Gou Zai Fei Men made up myths

The scene at the main peak, where the array pavilion is located, is quite different. There are no bustling voices or strong medicinal fragrances to be heard here, only the faint "sizzling" sound of countless runes flashing in the air and the slight wind caused by the flow of spiritual energy.

Zhao Qingyan hovered in mid-air in the center of the array pavilion, her eyes closed, a glimmer of spiritual light shining between her brows, closely connected to the massive array compass that covered the entire pavilion beneath her feet. Countless strands of spiritual energy, as thin as hair, extended from the compass, connecting to the hundreds of constantly evolving and combining array runes on the four walls of the pavilion.

Elder Han Lin sat to the side, holding a jade slip, and from time to time entered data about the mountain's spiritual vein nodes and the damage to the formation over the years into the compass to assist Zhao Qingyan in her deductions.

"Qingyan, in the southeast 'Xun' position, the third node, the flow of spiritual energy seems to be sluggish. Is this due to the pressure from the Xuan Yin Sect last time?" Han Lin said in a deep voice.

A glint of light flashed in Zhao Qingyan's eyes, and a cluster of runes in the corresponding area immediately lit up, displaying subtle distortions. She lightly tapped her fingertip, injecting a stream of pure spiritual energy, while her divine sense, like a thread, probed deep into that node.

"It's here. There's a lingering yin energy that's eroding the rune structure, causing the spiritual energy to stagnate." Zhao Qingyan opened her eyes. "It's not a big problem, but it needs to be covered and purified with the 'Purifying Spirit Array Pattern,' and then reinforced with the 'Solidifying Essence Talisman.' Elder Han, please help me retrieve two taels of 'Star Sand' and three mace of 'Mithril' from our inventory."

"Okay!" Han Lin immediately took out the corresponding materials from a storage bag next to him and used his spiritual power to deliver them to Zhao Qingyan.

Zhao Qingyan's hands moved swiftly, like butterflies flitting among flowers, rapidly forming hand seals. Under her exquisite control, the stardust and mithril melted and stretched, transforming into delicate lines shimmering with starlight and silver light, precisely imprinting themselves onto the damaged spot. Moments later, the distorted runes were repaired, and the flow of spiritual energy instantly became smooth.

This is merely the tip of the iceberg of the massive protective mountain formation. Over the past few days, Zhao Qingyan and her disciples have worked almost non-stop, meticulously inspecting, reinforcing, and optimizing each of the tens of thousands of nodes in the "Small Nine Palaces Flowing Cloud Formation." The defensive modules against Yin Sha and Ghost Dao attacks have been a particular focus of reinforcement.

"Senior Sister Qingyan, the spiritual energy of the warning array eye in the northwest 'Qian' position is overloaded. Should we adjust the output?" a disciple from the Array Hall asked loudly.

"Reduce the output by 10% and connect to the 'Gui Water' array pattern for diversion and buffering." Zhao Qingyan didn't even turn her head; her divine sense had already swept towards another area that needed fine-tuning.

The entire array pavilion was like a finely crafted brain, with Zhao Qingyan at its absolute core. Her face was somewhat pale, clearly indicating a significant depletion of her spiritual energy, but her eyes grew increasingly bright. Under this extreme pressure, her understanding of array formations was improving at an unprecedented rate, and many previously obscure and difficult-to-understand principles of array formations were now suddenly clear.

"Perhaps... after this crisis, I can try to construct a 'composite superposition array'..." A thought flashed through her mind, but her hands did not stop moving at all.

On the edge of the training ground behind the main peak, on a secluded training cliff, the sound of sword energy rang out, accompanied by the faint sounds of wind and thunder. A young man dressed in a light blue outfit, with sharp eyes, was wielding an ordinary steel longsword, frantically striking a dark blue boulder several meters high on the cliff face.

His sword strikes were incredibly fast, but his moves were not as graceful and agile as the Flowing Cloud Sword Technique. Instead, they carried an indomitable and fierce momentum, with each strike precisely cleaving into several natural, minute cracks in the boulder.

It was Jin Hao, a newly promoted inner disciple with a single metal-type spiritual root.

"Nine hundred and ninety-seven! Nine hundred and ninety-eight! Nine hundred and ninety-nine! One thousand!"

