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“Is everything ready?”

“It is”

“Then, let's begin.”

Da Ling and Jin Ruiying along with the rest of the children and teenagers of the village watched with fascination as the two cultivators worked on setting up the formation.

The small, remote village that these people called home had transformed considerably in the past three months since Da Wei returned with newcomers.

The original shabby walls of the village had been replaced with sturdy walls and massive gates made of Spiritual marble, now encasing several dozen Li around the village that held all the farms and cattle in its protective embrace.

Then, the poor-quality roads and paths of the village were replaced with cut-stone paths while a few specific paths in the cardinal directions and other places of power were made from Spiritual Marble to help with forming the array.

Finally, the special materials required for the formation were placed in a five-pointed star formation.

Muyu Jade (Wood Essence Jade) of the Wood nature in the North.

Yanhong Ore (Blazing Crimson Ore) of the Fire nature in the East.

Dihuang Gold (Earth Emperor Gold) of the Earth nature in the South-East.

Qingluo Steel (Azure Veil Steel) of the Metal nature in the South-West.

Lingqing Silver (Spirit Clear Silver) of the Water nature in the West.

All of these materials were buried deep underground and then covered by layers upon layers of Spiritual Marble to act as the anchors and conduits of the formation.

Together, these materials placed in such a way formed a powerful defensive formation based on the Wuxing cycle of the major elements, known as the Heaven and Earth Defensive array.

Of course, this particular formation was a heavily modified version of this defensive array that is usually used by top sects, powerful forces, and royal families of the continent.

At Da Wei’s signal, Jin Tianrui started activating the formation by channeling his Qi through the materials one by one, activating the Wuxing Generative Cycle.

Wood feed Fire. Fire produces Earth. Earth bears Metal. Metal collects Water. Water nourishes Wood.

The moment the cycle is complete, the world acknowledges the formation of the natural order in the area within the formation, giving rise to dense Pure Qi that quickly forms a barrier with the Spiritual Marble acting as the guide or path for the Qi to follow.

All of this process is very philosophical in nature and one of the main reasons why Da Wei sucks at large-scale Formations.

Aside from working as the pathways of the formation, there is another reason for the usage of Spiritual Marble as the anchors and to bury the precious materials underground.

While the Wuxing Generative Cycle allows the creation of a barrier that needs the combined power of more than a few hundred Nascent Soul realm cultivators or a few dozen Soul Transformation Realm cultivators to break it open, the barrier can very easily be brought down by traitors from the inside using the Wuxing Destructive Cycle.

The destructive cycle uses the concept of destruction instead of creation. Wood depletes Earth. Earth obstructs Water. Water extinguishes Fire. Fire melts Metal. Metal destroys Wood.

Circulating Qi in such a path would lead to the complete collapse of the barrier along with overloading the founding materials with Qi, causing them to explode with enough power to destroy even a Nascent Soul realm cultivator if he or she is caught within the blast range.

To prevent such traitorous actions, Spiritual Marble carved with inscriptions to accept Qi from only certain people is used to bury and regulate the formation. This is a standard practice utilized by everyone who uses this formation.

As the Pure Qi quickly rose from the earth and slowly started to form a barrier around the entire area, the children and mortals of the village could not help but gasp in awe at the wondrous sight.

Soon, the entire area was saturated with Qi and created a solid barrier before fading from sight, indicating that the formation had succeeded.

“Master, the first phase is a success.”

Da Wei nodded at his second disciple's words.

“Good. Begin the second phase.”

Jin Tianrui wasted no time and shot toward the eight main directions and activated the secondary formation he created based on the strange language and methodology taught to him by his master.

Soon, the five-pointed star of the Heaven and Earth defensive array was overlapped with an eight-pointed star with each point in one of the eight main directions.

This new formation was formed with both the Eight Trigrams or Bagua from ancient China of Earth and modern science while using the Wuxing cycle as the base.

The first two phases, Qian of The Creative and Dui of The Joyous aligned with their elemental phase of Metal.

The third phase, Li of Radiance aligned with its elemental phase of Fire.

The fourth and fifth phases, Zhen of Arousing and Xun of Gentle aligned with their elemental phase of Wood.

The sixth phase, Kan of The Abysmal, aligned with Water.

Finally, the Seventh and Eighth phases, Gen of Keeping Still and Kun of the Receptive aligned with the elements of Earth.

