Chapter 68: Extra Safety Measures
Lu Feng had just finished declaring that he would cut off hands if it came to it when they heard the left training hall clicked shut.
Clack!
It echoed through the empty courtyard, sealing Ye Chenxue inside the stone chamber.
Within moments, the ambient temperature of a portion of the surrounding courtyard began to drop at an alarming rate. A thin layer of white frost crept across the stone steps, glistening like crushed diamonds under the clear moonlight.
Sitting cross-legged on the polished stone dais at the exact center of the Qi Absorption Array, Ye Chenxue placed three Ice-Blooded Blossom Pills into her mouth at once.
The moment the medicinal shells dissolved beneath her tongue, a wave of pure, absolute cold exploded within her meridians. It was not a chaotic force, but an icy torrent of concentrated, high-grade Ice Qi that surged through her limbs, threatening to freeze her blood and lock her joints if her focus slipped for even a fraction of a second.
Closing her eyes, she sank into a deep, twelve-hour state of absolute seclusion, refining the dense, surging energy to push her cultivation toward a higher boundary.
Outside the training hall, Lu Feng stood near the lotus pond, watching the pale frost spread across the lattice window frames. Seeing that Ye Chenxue had successfully entered her meditative trance, he turned on his heel and walked toward the secondary training structure situated on the right side of the courtyard.
Stepping inside the quiet, stone-walled hall, Lu Feng ran his fingers along the dark masonry until he noticed a subtle, heavy stone latch concealed behind a carved wall pillar. He pressed it inward, and with a low, grinding sound of stone against stone, a portion of the floor slid back to reveal a narrow flight of steps leading down into total darkness.
Lu Feng descended the stairs calmly, finding a cavernous subterranean cultivation room built directly into the solid bedrock beneath the hill. The space was spacious, entirely silent, and insulated from any outside noise or spiritual interference. Down here, the ambient Qi was even thicker than in the courtyard above—a perfect, hidden haven for quiet practice, deep meditation, or storing high-value resources without drawing prying eyes from outside the perimeter walls.
After inspecting every inch of the underground chamber and ensuring there were no hidden exit passages or spatial flaws, Lu Feng returned to the surface, the heavy stone door sliding smoothly back into place behind him.
He walked back out into the open courtyard, looking up at the ten-foot-tall stone perimeter walls. The estate’s built-in middle-grade Protective Array was decent enough for ordinary circumstances, but with Ye Chenxue deep in meditation for the next twelve hours and Han Lin lacking high-tier combat strength, Lu Feng could not help but feel that their mini estate could use a few more layers of security.
Leaving Han Lin inside the main residential hall to unpack her things, Lu Feng slipped out through the heavy wooden gates and headed toward the commercial avenues of the Eastern District.
Even though night had fully fallen, the market streets were still illuminated by glowing lamps suspended from tall wooden posts. Lu Feng navigated through the quiet stone pathways until he found an upscale formation shop displaying various carved talismans, spirit mirrors, and brass array flags in its glass storefront.
Inside, a slick merchant dressed in silk robes greeted him with a wide, oily smile, eagerly displaying his "top-grade" defensive formations. Seeing Lu Feng’s polished posture and unbothered demeanor, the merchant pushed a set of six silver-trimmed formation flags, claiming they formed a ’Tier-2 Frost-Guard Defense’ capable of turning back even seasoned cultivators.
Lu Feng did not feel like wasting time haggling over pocket change. He reached into his coin pouch, produced thirty bright gold coins, and dropped them onto the wooden counter, purchasing the formation set alongside its activation manual on the spot.
Taking the heavy wooden box containing the array flags, Lu Feng walked back through the quiet streets, returning to the estate without incident.
Pushing open the heavy wooden doors of the primary building, he found Han Lin sitting at the sandalwood desk in her newly assigned eastern wing, organizing her scrolls and accounting books under the warm glow of a bronze lantern.
Lu Feng walked over and placed the wooden box gently on the desk before her.
Han Lin blinked, looking up from her papers in surprise. "Lu Feng? What is this?"
"A higher-tier defensive array set," Lu Feng explained, offering a casual smile. "I picked it up from the district formation shop just now. Since Chenxue is in deep seclusion and I might be busy exploring the city over the coming days, I want your quarters fully secured. Set these flags around the foundation of your wing."
Han Lin stared at the intricate silver-trimmed flags inside the box, her slate-blue eyes softening with genuine appreciation. To her, thirty gold coins spent purely on her personal safety was a massive gesture of care.
She picked up the small activation manual provided in the box, quickly reading through the basic instructions. Without suspecting a single thing, she followed the simple steps laid out on the parchment—placing four flags at the outer corners of her room and two beside her bedpost before channeling a tiny sliver of her energy into the core flag.
A soft, faint blue barrier flared to life around the walls of her room for a split second before vanishing smoothly into the woodwork, signaling that the formation was active.
Han Lin closed the manual, looking up at Lu Feng with a warm, touched expression. "Thank you, Lu Feng. Knowing this array is protecting my room gives me a lot of peace of mind."
"Just making sure we’re prepared for anything," Lu Feng replied smoothly. "Just extra Safety measures."
Neither of them had any idea that the slick merchant in the market had sold him a vastly overpriced, subpar imitation array that barely possessed a fraction of a true Tier-2 formation’s power.
Han Lin simply trusted Lu Feng’s judgment and the shiny manual, completely unaware that the thirty gold coins had gone toward a glorified piece of decorative formation work.
Satisfied that the estate was as secure as it could be for the night, Lu Feng wished Han Lin a good night and retired to his own private suite in the central wing, leaving the quiet courtyard shrouded in moonlight and rising frost.