The cheers were still ringing when Haotian dismissed the disciples. One by one, they filed out of the courtyard, Yuehua Jian clutched tightly in their hands, eyes burning with new resolve.
But Shuyue did not leave. She stood rooted in place, her gaze fixed on the dais.
Haotian's figure loomed against the sunlight, his robe outlined by the gleam of countless blades. He looked untouchable, dazzling, as if he had descended from the heavens themselves.
Her chest tightened.
Months ago, she had stumbled upon a scene she could not forget — Elder Ziyue, her aloof and untouchable senior, standing beneath the moonlight, her voice trembling as she confessed to Haotian. Shuyue had fled before she heard his reply, but the sight alone had shattered something within her.
In panic, she had thrown herself into cultivating the Heart-Seal Method, locking her emotions in chains, forcing stillness into her restless heart. Days upon days she meditated, suppressing the turmoil. And for a time, it worked.
But now…
Now he had returned. Standing tall, his voice carrying like thunder, his golden eyes alight with conviction as he vowed to raise the sect to greater heights. His presence filled the courtyard, made the world itself seem smaller in his shadow.
And the heart-seal cracked.
Shuyue's hands trembled at her sides, her pulse racing. The words Ziyue had once spoken — sharp, cutting, unshakable — rose unbidden in her mind:
"Why do you cultivate the Heart-Seal Method? For what purpose?"
She had no answer then. She had no answer now.
Her eyes lingered on Haotian as he turned, his stride steady, his back broad, carrying the weight of the sect, the weight of their futures.
That strong back.
Her breath caught. A sudden, desperate urge rose within her — to follow, to step forward, to walk in his shadow and never leave.
Her heart pounded, her thoughts a storm. She clenched her fists until her nails bit into her palms.
"Senior Brother Haotian…" she whispered, voice too faint for anyone to hear.
But even as the disciples dispersed, even as Yinxue and Ziyue exchanged quiet words, Shuyue remained frozen, torn between the chains of her heart-seal and the storm that was breaking them apart.
And as Haotian's figure vanished beyond the pavilion doors, the longing only grew.
The cheers still rang in the courtyard as disciples clutched their new swords and filed out, their voices echoing Haotian's vows. The air was alive with hope.
But Shuyue remained still, her feet rooted to the stone tiles, her eyes fixed on the figure at the center of it all.
Haotian.
He stood tall, sunlight at his back, moonlight blades gleaming behind him, his golden eyes steady and unshakable. His presence filled the courtyard until it seemed the very mountains bent to him.
Her chest tightened.
She remembered too clearly that night, months ago, when she had stumbled upon Elder Ziyue — her aloof, untouchable senior — standing beneath the moonlight, voice trembling as she confessed to Haotian. Shuyue had fled before hearing his answer, but the sight alone had shaken her.
Panicked, she had locked herself away, cultivating the Heart-Seal Method, binding her emotions in chains, forcing calm into her turbulent heart. Days and nights she had meditated, silencing her longing.
And for a time, it had worked.
But now… seeing him again… hearing his voice thunder like iron and silk, promising to raise the sect higher, promising to shield them from the coming storm…
Her heart-seal cracked.
Shuyue's breath caught, her fingers curling tightly at her sides. Ziyue's words returned to her, echoing like a curse:
"Why do you cultivate the Heart-Seal Method? For what purpose?"
She had no answer then. She had no answer now.
Her eyes clung to Haotian as he turned from the dais, his back straight, his stride sure. That back — strong enough to bear the weight of the sect, the seal, even the heavens. Strong enough to shield all.
The desire rose unbidden, fierce and desperate. To step forward. To follow. To never leave his side again.
Her lips parted, a whisper breaking free before she could stop it."…Haotian."
The name slipped out softly, more prayer than voice, unheard beneath the noise of dispersing disciples.
She stayed frozen as the courtyard emptied, her heart thundering against the breaking chains of her seal. And as his figure vanished beyond the pavilion doors, the storm in her chest only grew louder.
The next days passed in relentless focus. Haotian secluded himself in the refining halls, his sleeves rolled, his hands never still.
One day.That was all it took for him to refine more than 1.6 million pills.
The flames of his cauldron roared like a living dragon, its heat controlled with perfect precision. Batch after batch flowed forth — Triple Recovery Pills to replenish qi, Frost Crystal Vein Pills to strengthen meridians, and countless others to temper body and spirit. Each pill gleamed like a tiny jewel, flawless in form, their fragrance seeping through the halls.
Nor did he forget the disciples' hearts. He refined thousands of Beauty Restoration Pills, knowing well the sect sisters prized both their cultivation and their grace. A small gesture — but one that bound their loyalty deeper still.
