Chapter 591: Master Xun
Chapter 591: Master Xun
Though he now possessed a lowly status as an outer disciple of the Tai Xu Sect, it was best to keep a low profile and focus on his cultivation.
This was for the best.
His master had once taught him a saying: "A prominent man invites envy, a robust pig invites slaughter."
The protruding beam is the first to rot.
It was wiser to accumulate wealth and cultivate influence quietly, maintaining a low profile.
The next day, Mo Hua spent the entire evening practicing formation techniques on the Dao Monument before rising early, feeling refreshed and energized for his first class.
According to the Tai Xu Token, his first lesson was a cultivation class.
The instructor was an inner sect elder, adorned in an elaborate Daoist robe, exuding an air of dignity and respect.
However, as it was the first lesson, the elder didn't delve too deep into the topic, merely touching upon the basics of cultivation.
"Cultivation is the foundation of a cultivator's journey."
"All Daoist techniques rely on a solid foundation of cultivation, and artifacts, pills, and talismans are also graded based on the cultivator's level."
"Only by breaking through and elevating your cultivation can you transcend the categories of cultivation and ascend step by step."
"Thus, cultivation is the very step towards seeking immortality and understanding the Dao."
"For disciples from aristocratic families, qi refinement is merely the beginning of your journey. Building a solid foundation is the true starting point, and only with a robust and pure spiritual energy can you hope to forge a high-quality Golden Core..."
"With a high-quality Golden Core, you can then aspire to tread the higher paths of the Dao..."
"Step by step, with a solid foundation, you will go further in the future..."
"The process of forming a Golden Core is still far off for you, so there's no need to rush. For now, focus on laying a sturdy foundation during the Qi Refining stage..."
"Though there are many paths to immortality, they all lead to the same summit. Most of you come from aristocratic families with diverse backgrounds and cultivation techniques. However, there are some universal principles that you must diligently learn."
"How to purify your spiritual energy, how to perfect your Small Heavenly Cycle, how to stabilize your Dao foundation..."
"How to avoid pitfalls, protect your meridians, and prevent damage to your spirit sea during the Foundation Establishment stage..."
"How to improve your cultivation quickly and steadily..."
"How to avoid common pitfalls in cultivation, how to remain humble and calm, and what to do if you show signs of deviation..."
...
"These are the hard-earned insights and experiences accumulated over countless years by innumerable predecessors of the Tai Xu Sect."
"In the following lessons, I will gradually teach you these secrets..."
"Regardless of your background or the inheritances you possess, the knowledge you gain from these cultivation classes will broaden your horizons and give you a clearer understanding of your future path."
"Now, let me briefly explain how to cultivate during the Foundation Establishment stage..."
"For qi refiners, spiritual energy is in a gaseous state. Upon reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, your spiritual energy undergoes a qualitative change, becoming as viscous as mercury..."
"This mercury-like spiritual energy needs to be further refined, purified, and condensed before it can crystallize and eventually form your Golden Core..."
"This process cannot be rushed and requires years of persistent and unwavering cultivation."
"Additionally, during the Foundation Establishment stage, you must also purify your blood essence, strengthen your meridians, and expand your spirit sea..."
"In the past, this process was known as 'Cleansing the Marrow and Washing the Bones,' but with the evolution of cultivation techniques, the effects are not as pronounced anymore..."
"Modern cultivation methods emphasize a gradual and nurturing approach, reducing the risks of deviation and falling into madness during cultivation..."
...
The inner sect elder was a fountain of knowledge, speaking with a calm and peaceful tone that captivated Mo Hua's attention.
Mo Hua listened intently, gaining profound insights from the elder's words.
Ever since he reached the Foundation Establishment stage, he had been cultivating based on his own understanding of the Tian Yan Manual, primarily focusing on absorbing spiritual energy from spirit stones to increase his cultivation.
He never imagined that cultivation entailed so many intricate details.
To forge a Golden Core and progress to even higher realms, one needed to plan ahead and cultivate in a systematic manner...
Even though the elder didn't divulge too much information, Mo Hua was still deeply shaken by the implications.
This was the legacy of a major sect!
A crystallization of knowledge amassed over countless millennia by innumerable generations of Tai Xu Sect ancestors!
However, Mo Hua also faced a dilemma.
The elder's teachings seemed to be geared towards cultivators who focused on refining their spiritual energy and blood essence, perfecting their Dao foundation, and progressing further.
On the other hand, his own path involved the enlightenment of his spiritual sense.
The elder hadn't mentioned anything about spiritual sense cultivation.
Moreover, Mo Hua's spiritual energy and blood essence were meager, and he had rushed through his realms without properly consolidating his foundation. His cultivation was far from stable.
His cultivation method differed significantly from what the elder had described.
Mo Hua sighed inwardly.
It seemed that he could only try to learn as much as he could for now and delve deeper into these matters in his spare time.
After all, he had just joined the sect, and there was still plenty of time ahead of him.
In the following days, Mo Hua dedicated himself to cultivation, practicing formation techniques, and attending classes.
However, a few days later, Mo Hua suddenly realized something: He knew very little about the Tai Xu Sect.
This wouldn't do.
He would be spending the next few years, perhaps even decades, within the Tai Xu Sect, and it was imperative that he familiarize himself with his new home.
It was a basic principle for any beast hunter.
When entering unfamiliar territory, one must first get to know the lay of the land.
When he had first ventured into Da Hei Mountain, his father, Mo Shan, had taken him all over the outer and inner mountains, acquainting him with the terrain, the traces of demonic beasts, and the locations of herbs and minerals.
That knowledge had allowed him to thrive in Da Hei Mountain.
