The head master has a new female apprentice

Chapter 357 No way, how can you be so awesome? (6k)

Hearing Shen Yunzhou's explanation, Lu Yaoyao breathed a sigh of relief and looked at him with a hint of sympathy.

She then grabbed a walnut pastry and took a big bite, then puffed out her cheeks and suddenly asked indistinctly, "So, do you think I look like your sister?"

Shen Yunzhou couldn't help but chuckle as he looked at the crumbs clinging to the corner of her mouth: "The hair color is quite similar. As for the overall vibe..."

He stroked his chin. "One's a big iceberg, the other's a little iceberg. But you talk way more than she does."

"Then," Lu Yaoyao wiped her mouth, then eagerly picked up a piece of jujube cake, "are there any parts of us that look alike?"

Shen Yunzhou was taken aback. Watching her eat so happily, he suddenly grinned mischievously: "What? Want to acknowledge your family? Come on, call me 'Dad' and let me hear it?"

"Get lost!" Lu Yaoyao grabbed a piece of almond shortbread and threw it at him.

Shen Yunzhou dodged to the side with fluid movements, as if such actions had long been an instinct of his body.

This commotion drew the attention of the surrounding diners.

After all, the one who recently caused a ruckus in the Royal Array Hall was a white-haired female spirit slayer.

The silver-haired girl in front of me, wearing a half-silver patterned mask that revealed a section of her delicate chin, only had the aura of the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, but her frost-like and snow-white hair was too eye-catching.

However, everyone soon shook their heads and laughed: How could a high and mighty Spirit Slayer be so lively and unrestrained?

At this moment, Lu Yaoyao also noticed this scene, so she had to restrain herself a little. Then, she rested her chin on her hand, idly swayed her legs, and changed the subject.

"Brother Shen, do you really mean what you said last time that Sister Shen doesn't have a master?"

Shen Yunzhou immediately sat up straight: "Of course, do you think your brother Shen is the kind of person who would easily deceive children?"

"First of all, I'm telling you this seriously. Also, I'm not a child anymore!" Lu Yaoyao declared.

Yunzhou couldn't help but chuckle, raising his teacup in a gesture of surrender: "Alright, alright, you're not a child."

He put down his teacup and said with unusual seriousness, "My sister really didn't have a master. She got to where she is today entirely on her own. Do you know what it feels like to be self-taught?"

Lu Yaoyao nodded slightly. She had seen similar signs in her father many times before.

But if she really didn't have a master, then why did her father lie to her?

Was it because they didn't ask, or did they break some taboo?
Then, staring at the dazzling array of pastries on the table, she hesitated for a moment and asked, "Does Sister Shen like these?"

"Well," Shen Yunzhou scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly, "I was too busy avoiding her to pay attention to these things."

Lu Yaoyao sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation—you're really being a perfunctory younger brother.

"By the way," Shen Yunzhou said curiously, poking at the pastry, "why do you have such a fondness for these sweet things?"

Lu Yaoyao's jade-like hand holding the cake suddenly paused, and the light in her eyes behind the mask gradually dimmed.

She gently stroked the intricate patterns on the pastry, her voice so low it was almost inaudible.

“When I was a child, I was always on the run with my father. For three years, I was fostered in an ordinary village to hide.”

"Later, my father came to pick me up," she said, a slow smile spreading across her face. "He took me to a city and bought me several pastries."

"At that time, I felt that this was the most delicious thing in the world. I had never eaten anything so sweet before."

Shen Yunzhou's teacup, which he had just raised, paused in mid-air. After a long while, he sighed softly, "What you cherish has never been the pastries themselves, has it?"

He looked out the window at the deepening twilight, "It's because your father bought it for you."

At that moment, he suddenly remembered the woman who always smiled gently.

In my memory, my mother would also stuff freshly steamed osmanthus cakes into his and my sister's hands as dusk fell.

If only someone could have saved my mother back then.
Shen Yunzhou closed his eyes.

Perhaps then my sister wouldn't have become like this, with even her smile carrying a frosty look.

That's why, when he and Brother Zhou encountered Li Niang being chased, he rushed towards her almost without thinking when he saw her high, protruding belly.

Who would have thought that this crazy woman not only didn't appreciate it, but after failing to catch up with Brother Zhou, she actually beat him up until his face was bruised and swollen.

"Perhaps." Lu Yaoyao carefully wrapped up the remaining pastries, stood up and said, "Let's go, we still need to continue looking for... um, Senior Brother Zhou."