Attendants moved like shadows, carrying away tray after tray, storing them in jade cases, sealing them with runes. And still Haotian worked, as though time itself bent beneath his will.
When he finally paused, it was not to rest. Instead, he spread scrolls across the table, his brush moving swiftly as he drafted lists of resources.
Spirit jade veins.
Star iron ore.
Core beast crystals.
Chi-absorbing spirit woods.
Each item was critical. He was planning more than swords or pills. He was drafting the framework for a mini grand formation, one to encircle the Moon Lotus Sect itself — layers of defense, layers of concealment, chi-gathering nodes that would shield and nourish his sect sisters.
His hand did not waver. Every rune, every sigil, every number of resources was calculated precisely.
When the ink dried, he left the scrolls behind and made his way outside.
The Falcons
Past the training grounds and herbal gardens, he came to the cliffs where the spirit falcons nested.
They had grown. Once no larger than hawks, now they rivaled bald eagles in size, their wings wide enough to blot the sky when they stretched. The youngest still bore gray feathers, but the elders shone with iridescent silver-blue, their eyes sharp as blades.
The moment Haotian appeared, the air split with sharp cries.
Skreee! Skreee!
They flocked to him at once, swooping down from the cliffside. Their massive wings beat the air, yet their movements softened as they landed around him, pressing their hooked beaks to his shoulders, nudging against him like children.
Haotian chuckled softly, lifting a hand to stroke the nearest falcon's head. The creature lowered its eyes, its cry softening, the bond between them plain.
"You've all grown well," he murmured. "Soon, you'll soar higher than any storm."
The falcons crooned, crowding closer, jostling one another for his touch. Even the largest of them — its head broader than his own — bent low, nudging at his chest with surprising gentleness.
For a moment, the world of formations and seals, of demons and storms, faded. For a moment, he was simply their guardian — the one they called to, the one they trusted.
And then his golden eyes lifted, sharp once more. The falcons would not only be nurtured — they, too, would become a part of the defense to come.
Word spread faster than wind.
By noon, every courtyard and pavilion of the Moon Lotus Sect buzzed with disbelief. Disciples whispered to one another, jade bottles clutched tightly in their hands, each filled with gleaming pills that seemed too perfect to be real.
"He refined all of these… in one day?""Impossible. Even a peak alchemist couldn't manage ten thousand in that time!""And yet Senior Brother Haotian refined 1.6 million."
The number became a chant, a legend born before their eyes. Elders who had lived for centuries were left speechless, their pride shaken by what they witnessed. Attendants swore their arms still ached from carrying tray after tray out of the refining halls — and still, the flow of pills had not ceased until Haotian willed it.
Disciples sat in meditation chambers, their Yuehua Jian at their sides, swallowing Triple Recovery Pills and feeling their qi surge back three times faster than before. Others tempered their meridians with Frost Crystal Vein Pills, their bodies hardening against cold and strain. And many more gasped in delight as Beauty Restoration Pills cleared old scars, restored their glow, and renewed their confidence.
The sect's morale soared. For the first time, the disciples believed that perhaps — just perhaps — they could stand against what was to come.
And all of it was because of him.
"Haotian… he's beyond human.""No, he's our Senior Brother. He's the pillar of this sect.""With him here, even demons cannot shake us."
Their voices filled the halls, their eyes brighter than ever before.
The Mini Grand Formation – Haotian's Vision
While the sect stirred with hope, Haotian sat alone with scrolls spread wide before him. Brushes stained with ink moved swiftly in his hands, drawing rune after rune, array after array.
This was not a plan for a mere defensive barrier. It was a mini grand formation, modeled after the Nine Divine Flying Dragons Array he had already tested, but adapted to fit the Moon Lotus Sect's unique needs.
He drafted 36 Chi-Gathering Nodes, spread evenly along the perimeter, each etched with spiraling runes that would draw the ambient energy of heaven and earth. Together, they would feed the entire formation continuously, ensuring it never lacked power.
Around these, he layered three Defensive Arrays, each calibrated differently:
The first layer to disperse elemental attacks.
The second to redirect force and pressure away from the sect's structures.
The third to harden into a crystalline barrier, able to withstand direct assaults from Saint Realm experts.
Beyond defense, he wove in two Concealment Arrays:
One to blur the sect's presence from prying eyes.
Another to dampen spiritual sense, masking the strength of its disciples.
At the heart of it all, Haotian sketched the keystone — a Killing Array, a reduced version of the Nine Divine Flying Dragons. It would not summon dragons, not here — but instead manifest nine streams of destructive chi that could converge upon invaders, tearing them apart with combined force. Enough, Haotian calculated, to repel even a peak Saint Realm intruder if activated with full strength.
He leaned back, studying the layered structure. Each rune connected seamlessly to the next, a web of power waiting to be etched into the land itself.
