Chapter 147: Great Success in Formations, the First Trial: the Maze Formation

【A fifth-tier high-grade formation, hahahaha!!】Ancestor Kongling looked at the formation you had laid out, praising you without end.

【To be able to lay out a formation like this, you should be a shoo-in this time!】

【Thank you for your guidance over this past year, Senior. This junior is endlessly grateful!】You cupped your fists and bowed to Ancestor Kongling.

Over the course of this year, you had benefited greatly. Ancestor Kongling had taught you the way of formations with almost no reservation.

【I never imagined my Heavenly Blade Sect would actually have a genius with such outstanding talent like you. It's just a pity — if you had been discovered a few years earlier, I would have definitely taken you as a disciple!】Ancestor Kongling said with emotion, seemingly regretful over his blindness all these years.

【It's all thanks to Senior's good teaching.】you praised.

Ancestor Kongling waved his hand dismissively. "You brat, no need to flatter me. No matter how well I teach, if you didn't have the talent, you wouldn't have been able to learn it anyway."

"Are the two of you chatting well?" The First Elder suddenly appeared, looking at you with a chuckle.

"Shoo, I've already trained this one up for you. Passing Ancestor Xuanming's Recorded Disciple assessment won't be a problem."

"Then I'll thank you for that." The First Elder did not stand on ceremony, and took you away directly.

"Ancestor Xuanming will be recruiting disciples soon. Go back and prepare well first. Tomorrow morning I'll take you there." The First Elder said to you, without even asking how your studies had gone. Clearly, he trusted Ancestor Kongling very much.

"Understood!" After a year apart, you returned once again to your cave residence and saw the Demoness.

"Senior, you're finally back!" Upon seeing you, the Demoness was very excited and directly flung herself at you.

You sidestepped to dodge, glanced at the Demoness, and said flatly, "Any discoveries?"

The Demoness gave a cold snort, but did not dare conceal anything. She told you what she had found.

"There's a place in the back mountain of the sect that looks very similar to the location on the treasure map."

"It's just that there are formations there. I didn't dare venture in rashly."

"Mm, you did well. We'll deal with this after I return." You rested well for a night. Early the next morning, you followed the First Elder to the place where Ancestor Xuanming was recruiting disciples.

"This direction is… the Imperial City?" You glanced into the distance, then turned to ask the First Elder.

"That's right. Speaking of the Imperial City, this Elder has one more thing to warn you about."

The First Elder said mysteriously, "Forty years ago, Princess Pingyang held a Martial Contest for a Bride, but everyone competed half-heartedly. In the end, a female cultivator who had just entered Spirit Transformation won!"

"This matter caused the Imperial Clan to lose a great deal of face!"

"On this trip to the Imperial City, you absolutely must not bring this up!"

"This disciple understands. But isn't marrying a princess supposed to be a good thing? Why…" you asked, face full of confusion.

"Sigh." The First Elder let out a long sigh, and said quietly, "Marrying a princess of this dynasty is no different from cutting off your own path to immortality with your own hands!"

"Why is that?" You still didn't quite understand. Logically speaking, becoming the Prince Consort meant getting tangled up with the Imperial Clan, right?

As one of the most powerful factions in the Central State, even a little bit of resources casually leaked out would mean a lifetime of cultivation resources without worry, no?

The First Elder merely shook his head, unwilling to say more on the matter.

A week later, you followed the First Elder and his group into the Imperial City.

For this grand contest to recruit disciples for Ancestor Xuanming, the Heavenly Blade Sect naturally couldn't possibly send only you. You were merely one of the people the First Elder had specifically cultivated, that was all.

You knew that if you failed to secure the identity of Recorded Disciple on this trip, you would likely be abandoned by the First Elder in the future!

Before the contest began, the First Elder gathered the five people participating in the contest, including you, and promised, "If any of you can become Ancestor Xuanming's Recorded Disciple, this Elder can grant you one request within my power!"

"We shall certainly not disappoint the First Elder's expectations!" You knew the matter of entering the Secret Realm was settled.

On the day of the contest, over a thousand Spirit Transformation cultivators gathered together. These people, like you, had all come to be selected as Ancestor Xuanming's Recorded Disciple!

"The first trial of the assessment: break the Maze Formation!" A voice rang out, and a grand formation immediately appeared beneath your feet.

"This formation is composed of over a thousand kinds of maze formations. My Master created it when he was five hundred years old!"

"If none of you have any objections, then the assessment begins!"

A flash of light streaked past, and you entered the maze formation.

"At five hundred years old, he could already fuse over a thousand kinds of maze formations together?" you murmured to yourself, unable to help but be shocked by Ancestor Xuanming's talent for formations.

In the next instant, your Primordial Spirit power spread out in all directions, searching for the formation's eye.

With your Return-to-Void realm physical body, you could basically ignore all the dangers within the maze formation. You searched for the formation eye with single-minded focus, and once you found it, you directly destroyed it.

Unknowingly, three days passed. You had broken over a hundred maze formations, yet you still had not walked out of the formation's range.

You silently pondered for a moment, then began breaking formations again. Only this time, you chose to replace the formation eyes with your own!

You refined the formation eye, turning it into your own belonging.

Another three days passed. Your speed at finding formation eyes grew faster and faster. You had already refined two hundred maze formations, making them your own possessions.

You could sense that other contestants had intruded into your maze formations.

Formations without anyone controlling them basically had fixed formation eyes. But if someone was controlling it, then finding the formation eye again would not be so easy.

In the spirit of one less person meaning one more bit of winning odds, you made a few small modifications to the formations.

Ten days later, you had refined all the remaining maze formation eyes. You had become the controller of this formation!

Before your eyes, a path appeared. It was the passage out of the maze formation!

You strode forward, walked out of the maze formation, and successfully passed the first trial!

"Heh, so slow!" Zhao Wuji, who had long since come out, glanced at you with disdain and mocked.

You looked at him, said nothing. You knew this person was someone chosen by the Vice Sect Master's faction, and it was only natural for him to be somewhat hostile toward you.

As long as he didn't interfere with you, you simply ignored him.

And so another half month passed. Under your deliberate control, after you, no one else emerged from the maze formation.

"The one-month deadline has arrived. Those who have not yet left the maze formation are eliminated!" Ancestor Xuanming's disciple announced.

"Grand formation, disperse!"

"Hm?" Ancestor Xuanming's disciple looked at the grand formation that showed no reaction whatsoever, somewhat baffled.

Seeing this expression on Ancestor Xuanming's disciple's face, you hurriedly shut down the formation in your heart, and over a thousand contestants appeared from within the formation.