Chapter 452: The Western Earth Array Master
Long Qilin nervously looked around in every direction, terrified that these buildings, houses, and palaces might come alive again.
Jun City was eerily silent. The entire city was devoid of any other people. According to the Western Earth geographical map, Jun City should have been a large city with a population of over a hundred thousand, but now its residents had completely vanished.
For someone to make an entire city's people abandon their homes, that person must possess unimaginable power and influence.
Jun City was empty and desolate, with only Qin Mu and the others present. The city that had been so vibrant just moments ago now seemed as if it had suddenly died.
The quieter it became, the more terrifying it felt.
Suddenly, the entire city began to tremble violently. The ground beneath their feet churned, and buildings, houses, and palaces sank one after another. In an instant, Jun City was reduced to a barren, white expanse.
Long Qilin quickly stepped onto a cloud of fire and soared into the air. Qin Mu leaped onto his back, while Xiong Qi'er tightly grabbed Long Qilin's mane, nervously looking down.
Below, the empty city suddenly split apart, and square, rectangular stones rose from the ground. These stones stacked layer upon layer, forming square stone pillars. The pillars rose at an incredible speed—in less than a single breath, a forest of square pillars surrounded Qin Mu and the others!
Standing in this forest, they appeared utterly insignificant.
These pillars were moving at an astonishing speed, clearly concealing some kind of formation transformation. Every time a pillar moved, it would suddenly grow taller or shorter, with square stones automatically shifting horizontally or vertically, moving into other pillars.
Some pillars lay horizontally, bridging the gaps between other pillars like beams. However, the lengths of these beams were constantly changing, growing longer or shorter at will. A path might appear ahead, but in the next moment, a row of pillars would crash together, forming an immensely thick wall.
Jun City seemed to have come alive again, but this was entirely different from before, when the entire city had raced forward, devouring everything in its path. Now, Jun City was like a constantly shifting, three-dimensional space.
Earlier, Jun City had been nothing more than a colossal, mindless devourer. Though dangerous, it was unwieldy and not particularly threatening. Now, however, Jun City had become three-dimensional, operating in the form of a formation, greatly increasing its threat level!
Moreover, each of the six faces of those square stones was etched with different runic patterns. As these stones moved and reorganized, the broken edges of one stone's runes would perfectly connect with those of the neighboring stones.
This was the most peculiar aspect: the reorganization of the stones was merely the surface; the true killing intent lay hidden within the constantly splitting and recombining runic structures.
Different combinations of runic patterns formed different formations. This city contained countless stones, each with unique runic patterns, offering an infinite number of combinations—and thus, an infinite number of formation variations!
Qin Mu immediately realized that if they stood still and did not move, they would not trigger any of the formation's power. But if they moved, they would activate it!
"The divine abilities of the Western Earth are truly magnificent and varied!"
Qin Mu sincerely praised. Although the divine abilities of the Western Earth were not as focused on raw power as those of Yankang, their imaginative and wildly creative techniques deeply impressed him!
He had studied the Ten Thousand Spirits Natural Art, but he had never put much effort into it. What Jun City now revealed to him was the wisdom of countless Western Earth cultivators!
The space within Jun City was shrinking, constantly compressing. In the end, the city would likely become a massive cube composed of layer upon layer of formation structures, perfectly square. If Qin Mu, Xiong Qi'er, and Long Qilin could not break out, they would be crushed into a pulp.
Long Qilin also recognized the terrifying nature of Jun City in its current state. He immediately began calculating the path to survival. Since it was a formation, there must be a process of activation, and that process was where the opportunity for survival lay.
The formation changes in Jun City relied on the movement and rearrangement of the stones. The process of the stones moving was where the chance of escape existed.
However, cracking the formation was extremely difficult. The paths that seemed to lead out of this cube were actually all dead ends. If they tried to escape through those paths, they would surely die without a burial place!
"Jun City's cube prison contains extremely complex mathematical transformations!"
Long Qilin looked around, his eyes spinning like a revolving lantern as he used his brainpower to calculate the movements of all the cubes within the massive structure. He was so exhausted that he was foaming at the mouth. He spoke rapidly, "If you give me time, I could calculate a path to survival! But I'm afraid I'll be crushed before I can figure it out! Sect Leader, your mathematical skills are better than mine. Can you find the way out?"
Qin Mu's eyes flickered, and he said cheerfully, "I've suddenly thought of a way to deal with Star Jackal! If Star Jackal's limbs could develop a spirit, wouldn't they be completely out of his control? Killing him would be much simpler!"
Long Qilin was furious and frustrated: "Sect Leader, we're about to die, and you're still thinking about this?"
Qin Mu laughed. "The person controlling Jun City has mathematical skills on par with mine. If it were a fair fight, I could still defeat him. But he ambushed me, struck first, and gained the upper hand. Cracking his formation will be extremely difficult. By the time I solve his mathematical puzzle, we'll already be crushed to death."
Long Qilin felt despair.
Suddenly, Qin Mu called out in a long voice, "Brother Yu, long time no see. Don't you want to chat with me before I die?"
"No chatting. I'm afraid I'll die from talking too much."
Yu Bochuan's voice came from somewhere, laughing cheerfully. "For someone like Sect Leader Qin, the sooner you die, the better. I won't feel at ease until you're dead a moment later. Only a dead Sect Leader Qin is a reassuring Sect Leader Qin!"
Qin Mu's face darkened like iron.
"But Brother Qin can rest assured. When I face your corpse, I will definitely sit down properly and pour out my heart to you."
