Bai Mu continued with the links. Once again, he tried to group them to make sure that they would fit into the shapes of the array with as few variations as possible. Unfortunately, there was still about a dozen of them when he had managed to connect all lines. He furrowed his brows and stared at the drawing.
One dozen … That was way too much. If it was supposed to be stable, then half of that would be necessary. If he also wanted to have this work for a long time, then even less would be better. Three or maybe four combinations should be the most. And three would be much better for this kind of array. Would this really work? Right now, he saw no way to do so.
He took a deep breath and once again drew the basic shape. If he couldn't reduce the number of clusters he needed, then maybe simplifying them would help. Even though it wouldn't make the every more durable in regard to time, it would, at the very least, make it less susceptible to attacks.
Bai Mu continued to try, creating one cluster after the other, trying to simplify and cut down as much as he could but he only managed to reduce their number by one and simplify two. Looking at what he had managed to achieve, he could only give a sigh. This wasn't enough. It wasn't even close. This would never be able to sustain a gate leading from the human realm to another dimension. Not for a long time, not with the amount of spiritual energy that this place would likely have.
He leaned back and stared into air. What should he do now? He wouldn't be able to find his mother to ask for advice. Then what? Ask his father? After all, he should have been there when his mother created the array. He should know about it too. Maybe he would have some input that could help?
Bai Mu shook his head at himself. Obviously, this array was supposed to be used so that that man couldn't be found. Telling his father about this wouldn't be a good idea. No, he had to somehow figure this out by himself. Unfortunately, it was obvious that he wouldn't be able to do this anytime soon.
Bai Mu turned to Nie Huang, examining the face that he hadn't seen in such a long time. "Ah Huang, if I said that I need to leave for a while, would you be able to accept that?"
Nie Huang smiled. Could she really say no if he asked like this? "It must be very important."
Bai Mu sighed. "I am … I'm afraid I'm not good enough at this. I'll need more time to figure this out. It's just that … time moves differently here and in the mortal realm. I might need weeks or maybe months to figure this out. If I took this much time here in the dragon realm, that thousands of years would've gone by in the mortal realm when I'm finished. I'm afraid the person that needs this cannot wait that long."
Nie Huang nodded. "Then … you'll go to the mortal realm again? Nothing would happen to you, would it?"
Bai Mu reached over and grabbed her hand. "Well, it's not that I can promise anything but I do have an idea. It's just that …" He looked at her and sighed. He definitely didn't want to leave her alone. They had only just found each other again. How could he just go? But this was the only way to figure this out soon. That or he needed to find his mother somehow. It was obvious which of the two was more likely.
"Is there no way for me to come with you?"
Bai Mu shook his head. "You need to take the pill and acquire spirit veins. Afterward, you'll need to cultivate as fast as you can. I guess with the kind of pill that these people are able to make, your spirit veins should be heavenly spirit veins. So your progress in cultivation should also be high. And with the spiritual energy around here … You won't need long. When you've managed to reach the third stage, then there won't be any problems anymore. You could follow me to the mortal realm if you wanted. But for now, you'll need to stay here."
Nie Huang nodded. "Then when will you leave?"
Bai Mu sighed. Most likely, it would be good if he could leave immediately. He didn't want to leave her alone here though. They had just arrived and other than Xiang Yong, they didn't know anyone here. With Nie Huang being a mortal, he didn't feel that it was a good idea to leave her alone.
No, he should at least wait until they had the pill. Then, he could show her how to cultivate and leave afterward. That should be for the best, shouldn't it? Now, the only question was how long would it take until they got the pill? After all, the time in the mortal realm wouldn't wait for them. As they were sitting here, years would pass over there, making the situation even worse.
Seeing her fiance's expression, Nie Huang reached over and patted his arm. "Don't worry about me. You can go and take care of this. I'll wait here. Don't you have the stone now?" She pulled out the small transmission stone that Qiang Yan had given them and smiled. "If something happens, I can reach you and your father. You can also reach me if something happens. So there really is no need to worry.
"Just go and do what you must. I always knew what kind of man I fell in love with. There are things that I might not understand and cannot help you with, I might also drag you down because I'm merely a mortal. I knew all that from the very beginning. So … you don't have to take me into consideration.
"If the situation calls for it, you'll have to go. I will stay here and wait. I'm sure your father will soon bring the pill over. I'll concentrate all my energy on that. And when you come back, then maybe I'll already have reached that stage that you spoke of. Then we can stay together forever. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Bai Mu nodded and leaned over, kissing her temple. "You're right. I'm sorry though. This shouldn't have happened. I'll contact my father before I go. He can answer all your questions if there's something you don't know how to do. Don't hesitate to ask him."
Nie Huang nodded and got up when Bai Mu made to stand. "Don't worry about that. I feel that father-in-law and I are getting along very well.
Bai Mu nodded and hugged her for the last time, taking in her scent before he turned around and left. He'd have to hurry even in the mortal realm. Because even though one year there might only be a day here, he didn't want to leave her for too many days.