As if it understood Song Changsheng, the Spirit Fish blew bubbles even more joyfully.
Song Changsheng shook his head. "Although this tea isn't of much use to me right now, it's still an extremely precious item. I'll have a great need for it in the future, so I can't give it to you."
With that, Song Changsheng turned to leave.
Seeing this, the Spirit Fish grew anxious and hurriedly blew a stream of bubbles. Although Song Changsheng didn't understand "bubble-speak," he could roughly guess that it was trying to tell him something.
This piqued Song Changsheng's interest. The intelligence displayed by the Spirit Fish was beyond what it should possess at its current stage.
'Could it be that it's already touched the threshold of Tier Two?' Song Changsheng wondered to himself.
If that were true, it would be a great boon for the clan. A Tier Two Spirit Fish could breed higher-quality schools of fish in greater numbers.
It would also be of some benefit to Song Changsheng. The most crucial point was that a Tier Two Spirit Fish was weak; even after its breakthrough, he would still be able to control it.
"In that case, I suppose I can let you try, but you only get one chance." Song Changsheng took a tender bud from the Jade Bottle and tossed it into the Spirit Fish's mouth.
Having achieved its goal, the Spirit Fish did a cheerful spin in the water and swam toward the bottom of the lake…
Song Changsheng suddenly realized that more and more places on the island required Spiritual Qi. The Spirit Plants needed a large amount of Spiritual Qi to grow, and the Mist Concealed Tea Tree was also a major consumer.
Song Changsheng's own cultivation demanded a massive amount of Spiritual Qi, and the current supply on Lake Heart Island was no longer enough.
'My Array Cultivation has now touched that threshold. It's time to attempt a breakthrough. I'll start by setting up a Spirit Gathering Array,' Song Changsheng murmured to himself.
Song Changsheng calmed his mind and steadied his breath. He took the materials for Array Formation from his Qiankun Bag and placed them where they were most convenient.
For this Array Formation, he needed a set of Tier One Top-Grade Array Banners. Because the Spirit Gathering Array was a permanent array, he also needed a Top-Grade Array Foundation.
With his current Artifact Refining skill, he was still unable to craft Tier One Top-Grade Magical Artifacts. The ones he was using now were left behind by his late father, Song Luyan.
Perhaps it was due to their bloodline, but from Song Xianming to Song Changsheng, all three generations of grandfather and grandson possessed a remarkable talent for the way of arrays.
However, since Song Changsheng hadn't crafted them himself, using them for Array Formation would not produce the best possible results. But his Artifact Refining Technique had hit a bottleneck, so this was his only option.
"Array Foundation, rise." With a light tap from Song Changsheng, the disc-shaped Array Foundation immediately began to expand at a visible rate, stopping only when it reached ten feet in diameter.
"Descend."
Under the control of his Spiritual Power, the Array Foundation slowly sank into the ground before him. At that moment, Song Changsheng waved his sleeve and flung out twelve Triangular Array Banners.
Holding his breath and focusing his mind, he guided the banners with his qi. The twelve Array Banners quickly disappeared into the ground in a peculiar pattern. Guided by Song Changsheng's Spiritual Power, they linked perfectly with the Array Foundation.
"Now!"
Song Changsheng's eyes snapped open. He flew into the array, and with a single step, a faint Array Pattern formed beneath his foot. He moved through the array as if taking a leisurely stroll, and intricate Array Patterns gradually began to take shape.
The Array Patterns grew denser, and the connection between the Array Banners and the Array Foundation became increasingly tight, eventually merging into a single, integrated whole.
By now, Song Changsheng had reached the center of the Grand Array. He dropped the final Spirit Stone from his hand and took the last step.
With that step, the entire Grand Array seemed to come alive, and the Array Patterns looked as if they had gained life of their own.
"Array, rise!" Song Changsheng stomped his foot forcefully. All the Array Patterns instantly erupted in a dazzling light. He formed a special Magic Technique with his hands, and the ground suddenly began to tremble.
He was connecting to the Spiritual Vein. A permanent Grand Array had to be linked with a Spiritual Vein to achieve a state of self-sustenance.
A Defense Array set up this way could automatically draw power to repair itself, even if the Array Foundation and Array Banners were damaged, as long as the Spiritual Vein remained intact.
Even if an enemy breached the Grand Array's defenses, the opening would quickly heal as long as the array was supplied with enough Spiritual Qi. It was truly formidable.
Therefore, in this world, having a powerful Grand Array was crucial for a faction's stable continuation. If the Song Clan hadn't possessed a Tier Three Middle-Grade Clan Protection Array, they would likely have been annihilated by the Lieyang Sect in that previous battle...
Amidst the violent tremors, the Array Patterns extending from the Array Foundation successfully connected with the Earth Vein beneath Little Cyan Mountain. As long as the Spiritual Vein existed, this Spirit Gathering Array would continue to operate indefinitely.
"Phew..."
Song Changsheng let out a long breath. The array was finally complete.
In just that short amount of time, his face had turned as pale as paper, and beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down in streams, soaking a large patch of the earth before him.
He quickly sat down cross-legged, took out his Treasure Gourd, and gulped down several mouthfuls of Spirit Wine. Only then did he circulate his Heart Method to begin recovering his depleted Spiritual Power and Mental Power.
He did not finish meditating until 9:00 AM the next day, when some color finally returned to his pale face.
'A Tier One Top-Grade array is indeed on a whole other level of difficulty. If I hadn't practiced it in my mind every day, this probably wouldn't have gone so smoothly.' Song Changsheng was overjoyed as he looked at the Spirit Gathering Array before him.
According to the criteria for Array Masters, he had independently and completely set up a Tier One Top-Grade array. From this moment on, he was a Tier One top-grade Array Master.
'Let me test its effects.'
Song Changsheng took out the Control Token and activated the array. The previously dormant Array Patterns immediately appeared and began to expand outward, only stopping when they reached their limit.
The activated array's range was now much larger, enveloping Song Changsheng's thatched hut, a portion of the Spiritual Field, and several Cyan Plum Trees.
Song Changsheng could clearly feel the concentration of Spiritual Qi in the surrounding environment rapidly increasing until it was nearly three times the average concentration of a Tier Two Spirit Vein.
Conversely, the Spiritual Qi concentration in the several-hundred-meter area around Lake Heart Island had dropped to less than half the average.
The Spirit Gathering Array was a fine thing, but it was not suitable for widespread use. The more cultivators there were in an area, the less suitable it became, as it worked by gathering the surrounding Spiritual Qi to increase the concentration within the array.
One Grand Array could only support the cultivation of two or three people, and the price was that the surrounding several-hundred-meter area would no longer be suitable for any cultivator.
This was why Song Changsheng could only do this on Little Cyan Mountain, where cultivators were sparse. If he had tried this in a densely populated area, he would have been beaten to death...
Time spent in cultivation always flew by. In the blink of an eye, the new year had arrived, and with it, the steward sent by the clan to collect the Spirit Fish. After collecting the stipulated two hundred, there were still more than twenty adult Spirit Fish left over.
These, naturally, fell into Song Changsheng's pockets. A single Spirit Fish was worth two Spirit Stones, which was quite a considerable income for him.
As for the Fish King, there had been no sign of it since it consumed the Mist Concealing Tea. He had no idea if it had succeeded or failed...