Chapter 31: What Does Modernized Array Placement Mean?
【Ah Zheng’s mind worked quickly—he was indeed more astute than Yong'er.】
Pei Zhen thought to himself, growing even more eager to see what kind of performance Xu Zhengyang would display in array placement and what kind of surprise it might bring him.
However...
After Xu Zhengyang located the array's core, he immediately closed his eyes and sat cross-legged above the Spiritual Eye, remaining motionless for a long time.
Pei Zhen was a little puzzled upon seeing this.
But out of trust in Xu Zhengyang, Pei Zhen did not interrupt him with words and simply stood to the side, quietly waiting.
After approximately the time it took for one incense stick to burn...
Xu Zhengyang finally stood up and opened his eyes, then took out his compass and ruler and approached the spiritual materials Pei Zhen had just disassembled, measuring each one carefully.
...
When Xu Zhengyang was sitting cross-legged on the Spiritual Eye just now...
He was actually using the CAD system installed in his body from his previous life to draft construction blueprints for the Spirit-Gathering Formation deep within his sea of consciousness.
With the blueprints for the Spirit-Gathering Formation in hand...
Only then did Xu Zhengyang begin to measure the dimensions of the spiritual materials, intending to calibrate the design drawings according to the actual sizes before starting construction.
He wouldn’t have known without measuring, but once he did, he was startled!
With just a bit of measurement, Xu Zhengyang discovered that the dimensions and proportions of those spiritual materials were utterly chaotic!
After collecting the dimensional data...
Xu Zhengyang realized that the Spirit-Gathering Formations Pei Zhen had previously set up were all based on a "close enough, it'll work" kind of civil engineering spirit.
They had forcibly cobbled together all these array materials!
It was only because the Spirit-Gathering Formation was merely a Tier 1 formation without complex functions that it had been able to run steadily until now.
"……"
At that moment, Xu Zhengyang was speechless for a long time.
After a pause...
Xu Zhengyang hesitated again and again before finally approaching Pei Zhen, bowing to him and saying, "Master, this disciple dares to ask for a small favor."
Pei Zhen, curious upon hearing this, said, "Speak freely."
"Please wait a moment, Master."
As he spoke, Xu Zhengyang took out a sheet of white paper and a charcoal pencil from the Jade Gourd.
Under Pei Zhen's curious gaze, Xu Zhengyang used sketching techniques to draw all the spiritual materials on the paper.
He even carefully labeled the dimensions of each cross-section of every type of material.
Once finished...
Xu Zhengyang held the paper and said to Pei Zhen, "I ask Master to please help me process these materials into the dimensions I need."
"Oh?"
The drawings Xu Zhengyang had made were clear and easy to understand—Pei Zhen grasped his intention at a glance, knowing that Xu Zhengyang was striving for excellence.
But Pei Zhen was a little puzzled.
He asked Xu Zhengyang, "It's just a Tier 1 Spirit-Gathering Formation—is it really necessary to be this precise?"
"A thousand-mile dike can be destroyed by an ant’s nest."
Xu Zhengyang solemnly replied, "This disciple believes that if array placement can be made more rigorous, there might be unexpected rewards."
Pei Zhen was unconvinced by these words.
But he didn’t discourage Xu Zhengyang. He simply said, "That’s simple enough—just watch."
Divine Mechanism Peak was renowned for its formations and artifact crafting.
As the head of Divine Mechanism Peak, handling some Tier 1 spiritual materials was an easy task for Pei Zhen.
So within just the time it takes to drink a cup of tea...
Pei Zhen had cut all those spiritual materials to the specified dimensions according to Xu Zhengyang’s blueprints.
After finishing everything, Pei Zhen clapped his hands and said to Xu Zhengyang, "Go take a look."
"Many thanks, Master!"
Xu Zhengyang bowed, then immediately brought his ruler over to inspect and accept the materials.
...
After a moment.
