Chapter 65

Carefully placing the Cloud Mist Stone on both sides of the room, he cautiously sprinkled the specially made silver powder. As a flash of light passed, all the materials used to form the array disappeared, as if they had never existed.

Only then did Tang Jie let out a sigh of relief: "The Spirit Gathering Array is finally successful."

The Spirit Gathering Array is a formation used to gather the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and it is a relatively common formation in the world of cultivation. Cultivators often use this array to gather spiritual energy and draw upon the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Although the absorption of spiritual energy by cultivators is mainly related to the Jade Gate, the environment also has a significant impact on cultivators. Even if one has reached the Ninth Turn of the Jade Gate, cultivating in a place without spiritual energy is useless.

However, the Spirit Gathering Array is not as easy to set up as the Small Maze Array; it requires some special materials as a foundation.

Like elixirs and puppets, formations also have different grades: ordinary, spiritual, and immortal, corresponding to different levels.

For example, the Small Maze Array is just an ordinary formation, so it can be set up by drawing a few spiritual lines.

The Spirit Gathering Array, on the other hand, is a first-grade spiritual formation, which inevitably requires some materials. Even if Xu Muyang boasted of using the heavens and earth as his array, he could not truly do so without any casting materials; he just used as little as possible.

To date, the most powerful known formation is the Nine Absolute Immortal Slaying Array. As its name suggests, it is beyond the immortal grade, and because of this, even the Heavenly God Palace dare not think of forcibly breaking it.

Tang Jie had long mastered the method of setting up the Spirit Gathering Array, but he had never dared to do so here.

The Spirit Gathering Array gathers the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and its effect is much more noticeable than the Small Maze Array. Once activated, it would definitely be discovered.

He could not let anyone know that he understood formations!

At least not now!

If the Heavenly God Palace knew he understood this, they could almost confirm his identity.

Tang Jie's plan only needed the other party to suspect, not to confirm!

Therefore, he could not give the Heavenly God Palace and the Moon Washing Sect the opportunity to confirm his identity.

But when Xie Fengtang set up a protective array for him at Tao Ran Residence, everything changed.

With this large array as a cover, he could do whatever he wanted inside without being discovered. Even if someone noticed, they would only think it was the fluctuation of the outer array.

For Tang Jie, this was his first true attempt at setting up a formation. Compared to this, his previous efforts were just laying the foundation.

This time, setting up the formation was like a trainee chef finally being able to cook for guests.

Fortunately, the guest was himself, so he didn't have to worry about the evaluation.

At this moment, activating the Spirit Gathering Array, Tang Jie felt the gathering of spiritual energy.

Under the effect of the Spirit Gathering Array, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered more and more, almost actively surging into Tang Jie's body—though the Fifth Turn of the Jade Gate might not be a large faucet, the speed suddenly increased.

Tang Jie took advantage of this to start the circulation of the small universe, greedily absorbing every bit of spiritual energy, converting it into spiritual liquid, and then releasing it as a spell, repeating the cycle. Spell after spell of Water Light Shield appeared on Tang Jie's body, forming, disappearing, and reappearing.

The effect of the Spirit Gathering Array was very obvious, and Tang Jie's magical power recovery speed almost doubled.

Despite this, Tang Jie was still unsatisfied. Once a certain level of proficiency is reached, it becomes increasingly difficult to improve.

From casting a Water Light Shield every twenty seconds to every six seconds might take a few hundred practices, but to further increase the casting speed by even one second might require hundreds or thousands of practices.

Fortunately, Tang Jie not only had the Spirit Gathering Array but also the spiritual elixirs given by Xie Fengtang.

To quickly master the Water Light Shield, Tang Jie chose half of the elixirs that could restore spiritual energy.

In the Xi Xia Realm, most elixirs that restore spiritual energy do not replenish spiritual power immediately upon consumption. Instead, they contain a large amount of spiritual energy that is easily condensed into liquid, but still requires the circulation of the small universe to complete.

