Hundred Beasts Formation
Lesser Heaven Stage disciples only needed fundamental formation knowledge and how to cast formations using resources. The bonus was being better than others. An example of their level would be the third hexagram Mu Yu tackled, which was the transforming stars’ formation.
Heaven Stage disciples had to also learn to be flexible, such as making the smallest change to switch from one formation to another. This was the level most formation casters reached. The only differences that occurred were when the formation foundation or core was placed in different locations.
Greater Heaven Stage disciples needed to learn all the skills from previous ranks and learn to produce the best formation with minimal resources. They were taught that everything in the world was linked in one way or another. As such, anything could’ve been used as a formation foundation or core. The most proficient among them were in another league when it came to mentality.
The formation tablet in Advancement Hall was designed specifically for Heaven Stage disciples. They commonly failed the advancement exam as they lacked innovation when it came to formation forms; they were too textbook and didn’t have the astute qualities required. The most common mistake was selecting the strongest fiend beasts and trying to out-muscle their foes as opposed to getting creative with their assets.
The enemies that Mu Yu was presented with were the most complete squad. There were the types that moved along the earth, those that swam, were durable, fast, possessed sharp fangs, sturdy claws, sprayed venom and attacked with their voices. Mu Yu’s available selection, in contrast, resembled a group of misfits mashed together at the last moment.
Since there was little information on the enemy, Mu Yu decided it was wise to select one that could tackle the greatest variety of scenarios as opposed to choosing one that excelled in one particularly attribute or context. Ku Mu taught him Hundred Beasts Formation’s selling point was that it could be used to enhance fiend beasts’ strengths, heightening it to an extent where its strengths compensated for its weaknesses.
Back when Mu Yu learnt Hundred Beasts Formation, the stronger fiend beasts pressuring the weaker ones wasn’t accounted for. The dragon vine’s dominance kept all the others subservient. Since it wasn’t with him in the exam, he didn’t have his “cheat”. Nevertheless, it was something to worry about after selecting his fiend beast.
“All righty, strong fellas on this side, big fellas on this side and fast fellas in the centre…”
Fiend beasts with lagging intelligence just spun on the spot, unfortunately, since they couldn’t discern which category they fitted in. Mu Yu had them join the strong ones as they packed a punch despite their low intelligence quotient. There were some that fitted into more than one category, such as level four and five blood spirit birds. In the end, Mu Yu had them join the speed group.
It took Mu Yu four hours to finish categorising them. Because he didn’t know all of their unique traits and attributes, it was a tough job. Qiao Xue would’ve had an easy time if she was in his shoes.
To counteract the level six fiend beasts, Mu Yu grouped up the lowest level fiend beasts so that they had a better chance of survival. The formation he planned to adopt was an attack that would blow their morale. He had to learn about them as he went in order to station them in positions that’d allow them to maximise their potential and mask their weaknesses. The sad news was that it wasn’t easy to command them despite their obedience.
“Small Head Big Ant, in the centre. Yes! Don’t move. Watch Black Armour Turtle’s bum. You go wherever he goes.”
“Sleepy Wolf, shut your eyes again, and I’ll set your tail alight with a fire spirit!”
“Armoured Beast, four steps to the left. I said four, not ten.”
“Hornet, show me your wings. Flap slower or I can’t see them. Slower. Slower. Good. Oi, oi, d-“ Mu Yu palmed his face. “I said flap slow; I didn’t tell you not to flap them.”
Mu Yu prepared several formations to switch to on the fly. There were less than ten level five fiend beasts. Most of them were level three and four. If they were in disarray, the level six fiend beasts were able to bring them to their knees with a howl.
“All right, let’s rehearse. Remember our positions. Small Head Big Ant, how many times it that now? Look at Black Armour Turtle’s butt, not Armoured Beast’s butt. How do you mix up the thick turtle and lanky armoured beast?”
“Okay, good. Fast now. Don’t fall behind. Oi, Sleepy Wolf, move it!”
“Nine Year Spiky Pig, keep your spikes folded when moving. You’ve punctured the face of your ally behind you.”
“Hornet, you can flap faster now. I was just trying to see your body shape before.”
It took a day of rehearsing before they were flowing.
“Friends and buddies, we need to give a war cry every now and then to improve the atmosphere and relax. Sing after me.”
“D-dula duladu,” sang the three small head big ants.
“Damn, that’s ear pollution. Ah, whatever, he’s a hard-working fella.” Mu Yu knocked on Black Armour Turtle’s shield with a tree branch. “Unity is power. One, two, three, sing!”
After the choir sung their war song, everyone was in high spirits and fired up.
“We’re going to floor the level six fiend beast tomorrow. We’ll show ‘em what’s good!”
The fiend beasts cheered in synchrony.
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