Xiao Yuansi held the array diagram for a dozen or so breaths before shaking his head and saying,
"I thought it was something novel, but it's just the Misty Maze Array under a different name."
After putting away the diagram in his hand and handing it back to Li Xiangping, Xiao Yuansi continued,
"Although I'm not very familiar with the Formation Path, this array diagram is too simple. It's only good enough to deceive those in the Fetal Breathing Realm. Once cultivators of the Jade Wheel completion stage intervene, they can easily break the formation and seize the flags."
"My Li Family is impoverished and owns little. Having this array does give us some peace of mind,"
Li Xiangping cupped his hands and said with a wry smile.
Xiao Yuansi looked at Li Xiangping, who was merely at the Chengming Wheel stage, and Tongya, who was at the Zhouxing Wheel stage, and couldn't help but laugh as he said,
"For the likes of you, it indeed is a decent choice."
With a slight pat on his brocade pouch, Xiao Yuansi suddenly produced six small flags. The blue and white flags were adorned with mysterious spell patterns, and the flagpoles were a reddish-brown, making them seem quite presentable.
"These are the Formation Flags I used when I was at the Jade Wheel stage. The flag bodies are made from the skins of a White Streaked Carp, and the poles from Red Birch Wood. They're considered quite precious in the Fetal Breathing Realm, and they match your formation quite well."
"I have no use for these flags now, so I'll leave them here for you to set up the Misty Maze Array. Should you find better array diagrams in the future, you can also make use of these flags to establish them," Xiao Yuansi said with a smile. He waved his hand to stop Li Xiangping and Tongya, who were about to express their thanks, and said,
"Twelve Spirit Stones."
Li Xiangping was instantly at a loss for words and laughed awkwardly,
"I wonder about these Spirit Stones..."
"You don't have Spirit Stones?"
Xiao Yuansi paused momentarily, then explained,
"Among cultivators, Spirit Stones are akin to gold and silver among mortals. In markets or shops, transactions are usually settled with Spirit Stones, and even larger families need Spirit Stones when making tribute payments."
Upon hearing this, Li Xiangping was struck with an idea and asked hastily,
"May I know how much Spirit Rice and White Origin Fruit are worth in Spirit Stones?"
"If you have those two items for collateral..."
Xiao Yuansi stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and replied,
"Ten White Origin Fruits should be worth one Spirit Stone, and you'd need one hundred jin of Spirit Rice for one Spirit Stone."
Li Xiangping and Tongya were speechless, thinking to themselves,
"A hundred jin of Spirit Rice could even force the Wan Family to send cultivators to rent and plant rice in our fields. These twelve Spirit Stones add up to one thousand two hundred jin of Spirit Rice! Selling off the entire Li Family might not even cover the cost."
Seeing Tongya and the others with their heads bowed in silence, Xiao Yuansi immediately got the hint and said softly,
"Well then, let's consider this Illusionary Formation as equivalent to two Spirit Stones. We'll put the rest on your tab. Once your family has gathered enough, you can send it to Qing Sui Peak through the brothers who collect tributes for Li Xia County."
Li Xiangping gave a wry smile, bowed, and thanked him. Then he saw Xiao Yuansi pinch a spell, and the six Formation Flags in his hand began to float up.
"Let's go!"
With a gentle lift of his hand, five of the six flags soared into the air, trailing faint white tails of flame as if they were sentient. They scattered and one by one plunged into the bamboo forest at the foot of the mountain.
In an instant, gray mist spread and woven horizontally at the mountain's base, as layers of heavy gray fog started enveloping Lijing Mountain completely.
After a short while, the gray fog gradually faded. From a distance, all the figures on the mountain had vanished, and the entire mountain seemed to be frozen at that moment, without any further changes.
"Done! The Misty Maze Array I've set up for you is a technique from my sect, though it's a bit better than that Illusionary Formation,"
Xiao Yuansi stopped his motion and inserted the last Formation Flag into the ground, causing a palm-sized array core to appear, divided into an inner and outer layer and flashing a faint white light.
