The formation disks and jade slips were ready to use at any time. Liu Xiaolou and Liu Daoran each infused their true qi into them, picked out three with better spiritual quality, and began etching formation talismans according to the plan they had agreed on.
Etching formation talismans had to be done in one continuous flow. If it was interrupted, the talisman would come out broken, nothing more than a “dead object,” unable to function properly.
The Li Nine Palace Micro Formation was extremely complex. Each of its three talisman types required nearly a hundred lines, far more intricate than the Abyssal Blackstone talismans Liu Xiaolou had worked on before. With his current cultivation, he simply couldn’t etch it all in one go. That was exactly why Tang Song hadn’t allowed him to refine the formation disk himself.
So the task of etching the talismans was handed to Liu Daoran.
Liu Daoran was fully absorbed in the work. His technique was smooth and practiced, and the way he handled beginnings, connections, and turns in the lines showed great skill. Watching him, Liu Xiaolou kept nodding, leaning in closer to study carefully.
“Brother?”
“Mm?”
“Did I miss something in the etching?”
“Oh, no, no. Just learning.”
“You’re joking, brother. Your cultivation may be shallow, but when it comes to formations, you far surpass me.”
“Brother Daoran, you’re too modest. What technique is that you’re using?”
“Forgive me for making you laugh. This is the Method of Heaven’s Origin, Beginning to End.”
“I must be terribly ignorant. I’ve never even heard of it.”
“No wonder. It’s a secret method passed down only within my sect. Outsiders rarely know of it. To be honest, it seems I have no other strengths left; only this technique is still worth showing.”
“Brother Daoran, this one method alone could be passed down for generations.”
“I’m ashamed, truly ashamed.”
Since coming up the mountain, Liu Daoran had taken one blow after another. Most of his old pride had already been crushed, and his words now carried little confidence.
But while he spoke without confidence, the Method of Heaven’s Origin, Beginning to End was no ordinary thing. Liu Xiaolou was deeply tempted by it. Still, since it was a secret technique of another sect, and since the two of them did not share any true bond of trust, he dared not press for details.
It took Liu Daoran three full days, working day and night, to finish etching the Cloudscape Talisma formation disk. Even with his cultivation at the eighth layer, he was completely drained, and collapsed into sleep the moment it was done.
Liu Xiaolou had been observing for three days, carefully studying the technique. Feeling that he had learned well enough by watching, he seized the chance while Liu Daoran was fast asleep, took up a jade tablet, and tried his hand at etching the Three Treasures True Cloud Talisman formation disk. To his credit, the skills he had just picked up served him quite well. His control of the finger techniques improved noticeably, and the talisman lines he etched grew more refined. Faint yet steady, light yet firm.
That subtle balance, faint yet distinct, was precisely what a formation master sought when carving talisman lines. If the lines came out too sharp, they looked clumsy and heavy. If they were too airy, the flow of true qi would break apart too easily. Either way, the talismans would fail when fused into spiritual materials. Lord Xingde had once taught him only the rudiments of talisman-carving, and at the time Liu Xiaolou hadn’t even been ready to begin. Green Bamboo, on the other hand, had never cared much for these technical details, preferring to focus on the principles and structure of formations.
This time, by watching Liu Daoran so closely, Liu Xiaolou had finally made up for that gap. He had gained a great deal, even touching the threshold of that elusive “faint yet distinct” state.
Unfortunately, when he was only a fifth of the way through, the delicate talisman line snapped. It wasn’t because his cultivation was lacking or his qi insufficient. He had prepared thoroughly, with two spirit stones in hand ready to replenish himself at any moment. The problem was that while using this technique, his reserves of true qi simply couldn't keep up.
And so, the jade tablet was ruined.
Every jade tablet that could serve as the base of an formation disk was brimming with spirituality, far from ordinary jade. Each was worth anywhere from three or four spirit stones to well over a dozen. To waste one like this was truly a pity. Even though Liu Xiaolou didn’t owe anyone compensation, he still felt a pang of real heartache.