Once again, the world acknowledged the philosophy of creation as the formation activated. However, unlike the previous formation, the Pure Qi generated by this formation did not head upwards or form a barrier.

Instead, it seeped deeper into the ground and floated above ground, seeping into all living things within the radius of the formation.

This was a formation that Da Wei and Jin Tianrui created together from scratch using Da Wei’s knowledge of Chinese culture, philosophy, and modern science along with Jin Tianrui’s expertise with large-scale formations and his knowledge of this world’s philosophies.

Unlike the Heaven and Earth defensive array, the purpose of this formation is not that of protection but that of creation.

Specifically, the purpose of this formation is to boost the life force of everyone within this formation along with turning this village into a Qi-rich land on par with what one would find in many high-ranking sects or in the capital of the empire. Along with this, the formation also promotes the growth rate of all living beings within its influence. While this aspect is not that apparent in humans, it becomes extremely clear in the case of crops, cattle, and spirit beasts.

“Phase two, complete.”

“Now, onto the final phase.”

At Da Wei’s words, Jin Tianrui moved to the center of the two formations which was located at the very center of the village, within the courtyard of the Village Chief’s house.

Once he reached his destination, Jin Tianrui placed the remaining precious materials used for the formations along with a few other materials along with the Jade staff that Da Wei had obtained many months ago in Starfall City.

“Are you ready? Master.”

“I am. Begin.”

At Da Wei’s words, Jin Tianrui made a few hand seals, activating the last array.

Unlike the other two arrays, this one was extremely tiny, only big enough for Jin Tianrui and the materials placed within it. However, despite its small size, the array was extremely terrifying.

With a grunt, Da Wei controlled his expression as he felt a large chunk of his Primal Qi being sucked out of him by the array, directing it into the materials on the ground.

The result was immediate as the materials combined into a multicolored fluid that started to float in the air, spinning wildly and gradually condensing into a semi-solid form.

Taking advantage of this semi-solid state, Jin Tianrui manipulated the array and split the object into two parts. One part continued to condense while the other part flew to the jade staff and merged with it to form a jet-black spear with intricate carvings that gave off a multicolored light.

The other part further condensed and finally solidified into a massive pillar which buried itself into the ground, creating the core of the formations now covering the village.

With his task done, Jin Tianrui finally collapsed onto the ground and gasped for breath as Da Wei walked towards the spear.

“Master, you are a monster and a slave driver.”

“Is that any way to speak to your master?”

“What else do you call someone who just had enough Qi pulled out of him to cover for a few dozen Nascent Soul realm cultivators combined? And what do you call someone who forces their disciple to work three large-scale formations all on his lonesome?”

Da Wei chuckled at his disciple's words and wordlessly pulsed his Primal Qi, instantly reinvigorating his disciple while inspecting the spear carefully.

“Did everything work out like we wanted?”

“Yes. The modified Heaven and Earth defensive array can protect the village from anything in this region below the Void Refinement realm. The Bagua formation will promote the growth of crops, beasts, and cattle while also increasing the life force of all living beings within its influence. It will also work as the antithesis for any Demonic Cultivator thanks to the extreme Yang element incorporated into it while also remaining harmless to those who cultivate Yin nature Qi.”

Jin Tianrui pointed to the massive black pillar now standing at the center of the courtyard.

“That is the primary control point of the two arrays while your spear will now act as the secondary control point.”

Da Wei nodded and placed the spear within his space ring and started walking out but not before leaving behind words that caused a shudder to travel down Jin Tianrui’s spine.

“Good. With this, the first part of the plan is complete. Rest for half an hour and start preparing for the next step.”

“…. Ruthless slave driver.”

“I heard that. Want me to inform your mother about your words?”

Immediately, Jin Tianrui’s discontent face transformed into a forced cheerful look.

“No need, Master. I am very happy to work like a slave for your grand plan.”

This time, Da Wei could not help but laugh out loud at those words and expressions.

The Master and Disciple pair headed straight towards where the children and the mortals were gathered, joining them in their impromptu celebration and losing themselves in the fun.

In the end, Jin Tianrui escaped his fate of slaving away for the rest of the day thanks to this sudden celebration.

However, his luck quickly ran out the next day when his workload doubled thanks to Da Wai remarking that they were falling behind schedule.

That day, the house of the Village Chief was filled with the lamenting cries of a distraught and overworked disciple and the joyful and teasing laughter of two little girls.