At this moment, after taking a Spirit Restoring Pill, Tang Jie felt his body immediately filled with spiritual energy. After one small universe circulation, he directly condensed thirty units of spiritual liquid. Not only that, but the speed of the small universe circulation also suddenly increased, mainly due to the effect of the elixir, making the condensation process extremely smooth.

While continuing to refine the remaining elixir effects, Tang Jie constantly used the Water Light Shield to quickly consume the replenished spiritual energy, practicing the application of the Water Light Shield.

By the end of the night, he had absorbed all the effects of the Spirit Restoring Pill. Tang Jie calculated that he had completed over seventy small universe circulations, which was twice as fast as before, mainly due to the ease of refinement. This process also significantly improved his proficiency in the small universe circulation.

At the same time, he had cast the Water Light Shield over two hundred times, finally increasing the casting speed to nearly five seconds.

A bottle of Spirit Restoring Pills contains ten pills, and five bottles can last for fifty days. Tang Jie estimated that two to three bottles would be enough to bring his Water Light Shield casting speed to within one second.

Seeing that it was already bright, Tang Jie felt refreshed, deactivated the Spirit Gathering Array, and went out to attend class.

---

During the class, Tang Jie noticed Wei Tianchong looking listless and wrote to him: "Why didn't you sleep last night?"

Wei Tianchong replied: "Sigh, don't mention it. I finally realized the drawback of making puppets. We can stay up all night practicing, but making puppets isn't practicing! I was busy all night and am now extremely tired."

"Then go to sleep. As long as you don't talk, sleeping in class is fine."

"But what about the class? There's a big exam in a few days."

"Whether you listen or not, you won't pass. You can continue attending after the exam."

"Tang Jie, is it right to speak to a young master like this?"

"I'm not speaking, I'm writing."

"…Tang Jie, do you really think making puppets is the right path? My brother came again last night and scolded me for not focusing on my studies."

"The path to immortality is narrow and long, but it's not necessarily the only path. Everyone has their own path, Young Master. You are suitable for this. If you trust me, follow this path, and I guarantee you will succeed. Don't forget, I'm counting on you to become one of the top ten disciples."

"Don't mention the top ten. But after making one last night, I found that making puppets is quite interesting. Each material has its own function, and placing it in different positions and using different formations can produce different effects. It's truly fascinating. My carving skills are far from enough for making puppets."

"If you like it, that's good. With interest and a bit of persistence, you can achieve success. By the way, how long do you estimate it will take to complete your puppet?"

"At least it's my first work, so I want to do it well. At least twenty days. But some senior disciples said it's too small, and the formations are hard to engrave. Unless a master helps, ordinary students probably can't do it."

"Don't worry, I can help you solve it."

"Can you make formations?"

"I can't, but I know someone who can."

"A master?"

"A reclusive master, a hidden dragon among the students, a superlative in the art of formations, a peerless expert in the field of formations."

"…Tang Jie, you're just pulling my leg again!"

"What do you mean 'again,' Young Master! Anyway, I guarantee your formation will be perfect, and your first-grade battle puppet will be astonishing. But to make a formation that satisfies you, the price will be a bit higher."

"How much?"

"One hundred spirit coins."

"If it can be done as you say, one hundred spirit coins is worth it."

"Then it's settled." Tang Jie smiled and stopped writing.

---

Eagle Nest.

Gu Changqing sat in his seat, a new writing desk in front of him.

After a moment of deep thought, Gu Changqing finally said, "If he really is Tang Jie, what do you think his next move will be, Eagle Master?"

Gu Changqing shook his head: "I don't know. This young man has already exceeded our expectations. Some things are beyond estimation and speculation. Sometimes, the simplest method is the most effective against such an opponent."

