Chapter 595
The speed at which this Junior Sister Ye was gathering people was astonishing.
If it were just five or ten disciples, Zheng Fa wouldn’t have suspected anything. But over fifty disciples? That was nearly a quarter of the entire sect.
In the sect, only three individuals could command such a large force in a short time— the Sect Leader, Elder Eight, and Elder Nine.
Considering Junior Sister Ye’s identity, Zheng Fa quickly deduced who had provided him with this list.
“Junior Sister Ye… you can’t be serious about befriending all those disciples, can you?”
Upon hearing this, Junior Sister Ye’s expression turned even more astonished.
“At first, I thought it was normal. You told me all about the disciples within the sect…”
“Then, you seemed to know every move of the foreign Yuanying cultivators as well.”
“There are some things that a mere Jindan cultivator shouldn’t be privy to.”
Junior Sister Ye lowered her head, speechless.
This must be the answer.
Zheng Fa took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
What was his cheap master really thinking?
…
At the mountain peak, Shi Nandang and six other Huashen cultivators stood at the volcano’s mouth, their figures forming the Big Dipper as they chanted incantations towards the crater.
Zheng Fa approached Elder Nine, took out a spirit stone, and focused his mind like a blade, meticulously carving runes into the stone.
Beside him were Elder Nine, the Sect Leader of Chongxuan Sect, and Elder Eight.
Like Zheng Fa, these three Yuanying cultivators could only assist from the sidelines.
His gaze inadvertently swept over Elder Nine.
Elder Nine seemed unfazed, merely bowing his head, concentrating on carving formations into the spirit stone.
Zheng Fa pushed aside his distractions and slowly imprinted the runes of the “Heaven and Earth Divine Array” onto the spirit stones.
Now, Zheng Fa had come to understand—
Saying that spirit stones were like chips wasn’t entirely accurate.
They were more akin to raw materials for chips.
Only when the cultivator’s runes were inscribed within could these spirit stones form a formation and unleash their effects.
What Zheng Fa and the others needed to do now was to carve these spirit stones into chips, connecting them to the earth’s veins to expand the range of the “Heaven and Earth Divine Array.”
As he carved the spirit stones, Zheng Fa focused intently on memorizing the various runes of the “Heaven and Earth Divine Array.”
This grand formation was exceedingly complex, and with his current memory, he couldn’t fully recall it all at once. Thus, he became even more absorbed, even forgetting Elder Nine’s unusual behavior.
Shi Nandang cast a spell from his hand, sighed, and looked at the four of them.
Seeing Zheng Fa’s focused expression, he couldn’t help but smile, “Li Hao, do you have any insights into the ‘Heaven and Earth Divine Array’?”
Zheng Fa snapped back to attention and replied, “Disciple has gained some small understanding.”
“Oh? Do tell.”
“This grand formation seems to be divided into four parts…”
Shi Nandang had a hint of testing in his tone, and he needed to maintain the persona of a so-called “genius.”
Zheng Fa carefully selected his words, sharing about sixty percent of his insights into the grand formation, excluding matters related to the Tianhe Sect’s techniques and the secrets of the Nine Mountains’ talismans.
At first, Shi Nandang’s expression was one of appreciation, nodding along as he listened.
But soon, confusion began to creep onto his face.
Then, he stared blankly at Zheng Fa, watching his mouth move, lost in thought.
As Zheng Fa continued speaking, he sensed something was off— it was far too quiet around him.
He turned to look around and saw that everyone’s expressions were somewhat dazed, and he immediately understood:
Sixty percent was too much!
Though he was only beginning to grasp formations, his accumulation in talisman techniques was substantial, and with experience from various similar methods like the Immortal Array, his understanding of the “Heaven and Earth Divine Array” far exceeded what others could imagine!
Realizing this, Zheng Fa couldn’t help but look at Shi Nandang with a hint of disdain— it was one thing for others to be ignorant, but for you, a true disciple of Haori Mountain, to be so uninformed?
After a long silence, Shi Nandang suddenly trembled, looking at Zheng Fa with an expression that hinted at hidden treasures, “Did you come to these insights all on your own?”
Zheng Fa nodded.
“Have you studied formations before?” he asked again, but upon seeing the spirit stone in Zheng Fa’s hand, he realized, “No, you didn’t even know how to use spirit stones before.”
Understanding this, Shi Nandang’s interest deepened. He stared at Zheng Fa for a long while, seemingly contemplating something, before finally saying:
“I used to think you had some potential, but I didn’t expect… you have such a talent for formations!”
“Very good!”
