Chapter 126 : Formation-Walker

Chapter 126: Formation-Walker

A quarter of an hour later, a crack suddenly split open in the Six-Gate Mind Maze Formation that enveloped the center of the side hall.

Zhou Quan walked out, full of confidence.

“In thirty-five minutes, Junior Brother Zhou broke the formation. He qualifies for the position of Formation Guardian and will receive a seven-hundred-yearly contribution salary,” Yun Yishu announced.

Upon hearing this result, a trace of surprise flashed in Zhou Quan's eyes.

The Six-Gate Mind Maze Formation, being a second-tier high-grade maze formation, was composed of six gates: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind.

These six gates cycled in rotation to activate the formation, capable of stripping a Foundation Establishment cultivator of their six senses—sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and divine sense—trapping them in a terrifying illusionary prison of sixfold delusion from which they could not extricate themselves.

Precisely because of this, he had lost four of his senses while breaking the formation and couldn't perceive the passage of time at all.

Otherwise, he might have been able to complete the break within fifteen minutes.

Sun Ying turned her head to glance at Zhou Quan, a bit helpless inside.

There were many positions in the Formation Hall offering seven hundred contribution points annually, but Formation Guardian had relatively higher potential for advancement.

Just two more steps forward, and one could become a Formation Nexus Master, who controlled the core of sect formations—a position comparable to that of an Inner Sect Deacon.

This made it clear that even though Hall Master Yun hadn’t shown any emotion outwardly, she clearly held high hopes for Zhou Quan’s future.

After all, the Formation Hall had no surplus of talent, and Zhou Quan was among the more gifted formation masters in recent years.

Thinking of this, Sun Ying instinctively glanced toward Chen Beiwu.

Judging from the previous round of assessments, Chen Beiwu’s talent in formations was clearly stronger than Zhou Quan’s. It was just that he was too young and hadn’t yet fully realized his potential.

Otherwise, he might have had a chance at breaking through the Six-Gate Mind Maze Formation.

“I’ll go next.”

Under the crowd’s gaze, Chen Beiwu walked toward the seemingly empty, yet formation-covered, center of the side hall.

Due to his cultivation limitations—and the legal constraints of the Immortal Alliance—he had never been able to come into contact with a second-tier high-grade formation.

Now that such a rare opportunity presented itself, Chen Beiwu was naturally willing to try.

“Buzz.”

The moment he stepped into the formation, a light ringing sounded in his ears.

The next second, his world lost all sound.

‘So it's a formation that isolates sound?’ Chen Beiwu was somewhat surprised.

For cultivators, divine sense could fully replace the five senses, making hearing relatively dispensable.

‘Could it be!’

Chen Beiwu’s expression changed as he activated his divine sense to scan the faintly visible five doors amidst the hazy mist.

In the next instant, as one of the doors disappeared, his divine sense vanished without a trace.

If not for the river-like flow of pure mana in his body constantly reminding him, Chen Beiwu might have thought his cultivation level had dropped to the early stage of Qi Refining.

‘Not only hearing—even divine sense can be sealed at will.’

Chen Beiwu slightly raised his brows, immediately realizing he was within a second-tier maze formation capable of stripping all six senses.

Fortunately, nothing in this world was truly flawless.

This type of maze formation, though powerful in stripping perception, naturally had its own limitations.

Just then, a thread of orange Fate light at the edge of the mist caught Chen Beiwu’s attention.

...

“Tap!”

“Tap!”

“Tap!”

Hearing approaching footsteps, Sun Ying instinctively glanced at the hourglass beside her.

Only twenty minutes had passed—there were still forty minutes left before a full hour.

‘How is this possible? Could Chen Zi’ang really break the record Senior Sister Yun once set?’

This thought made Sun Ying’s heart skip a beat. Her eyes subconsciously drifted toward Senior Sister Yun, and she was momentarily stunned.

‘Senior Sister Yun is actually smiling!’

Noticing her junior’s unusual gaze, Yun Yishu immediately withdrew her smile and softly asked, “What is it?”

