"Yes, I can."
Luo Xue nodded as a matter of course.
She had already comprehended the Withering Sword Intent when she was in the Foundation Establishment Stage... Even though she would die every time she used it, at least it was usable.
Nangong Mian opened his mouth, wanting to argue something, but in the end he sighed and said awkwardly,
"Although I'm very unhappy, I can't find any reason to refute it..."
"Everything comes at a price." Luo Xue said softly.
“However,” Nangong Mian continued, “Besides me, my sister can also smell it—to be more precise, she can feel it. Except for our Nangong clan, other ancient clans cannot feel it.”
Hearing this, Luo Xue's expression became more serious and she nodded slightly.
"That's good. We don't know where to find Sister Ling right now, so it's good to use this method to let her know that we have arrived at the Beiming Ancient Clan's residence."
Nangong Ling asked Luo Xue and others to come in a low profile because they must have discovered something and had to avoid the eyes and ears of the Beiming Ancient Clan.
Otherwise, if they came in the name of the Nangong clan, Luo Xue and the others wouldn't have to be captured and used as human batteries like they are now...
The two escorting guards knew that Luo Xue and Nangong Mian were communicating with each other, but they didn't think that these two people could cause any trouble.
As long as you are willing to cooperate with the work, the guards will not bother to care about other things.
If it weren't for the fact that after the clan protection formation was activated, there was a clear ban within the clan to use magic within the formation, they would have been thrown to the center of the Tianzi formation in a matter of seconds.
After a while, Luo Xue discovered that there were more monks around her, but when she looked closely, almost everyone looked very haggard, as if their strength had been drained.
Among them, the majority are Jindan cultivators, but there are also some Yuanying cultivators. However, their demeanor here is no different from that of Jindan cultivators, all of them are equally dull and numb.
Seeing that Luo Xue's eyes were fixed on these monks, the guard walking in front couldn't help but say something more,
"Don't look at them, you will be the same as them soon."
"...Are they all mandatory?" Luo Xue frowned slightly.
"Force?" The guard smiled coldly and said, "You have been favored by Bei Ming in normal times. In times of crisis, we only ask you to help. How can you force me?"
Luo Xue thought to herself that I had never received any favors and was drafted into the army for no apparent reason while walking on the street, but she did not say it out loud.
She observed the expressions of these monks and could see that although they were dull and numb, they were still conscious. This showed that although the actions of the Beiming Ancient Clan were overbearing, they were not entirely unreasonable.
But...didn't these monks ever think of escaping
The Beiming Ancient Clan has no defenses outside at all, anyone can come in if they want...
etc
Luo Xue's pupils shrank slightly, and she seemed to realize something.
She slowly closed her eyes and felt the direction of the surrounding formations.
Although Luo Xue's attainments in formations could not be compared with that of the genius Senior Sister Li, she had at least assisted Senior Sister Li.
He is considered a master of formations in the four regions of Kyushu, not to mention in the vast world where there is no formation inheritance.
Soon, Luo Xue opened her eyes with a serious expression.
Nangong Mian noticed something was wrong with Luo Xue, so he sent a message.
"Luo Xue, what's wrong?"
"Running the formation in reverse... I was wondering why the monks would be used as human batteries, so this is what happened."
After realizing this possibility, Luo Xue used this idea to deduce the formation and finally discovered the weirdness in it.
It's not that the Bei Ming Ancient Clan didn't know how to use spirit stones to maintain the operation of the clan protection formation, but... they couldn't operate it in the reverse direction. After all, they knew nothing about formations.
In this case, we use the most stupid method, which is to let the cultivator connect to the center of the formation and reverse the operation of the formation through the cultivator's circulation of the Qi.
In this situation, the cultivator's cultivation level itself is not important. What is important is the existence of the cultivator. This also explains why even Luo Xue and others who have reached the Jindan and foundation building stage were captured to serve as soldiers.
"Anyone who can come up with this method to reverse the formation is considered a talent."
Luo Xue sighed, but Nangong Mian was confused. He scratched the back of his head, but still couldn't figure it out.
"What do you mean by this..."
"Nothing. This shows that the crisis of the Beiming clan is not external, but internal." Luo Xue pondered for a moment and said, "It seems that the situation of the Beiming Ancient Clan is much more serious than we thought."
"Stop talking, we're already here."
Just then, the guard spoke up.
