Breaking through the illusion of the mortal world

Chapter 93 Six Yi Eight Trigrams

Within the stone chamber, the power of nothingness flowed. Lu Ming knew that prolonged confinement would inevitably lead to danger, and Ning Qingxue was severely injured and unable to move. The responsibility of breaking the deadlock rested entirely on his shoulders.

He took out the Spirit Gathering Pill and Qi Strengthening Pill given to him by the Zhenwu Sect from his storage bag and swallowed them together, then clutched several top-grade spirit stones tightly.

The medicinal power of the pills and the spiritual energy of the spirit stones surged into the meridians, and the five elements of martial arts circulated endlessly.

In less than half an incense stick's time, his body was fully replenished, and his aura reached its peak.

Ning Qingxue leaned against the cold, hard stone wall, watching him quietly regulate his breathing, her doubts growing stronger.

The oppressive power here completely sealed off even her supreme demonic technique, the "Seven Emotions and Separation Scripture," preventing her from using any of her magical power. However, Lu Ming was not only unaffected by the restrictions, but his spiritual power circulated freely.

Once his cultivation was fully restored, Lu Ming drew his Cloud Snow sword, its azure light piercing the darkness of the stone chamber.

Having no way to break the formation, he could only resort to the most clumsy method: Lu Ming swung his sword at the surrounding stone walls, each strike causing the stone chamber to vibrate and hum.

Fearing that the aftershocks of the sword energy might harm Ning Qingxue, Lu Ming raised his hand and conjured a layer of Xuan Yuan protective shield, firmly protecting her from the rampaging sword energy.

Seeing him swinging his sword wildly, Ning Qingxue frowned slightly, feeling a headache coming on. She thought to herself: This hothead has no sense of technique at all. How can he break the formation by slashing like this?

Lu Ming, however, was completely focused, slashing with each sword strike while carefully sensing the feedback from the stone wall.

Finally, on the west side of the stone chamber, they noticed something unusual. The stone wall here was slightly loose, which should be a weak point in the stone wall.

A golden light flashed in Lu Ming's eyes, and all the Dao Martial True Qi around him poured into the Cloud Snow Sword. The sword's azure light surged, transforming into a form capable of splitting mountains and cleaving seas, and a low roar reverberated throughout the stone chamber:

"Rending the Universe!"

This sword strike, imbued with all his cultivation, was incredibly powerful and fierce, and slammed heavily into the stone wall!

boom!

The violent sword energy scattered in all directions, and the power of nothingness was shaken into chaos, yet the stone wall remained completely still, without even leaving a trace.

Only the luminous pearl above their heads was shaken and its light flickered wildly, while the originally dim patterns on the stone wall suddenly lit up with golden light as the sword energy struck.

The light crisscrossed and shifted, as if it had come alive.

Ning Qingxue's pupils contracted slightly, her heart filled with shock and disbelief. The power of Lu Ming's sword strike was approaching that of a Nascent Soul cultivator's full-force attack!

His Daoist cultivation was only at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, plus the Five Qi Realm of Martial Arts.

Although the Five Qi Realm corresponds to the Nascent Soul Realm in Daoist teachings, Lu Ming clearly only recently entered the Five Qi Realm, yet he possesses such terrifying combat power.

Her supreme demonic cultivation method was rendered useless in this terrain, while Lu Ming walked on flat ground. Just how heaven-defying was this guy's cultivation method and foundation?

Seeing that the stone wall was completely undamaged, Lu Ming, who had been filled with hope, suddenly plummeted to the bottom of the valley. He stood there with his sword hanging down, looking dejected.

Just as he was in despair, Ning Qingxue stared thoughtfully at the flowing array patterns and the light and shadow of the luminous pearl.

"Don't just stand there."

Ning Qingxue spoke, her voice weak, "Your sword strike disturbed the array patterns. The stone chamber contains a grand array based on the Eight Trigrams and transformed by the Six Changes."

Lu Ming turned his head blankly: "The Eight Trigrams of the Primordial Era? The Six Changes?"

Ning Qingxue stood up, supporting herself against the wall, and lightly touched the shimmering patterns with her fingertips, saying:

"The Eight Trigrams of the Earlier Heaven, Qian for Heaven, Kun for Earth, Zhen for Thunder, Xun for Wind, Kan for Water, Li for Fire, Gen for Mountain, and Dui for Lake, determine the eight directions and form the basis of the formation."

"The Six Changes are the core of the Yi Dao (the Way of Change): Change, Simplicity, Immutability, Exchange, Mutual Exchange, and Reversal. They govern the flow of time in formations and are the application of formations."

She traced the array's patterns with her fingertips: "This array uses the Eight Trigrams of the Primordial Era to solidify the eight directions, and the Six Changes to drive the circulation of the array's cores. The cores constantly change according to the directions of the Eight Trigrams and the sequence of the Six Changes, with each link interconnected."

