Hearing Xiao Qingxuan’s question, Bai Yuhan’s expression immediately became somewhat awkward.
“Simply put, the Sect Master of the Illusion God Sect used Yang Spirit Astral Projection, completely separating from her body, leaving her with no sensation whatsoever.”
“Your Shizun, not well-versed in the ways of the soul, didn’t believe that the physical body could have absolutely no feeling, so she… ‘slightly’ stimulated it.”
“A few days later, when the Illusion God Sect Master’s spirit and flesh reunited, the physical stimulation flooded her soul all at once, causing her to faint for a full three months.”
According to Feng Linyi, this was called “Sensory Deprivation Stimulation.”
Later, Feng Linyi also learned this trick and even used it on Bai Yuhan a few times.
As someone who had personally experienced it, she admitted it was indeed very “stimulating.”
Thinking of this, her face flushed slightly, and she let out a subconscious light snort.
“Mm… in any case, you just pretend you know nothing about it, and definitely don’t bring it up yourself.”
“These are all matters from our generation, already long past.”
Xiao Qingxuan nodded. She felt that fainting for three months wasn’t a very big deal.
Even cultivators at the Golden Core or Nascent Soul Stage often went into seclusion for months at a time.
Still, she really didn’t know exactly what her unreliable Shizun had done. She had to be careful on this trip.
She secretly resolved that on this trip to the Illusion God Sect, she absolutely had to find a way to restore Ye Luqing’s memories.
…………
On the other side.
As Ye Luqing flew through the sky using Qi, the System’s voice suddenly sounded in her mind.
【Destined Female Lead Xiao Qingxuan’s Blackening Value has risen to 89%】
【Side Mission: Evade the soul probe of Dao Integration Realm Great Cultivator Bai Yuhan. Completed】
【Reward has been distributed. Host, please check and accept.】
At this moment, Ye Luqing was immersed in the joy of flying, so she simply tossed these matters to the back of her mind.
“So this is Qi-controlled flight…”
Her eyes were full of curiosity. This was a sensation she had never experienced before.
In her past life, she hadn’t even been on an airplane, and now she could fly by herself.
Bai He only led her for a short flight before Ye Luqing chose to experience it herself.
She felt the speed of Qi-controlled flight wasn’t slow, but there was a protective film condensed from True Qi on the outside, making the experience very stable.
At the Golden Core Stage, one opened the Qi Sea and could project True Qi externally.
Golden Core Stage cultivators were also known as “Perfected Persons” and were qualified to establish their own schools and sects.
However, Ye Luqing herself had fallen from the Nascent Soul Stage and was still unclear about her current combat strength.
After her first failure, she realized that her top priority should be increasing her cultivation and strength, not blindly raising Xiao Qingxuan’s Blackening Value. Otherwise, she would just be casually killed like a stray dog on the roadside.
Once her strength surpassed Xiao Qingxuan’s, couldn’t she then stimulate her however she pleased?
A short while later, Bai He and Ye Luqing landed on the mid-slope of Azure Sky Peak.
“This is Azure Sky Peak. We can’t fly any higher; we have to walk up from here.”
Bai He watched Ye Luqing as she slowly landed. Although this Junior Sister had lost her memory, she still had the skill of a Golden Core Peak Stage cultivator in controlling True Qi.
“It seems she hasn’t lost all her memories; the cultivator’s instinct to use True Qi is still there,” she thought to herself.
But she didn’t dwell on it. The Soul-Slaughtering Sect’s methods were treacherous; such an occurrence wasn’t unusual.
Ye Luqing followed Bai He up the mountain path. Looking up, the sky was high and the clouds pale, and the wind carried the scent of grass and trees.
Rounding half the mountain slope, she saw a massive training ground where over a dozen people were cultivating.
“This is Azure Sky Peak’s White Jade Platform, the place where inner sect disciples train.” Bai He pointed eastward to an area not far away, rich with spiritual energy.
“Are there only this many people in the inner sect?” Ye Luqing asked curiously.
She hadn’t seen much introduction about Azure Sky Peak in the original novel, but as one of Profound Firmament Upper Sect’s three main peaks, the number of inner sect disciples should naturally be quite large.
Bai He’s expression became a bit awkward. She explained,
“The Sect Grand Tournament is about to start soon. They probably all went to prepare for it.”
Azure Sky Peak’s transcendent status in the Profound Firmament Upper Sect was primarily due to Vice Sect Master Bai Yuhan. The average quality of its disciples was much lower.
As one of the sect’s three Dao Integration Realm Dao Venerables, even if she had not a single disciple, she was still entitled to an entire peak for herself.
As for their Azure Sky Peak having few people… it was mainly because Array Cultivators were indeed a bit of an obscure path.
