Chapter 370: Breaking the Formation

Within his divine sense, Zhang Xiaohua saw that the flawless, perfectly round, and seamlessly joined golden tadpole talisman formation had a narrow slit. From that slender gap, a strange and enchanting fragrance wafted out.

Zhang Xiaohua was overjoyed. He immediately sent his divine sense probing through the tiny crevice, only to discover, to his astonishment, that the formation was but a thin layer. Yet within this thin space, there were countless formations, numbering in the billions, each composed of innumerable tadpole-like talismans.

The formation was actually formed by billions of layers stacked atop one another!

However, Zhang Xiaohua knew well that this formation was not simply a matter of piling one layer upon another.

Inside the spherical formation, it was filled with swirling purple qi, and within that purple qi was a chubby male infant, his eyes and mouth tightly shut, his expression solemn and dignified, as if in a state of sacred meditation.

Zhang Xiaohua had no time to ponder further. He first looked up, smiled, and said to Guo Sufei: “Mother, congratulations! It’s a boy. But please wait a moment, let me see how to bring him out.”

Guo Sufei was overjoyed, all fear vanished from her eyes, replaced by wild delight. The others nearby were also filled with happiness, all wanting to crowd forward for a better look. Zhang Xiaohua quickly waved his hands and said: “Mother, you and Father, and everyone else, please step back a bit. Just in case something unexpected happens, let me take a careful look first and think of a good way to handle this.”

Guo Sufei nodded hurriedly and retreated with the others, keeping a safe distance.

Only after everyone had moved far enough away did Zhang Xiaohua turn his attention back to the mysterious and extraordinary innate formation. The gap in the spherical formation seemed as if it was naturally formed, the tadpole-like talismans on either side of the gap appearing completely unconnected. But Zhang Xiaohua understood that this gap could not have existed from the beginning. The original formation must have been perfectly seamless; this gap was surely the inevitable result of the formation’s operation reaching a certain stage.

Zhang Xiaohua stroked his chin thoughtfully. He realized that his little nephew was certainly not born at full term. Judging by the size of the gap, it seemed far too early. If the birth were at full term, the child would surely have taken human form, rather than still being a fetus protected by the formation. Alas, it had been five whole years, and only now had a tiny slit appeared. If the birth were truly at full term, who knows how many years it would take!

Fortunately, there was already a clue and a direction for a breakthrough. Zhang Xiaohua carefully observed the tadpole talismans on both sides of the gap. Those tadpoles, flowing with radiant light, seemed to show signs of separating, yet an elusive force bound them tightly together. Seeing this, Zhang Xiaohua’s heart stirred. He followed the direction of the gap downward, and as expected, along the edge of the gap in the spherical formation, the formation’s energy was noticeably weaker than that of the surrounding areas. Zhang Xiaohua instinctively understood: this must be where the formation would eventually split into two halves.

Only by starting here could the innate formation be separated. But, did Zhang Xiaohua possess such ability?

At this thought, Zhang Xiaohua’s grip on his small sword unconsciously tightened. He knew that, at this moment, only his little sword could help him. But whether it would actually work was hard to say. After all, the restrictions and formations he had broken before were all ordinary ones, like the small box sealed with the Carefree Heart Sutra, or the cave sealed by Fire Dragon True Person’s restriction. But this innate formation, he had not the slightest confidence.

Zhang Xiaohua gripped the small sword in his left hand and reached into his robe for a yuan stone. But then, he gave a bitter smile. Previously, when he used the sword with his left hand, the energy powering it did not seem to come from the true qi in his own meridians. Even if he took out the Crouching Ox Yuan Stone from his money pouch now, it would likely be useless.

So, Zhang Xiaohua hesitated. But just in case, he still took out a stone and held it in his hand. Then, locking his divine sense firmly onto the slowly flowing gap, he gently raised the small sword. At this moment, Guo Sufei asked in surprise: “Xiaohua, what are you doing?”

Zhang Xiaohua had to turn and explain: “Mother, the child is inside this sphere. I need to cut it open.”

“A sphere? Isn’t that a giant lotus flower?”

“Oh, yes, Mother. I need to cut open the lotus pod of this lotus flower.”

“But, Xiaohua, you won’t hurt the child inside, will you?”

Indeed, Guo Sufei had not yet seen her little grandson; how could she be at ease letting Zhang Xiaohua use such a dagger-like thing on him? Even if it was just the lotus on the outside, she was worried.

Zhang Xiaohua smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Mother. I’m absolutely certain it won’t hurt him. I have full confidence.”

Yes, there was absolutely no way there would be a problem. The swirling purple qi within the spherical formation was something mysterious, brimming with incredible vitality. As long as this purple qi protected him, not even the formation could harm the child inside, how could the child possibly be hurt?

Zhang Xiaohua thought to himself.

“Well… well, alright then. But, Xiaohua, you must be careful, whatever you do, don’t hurt the child. Especially… especially his little willy.”

“Ugh~” Zhang Xiaohua nearly stumbled and fell!