The other six Huashen cultivators and the three Yuanying beside Zheng Fa all sensed the genuine admiration in his voice and turned to look at Zheng Fa.
Zheng Fa bowed his head in acknowledgment, maintaining his persona of being taciturn.
“If you have any difficulties in your cultivation, feel free to share them with me.”
Seeing a disciple with such high comprehension, Shi Nandang was clearly excited and began to guide Zheng Fa.
The others exchanged glances, realizing that this disciple had increasingly caught Shi Nandang’s eye, and their expressions toward Zheng Fa grew more favorable.
As dusk approached, Shi Nandang reluctantly waved his hand, allowing Zheng Fa and the others to return to their cultivation.
Zheng Fa followed behind Elder Nine, and once they separated from the Sect Leader of Chongxuan Sect and the others, they walked in sync into Elder Nine’s cave dwelling.
Inside the cave, it was just the two of them.
Silence enveloped the space.
“Is Li Hao still alive?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s good.” Elder Nine nodded gently and continued, “Do you know what will happen once the ‘Heaven and Earth Divine Array’ is set up?”
“The earth veins of the Hundred Immortals Alliance will be severed.”
“No, it’s the complete annihilation of the Chongxuan Sect.”
Zheng Fa’s eyes widened in shock.
“The formation you’ve seen is only a part of it.” Elder Nine sat on an ice-cold bed, looking at Zheng Fa, her gaze seemingly unfocused.
“When the grand formation is truly completed, all disciples of Chongxuan who have practiced the secret techniques of Haori Mountain will become nourishment for the array…”
Zheng Fa’s heart raced as he finally understood why Haori Mountain had been so generous, providing Chongxuan Sect with so many spirit stones and secret techniques— it wasn’t that they had money to burn, but rather that the formation required the sacrifice of disciples?
“Does that include you, Elder?”
Elder Nine smiled slightly, “Those who enter the mountaintop will have a way out. Including me, and you.”
“Does the Sect Leader know about this?”
“What do you think?”
So this was the reason why his cheap master often said that all disciples of Chongxuan would die.
It was also why she had fought for him to ascend the mountaintop…
Elder Nine lowered her gaze and spoke softly:
“Whether it’s the Sect Leader or Elder Eight, they’ve let it go… but then again, what choice do we have against Haori Mountain’s decision?”
Zheng Fa remained silent.
“But I was born in Chongxuan Sect, not in Haori Mountain. They accepted it, but I don’t want to… I want to buy a few lives for Chongxuan Sect.” Elder Nine raised her eyes, looking at Zheng Fa with a smile, speaking softly.
“That list?”
Elder Nine nodded gently, her smile radiant, “Whatever you want to do, Zheng Alliance Leader, I can help you.”
“... How did you figure it out, Elder?”
Elder Nine shook her head slightly, “I don’t know much about you, Zheng Alliance Leader, but I know my disciple well enough… his foolishness isn’t an act.”
… It’s not that he was pretending to be foolish, and he felt a bit sorry about that.
“Then how did you know it was me?”
“In the realm of the Hundred Immortals, how many people could hide from Shi Nandang and the other Huashen cultivators while trying to infiltrate Chongxuan Sect? A few days ago, you were in my Chongxuan Sect, while Real Person Zhang was making an appearance in the Hundred Immortals Alliance.”
Indeed, one should never underestimate any Yuanying cultivator; they were all sharp as a tack!
“Why didn’t the Real Person report it?”
“Among the disciples who went to the Jiushan Realm, I have a relative.” Elder Nine chuckled lightly, looking up, “Between Jiushan Realm and Haori Mountain, I would choose Jiushan Realm.”
“…”
Zheng Fa truly hadn’t expected that the brainwashing could reach even the elders of Chongxuan Sect.
This Elder Nine had given him quite a surprise.
Looking at Elder Nine, Zheng Fa still didn’t fully believe that a Yuanying cultivator would choose to betray their sect based solely on a relative’s words.
How much of what she said was credible was still uncertain.
Dealing with such clever individuals whose motives were unclear was indeed troublesome.
He glanced at the mountaintop, pressed the Canghai Pearl against his chest, and knew that for now, Elder Nine’s concealment of her identity, whether it was as she claimed to help him or not, meant he was temporarily safe…
But if conflicts arose in the future, things could get complicated.
“Since the Elder has said so, I happen to have a matter I’d like to ask for your help with.”
“Hmm?”
“Do you have anyone who can help me transport some items from Taishang Dao?”
“…”
Taishang Dao and Jiushan Sect were blocked by Chongxuan Sect, and he didn’t have a good way to smuggle things. This deep-thinking Elder Nine, however, might have her own channels.
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