Chapter 26: Formation Magic

Five hundred li west of Zuiyun Peak lies a mountain peak entirely covered in fiery red hues, as if it were in a state of melting. This peak is Huo Miaofeng, the cultivation site of the master blacksmith Huai Miao.

As soon as Qu Yi reached the early stage of Foundation Building, he immediately asked the God of Tools to teach him its formation magic and blacksmithing arts—a promise the God of Tools had made before. Naturally, the God of Tools kept his word but did not immediately impart these skills to Qu Yi. Instead, he sent Qu Yi to Huo Miaofeng to learn some of the sect’s formations first, so that after gaining a practical understanding, he could then be taught further.

At this moment, Qu Yi and Bai Man were riding on a Golden Crown Heron, heading toward Huo Miaofeng.

“Qu Yi, have you really reached the early stage of Foundation Building?” Bai Man asked softly.

She had asked this question ten times already. Though she knew Qu Yi kept secrets, she was still surprised that he had reached this stage in less than two years.

Qu Yi showed a worried expression and patiently replied with a bitter smile, “Sister, I’ve only told you my true cultivation level. Please stop asking. Do you really expect me to perform in front of the whole sect for you to believe me?”

Thanks to the “Wuxi Jue,” Qu Yi was suppressing his cultivation level at the mid-stage of Qi Guidance.

Bai Man stuck out her tongue and giggled crisply. It wasn’t that she doubted Qu Yi’s cultivation level; she just wanted to see him look distressed.

One teasing, the other pleading—unaware of time passing, they soon arrived at Huo Miaofeng.

…

On Huo Miaofeng stood the Blue Flame Hall, where Huai Miao practiced blacksmithing. Inside the hall were sections such as the Flame Hall, Material Hall, Tool Hall, Formation Hall, and Exhibition Hall. In essence, the core of Xianyun Sect’s blacksmithing skills was all contained within this Blue Flame Hall.

At that moment, Elder Huai Miao lay on a red jade bed, looking worried, muttering to himself.

“A tragedy! Is the blacksmithing art of Xianyun Sect really going to end in my hands? I, Huai Miao, have exhausted all my efforts and shared everything I know, yet still failed to cultivate a successor. I truly feel guilty toward the sect’s ancestors. Kang Qian… Kang Qian, you were my most proud disciple. I chose the character ‘Qian’ for your name precisely so that you could unlock your potential. But even crafting a low-grade magic weapon, you failed. I really want to commit suicide. I’m so sad, so heartbroken, so miserable…”

It turned out that in recent days, Huai Miao’s only Golden Core disciple, Kang Qian, had failed for the tenth time in attempting to craft the low-grade magic weapon, Tonghuo Knife. Overwhelmed by disappointment, Huai Miao had been gloomy and sighing nonstop for days.

Just as Huai Miao was filled with sorrow and lamentation, a burly man in his youth appeared, with a dark complexion and an honest appearance—this was Kang Qian.
“Master, there are two people outside. One is junior sister Bai Man, and the other is Qu Yi, the fifth disciple of the master. They have come to visit you,” Kang Qian said respectfully.
Huai Miao stared at Kang Qian for a while, pressing his head so low that it almost touched his knees, before responding gravely, “I see. Go to the Formation Hall and study more about formations. I’ll go see them.”
Kang Qian looked ashamed and immediately flew away at her words.
Next to the Blue Fire Hall, there was a reception hall where Qu Yi and Bai Man were waiting, chatting and laughing.
“Oh, Uncle Huai Miao! Man really misses you. We came to see you today,” Bai Man said with a bright eye, immediately giggling as she saw Huai Miao enter lightly.
Qu Yi shuddered and glared at Bai Man, though he dared not show it, and quickly called out, “Uncle Huai Miao, it’s Qu Yi. I’ve come to visit you.”
Huai Miao had changed into a more energetic demeanor, smiling as she looked at Qu Yi and Bai Man before sitting down first.
“Man, you seem very happy. By the way, Qu Yi, why did you leave the Cloud-Chasing Peak to come here? Do you want to learn artifact crafting?” Huai Miao asked casually.
Bai Man laughed heartily, while Qu Yi had to speak up, “Uncle Huai Miao, I heard from my master that you’re the best at artifact crafting in the Immortal Cloud Sect. Recently, I’ve felt troubled during my cultivation, so I wanted to learn from you to see if I have any potential in this field.”
Qu Yi was good at flattery, having lived alone since childhood and relying on the villagers’ aid to survive—flattering words came naturally to him. At this moment, he didn’t hesitate to praise Huai Miao, who was already in the later stages of the Golden Dan realm.
Sure enough, upon hearing that Qu Yi thought her craft skills were excellent, Huai Miao’s face bloomed with joy as she gave him an approving look.
“Very good. Since you want to learn artifact crafting, I’ll surely help you. How about this? Let your senior brother Kang Qian guide you first. If you truly have potential, I’ll take charge of your training. What do you think?” Huai Miao said with a smile.
Qu Yi immediately replied, “Yes, Uncle!”
Soon, Kang Qian came in again and took Qu Yi away.
As for Bai Man, she made an excuse and stayed at the Fire Marvel Peak.
…
Kang Qian led Qu Yi around the Blue Fire Hall.

