Chapter 1492: Deliberation (Part Four)

Upon hearing this, Grandmaster Lan slanted a glance at Xue Tieyi and then said faintly, “If I were to continue researching that formation and not try every known method to communicate with the two elders, would you be content? And if that Li Yan hadn’t been sent out, Tang Feng might not be sitting here now. The situation would be vastly different.”

Xue Tieyi was taken aback upon hearing this, and then he gave a wry smile.

“Elder Lan is right. It was I who was too rigid in my thinking. I was so focused on the matter of the Supreme Elders that I forgot everything else…”

He paused for a moment, then spoke again.

“Elder Lan, in the future, can we use the Canghao Stone formation to communicate with the two Supreme Elders? Although our original purpose was not to use this formation for this matter, it is, after all, a spatial-type formation. It should not be too much of a problem for breaking through barriers. We are still missing two raw materials now. I think we should increase our efforts and send more people to find those two raw materials. At the same time, Elder Lan can continue to research that Void-Breaking Formation simultaneously. A two-pronged approach would be more secure!”

Xue Tieyi said as he pondered Grandmaster Lan’s words.

However, if an outsider were to hear his words, they might be very confused and bewildered. What ‘lost and in chaos’? What ‘spatial formation communication’? It would be completely baffling. But the three of them were very clear about it.

“It should be so. Everything that can be tried has been tried. At present, only these two methods are the most hopeful. Three or four years! Sigh, I thought there were still three hundred years, but in the end, it was shortened a hundredfold. All the changes have been too sudden, and the development of the situation is worrying. But with both moving forward simultaneously, there is at least a bit more hope…”

Grandmaster Lan sighed softly.

However, all three of them knew that this was not a complaint against Tang Feng. No one could say that when carrying out a mission, everything would revolve around you and go smoothly.

“Alright then, let’s do it this way. Time is of the essence. Tang Feng, after you go back, be on standby at all times. All the disciples in the Rear Hall will be under your command. I will arrange the other matters. In the next four years, we must ensure that no major problems arise in the situation, and ensure that Elder Lan is not distracted by other matters, but can concentrate…”

Xue Tieyi immediately gave the final decision.

Although he was anxious, he also knew that Grandmaster Lan had been painstakingly searching for a solution for so many years. The only methods they could think of at present were these. The affairs of the world were not such that you could succeed just by being anxious. If it were that simple, they wouldn’t have delayed for so long and would have solved this most difficult matter long ago.

But this time, before Xue Tieyi could finish, Tang Feng suddenly interrupted him and interjected, “Sect Master, Elder Lan, I think there is a third method, which may be even more hopeful!”

Xue Tieyi, the dignified master of a sect and a top-tier Void Refining realm cultivator, did not show any displeasure on his face after being interrupted by Tang Feng. If an outsider were to see this, it would be somewhat puzzling. Although the core disciples of the Soul Palace’s Rear Hall were mysterious and highly valued by the sect, before they had cultivated to the Void Refining realm, they were just future elders or successors to the Sect Master who were being nurtured. There was still a distinction between senior and junior.

However, Xue Tieyi’s attitude towards Tang Feng was like his attitude towards Grandmaster Lan. It was as if he were facing a Void Refining elder and would seriously listen to his suggestions.

“Oh? A third method? What method is it?” he immediately asked. Grandmaster Lan did not speak, but she seemed to have already guessed something in her heart.

“Using the Power of the Cold Moon to sense. This is a unique connection method of the ‘Soul Residence Moon’. The main thing is that we have detected this power more than once. If we use this power to communicate, Elder Tang and the others might be able to sense it and thus find a way out,” Tang Feng said calmly.

In his speech, not only did “Power of the Cold Moon” and “Soul Residence Moon” appear, but also an “Elder Tang” with the same surname as him.

“You said before that that Li Yan cultivated the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation’? But he has only cultivated the star power, which means he has only reached the stage of sensing the ‘Soul Residence Star’. We have had all the disciples who have cultivated the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation’ try it before. The star power cannot penetrate too much. This led to the later speculation that only by cultivating the stronger ‘Power of the Cold Moon’ and reaching the ‘Stellar Shift and Lunar Advent’ stage would it be possible to penetrate without dissipating.

“Elder Lan also said before that although that Li Yan also happened to choose to cultivate the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation,’ he has only cultivated about seventy percent of the star power. To be able to cultivate to this stage in such a short time is already very good, but it is still inferior to some of the older disciples in the sect.