Luo Xue raised her head and looked forward, squinting slightly.
Nangong Mian and Dugu Xue next to them opened their mouths slightly. They had never seen a large-scale formation in their lives, so how could they have seen such a situation
I saw countless formation runes flying in the air, connecting the formation veins that could not be observed with the naked eye, and operating in some incredible way.
"This... shouldn't be considered the center of the formation, it can only be said to be a node of the formation." Luo Xue's eyes flickered slightly, and she thought to herself, "No wonder there are so many types of formations, such as the Heavenly Type and the Earthly Type... There is usually only one center of the formation.
"However, it is also a very important node."
"Only those who have established their foundation or formed their elixir can enter the center of this formation." The guard glanced at several people, lingering on Luo Xue and Xue Ling for a while, and continued, "What is your cultivation level, both of you?"
"Building the foundation."
Luo Xue replied.
"Condensation of the elixir."
Xueling replied in a cold voice.
The guard nodded, pointed to a space outlined by the formation runes, and said,
"All of you, go in and sit down, then circulate the Qi in your body with all your strength, and don't slack off!"
At this formation node, some areas were artificially transformed to connect to the core of the formation's operation.
It is equivalent to forcibly placing several interfaces in the sealed formation so that the circulation of the meridians of these cultivators can maintain the retrograde movement of the formation.
The reason why it is limited to the Foundation Establishment and Core Formation realms is because the ways of circulation of the Qi in cultivators at different realms are also different. The reformers have tried their best to solve the compatibility issues between cultivators.
I have to say that even if they are not familiar with formations, there are still capable people in the Beiming Ancient Clan. At least this level of transformation is simply unheard of. Even Li Guijiao would have to admire it sincerely.
Of course, if it were Li Guijiao, there would probably be no need to use the monk's battery... You can change it to do whatever you want in minutes, not to mention going against the flow, even going diagonally is not a problem.
"Every seven days, everyone will supervise." The guard looked at Luo Xue deeply. He knew that Luo Xue was the leader of these people. "Don't think about being lazy. If you are caught, you will be added three days."
He paused and continued,
"However, if you find someone slacking off, you will have three days reduced."
As soon as the words fell, the eyes of all the monks around instantly fell on them. Their haggard eyes were like those of ghosts, which made Dugu Xue hide behind Xue Ling.
"Of course, of course..."
Luo Xue nodded repeatedly, thinking that this ancient Bei Ming clan still felt a bit like some big shot from her previous life, and this behavior of reporting on each other seemed somewhat familiar.
After complaining a little, at the urging of the guards, Luo Xue brought Nangong Mian and others into the formation node and sat at several positions connecting to the formation runes.
The monks around looked at them like crazy, trying to find evidence that they were being lazy so that they could get a few days' relief from this endless torture.
But... who said I wanted to be lazy? Luo Xue is not lazy.
However, she had no intention of working properly for the Beiming Ancient Clan. She didn't want to be a human battery here... Oh no, a human circuit board.
Don't forget, just because the Beiming Ancient Clan doesn't understand formations doesn't mean she doesn't understand formations.
In addition, even if she couldn't handle this clan protection formation that had been passed down from ancient times, Luo Xue could still ask for external help.
"Senior Sister Li should be interested in this formation that has been passed down for who knows how long... Tsk tsk, maybe we can invite her to come and have a look."
Chapter 222: The old method, the Beiming Breaking Evil Array
The formation nodes of the clan protection formation itself will not cause any harm to the cultivators, nor will they absorb spiritual power - after all, the spiritual power of a few foundation-building and elixir-forming cultivators is not enough to even fill the gaps in the formation.
However, running the small circulation at full power in the center of the formation is equivalent to being in a state of combat all the time, which is quite mentally exhausting.
Not to mention that you have to maintain it all the time, and if you are not careful you might overdraw your soul.
Luo Xue and Nangong Mian are relatively better off, but Dugu Xue's condition cannot withstand such torture. If she is not careful, her condition may worsen.
However, after Luo Xue had a general understanding of the situation, she did not plan to continue working as a circuit board here.
It's just... Under the meticulous supervision of the guards of the Beiming Ancient Clan and the surrounding monks who are desperate to get their sentences reduced, you have no choice but to be a circuit board even if you don't want to.
Now they are inside the Beiming Ancient Clan. Not to mention Luo Xue and others, even Xue Ling who is in the Yuhua realm is not worth mentioning. It is unlikely to escape by relying on more direct means.
