Chapter 107
By the time she arrived at the Guest Quarters, dusk was settling all around.
Baek-Cheong’s Abode inside the Guest Quarters was situated deep within the Main Building.
As their Clan Status had risen following the announcement of the Millennial Plan, they were set apart from the Guests of other clans.
And Jin-Wi escorted Baek-Cheong right up to the front of her Abode.
“Young Lady Baek, please rest comfortably.”
“Thank you.”
Baek-Cheong bowed her head slightly in return and stepped inside the Abode.
Inside the room, a neat bed and a small tea table stood.
A Formation was carved into the wall, allowing spiritual energy to flow in gently.
Baek-Cheong sat in front of the tea table and examined the inside of her Storage Platform.
It contained the Thousand-Year-Old Red Yang Herb, Cold Moon Flower, and Cheong-Ok-Ji-Cho she had received at Dan-Jeong-Ru.
The piles of spiritual herbs she had received from other places also took up a considerable amount of space.
Furthermore, the Jade Slip Bundle handed to her by Talisman Master Yeon at Yunpil Hall sat neatly to one side.
“Mm, it was a fruitful day.”
Baek-Cheong felt satisfied as she looked at the gifts that had rolled in for free.
Her Storage Platform becoming this plump was a rare occurrence, even back at the Main Family.
If she returned to the Main Family and unpacked the medicinal ingredients, it seemed like one side of the Pill Refining Room would be completely filled with spiritual herbs.
She planned to flip through the Jade Slip Bundle later when she got bored.
‘At this rate, won’t my Storage Platform be completely full by the end of the New Year’s Banquet?’
A small laugh escaped her as this thought crossed her mind.
Normally, this would be the time she’d be stealthily snooping around the Nameless Forum.
Around the time she finished her Training at the Main Family and went to bed, her Desire to Stir Trouble would usually surge.
Strangely enough, however, the urge to log into the Nameless Forum did not arise today.
‘Huh, I don’t feel like going in today.’
She had no idea why that was the case.
But a deep sense of fulfillment filled her small chest, accompanied by a pleasant wave of fatigue.
“Is it because I’m tired?”
Baek-Cheong let out a small yawn while fiddling with her hair.
She stood up, straightened her clothes, and approached the bed.
Smoothing out the blanket, she lay down on the bed.
She closed her eyes, embracing the rapidly approaching sleep.
* * *
The next morning dawned.
She opened her eyes to the sound of a small bird chirping beneath the eaves of the Guest Room.
Thanks to that unknown sense of fulfillment, she had slept deeply through the night, and her body felt light.
After finishing a light meal, she was attended by the maidservants and neatly dressed in her Water-Colored Daoist Robe.
Footsteps sounded from outside the Guest Room, and a Guard arrived to deliver a message.
“Young Lady, the Sect Master’s True Disciple has arrived at the front of the Guest Quarters.”
“Yes, I’ll be right out.”
Baek-Cheong grabbed her Storage Platform and headed out of the Guest Room.
As she stepped out into the Courtyard of the Guest Quarters, Jin-Wi stood to one side, dressed in his Cloud-Patterned Daoist Robe.
Unlike his endlessly bright demeanor, his aura was refined, befitting someone who had entered the Early Foundation Establishment Stage.
“Young Lady Baek! Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, did you have a good morning as well, senior Jin-Wi?”
As usual, Jin-Wi broke into a goofy grin the moment he saw Baek-Cheong, but he hurriedly regained his senses.
Then, Clearing his throat, he clumsily imitated an adult.
“Which Peak of Arts would you like to visit today?”
Having toured Pill Refining Peak and Je-bu-bong Peak yesterday, it was time to visit a different Peak of Arts today.
While pretending to ponder as she adjusted her Attire, Baek-Cheong had already decided on a destination in her mind.
It was an Art she had been secretly looking forward to since yesterday.
“How about Formations?”
Jin-Wi paused for a moment before nodding his head.
“Then I shall guide you to Jinmunbong Peak.”
Jin-Wi reached out one hand and gathered his spiritual energy.
Clouds gathered at their feet, and they stepped onto them with practiced ease.
As the clouds gently rose and headed toward Jinmunbong Peak, Jin-Wi quietly observed Baek-Cheong out of the corner of his eye.
‘Surely she doesn’t have a Talent for Formations too…’
He recalled the incident where she had thoroughly embarrassed Dan Gyeong Sa-Suk using Yak-seon’s teachings as a foundation, the previous day at Pill Refining Peak’s Dan-Jeong-Ru.
At Yunpil Hall, he had seen with his own two eyes the sight of her drawing a 2nd-Tier Talisman - something even Talisman Masters struggled with - in a single stroke.
With such aptitude, he guessed that even if she turned her attention to Formations, she would be more than capable of holding her own.
‘Nah, there’s no way she has a Talent for every single Art.’
Jin-Wi shook his head, scattering his distracting thoughts.
Even showing Talent in just one of the Hundred Arts of Cultivation was rare enough to be counted on one hand in a lifetime.
Even if Baek-Cheong had dabbled in Pill Refining and talismans, there was no reason for her to be a genius in Formations as well.
According to what she had told him on the way back to the Guest Quarters, hadn’t she said that drawing the talisman in one go at Yunpil Hall was all thanks to her Third Older Brother’s teachings?
She must have chosen Jinmunbong Peak out of pure curiosity.
.
.
.
