lǒng zhào dǎo yǔ de jīn sè jié jiè shàng ， què yǒu zhe yí gè yuán xíng de xiǎo xiǎo quē kǒu 。
笼罩岛屿的金色结界上，却有着一个圆形的小小缺口。
Surrounding the island was a golden protective barrier, but there was a small circular gap in it.
hé zhèng hào dài zhe lǐ fán ， cóng zhè xiǎo quē kǒu zhōng jìn rù hù dǎo dà zhèn nèi bù 。
何正浩带着李凡，从这小缺口中进入护岛大阵内部。
Xiao Zhenghao led Li Fan through this tiny opening to enter the interior of the protective array.
“ yī huì jiàn dào zhū wèi zhèn fǎ dà shī ， nǐ kě bié dāng zhe tā men de miàn ， tí gòng xiàn dù de shì 。 jiàn jī xíng shì ， děng shì chéng zhī hòu ， nǐ jiāng gòng xiàn dù zhuǎn gěi wǒ jiù xíng 。 wǒ zài zhuǎn jiāo gěi zhāng zhì liáng 。” hé zhèng hào qiāo qiāo zhǔ fù dào 。
“一会见到诸位阵法大师，你可别当着他们的面，提贡献度的事。见机行事，等事成之后，你将贡献度转给我就行。我再转交给张志良。”何正浩悄悄嘱咐道。
"Hang on and meet all these array masters. Don't mention anything about your contribution points in front of them. Just act naturally. Once the task is done, you can transfer your contribution points to me, and I'll pass them on to Zhang Ziliang," Xiao Zhenghao whispered secretly.
lǐ fán wēi wēi yī xiào ， biǎo shì liǎo jiě 。
李凡微微一笑，表示了解。
Li Fan smiled slightly, indicating he understood.
“ hā hā ！ hé dào yǒu lái de zhèng hǎo ！”
“哈哈！何道友来的正好！”
"Haha! Friend Daoist Xiao, just in time!"
jiù zài zhè shí ， gōng bó yǔ de xiào shēng yuǎn yuǎn chuán lái 。
就在这时，宫伯羽的笑声远远传来。
Just then, Gong Biyu's laughter echoed from a distance.
lǐ fán yíng zhe shēng yīn wàng qù ， zhǐ jiàn cè zhèn táng de jǐ wèi zhèn fǎ dà shī ， dōu zài cǐ chù le 。
李凡迎着声音望去，只见策阵堂的几位阵法大师，都在此处了。
Li Fan turned towards the voice. Theseveral array masters were all gathered here. In front of them was a vertical giant light screen. Many tiny array units flashed rapidly on the screen. The array masters occasionally pointed at it and discussed among themselves with varying expressions.
tā men miàn qián ， shì yī dào shù zhí xiǎn xiàn de jù xíng guāng mù 。
他们面前，是一道竖直显现的巨型光幕。
"This is..." Li Fan's gaze flickered as he looked up at the golden array in the sky.
guāng mù shàng ， xǔ duō wēi xiǎo de zhèn fǎ dān yuán ， kuài sù shǎn guò 。
光幕上，许多微小的阵法单元，快速闪过。
Sure enough, he vaguely saw many small circular disks attached to the surface of the array barrier like crawling insects. They were absorbing array power while transmitting the most detailed data of the array's components to the central light screen.
zhèn fǎ dà shī men bù shí zhǐ zhe guāng mù ， hù xiāng tǎo lùn zhe xiē shén me ， shén sè gè yì 。
阵法大师们不时指着光幕，互相讨论着些什么，神色各异。
"Breakthrough Disk."
