This old man was none other than Master Liangqiu, the foremost spirit formation master of the Ancestral Martial Starfield.
“Master Liangqiu, so it was you who came ahead of time. I knew it—there’s no way those two could’ve set up the main formation that fast,” Lady Fox Immortal said, her tone warming considerably at the sight of him.
Master Liangqiu’s status in the Ancestral Martial Starfield wasn’t built on empty reputation—it stemmed from true strength.
He wasn’t just a Serpent-Mark Saint-Cloak Spiritist; he was also a Supreme Realm powerhouse.
Whether in spirit techniques or martial cultivation, he stood at the pinnacle.
“Whether this old man can break through to Dragon-Mark Saint-Cloak depends on this opportunity. Naturally, I have to take it seriously,” Master Liangqiu said.
At his words, Lady Fox Immortal and the others grew visibly excited.
They’d meticulously prepared everything to harness the power within the grand formation.
Master Liangqiu aimed to become a Dragon-Mark Saint-Cloak Spiritist, while the four of them hoped to use this power to ascend to Serpent-Mark Saint-Cloak in one leap.
“Everything that can be prepared is ready. Now, it’s up to the youngsters’ performance,” Master Liangqiu said with a sigh.
At the same time, Liangqiu Chengfeng, Wuming Xingyun, Lady Fox Immortal, and Master Longxuan all turned their gazes toward the grand formation.
After years of careful planning, they’d done all they could. But whether it succeeded ultimately depended not on them, but on those juniors.
…
There were twelve entrances in total, each allowing only one person to enter within a set time frame—meaning just twelve could access the grand formation.
After a fierce competition, those who claimed the entrances were:
Linghu Yueyue, Linghu Tiemian, Linghu Mingye, Linghu Lun.
Tantai Xing’er, Mengyan Wushuang, Tongtian Yuanming.
Liangqiu Hongyue, Liangqiu Lanyue.
These nine each secured an entrance.
Meanwhile, within the Tantai Heavenly Clan, two exceptional juniors also claimed entrances.
As for Tang Zhenghao, perhaps rattled by Chu Feng’s actions, he didn’t even try to compete. Instead, he joined the other eliminated contenders in entering the palace Lady Fox Immortal had mentioned.
That palace housed a special formation—not only could it benefit Tang Zhenghao and the others who’d been knocked out, but it was also linked to the grand formation left by the Immortal Boundary King.
When Tang Zhenghao and the others entered and began activating the formation, part of the barrier sealing the grand formation turned transparent.
The scenery of that area came into view.
It was the region connected to the twelve entrances.
Emerging from any of the twelve entrances into the formation, one would see thirty-six mountain peaks standing side by side like a wall, sealing off the entrances.
Clearly, to reach the formation’s depths, one had to first climb those peaks.
But the path up each mountain was no simple trek.
Golden, radiant orbs of light lined the ascent—formations, in truth.
Countless formations dotted the paths.
Each acted as a checkpoint; only by breaking them could one continue upward.
What rewards awaited after breaking them?
What lay at the peaks?
What could be seen beyond the mountains?
No one knew yet…
Especially the juniors watching—they were utterly clueless.
Because not only could Wuming Xingyun and the others clearly see everything inside the formation, but Tang Zhenghao and his group could too.
“What’s going on?”
The changes in the formation baffled many of the juniors.
This formation was said to be impenetrable even to the mightiest spiritists.
Yet now, without any effort, they could see inside, leaving them stunned.
“If I’m not mistaken, these changes in the formation are tied to the one we’re activating right now,” Tang Zhenghao said.
Though he’d acted foolishly against Chu Feng earlier due to underestimation, Tang Zhenghao was no idiot. He was sharp, and he was the first to realize they were being used by Lady Fox Immortal and the others.
“Tied to us? You mean this formation we’re powering?” His words clicked for many.
“Mm,” Tang Zhenghao nodded, then added, “But it doesn’t matter. There’s no free lunch in this world. As long as we pour our all into this formation, its treasures will naturally be ours.”
“Right, right!”
The crowd nodded, their gazes drifting to the treasures lining the formation’s edges—items dazzling and tempting even to them.
If they fully powered the formation, they’d earn rewards proportional to their efforts.
That was their prize.
…
Though parts of the formation were now visible, the checkpoint sections of the twelve entrances remained hidden.
No one knew what the juniors tackling those trials were facing.
So, speculation swirled—could they pass the checkpoints? Who’d enter the formation first and seize the advantage?
*Rumble—*
Suddenly, a thunderous boom echoed from within the formation.
One of the twelve entrances linked to the interior finally opened.
Someone had passed their trial.
But, to everyone’s shock, the first to emerge wasn’t from the easiest Rat Zodiac entrance—it was from the hardest, the Dragon Zodiac.
Linghu Yueyue appeared in everyone’s sight, unscathed, her pretty face radiating ease. It was clear that even the Dragon Zodiac’s toughest trial posed no challenge to her.
“This Linghu Yueyue is incredible—no surprise she’s the top junior in the Ancestral Martial Starfield under Linghu Hongfei!”
Her appearance thrilled the crowd, especially the men, who buzzed with excitement.
To these genius-level juniors, Linghu Yueyue was a saintly figure—the woman they dreamed of marrying.
But they knew full well their strength didn’t qualify them to claim her.
They could only fantasize.
“No idea what kind of man could match a girl like her,” someone mused aloud, gazing at the near-perfect Linghu Yueyue within the formation.
