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墨書 Inktalez
Spirit Cypress Valley is located two hundred miles directly east of Nine Separation Peak.
The valley is deep and secluded, with lush forests. Nearby, several high hills rise abruptly, completely obscuring the view of the valley below. Even from the sky, one cannot discern what lies within.
In the center of the valley stand three ancient cypress trees, likely thousands of years old, each thick enough for three or four people to embrace. Their gnarled trunks and aged green foliage indicate they are no ordinary cypress trees; occasionally, a strange faint red light flickers across their emerald leaves.
The three ancient cypress trees form a triangular shape, with a triangular Clearing in the center. The ground is covered in a rare smooth crimson surface that appears extremely hard, with triangular pieces of exquisite Jadeite inserted every half foot. The tips of the Jadeite protrude from the crimson ground, revealing their upper halves engraved with intricate symbols.
One by one, young people enter the Clearing, closing their eyes and sitting cross-legged on the ground among the Jadeite. In a short while, over a hundred youths are seated in silence within the Clearing. Some have hands that tremble involuntarily. A tense atmosphere gradually envelops the area.
Ling Jizi, Ling Daozi, and Ling Xiaozi each stand at one corner of the triangular Clearing, positioned right behind the massive trunks of the three ancient cypress trees. Above them, in mid-air, floats a large Spirit Stone with flowing sleeves.
"Activate!" commands the Spirit Stone. Four beams of red light shoot forth simultaneously from their hands. The Jadeite scattered throughout the Clearing begins to glow from within, suddenly bursting forth with streams of Azure Light, crisscrossing to form a dense triangular net of Azure Light. The tips of its corners head straight toward the three ancient cypress trees.
Golden ropes, as thick as a child's arm, are tied around the waists of the ancient cypress trees. The Azure Light rushes toward these ropes, causing their ends to gradually lift off the ground until they connect with the Azure Light, becoming taut. Streams of red light continuously surge from the trunks of the cypress trees along the ropes into the triangular Clearing.
Brilliant blue and red lights explode forth. The three ancient cypress trees tremble violently as their emerald leaves visibly wither at an alarming rate. The accumulated Spiritual Energy they have gathered over thousands of years is being siphoned away and infused into the central Clearing.
The borrowing spirit formation has been established.
The four individuals by the Spirit Stone do not dare to be careless; they spread their hands wide and firmly grip the formation's focal points.
The abundant Spiritual Energy within the formation has nowhere to escape and rapidly flows into the bodies of the youths. This borrowing spirit formation is far more overwhelming than what Li Hong experienced with his Spirit Gathering Array. The youths cannot withstand it and begin to tremble uncontrollably.
Some grit their teeth to endure, while others cannot bear it any longer and soon foam at the mouth before collapsing. The sound of thuds echoes as more and more youths fall down.
The four individuals showed no signs of stopping. The Azure Light within the formation was thick as a physical substance, trapping the young men inside. Even when they collapsed to the ground, unconscious, the dense Azure Light continued to surge into their bodies.
Their clothes swelled, and the young men appeared to inflate as if blown up, blood seeping from their mouths and noses. With a splatter, one of them violently spewed forth a fountain of blood, followed by another and another; blood rained down within the formation. The heavy Blood Stench made one feel nauseous.
Witnessing this brutal scene, Li Hong turned his head away, unable to bear watching any longer.
He never expected that the Six Spirit Salty Ritual would bring about such consequences for his inherited cultivation method. When the Spirit Stone had informed him that day, he could hardly believe his ears.
At that time, he had even pointed out that he could only silently recite the introductory techniques; he wouldn't be able to articulate or write down the subsequent parts even if he understood them. What use was it to find these exceptionally talented young men as test subjects if it was just a waste?
The Spirit Stone immediately frowned and said sternly, "Just do as I instruct!" Seeing Li Hong remain silent, it softened its tone and added, "As long as they can meet the requirements for cultivating the Six Spirit Salty Ritual, how do you know the scroll won't pass on its teachings? Even if it doesn't pass on completely, at least having the introductory techniques will allow them to build a foundation. At that time, I will have my ways to help you memorize the later techniques for them to cultivate; at most... hmph, it will just take a bit of effort."
Li Hong dared not argue further but felt increasingly dissatisfied in his heart. He finally understood why the Spirit Stone had been frequently going down the mountain these days. It must have been searching for these supposedly qualified young men everywhere.
With a creaking sound, three ancient cypress trees finally expelled the Spiritual Energy they had accumulated over thousands of years; their trunks began to crack. With a loud crash, the three thousand-year-old cypress trees that were on the verge of becoming sentient turned into a pile of decayed wood chips.
The spirit formation broke apart instantly, and Spiritual Energy surged out rapidly, turning the Jadeite embedded in the ground into powder like sand.
