Please read the author note at end.
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Lin Mu felt a bit curious about the tear in the barrier as he peered at the void that was behind it. He realized that he could faintly sense something moving around the tear. He had not felt this before and could only sense it for the first time now.
What Lin Mu was sensing was different from using the spirit sense, as whatever it was near the tear, it was too far away for his spirit sense to reach.
'Huh? How am I able to sense that…? Is it because my cultivation recently increased?' Lin Mu thought to himself.
"Why don't you try to focus on it more, see what happens?" Xukong suggested in an encouraging tone.
Lin Mu closed his eyes and tried to focus on whatever that was moving around the tear. He realized that he was feeling it through a different kind of a sense. A sense he had for a while, but it was not as strong. He had been using this sense for a while now, unconsciously.
"The thing moving around the tear, its… spatial attribute qi!" Lin Mu uttered upon realization.
"Of course, Jing Wei said that the tear was caused by the spatial attribute qi that was accidentally released because he lost control. So it's still around the tear and that's what's stopping it from repairing fast enough," Lin Mu concluded.
"You are correct, that's exactly what's happening. The spatial qi that escaped from the material that Jing Wei previously used is trying to escape the confines of the barrier but is being restricted by it. The more it leaks out into the lesser void, the faster the barrier heals." Xukong explained.
Lin Mu's brows furrowed as he felt some counterproductive points in Senior Xukong's words.
"But Senior, if the barrier restricting the spatial qi is what's preventing it from repairing, doesn't that mean it is actually a flaw?" Lin Mu asked.
"Absolutely correct!" Xukong said in a pleased tone.
'Seems like his talent in formations is indeed good and his spatial sense is also improving. Hmm, let's see if he can do that…' Xukong thought.
Lin Mu was still thinking about the flaw as he walked forward and then suddenly stopped. An idea had just appeared in his mind.
"Senior, if the spatial qi is removed somehow, won't the formation repair faster?" Lin Mu questioned.
"Maybe it will… Why, do you want to try something?" Xukong replied with a slight chuckle as Lin Mu asked what he had thought of before he could even do it.
"I feel like since I can sense it, perhaps with the help of the ring I can make it leave the barrier faster, or perhaps something else like… absorbing it?" Lin Mu said in a slightly unsure tone.
"Well, go ahead then. Try it, find our for yourself." Xukong encouraged.
"Hmm," Lin Mu hummed in response before closing his eyes and focusing on the spatial qi swilling around the barrier.
It took him a little while to fully get a measure of how much spatial qi there actually was, but after five minutes Lin Mu got it. Lin Mu then extended his right hand and pointed it towards the tear.
At first, nothing happened, but a minute later the air in the courtyard started swirling, turning into the wind. The invisible spatial qi that was near the tear started to move from its position. A part of it moved out from the tear into the lesser void outside, while the remaining part instead descended.
The part that descended started clumping together and soon formed into a translucent cloud. This cloud moved towards Lin Mu's hand and then turned into a stream, entering the mysterious ring on Lin Mu's middle finger. A few seconds later, all the spatial qi was absorbed and the tear in the barrier started repairing at a rapid pace.
Thirty seconds later it was completely gone, and the barrier was repaired to its original state.
~Phew~
Lin Mu opened his eyes and let out a breath of relief. While the entire process looked relatively easy, it was not. The process had been taking on Lin Mu's mind and he felt fatigued now.
"Excellent! That was flawlessly done." Xukong praised in an elated tone.
Xukong had not expected that Lin Mu would actually be able to do it this well. Originally he had thought it may take him a few tries to do it, but he had done it in a single try. And not only that, but he was also able to absorb a small part of that spatial qi into the ring.
That final thing in itself was a complex thing that would trouble a lot of experienced cultivators that specialized in using the spatial qi techniques or had cultivation techniques that focused on that aspect.
"Thank you, senior." Lin Mu replied before peering into the ring.
There he saw the translucent cloud of the spatial qi floating in a corner. Unlike the silvery grey streaks of spatial energy that floated in the sky, Lin Mu realized that this cloud was fully in his control. He could move it wherever he liked and could even change its shape.
"Umm Senior… what do I do with it?" Lin Mu asked, feeling confused.
While he had obtained this cloud of spatial qi, he had no use for it. He had not planned to really get something like this, thus was confused.
"Well, there are many uses for it, of course, that I want you to find them out yourself. But, I can still give you one use, which is rather obvious. Try using that spatial qi to power the skills that you obtained from the ring." Xukong answered.
Lin Mu tilted his head as he thought over the other possible uses, but then decided to try the one that senior Xukong had suggested him.
Lin Mu decided to use it with the first skill 'Flicker' as it was the easiest one to use and took the least amount of qi. He controlled the cloud of spatial qi and broke out a small part of it before using that to activate the skill 'Flicker'.