What a waste! He slapped himself hard across the face.
Why was it that his true qi was sufficient, yet he couldn’t keep it flowing? No matter how he turned it over in his mind, he couldn’t accept it. Unwilling to give up, he chose another jade tablet and started over from the beginning.
He worked through the night, but this time he didn’t even reach his previous progress. Barely one and a half tenths of the plate was done before his qi once again failed to continue.
While he ached over wasting yet another jade tablet, he finally understood the problem. Liu Daoran’s Method of Heaven’s Origin, Beginning to End must have its own secret for managing the flow of qi. It was a simple truth, but one he only realized after ruining two jade tablets. Such is the path of cultivation. Whatever path you walk, wealth and resources are always the foundation that supports it.
Knowing this, Liu Xiaolou no longer tried to force the matter. Instead, he began thinking of ways he might obtain the complete Method of Heaven’s Origin, Beginning to End.
Liu Daoran slept for two full days before recovering his spirit and beginning work on the Three Treasures True Cloud formation disk—the very same type that Liu Xiaolou had ruined two tablets on. Liu Xiaolou watched the entire process from beginning to end, and in doing so confirmed that his own technique was sound. The difference had to lie in a special method of regulating true qi that supported the technique itself.
After Liu Daoran completed this second disk and again slept for two more days, Liu Xiaolou said, “Brother Daoran, working without day or night, exhausting yourself like this, cannot be a lasting path. It would be better to slow down. Once the etching is done, you still have to fuse the spiritual materials, and that is the part that truly consumes time and effort.”
“I was planning to finish etching the last formation disk, then take a few days to rest,” Liu Daoran replied.
Liu Xiaolou shook his head. “Rest a day first. There’s no need to rush.”
Liu Daoran thought it over. “All right.”
Liu Xiaolou invited him to take a walk on the mid-mountain terrace. Liu Daoran readily agreed, and the two of them strolled along its edge. They looked at the drifting clouds and waterfalls of Fangle Peak, at the greenery cloaking the mountains beyond, and listened to the cranes crying in the distance, though they never caught sight of them. Their minds slowly relaxed.
Stretching lazily, Liu Daoran said with a smile, “It’s been nearly two months since we entered the mountain, and not a single day free. To suddenly be idle like this… it feels almost strange.”
Liu Xiaolou understood. The formation masters who had come here had their reasons: some out of regard for Tang Song, some because of ties with the Zhao clan, some to hone their formation skills. But most of them had come for the promised payment.
Each master’s reward was different, the exact amount allocated by Master Tang according to their contribution, though none would be small. As for Liu Xiaolou, he had never discussed payment with Tang Song at all. He was bound to Tang Song, and in the end whatever share Tang Song gave him would be his.
So he asked, “When this is all done, Brother Daoran, how much will you be getting?” It wasn’t really the sort of question one should ask, but sometimes taking the initiative could serve as a gesture of goodwill, a way to close the distance.
Sure enough, Liu Daoran didn’t mind. He smiled and answered, “Twelve stones.”
That was quite a reward. About what Liu Xiaolou would earn as a live-in son-in-law for an entire year. Considering Liu Daoran was only an eighth-layer Qi-refinement formation master, it showed just how much higher the earnings of formation specialists were compared to others of the same rank, even if their cultivation advanced more slowly.
But money wasn’t what Liu Xiaolou really wanted to talk about. He pressed on, “And once you’ve got those spirit stones, Brother Daoran, what then?”
Liu Daoran thought for a moment. “Back to cultivation, of course. The sooner I reach Foundation Establishment, isn’t that the duty of all of us cultivators?”
Liu Xiaolou coaxed him further. “Won’t you at least enjoy yourself for a few days?”
“How would I do that?” Liu Daoran asked.
Liu Xiaolou grinned. “Over in Yueyang Market there are two houses of courtesans. I know the madams there quite well. When the time comes, we could go have some fun. My treat!”