But it was understandable. After all, the thing that ensured the continuation of the family line was naturally of utmost importance.

Zhang Xiaohua took a deep breath and once again slowly raised his left hand. Just then, another person spoke up. It was Zhang Cai who said: “Xiaohua.”

“Huh? What is it, Father?” Zhang Xiaohua asked in surprise.

“Well, you must be careful, especially about what your mother just mentioned at the end.”

Zhang Xiaohua was speechless, but he smiled and replied: “I know, Father. I’ll be careful.”

He glanced around at everyone, each person looking at him, waiting for his move. Only when everyone fell silent did he say: “Alright, I’ll begin now.”

Zhang Xiaohua turned back, stretched out his left hand, and raised the small sword, locking his divine sense firmly onto the gap in the sphere. When the gap rotated to the very top, Zhang Xiaohua took a deep breath. His left hand moved like lightning, slicing straight down toward the lower end of the gap.

Sure enough, as Zhang Xiaohua wielded the sword with his left hand, a mysterious surge of heat arose somewhere in his left arm, flowing along his arm into the small sword. When the sword pierced the gap, the heat arrived at the blade at just the right moment. There was no intense reaction, no blinding light, yet the moment the small sword touched the tadpole talismans at the gap, an immense suction force instantly appeared, drawing all the heat from Zhang Xiaohua’s left arm into the sword. At the same time, the energized tadpoles seemed sated, swimming away to either side, causing the gap to stretch further downward.

Zhang Xiaohua was overjoyed, but since this nameless heat was not under his control, he could not actively direct it. Fortunately, just as the warmth in his left arm was depleted, another surge arose from somewhere, once again flowing up his arm.

As the warm current in his left arm continued to flow, the gap grew longer and longer.

If the warm current within Zhang Xiaohua’s body was sufficient, the gap would eventually be torn open completely. Unfortunately, Zhang Xiaohua had no idea how much of this warm current he possessed, and could only pray silently in his heart.

But as always, Heaven seldom grants what people wish for. Before long, Zhang Xiaohua felt the warm current in his left arm diminish greatly. He secretly thought, “This isn’t good,” and hurriedly tried to draw Yuan Qi from the yuan stone in his right hand. Yet, though the Yuan Qi filled his meridians, the size of the warm current did not change in the slightest.

“What should I do? The gap in this spherical formation isn’t large enough yet, I can’t reach in and pull the child out at all.”

Just as he was worrying, the warm current in his left arm dried up completely, and the small sword could no longer cut through.

But at that very moment, something strange happened. The purple qi within the spherical formation seemed to be attracted by something, and followed the tip of the sword that had pierced the gap, flowing into Zhang Xiaohua’s left hand. It formed a new warm current, traveling up his left arm along a different path, vanishing at the spot where the warm current used to arise. After a moment, another warm current was generated, flowing along the original path into the small sword. The tadpole-like talismans, driven by this new surge, parted even more swiftly, melting away like snow under boiling water.

Zhang Xiaohua was wild with joy. There was an abundance of swirling purple qi within the sphere, and now it had formed a cycle with the warm current in his left arm. Before long, he would surely be able to widen the gap enough.

While effortlessly splitting open the formation, Zhang Xiaohua pondered. This purple qi must be the key to breaking the formation. But if one relied solely on the purple qi to break the formation, it would take a very long time, perhaps as long as the child’s gestation in his sister-in-law’s womb. Now, with this premature birth, if only the purple qi were used, it might take decades to break the formation. But outside the womb, who could say if that would affect the child’s growth?

Now, with the purple qi passing through his body as a medium, the formation could be broken in a short time, surely an extraordinary method. Still, he could not help but wonder if this would harm the child’s development. But things had come to this point, and there was no other way. To let this lotus-formed spherical formation remain in the Zhang family’s courtyard in Guo Village for decades, just thinking about it was unimaginable.

After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the gap was finally wide enough. Zhang Xiaohua tried to withdraw his sword and pull his little nephew out from within the formation, but the formation seemed to possess a tremendous suction force. No matter how hard he tried, he could not pull the sword out even a fraction. Helpless, Zhang Xiaohua could only continue absorbing the purple qi, using the warm current to break open the sphere.

Meanwhile, in the eyes of Zhang Cai, Guo Sufei, and the others, Zhang Xiaohua’s unremarkable little sword, once it pierced the lotus, caused the lotus to stop opening and closing. The tightly closed lotus bud began to bloom, little by little. Everyone held their breath, watching intently, afraid that any sound might disturb Zhang Xiaohua’s actions.

As Zhang Xiaohua’s small sword continued to break through the formation, the lotus flower bloomed ever more fully. By the time it took to finish a meal, the entire sphere had been split in two, and in the eyes of everyone present, the lotus flower had completely blossomed!

In that instant, an exotic fragrance filled the entire courtyard.

At this moment, the infant within the purple qi suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze met Zhang Xiaohua’s, and the instant their eyes connected, Zhang Xiaohua felt himself pulled into a world of darkness.