Transcending Evolution Chapter 9: Reward
Edited by JFantasyBooks
True Yuan flowed into the Array Pattern from Gu Yue’s hand. As the True Yuan slowly flowed, Qin Xue, who was standing on the side, gradually became surprised. Having reached the pinnacle of Yuan Stage, her control over her Yuan had reached to a high precision.So she knew when she saw it that his control over the circulation of the Yuan had no problems whatsoever.
In conjunction, Gu Yue’s spiritual strength was beyond her imagination. Under her perception, his spiritual energy flooded the Array Pattern and circulated endlessly, almost as if bringing the entire Array alive in infinite, immeasurable ways. The subtle control exhibited here was in no way inferior to her own control of True Yuan. Although she had already reached the peak of the Yuan Boundary, even she could not so thoroughly control the Array.
The damage to the Array Pattern was as if it were void of life; only when it was replenished could it be repaired. Therefore, even for true Array Masters, regardless of the number of Array Patterns they had comprehended, the strength of the original person who had created the Array had to be good. Gu Yue, only finis.h.i.+ng his second refinement, actually daring to say he could repair the array was completely unprecedented.
Time pa.s.sed. After the Array was repaired, there were no visible changes in the array; there was no light, no movement from the engravings on the pillars of the array. However, gradually, the yuan in the Array Room thickened. A layer of enchantment on the ground gradually opened up.
"It’s fixed! It’s really fixed! Hahaha!” Aunt Mei was ecstatic; she knew what it meant now that the arrays were fixed. With the fixing of the Array, the problems of the martial school would be fixed, and the haze that had covered the martial school would also be swept away.
“This elemental effect……?” Qin Xue’s cherry shaped mouth hung open, her face unable to maintain it’s frosty countenance. She tentatively tested the concentration of yuan in the air, and was extremely shocked.
"The original array pattern was a little wasteful, so I streamlined it. The effect should be stronger than how the original array was.” Gu Yue said, exhausted. Although it hadn’t taken him long to fix the array, he was already drenched in sweat, hunched over.
It really did take a toll; concentrating oneself to control True Yuan was a heavy toll on both the focus and physical strength one had. If not for the experience of the mysterious s.p.a.ce disk backing him up, allowing the act of controlling True Yuan to almost be an instinct, he simply would not have been able to have held on.
"Did you just say streamline? You can actually optimize and improve the Array Pattern?” Qin Xue’s rapidly became pale, her two eyes as round as the moon as she stared at Gu Yue, completely overwhelmed “Don’t tell me, your attainments as an Array Master has already reached the level of a master?”
“Recover your True Yuan! After you have recovered, all that is left to do is to replace the original spar (a type of stone) of the array and it should work.” Gu Yue sighed as he retracted his palm. It felt good to relax; guiding the True Yuan had been too laborious and he did not want to maintain the state for too long.
Qin Xue cut off her supply of True Yuan. With the disappearance of True Yuan, the Array lost it’s functionality, and the original concentration of Yuan also begun to dissipate. However, when Aunt Mei inserted a palm-sized of black spar, the Array lit up once again, and the concentration of Yuan became thick again.
“I’m famished; I have to rest for a day.” Gu Yue said, as if half-alive. Although the consumption of his spirit was not small, it was not to the point where it was considered unsustainable. However, having confirmed and proved his ability, it should be time to harvest the rewards. Acts of kindness are reciprocated with acts of kindness. Any form of remuneration would not be less than what he did. Who would call him poor now?
“Are you our savior?” Qin Xue had completely lost her cool; the only thing she could do was stare at him, shocked.
“If I am your savior, then you wouldn’t have needed to help me fix the Array Pattern.” Gu Yue said helplessly.
“You should be an Array Master at least!” Aunt Mei looked Gu Yue up and down; what had happened today had really been too fantastical. He had only been a paltry martial artist who could be called a handyman, pa.s.sing the last two years uneventfully. However, he suddenly had the mental strength close to an evolutionist, and also turned into an Array Master?
“It’s nothing that exaggerated.
"I only optimized it slightly; I still have far to go from being an Array Master.” Gu Yue did not think what he had done was anything amazing; besides, he also did not know what kind of attainments a true Array Master would have.
“Able to master the Array Pattern, and modify the original Array; you are definitely an Array Master!” Qin Xue silently shook her head; a 16 year old Array Master, if this was not the work of the devil, what was?
“Alright, since this array has been fixed, my ability should be proven. Why don’t we discuss the price?” Gu Yue did not want to linger too long on the subject; after all, it was quite irrational. An Array Master who had only completed their second refinement? Who would believe him?
As he gradually realized that he may have exposed his own secret, he begun to regret his recklessness. Since his strength had so sharply increased, it was not entirely unfair to have been a little hasty as he had been in a delirious state of mind.
Now, it was too late. His attainments in the field of Array Masteries had been exposed, and since it was impossible to hide it, it would be better to use it to leverage his own needs. It could be said that although money was not a panacea, there was almost nothing money couldn’t solve.
