NOVEL NEXT Ch. 31
Chapter 31: Chaos of Yin and Yang
Morning mist had yet to disperse when Chen Beiwu picked up his self-made Illusory Weasel-Wolf Brush, dipped it into Exotic Beast Blood Ink, and suspended the brush tip three inches above the Wolfskin Talisman Paper.
In his mind surged the detailed method of drawing the Strength Talisman. The wolf-hair brush in his hand moved up and down like a swimming dragon, sketching one foundational talisman pattern after another onto the talisman paper. Spiritual energy from the surroundings was drawn into the paper, embedding the technique within the talisman.
"Hu!"
As the final stroke of the talisman pattern connected, a faint spiritual light instantly burst forth from the talisman on the table, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Putting down the wolf-hair brush, Chen Beiwu picked up the slightly yellow-hued Strength Talisman and carefully inspected it.
After confirming nothing was amiss, a hint of satisfaction flickered in his eyes: ‘Since ancient times, talismans and formations have been inseparable. This kind of non-tiered talisman is indeed a breeze for me.’
He picked up the wolf-hair brush again and skillfully began drawing the Lightweight Talisman and the Iron Body Talisman, both of which were non-tiered talismans.
Not long after, three talismans lay neatly on the table.
Just then, dawn broke. Mo Li entered the room, carrying breakfast in her hands.
"I'm leaving now," Chen Beiwu said in farewell.
Mo Li paused slightly, and the breakfast in her hands dropped to the floor.
Chen Beiwu walked out of the house, brushing past Mo Li. "There are three talismans on the table. Take them for protection. If you encounter evildoers, just tear them open."
"Can you take me with you?" She suddenly tugged at the hem of Chen Beiwu’s sleeve.
Chen Beiwu looked into her eyes and asked in return, "Can you bear to part with your father who has just recovered from a serious illness?"
Mo Li fell silent.
She couldn’t bear for the adult to leave, yet she also couldn’t let go of her father.
"Sir, will we be able to meet again in the future?" Mo Li asked, her eyes red.
After a brief hesitation, Chen Beiwu retrieved a Spiritual Root Testing Talisman from his storage pouch and activated his spiritual power.
The Spiritual Root Testing Talisman was a first-tier low-grade talisman with a single purpose: to roughly determine a person’s Spiritual Root Purity.
The next second, the talisman ignited without wind, turning into a wisp of cyan smoke that condensed midair into a vague illusory formation diagram.
The diagram had Heaven as Qian, Earth as Kun, and used the Five Elements to generate a profound Eight Trigrams diagram.
"Place your hand on the diagram."
Just as Chen Beiwu’s voice fell, Mo Li unhesitatingly extended her arm.
The next second, the illusory Eight Trigrams diagram accelerated its rotation, then suddenly collapsed with a bang. It transformed into a shifting, semi-illusory Fangtian Halberd, radiating intense metallic war aura.
"Metal Qi forging a weapon!" Chen Beiwu's pupils contracted.
Good heavens—this herb-gathering girl he had casually saved on the mountain turned out to have an Earth-Grade Root. Unbelievable.
"What’s wrong?" Mo Li asked timidly.
"It’s a good thing," Chen Beiwu looked at her deeply. "There are six grades of Spiritual Roots: Immortal, Heavenly, Earth, True, Mixed, and False. Your aptitude is good—an upper-grade metal-attribute Earth-Grade Root."
"I have a cultivation method here called the Alchemy Manual. If you cultivate it diligently, you’ll one day reach Late-Stage Qi Refining." Chen Beiwu handed over two jade slips.
The Alchemy Manual wasn’t a cultivation method from the Immortal Alliance. It was a broken technique he had obtained from a demonic cultivator—something he handed over casually to establish a good connection. The other jade slip recorded general information about the cultivation world of the Southern Wastes.
Mo Li gripped the jade slips tightly and repeated her question, "Sir, will we have the chance to meet again?"
"If fate allows, we will meet again." Chen Beiwu departed using Wind Control, leaving Mo Li standing there, unwilling to leave for a long time.
...
This morning's class was Formation Arts.
