Chương 99: Rank 1 Formations

I sat with the offer for a moment before I gave him an answer. The only response that made sense was to accept, but I didn't feel comfortable without putting some terms down.

"I accept," I said, "but I have three conditions."

"Oh?" Elder Chen Yong's right eyebrow lifted at that. He probably hadn't expected a disciple at my level to arrive with conditions, which made sense, because most disciples would have been too overwhelmed by the offer itself to remember that they had leverage in any form.

"And what are these conditions?" I took a breath and laid them out.

"First, you can't use any invasive methods on me or try to extract the energy without my permission." He opened his mouth and I held up a hand before he could say anything.

"I know you could probably do it if you wanted to. I just want us both clear on what the boundaries are. Otherwise, this arrangement falls apart quickly." He was quiet for a moment, but then he finally nodded.

"That's fair," he said.

"Though you should know my methods of study have been described as a little unconventional." The way he said the last word made me uncomfortable.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, and I knew my eyes had narrowed slightly.

"I'll probably be drunk most of the time." He said it like it was totally normal.

"It's part of my cultivation method. I see things more clearly through the lens of spiritual wine." I had expected a lot of possible answers to that question. That one had not been high on the list, and yet sitting with it for a second, it fit the man so exactly that I couldn't really argue with it. Different cultivators perceived spiritual phenomena through different frameworks. Some meditated, some fought, some, apparently, drank. As long as whatever he was doing didn't harm me, the specifics weren't my business.

"Okay, that's fine," I said.

"The second condition: you teach me formations properly. I don't want to just memorise patterns. I want to understand the theory behind them."

"Now that's the kind of student I like. Too many disciples just want to memorise patterns without understanding the principles." He leaned forward with an eager expression.

"Did you know that most formation masters don't even realise why triangular configurations are more stable than square ones? It's all about the energy flow vectors and—" He caught himself. I watched him catch himself and thought that he probably would have gone for the next hour if I hadn't been sitting there looking like someone who still had conditions to get through. He coughed.

"Ah, sorry. Got a bit excited. But yes, I'll to teach you proper formation theory." I believed him. That kind of passion wasn't something a person could fake and even if he had wanted to teach me poorly, the part of him that cared about the discipline wouldn't have let him.

"Final condition," I said, fighting back a smile at how quickly his mood had shifted.

"What you learn about me stays between us. You don't report to the Sect Master or any of the other elders about what I carry." His expression grew serious.

"I won't lie to Yuan if he asks me directly," he said, and before I could object, he continued.

"But I won't volunteer information either. And he rarely asks about specific disciples unless something major happens." It wasn't perfect. It was probably the best I was going to get out of a man who clearly had more loyalty to his sect master than he was letting on, and given that I was the one asking him to withhold information from someone he had known for centuries, getting any concession at all was the reasonable outcome here.

"Okay," I said.

"In that case, I accept."

"Perfect." He clapped his hands together and the enthusiasm that had been temporarily sidelined by my conditions came back in full force.

"Let's begin with lesson one." With a wave, the low table between us was cleared. The scrolls and formation diagrams that had been scattered across it vanished, and in their place appeared a clean sheet of formation paper and what looked like standard scribing tools. I recognised the shape of them from the ones I had bought at the Way Station, though these looked considerably better maintained.

"Before we draw anything," he said, settling into his chair, "we need to discuss what formations actually are. Most disciples think they're fancy patterns that make spiritual energy do tricks." He took a sip from his cup.

"They're wrong, of course." I leaned forward. This was the part I had actually been looking forward to.

"Formations," he continued, "are a language, but not the kind you speak or write, they're something more fundamental. They're how we communicate with spiritual energy itself." His eyes took on the distant look of a man who had spent a lot of time thinking about a thing and had gotten used to the fact that most people he explained it to didn't find it as interesting as he did.

"The universe has its own grammar. Its own syntax."

"Its own dialects?" The word had come to mind almost on its own, because I was thinking about how the rune system of the Two Suns World worked differently from what I had seen of formations in the Cultivation World. I had only offered it to see if the principle held.

"Exactly." His eyes lit up.

"Different sects, different regions, even different cultivation realms. They all have their own dialects of formation craft, but the underlying principles remain the same." He held up three fingers.

"Do you know what those principles are?" I shook my head, even though I had some theories based on my experience with runes.

"Intent, Structure, and Resonance." He let each word land on its own.

"Intent is what you want the formation to do. Structure is how you arrange the spiritual geometry to achieve that intent. And Resonance," he paused for another drink, "is how well your formation harmonises with the natural laws of the world." I thought about that for a moment.

