Chapter 38: Turning the Tables
“Lord Black Steward, that group has come again.”
In a cave less than a hundred li from the ruins, a man in black robes, looking like a walking skeleton, respectfully reported to the person seated before him on a blood-red iron throne.
On that iron throne sat a tall figure draped in a crimson robe. Embroidered on his chest was a black bat insignia. His face was shrouded in a mist of blood, making his features indiscernible.
The Black Steward leaned lazily against the armrest of the iron seat, tapping his fingers in no particular rhythm. After a long silence, he spoke coldly: “Can they break that damned Mystic Yang Skysteel Array this time?”
The skeleton man replied cautiously, “My lord, they seem well prepared this time. Two suspected formation masters have already entered the formation. They’ve likely made thorough preparations.”
“Oh? Seems these people do have some value after all. This seat’s patience over the past year might finally pay off. The mission the Hall Master entrusted to me is finally nearing completion.”
The Black Steward’s tone softened slightly, and his mood clearly improved.
“Congratulations, my lord! Once this is done, you’ll surely become the First Steward under the Hall Master’s command. Achieving Purple Mansion and opening a new branch is just around the corner!”
The skeleton man immediately began heaping praise like a sycophant.
Unexpectedly, the Black Steward snorted coldly, “Hmph! If the stronghold at the Wangyue Mountains hadn’t been destroyed by the Song clan, I would’ve broken through that Mystic Yang Skysteel Array long ago. Why would it have dragged on until now!”
“Those useless wastes truly deserved death. They even failed at capturing a few brats with spirit roots and ruined the pieces you had arranged in the Wangyue Mountains,” the skeleton man hurriedly agreed.
“That’s not something you should be commenting on. Send someone to keep watch on that group. As soon as the array is broken, kill without mercy. They cannot be allowed to touch anything in the ruins inside. Understand?”
“Yes!”
...
Outside the ruins, Zhu Yiqun and the others were doing everything they could to maintain the two open entrances to the array, completely unaware that they had already fallen into a blood demon’s trap.
“Old Zhu, why aren’t Fellow Daoist Xu and Song done yet? This is draining too much, everyone’s close to collapsing,” Li Hu said, his face now pale as paper.
The others didn’t look much better, aside from Zhu Yiqun, Zhuang Yuechan, and Xu Yunhe, most were in poor shape, their spiritual power nearly depleted.
“Just hang on a bit longer. We’ve prepared so long for this, there won’t be another opportunity like it. I believe they can do it,” Zhu Yiqun said through gritted teeth, trying to reassure everyone. But inwardly, he couldn’t help but grow anxious.
He could only silently pray that he hadn’t misjudged the wrong person...
Within the array, Song Changsheng was already near the formation’s center. At this point, the difficulty of his deductions had risen significantly.
If not for the great enhancement to his soul from years of comprehending the Daoist scripture, he wouldn’t have been able to sustain such high-intensity calculations.
“The array core should be nearby, three steps left, two up.” Song Changsheng moved slightly, and as he stepped forward with his final step, his gaze sharpened. With a wave of his sleeve, he summoned the Water Element Shield to protect him.
Clang—!
A deep, resonant bell toll rang out. A massive phantom image of a bronze bell appeared, slamming directly into the Water Element Shield.
“Resist!”
While controlling the Water Element Shield to shield himself, Song Changsheng quickly retreated, landing firmly on the route he had previously calculated.
“It’s actually a spiritual tool serving as the array core. The owner of these ruins was quite extravagant!” Song Changsheng couldn’t help but exclaim as he stared at the bronze bell’s phantom.
In this world, magical tools are categorized by ranks, first-rank, second-rank, and so on according to the cultivator’s level.
But once a magical tool reaches the second rank, things change. Foundation Establishment cultivators can begin to refine magical tools within their dantian, a process known as spirit-nurturing.
Over time, or through special means, a magical tool can gain a trace of spiritual awareness, this is known as a spiritual tool.
Beyond that are true magic treasures, spirit treasures, and even law-infused spirit treasures.
No matter the rank of the artifact refiner, all freshly forged tools are merely magical tools. Its spiritual nature must be nurtured over time, though there are certain special methods that are exceptions.
Though spiritual tools are equivalent to second-rank magical tools, their value far exceeds them. Magical tools are dead objects; spiritual tools possess a sliver of awareness, they’re half-living and can dramatically increase a cultivator’s combat power.
Don’t underestimate this. In real combat, the boost is massive.
Magical tools are common, but spiritual tools are rare. Even within the Song clan, there were only a handful passed down through the generations, each one a precious family treasure.
“Although this is a superior-grade spiritual tool, it’s ownerless now, so it should be manageable.”
As Song Changsheng was thinking this, the bronze bell phantom launched another attack. Spiral-shaped shockwaves rippled silently outward from the phantom.
“Treasure gourd, come forth!” Song Changsheng recalled the Water Element Shield to defend himself again, then summoned the Water-Fire Treasure Gourd to engage the bell phantom head-on.
The gourd and bell clashed violently, sending shockwaves booming through the air. Song Changsheng flicked his sleeves again, sending twelve formation flags flying in a line.
The flags formed a circle in mid-air, surrounding the bell phantom.
Holding his breath and focusing his mind, he carefully guided the triangular flags into the main formation according to his deductions.
What Song Changsheng was doing now was incredibly bold. He wasn’t just trying to destroy the array core to break the formation, he was trying to seize control of it.
He had completely grasped the Mystic Yang Skysteel Array’s structure. All he needed was to place a reverse array at the core following the formation’s original operating rules.
By locking down the array core, he could turn the tables, become the master instead of the guest and seize control of the entire array.
His intent wasn’t to monopolize the ruin’s treasures. He just wanted to leave himself a fallback option.
After all, among this group, he was the only one brought in at the last minute. If anyone decided to betray him after crossing the river, he needed a way to retaliate.
He wasn’t being paranoid, just cautious. Better safe than sorry!
Clang clang clang!
The bell phantom seemed to sense Song Changsheng’s intent and increased its attack speed. The treasure gourd was battered backward repeatedly.
Song Changsheng’s face grew pale. Each strike of the bell rattled his soul. Had Xu Yun been in his place, her divine consciousness might have already been shattered into insanity.
“You think a mere spiritual tool can defy me?” Song Changsheng growled, swallowing a few pills to stabilize his spirit, eyes blazing.
“Water Element Shield, come out!”
He completely gave up on self-defense and poured both of his superior-grade magical tools into the battle. Instantly, the bell phantom was pushed back.
He seized the chance to finish laying the reverse array.
Thanks to his deep understanding of the formation, the process went smoothly.
The moment the array succeeded, Song Changsheng erupted with full force, suppressing the spiritual tool acting as the core and forcefully imprinting it with his own soul mark.
At that moment, he seized control of most of the array’s functions!
(Chapter End)