"Ding! Congratulations to the player for spending 3,000 experience points.The Hundred Scrolls of Array Dao · Volume 1 has advanced to Greater Mastery. Heart Array State has increased to High-Tier."
Facing a formidable enemy like Zhou Fan, Liu Bai naturally wouldn't hesitate to spend experience points.
At that very moment, Liu Bai felt himself entering a mysterious and profound state. It was as if, the moment he closed his eyes, he could clearly perceive every single movement of each Spiritual Seal drifting through the air...
The continuously sketched lines of spiritual energy felt as though he himself was holding a brush, painting across the scroll of heaven and earth. Wherever his thoughts drifted, the brush would land. Every stroke was identical to the Arrays drawn within his mind.
Only now did Liu Bai truly understand the meaning of Heart Array State.
Perceiving the array with the heart, constructing it with intent the trajectory of the spiritual formation existed completely within his mind and could be guided at will.
In terms of Array Dao cultivation level, Liu Bai could now rival a fifth-Rank Spiritual Array Master. The only pity was that his current spiritual energy was still insufficient to support the condensation of so many Spiritual Seals.
However, if he had an array diagram, then attempting to set up a fourth-rank spiritual array was within reach. Didn't that mean, as long as he had the array diagrams in hand, he could wield power equivalent to the Heaven Transformation Realm?
That was truly astounding…
Even Liu Bai himself was shocked by his own strength.
Terrifying demonic vines burst forth from the ground, and before the enormous Tianxuan Golden Qilin Beast could even unleash its might, it was instantly entangled by the vines, bound tightly!
Roar!
The golden behemoth let out a deafening roar, and terrifying baleful energy surged out, making everyone in the Ice Valley feel an icy chill enveloping their entire bodies.
"What kind of array is that? It actually suppressed the boss?!"
Zhou Fan's followers all wore expressions of disbelief.
At this moment, Zhou Fan's expression had darkened.
He had thought that, after unleashing his trump card, he could easily settle the situation. Who would've expected the opponent to suddenly produce such a powerful Array that even at full strength, he couldn't break free from?
"This is definitely not Second-Rank array. Who exactly are you?!"
Zhou Fan felt the tightening of the terrifying demonic vines. The spiritual body of the Tianxuan Golden Qilin Beast outside his body seemed as though it would collapse at any moment. If that happened and those thorn-covered vines struck his frail body directly, wouldn't that be a death sentence?
Liu Bai smiled faintly. Even a genuine Snow Demon Beast couldn't escape his Demonic Vine Strangulation Array, let alone a Early-phase Heaven Fusion Realm cultivator like Zhou Fan.
The Tianxuan Golden Qilin Beast might be powerful, but it was only a fused spiritual essence — its strength was not even a tenth of the original. At most, it allowed Zhou Fan to exert the strength of a mid-phase Fusion Realm, perhaps only peak early-phase at best. Naturally, it was no match for a true Heavenly Beast.
"Third-Rank Spiritual Array Demonic Vine Strangulation Array."
"King Zhou, do you still wish to continue?"
Zhou Fan clenched his teeth in frustration.
Indeed, the moment he got trapped, the thought crossed his mind this was very likely a third-rank array. But how could a mere Divine Soul Realm cultivator, no matter how monstrously talented in the Array Dao, have enough spiritual energy to set up so many Spiritual Arrays in such a short amount of time?
Crack, crack, crack…
Just as Zhou Fan was puzzled, a cracking sound suddenly rang in his ears.
He was startled and looked up, only to see that the spiritual body of the Tianxuan Golden Qilin Beast was on the verge of collapsing.
"I admit defeat!"
"I didn't expect you to be a third-rank Spiritual Array Master. I truly underestimated you. I concede this time. The matter at the Snow Mountain ends here!"
Zhou Fan wasn't like those other arrogant prodigies who would stubbornly cling to their pride and suffer because of it. In his heart, a true man must know when to yield and when to rise. Now that he had fallen into a disadvantage, it was best to surrender decisively. He could always come back for revenge once he became stronger in the future.
Liu Bai didn't push him further either. After all, this Northern Heavens Realm was constantly under the surveillance of the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy. Zhou Fan, a genius student who had reached the Heaven Fusion Realm within the Northern Heaven Realm, would never be allowed to be eliminated so easily. If Liu Bai really tried to go for the kill, someone might step in and stop him.
The array dissipated, and Zhou Fan retracted his spiritual beast essence.
Though the battle had been brief, both sides had consumed a considerable amount of spiritual energy especially Liu Bai, who had already used up nearly two-thirds of his reserves. Had it not been for the support of his three Spiritual Wheels, he would've been taken down by the opponent long ago.
