Superior Formation: Golden Light Formation

"Superior formation diagram, Golden Light Formation."

Lu Qing's gaze turned strange. He knew this was a superior formation diagram. Ever since he'd become obsessed with studying formations lately, although he had no Spirit Stones or contribution points to exchange for them, he would open various formation diagrams each time to inspect their information.

The Golden Light Formation was among them.

This formation originated from the Golden Light Divine Incantation, a blessing spell passed down from the Primordial Era.

But generally speaking, anything bearing the touch of gods or Immortals wasn't something ordinary cultivators could control.

Later, some unknown formation master had apparently gained insight from observing the Golden Light Divine Incantation and devised the Golden Light Formation.

The Golden Light Formation in Lu Qing's hands had been passed down from that time.

The Golden Light Formation was neither a bewildering formation nor an Illusion Formation, nor was it a killing formation.

What allowed such a formation to rank among superior formations was its defense.

That's right—defense.

That formation master believed that only one's own fleshly body was the most suitable vessel for bearing a formation.

Thus, the Golden Light Formation was actually a formation branded directly onto the flesh.

"Turn the flesh into a formation, inscribing it over every inch of skin. Not even the hair is spared, while fragile places like the eyes and other six apertures receive special protection. Once mastered, its defense rivals an ancient turtle from the Primordial Era."

Lu Qing had never imagined that formations could be inscribed upon one's own body.

But right now, he had no confidence in doing so at all.

"There's a long road ahead."

Though he said that, Lu Qing was still quite pleasantly surprised by this unexpected gain.

The formation diagram contained only a sparse depiction of lines.

If someone who had never comprehended formations saw it, they would surely think it was some ghostly scribble, utterly incomprehensible.

Yet in Lu Qing's eyes, every pattern on this formation diagram contained the rhythm of the formation Dao. It was as though every stroke had been bestowed by chance upon heaven, wrought by a marvelous hand.

It seemed to be the laws of heaven and earth themselves.

His body and mind unconsciously relaxed, and his heartbeat gradually eased.

When cultivating the Golden Light Formation, golden light would arise from flesh and skin. It had no Formation Eye; to shatter its defense, one could only use absolute power to crush the outer layer of protection.

In other words, this formation could not be broken without a higher realm's dimensional strike.

Of course, if it were all advantages, the Golden Light Formation would have been ranked among the finest formations.

The Golden Light Formation had flaws as well, and its flaw lay in luck.

Its threshold was even more mysterious and unfathomable.

There had once been a cultivator who entered the Purple Mansion Realm and formed a Golden Core, yet remained utterly baffled upon looking at this formation. That person had also been a renowned youthful prodigy, with comprehension surpassing the vast majority.

One could imagine it: Lu Qing had seen this formation diagram in the Dao Academy Treasury as well. Unfortunately, while there were people who exchanged for it—and quite a few at that—

very few could actually begin cultivating it.

The most recent person to enter the path had been an Outer Academy disciple a century ago, one with Mid-grade Aptitude.

Some possessed extraordinary comprehension yet couldn't get through the door, while others with ordinary comprehension could enter it.

It wasn't until a formation elder who had studied formations for several thousand years pointed out the matter of luck. This formation had evolved from the Primordial Era's Golden Light Divine Incantation, and spells usually required a little luck.

Senior Brother Qian hadn't given him this formation diagram to cheat him. It was simply the only superior formation diagram he possessed.

A genius with Superior Aptitude, one who cultivated the path of formations—and whose cultivation speed was among the very best throughout the Outer Academy's history.

Lu Qing understood this. His confidence did not come from comprehension, but from the effect that increased his lifespan.

Foundation Establishment granted five hundred years of life. He had calculated it—he now had six hundred years to live.

Time was on my side.

The green bamboo rooted in the sheer cliffs rustled, but Lu Qing no longer paid attention to the outside world.

He didn't look at the clouds, nor at the leaves drifting down.

His entire gaze, his entire mind, had fallen upon the Golden Light Formation.

The Golden Light Formation depended on luck. Those who could comprehend it could enter the path in a day; those who could not would gain nothing even after repeatedly studying it for decades.

Threads of profundity emerged in his heart.

When he looked again at the formation diagram covered in all manner of lines, he suddenly heard a roar in his daze.

Countless changes unfolded within the formation. Golden light flashed as lines of formation patterns linked together the apertures across his body.

Rumble.

His Sea of Consciousness, originally a vast blank whiteness behind his brow, suddenly erupted with golden light.

A scene appeared within his Sea of Consciousness.

Lu Qing's heart instinctively turned. "This formation diagram actually contains a True Person's inheritance."

Within the scene appeared a middle-aged man in a green robe, his entire body steeped in an air of age and desolation.

"Golden Light Formation—use points to form planes, layer upon layer, unbreakable..."

"This is the cultivation method..."

Without blinking, Lu Qing watched as the green-robed man waved his hand. That desolate aura was suppressed by a streak of golden light.

Using his fingers as a brush and golden Spiritual Power as lines, he tapped several points upon his body in an instant. The procedure wasn't complicated, but his movements were incomparably swift.

Without some cultivation, anyone watching would only feel as if the man had a hundred arms, all gesturing before their eyes.

Lu Qing memorized those positions, as well as their order and the force used.

If he wasn't mistaken, these were the key points. The body possessed hundreds of apertures, and with Divine Consciousness born in the Sea of Consciousness, surveying one's entire body wasn't difficult.

Yet even so, it was hard to enter the path. The mistake was likely that one had been wrong from the very beginning.

It was good that the Golden Light Formation acted upon one's own body, but where force was applied and where one began both carried great significance.

The green-robed man's movements were as swift as a raging gale, yet his breathing remained calm as a still lake.

Lu Qing unconsciously began to imitate him.

He closed his eyes. Rather than applying it to himself, he used Divine Consciousness to manipulate his formation disk.

He had bought the formation disk himself. After entering Foundation Establishment, he had gained Divine Consciousness and could immediately place a strand of Divine Sense within it, making it convenient to control.

The one who had created the Golden Light Formation was a great master, a powerful figure. Naturally, he needed no external aid. Such people could lay down several great formations with a flick of their fingers; to them, it was as simple as breathing.

Lu Qing naturally didn't possess such capital, nor was he arrogant. He could clearly see the road beneath his feet. Once the formation disk emerged, his Divine Consciousness and Spiritual Power followed his imitation naturally.

Several streaks of golden light took shape.

When the scene ended, golden light burst from the green-robed man's entire body. Then he returned to his original appearance, the golden light concealing itself beneath his skin and flesh.

After only a few breaths, he looked no different from an ordinary person.

Lu Qing frowned slightly. With his eyes closed, he unconsciously imitated it within his Sea of Consciousness as strands of Spiritual Power from the formation disk before him traced themselves through the air.

That was the position of a bodily aperture.

Rumble, rumble.

At this moment, dawn light pierced through the azure clouds.

Golden radiance spread across the vast Dao peak in an instant.

Mysterious formation patterns floated before him.

The inheritance scene in his Sea of Consciousness had lasted only a minute.

Fortunately, it did not fade away afterward. Though it was called an inheritance, it was more like the formation diagram itself had recorded the scene from that time.

Lu Qing opened his eyes, a flash of understanding passing through them.

The Golden Light Formation could stump countless people. Clearly, he still couldn't enter the path on his first attempt.

But if his chance of success had previously been nonexistent, then after this failure, it had instead risen somewhat.