Xiao Zhan walked swiftly toward the training ground; his body tensed in anger. As soon as he arrived, he stood still motionlessly for one whole minute to stabilize his blood pressure. Taking a deep breath, he shifted his focus on the magical circle beneath his feet.
Stop being so emotional. It's only going to make things harder than it already is. Let's just focus on this thing! Okay, inner peace... Inner peace...
With another deep inhalation, he raked his genius brain on any add-ons compositions that he wanted to input inside the huge array formation that he designed specifically for the formal discussion. Not long after, he began putting inscriptions after inscriptions, reshuffling some parts to enhance the efficiency and improving the stability. He put in enough concentration to completely forget his current surroundings. Just like that, his mind focused solely on the task at hand and his hands flew across the ground, writing in a flurry of strokes and symbols. As Xiao Zhan drew, he could feel himself beginning to relax. A complex pattern slowly formed around the array, making it look more like a maze than an array with its many different paths.
It was just like coding a computer program, which he had mastered during his university years. Technically in programming, an array is an object that can store multiple values at once without having to manually choose a particular set of characters. In brief, a simple linear container that the creator could put anything inside. What he currently creating was simply a literal manifestation of multidimensional array based on computer science. The foundation of the multidimensional array concept was simple, several polymathic arrays inside an array. For Xiao Zhan, they were usually simple enough to create and he just need to apply his existing knowledge onto building one and translated it into a real life gigantic magical circle, with spiritual energy as the main source. The runes and spells were just like ciphers that he could easily manipulate and implement. With that said, he could swiftly access each element on every array that he stored inside the body of the outer array. He could add or remove any elements in detail to inner, middle or outer array at any time as he wishes. Using the same principle of syntax for looping to repeat a block of cryptograph, he saved plenty of time, energy and space, which meant he could slot more key aspects without any wastage. That was how he managed to complete multilayered array system for those barriers in such a short time frame. In addition, he was the only person who could understand what he just coded since he was the only person who would a computer programming language in the world of cultivation. In other words, it was not possible for his inventions to be corrupted or hacked by any means, regardless of how strong the enemy was. After all, no one could hack what they could not understand.
Two hours later, it was finished. He took a few steps back to get a better view of what he created. This was the final check that he really needed to take to make sure that every part was correct and in sync. He stood there staring for nearly five minutes to make sure all components were still within the parameters of their functions, that he did not missing anything important, and that everything was interconnected accordingly. The inner array which was the core that housed the main energy source seemed stable, and the amplifiers were all set up in accordance to magnify the power current, the transformer arrays were aligned to be able to receive and direct the spiritual energies flows towards their desired channels and lastly, the converter were set to prevent any overloading of the circuit nodes.The result was a six-multidimensional array; practically a hexeract in the simplest term with alternate and direct current pathways. A complete, unified force, capable of doing what it is intended to do; defensive barrier with passive secondary offensive mechanism powered by spiritual energy as the main source. All the energy from the two parallel planes of existence was being siphoned into the matrix, and all of the energy that escaped into space would be absorbed back by the energy of the entire plane of existence.
"I deserved a PhD in building magical formation." Xiao Zhan chuckled to himself as he stared at his work proudly. All that was left now was to test the power levels of the array to verify the functionality. He stepped back into the center of the array and kneeled, putting his palm flat onto the core of the formation. With determination written all over his expression, he closed his eyes and focused on the connection between himself and the array. his lips moved soundlessly with the spell chant. He visualized his spiritual energy like it was blood flowing through his whole body. He imagined it as a powerful, solid force coursing through his body. He concentrated his mind and his body, willing his soul and spiritual energies to merge. Slowly but surely, a wave of energy emanated throughout his body. The ripple reached its conclusion when it passed through Xiao Zhan's palms and spread throughout his limbs and then traveled downward, rippling across the array. The array hummed and pulsed with energy. The matrix vibrated slightly with power and lighted up starting from the core, spreading outward like a geyser. The matrix grew rapidly in size and color, the colors becoming more and more brilliant as it continued to grow. Eventually it reached its peak and began to glow brightly. The colors shifted in time with the matrix, some parts turning blue while others turned green or red. The colors were constantly changing but remained consistent throughout the entirety of the spell chant. After a few more seconds, the entire array lighted up in an almost blinding display of color.
