Chapter 526: Confidentiality
Chapter 526: Confidentiality
It was clear that the sect, which prided itself on its array formation expertise, lacked a strong culture of academic pursuit among its disciples.
These disciples of the Five Elements Sect spent their days neglecting their studies and indulging in gossip instead.
No wonder the art of array formation was declining in the Five Elements Sect...
However, Mo Hua found it peculiar that while these female disciples praised him and his junior martial brother, their gazes, as clear as autumn water, were fixed on his junior martial sister.
Mo Hua turned his head to glance at his junior martial sister.
Bai Zixi, dressed in male attire with her hair tied back, exuded a valiant and crisp aura. Her eyes sparkled, her long eyelashes enhancing her frosty beauty.
Yet, she didn't try to disguise herself as a man completely.
Despite the masculine clothes, one could tell at first glance that she was a young woman.
"But why are all the female cultivators of the Five Elements Sect staring at my junior martial sister?"
He recalled that the female cultivators at the Hundred Flowers Tower on Jinhua Street in Nanyue City had displayed similar behavior.
Mo Hua furrowed his brows, perplexed.
Initially, he thought it might be his imagination.
But over the next few days, as he secretly observed, he confirmed that it was indeed the case.
These female cultivators dared to look openly at his junior martial brother, but when their gazes turned to his junior martial sister, their faces flushed and their eyes shone with a soft light.
When his junior martial brother looked their way, they smiled charmingly and coyly.
However, when his junior martial sister looked at them, they quickly averted their eyes, fiddling with their hair and lowering their heads in shyness.
Later on, some female cultivators even sent invitations, flowers, pastries, jade hairpins, or paintings and calligraphy to his junior martial sister in secret.
Now, Mo Hua was truly bewildered.
Was it because he was too young and naive, or was it due to his limited life experiences and lack of exposure?
What could these female cultivators be thinking?
Mo Hua couldn't wrap his head around it and finally decided to ask his junior martial sister.
"Senior martial sister..."
As they sat alone in the pavilion, with Bai Zixi staring absentmindedly at the fish in the pond, Mo Hua spoke softly.
Bai Zixi turned her head to look at Mo Hua, her voice gentle and mild as she asked, "What is it?"
Mo Hua hesitated, "Why do those female cultivators only send gifts to you?"
Bai Zixi was taken aback, her expression turning complex.
"Is it inconvenient to talk about?" Mo Hua asked in a low voice.
After a moment of silence, as if she had made up her mind, Bai Zixi's eyes brightened slightly, and she slowly said, "I've never told anyone about this before..."
Mo Hua was about to say that if it was inconvenient, they didn't have to discuss it.
But Bai Zixi continued, "It's because of my bloodline..."
Mo Hua was stunned, "Bloodline?"
"Yes." Bai Zixi nodded slightly, "My bloodline... it's a bit special..."
Special?
In a way that made her more appealing to other women?
What use could such a bloodline have? Mo Hua was confused.
"As for the specifics, I really can't tell you..."
The corners of Bai Zixi's mouth curved up, holding a faint smile as she said softly, "My mother instructed me not to tell anyone about my bloodline, so..."
Bai Zixi glanced at Mo Hua, "You must keep this a secret for me."
Mo Hua nodded repeatedly, "Junior martial sister, rest assured, I'd rather die than reveal it!"
For a moment, Bai Zixi's eyes shone like the sun in spring, captivating and alluring.
Mo Hua's heart skipped a beat.
At the same time, he felt a mix of emotions.
His junior martial sister had shared her secret with him, and out of reciprocity, he felt he should reveal something in return. Otherwise, it would be impolite... Secrets were meant to be exchanged!
But what secret could he possibly have?
He definitely couldn't talk about the Dao Stele...
Aside from that, he couldn't think of anything else.
Bloodline...
He didn't have any special bloodline either. His parents were just ordinary loose cultivators.
And being born with a weak body didn't count as a special bloodline.
After thinking for a long time, Mo Hua finally remembered something, his eyes lighting up as he said softly, "Senior martial sister, I'll tell you a secret too, something I haven't told anyone else."
Bai Zixi smiled gently and leaned closer to hear what secret Mo Hua could possibly have.
Mo Hua pointed to the sky, his small face serious, "Senior martial sister, there really are array formations in the sky."
Bai Zixi was slightly taken aback, furrowing her brows as she thought for a moment before asking, "Didn't you mention that before?"
