"Brother Luo Qing, something's wrong. There's a guy called Wu Xuan in the outer sect who has already cracked thirty-seven formations in the Eight Arrays Diagram," a disciple exclaimed loudly upon arriving at Luo Qing's residence.
"What did you say?" Moments later, the door to Luo Qing's room opened, and Luo Qing hurriedly walked out.
"Wu Xuan, what's going on here?" Luo Qing asked, his face turning ashen, irritation evident in his voice.
"I don't know either. This kid seems to have just appeared today. In just one hour, he cracked all thirty-two of the first-order formations. Now, his ranking on the Array Comprehension Stele is just behind yours," the disciple explained.
"Oh, is that so?" Luo Qing sneered. "It seems our Array Peak has produced another genius in formations. But challenging my position as number one won't be so easy."
With that, Luo Qing swiftly made his way toward the Eight Arrays Diagram. Upon arriving, his eyes immediately locked onto Wu Xuan's name. The number thirty-seven that followed it gleamed brightly, almost blinding in its intensity.
"I can't believe it's true," Luo Qing muttered. "But the formations in the Eight Arrays Diagram only get more difficult. That kid has been silent for so long; he's probably stuck on the thirty-eighth formation by now."
After saying this, Luo Qing entered the Eight Arrays Diagram. Less than an incense's time later, the number following his name on the stele jumped from thirty-seven to thirty-eight.
"Unbelievable, Brother Luo Qing is so powerful. In just a little over a month, he's cracked thirty-eight formations in the outer sect," one disciple couldn't help but remark.
"I heard that Senior Sister Song Ya, the current number one inner sect disciple, took a full month and a half just to crack the fortieth formation in the outer sect. At this rate, isn't Brother Luo Qing about to surpass her and break the fortieth formation in less than one and a half months?" another disciple chimed in.
"Could it be that Brother Luo Qing's talent is even higher than Senior Sister Song Ya's?"
"Is that even a question? Don't you all know who Luo Qing is? If he wants to, forget about forty formations. In just a month and a half, he could crack forty-eight," said Qi Bai, speaking with unabashed admiration.
As Luo Qing's most devoted follower at the Array Peak, Qi Bai held an almost fanatical reverence for him. He spoke without hesitation, clearly unreserved in his praise.
Upon hearing this, many of the outer sect disciples looked at Qi Bai with disdain. They were well aware of his tendency to blindly worship Luo Qing, but they hadn't expected him to be so obsequious.
"What, don't believe it? Just wait and see. It won't be long before the number after Brother Luo Qing's name changes to thirty-nine. As for Wu Xuan, surpassing Brother Luo Qing? That's just wishful thinking," Qi Bai sneered.
The moment he finished speaking, the number after Luo Qing's name jumped once more. Upon seeing this, the outer sect disciples were stunned.
At this point, Luo Qing was just one formation away from cracking the fortieth. If he managed to break another formation today, he would overtake Senior Sister Song Ya and become the outer sect disciple to break the fortieth formation the fastest in the history of Array Peak.
"Look, the number after Wu Xuan's name!" Just then, another disciple cried out. As everyone turned to the Array Comprehension Stele, they saw that the number following Wu Xuan's name had shifted from thirty-seven to thirty-eight.
"Could it be that Wu Xuan is trying to challenge Brother Luo Qing?" Seeing the change, the outer sect disciples of Array Peak grew agitated.
At this moment, Lin Tian, who was immersed in the Eight Arrays Diagram, was completely unaware of the stir his name had caused in the outside world. His eyes now shone with a strange gleam. Previously, cracking the first-order formations only earned him twenty points as a reward. But for the second-order formations, the points had increased to two hundred. This meant that cracking third-order formations would reward him with two thousand points.
For Lin Tian, these points were nothing short of tangible currency. His sole focus was on swiftly cracking formations to earn points. So, after a brief rest, he hurried back to continue earning more.
"Absurd," Qi Bai scoffed. His faith in Luo Qing was absolute. Even though Wu Xuan's name had just appeared after Luo Qing's, he still firmly believed that Luo Qing would be the first to crack the fortieth formation. Luo Qing would surely become the outer sect disciple to break the fortieth formation the fastest in Array Peak history.
"Qi Bai, you're speaking too soon. We've all seen how fast Wu Xuan is cracking formations. Maybe today, he will really surpass Luo Qing and be the first to crack the fortieth formation," one of the outer sect disciples couldn't help but respond.
"Crack the fortieth formation first? Are you out of your mind? Right now, Luo Qing has already cracked the thirty-ninth formation, and Wu Xuan has only just cracked the thirty-eighth. This kid thinks he can surpass Brother Luo Qing? It's just a pipe dream," Qi Bai said dismissively.
But as soon as his words fell, the number after Wu Xuan's name shifted once again, jumping to thirty-nine, bringing his total number of formations cracked in line with Luo Qing.
Seeing this, Qi Bai's breath quickened. He might have confidently spoken just moments ago, but now, witnessing the number after Wu Xuan's name, he was genuinely panicking.
As he stared at the Array Comprehension Stele, Qi Bai could only silently pray. He hoped that Wu Xuan's speed would slow down, but his prayers seemed to have no effect. Moments later, the number after Wu Xuan's name jumped once again, this time directly to forty.
When he saw this number, Qi Bai's face drained of color. His legs buckled, and he collapsed to the ground, stunned, staring at the stele in complete disbelief.
"How could this be? How is this possible?" he muttered to himself, clearly unable to accept the reality before him.
At the same time, Du Yuejiao, who had been watching, was also in shock. While others might not know who Wu Xuan was, she knew exactly who he was—Lin Tian. What was even more astonishing was that Lin Tian had only been in contact with formations for two days.
In other words, this young man had surpassed more than a month's worth of progress in just two days. The speed at which he was advancing was a deep blow to Du Yuejiao. It felt like a punch to the gut.