A Chaotic World

Grandmaster Xiqin drew much attention with his grand display of skills.

Beside him, Lu Tianzi similarly attracted his fair share of attention, but for all the wrong reasons.

Everyone was already busy working on their inscriptions, but Lu Tianzi was still looking around like he was just another member of the audience.

"Manor Lord Lu is still just watching and not doing anything at all! Could there be something wrong with him?"

"I would not be surprised. No matter how great his records are, Manor Lord Lu is still far too young in comparison to the other inscription masters. Seeing all these seniors in action with their wondrous techniques must have given him a rude awakening. He might just be in shock right now."

"Such a shame..."

"What shame? If he had not overestimated himself and challenged Grandmaster Xiqin, would he be embarrassing himself here right now? Instead of pity, I'd say he deserves it!"

At this point, Xuan Qinshang, leader of the Blue Ember faction, could no longer hold it in any longer.

To a certain extent, Lu Tianzi was a representative of his Blue Ember faction here at the Inscription Meet.

Even though Lu Tianzi had not made his move earlier, neither had Grandmaster Xiqin. Since both of them were staying still, Xuan Qinshang thought that there might have been something like a war of nerves going on between them.

But now that Grandmaster Xiqin had already started working on his inscription, how could Lu Tianzi remain unmoving like that?

Did he really think that he was capable enough to give Grandmaster Xiqin such a headstart?

What unfounded arrogance!

Xuan Qinshang glanced over at Young Master Xuan Hao for answers, but how could the latter have any?

He could only lower his head before turning towards Nanlan Qianxue. "Sister Qianxue, do you know what is wrong with Brother Tianzi? Why isn't he doing anything?"

"I'm not sure either," Nanlan Qianxue shook her head. "But I'm sure he has a plan!"

From her clear voice, it was apparent that she did not feel worried about Lu Tianzi at all.

"Hopefully that really is the case..." Ruan Ling muttered under her breath.

No matter what, Lu Tianzi's performance here would have a significant impact on Young Master Xuan Hao's reputation, so she could not help but feel anxious about the current situation.

"Yeah..." Young Master Xuan Hao chimed in weakly.

Indeed, it would be good if Lu Tianzi truly had a plan...

Seeing that even Young Master Xuan Hao and his friends had no answers, Xuan Qinshang could only let out a helpless sigh.

At the point, he could only take solace in the fact that he had at least sent out other talented inscription masters of the Blue Ember faction to join in the Inscription Meet.

Even if Lu Tianzi let them down in the end, it still would not be too bad if one of the others managed to obtain acceptable results.

Otherwise, their Blue Ember faction would really end up as a big laughingstock!

Taomie Lianhe saw the grim look on Xuan Qinshang's face, and could not help but feel her cheeks getting hot from anger.

This Lu Tianzi was truly unreliable.

To think that her son Xuan Hao trusted him so much, even to the extent of convincing the elders to allow him into their faction's Valley of Finesse.

Now, he was just going to crash out in such an embarrassing fashion?

Wouldn't that make others think that her Xuan Hao's eye for people was bad?

Should that happen, Young Master Xuan Hao's position in the faction would end up taking a big hit!

"If that brat really ends up failing in such a pathetic manner, you are going to stay home and lay low for a bit after this," Taomie Lianhe sent her voice straight to Young Master Xuan Hao's mind.

Young Master Xuan Hao was shocked to hear his mother's voice all of a sudden. At the same time, he could not help but feel indignant for Lu Tianzi.

However, the truth was that as much as he trusted his Brother Tianzi, even his belief in the latter was starting to waver.

He did not think for a moment that Lu Tianzi would ever betray him. But perhaps Lu Tianzi really was too young, and was not yet ready to stand on such a grand stage?

If that really was the case, then he could only blame himself for being blinded by greed and not stopping Lu Tianzi when he had the chance. This greed for quick achievements would not only hurt his reputation, but also Lu Tianzi's.

Just as he was thinking that, Lu Tianzi finally started to move.

While he would very much rather continue observing the others, Lu Tianzi knew that he was not participating only for himself.

Even if his fate was to get eliminated, he would have to get eliminated only after trying his best. Otherwise, he would truly be letting down the trust that Young Master Xuan Hao had placed in him.

And more importantly, he did tell Nanlan Qianxue earlier that he would be doing his best, didn't he?

Lu Tianzi closed his eyes and took a deep breath, taking this moment to calm himself down and organise his thoughts.

Since he had come across such a fortuitous encounter, Lu Tianzi's first thought was to assimilate all of it to create the ideal inscription for this Inscription Meet.

But as he broke down these memories piece by piece, Lu Tianzi slowly came to realise that he had actually seen a lot in the past hour, far more than he thought he did.

