Chapter 672: Breaking the Formation with Silver Needles

"There should be!" Luo Qiqi was slightly taken aback by the question but replied, "Grandmaster Wu Yangzi is not only an artifact forger but also, reportedly, a master of body cultivation!"

"Alright then, I'll go!" Zhang Xuan smiled faintly and nodded in agreement.

Artifact forgers have high requirements for their physical bodies; if their strength is insufficient, they won't be able to forge many weapons. Therefore, every artifact forger is essentially an expert in body cultivation. If he could obtain the cultivation art of a 6-star artifact forger, it would definitely be much better than searching in the Illusory Feather Empire.

"Great!"

Luo Qiqi was filled with excitement upon hearing her teacher agree. Although she hadn't spent much time with this teacher, he gave her a feeling of unfathomable depth. With him going along, she would definitely feel much more at ease.

With things settled on their side, Zhang Xuan called out to the others, and Princess Yu Fei-er and the rest came forward.

"Regarding the bet at the Purifying Lake, I lost," Princess Yu Fei-er said, "However, don't think you can control me just because of that!" As soon as she approached, she glared at him through gritted teeth. "I will prepare the spirit stones, but I might only be able to give them to you after we return to the Hongyuan Empire!"

"The Purifying Lake had an unexpected change, so I didn't win, and you didn't lose..." Zhang Xuan said with a smile. "Let's just call it a draw!"

Seeing her like this, and that she had no intention of backing out, Zhang Xuan chuckled. He was the one who caused the Purifying Lake to collapse, and although he had already made compensation, it was still quite awkward. Since the time wasn't up yet and an unexpected change occurred midway, naturally, there was no real winner or loser.

"A draw?" Princess Yu Fei-er was stunned. She had expected the other party to take the opportunity to extort her, make her continue being a maid, or perhaps use harsh words to embarrass her. She never imagined he would simply declare it a draw. Was he... really so generous?

"That's right. Of course, if you're not convinced, we can continue to bet," Zhang Xuan said. "As long as you're willing, I'm always ready!"

Her mouth twitched, and Princess Yu Fei-er quickly shook her head. "No need..." She had just thought he was generous, and then he said that. It seemed it was all an act. "Always ready... Do you think I'm a fool?!" Twice in a row, she had lost everything. If they continued to bet, she probably wouldn't have a single hair left to lose.

"Does anyone else want to bet with me?"

Seeing the woman so frightened, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but shake his head and looked at Xing Yuan and the others. Without anyone to bet with, it meant a loss of income. As he cultivated, his spirit stones would eventually run out.

"No way..." Xing Yuan and the others were startled simultaneously. Betting with you meant almost certain defeat; no one, no matter how foolish, would be so reckless.

"Sigh, there’s no opportunity for them to lose to me!" Seeing that no one dared to bet, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but shake his head. "Are these really top students from the Master Teacher Academy? They don't even dare to bet. Aren't they a bit too weak?"

If the others knew his thoughts, they would surely burst into tears. It's not that they are weak; it's that you are too strong, alright? Others take years to decipher a stone tablet, but you do it in seconds; others absorb spiritual energy from the Purifying Lake in days, but you do it in minutes... Who would knowingly participate when they're certain to lose?

"Let's hurry to the underground palace!" Knowing that Zhang Xuan had a teacher even Hall Master Mo revered, and that his own strength was so formidable, Xing Yuan and the others no longer dared to treat him as an ordinary freshman. Instead, they regarded him as an equal and dared not show the slightest disrespect.

The immediate priority was to find the entrance to the underground palace. After familiarizing themselves with the task, they stopped talking and increased their speed. They bypassed the mountain range in front of them and then entered a wide valley.

"According to the map's description, the underground palace should be here!" Luo Qiqi stopped.

"This place?" Xing Yuan and the others exchanged glances, completely bewildered. The valley before them wasn't very large and looked quite ordinary. It was covered in vegetation, filled with the chirping of birds, and vibrant with life. There was no sign of an underground palace whatsoever. Could the information be wrong, or perhaps they had come to the wrong place?

"Yes," Luo Qiqi affirmed, "the weapon forged using the 'Qin-Playing Forging Method' was discovered here by a hunter. Within three thousand years, seven weapons forged with the same method had appeared in this location. Combined with all the information I've gathered, there must be an underground palace here!"

"But... the spiritual energy here is stable, with no anomalies whatsoever," Xing Yuan and the others frowned. "It doesn't look like there's a formation present?" If there's an unseen underground palace, it means there must be a formation hiding its traces. Yet... the spiritual energy here is stable, without the slightest fluctuation, indicating no signs of a formation.

"Let me investigate," Princess Yu Fei-er stepped forward. "I am a 5-star formation master. I should be able to find and decipher any formation."

"Agreed!" Everyone nodded.

Princess Yu Fei-er flipped her wrist, revealing a compass in her palm. She walked around the valley, searching as she went. A moment later, she stopped. With a flick of her delicate hand, she took out a spear-like spike. It was unclear what it was forged from, but special patterns were carved upon it, emitting an awe-inspiring cold glint.

"This is a Formation-Breaking Silver Needle!" Seeing Ye Qian and the others looking puzzled, Luo Qiqi explained.

"A Formation-Breaking Silver Needle?"

