Chapter 1735. Meeting Her First Opponent.

Guan Luan guided Angel to the second innermost area. The central area was reserved for the strongest families and formation masters, so Angel couldn’t enter without getting a permit by proving her ability.

Guan Luan gave Angel a card. “Here, this is a card that can register your formation ability based on your competition results. It’s not ideal, but it is the best method we came up with. It calculates your win rate, your opponent’s strength, and opponents you've won and lost against previously to give you a rank, more or less. It is quite accurate.”

Angel blinked and looked at Guan Luan. “Then, if senior Guan defeats me, won’t I have quite a bad win rate?”

Guan Luan smirked. “You don’t have to worry. Because my level is so high, even if you lose, it will be a bonus. The more you can struggle against me, the better your result. Actually, facing me right from the bat will help you skip several ranks and place quite high, even if you lose. Take it as goodwill from a senior!”

Angel looked at her and smiled gently. “Lady Guan Luan.”

Guan Luan felt a change in the atmosphere and her tone, so she looked down, puzzled. Angel spoke softly. “I have been holding back from revealing the truth to see if you had evil intent. However, I can see that your nature is good deep down. So, I’ll tell you. My formation mastery is enough to easily compete with Lord Zhuo Lianyu.”

Guan Luan looked at Angel, speechless. Angel waved the jade-and-gold card. “Since this card takes into account everything you’ve said, losing to me would hurt Lady Guan a lot. I am, after all, someone who just registered with this card.” Angel smiled faintly, her tone mature and gentle. “That’s not something I want to do out of amusement. At least not to Lady Guan, who had explained so much to me.”

Zhuo Shuyun approached before Guan Luan could speak and gently patted her shoulder. “Luan, believe her. My grandpa calls her Master Angel. Take her goodwill now and be grateful. Also, since Madam Angel seems to like you, you can accompany us. Take this as a fortuitous encounter you won by being honest and sincere.” Shuyun chuckled and smiled at her. “Well, that’s your usual self, so it is something you deserved.”

Meanwhile, Guan Luan looked back and forth, weighing whether they were messing with her or telling the truth. “Um… Are you telling me this young girl is that much of a prodigy?”

Guan Luan could tell that Angel’s bone age was not over 1,000. It wasn’t fuzzy or hidden. That was Angel’s true bone age. If a technique concealed her bone age, she would notice a small oddity in her vital aura. Nothing like that appeared in Angel’s body.

Old Man Zhuo stepped forward. “Girl, since Master Angel has taken a liking to you, I’ll overlook all the rudeness you’ve committed. For now, just step back and let me explain the rest.”

Guan Luan was arrogant, but she was very respectful toward those whose skill was above hers. She quickly took a step back. “Master Zhuo! I will do so. However, Master Zhuo, I do have a question. Is what Shuyun just said really true?”

Old Man Zhuo nodded. “It is. Observe her first formation battle, and you’ll understand.”

Angel looked at Zhuo Lianyu and asked with a faint smile. “So, is there someone who is considered annoying or evil? There must be someone who always aims to challenge the weak to win and make the card mark them as a higher-ranked individual than they are. This card favors that type of personality.”

Shuyun and Guan Luan looked at Angel and quickly caught her intention. Guan Luan silently thanked herself for being honest. ‘If I had been arrogant and wanted to crush her as a newbie just to get at Shuyun, I would’ve probably regretted it for a long, long time.’

She promised not to underestimate juniors ever again, just in case.

Meanwhile, Zhuo Shuyun burst into laughter. “That’s a great idea. Grandpa, let that annoying woman from the [Thousand Desire Pavilion] face her. Madam Angel is precisely the type of person she can’t stand and will try to crush. If she loses to a [Pure Card] like Madam Angel’s, it will set her back for at least a few centuries.”

Old Man Zhuo rubbed his beard and nodded. “Alright then. That woman’s antics were getting on my nerves as well. Let’s teach her a lesson this time around.”

***

Mei Lingxue sat in one of the luxurious rooms in the central pagodas when she saw a demon running her way. She was a snake-human beast, looking at a formation book. Her body was slender, but her bunned hair, wide hips, and long legs made her overall beauty seem seductive.

Moreover, because she practiced a Dual Cultivation technique, her sensual aura was even more pronounced.

“Lady Mei, we’ve found a new genius who has come to try to get her rank. She has connections to the Zhuo family, from what we’ve seen. It seems that she wants someone at the Deep Insight rank to start her formation career. If you talk her up, she might become easy prey.”

The card ranks were quite arbitrary, set by the one who placed the formation. [Deep Insight] was considered the third-highest rank among the more than 20 ranks. Above it, there were [Supreme Formation Master] and [Formation Lord].

