Immortality Through Array Formations

Chapter 312 - 311 Calculation_1

To break a Formation is to decipher the Formation Patterns, and through the mutual generation and restriction of Formation Patterns, one unlocks the entire Formation.

Similarly, the Reversed Spirit Formation can break Formations, but at a deeper level, it directly dissolves Spiritual Power.

Mo Hua may not understand, but it sounded very impressive.

”But how do we break it?”

He was capable of breaking Formations, but dissolving Spiritual Power was something he had never even heard of.

Mr. Zhuang hesitated for a moment before finally speaking slowly:

”Divine Sense Calculation.”

Mo Hua frowned; this was another term he had never heard before.

None of the Formation Books he had read, nor any Formation Master he had encountered, had ever mentioned ”Divine Sense Calculation.”

”Gentleman, is Divine Sense Calculation also an extremely profound knowledge of Formation methods?” Mo Hua asked.

Mr. Zhuang nodded: ”Yes.”

”How profound is it?”

”Ordinary Formation Masters might never learn it in their lifetimes.”

Mo Hua was stunned. ”A lifetime?”

Mr. Zhuang emphasized again, ”A lifetime!”

”Wouldn’t high-grade Formation Masters learn it?”

Mr. Zhuang laughed: ”High-grade Formation Masters merely have higher cultivation and stronger Divine Sense, so the class of Formation methods they learn is higher. When it comes down to the use of Divine Sense and the understanding of Formations, they might not surpass some low-grade Formation Masters.”

Mo Hua was taken aback.

So there was such a viewpoint...

”Then, do Formation Masters not learn Divine Sense Calculation because it’s unnecessary, or because it’s too difficult?” Mo Hua asked again.

Mr. Zhuang said: ”It’s both because it’s unnecessary and because it’s too difficult.”

Mr. Zhuang sighed lightly, ”Formation knowledge is vast and profound. The deeper the Formation, the more it tries to seize the Heavenly Dao and reverse the Yin and Yang of the universe.”

”Compared with this, a cultivator’s Divine Sense is much more insignificant. The deeper one goes into Formation studies, the more inadequate the Divine Sense becomes. It’s considered good enough to comprehend Formations. Where would one find the surplus Divine Sense to calculate Formations?”

Mo Hua nodded repeatedly upon hearing this.

Mr. Zhuang looked at Mo Hua, his expression gentle as he spoke:

”Originally, Divine Sense Calculation is not something you should be learning now, but if I don’t teach you now, perhaps no one else will in the future.”

”Your foundation in Divine Sense is so strong; it would be a real pity not to learn.”

Mo Hua said with a tinge of sadness, ”Gentleman, are you going to leave?”

Mr. Zhuang sighed lightly: ”There’s no such thing as a feast that doesn’t come to an end. I’ve stayed in this place long enough.”

Mo Hua’s little face turned downcast.

Mr. Zhuang gently patted his head, ”There’s still some time. I’ll teach you some more things, so learn them well.”

Mo Hua nodded earnestly: ”Don’t worry, Gentleman, I will certainly learn it well!”

Mr. Zhuang smiled faintly and began explaining Divine Sense Calculation to Mo Hua:

”The Formation knowledge you have learned so far, whether it’s Formation media, Formation Patterns, Formation Pivots, Formation eyes, Single Formations, or Compound Formations, is all based on the cognitive understanding of the Formation structure itself.”

”You must have noticed that, beyond the Formation structure, the essence of Formation effectiveness comes from the flow of Spiritual Power.”

”The Formation eye is the source of the flow of Spiritual Power, the Formation media is the carrier of this flow, and the Formation Patterns and Pivots are the trajectory of the flow.”

”The Heavenly Dao leads to the same goal by different paths, and just like other Cultivation Techniques and Taoist Skills, even in the practice of Tao Cultivation, Spiritual Power is the intrinsic essence.”

”The so-called Divine Sense Calculation is the deductive reconstruction of the Formation’s Spiritual Power flow trajectory within the Sea of Consciousness.”

”Just as you would see someone else’s state of Spiritual Power within your Divine Sense, Divine Sense Calculation is the detailed deduction of the Formation’s Spiritual Power presence within your Divine Sense.”

Mo Hua remembered that when he was in the Foggy Forest, he sensed the existence of the Fog Formation, which was why he could distinguish the directions.

However, what he sensed at that time was only a vague impression of Formation Patterns, or more precisely, ghostly shadows of Spiritual Power in the form of Formation Patterns, and not the clear flow of Spiritual Power.

Mo Hua timorously asked: ”What use is this?”

Mr. Zhuang smiled, explaining patiently:

”First, it can deepen the understanding of Formations, letting you know what exactly Formation Patterns and Pivots are for, and how Spiritual Power passes through the Pivots and connects through the Patterns.”

”After all, Formation Patterns and Pivots are forms, and the flow of Spiritual Power is the essence.”

”If you understand this point, you would know why the same Formation, inherited differently and belonging to different schools, always varies slightly in the Formation Patterns’ stroke work.”