Yu Bochuan laughed even more merrily. "Your younger brother is not very talented, but I have a bad habit: when fighting for life and death with an opponent, I like to do everything in my power to kill them. Only after my opponent is dead do I become talkative, chatting with their corpse and explaining the reasons for their defeat. I won't make an exception for Sect Leader Qin."
Qin Mu sighed emotionally. "What a good habit. I'm trapped here, destined to die at your hands, yet you remain so cautious. You truly are a worthy opponent. As they say, a match made in heaven, a worthy adversary. I want to paint a picture for you, as a way to conclude our mutual admiration."
The walls around them, constantly shifting and closing in, grew denser and denser. The cube prison formed by Jun City was changing too quickly. Every step contained profound mathematical structures.
The mathematical structures of those stones had transformed into formation structures. The stones on the outer layer, which had stopped moving, had already become layers of killing formations, trapping them tightly. The inner stones also stopped moving one by one, turning into killing formations as well.
Layer upon layer of killing formations surrounded them, making escape increasingly impossible. When the final layer of the killing formation was complete, it would become an absolute death trap.
Qin Mu and the others would die if they moved, and they would die if they stayed still.
Qin Mu chose to stand still. He picked up his brush, splashed ink, and painted swiftly, creating a picture at lightning speed.
Pillar after pillar and beam after beam advanced toward them, the formation constantly evolving until it finally reached them from all sides.
The formation evolved to its final stage, turning into six walls that pressed inward from all directions. The stones on the six walls kept protruding and advancing, producing loud booming sounds.
Finally, the six walls crashed together with immense force. The outer layers of the formation activated, and the runic marks on countless stones lit up, driving the six walls into a terrifying crushing force. The entire three-dimensional Jun City trembled violently under the impact!
— This is the first update today. Zhai Zhu is still adjusting his physical condition; he's been too tired lately. The second update may not be well-written. If there's no update by ten o'clock, everyone should stop waiting. The broadcast time of the Yuewen Super IP Gala on Hunan Satellite TV is 9 PM on the 28th. Zhai Zhu remembered it wrong; correction made.
This single strike would have killed not only experts like Qin Mu and Long Qilin but even a sect leader-level expert at the Divine Bridge realm!
"Good, very good!"
Yu Bochuan's voice came through, accompanied by applause and laughter. He praised, "The Array Master truly lives up to her name. This formation technique is unparalleled, unmatched by anyone. The Heavenly Demon Sect Leader may be full of tricks, but faced with the Array Master's formation, he can only die obediently, without a single complaint."
A woman's voice sounded, indifferent and flat. "Young Master Yu flatters me. I've heard that this Sect Leader Qin once clashed with the Poison Master. Mu Yingxue has always been proud and aloof, yet she was defeated by him. This shows that he is indeed extraordinary. However, he spent too much effort on poison, so his skills in mathematics and formations are far inferior to mine. I caught him off guard with a prepared plan, which is why I was able to trap him and force him to submit to death."
Yu Bochuan laughed heartily. "He thought Jun City could only defeat him through brute force, so he charged in to show off. He didn't realize that this was just the Array Master's strategy to lure the enemy in deep, and he fell into the trap. The Array Master, the Poison Master, and the Sword Master—the three masters of our Western Earth—are truly all extraordinary. Array Master, please undo the formation. I still want to see the painting Sect Leader Qin left for me before he died."
Clanking sounds came continuously as the massive formation structure of Jun City slowly unraveled. Huge stones sank back into the ground, and houses and palaces rose from below. Before long, Jun City had returned to its original state, leaving only a stone wall at the spot where Qin Mu, Long Qilin, and the others had stood. On the wall hung a painting.
Yu Bochuan rode his fragrant carriage toward that stone wall, a smile on his face. Behind the carriage followed a group of about a hundred Western Earth experts, led by a woman with a delicate appearance, holding a cubic piece of metal in her hand.
That piece of metal in her hand suddenly clattered apart into large and small metal blocks, then clattered back together again.
She was the Western Earth Array Master, He Yiyi, who was as famous as the Poison Master Mu Yingxue and the Sword Master Luo Yinyu.
The three masters of the Western Earth were all women, each with their own unique skills, ruling over their own territories.
The Array Master He Yiyi ruled Jun City, renowned for her formations, unmatched in the Western Earth in the art of formations.
Although the True Heaven Palace was the holy land of the Western Earth, the three masters each had their own strengths and were not subordinates of the True Heaven Palace. However, due to the True Heaven Palace's influence, the three masters were somewhat fearful of it. If the True Heaven Palace made a request, they would also lend a hand.
Behind He Yiyi were the experts of Jun City, the leaders of the major families of Jun City. Their strength was formidable, even greater than that of Fangxiu City. To be able to carve out their own territory, they were naturally extraordinary.
Yu Bochuan drove his carriage to the stone wall and examined the painting on it. The painting depicted Qin Mu, Long Qilin, and Xiong Qi'er, incredibly lifelike.
"Lifelike!"
Yu Bochuan's face beamed with glory as he said to the True Heaven Palace female disciples in the carriage, "Truly lifelike! Sect Leader Qin paints well! With such painting skills, he could even make a living selling paintings! Hahahaha!"
The women in the carriage laughed and said, "What a pity he's dead. Young Master, look, the Sect Leader Qin in the painting is still smiling!"
Another True Heaven Palace woman giggled, "He died at the hands of the Array Master. Seeing the perfect formation, this is a smile of dying without regret, right?"
Yu Bochuan laughed heartily, stood up from the carriage, clasped his hands behind his back, and examined the painting on the wall. He said leisurely, "Sect Leader Qin, I've come to chat with you."
"Alright."
The Qin Mu in the painting suddenly turned his head and smiled. "I also wanted to chat with Brother Yu! Sword Traversing Mountains and Rivers—"