Chapter 24

The strange patterns on the thin book that the old man took out were not the first time Lin Tian had seen them. Not long ago, after the iron sword entered his body, many things appeared in his mind, including patterns similar to these.

"What are these patterns...?"

Lin Tian was somewhat surprised.

Like him, the other disciples in the lecture hall were also puzzled.

The old man closed the book and slowly said, "These are array patterns."

"Array patterns?"

Someone was confused.

"Array patterns are the crystallization of what array masters have studied over countless years. And what I call array masters is something beyond traditional martial arts," the old man explained. "Array masters can create martial technique scrolls that ordinary people can use by relying on true essence and some special materials. They can draw spirit-gathering array patterns to increase the cultivation speed of martial artists. They can enhance the power of weapons by imprinting array patterns on them. And according to legend, peak array masters can even invoke the power of heaven and earth to engrave killing patterns in the void, which is extremely terrifying."

Wow!

When the old man finished speaking, everyone in the lecture hall was moved.

Array masters? That's too powerful!

In the corner, Lin Tian was slightly startled and finally understood.

"So, the strange divine patterns that appeared in my mind are actually array patterns, something related to array masters."

Lin Tian muttered to himself.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up. The old man had mentioned many things about array masters, and the most attractive to him was that array masters could increase the cultivation speed of martial artists by drawing spirit-gathering arrays. After all, he was currently facing the problem of how to improve his cultivation speed.

"Teacher, I want to become an array master. Can you teach me?"

"Me too! Teacher, I also want to learn array techniques!"

"Me too!"

Most of the disciples in the lecture hall became excited.

The old man smiled and shook his head, pressing his hands down to signal everyone to calm down.

"Array masters have a high status in the Northern Flame Kingdom. They are the targets of recruitment by major forces. Once you become a qualified array master, money, wealth, and power will all be within reach," the old man said. "Unfortunately, the conditions to become an array master are too stringent, far beyond what ordinary people can achieve."

Hearing this, many people were stunned.

"Teacher, what conditions are needed to become an array master?"

A disciple asked.

In the corner, Lin Tian also perked up his ears. This so-called array master might be his only chance to reach the ninth level of Body Tempering within three months, so he naturally had to listen carefully.

The old man said, "To become an array master, you need to meet at least two conditions. First, you must have a soul far stronger than ordinary people. Second, you need a powerful array master to guide you and pass down the array patterns." He shook his head and continued, "In the Northern Flame Kingdom, the number of people who can achieve the soul strength required to become an array master is one in ten thousand. And array patterns are almost never passed down by array masters, so becoming an array master is extremely difficult."

The old man repeated the word "difficult" three times, which made many people pause.

"Um, regardless of soul strength, Teacher, don't you have array patterns in your hand?"

A disciple said softly.

Many people looked at the old man.

The old man shook the thin book in his hand and said, "These patterns are just some array masters' casual drawings, later copied by people who didn't understand them. They lack the divine essence and have no value for enlightenment."

"Is that so." Many disciples showed disappointment.

Seeing their reactions, the old man smiled and said, "There's no need to be so disappointed. To become a qualified array master, besides the two conditions mentioned earlier, you also need a large amount of money. This is because when practicing the engraving of array patterns, you need to consume many precious materials, which ordinary people can't afford. Of course, once you become a qualified array master, you can easily make money by casually creating some martial technique scrolls."

Hearing this, the disciples became even more eager to become array masters, but also more disappointed, because the conditions to become an array master were too stringent, each one being incredibly difficult, enough to make people despair.

"Alright, don't think too much. Focusing on traditional martial arts is the right path."

The old man said.

Many people chuckled and quieted down. For them, array masters were too distant, so they began to listen to the old man's explanations about traditional martial arts.

In the corner, Lin Tian clenched his fists, his eyes flashing with determination: "Array masters, I see."

The class lasted for an hour. After the old man announced the end of the lecture, Lin Tian quickly left the lecture hall and headed to his residence in the Martial Mansion. After returning, he locked himself in and began to review the mysterious array patterns that had appeared in his mind not long ago.

He needed to reach at least the eighth level of Body Tempering in three months, and time was not on his side. Becoming an array master could help him increase his cultivation speed by drawing spirit-gathering arrays, which was undoubtedly what he needed most at the moment. Additionally, the cultivation of martial artists required a lot of resources, such as elixirs and treasure weapons. If he could become an array master, he could earn a lot of money and buy high-quality elixirs and superior treasure weapons.

Therefore, he had to become an array master no matter what!