Ling Jizi and his two companions were jolted back, their faces reddening as if they were bleeding; they stumbled backward several dozen steps. The Spirit Stone in mid-air nearly fell on the spot but managed to stabilize itself before swaying down to land on the ground, immediately looking towards Li Hong.
Li Hong sprang forward with a light leap and quickly reached the Spirit Stone's side. He swiftly pulled out a jade vial from his pocket and poured a Supplementary Spirit Pill into his hand before stuffing it into the Spirit Stone's mouth. He then proceeded to do the same for Ling Jizi and his two companions.
The four Elder Brothers stood still in place, taking some time to catch their breath.
The Azure Light dissipated, revealing the young boys inside the formation, all sprawled out in disarray, unconscious and covered in bloodstains on their white robes. Some of them still showed signs of life, their chests rising and falling slowly, while others appeared lifeless, completely motionless.
Only five individuals remained at the scene, including Spirit Stone and four Elder Brothers. This was to maintain the confidentiality of the situation. Spirit Stone had not even sought additional help. Li Hong's hands were cold, and he was in a daze.
Fortunately, the four from Spirit Stone quickly regained their composure and began to check on the boys one by one. Some pried open clenched jaws and hastily shoved an unknown pill into their mouths, while others merely checked their pulses and moved on.
Clearing had about ten more corpses added to it. Spirit Stone summoned the Gale Fire Sword. With a flash of red light, these corpses turned to ashes, scattered by the wind, leaving no trace behind.
Li Hong moved his lips but ultimately said nothing, turning away with a look of despair.
********
Even after putting in great effort to forcibly alter the boys' physiques using the Borrowing Spirit Formation and opening their celestial gateways, the Six Spirit Salty Ritual still had not been passed down to even one boy. Spirit Stone felt somewhat discouraged, but given the circumstances, there was no room for giving up; he could only grit his teeth and continue. For now, he could only hope to enhance their Divine Consciousness in hopes of successfully laying a foundation. He resorted to Li Hong's old methods.
However, the Fire Separation Pearl had already entered Li Hong's body. Without the Fire Separation Pearl, those boys would turn to ashes upon entering the Li Fire Formation. Several Elder Brothers gathered together and whispered for a moment before coming up with a solution.
Li Hong was once again blindfolded and taken to the Li Fire Formation. This entrance was clearly not the obscure location that Chu Xi had found on the map; it was located near Nine Separation Peak. As Li Hong walked, he pondered: Could this be the very Nine Separation Peak depicted on the map? Unfortunately, Nine Separation Peak was vast with countless towers, making it impossible to ascertain its exact location—the entrance to the Li Fire Formation should be one of Nine Li Sect's highest secrets; even though he had become an official disciple of Nine Li Sect, he still wasn't qualified to know.
After walking for a short while, a voice suddenly spoke in his heart: "What’s wrong with you? Why are you coming to the Li Fire Formation while I’m in hibernation?"
Heavenly Torch! Ever since he had sent a strand of Dragon Soul into his own body, there had been no response. Last night he had urgently sought out Heavenly Torch regarding this matter; after calling out repeatedly and nearly losing his temper over its silence, Heavenly Torch's voice finally echoed in his heart.
It lazily replied: "Don’t treat me as a pastime when you’re bored; aren’t you just fine now?"
Li Hong countered Ask the Way: "Didn’t you say I could call you out if I had something urgent? Well, I really need you now!"
"What’s your problem? I know you too well! Besides, this is a different time. The strand of Dragon Soul within you was forcibly extracted by me, and it’s making me quite uncomfortable. No, I should just rest more. Remember, don’t call me unless you’re in life-threatening danger." After saying this, no matter how much Li Hong called, Heavenly Torch remained silent. Yesterday, he had been quite upset about it, feeling deceived. Yet at this moment, Heavenly Torch appeared on its own.
"My master has initiated an experimental project; this situation is serious, and you must help me!" Li Hong shouted in his heart.
Before Heavenly Torch could respond, Spirit Stone removed the blindfold from Li Hong. He had no choice but to stop.
Spirit Stone instructed: "You must remember that although the four of us can enter the Li Fire Formation, we cannot support you for long. Therefore, you will primarily rely on yourself inside. If any disciple truly cannot hold on, then you can bring them out; otherwise, let them be! You must be ruthless; remember how you succeeded in Refining the Heart back then. Keep my words in mind!"
"Understood."
The stone door opened wide, and a wave of scorching flames rushed toward them. Spirit Stone did not directly enter the Li Fire Formation, but instead took something from his pocket and solemnly tossed it into the air.
Suddenly, the flames before them diminished. A massive red dome appeared behind the stone door, with a narrow passage left for only one person to pass through, isolating the Boundless True Fire of the Li Fire Formation behind it.
The surface of this dome shimmered with red light, and the interior space was quite large; it seemed capable of accommodating hundreds of people without issue. Li Hong gaped in surprise; he understood what this dome was for.
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