“I used to hire an Array Master, and we paid him millions annually. If you are interested, I can double the price for you if you sign on for five years.” Qin Xue instantly saw his potential, and quickly gauged his worth. A 16 year old Array Master; how could he be considered weak? Even if the array wasn’t broken, this was a talent that could not be let go of.
“Over a million a year?!” Gu Yue’s eyes bulged out; he earned but a measly 100 credits a day from his job. He had known that being an Array Master was a lucrative business, but he had not known that he would be able to make that much money.
“If you are so inclined, we can sign the contract right now.” Qin Xue was secretly delighted; if she could get Gu Yue to sign, not only would their crisis be solved, if such a thing occurred later on, there would be no problems.
“No no no, I do not intend to sign a contract and become an exclusive Array Master.” Although Gu Yue was very moved, he knew that aside from their attainments in the fields of Arrays, their personal strength was very weak. To some extent, being an evolutionist was just a fundamental aim.
“You’ve already worked at the martial school for two years already; becoming a professional Array Master should have no effect on your martial studies, why would you refuse?” Aunt Mei asked with a confused look on her face. She was very clear on Gu Yue’s economic status; there was no logical reason he should have refused such excellent conditions.
Qin Xue hastily concealed the disappointment from her face. “If it is a matter of the conditions, we can discuss this.”
“I am but a temporary part time worker.” He was clearly an impoverished pauper; to resist the temptation of the two million annual salary was an extremely big test on Gu Yue’s willpower. Even if he had not heard the conversation between Qin Xue and Aunt Mei, just from the quality of the arrays, one could see that the martial school was in another league of strength altogether; entirely out of his reach.
“Forget it. If people are not interested, they cannot be forced.” Qin Xue sighed and said. “The price on the black market to repair a third level array is one hundred thousand credits. If in the next few days, the arrays that you repaired indeed prove to be more powerful than the previous arrays, then I’ll pay you 300,000 credits for every array you fix.”
“300,000?” Gu Yue’s eyes were as round as binoculars; this was just one array! If he fixed all five arrays, wouldn’t the amount of money he earned be 1,500,000 credits?!
“That is correct.” Qin Xue shook her head as she said: “If you go to the Array a.s.sociation to get someone to fix it, it would only be 200,000 credits since it just fixing it. However, since you are improving the arrays, then the price will naturally be driven up.”
“Excellent! Let’s get started right now!” Gu Yue ecstatically said, before scrambling to his feet.
“Are you sure? Didn’t you need to rest?” Qin Xue and Aunt Mei looked at each other, then at the vibrant and radiant Gu Yue, then laughed self-deprecatingly.
Even if you want to increase the price, isn’t this a bit too obvious of an act?
“Uh, my lady, regarding the repair method used just now, do you remember it?” Gu Yue suddenly sombrely asked Qin Xue.
“That’s right! The other arrays should be exactly the same, and so should the movements! Once I’ve remembered the patterns, doesn’t that mean I can fix all the other Arrays myself?” Qin Xue’s eyes lit up, her mouth curving into a self-ridiculing smile. “Then, I can save on a million credits!”
“Not bad. The five element arrays are indeed similar. If you can do it yourself, isn’t that for the better?” Gu Yue stared at the sky as he laughed, without the slightest worry for what it meant. Array Patterns were extremely difficult to follow. Even if one was an Array Master, it was not possible to memorize the method after having just seen it once.
And of course, after a moment, Qin Xue helplessly shook her head, seemingly regretful. “Forget it, such a complex Array, how can I remember the methods? Looks like it is still better for you to personally fix it."
To be honest, as long as he could fix the arrays, forget the 300,000, even if it was double the price, she would still be willing to pay it. It had to be known the loss from the martial artists leaving was difficult to estimate. Forget about the long run, it was even doubtful if the school would continue to run.
However, Gu Yue was also very desperate. Although these Array Patterns were not difficult to fix, it was difficult for him to control the flow of True Yuan. After all, it required the use of spiritual power; who could treat it as just a joke?
With five arrays to repair, time marched on gradually, and when he was finished, half the day had pa.s.sed already. The five arrays were all completely fixed, and the underground practice room had increased in its power. At this point, even if it was ordinary people, you could feel the difference in power when cultivating.
But Gu Yue had no interest in this matter. Once the arrays had been fixed, he fled. Yes, he was escaping. He had only finished his second refinement; he was already gambling with his life to fix second level arrays, if it was a third level array, he would have been done for.
[ED: Remember, the array was designed to be of the third level, but it did not work, and so was regressed as a second level array. Although he improved upon the array, it remains as second level.]
Everyone had a limit to what they could bear, just like a blacksmith and forging, if one used appropriate force, then you would get appropriate results; but if you applied too much, it would just warp the material. The same could be applied to warriors. In a third level array, the moment a body refining warrior rushed in, the ten times the concentration of yuan in the air would be thick enough to immobilize them.
An array with a single pillar would be able to provide two levels of difficulty, allowing one to train until they were able to withstand the pressure of a third level training array. If all five pillars of the array were activated, it's power could reach the fourth level.
So, given that, if he stayed in the Array Room with his weak ability, he would be courting death.