"By the way, who was chasing you? Why? Where's your father?" Shen Yunzhou got up and followed after them, asking.

"I do not want to say!"

"Hey, you little rascal, why do you only say half of what you mean? Look at me, I can answer almost everything you ask."

……

One month later!
Zhou Qing sat alone in the quiet room. His face looked slightly haggard, and there were faint dark circles under his eyes, but he could not hide the increasingly bright look in his eyes.

"Finally done..."

He suddenly sighed softly, his fingertips tracing patterns in the void, and myriad spiritual seals began to intertwine in the room to form a dazzling star map.

Each spiritual seal corresponds precisely to a node in the Hidden Dragon Path, and they are interconnected, forming a perfect whole.

As the last spirit seal fell, the entire star map suddenly lit up, transforming into a lifelike dragon of light that circled and roamed in the quiet room.

With its head held high, tail outstretched, and four claws corresponding to the four directions, it is the complete "Hidden Dragon Path" formation!
A slight smile finally appeared on Zhou Qing's lips.

After a month of tireless work and countless failures, the results have finally paid off.

He reached out and gently touched the dragon-shaped array diagram. The light dragons obediently circled around him, showing no signs of disorder.

“With my current skill in array formations,” Zhou Qing stared at the light dragon and sighed softly, “it is still insufficient to set up such a large array.”

"If I'm not mistaken, the master who set up these two four-colored arrays for the Holy Martial Dynasty has condensed at least 20,000 spirit seals."

He pondered for a moment, "Among the neighboring fourth-level cultivation countries, there is only Jiuli. In other words, the other party is a fourth-level master from Jiuli."

"However, more than three thousand years have passed. If that master had not advanced to the Spirit Severing stage, with a lifespan of two thousand years in the Divine Transformation stage, he would probably have passed away long ago."

A sense of melancholy welled up in Zhou Qing's heart.

This senior's understanding of the Dao of Formations far surpasses that of his peers. Although this formation was not his original creation, his ability to perfectly reproduce the formations of his predecessors within the imperial territory is a testament to his skill.

He really wanted to take this opportunity to have a chat.

He then gathered his thoughts and examined the entire array star map once more.

“Sikong Yan is right, it is indeed possible to ‘hitch a ride halfway,’ but we still need to refine some little gadgets that can deceive everyone.”

Zhou Qing's gaze fell on the seventh node of the array diagram, where there was a barely perceptible weak point in the array.

Ordinary cultivators would hardly notice it, but in the eyes of this fourth-level array master, it was an excellent "shortcut".

Looking at the first light of dawn outside the window, Zhou Qing put away the array diagram and then contacted his senior brother and second senior sister.

Only the second senior sister replied. The eldest senior brother estimated that the location he was searching for had completely exceeded the range of the three-colored communication jade slip he had refined.

After all, the capital city is too large, with countless cultivators and numerous restrictions everywhere, which will inevitably cause some interference.

"Let's rest for a while first!" Zhou Qing took out two top-grade spirit stones and began to absorb and adjust them.

……

Two days later, he returned to the [Jintian Palace].

"You've already figured it out in just one month?" Sikong Yan snapped his folding fan shut, his eyes filled with undisguised shock.

Zhou Qing nodded slightly: "Tell me your plan."

"Hahaha!" Sikong Yan suddenly burst into laughter, "Brilliant! It seems I underestimated you once again."

He waved his hand impatiently, parting the space around him, "Let's not delay, we can leave now!"

A deep rift opened in the void, and Sikong Yan leaped into it.

Zhou Qing's eyes flickered slightly, and he followed closely behind.

In the blink of an eye, the two appeared deep within the inner city.

In the distance, a colossal, jet-black altar stands majestically, its nine dragon-carved pillars piercing the sky, the gilded dragon patterns entwined on the pillars gleaming in the sunlight.

At the center of the altar, four-colored spiritual light intertwined to form a pillar of light reaching the sky, and a phantom dragon could be vaguely seen swirling within the pillar.

This is precisely the core of the [Hidden Dragon Path] formation.

Thirty thousand golden-armored guards stood around like sculptures, their heavy black iron armor gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

Each guard had a "Spirit-Slaying Crossbow" hanging from its waist, glowing with a ghostly blue light, and the crossbow bolts were engraved with spirit-slaying runes.

Outside the altar, nine layers of protective light curtains flowed like water, each layer engraved with the dragon pattern unique to the royal family.

Those who are not of royal blood will be burned upon contact.

