“Learning illusion arrays shouldn’t pose much difficulty. The talent [Enchanting Immortal Divine Seal] itself originates from the Enchanting Spirit Fox, whose abilities are fundamentally based on illusions.”
“Also, [Hundred-Eyed Demonic Domain] is a talent of the illusion type. So, I should have some aptitude for learning illusion arrays.”
Illusion arrays are a crucial component when building a private territory. Only by creating a deception that feels utterly real can one avoid unwanted attention. They must make ordinary animals, birds, beasts, and even cultivators feel no abnormality upon contact or inspection.
Fortunately, Qi Ping has two animal companions skilled in illusions, who can also help him identify and fill gaps in the setup of his illusion arrays.
“Beyond illusion arrays, there are also arrays for concealing auras.”
“According to the manual’s description, setting up aura-concealing arrays is relatively low in difficulty. However, if one wants to deploy a highly effective one, dedicated study is required.”
Qi Ping cultivates two techniques, the Art of Breath Concealment and the Fetal Breathing Art, giving him some understanding of hiding his aura. Combined with the generally lower difficulty of setting up aura-concealing arrays, he feels somewhat confident about this type of array—as long as it doesn’t involve those profoundly advanced ones.
“So, as long as I master these two types of arrays, and wait for my Druid advancement to break through to Level 5 and become a Tree Warden, I can choose a location to establish my private territory. The swarm can start scouting for potential places in advance…”
Thinking this, Qi Ping immediately ordered a group of bees from the swarm to begin scouting locations within the Misty Cloud Mountains.
“Buzz… (Okay, Boss! Bee-bee will definitely complete the task!)”
After arranging this task, Qi Ping shifted his focus back to studying formations.
“With illusion arrays and concealment arrays secured, defensive and offensive arrays can be tackled gradually. After all, the territory will be guarded by the bee swarm, ensuring basic safety as long as it remains undiscovered.”
“Finally, for my formation cultivation path, I can start with fire-element arrays.”
“Since the path of formations is extremely difficult to cultivate, starting with the fire attribute I’m most adept at will make things much simpler. Once I successfully master fire-element arrays, I can draw inferences about other types, making the setup of illusion and concealment arrays much easier…”
Qi Ping’s current talent in the path of fire is unquestionable, especially since the Fire Essence is a manifestation of the first layer of the natural laws. The most basic fire-element arrays rely on formation bases to connect with the power of the Fire Essence. Generally, one only needs a simple grasp of the Fire Essence to set up basic fire arrays relatively easily.
Qi Ping can now directly control the Fire Essence using spiritual energy as a medium, which already surpasses many novice formation masters. This isn’t without its benefits, as formations leverage the power of heaven and earth. The deeper one’s comprehension of this power, the more force one can harness.
“In other words, as long as my formation skill improves and my spiritual power keeps up, the power of Fire Essence I can harness through formations and formation bases would be far greater than what I can directly control myself…”
From this perspective, one can see the value formations possess when geographical advantages are in play.
Qi Ping estimates that a significant reason the Azure Origin Sect can withstand pressure from so many rival sects of similar strength is likely their formations. With powerful arrays in place, even if several rival sects mobilized their full strength, they might not be able to capture it. Or, if they could, the losses would be devastating, potentially leading to a situation where a third party benefits from the conflict.
That’s probably why the Azure Origin Sect signed those combat agreements with its rival sects, defining the scale, numbers, and strength of conflicts within an acceptable range for all parties. This way, no matter how they fight, it won’t shake the foundations of the sects.
Having determined his formation cultivation direction, Qi Ping dedicated most of his energy to studying formations.
Starting from the most basic theories to practicing fundamental formation techniques, Qi Ping learned with utmost seriousness.
Unknowingly, over a month passed.
Around forty-some days later, Qi Ping finally succeeded in setting up his first formation using spirit stones: The Heavenly Fire Array!
[Heavenly Fire Array: A first-order, low-grade formation. Once deployed, it can condense fireballs to launch attacks.]
The Heavenly Fire Array Qi Ping set up currently covers an area of about a hundred square meters. After entering the array, Qi Ping immediately activated it, commanding it to attack him.
Upon his activation, the formation began to operate. Over a dozen fireballs condensed from all directions and simultaneously shot towards Qi Ping.
Immediately after, the dozen or so fireballs slammed into Qi Ping’s body, erupting in loud booms and explosions.
“Each fireball possesses speed and attack power comparable to a Fireball Technique cast by someone at the fourth layer of Qi Refining…”
“If a cultivator at the early Qi Refining stage were struck by over a dozen fireballs like this, they’d likely be utterly obliterated! Even cultivators at the fourth or fifth layer of Qi Refining still face the risk of severe injury or death.”
After testing the Heavenly Fire Array’s power, Qi Ping felt quite satisfied.
A first-order, low-grade array, corresponding to the early Qi Refining stage, could unleash power threatening to mid-Qi Refining cultivators. That’s undeniably impressive.
However, Qi Ping noted that the reason it could achieve such power was primarily his high level of control over the Fire Essence. If another first-order, low-grade formation master tried, they’d never be able to bring the Heavenly Fire Array to this level.
“Still, cultivating the path of formations is indeed not easy. Even with my current conditions and talents, it took me a whole month to successfully set up my first first-order, low-grade array, and it’s a fire-element one…”
This level of cultivation difficulty can’t simply be described as ‘hard.’
Qi Ping truly finds it hard to imagine how long it would take to successfully set up a single array if he hadn’t comprehended the Fire Essence, didn’t have the Druid identity and Heaven-Earth Blessing talent, lacked the spiritual power talent advantage, and didn’t have his current ninth-layer Qi Refining cultivation.
“Probably not even in a year… No wonder there aren’t many formation masters. Without talent, it’s far less appealing than regular cultivation, or making talismans is slightly simpler and more convenient for earning money…”
Actually, if other formation masters knew that Qi Ping went from a complete novice to a first-order, low-grade formation master capable of successfully deploying the Heavenly Fire Array in just over a month, they’d probably be astounded. That speed is truly terrifying!
“Now, the initial hurdle of getting started has been somewhat cleared for me. I believe the path of formation cultivation will be much simpler from here on…”
After all, Qi Ping spent most of that over-a-month period studying foundational knowledge and practicing basic formation skills. The actual time spent attempting to set up arrays wasn’t that long. With his exceptional advantages, he succeeded in setting up the Heavenly Fire Array after not many attempts. Given his current conditions, learning a first-order, low-grade array is practically a case of overwhelming advantage.
It’s worth mentioning that during this period, with a plentiful supply of honey, Qi Ping’s cultivation smoothly broke through to the ninth layer of Qi Refining, encountering not the slightest obstacle along the way.