“Does Hall Master think Senior Brother Chen has a chance of breaking the formation?” Sun Ying shifted the topic.

“No need to guess. He’s already out.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Ying swiftly turned around.

Zhou Quan's heart also skipped a beat, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably.

Then he saw a handsome figure suddenly emerge from the center of the side hall—it was none other than Chen Beiwu, who had just broken through the formation.

“This...” Zhou Quan opened his mouth, his heart filled with both shame and anger, unable to find the words to respond.

Seeing Zhou Quan dumbfounded, and then glancing at Chen Beiwu’s calm expression, Zhao Qingxue’s face was filled with astonishment.

He couldn’t patch formations, and now he couldn’t even break one.

Wait a minute, who between the two of them was actually the second-tier formation master?

“Formation broken in thirty minutes—within one quarter hour. Junior Brother Chen is eligible for the title of Formation-Walker, with an annual salary of one thousand,” Yun Yishu said in praise.

The position of Formation-Walker stood above that of Formation Guardian. It was a special title established by the Formation Hall to nurture fresh talent—but even so, she still felt it somewhat undervalued him.

After all, Junior Brother Chen had broken the record she herself had set years ago. His talent in formations might very well surpass hers.

Unfortunately, the sect’s laws clearly stipulated that only formation masters of second-tier or higher could serve as the sect’s Formation Nexus Master.

She was only a Hall Master at present, not a high-ranking figure in the Formation Hall, and thus lacked the authority to make special exceptions for Junior Brother Chen.

“Senior Brother Chen, how did you break the formation? Can you share your method?” Sun Ying suddenly asked.

Back then, Senior Sister Yun’s record for breaking the formation had been forty minutes.

For Chen Zi’ang, a mere Qi Refining cultivator, to break it in under two hours already made him a rare genius in the Formation Hall—but he had succeeded in just thirty minutes.

Witnessing such an unbelievable feat, even Sun Ying, as an assessment officer, couldn’t help but wonder:

‘Could there really have been foul play?’

“By relying on instinct,” Chen Beiwu replied.

He hadn’t expected the fatal flaw of this second-tier maze formation to be its inability to move.

A cultivator merely needed to walk beyond the formation’s range to escape and successfully break through.

Had he known this beforehand, he wouldn’t have moved toward the Fate light, but instead stayed in place to carefully study the formation’s mysteries.

Now he had no choice but to quickly explain his instinct-based strategy in a convincing way.

Hearing this familiar-sounding answer, Sun Ying instinctively looked toward Senior Sister Yun.

The corners of Yun Yishu’s lips curled up slightly beneath her veil.

Back when Hall Master Yu had asked her how she broke the formation, she had answered the same way.

The Six-Gate Mind Maze Formation could strip a cultivator of six senses—but it couldn’t strip away her understanding of formations.

All she had to do was discern the flow of mana within the formation to pinpoint its weak points and locate the hidden path to survival.

“Xiao Ying, continue presiding over the assessment,” she said, turning to walk toward the main hall. “Junior Brother Chen, come with me. I’ll take you to visit Hall Master Lin.”

Chen Beiwu nodded and followed behind Senior Sister Yun.

As the two disappeared from sight, all the cultivators present looked on with envy—except Zhou Quan, whose lips curled bitterly, his feelings tangled and hard to express.

Vice Hall Master Lin was a famed second-tier high-grade formation master in the Formation Hall, just one step away from becoming a fourth-tier master. He was a true expert in formations, with countless achievements to his name.

During the last Ten-Sect War, Vice Hall Master Lin, assisted by formation cultivators from the Formation Hall, commanded the sect’s fourth-tier Profound Formation. Using the Weak Water Profound Formation, he had refined two Golden Core True Persons of Green Nether Cliff to death—shocking his peers and striking fear into the hearts of other sects.

If such a figure took a liking to someone, that person might one day break through Foundation Establishment and form a Golden Core, becoming a True Person themselves.

Unfortunately, that opportunity had been snatched away by a mere first-tier formation master!