According to the first few pages, arrays used to be everywhere before the demon surge. Spirit jades were common tools, and cultivators used arrays not just for battle, but also for things like laundry, dishwashing, and hair care routines. Some could even heat bathwater. And even regular people could use them if someone charged the spirit jade with spiritual energy first. But after the demons appeared, most of the great cultivators and masters who specialized in arrays had... well, gotten eaten. Or exploded, or vanished mysteriously into tragic footnotes. And so, arrays were quietly forgotten.
Linyue picked up another book from the crooked stack, this one titled "Arrays for Dummies." A title so straightforward even He Yuying couldn't mess it up.
She plopped down right there on the floor, legs folded, back straight. Completely ignoring the very elegant, perfectly polished reading tables just a few steps away. The book creaked ominously as she opened it, and she braced herself for nonsense. Maybe more doodles, or bizarre tips about laundry arrays. But to her surprise… the content wasn't ridiculous at all. It was actually very well written. The pages were filled with clear, concise sentences and neat diagrams that even a beginner could follow. It explained that an array needed a physical object as the core or anchor of its formation like talismans, swords, spirit jades, blood, or even corpses.
Linyue blinked at that part. "…Well, that escalated quickly."
Apparently, arrays also required a power source, usually spiritual energy. Without it, even the fanciest blood-smeared sword wouldn't glow or do anything remotely exciting. Which meant, technically, the spirit transmission jades they had been using were also arrays.
That was kind of neat. She made a mental note to tell Song Meiyu, and fully expected the girl to yell "I knew it!" even if she didn't.
As she read on, the book mentioned that once a cultivator grew skilled enough, they could skip using physical objects altogether. Instead, they could visualize the array in their mind and draw it directly in the air with spiritual energy. That part sounded especially cool. Linyue's eyes sparkled a little. No one had ever told her this. Then a question popped into her mind.
What about the colorful array that protected the inner wall? What was it made of? What was its function? No one knew the answer.
She frowned, biting her lower lip thoughtfully. If corpses could be used as core, could living people hold an array?
She tilted her head, curious. Then she reached for another book. She was officially invested now. And maybe slightly dangerous.
This one was thick and full of complicated symbols. Diagrams of arrays filled every page, from simple circles and triangles to chaotic spiderwebs of symbols. Just looking at it made her head hurt.
She squinted. She flipped the page. Her head hurt more. It was definitely more complicated than she thought. There were protection arrays, attack arrays, tracking arrays, alarm arrays, and something called "Trap Arrays: A Fun Way to Ruin Someone's Week."
She paused on that one. "…Hmm." A mischievous smile started tugging at her lips.
No, this had nothing to do with curing diseases. Not directly. But still, she was very interested now.
She didn't know how much time had passed. Maybe an hour. Maybe three. Or maybe the sun had set and risen again and someone should really come water her. She was too deep in. The more she read about arrays, the more fascinating they became. She had already stacked six books beside her, half-read and marked with random strings and symbols that might've meant "activate" or "explode," she wasn't sure. She found one scroll that claimed arrays could be used to dry laundry in the rain (useful), and another that suspiciously promised to "summon your lost chickens" (suspicious but possibly life-changing). She bookmarked that one just in case.
Part of her wanted to try a basic array right here, right now. Maybe the "pocket flame array," which only needed three strokes. But she remembered Shen Zhenyu's words: don't burn, break, or steal anything.
Linyue sighed, fingers twitching. She was being so responsible, so well-behaved. Truly a model princess. Regretfully, she closed the scroll before she could set something gently on fire.
Just then, quiet footsteps approached.
Shen Zhenyu stopped beside her, tilting his head. He looked mildly surprised to find her sitting cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by a small fortress of books and scrolls.
"Linyue," he said softly, "what are you reading?"
She looked up at him, her eyes bright and sparkling. "I'm reading about arrays," she said. "It's actually very interesting." She patted one of the books beside her.
Shen Zhenyu raised an eyebrow and glanced down at the titles. One read: "How to Trap Your Enemies Without Getting Sued." Another was upside down.
"Well," he said calmly, "we don't have a lot of knowledge about arrays anymore. Most people have already forgotten."
"I can see why," Linyue agreed with a thoughtful nod. "Half of these look like scams. The other half make me want to start a fire."
Shen Zhenyu's expression shifted to mildly alarm.
"I didn't," she added quickly. "Because I promised."
He let out a tiny sigh of relief.
"But the day is still young," she said, flipping to the next page.
Shen Zhenyu stood beside her with slightly-tired expression. "Do you know how long we've stayed here?"
Linyue looked up from her book, tilting her head thoughtfully. "An hour? Three? A day? A week? I didn't really notice."
"Almost a day and a half," he said.
"Oh." She nodded, as if that were completely normal and not even remotely concerning. "What about the others?"
"Meiyu was reading a romance book with dramatic gasps every ten minutes," he said. "And Yuying fell asleep in the corner of one of the shelves with a scroll over his face. I think he drooled on it."
Linyue chuckled. "So, all are safe. Nothing exploded." She paused, then added with a sly smile, "Yet."
Shen Zhenyu gave her a long look. "Please don't."
"I'm just saying yet, not now," Linyue said reasonably.
He sighed, but to her surprise, there was a quiet chuckle buried in it. "I'll get the others. Please don't summon lightning while I'm gone."
Linyue gave him a casual thumbs-up with one hand, still holding her array book in the other. "Got it. No lightning. Maybe wind."
He didn't even argue. He just turned around and walked away like he had long accepted his fate, three chaotic siblings and all.
After a while, Shen Zhenyu returned with He Yuying and Song Meiyu trailing behind him. Song Meiyu's eyes were still completely glued to the book in her hand, her mouth slightly open as she read. Meanwhile, He Yuying was ahead of her, yawning so wide. He dragged his feet like he had just woken from a century-long nap which, knowing him, wasn't impossible.
Linyue was just about to smile and declare, "We made it. A full day and a half without anyone burning the library down," when the universe, as always, choose violence.
It started innocently enough.
Song Meiyu, completely absorbed in her book (probably a tragic tale of forbidden love between a fox spirit and a brooding warrior), didn't notice the shelf to her right. She walked straight into it with a loud thunk, yelped, stepped on her own foot, and toppled forward like a falling tree right onto He Yuying. The book she had been reading flew into the air in a graceful arc.
In a moment of pure chaos, Song Meiyu's hand reached out, aiming to grab something or anything to stop her fall. Unfortunately, what her hand grabbed was not the shelf nor He Yuying's arm, but… the belt of his pants.
"What are you doing?!" He Yuying shrieked as his pants slid halfway down his legs, his voice cracking.
"Saving myself!" Song Meiyu wailed back, still clinging to his belt.
"You're ruining me!" He Yuying hissed, hopping frantically on one foot while clutching at his dignity for dear life.
In his desperate dance, he didn't notice the massive shelf looming treacherously close behind him. His back slammed into it with a loud thud. The shelf wobbled. It creaked. And then very slowly, it began to tip over.
Shen Zhenyu saw the disaster unfolding. He closed his eyes and exhaled deeply.
Crash.