“Sect Master, protect me. Jiang Keke, hold these two herbs tightly. When I say ‘smash,’ throw them onto the ground with as much force as possible.”
After hanging up the phone, Yun Heng immediately began setting up the array.
The Soul-Settling and Spirit-Calming Array was not an obscure formation; it could even be called the most basic of basics.
However, the more basic something was, the more difficult it became to produce an extraordinary effect.
Setting up arrays was similar to refining pills, where Rank 7 was the watershed. Yun Heng knew that with his current cultivation, it was impossible to draw a Rank 9 array.
Even if he exhausted all his strength or relied on ‘fortune,’ he could at most draw a Rank 7 array by relying on his infinite mental energy. Afterward, he would surely fall into a deep coma.
But he did not have much time left. For every 1 second he hesitated, this child would suffer for another 1 second.
The two who were named said nothing more, performing their duties and trying their best not to disturb Yun Heng.
Yun Heng took a jar of ink that shimmered like starlight from his storage bag and then produced a gold-leafed brush that had not yet been unwrapped.
‘These are all rare, top-grade artifacts…’
Yan Qingli clicked her tongue inwardly, lamenting once again the deep heritage of the Changsheng Yun family.
Yun Heng focused his mind, and his brush moved as if carving. The array patterns were not drawn on the ground but condensed in the air according to his will.
Every stroke pulled in the surrounding spiritual energy, funneling it into the Ice Lotus held by Jiang Keke.
The array lines grew from simple to complex, layering upon one another. A faint blue glow gradually lit up, and the temperature in the room plummeted. Frost condensed on his eyebrows and eyelashes.
Yun Heng’s face turned pale at a rate visible to the naked eye. However, the hand holding the brush remained as steady as a rock.
Only the beads of sweat rolling down his forehead betrayed the truth — his soul and spiritual energy were being rapidly drained.
“Wait, what the… don’t…”
Jiang Keke was the person on-site with the least to do, so she was the first to notice the sudden movement of the demon race girl.
Fortunately, after saying only five words, Jiang Keke quickly bit her tongue, fearing she might affect the Young Master’s performance.
But she was worried the girl would suddenly cause trouble. She was so anxious she wanted to stomp her feet, but she also feared that moving would affect him.
Thus, she could only glare wildly, trying to stop the girl with her eyes.
Yan Qingli had to maintain the barrier to prevent outside prying, keep an eye on Yun Heng’s state to ensure he didn’t succumb to internal demons, and set aside a sliver of her mind to monitor the sect entrance in case Xuan Sun arrived unexpectedly.
Facing this situation, she had no choice but to pray in her heart.
Under the two women’s nervous gazes, the girl slowly crawled to a distance of about 3 steps from Yun Heng’s side.
The good news was that she didn’t advance further, nor did she disturb him.
She simply watched Yun Heng with the same awkward, stiff movements she had shown when they first met.
1 second, 2 seconds.
***
After about 5 minutes, the girl seemed to have finally regained a bit of strength to speak. She spoke with difficulty, “You… hurt. Don’t hurt, okay?”
She tremblingly reached out her hand. “I’ll take the pain, okay?”
No one could understand what her stiff posture represented, but everyone could understand what those broken words contained.
Unfortunately, Yun Heng could not hear her.
He was completely immersed in the process of drawing the array.
Another 3 minutes passed. The girl’s outstretched hand was like a hatchling falling from a cliff; along with another bout of unconsciousness, she fell silent once more.
At that very moment, the previously ambiguous providence became clearly visible within the field of Yun Heng’s mind.
But unlike before, this wave of providence was not fierce. Instead, it was as gentle as flowing water and moonlight.
The brush tip flowed, and array patterns formed like celestial tracks.
Yun Heng closed his eyes and focused, using his body as a pivot to trigger that mysterious power of providence.
At first, it was like a trickle, then it became a river, and finally, it transformed into a boundless, vast sea of stars — heavy and profound, yet ethereal and uncertain.
‘Strange, today’s fortune… why does it feel infinite?’
Yun Heng had no time to delve into the underlying reason.
Relying purely on the physical instincts of his past life’s experience, he pulled the threads and wove that infinite, majestic power into the array, pattern by pattern, and rank by rank.
The light of the array turned from green to blue, then from blue to purple, and finally transformed into the color of transparent black ice.
Frost patterns spread and layered, as if sealing an entire frozen abyss within a small space.