Bai He continued to explain, “Actually, it’s not that Azure Sky Peak has few people, but rather that the number of Array Cultivators is just too small.”
Most cultivators in the world strived towards Daoist arts and offensive power.
A tier below that were cultivation paths in alchemy, talismans, and Qi nurturing.
But Array Cultivators lacked offensive methods and were mainly focused on support. Furthermore, they needed to purchase materials and draw Array Runes, incurring significant daily expenses.
Moreover, once most spell arrays were constructed, they could operate for a very long time. For instance, Spirit-Gathering Arrays and Protection Arrays had far less demand than consumables like pills and talismans.
As for the supportive effects provided by arrays… taking pills or using talismans could achieve the same effects.
Thus, those with talent in spiritual power all chose to learn alchemy or talisman crafting, so very few cultivators directly chose to practice formation arts.
Both being Golden Core Stage cultivators, if you were a Sword Cultivator, others would cast admiring glances at you. But if you were an Array Cultivator, others would think of you as just an accessory for other cultivators.
Ye Luqing pouted. As someone who had read the original work, she also knew that the status of an Array Cultivator in the Immortal Cultivation World was basically that of support.
Her cultivation talent was already inferior to the Destined Female Lead’s, and being an Array Cultivator further crippled her combat strength. How could she possibly resist Xiao Qingxuan?
Was being the one getting screwed her only path?
She didn’t want that!
“After reaching the Spirit Transformation Stage, when you communicate with Heaven and Earth and comprehend the Grand Dao, everyone’s Dao is equal,” Bai He consoled her.
“The path of snakes and rats can also swallow elephants.”
Ye Luqing nodded. She remembered the book’s setting: the Spirit Transformation Stage was a realm of qualitative change.
The two of them continued up the mountain. Bai He led Ye Luqing to a grand hall near the summit.
“This is the Mysterious Heaven Hall, where the elders and Peak Lord of Azure Sky Peak decide on major, important matters.”
“Azure Sky Peak has seven elders. Five are at the Spirit Transformation Stage, and two are at the Void Comprehension Stage. They usually maintain the sect’s large arrays in various places or go out to search for rare array materials and are normally not on the peak,” Bai He introduced.
Today, the main hall was empty, with only faint trails of green smoke swirling around.
Ye Luqing looked curiously inside the Mysterious Heaven Hall. In her eyes, the seemingly empty hall seemed to “come alive.”
Dozens of arrays operated continuously within the hall. True Qi, soul power, and even the Power of Heaven and Earth perfectly harmonized together. The profound and obscure Array Runes and the multicolored, dazzling mystic lights intertwined to form an incredibly beautiful masterpiece of a picture scroll.
“It’s so beautiful…” she murmured subconsciously.
In Ye Luqing’s eyes, these overlapping arrays were extraordinarily aesthetically pleasing, more beautiful than any painting in her memory.
Bai He was momentarily stunned, then immediately asked,
“Junior Sister Ye, how many arrays can you see?”
Ye Luqing carefully observed the arrays within the Mysterious Heaven Hall and answered honestly,
“Seventy-two, but five or six are a bit unclear…”
Upon hearing this, Bai He’s mouth first opened slightly as if to speak but then stopped. After a moment of silence, she finally nodded.
“Very impressive. It seems Junior Sister Ye’s talent in spell arrays hasn’t disappeared.”
“These unactivated arrays can test one’s aptitude for formation arts. This is also the final test we use to select disciples for Azure Sky Peak.”
“Perceiving sixteen arrays allows one to become an outer sect disciple. Perceiving thirty-two allows one to advance to an inner sect disciple.”
Bai He hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn’t say the next part…
According to her mother—Azure Sky Peak’s Peak Lord, Bai Yuhan—there were a total of seventy-two arrays in the main hall, a treasury of spell arrays passed down through the ages in the Profound Firmament Upper Sect. The first sixty-four were constructed by Arrayists at the Spirit Transformation and Void Comprehension Stages. The last eight arrays, however, were constructed by Arrayists at the Dao Integration Realm and even the Tribulation Transcendence Stage.
When Bai He was at the Golden Core Stage, she could only perceive fifty-four arrays. After breaking through to the Spirit Transformation Stage, she was able to see the full sixty-four arrays, but she still couldn’t perceive the last eight.
She never expected that Ye Luqing, at the Golden Core Peak Stage, could already see all the arrays in the main hall.
One had to know, her mother Bai Yuhan, at the Golden Core Stage, could only see the full sixty-four arrays, and for that, she was hailed as a rare genius of the Formation Arts Lineage.
Bai He sighed almost imperceptibly. She couldn’t quite understand.
This Junior Sister Ye, whose talent in formation arts could be considered monstrous, why was she content with just being a little tag-along, providing support for Xiao Qingxuan?
