Aifei’s sudden change in attitude made him nervous. The implications of the poor defensive formations and the importance placed on his claim to be a formation master weren't anything good. He wondered what dangerous situation he had gotten himself caught up in.

  Ren barely got a glimpse of the camp before he was dragged into a lavish-looking tent. The command tent had three others inside, one of whom he recognized. It was the 2nd place holder of the outer sect tournament, Zhen Bing. The one who had defeated senior Chun Wei with a terrifying icy breath technique. His newly awakened spiritual sense couldn’t let him identify the precise strength of others, but he could tell she was also in the early foundation establishment realm. Only she felt more stable and solid…?

  If she had broken through immediately after the tournament, then she must have advanced two or three layers in a period of just one year, which was remarkable progress. A prodigy of the illustrious Zhen family, this much was expected, but Ren was still impressed by how stable her cultivation was despite such a rapid advance.

  While he was looking around the tent, Aifei had approached Lady Bing and was reporting to her. It made sense. She must be second in command and leader of the camp in the absence of Lady Li Xing. She was now looking at him, so Ren swiftly bowed and waited.

  “I recall you from the tournament. Chun Wei had been interested in you. So you are a formations user?”

  "Yes, Senior.” Ren kept his words to a minimum. But he felt if Senior Chun Wei knew her, then she was someone worth trusting.

  “We have need of your services. As you probably saw on the way in, the formation guarding this camp is damaged. It was given to Senior Li Xing by her master to protect our sect’s juniors. It is a matter of some urgency to repair it. What do you say?”

  Ren could read between the lines. The camp was under a threat of some kind, and the urgency implied another attack was forthcoming. If they were relying on him, then they can’t have too many options. If he accepted, he would be taking up a huge risk, but he also didn’t see any real chance to refuse. A little resigned, he moved on. The pre-made formation could be patched, but he needed to know more.

  “I saw some places that I could mend, but I would need to inspect the formation to truly know what I can fix. Also, what materials may I use?”

  “Very well, you’ll have your chance. Aifei can guide you. But know this: if you mess around and waste my time, you’ll have to bear the consequences.”

  She flicked her hand in dismissal, and Ren bowed before following Aifei out. She had already shed her serious demeanor and returned to her cheery self. Ren was amazed by how easily she switched personalities.

  “So we have around 50 disciples gathered here, and everybody provides some assistance to the camp in exchange for the shelter. We have a decent stockpile of materials, but you should know that there isn’t a large variety in attributes. You can let me know which you need.”

  “Thank you, Senior. But I should take a look at the formation first to know what needs to be fixed before selecting materials.”

  “Oh, that makes sense. Let’s go!”

  As they neared the gate, he saw Bao Hua and Mei Ling waiting with curiosity and a little apprehension. He took a few moments to reassure them before heading out. His spiritual sense stretched out a little to identify the flow of qi through the formation. He walked around the whole camp observing the fractured formation.

  He made notes on what should be fixed first. Where he could get twice the results for half the effort. The urgency Zhen Bing had mentioned became more obvious to him as he realized with dread that the damage to the formation wasn’t done by the natives of the subspace realm. This was the result of sentient knowledge of formation and malicious intent.

  The implications grew the budding sense of dread even more as he realized that if only ally sects had been invited, then were they being betrayed, or had another unknown party snuck in? The subspace was dangerous enough and filled with mysterious phenomena. Add in a rival faction with ill intent, and Ren knew he needed to fix the formation fast.

  With half a plan in mind, he went with Aifei, who had looked on silently, to get some help from the other disciples. Refining raw materials into useable forms could be done by anybody skilled in alchemy or any number of other disciplines that required proficient qi manipulation.

  Zhao Ren had requisitioned materials and aid to patch up the formation as soon as possible. Zhen Bing had allowed him full access after he had explained his reasoning and sent a few disciples to assist him. After giving them their assignments, he had begun fixing the worst of the fractures in the formation.

  The next 2 days were spent in a frantic rush, with even lofty Lady Zhen Bing assisting in refining ingredients. The air in the camp was noticeably grim. Everyone had picked up on the looming threat and was doing their best to prepare in any way they could. Mei Ling had been assisting in the medical tent. There were many injured, and each one healed meant another hand to help defend the camp. Bao Hua went patrolling with two other disciples, and Ren hadn’t seen him since.

  The camp didn’t have any defensive walls, but a few trees had been cut down to clear the field and laid down as cover. The array had minor illusory properties, but it mainly focused on keeping away spirit beasts and a qi shield that could be activated. Ren ignored the illusions because it would be easy to see through and was just a waste of energy. There were large mid-grade spirit stones powering the formation, but if it was hit with persistent attacks, then there was a risk of it being drained.

  Ren had just finished the first round of fixes addressing the most critical points when patrols started returning, often injured. News quickly spread that it was the Hidden Sea Sect that had attacked the camp previously, and they were gearing up for another offensive. Even senior Li Xing had returned with her elite team along with more rescued disciples, much to everyone’s relief. If it came to a battle, then having a few elites would make a huge difference.

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  By the fourth day, Ren was doing his best to ignore the growing concern for his friend who hadn’t returned yet. His work was almost done. The formation was at 70% functionality, and further repairs would take twice the effort for half the result. He didn’t have the right materials, and for some sections, he just didn’t know how to approach without causing more damage.

  He went to report it to the camp command and found Senior Li Xing discussing the patrol reports. They paused to hear him out.

  “You’ve done well, but we are out of time anyway. The attack should begin sometime tomorrow. Go rest now. I shall address the camp soon.” She dismissed him with no additional reward. Nor did Ren expect any. His entry tax had already been forgiven, and handling the formation itself had been a precious experience.