”You would also understand why, for the same Formation, some Formation Masters’ strokes differ every time they draw the Formation Patterns, without affecting the Formation’s effectiveness; while for others, just one misaligned stroke can render the entire Formation useless.”

Mo Hua’s eyes lit up as he asked, ”So, although the former’s Formation Patterns are different, they don’t impede the flow of Spiritual Power, while the latter’s single misaligned stroke disrupts the flow, causing the Formation to fail, right?”

Mr. Zhuang nodded in approval and cautioned,

”Some conservative Formation Masters, who fail to grasp the essence of Formations, treat fixed Formation Patterns as if they were the Heavenly Dao itself, adhering rigidly to form and not allowing the addition or removal of a single stroke. Be sure not to follow in the footsteps of such blockheaded individuals.”

”Mhm, mhm.” Mo Hua nodded vigorously.

Mr. Zhuang continued, ”Secondly, once you learn Divine Sense Calculation, by merely sensing the flow of Spiritual Power within a Formation with your Divine Sense, you can deduce its Formation Patterns.”

”Some Formations are deeply hidden, and you cannot discern their intricacies. Those Formations whose intricacies you cannot see are the most dangerous.”

”If you ever travel abroad and accidentally trigger someone else’s Formation, being unable to see the Formation Patterns and guess the type of Formation, you would essentially have no choice but to sit and wait for death.”

”If you guess wrongly, mistaking a Killing Formation for an Illusion Array, the consequences would be equally severe.”

Mo Hua suddenly realized, ”So, learning to calculate, relying solely on the flow of Spiritual Power in the Formation, will allow one to see through any Formation, making it impossible for other Formation Masters to deal with you!”

Mr. Zhuang gave a nod.

Mo Hua’s eyes shone as he whispered, ”Does that mean I could also sneakily learn other people’s Formations?”

If one could deduce the Formation Patterns simply from the Spiritual Power in the Formation, there would be no need for a Formation Diagram, and one could learn the Formation independently.

In the future, if targeted by another Formation Master, one could even directly learn and use his Formation against him.

”Your Formation is powerful, but after a few glances, it becomes mine.”

Mo Hua could already imagine the domineering air he would exude when uttering these words in the future.

However, Mr. Zhuang shook his head.

Mo Hua was sorely disappointed and asked regretfully, ”Can’t I learn it secretly?”

”You can learn it, but it should not be termed ’learning secretly.’”

Mr. Zhuang smiled and said with righteous indignation, ”If it’s acquired through one’s own abilities and learned openly and aboveboard, how can it be considered ’learning secretly’?”

Mo Hua was momentarily stunned, then also laughed, ”The gentleman is right!”

”The final use of Divine Sense Calculation, as I told you before, is to reverse-engineer the Spiritual Power through the Reversed Spirit Formation, causing the Formation Collapse, which unleashes destructive power that can only be described as terrifying.”

Mr. Zhuang’s gaze grew intense, and his tone became weightier.

Mo Hua was shocked and curious, ”How powerful could it be?”

”It depends on the Formation’s complexity. Ordinary Single Formations are not worth collapsing because their composition of Spiritual Power is too weak; common Compound Formations also do not need collapsing because their Formation Pivot structure is simple; only the more complex Compound Formations necessitate a collapse.”

”Based on this, the more complex the Formation and the stronger the Spiritual Power, the more formidable the power unleashed upon collapse.”

Mo Hua’s spirits lifted, ”Can it overcome cultivators of a higher level? Could the collapse of a first-class Compound Formation kill a Foundation Building Cultivator?”

Mr. Zhuang nodded, ”Yes.”

Mo Hua became excited, ”Then I...”

”No.”

Mo Hua felt an indescribable mix of emotions, ”Gentleman, I haven’t said anything yet...”

Mr. Zhuang couldn’t help but laugh, ”I know what you were thinking without you saying it. You want to collapse a Compound Formation and harm a few Foundation Builders, right?”

Mo Hua gave an embarrassed smile, ”Can’t I?”

”It’s not possible.”

Seeing the puzzled look on Mo Hua’s face, Mr. Zhuang said plainly,

”Your Divine Sense is not strong enough.”

Mo Hua was somewhat shocked, ”Even the Divine Sense of a Foundation Builder is not sufficient?”

”No.” Mr. Zhuang nodded, ”The reason so few Formation Masters learn Divine Sense Calculation is the sheer amount of Divine Sense consumed during Calculation, which is incredibly high.”

”I’m teaching you now because your Divine Sense has just barely reached the threshold for Foundation Establishment. But with your current Divine Sense, at most you could calculate simple first-class Compound Formations. The destructive power of such a collapse might injure Foundation Building Cultivators but would not be lethal.”

The Divine Sense of a Foundation Builder, barely reaching the threshold...

Mo Hua felt a tinge of disappointment.

Mr. Zhuang said softly, ”I’m teaching you Divine Sense Calculation not to have you collapse Formations, but to help you see through the essence of Formations, to better grasp them. This way, you won’t endanger your life by falling into another Formation Master’s Formation, unable to see through its intricacies...”

Mo Hua was taken aback, then warmth filled his heart, and he said gratefully, ”Thank you, sir!”