Closing his eyes, Lin Tian began to integrate the strange patterns in his mind. Instantly, divine patterns appeared, filled with profound and abstruse divine essence, like sharp blades cutting into his head, causing him to almost scream in pain.

This process lasted for three hours, until the afternoon, when Lin Tian finally opened his eyes.

"It hurts so much!"

He supported his head, feeling his vision blur and his head splitting with pain.

However, despite the pain, Lin Tian was very excited. After integrating the strange patterns in his mind, he indeed found many array patterns, including the spirit-gathering array pattern mentioned by the old man. Most importantly, the spirit-gathering pattern was just one of the most basic array patterns.

"Spirit-gathering pattern, martial pattern, powerful pattern, trapping array, illusion array, killing array..."

Lin Tian muttered to himself.

He rubbed his head and shook it hard.

The divine patterns and array networks that flooded his mind were too numerous, from the most basic spirit-gathering pattern to the highest-level killing array. The array patterns overlapped in his mind, and under his deliberate integration, they almost burst his head.

Another hour passed, and Lin Tian finally felt better.

After four hours, Lin Tian roughly understood how to practice as an array master. As for the conditions to become an array master, Lin Tian knew his soul strength had already met the requirements; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to organize the array patterns in his mind. On those array patterns, he clearly felt the vast divine essence, which could definitely be used for enlightenment!

The practice of array masters first involves making scrolls, which are usually made of parchment. This step is relatively simple. The second step is to buy materials to make the ink used for drawing array patterns. The ink can be obtained by grinding herbs and sometimes requires the blood of high-level beast monsters.

After making the scrolls and ink, you can use true essence to engrave the array patterns you have fully comprehended onto the scrolls, creating finished products. This is the last step and the most challenging one. Generally, a newly practicing array master can succeed in one out of ten scrolls they draw.

Besides this third step, the second step is also very prone to failure. Once you fail, the materials are wasted, and so is the money. This is why the practice of array masters is extremely costly, and ordinary people really can't afford the materials needed for practice.

"Let's take a look at the spirit-gathering pattern." Lin Tian was somewhat excited and subconsciously recited the materials needed to make the spirit-gathering array pattern: "Soul Tooth Grass, Golden Armor Root, the blood of a third-level beast monster, the Spirit Fire Ape..."

"These materials..."

Gradually, Lin Tian couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Soul Tooth Grass and Golden Armor Root were fine; he could afford them. But the blood of a third-level beast monster and the other two materials were incredibly expensive, each costing dozens of spirit coins. In total, making one spirit-gathering array scroll would cost him a hundred spirit coins. Considering the possibility of failure, he would need at least a thousand spirit coins to buy the materials, which might barely allow him to make one spirit-gathering array scroll.

"This is too expensive!"

Spirit coins were the common currency in the Northern Flame Kingdom, made from the residue of a certain source spirit ore. For ordinary families, one spirit coin was enough to sustain a month's normal living expenses. Lin Tian counted and found that he only had about thirty spirit coins on him, not enough to buy the materials for one spirit-gathering array.

Thinking about this, Lin Tian felt a headache.

"It seems I can only borrow money."

Lin Tian said helplessly.

...

"What? A thousand spirit coins, what do you need so much money for?"

Su Shu stared at Lin Tian.

A thousand spirit coins was a large sum of money, even for her, a direct disciple of a Martial Mansion elder.

"Buying something."

Lin Tian said awkwardly.

In the Nine Yang Martial Mansion, the people he was familiar with were Su Shu, Mu Qing, and Shi Dong. The latter two were both elders of the Martial Mansion, and he didn't feel right asking elders for money. After much thought, he could only ask Su Shu for help.

Speaking of which, this was the first time in his two lives that he had asked a girl for money.

"What are you buying that requires so much money?"

Su Shu asked.

Lin Tian scratched the back of his head and said, "This is a secret, I can't tell you yet."

"A secret?"

Su Shu glared at Lin Tian and puffed out her cheeks.

Lin Tian felt awkward and didn't know what to say.

Su Shu huffed but didn't make things difficult for Lin Tian and gave him a thousand spirit coins.

"Thanks, I'll pay you back as soon as possible."

Lin Tian promised.

After getting a thousand spirit coins from Su Shu, Lin Tian immediately returned to his residence, put on a black cloak to cover his entire body, and left the Martial Mansion. He had killed Mo Sen and was a mortal enemy of the Xiao family. If his true identity was exposed outside the Martial Mansion, it might be dangerous. Before he became strong enough, he felt it was better to be cautious.

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