The Fisherman Above the Sword Clouds

At the very center of the sword cloud’s encirclement, within the golden sphere, Ye Qingqing retrieved a miniature divination plate from her Cosmos Bag.

Though small, this plate was fully equipped. The Five Elements, Eight Trigrams, Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches, four seasons, and the twelve earthly branches were all intricately carved upon its surface.

Ye Qingqing gently adjusted the knob on the right arm of her auxiliary eyepiece, and the tiny characters on the divination plate instantly became crystal clear.

She had specially developed this auxiliary eyepiece twenty years ago for her research into the ‘Grand Yin-Yang Five Elements Array,’ dedicating considerable effort to it. Now, almost every disciple of the Great Evolution Sect carried one.

Despite its small size, this divination plate might only serve as a delicate toy or ornament in the hands of an ordinary cultivator. However, for a sect like the Great Evolution Sect, which specialized in array formations, it was akin to a high-tier magic treasure.

In the past, when disciples set up arrays, pinpointing the array core often involved tedious calculations for ages. By the time the array was fully deployed, if it was for a static purpose, it was fine. But in a live confrontation, enemies would often have already fled before the array was even complete.

With this plate, however, disciples merely needed to align with the correct time and silently recite an incantation Ye Qingqing had tailor-made for it, and the position of the array core would become clear at a glance.

“Deploy Gold!”

At Ye Qingqing’s command, the disciples within the array all revealed expressions of delight.

Empowered by Ye Qingqing’s voice, the Gold Flag disciples exerted themselves immensely. Their hand seals rapidly condensed, and the command flags under their control ceaselessly fluttered up and down.

The flag maneuvers had been practiced countless times before, so their technique was naturally superb.

Before long, the essence of metallic warfare manifested powerfully within the array.

Ye Qingqing kept her gaze fixed on the divination plate’s pointer until it finally came to a stop.

“Kan position! Establish the array core!”

No sooner had the order been given than a golden command flag instantly stood twenty paces north of the ‘treasure.’

The array core had just settled into place.

Arcs of ethereal blue light rapidly spread out from it, like ripples caused by a pebble cast into water.

“Enter Wood!”

The Wood Flag disciple, responsible for that section of the array, had long been eager to showcase their abilities before Elder Ye.

The command had barely been issued when a dozen command flags settled into position in just a single breath.

Upon completing this, the disciple immediately turned to look at Ye Qingqing, only to find the goddess of their heart nodding frequently. His heart swelled with elation and immense satisfaction.

‘Haha, I must have earned a lot of points in Elder Ye’s eyes!’

The other several disciples had naturally witnessed the scene just now and couldn’t help but seethe with indignation. ‘That scoundrel! He always ranted in the dorms, urging everyone to maintain the same pace and not to practice array deployment privately.’

‘Yet, who would have thought that the one who shouted the loudest about not overexerting oneself had secretly and silently mastered array deployment to such perfection?’

‘Truly despicable…’

The Wood Flag disciple distinctly felt the murderous glares from the other four, but he paid them no mind. Instead, he raised his head high, his provocative intent fully apparent.

‘That scoundrel…’ The four of them cursed almost simultaneously in their minds.

‘Once we return, we’ll surely flick this traitor until he sees stars, to teach him what true pain is!’

Sensing the shift in atmosphere within the array, Ye Qingqing immediately reprimanded them, “You fools! Why aren’t you immediately focusing and stabilizing your energy? Do you wish to be consumed by the array’s backlash and explode? I don’t have time to pick up your pieces.”

Owoo~!

A collective wolf howl echoed in the five disciples’ minds almost simultaneously. ‘Elder Ye’s voice is simply too beautiful, it inspires us to push forward!’

After a spring rain, five bamboo shoots were about to break through the soil.

Seeing the five idiots in the array with flushed faces, Ye Qingqing was so exasperated her hair almost smoked.

“If this array test fails, I’ll place a restriction on all your ‘wives’! It won’t be lifted for a year!”

Having exhausted her options, Ye Qingqing resorted to her ultimate threat.

“Our wives?” The five disciples collectively glanced at their hands, some at their left, others at their right.

Their faces instantly paled.

“How could this be? Without these dexterous companions, what pleasure would there be in looking at Elder Ye’s ‘books’ in the future?”

Ye Qingqing had just overheard some truly astounding information. Her fists clenched, her body trembling uncontrollably, on the verge of an outburst, when Master Shou Zuo, behind her, reminded, “Benefactress Ye, someone has already begun attacking the Immovable Wisdom King Array we set up. Please hurry!”

Ye Qingqing took a deep breath, suppressing the anger raging within her.

“Send—Water!”

Ye Qingqing practically roared this command, her voice nearly cracking.

Upon hearing this shout, coupled with the slightly ambiguous incantation, the five disciples nearly peed themselves.

Daring not to fool around any longer, the Water Flag swiftly responded and settled into its precise position.

“Return Fire!”

“Combine Earth!”

With the final command, the Grand Yin-Yang Five Elements Array was finally completed!

Only then did Ye Qingqing’s mind slightly ease.

The monks of the Great Zen Temple outside watched with continuous delight. This array formation was truly marvelous!

As expected of the Great Evolution Sect! As expected of its genius disciples!

Seizing the opportunity, while the five goofs were still in their heightened state, Ye Qingqing quickly ordered, “Deploy the Five Elements auxiliary materials!”

“Disperse!”

No sooner had her words fallen than the five disciples rapidly retreated. Then, controlling their flying swords, they immediately flew to Elder Ye’s side, vying for the positions where she would most easily notice them. All five were top-ranked in the sect for their knowledge of the Five Elements and directional theory, though it was clear they applied all their learning to Elder Ye herself.

