"The Gathering Yuan Array… that's a fitting name," Dugu Xin mused, stroking his chin. Then he frowned. "But how did you even come up with something like this?"
"Naturally, it was inspired after I studied core soul engineering arrays," Chen Junting replied, deliberately vague—mixing truth with omission to avoid revealing anything about magical runes. He knew some secrets had to stay hidden.
He pointed to several key nodes in the array diagram—
places where the patterns clearly mirrored those of core soul engineering arrays.
But—
"I don't understand any of this," Dugu Xin said with a dismissive wave, clearly unbothered.
Chen Junting didn't press further. He simply asked Dugu Xin to keep the array a secret for now. He needed to return to the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect first and discuss this with the Sect Master and his master before proceeding.
And tomorrow morning was the final deadline.
At dawn, golden sunlight spilled through the window. Chen Junting felt the surge of soul power within him and smiled faintly.
"Rules are rigid—but people are adaptable."
"Hmm… almost Level 40."
The thought instantly unlocked a flood of new ideas.
Not long after, Dugu Xin, still seated on his bed, gestured toward the array.
"So… what's next?"
Chen Junting didn't answer immediately. Instead, he sank his consciousness into his spiritual sea and asked Elder Electrolux why the array had collapsed on its own after roughly three hours.
"Ah," Electrolux's voice came, gentle yet firm. "Your array lasted that long only because I intervened—extended its duration slightly."
"You stepped in? But I thought you said—"
"I did say I wouldn't interfere," Electrolux chuckled, "but you were right at the breakthrough threshold. Had the array collapsed then, you'd have lost momentum. You could've recovered—but it would've been a shame."
Chen Junting gave a knowing look—seeing through it, yet saying nothing.
Electrolux then demonstrated it personally.
With a slow, deliberate motion, he conjured a far more solid Energy Gathering Array before Chen Junting's eyes. Every detail, crafted by Electrolux's hand, was crystal clear.
Compared to Chen Junting's earlier attempt, this one was like the moon beside a firefly—like a celestial qilin next to a mangy stray.
"The difference is stark," Chen Junting murmured. "So the issue is that my cultivation and spiritual strength aren't strong enough yet to stabilize the array's runes."
"Precisely," Electrolux confirmed. "Both are hard requirements. Without sufficient power, the formation cannot endure."
Chen Junting fell into thought.
'If the array's instability stems from my own limitations… what if I bypass that by anchoring it to a stable physical medium?'
An idea sparked.
"What if I engrave the array onto metal—like a soul engineering device? Then I could just carry it and deploy it instantly."
"That's acceptable," Electrolux nodded. "But it will require further experimentation."
After bidding Electrolux farewell, Chen Junting withdrew from his spiritual sea. He washed up quickly and slipped out of the dorm.
Thanks to the carefully arranged combination of the Gathering Yuan Array and his morphic cultivation soul engineering device, his breakthrough had come swiftly. The doubled ambient energy, amplified by the device, had shattered his Level 39 bottleneck in a single night.
When he opened his eyes again, he stood firmly in a new realm—Level 40.
That morning, after a quick breakfast, he hurried toward the classroom.
But just as he stepped inside, a familiar soul power wave brushed against his senses from behind—Wu Feng's aura. To his surprise, it felt noticeably stronger… already at Level 30.
"Did you break through to Level 30?" a voice suddenly cut in from ahead.
Chen Junting turned to see Wu Feng staring at him, eyes wide with disbelief. "You mean… you've broken through too!?"
"Just got lucky with some opportunities," Chen Junting deflected casually.
Wu Feng, still processing, instinctively raised her hand as if to boast—but froze mid-gesture when she saw Chen Junting's calm expression. She quickly dropped it, puffing her chest instead. "Of course! Who do you think I am!?"
She shook her head. "But wait—you're going to apply for a soul hunt too, right?"
"Not yet."
Chen Junting's focus had been almost entirely on array research and cultivation these past months, so he'd paid little attention to anyone beyond Ning Tian, Wu Feng, and Dugu Xin.
He recalled something. "Didn't Huo Yuhao break through a month after the freshman trials? Has the academy still not approved his soul hunt request?"
"Yeah," Wu Feng sighed. "Turns out, only Core Disciples and a few special first-years—like those with trial rewards—can even apply. So far, barely anyone has. Back then, Huo Yuhao was literally the only one."
Dean Du's solution? Have Huo Yuhao wait until enough students gathered to form a group. After all, at his current level, the difference in soul power gain between hunting a soul ring now or later was negligible.
"That's… actually pretty smart," Chen Junting admitted. "Saves the academy a lot of trouble—especially since Yuhao's shuttling between two departments."
Wu Feng fell silent, stunned.
"Sword-face! You—"
"Relax," Chen Junting said with a faint smile. "I won't tell anyone."
Dugu Xin, who had been lying on his bed looking utterly exhausted, finally spoke up. "You stayed up all night?"
Chen Junting shook his head. "The Gathering Yuan Array does thin the qi within a ten-meter radius, but it's subtle—hard to notice immediately. So I used last night to test how long the array lasts."
He didn't elaborate, quickly changing the subject. "Anyway, you'll need to ask Teacher Mujin for leave on my behalf later."
"Oh?" Dugu Xin perked up slightly. "Your array collapsed after about three hours, right? I saw you didn't react, so I didn't disturb you." He rolled over, signaling Chen Junting to stop talking.
Chen Junting nodded. "Understood."
As he turned to leave, Wu Feng called out again, "Wait—so you really broke through? On your own? No way! Unless you've been popping spirit-boosting pills!"
She sniffed the air suspiciously. "If it weren't for that faint herbal scent of Ascension Soul Pills on you, I still wouldn't believe it."
After a moment of stunned silence, she threw up her hands. "Fine! I'll keep it quiet."
Chen Junting gave her a reassuring look. "Don't worry—I've got this under control."
His real concern wasn't secrecy—it was practicality.
Carving arrays by hand takes too long. Useless in real combat.
But now, with the idea of pre-engraved array devices…a new path has opened.
And as he walked toward class, mind already racing with possibilities, one thing was certain:
This was only the beginning.
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