"Yes," Luo Qiqi explained, "some high-level formations absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and hide according to the terrain, making them very difficult to discern. To make them reveal their true form, this item is needed. It has special formation patterns carved on it that can dissipate the spiritual energy stabilizing the formation, causing an imbalance and thereby revealing the formation's true state!"

Everyone understood and nodded simultaneously. Zhang Xuan also acknowledged and looked on with curiosity. He had previously read about Formation-Breaking Silver Needles in books at the Formation Master Guild. They were said to have the effect of breaking formations, and he had thought they could only be found at higher-level Formation Master Guilds. He didn't expect Princess Yu Fei-er to possess one. It seemed they were indeed well-prepared.

After taking out the Formation-Breaking Silver Needle, Princess Yu Fei-er did not rush to act. Instead, she circled a few more times with the compass. She even bent down to feel the soil and pulled out a few wild grasses. Powerful formations can change their weak points based on the surrounding environment. If the most crucial spot isn't found, drawing out any amount of spiritual energy will have no effect on the grand formation. It's like wanting to sink a large ship; one must create a hole in a crucial spot. If the correct spot isn't found, even a large hole in the deck won't have much effect.

"Step back!" After another round of observation, seeming to have found something, Yu Fei-er turned to the others and waved her hand.

Luo Qiqi and the others knew formations were dangerous, so they didn't say much. They retreated and soon arrived outside the valley.

Seeing them leave, Princess Yu Fei-er shed her previous demeanor. Her delicate brows furrowed, and a solemn expression appeared on her face. In an instant, her aura changed, becoming valiant and awe-inspiring, giving off a feeling that no one dared to disrespect her.

"Whoosh!"

With a flick of her wrist, the Formation-Breaking Silver Needle flew out of her hand and plunged vertically into the ground not far from her. Immediately after, she swiftly formed several hand seals with her fingers and sharply pointed. The silver needle immediately began to spin rapidly on the ground. As it spun, the formation patterns on the needle's surface seemed to transform into a vortex absorbing spiritual energy. It swept the surrounding spiritual energy towards its center, finally forming a pillar of spiritual energy that stretched towards the sky.

"The Formation-Breaking Silver Needle can draw out the surrounding spiritual energy," Luo Qiqi explained. "Once the spiritual energy undergoes violent fluctuations, even the most cleverly hidden formations will reveal themselves!"

Zhang Xuan nodded. Formations are maintained by spiritual energy. If the spiritual energy is completely drawn out, they naturally lose balance and reveal their form. It's the same principle as a secret being revealed. The collapse of the Purifying Lake was also due to its balance being broken.

Whirring! Whirring! Whirring!

The silver needle spun faster and faster, drawing out more and more spiritual energy. Soon, beads of sweat appeared on Princess Yu Fei-er's forehead.

"Open!"

With a soft cry, the area around the silver needle shook violently. A mist seemed to appear and disappear intermittently.

"There really is a formation!" Seeing the mist, everyone's eyes lit up. The rising mist was a sign of a formation. Its appearance indicated that a powerful formation was indeed hidden here... In other words, Luo Qiqi's deduction was correct: there was very likely an underground palace here!

Whirring! Whirring! Whirring! Whirring!

At this moment, the silver needle spun even faster, and Princess Yu Fei-er's face was already covered in exhaustion. To have remained hidden for so many years without anyone discovering it, this formation must be of no low rank. Even as a 5-star formation master, she was struggling to hold on.

Exhaling a mouthful of stale air, she stopped. She slumped as if paralyzed, sitting on the ground without a care for her image.

"How is it?" Seeing her state, Luo Qiqi rushed over. She gave her a Recuperation Pill, and only then did her complexion improve slightly.

"There's a level six grand formation here," Princess Yu Fei-er said, "My cultivation isn't high enough yet to fully draw it out!" After a brief adjustment, Princess Yu Fei-er stood up, shaking her head helplessly. She had just used all her strength, but only managed to make the formation appear intermittently. To fully reveal it to everyone was clearly beyond her current capabilities.

"You can't even draw it out? Then how do we get in?" Luo Qiqi frowned. If the formation couldn't even be drawn out, it naturally couldn't be deciphered, let alone entering the underground palace. They had confidently come here, intending to complete the trial, but never dreamed that they would be stopped at the very first step. If they had to return just like this, they would probably be laughed to death by many.

"I don't know either..." Princess Yu Fei-er shook her head. She had thought that with her abilities as a 5-star formation master, even if she couldn't break the formation, making it reveal itself would be simple. To her surprise, after all that effort, she had accomplished nothing, and she couldn't help but look utterly dejected.

"If worst comes to worst, I'll rest a bit and try again..." She gritted her teeth, about to continue speaking, when a faint voice rang out.

"If you try to break the formation like this, it definitely won't work!" Turning to look, they saw Zhang Xuan approaching.

"You also know about breaking formations?" Princess Yu Fei-er snorted upon seeing it was him who spoke. "Since this won't work, do you have any brilliant ideas?"

"It's not exactly a brilliant idea," Zhang Xuan replied. "Since it's confirmed there's a formation, why not just decipher it directly? Why bother drawing it out to reveal its form, adding an extra step?" The goal is to find the hidden underground palace. Wouldn't simply breaking the formation suffice? Why go to all this trouble to make it appear?

"Break it directly? Hmph, do you even understand formations?" Princess Yu Fei-er flicked her sleeve and let out a cold snort.