“ zhè shì ……” lǐ fán mù guāng yī shǎn ， cháo zhe tiān kōng zhōng de jīn sè fǎ zhèn wàng qù 。
“这是……”李凡目光一闪，朝着天空中的金色法阵望去。
In the twelfth generation, Zhang Ziliang had mentioned this treasure in his will. It could analyze the structure of an array without damaging it and provide a reference for breaking through the array.
guǒ bù qí rán ， tā yǐn yuē kàn jiàn xǔ duō xì xiǎo de yuán pán ， yóu rú yī zhī zhǐ pá chóng bān ， fù zhuó zài fǎ zhèn jié jiè biǎo miàn 。
果不其然，他隐约看见许多细小的圆盘，犹如一只只爬虫般，附着在法阵结界表面。
A set of 1080 Breakthrough Disks was worth a fortune.
jí qǔ zhe zhèn fǎ lì liàng de tóng shí ， jiāng gòu chéng dà zhèn de zuì xì wēi dān yuán shù jù ， chuán shū dào zhōng yāng de guāng mù zhī zhōng 。
汲取着阵法力量的同时，将构成大阵的最细微单元数据，传输到中央的光幕之中。
He hadn't seen one before, but he happened to come across them today.
“ pò zhèn pán 。”
“破阵盘。”
"Come over here, Friend Daoist Xiao. Let's take a look at the latest analysis data. Isn't this island rising from the seabed due to changes in the underground veins?" Gong Biyu called out enthusiastically.
zài dì shí èr shì de shí hòu ， zhāng zhì liáng de yí zhe zhōng ， céng jīng tí jí dào zhè zhǒng fǎ bǎo 。
在第十二世的时候，张志良的遗着中，曾经提及到这种法宝。
Although Xiao Zhenghao was eager to see it, he didn't forget his main task and turned to Zhang Ziliang instead. "Friend Daoist Zhang, this is Li Fan, a cultivator with foundation establishment cultivation who wants to be an array repairer. He has some knowledge of arrays."
néng gòu zài bù sǔn huài zhèn fǎ jié gòu de qíng kuàng xià ， fēn xī chū zhèn fǎ de gòu chéng shù jù ， cóng ér wèi pò jiě zhèn fǎ tí gōng fāng ān cān kǎo 。
能够在不损坏阵法结构的情况下，分析出阵法的构成数据，从而为破解阵法提供方桉参考。
Zhang Ziliang casually glanced at Li Fan and tossed him a spirit token. "You can test it first. As long as you're not completely clueless about arrays, there shouldn't be any problems."
yī qiān líng bǎi bā shí gè pò zhèn pán zǔ chéng yī tào ， jià zhí bù fēi 。
一千零百八十个破阵盘组成一套，价值不菲。
Li Fan caught the spirit token and his divine sense scanned through it before coming out quickly.
zhī qián yì zhí wú yuán dé jiàn ， bù xiǎng jīn rì còu qiǎo zhuàng jiàn le 。
之前一直无缘得见，不想今日凑巧撞见了。
After checking the number of glowing points on the spirit token, Zhang Ziliang was surprised. "I heard you've been teaching yourself arrays? That's quite impressive. You should have no trouble as an array repairer!"
“ lái lái lái ， hé dào yǒu ， kuài lái kàn kàn zuì xīn de fēn xī shù jù ， shì bú shì zhè zuò dǎo cóng hǎi dǐ zài cì fú xiàn ， hé dì mài biàn dòng yǒu guān ！” gōng bó yǔ rè qíng de zhāo hū dào 。
“来来来，何道友，快来看看最新的分析数据，是不是这座岛从海底再次浮现，和地脉变动有关！”宫伯羽热情的招呼道。
Zhang Ziliang knew the difficulty level of his own spirit token questions very well; some were quite tricky. Even if it was someone self-taught in arrays, let alone a normal apprentice at the Strategy Array Hall, few could do better than this person.
hé zhèng hào suī shì jiàn liè xīn xǐ ， bù guò dào yě méi wàng le zhèng shì ， zhuǎn ér xiān duì zhāng zhì liáng shuō dào ：“ zhāng dào yǒu ， zhè wèi jiù shì wǒ zhī qián gēn nǐ shuō de yǒu yì gēn zài nǐ hòu miàn ， dān rèn zhèn fǎ xiū shàn yuán lǐ fán dào yǒu 。 zhù jī xiū wèi ， duì zhèn fǎ lüè tōng yī èr 。”
何正浩虽是见猎心喜，不过倒也没忘了正事，转而先对张志良说道：“张道友，这位就是我之前跟你说的有意跟在你后面，担任阵法修缮员李凡道友。筑基修为，对阵法略通一二。”
"Master flatters me! My abilities are limited, but I rely solely on diligence," Li Fan responded calmly.