Mo Hua shook his head, "It's different..."
"When I mentioned it before, I was just repeating what Master said."
"Now, I'm telling you because I've actually seen it myself!"
Bai Zixi's beautiful eyes widened in surprise, and after a moment of contemplation, she guessed, "Did you see it during the tribulation lightning?"
Mo Hua sighed inwardly.
His junior martial sister was too smart...
He nodded, "Yes, when the tribulation lightning descended and then dissipated, I saw the array patterns hidden within the clouds!"
Bai Zixi was truly astonished now.
She hadn't expected that there would indeed be array formations in the heavens, and that Mo Hua had witnessed them firsthand...
Heavenly Dao Grand Array...
Bai Zixi looked at Mo Hua, her lips curved in a slight smile as she said, "Alright, I'll keep your secret too."
"Okay!" Mo Hua nodded.
Now that they each had a secret to keep for each other, things were fair.
As Bai Zixi thought about Mo Hua's words, she unconsciously looked up at the sky.
The sky above the Five Elements Sect was clear and vast, without a trace of any array formations, but she continued to gaze upwards.
Mo Hua also looked up out of habit.
When he had nothing else to do, he would often gaze at the sky like this.
He wondered when he would be able to comprehend the true Heavenly Dao array formations.
Even though he couldn't see any formations at the moment, just looking at the vast sky made him feel the boundlessness of the Heavenly Dao and the profundity of the Grand Dao.
It also made his heart feel more at ease.
All the gains and losses, all the ups and downs, none of them seemed to matter in the face of this vast sky.
In the small pavilion...
Bai Zixi was doing the same.
Intrigued, Bai Zesheng sat down and tilted his head back to join them in staring at the sky.
After a while, there was still nothing to be seen in the sky.
Bai Zesheng couldn't help but ask, "Junior brother, what are you looking at?"
Mo Hua lazily replied, "The sky."
"The sky?"
"There's nothing there, what are you looking at?"
Bai Zesheng was a bit perplexed but found himself unconsciously following his sister and junior brother, sitting and staring at the clear sky for a long time...
...
After sitting for a while, Bai Zesheng finally grew restless and said, "Little junior brother, I'll teach you a Daoist technique!"
Mo Hua was taken aback. "A Daoist technique?"
"Mm." Bai Zesheng nodded, looking proud. "It's a cultivation martial art that I created myself!"
"I don't want to learn it," Mo Hua refused bluntly.
Bai Zesheng was stunned. "Why not?"
Mo Hua sighed. "First, I don't cultivate my body. Second, I don't practice martial arts. And third, since you created it yourself, it's definitely not going to be any good."
Bai Zesheng frowned, displeased. "Why wouldn't it be good just because I created it myself?"
"You're only at the Qi Refining stage. What kind of impressive technique could you possibly create?"
"Let me show you!"
Bai Zesheng gripped his long spear, ready to demonstrate for Mo Hua.
Mo Hua quickly waved his hands. "Never mind, never mind, take a break..."
"No!"
Mo Hua relented, "Alright, go ahead and show me."
The three of them found an open space surrounded by artificial hills and flowing water, creating a tranquil landscape.
With a serious expression, Bai Zesheng held his long spear, gathering his spiritual energy as the wind howled and the plants rustled.
Mo Hua's expression turned slightly more solemn as well.
"This is a spear technique that strikes from the heavens!" Bai Zesheng declared.
He then channeled his spiritual power, leaping high into the air and striking a majestic pose as he shouted, "Flying Dragon in the Heavens!"
The spear descended like a rainbow, piercing the ground forcefully and kicking up a small cloud of dust...
Mo Hua froze, feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable all over.
It felt like ants were crawling all over his body.
Bai Zixi covered her mouth, trying to hold back her laughter.
Having demonstrated his technique, Bai Zesheng lost his earlier arrogance and said with a hint of embarrassment, "Isn't it good?"
Mo Hua sighed, "The buildup takes too long, there are too many openings for an attack, the spiritual power consumption is too high, and the resulting power is too weak..."
"If you were facing a Lingxi cultivator, you'd be an easy target while jumping in the air like that."
"And if you were fighting a Tiuxi cultivator, you'd be sliced to pieces while taking so long to gather your power."
"And that name..."
"Flying Dragon in the Heavens..."
Mo Hua felt awkward. A technique created by a Qi Refining cultivator with such a grandiose name—he didn't know what to say.
