Understanding a Thousand Zhang of the Formation, the Three Pure Ones Chat and Laugh

"Whew—"

"Almost there."

Bai Ze opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of stale air. After more than two thousand years of contemplation and deduction, his Spatial Divine Ability had now reached great completion.

The space he had originally opened behind him had now transformed into rings of light, like the growth rings of a tree.

A closer look would reveal that those so-called rings of light were actually layers upon layers of compressed space.

As he gathered his mind, the rings of light gradually contracted until they vanished without a trace.

He raised his head and glanced at the empty surroundings, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips.

When he had comprehended five hundred zhang, he had already understood that this seemingly unoccupied stage was, in truth, filled with spectators beneath it.

He knew he could neither hide nor evade, so he might as well seize this opportunity to display his worth to the fullest and indirectly convey everything he had learned to Duobao.

Through this, he could deepen the connection between himself and Duobao.

It would give him a few more bargaining chips when he entered the small courtyard and met the Three Pure Ones in the future.

Looking at the remaining hundred zhang of the forbidden formation, Bai Ze sighed softly. "Do all that man can, then heed Heaven's decree."

Now that his divine ability had reached great completion, it was time to comprehend the remaining forbidden formation!

Gazing at the remnants of the forbidden formation, Bai Ze entered his Inner Landscape and activated his accompanying Lingbao—the Fate Compass.

"Will this deduction succeed? Will I encounter any obstacles?"

The next moment, grains of sand leaped atop the compass, slowly forming an enormous gateway.

He merely stood silently before the gateway, watching it in silence.

The scene abruptly ended there.

Seeing this, Bai Ze felt somewhat relieved. There were three circumstances under which the gateway could appear. One was when he had completely mastered the Mountain-Guarding Forbidden Formation.

Another was when he had comprehended part of the forbidden formation and actively activated it to open the gateway.

Given his personality, he definitely would not take the initiative to open this gateway. Therefore, it had to be that it would emerge on its own once he had fully mastered the grand formation.

Of course, there was another possibility—the person inside the gateway had opened it...

He who hesitated at the critical moment would suffer chaos instead.

"I've already done everything I can. What remains can only be left to Heaven's will."

Bai Ze murmured softly. He suppressed the unease in his heart at the thought of soon meeting the Three Pure Ones, expelled every distracting thought, and began contemplating in peace.

At the same time, Guang Chengzi arrived before a stone table in the courtyard and bowed.

"Master, Martial Uncle, Bai Ze is a man of deep schemes. Should he be killed or spared?"

Before the stone table, there was utter silence. Only after a long while did Venerable Yuanshi's majestic voice sound out.

"Spare him!"

Upon hearing this, Guang Chengzi's lips curved slightly, as though his inner suspicions had been confirmed. After cupping his hands in a slight salute, he said,

"I obey the Dharma decree."

With that, he turned and departed.

Within the mysterious space, Venerable Lingbao looked at the helpless Venerable Yuanshi across from him and teased,

"Senior Brother, what is with that expression? Is it not a good thing when your disciple is obedient?"

Venerable Yuanshi shot Venerable Lingbao a glance. Seeing his grinning face, he shook his head and sighed softly.

"Junior Brother, do not tease your senior brother. Guang Chengzi clearly came this time to protect Bai Ze."

"Hehe, Senior Brother, just secretly enjoy it. At least Guang Chengzi sought your instruction.

"Unlike my foolish disciple. After learning what Bai Ze had done, he had no intention whatsoever of asking me about it." Venerable Lingbao spoke somewhat irritably.

"He uses sincerity as his stratagem and genuine feeling as his scheme, while sparing no effort to fully display his own value. He reassures us while also winning people's hearts.

"This child is cautious by nature, meticulous in thought, and deeply calculating without making others dislike him. He handles matters with exceptional restraint.

"He is indeed a rare sight."

Venerable Yuanshi sighed faintly.