zhāng zhì liáng zhǐ shì suí yì dǎ liàng le lǐ fán yī yǎn ， rēng le gè shí líng qiú guò lái ：“ nǐ xiān cè shì yī xià ba ， zhǐ yào bú shì duì zhèn fǎ yī qiào bù tōng de ， yīng dāng dōu méi shén me wèn tí 。”
张志良只是随意打量了李凡一眼，扔了个识灵球过来：“你先测试一下吧，只要不是对阵法一窍不通的，应当都没什么问题。”
Zhang Ziliang nodded, feeling even more satisfied. He handed Li Fan an jade token with a slanted metal cube design etched onto it—the main building of the Strategy Array Hall.
lǐ fán jiē guò shí líng qiú ， shén shí cóng zhōng zhuǎn le yī quān yòu chū lái ， hěn kuài jiù jié shù le cè yàn 。
李凡接过识灵球，神识从中转了一圈又出来，很快就结束了测验。
"Go to the Administrative Hall first and register your identity. Then get the necessary items from the Ten Thousand Mysteries Mirror after you gain access. You can find answers in the Ten Thousand Mysteries Mirror for any questions," Zhang Ziliang instructed.
zhāng zhì liáng kàn le kàn shí líng qiú shàng liàng qǐ de guāng diǎn shù liàng ， yǒu xiē jīng yà 。
张志良看了看识灵球上亮起的光点数量，有些惊讶。
Li Fan nodded, put away the jade token, and bowed in thanks.
“ jù shuō nǐ zhī qián yì zhí zhǐ shì zì xué zhèn fǎ ？ yǒu zhè chéng jì hěn bú cuò ， dāng gè zhèn fǎ xiū shàn yuán ， chuò chuò yǒu yú le ！”
“据说你之前一直只是自学阵法？有这成绩很不错，当个阵法修缮员，绰绰有余了！”
Seeing things go so smoothly, Xiao Zhenghao's face lit up with joy.
duì yú zì jǐ shí líng qiú nèi shì tí de nán dù ， zhāng zhì liáng kě shì shí fēn qīng chǔ 。 yǒu xiē dōu kě yǐ chēng de shàng yǒu diǎn diāo zuān le 。 bié shuō zhèn fǎ zì xué zhě ， jiù suàn cè zhèn táng nèi de yì bān xué tú ， dōu wèi bì yǒu yǎn qián cǐ rén zuò de hǎo 。
对于自己识灵球内试题的难度，张志良可是十分清楚。有些都可以称得上有点刁钻了。别说阵法自学者，就算策阵堂内的一般学徒，都未必有眼前此人做的好。
With matters settled, he immediately focused on the array screen. His demeanor changed dramatically as if a new person had taken over. Li Fan couldn't help but marvel at this transformation.
“ dà shī miù zàn le ！ wǎn bèi zī zhì yú dùn ， suǒ lài zhě ， wéi yī ‘ qín ’ zì ěr ！” lǐ fán shén sè píng jìng de huí yìng dào 。
“大师谬赞了！晚辈资质愚钝，所赖者，唯一‘勤’字尔！”李凡神色平静的回应道。
The images on the screen sped up rapidly.
zhāng zhì liáng diǎn diǎn tóu ， xīn zhōng yuè fā mǎn yì ， dì gěi lǐ fán yí gè yù pái 。
张志良点点头，心中越发满意，递给李凡一个玉牌。
Xiao Zhenghao seemed to struggle slightly, sweat beads forming on his forehead.
yù pái shàng kè yìn zhe yí gè xié lì de jīn shǔ zhèng fāng tǐ tú ān ， zhèng shì cè zhèn táng de zhǔ tǐ jiàn zhù 。
玉牌上刻印着一个斜立的金属正方体图桉，正是策阵堂的主体建筑。
Above him, a scroll slowly unfurled. The scroll showed a continuous mountain range and dense waterways.
