Those eliminated from the first phase were dismissed with speed and efficiency. Servants of the Jade Palace, dressed in jade-green robes, circulated along the outer edge of the Celestial Plaza, guiding the defeated participants toward the side exits.
Many chose to remain in the common stands, they still wanted to watch the rest of the tournant, learn from the survivors, or simply not miss the chance to see Qing Lanyue up close.
Others left with their heads lowered, carrying spiritual injuries or visible frustration. In less than ten minutes, the arena was clean again, and the ninety survivors occupied the central disc, exhausted but determined.
Qing Lanyue did not waste ti.
She raised her right hand once more. From her spatial ring, two hundred and seventy basic tal plates, reinforced iron engraved with simple runes, without jade or precious materials, erged in a controlled whirlwind. They spun around her like a silent hurricane, reflecting the diffused light in dull and cold tones.
She remained at the center of the main disc, her bright green hair rippling slightly with the movent of the plates.
"Then, let us begin the second phase."
Her cold voice cut through the air again.
"I will deliver three random formation plates to each of the ninety participants. You have two hours to form three complete formations."
"They will be chosen based on the plates you receive. You will also receive enough spirit stones to assemble each formation and keep them active."
A noble beside Kyrian whispered, his voice heavy with respect.
"It is possible to assemble a formation using only one’s own Qi as fuel, but it is best to use spirit stones to maintain it. Otherwise, they would have to keep feeding the first formation while trying to form the second."
"Not everyone can do what Miss Qing Lanyue does, fueling a giant barrier with only her own Qi, calmly."
i Li listened and nodded slightly, understanding the trial.
The whirlwind of plates intensified for a mont. Then, as if obeying a silent command, the two hundred and seventy plates flew in precise lines.
Three plates for each of the ninety participants. They landed gently in front of each participant, forming small, organized triangles on the ground of the disc.
Qing Lanyue made an elegant leap. In a single movent, she rose to the top of the tallest pillar, hovering above everyone.
From there, with a complete view of the arena, she observed like a cold and distant goddess. So gazes from the crowd remained fixed on her, many young cultivators preferred to admire her beauty rather than pay attention to the tournant. But Kyrian did not. His crimson eyes were already fixed on the ninety survivors.
The second phase began.
Kyrian shifted his focus to old Ming. The independent formation master who had exited the barrier in four minutes. The man with the thin white beard and worn gray robes was seated in a lotus position before his three plates.
He analyzed them for less than ten seconds, eyes half-closed, fingers tracing invisible runes in the air as if he already knew what to do.
The three plates were simple keys to formations. One of basic concealnt, one of Qi concentration, and one of movent restraint. Nothing high rank. But Ming did not hesitate.
Before him, there was a small pile of low-grade spirit stones, it was the fuel provided by Qing Lanyue. Stones less rich in Qi, to make the trial even more difficult.
He picked up the first plate, the concealnt one, and placed it on the ground in front of him. He spread the stones around it in a precise circular pattern, sat exactly over the central plate, and released his Qi.
The process was slow but fluid.
The stones began to glow. Ming’s Qi spread like a thin mist, enveloping the runes of the plate.
Gradually, a concealnt formation ford, not visible to the naked eye but perceptible to those who understood. In exactly twenty minutes, old Ming’s body completely disappeared from everyone’s sight.
Well, from everyone except those with advanced cultivation or special eyes.
Kyrian saw clearly.
The old man had not vanished. He was still there, seated, breathing calmly. But the concealnt formation distorted the light and Qi around him, making him invisible and almost undetectable. Kyrian nodded internally.
The crowd exploded into excited murmurs. It was the first ti many there had seen a formation being assembled live, in real ti. So shouted in excitent. Others simply watched, open-mouthed.
The disciple of the Cloud Academy was the second to complete the first formation.
He also sat over his central plate, one of the basic protective barriers. His Qi drew blue lines in the air, connecting to the plate. In twenty-eight minutes, a translucent barrier rose around him, small but solid, Peak Rank 3. He did not waste ti and imdiately began the second formation, one of Qi concentration.
Throughout the first hour, dozens of formations began to arise in the arena.
So were simple defensive barriers. Others, illusion traps that made the air shimr. A young man ford a movent restraint formation that trapped his own feet by accident, he laughed nervously while undoing the mistake.
An elderly woman assembled a Qi purification formation that glowed like an aurora borealis. Many took nearly an entire hour to form just one formation, the ntal consumption was high, and the fear of making a mistake made their movents hesitant.
anwhile, old Ming was nearly completing his second formation.
He had moved on to the Qi concentration plate. The stones around him were already half depleted. The consumption was great. His Qi spread once again, denser this ti. The ambient Qi began to be pulled into the formation until it was ready. In forty-two minutes, the second formation was complete.
He did not stop.
He moved directly to the third, the movent restraint one. This ti, the process was even faster. He used the residual Qi from the previous formations to feed the new one. At fifty-five minutes, the third formation was completed. A network of invisible threads that bound anything that touched the ground around him.
Old Ming opened his eyes.
Three formations are active at the sa ti. Low rank, but perfectly executed. He was among the first to complete all three.
Kyrian watched attentively.
Others also stood out.
The disciple of the Cloud Academy finished his second formation in fifty minutes. He began the third, an offensive barrier that launched needles of energy.
An unknown young woman, in purple robes, assembled three illusion formations in sequence, each more complex than the previous one. She finished in one hour and two minutes, exhausted but victorious.
Many, however, were still struggling with the first.
A young man exploded his formation plate due to a sequence error. Another fainted from ntal exhaustion after trying to feed two formations at the sa ti.
Ti ran on as the tournant continued.
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