Zhou Fan glanced at Liu Bai, and in the next moment, the violet-golden mark on his forehead shot out a beam of light that quickly merged into the imprint on Liu Bai's forehead.
"This is your rightful reward!"
"We're leaving!"
Watching Zhou Fan and his group turn and leave without hesitation, Liu Bai was momentarily dazed.
To be honest, he hadn't expected Zhou Fan to make such a decision in the end.
After obtaining Zhou Fan's Imprint, Liu Bai's previous Grade-7 Imprint directly advanced to Grade-8, now on par with Su Xuan's imprint, which made Guo Xiong and the others visibly envious.
"Heh, I didn't expect Zhou Fan to be a man of character. He just handed over a Grade-7 Imprint like that, and judging by its aura, it was close to becoming Grade-8. I wonder how much it hurt when he gave it up," Liu Bai chuckled.
At this moment, Su Xuan and the others walked over. Upon hearing this, Su Xuan said, "Zhou Fan may be extremely prideful, but he isn't unreasonable. Since he lost to you, based on his personality, this kind of decision fits.
As for whether it hurt I'm sure it did. After all, the higher the imprint level, the harder it is to upgrade. Who knows how many high-level spiritual beasts he had to slay to raise it to Grade-7? Now, all of that is gone. Even I would find that difficult to swallow.
But you should still be careful. While he disdains using dirty tricks, he's not the forgiving type. He will definitely remember this loss. When he believes he's strong enough again, he'll surely come looking for another match…"
If it were anyone else, being targeted by such a genius would be quite troublesome. But Liu Bai was not among them.
"I never worry about an opponent I've already defeated. Because from the moment they lost to me, they no longer have the qualifications to stand on the same level as me." Liu Bai's tone was calm, but his words left Su Xuan and the others speechless in shock.
Just how confident must someone be to say something like that?
"I originally thought you were a humble and easy-going person, Liu Bai. It seems I completely misjudged you…" Su Xuan joked.
They left the Ice Valley laughing. Because Su Ling'er had been standing guard outside, she hadn't seen either of the battles. So the whole way back, she kept pestering the others with questions.
She was especially curious about Liu Bai's identity as a third-rank Spiritual Array Master, and the little girl kept circling around him, trying to figure out what was so special about this guy to make him so powerful.
"Alright then, what are your plans next?" Su Xuan pulled her sister back, finally relieving the pressured Liu Bai.
As for her question, Liu Bai answered straightforwardly, "I don't have any particular plans. I'm just going to hunt more spiritual beasts and try to raise my imprint to Grade-9 as soon as possible."
Of course, things like farming experience points didn't need to be explained to outsiders. With the journey to Northern Heavens Spiritual Academy fast approaching, this was a rare opportunity to gather experience for future use.
"Oh? In that case, why don't we team up? With a Spiritual Array Master like you around, our Imprint accumulation will surely be faster!" Guo Xiong's eyes lit up, and he quickly suggested.
Liu Bai had no reason to refuse.
It wasn't like he was a Spiritual Road King like Su Xuan, otherwise he would've already gathered a large force under his command. Then he could just command his troops to lure monsters while he set up arrays, waiting for the experience to come flooding in…
Now that Guo Xiong and the others had offered themselves up as free labor, Liu Bai was more than happy to accept.
"In that case, count us in as well. Liu Bai, I wonder if you're willing to have us…" Su Xuan gave it some thought, then smiled and looked at Liu Bai.
Although Su Xuan was powerful in her own right, one must not forget she also had Su Ling'er tagging along like a little tail.
Su Ling'er was only at the Spiritual Wheel Realm. Beyond simply gathering Imprint Aura, ensuring her personal safety was even more important. After all, in this realm, any high-level spiritual beast had the power to gravely injure her with ease.
At the very least, having more people around would make Su Ling'er safer.
"I couldn't wish for more! With the addition of Su King, even if we run into another Heavenly-level beast like the Snow Demon Beast, we'll be able to handle it with ease," Liu Bai responded with an expression of delight.
With that, everyone was satisfied.
However Li Qing had just obtained the spiritual essence of the Snow Demon Beast and still needed time to properly fuse with it. Regretfully, she had to part ways with Liu Bai and the others for now, heading off to find a safe place to complete the fusion.
And so, a day later, in a stretch of forest in the northwest region of the Northern Heaven Realm...
The once-quiet forest had become chaotic. Roars erupted as countless spiritual beasts surged out, chasing after three fleeing figures ahead.
"Hurry! Quick, lure them all to the designated location!"
"You two, if you don't want to be beast food, run harder!"
"I'll hold them off. You two, go draw back those that are falling behind!"