Ye Qingqing had no time to spare for them now. As she conjured hand seals one after another, the entire Grand Yin-Yang Five Elements Array truly activated. All the blue light circles emitted by the array flags overlapped, intersected, and finally converged at the array core.

Ye Qingqing seized a moment to swallow a Qi Recovery Pill, and her pale face, drained from depleted magical power, slowly began to recover.

‘To think that even this simplified and re-simplified Grand Yin-Yang Five Elements Array consumes so much energy. When setting up arrays for the sect in the future, I must plan meticulously.’

“Then… let’s begin!”

Ye Qingqing snapped her fingers.

The array’s original blue light immediately turned red. Before long, fierce winds abruptly rose within the array, followed by continuous rain and snow, then fires erupted in all directions. Cold or scorching heat, the four seasons changed in an instant.

Because this array mimicked nature, it surprisingly did not disturb the invisible sword qi in the slightest!

The monks naturally witnessed these changes, exchanging astonished glances. They were all deeply shocked, marveling that a mortal array could wield the power of the heavens. They wondered if the Immovable Wisdom King Array could withstand it.

After a long while, Ye Qingqing adjusted her auxiliary eyepiece again, focusing, and observed the treasure within the array. It seemed a slight change had indeed occurred!

The original five-colored light finally dispersed, revealing the treasure’s true form.

“A bean, a bean?” The Wood Flag disciple had also been watching all this time.

“Idiot! It’s a lotus seed!” The other few disciples collectively shot him disdainful looks. They all held considerable grievances against the Wood Flag disciple and seized every opportunity to retort.

“Five colors, five seeds… could it be a Five Elements Lotus Seed? Holy crap, we’re rich!”

Even the usually composed Ye Qingqing couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.

The world knew that all things existed within the Five Elements. It was simply impossible for anyone in the mortal realm to imbue a lotus seed, originally of the Wood element, with other attributes simultaneously. This was power beyond the grasp of mortal cultivators.

Even in the immortal realm, few could refine such an item.

‘What exactly is the origin of this lotus seed?’ Ye Qingqing couldn’t help but swallow. ‘Damn, I really want it…’

“Cough, cough, Benefactress Ye…”

Master Shou Zuo, seeing the unusual expression on Ye Qingqing’s face, quickly reminded her, “We agreed that you would use the invisible sword qi to test the array’s power, and the treasure within belongs to us.”

“Uh…” Ye Qingqing’s expression twisted slightly. The five henchmen by her side immediately understood her unspoken intent.

“Old monk, when a rare treasure descends, those with destiny acquire it; do not force what is not meant to be~” As they spoke, the five men pulled out several more command flags from their robes, ready to fight if a disagreement arose.

“Oh~ Amitabha, is that so? This old monk may be overestimating his own strength, but I must respectfully seek guidance!”

“Hey, no, no!” Ye Qingqing saw the tension rising and secretly rejoiced. Her five disciples were finally proving useful, their training not in vain! If they truly started fighting, she would have an excuse to settle scores later! After all, she had tried to mediate.

“Hmph!” The old monk snorted, about to make his move.

Yet, the red light within the Grand Yin-Yang Five Elements Array began to flicker incessantly. The command flags within the array trembled, and the entire formation seemed on the verge of collapse.

As expected, the entire array couldn’t even withstand a single breath of time. It was shredded to pieces by the activated invisible sword qi.

Then, a loud explosion erupted from the array core, and smoke filled the grand formation.

Whoosh!

The disciples of the Great Evolution Sect and Great Zen Temple within the golden sphere all witnessed a five-colored ray of light pierce through the mist. It then effortlessly tore a hole through the Immovable Wisdom King Array and shot straight into the sky!

“This is bad!”

Innumerable cultivators were outside the array, attacking the Immovable Wisdom King Array in rotating batches.

Unexpectedly, an unknown object suddenly burst out from within, trailing a five-colored light. Some quick-reacting cultivators attempted to intercept it, but they were bounced back upon approach.

At this moment, the previously impenetrable golden sphere vanished. A group of monks burst forth, followed closely by numerous cultivators from the Great Evolution Sect.

All the cultivators understood that the object that had just flown out was undoubtedly the treasure.

Immediately, the sword cloud’s formation warped, resembling a swarm of locusts sweeping across the land, blotting out the sky.

Several miles above the sword cloud, Miaomiao stood in mid-air, gazing towards the direction of the Saint Water Palace.

Suddenly, a sense of oppression emanated from beneath her feet, growing stronger and stronger.

Just as she looked down, she felt the familiar presence of the sword qi from before.

Miaomiao still sensed no killing intent from it, and thus, she was struck head-on by the sword qi, standing perfectly still.

The tens of thousands of cultivators below witnessed this scene, believing the young girl would perish then and there. Everyone secretly lamented the loss, ‘What a promising talent, gone just like that…’

However, the expected scene of blood splattering did not occur.

The sword qi, upon contacting Miaomiao, simply vanished.

Miaomiao touched her forehead where she had been hit, yet felt not the slightest discomfort.

“That girl took the treasure!”

Only then did the cultivators understand. They immediately accelerated their flying swords and rushed towards Miaomiao.

Miaomiao, seeing the dense swarm of flying swords beneath her, also felt her scalp tingle.

In the blink of an eye, two plans popped into her mind.

‘Punch my way down and knock them out one by one.’

‘Punch my way through a path, then make a turn, then punch my way through another path, repeating until they’re all knocked out.’

“Hmm…” Miaomiao stroked her small, delicate chin.

“Time to bail…”