Chapter 1509: Chapter 586 Decapitation Tactics_2 Chapter 1509: Chapter 586 Decapitation Tactics_2 At the start of the war, after a thousand years of recuperation, the various powers could perhaps muster three hundred “Five Qi Towards Primordial” cultivators to construct a formation.

For decades, the number of cultivators in the Changqing Domain had diminished by at least a hundred and fifty thousand due to the war.

In the face of such a reduction of elites, the current battlefield, with the exception of Taiping Dao still adhering to an elite strategy,
Sects like the Jiuzhou Immortal Sect and the Changqing Immortal Sect had already begun to lower their recruitment standards, drafting a great number of cultivators in the first or second phase of cohesion and seeking victory through sheer numbers.

Under these circumstances, sects had no choice but to employ a strategy of using a few elites in conjunction with a multitude of cannon fodder in order to meet the demands of sustaining each Earth Immortal formation.

Like the united front of Su, Dongxu, and Dongyu Countries against the Changqing Immortal Sect, it was with three thousand elites paired with more than four times cannon fodder, totaling sixteen thousand individuals, that a defensive line was established.

So many people were needed just to barely construct and maintain the operation of an Earth Immortal formation.

Compared to the start of the war when it took only three to five thousand people to sustain a large formation, the difference was incalculable.

It was evident to what extent the quality of Changqing Immortal Sect’s soldiers had declined and been diluted.

And if the quality of the soldiers at the vanguard was already like this,
Then it wasn’t hard to imagine what the four thousand disciples protected behind the lines at Changqing Mountain might be like.

It could only be worse, certainly not better than the front line.

With four thousand disciples of even poorer quality, it would be a struggle not just to keep a Heavenly Immortal Array operational, but even an Earth Immortal formation.

With so few and such poor quality, were they to be placed on the front line, it’s estimated they would barely fill the inside of a formation, covering half a small country.

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Lu Yuan estimated that they could sustain an Earth Immortal formation on Changqing Mountain, considering the mountain’s powerful protective formation, which might indeed be extraordinary and capable of unleashing formidable power with only a few disciples.

He estimated generously, aiming high for a possible outcome.

Otherwise, by common reasoning, these four thousand people would only amount to the standard of a Human Immortal Array, and an average one at that.

The above details the very foundational requirements necessary to establish and operate a large formation.

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Beyond maintaining the operation of a formation, there are even higher pursuits to aim for.

That is to equip the formation with a custodian for each main Formation Core.

Take the Earth Immortal formation of the opposing Changqing Immortal Sect for example.

Within the formation of the Changqing Immortal Sect in Su, Dongxu, and Dongyu Countries, a Human Immortal was placed at the Formation Core of each country to coordinate the operations of the formations.

These Human Immortals responsible for the Formation Cores could gather the power of the formations of a whole country unto themselves, temporarily enhancing their own strength, with the potential to ascend up to the level of an Earth Immortal.

This is also where those Earth Immortals of the formations come from.

However, these formation Earth Immortals, while possessing the strength of an Earthly Immortal Realm, lacked the corresponding level of cultivation and couldn’t fully harness that power, marking them as the flimsiest of the flimsy.

Even an Avatar like Qing Guanzi could easily handle three to five at once, illustrating just how insignificant these formation Earth Immortals really were.

But despite the subpar caliber of these formation Earth Immortals, the strength they gained was undeniably real.

However inferior an Earth Immortal might be, they were still an Earth Immortal.

Three formation Earth Immortals together could confront the weakest Earth Immortal like Qing Guanzi, which somewhat justified the reputation of the Earth Immortal array.

Hence, every sect that could afford it would make arrangements for a Human Immortal to oversee each Formation Core.

Like those on the other side.

Even now, as the Changqing Immortal Sect found itself in dire straits and short-handed, on the two battlefields facing Taiping Dao and the United Army of the Nine Provinces, the Earth Immortal formations on the very frontline still each had a Human Immortal assigned to their Formation Cores.

This demonstrates their emphasis on the custodians of the Cores.

However, these Earth Immortal formations equipped with Human Immortal custodians at the Formation Cores were still not the complete form of an Earth Immortal array.

After ensuring the functioning of the basic elements of the formation and coordination of the Cores, the centerpiece was yet to come.

That would be the true custodian of an Earth Immortal formation.

To unleash the greatest power of an Earth Immortal formation, ordinary Human Immortals simply do not possess the capability.

They lack the necessary level of cultivation and magic power to fully wield and channel the might of the whole formation.

Those Human Immortals overseeing the Formation Cores can at best perform as formation Earth Immortals.

To the average cultivator, it might appear impressive, but in the eyes of a true Earth Immortal, it’s just a joke.

To fully utilize the power of an Earth Immortal formation, at the very least it needs to be overseen by an Earth Immortal to achieve this.

Like the opposing Zhang Xiuzhu, who was merely an early-stage Earth Immortal, at most lingering in this realm for a longer period and slightly more experienced.

His actual strength still revolved within this level.

Under normal circumstances, he would stand no chance against three early-stage Earth Immortals, even against the likes of Qing Guanzi at an early stage; a draw would be rather good already.

But sheltered within the Earth Immortal formation, bolstered by the power of the formation, Zhang Xiuzhu, originally only at the early stage of Earth Immortal, instantly ascended a level in strength, displaying the capacity of a mid-stage Earth Immortal.

And he was not just any mid-stage Earth Immortal; his strength was decently ranked.

In this situation, three ordinary early-stage Earth Immortals entering the formation to challenge the opponent, lacking a small realm, would stand absolutely no chance.

Even factoring in Lu Yuan, a mid-stage Earth Immortal cultivator, bringing along two Avatars within the great formation, they would at most manage self-preservation, merely holding their ground for a draw.