Chen Zhou's aura seemed to be locked onto by an arrow; as long as he moved to the left, the arrow would follow him.

Chen Zhou swayed from side to side, but eventually found that he couldn't even move. He felt as if he were under a thousand pounds of pressure, a kind of imperial majesty from the emperor.

Is this... the power of the royal family...?

Chen Zhou, holding Jiang Ying, barely managed to maintain his standing posture under this oppressive force; Chen Zhou could be crushed by the pressure at any moment.

"What right does a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator have to act so arrogantly in front of us?"

As Huang Gong spoke, the arrow he controlled was already at Chen Zhou's throat.

It could pierce Chen Zhou's throat at any moment.

"Lay down or die," the Emperor said, effortlessly manipulating the golden arrow.

Chen Zhou had no power to resist.

But he did not let go of Jiang Ying.

Jiang Ying simply clung tightly to Chen Zhou, trying to shake his body and using all her strength to shake her head.

"If you want to kill her, then step over my dead body." Chen Zhou faced the threat of death for the first time, his clear eyes remaining completely calm.

I have already lived once, so dying like this is enough to make me die without regrets.

I hope I'll have a healthy body in my next life and won't die suddenly from reading novels.

I hope that in the next life, I can still meet the person I would risk my life to protect.

Chen Zhou slowly closed his eyes.

The moment Chen Zhou closed his eyes, he seemed to see dazzling stars.

At this moment, the sky in Chen Zhou's eyes was very magical, as if it contained all the stars in Chen Zhou's eyes.

In that instant, Chen Zhou grasped the true meaning of the pupil technique.

His pupil technique seemed to have evolved; when Chen Zhou opened his eyes, his pupils were filled with stars.

Everything around them became illusory, and the golden arrow that was meant to take lives vanished into nothingness.

Jiang Ying, whom he was holding, gradually vanished into nothingness, along with the bloodstains on Chen Zhou's hands and body.

The three cultivators from the Southern Kingdom and the King of the Southern Kingdom also disappeared without a trace.

All that remained around Chen Zhou were clumps of messy bushes and grass.

"What...what exactly is going on?"

Chen Zhou watched helplessly as everything vanished, so unreal, it almost cost him his life.

"Boy, you're still too young. It's true that times make heroes. If you hadn't grasped one of the true essences of the Eye Technique just now when you were on the verge of death, you would have really died in this Path of Heart Observation. That was the second difficulty of the Path of Heart Observation, the illusion."

At this moment, Ren Lao reappeared in Chen Zhou's mental world.

Did I misunderstand Master Ren just now?

Chen Zhou felt very sorry for his impulsive behavior, especially since he had just been harsh with Elder Ren.

"Old Ren..."

"Stop talking, you brat. Once your pupil technique reaches a higher level, you'd better open your eyes properly. Being unable to distinguish right from wrong like this will only lead to trouble."

Ren Lao interrupted Chen Zhou.

If this emotional outpouring continues, the old man, who is already quite old, will start to cry.

Just now, Elder Ren couldn't help but want to make a move. That scene was truly touching. Just as he was about to strike, he didn't expect that this kid had grasped the first level of the true essence of the pupil technique.

The true power of pupil techniques lies in comprehending their essence. Chen Zhou's previous pupil techniques were merely rudimentary skills. Only those who have grasped the true essence can be considered to have truly mastered pupil techniques.

As for the ninefold truths that follow, that depends on Chen Zhou's fate.

In all his years of life, the strongest array master he had ever seen was only at the seventh level of the true essence of the pupil technique.

Chen Zhou has a long road ahead of him.

"Does this Path of Heart Observation have other variations?" Chen Zhou pondered whether to rest or continue on his way.

"The Great Path of Insight has three stages, and this is only the second one."

Is there a third level?

Chen Zhou was already feeling quite exhausted; there was still a third hurdle to overcome.

It seems the only option is to rest and wait until dawn before setting off.

"I'll rest and study the Crimson Dragon Formation Diagram first, and then set off at dawn."

Chen Zhou spoke to Elder Ren, then sat cross-legged and carefully studied the small Crimson Dragon Array diagram in his mind.

With the help of the first level of the true essence of the pupil technique, Chen Zhou quickly saw the key to the small array and was soon able to set up the key to the Crimson Dragon Small Array on the ground.

Having set up the array's core, Chen Zhou then used his true energy to outline the entire formation. His palms were sweaty, and he was naturally very nervous.

I've failed countless times already.

So what if we fail this time?

With this thought in mind, Chen Zhou immediately felt much more relaxed.

Use your inner energy to slowly trace the array diagram that appears in your mind.

Soon, a formation was set up using true energy, and Chen Zhou had a thought.

Crimson Dragon Formation (small formation), activate!

Clusters of magma-like flames emerged from the center of the small array. Immediately afterward, Chen Zhou could clearly sense the fireballs within the array, and he could control these fireballs at will, as well as manipulate their size.

Chen Zhou underestimated the power of this Crimson Dragon Formation.

As long as your small confinement array can trap the enemy for a while, then using the Crimson Dragon Array will definitely have an unexpected effect.

"Kid, you see. You have to stay calm when you do things; rushing won't work," Elder Ren said, summarizing after watching Chen Zhou complete his training.

Through this process of learning the Crimson Dragon Formation, Chen Zhou truly grasped the importance of calmness.

Just as Chen Zhou was about to rest a little longer before setting off, a different system notification sounded in his mind.

"Ding! Host has unlocked the second formation of the Wind and Cloud Dragon Roar Divine Formation Diagram, the Dragon Imprisonment Formation."

As the system notification sound appeared, all the information about the "Dragon Imprisonment Formation" flashed through Chen Zhou's mind.

This is practically an evolved version of the small confinement array, or even an enhanced version of the confinement array Chen Zhou encountered last time.

The Dragon-Trapping Formation possesses the power to trap dragons. It can imprison anyone within five levels of its own strength for three minutes, and anyone weaker than itself for ten minutes!

Isn't this exactly what I need?

The Dragon Imprisonment Formation, plus the smaller Crimson Dragon Formation.

This could now be used as Chen Zhou's trump card.

Chen Zhou's eyes were once again filled with stars, and his pupil technique was activated silently.

He is about to master the Dragon Imprisonment Formation!

He never wants to encounter that situation again in his life.

It feels like I lack ability.

This truly made Chen Zhou feel suffocated and helpless.

Chen Zhou hated this feeling.

Now that we have a second chance to live, we shouldn't live like this, helplessly.

He wanted to protect the people he wanted to protect.