After confirming that the dimensions of this batch of spiritual materials completely met his requirements, Xu Zhengyang nodded in satisfaction.
Then he directly activated the AR visual app installed in his previous life and projected the construction blueprints of the Spirit-Gathering Formation onto the ground in equal proportions using AR!
With the assistance of AR vision...
Xu Zhengyang laid down the array without the slightest obstruction—his movements were smooth and fluid, like that of a grandmaster of formations!
【Truly, a great disciple comes from a renowned master!】
Upon witnessing this scene, Pei Zhen stroked his beard with a smile, deeply satisfied within.
...
After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick.
As Xu Zhengyang successfully finished setting up the Spirit-Gathering Formation, the spiritual energy leaking from the Spiritual Eye was immediately locked in place near the array’s core!
Seeing this scene...
Pei Zhen nodded in satisfaction and encouraged Xu Zhengyang, saying, "Not bad! Although the coverage of the Spirit-Gathering Formation you set is a bit small, being able to succeed on your first try at array placement is still—"
Pei Zhen hadn't finished speaking when...
At that moment.
Through the perspective of the Qi Observation Technique, he noticed that the spiritual energy inside the Spirit-Gathering Formation seemed much denser than before!
“？”
Pei Zhen was momentarily stunned, thinking he was seeing things.
But after he reapplied the Qi Observation Technique to himself, he realized he hadn’t been mistaken—the spiritual energy within the formation had indeed grown denser!
Pei Zhen quickly walked toward the Spirit-Gathering Formation.
Through personal experience, he found that the spiritual energy inside the formation Xu Zhengyang had arranged was at least thirty percent denser than before!
"This..." Pei Zhen was utterly shocked!
Just then.
Pei Zhen suddenly recalled what Xu Zhengyang had said to him earlier and couldn't help but think to himself:
【Was it just adjusting the dimensions of the spiritual materials? How could that cause such a noticeable difference compared to before? Is this… What Ah Zheng meant by striving for perfection?】
At that moment.
Xu Zhengyang stepped forward and bowed to Pei Zhen, saying, "Master, I have fulfilled the task!"
Pei Zhen looked at Xu Zhengyang with a complicated expression.
Although as a master, he naturally hoped that his disciple would surpass him...
However...
When someone actually gave him a lesson in the field he was most confident in, Pei Zhen couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy.
Just then.
Pei Zhen recalled the previously improved Tier 1 talisman Xu Zhengyang had worked on, and after smiling and patting Xu Zhengyang on the head, he said, "I’m getting old, getting old!"
As he spoke...
Pei Zhen took out a palm-sized token from his storage pouch—the front was engraved with the words “True Essence,” and the back bore a carved pavilion. He said, "The Scripture Repository is atop Celestial Mechanism Peak. Normally. Celestial Mechanism Peak is open to disciples only from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily—you must remember not to trespass outside these hours."
"Yes, Master."
Xu Zhengyang happily received the True Essence Token and then said to Pei Zhen, "Master, I’ve already finished reading 《Introduction to Formations》. I also have a complete grasp of the fourteen Tier 1 formations recorded within. Does Master have any other advanced books for me to study?"
Upon hearing this, Pei Zhen waved his hand and said, "Tier 2 talismans and formations all require mana as the medium and are controlled through mana. And only cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage can refine mana. That’s why… Reading such content now would be like gazing at castles in the sky—it would do you more harm than good."
As he spoke...
Pei Zhen waved his large hand and poured out a pile of Tier 1 spiritual materials and some tools for processing them from his storage pouch.
Then Pei Zhen said to Xu Zhengyang, "Take these. If you find yourself with free time, aside from drawing talismans, you can also try making some array flags, array disks, and other such items with these materials. You’ll find them useful later in Sunset Cloud Blessed Land."
Looking at the dazzling array of spiritual materials on the ground, Xu Zhengyang exclaimed excitedly, "I shall heed Master’s teachings!"