431: Current situation in the East China Sea

Li Changfeng departed from Dragon Seeking City and traveled all the way to the Ancient Battlefield without encountering any Yao Beast interceptions.

Along the way, islands with established towns appeared on the sea, all creations of the players.

Some were pre-existing islands, while others were islands moved there using Divine Ability secret methods.

In short, to facilitate the development of the East Sea, especially for lower-level Cultivators and even Mortals, players had indeed invested a lot.

"From the looks of it, the East Sea's development seems to be the most normal and fastest among the four regions?"

Upon arriving at the Ancient Battlefield, Li Changfeng was no longer in a hurry to find Xiao Buyu.

He patrolled the edge of the Ancient Battlefield and indeed saw a cluster of strongholds established by players.

The strongholds here were larger than the island strongholds, mostly large cities spanning dozens of miles.

Li Changfeng inquired around and then understood the ecological situation here.

After Wen Xinghai commanded Dragon Seeking City to open up the East Sea, this area became the most adventurous and highest-reward region among the Immortal Dynasty's four directions.

Since then, Loose Cultivators and Sects have flocked here continuously.

Some Loose Cultivators spontaneously banded together, forming trade cities centered around markets.

Some Sects came here and established their own towns, gradually forming branch Sects.

As the exploration of the Ancient Battlefield deepened, more and more treasures were discovered, and the methods required to acquire these treasures became increasingly sophisticated. Even cashing them in required certain connections.

Some Sects also began to cooperate, gradually banding together, connecting their independent cities into one large area, growing larger and larger, forming massive cities spanning dozens of miles.

If such large cities lacked Formation protection, they would inevitably be exploited, so Formation Great Masters like Xiao Buyu were invited.

They didn't need to worry about anything; they just waited to be invited, and there would be endless major projects, each with higher remuneration than the last.

In short, the spring for Formation Masters had arrived.

Not just Formation Masters, but all professions related to city building, such as Architects, also became popular, rapidly developing the talent pool in these areas.

Players' understanding and utilization of metallurgy, stone, and earth were rapidly improving.

"This is a good thing..."

Li Changfeng sighed with emotion.

He held a high position and had sponsored various Hundred Arts Player from the start, but he couldn't comprehensively cultivate all kinds of artisan talents.

Now that city building in the East Sea had revitalized these Hundred Arts Player, Li Changfeng, while sighing, also began to ponder whether there were better ways to cultivate talent beyond ordinary sponsorship.

For example, letting the 'invisible hand' of the market 'help the sprouts grow' vigorously?

"Hmm, we'll talk about this later..."

Although somewhat stunned by the changes in the East Sea, Li Changfeng ultimately didn't forget his original purpose.

He contacted Xiao Buyu in advance, learned his location, and after touring the East Sea Ancient Battlefield, headed in Xiao Buyu's direction.

That was further east, next to the Heaven-Reaching Pagoda ruins.

A massive city spanning a hundred miles rose from the ground, its dozens-of-meters-high city walls resembling a great mountain stretching across the plain.

Li Changfeng knew that if it were a city for residents, a hundred miles wouldn't be too exaggerated, as the population in the Xuanhuan World was explosively large, with many super-cities west of Yanwang Prefecture.

However, the city next to the Heaven-Reaching Pagoda was not designed to accommodate too many people; it was for defense against enemies.

The city was large because it needed to store vast amounts of resources to maintain its Formations, ensuring it could withstand a siege by Fifth-Rank Cultivators for several months, and even sustain attacks from Fourth-Rank Cultivators for several days.

Therefore, the city had to be large; otherwise, there wouldn't be enough defensive resources inside, and the Formation platforms of the grand Formation wouldn't have sufficient space to deploy.

Li Changfeng met Xiao Buyu on the city wall. He didn't directly state his purpose but instead brought up the issue of the city's size.

Xiao Buyu smiled bitterly:

"It's not that we wanted to build it so large, but rather it's out of necessity.

"Currently, we players simply don't have the ability to create Grotto-Heavens. Things like 'Sleeve Universe' and 'Heaven in the Palm' are simply incredible to us.

"So we can only utilize actual, physical space."

Li Changfeng asked, "Can't storage rings be used?"

He actually knew the problem, but he asked anyway to pave the way for what he was about to say.

Xiao Buyu shook his head:

"Many precious Materials cannot be stored in ordinary storage rings, and high-level storage rings are extremely expensive, simply unaffordable.

"Furthermore, with our current level, to create a grand Formation capable of resisting Fourth-Rank Cultivators, we can only adopt a method of layering multiple grand Formations. This means the Formation itself requires a large amount of space to deploy, and the internal Spiritual Qi circulation must be ensured to be smooth.

"In short, space cannot be saved."

Li Changfeng said:

"I heard that skilled Formation Masters can create composite Formations for an entire mountain peak.

"Moreover, this mountain peak would gather the local Spiritual Qi, even directly encompassing an entire Spiritual Vein, allowing the Spiritual Vein to merge with the mountain range.

"Inside, numerous Semi-Grotto-Heavens and Grotto-Heavens would be designed to expand space and gather Spiritual Qi.

"In just a few hundred years, it could become a Holy Land for cultivation."

Xiao Buyu sighed:

"Those capable of such engineering are all Great Masters of Formations; I am still far from that level."

He pointed to the inside of the city wall, where many warehouses and Formation platforms could be seen.

"Because our skills are not refined, we've sacrificed a lot of space to store supplies and arrange Formation platforms, and we still have to ensure the normal operation of the grand Formation's Spiritual power.

"Therefore, the utilization of Spiritual Veins here is almost zero, and there's no unique design for gathering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

"In short, we are merely aiming for a stronghold here that can defend against powerful enemies; we are not striving for a treasure land for cultivation."

Li Changfeng nodded and then said:

"But as a Formation Master, isn't your most valuable aspect in collaborating with the various Sects?

"You will eventually need to be responsible for the entire Formation construction of a Sect, whether it's a Sect-protecting grand Formation or a Spirit Gathering Array. All of this requires you to have better Formation mastery."

Xiao Buyu frowned: "Just say it directly, Immortal Master Changfeng, do you have a better Formation Legacy?"

Li Changfeng shook his head.

Xiao Buyu's face showed disappointment.

"But I know who does."

Li Changfeng said, "True Lord Feng Chuan definitely does."

Xiao Buyu frowned: "Why are you so sure?"

Li Changfeng confidently said:

"The Qingling Sect itself has an excellent Sect-protecting grand Formation that can resist our players' harassment. Moreover, recently, to counter the siege of multiple Fifth-Rank Cultivators, this Formation was even upgraded and gained some counter-attacking capabilities. This indicates that they definitely have a Formation Legacy, and living Formation Masters.

"Secondly, the Qingling Sect relocated entirely from the south to the north. During this mountain-moving process, they also brought along the local Spiritual Veins. Such a large-scale migration that can gather Spiritual Qi must involve extremely intricate Formation designs.

"In summary, if you want to advance further, you need to seek a Formation Legacy, and the Qingling Sect is the most ideal source for such a Legacy."

Xiao Buyu pondered for a moment, not answering immediately.