Shuyun and Guan Luan were both Supreme Formation Masters, while Old Man Zhuo Lianyu was one of the world's only 99 Formation Lords. The number wasn't arbitrary; it was the limit the card set for those who could be called Formation Lords.

So, staying in that position for a long time established you as a recognized formation master worldwide. Above all, each rank had nine divisions. Division One was the best among those within the rank. So, each Formation Lord division had 11 individuals.

Lianyu was in the fourth division, not because he couldn’t aim for higher, but because he had stopped caring as much about his position. Truthfully, only those at the Ninth, Eighth, and Seventh divisions of the Formation Lord rank could be considered “correctly” positioned.

Of course, the only exception was the Division One of the Formation Lord rank. Those there were the actual monsters hidden among the people. Even Lianyu had to act respectfully toward them.

This ranking was similar for all the Professional Plazas.

Speaking of ranks, Mei Lingxue was a Division Nine Supreme Formation Master, hanging by a thread. So she asked cautiously. “Are you sure she will accept? Over that, is it not a trap of something? Those from the Zhuo family have been wanting me to fall from the Supreme Formation Master rank for a while.”

The Demon smiled. “We are confident. She is a disciple Zhuo Shuyun had taken, and we’ve overheard her say that her talent is exceptional. From her assessment, she can become a Division Eight or Nine of the Deep Insight Rank with effort.”

“That’s well within my capabilities.”

As a “false” Supreme Formation Master, she couldn't maintain her position without proper skill. It was just that, since she targeted low-level geniuses and crushed their spirits to keep her rank, people deeply disliked her.

Mei Lingxue moved with her usual group, and they arrived at the place a few moments later. ‘Hm? Formation Lord Zhuo is here?’

He didn’t usually come to the Formation Plaza. Those at the very top usually spent their days studying formations or discussing them among themselves. It was another thing if they were challenged, but otherwise, seeing them was difficult.

Mei Lingxue quickly spotted Angel and raised her eyebrow. ‘Cute… Well, mostly.’

Like it or not, missing that specific part of our cute Baby was almost impossible.

A few people were around Angel, all of them people Mei Lingxue knew. They had gone against her before and lost. She stepped forward and first bowed to Zhuo Lianyu. “Lord, it is nice to see you.”

Old Man Zhuo nodded at her and didn’t say anything else. Mei Lingxue didn’t mind and approached Angel. “I heard you want someone to practice? I don’t mind being the one. I am the highest ranked among those here, right?”

Angel looked over and tilted her head. “Hello, Miss. I am Angel Dravory. Nice to meet you. Who might this senior be?”

“I am Mei Lingxue. A Supreme Formation Master. Even if you lose, having your first match against me is a good deal, isn’t it? You will start, at the very worst, one or two ranks below Deep Insight. It depends on how you do.”

Zhuo Shuyun stepped forward. “Mei Lingxue, are you really going to do this? She is someone I hold in quite high regard. You know that what you said only stands true if Angel can even show some sort of struggle against you. I know how you play.”

Mei Lingxue snorted. “Are you that unconfident in her? So much for a disciple of the famous genius from the Zhuo family.”

Angel looked at Shuyun and spoke with a cute posture while clenching her fists. “Let me do it! I promise I won’t do bad. Miss Mei is the highest ranked, so she is the best option.”

Mei Lingxue smiled coldly to herself. ‘Once I crush her, I will have another win. I might even be out of risk for a while.’

Shuyun showed a worried look and sighed. “Up to you. No one can stop another’s path when they are so dead-set.”

Shaking her head as if Angel was a lost cause, she turned around and stepped outside. Mei Lingxue glanced at Angel and spoke. “Let’s do a quick competition style. It’s your first formation battle, right? That’s the best style you can choose.”

It was, in fact, the worst. Because building formations fast was prone to cause mistakes, speed formation battles were fought between veterans. They were the ones who moved almost by instinct, so speed formation was a quick way.

A slow, measured competition would help bring out a newbie’s potential much more, as they’d have more time to respond.

The rules were simple.

First step. Both sides built a defensive formation in the agreed-upon time.

When that time passed, both sides would create attack formations to try and break through the opponent’s defenses. Both sides had access to the same materials, and the only difference was the formation masters' techniques.

The attack phase also lasted a set amount of time, and after that, both sides would move to reinforce their defensive formations. The battle shifted back and forth between phases, and new materials were supplied when a defensive building phase began.

These materials didn’t appear out of nowhere. All families shared the burden, and the Pagodas, which also served as a market, were the main providers. If you had a backer, you wouldn’t have any issues. If you didn’t, then you’d have to pay for the materials.

For formation masters, money was usually not a problem, unless you were in the lower ranks. If you were there… the best advice from those at the top was “good luck.”