80: Chapter 80 Rune Array

Friday, 6:00 AM. Chen Zhen opened his eyes right on time.

He sat up and swept his gaze across the room.

Cleaning Spell.

Consuming 1 point of spiritual power, an invisible ripple swept through.

The Cleaning Spell, infused with Stellar Energy, had become as natural as instinct.

The room became instantly clean, the air crisp, and the leaves of the two spiritual plants unfurled, even the Spirit Gathering Talisman pasted on the wall brightened a fraction.

He got out of bed and walked over to the Talisman.

The Spirit Gathering Talisman he had pasted last night was now completely dry; the purple light on the Talisman paper was a bit fainter than when it was first drawn, but it remained stable.

[Spirit Gathering Talisman (Star Radiance Version) Remaining Time: 3 hours]

The 12 hours were almost up.

He took out two newly drawn Spirit Gathering Talismans from his Storage Space, one to replace the old one and one as a spare.

The moment he tore down the old Talisman, the concentration of Spiritual Qi in the entire room fluctuated slightly.

With the new Talisman applied, the spiritual power field stabilized again.

He looked at the old Talisman.

Although its spiritual power was exhausted, the Talisman paper itself was still intact.

According to the talisman scripture, this kind of used Talisman paper could be recycled and reused after being re-prepared.

He put it away to deal with it on the weekend.

Nearly 7:00 AM, Chen Zhen stepped into the classroom.

Zhang Meng was in the back row catching up on homework. Seeing him enter, he shouted as usual: "Help! Lend me your English homework to copy!"

Chen Zhen threw the homework book over.

Zhang Meng caught it and buried his head, copying furiously.

Chen Zhen walked to his seat and sat down.

The girl sitting in front of him, Su Xiaoya, turned around with a strange expression.

"Chen Zhen, did you give my mom a Talisman again yesterday?"

Chen Zhen looked at her.

"What's wrong?"

Su Xiaoya was silent for two seconds.

"She used that Talisman last night, then suddenly woke up in the middle of the night and said she had a dream. There was an old man in the dream who kept saying something like 'The Dao of Talismans shall flourish'."

Chen Zhen's heart jolted.

The Dao of Talismans shall flourish — these were the words from Shen Mo's grandfather's notes.

"Does she remember what the old man looked like?"

Su Xiaoya thought for a moment.

"She said she couldn't see his face clearly, but he was wearing old clothes, like the kind from many years ago."

Chen Zhen was silent for a few seconds.

"Tell your mom not to overthink it; it was just a dream."

Su Xiaoya nodded and turned back.

But Chen Zhen knew that it was no ordinary dream.

The remnant intent within the Talisman had been perceived by the user.

This was recorded in the talisman scripture.

High-level Talismans, especially those prepared with spiritual plants, would retain a trace of the Talisman maker's intent.

If the user was sensitive enough, they could perceive it during deep sleep.

Su Xiaoya's mother was clearly that kind of sensitive person.

He glanced at Su Xiaoya's back.

Her mother, perhaps, was not simple either.

The first class was Physics.

Mr. Li was teaching comprehensive electromagnetic induction, and the blackboard was filled with coils, magnetic field lines, and current directions.

Chen Zhen listened for a while, and a thought suddenly popped into his mind.

Did electromagnetic induction and runes have anything in common?

Coils were structures, current was the flow of energy, and magnetic fields were energy fields.

Runes were also structures, spiritual power was the flow of energy, and the Spiritual Qi field was an energy field.

If one viewed runes as a kind of "energy circuit diagram," could the principles of electromagnetic induction be applied to runes as well?

He took out a piece of paper and drew a simple Spirit Gathering Talisman on it.

Then, next to the rune, he drew a coil.

When the coil was electrified, it produced a magnetic field.

When the rune was infused with spiritual power, it produced a spiritual power field.

If the coil and the rune were combined...

He drew a new pattern — with the rune as the core, surrounded by coil-like lines.

[System Prompt: Cross-Domain Insight Triggered]

[Runes + Electromagnetism Initial Fusion]

[Learning Dimension EXP + 150]

[exploration dimension EXP + 80]

[Acquired New Ability: [Talisman Array Thinking] (Can design Composite Rune Array)]

Chen Zhen looked at the prompt, stunned for a moment.

Talisman Array Thinking???

This wasn't a simple Talisman; it was an array composed of multiple Talismans.

He put the paper away.

Try it this weekend.

At noon, school let out, and Chen Zhen went to the cafeteria.

He got his food and found a seat.

He had just taken a few bites when someone walked over carrying a food tray.

Shen Mo.

He sat down opposite Chen Zhen and started eating.

Halfway through the meal, he suddenly spoke: "Chen Zhen, what was that thing you drew in class today?"

Chen Zhen looked at him.

"You saw it?"

Shen Mo nodded.

"I was sitting diagonally behind you, I could see."

Chen Zhen was silent for a few seconds.

"Just doodling."

Shen Mo smiled and didn't press further.

After finishing his meal, he stood up and walked away with his tray.

Zhang Meng was watching from the side, looking confused.

"Is this guy sick? He talks to you every day, but never gets to the point."