zhāng zhì liáng jiāo dài dào ：“ nǐ píng cǐ yù pái xiān qù bù zhèng táng jìn xíng shēn fèn dēng jì ， suí hòu zài wàn xuán jìng chù lǐng qǔ xiāng guān wù pǐn 。 kāi tōng quán xiàn hòu ， yǒu shén me yí wèn ， yě dōu kě yǐ zài tiān xuán jìng zhōng sōu suǒ dé dào dá ān 。”
张志良交代道：“你凭此玉牌先去布政堂进行身份登记，随后在万玄镜处领取相关物品。开通权限后，有什么疑问，也都可以在天玄镜中搜索得到答桉。”
In one seamless scene, the mountains and rivers stretched for countless miles.
lǐ fán diǎn tóu biǎo shì zhī dào ， shōu qǐ yù pái ， xíng lǐ dào xiè 。
李凡点头表示知道，收起玉牌，行礼道谢。
Impressive in scale, it was awe-inspiring.
hé zhèng hào jiàn shì qíng bàn dé rú cǐ shùn lì ， yě miàn lù xǐ sè 。
何正浩见事情办得如此顺利，也面露喜色。
"This should be Friend Daoist Xiao's foundation establishment treasure, [Map of Mountain Rivers and Veins]. Judging by its power, it seems to go beyond just a personal treasure," Li Fan observed carefully.
shì qíng bàn hǎo ， dāng jí bǎ zhù yì lì jí zhōng zài le pò zhèn pán de guāng mù zhī shàng 。 shén qíng zhuān zhù ， qì zhì dǒu rán yī biàn ， chà nà jiān biàn huàn le gè rén bān 。
事情办好，当即把注意力集中在了破阵盘的光幕之上。神情专注，气质陡然一变，刹那间便换了个人般。
After about half an hour, Xiao Zhenghao finally exhaled deeply and stowed away the strange phenomenon.
lǐ fán kàn le ， bù yóu dì zé zé chēng qí 。
李凡看了，不由地啧啧称奇。
"Friend Daoist Gong has keen insight! One word: accurate!" he praised first.
guāng mù shàng ， huà miàn shǎn dòng de sù dù bù duàn jiā kuài 。
光幕上，画面闪动的速度不断加快。
Then he continued slowly. "Indeed, this island is situated on an underground vein. It seems that a significant change occurred at some node along this vein, causing it to rise from the seabed after being submerged for three thousand years."
hé zhèng hào yě sì hū biàn de yǒu xiē chī lì ， é tóu kāi shǐ yǒu hàn zhū dī luò 。
何正浩也似乎变的有些吃力，额头开始有汗珠滴落。
"But the location must be far away from Cunyun Sea. At my foundation establishment stage, I can't sense its exact position," Xiao Zhenghao lamented.
zài tā de tóu dǐng ， yī fù huà juàn xú xú zhǎn kāi 。
在他的头顶，一副画卷徐徐展开。
Xiao Zhenghao's words sparked a heated discussion among the array masters.
huà juàn zhōng ， yī xī néng kàn dào lián mián shān mài hé xīng luó mì bù de shuǐ xì tú jǐng 。
画卷中，依稀能看到连绵山脉和星罗密布的水系图景。
"Is it really due to changes in an underground vein? How much of a disturbance was that?"
shān shuǐ yī tǐ ， wàn wàn lǐ bù jué 。
山水一体，万万里不绝。
"Friend Daoist Xiao couldn't feel it, so the location must be quite far. Such a distant impact suggests at least 'Hundred Mountains Turned into Plains.'"
qì shì huī hóng ， wèi wéi zhuàng guān 。
气势恢宏，蔚为壮观。
"We can find out which state it happened in by asking around."
