Gu Jinghong froze for a moment.
He had never told his master about his study of formations. How did she know?
But that thought passed quickly. Gu Jinghong composed himself. His master was all-knowing. It wasn't strange at all for her to be aware of something like this.
"Yes."
Gu Jinghong responded respectfully, then produced a jade slip and placed it on the table. "Master, this is a formation compendium I acquired while completing a mission outside. It's labeled as a 'comprehensive guide,' but it only contains basic formations from Grade One to Grade Three. I've mainly relied on this to teach myself."
He was self-taught?
Yun Jin couldn't help but look at him with curiosity. "Among the ten peaks of the Tianxing Sect, the master of Wanzhen Peak, Cheng Guang, is a Fifth-Rank Formation Master. Since you had this interest, why not ask him for guidance?"
Gu Jinghong's voice remained calm. "I was not well-regarded within the sect at the time."
Yun Jin immediately understood.
The old Gu Jinghong, due to the Blood Qi Art, had been nothing short of a madman. If Zhao Wuji had truly valued him, it might have been different. But Zhao Wuji had kept his distance from him as well.
As a result—
Tianxing Sect's disciples feared him, the elders disliked him. So despite being a personal disciple of the sect leader, if Gu Jinghong wanted to learn something, he had no choice but to do it on his own.
Yun Jin recalled what little she knew about Cheng Guang. As the master of Wanzhen Peak, Cheng Guang, like most peak masters, followed a path of self-preservation.
She didn't know much else about him, but in the future, she planned to elevate the Tianxing Sect to the pinnacle. Before that, she'd need to make time to investigate the sect's internal affairs.
Those with weak will or questionable loyalty would have to go. She wanted every member of the Tianxing Sect to be someone worthy of her investment. Until then, Yun Jin had no intention of redeeming too many valuable items from the system.
Only after she had refined the inner circle of the sect would she begin to introduce system-enhanced techniques and resources.
Right now, there were only a few people in the entire Tianxing Sect whom Yun Jin truly trusted.
Cheng Guang was not among them.
Yun Jin picked up the jade slip and examined its contents.
It was a standard market copy.
The Grade One formations included only the most basic types: Spirit Gathering Formation, Maze Formation, and three others.
For Grade Two and Grade Three, there were only three formations in total.
To a true Formation Master, this was barely the bare minimum—elementary at best.
But in the market, this was about the best one could find.
Yun Jin was familiar with some foundational knowledge of formation masters.
For example:
Being able to set up at least five types of Grade One formations within a time limit was the basic requirement for being considered a First-Rank Formation Master.
Second-Rank and Third-Rank Formation Masters were also required to master at least five formations each.
So in Gu Jinghong's case, even though he had mastered several Grade Two and Grade Three formations, because he hadn't reached the required number, he could currently only be counted as a First-Rank Formation Master.
The path of formations involved using various materials and tools to draw in spiritual energy from heaven and earth and channel it to achieve different effects.
At its highest levels, it could move mountains and reverse seas—truly awe-inspiring.
That level was still far off for Yun Jin.
She focused on the most basic formation: the Spirit Gathering Formation.
"A Grade One Spirit Gathering Formation requires low-grade spirit crystals. The more used, the better the effect."
The jade slip contained a detailed formation diagram. The beginner version required ten low-grade spirit crystals. There were also versions with a hundred or even a thousand crystals, but the increased numbers only affected the potency of spiritual energy gathered, not the difficulty of the formation itself.
So once one mastered the ten-crystal version, they essentially had control over the entire formation.
It required placing the spirit crystals precisely in position, then channeling spiritual energy into the array. The hardest part was maintaining a delicate balance between the incoming spiritual energy and the crystals' own energy.
Yun Jin gave it some thought, then pulled out ten low-grade spirit crystals.
This time, she didn't use the system. She wanted to try it herself.
The diagram clearly marked each crystal's position, and the instructions demanded all ten be placed simultaneously, with a margin of error no greater than a single breath.
With Yun Jin's formidable spiritual power, she only had to think—and ten crystals landed neatly into place on the floor, precisely aligned with the formation diagram.
