Chapter 27: Comprehending Arrays

Events unfolded exactly as Lu Yang had predicted; in the end, Zhao Xuhe still sold him the "Nine Transformations Dragon Art" at a bargain price of 1, 00 contribution points.

People are always like this when they owe debts.

After obtaining the "Nine Transformations Dragon Art," Lu Yang immediately returned to his cave dwelling, memorized the cultivation method's content word for word, and only then put it away again.

"It's a pity I cannot cultivate right now."

Transforming into a blood shadow meant his cultivation base would neither increase nor decrease, forever stuck at the Late Stage of Qi Condensation; even wanting to scatter his cultivation was impossible, so he could only wait for his next life.

Despite saying this, Lu Yang was in no hurry to commit suicide.

After all, time was precious; even with the 【Book of Hundred Lives】, he would not waste it easily. Even if he could not cultivate, there were other areas where he could continue to improve.

Thinking of this, Lu Yang took out Immortal Qingchen's "Secret Explanation of Array Treasures" from his storage bag once more.

That's right, he wanted to learn array formations!

The four arts of cultivation—arrays, treasures, elixirs, and talismans—whoever mastered even one of these skills would immediately become a high-level talent in the Cultivation World, able to thrive anywhere.

Take Immortal Qingchen, for example; Lu Yang felt she was truly a talented individual, not only proficient in array formations but also capable of refining arrays into magic treasures. Unfortunately, her taste in men was lacking; she had consecutively fallen for scumbags who turned against her once their faces changed, resulting in her dying with resentment in both lifetimes.

Opening the "Secret Explanation of Array Treasures," the very first page made Lu Yang unable to help but sigh with emotion.

【The so-called Array Treasure means taking the array as the treasure and the treasure as the array; the two complement each other. The craftsmanship within was researched and developed only through the author's painstaking efforts.】

【To learn this path, both talent and effort are indispensable.】

After the introductory preface, the second page was filled with dense patterns, each pattern accompanied by annotations explaining its meaning.

【The Dao of Array Formations takes array patterns as the core. Only by outlining these patterns and sketching the heavens and earth can one borrow the wonders of heaven and earth. However, the heavens and earth encompass endless mysteries of the world, difficult to comprehend, let alone transform into array patterns. This requires extraordinary comprehension. Only by mastering array patterns does one gain the ability to learn arrays.】

【Very good, you now have a certain understanding of the basic principles of array formations.】

【Next, turn to the third page. Let us look at the simple example below and apply the knowledge we just learned into practice.】

On the third page, an extremely complex and intricate pattern entered Lu Yang's sight.

Is this an array formation diagram?

Lu Yang stroked his chin. The so-called solving of an array formation diagram actually meant distinguishing the composition of array patterns within the formation, thereby deducing the function of that array.

Array patterns were the foundation of all array formations.

Whether an array formation could take effect depended mainly on whether the combination of array patterns was reasonable, whether there were conflicts, and whether they could form a complete circuit to operate.

"Interesting."

Lu Yang smiled confidently, feeling this did not seem particularly difficult: "With my talent and effort, a mere simple array formation diagram is something I am determined to master!"

One month later.

Lu Yang sat dazedly on a meditation cushion, surrounded by piles of manuscripts filled with his calculations, looking utterly despondent.

In his hands, however, were array patterns combined one after another.

不知 how much time passed before a spark of spiritual light suddenly ignited at Lu Yang's fingertips.

"Did I succeed!?"

Lu Yang instantly stood up, his face brimming with wild joy. He carefully examined the array patterns he had pieced together, counted silently on his fingers for a moment, and then revealed a look of confusion:

"That's not right, how did it succeed?"

"How does this thing even operate?"

It was clearly the result of a month of his painstaking effort, yet he himself did not understand why it worked; this feeling simply drove Lu Yang mad.

After a month of bitter cultivation, he now had a deeper understanding of array formations.

In short, array formations were very similar to programming.

The so-called comprehending array circuits meant extracting usable parts from the heap of shit code written by the heavens and earth—that old bastard—and composing them into one's own code.

However, with array formations, either you knew it or you didn't.

It was like panning for gold in a heap of shit; those without talent would end up just like Lu Yang now, having panned not a single grain of gold, but instead scooped up a pile of shit.

"Regardless, I at least panned out something."

