Volume One: Youth Enters the World Chapter Forty-One: The Thunder-Linking Formation

Qi Liang saw Fang Tian shaking his head, as if he did not believe his words. He thought to himself, "This is going to be troublesome." Realizing things would not be so simple, he decided that if persuasion would not work, he would have to resort to threats. He changed his tone and said, "Young man, do you know who I am? If you kill me, it will bring you no benefit. In fact, it will bring disaster upon you!"

Fang Tian grew interested and asked, "Oh? Are you someone important, then?"

Seeing a glimmer of hope, Qi Liang continued, "I am the deputy commander of the guards in Wufeng City. If you kill me, your face will be posted on the wanted list, and a bounty will be set on your head. Then, not only will a legion of bounty hunters come after you, but also the cultivators from the imperial court who oversee punishment."

"So, it would be best for you to remove the formation and let us go."

After saying this, Qi Liang fell silent and waited for Fang Tian's response.

Fang Tian paused, his hand ceasing its movement as he inscribed the formation patterns. Indeed, as the man said, if he killed them all, endless trouble would surely follow. Yet, if he released them, they would surely not let him off easily in the future either. The situation was truly difficult.

Turning to Zhou Yunshu, Fang Tian asked, "Uncle Zhou, is what they say true?"

Zhou Yunshu nodded and replied, "Xiao Tian, if he truly is the deputy commander of Wufeng City's guards, then he speaks the truth."

"So, should I let them go?"

"Xiao Tian, you must decide for yourself. Either way, the outcome is unlikely to be good."

"I understand what I must do."

Fang Tian then raised his hand once more, harnessing the power of heaven and earth, and continued to inscribe the formation patterns.

Qi Liang grew anxious at the sight, his face turning pale as he cried out in panic, "Boy, do you really want to be hunted by everyone?!"

Fang Tian remained expressionless, his voice calm. "Though what you say is true, in this moment, dealing with you is still the best choice."

Realizing that Fang Tian could not be swayed, Qi Liang dropped his pretense, his face twisting with malice as he glared at Fang Tian. "Boy, I warn you not to be reckless, or you’ll die with no grave to mark your passing!"

Fang Tian looked back at him, a hint of irony in his eyes. "I know. You need not repeat yourself."

"You...!"

Ignoring him, Fang Tian continued to engrave the formation lines one after another onto the spirit array. As the formation grew, the blue light emanating from it became ever brighter, its rotation faster and faster. In no time, sixty-eight patterns had been inscribed.

Then Fang Tian added another, making sixty-nine, pushing the array to its very limit.

Yet he felt he could inscribe more; only the grade of the array itself was insufficient. He had prepared a second-grade spirit array, the Lightning Convergence Formation.

Fang Tian sighed softly to himself, "Is this still not enough to test my limits?"

He looked toward Qi Liang and his men. "Let this Lightning Convergence Formation show you its power."

On the spirit array, the blue light gathered, the central pattern—like the branches of a tree—now flickering with strands of lightning, thunder rumbling from within. The diagram originally etched upon the ground began to rise, floating into the air and spreading above the valley.

A pillar of white light surged up from the spiritual pool, pouring into the array.

Above the valley, the spirit array drew directly upon the pool’s energy to sustain its operation. The lightning on its surface concentrated ever more tightly, thunder roaring so that the once-pitch-black valley was now as bright as day.

Moments later, the array had absorbed enough energy. A bolt of lightning, coiling like a blue dragon, let out a thunderous roar as it crashed down.

With a deafening crash, the lightning instantly enveloped Qi Liang and his party.

They were seized by the lightning, their screams echoing through the valley, faces twisted in agony as they wailed,

"Ah...!"

"Master, save me...!"

"I don't want to die...!"

"Fang Tian, stop this at once...!"

"Boy, even as a ghost I won’t let you go...!"

And then, silence. The light and thunder faded, and when the power of the formation had been spent, it dissolved into countless motes of starlight and vanished.

Now, only Fang Tian and Zhou Yunshu remained. The others had been reduced to dust by the lightning, their bodies utterly obliterated, scattered to the winds.

Fang Tian saw that Qi Liang and his men had been erased by the formation. For some reason, though he himself was unharmed and the threat was gone, he felt no joy—only a strange, indescribable feeling.

Perhaps this was the world of cultivators.

He turned to Zhou Yunshu and said, "Uncle Zhou, it's done."

"Yes, Xiao Tian. This time, we owe it all to you."

"It was my duty. I couldn't stand by and watch you harmed."

"Let's go. The clan must be worried about us."

"Alright, Uncle Zhou."

With that, the two did not linger. Leaving the valley behind, they made their way back toward the town.

Meanwhile, the Zhou clan was beside themselves with worry. The guards waited anxiously at the gate, not knowing where the clan chief and Fang Tian had gone, nor what fate had befallen them, or whether they would return alive.

Just as their anxiety peaked, Fang Tian and Zhou Yunshu appeared in the distance, walking toward the compound.

Overjoyed, the clan members hurried to greet them, smiles breaking across their faces.

Zhou Xiaodie saw Fang Tian returning unharmed and tears welled in her eyes. She ran forward and threw herself into his arms, weeping uncontrollably. For her, this short wait had felt like an eternity.

"Brother Fang Tian, you’re finally back!"

Looking at Zhou Xiaodie in his embrace, Fang Tian felt a surge of tenderness. He stroked her hair gently and said softly,

"Xiaodie, I’m sorry for making you worry."

"Brother Fang Tian, don’t apologize. I know you were trying to save my father. Seeing you come back safely is all I could wish for."

"Alright, don’t cry. Uncle Zhou is right here—what will he think?"

At those words, Zhou Xiaodie suddenly remembered her father was beside them. She quickly left Fang Tian’s arms, wiped her tears, and walked over to Zhou Yunshu.

"Father, are you alright?"

Zhou Yunshu looked at his daughter, whose eyes now held only Fang Tian. He smiled helplessly, "I’m fine. It’s all over now."

"Really, Father? Since everything’s alright, let’s go inside."

"Yes, let’s."

At this moment, Zhou Quan approached. "Chief, Brother Fang Tian, it’s wonderful to see you both safe. Has that man in black been dealt with?"

"Yes, Xiao Tian has taken care of him. There are other matters, but let’s discuss them inside."

"Very well, Chief."

With that, Fang Tian and the Zhou clan members did not remain at the gate, but entered through the main doors.