My best friend asked me if I was still doing system tasks.

After discussing her recent studies with Luo Hanying, Ruan Chayan expressed her desire to visit the Snow Dream Pavilion on Hidden Peak.

Snow Dream Tower is where the disciples of Hidden Peak take their classes. The tower has nineteen floors, each containing a different formation. The elders teach on the first floor, and the disciples explore and comprehend on their own on the floors above.

Ruan Chayan cultivates the art of beast taming. Forming contracts with spirit beasts requires the use of different formations. However, she has always focused on magic as a secondary skill and is now struggling to learn complex beast taming formations. Therefore, she wants to go to Xuemeng Tower to learn a thing or two.

Although Luo Hanying studied Confucianism and Taoism, she had not yet grasped the threshold of righteousness. The six arts of the gentleman that she learned were still superficial. Apart from using her brush and ink to change words for attack, she could not even protect herself.

She enjoyed engraving array plates and studying array formations. Upon hearing that Ruan Chayan was indeed interested in this, the two hit it off and planned to visit Xuemeng Tower on its open day.

However, at the entrance of Xuemeng Tower, he unexpectedly encountered Le Shu.

Ruan Chayan is good at socializing but doesn't like it. She is grateful for Le Shu's help and greets her with a smile.

Luo Hanying didn't have many hidden thoughts. In her opinion, Le Shu was a pitiful person, and now that she had helped Ruan Chayan, she could be considered their friend.

Le Shu smiled with delight: "What a coincidence! You're here to learn about formations too?"

Luo Hanying was still lively in front of acquaintances: "Yes, let's not stand at the door, let's go in quickly."

Le Shu asked enthusiastically, "What do you want to learn? Are you going straight to class?"

Ruan Chayan said, "I didn't really plan to see anything. I'll just wander around and see what comes my way."

"In that case, let's go together."

Le Shu smiled and said, "I've been to Xue Meng Lou a few times before, but I've only ever reached the fourth floor. If you have any questions about the first four floors, feel free to ask me."

Luo Hanying then inquired about the general layout of the formations on the first four levels. Le Shu gave a rough explanation, and the three of them headed towards the second level.

Ruan Chayan looked around the building and said, "Xiaoxue, I think it's better if we do the research ourselves."

"Indeed."

Le Shu responded even faster than Luo Hanying. Her eyes darted around, and she asked in a low voice, "By the way, there's something I'm very curious about. I wonder if you two could answer my question?"

Luo Hanying said, "Tell me about it."

The two had a vague suspicion in their hearts.

Sure enough, I heard Le Shu ask in her voice: "Although it might be offensive to bring this up, I'm just so curious."

We all know I lied when I brought out the incense that day. I wanted to ask why the tea smoke would cause such a disturbance in the spirit beast.

Luo Hanying looked at Ruan Chayan, whose eyelids twitched. With a forced smile, she slowly said, "Actually, there's nothing special about it. I ate a pill I obtained in the secret realm, and its effect is similar to your incense."

I had hoped to find a new spirit beast to use at the Moon Heart Bridge, but I never imagined it would cause such trouble.

Now that the elixir is gone, and I've only dragged you down with me, it's truly a losing proposition."

Luo Hanying sighed along with Ruan Chayan: "Who says otherwise?"

Le Shu smiled faintly, seemingly not believing Ruan Chayan's explanation.

Luo Hanying suddenly took out a fifth-grade Xuan-level magic artifact from her Qiankun bag; it was a pill furnace.

She handed it directly to Le Shu, saying, "Speaking of which, we haven't thanked you for this yet. This alchemy furnace isn't anything precious, but it's the best magic weapon I have. Whether you use it for alchemy or defense, it's a good choice."

Le Shu repeatedly declined, saying that she was only repaying their kindness in saving her life.

Speaking of which, Luo Hanying was extremely grateful: "Oh right, I just remembered that. I also want to thank you for your cultivation method."

I've wanted to say this for a long time: the range of my divine sense is indeed farther than before.

Now that you mention it, I should thank you even more. Please accept this alchemy furnace; it will come in handy for you. Neither Cha Cha nor I are alchemists.”

Unable to refuse, Yue Shu accepted the alchemy furnace and then said, "Both of us have strengthened our spiritual senses, doesn't Cha Yan plan to continue cultivating?"

A thought flashed through Ruan Chayan's mind, but it vanished in an instant—

How did she know I hadn't learned that technique?

Ruan Chayan smiled faintly: "I really don't have much time. The beast taming manuals alone are enough to keep me busy."

Le Shu's attitude was somewhat deliberate: "The technique is very simple and won't take much time to learn."

Without much thought, Ruan Chayan readily agreed, "I understand."

Luo Hanying noticed that Ruan Chayan had no desire to chat with Le Shu, so she jumped in and said, "Are you two still chatting? I want to go look at the formation."

Le Shu covered her mouth and chuckled, "I'm sorry for keeping you waiting. Let's go now."

The three watched the formation operate together, but separated because they studied different areas.

Ruan Chayan took out a blank array plate and chisel, and slowly searched for the array's core, attempting to replicate the array on the blank array plate.

Only by solving the formation on the second level can one enter the third level.

Luo Hanying squinted at the intertwined lines, her index finger tracing the trajectory of the formation in mid-air.

Luo Hanying withdrew her hand, flicked her finger, and released spiritual energy onto the array's core. In a flash, she entered the third level.

Ruan Chayan looked up and realized he was gone. Surprised, she asked, "Where are you? Did you break the formation?"

While observing the environment and formation on the third level, Luo Hanying said, "Yes, I felt that the formation just now wasn't complicated; they didn't even hide the key point."

"Wow, is this what it feels like for a top student to look at a question?"

Looking at the array plate she had carved incorrectly, Ruan Chayan replaced it with a new one while exclaiming, "You're amazing! We learned together, but your comprehension is so high!"

Luo Hanying chuckled shyly twice and continued to examine the formation in front of her.

There are two formations on the third floor, which partially overlap to disrupt vision and thinking.

Luo Hanying had seen complex formations like the Unmelting Mountain, so this kind of formation that wasn't nested together was really child's play.

Just as Ruan Chayan finished engraving the second layer of the formation and put it away, Luo Hanying had already rushed up to the eighth layer, leaving everyone else in the dust.

The eight-layered formation is an illusion array encompassing a sword array. Before Luo Hanying's eyes appeared the images of her past relatives and friends. The illusion array numbed her senses, and the environment she was in gradually changed to a modern scene.

Luo Hanying's gaze was momentarily dazed when a sword aura struck her face. She instantly regained her senses and summoned her spirit sword to slash out and disperse the sword aura.

Looking at the illusory phantom, Luo Hanying made a hand seal and chanted an incantation: "Embrace the spirit and guard the mind!"

Cleanse your mind and purify your spirit; ward off evil and protect your truth!

Break through the barrier!

As the words fell, hand seals were made, the illusion was powerfully shattered, and the sword formation was revealed.

She was terrified of illusions. Her past experiences with illusions had given her some PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), so she specifically sought out techniques to break free from illusions.

No matter how she tried to form hand seals in the Unyielding Mountain, it was no use. The formation kept getting worse and worse. She was even a little unsure of herself just now. She didn't expect that the illusion here would be broken so easily.