The light barrier was thick and somewhat murky. Although it wasn't as perfectly opaque as the yellow mist had been, it still appeared somewhat hazy and indistinct.
Moreover, aside from this outer layer of the light barrier, there seemed to be several more layers within it. At the center of the barrier, one could faintly make out a circular pillar several zhang tall, covered with what appeared to be ancient patterns and archaic script — but none of them could make out the details clearly.
The reason was that the moment one's spiritual sense touched the barrier, it was completely repelled, unable to penetrate even the slightest bit.
What was even stranger was that countless slender, seven-colored bands of light drifted and wove between the various layers of the barrier, darting about as if they were alive — an exceedingly eerie sight.
The others had noticed all of this as well and couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
Han Li's expression darkened slightly, a hint of suspicion flickering through his eyes almost imperceptibly.
Though his knowledge of ancient formation arrays was limited, he had seen quite a few in the various texts and records Xin Ruyin had shared with him. The appearance and aura of the formation before him didn't seem to match any of those ancient methods. If anything, it carried a faint taint of something sinister.
With that thought, Han Li turned his head slightly to glance at Shi Die, who stood not far away.
She was examining the great formation with keen curiosity, and no unusual expression had crossed her face.
This put Han Li somewhat at ease. He wasn't particularly confident in his own understanding of formations, and he privately mocked himself for perhaps being wrong in his assessment.
"All right! I can see it's getting late, and Brother Han and the others have traveled a long way. Everyone should get some rest. We'll begin the formal formation-breaking tomorrow! Judging by the look of this thing, it's not something that can be cracked in half a day or so!" Hu Yue said considerately to Han Li and the others.
Hearing this, Han Li also felt that after such a long journey, he was indeed rather weary, so he didn't voice any objections.
That said, the so-called Fairy Shi, having now seen the true face of the great formation, was rather eager to give it a try. But since Hu Yue had spoken, she didn't press the matter.
The group flew back to the stone houses.
Since there weren't enough rooms, Han Li and the others casually gathered some earth and built a few mud huts, then used the Stone Transmutation Technique to turn them into proper stone dwellings before officially moving in.
……
Early the next morning, Han Li and Shi Die went to the area near the light barrier and began their calculations and tests of the formation's properties.
The entire process of breaking the formation was exceedingly slow.
At the very beginning, both of them felt at a complete loss for where to start. They frequently encountered obstacles they couldn't overcome, going days at a time without making the slightest progress.
But regardless, formations were inanimate — people were not!
As long as one had enough time to study and deliberate, even the strangest formation would eventually yield to someone's efforts.
Under the joint efforts of Han Li and this woman, this so-called ancient formation proved no exception. The secrets of the formation were gradually uncovered by the two of them, bit by bit.
During this process, Han Li's impression of this female cultivator surnamed Shi underwent a significant change.
Though she was somewhat haughty, she truly did have real skill.
She not only knew every manner of known formation — large and small — like the back of her hand, but when it came to calculating a formation's layout, she was meticulous beyond reproach, her analysis flawless and incredibly detailed. Han Li found this rather admirable.
In his estimation, this woman's mastery of formation theory, while not quite on par with Xin Ruyin's, wasn't terribly far behind either.
But alongside his admiration, Han Li felt a certain puzzlement.
How was it that every formation genius he knew turned out to be a woman? Was there some innate aptitude among female cultivators when it came to formations?
Still, compared to Xin Ruyin, this Fairy Shi gave off more of an air of someone who knew the theory but lacked practical experience.
Though she could talk a convincing game about every aspect of formation theory, her actual methods for breaking formations were woefully limited — just the same few tricks over and over. If they didn't work, she was left staring blankly, utterly at a loss.
As for Han Li's own half-baked formation knowledge, it naturally fell far short of this woman's when it came to the art of calculation and analysis.