Under the infusion of the majestic providence, the framework of the basic array underwent a fundamental transformation. Its rank climbed steadily.
The Rank 7 threshold was broken instantly, and the radiance of Rank 8 flowed incessantly until finally — a Rank 9 ice bloom brilliantly bloomed.
“Smash!”
Yun Heng shouted with a hoarse voice. Jiang Keke slammed the two top-grade spiritual herbs in her hands onto the ground with all her might!
In an instant, a clear chime rang out, and a circular ice barrier suddenly expanded, enveloping the girl within.
**[Rank 9: Soul-Settling and Spirit-Calming Array, Formed!]**
***
At the same time.
On a crooked tree outside Liuli Valley, a gloomy man playing with a hawk-beak mask in his hand was leisurely whistling.
The lower half of his face was terrifyingly scarred, as if scorched by a prairie fire. However, his unrestrained peak integration stage cultivation made it puzzling — why did he not use spiritual energy to heal it?
Suddenly, the entire world grew solemn.
Even without the monster hunting mirror glowing red to remind them, everyone present was clear: another member of the demon race had broken through within the human territory.
“These beasts truly have no respect for my human race.”
Xuan Sun scratched his ear, clicked his tongue, and flipped down from the crooked tree. “One after another, they keep coming to my human race to mess around. I want to see who can protect you this time.”
As his words landed, a line of twenty-four people walked out from the bushes in unison, their expressions solemn, looking like an army.
“Let’s go. Let’s ‘pay a visit’ to this Liuli Valley, where female cultivators are as common as clouds.”
Xuan Sun chuckled and transformed into a wisp of black smoke, soaring into the sky.
***
Yu Gong Province.
“Little… Jiu, do you feel something wrong?”
Shizi furrowed her brows, looking toward the southeast.
Although she was only a stone spirit, she was very old. Even though she had just been enlightened, she already had cultivation at the golden core stage. Her divine sense range wasn’t remarkably wide, but it was certainly not low.
“…It’s a loathsome scent.”
Ling Yao looked toward the southeast with a grim face.
Even if an immortal king from a past life went into seclusion for 1 month to transform, they would barely reach foundation establishment without the help of miraculous pills.
However, some things never relied on divine sense or cultivation, but rather “bloodline.”
That direction… it seemed to be Yunmeng Prefecture.
Why was she active in the human territory at this point in time?
Ling Yao’s brows arched, and her expression was extremely poor.
Shizi felt the almost undisguised killing intent emanating from Ling Yao. She wanted to say something to comfort her, but was interrupted.
“If we leave now, how long will it take to reach Yunmeng Prefecture at the fastest?”
“…Without the help of a flying artifact, it will take at least 6 months at the fastest.”
Shizi made a rough estimate of the distance and spoke with regret.
Ling Yao tilted her head and thought for a moment. “That’s not a big problem. We’ll just snatch one nearby.”
***
In the Upper Three Provinces, at the Penglai Prefecture mansion of the Everlasting Su Clan.
“Oho, if it isn’t the busy man Yun? You’re back?”
The Su family head, who was chatting with two other family heads, had sharp eyes.
He immediately saw Yun Wangji, who was being affectionate with Mrs. Yun, and couldn’t help but tease, “How did you go out on a trip and bring your wife back? Let’s get this straight, this is a life-and-death gamble; no bringing family members along! Especially your wife — no swapping cards!”
“Is this a joke? Do I need my wife’s help to beat you?”
Yun Wangji curled his lip and sat down opposite the Su family head. He bit down on a pipe and began to shuffle the cards skillfully.
“I’m in a good mood today. If I don’t strip you down to your underwear, I’ll change my name to Ji Wangyun starting tomorrow!”
While the grown men were bragging and talking nonsense, Mrs. Yun looked around and suddenly spoke up, “Wait, husband, didn’t you say the girl Zhen Xue was here? I wanted to talk to her about that feather robe I took a fancy to earlier. Where did she go?”
“Oh, her.”
The Su family head yawned and replied casually, “She said she had some temporary business. She grabbed a flying artifact and ran off toward Yunmeng Prefecture. Little girls all have their own little secrets~”
Yun’s father and mother looked at each other, both seeing shock, nervousness, and a sense of being caught between laughter and tears in each other’s eyes.
‘Heng’er, if you’ve run into her, Mother really can’t help you. Anyway, good luck.’
Mrs. Yun smiled secretly in her heart.
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