As the final sword thrust out, a golden glint flashed at the tip, accompanied by a soft "crack" sound, and the incredibly hard, dark blue boulder actually cracked open from the inside!

Jin Hao sheathed his sword and stood there, drenched in sweat, his face pale. The web of his right hand, which was gripping the sword, was cracked, and blood was flowing down the hilt. But in his bright eyes, there was an almost stubborn flame burning, without the slightest fatigue, only the excitement of breaking through the limit.

"Good! A thousand sword strikes, the sword force penetrates three-tenths of an inch of stone! Young Jin, you've mastered the power of your 'Gold-Splitting Sword Technique'!" A rough voice rang out, and Shi Tie appeared at the edge of the cliff at some point, arms crossed, his face showing undisguised admiration.

He had just emerged from the "Raging Waves" difficulty level of the Flowing Clouds Secret Realm, still carrying lingering murderous aura, but his gaze towards Jin Hao was full of goodwill.

"Uncle Shi!" Jin Hao quickly sheathed his sword and bowed, his breathing still a little unsteady.

"Stop with the formalities." Shi Tie waved his hand, walked to the boulder, touched the crack, and clicked his tongue in amazement. "When I was your age, I was still playing in the mud! You're not bad, kid, you've got swordsmanship potential! It's just that you're too impatient and impetuous!"

"A sword is a weapon, but the wielder must have a calm mind! Blindly charging and attacking makes one a reckless fool, not a swordsman! Look at Junior Sister Su's sword; it's all soft yet sharp—that's true power!"

Upon hearing this, Jin Hao's excitement subsided slightly, replaced by a thoughtful expression. He respectfully replied, "Thank you for your guidance, Uncle Shi! This disciple... this disciple simply feels that with a formidable enemy at hand, only by being faster and more ruthless can we kill the enemy and protect the mountain!"

"Bullshit!" Shi Tie glared. "What's the use of just being fast and ruthless? Those bastards from the Xuan Yin Sect have bizarre techniques. You could strike them ten times and they might be fine, but one touch from them and you'd be down! You have to use your brain!"

"Your golden spiritual root is incomparably sharp. What you need to practice is how to use that sharpness in the most crucial places! A single, decisive blow! Not recklessly wasting your strength! It's like chopping wood; you have to aim at the grain so you can split it in one go. If you just keep hacking around, you'll exhaust yourself, you fool!"

His words, though rough, were true, and Jin Hao blushed deeply, bowing his head in understanding: "Yes! This disciple understands!"

"Good that you understand!" Shi Tie patted his shoulder with such force that Jin Hao grimaced. "Practice hard! Once you've mastered Qi Refining, your Uncle-Master will take you to the secret realm to find those rocky lumps for a good 'sparring'! Let's go!" With that, he vanished in a flash.

Jin Hao stood there, pondering Shi Tie's words. He glanced at his bleeding hand and the crack in his skin, his eyes less impatient and more composed. He raised his longsword again, this time with slower but more focused movements. The tip of the sword gleamed with golden light as he aimed for the most vulnerable point in the rock's texture.

Meanwhile, the scene was quite different along the Lingxi River next to the herb garden.

Mu Qingqing squatted by the stream, barefoot, soaking her feet in the cool water, gently stroking the surface with her hands.

A faint green aura lingered around her fingertips. With her movements, the seemingly ordinary weeds on both sides of the stream stretched out their leaves at a speed visible to the naked eye, becoming even more lush and vibrant. Even a few withered medicinal seedlings regained their vitality.

She wasn't casting any profound spells; rather, as a wood-type spirit naturally drawn to plants, she could effortlessly guide and gather the subtle essence of vegetation.

This ability wasn't particularly effective when tending to the herb garden on a regular basis, but at this moment, with the sect's resources strained and the supply of pills for lower-level disciples insufficient, she was able to use this talent to carefully nurture those ordinary herbs that weren't growing well, saving the Pill Hall a lot of low-level medicinal materials and indirectly supporting the front lines.

"Senior Sister Mu, you're amazing! This 'Blood Clotting Grass' was almost wilted a couple of days ago, but you've revived it!" A younger female disciple looked at her with admiration.