Chapter 336: The First Lesson

Chapter 336: The First Lesson

Piro’s final words cast a mantle of profound shock over everyone present.

To command a divine servant to seal a god!

Indeed, with this single utterance, the concept of "perspective" was broken entirely wide open.

The one who had delivered this revelation was their mentor for the day, Piro; though he had not declared his official rank, none dared question his standing, and that "intimate yet estranged" friend of his must surely possess an equally exalted status.

The exact same words, when spoken from different heights of authority, leave entirely different impressions upon the soul.

Yet here, Karen’s astonishment differed from those around him; a faint intuition whispered within him that this friend of Mentor Piro might very well be Mr. Hoffen.

Or rather, Grandfather Hoffen.

In the formation notes he had left behind, Mr. Hoffen had divided the mastery of arrays into five distinct realms: basic elementary, practical intermediate, integrative advanced, and perspective supreme.

The final realm had been left blank, which Karen interpreted as Mr. Hoffen’s way of expressing that the path of formations was boundless.

Karen had only just mastered the basic elementary level and was currently studying practical intermediate application.

But this did not mean he had left the subsequent sections gathering dust; it wasn't as though he had to master one level before running to the old man for the next, for the notebooks were entirely in his keeping, and how could he possibly resist the temptation of a spoiler?

The opening introduction to the supreme realm began precisely with this line: The essence of an array is perspective.

When it came to sudden realizations, one could not rule out the possibility of others arriving at identical views and theories, but in terms of practical execution, Mr. Hoffen had already succeeded.

On this matter, the dog at home held the ultimate right to speak.

A divine servant of the Church of Principle had truly and honestly sealed an evil god.

Furthermore, the materials and assistance utilized had been remarkably scarce.

The raw material was merely an ordinary golden retriever.

The assistants consisted of a spiritual-type aberrant who could just barely manage a draw against an ordinary Inquisitor, and one actual Inquisitor.

This realization brought a truly wondrous sensation.

That old man, who during their very first meeting had tumbled in a clumsy tussle and nearly been sent straight to the afterlife, had once possessed such a glorious past.

After being "awakened," the notes he had penned for Karen in his remaining days required a massive suitcase just to contain them... they were a genuine, priceless treasure.

However, from this, one could also discern the advantage of a person's choices; Alfred had earnestly studied and researched Mr. Hoffen’s notes from the very beginning, even earlier than Karen himself, and with absolute obsession.

He truly was a man possessing the Eye of the Succubus; his foresight was impeccable.

Piro raised his arm and said, "Of course, the 'perspective' I speak of is not necessarily an absolute truth. The heritage of formation systems stretches back into antiquity, yet it is often accompanied by the upheavals of divine churches and the changing of eras, repeating a ceaseless cycle of being lost, recovered, studied, and then lost, recovered, and studied once more.

But for your sakes, I hope you can commit this answer to memory, because I believe it to be correct, and my friend believed it to be correct as well.

Absolute eternity never existed in this world to begin with, and we only need to accept the correctness of this present span of time."

As he spoke,

a spark materialized at Piro's fingertips.

In an instant,

the massive ice pillar beneath everyone's feet began to glow a fiery red, and the sea below surged violently, as though a subterranean volcano were on the verge of eruption.

During this commotion, Karen caught sight of what appeared to be an entirely black structure resting deep beneath the distant ocean floor.

Noticing Karen’s gaze, Piro smiled and said, "That is the place you will need for your upcoming lessons, but it is not the theme of our class today. Come, I shall take you for a further stroll."

The ice pillar collapsed, sparks showering in all directions, yet they brought no scorching heat to the crowd; as they drew near, they seemed to transform into a sky filled with dancing red butterflies, weaving a dreamlike, illusory atmosphere.

Right at that moment, Mase, Digat, and Pasio suddenly began to retreat, shouting warnings to their teammates simultaneously:

"Fallback, quickly!"

Karen was also prepared to step back, but a sudden sense of discord struck him.

This feeling of discord stemmed from a familiarity buried within his mind:

In *Mr. Hoffen’s Formation Notes*, right after introducing "perspective" as the prologue to that volume, a counterexample was immediately cited, primarily meant to strike down any blindly optimistic or overly confident mindset.