“And the most important thing is that the further one goes in this cultivation method, the more difficult it is to cultivate. Don’t look at the fact that he is only missing thirty percent of the star power. It might take a hundred or a thousand years to cultivate it. Your great-grandfather, when he cultivated this method back then, only cultivated the ‘Stellar Shift and Lunar Advent’ after he had reached the Void Refining realm. That was the result of many years of accumulation.”

Upon hearing this, Xue Tieyi knew what Tang Feng meant and immediately shook his head.

He had also heard some of Grandmaster Lan’s introduction about Li Yan before and knew that that disciple had also cultivated the “Saintly Soul Transformation.” Although it had only been a few decades, he had also cultivated the “Soul Residence Star.” This should be the fastest among all the disciples who had cultivated the “Saintly Soul Transformation,” but he had still only accumulated about seventy percent of the star power.

As for the remaining thirty percent, it was unknown how long it would take to cultivate it to perfection. But it was basically foreseeable that it would have to be slowly ground out over time. But the current situation was constantly changing. They didn’t have a thousand years, or a hundred years. Even ten years might be too much.

“Yes, once he goes to cultivate this method, the Void-Breaking Formation will also no longer be able to provide assistance. This method can be disregarded!”

The moment Tang Feng spoke, Grandmaster Lan had already guessed his thoughts. It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought of this method, but after weighing it, she felt that the Void-Breaking Formation and the formation using the Canghao Stone were more hopeful.

After Tang Feng heard this, he also quickly waved his hand.

“Sect Master, Elder Lan, please hear me out. The star power that Li Yan has cultivated is not just seventy percent, but has reached over ninety percent! I have already seen that this person has a trump card for everything. Even when he was cooperating with Grandmaster Lan in researching the formation, he still held back. But this time, when we were dealing with the Late-stage Spirit Transformation enemies, in order to kill the other party as quickly as possible and leave that place of trouble, at the same time, he probably didn’t know that I was also very interested in the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation,’ and he also went all out in the fight.

“To put it bluntly, in any case, he felt that the power he displayed at its peak was only at the Late-stage Nascent Soul realm. This had nothing to do with the display of star power. So he didn’t hold back. But he had no idea that I had also cultivated this method before, and I had never told him about it. So I sensed the strength of the star power contained in his arts. It had already reached the point of ninety percent. Although it had not reached Great Perfection, it was indeed the case that the star power it contained had accumulated to over ninety percent.

“And the total time he has cultivated this method is only thirty-odd years, and yet he has reached this stage. I think you can also understand how suitable this person is for cultivating this method through this point. Now, of all the disciples in the sect, whether they have switched to other cultivation methods or are still cultivating the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation,’ none of the strongest among them has reached this stage! I am thinking, if we let him enter the Wenwu Hall to cultivate again, perhaps his progress in this method will have another breakthrough!

“And I have another thought. Although it doesn’t sound very pleasant, it is the truth. That Void-Breaking Formation, even if Elder Lan has researched it, how much time will it take to successfully construct it? Not to mention whether the formation manual for that formation can be obtained smoothly in the end, even if it is obtained, one doesn’t need to think to know how extraordinary the power of this kind of formation is. Then, the refining materials needed to construct this formation are probably rare in this world, or may not even exist at all. To put it bluntly, it’s not as reliable as the other formation. At least we know that that formation is only missing two main materials.

“Of the three methods, I actually feel that Li Yan’s side is the one that is most worth looking forward to!”

As Tang Feng spoke, his eyes became brighter and brighter.

“You… you said his… his accumulated star power has reached ninety percent?”

This time, it was Grandmaster Lan who spoke first. And her figure, in an instant, stood up from her seat, her eyes filled with shock. Although Xue Tieyi was not as extreme, his body also trembled slightly.

“This is definitely not wrong. At that time, I thought I had seen it wrong, so I carefully sensed it several times. There is definitely no mistake!”

Tang Feng nodded in confirmation. At the same time, he was thinking to himself that Li Yan had only really made a move after there were no Void Refining cultivators observing. The key was that Li Yan would never have thought that while the power of his arts was only at the Nascent Soul realm, how could anyone pay attention to the “Saintly Soul Transformation” cultivation method? But he, in order to increase the damage to the enemy, had unreservedly poured all of his star power into it.