“ zhè yīng gāi jiù shì hé dào yǒu de zhù jī qí wù ，【 shān chuān bǎi mài zhèn tú 】 le 。 kàn qí wēi shì ， sì hū bù zhǐ shì rén zhī qí wù zhè me jiǎn dān nà 。” lǐ fán zǐ xì guān chá zhe ， xīn zhōng àn dào 。
“这应该就是何道友的筑基奇物，【山川百脉阵图】了。看其威势，似乎不止是人之奇物这么简单呐。”李凡仔细观察着，心中暗道。
"It's not necessarily so; changes in underground veins could occur deep below ground, causing only slight tremors on the surface."
guò le dà yuē bàn zhǎn chá de gōng fu ， hé zhèng hào zhè cái zhǎng shū yì kǒu qì ， jiāng qí wù yì xiàng shōu qǐ 。
过了大约半盏茶的功夫，何正浩这才长舒一口气，将奇物异像收起。
...
“ gōng dào yǒu yǎn guāng bù fán nà ！ yí gè zì ， zhǔn ！” tā shǒu xiān chēng zàn le yī shēng 。
“宫道友眼光不凡呐！一个字，准！”他首先称赞了一声。
While they discussed fervently, Zhang Ziliang, who hadn't participated, suddenly asked Xiao Zhenghao, "What do you think of this golden protective array?"
suí hòu cái huǎn huǎn shuō dào ：“ dí què ， zhè dǎo yǔ zhèng chù zài yī tiáo dì mài zhī shàng 。 yīng gāi shì zhè tiáo dì mài shàng de qí tā mǒu gè jié diǎn ， fā shēng le dà de biàn dòng ， cái dǎo zhì le zhè zuò yǐ jīng chén rù hǎi dǐ sān qiān nián de dǎo yǔ ， chóng xīn fú chū shuǐ miàn 。”
随后才缓缓说道：“的确，这岛屿正处在一条地脉之上。应该是这条地脉上的其他某个节点，发生了大的变动，才导致了这座已经沉入海底三千年的岛屿，重新浮出水面。”
Xiao Zhenghao narrowed his eyes and pondered for a moment before replying. "This golden array is connected to an underground vein. If my guess is correct, it should be based on the [Mountain River Great Array]."
“ dàn nà chù dì diǎn ， sì hū lí cóng yún hǎi jí yuǎn 。 yǐ wǒ zhù jī qī de xiū wèi ， què shì nán yǐ gǎn yìng dào jù tǐ wèi zhì le 。” hé zhèng hào yí hàn de shuō dào 。
“但那处地点，似乎离丛云海极远。以我筑基期的修为，却是难以感应到具体位置了。”何正浩遗憾的说道。
"Without destroying the underground veins, this protective array will remain active. And the Ten Thousand Daoists Great Array can further condense the state's underground veins, making its defensive power so strong that even three or four Kin-Pathers arriving together couldn't break through it."
hé zhèng hào de yán yǔ ， dùn shí yǐn qǐ le zhè qún zhèn fǎ shī de rè liè tǎo lùn 。
何正浩的言语，顿时引起了这群阵法师的热烈讨论。
"This is far superior to the current protection plan."
“ jū rán hái zhēn shì dì mài biàn dòng yǐn qǐ de ？ zhè dé duō dà de dòng jìng a ？”
“居然还真是地脉变动引起的？这得多大的动静啊？”
Zhang Ziliang nodded slowly. "While this array provides excellent defense, if the array is broken, it will cause some damage to the underground veins. I wonder what happened back then that made them choose such an extreme approach."
“ hé dào yǒu gǎn yìng bú dào ， shì fā dì diǎn yīng gāi yǒu diǎn yuǎn le 。 zhè me yuǎn hái yǒu rú cǐ yǐng xiǎng ， kǒng pà zuì qǐ mǎ yě shì ‘ bǎi shān huà píng chuān ’ de dà chǎng miàn 。”
“何道友感应不到，事发地点应该有点远了。这么远还有如此影响，恐怕最起码也是‘百山化平川’的大场面。”
Gong Biyu joined in. "Why worry about that? This free Mountain River Great Array is right here. We can observe it without spending any contribution points. Such a rare opportunity doesn't come around often."
