Chapter 75

When the training was over, did the two girls return, but Jiang Mang stayed because his master Zhu wanted to discuss the plans for the next day, while also informing him how his training regime would change. She started with his new training regime: " Xiao Mang, I and your master are proud of your hard work and rapid improvement, but until now you have only been learning the basics and shoring up your foundations. Now that they have been shored up and perfected, your actual training will start. From Chen, you will start learning about the dao of sound and the dao of illusions, while I will start guiding you on the formation master occupation and the way to use charm techniques in combat, assassinations, intelligence gathering, and controlling people. You will also start to learn how to use a sword.

In the mornings you will train with Chen, while you will train the charm Dao with me in the afternoon on weekdays and about formations during the weekend in the afternoon. Chen will also teach you basic swordsmanship that you will have to practice on your own in your cave. Those two girls will not be allowed to accompany your training anymore after the first month.

I will provide them with a jade slip at that time, that explains how they can further train their charm techniques and abilities as a charm cultivator until they reach the Sage realm. This also includes a list that advises some suitable techniques for them to learn and master."

Jiang Mang nodded that he understood everything. She then continued about what was planned tomorrow: "Xiao Mang, You have been formations for five months now and it is time to test your abilities inside the formation hall. The formation hall has a trial that consists of twelve levels, those capable of completing the first level can be considered peak early formation apprentices. the first level requires someone to break through 100 different formations by setting up level one formations, with the help of ten formation flags, under three hours. Those who pass will be awarded one-thousand merits, while those who break the record gain double the merits. I want you to try and break the current record, which stands at forty minutes. This test is approved by the formation guild and will award a badge representing the identity of a level one formation master or an early formation apprentice to all who complete it."

Jiang Mang accepted the challenge and returned to the cave. He informed his sisters about the changes in his regime and the fact that he tomorrow test his formation capability in the trial of the formation hall. Lu Chang stated that he would complete it, while Zi Bai said she would root for him. That evening, they didn't practice anything but leisurely chatted with each other and had a relaxing evening.

The next day, when he arrived outside of the cabin where his master Zhu was already waiting, he greeted his master Zhu who immediately grabbed him and brought him towards the formation hall. When they arrived all of the disciples looked at them. They greeted his master as an elder when they saw her elder token. While the deacons greeted her respectfully as master Zhu, due to her identity as the second-best formation master in the palace only under the formation hall master, who is a formation grandmaster.

After entering, she guided him before a registration office and ordered him to register for the level 1 trial. Jiang Mang went to the office and asked the deacon to register him for the level one trial. The deacon asked for his identity medallion, and after checking it, he informed him that only members of the formation hall were allowed to take the trial. Jiang Mang became then a level 0 member of the formation hall as he had still not completed the first level trial, which would allow him to become a level 1 member. He then arrived before the trial room, where his master was waiting. He joined by her side, and she explained that it would be his turn after the person before him tried the trial. The boy entered the trial room and started setting up a formation. Outside the trial, there was a screen that showed a trial takers progress. His master read the screen for him and informed him of any changes, as it would be inappropriate to play a tune here to utilize his inner view.

The boy came outside after three hours and had thus failed the trial. He had been able to break seventy formations in three hours. The guardian told the boy that his attempt was a commendable one for the first time and that he could try again after a month.

It was now Jiang Mang's turn to enter the room. Due to his blindness, had his master Zhu make him learn how to identify formations through his other senses without using his inner view. The first formation he sensed was an offensive formation that used the unity concept with the water element as the core and support. Jiang Mang knew that another offensive formation that used the earth element as the core could break the other formation the fastest way possible.

Jiang Mang summoned five flags and two seconds to form the easiest offensive earth element formation he knew, which immediately broke the other formation.

He had broken the first formation in ten seconds. Outside the trial room, his teacher was looking at the screen on which a symbol had appeared. There also stood an old man beside her asking if her disciple could complete the trial. She answered that he certainly would and was also trying to break the record of forty minutes, which intrigued the old man as it had been three hundred years since the establishment of the record. Records could only be broken during the first trial run.

This old man was the sole formation grandmaster of the palace and was often called grandpa Feng. Ten seconds later another symbol popped up announcing the second broken formation. This situation continued for the next eight formations too and Jiang Mang managed to break the first ten formations within 100 seconds.

This surprised the grandpa Feng as he knew that Jiang Mang had only learned formations for five months, but had reached such mastery over level one formations in such a short time. He would keep observing the trial and see if this boy can break that three-hundred-year-old record.