Library of Heaven's Path

"This…" Zhang Xuan's lips twitched.

After reaching the Transcendent Mortal realm, it was already extremely difficult for a cultivator to die from falling from great heights. Considering how the fatty was no weaker than Luo Xuanqing, there was no way he would have any trouble falling from such a height.

However… to be able to destroy a spatial seal set up by Luo Xuanqing in midair and still create such a huge depression beneath him, that was already a force far greater than smashing a mountain right upon one's head! Zhang Xuan could not help but think what would have happened if he had been in that fatty's place. Would he have died from the impact?

That would have been a rather hilarious situation.

Before Zhang Xuan could remain shocked for long, a plump silhouette rose up from the huge depression and shook his body. The dust that he was cloaked in fell from his clothes, and shockingly, he was completely unharmed!

It was as if the person who had just fallen to the ground was not him but someone else.

Zhang Xuan was astonished. What incredible defensive ability!

After cultivating his Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body to its limits, his physical body was already on par with Saint intermediate-tier artifacts. However, if he had fallen with the momentum that the fatty did earlier, his organs would have ruptured from the impact of the fall. Even if he did not die, his health bar would at least have depleted by half.

This meant, in terms of physical body resilience, the fatty had already reached a level far beyond his!

That was truly frightening!

"Who's this lad? I have never seen him before."

After shaking off the dust on him, the fatty took a look at Zhang Xuan, and his lips cracked into a smile.

"Sealed on the spot, and it seems like there's something wrong with his body as well. Did this lad offend you somehow? Do you need me to crush him for you with my bottom? Well, it'll be his honor to die beneath my bottom…"

Black lines streaked across Zhang Xuan's face.

Did this fatty have the same hobby as Golden Origin Cauldron—sitting on others?

Fearing that the fatty would really do as he had said, Luo Xuanqing quickly waved his hand and explained, "He's a person whom I have specially invited here to assist us!"

"You specially invited him over?"

Looks of disbelief surfaced on the faces of the fatty and the shorty.

They knew Luo Xuanqing's personality very well—a proud and condescending person, a troublemaker who refused to submit to anyone. For such a person to engage the help of a twenty-year-old lad who was only at Leaving Aperture realm primary stage… just what was the background of this lad?

"Indeed." Luo Xuanqing nodded. Just as he was about to begin on his introduction, he noticed that the surroundings had, at some point, been shrouded with a light mist.

Following which, an entrancing melody sounded.

"A melody of sorrow to mark the passing of the beautiful years of youth, replaced by tears upon one's robe. I have kept you waiting…"

The voice was fleeting, sounding as if it was a whisper in one's ears or a resonation within one's soul. It carried a quality that seemed to hook one in, compelling one's emotions to sway along with it.

Grave looks surfaced on the faces of Luo Xuanqing, the fatty, and the shorty, and they drove their zhenqi to the point where white smoke was rising from their heads, seemingly desperate to keep out the attack of the voice.

Demonic tune! Zhang Xuan noted in alarm.

Even though the effects of demonic tunes were not as pronounced on him since he cultivated the Heaven's Path zhenqi, the slightest carelessness could still end with him being placed in a trance, resulting in the breeding of inner demons.

For the time being, he already had enough inner demon subordinates.

Sensing that the offense of the voice was growing more and more intense, Luo Xuanqing harrumphed coldly in displeasure. "Bi Hongyin, it has been long since we last met, but it seems like your means are still the same as ever!"

"Oh? Why don't you give it a try to see if they are still the same then?"

The tone of the voice abruptly changed to take on a more seductive edge. At the same time, the mist in the area seemed to intensify, and apparitions seemed to flash in the air, playing on the deepest fear within one's heart, making it difficult for one to focus one's attention.

"Sure, give it your best shot! Do you think that I'll be afraid of you?" Luo Xuanqing stepped forward and stomped on the ground. A resounding boom reminiscent of a drumbeat reverberated in the surroundings.

A blinding burst of zhenqi erupted from Luo Xuanqing, making it hard for one to open one's eyes before him.

With the diffusion of the light, the mist was forced to dissipate considerably. After which, Luo Xuanqing scanned his surroundings with keen eyes, and a moment later, he abruptly grabbed at the space ahead of him.

A massive palm print immediately appeared in the sky, covering more than ten mu. Immense energy coiled endlessly around his body. In that moment, it felt as if the space of the sky above had been frozen in place, threatening to collapse at any moment.

