Chapter 761
He glanced at the live stream of Jiu You Mo Zu, who had his eyes closed and brows furrowed, appearing quite passive, yet the Buddha light surrounding him showed little sign of increase.
After all, no matter how cunning Lu Yao was, with his current cultivation level, refining the Book of Life and Death, a treasure of the Golden Immortal rank, was no easy feat.
Moreover, the "spirit" of Jiu You Mo Zu harbored a deep-seated hatred for Lu Yao, which only added to the difficulty of the refinement.
This bought some time for Zheng Fa and the others.
Xie Qingxue smirked slightly and heard the Heavenly Emperor's avatar continue, "After all, they don't understand the Xian Sword as well as we do. They also lack the theory of function symbols."
"Theory of function symbols?" Sister Zhang interjected, "Are you suggesting that the Zhu Xian Sword Array conforms to this theory?"
The Heavenly Emperor's avatar nodded, "I discovered within that aura cage that the structure of the symbols can be analyzed using the theory of function symbols, revealing a recursive nature."
"So, that's why you can't get out?" Sister Zhang began to understand, "What symbols are involved?"
The Heavenly Emperor's avatar drew countless symbols in the air, and Sister Zhang quickly furrowed her brows, diving into her research.
Xie Qingxue, standing by, felt lost. The Heavenly Emperor's avatar glanced at her but said nothing more—
This was truly hard to explain.
If it were the modern world, Xie Qingxue had played video games, and Zheng Fa could have made a comparison:
In essence, the Zhu Xian Array was like a maze game, except that the code of a video game controlled pixel blocks, while the symbols in the Zhu Xian Sword Array manipulated the subtle physical rules, trapping Zheng Fa and the others.
Perhaps the symbols were even more complex than computer code, controlling a greater variety of elements.
But the underlying concept was quite similar.
Yet in the Jiu Shan realm, the only one who could grasp such a metaphor was likely Sister Zhang.
Sister Zhang understood: "You mean, using the Xian Sword to escape the sword array?"
What Sister Zhang said was precisely what Zheng Fa was thinking.
Analyzing the sword array was one thing.
Escaping from it was another matter entirely.
But Zheng Fa had the Xian Sword!
With his understanding of the symbols and knowledge of the sword array, combined with the connection between the Xian Sword and the Zhu Xian Sword Array, Zheng Fa felt confident he could break free from the Zhu Xian Sword Array and head to the Wan Jian Realm.
The Heavenly Emperor's avatar had various affairs in the Jiu Shan realm to attend to and could not linger.
Sister Zhang remained in the laboratory, analyzing, deducing, and calculating.
Xie Qingxue assisted her.
After all, she was most familiar with the techniques of the Tianhe Sect and well-acquainted with the terrain of Tianhe, providing valuable references.
Half a month slipped by in the blink of an eye.
Sister Zhang had not left the laboratory even once.
As a transformation stage cultivator, she could go without food or drink, but prolonged use of the innate Eight Trigrams for deduction had left her complexion pale.
The glow of the spirit stones illuminated her face, making her skin appear translucent and fragile, like delicate white jade.
Xie Qingxue understood that although Sister Zhang hadn’t said much, she must be feeling quite anxious.
"Have you deduced anything?"
"Hmm?"
"Even if we find the ancestral treasure, it might not be enough to stop Lu Yao from achieving his Dao... What are our chances?"
Sister Zhang looked at her, remaining silent for a long time before finally speaking, "I haven't calculated that."
"…"
Sister Zhang then turned her gaze back to the various symbols within the spirit stones, seemingly pondering, and uttered a statement that left Xie Qingxue stunned:
"What my junior brother decides doesn’t need to be calculated."
…
On another island in the Xuanwu Garden, Zheng Fa's sister, Zheng Shan, curiously watched Xiao Yuying wandering about.
Zheng Shan was now a Golden Core cultivator and, by rights, should have her own small courtyard.
However, she still lived with their mother—
She knew her brother was busy with many matters and often couldn’t pay attention to home, so she chose to stay by their mother’s side.
Yet there were some things she couldn’t share with her mother; mentioning them would only add to her worries.
She was quite familiar with Xiao Yuying, and upon seeing her, couldn’t help but follow.
"Zheng Shan?"
Xiao Yuying was surprised to see her approach.
Her gaze towards Zheng Shan was warm—
On one hand, Zheng Shan had attended her classes.
On the other hand, Zheng Shan was Zheng Fa's sister, and since she had a good relationship with Zheng Fa, she naturally treated his sister kindly.
Zheng Shan didn’t let her identity make her complacent; she respectfully greeted her before asking, "Teacher, what are you doing?"