"It may seem like there's no way out, but when the energy flows and aligns at the core of the array, a path to survival will open up. Your sword strike just now just happened to trigger the array patterns to manifest."

Lu Ming scratched his head awkwardly: "I...I know absolutely nothing about formations. When I was cultivating at the Taoist academy, I only focused on the techniques, and I never delved into the fundamental principles of Taoist formations and formations."

Ning Qingxue froze for a moment, then frowned and stared at him speechlessly.

Ning Qingxue then spoke with disbelief in her voice:

"You're a disciple of the Taoist academy? The Eight Trigrams and the Six Changes are the most fundamental Taoist scriptures, yet you know absolutely nothing about them?"

"Moreover, your cultivation in Daoist arts is only at the Foundation Establishment stage, but your martial arts cultivation has already reached the Five Qi Realm, and your body tempering is even more perfect."

"You said you're not a disciple of the True Martial Sect, but from the Daoist Academy?"

"Hmph! You look honest, but you never tell the truth!"

Lu Ming was speechless and didn't know how to refute her.

"I'm not lying. I studied at the Dao Academy for six years, then had a fortuitous encounter, and practiced martial arts diligently for over thirty years, day and night, to achieve this level of skill," Lu Ming explained after a moment's thought.

Ning Qingxue rolled her eyes at him.

"You mean, you've cultivated martial arts at the academy for over thirty years, achieved perfect body tempering, and even entered the Five Qi Realm?"

"Why don't you go to the True Martial Sect and see if anyone there has reached the Great Perfection of the Body Tempering Realm within a hundred years of cultivation?"

"You don't need to explain to me if you don't want to, but can you please stop treating me like an idiot?"

After saying that, Ning Qingxue turned her head and snorted coldly.

"I'm not lying to you, I really am from the Dao Academy," Lu Ming hurriedly explained.

Ning Qingxue glanced back at him, looking at him with the eyes of someone looking at a liar, or even someone looking at a fool.

It's as if to say, "Who are you trying to fool with your clumsy acting?"

For some reason, Lu Ming felt a little guilty under that gaze.

He didn't need to explain, much less make Ning Qingxue believe him. But Lu Ming's usual composure faltered several times after seeing Ning Qingxue, causing him to lose control of his emotions.

Ning Qingxue sighed helplessly. This was not the time to argue, so she could only concentrate on studying the array patterns on her own.

From a young age, she read extensively in ancient books of the Lihentian Palace, and was familiar with the principles of Yi Jing and formations.

Her gaze raced between the eight trigrams and the six patterns of divination, her fingertips lightly tracing the flow of energy within the array, silently calculating the patterns of its movement:

"The numbers of the Eight Trigrams in the Earlier Heaven are: Qian 1, Dui 2, Li 3, Zhen 4, Xun 5, Kan 6, Gen 7, Kun 8. The array's core follows the 'change' sequence of the Six Changes, shifting its position once per breath, with mutual and reverse changes alternating, resulting in a constantly fluctuating and chaotic arrangement of positions..."

A moment later, she looked up at Lu Ming and said, "You greenhorn, come here and inject your spiritual power into the direction I'm pointing to. Don't force it; just activate the array patterns."

Lu Ming quickly stepped forward.

"The Qian position in the south."

The array patterns flickered for a moment, then dimmed, and the array's core shifted to the Dui position.

"Westward position, quick!"

Once, ten times, fifty times...

The formation's core shifts constantly with the changes of the Six Changes, with Qian, Dui, Li, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Gen, and Kun cycling back and forth. Furthermore, due to the principles of mutual and reverse exchange, the positions are repeatedly reversed, with each link interlocking with the next. The slightest mistake will render all previous efforts futile.

Ning Qingxue frowned, constantly deducing and correcting her actions. Lu Ming followed her instructions, his spiritual energy gradually consuming, but he dared not slacken in the slightest.

On the hundredth attempt, Ning Qingxue's eyes suddenly lit up:

"The North (Kun) position and the East (Li) position are simultaneously infused with spiritual energy! This aligns with the principles of maintaining balance and interconnectedness in the Six Changes!"

Lu Ming immediately placed his palms on two opposite sides, steadily channeling his spiritual energy into them.

hum!

All the array patterns in the stone chamber burst forth with a faint golden light, the innate Bagua patterns were connected end to end, and the light of the Six Changes flowed like water, instantly activating the base of the great array!

The western stone wall trembled violently, and the originally smooth, mirror-like stone surface slowly cracked open. The cracks widened and widened until they finally formed a stone gate large enough for one person to pass through.

Lu Ming looked at the opened stone door with surprise in his eyes, then turned to look at Ning Qingxue with admiration.

"You're amazing!"

Ning Qingxue merely glanced at him indifferently, maintaining her haughty and aloof demeanor.