Mr. Hoffen wrote: Perspective is a state of standing upon the balcony of a castle you have painstakingly built, gazing out at the surrounding scenery; it is not lying upon muddy ground beneath a violent storm, crying out that you have seen it all.

Therefore, Karen did not move.

Because he sensed that this Instructor Piro wished to infuse the students with passion, only to immediately douse them with a bucket of ice water to cool them down.

Since Karen did not move, Ventura, who had been standing right behind him, remained completely still as well; he had always simply mirrored whatever Karen did.

Seeing that Ventura remained stationary, Aisly and Bart, who had already begun to retreat, also halted their movements.

Within their team, Mase and Blanche were still backing away, while Muri’s entire team was in full retreat.

They knew this mentor loved to play tricks, and they trusted the judgment of their team's formation master.

Following this, a fissure cracked open beneath Karen's feet, extending rapidly until it spread beneath Ventura, Bart, and Aisly as well.

Mase yelled, "Captain, fall back! The displacement coordinates lead to the cliff!"

Karen still did not budge.

Finally, the seawater, the surging waves, the ice pillars, the flames, and the butterflies all dissolved into nothingness, and the group found themselves standing upon the hillside corresponding to the other side of the hotel.

Karen and his immediate companions were standing on solid ground, while directly behind Bart and Aisly lay a sheer precipice.

"Ah!!!"

A crowd of people tumbled straight down; some dissolved into black mist, some clung desperately to the cliff face, and others drew out scrolls or sacred tools from their sides.

"Hey, hey!"

At that moment, a familiar wave of sound struck once more, forcing those who had turned into black mist back into solid form, causing the rocks gripped by those on the cliff to crumble away, and severing the connection of those holding scrolls and sacred tools from the items in their hands.

*Splash! Splash! Splash! Splash! ...*

One after another, a total of eight people plummeted directly into the water.

Falling into water from such a height would be incredibly painful if one failed to adjust their posture correctly.

Karen glanced back, thinking to himself: This mentor is teaching strictly according to the syllabus of *Mr. Hoffen’s Formation Notes*!

Of course, it could also be interpreted that Mr. Hoffen had arrived at this more familiar conclusion only after exchanging ideas with him, which was why this exact sequence appeared when he set pen to paper.

Piro walked over to Karen; he was not particularly tall, so he had to tilt his head slightly to look at him.

"Did you see through it?"

Karen shook his head and replied, "I guessed."

"Guessed?" Piro pressed further, "How did you guess?"

"I guessed that after telling us of the boundlessness of perspective, you would then teach us the reality beneath our feet."

"You are very clever." Piro pulled out a small pouch and handed it to Karen.

Karen reached out to accept it, and then watched as Piro produced a tobacco pipe.

This pipe looked incredibly familiar to Karen, because it was practically identical to the one Old Saman used to smoke.

In terms of style and shape, pipes were generally similar, but for the intricate details of the engraving to match so perfectly was an impossibility, especially since Old Saman’s pipe had not been bought from a shop; it was a spatial sacred tool he had crafted with his own hands.

"Well, beautiful, isn't it?"

Pilo raised his pipe, holding it before Karen.

Karen felt a sudden jolt of surprise; he had been veiling his emotions flawlessly, yet the mentor before him had still sensed something.

Faced with an existence of this caliber, one truly could not afford even a single moment of relaxation.

"Exquisite."

Karen replied as he tore open the small pouch, pinching a bit of tobacco between his fingers and placing it into the pipe.

This was precisely what the mentor had intended—to have his student lend him a hand.

Pilo smiled and said, "Of course, a friend gave it to me."

"That close yet stranger friend of yours again?" Karen asked, deliberately offering an incorrect guess.

"No, another one. I used to have quite a few friends, but our numbers have dwindled over the years, and we don't visit much anymore. Ah, did you bring a lighter?"

Karen pulled a lighter from his pocket; though he had already quit smoking, he kept a pack of cigarettes and a lighter in his pocket out of habit.

"Snap!"

Ignited.

Pilo took a drag, pointed at Karen, and said, "You have one too, smoking is permitted in my classroom."

"I don't smoke."

"You don't smoke, yet you carry them?"

"I used to work at a funeral parlor, it became a habit."

"Oh, very well." Pilo exhaled a ring of smoke. "Next time you had better bring matches, do you know why?"