"Oh, me? Just looking around," Xiao Yuying replied, raising the jade tube in her hand. "I want to record what I see and hear in the Jiu Shan realm."
"Record?"
Zheng Shan furrowed her delicate brows, seeming not to fully understand.
Xiao Yuying smiled and asked, "Are you looking for me for something?"
"Nothing!" Zheng Shan instinctively replied, then fell silent for a moment before quietly asking, "Teacher Xiao, if that Lu Yao..."
Xiao Yuying suddenly understood.
The live stream of Jiu You Mo Zu was visible to anyone with access.
Most disciples in the Jiu Shan realm had this capability.
Coupled with the existence of Jiu Shan News, many disciples were quite aware of the conflicts between the Bai Xian Alliance, Hao Ri Mountain, and even Lei Yin Temple.
They also understood that Lu Yao achieving his Dao was not a good thing for the Bai Xian Alliance.
"Are you worried about this?"
Zheng Shan nodded, her face troubled. "I can’t show it in front of others; after all..."
"After all, you’re Zheng Fa’s sister. If you panic, it could affect the other disciples."
Zheng Shan nodded vigorously, then added, "I can’t say much in front of my mother either."
Xiao Yuying gently nodded, her gaze towards Zheng Shan warm, but her words were somewhat cold:
"I don’t know..."
"Y-You don’t know?"
Seeing her face grow increasingly anxious, Xiao Yuying realized that although Zheng Shan was a Golden Core cultivator, she had hardly faced any real danger.
This was unavoidable.
No one in the Jiu Shan realm wanted Zheng Shan to encounter trouble outside.
This was, of course, out of care for her.
But on the other hand, it also limited her—while other disciples could go to the Bai Xian Alliance or even the sea, it was incredibly difficult for Zheng Shan to venture out.
Compared to other disciples, Zheng Shan’s world had, in a sense, become much smaller.
Xiao Yuying’s expression grew even gentler as she looked at Zheng Shan:
Zheng Shan seemed to understand the implications but had never complained, ultimately deciding to stay by her mother’s side.
Compared to the child who had just entered Jiu Shan University, the current Zheng Shan seemed to have quietly matured.
"Lu Yao is a true immortal, even a Golden Immortal. I, as a transformation stage cultivator, still need some time," Xiao Yuying said candidly. "I certainly can’t guarantee whether he will succeed."
"But I know that the Sect Leader, Zhang Taishang, and even everyone in the Jiu Shan realm are doing their best."
Zheng Shan slowly nodded, yet her eyes remained filled with worry.
Xiao Yuying didn’t try to console her but continued:
"Do you know? Throughout history, countless sects and prodigies in Xuan Wei have become mere memories."
Zheng Shan turned to look at her, seemingly not understanding what she was trying to convey.
"Perhaps it’s Lu Yao, or perhaps it’s something else. One day, we too will face insurmountable difficulties and enemies we cannot contend with." Xiao Yuying handed the jade tube to Zheng Shan, smiling, "But we have left behind many things."
Zheng Shan understood Xiao Yuying’s words: "So, you want to record them?"
"Yes. I want to document how Jiu Shan University, Jiu Shan Military Academy, and even the mundane lives in the Jiu Shan realm operate, and how the divine path of the Jiu Shan realm functions," Xiao Yuying explained. "This is a sect and a world established by your brother, completely different from other places in Xuan Wei."
"They are worth remembering."
Zheng Shan grasped the meaning and nodded gently, a hint of pride on her face.
"So don’t worry, even if it’s just for these reasons," Xiao Yuying added, "many people in the Jiu Shan realm will be willing to fight to the end."
"Mm!" Although Xiao Yuying’s words were quite pessimistic, for some reason, Zheng Shan felt less anxious. She suddenly asked curiously, "Teacher Xiao, would you be willing to?"
Xiao Yuying glanced at her.
"I’m not saying you... I mean, Teacher Xiao, you could return to the sea..." Zheng Shan stumbled over her words, trying to explain, "My brother would definitely persuade you..."
Xiao Yuying waved her hand, seemingly understanding Zheng Shan’s intent.
"So I want to record these things."
"Huh?"
Zheng Shan didn’t understand the connection.
"If I record them, I won’t have many regrets."
…
"Zheng Fa, what are you looking at?"
In a modern nursing home, an old man stood curiously beside Zheng Fa, following his gaze towards the spiritual fields in the mountains.
These were newly opened spiritual fields, located in the area with the most concentrated spiritual energy in Hong Shan.
Since Zheng Fa had reached the transformation stage, he had opened many new spiritual veins, and over the years, the modern world had gradually cultivated many useful spiritual plants.
Now, the spiritual plants grown in the nursing home had actually surpassed thirty varieties.
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