“If that’s really the case… it’s a bit hard to believe. In thirty-odd years, he has cultivated this method to this stage? Good boy, he has been deceiving this old one all this time. Hmph! I will definitely teach him a lesson…”

The look of shock on Grandmaster Lan’s face quickly faded, and was replaced by a hint of anger. If she had known earlier that Li Yan had cultivated his star power to this stage, then she might have changed her strategy a few years earlier and had Li Yan focus on cultivating the “Saintly Soul Transformation” in advance. How could she still be thinking about other methods, and even let Li Yan go on a sect clean-up mission? The thought of these things made Grandmaster Lan feel angry.

Li Yan had delayed their plan. If she had known a few years earlier and had changed the plan, perhaps they wouldn’t be at a loss like they were now.

However, they didn’t know that they were actually wronging Li Yan. After Li Yan had come out of seclusion from cultivating the “Saintly Soul Transformation,” the star power he could accumulate at the beginning was indeed only about seventy percent. But it had also reached the upper limit of seventy percent. The subsequent improvement was precisely because he had participated in Grandmaster Lan’s tests. Under that kind of heavy load and tempering, he had quickly and smoothly broken through to the eighty percent stage.

After that, in the following two years, he had repeatedly consumed and restored his star power every day. Each time, he was so tired that he was almost exhausted. Finally, not long ago, he had broken through to the point where he could accumulate ninety percent of the star power, and then he had come out.

But some situations were also as Grandmaster Lan and the others had guessed. Li Yan was indeed also thinking of holding back a trump card, so he had been hiding it during the tests. In the soul art that was infused with star power, the power of the soul art could be greatly enhanced. Li Yan, feeling that he could fully cooperate with Grandmaster Lan’s test intensity, would naturally choose his habitual method of concealment.

Just as Grandmaster Lan was indignant, Xue Tieyi also spoke again.

“If that’s the case, this disciple named Li Yan is truly not simple. Could it be because of his innately powerful soul that he has truly become the successor of the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation’? If that’s the case, then Tang Feng’s proposal is feasible. It’s just that such a result will conflict with the plan to research the Void-Breaking Formation!”

Xue Tieyi’s fingers tapped rapidly on the armrest. He was not as dissatisfied as Grandmaster Lan, but his mood had fluctuated. Although Tang Feng had said this was the third method, it was actually still just two methods. It was impossible for Li Yan to be in two places at once. He could only carry out one plan at a time.

At this time, after her dissatisfaction, Grandmaster Lan had also quickly calmed down. She only thought for a moment and then gave a suggestion.

“I think Tang Feng’s proposal is very correct. We can let Li Yan enter the Wenwu Hall to cultivate. That place has a certain amplifying effect on the cultivation of the damaged version of the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation.’ We have had all of those disciples enter to cultivate before. Although they ultimately failed to cultivate to the ‘Stellar Shift and Lunar Advent’ stage, the star power of each person’s cultivation has been enhanced to a greater or lesser extent.

“As for the research on the Void-Breaking Formation, to be honest, it would be better with Li Yan’s assistance. However, in these few months, the speed of the formation’s construction and extension has been a bit fast. In fact, I have not fully comprehended it. Although the long alley has been extended, the problem of the soul power consumption of the Soul Spirits has not been further compressed and resolved, and it is still at the previous level. This phenomenon will cause the loss of strength in a certain section of the formation foundation, and there will be a considerable problem in the process of accumulating power. In fact, I need a certain amount of time to comprehend it.

“I think this way: I will continue to comprehend those things that I have not understood. Sect Master, you all look for those two raw materials, and at the same time, let Li Yan enter the Wenwu Hall to cultivate the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation.’ When I have comprehended those problems, I will also see what stage Li Yan’s cultivation has reached. If there is not much progress, then we will immediately interrupt his cultivation. If he really has a major breakthrough in his cultivation, then I will temporarily suspend the research on the Void-Breaking Formation. The matter is indeed as Tang Feng said. The construction materials for the Void-Breaking Formation are all uncertain, and collecting them later will also take time.

“But in the absence of a better solution, we cannot let go of any opportunity that might succeed. Therefore, every method must be advanced in parallel. This way, the effect may be better. However, we must put pressure on Li Yan and make sure that he makes some progress after a year of cultivation.

“For this, we can also tell him some things, but not too much, just enough to let him know some things. We will determine the proper measure later. We must also let Li Yan know why the sect suddenly found him and asked him to have a breakthrough in cultivating the ‘Saintly Soul Transformation’ within a year. Only after he knows some of the reasons will he feel a sense of urgency.

“But apart from this, all the other core secrets of the sect that are not related to this must not be mentioned to him. Sect Master, what do you think?”