Zhang Yuanqing staggered back, clutching his face and cursing, "For heaven's sake, my titanium alloy eyes are blind! That sword aura was incredibly sharp." The chief of Zhishik Palace, who had initially been startled and had instinctively reached for her life-source liquid to treat him, exhaled a sigh of relief upon hearing the force and conviction in his voice—such strong, clear exclamations indicated that the injury wasn't severe. Zhang Yuanqing drew out the mountain god's staff, activated the jade-green gem at its tip to stop the bleeding, then settled into a meditative posture, waiting for his eyes to heal. "What did you see?" Fu Qingyang asked. With his eyes closed, Zhang Yuanqing replied, "Lights—floating above my head, shaped like the traditional Kongming lanterns, glowing with a pale green flame. There are many of them. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that their arrangement follows a certain pattern..." The Magi-Eyed King pressed on, "What kind of pattern?" After a moment's thought, Zhang Yuanqing said, "The arrangement of these lanterns resembles the Seven Stars of the Big Dipper." A celestial official, naturally most attuned to and familiar with celestial patterns "The Seven Stars of the Big Dipper..." Xue Hou Ao Tian raised an eyebrow. "Could it be the Seven-Star Formation?" Upon hearing the term "formation," the others fell silent, yielding their voices to the protagonist. Xue Hou Ao Tian lifted his chin proudly, like a proud rooster: "The Seven-Star Formation is one of the layout techniques, inspired by the Seven Stars of the Big Dipper. You can think of it as a mold—what's placed inside depends entirely on the operator. Examples include the Seven-Star Fire Formation, Seven-Star Sword Formation, Seven-Star Bow Formation, Seven-Star Ghost Formation, and so on. I've read that ancient noble clans and major sects often devoted themselves to studying formations, leveraging their numbers and geographical advantages to achieve remarkable results. A well-designed formation can prove exceptionally effective when facing strong enemies attacking a mountain stronghold—therefore, it's no surprise that a grand sect like Shu Mountain would have such formations." "What about ways to break or counter such formations?" Magi-Eye King, growing slightly impatient as Xue Hou Ao Tian began to lecture with confidence, asked. Xue Hou Ao Tian stood with his arms folded. "It's quite simple—the weakness of every formation All seven-star arrays have their weakness at the stars 'Xuan Ge' and 'Zhao Yao.' 'Xuan Ge' and 'Zhao Yao?' King Mago's brow furrowed slightly. Before Xiaohu Ao Tian could explain, Zhang Yuanqing stepped in first: "Hidden along the extension of the handle of the Big Dipper are two stars—Xuan Ge and Zhao Yao." Xiaohu Ao Tian gave him a disapproving glance and quickly added, "Correct. Once you locate these two stars, you can break the array. However, the array's arranger conceals these two stars representing the array's core points, making it quite difficult to find." Fu Qingyang, after listening, looked at Zhang Yuanqing meditating in lotus position and asked, "Yuan Shi, is there any further information?" Zhang Yuanqing replied, "I didn't see the enemy. As usual, I began exploring, but after only a few steps, a Kongming lantern descended and disrupted my progress. I destroyed that lantern, and then lost contact with the Yin Shi. My eyes were also pierced and blinded." Xiaohou Aotian stroked his chin and offered his opinion: "It must be the mechanism that activates the array. However, it only hinders progress by lowering the lamps, without directly attacking—this suggests it's not a fatal mechanism. Ah, I wasn't there. Otherwise, I would have certainly identified the pattern." This was his forte. If it were him, he would have spotted the array's operational rhythm within half a minute—unfortunately, Yuanshizhentian was simply not up to par. "How is it that attacks directed at the shadow corpses are somehow reflected back onto the main body?" Fu Qingyang was more concerned with the array's mode of attack. "Given Yuanshizhentian's current condition—his eyes damaged—two streams of sword energy struck him. I've never seen such an unusual form of attack before." Upon hearing this, the Chief of Zhishi Palace expressed curiosity: "Even the Marshal couldn't achieve this?" Fu Qingyang nodded: "Strictly speaking, it's the unique quality of the sword intent that's at play. The sword energy itself is pure energy, while the sword intent reflects the stylistic essence of the swordsman. Every master of swordcraft who has reached Different sword intentions manifest in distinct attack methods. "Just like my strikes—unyielding, relentless, charging straight ahead—no matter how strong the marshal is, he can never replicate my sword intent," Xue Hou Ao Tian added. "Not only strikes, but even your life-sacrificing sword technique—others simply can't learn it either," he continued. Fu Qingyang glanced at him with a touch of irritation. "Do you always have so much to say?" In truth, his life-sacrificing sword technique was an advanced form of strike, made possible precisely because it disregarded life and pressed forward without hesitation, thus enabling the life-sacrifice. The Mage-Eyed Emperor stood upright, gazing steadily toward the third level, steering the conversation back on track. "If we're talking about formations, then the significance of the shadow corpses probing the way becomes questionable. The Primordial Sovereign lacks formation expertise—he dies no matter how many he sends, and his reserves of shadow corpses cannot withstand such continuous losses," he remarked. The Stiller of the Killing Palace said, "No matter how many shadow corpses we have, if they cannot break through the formations, their value is negligible. According to the intelligence compiled by the Primordial Sovere But we still need to probe further to understand why Xiaohou Aotian's drone fleet has been attacked—we can't yet act too hastily. "No need to overthink!" Xiaohou Aotian lifted his chin. "Since it's a formation, it's no surprise that my drone fleet has been struck. A formation functions like a domain—only by following the correct path and reaching safe zones can one remain unharmed. It's entirely normal for the drones to scatter and trigger danger." At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing, whose eyes had regenerated, opened his eyes and looked at Fu Qingyang. "Good thing we have a scholar in