I Pick up a Lost Godhood-Chapter 101 - 99: Good Fortune
Even someone as good-natured as Mingren had his limits. But in that instant, he understood the root of the problem. Whether it was against Li Tianyi or Ning Zhiquan, their opponents’ sheer power had forced him to shift from managing the Main Control Array to going on the attack. Once an opponent was sufficiently powerful, they would disrupt the array’s rhythm, causing him to gradually lose control. In the end, the combined strength of all five of them couldn’t be utilized at all.
Wang Meng’s point was that against weak opponents, it wasn’t worth the effort, and against strong ones, it was useless. The array was fine for dealing with group attacks or similar situations. As it was, it was already good enough; there was no need to spend more energy on it.
Mingren was an insightful man, and he had a sudden, great epiphany. To be honest, the fact that their array could be broken had troubled them for a long time. It was a problem they hadn’t been able to solve, and it had undoubtedly drained a lot of their energy.
"Wang Meng, you’re too arrogant! If you’ve got the guts, try facing our Five Extremes Array! If you can last three moves, we’ll admit you’re good!"
"Exactly! Talk is cheap!"
The Lingyin Four Tigers couldn’t hold it in any longer. It was already frustrating enough having their flaws exposed by a junior, and now they were being mocked. The implication was that there was no difference between practicing their array and not practicing it at all.
Wang Meng just smiled, not bothering to argue back.
However, Mingren raised a hand, stopping his junior brothers from saying any more.
"Junior Brother Wang, some debts of gratitude are too great for words. Don’t take what they said to heart," Mingren said.
"Senior Brother!" The Lingyin Four Tigers really couldn’t take it anymore. ’Is our Senior’s good nature acting up again?’
"I was just speaking casually. Don’t take it so seriously."
"You’re right. Although I can’t completely accept it right now, you’re undoubtedly correct that we shouldn’t be spending so much energy on this Sword Array. Tianyi, let me ask you. If you had the choice, would you learn this Sword Array?"
"No, I wouldn’t. Why?" Li Tianyi answered instinctively.
"Why not? What’s your first reaction to it?"
"It’s overly complicated and a hassle. Ah..." Li Tianyi suddenly felt his words were a bit inappropriate.
Mingren gave a wry smile. "That’s basically the gist of it. The greatest value of this array technique is to fight many with few. But we’re trying to turn it into an invincible array, and that in itself is where we went wrong."
"But the array technique is really powerful. Even Ning Zhiquan had to put in a lot of effort to break it," Anx Dao said doubtfully. As the youngest of the Lingyin Four Tigers, he still held a sense of reverence for it.
Actually, Wang Meng’s real point was that they should just stop practicing it altogether. But on second thought, he realized that not everyone’s goal was ascension. Some people just wanted to become stronger, or even just secure a foothold in the Holy Hall.
"Even a flawless array can be broken. You can break an array by overwhelming it with a tyrannical attack, or you can apply pressure to disrupt its rhythm. For example, by constantly pressuring Brother Ming, you’d leave him no time to control the array. Over time, he’d be unable to attend to everything at once, and the array would fall into chaos without a fight," Wang Meng said, his words hitting the nail right on the head.
Li Tianyi clicked his tongue in amazement. "If I didn’t know you hadn’t even entered the Holy Hall when the battle with Ning Zhiquan happened, I’d really suspect you saw it with your own eyes. I was thinking the same thing, but I wouldn’t choose to break the rhythm with pressure. I’d use the strongest attack to break the strongest defense!"
The Nine Heavens Separation Fire Sword was, by its very nature, all-destroying and ever-victorious!
With things laid out so clearly, the other four also understood. Wasting too much energy on the array technique would delay everyone’s cultivation.
The four of them looked a little embarrassed.
"Junior Brother Wang, from now on, just speak to us directly. No need to spare our feelings. We’re thick-skinned, haha." Mingren’s words immediately eased the awkward atmosphere.