  Later that evening everyone gathered to hear Li Xing’s announcement.

  “Our foes are the Hidden Sea Sect. We don’t know what their goal is, but they have been behaving erratically from the start. We suspect that demonic cultivators have infiltrated them and are working for some unknown objective.”

  “Our duty remains the same. We shall defend ourselves. They are already lacking numbers, and once this second attack fails, they will be too weak to try again. Then you can continue exploring this realm to find glory and wealth. So do your best to endure tomorrow and bring honor to the Heavenly Sword Sect!”

  There was some cheering, but most were still apprehensive. Ren met up with Mei Ling to discuss their plan for tomorrow. Bao Hua still hadn’t returned, and they feared for him. They made plans to watch each other’s back and, after the battle, go looking for their companion.

  “Watch out tomorrow, Ren. I think they are downplaying the danger the enemy poses. Why do you think so few people knew about the first attack? I’ve been healing the few survivors, and they all said the Hidden Sea Sect cultivators were stronger than they should be for their realm and completely bloodthirsty, without regard for their own lives.”

  Demonic cultivators followed unorthodox methods with which they gained a lot of power very quickly. Those methods often involved sacrificing others, stealing cultivation, refining human pills, and other such vicious methods. Naturally, going against the heavens so blatantly had consequences. They experienced harsher tribulations when breaking through, had unstable cultivation, and often succumbed to heart devils or cultivation deviation. It was hard to believe those maniacs accepted such deadly consequences willingly!

  After a fitful night's rest, Ren woke and went with Mei Ling to the edge of the camp to their assigned post. His status as a valued formation user meant he had been assigned one of the more favorable posts. Aifei would lead his team, and Lady Zhen Bing would take their flank. The elites would provide shade for their juniors, but nothing was guaranteed in the heat of battle.

  As they waited, the last of the patrols returned, bringing back word of an imminent attack. Bao Hua was one of them, carrying one of his teammates on his back. Ren felt relief wash over him to see his friend safe, but it was quickly tempered by the news. None of them would really be safe until the battle was over.

  After a few moments of heart-pounding waiting, a cry went out on one side. The enemy cultivators had arrived. Menacing laughter echoed from one of the cultivators. Ren recognized him from Hu Yan’s report on the talents of the other sects, Dachuan. This one was a late-stage foundation establishment realm and equivalent to a core sect disciple. All of a sudden Ren was glad his team wasn’t facing that guy as opponents. Then he felt guilty for thinking that way.

  ‘That’s not how a cultivator should think!’ He berated himself.

  In front of his team, a group of demonic cultivators appeared. They didn’t make a move yet, seemingly waiting for something. The signal came in the form of an attack. What looked like a tidal wave of blood appeared and crashed against the formation's defenses. Cracks appeared instantly as the formation faltered under the impressive attack. The others also started to launch attacks, with blood being a common theme.

  Ren realized what was happening. These demonic cultivators were using blood attribute attacks, and this damn subspace was empowering them! A look at Aifei made it clear that this was unexpected. Ren cursed. If the enemy had kept this as a hidden ace and still dealt such damage during their first attack, the camp was in trouble.

  The disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect didn’t stand around and launched their own attacks. Ren had already set up a temporary wind razor formation around himself and started launching blades of wind. It afforded him time to look around at how the others were doing. He finally saw for himself the devastating power of the inner sect disciples.

  Aifei was throwing out flames shaped like swords that had already slain two. At the side, Zhen Bing wielded a flying sword with fluid grace. They were like cranes in a flock of chickens. Attacks clashed in impressive displays of power. The formation was draining rapidly under the onslaught, but it had given them a little advantage while it lasted. It just wasn’t as much as they had hoped.

  The enemy cultivators gathered at the weakest points of the formation and directed their attacks. Ren couldn’t afford to see how the other sections of the camp were doing anymore, and he focused on surviving. With a sound like shattering glass, the formation broke.

  Immediately there were casualties. Mei Ling, who was weak at long range, chose to act as a medic and help their sect mates. Ren picked one opponent and started throwing attacks at him. Their side of the camp was doing surprisingly well, and their enemy’s numbers were already dwindling. Just then, they were reinforced by a team led by Dachuan!

  Panicked, Ren looked around to see where Senior Li Xing was only to see her fighting another wearing similar robes as Dachuan! There was another core sect-level enemy. His attention was dragged back as the demonic cultivators approached to fight in close quarters.

  In the chaotic melee, he had no idea what was going on. He could barely react in time, and his sword skills were put to the test just to survive. He caught glimpses of the field around him, but he couldn’t spare his focus. Beside him a fellow disciple fell to a blade. Aifei frantically dueling Dachuan. Mei Ling standing above the fallen disciples, protecting them.

  The tide was turning against them when reinforcements arrived. It wasn’t Li Xing but the other elites. The pressure lessened but only a little. His own opponent had a crazy smile on his face as his heavy blows caused Ren’s arm to throb painfully. Seeing that he would lose if he stayed defensive, Ren sacrificed his array to land an empowered blow that distracted the man just enough that Ren could follow up with a punch to his face, his cold iron fist technique showing its worth again. The chained attacks disrupted his opponent's flow and allowed Ren to pierce his chest with his sword. He never lost the manic grin even as he slumped to the ground.

  He had a scant few breaths to recover when he saw Dachuan breaking past Aifei’s guard. Without hesitation, he leaped to try and protect her. Almost subconsciously he created a seed of intent focused solely on saving her. He didn’t even realize what he had done until he felt the seed instantaneously bloom into a roaring flame. But the new connection lasted for just a breath as Dachuan shot a stream of blood that pierced right through her heart. The flame extinguished. The newly formed thread snapped, and something inside Ren ached.