Chapter 612 458: The Courtyard (Part 2)

However, the wind here seemed endless, swirling around the mountain in all directions. The group, blown down by the Spirit Wind, didn't stop to gather it but hurriedly made their way up the mountain.

Li Xuanfeng had just landed when another black-clad man ahead of him landed too. His brows were thick yet pale, cheeks gaunt. He cupped his hands and spoke:

"I just spotted you in the air, Taoist Li Xuanfeng. The mountain is dangerous; why not travel together?"

This man was none other than Lin Chensheng from Great Owl Sunflower View. Receiving his reminder, Li Xuanfeng had a good impression of him, raised his eyebrows and nodded, replying softly:

"Alright."

The two set off side by side, activating their movement techniques, stepping swiftly on stone bricks, ignoring the Spirit Pines around them and heading quickly for the nearest pavilion.

The pavilion was about the size of an ordinary household's small courtyard, two stone lions set before the gate. Li Xuanfeng fixed his gaze, discovering someone had come first and was standing at the yard's entrance.

It was a female cultivator, robed in red, her cloak draping down. She stared intently at the pavilion, holding a small halberd in her arms, about the length of an arm. The whole thing glowed with red and yellow, splitting into three prongs, the tips clustered together like a petal—more like a ritual implement than a weapon.

Li Xuanfeng paused just in time, but the female cultivator immediately turned, eyeing him warily, her voice soft:

"Taoist fellow... I arrived here first; please, go elsewhere..."

Her gaze swept past Li Xuanfeng to Lin Chensheng behind him, and suddenly she paused, eyes curved in a look of surprise and delight, calling out:

"Brother Chensheng!"

Lin Chensheng was also slightly shocked, replying:

"So it is Yu Tian, Taoist Fellow..."

He revealed a genuine smile, introducing her to Li Xuanfeng:

"This is Taoist Bi Yuzhuang of Hengzhu Taoism, an old friend of mine since childhood!"

Lin Chensheng looked at Bi Yuzhuang and smiled:

"This is Li Xuanfeng, a capable aide to Yuansu Perfected Person."

Bi Yuzhuang responded and her attitude shifted, smiling:

"I've been worrying about unlocking this array... Wasn't sure what to do next. Since you two are here, why not split the spoils together? That'll save us from wasting time and unnecessary trouble."

Lin Chensheng cupped his hands a bit awkwardly:

"You know I'm no good with Formations, and neither is Taoist Li Xuanfeng... If only Kan Ziyu were here... we might give it a try."

Bi Yuzhuang pondered for a moment, then replied:

"I've looked at it for a while. This Formation is rather peculiar and has a distinctly ancient flavor. It lacks the Six Chapters, and omits the Nine Marks. Besides, the passage of time and changes in the world mean its spiritual nodes have dimmed and its power has waned."

With a wave of her hand, she produced several jade wedges from her Storage Bag, each with several thin chains at the tail end, which she tossed lightly, chains still grasped in her hand.

The jade wedges landed nimbly upon the array, moving smoothly about. Bi Yuzhuang explained:

"This array must've been laid down over a thousand years ago, when Lu Shui was still gone and Mingyang, Jueyin, and even Taiyang and Taiyin possibly remained in the world—thus, Yin-Yang was used as the fixed points, making the array especially stable."

"Nowadays, everything's changed; people prefer using the Three Metals of Five Virtues for formations and rarely use Yin-Yang anymore. Though the influence within a Cave Heaven is lessened, flaws have inevitably appeared."

She gently plucked at the chains; lines of light began to float and wander atop the Formation. Picking out a few points, Bi Yuzhuang whispered:

"Just follow my Spiritual Sense, and break through these weak spots."

Lin Chensheng flipped his wrist and took out a Talisman, pitch-black and flowing with silent rainbow light. Holding it for a moment, he formed a seal, activated the Talisman, and smashed it down with a bang.

Lin Chensheng had clearly held back, not going all out. A muffled boom rang out, the great formation flickered and then re-illuminated.

Li Xuanfeng drew his bow, but did not nock an arrow, merely condensing a strip of golden light and shooting it into the array. He too reserved his full strength, causing the array to shudder and sway.

