Comprehension

Time flowed on; the years sped by like a shuttle.

A hundred years vanished in the blink of an eye.

Bai Ze awakened from cultivation. Over those hundred years, aside from cultivating, he had spent most of his time comprehending the Spatial Divine Ability he had exchanged with Duobao.

But this divine ability had been formed from Duobao's innate talent. Even with his Insight Talent, it had taken Bai Ze a full hundred years merely to cross the threshold.

He rose and exhaled a breath of turbid air, surveying his surroundings and the terrifying Dao essence surging beneath the formation's calm surface.

For a moment, he was puzzled. "Why hasn't Duobao come back yet?"

Bai Ze pondered in secret. He wanted to walk around, but the terrifying formation made him afraid to move recklessly.

"Could it be that I really got played?"

"That shouldn't be possible, should it? There is no conflict of interest between Duobao and me, and we got along fairly well before coming up the mountain.

"Then why has there been no word from him for so long..."

Bai Ze furrowed his brow as he considered every moment he had known Duobao, trying to find where the problem lay.

Suddenly!

The faint mischievous smile Duobao had worn before leaving surfaced in his mind, lingering there without fading.

Duobao and I have neither grievances nor conflicts of interest. There is no benefit for him in tricking me.

Before leaving, Duobao had even kindly reminded me not to wander around, which further showed that he had no intention of deceiving me.

Not only that, he had specifically emphasized that I should take the time to comprehend this formation.

If Duobao intended to harm me, there was no need for him to go to such lengths.

Even if he did not want to act against me directly, after bringing me into the formation, he could have used the formation's power to erase me!

Yet not only had he not done so, he had instead delayed for such a long time.

A gleam flashed through Bai Ze's eyes as he thought of two possibilities.

"Could it be that Duobao deliberately left me here and delayed for so long so that I could properly comprehend the formation?

"After all, he did say before that the opportunity to comprehend Upper Clear Heavenly Venerable's forbidden formation was exceedingly rare. Perhaps Duobao brought me here precisely with this intention!

"Of course, it is also possible that the Heavenly Venerable is deliberately testing whether I am qualified to enter his sect!

"After all, judging from the divination, the Heavenly Venerable did not kill me in the end. Instead, he permitted me to cultivate here!"

As the thoughts in his mind gradually became clear, Bai Ze no longer hesitated. Whether this was the Heavenly Venerable's test or Duobao's goodwill—

Given that he could not go anywhere at present, comprehending the formation was undoubtedly a path with nothing but benefits for him!

He immediately sat cross-legged and began comprehending this Mountain-Guarding Forbidden Formation.

With his prior experience comprehending innate formations and the aid of his Insight Divine Ability, he quickly found one node within the forbidden formation.

Especially now that he had crossed the threshold of the Spatial Divine Ability, he could easily catch even those formation patterns hidden within the void.

However, as he searched through them one by one, the shock in his heart grew ever greater.

"Just how many nodes does this forbidden formation have?!"

This search alone took him nearly another hundred years. Thus far, he had discovered a total of thirty-six thousand nodes.

And those nodes covered only the area within three zhang centered on himself.

One had to know that this place spanned an entire thousand zhang.

Most importantly, these formation nodes could shift and recombine at any moment. It had taken him a hundred years to completely master the range of those three zhang.

To fully master the forbidden formation here would take at least four thousand years!

When Bai Ze thought of needing four thousand years to thoroughly comprehend this forbidden formation, a blaze of excitement instantly ignited in his heart.

With his talent, the harder a formation was to comprehend, the more it proved just how powerful it was!

Once he thoroughly comprehended this formation, he would gain another trump card for preserving his life!

His safety factor would rise enormously as well. After all, this was a formation the Three Pure Ones used to guard their cave abode!

At the thought that he would one day possess the same kind of mountain-guarding grand formation as the Three Pure Ones, a surge of heroic spirit welled up within him!

"By then, whoever dares barge into the formation will die!"

Not to mention that while comprehending the forbidden formation, he could also freely cultivate with the incomparably dense Primordial Spiritual Qi here.

Compared with meeting the Three Pure Ones and facing unknown dangers—

The obvious gains here clearly thrilled him even more!

He stared at the remaining 997 zhang of the formation, his eyes burning with passion and his fighting spirit soaring!

"Set a small goal: cultivate for a thousand years first!"

As Bai Ze entered meditation to comprehend the forbidden formation, Huanglong, who was keeping watch in the small courtyard, hurriedly awakened Duobao and Guang Chengzi from cultivation.

Duobao Daoist looked at the image displayed by the formation spirit and asked, "Huanglong, when did Bai Ze realize something was wrong and begin comprehending the formation?"

"Reporting to Senior Brother Duobao, Bai Ze noticed something was amiss a hundred years ago. He has now been comprehending the Mountain-Guarding Forbidden Formation for a hundred years," Huanglong respectfully reported.

Duobao looked at the figure within the formation, the corners of his mouth curling slightly as he turned toward Guang Chengzi, who had arrived.

"Senior Brother, I won the first round!"

Guang Chengzi looked at Duobao's smug expression and smiled as he shook his head.

"You, honestly. It is merely an Acquired Spirit Treasure. Just take it."

At those words, Duobao quickly raised two fingers. "Senior Brother, it is two pieces, plus Huanglong's share."

Seeing Duobao's money-grubbing look, Guang Chengzi smiled indulgently. "Take them. Your senior brother will not go back on his word."

Seeing that he could not get a word in, Huanglong did not dare speak either. He obediently headed to Formation Spirit Mountain to continue keeping watch.

Guang Chengzi saw this scene as well. He called Huanglong to a stop, seeming as though he had suddenly remembered something, then said:

"Junior Brother Huanglong, I recall that your bloodline is close to returning to its ancestral origin, is it not? I happen to have a vial of True Dragon Blood Essence. I shall give it to you, and I hope you cultivate diligently."

Huanglong was deeply moved. He accepted it with both hands and declared resolutely, "This junior brother will never disappoint Senior Brother!"

"Go on." Guang Chengzi nodded, then shook his head as he watched the highly motivated Huanglong depart.

Yet Duobao, who had gained two Acquired Spirit Treasures, saw Guang Chengzi so generously give away a vial of True Dragon Blood Essence, something no less valuable than an Acquired Spirit Treasure. For a moment, his eyes were filled with envy.

"Senior Brother truly deserves to be someone Second Uncle-Master personally brought back. His blessings run deep. Unlike my master, who pinches every coin until it squeals."

Seeing Duobao's aggrieved, sour-faced appearance, Guang Chengzi smiled helplessly.

"You, honestly. Has Little Uncle-Master given you too few treasures?

"Aren't you afraid Little Uncle-Master will hear those words and punish you?"

Duobao curled his lip, folded his arms, and said, "Although my master consumes quite a lot in refining formations, he truly has not treated me poorly.

"But Second Uncle-Master also consumes quite a lot in artifact refinement. Why have I never seen my master give me an Acquired Spirit Treasure?"

Guang Chengzi explained helplessly:

"Some of these were refined by me, while others were picked up during my travels down the mountain. They were not all given to me by Master."

Duobao looked at Guang Chengzi in astonishment. "What? Senior Brother can refine Acquired Spirit Treasures now?"

Seeing Duobao's utterly astonished expression, Guang Chengzi immediately let out a sigh.