"Like how a poorly tuned instrument can still make music, but it won't sound right." This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. He gave me an appraising look that I didn't entirely know what to do with.

"That's actually a decent analogy. Most disciples would have gone for something more martial. A sword technique working better with proper form. Some variation of that."

"Music just seemed more appropriate," I said.

"Formations are about patterns and harmony, aren't they?"

"Yes, they are." His smile widened slightly as he looked at me proudly.

"There are nine levels of formation mastery, each building on the ones before. Today we start with Level 1. The basics." He waved his hand and three objects appeared on the floor between us. A copper disc about the size of my palm, a small jade tile, and what looked like a stick of chalk. Apparently, either chalk or a stylus worked for drawing formations, which was useful to know.

"Level 1 formations are all about foundations," he explained.

"Simple, stable patterns that serve basic functions. The most important of them is the protective barrier. If you can't keep your formation from being disrupted, nothing else you build on top of it matters." He picked up the chalk and began to draw on the stone floor in the relaxed way that I recognised from watching other experts work in their chosen disciplines.

"Watch carefully," he said.

"A basic Protection Barrier has three key components. The outer circle for containment. The inner triangles for stability. The connecting lines for energy flow." I watched. The technique was similar to drawing runes and different from it in the same moment. Where the Two Suns' rune system relied on organic flowing patterns that responded to intent as much as to geometry, these formations felt more structured, more like architecture and less like calligraphy.

"Now you try," he said, erasing his diagram with a wave.

"Steady hand. Consistent pressure. Most importantly, clear intent. The formation needs to know what you want it to do." When I picked up the chalk, my fingers found the grip I had used for rune work without any conscious decision on my part. The underlying principles weren't that different, really, both were about channeling energy through precise patterns, and the body's memory of one transferred reasonably well to the other. I started with the outer circle.

The muscle memory from hours of rune work wanted to take over entirely, and I had to consciously hold it back. Someone seeing me draw a perfect first attempt at a Level 1 formation on my first try would ask questions I didn't want to answer, so I let the circle come out slightly uneven in places. Nothing that would compromise the formation's function, but enough that the work looked like the work of a talented beginner rather than someone with a hidden background.

"Interesting," Chen Yong murmured as I started on the inner triangles.

"Your hand is steadier than I would expect from a complete novice."

"I used to draw a lot," I said, falling back on the cover story I had prepared.

"Back in the village. When I wasn't helping my father at the shop, it helped pass the time."

"Hm." He took another drink, but his eyes stayed on my work.

"And what did you draw?"

"Patterns mostly. I liked how they could produce different effects depending on how you arranged them."

"Well," he said as I added the connecting lines, "it seems to have served you well. Your penmanship is quite good for a beginner. Though your angles could use some work." I nodded and accepted the criticism without argument, because I had deliberately made the triangles slightly uneven to not make him suspect that I'd done something similar before.

"Now," he said, setting the bottle down with a small click of ceramic on wood.

"Let's see if it works. Channel your qi into the copper disc, then place it in the centre of the formation." I did as he instructed. The metal grew warm in my hand as it absorbed the energy I fed it, and when I placed it inside the chalk lines, the lines started to glow faintly, a soft white at first, then steadying.

"It works," he said.

"Good start, but a Level 1 practitioner needs to master at least three basic formations. The protective barrier is just the beginning." He moved the copper disc aside.

"Next is the Light Formation. Simple but essential. Every formation practitioner needs to be able to see what they're doing." He began drawing. The pattern that came out looked like a simplified sun with radiating lines, more elegant than I had expected from how he had described it.

"The key here is balanced energy distribution," he said as he worked.

"Too much power to any one section and you get uneven light. Too little and it won't activate at all." I watched him explain each component. The central core for energy concentration. The radiating lines for distribution. The outer circle for containment, which seemed to be a recurring feature across most of these patterns.

"Your turn." He erased his work with a wave. I drew the central core with the precision I had learned from rune work, incorporating the focusing principles I already knew into the structure he had just demonstrated. The patterns complemented each other better than I would have expected.

"Interesting approach." He tilted his head slightly as he studied what I had produced.

"Your lines are quite precise, and the energy flow pattern is unusually efficient for a beginner." I channelled my qi into it, and a soft blue light spread through the formation and lit up the area around us.

"Very good," he said.

"Now for the third essential formation. The Qi Gathering Circle. This one is a little trickier than it looks, so watch carefully." The chalk moved again. What emerged was more complex than either of the previous patterns, nested circles with lines spiralling inward toward the centre.

