Chapter 45: The Unbound Divine Soul and the Metal Elemental Sword Array

Second-tier formations were already quite intricate for Lian Yueying. She roughly calculated the positions and sketched a preliminary design before retreating. After all, she dared not directly confront the Hundred-Petal Lotus’s spiritual energy from such close proximity. Once the initial resistance subsided, she re-entered to set up the formation. Her daily practice had endowed her with an exceptionally solid foundation in formations, making her almost intimately familiar with them. The complexity would only slow her down, not lead to errors. Approximately an hour later, the “Sun-Facing Repulsion” formation was complete.

The ability to correctly choose a formation was also an indispensable quality for a formation master. Given the Hundred-Petal Lotus’s extremely potent Yin energy, this formation harnessed the mountain’s sun-facing side, utilizing Yang energy to repel Yin. Conversely, there was also a “Shaded-Side Repulsion” formation.

Since a formation was already established on the spirit vein, Lian Yueying decided to power it with spirit stones. She provisionally placed one spirit stone at each of the seven formation nodes, which would suffice for more than ten days of operation, and then, after confirming everything, activated the formation to isolate the area.

“By my reckoning, the next fluctuation should be imminent.”

Sometimes, lost in thought, Lian Yueying would voice her inner musings. After a moment of contemplation, she turned to leave, murmuring, “Even with the isolation in place, not a single fluctuation should escape, but it’s best not to be careless.”

As she spoke, Lian Yueying returned to the large stone chamber, finding her mood considerably brightened by the sight of sunlight bathing the spiritual plant field. A moment later, when no fluctuations arrived as expected, it signified that the Sun-Facing Repulsion formation was functioning normally, allowing her to finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Returning to the desk, she resumed her perusal, hoping to unearth further clues. She replaced each book as she finished it, and before she realized it, dusk began to settle.

As the sunlight vanished from the spiritual plant field, the stone chamber grew dim. Lian Yueying had no choice but to light the scattered candlesticks before picking up the final book.

The moment the desk was cleared, a sound of interlocking gears echoed, instantly revitalizing the somewhat weary Lian Yueying. She swiftly retreated to the side, on high alert, discerning that the sound emanated from beneath the desk.

Bending down to look, she saw a square protrusion appear beneath the desk. From the outside, it seemed unremarkable, but when Lian Yueying circled to the other side, she discovered it was a box.

‘This mechanism is rather like a drawer. What could be inside?’

Inside the drawer lay a cylindrical object, wrapped in something resembling cloth.

It was described as “like cloth” because it appeared to be fabric, yet its texture was incredibly smooth to the touch. Unlike silk, which at least possessed a discernible weave, this material felt utterly frictionless no matter how she tried to grasp it, making it impossible for Lian Yueying to pick up. She could only hook it out and then catch it.

As expected, it nearly slipped away even as she caught it, and only by quickly closing her hand did Lian Yueying manage to secure it.

‘Not only is this cloth incredibly slick, but it seems to strip my hands of all friction. This outer layer is certainly no ordinary item, though I don’t yet know what it is.’

Lian Yueying placed the object on the desk, but when she tried to remove the slippery cloth, she still couldn’t get a grip. In her frustration, she attempted to use her Item Manipulation spell, only to discover with surprise that her spiritual energy couldn’t adhere to the material.

This revelation only piqued Lian Yueying’s interest in the mysterious covering even further.

Of course, such a simple obstacle wouldn’t deter human ingenuity. The cloth wasn’t a pouch containing the cylinder, but merely wrapped around it. Lian Yueying rolled the item, found a seam, and with a slight twist, removed the peculiar fabric, then immediately focused on the object within.

It was a jade slip.

Having personally experienced the peculiar and useful nature of the Three-Foot Mirror, Lian Yueying had a very intuitive impression of jade slips. They were precious.

Nevertheless, it was ultimately the cloth that captured her attention.

Although the desk couldn’t be perfectly level, even an imperceptible incline caused the cloth to slowly begin moving. In the blink of an eye, it slid to the edge of the desk.

Lian Yueying allowed it to slide off the edge, catching the cloth herself below. To her amusement and exasperation, she had to cup her hands into a small hollow to contain the fabric.

‘For now, I’ll call it “Slick Cloth.” I’ll investigate what it truly is when I return.’