The Formation Arts teacher's surname was Zhao. She was a young woman who had just started working, a graduate of the Lotus Array Sect—one of the Seven-Nine Upper Sects. She seemed to be teaching at Shouhe No. 2 High School to gain grassroots teaching experience, and was set to transfer to Fallen Dragon Mansion next year.
Perhaps because of that, Teacher Zhao rarely took the initiative to lecture. She would usually sit at the podium playing on her phone, leaving the students to study on their own.
According to her, the path of formations was different from pill refining and artifact forging—it couldn’t be explained clearly just by lecturing. It required comprehension.
Students with comprehension needed only to read during class to easily learn the basic formations and understand the heavenly principles behind the Immortal Alliance’s formation theories.
As for those who lacked comprehension and couldn’t even grasp the entry-level formation books of the Immortal Alliance, Teacher Zhao felt it was not worth wasting time on them. It would be better to spend their time cultivating or practicing other cultivation arts.
In short, Formation Arts were extremely profound—those who understood needed no teaching; those who didn’t couldn’t be taught.
Teacher Zhao’s laissez-faire teaching philosophy had drawn many complaints from students, but her method never changed.
Of course, if a student took the initiative to ask her a question about formations, she would patiently explain it once.
Whether the student understood was their own business—she wouldn’t repeat herself. As a result, most students in the class didn’t like this cold and aloof Formation Arts teacher.
Chen Beiwu was one of the only two exceptions in the class. He had a good relationship with Teacher Zhao—part student, part friend.
Because Teacher Zhao did teach real things.
For instance, faced with his odd question now, she wasn’t dismissive but seriously pondered over it.
"Your thinking is strange. Water is naturally countered by lightning. Why would you use a second-tier water-attribute formation to fight a second-realm Cang Thunder Tiger? Isn’t that just meeting strength with weakness?" Teacher Zhao frowned slightly.
"Formations are boundless, connecting patterns and principles. Why can’t a water-attribute formation kill a lightning-attribute beast?" Chen Beiwu countered.
"It’s not impossible, but limiting the formation master’s realm to Eighth Level of Qi Refining is too much," Teacher Zhao poked his forehead with a fair finger, exasperated.
"Teacher, you’re a top student from the Lotus Array Sect. Isn’t killing a second-realm minor beast with a formation as easy as flipping your hand?" Chen Beiwu asked in surprise.
"You’re overestimating your teacher." Teacher Zhao shook her head with a helpless tone. "I’m not as powerful as you think. Do you really think second-realm minor beasts are weak?"
Chen Beiwu probed, "What if the formation is pre-arranged, trapping it like a turtle in a jar?"
"Possible, but the formation master needs to thoroughly study the relationship between Yin-Yang Qi and the formation field. With the Chaos of Yin and Yang Formation as the core to reverse heaven and earth, transform the Still-Sea Ninefold Formation into the Thunder-restraining Profound Yin Still-Sea Formation." Teacher Zhao smiled.
Chen Beiwu frowned, "Teacher, are you saying it’s fundamentally impossible?"
"Correct. A Qi Refining cultivator can use a prefabricated formation disk to lay out the Still-Sea Ninefold Formation."
Teacher Zhao explained, "But the Chaos of Yin and Yang Formation is different. It requires the formation master to have spiritual awareness above the second-tier. A Qi Refining cultivator forcibly laying this formation would only exhaust their spirit and die."
"A second-tier formation master capable of laying the Chaos of Yin and Yang Formation must at least be a Foundation Establishment cultivator."
"Understood. Thank you for the guidance, Teacher." Chen Beiwu returned to his seat.
‘As expected, defeating that Cang Thunder Tiger in a short time won’t be easy!’ Chen Beiwu sighed inwardly.
To put it plainly, all his current troubles stemmed from lack of strength!
‘Maybe I should apply for independent cultivation.’ The thought stirred in Chen Beiwu’s mind.
He had long since completed the high school curriculum through self-study, and his grades were solid.
Right now, what mattered most to him was seizing the cultivation resources of the Southern Wastes to raise his Qi Refining level and establish Foundation as soon as possible!
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