But this was only the beginning. To bring it to life, he would need resources in staggering quantities: ores, crystals, rare woods, spirit stones. And time. Always time.
His brush stilled. His golden eyes narrowed.
"Three years," he murmured. "That is all we have. When the seal breaks, this formation must already stand — perfected and unshakable."
Outside his chamber, the Moon Lotus Sect bustled, disciples training harder than ever, voices filled with hope. None saw the weight in Haotian's eyes, nor the relentless calculations in his mind.
The storm was coming. And he would not let them fall.
By the next morning, the Moon Lotus Sect was alive with whispers.
Disciples clutched jade bottles close to their chests, unable to stop opening them again and again, gazing at the perfectly formed pills within. Each was flawless — smooth, gleaming like polished pearls, their fragrance rich enough to stir qi even without consumption.
"He refined these… all of these… in just one day?""No one can refine more than a few thousand at once. Not even the most famous alchemists of the Holy Lands…""And yet Senior Brother Haotian refined 1.6 million."
The number passed from lip to lip, growing heavier with each retelling. Elders who had lived for centuries were left speechless, their composure shaken. The sect's younger disciples trembled with awe as they held their first pills, feeling qi swirl eagerly in their meridians the moment the medicine touched their tongues.
In the meditation halls, cultivators swallowed Triple Recovery Pills, gasping as their energy surged back threefold, far beyond normal recovery speed. Others consumed Frost Crystal Vein Pills, their meridians strengthening, their channels clearing with a chill sharpness that left them steadier in their cultivation. And many more, shy smiles blooming across their faces, marveled at the effects of the Beauty Restoration Pills as old blemishes vanished and their glow renewed.
Everywhere, the sect buzzed.
"Senior Brother Haotian… he's a monster in the art of alchemy.""No — he's our guardian.""With him, we might truly stand against the demons when the seal breaks."
Voices overlapped, tones ranging from laughter to tears. Some disciples wept openly, overwhelmed by the flood of blessings they had received. Others gripped their swords tighter, their eyes burning with resolve to live up to the gifts he had given.
Hope spread like wildfire. For the first time in years, the looming shadow of the demons seemed just a little less suffocating.
And all of it was because of him.
The lands surrounding the Moon Lotus Sect were unlike the Azure Dragon Sky Sect. Here, the valleys and peaks breathed frost, the rivers and caves steeped in yin qi. The air shimmered with cold mist, beautiful but thin in density — far less abundant than the concentrated chi of the Azure Dragon mountains.
Haotian stood at the highest ridge, scrolls unrolled before him, golden eyes tracing the land. He knew at once: a simple replication of his prior design would fail here. The environment demanded adaptation.
And so he began.
The first strokes of his brush sketched a new heart for the formation — a 72-node Chi-Gathering Array, vast and intricate. Each node was positioned to weave through the veins of yin frost running under the earth, pulling in every drop of ambient chi and condensing it into usable power. Where 36 nodes had sufficed before, now 72 would ensure the formation would never starve of energy.
Around this core, he layered eight Defensive Arrays, each one crafted with precision. Their strength overlapped, able to repel blows from even peak Saint Realm experts for days without collapse. Frost-hardened runes reinforced their barriers, making them more durable in this terrain than fire or thunder-based designs ever could.
Next, he drew the schematics for five Concealment Arrays, each one built to mask not just the sect's presence but also its power fluctuations. To spiritual sense, the sect would appear as nothing more than quiet peaks lost in fog — a veil of silence hiding the strength within.
Finally came the heart of the design. The Killing Array.
Haotian named it the Cry of the Ice Phoenixes.
Unlike the Nine Divine Flying Dragons Array, this formation summoned 24 frost-born phoenixes, their wings woven from frozen light and yin qi. Each phoenix, alone, would be capable of clashing with an Initial Saint Realm expert. Together, their combined resonance would unleash torrents of cold fire, blizzards that tore mountains apart — strikes potent enough to fell even Peak Saint Realm enemies.
It was not merely a formation. It was a storm given shape, an army carved from the essence of ice.
Haotian's expression remained steady as he set aside his scrolls and began the work. Day after day, night after night, his hands moved tirelessly across the sect's perimeter. Runes etched into the earth, stones rearranged, nodes aligned, pillars inscribed. His qi threaded through the land itself, binding it into a web of immense scale.
For fourteen days, Haotian worked without pause, weaving the grand formation into reality. His sleeves blackened with ink, his hands stained with frostbite that healed as quickly as it came. Yet he did not falter.
And when at last the final rune sank into place, the mountain air shifted. The ground itself seemed to breathe differently. A quiet hum spread beneath the soil, a slumbering power waiting to be called.