As soon as they were placed, the crystals began to resonate, spiritual energy rippling through the air.
At that moment, spiritual energy from the world had to be introduced into the array immediately, or it would destabilize and explode.
Seeing Yun Jin start setting up the array so suddenly made Gu Jinghong tense.
He remembered when he had first tried—he failed nearly a hundred times before managing one successful attempt.
This balance of energy was no easy thing to master. It took countless failures to learn how to fine-tune it.
Fortunately, these were just ten low-grade crystals. Even if the array exploded, it wouldn't cause any real harm.
Yun Jin began channeling the spiritual energy.
As soon as it entered the array, the field became even more chaotic. But Yun Jin remained calm. She carefully guided the energy threads, letting the ambient spiritual energy flow into the array and harmonize with the ten crystals' energy, forming a closed loop.
The circulation was unstable at first, but quickly settled into a steady, harmonious flow.
Gu Jinghong's mouth slowly opened in disbelief.
Had it... worked?
His master had only just asked him for the jade slip, glanced at it once, and then successfully constructed a Spirit Gathering Formation?
Yun Jin ignored Gu Jinghong's shock. She reached out with her senses. Inside the small array, the concentration of spiritual energy was twice that of the surrounding area—exactly what a Grade One Spirit Gathering Formation was supposed to achieve.
But as she examined the flow of energy within the formation, something felt off.
The cycle looked balanced, but it seemed cluttered—full of unnecessary and redundant channels.
So then, what would a truly optimal energy cycle look like?
In that moment, Yun Jin recalled the energy circulation of her own Golden Core.
She had gained insight into that flow through the concept of Taiji.
Her Golden Core's rotational pattern allowed her to absorb spiritual energy at ten times the normal efficiency.
If that rotation was so effective for her core—
What if she applied that same principle to the formation?
The idea struck her, and she acted on it immediately.
Using her formidable spiritual power, Yun Jin forcibly interfered with the array's energy flow. The Spirit Gathering Formation began to tremble, teetering on the verge of collapse.
Yun Jin lifted a brow and pressed down with her will, stabilizing the structure.
She then redirected the energy channels, adjusting the flow to match the Taiji-inspired rotation from her core.
The moment the corrections were complete, the array regained stability—and began operating in perfect harmony once again.
But this time—
Its efficiency had improved.
The spiritual energy within the formation was now three times denser than outside.
[Ding. Host has modified the Spirit Gathering Formation. Grade One Formation has reached Perfect Level.]
Different sects had different methods for arranging even the same formation.
The stronger the inheritance behind a formation, the higher the quality of the resulting array.
The version Yun Jin had just constructed—perfect level—was the pinnacle of what a Grade One Spirit Gathering Formation could achieve.
A threefold spiritual energy concentration was its absolute limit.
"Not bad," Yun Jin said, waving a hand and dismissing the array.
Gu Jinghong stood to the side, utterly stunned.
What had just happened?
Not only had his master casually set up a Spirit Gathering Formation in one go, she had even improved it?
That level of spiritual energy just now—
Could it have been...
A perfect-level formation?
Only the top-tier sects or Holy Lands were said to possess such advanced formation inheritances.
And yet his master had merely looked at the diagram once and muttered, "Not bad"?
===
New novel on work "Mom's Apocalypse Survival Log". You can find it on my webnovel profile.
Lan Jin thought she knew how the apocalypse would end—struggling to survive for two long years, only to be betrayed and murdered by her cheating ex-husband and his mistress. But fate gives her a second chance. Reborn three months before the world collapses, she's armed with a space ability, a burning desire for revenge, and one unwavering goal: protect her child at all costs.
This time, she won't be naive. Armed with a space that keeps her supplies fresh and a burning desire to never be a victim again, she's ready. She's stockpiling food, securing shelter, and building a small but loyal team—including a tough-as-nails gym instructor, teenager who should be in college but ditched it for a gap year, a no-nonsense trainer with her elderly grandmother, and, of course, a very good dog.
But the apocalypse isn't just about surviving disasters. Earth itself seems determined to wipe humanity out in the cruelest, most unpredictable ways. And when the final catastrophe hits? No one could have seen it coming.