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Chapter 404: The Lingyin Sect
Chapter 404: The Lingyin Sect
During the journey that followed, Mo Hua would occasionally poke his little head out the window, taking in the sights of the world.
He searched for traces of formations among the mountains, within immortal cities, and among the ruins of ancient temples.
Whenever he found something intriguing, he would release his spiritual sense to perceive and meticulously calculate.
If he managed to deduce the trajectory of spiritual energy within a formation, he would stop the carriage and personally investigate the area.
He would inquire with local cultivators, visit formation masters, or venture to secluded mountaintops to examine ancient steles standing erect...
This journey of intermittent stops and starts lasted for two months.
Mo Hua did indeed discover some special formations, and even came across two absolute formations.
However, one of them was incomplete, and the other had only ten patterns, which were simple in design and encompassed basic Daoist principles.
Even without the aid of the Daoist stele, it only took Mo Hua a few days to master it.
After that, there were no more traces of absolute formations.
He couldn't find any first-rate eleven-pattern formations, let alone the more complex twelve-pattern ones.
Mo Hua sighed.
The Daoist stele in his sea of consciousness was still "on strike," and hadn't recovered yet, causing him to miss out on practicing formations numerous times each day.
He could only rely on drawing the Earth-thickening Formation to enhance his understanding and temper his spiritual sense.
However, his spiritual sense had already reached twelve patterns.
The eleven-pattern Earth-thickening Formation was easy for him now, and it no longer provided much of a challenge to hone his spiritual sense.
In recent days, his spiritual sense had been improving at an extremely slow pace.
He was still far from achieving a thirteen-pattern spiritual sense.
In contrast, his cultivation progress had been much faster.
It was highly likely that by the time he reached the peak of the ninth layer of Qi Refining, his spiritual sense would still be stuck at twelve patterns, unable to reach thirteen, let alone the mid-Foundation Establishment level of spiritual sense.
To achieve Foundation Establishment with a twelve-pattern spiritual sense...
Mo Hua sighed again. This was far below his expectations.
It seemed he would have to come up with another plan.
After some thought, Mo Hua went to find Mr. Zhuang and asked, "Master, are twelve-pattern formations truly that rare?"
Mr. Zhuang took a sip of his tea and replied casually, "Any absolute formation is exceedingly rare. Whether you come across one depends on both fate and your ability to recognize them."
"If fate is not on your side, you won't encounter them. And if your discernment isn't sufficient, even if you do stumble upon one, you won't be able to identify it."
"The fact that you were able to find the Earth-thickening Formation already indicates that your fate is quite profound. You can't expect to find an absolute formation everywhere you go."
"Seeking formations requires both time and patience."
Mo Hua nodded, but then furrowed his brows and sighed, "But if things continue like this, by the time I reach Foundation Establishment, my spiritual sense will only be at twelve patterns..."
Mr. Zhuang gently tapped Mo Hua's forehead and smiled, "Just say what's on your mind. Don't play these little tricks with your old master."
Mo Hua chuckled, "I've heard of a twelve-pattern formation."
Mr. Zhuang nodded slightly, "Tell me about it."
"Master, do you remember Instructor Yan?" Mo Hua asked.
Mr. Zhuang's eyes flickered, "The Lingshu Array?"
Mo Hua was startled, "Master, you know about this too?"
Mr. Zhuang looked at Mo Hua's shocked expression, his eyes crinkling with a smile, "I have a passing connection with Instructor Yan, and it's precisely because of this formation."
Mo Hua pondered for a moment, slowly understanding.
Mr. Zhuang was profound and mysterious, choosing to live in seclusion within the mountains, obscuring his tracks. Ordinary cultivators would have no chance of meeting him.
Among the cultivators in Tongxian City, aside from himself, no one had ever seen Mr. Zhuang.
Even Mo Hua's parents, Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua, only knew Mr. Zhuang's name, but had never met him and didn't know what he looked like.
Instructor Yan was different.
Mo Hua had always believed that Instructor Yan was exceptional when it came to formations, but that was mostly due to his gratitude since Instructor Yan had been his teacher at the Tongxian Sect and had guided him in formations.
In reality, Instructor Yan was merely a Qi Refining cultivator and not even a first-rate formation master.
Such a level of proficiency in formations was already considered profound in a small immortal city like Tongxian City.
However, in Mr. Zhuang's eyes, it was probably not worth mentioning.
Solely based on formation standards, Instructor Yan might not have been able to become acquainted with Mr. Zhuang.
Back then, it would have been even more unlikely for him to recommend Mo Hua to become Mr. Zhuang's named disciple.
Now, it seemed that Mr. Zhuang knew about the causal inheritance of an absolute formation on Instructor Yan, which was why he viewed him differently.
That was probably also the reason why Mo Hua had the opportunity to become Mr. Zhuang's disciple.
Mo Hua asked curiously, "Master, is the Lingshu Array very powerful?"
Mr. Zhuang nodded, "Absolute formations all have unique effects, embodying spiritual power rules that are extraordinary and close to the Dao."