"This formation draws in spiritual energy from the surroundings and concentrates it in the centre," he said.

"Useful for cultivation, though the effect at Level 1 is fairly weak. Don't expect it to benefit anyone above Qi Condensation stage three." The spiraling configuration was a near-exact inversion of certain rune patterns I'd worked with extensively, the principle of energy flow identical and the direction of it reversed, and I filed that away as something worth thinking about later. I spaced the spiral arms for optimal flow. He watched me work without commenting until I was finished.

"Good," Chen Yong nodded.

"The basic structure is sound. Now for the real test." He pulled out another bottle from somewhere and took a long drink before continuing.

"Every Level 1 formation practitioner must prove they can create a barrier strong enough to withstand a direct strike from a third-stage Qi Condensation beast for ten seconds."

"We're testing it now?"

"Of course, theory is one thing, but application is another." Before I could ask any more questions, the world compressed. It was the same spatial technique he'd used earlier. When everything settled, we were standing in a clearing at the edge of a forest.

"Inner sect beast training grounds," Chen Yong said. He didn't appear to find the transition worth acknowledging.

"You'll be testing the Protection Barrier against Hong Yue." The trees at the clearing's edge swayed without any wind to account for it, and I felt the pressure of something large through the ground before I saw anything. Then she came through the treeline. The scale of the crimson bear was the first thing I noticed. Twenty feet, if I was measuring generously downward. But the part that stopped me from completing any of the assessments I'd started was her eyes.

They glowed with an intelligence that felt almost human, full of curiosity and was that amusement?

"Hong Yue is one of our most experienced training partners," Chen Yong explained.

"She assists with formations testing and combat assessment for inner disciples." Hong Yue's head tilted slightly as she studied me like I was being catalogued and filed. Then she raised one enormous paw and began to gesture. First, she pointed at the empty ground in front of me. Next, she indicated herself, following the motion with an unmistakable charge mime. Finally, she drew one massive claw across her own throat while maintaining direct eye contact with me.

"Ah, yes." Chen Yong chuckled.

"I should mention that Hong Yue has developed quite the theatrical flair over the years. She likes to make sure test participants understand exactly what they're getting into." The bear's mouth curved into what could only be described as a smirk. She repeated the sequence of gestures, adding a graceful bow at the end, as though to ensure I had fully appreciated the performance.

"Is she really just a third-stage beast?" I asked, trying to keep my voice level despite the aura that was rolling off her in waves I could feel in my chest.

"Oh my." Chen Yong's eyes sparkled.

"Did I say third-stage? How forgetful of me. Hong Yue actually reached the ninth stage last month. But don't worry. She's excellent at holding back." Hong Yue's grin widened. The teeth that grin revealed were about the size of daggers, and she held up four massive claws, then slowly lowered one, nodding to show that she understood the handicap she would be operating under.

"You might want to start drawing," Chen Yong suggested.

"Hong Yue gets a bit creative when disciples take too long." As though to demonstrate the point, the bear began pantomiming various ways she might break through a barrier. The performance was surprisingly detailed. She included exaggerated expressions of surprise and terror for the hypothetical disciple inside the barrier, which in this case would be me.

"Your pet," I said carefully as I knelt down with the chalk, "seems to enjoy her work."

"Of course she does." Chen Yong beamed.

"Why do you think I keep her around? The entertainment value alone justifies the spirit stones I spend on honey." Hong Yue paused the dramatic performance long enough to nod enthusiastically, then went straight back to what appeared to be her impression of me running away screaming.

"Ten seconds," I muttered to myself as I began the outer circle.

"Just ten seconds." Behind me, I heard a sound that shouldn't have been possible for a bear to produce. It was a slow, rhythmic ticking noise, a very clear and very deliberate tick-tock, and her shadow fell across the workspace as she leaned in to watch. I could feel the grin without looking up.

"Master," Azure said quietly in the back of my mind, "I believe we may have slightly underestimated the complexity of formation testing at this sect." I couldn't argue with that. I took a deep breath and focused on the formation. It needed to be good, because dealing with a ninth-stage beast didn't leave much room for sloppy work, handicapped or not.

"Just a Level 1 formation test," I said under my breath as I worked on the foundation triangles.

"Perfectly normal. Nothing unusual about being watched by a giant bear who has just given me death threats through interpretive dance." Hong Yue made a sound that could only be described as a snicker. This was going to be a very interesting ten seconds.