Gao Fei's eyes flashed with a sharp light: "Eagle Master means…"

"Beautiful things are most afraid of brutal treatment. When the opponent sets up a meticulously planned scheme, sometimes what you need to do is not to unravel it, as that would only follow the enemy's path and get you deeper into the trap. The best approach is to destroy it with a thunderous strike! If the opponent wants to play with fire, let him know he doesn't have the ability to control it. Don't assume he can manipulate things to his advantage. When he starts the fire, it will immediately engulf him!"

Saying this, Gu Changqing sneered: "Send people to capture Tang Jie immediately and interrogate him using the soul-searching technique!"

Are we going to take action?

Gao Fei frowned: "Isn't it too hasty? We still have other means to verify. We can go to Anyang and find people who have seen Tang Jie."

"What if the opponent thinks the same way?" Gu Changqing countered. "Anyang is far away, and it will take a long time to find people. By then, he might have some new tricks, making our trip in vain. The opponent is so cunning that we must take some extraordinary measures. Besides, we've invited people from Anyang before, and you know the results."

Gao Fei naturally knew.

In the past three years, there have been many suspects, and they have invited people from Anyang. However, those people no longer clearly remembered Tang Jie's appearance, and under the intimidation of the Heavenly God Palace, they often made random identifications.

The last two mistakes were due to these people pointing randomly.

"Moreover, I feel that if Tang Jie is smart, he might have prepared for this." Gu Changqing added.

Gao Fei agreed, but he still reminded: "That's true, but we need to try. If the soul-searching technique fails to find any clues, we might lose all hope, and the cost of soul-searching is too high…"

"So we will interrogate first, and use the soul-searching technique as a last resort. The cost is not your concern."

"What if we target the wrong person?"

"Before we succeed, we must not involve the Heavenly God Palace… We cannot make the same mistakes as before. This time, we need to think of other methods."

"The Moon Washing Sect has already noticed Tang Jie. If we act now, they won't believe us."

"We don't need them to believe us; we just need to give an explanation."

Gao Fei fell silent.

He understood Gu Changqing's meaning.

Gu Changqing sighed: "Be prepared to sacrifice a life… To achieve great things, sacrifices are necessary. If one life can bring us the Military Mirror, it is worth it."

"Yes!" Gao Fei bowed his head.

But he couldn't help thinking that the person being sacrificed might not find it worth it. This cannot be done voluntarily; some thought must be given.

Gu Changqing continued: "You decide who to send."

Gao Fei sneered inwardly, knowing that Gu Changqing was passing the difficult task to him. If something went wrong, he would be the one to suffer.

But as a subordinate, who else would bear the black pot if not him?

"How much time do you need?" Gu Changqing asked.

After some thought, Gao Fei replied: "At least a month. Tang Jie's residence is now protected by a formation. After this incident, whether he is Tang Jie or not, he will be on guard, and it will take time to approach him. Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Unless we let the Savage Ape act."

"No!" Gu Changqing firmly rejected: "The Savage Ape is our last trump card. It is not easy to cultivate, and it cannot be used unless we are in dire straits!"

"Yes!"

"Forty days. You must capture Tang Jie within forty days!"

"Understood!" Gao Fei replied loudly.

---

PS: I don't want to explain much about Wu Xing's situation. Everyone has their own interpretation, and I am just writing what I see. Regarding the actions of the Moon Washing Sect, I can only say that, as a prestigious and ruling sect, they would not kill their own people for a little benefit. The worldview of this book is generally more realistic, without the concept that being a powerful person means everything else is worthless. At least it's not that explicit or crude. Personally, I find the idea that if I had special abilities, I would be dissected by the state, absurd. In reality, there are countless fake special abilities, and many high officials believe in them, but no one has been dissected.

It's not that extreme!

Dark things are dark because they are hidden in the shadows. In this book, there will be some characters who believe they are powerful and can kill anything, but such people usually don't have a good end.

Unscrupulous things exist, but they cannot become great, and they should not be openly present in large organizations like the Moon Washing Sect and the Heavenly God Palace.

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