"Your control over space is superb. I didn't think that you would have made such huge progress since the last time we met."

The demonic tune seemed to have grown a little weaker, a sign that the demonic tunist had suffered a setback in the previous clash.

"Of course. How could I possibly be the only one who remained stagnant?" Luo Xuanqing retracted his palm and returned to Zhang Xuan's side.

Tzzzzzz!

The mist in the distance began to gather, and a tall, slender figure slowly materialized before everyone's eyes.

It was an extremely beautiful young lady. Her slim figure paired with her tall stature gave her a type of unique elegance, and this was especially accentuated by her pair of beautiful legs. In terms of height, she was even taller than Zhang Xuan.

After cultivating the Heaven's Path Golden Body, Zhang Xuan's skin had not only become smoother than a baby's, his height had also risen to 1.8 meters. At that height, he could already be considered one of the taller ones among the males in the Master Teacher Continent. It was truly rare to see a lady whose height was even above his.

"Since everyone is here, allow me to make the introductions." As the young lady walked over, Luo Xuanqing took a look around him before getting straight to the topic at hand. "Zhang Xuan here is a freshman who enrolled into the Sanctum of Sages just a day ago. We met for the first time yesterday."

"Luo Xuanqing, why did you bring a freshman over here?"

"It's not as if you don't know the strength of the freshman. He'll drag us down if you bring him there as well!"

"That place is extremely dangerous! What are you thinking, bringing a Leaving Aperture realm primary stage cultivator there? Wait a moment… If his surname is Zhang, could he be from the Zhang Clan? No, that's not right. You have always hated those from the Zhang Clan, so how could you be willing to work with them?"

…

Upon hearing that the person whom Luo Xuanqing had brought over was only a freshman, the trio frowned in displeasure.

It was no wonder they would react in such a way. They were all Saint 7-dan experts, and yet, Luo Xuanqing actually brought a mere Saint 5-dan primary stage cultivator over. This course of action was clearly detrimental to the success of the mission that they were about to undertake.

"Don't underestimate Zhang shi. He might be young, but he's an incredibly talented formation master. The speed that he can construct formations at is unmatched by anyone that I know of. In fact, even 8-star pinnacle formation masters might not necessarily be a match for him!" Luo Xuanqing explained.

Even though he was rather displeased that the young man had insulted his sister yesterday, that did not hinder the awe he felt for the young man's talent in formations. To be able to construct a grade-8 formation that he had never seen before, albeit the most basic one, in just several breaths… With this young man with them, their chances of success would be increased manyfold!

Formations? Zhang Xuan finally understood what was going on.

He had thought that Luo Xuanqing had brought him over because the latter had found out about the relationship between him and Luo Ruoxin, but it was apparent to him now that he was mistaken.

Most likely, Luo Xuanqing required some help concerning formations for some kind of mission or trial, and recalling his incredible ability in setting up formations, Luo Xuanqing chose to specially invite him over.

Yes, specially invite him over!

"You are telling us that a Leaving Aperture realm primary stage cultivator is able to set up a formation faster than a grade-8 pinnacle formation master? Are your eyes playing tricks on you?" The shorty frowned doubtfully, clearly not believing Luo Xuanqing's words at all.

The other two also shot looks of skepticism toward Luo Xuanqing and Zhang Xuan.

It was not without reason that formations masters had strict cultivation requirements on one's promotion. Without sufficient strength, it would be impossible for one to set up a certain formation.

Considering how Zhang Xuan was only at Leaving Aperture realm primary stage, it was hard for them to take Luo Xuanqing's assessment of the other party seriously.

"Do you all think that I'm lying?" Luo Xuanqing clearly looked at little displeased. "I took the 8-star formation master examination with him, and back then, before I could even finish browsing through the formation blueprint, he had successfully set up the formation. If not for that, do you think that I would go through so much trouble to invite him here?"

"He had set up the formation before you could even finish browsing through the formation blueprint?"

The trio was taken aback for a moment before the disbelief on their faces deepened.

As a cultivator's cultivation advanced, their Primordial Spirit would gradually grow stronger, which would in turn further the prowess of their Spiritual Perception. As Saint 7-dan experts, as long as the content was not too profound, they would be able to memorize most cultivation techniques and secret arts with a sweeping glance.

