CHAPTER 52: A GENIUS OR A FOOL?

Lena flinched every time Rhys glanced in her direction. To her, a normal person looked like a calm, clear image.

But when she looked at Rhys, she saw a raging, swirling vortex of pure chaos. He was the most unpredictable and dangerous thing she had ever seen.

She was even more scared when she heard the Elder’s next words.

"Rhys," the Elder said. "Lena has been my student for a long time. Now, you will learn alongside her."

Lena looked up, her face pale. She had to learn with this monster? Her eyes momentarily locked with that bottomless pit of chaos and she hurriedly looked away.

Elder Solon looked at Rhys, his ancient eyes holding a mix of curiosity and deep doubt.

"You are too brave. Two days? It even takes ten days to draw a formation."

Rhys shrugged, his mind wandering during the talk with the System. He was not bragging when he said he needed only two days to learn about formations from the Elder.

In truth, he could learn in one day if the Elder was capable of giving him a non-stop class. After all, he had the System.

The reason he wanted the Elder’s teaching was because his knowledge of formations was vague, as he had learned it on his own.

He had mastered the basics in Greenleaf Town, but that was like learning to write letters. What Solon knew was like writing a grand novel.

Sure, with the System’s help, he could absorb any knowledge instantly. But the System could not create knowledge from nothing. It needed a source.

With a true master like Solon to guide him, the System could improve his understanding at a speed the world had never seen.

Elder Solon sighed. Although he sounded sceptical, his eyes shone with interest.

"Very well. Your confidence is either that of a genius or a fool. We shall see which it is." He turned to his other apprentice. "Lena, bring the primary scrolls. The ones on energy flow and rune structure."

Lena flinched slightly, then peeked at Rhys. As she saw him looking at her, she quickly walked into a dark tunnel behind the Elder’s chair.

"She seems scared of you," Elder Solon joked, sipping the tea on his table.

"More like she fluttered after seeing my handsomeness."

"Cough!" Elder Solon almost choked on his tea.

Suddenly, Rhys heard a sound come into his head. He almost jumped in panic. As quiet and warm as the voice sounded, it had come without warning.

I am going with the hunters.

’How can Yuki talk in my mind?’

[Her consciousness has reached Tier 4.]

’Wow.’

Only she could speak to him, as his own consciousness was still in Tier 1. But he made an expression he hoped she would understand.

’Are you hungry?’

Not at all. I have enough food here... her voice trailed off.

’You mean the people here,’ Rhys rolled his eyes.

After all, they are giving me crystals for free. So, no. It’s so boring here anyway, and Zara said they might find some shiny crystals. I like shiny things.

Yuki’s voice disappeared from his head. Rhys could only pray that the crystals of those poor hunters were not that shiny.

’She will be safe anyway.’

Rhys had a hunch that she was the most dangerous thing in the desert, even considering the Tyrant. Rhys felt a sense of relief.

In any case, Yuki going was a good thing. He could focus completely on his lessons. It also meant he did not have to worry about her getting into a fight with the Elder.

When Lena returned, she was carrying a heavy stack of old, dusty scrolls. She placed them carefully on a stone table.

The scrolls looked ancient. They were covered in complex diagrams and writing that Rhys did not recognise.

"We will start with the basics," the Elder said. "This is the first principle: the Law of Qi Diversion. A formation is not a wall. It is a river. It does not block energy; it guides it. You must learn to feel the flow of the world’s energy and create channels for it to follow."

He pointed to a complex diagram on the first scroll. It showed hundreds of thin, intersecting lines.

"This diagram shows the primary energy pathways in a simple concealment array. It would take a normal student months to just memorise the pattern. You have until tomorrow."

Rhys looked at the diagram. The moment his eyes focused on it, the System acted.

[Burning 10 years of lifespan to comprehend Basic Formation Theory...]

[Comprehended to Perfection.]

Elder Solon continued teaching while Rhys intently concentrated. The knowledge that flooded into his mind began to break into small fragments, which were absorbed at high speed as his brain worked to solidify them.

Elder Solon talked non-stop for an hour, then leaned back in his chair and took out ink and a pen. He was also surprised by Rhys’s mental capability to concentrate on such complex principles without losing focus.

"Let’s try to draw one of the nodes. Don’t be in a rush; the first node will take someone at least two days."

An unranked formation had hundreds of such nodes. If this boy drew a single node in one day, that would be great. Elder Solon silently sighed.

Despite Lena being his most talented disciple, it had taken her more than one day to draw a node. It took her fifty years to completely learn to draw an unranked formation, and currently, it now takes her ten days to draw one.

Elder Solon was sure the outsider would not be any different; after all, he did not even have a profession core for formations.

’In any case, I just need to teach him for two days.’

Rhys said nothing as he picked up the paper and ink. He began to draw on the paper. His hand was a bit shaky at first, but it quickly became precise.

His speed also increased, and within half a minute, an entire node was formed. Elder Solon was stunned into silence, his mouth open wide.

Lena gasped, covering her mouth. Rhys ignored them as he continued drawing.

Time passed, and within five minutes, a complete and complex formation diagram was formed on the paper. He patted his palms and raised his head to stare at the two of them, not forgetting to curl his lips.

’If I showed them I could draw an unranked formation in a minute, what would their expressions be?’ he wondered.

He could draw simple formations within a minute, but this one was far more complex and innovative than any he had ever seen.

Unlike alchemy, formations were unique depending on the one who drew them. If one was innovative enough, they could even make an unranked formation better than high-ranked ones.

This was what Elder Solon had done.

This formation was a simple gravity formation. It was not rare. In the province, Body Cultivators used it commonly to train their bodies.

But Elder Solon had added something of his own into it. He had made the gravity shift in time intervals and pass a small amount of electric current which was not lethal but would warm their muscles.

In this way, one could continue training for longer.

Rhys was sure that if this formation were to be sold in the province, it would earn him a high fortune.

His gaze landed on the thick scrolls placed upon the table.

’If a simple gravity formation has such capability, what would the others be like?’

He could not wait to explore. This was one of the reasons he had shown his talent so highly.

Rhys wanted to impress the Elder and, if possible, become his disciple. In that way, he could inherit every formation Elder Solon had made and innovated.