273: The pass is as strong as iron, and the blood is as cold as frost.

A few days later.

The massive hull of the Cloud Piercer Shuttle slowly descended onto the berth behind Iron Wall Pass amidst a tooth-gritting sound of metal grinding.

When the hatch opened and the first gust of cold wind poured in, it wasn't the bone-chilling cold one would imagine, but a wave of dry heat mixed with the smell of burning, rust, and intense spiritual power fluctuations.

Su Ming followed the group out of the hatch. The moment his feet touched the ground, he felt the earth trembling slightly.

This tremor wasn't an earthquake, but a resonance caused by some unimaginably massive energy surging underground.

He looked up, his pupils involuntarily shrinking slightly.

Stretching across his vision before him was a black mountain range.

No, it wasn't a mountain range.

It was a city wall built from countless giant Black Iron Rocks, after half of the mountain peaks had been forcibly leveled by human power.

The wall was a thousand zhang high, extending to the left and right until the end of his vision, like a black iron gate dividing heaven and earth in two.

But that wasn't the most shocking part.

The most shocking part was the light curtain shrouded outside the city wall.

Seven beams of starlight, as thick as pillars of heaven, fell from the firmament and plunged deep into the earth. Using these as fulcrums, they propped up a translucent, pale-golden light curtain. What flowed across the light curtain were not ordinary runes, but a torrent of spiritual power rushing like a river.

Every surge of the spiritual power tide produced a muffled roll of thunder.

“So this is... the Big Dipper Seven Stars Demon-Locking Formation.”

Su Ming murmured to himself. Even at the edge of his 'Micro-Observation' state, he felt a wave of dizziness. The complexity of this Formation was hundreds of millions of times greater than any Formation diagram he had ever seen.

“Don't stare for too long, or your Divine Sense will be sucked in and shredded.”

Lin Yu's voice echoed in his Sea of Consciousness, carrying a rare hint of seriousness. “This is no mere Formation; this is clearly a furnace that burns Spirit Stones. The amount of Spiritual Qi consumed every breath just to maintain the normal operation of this light curtain is enough to make you explode a hundred times over.”

Su Ming quickly withdrew his gaze and rubbed his throbbing brow. “Master, the flow of spiritual power in this Formation... seems a bit sluggish?”

“That's only natural,” Lin Yu said. “Like an old machine that's been running at full capacity for thousands of years, the parts are worn and the pipes are aging; it's a miracle it can still turn. Your job is to tighten the screws on this machine and make sure it doesn't fall apart at a critical moment.”

A shout came from the front of the group.

“Newcomers for the Formation Maintenance Battalion, gather over here!”

Su Ming focused his mind and quickly followed.

The person responsible for receiving them was a middle-aged Cultivator wearing a dark red Formation robe, his left sleeve empty and fluttering in the wind. He held a Jade Slip in his hand, his gaze coldly scanning this group of 'fledglings' from the Sect.

“When your name is called, go and collect your identification badge and tools.”

“Zhang San, First Squad.”

“Li Si, Second Squad.”

...“Su Ming, Third Squad.”

Su Ming stepped forward and took the heavy black iron badge. It was cold to the touch, with the character 'Assistant' engraved on it and a complex serial number on the back.

“Third Squad is over there.” The one-armed Cultivator pointed to a stone house in the corner of the camp. “Go find Captain Zhao Tieji. Don't wander around. One wrong step here and you'll trigger a killing Formation; no one will be there to collect your corpse.”

Su Ming thanked him and turned toward the stone house.

The camp here was completely different from the ethereal, Immortal Qi-filled atmosphere of the Sect. The ground was paved with rough stone slabs, and the gaps between them were filled with black sealant to prevent Spiritual Qi leakage. Most of the Cultivators passing by were in a hurry, their robes stained with oil and scorch marks. The air was thick with a solemn and orderly sense of tension.

In front of the Third Squad's stone house stood a tall man.

His back was to Su Ming, and he was holding a massive Formation Plate, using a tool like a chisel to forcefully carve something onto it. Every strike was accompanied by flying sparks.

“Reporting. New Technical Assistant Cultivator, Su Ming, reporting for duty as ordered.”

Su Ming stood three steps away and performed a standard Sect salute.

The man didn't stop his movements until he finished the last stroke, then he slowly turned around.

It was a face as cold and hard as rock.

A dark red scar ran from the corner of his right eye down to his chin, making his face look somewhat ferocious. He was at the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment, but his aura was more condensed and sharp than any Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator Su Ming had ever seen.

Zhao Tieji.

He sized Su Ming up, his gaze lingering for a moment on those long, clean hands, and his lips curled into a far from friendly arc.

“Qi Refining Seventh Layer? The Sect was quite generous this time, sending someone with decent cultivation.”

Zhao Tieji's voice sounded like two pieces of pig iron rubbing together. “However, looking at your delicate skin and tender flesh, you must be used to sitting in an office in the rear, aren't you?”

Su Ming's expression remained unchanged as he said calmly, “Reporting to the Captain, this Disciple was responsible for the Repair Hall in the Sect and indeed has little experience fighting on the front lines. If there are any shortcomings, I ask for the Captain's guidance.”

He was neither humble nor arrogant, neither angered by the other's contempt nor deliberately showing fear.

Zhao Tieji casually threw the hundred-jin Formation Plate to Su Ming.

Su Ming instinctively channeled his spiritual power to catch it. It was slightly heavy, but he held it steadily.

“That is a spare node Formation Plate for the 'Tianxuan Position' of the city wall.”

Zhao Tieji pointed to a tiny crack on the Formation Plate. “For a crack like this in the Sect, you might dismantle it to re-refine it or spend three days slowly repairing it. But here, you only have half a cup of tea's time.”

He walked up to Su Ming, a pressure mixed with the scent of blood washing over him.

“Kid, remember the first rule here.”

Zhao Tieji reached out with a rough finger and tapped the badge on Su Ming's chest. “In the Sect, if you draw a rune wrong, all you waste is a piece of material, and it's over after a scolding. But at Iron Wall Pass, if there's a problem with the node you're responsible for and a Yao Beast leaks in, the ones who die could be the brothers behind you, or even an entire battalion.”

“Every single Formation line here is stained with blood.”

Su Ming looked at Zhao Tieji's hand, which was covered in calluses and scars, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“This Disciple understands,” Su Ming said in a low voice. “The Formation stands as I stand; I will not fail my mission.”

“Save the pretty words for the dead.”

Zhao Tieji snorted coldly, turned, and took a dusty cloth bag from the shelf behind him, tossing it to Su Ming. “These are your tools. Inside are a standard Formation pen, spirit ink, inspection maps, and distress signal fireworks. Your quarters are in Stone House No. 7, Section C. Familiarize yourself with the environment and the diagrams today. Tomorrow at the Hour of Mao, follow the squad onto the wall punctually.”

“Yes.”

Su Ming took the cloth bag, saluted again, and turned to leave.