Chapter 276: Chapter 274: The Grand Bamboo Sea Mutation Operation
I couldn’t find any more clues in the cave, and it was impossible to determine the identities of the deceased from the few skeletons.
I expanded the search area and swept through it again.
Still, there was no sign of Songx Lian. Bai Zichen had no choice but to abandon the search and rescue effort and begin his journey back.
A dignified Core Formation True Man spending a whole day on a single True Disciple was already a significant concession. He had done it only because Tong Huan had pleaded with him, and because Songx Lian had disappeared while on a Sect mission that he himself had posted.
Upon returning to Celestial Thunder Cliff, he informed Tong Huan of the results of his trip.
If they wanted to find Songx Lian’s body, they would have to wait until the Sect expanded in that direction and then use a Soul Lamp to search the area.
"Right, go and investigate whether Songx Lian was traveling with any other Sect Disciples when he left the Mountain Gate... If it truly was a Sect Disciple who was overcome by greed and killed him over treasure, we must find this person."
Bai Zichen instructed Tong Huan. Even though he hadn’t ended up taking the position of Hall Master, he had never forgotten his desire to purify the Sect’s culture.
"I don’t expect fellow disciples to be perfectly virtuous or go to the absurd length of risking their lives to save each other... But I will absolutely not tolerate them secretly plotting against one another for profit and murder. Even if the culprit is a True Disciple or has already become a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, as long as it’s confirmed, they will be severely punished."
"Yes, sir!"
Tong Huan responded loudly. He never imagined that a fellow disciple he had finally come to see as a friend would be separated from him by life and death after just one parting.
Dying while exploring ruins or being killed by a Demon Beast would have been one thing, but dying at the hands of a fellow sect brother was unacceptable.
「Several days later」
Zhou Suqing arrived at Celestial Thunder Cliff, accompanied by several Tier Two Array Masters from the Array Hall.
Ancestor Yangg could set up a Tier Three Array in a single go, but they didn’t have that kind of ability.
Zhou Suqing, the one with the deepest understanding of the Array Dao among them, was still only a Tier Two Peak Array Master, just a Half-Step away from Tier Three.
They needed to work together, first mapping the direction of the Spirit Vein, then each taking charge of an Array Plate and placing Array Banners, breaking the task down for each person.
The final, critical step of activating the Grand Array still required a Core Formation True Man to act.
Otherwise, just the few of them wouldn’t be able to mobilize the terrifying amount of Spiritual Power required, nor could their bodies withstand it.
Bai Zichen naturally took on the final step. He accepted a case of Top-Grade Spirit Stones that Zhou Suqing had requisitioned from the Sect Secret Hall and carefully observed the Array Masters’ movements.
The Qingfeng Sect only had one Tier Three Low-Grade Array left: the Red Flame Bing Fire Array.
It wasn’t a perfect match for Celestial Thunder Cliff, but there were no better options.
A Tier Three Grand Array was powerful precisely because it connected to the Earth Veins and was intertwined with the Spirit Vein, making it a world apart from a Tier Two Array.
Therefore, the position of each Array Banner could not be off by even the slightest fraction. They had to be inserted at the most suitable nodes so as not to affect the subsequent flow of Spiritual Qi.
Bai Zichen watched the group of Array Masters forming hand seals, some tossing copper coins, others manipulating calculating rods, their brows furrowed as they calculated distances down to the millimeter.
Bai Zichen discovered that although he had little talent for the Array Dao, he was far superior to these Array Masters when it came to finding the key Spiritual Energy Nodes.
By using his As Clear as Daylight ability, the direction of the Spirit Vein and the locations of the Spiritual Energy Nodes were completely visible to him.
As he studied the Array Masters’ techniques and experience, he cross-referenced them with the Spiritual Energy Nodes he saw in his mind and found that they didn’t miss a single one.
It could only be said that this batch of Sect Array Masters had very solid fundamentals.
Although their efficiency in finding the Spiritual Energy Nodes was a bit slow, they didn’t make a single mistake.
Seven days later, once all the Array Banners were in their proper positions, Zhou Suqing flew into the air, holding the Array Plate with a solemn expression.
She would undertake the most arduous task of all: adjusting the Array until it was perfectly synchronized with the Spirit Vein.