Wang Meng had always had a good impression of Mingren.
"There’s another question I’d like to ask you. Do you think Talisman and Sword Dual Cultivation is a case of biting off more than one can chew?"
Mingren asked. This was actually a major question. Most other Sub-Halls focused on a single discipline, supplementing it with other types at most. For example, Pill Cultivation was often attached to Talisman Cultivation, and forging was attached to Body Cultivation. These pairings didn’t create conflicts; they could even be mutually beneficial.
But Lingyin Hall insisted on Talisman and Sword Dual Cultivation, and their training was indeed exhausting.
Wang Meng smiled. "Cultivation is very simple. It’s all about increasing your strength. As long as it’s suitable for you, any method is fine."
"I think so too," Li Tianyi said with a knowing smile shared with Mingren. "That’s why I’m purely a Sword Cultivator. Only by reaching the pinnacle of the sword can one be unrivaled!" His personality was casual, but his dedication to the sword never wavered. In fact, it was precisely because of his focus on the sword that he paid little mind to anything else.
"Talisman and Sword Dual Cultivation is difficult at the start, but once you truly get the hang of it, having an extra tool in combat feels very liberating," Mingren said.
’Of course, Wang Meng knew this better than anyone. It was naturally better to have more combat techniques; as long as they suited one’s preferences, there was no conflict. The only pity was that the level of Elemental Power in the Small Thousand World was too low to manage everything at once. Because of that, what was right in one place could be wrong in another, and vice versa.’
Just as their conversation was getting lively, several disciples from Lingyin Hall burst in, looking frantic.
Mingren frowned slightly. "Didn’t I say we weren’t to be disturbed?"
"Senior, it’s a disaster! If Senior Brother Wang doesn’t go out there soon, the whole Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting is going to erupt!" one of the disciples said, looking at Wang Meng as if he were some kind of primordial monster.
Wang Meng just smiled faintly. "Is there something you need me for?"
"It’s not just ’something’! Ancestor Master Lei, Ancestor Master Zhou, Ancestor Master Wu, and Ancestor Master Zhao are waiting for you at Thunderlight Hall! The disciples from Thunderlight Hall are looking for you everywhere! Senior, we really couldn’t hold them off any longer."
The disciples spoke with pained expressions. Although they didn’t know what important matter their Senior was discussing, they truly couldn’t keep things under control anymore.
Everyone was surprised. "Wang Meng, you didn’t get into some kind of trouble, did you? I’ll go with you," Li Tianyi said. It was rare to see someone so protective of a rival. But that was just Li Tianyi’s way; if he acknowledged someone, whether as a friend or a rival, he would look out for them.
"It’s fine, it’s fine. Come visit Thunderlight Hall when you have time. We’ve also made some special preparations for this Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting," Wang Meng said, not forgetting to put in a plug for his hall.
Mingren and the others shared a knowing smile. ’What could Thunderlight Hall possibly have to see?’
"Senior Brother Wang, even if we wanted to go look now, I’m afraid there’d be no room. Almost everyone from the Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting is at Thunderlight Hall right now."
.........
Mingren and the others seemed more anxious than he was. Wang Meng, on the other hand, wasn’t very worried. This was the Holy Hall’s territory; clearly, nothing too serious could happen. And even if something big did happen, there were bigger guys to handle it.
When he got back to Thunderlight Hall, he was still taken aback by the crowd there.
"Senior Brother Wang, you’re finally back! Oh, thank heavens! Get inside, quickly." Chen Haiguan was the first to spot Wang Meng, his form of address immediately becoming more respectful.
"Brother Chen, what’s going on? Did our hall suddenly produce some incredible treasure?"
Wang Meng was completely baffled. Seeing how anxious everyone looked, he wondered, ’Did Thunderlight Hall really produce some treasure?’
Chen Haiguan felt something indescribable in his heart. It was obvious Wang Meng truly had no idea about his own good fortune. ’We’re all human, so how can our fates be so different?’