But Bai Zesheng insisted, "The name is the essence of this technique! Everything else can be criticized, but not the name!"
Mo Hua asked, puzzled, "Did you create this flashy yet impractical technique just for the sake of the name...?"
Bai Zesheng's heart skipped a beat as he defended himself, "How could that be possible?"
In truth, he had come up with the technique on a whim because he thought the name sounded cool.
Bai Zesheng continued, "It's not that bad, is it? When I use this technique against the inner disciples of the Five Elements Sect, I take them down with one strike. There's hardly anyone who can last more than one exchange against me!"
Mo Hua sighed, "That's only because your cultivation is too high. Even without this technique, they wouldn't stand a chance..."
Although Bai Zesheng was at the Qi Refining stage, he was already capable of fighting head-on against Foundation Establishment cultivators.
The Qi Refining disciples of the Five Elements Sect were naturally no match for him.
Moreover, the Five Elements Sect was wealthy in spiritual stones, leading to complacency among its disciples, whose hearts were not focused on cultivation, resulting in mediocre strength.
Thus, Bai Zesheng was able to dominate with his flashy yet superficial technique.
Bai Zesheng was unhappy about being criticized by Mo Hua.
Mo Hua paused before offering some consolation, "It's not good now, but if you keep improving it, it might become a technique that will shake the world and be passed down for generations!"
Bai Zesheng's eyes lit up. "Then I'll teach it to you!"
Mo Hua waved his hands. "I don't need to learn it. I'm a Lingxi cultivator; I use spells..."
"It's always good to have more skills," Bai Zesheng insisted.
"I already know enough. I can't afford to learn something mediocre," Mo Hua replied.
"There's a benefit to you learning this technique," Bai Zesheng said.
"What benefit?" Mo Hua asked, curious.
Bai Zesheng looked serious. "It's very cool!"
Mo Hua: "..."
"I'm thinking of your future," Bai Zesheng said earnestly.
"You'll definitely want to find a Daoist partner in the future. Although you have a decent appearance, fair and clean, you don't come from a prestigious family, so it will be difficult to find a good partner."
"You don't know how snobbish girls from prestigious families can be. They look at lineage, spiritual roots, family resources, and whether you have a cave mansion..."
"You're at a disadvantage in all those aspects."
"And the techniques you learn are things like invisibility and water prison techniques, which are rather treacherous."
"When you fight others, you stay hidden, throwing fireballs from a distance. It's an effective way to fight, but it's not flashy."
"While it's effective in battle, not being flashy puts you at a disadvantage."
"If you're not flashy, you won't look cool, and if you're not cool, you won't easily attract girls."
Bai Zesheng's eyes sparkled, "So I'm teaching you this technique!"
"In the future, when you're saving a beauty in distress, first use your fireball technique to weaken your opponent so they can't fight back. Then, use the technique I'm teaching you, Flying Dragon in the Heavens, to finish them off with a cool and majestic strike!"
"That way, you'll be both cool and handsome.
Mo Hua, on the other hand, was speechless. "Why are you always thinking about such things...?"
"I have no use for such thoughts..." Mo Hua replied.
White Zesheng patted Mo Hua on the shoulder. "This is my thoughtful consideration as your senior martial brother. I'm planning for your future!"
Mo Hua still didn't want to learn the technique.
Disappointed, White Zesheng said, "You are my junior martial brother, so I'm teaching you. If anyone else wanted to learn, I wouldn't even bother teaching them..."
Mo Hua stubbornly refused, but White Zesheng persisted until Mo Hua reluctantly agreed to give it a try.
The technique was called "Flying Dragon in the Heavens."
However, it had nothing to do with dragons, and its power was not that impressive, except for making the user stand out like a sore thumb when jumping into the air.
Since Mo Hua was not a body cultivator, the move was even less effective when he used it.
Nevertheless, he didn't want to disappoint his senior martial brother, so he learned it diligently, not as a martial art for cultivation, but purely to refine his body's movements.
Using the Flowing Water Step, he leaped into the air and then descended while holding the spear.
As a result, the move looked completely different when Mo Hua and White Zesheng performed it.
White Zesheng exuded a majestic aura, his movements grand and sweeping like a soaring dragon.
Mo Hua, on the other hand, was light and graceful, his movements resembling a startled swan or a soaring dragon.
On the picturesque grassy field,
White Zixi took out a book and quietly read it, occasionally lifting her head to watch the two boys, their figures imprinted in her eyes...
...
