Chapter 1402: Dramatic Li Xing

The process continued for over half an hour. He would draw Runes, move, and merge them with the Formation. He scanned for rejections, searched for places where the Runes might suddenly collapse in a couple of centuries, and reinforced them.

Ordinarily, various Formation Masters and Rune Masters wouldn’t be able to do what these old men were doing. While Runes could be drawn, they needed a medium to be drawn on first, then transferred to whatever they were intended for and merged with it.

Only Ten-Star Masters could just draw Runes in the air as though it were nothing. If Hidden Elder Cane Haine hadn’t sealed various Formations into the metallic disk, he would also have drawn his own Formation in the air.

After an hour, Ancient Elder Li Xing finally stopped moving all over the mountain. Although an hour might seem like a long time, it was extremely short considering what he had just done.

Merging a Rune into a Formation was no easy feat and required immense concentration. One misstep somewhere, and the already-drawn Formation would collapse. It took hours and days of work to merge these two, yet the man had done it within an hour.

Clearly, he was simply too talented and experienced in his field.

"Aigoo!!! I think my back is going to break with all this work. My old bones aren’t built for working under the sun and bending down too much."

The Sky Sealer stated as he rose from the ground, the bones at his waist making dramatic sounds. But neither Anthony nor Hidden Elder Cane Haine reacted. The man was simply faking it to the point that he could fool almost anybody.

But they could sense the immense vitality and life force coming from the man’s body despite his age. His waist was definitely not hurting him, and the bone sounds were deliberately made by him.

"Next time, get the sealing artefact."

Hidden Elder Cane Haine stated with a slow smile as he shook his head.

Anthony observed the chemistry between these two. Although they were from two different neutral forces, they were clearly extremely familiar with each other, to the point of being friends. Something which was rare in a Realm like this.

Ancient Elder Li Xing’s eyes turned towards Anthony as he spoke in a curious tone.

"So, Anthony, what do you think about our Rune Formation?"

At his question, Hidden Elder Cane Haine’s eyes turned towards Anthony too, their expressions revealing their curiosity.

Anthony shook his head as he spoke in a calm, modest tone.

"As I’ve said before, I only know a little bit about Formations and Runes, as most of my abilities are focused on fighting. And as the Sect Master said, I’m simply here to learn, nothing more."

A peaceful, welcoming smile appeared on his face as he met their gazes.

But Elders Li Xing and Cane Haine weren’t ones to back down so easily. They simply stopped playing the game Anthony was playing and asked directly.

"Anthony, no need to be modest. Although the Sect Master never said it, we know you are here for surveillance, and your surveillance would have been useless if you weren’t Ten-Star."

The Translator of Wills spoke calmly.

"Besides, during the Law Contract, the Sect Master also left out a certain clause, acknowledging his trust in your experience and power in these fields. So, you can stop the act, Anthony."

The Sky Sealer stated as he stood with his hands behind his back.

Anthony stood silently for a moment, then shook his head with a heavy sigh, as he knew he couldn’t escape whatever was happening. He could feel a certain enthusiasm coming from these two men. After all, it wasn’t every day that one met people on the same level of skill. Meeting anyone at their level was enough to make them happy, especially if the other party was friendly.

"Want the honest truth?"

Anthony asked as he met their gazes after a sigh.

Both Elders nodded. They wanted to hear Anthony’s thoughts; they wanted to know where he stood at the Ten-Star rank.

"Are you sure your pride won’t be hurt?"

Anthony asked calmly, not breaking eye contact.

The Elders nodded once more, but inwardly, they wondered what Anthony meant.

Seeing them nod, Anthony turned towards the Rune Formation as he began to speak.

"I would give it to the both of you. Both of your works are simply flawless; there is no flaw to be detected."

As Anthony spoke, smiles appeared on their lips, as they had expected to hear something like that. They had literally heard it everywhere, but they needed to hear something new.

"But just because a work is flawless doesn’t mean it can’t be improved or optimised, Li Xing, Cane Haine."

Anthony added, finally breaking eye contact as he shifted his gaze to the ground.

Anthony’s words made their eyes narrow for the first time in years. They wondered what he meant, their minds spinning as the word "optimised" rang endlessly in their thoughts.

"Li Xing, Cane Haine, do the two of you believe that Ten-Star is the highest one can attain within the Galaxy?"

Anthony asked, his question snapping them out of their thoughts, their attention turning towards him.

"Just because Eternal Apexes can’t find the Path to Transcendence doesn’t mean the two of you are stuck here. Through the ways of Runes and Formations, the two of you can still Transcend, even if you’ve wasted a lot of years here. Your answers lie in Rune and Formation optimisation."

He paused for a moment, his lips parting as though he wanted to continue, but then shook his head and said no more, as he had already said more than necessary.

Both Elders didn’t even know what to say. Of course, they never believed that Ten Star was the true pinnacle. They had thought that only by Transcending could they continue to rise, but with the Path blocked, they couldn’t. And now, someone was telling them they didn’t need The Path at all.

This changed everything they had believed and understood for ages and eons.