Of the several Array Masters present, she was the only one capable of doing it.
It wasn’t just a matter of her realm in the Array Dao.
The two old men with white hair and beards, looking to be on the verge of death, were also Tier Two Peak Array Masters.
The main factor was her personal cultivation realm. Zhou Suqing had, after all, achieved Pill Discussion, so in some respects, she could be considered a semi-Core Formation True Man.
"Rise!"
Zhou Suqing threw the Array Plate, striking it with hundreds of complex Magic Formulas, causing it to spin rapidly in mid-air.
With a deafening ROAR, a crimson glow shot into the sky, stretching for a hundred miles.
The twelve Array Banners buried throughout Celestial Thunder Cliff responded in unison. Twelve beams of red light shot out, merging with the crimson glow.
High in the sky, fiery clouds gathered, and balls of flame spontaneously appeared from the void.
"Junior Martial Uncle Bai, now!"
At Zhou Suqing’s reminder, Bai Zichen slapped the case in front of him, and thirty-six Top-Grade Spirit Stones flew out.
Immense Spiritual Power was drawn from the Spirit Stones, converging into a single stream that shot into the Array Plate.
At the same time, he felt a heavy, immense power from deep underground, pulsing in time with the Array.
Even with his strength, he couldn’t control or grasp it. He could only go with the flow, making minute adjustments to guide the Power of the Earth Veins.
’The Power of the Earth Veins is truly immense... To control such a great power of heaven and earth, I suppose one would have to reach the Nascent Soul Realm.’
Bai Zichen felt the terrifying power of the Tier Three Grand Array at the moment of its first activation. It was a force that even a Core Formation True Man could only coordinate and guide, not command.
The entire Celestial Thunder Cliff trembled. The Tier Three Grand Array was finally successfully deployed.
A ring of crimson light rained down. Any Cultivator who dared to invade Celestial Thunder Cliff would be assaulted by thousands of flames.
With every step forward, the power would double.
By the time they reached the Array itself, they would be plunged into a sea of fire, with a power that could already approach that of some True Flames.
After the Array Formation was complete and he had seen Zhou Suqing off, Bai Zichen went into seclusion for several months to digest what he had learned from observing the process, successfully advancing to Tier Two.
He became a Tier Two Low-Grade Array Master, acquiring his first Tier Two skill among the Hundred Skills of Cultivation.
...
"Ancestor, all the Bai Clan Members have been summoned."
Bai Xiran was the Elder leading the Bai Family contingent this time. In terms of blood relations, he had to address Bai Zichen as Grand-Uncle.
"Tell them that I’m only looking for mutated Spiritual Bamboo... Aside from Spirit Stones, cultivating a Sacred Sound Bamboo will be rewarded with one Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object, and a Thunder Sound Bamboo will be rewarded with one Foundation Establishment Pill."
Under the pretext of teaching the younger generation of the clan, Bai Zichen had gathered all the Bai Clan Members.
Dozens of yards behind him, a Crystal Stone containing Holy Beast Essence Blood was floating.
Using a Secret Technique from the Fish Dragon Sect, an invisible giant hand manipulated the Holy Beast Essence Blood Crystal Stone. More than seventy fine, cyan threads were scooped up and sprinkled over every Bai Clan Member.
Even the leader, Bai Xiran, was no exception.
When the reward plan was announced, all the Bai Clan Members erupted with excitement.
Although in the Bai Family’s several-hundred-year history only two Sacred Sound Bamboos had ever mutated, everyone harbored the fantasy that they might be the next lucky one.
Moreover, Bai Zichen had deliberately laid the groundwork by explaining that Celestial Thunder Cliff, being a Tier Three Spirit Vein with a modified environment, was extremely suitable for the growth of Spiritual Bamboo.
This was to prevent them from being too shocked when, stimulated by the true use of the Holy Beast Essence Blood, the Wood God Skill replicated its effects from the hands of the Fish Dragon Sect disciples.
He wanted the Bai Clan Members not to be overly astonished when the number of future Spiritual Bamboo mutations far exceeded their imagination.
"At the end of every year, all Bai Clan Members are to come before my courtyard... I will inspect the progress of your Cultivation, and those who have tended to the Spiritual Bamboo most diligently may sit and listen to my teachings."
