"Don’t worry, there won’t be any problems." Han Yan smiled slightly. Seeing their anxious faces made Han Yan chuckle inwardly and added, "If you’re still really uneasy, you can step out of the courtyard first. Each courtyard has a defensive array, so even if something unexpected happens, you won’t be harmed."

After speaking, Han Yan no longer paid attention to them, focusing entirely on setting up the array.

If she hadn’t seen Leng Qingyun and Luo Lifu’s hand gestures for the array beforehand, Han Yan wouldn’t have dared to take such a risk. But after observing their gestures and replicating them, Han Yan suddenly discovered that not only did memories seemingly branded deep in her consciousness, dormant for countless centuries, quietly awaken, but also the memory inheritance of the Aolai Divine Beast awakened as well.

These memories that awakened were all related to arrays, and they verified and fused with each other. Many principles of arrays that had previously been unclear to Han Yan suddenly became clear. She attained a brand new understanding of the Heaven and Earth Rules and the principles of array formation, as if she had directly grasped the essence of arrays.

Although she still couldn’t fully comprehend this essence at the moment, she could easily copy and apply it. Countless arrays appeared in her mind, and she could even empathize and feel the energy fluctuations within those arrays.

The array Han Yan was currently setting up was one of those Spirit Gathering Arrays. While it wasn’t the most intricate or effective, its greatest feature was that it could complement any other Spirit Gathering Array without causing detrimental clashes. Even if slight errors occurred, the worst that would happen is a diminished effect, never damaging the existing Spirit Gathering Arrays.

Seeing Han Yan’s relaxed demeanor, Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe were nervous yet couldn’t help but admire her.

Some say that wealth is sought in danger, and some say that people die for wealth like birds for food. Isn’t the cultivation path the same? Throughout history, countless talented cultivators have fallen unexpectedly, and many not at the hands of other cultivators, but during their climb to greater heights.

When cultivators reach a certain realm, the ones they need to overcome are not others, but themselves. Each adventure signifies greater opportunity, but often also signifies a threat of death.

Only those who see through life and death and remain fearless at heart can reach the final peak. Anyone with even a hint of cowardice cannot persevere to the end.

Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe had no idea that Han Yan was fearless and assumed she was a cultivation prodigy who had seen through life and death in her pursuit of the peak. Naturally, they were in awe of her.

Initially, the two thought about following Han Yan’s advice and retreating with their companions outside the courtyard, but then felt too ashamed to back away.

However, watching Han Yan "fearlessly" set up the array, picking up and putting down the Meteorite Gold Stone, rearranging the positions with occasional taps, left the two pale and drenched in sweat, their legs trembling incessantly.

"What’s wrong with you?" Han Yan suddenly turned her head, noticing their strange expressions and asking in confusion.

In that moment of distraction, a piece of Meteorite Gold Stone slipped from her hand and fell downward.

It’s over, it’s all over now! Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe’s faces turned black instantly, nearly fainting on the spot.

Although they weren’t fully versed in the path of array formation, they knew enough to see that Han Yan’s array was starting to take effect, with the array’s fluctuations faintly appearing. If something went wrong at this juncture, it would cause the array to go awry and trigger a catastrophic clash with the existing Spirit Gathering Array.

The two had even imagined the earth-shaking explosion of the array, envisioned their flesh and blood flying, even turning to dust, and their grieving families and friends crying bitterly upon hearing the bad news.

"Thud." The piece of Meteorite Gold Stone fell to the ground.

Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe’s hearts sank along with it, as if falling into an abyss.

However, the explosion they anticipated did not occur. The Meteorite Gold Stone bounced a few times and settled on the ground, and everything around remained calm.

"Are you alright?" Han Yan asked again.

Previously, after drawing on their strength to defeat Wei Xiaotian, Han Yan was worried about leaving them with any hidden dangers.

"Oh, we’re fine, we’re fine. Just focus on setting up the array. You don’t need to worry about us," Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe said, wiping the cold sweat from their foreheads. It felt as if they had just walked through the Ghost Gate, drenched in sweat. Fearful of distracting Han Yan, they dared not say much, merely urging her to concentrate on the array.

"Oh." Seeing they claimed to be fine, Han Yan refrained from saying anything more, turning around to stomp on the piece of Meteorite Gold Stone.

Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe initially assumed she would gingerly pick up the Meteorite Gold Stone to reposition it, but to their surprise, she stomped on it. Their hearts, which had just settled, were once again in their throats.

But fortunately, even after that stomp, nothing unexpected happened.

The two pressed their hands tightly over their mouths, afraid to make any noise that might distract Han Yan, feeling utterly helpless: Young Master Mu, Young Madam Mu, we beg you, please don’t scare us like this anymore. You’re unafraid of death, but we are.

Nearby, Huayue and others couldn’t help but stifle laughs at Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe’s expressions. Seeing their expressions, they could somewhat guess what was on their minds.

However, they clearly misunderstood Han Yan. Although Han Yan did indeed have a resolute heart and, if pushed to the brink, did fearlessly face death, it didn’t mean she would recklessly risk her life. In fact, she valued life more than anyone else.

Of course, they didn’t know that Han Yan’s respect for life was deeper than others because she had lived through two lifetimes, including one experience of death.

Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe kept their eyes locked on Han Yan, fearful of her performing any more shocking actions. They worried that if this continued, even if they didn’t die in an array explosion tragedy, they might be scared to death by Han Yan.

In the end, luckily, they weren’t scared to death. But it wasn’t because Han Yan didn’t do anything shocking, but because her actions were consistently so astonishing, and their hearts continued to tense and relax until eventually, their minds went completely blank, nerves totally numb.

Han Yan would walk a few steps, make a calculation with her fingers, then toss a few Meteorite Gold Stones, stamping them down with her foot.

One step, two steps, three steps... They couldn’t remember how many steps Han Yan took in total, nor how many Meteorite Gold Stones she set down. They only knew their clothes were drenched in cold sweat, and the ground beneath their feet was surrounded by rings of perspiration.

"All done." Han Yan finally pressed the last piece of Meteorite Gold Stone into the ground, clapping her hands and saying lightly.

At the beginning, she was still a bit cautious, as the memories that awoke were just memories, akin to dreams, and nobody could be completely certain there was no risk. But gradually, she found that this Spirit Gathering Array indeed had no risks and she became more skilled at arranging it, as if she had practiced countless times before, naturally growing bolder and quicker, more at ease.

"All done?" Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe felt as if they had experienced a nightmare, and until the moment they woke up, they couldn’t discern between reality and dreams.

It was only when a Heaven and Earth Power several times denser than before enveloped their bodies that they realized it had succeeded, and Han Yan’s seemingly reckless array was indeed completed.

Suddenly, the sky was filled with stormy clouds.

"I’m about to have a breakthrough, I’m about to have a breakthrough." More than a dozen young Sword Masters exclaimed in joy, sitting down cross-legged at once.

Only then did Zhuang Ping’an and Sang Qinghe completely wake up, looking at Han Yan again with completely changed expressions.

(Begging for monthly tickets, aoooooo, howling to the sky~~ Begging for everyone to spare a monthly ticket~~~)