Chapter 222: Cloud Empire (42)

The thirteen finalists stood up in unison, without hesitation.

The silence of the Celestial Plaza was so dense that one could hear the faint crackling of ancient runes on the 108 jade pillars surrounding it.

Qing Lanyue remained motionless at the center of the main disc, her silhouette standing out against the backdrop of eternal clouds that filtered the light into cold, diffuse tones.

She raised her left hand with an almost casual gesture.

From the spatial ring on her middle finger, a single plate emerged.

It was different from anything that had been used so far.

An ancient jade plate, with six perfectly symmetrical sides, its edges slightly irregular as if it had been cut from a natural block millennia ago.

Its size was impressive, nearly three meters in diameter, thick enough to be considered a slab.

Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of interconnected lines covered its surface. They were ancient runes intertwined in perfect geometric patterns, layers upon layers of inscriptions that seemed to pulse with a life of their own.

Some lines glowed faintly in shades of emerald, others in aged silver, and there were sections that seemed to absorb the light instead of reflecting it.

The plate floated for a moment above her hand, then slowly descended until it landed exactly at the center of the main disc.

The impact was silent, not even a sound of stone against stone, yet the ground trembled slightly, as if the arena itself recognized the weight of the treasure.

Qing Lanyue lowered her hand. Her voice came out cold, precise, and without unnecessary emotion.

“This is the final phase.”

She paused briefly, allowing the weight of the words to settle.

“The plate you see is an ancient Peak Rank 6 formation. It is the key to a matrix of containment, illusion, and barrier, among other simultaneous formations, created more than a thousand years ago by a master of the Jade Palace. It contains more than seven thousand interconnected runes.”

“You will have two hours to observe it.”

She raised a finger.

“The rules are.”

“You may not touch the plate. You may not copy the lines with Qi or tools.”

“Use only your own memory, comprehension, and natural vision.”

“After the two hours, each of you will have to assemble a complete formation based on what you understood from this plate.”

“The quality of the assembled formation, the rank, complexity, stability, purity, and creativity in adaptation will decide the winner.”

“The time begins now.”

She said nothing more.

A spiritual bell rang, softly yet piercing, marking the beginning of the two hours.

The thirteen finalists approached in a respectful circle around the giant plate. None of them spoke. They simply positioned themselves, some sitting in lotus position a few meters away, others standing with arms crossed, eyes fixed on the jade surface. The air around the plate seemed heavier, as if the ancient formation itself emanated a subtle pressure that challenged whoever dared to comprehend it.

Kyrian watched everything with absolute attention. His crimson eyes traveled across every visible line on the plate, layer by layer. Engraving everything into his practically perfect memory. He could see the lines, but he still did not fully understand them. Perhaps he should study more about formations to fully understand them.

Mei Li whispered beside him, barely moving her lips.

“Whoever created this must have been a genius. Two hours is a very short time to even memorize the lines, let alone create something from them. It requires truly great talent for the path of formations.”

Kyrian nodded slightly.

“Besides, she doesn’t want mere copies. She wants comprehension.”

The two hours passed in an almost oppressive silence. The audience understood the test and remained quiet, simply watching, not wanting to disturb the participants.

Master Ming was the first to sit down. He closed his eyes for long minutes, then opened them and began tracing runes in the air with his finger, not to copy, but to feel the flow. His breathing was steady and deep. Gradually, he seemed to enter a state of deep meditation, as if he were conversing with the plate.

The disciple from the Cloud Academy remained standing the entire time. His eyes moved quickly, following specific lines, returning, and stopping at points of intersection. He murmured formulas softly, mentally reviewing each layer he could perceive.

Lan Xue, the young woman in purple robes, sat sideways, legs crossed, chin resting on her hand. Her eyes shone with genuine interest, she seemed more fascinated than pressured.

The others varied. Some walked slowly around the plate, trying to see different angles, others remained motionless like statues, one or two broke into a cold sweat, visibly overwhelmed by the complexity.

Kyrian, after engraving every line of the plate, observed each reaction.

’Old Ming is no longer looking. He has already understood what he judged to be enough and is now organizing it mentally.’

’Lan Xue seems satisfied as well, with a fascinated smile on her face.’

The time then ended.

The same spiritual bell rang, this time shorter, more definitive.

Qing Lanyue raised her hand.

The giant plate slowly lifted from the ground, floating back into her spatial ring in a smooth arc. When it disappeared, the central disc was empty once again.

“Two hours concluded.”

She looked at the thirteen finalists. There was no visible judgment in her expression. Only absolute calm.

She raised her right hand again.

From the spatial ring, thirteen identical sets of materials emerged and floated gently toward each finalist. Each set consisted of ten reinforced iron plates, a neutral material. In addition to sixty mid-grade spirit stones.

A vial of pure spiritual ink was also delivered to trace runes onto the plates.

The materials landed before each of them in organized triangles, forming clear workspaces separated by invisible lines of containment that Qing Lanyue traced with a subtle gesture of her finger. The lines glowed for a second before disappearing, ensuring that no one could interfere with another’s work.

She gave no further explanations.

With a light and elegant leap, Qing Lanyue rose once more to the top of the highest pillar. Her robes fluttered once before settling. From up there, with a complete view of the arena and the thirteen workspaces, she hovered motionless like a living statue.

“Begin.”

The word fell like a hammer.

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