41: The combination of formation and body training

The next day, inside the Talisman Department's teaching hall.

Li Heng stood at the podium, facing dozens of students who had chosen the Talisman major.

"What is the essence of a Talisman?"

He didn't launch into a lengthy discourse; his opening was a direct, core question.

The students exchanged glances, none able to answer.

"Is it a tool? A weapon? A medium for communicating with Heaven and Earth?"

Li Heng extended a finger.

"All are correct, and all are incomplete."

"A Talisman is an extension of your will, a vessel for your Spiritual Qi, and even more, it is the manifestation of your understanding of the 'Dao,' solidified on paper."

"When the brush moves like a Dragon, it's not drawing a pattern; it's drawing a rule."

"When cinnabar is used as an lead, it's not invoking ghosts or spirits; it's invoking the Spiritual Qi within yourselves."

As soon as he finished speaking, he grabbed at the air with his right hand, and a yellow paper, a wolf-hair brush, and a dish of cinnabar instantly appeared on the table.

With a flick of his wrist, the brush tip was fully saturated with cinnabar.

Without the slightest pause, the brush moved swiftly across the yellow paper.

Mysterious Talismanic symbols were drawn in one fluid motion.

As the last stroke fell, the entire yellow paper hummed, emitting a faint glow.

"This is the most basic Mind Purification Talisman."

"Your task today is to draw it."

...Student cafeteria.

The aroma of food mixed with the hubbub of young people, full of the hustle and bustle of life.

A clear-faced girl with a ponytail was eating her meal in small bites, while her other hand swiftly scrolled across her phone screen.

Her name was Tang Ruoling, a student from the Talisman Department.

Suddenly, her video-scrolling stopped.

On the screen, a Streamer dressed like an immortal was holding a crudely drawn yellow paper, spouting saliva.

"family members (audience)! See this! A safety talisman personally consecrated by Great Master Wang of Qingcheng Mountain! Only 998! It guarantees your safe travels and repels villains!"

The comment section was a frenzy.

"Ordered! Thank you, Streamer!"

"Great Master Wang's Talisman, you can't lose out, you can't be fooled!"

Tang Ruoling's brows furrowed tightly.

She brought her phone closer.

That so-called "safety talisman" had broken lines and uneven ink, making it look like the cheapest printed item.

Let alone Spiritual Qi fluctuations, even the "Fu" character pasted on her doorstep had more Aura than it.

Without thinking, she typed a line into the comment section.

"Fake, a print, completely useless."

As soon as the comment was sent, it was immediately drowned out by the scrolling text.

But the Streamer, with his sharp eyes, actually saw it.

"Oh? We have an expert in the live stream!"

The Streamer aimed the camera at himself, his face full of Yin and Yang sarcasm.

"This little sister called 'Tangtang Not Adding Sugar,' you say my Talisman is fake? Then tell me, what makes a real one?"

Tang Ruoling hadn't expected to be called out, and her cheeks flushed.

Several classmates in the cafeteria who noticed her screen also cast curious glances her way.

Feeling a bit indignant, she typed another line.

"A true Talisman is infused with Spiritual Qi, every stroke carries the Dao's essence. Yours is just a piece of waste paper, a scam."

The Streamer laughed.

"Hahahaha! family members (audience), did you hear that? Spiritual Qi? Dao's essence?"

"Little sister, read too many cultivation novels, have you? Brain's gone haywire?"

The live stream was instantly filled with mockery.

"LOL, people still believe this stuff nowadays?"

"Just say you're jealous if you can't afford it, don't pretend to be a Great Master."

"Streamer, ignore her, she's just a troll causing trouble, kick her out quickly!"

Tang Ruoling's chest heaved with anger.

A bunch of idiots!

They were being scammed and still defending the scammer!

Just as she was about to type a rebuttal, a private message popped up.

It was from one of the most active users in the live stream.

"Little sister, I see you're young, don't talk nonsense online. Great Master Wang's Talismans are very effective; I bought one last month, and my company project was immediately finalized. If you don't understand, don't speak carelessly, beware of trouble coming from your mouth."