"Because a cigarette lit with a lighter lacks a sense of ritual; it misses that tiny spark of soul."

In his past life, he hadn't liked using windproof lighters either.

Pilo's eyes lit up, and he let out a chuckle: "Heheh."

Then, Pilo walked to the edge of the cliff, looked down, and raised the burning pipe once more, saying, "A teacher should always offer some reward to students who solve a problem correctly. How about this: whoever can guess what attribute of sacred artifact this pipe belongs to, I will give them a reward."

Bart spoke up, "It is a healing-type sacred artifact."

He felt that the "tobacco leaf" was a special kind of healing item, treating the body through the transformation of the pipe.

Aisly spoke up, "It is a spiritual-type sacred artifact."

She felt that the smoke rings possessed a hallucinogenic effect.

Ventura spoke up, "It is... it is a defensive-type sacred artifact."

Generally, defensive-type sacred artifacts were the sort of things one could carry close to the body without arousing suspicion.

No one guessed it was a spatial sacred artifact, because it was difficult for a normal person to imagine how a tiny pipe could have anything to do with a spatial sacred artifact.

When ordinary people summoned weapons or other items at close range, they would use single-use consumable scrolls to act as a summoning formation; they rarely used physical objects, as there was no need for it.

Pilo looked toward Karen, clearly waiting for Karen's answer.

Karen answered with utter confidence, "It is an amplification-type sacred artifact, capable of amplifying and enhancing the effects of spells."

"Correct!"

"..." Karen.

Pilo took a coin from his pocket and tossed it to Karen.

"A little trinket, it can bestow a period of purification, a single-use consumable, use it rationally."

"Thank you, Teacher."

Aisly, Bart, and Ventura looked at Karen with admiration; as expected of their captain, his vision was unerringly precise.

Karen could only smile bitterly in his heart; he had clearly chosen an incorrect answer on purpose, it was just that this mentor wanted to reward him and only happened to have a single silver coin on hand.

"Ah me~"

Pilo stretched his back, then cleared his throat and said to Karen, "You said just now that you had deduced my teaching method?"

"Your student would not dare say so."

"In my classroom, freedom is valued; speak freely, it is fine. Then let me ask you again, what exactly did I mean by the addition and subtraction I mentioned earlier?"

Karen assumed a contemplative posture, weaving a well-reasoned but incorrect answer in his mind.

Pilo blew out another ring of smoke and said, "If you answer incorrectly, I shall throw you down. Where there are rewards, there must be punishments, right?"

Karen hesitated for a moment longer before finally speaking, "Addition is the initial primitive accumulation, absolutely indispensable, because only when its accumulation is sufficient can it trigger a qualitative change. Subtraction is not a shearing away based upon addition, nor is it choosing to retreat while climbing a mountain or walking a path; rather, it is advancing with light baggage in a completely new way, representing a sublimation in the level of understanding."

Beside him, though Ventura and the others could not comprehend exactly what their captain was saying, they felt that whatever it was sounded incredibly profound.

Pilo pursed his lips.

Karen's face remained calm.

When all was said and done, he was still unwilling to be tossed into the sea for a soaking.

"What is your name?"

"Karen. Karen Silva."

"From which grand district?"

"York City Grand District."

"Who is your teacher?"

"I have no specific teacher, but I often read and study on my own."

"Your main focus is formations?"

"No."

"What is your main focus?"

This... was a bit too much to list.

"I belong to the Whip of Order."

"The Whip of Order? That makes things a bit troublesome." Pilo muttered to himself, for he was clearly aware of the upper echelon's upcoming reform plans for this batch and the hundred-or-so young people from various grand districts participating in the final selection.

"How much do you know about formations?"

"I have just passed the basics."

Pilo turned around, looked at Karen, and smiled, saying, "Do not let your formation studies slide over these next two years. In two years' time, bring this coin... tsk, forget it, use the coin as you need to. In two years, come directly to the Dingge Grand District to find me, and I will test your formation proficiency then."

"Yes, Teacher."

By now, those who had fallen into the sea had climbed back up one after another.

Pilo began to deliver a speech that doused these "drenched chickens" with cold water.

Once this round of speaking concluded, Pilo clapped his hands once more, and everyone appeared inside a pitch-black cavern, a foul, reeking stench drifting continuously from all around.