Chen Zhen didn't answer.

But he knew better.

Shen Mo had figured it out.

He saw that what he drew wasn't ordinary.

However, since Shen Mo didn't ask, he wouldn't say.

The third period in the afternoon was a self-study class.

Mr. Zhao wasn't there, so the class monitor was in charge of discipline.

Chen Zhen took out a piece of paper and began to draw the "rune + coil" design from the morning.

The rune was the basic structure of the Spirit Gathering Talisman.

He drew three coils with thin lines, wrapping around the periphery of the rune.

After finishing, he looked at the paper.

Through the [Talisman Eye], this composite pattern indeed had something more than a simple rune.

It looked like a kind of "resonance" structure.

He took a pinch of anshen flower powder from his Storage Space, mixed it into Talisman ink, dipped a brush in it, and formally drew it again on another blank piece of Talisman paper.

When the last stroke fell, the Talisman paper burst into a blinding purple light, which lasted for three seconds before slowly fading away.

[Composite Rune Array · Spirit Gathering Coil (Experimental Version)]

[Effect: Spiritual Qi concentration + 30%, spiritual power flow speed + 20%]

[Duration: 8 hours]

[Quality: Excellent]

30%, which was twice as high as a simple Spirit Gathering Talisman.

Chen Zhen looked at this Talisman, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

It worked.

He folded the Talisman and put it into his Storage Space.

The class monitor turned his head from the front row and glanced at him.

"Chen Zhen, what are you doing?"

"Doing problems."

The class monitor looked at him suspiciously, then turned back.

After school, Chen Zhen packed his bag and prepared to leave.

Zhou Rui walked over from behind and stood beside him.

"Master, can I see that thing you drew this afternoon?"

Chen Zhen looked at him.

"You felt it?"

Zhou Rui nodded.

"I was in the last row, so far away, and I could still feel a strong aura emerging from your direction. It lasted for three seconds."

Chen Zhen was silent for a few seconds.

Qi Refining Stage 1, and his perception could reach this level?

This guy's talent was indeed decent.

He took the Talisman out of his Storage Space and handed it to him.

Zhou Rui took it, unfolded it, and stared at it for a long time.

"This isn't a normal Talisman," he said, "Is it a composite type?"

Chen Zhen nodded.

Zhou Rui looked at it for a few more seconds, then returned the Talisman to him.

"Master, can I learn this?"

Chen Zhen looked at him.

"Practice the basics well first."

Zhou Rui nodded.

"I know."

He turned and left.

Chen Zhen watched his back, lost in thought.

This kid had good Heart-Nature.

7:00 PM, Secret Base.

Chen Zhen sat cross-legged in the center of the Spirit Gathering Array, with six pots of spiritual plants surrounding him.

He pasted the newly drawn Composite Rune Array on the wall.

Instantly, the concentration of Spiritual Qi in the entire base began to soar.

10%, 20%, 30% —

After thirty seconds, it stabilized at 32%.

[Composite Rune Array in effect]

[Range: 15 square meters]

[Effect: Spiritual Qi concentration + 32%, spiritual power flow speed + 22%]

[Duration: 8 hours]

Chen Zhen closed his eyes and began to Cultivate.

The rotation speed of the spiritual pearl in his Dantian clearly accelerated, and the speed at which spiritual power surged into his body was at least 30% faster than usual.

[Cultivation Progress: Qi Refining Level 4 220 / 1800]

He opened his eyes and looked at the Talisman.

The effect was better than expected.

What if he drew a few more and used them in combination?

What if he drew them on the eye of the Spirit Gathering Array?

What if...

He stood up and drew two more identical Talismans.

Three Talismans, pasted in three different directions.

Instantly, the Spiritual Qi concentration of the entire base soared again.

45%, 50%, 55% —

Finally, it stabilized at 58%.

[Composite Rune Array × 3 combined effect]

[Effect: Spiritual Qi concentration + 58%, spiritual power flow speed + 45%]

[Duration: 8 hours]

Chen Zhen stood in the center of the array, feeling the dense Spiritual Qi all around him.

This efficiency was even higher than the Spirit Gathering Array.

Moreover, the Talisman Array was much simpler than the Spirit Gathering Array.

No need to arrange jade stones, no need to adjust positions; just paste it on and it works.

He thought for a moment and drew five more.

Tomorrow, he would cover the entire base with them.

11:00 PM, late at night, Chen Zhen finished Cultivation.

Qi Refining Level 4, 265 / 1800.

It had increased by 45 points tonight, which was more than double the usual amount.

He stood up and looked at the few pots of spiritual plants.

Under the blessing of the Talisman Array, they were also growing delightfully.

The second flower bud of the largest soul-calming grass had already emerged.

For the other three, the golden edges on their leaves were also more distinct.

[soul-calming grass × 4]

[Estimated flowering time: 5-7 days]

In another week, he would be able to harvest the second batch of calming flower.

He packed his things and walked out of the Secret Base.

Outside, the night was deep.

He touched the key in his pocket.

He hadn't been to Shen Mo's grandfather's Old House a second time yet.

He would go check it out on the weekend.