Time flowed like the gentle mountain breeze, neither fast nor slow.
After several days, Mo Hua had visited all the places in the Five Elements Sect that were open to visitors.
The remaining places were either the living quarters of inner disciples, the elders' caves, the library, the pill pavilion, the formation pavilion, and other restricted areas not open to outsiders.
Or they were locked and guarded by cultivators, marked as confidential locations within the sect.
Apart from these, there were also the formation arrays of the Five Elements Sect.
If he wasn't mistaken, there was a grand formation within the Five Elements Sect! Moreover, this grand formation was ancient, its aura profound, and its formation patterns intricate.
Mo Hua had tried to deduce the formation but found it impossible.
So, he went to ask Teacher Zhuang:
"Teacher, is there a grand formation within the Five Elements Sect?"
Teacher Zhuang nodded. "Yes."
"Isn't it a first-rate formation?" Mo Hua asked.
Teacher Zhuang's eyes flickered. "It's second-rate."
A second-rate grand formation!
Mo Hua was astonished.
Thus far, he hadn't seen many second-rate formations, and now he had encountered a second-rate grand formation! The fact that the Five Elements Sect could construct such a formation showed how profound their understanding of formations was and how deep their heritage ran.
"Teacher, what's the name of the Five Elements Sect's grand formation?" Mo Hua asked curiously.
Teacher Zhuang's eyes turned solemn. "The Five Elements Mountain Protecting Grand Formation."
"The Five Elements Mountain Protecting Grand Formation..."
Five Elements...
Mo Hua felt a chill in his heart. "Teacher, is this grand formation related to the Five Elements Demon-Slaying Grand Formation?"
Teacher Zhuang was slightly taken aback, then he smiled bitterly. "It's not wrong to say they're related..."
"The Five Elements Demon-Slaying Grand Formation is primarily offensive, while the Five Elements Mountain Protecting Grand Formation is defensive. Both formations rely on the Five Elements, and they both have some connection to the Five Elements Sect..."
"The predecessors of the Five Elements Sect once deployed the Five Elements Demon-Slaying Grand Formation to completely annihilate a demonic sect, slaying all the demon cultivators within."
"However, I'm afraid the current Five Elements Sect doesn't have the capability to do that anymore."
"When a sect is prosperous, it can go on the offensive, but when it declines, it can only focus on defense..."
Teacher Zhuang sighed softly. "This Five Elements Mountain Protecting Grand Formation is probably one of the few remaining legacies of the Five Elements Sect's predecessors."
"In the Third-Rate State, constructing this second-rate grand formation is basically enough to protect the Five Elements Sect and ensure its invincibility amidst the turbulent cultivation world."
Of course, that was generally the case.
No matter how impenetrable a grand formation was, if it rotted from within, there was nothing that could be done...
Teacher Zhuang's eyes narrowed, and his gaze toward the distant mountains, the numerous caves, and the hidden grand formation held a deeper meaning.
Mo Hua also fell into deep thought.
"Mo Hua, I have a test for you." Teacher Zhuang suddenly said.
Mo Hua nodded. "Teacher, please tell me."
"Take some time to try and deduce the formation's core structure..." Teacher Zhuang instructed.
Mo Hua was taken aback. "Teacher, isn't this a second-rate formation...?"
Teacher Zhuang nodded slightly. "You can try to study second-rate formations now."
Mo Hua was stunned.
Study second-rate formations... Start with a second-rate grand formation?
Wasn't Teacher asking too much of him...?
Teacher Zhuang understood Mo Hua's hesitation and smiled gently.
"Second-rate formations, compared to first-rate formations, have a qualitative change in their formation patterns, but their core structures share some similarities."
"You don't need to deduce the formation patterns; just observe the structure and grasp the overall framework."
Mo Hua's eyes lit up as he understood. "Okay, Teacher!"
After Teacher Zhuang's instructions, Mo Hua excitedly ran off, pulling his senior martial brother and sister along to study the Five Elements Sect's second-rate Five Elements Mountain Protecting Grand Formation.
The room fell silent for a moment.
Kui Lao appeared, frowning. "You're really not in a hurry at all."
Teacher Zhuang's eyes shone with insight as he looked at the distant mountains, the numerous caves, and the hidden grand formation, his expression calm.
"Let's wait. I'll make the necessary arrangements first..."
Teacher Zhuang's gaze shifted to the departing figure of Mo Hua, and his heart stirred.
"...and spend a little more time with these children."
(End of Chapter)
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