Having made her decision, Lian Yueying tucked the Slick Cloth into her storage pouch and likewise swept the jade slip inside.

She dared not examine the jade slip there; the unsettling strangeness of the Hundred-Petal Lotus made her constantly uncomfortable. Even with the Sun-Facing Repulsion formation in place, she felt uneasy.

With the hour growing late, Lian Yueying wandered through the stone chamber once more. Finding nothing else of use, she added enough spirit stones to the formation to power it for a full year. She also observed the Hundred-Petal Lotus. She noted that while the Yin energy here was abundant, there were no fresh corpses to provide the massive influx of Corpse Yin the Hundred-Petal Lotus required, thus its growth was exceedingly slow, and it might take a considerable time to fully mature.

Lian Yueying knew very little about spiritual plants of this caliber and couldn’t discern the precise time needed. Unable to acquire the Hundred-Petal Lotus for now, she could only seal off the area, intending to collect it once it matured in the future.

****

As she walked out of the cave, night had already fallen, and the forest occasionally echoed with the calls of birds and beasts. Lian Yueying stood at the cave entrance, gazing at the dilapidated stone door, before turning back inside.

‘The cave dwelling’s owner certainly enjoyed using Qimen Dunjia, but such tricks are nothing to cultivators. It’s fortunate this place is so well-hidden, and that the illusionary spell at the entrance contained no spiritual energy; otherwise, others would have long since claimed it.’

Lian Yueying didn’t perceive herself as an intruder in the slightest; she had long considered the Hundred-Petal Lotus deep within the cave to be her own. Even if she couldn’t claim it immediately, she absolutely wouldn’t allow anyone else to take it. Thus, she returned to the massive stone chamber, surveyed its layout, and began inscribing a formation within.

In the blink of an eye, more than two hours passed. Lian Yueying finally let out a long breath, put away her formation book, and then plopped down onto the ground.

The day’s experiences had been mentally taxing, and this particular formation was among the most challenging of all second-tier arrays. Even Lian Yueying’s body, tempered by cultivation until now, found it difficult to endure.

A second-tier formation: the Metal Elemental Sword Array.

Formations broadly encompass the Five Elements: Metal governs slaughter, Wood governs nature, Water embodies supreme goodness, Fire represents aggression, and Earth stands unmoving as a mountain.

Metal forged implements of war, and in most cases, Metal spiritual energy possessed characteristics of sharpness. Ninety-nine percent of sword cultivators in the cultivation world primarily cultivated Metal spiritual energy, and sword arrays were no exception.

However, while all Five Elements had offensive formations, Lian Yueying chose the Metal Elemental Sword Array primarily because this location was deep within a mountain, where Earth energy was abundant, allowing Metal spiritual energy to perform optimally.

Gazing at her masterpiece, Lian Yueying felt a surge of excitement. It was thanks to the elder’s “Primer on Formations” from the library that she had become so familiar with the mysteries of formations, enabling her to deploy them with such ease.

‘I must find time to thank the elder; he is one of my teachers as well.’

After resting for a good while, her eyes, strained from staring at the formation patterns, felt much better, and her mind was no longer muddled. Only then did she stand up and pat the dust from her skirt.

Promptly, Lian Yueying placed spirit stones at the formation nodes, then infused her own spiritual energy into them. Pale blue luminescence pulsed along the formation lines, converging towards the center in waves. After four complete cycles, all the formation lines lit up, and the sword array suddenly fell silent.

However, anyone standing at the center of the formation would undoubtedly feel the spiritual energy around them completely locked down.

This was the activation of the array, signifying that the formation was bound to Lian Yueying. Firstly, no one else could use it, and secondly, she could control it at will.

Merely activating the formation caused Lian Yueying’s spiritual energy to sharply decrease by thirty percent. She conjured the Mountain-Bearing Shield and directed it towards the formation. At her mental command, the sword array instantly emitted a terrifying sharpness, and four golden-glowing flying swords materialized out of thin air, shooting directly towards the Mountain-Bearing Shield.

“Bang!” The Mountain-Bearing Shield, renowned for its defense, was instantly pierced and shattered by the flying swords, leaving only clouds of dust to settle as the golden swords dissipated.

