I'll make you the furnace and the cauldron, so you can refine Yin and Yang and prove the Great

As Elder Gong stepped aside to make way, the space between the twelve silver-white array flags unfolded before Li Hanshan like a stage with its curtains drawn back.

He could feel the runes flowing across the surface of those banners pulsating at an extremely subtle frequency, like a tamed river flowing quietly in a narrow riverbed. With each step forward, the sensation of being enveloped in ancient spiritual energy intensified.

He crouched down before the array flag whose base had shifted, his pure Yang energy condensing into an extremely fine golden thread at his fingertips, slowly seeping into the edge of the crack. His divine sense was like a finely crafted net, reflecting each of the misaligned runes deep within his sea of ​​consciousness.

The direction of those cracks was indeed different from the marks formed by natural aging—like a door hinge that had been deliberately pried open. Although the surface looked like ordinary wear and tear, there was an extremely fine scratch at the edge that had nothing to do with the consumption of spirit stones.

He didn't immediately begin repairs. Instead, he first used his divine sense to trace the patterns on the entire array flag, recording every subtle structural anomaly. Elder Gong stood a few steps behind him, his silver-white robe gleaming coldly in the light of the luminous pearl. His gaze remained calmly fixed on his every movement, without urging him on.

Li Hanshan spent about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea to confirm the exact location and extent of the deviation. Then, he used pure Yang energy to condense a finer golden thread in his palm, and slowly injected spiritual power along the deviation.

He could feel the misaligned runes trembling slightly the moment they touched the pure yang energy. He carefully guided the flow of spiritual energy, returning each of the misaligned lines to their original positions, as meticulously as if he were restoring an ancient, crumpled painting, each stroke carrying the certainty of repeated deliberation.

The repair process was slow. The runes were extremely precise, with each deviation measured in millimeters. Any excessive injection of spiritual energy would cause a chain reaction of displacement in the surrounding runes. He proceeded at a very slow pace, pausing after repairing each rune to sense it for a moment and confirm that there were no new anomalies in the flow of spiritual energy before moving on to the next.

During this process, Elder Gong merely observed and did not personally intervene.

Li Hanshan's techniques were very special; they were some extremely ancient, even lost techniques, which even he had never seen before.

More than half a month later, he used pure Yang energy to completely restore the last trace of deviation in the rift. The runes on the surface of the array flags lit up for a moment, like a lamp being relit, and then slowly stabilized. The flowing spiritual energy was smoother than before, and even the spiritual energy atmosphere in the entire rock chamber, which had become slightly fatigued due to continuous operation, warmed up a little.

Elder Gong stepped forward, knelt down, and gently traced the edge of the repaired pattern with his fingertips. After sensing it for a moment, he withdrew his hand, his gaze falling on the now stabilized array flag. He remained silent for a few breaths before speaking: "What technique did you use to repair that deviation just now?"

"Guiding with spiritual energy." Li Hanshan stood up, brushing the fine stone dust off his hands. "Those misaligned patterns aren't broken; they've simply been pushed from their original positions by the continuous impact of spiritual energy. If we were to force them back directly with spiritual energy, the surrounding patterns would deviate further due to uneven stress. Therefore, I first used extremely fine threads of spiritual energy to probe into the cracks, loosening each misaligned pattern one by one, and then guiding them back to their original positions at the same flow rate."

Elder Gong's gaze lingered on that array flag for a moment, then he stood up and slowly walked around the remaining eleven flags, finally stopping in front of one of them. "This flag's base has a similar problem, and the position is shallower than the previous one. Try to see if you can repair it as well."

Li Hanshan followed his instructions, crouched down, and used the same method to probe the base of the array flag. This deviation was indeed shallower than the previous one, but also more subtle, almost hidden within the natural patterns of the runes. If one didn't know it actually existed, they wouldn't notice the minute discrepancy. He spent nine days repositioning it. The light on the flag's surface also shone briefly after the repair was completed before stabilizing.

"There are three more sides," Elder Gong's voice came from the other side of the cave. "Their problems are different. One side has developed fine cracks in its base; they're not deep, but continued operation will affect the overall balance of the spiritual energy circulation."

For the rest of the time, Li Hanshan spent almost all his time in this rock chamber.

He examined the remaining three flags one by one—one had fine cracks in its base, another had slight wear on the runes at the top, and the base of the flagpole had a nearly depleted spirit stone embedded in it, with the continuously outputting spiritual power visibly diminishing.

The repair process accelerated rapidly. He filled and reinforced the crack with pure Yang energy, and then meticulously repainted the worn runes. He didn't directly replace the nearly depleted spirit stone; instead, he first established a temporary spiritual energy loop with it using spare spirit stones surrounding the array flag. While maintaining the array flag's normal operation, he slowly replaced the old spirit stone. The entire process resembled a meticulously choreographed relay race, each step landing precisely at its designated point.

