106: Chapter 106 Seclusion and Arrangements

After the clamor, there was a deeper tranquility.

Within Gu Garden, although people still came and went in an orderly fashion, the atmosphere in the core area had quietly undergone some changes.

Shen Qingxue held down the inner residence, Jin Feiyan managed the external finances, and Liu Ruyan led the guards. The three wives each performed their duties, managing the vast Gu Family like an iron barrel.

Gu Yan stood before the secret chamber door of the Lakeside Cottage. He took one last look at this vibrant home, then turned and stepped into the darkness. The heavy Dragon-Severing Stone slowly descended, sealing off all the disturbances of the outside world.

To the outside world, he claimed it was to stabilize his Foundation Establishment cultivation.

In reality, he was sharpening his claws and teeth, building a fortress to cope with the coming, unseen storm.

In the center of the secret chamber, Gu Yan sat cross-legged on a warm jade bed.

He slowly closed his eyes, adjusting his breathing until his heart was as still as stagnant water.

The first step: switching his Cultivation Technique.

Although the Long Spring Art was long-lasting and rich, and excellent for health preservation, it was ultimately too tepid when it came to killing power and explosive force. Facing the strong enemies that might appear in the future, this Low Grade Yellow-tier Cultivation Technique could no longer keep up with his pace.

And the Burning Sea Art, a High Grade Profound-tier technique, combined water and fire, making it incomparably overbearing!

With a thought from Gu Yan, the liquid True Qi within his Dantian Qi Sea, which had been as calm as a mirror, suddenly began to surge violently.

Following the cultivation route of the Burning Sea Art, he guided his gentle wood-attribute spiritual energy, forcibly rushing it into several hidden and dangerous Meridians that had never been opened before.

Sss—

From within his body came sounds like water droplets falling into boiling oil.

His Meridians burned with pain, as if a raging fire were scorching his blood vessels.

Gu Yan's expression remained unchanged, his gaze steady and focused. Relying on the powerful Divine Sense of the second level of Foundation Establishment, he forcibly suppressed the restless spiritual energy within his body, bit by bit transforming, compressing, and reshaping it.

The originally cyan-green True Qi was gradually stained with a layer of crimson fire color, and at the core of the fire color, a deep, dark blue was gestating.

One day, two days...

As time passed, the temperature in the secret chamber continued to rise, causing the air to distort and deform.

Until the seventh day.

Boom!

Gu Yan suddenly opened his eyes. Deep within his pupils, crimson and deep blue lights flickered alternately, his gaze sharp and piercing.

He raised his right hand. In his palm, a ball of crimson flame rose out of thin air, and in the center of the flame, a blue water droplet was slowly rotating. Water and fire merged, emitting a heart-palpitating destructive fluctuation.

The switch was successful!

He could clearly feel that although the total amount of True Qi in his body had not increased, its explosive power and destructive force had increased several times over.

If he were to encounter the likes of Town Mayor Zhao Hong now, he wouldn't need to use any schemes; his overbearing Burning Sea True Qi alone would be enough to crush him head-on!

But this was not enough.

Individual martial prowess was not enough to protect the entire clan.

Gu Yan restrained his aura and did not leave seclusion.

From his Storage Pouch, he took out the large quantity of rare Materials that Jin Feiyan had secretly collected for him during this time using the channels of the Tianyi Chamber of Commerce.

Star Sand, the Void Gazer Stone which was extremely rare in this realm, the essence blood of a fourth-rank Yao Beast...

These were the cornerstones for setting up the Four Symbols Heaven-Locking Array.

Over the next half month, the nights at Gu Garden became exceptionally quiet.

Whenever the night was deep and quiet, a ghostly black shadow would appear silently in every corner of the mansion.

Whether on the highest ridge of the roof, in the shadows of the rockery, or at the bottom of the unfathomably deep lake.

Gu Yan held a specially made talisman pen, dipped in spiritual ink mixed from the essence blood of Yao Beasts and Star Sand, and was concentrating intently on carving at these hidden nodes.

Sss, sss—

The tip of the pen brushed across the hard stone wall, making a faint sound.

Complex and profound, golden array patterns that seemed to contain the truths of heaven and earth slowly took shape under his pen, then flashed with light and quickly vanished into the buildings and rocks, merging with the surrounding environment, leaving no trace to be found.

This was an extremely mentally exhausting process.

Every stroke of the array pattern required pouring in a large amount of Divine Sense and spiritual energy; the slightest mistake would result in all previous efforts being wasted.

Gu Yan's forehead was already covered with fine beads of sweat, but his hand holding the pen remained as steady as a rock.

He was weaving a net.

A net that could envelope the entire Gu Family, a net of absolute defense capable of withstanding any attack below the Golden Core Stage!

The Azure Dragon position, governing vitality, was placed at the ancient tree in the east courtyard.

The White Tiger position, governing killing, was hidden under the weapon rack in the martial arts training ground.

The Vermilion Bird position, governing fire attacks, was carved at the earth fire vent of the alchemy room.

The Black Tortoise position, governing defense, was submerged at the bottom of the back garden lake.

When the last stroke of the array pattern was completed on the giant stone at the bottom of the lake.

Hum—

From deep beneath the entire Gu Garden came a low, heavy hum that only Gu Yan could hear.

Four invisible pillars of light shot up into the sky from the four directions of the mansion, then intersected high above to form a huge, invisible light barrier, firmly enclosing the entire Gu Family within it.

The great array was complete!

Gu Yan stood by the lake and let out a long breath of turbid air.

He looked at the mansion sleeping in the night before him, looking at those windows with lights on, the places where his wife and children were sleeping peacefully.

A glimmer of determination flickered in his eyes.

The Gu Family today was no longer a soft persimmon to be slaughtered at will.

This Four Symbols Heaven-Locking Array was the wall of bronze and iron he had built for his family!

Whether it was the Chen Family or any other covetous parties.

If anyone dared to reach out their claws, he would make them... never return!

After doing all this, Gu Yan finally felt a deep sense of exhaustion.

He returned to the secret chamber to rest for a while.

Until the next morning, when the sky was bright.

Gu Yan changed into a clean robe and pushed open the door of the secret chamber that had been tightly closed for nearly a month.

The sunlight spilled onto his face, warm and dazzling.

He stepped out, preparing to go see his children.

However.

Just as he stepped out of the courtyard gate.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid, ear-piercing, and massive bell toll, carrying endless panic and warning, exploded without warning over Baifeng City!

This bell toll did not come from the Gu Family.

It came from... the city walls of Baifeng City!

This was... the highest level of combat alert for the entire city!

Gu Yan's footsteps suddenly stopped, his heart skipped a beat, and he looked up sharply towards the direction outside the city.

He saw that the originally clear sky had, at some unknown time, been obscured by a dark, surging mass of clouds that looked like a tide.

In the air, there faintly came the rumbling sound of ten thousand beasts stampeding, and a nauseating... thick, fishy stench!

This crisis was not directed at the Gu Family.

It was... descending upon the entire Baifeng City!