Lu Yang sighed and continued his research, forgetting to eat and sleep. Just like that, another month passed before he finally deciphered the pattern in his hands.

"This is an illumination array!"

"Within the area covered by the array formation, light shines everywhere, rendering most methods of concealing one's tracks ineffective. Other than that, it possesses no offensive or defensive capabilities..."

Lu Yang looked haggard, his eyes bloodshot, yet his face overflowed with excitement. Filled with a strong sense of accomplishment, he turned to the third page of the "Secret Explanation of Array Treasures."

【Actually, it is normal that you could not solve it.】

【The problem on the third page is mainly intended to make you understand how difficult array formations are. Approach the comprehension of arrays with a humble heart; do not always aim too high without solid foundations.】

Lu Yang: "..."

"You beast! You beast!"

Lu Yang suddenly stood up and threw the book in his hand onto the ground. He was now one hundred percent certain that this array formation book was absolutely written by an array master of the Holy Sect!

After quite a while, Lu Yang picked the book up again.

There was no other way; some things do not care whether you like them, understand them, or want to do them. For the sake of survival, one must still grit one's teeth and press on.

However, after further study, Lu Yang discovered that his talent was not as poor as he had imagined.

Just as the book stated, that intricate pattern on the third page was never meant for beginners to solve, which was why Lu Yang had been stuck on it for two months.

But there were benefits too; now that he had switched to some simple and easy-to-understand array formations, Lu Yang's learning speed visibly accelerated. Occasionally, when he encountered a bottleneck, a few days of research would see him through, allowing Lu Yang, who had previously been severely discouraged, to regain his confidence.

Within the cave, one loses track of years; time flew swiftly.

In the blink of an eye, twenty years had passed.

During this period, Lu Yang could be described as hearing nothing outside his window, focusing solely on reading array formation books. He was even too lazy to pay the rent for his cave dwelling, moving directly to live in the Outer Sect.

After all, since he could not cultivate now and had no pressing needs, he naturally chose to rot and stop working.

Over these twenty years, almost every few years, a child of destiny with fortune rivaling that of the former Xiao Shiye would suddenly rise within the Outer Sect.

However, after that child of destiny obtained some great opportunity known to everyone in the Holy Sect, they would suddenly disappear.

Disappearing along with them was a large group of unlucky bastards who, upon detecting the child of destiny's fortune, harbored ill intentions and tried to cling to their coattails to leech off their luck.

"That senior is fishing again..."

Every time he heard similar news, Lu Yang felt a pang of panic in his heart. With Xiao Shiye serving as a prime example before him, he could only keep a respectful distance from any child of destiny.

He could not afford to provoke them; he could only hide.

Then there was Zhao Xuhe; twenty years later, he had reached the Great Perfection of Qi Condensation and became a famous true disciple of the Holy Sect. Alas, a few years ago, he failed his breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Realm and passed away.

Regarding this, Lu Yang merely sighed once and ceased to care.

What truly brought Lu Yang joy was that, through twenty years of diligent study, he had finally thoroughly mastered the knowledge within the "Secret Explanation of Array Treasures."

Inside the cave dwelling, Lu Yang's entire consciousness was focused on the sword pill before him. At this moment, he lacked even the strength to maintain his human form, and his blood shadow was incredibly dim.

This was a sign that his end was near.

The side effects of cultivating the Heavenly Demon Blood-Transforming Divine Light from his past life had finally caught up with him, causing him to exhaust his lifespan at merely forty years old, his oil dried and his lamp extinguished.

However, Lu Yang paid this no mind, remaining fully absorbed in inscribing the array formation. Even on the verge of death, he did not rise, nor did he attempt any action to save himself, because doing so would only interrupt his inspiration, and he did not wish to waste such precious inspiration.

"I understand! Wait, no, that's wrong."

"Oh, right! Right... no, ah, still wrong... oh right, right!"

Just like this, much time passed. Finally, at the very instant when Lu Yang's blood shadow was about to dissipate completely, at the boundary between life and death, Lu Yang suddenly widened his eyes—

"Hahaha! I succeeded!"

Watching the array patterns he had painstakingly sketched assemble around the sword pill and finally operate successfully, Lu Yang immediately burst into loud laughter, his laughter echoing throughout the cave dwelling.

Just like that, amidst his laughter, he lost his breath.

"Book of Hundred Lives!"

(End of Chapter)