Immortality Through Array Formations

“Formation Barrier?”

Mr. Zhuang also appeared slightly astonished.

Mo Hua recalled the Spirit Screen in her mind and detailed:

“The pale blue Spiritual Power was like Spiritual Ink, the intertwining patterns were like Formation Patterns, weaving into a Spirit Screen that resembled an entire Formation. However, the Spiritual Power was flowing, the Formation Patterns changing with it, resulting in different Formations on the Spirit Screen.”

“Interesting.”

Mr. Zhuang’s eyes lit up, and then he took out paper and pen, spreading them out on the table in front of him.

“Do you still remember those Formation Patterns? Draw a few for me to see.”

“I remember some of the Formation Patterns, but they keep changing…” Mo Hua said truthfully.

“That’s alright,” Mr. Zhuang said, “Just draw them as they appeared to you.”

Mo Hua picked up the pen and dipped it in ink, the pen tip dancing on the paper, and soon several Formation Patterns leaped onto the Formation Paper.

Mr. Zhuang glanced at them, “They look like ordinary Formation Patterns, nothing special.”

Mo Hua asked, “The seniors who practiced this Cultivation Technique before, did they not encounter this situation?”

Mr. Zhuang pondered for a moment and said, “No, at least I haven’t heard of it.”

Mr. Zhuang added, “Even for the same Cultivation Technique, different Cultivators may encounter different problems when they practice it, especially with such a rare ancient technique. There are few inheritances, and even fewer people who practice it. Once a problem arises, it’s hard to find any good precedents to refer to.”

Mr. Zhuang mused, “The Cultivation Technique does indicate that the bottleneck lies in Divine Sense. Previous Cultivators must have encountered issues at the level of Divine Sense too, but their problems must have been different from yours; otherwise, it would have been mentioned in the Jade Slip. It’s about the inheritance of a Sect’s internal techniques—seniors within the Sect wouldn’t keep secrets and fail to report them.”

Mo Hua frowned and asked, “Then, Gentleman, what should I do? It seems that I can’t cultivate now.”

Mr. Zhuang gave a carefree smile, “As long as it’s about Formations, it’s hardly an issue,” he then instructed, “Go back and write down all the Formation Patterns and Formations that appear on the Spirit Screen, and show them to me tomorrow.”

“Alright, Gentleman!”

Mo Hua breathed a sigh of relief, then thought about what Mr. Zhuang had just said.

If it’s about Formations, it’s hardly an issue?

Just how profound was Mr. Zhuang’s mastery in Formations?

Could he already be a Third Grade Formation Master…

What kind of Formations could a Third Grade Formation Master draw?

Mo Hua felt somewhat longing but then thought:

“Forget it, let’s not aim too high for now; even becoming a First Grade Formation Master is still a distant goal…”

Mo Hua collected her thoughts, remembered Mr. Zhuang’s instruction, and after returning home, immersed her Divine Sense into the Sea of Consciousness to observe the Formation Patterns and Formations on the Spirit Screen.

She recognized quite a few of the Formation Patterns on the Spirit Screen, but most of the Formations were unfamiliar, and some rarely encountered patterns were impossible to remember after just one look. She had no choice but to practice on the Stele while watching, and after mastering and memorizing them, she would exit her Sea of Consciousness and record the Formation Patterns on Formation Paper.

She continued like this until 1 p.m., suddenly feeling dizzy, knowing she had overused her Divine Sense, and decided to rest awhile.

As soon as she relaxed her mind, Mo Hua felt her stomach growling with hunger, then realized she had been so engrossed in recording Formation Patterns that she had missed dinner.

“My parents must be asleep by now.”

Mo Hua was somewhat worried, “I don’t even know if there’s anything to eat at home.”

She stood up and was about to open the door when she found a small table next to it, with several bowls and plates on it, a large bowl turned upside down on top.

Mo Hua lifted it to find a small pot of white porridge, a plate of mixed vegetables, two steamed buns, and a small dish of soy beef.

The vegetables and beef were cold, the buns were warm, but the porridge was still hot.

“It must have been my mother, worried that I hadn’t eaten and not wishing to disturb my Formation study, who specifically placed it by the door. And she must have reheated it before going to bed; otherwise, the porridge would have been cold by now.”

Mo Hua felt happy, took a sip of porridge, and felt her whole body warm up.

She then devoured the rest of the food like a whirlwind, sweeping away her fatigue, and felt refreshed and spirited.

