Chapter 1605 – Change of Plans

Mu Yao stared at the screen in front of him. On the screen, the Divergent Realm and the Hundred Treasures Realm still won, but the price they paid was very high. The Hundred Treasures Realm army has been cut in half. Only after this sacrifice were the Fireweavers repelled.

And the Fireweavers weren't decimated, they were just forced to retreat! Naturally, what worried Mu Yao the most was the fact that the strength of the large artifacts have been reduced to the lowest level.

In this simulation, the contribution of Zhao Hai's 13 large artifacts was very small due to the Fireweavers' battle formation as well as the artifacts they used. They were able to move around and change their tactics to evade the large artifacts. The impact the 13 artifacts made in the battle wasn't any better than the sword shuttles.

Mu Yao wasn't ignorant about the state of war. He knew from experience that the simulation on the screen wasn't random. The Fireweavers were truly able to accomplish such a feat.

The Fireweavers were defeated so badly mainly because they had been very defensive towards the large artifacts. They didn't expect their left side to be in trouble because they also stationed enough troops on it. Additionally, they always sent patrols to monitor the area, finding nothing. They truly believed that their left wing was safe. So in the end, when the fighting was at its fiercest, they sent their two reserve armies to join the battle. At the same time, the loose formation they arranged has been compressed. This caused their ultimate demise under the Hundred Treasures Realm's large artifacts.

Nevertheless, despite being disastrous, the Fireweavers only lost 80 thousand people. This was different from what Zhao Hai and the others calculated. They expected the Fireweavers to lose more than 100 thousand people.

It can be said that the Fireweavers lost less than half what they estimated. And this was under the surprise attack of the Hundred Treasures Realm. If they had been prepared, their losses wouldn't have been as big.

Mu Yao's expression changed a few times as Zhao Hai put his computer away. He looked at Zhao Hai and said, "Little Hai, can the Fireweavers really utilize such a strategy? Are there formations that are strong enough to stop the charge of large artifacts?"

Zhao Hai nodded, then he waved his hand and took out a formation disk. This formation disk wasn't very big, only having a diameter of a meter. It also didn't include formation flags as a set. It's an independent formation disk, very convenient to use.

Zhao Hai handed the formation disk to Mu Yao and said, "Elder, this is a formation disk I acquired from some of the Fireweavers. Moreover, I interrogated Undead Fireweavers and found out that these are refined by the Spirit Formation Realm to deal with large artifacts. Because their camp has been destroyed by us, the Spirit Formation Realm made these formation disks as a revenge. Using these disks is very simple. They also don't require a lot of resources to make. The Fireweavers are now producing it on a large-scale."

Mu Yao walked back and forth before looking at Zhao Hai and saying, "Can the Fireweavers really achieve the same strategy as in the simulation?"

Zhao Hai smiled bitterly and said, "They might not be able right now, but I'm sure in the future they will. Didn't Elder notice? The Fireweavers are slowly changing their formations. They're now reaching three-dimensional formations."

Mu Yao stared, then he nodded. He participated in the battle, so he noticed the formation of the Fireweavers. He knew that Zhao Hai was right.

But this also made him worried. If what Zhao Hai said was really true, then they would have to be careful in their future battles against the Fireweavers. The large artifacts would no longer be as effective as before.

Although large artifacts were used like tanks, tearing through enemy ranks, its operation environment was different. Tanks fight on the ground where enemies need to face them head on. The enemies of the tanks couldn't fly nor dig through the ground. This allowed tanks to effectively tear through enemy lines.

On the other hand, the enemies of large artifacts were strong cultivators that can fly in the air and swim through the ground. They can move in all directions.

If the Fireweavers really used loose formations, the lethality of the large artifacts would be reduced. The Fireweavers were very likely to adapt this strategy since they had fought with the Hundred Treasures Realm multiple times. The Fireweavers should have noticed that the Hundred Treasure Realm's pattern of attack was disrupting the enemy's army formation and then chase the stragglers down.

This kind of fighting was already well-known. All those who had been defeated by the Hundred Treasures Realm were already thinking about how to break their tactic. Even their allies were formulating countermeasures. By the way things were going, the Fireweavers were bound to find a solution.

Mu Yao looked at Zhao Hai and said, "Is there anything we can do?"