Sikong Yan lowered his voice: "Those restrictions are more sensitive than spider webs. Although a Spirit Severing Realm cultivator can tear through space and force their way in, they will be detected the moment they make contact."

A cold glint flashed in his eyes: "What's more troublesome is that the Xuanyuan family can easily twist the original fixed passage into a winding maze with just a little manipulation."

"By then, intruders will either be lost in the endless spatial crevices or be pulverized by the raging spatial storms."

He sneered, his voice barely audible: "Therefore, apart from the Xuanyuan family, no one at the Spirit Severing Realm has dared to risk forcing their way in or boarding this vehicle."

"After all, compared to being completely destroyed or entrusting one's life to others, spending more time traveling is the wisest choice."

Zhou Qing nodded silently, his pupils suddenly splitting—his double pupils appeared!
In an instant, the scene before him changed completely in his eyes.

Beneath these visible restrictions, layers upon layers of two-colored array patterns lurked, their red and black hues intertwined like the coiling of venomous snakes.

“As expected…” His Adam’s apple bobbed.

Where is this passageway?

It's clearly an open dragon's mouth!
Once triggered, it will not only attract the instant kill of a Royal Spirit Slayer Realm expert, but may also activate a contingency plan that was not even recorded in the jade slip.

"Now we can only rely on you," Sikong Yan said solemnly.

Zhou Qing did not respond, but his [Double Pupils] emitted a faint light, repeatedly confirming the array diagram in the jade slip.

“It should be about right,” he suddenly said. “Use this place as your center and travel a hundred miles west.”

A glint flashed in Sikong Yan's eyes as his fingertips traced rapidly in the air, as if calculating some invisible trajectory.

The next moment, he suddenly pointed his fingers together like a sword, tearing through space with a "whoosh".

"go!"

The two figures flashed and disappeared into the crevice.

"Hmm?" The commander in charge of guarding the area, who exuded the cultivation of a Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul Realm, suddenly looked over at this place.

With a swift movement of its feet, it instantly appeared where the two had just been. Its vast divine sense spread out, and after confirming that no one was around, it left with a puzzled look.

When the two came out again, they were already at the foot of an ancient city wall.

Without saying a word, Zhou Qing suddenly formed a hand seal—ten thousand spiritual seals burst forth, weaving into a dazzling star map in the void.

A radiant dragon leaped out from the star map, its clear roar causing ripples in the surrounding air.

Each dragon scale was engraved with intricate array patterns, and as the light flowed, it seemed to resonate faintly with a certain point in the void above.

Sikong Yan was mesmerized, his breath catching in his throat for a moment.

—This method is truly ingenious!

Suddenly, Zhou Qing raised his hand, and a golden light shot out from his fingertip, disappearing into a node on the star map.

"Found it!" he shouted, his double pupils flashing red light. "The weak point is three zhang above our heads—take me in!"

Sikong Yan looked up and saw nothing unusual.

He grinned and said, "Okay!"

The space was torn open again by brute force, and the two leaped in.

The moment you enter, a violent spatial turbulence surges forth like a tidal wave.

Sikong Yan's ten fingers, like hooks, pierced into the void, forcefully fixing the surrounding restless spatial cracks into a net-like structure. Zhou Qing, meanwhile, seized the opportunity to control the light dragon, which roared and pounced towards one side.

The array patterns on the dragon's body flickered wildly, colliding violently with the invisible barrier.

"Zi la - zi la -"

Amidst the grating scraping sounds, the barrier gradually came into view.

It was actually a huge silver "pipe," with liquid-like spiritual patterns flowing on its inner walls, writhing like living things.

Sikong Yan gasped, "This..."

Zhou Qing then formed hand seals even faster, and the light dragon in front of him suddenly raised its head and roared. The dragon's body swelled up section by section, and the array patterns on each scale shone with dazzling golden light.

"laugh--"

The array patterns on the dragon scales moved like living snakes, instantly splitting into millions of golden threads that shot towards the silver tube wall.

Just as the gold wire touched the tube wall—

"Buzz!"

The seemingly simple silver barrier suddenly twisted, and four-colored light surged, directly piercing through the body of the light dragon.

The dragon immediately let out a mournful cry, and half of its body disintegrated on the spot.

Zhou Qing's pupils suddenly contracted, and a strange phenomenon of four colors rotating suddenly appeared deep within his [Double Pupils].

"This master is truly amazing!" Zhou Qing stared at the four-colored flowing restriction, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes.

