Cultivation begins with harvest.

"This stone..."

Now even Chen Guang was absolutely certain that his destination was the boulder beneath his feet. Dongfang Lieming searched the land inch by inch with the token, but there was no particular reaction.

Dongfang Lieming was also sweating profusely. She had followed her brother's instructions and infused her magic power upon arriving here, but the token did not react in any way.

The intense excitement she had felt earlier had now turned into an indescribable fear and anxiety. The boulder in front of her seemed to be distorted by this fear, making her mouth dry and speechless.

"Let's get out of here first." Chen Guang had a vague idea in his mind. This boulder was already very strange, but the fact that it appeared here without any trace of beasts or cultivators passing by was even more peculiar.

Putting everything else aside, just the sight of the half-buried boulders in the Fire Beard Cave alone is enough to excite the cultivators and prompt them to dig. After all, it could represent relics or remains, but there are none of these traces here.

He led Dongfang Lieming out until the boulder was out of sight, then told her to stand still while he ran forward. He ran wildly, but all he saw were withered grass and vines; there was no trace of the boulder. Chen Guang refused to believe it and tried to find it again, changing directions, but to no avail. His clear spiritual eyes couldn't detect a single trace.

"An illusionary array for protection? If so, then it's a deliberate setup. If it's a large trap, either I'll have to go further, or it's truly harmless."

Even with his clear spiritual eyes, he couldn't discern the source of the danger, clearly indicating that it was a setup by a master. Chen Guang was no longer inclined to take the risk. However, since they had bound each other with a spiritual contract before coming, he couldn't just leave without seeing any actual danger, thus violating their previous agreement.

Back at their original spot, Dongfang Lieming, who was shrouded in purple mist, was unharmed. He took her to test it a few times and confirmed that a token was required to enter the formation. He was also relieved to know that he could leave the illusion formation by retreating alone.

"The illusion array is real, but no change in energy was detected by my clear spiritual eyes. Could it be a Qiankun Array, connected to the terrain?"

As soon as this thought arose, Chen Guang had an idea. The clear light in his eyes faded, and a simple, bright light appeared, making his eyes slightly brighter.

The art of observing qi.

Aside from exceptions like the Dongfang siblings, the art of observing qi is already the most basic spell mastered by everyone in the Qingheng Sect.

By observing the Qi and looking into the mysteries, one can see the "Qi" within the field of vision. Everything contains Qi. Qi is a broad concept that can be understood as a trace of one's own existence interacting with heaven and earth and naturally radiating influence.

Upon closer inspection, the difference in this area was immediately apparent, but it was not clear and extremely blurry.

"Walk."

Chen Guang led Dongfang Lieming back into the illusion array. The boulder stood before them, but what Chen Guang saw was red mist drifting and spiritual energy rising like the heat of burning coals from a non-existent "crack" in the boulder. This light made the part of the boulder both red and hot, but it began to spread as soon as it rose an inch higher, and disappeared without a trace beyond ten feet. The entire array relied on this to operate.

"No...it's not the Qiankun Formation! It's a first-rate Yanhuang Formation, drawing upon its own Qi and forming a self-sustaining cycle. It should look like this...no, no, his formation method is different from the inheritance I received. That's why the formation is so well-hidden even without someone controlling it; I can't detect it, and I can't break it."

There are always people more capable than you!

Chen Guang's eyes were opened wide. He drew upon a source stream to revitalize the formation, making this seemingly static arrangement move on its own. Only a small amount of force was needed to activate its operation and make it rotate efficiently on its own. This was the appearance of the first level of the Yanhuang Formation.

Drawing Qi for one's own use is like a waterwheel placed by a river. Once it starts turning for the first time, it will naturally start moving again. Drawing a source of water can revitalize fertile fields. Afterward, additional channels and embankments will be needed to make good use of this water source. Farming is not just about bringing water in, but with a "waterwheel" to move water, a lot of effort is saved, and more fields can be tended.

The self-sustaining cycle means controlling the use of water. Once the waterwheel is turned, the water flows continuously. However, the ditches have varying heights and widths. The question is how to use the water from this ditch for all the fields and then drain the excess water. This is the step that needs to be considered.

The first level of formation truly requires that the formation still be able to operate after being separated from the cultivator, and it can be set up in an environment where spiritual energy can be provided.

The third and second levels are fine as long as they remain independent without external forces, but they are easily disturbed or even collapse when subjected to external forces.

Therefore, Chen Guang is needed to regulate the Ice Mist Formation. When it was simplified from the Sixteen Jade Pillars of Yunbing into the Ice Mist Formation, it lost its ability to regulate itself in the face of the Ice Flower Wutong.

What makes this illusion array even more peculiar is the infusion of spiritual energy, which reminded Chen Guang of the mistification in his previous life—the array was activated faster and more invisibly, and its operation was faster and more concealed, which should be a characteristic of the array's inheritance possessed by the array setter.

"Try sticking the token here again." Chen Guang stopped and tapped the ground with his toes, signaling Dongfang Lieming to come here. Although he couldn't break the formation, some of the changes in the formation were visible to the naked eye.

Dongfang Lieming took a deep breath and then exhaled shallowly. He stood at the spot Chen Guang had pointed out, placed the token on it, and slowly infused it with magic power. The token trembled slightly, and the moss on the rocks on the ground withered. But when he looked closely, he found that the token had calmed down again, just emitting red light as before.

Cold sweat broke out on Dongfang Lieming's forehead. He frantically tried to recall what Dongfang Jianming had intentionally or unintentionally instructed him to "circulate his magic power." At that moment, he understood and immediately circulated his magic power through his body as he injected it into the token, treating the token as part of his body. Suddenly, a crack appeared in the rock, and abundant spiritual energy and scorching heat rushed out from it. At the same time, more red light shone out from the crack, revealing a gentler side.

The crack gradually widened, the token began to tremble rhythmically, and finally revealed a width wide enough for one person to pass through, then all the strange phenomena ceased.

"Senior brother?" Dongfang Lieming's voice trembled as he asked Chen Guang first.

"This is your opportunity, go and take it yourself." Chen Guang tapped her on the head. Dongfang Lieming's action of circulating the Purple Qi Rising Sun Technique once was fully observed. He stepped aside. "I left a spell on your forehead. If anything changes outside, it will alert you."

A dream-talking spell is merely a vague call that appears when necessary to remind the other party.

Chen Guang quickly walked down the rock and faced the direction outside the formation. Dongfang Lieming watched Chen Guang walk away, his heart filled with complicated emotions, unable to say anything. Only when Chen Guang stood still did he seem to wake up and hurriedly took the token and walked into the crack.

……

"call--"

Outside the illusion array, just as Dongfang Chushan was about to walk over, a wisp of hot air suddenly shot out from the ground, attracting his attention. He confirmed once again that the radiant light emitted from the jade plate in his hand was clearly pointing forward, and he couldn't help but confirm his thoughts. Scanning this empty area, he confidently used gestures to tell his people that this was the place.

At the same time, within the formation, Chen Guang sensed that the reconnaissance spell he had left behind had been activated, and he also looked in that direction. Although the formation blocked their line of sight, both sides were very clear about each other's presence.