"The Reverse Spirit Formation is about destruction, the Earth-thickening Formation is about creation, and the Lingshu Array also follows this principle."
"The Reverse Spirit Formation represents annihilation, the Earth-thickening Formation represents life, and the essence of the Lingshu Array lies in the word 'pivot'."
"The Lingshu Array is the pivotal point of spiritual power, involving the fundamental structure of spiritual power..."
Mr. Zhuang was about to say more when he suddenly stopped.
Mo Hua muttered to himself, "Here he goes again with his cryptic hints..."
As soon as he finished that thought, he looked up to find Mr. Zhuang looking at him with a half-smile, as if he had heard his inner complaint.
Mo Hua smiled sheepishly.
"Busted," he thought. "He knows I was grumbling about him again."
Mr. Zhuang shook his head fondly, his gaze filled with affection, and said nothing more.
Mo Hua asked, "Master, what's the origin of the Lingshu Array? And what about Instructor Yan's sect? What's their lineage?"
Mr. Zhuang pondered for a moment before slowly replying, "Instructor Yan's sect is called the Lingyin Sect."
"The Lingyin Sect's roots lie in a formation sect that declined a thousand years ago—the Great Lingyin Sect."
"A thousand years ago, the Great Lingyin Sect met its end, and its disciples scattered, with its lineage branching out across the land."
"Not wanting their sect's name to be forgotten, yet daring not to claim the title of 'Great Lingyin,' they changed a single character and became known as the 'Small Lingyin Sect.'"
Mr. Zhuang looked at Mo Hua and added, "Aside from the Small Lingyin Sect, other sects that seem dilapidated but have the words 'Lingyin' in their names, such as Small Lingyin Mountain, Lingyin Gate, or Lingyin Valley, may also be related to the Great Lingyin Sect."
"If you happen upon them, it wouldn't hurt to pay them a visit, forge connections, and see if there are any remnants of their legacy."
Mo Hua nodded, committing the words 'Lingyin' to memory.
Mr. Zhuang sighed softly and continued, "The reason I wanted to meet Instructor Yan was to see the Lingyin Sect's Lingshu Array."
"Unfortunately, the Small Lingyin Sect was destroyed, and the formation was stolen and lost."
"Even though I didn't get to see the formation diagram, Instructor Yan is a man of upright character. He doesn't hold back when teaching and imparting his knowledge, and he truly embodies the spirit of the formation masters of the Great Lingyin Sect."
"I admired that about him, which is why I allowed him to visit me when he needed help..."
As Mr. Zhuang finished speaking, he looked at Mo Hua, whose eyes were clear and focused. Mr. Zhuang couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder.
"Who would have thought that when he came to visit me again, he would bring me such a talented and clever disciple..."
Mo Hua was unaware of his master's thoughts and simply furrowed his brows in thought before asking, "What happened to the Small Lingyin Sect that it was destroyed?"
Mr. Zhuang replied, "Now that you know about the Lingshu Array, you should also have heard about the destruction of the Small Lingyin Sect."
Mo Hua nodded. "Yes. I heard there was a traitor who killed his master and destroyed his sect, stealing the formation diagram."
Mo Hua felt a surge of anger. Instructor Yan was a good man, dedicated and diligent in his teaching. Surely, his master must have been a respectable formation master and teacher as well.
For such a person to be killed by a treacherous disciple was unconscionable. And for that disciple to steal the sect's prized formation, causing the sect to fall apart, was unforgivable.
Mr. Zhuang sighed. "Human nature is greedy and often forsakes morality. There are many cultivators in this world who are like this..."
"Don't assume that just because the people of Tongxian City are kind and helpful, all cultivators are the same."
"Among cultivators, there are both good and evil, and there are those who waver between good and evil depending on their interests."
"The path of cultivation is treacherous, and the human heart is fickle and unpredictable."
"You must be cautious not only of evil people but also of those who turn evil in the face of temptation..."
Mr. Zhuang patiently imparted these life lessons.
Mo Hua listened intently, nodding along. "I understand, Master. I will treat those who treat me well with kindness, and those who treat me poorly will get the same from me."
Hearing his somewhat childish words, Mr. Zhuang couldn't help but smile. He asked, "What if the one who treats you well is an evil person, and the one who treats you poorly is a good person?"
"As long as I don't do anything wrong, those who treat me poorly are naturally evil, and those who treat me well are naturally good," Mo Hua replied with a crisp voice.
Mr. Zhuang nodded in agreement. "That's indeed the logic."
Mo Hua smiled as well.
Mr. Zhuang continued, "Since you brought up this matter, have you discovered any new clues?"
Mo Hua nodded. "Before I left, I went to see Mo Guanshi..."
"He's also from the Small Lingyin Sect and was Instructor Yan's junior."
"He told me that Instructor Yan went to the Nan Yue City in the Xiao Huang State to look for the traitor from his sect."
"And that traitor should have the Lingyin Sect's secret legacy—a first-rate twelve-pattern Lingshu Array!"
(End of Chapter)
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