Chapter 358 - 344: Breaking the Formation
Chapter 358: Chapter 344: Breaking the Formation
Zhao Lin steadied his breath and centered his mind, focusing all his energy on observing his surroundings.
The Illusion Array’s interference with his Divine Sense was incredibly strong. The phantoms persisted even when he closed his eyes. Trying to use sound to perceive his surroundings was also useless, as it only hit countless barriers, large and small.
Inside the Array, heaven and earth were inverted and the cardinal directions were in constant flux. It was impossible to get out without first breaking the Array. What felt like a straight line was, in reality, just walking in circles—or even spinning on the spot.
Just then, the scene before Zhao Lin’s eyes changed again.
A loud rumble echoed as dozens of massive boulders tumbled down the mountain, whistling through the air as they hurtled toward him.
That wasn’t all. One by one, terrifying monsters reared their heads from the abyss, their cavernous maws gaping open to reveal bristling fangs, each looking eager to devour him.
Most of these boulders and monsters were mere illusions, but some were corporeal, formed by magical attacks.
Trapped within the Illusion Array, it was incredibly difficult to distinguish the real from the fake. A single misjudgment would lead to grievous injury.
In a flash, years of experience on the martial path allowed Zhao Lin to react instantly.
He bit the bullet and took a step sideways, planting his foot into the "abyss." Then, in a blur of motion, he swung his iron ruler to meet two of the boulders, shattering them to dust.
The remaining boulders and monsters instantly vanished without a trace.
"That was close!"
Zhao Lin let out a soft breath. The phantoms created by the Illusion Array were incredibly lifelike. Even though he had been confident in his judgment, taking that step had still required immense courage.
Though he had survived the ordeal, he didn’t let his guard down. This was only the beginning. The Illusion Array would only grow stronger.
SWISH SWISH SWISH...
A dozen giant pythons suddenly leaped from the abyss, lunging at Zhao Lin with incredible speed.
From outside the Array, however, the scene was entirely different.
Zhao Lin was just standing on flat ground. There was no abyss, no mountain, and certainly no giant pythons. There was only a single magical technique cast by the Array: the Earth Spike Skill.
Five long, sharp earthen spikes erupted from the ground, thrusting toward Zhao Lin’s front and back.
Sensing the fluctuation of Mana, Zhao Lin quickly swept the area with his Divine Sense. He sprang into action, his iron ruler deflecting and striking in a single fluid motion, severing the five giant pythons in two.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
The five earth spikes crumbled to dust.
’Another magical attack shattered!’
After that, the Illusion Array changed repeatedly.
The scenes shifted from towering mountains and vast marshes to desolate deserts and churning seas, while Five Elements Skills were unleashed one after another.
Zhao Lin weathered each attack. Though they were harrowing, he suffered no real harm. As his heart gradually calmed, he recalled something Elder Wu had once said while teaching him about Arrays.
"An Illusion Technique is merely a distraction. If an Array is powerful enough, it doesn’t need to create phantoms. It can accomplish its goals directly with potent Magic."
"Take the sect’s Mountain Protection Array, for example, or the defensive magic protecting the market city—not even a Purple Mansion cultivator could stand against them."
After several rounds of magical exchanges, Zhao Lin determined that this Array was not a high-tier one. As long as he wasn’t deceived by its illusions, he had a chance to break it.
’Just now, for example, if it had unleashed a hundred earth spikes instead of five, I wouldn’t have been able to stop them even if I had three heads and six arms.’
And he was right. The Yinfeng Realm had no Spirit Veins. This Array had been established by taking advantage of the natural terrain and the ambient Three Yin Qi, so its power was naturally diminished.
’He’s just a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator, how can he be so difficult to deal with?’
Outside the Array, the more the disheveled cultivator watched, the more he felt something was wrong. Observing closely, he finally exclaimed, "He’s a Martial Cultivator!"
His expression darkened instantly. ’I’ve been in seclusion for twenty years, and this is my first day back in business. I thought I’d easily handle two Low Tier cultivators, but who would’ve thought one is a Martial Cultivator and the other a Body Cultivator? Both are tough nuts to crack!’
’I can only blame myself. I’ve been a shut-in for too long. My perspective and judgment have both degraded.’
’Looks like I’ll have to use the Spirit Stones!’
The disheveled cultivator grit his teeth. He carefully took out a few Spirit Stones from within his robes. Then, with a flip of his hand, an Array Plate appeared in his palm.
The Array Plate was covered in densely packed Array Patterns. From the center outward were concentric tracks, like those on a sundial, with a round indentation in the very middle.
One stone, two stones, three stones...
The dishevelled cultivator placed the Spirit Stones into the center of the Array Plate. The plate trembled faintly, absorbing every last wisp of Spiritual Qi from the stones.
VMMMM!
The Array Patterns on the plate flared with light, and the tracks began to spin rapidly.
The Three Yin Illusionary Killing Array primarily ran on yin qi and could function without Spirit Stones, but its power was limited. Adding Spirit Stones was a way to amplify the Array’s might.
Zhao Lin’s vision blurred, and the scene around him transformed once more.
He was no longer in the cave, nor even in the Yinfeng Realm. He found himself in a world of fragrant flowers and birdsong.
"This is..."
Zhao Lin found himself in a garden. The scenery was achingly familiar—it was the Zhao Mansion, back in the mortal realm!
"Brother, you’re back!"
A middle-aged man with a plain, honest face walked toward him, a good-natured smile spreading across his features. It was his older brother, Zhao Shan!
"Brother..."
A warmth spread through Zhao Lin’s chest as he called out softly.
’There must have been a Teleportation Array! It sent me back to the mortal realm!’
The Illusion Array had a powerful distorting effect. Events that would normally seem utterly impossible felt perfectly logical, to the point that the victim would even invent their own explanations to justify them.
The thought that he was still inside the Array flickered through Zhao Lin’s mind, but he dismissed it. ’An Illusion Array could conjure Demon Beasts, but how could it possibly know I have a brother, let alone what he looks like?’
’This has to be real.’
"Come quickly, everyone! Your uncle is back!"
His sister-in-law approached, her face wreathed in smiles, leading his two nephews and a niece.
"Uncle, Jizong missed you!"
"Xuanwu missed you, too!"
The two nephews broke free from their mother’s hands and ran over, throwing themselves into Zhao Lin’s arms, one from the left and one from the right.
"I missed you both, too!"
A smile bloomed on Zhao Lin’s face as he reached out to pat his nephews’ heads.