"This array core is divided into an outer array and an inner eye," he said. "If the outer array flashes, it means someone is attempting to break through the formation from the foot of the mountain. If the inner eye lights up, then the person has already breached the formation."
Xiao Yuansi dusted off his hands and explained to the few people around him while pointing at the array core, "If you have reached the stage of the Yujing Wheel and refined the array core with your Spiritual Sense, you will be able to control the Array freely. With only the cultivation level of Zhouxing Wheel at present, you can only drip blood from your fingertip onto the formation flag of this array core, and then the formation will recognize you."
"Thank you, Immortal Master!"
Li Tongya and Li Xiangping hurriedly stepped forward to drip their blood. The array core flickered, and both of them suddenly felt a vague connection with it.
Witnessing this miraculous scene improved Li Xiangping's mood, which had been weighed down by debt. He thought to himself, "This Misty Maze Array is much better than I expected, capable of concealing the Mountain Gate and blocking the prying eyes of commoners. These Formation Flags can also be used over and over again; it seems that the ten Spirit Stones were well-spent."
"Once the younger generation grows up, the Spiritual Fields in the village can also be utilized. It's just a matter of repaying the debt over a few more years; the Mountain Gate is of utmost importance! Especially that 'Mirror'..."
After Xiao Yuansi retracted his spell, he asked with a smile, "Do you have any more questions?"
Seeing everyone shaking their heads, Xiao Yuansi laughed heartily and whispered, "Then I will go for a walk in the mountains, slay some demonic creatures, and gather some Spiritual Medicine. I will come back at dawn tomorrow to concoct pills."
"Farewell, Immortal Master!"
Li Xiangping and the others said respectfully as they watched Xiao Yuansi call forth a Flying Shuttle and soar into the air.
Li Tongya waited for Xiao Yuansi to be out of sight, then turned to Liu Linfeng and said, "Uncle, the academy is no longer suitable to be on the mountain. We will move it down the mountain tonight."
"I will go pack."
Liu Linfeng went down to start packing, and Li Tongya looked at Li Xiangping and said, "Tomorrow, let's then move that 'Mirror'..."
"Brother!"
Li Xiangping, being of a suspicious nature, still doubted that Xiao Yuansi had left far behind and hastily interrupted him.
Li Tongya immediately understood and exchanged a glance with him. They both sat down cross-legged and began to cultivate.
Although Lijing Mountain was not a famous mountain, it was an offshoot of Da Li Mountain and had nourished Spirit Roots like the Serpent Jiao fruit. The Array isolated the flow of Spiritual Energy inside and out, and the Spirit Mechanism of the Earth Vein started to rejuvenate, increasing the concentration of Spiritual Energy by a tenth before gradually settling down.
The two cultivators were pleasantly surprised during their cultivation and became even more satisfied with the Array.
They continued their cultivation, breathing in and out until a brilliant golden light rose from the east and the mist among the mountains slowly dispersed, condensing into dewdrops on the tips of the trees.
Xiao Yuansi then descended from the sky, immaculate in his appearance, and landed in the courtyard on a Flying Shuttle.
"Let's start the pill concoction!"
He laughed heartily and produced a man-height black Pill Furnace from his Storage Bag. Sitting cross-legged, he addressed the two men, "Although the Serpent Origin Pill bears the name of the Serpent Jiao, it has a gentle nature. It is an Elixir for the Qi Refinement Realm, but those in the Fetal Breathing Realm can also take it, and it will be greatly beneficial to both of you."
He took out a brownish-yellow piece of wood from his Storage Bag and, placing his hands together, Xiao Yuansi summoned a pure white flame from his Dantian. Gently wiping the flame over the piece of wood, it immediately burst into flames with a whoosh, revealing a faint blue fire.
He threw the piece of wood to the bottom of the furnace, took out the Jade Box with his Mana, extracted the Serpent Jiao fruit, and cast it into the furnace.