A trace of surprise flashed through Venerable Lingbao's eyes. He smiled and said,

"Senior Brother, in all these years, I have never heard you give anyone such high praise.

"Could it be that your heart has been moved?"

Venerable Yuanshi smiled and placed a stone. "It is still too early."

Hearing Venerable Yuanshi say this, Venerable Lingbao shook his head.

He also thought Bai Ze was not bad, but based solely on what he had displayed so far, Bai Ze was not yet worth competing with his senior brother over.

Still, what Bai Ze had displayed truly piqued his interest.

Within the formation, Bai Ze cultivated at times and contemplated the formation at others.

Every so often, he checked whether the gateway that had appeared in the divination might suddenly open.

Thus, a thousand years passed, and he comprehended nine hundred and ninety-nine zhang of the forbidden formation.

Only one zhang remained uncomprehended.

Bai Ze looked around and found no changes, letting out a long breath of relief.

He was not afraid of the gateway opening on its own. He feared that someone inside would open it for him.

At that point, even if he did not wish to enter, he would have no choice but to do so.

To that end, he had spent a thousand years comprehending at an unhurried pace, but for some reason, those formation patterns seemed to have gained sentience.

They all burrowed into his mind in one headlong rush.

"This final zhang probably cannot be delayed for much longer."

Bai Ze withdrew the Concealment Formation and revealed his true form.

He sprawled brazenly across the soft grass, lazily basking in the sun and enjoying the gentle breeze.

"This beast is only a few thousand years old. Why the hell do I have to run into so many problems?!"

He had originally only wanted to lie low and grow in peace, but the string of changes that followed forced him to alter his strategy.

He had originally wanted to avoid karmic ties, yet because he had to meet the Three Pure Ones, he had no choice but to deepen his friendship with Duobao.

He had originally wanted to avoid encountering the Three Pure Ones, yet they had come looking for him themselves.

Now, he had no choice but to face them.

The clear breeze drifted gently, carrying the fragrance of flowers. Beneath the blazing sun and rosy clouds, warmth slowly rose.

Watching the clouds unfurl and gather across the horizon, Bai Ze gradually entered an ethereal state.

Countless insights into Array Dao Divine Abilities surged into his mind.

Brilliant golden patterns slowly emerged across the earth and sky.

The surrounding primordial spiritual energy surged toward him like a vast ocean.

Within his Inner Landscape, the final missing corner of the thousand-zhang grand formation was slowly completed.

His ring-like Spatial Divine Ability interlocked layer by layer, gradually merging with the Primordial Concealment Formation.

His cultivation at the Extremity Realm of the Early True Form Stage was like water overflowing from a cup, continuously spilling outward.

The sea formed from a stream charged toward the threshold of the Middle True Form Stage.

Bai Ze suddenly woke from his epiphany. "Not good, I'm about to break through again!

"I still haven't figured out this Fleshly Body Inscription. I absolutely cannot break through just like this!"

He immediately sat up, sealed away his epiphany, and used all his strength to suppress his restless cultivation.

After several cycles of sun and moon, Bai Ze gently exhaled a breath of stale air.

He was now like a powder keg on the verge of exploding—one spark, and he would blow apart.

He absolutely could not continue entering epiphanies.

It sounded simple enough, but...

He looked into his Inner Landscape at the hundreds of figures identical to himself, all immersed in epiphany, and shook his head with a bitter smile.

Over the past thousand years, he had already sealed away several hundred epiphanies.

At the very end, he had nearly broken through anyway!

Looking at the fully illuminated thousand-zhang forbidden formation within his Inner Landscape, Bai Ze froze slightly, a vague sense of foreboding rising in his heart!

He hurriedly looked toward the Mountain-Guarding Forbidden Formation outside. Countless formation patterns lit up, rapidly intertwining and rising.

In but a moment, they formed a gateway of formation patterns.

Looking at that gateway, Bai Ze felt like crying but had no tears.

"What kind of mess is this?!"