“ huí qù dǎ tīng dǎ tīng jiù zhī dào fā shēng zài nǎ ge zhōu le 。”
“回去打听打听就知道发生在哪个州了。”
Xiao Zhenghao agreed. "Friend Daoist Gong makes a good point. We must seize this chance and carefully study it."
“ zhè dào bù yí dìng ， dì mài biàn dòng yě yǒu kě néng zhǐ fā shēng zài jí shēn de dì xià 。 dì miàn yě xǔ zhǐ huì qīng wēi de huàng dòng ér yǐ 。”
“这倒不一定，地脉变动也有可能只发生在极深的地下。地面也许只会轻微的晃动而已。”
With that, they all immersed themselves in the rapidly flashing images on the Breakthrough Disk screen.
……
……
Li Fan observed for some time but found his current array foundation insufficient to gain any insights from it.
nà biān tǎo lùn de jī liè ， méi yǒu cān yù de zhāng zhì liáng cǐ kè què tū rán wèn dào ：“ hé dào yǒu ， duì zhè jīn sè de hù dǎo dà zhèn zěn me kàn ？”
那边讨论的激烈，没有参与的张志良此刻却突然问道：“何道友，对这金色的护岛大阵怎么看？”
Seeing the array masters still deep in thought, Li Fan decided not to linger. He bid farewell and quietly returned to Ten Thousand Daoist Island.
hé zhèng hào yǎn jīng wēi mī ， chén yín piàn kè hòu ， dá dào ：“ zhè jīn sè fǎ zhèn ， hé dì mài xiāng lián 。 rú ruò wǒ cāi cè bù cuò ， yīng gāi shì yǐ 【 shān hé dà zhèn 】 wèi jī chǔ de 。”
何正浩眼睛微眯，沉吟片刻后，答道：“这金色法阵，和地脉相连。如若我猜测不错，应该是以【山河大阵】为基础的。”
He headed straight towards the Administrative Hall at the island's center.
Surrounding the island was a golden protective barrier, but there was a small circular gap in it.
Xiao Zhenghao led Li Fan through this tiny opening to enter the interior of the protective array.
"Hang on and meet all these array masters. Don't mention anything about your contribution points in front of them. Just act naturally. Once the task is done, you can transfer your contribution points to me, and I'll pass them on to Zhang Ziliang," Xiao Zhenghao whispered secretly.
Li Fan smiled slightly, indicating he understood.
"Haha! Friend Daoist Xiao, just in time!"
Just then, Gong Biyu's laughter echoed from a distance.
Li Fan turned towards the voice. Theseveral array masters were all gathered here. In front of them was a vertical giant light screen. Many tiny array units flashed rapidly on the screen. The array masters occasionally pointed at it and discussed among themselves with varying expressions.
"This is..." Li Fan's gaze flickered as he looked up at the golden array in the sky.
Sure enough, he vaguely saw many small circular disks attached to the surface of the array barrier like crawling insects. They were absorbing array power while transmitting the most detailed data of the array's components to the central light screen.
"Breakthrough Disk."
In the twelfth generation, Zhang Ziliang had mentioned this treasure in his will. It could analyze the structure of an array without damaging it and provide a reference for breaking through the array.
A set of 1080 Breakthrough Disks was worth a fortune.
He hadn't seen one before, but he happened to come across them today.
"Come over here, Friend Daoist Xiao. Let's take a look at the latest analysis data. Isn't this island rising from the seabed due to changes in the underground veins?" Gong Biyu called out enthusiastically.
Although Xiao Zhenghao was eager to see it, he didn't forget his main task and turned to Zhang Ziliang instead. "Friend Daoist Zhang, this is Li Fan, a cultivator with foundation establishment cultivation who wants to be an array repairer. He has some knowledge of arrays."
Zhang Ziliang casually glanced at Li Fan and tossed him a spirit token. "You can test it first. As long as you're not completely clueless about arrays, there shouldn't be any problems."
Li Fan caught the spirit token and his divine sense scanned through it before coming out quickly.