Yet, for the young man to successfully set up the formation before Luo Xuanqing was done browsing through the formation blueprint… it was a little hard for them to conceptualize just how fast that was.

The tall lady, Bi Hongyin, casually pulled her hair behind her ear as she suggested with a smile, "I happen to be quite proficient in formations, too, so why don't I assess him?"

Hu!

Before Zhang Xuan could even say a word, his surroundings suddenly blurred, and the seal that Luo Xuanqing had placed around him vanished without a trace. He could tell in an instant that he was standing in the midst of a formation activated from a formation plate.

His surroundings were pitch-black, and a sinister wind whistled in the area. There was a powerful mental pressure weighing down on his mind, attempting to inflict him with a splitting headache.

It seems like that Bi Hongyin lady has achieved quite a deep understanding of formations as well, Zhang Xuan thought.

Thinking back, the appearance of the mist around them as soon as she appeared was likely to be the doing of some kind of formidable formation plate as well. It would be hard to produce such an effect otherwise.

To be able to activate a formation plate instantaneously and trap all of them, it meant that Bi Hongyin's comprehension of formations had already reached 8-star at the very minimum.

"Bi Hongyin, what are you up to?" Not expecting the tall lady to make a move on Zhang Xuan all of a sudden, Luo Xuanqing was enraged. He was just about to step forward to stop her when he suddenly felt a tug on his hand pulling him back.

"Don't worry, she won't go overboard… Just let her give it a try, otherwise it'll be hard for us to entrust our safety to him later on."

The person who had just spoken was the fatty.

Clearly, he also harbored some reservations toward the ability of the freshman. Thus, he hoped to see what the latter was capable of through Bi Hongyin's move.

"This…" Luo Xuanqing hesitated for a moment before grumbling reluctantly in agreement. "Fine then!"

Those who were gathered there were his close friends. While none of them were willing to submit to the other, they were very conscientious individuals, and they would never hurt others for no good reason.

"Luo Xuanqing says that you are highly skilled in the field of formations. This is the formation plate that I had an 8-star high-tier master teacher craft for me, and if you can break out of it within four hours, I'll acknowledge your skills and allow you to come along with us."

Unaware of the happenings outside, Zhang Xuan swiftly heard a voice from within the formation.

Acknowledge my skills and allow me to come along with you all? Zhang Xuan shook his head helplessly.

He was in the midst of attending a social event to interact with the other students of the Elite Division when he was suddenly dragged off by Luo Xuanqing. It was one thing for Luo Xuanqing to not explain anything to him, but before he knew it, they were suddenly trying to assess his skills. This bewildering turn of events really left him feeling deeply stifled.

Does it look like I'm really all that interested in joining your group?

But after taking in a deep breath and calming down, he thought through his circumstances once more, and the fact that Luo Xuanqing had invited him over showed that the latter acknowledged his skills. Since that was the case, if he could prove himself worthy this time around, he might just be able to win the goodwill of his future brother-in-law.

As troublesome as it would be, for the sake of Luo Ruoxin, he would just have to do it!

Flaws!

Having made up his mind, Zhang Xuan immediately leaped into action. A book materialized in the Library of Heaven's Path.

Taking a look at the content of the book, Zhang Xuan clicked his tongue in disdain.

What a trashy formation plate this is. There are so many flaws in it!

The tall lady had said that she had specially engaged the help of an 8-star high-tier formation master to craft this formation plate for her, so he had thought that it would be some ingenious artifact. Perhaps, his expectations were simply too high from the start.

I can think of 138 ways to decipher the formation.

It took only a moment of calculation for Zhang Xuan to come up with this conclusion.

After studying all the 8-star formation books over at the Formation Master Build branch in the Hall of Erudition, his comprehension of formations had already reached 8-star pinnacle. In fact, in terms of knowledge, he might even be a match for some 9-star low-tier formation masters.

With his knowledge, it was a walk in the park for him to overcome a grade-8 formation plate like this!

Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before making up his mind. I guess I should use the most direct and fastest method to decipher the formation so as to please my future brother-in-law.

After choosing the method to use, Zhang Xuan was just about to realize his plan when his body suddenly stiffened. To his astonishment, the meridians in his body had frozen solid.

Crap, I forgot. I have yet to assimilate the Wintry Spirit Essence…1 mu = 666.67 square meters. It also equals 26.36 square rods, whatever that unit is.