The message was filled with condescending "advice."

Tang Ruoling felt like she was punching cotton, both angry and frustrated.

There was no reasoning with these mortals!

She took a deep breath, exited the live stream, and couldn't be bothered to reply to that private message.

The anger churning in her chest finally transformed into stubborn defiance.

You don't believe me, do you?

You think I'm talking nonsense, right?

Fine.

Tang Ruoling opened her social media account, a small account with only dozens of followers.

She composed a new post.

"Three months from now, I will personally draw one Lightning-Summoning Talisman. It will be sold on the platform to the highest bidder. Whether it's real or fake, the truth will be revealed then."

Click, send.

After doing all this, she slammed her phone face down on the table, picked up her tray, and aggressively shoveled down a few mouthfuls of rice... Inside the Formation System's teaching hall, the atmosphere was equally solemn.

In front of Li Heng, there were no teaching aids.

"Formation is one of the hundred arts of cultivation that is closest to the 'Dao.'"

"Because what it studies is the underlying logic of how Spiritual Qi operates between Heaven and Earth."

"From small-scale spirit locking and spirit gathering to large-scale mountain protection, enemy trapping, and even space tearing, all are inseparable from Formation."

His words made the students below breathe a little faster.

Li Heng raised his hand and lightly traced in the air.

Spiritual Qi surged, and a complex three-dimensional pattern composed of countless lines materialized and floated in the center of the hall.

"This is the most basic Spirit-Locking Formation, composed of three hundred and sixty basic Formation patterns forming a Formation base, and then twelve Formation bases forming a core Formation eye."

"The thickness, length, and curvature of the Formation patterns, including the stability of the Spiritual Qi output during drawing—if even a tiny bit is wrong, the entire Formation becomes a pile of useless discarded diagrams."

The students were dazzled and incredibly excited.

"Teacher! When can we learn this?"

Li Heng looked at their eager faces.

"Don't aim too high."

"Your current task is to use Spiritual Qi to draw a perfectly straight line on a Jade Slip, without any fluctuations."

"Only when the lines you draw can achieve absolute 'straightness' can we then talk about Formation."

A bucket of cold water poured over them, chilling everyone to the bone.

That evening.

Girls' dormitory.

Li Xin sat cross-legged on her bed, slowly ending her meditation for the day.

She opened her eyes, and the Spiritual Qi within her body had grown a little stronger.

She looked at the desk opposite.

Her roommate, Li Ziyuan, was hunched over it, with a large pile of Jade Slips and blueprints spread before her, studying intently.

The light from the desk lamp shone on her face, and her eyes sparkled with an almost fanatical gleam.

"Ziyuan, what are you studying? You're so engrossed."

Li Xin asked curiously.

Li Ziyuan, the girl who had caused a sensation at the opening ceremony by declaring she would study all seven majors.

These past few days, she was either in the library or in the dormitory, researching these incomprehensible things.

Li Ziyuan heard the sound, looked up, and adjusted the glasses on her nose.

She picked up a blueprint covered with diagrams of human Meridians and strange symbols, and excitedly told Li Xin:

"Xin Xin, look!"

"I'm thinking, if we miniaturize the Spirit-Gathering Formation and the Adamantine Formation, and then use a special Spiritual Qi medium, like a tattoo, to permanently engrave them onto the skin or bones of Body Cultivators..."

She paused, her eyes gleaming.

"Wouldn't that be equivalent to equipping them with a BUFF that can automatically restore Spiritual Qi and passively increase defense?"

"This way, wouldn't the shortcoming of Body Cultivators having limited defensive means be solved?"

Li Xin was completely stunned.

She opened her mouth, unable to utter a single word.

Her own progress was still stuck on how to draw a straight line well with Spiritual Qi.

Meanwhile, her roommate was already conceiving how to combine Formations with human modification to create "Dual Cultivation" super warriors.

This... are they really students from the same school?