After checking the number of glowing points on the spirit token, Zhang Ziliang was surprised. "I heard you've been teaching yourself arrays? That's quite impressive. You should have no trouble as an array repairer!"
Zhang Ziliang knew the difficulty level of his own spirit token questions very well; some were quite tricky. Even if it was someone self-taught in arrays, let alone a normal apprentice at the Strategy Array Hall, few could do better than this person.
"Master flatters me! My abilities are limited, but I rely solely on diligence," Li Fan responded calmly.
Zhang Ziliang nodded, feeling even more satisfied. He handed Li Fan an jade token with a slanted metal cube design etched onto it—the main building of the Strategy Array Hall.
"Go to the Administrative Hall first and register your identity. Then get the necessary items from the Ten Thousand Mysteries Mirror after you gain access. You can find answers in the Ten Thousand Mysteries Mirror for any questions," Zhang Ziliang instructed.
Li Fan nodded, put away the jade token, and bowed in thanks.
Seeing things go so smoothly, Xiao Zhenghao's face lit up with joy.
With matters settled, he immediately focused on the array screen. His demeanor changed dramatically as if a new person had taken over. Li Fan couldn't help but marvel at this transformation.
The images on the screen sped up rapidly.
Xiao Zhenghao seemed to struggle slightly, sweat beads forming on his forehead.
Above him, a scroll slowly unfurled. The scroll showed a continuous mountain range and dense waterways.
In one seamless scene, the mountains and rivers stretched for countless miles.
Impressive in scale, it was awe-inspiring.
"This should be Friend Daoist Xiao's foundation establishment treasure, [Map of Mountain Rivers and Veins]. Judging by its power, it seems to go beyond just a personal treasure," Li Fan observed carefully.
After about half an hour, Xiao Zhenghao finally exhaled deeply and stowed away the strange phenomenon.
"Friend Daoist Gong has keen insight! One word: accurate!" he praised first.
Then he continued slowly. "Indeed, this island is situated on an underground vein. It seems that a significant change occurred at some node along this vein, causing it to rise from the seabed after being submerged for three thousand years."
"But the location must be far away from Cunyun Sea. At my foundation establishment stage, I can't sense its exact position," Xiao Zhenghao lamented.
Xiao Zhenghao's words sparked a heated discussion among the array masters.
"Is it really due to changes in an underground vein? How much of a disturbance was that?"
"Friend Daoist Xiao couldn't feel it, so the location must be quite far. Such a distant impact suggests at least 'Hundred Mountains Turned into Plains.'"
"We can find out which state it happened in by asking around."
"It's not necessarily so; changes in underground veins could occur deep below ground, causing only slight tremors on the surface."
...
While they discussed fervently, Zhang Ziliang, who hadn't participated, suddenly asked Xiao Zhenghao, "What do you think of this golden protective array?"
Xiao Zhenghao narrowed his eyes and pondered for a moment before replying. "This golden array is connected to an underground vein. If my guess is correct, it should be based on the [Mountain River Great Array]."
"Without destroying the underground veins, this protective array will remain active. And the Ten Thousand Daoists Great Array can further condense the state's underground veins, making its defensive power so strong that even three or four Kin-Pathers arriving together couldn't break through it."
"This is far superior to the current protection plan."
Zhang Ziliang nodded slowly. "While this array provides excellent defense, if the array is broken, it will cause some damage to the underground veins. I wonder what happened back then that made them choose such an extreme approach."
Gong Biyu joined in. "Why worry about that? This free Mountain River Great Array is right here. We can observe it without spending any contribution points. Such a rare opportunity doesn't come around often."
Xiao Zhenghao agreed. "Friend Daoist Gong makes a good point. We must seize this chance and carefully study it."
With that, they all immersed themselves in the rapidly flashing images on the Breakthrough Disk screen.
Li Fan observed for some time but found his current array foundation insufficient to gain any insights from it.
Seeing the array masters still deep in thought, Li Fan decided not to linger. He bid farewell and quietly returned to Ten Thousand Daoist Island.
He headed straight towards the Administrative Hall at the island's center.