"I originally thought that the unity of Yin and Yang was the limit, but I never expected that the killing formation and the trapping formation would complement each other, and that the four elements, though separate, would be integrated into one—truly a brilliant technique!"

If that master were still alive, he would really like to learn from him in person.

Sikong Yan's arms were bulging with muscles, and the veins on his forehead were bulging. He forcefully suppressed the space around him with his brute force, but he still couldn't stop the turbulent currents from eroding him.

"Is it not possible?" he said through gritted teeth, his voice carrying a rare hint of anxiety. "The turbulence in this godforsaken place is getting stronger and stronger. I'm afraid I can't hold on for much longer."

"Don't worry, it'll be quick!"

Zhou Qing suddenly looked up, his double pupils gleaming brightly.

He clasped his hands together, and the remaining dragon scales suddenly rolled back, condensing above his head into a three-foot-long dragon-patterned abacus—

The ruler is engraved with the Earthly Branches [Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao], with the dragon head as the compass and the dragon tail as the square.

"The first chisel strike!"

Zhou Qing bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the abacus.

"clang--!"

The slide rule struck the intersection of the four patterns, causing spiderweb-like cracks to appear on the surface of the barrier, but these were instantly repaired by the four-colored flowing light.

Sikong Yan grunted, and cracks appeared in the spatial crystal beneath his feet: "At most ten breaths!"

"Second turn!"

Zhou Qing's hands moved like wheels, and the calculator suddenly disintegrated and reassembled—

The dragon's head held the dragon's tail, transforming into a perfect circle, within which the phantom image of the Eight Trigrams of the Primordial Era appeared.

"Fuck!"

The ring, encircling the four-colored restrictions, spun wildly, scattering sparks everywhere.

"The third round!"

In Zhou Qing's pupils, the ancient void spider roared to the sky, and the abacus in front of him returned to its original state, but its entire body was crimson.

This time, the dragon's head and tail pierced in simultaneously, and the entire ruler was driven into the core of the restriction like a red-hot iron nail.

"Click, click."

Amidst a teeth-grinding cracking sound, the four-colored barrier finally shattered completely.

"It's open!" Zhou Qing's face lit up with joy.

The next moment, the barrier shattered, and a stable spatial aura rushed out.

Without hesitation, the two rushed into the gap, and a bright and clear view opened up before them.

The interior of the passage was as clear and transparent as a crystal palace, with the spiritual energy flowing gently along a fixed path, a stark contrast to the turbulent currents outside.

Sikong Yan's chest heaved violently, and he suddenly burst into laughter: "Hahaha, it's done!"

With this first step, their chances of successfully reaching the Imperial Treasury will be greatly increased.

Zhou Qing stared intently at the slowly healing gap.

At the edge, the remnants of the four-colored restriction were writhing and intertwining like living things.

"No time to celebrate." With a flick of his sleeves, the seventy-two kinds of spiritual materials he had prepared beforehand poured out like a torrential rain, suspending in the void in an array.

The three core materials rotate above the head, forming a triangular furnace, with auxiliary spiritual objects surrounding the moon like stars around the earth.

“Millennial Void Stone, Xuan Turtle Shell Powder, Star Sand, Dragon Breath Wood Ash…” Looking at these spiritual materials, Sikong Yan was somewhat puzzled.

Once you've had the experience of opening it once, you can just try again next time, right? What's going on here?
"Condense!" Not long after, Zhou Qing suddenly clasped his hands together.

All the materials instantly melted into two clumps of bronze liquid, and the restrictive patterns that appeared in the clumps resonated with the four walls of the passage!

But just then, a clicking sound like gears meshing came from deep within the passage, and the spiritual flow suddenly accelerated—

"Someone is remotely restarting the teleportation array. Could it be that Xuanyuan Shuo is heading back from the border?!"

Sikong Yan roared and unleashed his full power as a Spirit Slayer, forcefully holding back the walls on both sides and slowing down the repair process.

"What do you want to do? Hurry up!"

Sikong Yan's urging voice resounded in the passage, but Zhou Qing seemed not to hear it. His expression was solemn, and his double pupils split into two rings, which continued to merge at an accelerated pace.

The suspended clump of bronze liquid churned violently under his gaze.

Three breaths!

The surface of the liquid mass began to crystallize, revealing four-colored veins that were completely consistent with the channels.

Five breaths!

The stardust suddenly flashed, imprinting the flowing spatial coordinates into the core.

Seven breaths!

"Zheng——!"

Amidst a piercing metallic tremor, two cyan tokens materialized in mid-air.

