Heart Sect was destroyed.

But one thing was certain, once the sect was destroyed, the enemy wouldn’t know who you were or whether you had any grudges or love for the sect. They would kill you on sight. So Mi Xiaojing became nervous.

The Heart Sect was already on high alert, and any slight movement would startle everyone. When the sect leader’s order was issued, the entire Heart Sect began to panic.

The problem was that the Great Sword Formation couldn’t be activated or deactivated at will. There were many steps involved, and each guardian of the formation needed to perform a series of magical techniques and incantations to effectively close the formation.

Yu Hong said, “Mu Junior Brother, you command the closing of the formation. I must go out and see…”

Everyone understood that they had to go out and see because they didn’t know what preparations the enemy had made. Even if they closed the formation, it didn’t mean they would surrender.

Yu Hong flew out of the formation directly, and Mu Hengyuan began to give orders to systematically close the Great Sword Formation.

Since all the cultivators above the Foundation Establishment stage were busy, there was no one to control the lower-level cultivators. Chaos immediately ensued, with fights breaking out between each other and those with grudges taking the opportunity to kill each other. Some lower-level cultivators even started looting.

The entire sect was in chaos.

Mi Xiaojing said, “Let’s defend our home!”

Zhang Ke said, “Let’s go to the backyard. There’s still some spiritual qi there, and the restrictions in the backyard are stronger, able to withstand general attacks.”

Mi Xiaojing said, “Alright, let’s go to the backyard!”

The group of them ran towards the backyard.The Gathering Spring Villa was Yu Hong’s private residence, beautifully constructed with its own Gathering Spirit Array, three spiritual springs, and a seclusion prohibition. Although the prohibition was not strong, it could prevent Foundation Establishment cultivators from intruding. If a Foundation Establishment cultivator tried to force their way in, it would alert the people in the backyard.

Previously, when the large array was activated for attack, the spiritual Qi of the entire villa was drained. However, due to the gushing of the spiritual springs, the Qi recovered quickly. In such a short time, the Qi in the backyard had become dense. Although it had not reached the level of liquefaction, it was much stronger than the outside.

If spiritual Qi were green plants, then the outside was now a desert, with the Qi almost completely drained. It would be impossible to recover without a few dozen days.

The area near the main peak of the sect was still calm, but the Nine Peaks region was in complete chaos. There were many estates and some markets under the Nine Peaks. The sect was like a super-large city, of course, with more trees than people, and mostly estates scattered within.

Low-level cultivators were actually quite frustrated. They lacked resources, cultivation methods, connections, and everything else. If they couldn’t find opportunities on their own, falling behind would be inevitable. Usually, the sect kept order, and no one dared to cause trouble. But now, with the sect in trouble and most of the Foundation Establishment cultivators absent, many low-level cultivators became active.

Among them, the number of masked robbers was simply too high. It was common to see groups of low-level cultivators, three to five in a group, daring to rob with a piece of black cloth covering their faces. They would rob people, shops, and estates, as long as they encountered someone weaker than themselves, they would go straight up and rob.

Some smarter low-level cultivators would choose their targets and locations for robbery, while some brainless and bold low-level cultivators had no scruples at all. They would rob whatever they caught, even robbing markets, or even estates under the main peak. (To be continued.)