From the front of the spiritual beast horde came the breathless shouts of the three figures. They struggled to maintain the stampede of pursuing beasts while sprinting toward a nearby hill with all their might.
At the summit of that hill, a massive golden Spiritual Array was steadily rotating. Five golden wheels hovered in midair, their rapid spinning creating gales so fierce they seemed to tear through the air.
Looking down upon the oncoming tide of spiritual beasts, there were no fewer than forty in total. At least a dozen among them had the strength of high-level spiritual beasts.
However, to Liu Bai's current team, such beasts posed no real threat.
"Let's begin."
Liu Bai gave a low shout and waved his hand. The golden Spiritual Array atop the hill unleashed an immense wave of energy. The five golden wheels howled out as they swept across the approaching beast horde.
Beside him, Su Xuan was far from idle. Azure-blue spiritual energy surged out from her body and formed a spiraling current around her. In the next moment, her delicate palm gently pressed forward...
With a thunderous boom resembling a stampede of a thousand horses, a massive surging river erupted across the mountain wilderness, cutting off the escape routes of the forty-plus spiritual beasts and encircling them below the hill.
Buzz!
One of the golden wheels sliced through the air, instantly beheading a high-level spiritual beast a Silvermoon Hound killing it in a single strike.
If this had happened in the Northern Spiritual Realm, a high-level spiritual beast like the Silvermoon Hound would have caused a frenzy. After all, it ranked 177th on the Earth Rankings. Countless Divine Soul Realm experts would be willing to pay handsomely for its spiritual essence.
Unfortunately, here in the Northern Heavens Realm among countless elite geniuses from the various continents this kind of beast was virtually worthless, aside from providing a bit of spiritual energy for their Imprints.
Oh, of course, it wasn't completely worthless. If brought back to the Spiritual Value Hall at the Northern Heavens Spiritual Academy, it might still be exchanged for a few spiritual points…
The golden wheels controlled by Liu Bai's formation were fast, but a few nimble high-level spiritual beasts managed to narrowly evade them. After recognizing the danger, they immediately turned and attempted to flee, only to be blocked by the turbulent river surrounding the hill.
Any beast foolish enough to enter the water would meet a fate worse than being decapitated by the golden wheels. The crushing water pressure within the current would instantly obliterate their bodies, leaving not even a bone behind.
The battle ended swiftly.
Guo Xiong and the other two, who had been in charge of luring the beasts, happily went about collecting the spiritual essence before returning to the hill and collapsing to the ground.
"I can't go on… I'm done…" Guo Xiong lay flat on the ground, chest heaving like a bellows. He waved his hands weakly.
After all, there were only three of them. In order to attract this many spiritual beasts, they had no idea how far they had to run. While they didn't need to fight, sprinting that far was exhausting especially for someone like Guo Xiong, who wasn't specialized in speed-type cultivation.
Seeing this, Liu Bai didn't push them further. "Alright, let's take a break and split up the spoils."
At the mention of loot, the three who had just been flopping around like dead dogs immediately perked up, suddenly full of energy.
What they didn't know was that Liu Bai, inwardly, was already beyond pleased.
Over forty spiritual beasts had just brought him nearly 36,000 experience points and 165 Beast Soul Points. Not only did he now have plenty of experience, but even the Earthstone Spirit Python his recently fused beast essence now had the opportunity to evolve.
[Ding! Would you like to spend 200 Beast Soul Points to evolve the primary Heavenly Beast, Earthstone Spirit Python, into the intermediate Heavenly Beast, Three-Headed Stone Dragon?]
Whoa!
Although he had anticipated it, Liu Bai was still startled by the system prompt.
The so-called Heavenly Beasts were the collective term for spiritual beasts whose strength had reached the Three Heavenly Realm. In the Great Thousand World, there was no further division of low, mid, or high among Heavenly Beasts.
However, on the Earth Rankings, spiritual beasts below rank 50 even at full maturity at best possessed peak Heaven Fusion Realm strength, with a rare few reaching half-step Heaven Transformation Realm. Starting from rank 50 to around rank 30, some beasts could rival those in the Heaven Transformation Realm. From rank 30 to 20, beasts had the potential to break through into the Heaven Completion Realm. As for those ranked above 20, they were classified as superior Heavenly Beasts widely recognized across the Great Thousand World as elite entities, most possessing divine beast bloodlines and even the possibility of Spirit Transformation into Divinity...
The top ten of the Earth Rankings those were all beasts with innate divine beast potential, merely yet to fully mature. For instance, in the original work, there was Wen Qingxuan's Sacred Golden Phoenix and Luo Li's Spirit of the Luo River. Their terrifying power was in no way inferior to true divine beasts!
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