The surface texture flickers like breathing, perfectly synchronized with the pulsation of channel repair!
Zhou Qing immediately grabbed it, and as he injected spiritual power to activate it, the gap that was originally healing suddenly twisted and expanded.

This left Sikong Yan utterly shocked.

"go!"

As soon as the two rushed out of the passage, Zhou Qing sent a burst of spiritual energy into the token.

"Crack!"

The gap behind him instantly closed up completely, leaving not even a crack.

In that split second—

"Shh!"

A dark shadow swept through the passage, moving so fast that even the double pupils could only catch a fleeting afterimage!

However, Zhou Qing could still tell from the general outline that it was Xuanyuan Shuo returning, but there was only one person.

"How did you do that?" Sikong Yan asked, his face full of surprise.

Zhou Qing tossed one of the tokens to him and said, "Let's talk outside!"

Sikong Yan grinned, took the token, and with a flick of his fingers, the space tore apart like cloth.

He grabbed Zhou Qing and slipped away.

……

The token that Zhou Qing refined this time was not an ordinary key, but a "disguise" that was so realistic that it could be mistaken for a real one.

【Hidden Dragon Path】This four-colored grand array that runs through the Holy Martial Dynasty is actually composed of four main roads in the east, west, south, and north, like a giant dragon coiled over the territory of the dynasty.

For example, Lingyun Prefecture is located in the east. If Zhou Qing wants to return, although he can take this formation, he will have to take a very long detour.

After leaving the formation, one must transfer to the Four Prefectures Teleportation Array and then change to a flying boat to reach the destination.

However, compared to before, it is much more time-saving and labor-saving.

These four main roads are connected by countless nodes, which are tens of thousands of miles apart.

This design ensures smooth operation while also facilitating segmented repairs.

The two tokens he crafted could sense any node and enter or exit silently.

Completely avoid the proper entrance and exit of the formation, leaving no trace whatsoever.

"That's amazing!" Sikong Yan exclaimed with admiration after hearing Zhou Qing's words.

[Heart Judgment Points +9]

The description above his head, which originally read "[Evil-level Demon]", instantly changed to "[Evil-level Master]".

"This is truly a wonderful thing. From this moment on, the two of us can use the teleportation array built by the royal family for free, right?" Sikong Yan said excitedly.

Zhou Qing nodded and said in a deep voice, "But we must use it with caution. If we encounter a situation like today again, we must avoid it in advance, otherwise, if we run into it head-on, the consequences will be unpredictable."

"No problem!" Sikong Yan grinned, revealing his gleaming white teeth. "If we're discovered, we can just tear a hole and escape. However..."

He glanced at Zhou Qing sideways, his tone playful, "With your Nascent Soul Realm cultivation, you probably can't withstand the void turbulence; you'll be torn to shreds in an instant."

Zhou Qing was silent.

That’s not necessarily the case!

If it's just some Nascent Soul or Divine Transformation Realm inspectors coming and going on business, with his current talent skill [Reduce Presence], the probability of him being ignored is at least 90%.

He suddenly looked up at Sikong Yan: "Now that the problem with the teleportation array has been solved, what does this have to do with the royal treasury? Neither the entrance nor the exit has anything to do with the treasury."

Upon hearing this, a glint of light flashed in Sikong Yan's eyes, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.

He slowly raised his right hand, his slender fingers making a light stroke in the air, and a flash of light appeared.

A three-dimensional projection of the imperial capital slowly unfolded between the two of them.

"Who said we were going to enter through the main entrance?"

Sikong Yan's voice carried a hint of amusement as he lightly tapped the projection with his fingertip, instantly magnifying the nine-tiered palace above the imperial capital.

In the northwest corner of the palace, the phantom of a glazed pagoda is clearly visible, its body wrapped in nine chain-like array patterns, exuding a chilling pressure.

“This is the royal treasury,” Sikong Yan said in a low voice.

“The outer perimeter is not only protected by a three-colored restriction such as the ‘Nine Heavens Net Restriction,’ but also by thirty-six Nascent Soul Realm Great Perfection cultivators who are loyal to the Xuanyuan family and guard them day and night.”

"Even if you were a level four formation master, you couldn't break it openly, but its foundation—"

He traced his fingertip down the base of the glazed pagoda, and the image instantly flipped, revealing a complex network of spiritual veins underground.

One of the thick, crimson-gold spiritual veins is tightly intertwined with the western main road of the Hidden Dragon Path.

(End of this chapter)