Chapter 83: Luo Youtian

While the various refining factions were discussing cooperation, Tongzhou Hall had already solved the array problem and begun refining. This news was immediately conveyed to the leaders of each refining faction—hall masters, sect masters, and pavilion heads.
“Oh, how could Tongzhou Hall solve the array problem so quickly?”
“That’s impossible. Not long ago, their array masters were still traveling around; none of them were working on arrays. How could they resolve all the problems at once?”
“This news is too sudden. Could it be that Tongzhou Hall deliberately sent some array masters out to wander and mislead us?”
“Tongzhou Hall is so cunning.”
…
In an instant, the leaders gathered in the hall grew impatient and started shouting. The three hall masters of Zuhuo Hall, Jinghua Hall, and Xinlu Hall—Gao Chenlin, Le Liangyuan, and Han Bojia—looked at each other and shook their heads.
“Everyone, stay calm. Even if Tongzhou Hall has started refining, they can’t surpass the speed of nearly a thousand of our refining factions working together,” Le Liangyuan shouted.
“That’s right. We’ve all investigated Tongzhou Hall’s situation. With just over a hundred thousand disciples, can they outpace all of us combined?” Han Bojia added.
Gao Chenlin smiled faintly. When the hall quieted down, he spoke up, “Everyone, start mobilizing your array masters now. Let all of them work together to resolve the array problems.”
The three hall masters spoke in succession, quickly calming down the other leaders. Perhaps hearing that Tongzhou Hall had already begun refining, these leaders feared losing this wager and, without any ulterior motives, dispatched their strongest array masters to gather at Zuhuo Hall. Orders were sent out through communication cards.
※※※
The wager within the Refining Academy had caused a sensation within the Youhan Sect. Naturally, Luo Youtian, the sect master of Youhan Sect, must have also received the news from his trusted subordinates.
On the Ghostland, where the Sect Affairs Council was located, there was a Ten-Ring Mountain surrounded by ten concentric mountain ranges. This Ten-Ring Mountain was the residence of Sect Master Luo Youtian. All important matters of the Sect Affairs Council were brought to the Ten-Ring Mountain for his decision. Of course, it was also Luo Youtian’s place for receiving guests; he would meet important figures on the mountain peak.

At the mid-slope of Fifteen Mountains, there was a towering rock cliff shrouded in mist and wind, serene and tranquil—there, a floating palace had been built. At that moment, inside the floating palace, Sect Master Luo Youtian was in talks with several high-ranking officials from the Sect Affairs Council.

Luo Youtian, tall and imposing with a majestic presence, dressed in a purple robe that enhanced his regal aura. He sat on a crimson jade dragon throne, scanning the ten elders seated on either side.

“Elders, has anything significant happened within the sect recently?” Luo Youtian asked with a faint smile.

Five elders from each side of the Sect Affairs Council sat facing each other. Hearing Luo Youtian’s question, they all smirked, as if something interesting had occurred.

These elders all possessed the cultivation level of Mid-Level Human Soul Immortals. If anything could pique their interest, it surely wasn’t trivial.

The eldest among them on the left, a graceful and handsome middle-aged elder named Long Qingxin, said with a smile, “Sect Master, something significant—and quite interesting—has happened in our sect recently. In the Armament Hall, Elder Han Lingqiu introduced a new armament branch called Tongzhou Hall. Once it entered the hall, Tongzhou Hall became restless, taking on all the armament tasks for two consecutive times, which angered other armament branches. Now, the two sides are engaged in an armament wager.”

After saying this, the other nine elders laughed knowingly.

It was the first time such a thing had happened in the sect over the years, which naturally made these highly cultivated elders unable to suppress their laughter.

Luo Youtian also smiled slightly before calmly saying, “I’ve heard of Tongzhou Hall. It has taken on armament tasks at the level of One-Star Human Soul Immortals and Two-Star Human Soul Immortals. That’s indeed surprising. Elder Han Lingqiu told me that Tongzhou Hall possesses a unique armament technique based on pre-set formation methods, allowing them to produce armaments on a large scale and with high efficiency. So, taking on these tasks isn’t difficult for them. What intrigues me is who the formation master behind Tongzhou Hall is—how can one person solve all the formation problems?”

In fact, Luo Youtian had already learned about Tongzhou Hall before. Naturally, with his cultivation level as a High-Level Human Soul Immortal, he could instantly identify the key to Tongzhou Hall—namely, who solved the formation problems. After all, since various immortal artifacts required different attributes, different formations were needed, which required skilled formation masters to create new ones.

And it seemed that no particularly outstanding formation master had emerged within Tongzhou Hall. Thus, Luo Youtian was very curious about who the formation master hiding behind Tongzhou Hall was.