This great formation was never meticulously arranged, more like a protective ward hastily laid down. With its flaws, and the three working together, it was smashed to pieces, the stone beasts at the gate slowly growing dim.

The three each withdrew their power. Bi Yuzhuang retrieved from her Storage Bag a sparkling white orb and tossed it gently.

Once the artifact hit the ground, it immediately transformed and rose—a white-armored warrior at the Qi Cultivating Peak, features proper and silent, who strode straight into the courtyard within.

'It does bear a resemblance to Yuan Tuan's Green Jade Cliff...'

Li Xuanfeng took a look; the white-armored warrior had already pushed the door open, walking boldly inside. In the courtyard lay a pile of collapsed stone.

The debris was mostly intact, and one could vaguely make out the remnant of a stone beast once standing there.

This stone beast was neither wolf nor tiger; the head left on the ground bore three eyes, fangs sharp and fierce. In its third eye was a gem—some unknown treasure.

Li Xuanfeng felt it looked familiar, hesitated for a moment, and suddenly recalled that there was a similar statue before Yuansu Perfected Person's gate.

Indeed, the other two both shifted their gazes to him; Lin Chensheng spoke softly:

"Three-eyed Hill Beast... This beast could guard formations and attract wealth. In ancient times, it was often used to protect great arrays. The last one known... alas!"

Li Xuanfeng had heard that Yuansu once possessed such a Spiritual Beast, but it was killed by Situ Tang of Tang Jin Sect. He asked:

"And that gemstone...?"

Neither Lin Chensheng nor Bi Yuzhuang recognized it, so Li Xuanfeng used his mana to put it away, saying quietly:

"As this concerns Spiritual Beasts, I will bring it back for the Perfected Person to see. I'll take it first."

They both nodded naturally, watching as the white-armored warrior swept through the attached chambers, bringing out a pile of items and arranging them neatly at the door.

Dozens of ancient tomes, over ten jade bottles, several jade pillows and meditation mats—clearly, the owner never expected intruders in the Cave Heaven and left in some haste, leaving these behind.

Lin Chensheng wasted no time, first taking the tomes and handing them to his companions, following the usual custom to let all three read through them.

Li Xuanfeng read carefully: thirteen volumes on arrays, seven on cultivation techniques, and the rest biographies, novels, and bestiaries—most discussing Dragons of the sea.

Nearby, Bi Yuzhuang finished all the array manuals, sighing:

"A shame, a real shame... these formations are truly exquisite, but with changes to the world, most are no longer of much reference today..."

Li Xuanfeng looked over the cultivation techniques: three on Fetal Breathing, two fourth-grade ones—Six Chapters in Search of Immortals and Scaled Beast Inquiry Method—and a fifth-grade Fetal Breathing art called "Gains from the Taihua Classic."

'These ancients named their works so plainly—none of the fanciful names of today.'

Of the three, Scaled Beast Inquiry Method's Six Wheels could only advance to Water Virtue techniques, thus a bit limiting; the others were broader. Only Six Chapters in Search of Immortals noted at the end: cannot be continued with ancient merging methods.

'What ancient merging method... never heard of it; who could find such things now...'

These Fetal Breathing arts were useless to him, but truly precious for the juniors in his clan. He didn't know what Fetal Breathing cultivation they practiced besides the Taiyin Breathing and Wheel Nourishing Scripture, but none would be as high as fifth grade, surely.

'Now, only in a Cave Heaven can one hope to find such high-grade cultivation techniques!'

He memorized the three, and of the remaining ones, three were Qi Cultivation arts—mostly partial volumes to offer the master of the house options, he supposed. The last could progress to Foundation Establishment—the only complete Qi Cultivation technique.

'It seems the owner ultimately chose this one.'

The Qi Cultivation scrolls weren't of much use, so Li Xuanfeng skimmed them, focusing carefully on the Foundation Establishment one—an ancient text, exceptionally sturdy to the touch. The title was direct and neat:

"The Taiyue Northern Dawn Text."

He opened the first page, intent on reading deeply.