Mo Hua re-entered her Sea of Consciousness and continued to copy the Formation Patterns from the Spirit Screen, then transcribed the remembered patterns onto Formation Paper one by one.

She kept at it until 2 a.m., and when her Divine Sense was depleted a second time, she carefully stored the transcribed Formation Papers and went to sleep soundly.

On the second day, Mr. Zhuang looked at the Formation Paper transcribed by Mo Hua, his gaze slightly focused as he said:

“It turns out to be a Mystery Formation.”

“Mystery Formation?”

Mo Hua had never heard of it before.

Mr. Zhuang patiently explained, “You know riddles at lantern festivals, right?”

Mo Hua nodded.

“This Mystery Formation is like those lantern riddles, only it uses Formation Patterns as the key and the Formation itself as the puzzle to create the Mystery Formation. If you don’t have the right method, naturally you can’t see through the truth within,” Mr. Zhuang explained.

“Oh,” Mo Hua nodded.

“These used to be something that long-standing Sects and Noble Clans would use for their disciples as an intellectual pastime, but it’s not so common anymore.”

Thinking of those intricate and complex Formation Patterns that gave him a headache just by looking at them, Mo Hua’s expression also grew complicated.

This is for intellectual entertainment?

“So if I can’t solve it, does that mean I’m pretty dumb?” Mo Hua asked delicately.

Mr. Zhuang saw through Mo Hua’s thoughts and said with a half-smile, “Not necessarily, yours is slightly more difficult, and not everyone can solve it.”

Mo Hua felt that Mr. Zhuang was comforting him, though not quite hitting the spot.

Not everyone can solve it, which probably means quite a few people can, and not many like him who cannot.

And he was one who could not…

Since it is meant for intellectual pastime, he must solve it—this matter of face was something he needed to fight for!

Mo Hua couldn’t help but ask, “How do you solve this Mystery Formation then?”

Mr. Zhuang habitually tapped his bamboo chair with his finger, “Your situation is different from others; if they can’t solve it, they just feel a bit downhearted. But this Mystery Formation is tied to your cultivation, and if you can’t solve it, your Cultivation will stagnate, which would be quite troublesome.”

“As for the methods, there are two: one is you learn to solve it yourself, the other is you memorize all the Formation Patterns, transcribe them, and then I’ll help you solve it.”

“The second method is the fastest and most straightforward; after all, Cultivation is the foundation of a Cultivator. Without Cultivation, everything else is empty talk, not to mention becoming a Formation Master. The first method requires you to learn it yourself, which is beneficial for learning Formation, but it’s time-consuming and will delay your Cultivation. The choice is yours now,” Mr. Zhuang finished, watching Mo Hua with an interested expression.

Mo Hua felt a bit torn.

For a Cultivator, the consequences of stagnated Cultivation were too severe. His own Cultivation level was naturally inferior to the Bai siblings and other nobility’s children, but among his peers in Tongxian City who were Loose Cultivators, he was barely considered a standout—albeit the best among the weakest.

If he wasted too much time due to a bottleneck in his Cultivation Technique, he feared he’d fall even further behind.

After thinking it over, Mo Hua decided, “Gentleman, I choose the first option.”

It was best to solve a problem by oneself if possible.

Falling behind in Cultivation was acceptable; he was already lagging in terms of Spiritual Root and Cultivation Technique compared to others, and it would only get worse. It made no difference whether he fell behind sooner or later.

One should not covet fleeting superiority.

Furthermore, if he relied on Mr. Zhuang to solve the bottleneck of the initial phase of Qi Refinement, what would he do during the Middle Phase and even the later phases of Qi Refinement?

Mr. Zhuang could not always be by his side, and he was just a nominal disciple of Mr. Zhuang—he couldn’t trouble him with everything.

Another reason was that the concept of “intellectual pastime” deeply rankled Mo Hua.

“Oh? Are you sure of your decision?” Mr. Zhuang asked, his tone carrying profound meaning.

Mo Hua nodded, “The disciple has made up his mind.”

Mr. Zhuang nodded in approval, “I have some books and Jade Slips here that outline the basics of Mystery Formations. Take them and have a look. Once you have finished, come to find me, and I will teach you how to solve Formations.”

Mo Hua accepted them with gravity, saying, “Disciple takes his leave.”

Watching Mo Hua leave, Mr. Zhuang’s leisurely demeanor faded, his expression turning slightly grave.