The ten elders in charge of clan affairs also nodded slightly, understanding Luo Youtian’s intention.
“Clan Leader, shall we send someone to investigate Tongzhou Hall?” asked Huang Zhendan, the elegant elder sitting at the right, calmly.
Luo Youtian waved his hand immediately and said with a smile, “No need. That mage will come out on his own.”
The ten elders remained silent.
Soon after, Luo Youtian asked them to leave Shihuan Mountain, leaving him alone in the hall.
“Luo Yi, go to Tongzhou Hall and investigate thoroughly,” Luo Youtian said softly, leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed.
“Yes, Clan Leader!” Suddenly, a voice came from the shadows, but no figure appeared.
It turned out that Luo Youtian had also hidden his trusted men inside Lingkong Hall. Although he seemingly refused to let the clan elders conduct the investigation, his real intention was to send his own men instead—clearly, he had begun to suspect Tongzhou Hall as well.
“Tongzhou Hall comes from a tiny planet. How could it suddenly become so powerful? There must be something suspicious behind this,” Luo Youtian murmured after staying silent for a while with his eyes closed, before suddenly disappearing.
※※※
Inside Tongzhou Hall, there was a bustling scene of artifact crafting.
There were eighteen crafting peaks, each with a dozen or so crafting sites, all operating at full capacity.
Five thousand mages, having received the array jade slips sent by Huahai, quickly understood the essence of the arrays. They then went to the array preparation room to engrave the arrays on copper plates and cut them into pieces.
The hall master, Yun Zhouzi, accompanied Elder Han Lingqiu as they visited various crafting sites.
Han Lingqiu was most interested in the array preparation process. Whenever they visited a crafting site, she would watch the mages record the arrays on the copper plates.
After visiting hundreds of crafting sites, Han Lingqiu and Yun Zhouzi returned to Tongzhou Hall’s headquarters.
Inside the hall master’s chamber, the two discussed in detail.
“Yun Zhouzi, after seeing your crafting sites, I’m now convinced that your Tongzhou Hall is likely to win this bet,” Han Lingqiu said with deep emotion.
In the past, Han Lingqiu would never have believed that a single crafting faction could compete against all the others. But after seeing it with her own eyes, she calculated that it would take Tongzhou Hall less than two years to craft all the three-star Human Soul Immortal-grade immortal artifacts—far faster than the combined efforts of those other crafting factions.
The power of the array preparation method often struck Han Lingqiu in awe, and she was glad she had done everything possible to bring Tongzhou Hall under her wing.

Upon hearing this, Yun Zhouzi smiled joyfully and said, “Elder, if Tongzhou Hall wins this bet, we will not forget your kindness.” Immediately, he promised benefits to strengthen his relationship with Han Lingqiu. Han Lingqiu nodded in satisfaction and said with a smile, “We’ll talk about it after we win. Also, Yun Zhouzi, the gambling in the Refinement Hall this time has drawn attention from various sects within the clan. It’s likely that the major forces in the Immortal Realm have also noticed Tongzhou Hall. You must remind your disciples not to leave Tongzhou Hall’s territory in the future, so as to avoid being captured by those with ulterior motives and their pre-set formation methods being revealed.” The rapid speed of Tongzhou Hall’s refinement work must have already raised suspicions among others, and Han Lingqiu certainly didn’t want the secrets of Youhan Sect to fall into other forces’ hands. Hearing this, Yun Zhouzi was shocked—he immediately understood what Han Lingqiu meant. If Tongzhou Hall’s unique refinement techniques were exposed, their strength would no longer allow them to stay in Youhan Sect. After all, all of Tongzhou Hall’s disciples were at the Human Immortal level, with only the two hall leaders at the Earth Immortal level. “Elder, rest assured. I will give strict warnings. Moreover, I’ll enhance security throughout Tongzhou Hall—any suspicious individuals will be killed on the spot,” Yun Zhouzi assured immediately. Han Lingqiu nodded and smiled. Suddenly, he leaned closer to Yun Zhouzi and asked, “Yun Zhouzi, who solved the formation problems so quickly for Tongzhou Hall?” After thinking for a moment, Yun Zhouzi felt it wasn’t a secret—everyone in Tongzhou Hall knew about it. So he replied with a smile, “Elder, for these three refinement tasks, most of the formations were solved by the Fire Lord from Juehuo Peak.” Han Lingqiu exclaimed in surprise, “All of them were done by that Fire Lord?” Yun Zhouzi nodded. Han Lingqiu looked astonished. He had thought Tongzhou Hall hid a group of powerful formation masters, but it turned out that all of their formation problems were solved by just one person—the Fire Lord. It was hard to believe. “I remember that Fire Lord was only at the Upper Human Soul Immortal level, right? Yet his mastery of formations is so profound,” Han Lingqiu said thoughtfully. Yun Zhouzi also sighed deeply and said, “Elder, that Fire Lord is truly amazing. Back on Zhuyan Star, he joined Tongzhou Hall at the level of One-Star Human Soul Immortal, then invented the pre-set formation method and accomplished many other great things. In less than fifty years, his cultivation level has already reached Upper Human Soul Immortal—such a rapid progress is incredible.”

Han Lingqiu immediately widened her eyes, unable to believe this fact either. Unbeknownst to her, the conversation between Han Lingqiu and Yun Zhouzi had been fully overheard by someone in secret. This person was Luo Yi, a trusted subordinate sent by Luo Youtian.