Lan Wangji was not far away from where Xiao Zhan was. He was just respecting the rule of social distancing because he was well, being Lan Wangji. His heart felt compelled to jump out of his chest as he watched the force field engulf the entire valley. He was so entranced by the magnitude of the power contained within the circle that he was frightened that Xiao Zhan had used up his entire supply of spiritual energy, but he could see that it was not the case this time. The amount of power coming from a fully energized Xiao Zhan was terrifying to behold. In that moment, he realized that Xiao Zhan was truly capable of more than he ever expected. He always knew that the person he loved was indeed strong, but it was the first time Lan Wangji realized just how powerful Xiao Zhan was. His mind drifted to think about the kick he was promised, should he decided to carry on with his plan. He probably should re-evaluate that decision because if his lover's ability was this great, the kick would definitely hurt. Really hurt. He shook his head in order to push those thoughts aside. Right now, was not the time nor place for such distractions. At this point, what he needed to do was to keep a close eye on Xiao Zhan and see what his next course of action may be and step in when necessary. Xiao Zhan would always have his back, no matter what. He would be damned before letting any harm come upon his precious treasure. As long as Xiao Zhan was within his sight, everything would turn out fine. Even if his lover was currently angry with him, he would still protect him.
A deafening roar erupted from within the array as it expanded rapidly. As it grew larger, it caused the sound waves to spread throughout the entire cloud recesses. A loud rumble echoed throughout the area, shaking everyone to their cores. Everyone in Cloud Recesses was stunned before they searched for the source the noise. Looking up, they saw a colossal white glow appear on top of Cloud Recesses, covering all sides of it. The vast force field was like a huge impenetrable iridescent bubble that encapsulated the whole mountain itself. It glowed brightly, creating a brilliant aura of holographic rays and energy particles which swirled around the structure of it.
Intuitively, everyone knew where exactly those rays originated from and they soon found themselves hastening towards the training ground. All eyes converged on one man in the center of the formation, who was in deep concentration on channeling the energy within his body towards the epicenter of the circle. Lan Wangji stood by his side quietly, looking worried. The sheer amount of energy emanating from the array was so overpowering and overwhelming. The sight made everyone feel like their souls were being sucked into an endless abyss, unable to escape from this intense gravitational pull.
Xiao Zhan remained oblivious to the gathering crowds as he maintained his entire focus on keeping a firm grip on his control over the immense energy. If he wasn't careful, he could accidentally blow up the mountain and everyone into smithereens. The enchanted robe was more effective than he anticipated, increasing the power of his spell by several times higher than his original calculation. His emotions also affected his spiritual energy output. He probably needed to recalibrate the prototype to compensate for the increased intensity of the flow. At this critical point of time, he really needed to get the input of power back under his control and slow down the flow of energy. As if it was on cue, he could hear the melody of his and Lan Wangji's song in his mind. The song resonated deeply inside Xiao Zhan's chest and vibrated his very soul. A sense of calmness and serenity washed over Xiao Zhan. With this calming state, he finally allowed the power from his body to subside slowly, allowing the array to switch off. The barrier around the area dissipated and disappeared into thin air after the array was fully offline.
Just when he finished deactivating the circular formation, a tap on his shoulder startled him which caused Xiao Zhan jumped away from the sudden touch. His sword flew first to hover on mid-air behind him, threatening to attack whoever that was and forcing the person to step back. He yelled brashly and turned around to glare at the person, "Did no one teach you not to disturb someone when they are handling a delicate work?! Lucky for you, I already turned it off! If not, I already blew all of us to pi-"
The second his gaze laid upon his unexpected visitor, Xiao Zhan stopped his abruptly. A man that he never saw before, cladded in snowy white of Gusu Lan attire was smiling down at him. Still wary, he asked crudely as he grabbed Suibian and lowered it to his side, "Who are you?"
Xiao Zhan finally noticed that the training field was full of spectators, and they were making noises as if they were extremely shocked.
Lan Wangji rushed to stand in front of him and bowed hastily, "Forgive him, Father. He is not aware of your identity."
"Father?" Xiao Zhan repeated in confusion, before realization hit him a second later.
Qingheng-Jun, Lan Wangji's father. The novel did not mention much about this man so, his knowledge was limited. That made him an unpredictable variable to Xiao Zhan.