The Moon Lotus Sect now sat within the cradle of the Cry of the Ice Phoenixes.
The storm was coming. And Haotian was making sure they would be ready.
Haotian stood on the highest peak of the Moon Lotus Sect, robes snapping in the mountain winds. His golden eyes flared with cosmic brilliance as he opened the Eyes of the Universe, sweeping over every rune and node carved into the land. The vast web pulsed faintly beneath snow and stone — silent, sleeping, perfect.
He pressed his hands together, forming intricate seals. Each sign shimmered in the air, glowing faintly gold, then dissolving into threads of light that sank into the mountain itself. The sky seemed to darken, as though the world held its breath.
When the final seal snapped into place, Haotian stomped the peak beneath his feet. The stone cracked in a spiderweb around him as his voice thundered like a divine decree:
"Activate!"
His chi erupted.
Golden light poured from his body in violent waves, surging outward like a storm tide. The ground shook, the air rippled. The 72 Chi-Gathering Arrays scattered around the perimeter flickered — then began to awaken.
At first, it was beautiful: tiny sparks, threads of frost and light linking node to node. But the sheer scale resisted him. As the arrays demanded more, his chi poured out faster, scorching the air. His veins burned, his breath hitched, his aura trembled.
Lightning crackled overhead, drawn by the sudden storm of qi. Snow whipped from the peaks, swirling into violent spirals as the yin chi in the land stirred restlessly, colliding with his golden energy. The world itself seemed to roar, torn between silence and birth.
Below, disciples shielded their eyes, hair and robes whipped by the gale."What's happening?!""Senior Brother is… struggling?"
Sect Master Yinxue's expression hardened, worry flickering in her calm voice."He cannot activate all seventy-two chi-gathering arrays at once. Not alone."
Gasps spread. Elders exchanged looks of disbelief. Ziyue's lips pressed tight, her gaze trembling with unspoken fear. Shuyue clutched her hands together, unable to look away.
On the peak, Haotian grit his teeth as golden cracks split the ground beneath him, light surging like molten rivers. For a moment, the glow faltered — the arrays resisted his command, each node demanding power beyond what even his vast reserves could bear.
Haotian's chi poured into the formation like a raging flood. One node lit. Then another. Then a third. But by the time he forced the tenth into awakening, his chest seized.
His veins bulged, his arms trembling as golden light cracked across his skin like molten fissures. Each rune in the distance demanded more, their hunger endless, their pull unrelenting.
His teeth clenched, breath ragged."Tch… so heavy…"
The mountain beneath him groaned, fractures racing down the slope as his power pressed outward. For a heartbeat, the glow of the nodes flickered — as if the formation itself resisted his will.
Haotian bent his knees, one hand braced against the ground, the other forcing more seals into the air. His aura wavered dangerously, light sputtering. The effort carved a snarl across his face, his breath turning to steam in the frozen wind.
Still, the arrays resisted.
A moment passed. Then another. His arms quivered, his back bowed — but he refused to yield. His roar echoed in the sky as chi burned through him, yet still the strain pulled at his core.
"Not enough…" he muttered. His chest heaved. His aura flickered.
Then he shut his eyes. And opened his Heart Core.
BOOM!
The world exploded with light. His cultivation surged to the peak of the Dao Comprehension Realm, golden chi flooding from him like a newborn sun. His body blazed, his aura towering, filling the sky. The storm of yin qi bowed before him, sucked greedily into the awakening arrays.
One by one, the chi-gathering nodes flared into life. Each erupted with icy-blue light, runes blazing like frozen stars. They linked together in chains of radiance, a vast lattice of power encircling the sect.
The disciples below cried out, awed. Pillars of light shot skyward, intertwining like threads of silver and gold until the entire sky above the sect shimmered with overlapping sigils.
The ground rumbled as the defensive layers lit up next, shields of crystalline frost shimmering into existence, overlapping in translucent domes. Then the concealments bloomed, veils of mist spilling outward, shrouding the sect in phantom fog.
At last, silence fell.
Haotian exhaled, retracting his chi. The arrays no longer needed him. They were alive.
And then the air split.
SCREEEEEEEEEE!
Twenty-four cries pierced the heavens, echoing across the peaks. From the swirling yin mist, forms emerged — vast phoenixes woven from frozen light, their wings beating storms into the air. Their eyes burned like icy suns, their feathers shimmered with frostfire.
One phoenix spread its wings, the sheer force scattering clouds across the horizon. Another tilted its head back, unleashing a cry that rattled the bones of every cultivator below.
Together, the 24 Ice Phoenixes soared above the Moon Lotus Sect, guardians born from array and chi, their voices a symphony of cold fire.
The Cry of the Ice Phoenixes had awakened.