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Our Hundred Treasures Realm isn't strong enough to lose a lot of people. So I still won't allow people to get out of the large artifacts. If the Elder doesn't object, I will give rifles to everyone so that they can survive a drawn-out battle. With the protection of the large artifacts along with the cover of the cannons, we shouldn't lose too many people."

Mu Yao thought about it and then nodded and said, "This is good. But do you have enough rifles?"

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "We have enough. Elder might have forgotten, but I have prepared enough rifles to equip my Undead. Now that the Undead are providing energy to the large artifacts, their rifles are unused. We might as well give it to everyone to use."

Mu Yao nodded and said, "Alright, let's do that. I'll tell everyone. Send the rifles over as soon as you can. This way, they can get used to using them. From what I can see, Hawkins wouldn't wait long before staging another attack against the Fireweavers."

Mu Yu nodded and said, "Those fellows from the Divergent Realm are very excited by the victory. They can't wait to attack the Fireweavers once more. I think they will want to set out soon."

"Little Hai, do you have any way to deal with the formations?" Mu Yao gestured towards the formation disks on the ground.

Zhao Hai shook his head and said, "This formation disk is actually easy to break. We don't need a lot of strength to do so. However, it's a type of formation that immediately takes effect the moment it latches onto its target. Moreover, because they're easy to make, there are a lot of them. Not only can they attach to the large artifacts, they could also attach to the protective shields."

Mu Yao sighed and said, "The foundation of the Five Great Realms truly cannot be underestimated. With these formation disks, the Fireweavers could have a very popular business. Later on, they might manufacture offensive formations on a large scale. If we cannot find means to deal with them, it would be a huge problem."

Zhao Hai nodded, then he thought for a moment and said, "Elder, I will go study them and see if there's a way to break them before they take effect."

Mu Yao nodded and said, "Go. We need to find out as soon as possible. I'm afraid we don't have much time." Zhao Hai and Mu Yu understood what Mu Yao meant. The offense will definitely increase in frequency. There would no longer be any time to do anything else.

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Elder can rest assured. Elder, I will place all of the rifles inside a room and have the Undead lead you there. You can arrange for people to take the rifles and distribute them to everyone. An Undead will also take them below deck to try out the rifles."

Mu Yao nodded and said, "You go get busy. Little Yu, I'll leave the rifles to you. I still need to discuss matters with the other Elders." Mu Yu nodded and then walked out with Zhao Hai.

Zhao Hai returned to his room and immediately went to the Space. He still had the formation disk in his hand. But as soon as he entered the room, the disk vanished. To be honest, the formation disk wasn't really a threat to him. The shields of his large artifacts weren't only used for defense, they could attack as well. As long as the shields were initiated, these formation disks would be eliminated instantly.

The reason he said all those things was so that Mu Yao wouldn't depend on the large artifacts too much. At the same time, he wanted to decrease his merits in this battle. When the large artifacts are less effective, Zhao Hai's contributions would also be less. Although he handed out rifles, it was the cultivators who would participate in the battle. The ones who will get the most credit would be them. With this, people wouldn't feel envy towards Zhao Hai.

The reason Zhao Hai had these thoughts was because of his relationship with Mu Yu. Zhao Hai had a good relationship with Mu Yu. There's just one issue, Mu Yu was the successor that the Elders of the Hundred Treasures Realm specially groomed, but Zhao Hai was stronger than him. Even in the Hundred Treasures Realm, his reputation was beginning to surpass Mu Yu's. And if Prisonheart accepts him as a disciple, then his status would rise up even more. This was something that Zhao Hai didn't want to see.

Mu Yu was a magnanimous person and was devoted to serving the realm. He wanted the realm to progress. Even if Zhao Hai's status soared above him, he wouldn't care. Mu Yu might even be happy for Zhao Hai.

However, although Mu Yu was alright with it, this didn't mean that other people would. Mu Yu was the Mu Faction's future leader. The Mu Faction doesn't only include Mu Yao, Tang Yaoen, Mu Yu, and Tang Jie. The faction had a lot of members. These members were regarding Mu Yu as their hope. If Zhao Hai rises up quickly, then he would affect Mu Yu's prestige. In this case, these people might not be able to accept it.