678 Hidden Rules
Wang Wei and the group looked at the towering mountain with a castle at the top. It was a world of white due to the snow, and they observed only one road from the bottom to the top.
“This thing is a nightmare to conquer,” said Tie Gang. “There is only one path, and our troops would be decimated before reaching the top. Even with the Undying Legion, we would suffer terrible losses before we reach the castle.”
“It’s a double-layer formation,” added Yan Liling. “The outer formation covers the mountain, while the inner layer protects the castle. Both are Immortal Tier, if not more.”
“I’m guessing the Array Virus will not work for these formations?” asked Li Jun.
pAnDa (nov)e1 “No,” replied Wang Ju.
“With the formation, it’s virtually impossible to dig secret tunnels to reach the top,” Li Jun added. “We cannot use blockade tactics since they are likely self-sufficient with a small world full of resources.
“We do not know the effect the low temperature will have on our soldiers, and given this stupid game, there will definitely be consequences.”
Everyone looked at the map, shaking their head. Without all the restrictions, they would have way more options to conquer this mountain. But as of now, it was impenetrable.
“The best tactic would be to lure them out,” added Tie Gang. “But I doubt the enemy is so stupid. So far, the Sloth King seems a rather careful individual by his actions, and he might not even be in the base.”
“The conclusion is we might be able to conquer this place, but the damage to our troops would be catastrophic. So, it’s not worth it,” concluded Li Jun before looking at Wang Wei. “What do you think?”
“I don’t care about the Sloth King. However, If I can get my hands on this base, my understanding of Order-Disorder Dao would benefit immensely.”
“Do you want to take the risk? The price we will have to use to retrain these troops is not worth the benefit. I’m sure you can find another way to comprehend the laws from this game.” Li Jun spent too much time with these men and did not want to die needlessly.
“We don’t have to lose much. We will use their rules against them,” replied Wang Wei before explaining his tactic.
“That might work, but you must deal with the formations.”
“Leave it to Liling and me.”
Li Jun quickly mobilized the troops and divided them into many groups before sending them back to the previous cities they had conquered. Meanwhile, Wang Wei and Yan Liling sat cross-legged before the mountain entrance, analyzing this Immortal Formation.
The process went smoothly with Wang Wei at the helm. Although his main body stopped studying professions, his other incarnations had plenty of time and took any chance they had to practice. So, he only had to absorb their knowledge and experience.
Two weeks later, the preparations finished. Wang Wei and Yan Liling activated the Array Flags they planted around the mountain to counter the formation. Then, Li Jun and Tie Gang led the troops.
Surrounding the two legions were two different groups: Fang Lijun’s men and a group of mortal devils. With the threat of starving their loved ones, these devils had no choice but to follow orders.
The group then used them as leverage. If the enemy fired on them, they would hit the mortals and be penalized by the rules.
As expected, no one fired on the troops as they slowly marched up the mountain toward the castle. On the way up, Wang Wei and Yan Liling will continue to lay flags in different spots.
“Damn it,” said the Castle Captain with gritted teeth as he watched the enemy’s tactic. With this method, he could not use wide-scale attacks through the soldiers or the mountain formation. He could not even use an avalanche as a tactic.
“Archers, shoot the people in the middle,” he ordered, and his troops responded. Unfortunately, Li Jun’s troops were also elite and countered these attacks with their own arrows. Furthermore, they used Fang Lijun’s men as shields when necessary.
After marching a quarter up the mountain, Li Jun already noticed his man’s stamina deteriorated at a faster rate than before, most likely because of the snow. So, he ordered them to stop and set up camp.
A group of archers will be on guard before switching to another. Yan Liling set up a formation of her own to protect the group and give them time to rest. She also ensured the devil mortal had proper heating; the last thing the group needed was for any of these people to die because of them.
Inside the castle:
The captain knelt while talking to a floating mirror.
“I guess I should have expected such cruel tactics from the Myriad Emperor people.”
“Master, do you want to attack? We are willing to bear the consequences.”
“No, Heavenly Dao is on our side because we care and protect the people to the best of our ability. Doing this is counterproductive to our purpose,” disagreed Sloth.
“But, at this rate, they would soon reach the castle. I doubt the formation is enough to stop them.”
“I know, so you guys need to use Tactic 15. I will give you authority for the base.”
The captain was momentarily shocked, “As you wish.” Sloth took one last look at his castle before ending the communication; he went to report to Wrath.
The group slowly marched up the mountain for three days until they reached the castle.
“Have you noticed?” said Tie Gang, looking at the castle ahead.
“Yes, their attacks have not been as constant as the first day,” nodded Li Jun, who looked at the other two set-up flags. A few hours later, the formation opened, and Li Jun broke the gate with one spear.
As he led his soldiers inside, he quickly noticed an anomaly: too few soldiers were in this place.
The devil troops looked at the invaders with hatred. Then, with unbridled passion and determination, the leading general yelled: “Glory to the devil race! Curse the humans.” He crushed a talisman that immediately led to countless runes appearing above the castle.
“As expected, they want to blow up the castle to kill us with it,” said Yan Liling, who calmly activated the flags they placed all over the place, taking control of the castle’s formation and annulling the devil’s attempt.
Li Jun led his men to kill the remaining devil soldiers while Wang Ju went to check the castle. Everything disappeared, leaving little to nothing of value. However, they discovered the central hub of the base, which was a mirror.
“According to the game rule, we can use the base’s power after conquering it,” stated Wang Wei as he looked at the mirror.
“However, if they destroyed it as planned, we would have nothing.”
“What can this mirror do?” asked Li Jun.
“I can monitor the entire Sloth Territory and use teleportation once a day.”
“That’s it.”
“What do you expect?” said Tie Gang. “The entire point is to restrict us.”
“That’s more than enough,” commented Wang Wei. “Use the mirror to get the 100 million troops quota. I’m going to use this place to retreat.”
Wang Wei used the main room of the castle for his retreat. He connected to this base, comprehending the Order-Disorder Laws that Heavenly Dao used to create this base or the concept behind this base’s existence.
The process was smooth and fast because he essentially had a teacher teaching about this particular law. As such, a few days later, after using his Spirit Particles and 360 Future Buddha Self, he learned something new: how to add hidden rules and restrictions using Order and Disorder Dao.
“Quite the fruitful retreat,” muttered Wang Wei as he opened his eyes. “Now, time to find out what the devil race is planning.”
As he walked out, he saw Wang Ju waiting for him. “How is the situation?”
“Li Jun fulfilled his quota.”
“Oh,” said Wang Wei as he checked his entrance token, and she was correct. “I knew I could count on him.”
“Do you want us to exit the game and leave one soldier for you?”
“No need for that,” replied Wang Wei before mobilizing his Order Dao. After using a technique, the title above his head suddenly changed to [Neutral King]. He could now travel anywhere in this territory, but the restriction is he could not attack anyone–unless counter-attacking.
“As you expected of you, young master.”
“Oh my, since when were you so complimentary?”
“Isn’t it you who said it would help my career to sometimes slip some compliment to the boss? I remember your exact words were to be discrete and not make it look like you’re a sycophant.”
“Hahaha, I did say that, didn’t I? Well, who would reject compliments?” replied Wang Wei as he looked into the sky. “Tell Li Jun he can send the troops home, but don’t leave it. I feel something big is going to happen.”
“Something big? What do you mean?”
“Just a feeling.” Wang Wei then flew away. With his new status, he still could not teleport, but he did not need to with his speed.