As the clouds crossed over a couple of peaks, Jinmunbong Peak came into view.
The scenery was quite different from the other Peaks.
Small Pavilions were lined up all over the Peak, and energies of various colors flowed between them.
A large Platform was situated right in the middle of the Peak, and a faint yet ethereal radiance constantly shimmered above it.
It was far more splendid than the other peaks.
As the clouds touched down lightly at the entrance of Jinmunbong Peak, Jin-Wi stepped off first.
“This is Our Sect’s Jinmunbong Peak. Inside the Peak, the Pavilions of the Venerable One Formation Masters are lined up, and a simple Formation Test is currently in full swing on the large Platform in celebration of the academic exhibition.”
“Wow…”
Baek-Cheong couldn’t tear her eyes away even as she stepped off the cloud.
The Pavilions of the Formation Masters were lined up inside Jinmunbong Peak, but the scenery Baek-Cheong faced wasn’t just the Pavilions.
Between the Pavilions, above the Platform, and all over the Peak, countless Formation Glyphs were floating and shimmering faintly.
Every single Formation Glyph resembled the shapes she had examined in the Jinmun Formation Diagram.
However, while the Formation Glyphs in the Jinmun Formation Diagram had remained perfectly still on the paper,
The Formation Glyphs on Jinmunbong Peak were roaming all over the Peak as if they were alive and moving.
Inside the Peak, the Formation Glyphs were pulling and pushing against each other, weaving a flow, and energies of different colors were leaking out between the Formation Glyphs to form Formations.
As countless Formation Glyphs entered her vision all at once, Baek-Cheong found herself half-mesmerized without even realizing it.
It couldn’t even be compared to spreading out the Jinmun Formation Diagram and studying the Formation Glyphs.
“Wow… To think there are this many Formation Glyphs floating around.”
Baek-Cheong was busy shifting her gaze, imprinting the Formation Glyphs on her mind.
Among the Water-Attribute Glyphs, there was one that bore a strange resemblance to the Formation Glyph she had examined on the third page of the Jinmun Formation Diagram, and among the Fire-Attribute Glyphs, there was even a Formation Glyph mixed in that she had pondered over for a long time but failed to grasp.
In her mind, every single stroke of the Formation Glyphs was neatly transferred into its place within the Jinmun Formation Diagram.
While she stood still in front of this spectacle, Jin-Wi spoke to her, sounding proud.
“Young Lady Baek, Our Sect’s Jinmunbong Peak is the place with the most things to see among all the Peaks of Arts.”
“Things to see?”
“In celebration of the academic exhibition, the Venerable One Formation Masters of Our Sect have each laid out a Formation they’ve been cultivating at their respective Pavilions. Even External Guests make sure to look around Jinmunbong Peak when they visit Our Sect.”
Jin-Wi puffed out his chest proudly, as if he were a Formation Master himself.
“Is that why there are so many Formations here?”
Unable to contain her awe, Baek-Cheong asked as if it were obvious.
Jin-Wi looked at her with a bewildered expression for a moment.
“…Formations?”
His counter-question was laced with heavy doubt.
It seemed he couldn’t figure out what she was looking at to discern the Formations from where they stood, before even entering the Peak.
“Yes, there are so many Formations h - “
Baek-Cheong only stopped speaking when she looked straight at Jin-Wi’s puzzled expression.
She looked at the Formations visible to her eyes, then looked at Jin-Wi’s expression, taking a moment to organize her thoughts.
“Uh, wait a minute.”
The Formation Glyphs floating all over the Peak were faint, but they were definitely visible.
Since there were many Formation Glyphs she hadn’t yet comprehended, the Formations made up of those Formation Glyphs naturally revealed their presence, even if they weren’t complete.
“Could it be… that the Formations are only visible to my eyes?”
If the Formations existing all over the Peak were invisible to Jin-Wi’s eyes, it meant they were invisible to other people’s eyes as well.
Jin-Wi was the Sect Master’s True Disciple and a Cultivator possessing the aptitude of a Heavenly Spiritual Root Holder.
Even if he was ignorant about Formations, his Spiritual Perception could be considered outstanding.
If the Formations weren’t visible even in Jin-Wi’s field of vision, there was a high chance that the Formations visible in her own vision were a sight only she was seeing.
“…Wouldn’t there be?”
Baek-Cheong quickly changed her words, pretending to be nonchalant.
Jin-Wi nodded his head, unable to harbor any particular suspicion toward Baek-Cheong’s words.
“Since it’s definitely Jinmunbong Peak, there will be plenty of the Venerable One Formation Masters' Formations once we step inside the Peak.”
“Yes, I think so too.”
Baek-Cheong fiddled with the hem of her sleeve, carefully gauging his reaction.
Fortunately, there was no particular doubt evident in Jin-Wi’s words.
“I wonder if the Formation Masters know about the Formation Glyphs?”
Meanwhile, a point of confusion entered her mind.
If they were the Biun Sect’s Formation Masters residing on Jinmunbong Peak, they ought to be able to see the Formation Glyphs at the very least.
Otherwise, how could they possibly deploy Formations, carve Formation Glyphs, and fathom the Formation Structure?
‘Whether other Formation Masters see it like this too… I’ll have to wait and see for now.’
She withdrew her gaze, turned her head toward Jin-Wi, and straightened her posture.
It was better to quietly keep such guesses tucked away inside her small heart.
The secrets intertwined with the Nameless Forum were dangerous to reveal carelessly.