When the last new spirit stone was embedded in the base and the array light returned to stability, the spiritual energy atmosphere in the rock chamber was completely different from when he first stepped in—most of the subtle turbulence that had once lingered around the edge of the array flags had disappeared, and the flow of spiritual energy was like a precision instrument that had been repeatedly calibrated, with every gear meshing perfectly.

Elder Gong stood among the steadily functioning array flags, his gaze sweeping over each of the twelve silver-white flags. He remained silent for a long time, then turned around, his lightning-like eyes revealing an extremely rare and earnest scrutiny.

"Your skill in array formations truly far exceeds my expectations," he said, his voice tinged with a hint of awe. "The workload of repairing these twelve array flags would have taken me at least several years, even if I were to do it myself. You completed it in just one month, and every single repair was extremely precise."

He paused for a moment. "I have a question for you. When you were inspecting those array flags just now, did you notice anything unusual?"

Standing before him, Li Hanshan could sense the seriousness in Elder Gong's tone when he asked the question. He could tell that the time was ripe.

"This disciple has indeed discovered some anomalies," Li Hanshan said in a deep voice. "The problem with those array flags isn't entirely due to natural aging. Several of their offset positions and angles don't match the deviations caused by the natural depletion of spiritual energy. This disciple suspects—" He paused, his gaze meeting Elder Gong's piercing eyes, "that someone has tampered with these array flags."

Elder Gong's expression tightened slightly, and after a moment he spoke: "You mean, someone deliberately adjusted the angles of those array flags?"

"It's not about adjusting the angle." Li Hanshan shook his head. "This disciple has examined those misaligned patterns. Their locations are extremely well-hidden, almost concealed within the natural patterns of the runes. If it were caused by ordinary spiritual energy impacts or the consumption of spirit stones, the direction of the deviation should be consistent with the direction of spiritual energy flow. But those few instances of deviation are in the opposite direction to the flow of spiritual energy."

He paused, his tone becoming more solemn, "This disciple suspects that someone has used an extremely sophisticated method to inject some kind of extremely subtle spiritual energy interference into the base of the array flags. The force of that interference is very small, insufficient to immediately disrupt the operation of the array flags, but it will gradually amplify those originally non-existent deviations during continuous operation, eventually causing an uncontrollable increase in the acceleration ratio of the array."

"It can breed the interference of inner demons." Elder Gong's voice was a few decibels lower than before, his eyes surging with vigilance: "Who do you think did it?"

Li Hanshan said, "The cultivators of the Heavenly Demon Sect are most skilled in this kind of method. But the people of the Heavenly Demon Sect cannot access the array flags of the Flowing Light Array. Unless—there is a spy within the Immortal Alliance. And that spy must hold a high position, at least having the opportunity to access these array flags when the elders are not present."

Elder Gong remained silent for a long time. Only the faint humming of the runes on the surface of the array flags and the warm glow of the luminous pearls reflected in the spiritual mist remained in the rock chamber.

When he finally spoke, he said, "There are indeed spies from the Demonic Sect within the Immortal Alliance, and they hold quite high positions."

Is there a high-ranking spy from the Demonic Sect within the Immortal Alliance?

Could this be merely a plan devised by the elders to deal with him?

At this moment, Elder Gong walked to the carefully marked array diagram at the edge of the rock chamber and took out a pure silver token from the bottom of the stone platform. The token was about half the size of a palm, with the character "Array" engraved on the front and fine silver patterns flowing around the edges. The back was engraved with the words "Deacon" and several small rune numbers. He handed the token to Li Hanshan.

"From this day forward, you will be a steward of the Immortal Alliance's Array Formation Division," Elder Gong said solemnly. "Those who hold this token will have priority passage in all cities of the Immortal Alliance, the right to access array formation texts below level three, and the right to report directly to me. Your expertise in talismans and array formations is indeed somewhat wasted if left in the Purple Thunder Pavilion. The Array Formation Division needs someone who truly understands ancient array formations to assist in handling matters related to the Flowing Light Array."

Immortal Alliance Steward?

Li Hanshan was overjoyed. Although he was just a steward, he was considered a high-ranking official in the Immortal Alliance.

Li Hanshan took the token; it felt slightly heavy in his hand, and he could sense an aura within it that shared the same origin as Elder Gong's spiritual energy imprint. He stored it in his storage ring, clasped his hands in a respectful bow, and said, "Thank you, Elder Gong."

Elder Gong waved his hand, turned around, and his gaze returned to the array diagram: "Regarding the spies, don't make a sound for now. Without solid evidence, alerting them will only allow them to close the net prematurely. Besides—"

He paused, lowering his voice even further, "The higher-ups also need time to determine who can be trusted."

He turned around, his gaze returning to Li Hanshan's face: "You just mentioned suspecting someone tampered with it; I, the elder, will investigate this matter discreetly. Continue your work within the Array Formation Division's authority, and don't inquire too much about the spies. If anyone asks about the origin of your steward's token, just say it was because of your outstanding performance in repairing the array flags that I, the elder, promoted you exceptionally."