Chapter 417

Chapter 417: A Harsh Test of Will

There was no spiritual imprint on the ring, and Yu Zhi Yi saw everything inside at a glance. As expected of an Array Master-far richer than an ordinary cultivator. From the Gao Clan father and son, Ji Guang Dai, and the others, she had taken less than one hundred Spirit Stones total. This elder, however, had more than a thousand.

By their agreement, Yu Zhi Yi first counted out 200 Spirit Stones, then looked over the other items. There were Alchemy Pills, ores, gems of many colors, uncountable Formation Flags, and even quite a few weapons. She also saw things whose use she couldn’t tell-like a long black staff.

Noticing her stare, the elder explained with a shrug: “I got that in a secret realm. I can’t tell its grade. There’s no Spiritual Energy on it. I studied it for a while but couldn’t figure it out, so I put it aside.” Things with no Spiritual Energy won’t sell in the free market either-he knew that from experience.

Yu Zhi Yi’s instinct told her she had to take this one: “Then I’ll choose this.”

The elder was taken aback, then understood. People-especially the young-no matter how steady they look, keep a bit of flair inside. They think that if others failed at something, it wasn’t because the thing can’t be done, but because those people weren’t good enough; and that they themselves could make it work. He had seen many like that. When he was young, he had been the same. He had warned her; if she still wanted to step into a pit, he wouldn’t nag.

Yu Zhi Yi next picked a long sword in a black scabbard. The elder said a weapon master had forged it and it hadn’t been named yet. The sword had no name, but it was a fine blade-a Mystic-Grade Spirit Artifact.

Yu Zhi Yi thought and said: “Let’s call it the Nameless Sword.”

Nameless is still a name.

For her third item, she took a red gem. These gems held Spiritual Energy too. The elder said people in the Cultivation world like to set different gems into their weapons and gear, just like mortals wear ornaments. The more beautiful and pure a gem is, the higher its price.

Her master had said the Heavenly Secret Sect was poor. Her senior uncles would probably like this meeting gift.

After putting her choices away, Yu Zhi Yi asked with open curiosity: “Aren’t you afraid I’ll take the payment and not do the job?”

The elder laughed softly and said: “Someone who entered the path by staking her life will not leave karmic debts unpaid.”

Yu Zhi Yi’s eyes turned serious. Thinking back, she had even used coins to divine the moment she sensed an array-of course he could tell what kind of path she walked. She nodded and said nothing more.

The elder added: “Right, please also pass this Array Disk to my son.”

Yu Zhi Yi looked at the object that looked like a bagua and asked, puzzled: “Array Disk?”

The elder explained with patience: “An Array Disk is another form of array. As long as you lay a formation onto the disk, then when you need an array, you just activate the disk and the array appears. It saves the time of setting one up on the spot.”

“I’ve written the method to make Array Disks in my notes. If you’re interested, try it.” He sighed, a little regretful: “Sadly, my talent was limited and I had no strong lineage. In all my life I managed to carve only two grand arrays onto Array Disks.”

Yu Zhi Yi was curious and wanted to ask what arrays were on this one, but she was afraid she would grow greedy. She wasn’t a saint. So she didn’t ask. Instead, she asked for his name and his exact home.

“The old man’s name is Zhong Zhihong,” he said. “Head west. At the border of the Hidden Realm you’ll find a Teleportation Formation. For 100 Spirit Stones you can ride it to Myriad Springs City. Once you arrive, ask any person on the street, and you’ll find my home.”

Yu Zhi Yi memorized it all. When she looked up again, she was shocked to find Zhong Zhihong gone. Not only him-the array that had wrapped around her was gone too.

She stood once more in the cave. Not far away lay Zhong Zhihong’s corpse. Maybe because his wish was fulfilled, his body decayed fast, withered, and in a moment was only bones.

Yu Zhi Yi bowed three times and said with respect: “Senior, rest easy. I will complete your request.”

The Formation Manual lay on Zhong Zhihong’s knees. Yu Zhi Yi reached out, and the book drew itself into her palm. He must have feared the stench would ruin his life’s work, so he had wrapped it with a layer of Spiritual Energy. With that protection, the notes were unharmed-not stained by fluids, not even scented.

After a brief hesitation, Yu Zhi Yi decided to study the Formation Manual for a while before moving on. By her count, the Gao Clan people should be arriving soon. If they couldn’t find the killer, they would likely search the land. Of course, it was also possible Gao Wen Feng didn’t care that much, so they would just search a bit and leave.

She pressed her lips together and strengthened the illusion array at the cave mouth. Even a Golden Core Realm expert, if they didn’t come close, would see only a field of brambles and scattered rocks-no one would spot the cave.

With her plan set, Yu Zhi Yi moved up to the second level of the cave. The first level was where Zhong Zhihong had died seated. She wasn’t superstitious, but it felt disrespectful to stay there.

She sat and read for a full day. She skimmed the whole notebook three times. Only after three passes did she start studying one array in detail.

Thinking of the final pages, she couldn’t help but sigh. She hadn’t wanted to know what the Array Disk held; she could have stayed ignorant. But Zhong Zhihong had written down his thoughts about the Array Disk-his ideas, the making process, his insights, and the result-clear as day. So now she knew the Array Disk sealed a Mystic Grade attack array, Ten Thousand Sword Needles, and a triple array that combined offense and defense and also caused illusions.

Even someone as cool and restrained as she was felt a strong urge to keep that Array Disk. Especially because she had never sworn a Heart Demon oath. Even if she kept it for herself, she would only owe karmic debts; as long as she repaid them, she could take the disk without any punishment.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, helpless: [This really tests my will.]

She forced herself to stop thinking about the Array Disk and went back to studying arrays.

Arrays are ranked in four great levels: Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow. The ones she had used before were all Yellow Grade. Her own “ultimate grand array” was near the top of Yellow Grade, very close to Mystic Grade. The gap wasn’t large-she only needed to change the Formation Flags. Zhong Zhihong’s Formation Flags, whatever they were made of, were clearly rich with power. The ones Yu Zhi Yi made used mortal materials and were limited.

She thought of the pile of Formation Flags in Zhong Zhihong’s ring and could only sigh: [Don’t think about it.]

Judging the timing was about right, Yu Zhi Yi closed the book and prepared to step out to scout. As she reached the cave mouth, a blast of danger shot straight up her crown. She stopped at once and didn’t dare put her foot down, holding it half-raised and half-lowered, frozen in place.