our team, leader—shall we go in directly?" Fu Qingyang nodded slightly, issuing calm orders: "Xiaohou Aotian leads the way, with the Magi's Hall following. Yuanshǐ, I'll stay with you to protect the Palace Master." Soon, the group formed a straight line and advanced under Xiaohou Aotian's leadership, entering the film. Suddenly, the scene transformed—candles burning with a sickly green flame floated in the air, suspended three zhang above their heads, just within easy reach. A simple leap would allow them to touch. The flames cast a惨 green glow on their faces, as if they were immersed in the bustling, vibrant underworld. The black smoke here was equally dense, yet the numerous Kongming lanterns served effectively as lighting sources, allowing Zhang Yuanqing to no longer expend the power of the Sun God. Xiahou Aotian's eyes reflected the countless lanterns drifting above, and after a moment's contemplation, he retrieved a mechanical automaton from his inventory and guided it to move to the right. After walking about ten steps, the automaton suddenly shattered into four fragments, its break points clean and precise, as though severed by a sharp blade. Yet no one saw where the attack came from, nor clearly observed the manner of the assault. Only Fu Qingyang perceived the subtle details, and said solemnly: "It was a surge of sword energy descending from the sky. The automaton was struck precisely at the moment it detached from the candlelight." Xiahou Aotian lowered his gaze, his tone equally serious: "It is indeed the Seven-Star Array. Look carefully—there are seven lanterns arranged in a line, connected by slender, ribbon-like lamps that form a shape resembling a spoon. Doesn't that resemble the Big Dipper?" The group followed his guidance, silently visualizing the formation, and indeed, it did resemble a spoon. The Master of Zhishi Palace, standing close to Zhang Yuanqing, spoke softly and pleasantly: "Then, how shall I find the center of the array?" "Center of the array?" Xiahou Aotian chuckled. "For now, just focus on surviving within the array itself. This Seven-Star Array is nourished by negative qi—it's not only dangerous, but increasingly so. Every extra second you linger might mean death." The Master of Zhishi Palace smiled warmly: "With you, the extraordinary prodigy of the Xiahou family, here, what could possibly scare me? Surely, this Seven-Star Array can't be beyond your reach." "Oh—well…" Xiahou Aotian was suddenly lifted off his feet, eager to offer his assurance, yet feeling uncertain. To admit defeat seemed impossible, and he found himself particularly uncomfortable They had to shift their focus to the array and analyzed, saying, "Our current position is the Kaiyang star among the seven stars of the Big Dipper. We know that if we wander aimlessly, lanterns will descend to block our path. Beyond that, we're not certain about any other dangers." Fu Qingyang replied calmly, "Then let's try again." He also retrieved a defensive mechanical automaton and performed the art of puppetry, moving his fingers in sequence to command it forward. After walking a few steps—four or five—the automaton indeed had a lantern descend to block its path ahead. Fu Qingyang guided the automaton to maneuver around the lantern. Just as it had advanced a few more steps, a burst of fragmentation occurred at the automaton's chest, leaving a clear, hollow space visible from front to back. Fu Qingyang's gaze sharpened, and he was the first to recognize, "The attack originates from the lanterns. When they descend to obstruct us, it's a warning. If we ignore them or attack them directly, they will ultimately extinguish us." He looked up at the dense cluster of lanterns overhead and said, "These lanterns are not mere props—they are capable of such powerful and formidable attacks Zhang Yuanqing held his chest with one hand and tapped his jaw with the other: "We can't move beyond the area illuminated by the lights—we're simply stuck here? How about trying the technique of vanishing?" Xiahou Aotian shook his head: "No need. An advanced array wouldn't have such a flaw. Moreover, based on my understanding of the Seven-Star Array, it's certainly not that simple. There must be other hidden dangers within the array—standing still won't guarantee safety forever. But the crisis hasn't yet erupted, and I still can't discern the pattern." "Then let's test the intensity of the attack before the crisis breaks out." Zhang Yuanqing produced the Little Red Hat, summoning a spectral corpse, then retrieved the set of purple-gold armor, having the corpse don the full suit. He stepped forward resolutely, deliberately disrupting the hanging lanterns that had come down to block his path. "Crash!" A blade of energy descended, shattering the protective shield of the purple-gold armor, splashing the pale golden metal liquid in all directions, and cleaving the spectral corpse in two. Zhang Yuanqing arched his head back, his eyes bursting once more. The Master of the Halt the Kill Palace quickly reached for the Pot of Spirit Transformation, poured out a liquid of purple-golden hue, and treated his injuries. Zhang Yuanqing wiped blood from his face. "The attack intensity is mid-to-peak level eight. The magical eyes can barely withstand it through sheer physical strength. However, if struck by multiple sword attacks simultaneously, he will face life-threatening danger." As for the others—there was no need to elaborate. They were certain to die. Zhang Yuanqing waved his hand, and the scattered purple-golden liquid flowed toward him, enveloping him completely to form a full-body armor of purple and gold. In this state, activated with the Flame-Sun War God form, he could just barely withstand a single strike. Although such strength was quite typical for a level-eight master in a level-eight dominion quest, the seven level-eight masters present still couldn't help but tighten their nerves, their adrenaline rising. At that moment, though there was no wind, the celestial lantern above suddenly drifted eastward, its pale green glow swiftly receding. Fu Qingyang said solemnly, "Follow it. Don't lose the light Everyone had noticed this change. As Fu Qingyang opened his mouth to issue a warning, he had already begun running toward the east. Yet, as the group took a step forward, despite still being within the reach of the light, sharp blades of sword energy descended upon them, pouring down like a relentless rain. The heavens had unleashed its killing force!