"Hey, hey!"

Inside the cavern, lights flared instantly, and demonic beasts lay prostrate before everyone. They were of various shapes and forms, yet all kept their eyes closed as if fast asleep, though threads of silk were tied across their bodies.

The fundamental application of arrays requires differentiation based on the varying circumstances of different subjects, but I did not bring you here tonight to tell you which array to use against which type of demonic beast, rather, I brought you here to stand from the perspective of the beast itself and see what kind of array has imprisoned it.

The Gates of Reincarnation have existed since the previous epoch, and through these long ages, perhaps even the Church of Reincarnation itself remains unaware of exactly how many arrays they have deployed inside and outside those gates.

Come, you have three hours ahead of you to inspect this on your own, and once you return to the hotel, the corresponding illustrated guides for each demonic beast will be delivered to your rooms for you to cross-reference at your leisure.

Begin!

Yes, Teacher.

Yes, Teacher.

In the hours that followed, everyone divided into their squads and began observing and analyzing the demonic beasts one by one.

However, owing to his prior mishap of falling into the water, Mas appeared somewhat lacking in confidence and began incessantly soliciting Karen’s advice, relying entirely upon Karen’s experience; left with no choice, Karen could only comfort him, urging him to boldly voice his own opinions.

In the eyes of the other team members, this was the captain displaying his broad-mindedness and approachability, as well as offering encouragement and trust to his subordinates.

When one is fully immersed, three hours slip away in the blink of an eye.

Piro, who had been leaning against a corner puffing on his pipe all this while, tapped the pipe in his hand, stood up, and said, "Time is just about up, fall in."

The crowd returned and stood before him in an orderly fashion.

"You are all exceptionally talented young people, and it would not be an exaggeration to call you the future hope of our Church of Order, which is why I truly wish to teach you a bit more, but unfortunately... I am lazy."

Piro exhaled a long sigh, then continued:

"There is still a little time left, let me take you to see the scenery once more."

With that, and a wave of Piro's arm, everyone materialized once again upon the hillside, with the hotel situated just below them on the opposite side.

"I used to be very curious, what was the purpose of those people in the ancient, distant past when they pursued arrays?

At first, I believed it to be utilitarian.

Now, I still believe it to be utilitarian.

There seems to be no change in between, yet an indelible change has occurred nonetheless.

For instance,

I created a few arrays myself, not for any practical utility, but simply to amuse my little grandson, hoping to trick him into eating half a piece of bread more and two pieces less of the cavity-inducing candy."

Piro shook his divine robes, closed his eyes, and beneath his feet, a rainbow manifested, extending all the way into the heavens.

He beckoned with his hand, signaling for everyone to follow.

The crowd stepped onto the rainbow one by one, and when Karen set foot upon it, he perceived that beneath him lay a blend of several arrays; though they were all elementary arrays, they achieved a subtle and exquisite equilibrium.

Immediately after, dark clouds gathered around them, yet these clouds brought no thunder or oppression, instead transforming into the shapes of small animals that began to run and play, even proactively approaching the rainbow bridge to interact with them.

The melody of music drifted into their ears, the sound turning into the most natural and pure existence at this moment, lingering around everyone.

Piro halted his steps and opened his arms wide.

Before him was the canopy of the sky.

Streaks of shooting stars glided across the canopy, mysterious and brilliant in the night sky.

"Please remember the beauty of this scene.

Hey, look out!"

Everyone was enveloped by a vortex of air, their bodies jolting accordingly, and by the time the vortex vanished, they found themselves back inside the conference hall.

"Phew..."

Karen let out a long breath.

Muri, sitting in the same row as Karen, turned sideways at this moment and said, "A very interesting class."

"Yes."

"It would have been better if we hadn't fallen into the water."

"Not good."

"Hmm?"

"Because I didn't fall into the water."

"Hahaha, you really are something..."

"Where on earth did you all go!!!!!"

At that moment, a middle-aged man dressed in a red-bordered divine robe of Order rushed in frantically, followed by a crowd of hotel security personnel.

Muri stood up and replied, "We were just in class."

"In class?" The middle-aged man looked as though he had seen a ghost, "Who gave you a class?"

"The teacher."

The middle-aged man pointed at his own face and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"I am your teacher for tonight's class!"