Deities: Starting From Goblins

After spending several minutes examining the array, the elder was at a loss. The array was exceedingly complex, the positions of the spirit stones were obscure and unclear, placed seemingly at random but in perfect natural harmony. As time wore on, his complexion became more and more awkward, realizing he was out of his depth.

Celica Shingo sensed that something was wrong and anxiously asked, “Elder, why do you look so worried? Is there a change in the array formation? You must break this array, even if it requires tens of thousands more spirit stones.”

The half-step Saint Seats couldn’t lend a hand, and if even the Array Master they had placed all their hope in fell short, they would truly be trapped to death inside the array. They were likely to become the laughing stock for many years as half-step Saint Seats who were just one step short of the Saint Seat, the pinnacle of strength in the world.

The other Sect Leaders felt the same, fearing that the old man would give up midway. No matter how resentful they felt, none of them complained a word to the elder, all they thought about was getting out of this Barrier Array.

The elder looked at them with deep and mysterious eyes, then said, “It is troublesome, but I have been studying arrays for a hundred years. Give me a few more hours to try to break it. I’m sure I can find the mechanics of this array. It is incredibly sophisticated, much more so than most of the arrays described in the books.”

“Take your time,” said Celica Shingo. At this point, all he wanted was to get out safely. Unlike the other Sect Leaders, he was secretly delighting in their desperation, thinking it meant his son could escape unharmed, and he hadn’t considered his own escape plan.

Now, he shared the concerns of the other Sect Leaders, making him uneasy. After all, as a half-step Saint Seat himself, he certainly didn’t want to be trapped in this petty Barrier Array set up by someone in the Throne Realm. It was embarrassing no matter how you looked at it, considering that he was a leader of an entire sect.

The elder was under immense pressure, but he had already promised the Sect Leaders. If he were to abandon them and walk away just because he encountered a difficult problem, his reputation would go down the drain. Who would seek his help to break arrays in the future? Therefore, for the sake of his dignity and face, he was determined to break this array.

Moreover, he was a proud man who had studied array formations for a hundred years. Even if he wasn’t the foremost array master, he could at least be considered a grandmaster. But now, he was trapped by a beginner-level Barrier Array, how could he face the outside world if they found out about this? His hard-earned reputation would be lost.

Time flew by, and the elder had been trying for an hour, but he still had no clue. He had managed to sketch out the general positions of the hundred thousand spirit stones and found the operating principle. Indeed, it was a basic Barrier Array, with the only difference being the diverse positions the array could assume while functioning.

There were over a thousand points. If every point had different paths, it would result in countless permutations which naturally made it impossible to trace the path of the array, let alone find its flaws. The elder was flustered and frustrated at the thought that he was about to become a laughing stock.

The Sect Leaders in the array were gradually becoming impatient. After all, the elder had already spent a long time. Was he having difficulty breaking the array, or was he all talk and no action? If time continued to be wasted, the spiritual energy of the Sect Leaders would be completely drained.

“Elder, how much longer will it take?” the Sect Leader of the Heavenly Sword Sect asked. They had offered hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones only to find that this elder might be an incompetent fool. Was he just there to swindle their spirit stones?

“Wait another hour!” the elder responded as he continued to study the array formation. The impatience of the Sect Leaders was to no avail. He was more anxious than any of them, but patience was critical in breaking an array. Only by finding its flaws could they succeed. Spending more time on it without doing this was pointless.”

The Sect Leader of the Heavenly Sword Sect was discontent and flared up, “Can you be more serious? Are the spirit stones not enough and you want to increase the price? We will add to the previously agreed sum. Six hundred thousand spirit stones, will that be enough? I hope we can be straightforward and stop making things difficult to increase your reward.”

“I have always followed my principles when handling matters. Even if you give me six hundred thousand spirit stones, if I can’t break it, I can’t do anything about it. This array is too difficult and no one else was willing to attempt it. I’m doing this only because I agreed.”

The elder took a deep breath and said seriously, “If you do not trust me, you can look for others. I guarantee I won’t take a single spirit stone. However, if you do trust me, stop being suspicious. I have been studying arrays for a hundred years and at least, I do not deceive others with my reputation.”

“I believe the elder must also be having difficulties. After all, this array has trapped several of us half-step Saint Seats. There are not many arrays in this world capable of holding us captive; it’s evident how terrifying this array is. If the elder could easily solve it, wouldn’t it prove us incompetent?”

Celica Shingo righteously said, also giving the Heavenly Sword Sect Leader a glare. At this moment, why should they provoke the elder? After all, he was their only hope. If he walked away in a huff, wouldn’t they just be glaring at each other, continuously trapped in this damned Barrier Array?

The other Sect Leaders all nodded their agreement, begging the elder not to resent them. Whether he could break the array was less of an issue, as long as he tried his best. Moreover, they would still give the six hundred thousand spirit stones, as a small compensation even if the elder failed in the end.

Only then did the elder calm down, and his pressures increased simultaneously. After all, they had shown him respect, and if he still could not break the array, where would he put his face and ego? Despite doing his utmost, he still found nothing after another hour.

If the array had not used a hundred thousand spirit stones but perhaps just ten or twenty thousand, he would have solved it by now. However, with more spirit stones in the equation, the possible combinations became countless, making it impossible to project. Although he had been studying arrays for a hundred years, Logan’s array skills did not belong to any sect.

The elder sighed deeply, and said to everyone, “I’m sorry to admit that given my skills, I can’t break this array. So, even a million spirit stones would be of no use. I can only blame my own lack of talent and skill, the person who set this array surpassed me. I hereby apologize to all the Sect Leaders.”

All the Sect Leaders changed color. When the old man’s words came out, it was as if they had received a heavy blow. This Barrier Array was indeed terrifying, and even a titan among the array masters could not solve it.