Fortunately... Luo Xue's current location is the most important node in the formation that maintains the entire clan protection formation, and its importance is second only to the center of the formation.
If you want to create some trouble in the clan protection formation, it's not too easy.
The ancient Beiming clan had not failed to think of this. They deliberately only allowed cultivators who had reached the foundation-building stage to come to this formation node to serve as circuit boards, out of fear that high-level cultivators might develop ulterior motives and threaten the operation of the entire formation.
Low-level cultivators do not have so many abilities, not to mention that there is no formation inheritance in the world now. The one trick left by the ancient Beiming clan is enough to deal with most situations.
Unfortunately, there are only a few situations that Luo Xue cannot handle.
Luo Xue signaled to Nangong Mian and Dugu Xue with her eyes, asking them to be patient and that she would be there to solve this difficult problem right away.
Then she took a deep breath and started shaking people.
"Calling 'Ghost', calling 'Ghost', I am Luo Xue, please reply if you receive it."
Through the puppet's special sensing ability, Luo Xue remotely connected with Li Guijiao who was far away in the imperial capital and the wilderness.
"signal."
A cold and flat voice sounded, and it was impossible to tell whether it was a man or a woman - this was not Li Guijiao's voice.
"...Is that not necessary?"
Luo Xue’s eyelids twitched slightly.
"signal."
The voice remained unchanged and flat, like a mechanical reaction.
"The King of Heaven and the Tiger of Earth..."
Luo Xue gritted her teeth and sent a message, thinking to herself that she should not have taught Senior Sister Li this thing earlier...
It’s still very shameful.
"Two Mickey Mouses."
The cold and indifferent voice disappeared instantly, replaced by Senior Sister Li's light and graceful voice.
"Huh... Junior Sister, why did you suddenly think of looking for me? Let me make it clear first, this method of communication has a limited number of times. If you want to chat with me... it's not impossible, but you can't do it next time!"
"Who wants to chat?" Luo Xue had the urge to cover her forehead. Her senior sister's amazing train of thought always made her a little unable to keep up. "I need to find you for something. I came across an ancient formation and I want you to help analyze it."
"Oh?" Li Guijiao immediately became excited when the formation was mentioned. "Ancient formation in the universe? It's rare. I heard that only a few ancient tribes have it... Where are you now?"
"The hometown of the ancient Beiming clan." Luo Xue replied.
"... What are you doing there?" Li Guijiao seemed startled. "Why did you go to the ancient clan's hometown? Are you going undercover?"
"It's not an undercover, it's just some things," Luo Xue said vaguely, "Anyway... can it be solved?"
"As long as you hand over your current puppet to me to take over, there will generally be no problem."
Li Guijiao said confidently that she could even break and control the Xianlu formation. The formation used in Xianlu was even more powerful and complex than the four regions of Jiuzhou, and it was the ceiling in the current formation system.
"Yeah, I think so." Luo Xue nodded and continued, "I am now in the Beiming Ancient Clan's protective formation. This should be the most important formation node."
"... You said you weren't going to be an undercover agent, but you've already touched the vital point of the ancient clan!"
Li Guijiao almost jumped up. Deep in the heart of the ancient clan, at the node of the clan protection formation, it must be a very dangerous place no matter how you think about it, right
The junior sister is not like me. Her real body hides deep in the cave, and she uses puppets to wander around. If she is discovered by the people of the ancient clan... the consequences will be disastrous!
Luo Xue could hear the concern that Senior Sister Li expressed for her, and she felt a little touched in her heart, but she still said in a serious tone, "Anyway, I need you now, Senior Sister."
Li Guijiao was silent for a while, she knew that nothing she said now would help.
Since the junior sister has already reached the heartland of the ancient Beiming clan, it is too late for her to help her escape from the vortex. All she can do now is to provide her with all the help she can.
"No problem," Li Guijiao said in a deep voice, "You can place your soul on another puppet first, and I will transfer your consciousness to it right away."
Luo Xue's soul is too overbearing now. If she doesn't leave this puppet body, once Li Guijiao's consciousness enters, it will be crushed instantly and will be impossible to control.
Luo Xue agreed, and when she opened her eyes again, she saw Nangong Mian's curious gaze and Dugu Xue's slightly pale face, and she nodded slightly to them.