The Hall of Flames, the Hall of Materials, the Hall of Tools, and the Hall of Exhibits—after visiting each one, Kang Qian finally led Qu Yi to the Hall of Formation Tactics.
“Junior brother Qu Yi, I feel you seem quite interested in formation tactics. How about this? I’ll let you enter the Hall of Formation Tactics alone; you can browse through all the treasures inside. But under no circumstances may you take anything out privately. Otherwise, if the master gets angry, even the head instructor won’t be able to protect you,” Kang Qian warned.
“Don’t worry, senior brother Kang Qian. Am I that kind of person? By the way, senior brother Kang Qian, if you’re leaving me here alone, what are you going to do?” Qu Yi asked with a smile.
Kang Qian frowned slightly, wondering why his junior brother would ask such a question. Why did he need to report back on what he was doing?
“I’m going to collect some materials to prepare for crafting the Fire-Piercing Sword,” he said, looking somewhat embarrassed.
He had tried ten times already without success, and he felt quite guilty.
“Senior brother Kang Qian, can I watch you craft the Fire-Piercing Sword?” Qu Yi ignored Kang Qian’s expression and asked directly.
“Ah…” Kang Qian was startled and looked at Qu Yi uneasily, but still said bravely, “Alright, welcome, junior brother. Come and take a look.”
Qu Yi immediately smiled happily, his eyes filled with gratitude.
…
After Kang Qian left, Qu Yi entered the Hall of Formation Tactics alone.
Inside, the formation tactics of the Xianyun Sect were recorded in books—basic formations and fundamental knowledge. As for the established formations, they were stored in various jade slips.
Looking around the domed hall, aside from a small area filled with books, each grid on the walls held a jade slip.
“There are so many formations!” Qu Yi exclaimed in amazement.
“Tch. That’s called many? These worthless formations are only treasured by low-level sects like yours,” the Voice of the Divine Tool suddenly rang out.
Qu Yi was furious but helpless. Compared to the Divine Tool’s mastery of formations, those of the Xianyun Sect could only be called trash.
“Alright, Divine Tool. What do you want me to do now?” Qu Yi asked without arguing.
According to the Divine Tool’s earlier plan, Qu Yi should first get familiar with formations and form a practical understanding before learning its own techniques.
“Go and finish reading those books first,” the Divine Tool said lazily.
Qu Yi had no objections and immediately went over to retrieve the five books in the hall, starting to scan them.

A brief glimpse into formations, formation elements, basic formations, materials for low-level formations, and initial applications of formation magic in artifact crafting—these five books were completely scanned in just a moment, and Qu Yi memorized everything. The moment it was recorded, the Artifact God inside the Tiny Realm also clearly explained the contents of these five books to Qu Yi. It could be said that in just this short time, Qu Yi had fully understood the content of the five books and entered the world of formations. Such a learning speed would probably make others feel ashamed if they knew about it. Although these five books contained only basic knowledge of formations, it would be impossible to fully understand them without at least a year of serious study. But Qu Yi was special—just a moment was enough. “Qu Yi, how is it? After reading these five books, do you have any understanding of formations?” The voice of the Artifact God rang out in his soul. Calmly, Qu Yi put the five books back in their original places before answering, “Artifact God, I now have a basic understanding of formation knowledge. In my mind, I have a general idea that all things in the world can be represented through formations, as if formations are also a way of utilizing the five elements’ energy.” The Artifact God laughed heartily but said nothing. Meanwhile, Qu Yi was processing the formation knowledge he had grasped. All things in the world fall into five categories: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, which interact with each other and coexist. Formations involve arranging specific objects in certain patterns and using the energy of the five elements to create various structures—attack formations, defense formations, trapping formations, illusory formations, and so on—all formed by skillfully applying the energy of the five elements. To learn formations, one must master the basic elements and materials. Without knowing the properties of various materials, it’s impossible to set up correct formations. Without being able to use formation elements flexibly, one cannot draw the patterns required for formations, nor can they understand the internal relationships within them, making it impossible to create correct formations. Qu Yi fell into meditation, his mind continuously recalling various knowledge about formations. The Artifact God did not disturb him, allowing Qu Yi to first gain a basic understanding on his own before teaching him personally, so that he could learn faster. “Junior brother Qu Yi, I’ve prepared my materials. Do you want to watch my artifact crafting process?” Suddenly, Kang Qian returned to the Formation Hall and called out loudly.