The group of disciples in the Fish Dragon Sect responsible for caring for the Spiritual Bamboo were generally only exposed to the Holy Beast Essence Blood once every ten years.
This wasn’t because the Cultivators couldn’t withstand the Holy Beast Aura, which had been diluted by a Secret Technique, but because the Holy Beast Essence Blood was a Supreme Treasure of the Fish Dragon Sect, hidden deep within its Secret Vault.
Other than the Nascent Soul True Monarch, only a few high-ranking Elders were qualified to open it.
How could the people below disturb several Late-Stage Core Formation or even Core Formation Perfection Elders every so often just for the sake of the disciples tending the Spiritual Bamboo?
Therefore, Bai Zichen set the minimum time frame to one year, ensuring the Holy Beast Aura on every Bai Clan Member would allow the Wood God Skill to exert its optimal effect.
’If even this doesn’t accelerate the Spiritual Bamboo mutation, then I’ll have to accept it... Outsiders who find out will only think that after reaching Core Formation, my thoughts turned to my clan, and I wanted to support the Bai Family.’
Bai Zichen was full of anticipation for the changes in the Bamboo Sea.
If he happened to cultivate a few Foundation Establishment Cultivators for the Bai Family in the process, that would be a welcome outcome.
With the temptation of Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects and Foundation Establishment Pills dangling before them, he didn’t believe these clan members wouldn’t give it their all.
’There are still too few people. I’ll write a letter to Bai Xianzhong later. Population is the clan’s primary productive force... If we had two or three hundred clan members, the scale of the Bamboo Sea could be expanded several times over. The thousands of acres at the foot of the mountain could all be used to plant Spiritual Bamboo.’
Because of Bai Zichen’s mandatory requirement to plant the Ink Bamboo Sea, not a single acre of Spirit Field had been developed on Celestial Thunder Cliff.
The Spirit Field Hall expressed great confusion and had approached Tong Huan several times.
But once they learned it was Ancestor Bai’s will, what could they do? They could only return to the Mountain Gate dejectedly.
The Spirit Plant Hall had originally been overjoyed, thinking that their unpopular hall was finally about to see its spring.
The task of caring for tens of thousands of Spiritual Bamboos was no easy feat; it would have created many new positions in the Spirit Plant Hall at once.
But they soon received a crushing blow. Ancestor Bai had found a large number of his own clansmen and had no intention of letting the Spirit Plant Hall get involved.
They had gotten excited for nothing.
However, after reporting to his master, Tong Huan approved the relocation applications of five Elders, leaving only one Tier Three Spirit Land spot vacant for emergencies.
Lu Songx’s patrol team, the personnel dispatched from various halls, the Elders’ escorts, and the old staff from White Jade Tower...
All told, there were finally seven or eight hundred Cultivators on Celestial Thunder Cliff, and it began to teem with life and vitality.
Meanwhile, in the Artifact Refining Chamber, Bai Zichen, after using up dozens of sets of materials, had finally refined the first Flying Sword of his life.
A Tier One Ink Bamboo Sword.
One month later, looking at the seven or eight Ink Bamboo Swords scattered in a messy pile in the Artifact Refining Chamber, he finally stopped and extinguished the Earth Fire.
’By the end, I could basically guarantee a one-third success rate for Sword Refinement... But I don’t have that many materials to practice on for Tier Two Flying Swords. I’ll first try refining a few Low-Grade Spiritual Artifacts to prove I’ve reached the level of a Tier Two Refiner.’
The materials Bai Zichen had on him were of too high a grade. They were almost all Tier Three Spiritual Materials, which would be an incredible waste to use for refining Low-Grade Spiritual Artifacts.
He sent a message, and the Artifact Refining Hall delivered two hundred sets of common Spiritual Artifact materials.
Whatever the cost, it could just be deducted directly from Ancestor Bai’s Contribution Points.
He glanced at his Identity Token; it showed that he already had over seventy thousand Sect Contribution Points.
This was mainly the large amount of Contribution Points gained from acting twice, plus the materials from the Golden-Winged Thunder Roc Demon King that he had turned over to the Sect.
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