“To possess such power with just four blades, it truly lives up to its name as a second-tier formation. With this formation, anyone below Foundation Establishment would be utterly annihilated, though I wonder how it would fare against an early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.”

Lian Yueying murmured to herself, then with a graceful hand, she clenched the air, and the sword array’s keen edge instantly peaked. A full sixteen flying swords, four times four, hovered in mid-air, poised to strike at her command.

However, commensurate with its destructive power was the rate at which it consumed spirit stones. Just one attack combined with one full activation had caused the spirit stones at the formation nodes to dim by half.

Lian Yueying added several dozens more spirit stones, burying them at the formation nodes. She then retreated to the exit to survey the setup, and only after confirming everything was in order did she turn and leave.

The spirit stones she had placed were sufficient for the Metal Elemental Sword Array to operate at full power several times over, ensuring that anyone who stepped into the stone chamber would be swiftly annihilated by its thunderous blades.

Exiting the cave, Lian Yueying felt around the stone door’s mechanism outside. Once she finally located it, she first created an earthen wall, then closed the stone door. After a moment’s thought, she deactivated the illusionary spell, leaving only a mirage.

Night had deepened, and returning to the city was definitely out of the question. Lian Yueying’s body wasn’t particularly tired, but her mental energy had been heavily depleted. She surveyed her surroundings, judging that she could still endure, and decided to travel through the starry night, resting only upon her return to the sect.

Her journey back was smooth, and by the time she returned to the sect, the sun had already risen. Lian Yueying collapsed onto her bed and slept soundly until nightfall once more.

Incidentally, the reason Lian Yueying could sleep so peacefully was not solely due to the sect’s security, but primarily because her residence was protected by a Movement-Halting Formation she had personally set up. Without her permission, no one could enter.

Of course, a forceful intrusion was possible, but the commotion it would create would be sufficient to alert others. Hence, her residence was considered exceedingly safe.

Only then did it truly feel like home.

Waking naturally from a deep sleep was indeed refreshing, and Lian Yueying felt invigorated. She rose, stretched languidly, and only then retrieved the jade slip, infusing it with spiritual energy. Five large characters immediately appeared in her mind.

‘The Method of Unbound Divine Soul’

Vast are the heavens and earth, yet mortals perceive them incompletely; even cultivating for ten thousand years, one still perceives them incompletely. The Human Emperor’s life ultimately returns to the tomb; if cultivation is the same, then there is no distinction between immortal and mortal. Therefore, the heavens and earth are an infinite tomb; the physical body cannot depart, but the divine soul can. This is what is meant by the unbound divine soul.

The appearance of these words in Lian Yueying’s mind struck her as quite peculiar. She continued reading, and only after noting all the content did she slowly open her eyes.

“To compare the heavens and earth to a massive tomb, where the physical body cannot escape, but only the divine soul can… The ‘divine soul’ here should not refer to the three souls and seven spirits, but rather the ‘Divine’ soul. In essence, it’s a cultivation method for tempering the divine soul.”

If one were to ask what cultivation methods were the rarest in the cultivation world, aside from body-tempering methods for Dao cultivators after qi induction, it would be those for tempering the divine soul. The former were rarely researched due to their limited application, while the latter were genuinely complex.

In fact, even for cultivators, the soul before reaching Nascent Soul could not be called a divine soul.

Once the physical body perished, the soul would leave the body and enter reincarnation, just like a mortal’s. Those who cultivated to Nascent Soul possessed a powerful divine soul capable of reshaping a physical body, and tempering the divine soul to a certain extent could also achieve this.

Of course, reaching the stage of reshaping a physical body indicated being overwhelmed by an enemy, making it easy for both body and soul to perish. Therefore, the purpose of cultivating the divine soul was to strengthen divine sense and to utilize divine sense spells.

Such a rare and precious find should have brought joy, but it was not so. Divine soul cultivation methods were difficult to create, and even upon acquiring one, careful consideration was needed to determine if it could be cultivated, and if the benefits outweighed the risks.

Books in the library recorded such an incident: a Golden Core mighty figure once cultivated a divine soul method, ultimately developing a false Nascent Soul that devoured them, transforming them into a monster that was eventually besieged and killed.

In summary, divine soul cultivation methods were rare but could not be cultivated casually. One must first ascertain if they agreed with the introductory content and if there were any issues with the method’s operation.