Parsing the Spirit Realm Network

"Senior Apprentice, why didn't you let me keep questioning them?"

After leaving the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, Wei Kuang asked indignantly.

Zhou Qing smiled. "It's useless. They won't admit it unless we find the person passing messages for them and force an answer out of them. Otherwise, we have no evidence at all."

Wei Kuang said, "Are we really just going to let them push us around? If we can't get assignments, everyone loses a source of resources, and their cultivation will be affected. This is no small matter."

Zhou Qing smiled. "Don't worry. I have my own plan."

Wei Kuang was about to ask what plan he had when he saw Zhou Qing begin pacing along the mountain paths of Azure Cloud Mountain, as though searching for something.

He asked in confusion, "Senior Apprentice, what are you looking for?"

Zhou Qing shook his head. "I don't know. I'll know once I find it."

If he did not even know what he was looking for, how could he find it?

Wei Kuang was puzzled, but seeing Zhou Qing search with utter focus, he did not dare ask further and could only follow behind him.

At last, the two arrived at a mountaintop from which they could look down over the entire Miscellaneous Affairs Hall.

Pointing at a tall tower behind the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, Zhou Qing asked, "What is that?"

Wei Kuang glanced at it. "That is where the Spirit Realm Network's main body is located. They say the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall's assignments are issued from there."

Sure enough, that must be the "signal tower."

Earlier, Zhou Qing had used magnetic field sensing and detected spiritual energy fluctuations, possessing a unique frequency, that blanketed all Three Peaks of Azure Cloud Mountain. Following the changes in the strength of those fluctuations, he had found this place.

Zhou Qing took out his jade token.

Through magnetic field sensing, he "saw" faint fluctuations communicating between the tall tower and his jade token.

Zhou Qing sank his consciousness into the jade token, took a brief turn through the Spirit Realm Network, and came back out.

He sensed that the fluctuations between the tall tower and his jade token had clearly intensified, only to settle down again immediately afterward.

Zhou Qing surmised that this was because, after entering through the jade token, an exchange of information occurred between the tower and the token. Such an exchange required energy, so the spiritual energy fluctuations between the two became stronger.

Only after he exited the jade token did the fluctuations gradually subside.

Zhou Qing pondered briefly and quickly came up with an idea.

He smiled. "Let's head back."

Wei Kuang had held it in for half the day, but he could finally endure no longer. "Senior Apprentice, what exactly are you planning to do?"

Zhou Qing smiled. "You needn't worry about that. Once we return, go see our junior brothers and sisters for me. Ask who has wanted to take assignments recently, then report their names to me."

"I'll make everyone's names into lots. When the time comes, we'll draw lots to decide who completes the assignments. That will be the fairest way. Those who don't get an assignment will just have to wait until their turn comes later."

After returning to his residence, Zhou Qing began analyzing the frequency of the spiritual energy fluctuations from the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall's tower.

He had thought being a "hacker" in the Cultivation World had no future, but he had not expected it to come in handy so quickly.

Analyzing the frequency was not difficult. He merely needed to observe the signal over a long period, record characteristics such as the peaks and troughs of the spiritual energy fluctuations, as well as the patterns in their changes.

The most troublesome part was that, after analyzing it, he had to learn to simulate its frequency, using the magnetic field to vibrate spiritual energy at the same frequency and thereby emit spiritual energy fluctuations identical to those of the signal tower.

This was no small challenge for him.

Zhou Qing worked continuously for seven days.

During those seven days, aside from cultivating and practicing the Iron Pellet Technique, he spent all his time analyzing and simulating spiritual energy fluctuations.

Using the magnetic field to vibrate spiritual energy for such a long time greatly improved his ability to oscillate magnetic fields.

Starting from the third day, he noticed that his hair and clothes were often gently lifted by an invisible force, while static reactions between his clothes and hair became increasingly frequent.

After thinking it over briefly, Zhou Qing confirmed in delight that the magnetic field oscillations had generated a vortex electric field around him, which was why certain electrical phenomena had occurred.

It was just that with his current magnetic field strength and oscillation frequency, he still could not generate an electric field powerful enough to break down the air and produce lightning.

Still, this was a good sign.

If he continued progressing in this direction, one day he would reach that realm.

Seven days later, he was finally able to simulate the spiritual energy fluctuations of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall's tall tower, so he prepared to put his plan into action.

Zhou Qing asked Wei Kuang about Fang Yuhe's residence and learned that he lived in a courtyard near the Instruction Platform at the mountaintop, where he could overlook the sea of clouds.

He began lying in wait outside Fang Yuhe's courtyard.

Worried that Fang Yuhe might discover his movements, he hid in a mountain hollow some distance from Fang Yuhe's courtyard.

He had carefully selected this hiding place.

Cloud and mist drifted through the area, ancient pines and verdant cypresses concealed it, and mountain rocks blocked the view. It would not be easily discovered.

Most importantly, it lay between Fang Yuhe's small courtyard and the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall's tall tower. From here, he could easily monitor the signal sent from the tower to Fang Yuhe's jade token.

From early morning, Zhou Qing concealed himself in the mountain hollow, constantly using magnetic field sensing to monitor the spiritual energy fluctuations coming from the direction of the tall tower.

Around noon, he sensed a surge of spiritual energy fluctuations, much stronger than usual, forming a connection between the tower and Fang Yuhe's courtyard.

Zhou Qing's spirits lifted. He understood that Fang Yuhe had entered the Spirit Realm Network.

At once, he used the magnetic field to vibrate spiritual energy, simulating a similar frequency and slipping into the signal between Fang Yuhe's courtyard and the tall tower.

Zhou Qing felt a flash before his eyes as he entered a Spirit Realm Network filled with white light. Fang Yuhe stood not far from his field of vision.

He lowered his head to inspect himself and found that he had no physical form, just as he had predicted beforehand.

A user's form was simulated by the jade token. The token retained his aura, and when he entered the Spirit Realm Network through it, it simulated his physical form.

Now, he had not entered through a jade token but had sneaked in, so naturally he had no form.

Zhou Qing curiously examined everything in the Spirit Realm Network and discovered that his perspective this time was vastly different from when he usually entered through the jade token.

It was as if he possessed two perspectives.

One was his usual perspective. From it, he could see the endless white light, the bulletin board, and Fang Yuhe. This was merely the surface.

The other perspective allowed him to see the true nature of the Spirit Realm Network.

He could see many strange symbols, twisting, curved lines filled with a mysterious aura.

Zhou Qing had seen such symbols and curves before on the flying boat controlled by Chen Qingxuan. When he had asked Chen Qingxuan about them, Chen Qingxuan told him they were formations.

There were eighteen layers of formations on the flying boat, responsible for maintaining its flight, defense, and even the climate within it.

Thus, upon seeing these symbols and curves now, Zhou Qing immediately understood that the Spirit Realm Network had been created by formations. The formations enveloped the entire Spirit Realm Network, and all its elements were formed from various runes.

Before Zhou Qing had time to observe closely, his perspective swiftly followed Fang Yuhe to the bulletin board.

Several notices resembling slips of paper had appeared on the bulletin board.

Of course, that was only their outward appearance. From Zhou Qing's perspective, these slips were all made of runes, something akin to "information packets."

Compared to the runes and formations that made up the Spirit Realm Network, the structure of these "information packets" was extremely simple.

An idea stirred in Zhou Qing's heart. He stripped away the information within an "information packet," leaving only an empty shell behind.