Chapter 216: The Six Mysterious Deadly Formation

Cheng Lingyu pondered briefly before approaching the castle gate. Using his Dreamy Magic Eyes, he noticed a special barrier on the gate. Without knowing the proper method, breaking through would be impossible.

Worldly barriers varied in design but usually involved formations, spiritual diagrams, or dao seals. Skilled in the Heavenly Spirit Diagram and aided by his Dreamy Magic Eyes, Cheng Lingyu quickly unraveled the barrier’s secrets.

Though the castle appeared massive from afar, the gate gave him an eerie, oppressive feeling—like a prison meant to trap souls for eternity. The sensation weighed on him, stirring an unexpected pang of pity.

He stepped closer. Strange light rippled around his body as he passed through the barrier effortlessly, entering the castle grounds.

Beyond the gate lay a neglected garden choked with weeds and withered flowers. While scanning the area, Cheng Lingyu spotted a mid-grade spiritual herb hidden in the undergrowth. He plucked it, noting nearby dead herbs whose spiritual energy had faded long ago.

A stone path led from the garden to an inner gate. Walking its weathered stones, Cheng Lingyu felt a peculiar melancholy. The castle’s walls, carved from rare stone and etched with dao seals, stood defiant against time’s decay.

Past the inner gate stood a palace flanked by gardens, rockeries, and ponds—a flawless layout. Fighting sounds echoed from the palace, light waves bursting outward as the clash intensified.

Unhurried, Cheng Lingyu surveyed his surroundings. Beside a rockery and pond stood a pavilion named Heart Union Pavilion. Inside, a stone table held a chessboard with an unfinished game.

After observing cautiously, Cheng Lingyu entered. Two stone chairs bore faint marks of past occupants. A chess master himself, he studied the lingering game, his brow furrowing.

“Strange. Why the same pattern each time—attack and defense locked in endless stalemate?”

The board hid more than final moves. Residual energy from countless past games lingered—invisible to most but clear to his Dreamy Magic Eyes.

“Even after ten thousand years, their spiritual traces remain. Those players must’ve had unimaginable cultivation.”

Startled, Cheng Lingyu retrieved a chessboard and pieces from his storage ring. Replicating the stone table’s game, he played both black and white, recreating each move. What began as curiosity soon sparked revelation.

He finished the first game quickly, then reset and played again. Identical moves now carried new meaning. Deeper insights flooded him, plunging him into a trance-like state. Second game. Third. Fourth. He continued, game after game.

Each match unveiled layered truths—thirty-six in total. Cheng Lingyu realized the original players had repeated the same tactics and outcomes thirty-six times, yet each game held unique profundities.

After the thirty-sixth game, clarity struck. “So this is the Six Mysterious Deadly Formation!”

Thrilled, he began deciphering the formation’s mechanics in the pavilion. But despite grasping its principles, his low cultivation level barred him from wielding its power. Repeated attempts ended in failure.

Later, after careful analysis and deep thought, Cheng Lingyu made a shocking decision. He collected the chess pieces from the stone table and actually used them to construct the Six Mysterious Deadly Formation. To his astonishment, it worked immediately.

These chess pieces contained the spiritual essence of the two ancient masters from ten thousand years ago. Though greatly weakened over time, they still retained terrifying power.

Due to his low cultivation level in the Soul Martial Fourth Realm, Cheng Lingyu couldn’t wield the Six Mysterious Deadly Formation’s full power without these chess pieces. He wouldn’t be able to control it until reaching the Blood Martial Realm.

After repeated practice until mastering the formation’s setup, control, and withdrawal, Cheng Lingyu finally left Heart Union Pavilion with satisfaction.

The castle’s scenery of artificial hills and blooming flowers had been breathtaking during its prime ten millennia ago. Now, though structurally intact, its overgrown weeds and withered petals spoke of desolate decay.

Finding no spiritual herbs during his garden inspection, Cheng Lingyu grew puzzled. Fierce clashes echoed from the palace, accompanied by angry shouts.

Approaching the palace doors, Cheng Lingyu saw twenty to thirty figures battling inside. He immediately recognized Ji Yaozu and Luo Binghe from Zhan Wumen, though most fighters were strangers – unsurprising given his limited experience beyond Yunyang City in the vast Tianyang Empire.

“Why this chaotic brawl?” Cheng Lingyu wondered instead of entering. He noticed cultivators inside displayed Blood Martial Realm strength – impossible outside due to restrictions. This realization alarmed him, as his Soul Martial Fourth Realm would be dangerously vulnerable here.

After observing, he understood they fought over a golden-glowing scroll, likely a spirit artifact. Circling the palace, he found a rear door inexplicably invisible from the front.

As Cheng Lingyu peered inside, blinding golden light shot out. He instinctively caught the projectile – a silky scroll emitting strange energy that tried binding his hands, though his body gradually absorbed it.

Fifteen experts immediately surrounded him, including Ji Yaozu who sneered: “Fate brings enemies together. Nowhere to run now!”

Luo Binghe looked surprised while Lan Mingjie of Tianlang Sect boasted: “I’m Lan Mingjie, Blood Martial Second Level at twenty-six! Tell King of Hell my name when you die!”

Soon twenty-seven cultivators encircled Cheng Lingyu, their cultivation suppressed to Soul Martial Realm outside the palace. Unfazed, Cheng Lingyu calmly examined the scroll despite their threats.

The golden scroll resisted unrolling, weighing like a mountain despite its appearance. As Cheng Lingyu strained, mysterious dao patterns swirled around his hands with sealing power – yet his peculiar constitution neutralized them slowly.