Chapter 22

“Who is Lin Du?”

“Which family does Lin Du come from?”

“With the three sects and six schools in Zhong Zhou, which sect did Lin Du train under? How did she just suddenly appear?”

“Oh, from the Supreme Sect. Then it’s fine.”

In the Supreme Sect, failing to make it onto the Qingyun List would result in mockery for a hundred years, and failing to make it onto the Chongxiao List would bring ridicule for a thousand years.

By the time summer arrived, two new disciples had also made it onto the Qingyun List at the bottom, and by autumn, Ni Jinxuan had joined the list as well. Although their rankings weren’t very high, there was plenty of time for changes in the future.

Even though talent was crucial, hard work could still catch up.

The Supreme Sect never disappointed its geniuses, and geniuses were still ordinary people.

At this moment, Lin Du, who was being watched by many, was sitting at her usual spot by the window in the sect’s library. In front of her lay a large piece of Xuan paper covered with a dense formations of numbers and incomprehensible symbols, and there were many crumpled sheets of paper scattered on the floor, which she had no intention of picking up.

A fine wolf-hair brush was being pressed roughly onto the Xuan paper, producing increasingly hasty and coarse characters. With a crack, the brush snapped in half.

The young boy slammed the remaining part of the brush down and said, “Finally, damn it, I’ve figured it out.”

She abruptly stood up, grabbed the already smeared piece of paper, and strode out of the library, causing the unrestrained papers on the desk to flutter to the floor.

Lin Du paid no attention to them and quickly appeared in front of Yan Ye, slamming the paper down onto the ice surface. Once the paper touched the Luo Ze, it quickly turned brittle.

“I said, this problem should be solved this way. If you insist on using these materials for the Qian and Xun positions, the resulting energy cannot form a circle; it should be a curved formations. If you want me to calculate a circular formations, forget it. It can never be circular no matter how you calculate it!”

She vented her frustration, standing before the white-haired youth. “Were you deliberately misleading me?”

“Yes, I tricked you.” Yan Ye glanced at the formations pattern and the items that should be placed at each position with his spiritual sense. He then elegantly lifted the stiffened paper, holding it between his long fingers.

“I just wanted to see if you had the ability to question authority. Clearly, you passed the test.”

He shifted his tone, “But spending an entire day on this is a bit long; your mind must be restless.”

As he spoke, he lightly moved the fingers holding the paper, causing a chunk of ice to break off from beneath Lin Du’s feet, and with a splash, she fell into the water below.

Through the sound of the water, he heard, “Damn it… splash splash.”

A mischievous smile appeared on the young man’s face. “If your mind isn’t calm, then go down there and calm it down.”

Half an hour later, Lin Du, having expended her strength, let the current carry her to a still pool. She smashed the ice surface with a punch and climbed out.

She wiped her clothes dry, swallowed her rebellious thoughts, and sat dejectedly on the ice.

Since she began Foundation Building, Yan Ye had given her a book on formations fundamentals and the forty-nine basic formations, with the requirement being that she would memorize them and be able to calculate them. If she couldn’t, he would teach her personally.

When Lin Du received the book, she laughed.

It was a joke. Since high school, after choosing the science track, she had never scored below 180 on math with extra questions, with double A+ in physics and chemistry. Even in college, despite the challenges of physics, chemistry, and biochemistry, she consistently scored over 90 and never faltered in writing lab reports. How could she not understand this?

Oh, she nearly didn’t understand it.

As the saying goes, mastering mathematics and science ensures you won’t fear traveling the world, and it applies in the cultivation world too.

The essence of formations lies in the interaction of the five elements’ attributes, where different attributes and energies are placed in different positions to form an energy field, ultimately achieving a special effect within that field.

Formations originate from nature and can also be modified by human effort.

There are forty-nine basic formations, generally divided into five types: square, circular, curved, straight, and sharp.

She spent two months figuring out the energy constraints of the forty-nine formations, including distances, weights, and the items used to form the formations, and then memorized them all.

Before Lin Du could catch her breath, Yan Ye tossed her a book on ancient formations formations with ten unusual formation, all incomplete, containing only textual descriptions and no diagrams.

As she calculated the first formations, Yan Ye had tricked her into believing it was a circular formations, which made her laugh—his head looked pretty round, too.

Anyone would be frustrated and angry if they suddenly realized that their mentor had given them incorrect experimental methods.

Lin Du swallowed her frustration, looked up at the sky, and said, “It’s time to eat.”

Yan Ye had no objections and let her go.

After she left, the young man carefully put away the paper, his unrestrained yet dazzling eyes revealing a subtle hint of pride.

“That little brat is really something. It took me seven days back then.”

By the time Lin Du arrived at the dining hall, most people had already gathered.

As soon as she appeared, those who were setting the table continued their work, and those who were serving food did the same.

“Why are you here so early today? Aren’t you all busy with the autumn harvest? Who made the food?”

Although harvesting and planting were done with magic, someone still had to cast the spells.

During the busy autumn season, the real cultivators often forgot about the hungry young disciples. It was up to Mo Lin and Lin Du to take turns cooking.

Lin Du believed her cooking tasted about the same as anyone else’s. Being from the south, she focused on stir-frying, while Mo Lin, from the north, favored stewing. Fortunately, everyone was not picky and enjoyed whatever was served.

“Today’s food was prepared by the sect leader.”

Lin Du raised her eyebrows. “Senior Sister?”

She glanced toward the kitchen. “Is today a special occasion? Did we kill a swan or something?”

A large goose stew was usually reserved for major celebrations. What was going on today?

“The sect leader said that there’s an important announcement later.”

Lin Du thought for a moment and felt something was off. She grabbed an extra bun to help calm her nerves.

Feng Zhao soon came out carrying a pot of stewed swan and announced, “There’s a small secret realm at the end of the year. The highest level it can accommodate is the Heart of the Qin Realm, so you four are just right for it.”

No matter how the secret realm was divided among the sects, there was never any competition for spots in the Supreme Sect, because there were too few people; everyone had to go.

“Junior Sister, your body is weak. You should consult Jiang Liang before making any plans.”

The elegant boy looked at the young disciple. She knew Lin Du was studying formations formations, but those who practiced formation usually lacked self-defense abilities and did not participate in battles. They only played a major role when working in teams.

Lin Du held her chopsticks and said, “It’s a small matter.”

“This is no small matter. Although the secret realm can accommodate up to the peak of the Heart of the Qin Realm, you…”

“There are still two months,” Lin Du replied with a smile. “Everyone’s just a rookie, and rookies just peck at each other.”

Despite spending the last six months studying formation, her exceptional talent meant she easily reached the late stage of the Heart of the Qin Realm.

“I can protect Little Master Uncle!” Ni Jinxuan was the first to volunteer.

“Me too, me too.”

Lin Du raised an eyebrow. Was she really perceived as so weak by these kids?

“By the way, Jinxuan has successfully built her foundation recently. New disciples who complete their foundation-building can pick one magic item from our Supreme Sect’s Treasure Pavilion. Opening the pavilion can be quite troublesome. You four should go with me to the Treasure Pavilion tomorrow.”

After finishing her speech, Feng Zhao patted Lin Du on the shoulder. “It’ll be reassuring if you have a defensive magic item.”

Lin Du looked at the three pairs of eager and determined eyes across from her and gasped. Was she really seen as the kind of fragile, helpless Little Master Uncle by them?