These were all intricate techniques that tapped on profound understandings far beyond what could be seen on the surface.

Even with his wealth of inscription knowledge, it was impossible to break down and digest every last bit of them in a short amount of time.

If he insisted on doing so, it was highly possible that by the time he was done, there would no longer be enough time to complete his inscription.

Given that, he could only put that aside for now, and go with his original plan.

After his visit to the Valley of Finesse, Lu Tianzi already had a fairly good idea of what he wanted to do for the Inscription Meet.

Back at the valley, the perpetual nourishment of World Origin Energy over countless years had ended up transforming the terrain itself into a natural medium of energy.

This resulted in the different parts of the terrain acting in the same manner as formation nodes, forming into a natural yet complex web of interconnected formations that covered the entirety of the Valley of Finesse.

It was different from a natural formation of a grand scale. Instead, it was more like numerous individual formations stacking upon each other.

And as these individual formations overlapped, it was only inevitable that they had a certain influence on each other as well.

This created a mess of irregularities within the valley, or at least that would seem like the case to most others.

But to Lu Tianzi, with his wealth of knowledge on formations as well as the Limitless Mirror Eye, this environment was akin to a textbook on formations, one that was filled with live examples that he could adjust and test as he wished.

After spending months in the valley, Lu Tianzi's knowledge of the art of formations had taken a great leap forward!

His teacher Formation Master Beimu had once told him to think of a formation as a larger version of an inscription array.

Be it formations or inscriptions, they were both made from the combination of multiple energy nodes.

For inscriptions, these would be the numerous inscription runes that the inscription master had to draw by themselves. As for formations, these could be anything that could transmit energy, ranging from formation flags to mere stones.

The two were clearly different because of the scale and energy nodes involved, yet it was undeniable that they had their similarities as well.

Like inscriptions, like formations.

As long as someone knew both subjects well enough, it was very possible to apply concepts in one field to the other!

Lu Tianzi slowly opened his eyes that were shining with a silvery light.

He had the theory and calculations completed.

Now, he just had to put everything into practice!

With a flick of his wrists, numerous inscription materials were drawn out of his spatial ring.

His hands started moving. And once they did, they did not stop.

Even without the concealing formation in place, most people here would have seen nothing but a blur as his arms moved too quickly for the eye to follow.

Of course, with the concealing formation in effect, it no longer looked nearly as impressive.

Nevertheless, just like every other participant, there was something that could not be hidden from the crowds – the number of inscription runes drawn.

One by one, inscription runes started appearing in front of him at an alarming rate.

Those in the audience who still had their eyes on him were mostly those who were ridiculing his progress, or the lack thereof. Because of that, all the more did they were find themselves rendered speechless by his sudden eruption of speed.

"This speed... he might not be as fast as Grandmaster Xiqin, but he is pretty damn close!"

With the two of them positioned side by side, it was extremely easy for others to compare the rate of progress between Lu Tianzi and Grandmaster Xiqin.

Grandmaster Xiqin might have a huge lead in terms of the number of inscription runes completed, but that was mostly due to him having started off first.

Now that Lu Tianzi had begun his work in earnest, everyone could see that their rate of progress was about even.

About even, but not exactly.

Grandmaster Xiqin, with the years of experience under his belt, was still a little faster.

Nevertheless, Lu Tianzi's actions instantly dispelled all thoughts that he could have been having trouble with drawing up inscription runes.

Not just that, but his sudden burst of speed caused the crowd's blood to boil in excitement.

Cheers erupted from the audience as they welcomed the appearance of yet another participant who had the potential to fight for that top spot.

"Yes! That's the way!" Young Master Xuan Hao exclaimed out loud with his fists clenched tight. He could not help but feel a rush of adrenaline along with the cheers of the crowds.

"But he started really late. Will he be able to complete it in time?" Ruan Ling was still feeling a little worried.

"This..." Young Master Xuan Hao felt his mood dampened when he heard Ruan Ling's words.

While Lu Tianzi's progress was indeed fast, he was not the fastest among the participants. Yet even those faster than him had begun working on their inscriptions long before he did, showing how they dared not let down their guard despite possessing superior techniques.

Placing an inscription was not a simple thing, much less something that had to stand out among the thousands of participants.

The three hours given was not a lot by any measure.

For Lu Tianzi to have started this late, there was indeed the possibility that he might not be able to complete his inscription in time.

"Don't worry, he will be able to do it."

The voice full of confidence caused both Young Master Xuan Hao and Ruan Ling to look over, only to be faced with a cheerful Nanlan Qianxue smiling right back at them.

It was almost as though her thoughts were contagious.

Seeing the confidence in her eyes, Young Master Xuan Hao and Ruan Ling could not help but feel their worry dissipating, even if ever so slightly.