Arctic Illusory Spirit Formation
A smug look appeared on Yue Qianchou's face. The fact that the "Black Society" could infiltrate Fu Xian Island and commit violence so silently clearly indicated that Fu Xian Island was taking it seriously; otherwise, they wouldn't have dispatched fifty Tribulation Transcendence stage elders at once. Other sects would have investigated this matter covertly, but look at them—no need to be secretive; fifty people are openly and directly present, clearly prepared for a fight. Otherwise, they wouldn't have needed to send so many old guys.
Dongfang Changao nodded to the group, and dozens of people immediately darted around, searching everywhere. Yue Qianchou quickly held his breath, hiding in a pile of weeds and dead trees, like a hibernating animal. Sure enough, several Divine Sense swept around him. He guessed that if it weren't for the mysterious effect of the golden pearl, they would have discovered him long ago, even though he was hiding so close.
The group of people obviously didn't find anything suspicious, and they gathered together again, with Yue Qianchou intently observing their every move.
Dongfang Changao strolled to a mountain wall covered with grass and trees, and said with a soft "Eh?", "Elder Gongsun, you are an expert in formations, come and take a look here, is there any formation or mechanism?"
He was standing exactly where the jade tablet indicated, and if it weren't for the markings on the tablet, he would hardly believe that this place held anything. He simply couldn't see any difference between this place and the rest of the valley.
The old man who had been summoned came over, carefully examined the surrounding terrain, pressed his hands all over the mountain wall, picked a green vine with white flowers, smelled it, and frowned, saying, "Elder Dongfang, are you sure this is the place?"
"Elder Gongsun, what do you mean..." Dongfang Changao's face darkened as he said, "Non-Self 've been tricked, and there's nothing here at all?"
The people from Fu Xian Island immediately looked at each other in bewilderment. Had they really been tricked after coming with such a large entourage? Yue Qianchou, who could vaguely hear their conversation, was also puzzled. Logically, this shouldn't be possible! There was no reason for Hundred Charm Demoness to give him a fake map!
At this moment, one of the people in the group came over with a sword and said, "There might be something behind this cliff. Let me cut it open and take a look."
"Wait!" Elder Gongsun stared blankly at the mountain wall, then pushed his hand towards the newcomer and said, "There's something strange about this mountain wall, take a look."
Everyone looked in the direction he was pointing, and saw a white flower swaying in the wind on the entwined green vines, but it was quite ordinary! There were many green vines and flowers in this valley, and everyone looked for a while but couldn't figure out what it was.
Seeing that no one understood, Elder Gongsun shook his head and said, "Watch carefully this time. I'll pick this flower, and you should pay attention to the vine's reaction." After saying that, he casually picked the white flower.
His words drew everyone's attention to the green vines on the cliff face. After a while, a white flower suddenly and silently reappeared on the vine, right where it had been picked.
Everyone marveled at this, with one person exclaiming in surprise, "Could this green vine be some kind of naturally grown treasure? Or is that jade tablet a treasure map?"
"No, no..." Elder Gongsun kept shaking his head, as if he had remembered something.
Dongfang Changao asked, "Elder Gongsun, is something wrong?"
Elder Gongsun snapped out of his reverie, smelled the flowers in his hand, glanced around at everyone, paused, and said, "Legend has it that in High Antiquity times there was a formation called the 'Arctic Illusory Spirit Formation.' The place where this formation was set up was extremely deceptive, able to absorb the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to create a tangible illusion, blending seamlessly with the surrounding scenery. No matter how high your cultivation level, it would be very difficult to discover the location of the formation. If I'm not mistaken, someone has set up this formation here. Fortunately, we have the map on the jade tablet to guide us, otherwise, who would be able to tell that the scene here is an illusion? But logically speaking, this kind of formation should have been lost long ago, so how could it appear here?"
"Hmph! It seems there's something special behind this mountain wall, otherwise who would set up a High Antiquity, lost formation here?" Dongfang Changao turned around and said, "Elder Gongsun, do you have a way to break this formation? If not, we'll force it open. I want to see what kind of shady things are hidden behind this."
Elder Gongsun shook his head and smiled, "This formation became famous in High Antiquity times, so it must have its unique features. Although it doesn't have any offensive capabilities, it is a first-class protective formation. Once the 'Arctic Illusory Spirit Formation' is set up, it can merge with the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, endlessly regenerating. Just like the flower I just picked, you pick it and it grows back. Similarly, once you cut it open, it can immediately return to its original state, and the stronger the attack, the faster it recovers. Unless there is no more Spiritual Qi in the world to support its operation, or the person who set up the formation withdraws it themselves."
"Gongsun, what are you talking about! How can the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi be completely destroyed? And it's even more impossible for the person who set up the formation to withdraw it. Do you think we're here as guests? Do you expect them to open the door to welcome us?" the person who had previously raised his sword to cleave it open said irritably.
"If this formation is so powerful, then we've come for nothing!" someone else said.
"Elder Gongsun, do you have a way to break this formation?" Dongfang Changao asked, seeing the confident smile on his face.
"This formation may be able to stop others, but it can't stop me." Elder Gongsun said with a smug smile, "Years ago, I accidentally came up with a useless formation. Because it was not very useful, I never used it much. I never thought it would come in handy today."
Upon hearing this, someone immediately asked curiously, "A formation? What kind of formation could break this High Antiquity formation?"
"My formation can neither trap, defend against, nor harm anyone, but once it's set up, it can drain the Spiritual Qi within and cut off any outside Spiritual Qi from entering. If you were to set up my formation outside this 'Arctic Illusory Spirit Formation,' what do you think the consequences would be?" After Elder Gongsun finished speaking with a smug expression, everyone immediately understood what he meant, and someone immediately laughed and said, "Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Gongsun, you're truly something else; you even managed to come up with such a formation."
Dongfang Changao couldn't help but smile. It seemed that bringing him here today was quite a coincidence. So he raised his hand and said, "Elder Gongsun, the matter of breaking the formation is entrusted to you. Is there anything we can do to help?"
"No need, you can just watch the show." Elder Gongsun waved his hand at the crowd, surveyed the surrounding terrain, and then began taking things out of his Storage Bag. With a flash of movement, he busied himself in the area within a radius of several meters centered on the mountain wall.
Hiding not far away, Yue Qianchou heard everything clearly and was immediately filled with admiration. Fu Xian Island's dominance in the Cultivation World was definitely not a matter of luck; it truly had all sorts of talents! This was truly the will of Heaven! Fortunately, Fu Xian Island was involved; otherwise, who would have been able to break such a formation?
Before long, Elder Gongsun had completed the formation. After everyone retreated to a distance of more than ten meters, he made a hand seal and sent a beam of white light into the formation, then softly shouted, "Activate!"
The formation immediately rippled, accompanied by a hissing sound like air being pumped in. White mist formed from Spiritual Qi gradually rose from the mountain wall, slowly spreading outwards. Everyone nodded in agreement; the formation set up by Gongsun had clearly taken effect.
The vines and flowers in front of the mountain wall began to lose their original luster, their colors gradually dimming. Under Gongsun's control, the formation operated faster and faster, drawing Spiritual Qi at an equally rapid pace. Several hours later, as the scene within the formation began to blur, a large, indistinct cave in front of the mountain wall finally appeared before everyone's eyes.
The group exchanged glances; indeed, there was a hidden mechanism within the passage. Dongfang Changao solemnly waved his hand, and everyone immediately went on alert...
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