Daoist Competition

Zhang Yan smiled faintly, gently freeing his hand, and pointed forward, saying, "Lu Daoist, don’t worry. I merely wish to take a closer look at the inscriptions on the plaque."

Lu Guo exhaled a breath, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and said, "Take your time, fellow Daoist."

Before the array gate lay a copper token much like the one seen earlier in shape, yet differing in the presence of Spirit Light, with inscriptions appearing as though freshly carved, under the protection of the array.

Zhang Yan fixed his gaze on it, his expression slightly tense, and said solemnly, "The erosion text here is far deeper than what was seen earlier, and I’m afraid it will take time to slowly infer."

Lu Guo sighed and said, "There’s not much I can do to help with this. Only trouble fellow Daoist to endure the hardship."

Zhang Yan nodded slightly, sat cross-legged on the ground, and closed his eyes in contemplation.

Lu Guo saw he seemed already immersed, paused, circled around a few times, and then quietly retreated.

After footsteps faded away, some time later, Zhang Yan opened his eyes, released a plume of smoke, enveloping the stone platform, and then took the Heroic Festival Fish Drum from his sleeve, placing it before his eyes, whispering, "Master, are you there?"

With a flash of green light, the Yu Gu True Spirit emerged, stepped forward a few steps, looking at the great array before him, clicked his tongue.

Zhang Yan did not stand up, but said, "May I ask, Master, can Green Sun Gang Spirit be gathered here?"

The Yu Gu True Spirit chuckled and said, "It’s worth a try."

He reached out and grabbed, not knowing from where a stream of Clear Qi was captured, slowly gathering in his hand, finally condensing into a tiny green jade sand grain.

After a while, another grain formed, and as time moved on, more and more gathered in his hand. After an hour, he had gathered a hundred grains.

Zhang Yan looked intently, his eyes shining, and stood up, saying, "Is this the Green Sun Gang Spirit?"

He walked to the side of the Yu Gu True Spirit, reached out, grabbed a handful, and squeezed it in his palm, noting its crystal and translucent appearance, jade-like brightness, glowing luminously, but light as flying snow, its aura heavy, like dust floating and rising, several inches high yet not dispersing.

The Yu Gu True Spirit seemed displeased, saying, "This place is still far from the Extreme Sky; the essence within this gang spirit is too thin. Though useful to you, its effect is meager. Cultivating for a hundred years, you might not reach the Nascent Soul Realm, but if you manage to ascend the mountain peak, breaking the gate within half a Jiazi is not a far-fetched hope."

Zhang Yan looked up, his expression resolute, said with hands behind his back, "Then I’ll go to the peak."

Soon, footsteps approached, Zhang Yan’s eyes flashed, and he waved his sleeve, gathering all smoke within, and the Yu Gu True Spirit vanished together.

A moment later, Lu Guo approached the stone platform with a bright-eyed Daoist boy, who performed a salute upon arrival, smiling, "Fellow Daoist, inferring the erosion text must be tiring; likely there’s no one to attend you. The senior brother sent me to bring you a Daoist boy for your service. If he’s not to your liking, I can find another."

Zhang Yan glanced at the Daoist boy, observing his delicate appearance, seemingly spirited, yet his eyes flickered uncertainly, revealing impure intentions, causing him to smirk inwardly.

How could he not understand Duanmu Li’s intentions? This boy, named a servant, is truly there to monitor him. He chuckled and said, "Duanmu Temple Master is considerate. Let the child stay."

Lu Guo patted the boy’s back and said, "Go greet Zhang Daoist."

The boy quickly came forward to salute, saying, "Young boy Zhong Xin, greets the Daoist."

Zhang Yan responded indifferently.

Lu Guo, fearing to disturb Zhang Yan’s thoughts, bid farewell and quickly left.

After he departed, Zhang Yan called Zhong Xin over and said, "While I infer the Dharma technique, you must stand far away. Without my command, do not approach within three zhang, or if accidentally killed in a slip, it is your own desire for death. Do you understand?"

Zhong Xin turned pale and quickly replied, "I dare not, I dare not."

Zhang Yan waved his sleeve and said, "Then step aside."

Zhong Xin retreated several dozen paces, stopping only at ten zhang, reluctantly showing a trace of disappointment on his face.

He wasn’t truly a serving boy but Duanmu Li’s student from two years prior. He came not only to observe Zhang Yan’s movements but also hoping to learn the erosion text inference method secretly, but seeing Zhang Yan so cautious, hope seemed remote.

Zhang Yan ignored him, calming himself to infer the erosion text recorded on the copper token.

After a short time, he realized that strictly following the Dharma technique would take at least one to two years to fully understand its meaning, and even obtaining the spell would not ensure the Right Path, requiring verification with a Spirit Bird, causing further delay.

Imagining the complexity of twenty-seven subsequent arrays, fortunately, he had the Broken Jade to aid him, or he would be stuck here.

But as he was just about to use the Broken Jade, suddenly a flash of insight struck his mind, an idea forming.

With a flick of his hand, he took out the Jade Dishware Lu Guo had given him, looking closely at it, his face revealing a peculiar expression.

The solution to breaking the eight arrays individually was not much, but combined, it became meaningful.

Based on the erosion text, it seemed to progress from shallow to deep, more arduous towards the end. Without expertise in this realm, it was imperceptible.

If his conjecture was correct, much of the effort might be unnecessary.

He pondered a while, flicked his finger, and the Star Sword Ball flew out, hovering at his side, connected to his heart and spirit, alerting him if someone approached during inference.

Then he reached into his sleeve, grasped the Broken Jade, and immersed his mind within, patiently inferring.

...

...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)