Although the Tai Xu Sect wasn't a mountain range like Da Hei Mountain, and the elders and instructors weren't demonic beasts, the principle remained the same.
Sharpening one's tools before tackling a task was always a wise strategy.
Mo Hua decided to take some time to study and explore the Tai Xu Sect, gathering information that would be useful for his long-term stay.
After all, he needed to "fit in" if he wanted to "survive" here.
With his light schedule as a new disciple, Mo Hua had plenty of free time on his hands, so he began wandering around the sect with his hands behind his back, taking in the sights.
He also asked questions of Shang Guan Xu and other senior disciples.
Because of his cute and amiable appearance, his pleasant manner of speaking, and the fact that he asked questions that new disciples would naturally be curious about, he was able to gather most of the information he sought.
After a month, Mo Hua had a general understanding of the Tai Xu Sect.
First was the environment.
The Tai Xu Sect was nestled within the ancient and majestic Tai Xu Mountain.
A long jade staircase connected the outer and inner mountains.
The front was the outer mountain, while the back was the inner mountain.
The outer mountain of the Tai Xu Sect served as the residence for outer sect disciples, hired instructors, and guest elders, who also cultivated there.
In between was a large cultivation ground.
To the right of the cultivation ground was the disciples' living quarters.
To the left were the buildings where disciples attended classes—the Transmission Pavilion, the Pill Refinement Pavilion, the Talisman Refinement Pavilion, and the Daoist Law Pavilion, all dedicated to imparting knowledge and skills related to the Dao.
The inner mountain housed the residences of the sect leader and elders, as well as the living quarters for inner sect disciples and various buildings dedicated to imparting the Dao.
And behind the inner mountain lay the forbidden rear mountain, shrouded in mystery.
As an outer sect disciple, Mo Hua couldn't venture beyond the inner mountain, let alone the rear mountain, which was inhabited by ancient masters or ancestors, so he didn't inquire further.
Moreover, the Tai Xu Sect boasted a renowned grand array known as the "Tai Xu Hun Yuan Protective Mountain Array"!
To Mo Hua's surprise, this grand array far exceeded his expectations; it was a fifth-grade array!
A fifth-grade grand array constructed within the state of Qian Xue...
Mo Hua, who had firsthand experience in creating grand arrays, was astonished and even found it somewhat unbelievable.
What level of grand array master could create such a masterpiece...
He wanted to learn more, but he heard that this array hadn't been activated in tens of thousands of years, and no one knew if it still worked or if it was truly fifth-grade, so most disciples had all but forgotten about it...
Some even claimed that the Tai Xu Sect's fifth-grade grand array was a myth, a result of exaggerated tales, and that it was actually only third or fourth-grade...
Mo Hua refused to believe this, and he decided to investigate it himself by sneaking to the edges of the sect and digging.
Unfortunately, he couldn't dig anything up, and his spiritual sense calculations didn't reveal any traces either...
The complexity of this grand array, from the materials used in its foundation to the construction of its array patterns, far surpassed Mo Hua's cultivation and understanding of array techniques.
He couldn't pry it open or calculate its workings.
But Mo Hua remained undeterred.
"When my cultivation improves, I must come back and pry at the foundation to see if it's really a fifth-grade grand array!"
Mo Hua nodded, silently setting a "grand goal" for himself.
In addition, there was the matter of inner and outer sect divisions.
Back in Tongxian City, the Tongxian Sect had also been divided into inner and outer sects, but the distinctions in a small place like that were different from those of a fifth-grade sect like the Tai Xu Sect in Qian Xue State.
It was also somewhat different from what Mo Hua had previously understood.
He was currently an outer sect disciple.
All new disciples who had just reached the Qi Refining stage were considered outer sect disciples.
Once they reached the Golden Core stage, they could graduate.
After graduating, they could choose to leave the sect, return to their families, or join other powers to seek a longer path.
Alternatively, they could choose to stay in the sect and, after passing an assessment, join the inner sect.
The outer sect was open to accepting disciples and earning tuition fees.
The inner sect, on the other hand, was responsible for managing the sect, imparting the Dao, and guiding the sect's affairs.
Most inner sect disciples were expected to become "instructors."
In the Tai Xu Sect, an "instructor" was a position referring to a cultivator responsible for teaching and imparting the Dao. This could be a Golden Core inner sect disciple, an elder, or even the sect leader.
There were also two types of instructors.
One type was hired externally and resided in the outer sect. They were cultivators at the Golden Core stage or above, or even at the Feathering Transformation stage, who were hired from outside the sect or were guest elders.
These individuals were not part of the inner sect; they were merely hired to teach.
The other type consisted of disciples who joined the inner sect and received the inner sect's legacy, as well as elders who had been promoted from disciples.
The inner sect disciples and elders were further divided into regular and true disciples.
Regular inner sect disciples would pay respects to regular elders and learn the sect's important legacies.
True inner sect disciples, on the other hand, would pay respects to true elders and only then gain permission to learn the sect's most core and treasured legacies.
These were two distinct paths of advancement.
Regular disciples would advance to become regular elders as their cultivation improved.
True disciples, upon reaching the Feathering Transformation stage, would become true elders.
Additionally, the sect's core positions, including the vice sect leader and the sect leader, were chosen exclusively from among the true elders.
There were two seemingly similar yet distinct paths: regular disciples and elders, and true disciples and elders.
It took Mo Hua a while to wrap his head around the distinctions between the inner and outer sects, externally hired instructors and inner sect instructors, guest elders and inner sect elders, regular inner sect disciples and true inner sect disciples, and regular inner sect elders and true inner sect elders.
"Even within a sect, the hierarchy is clear and complex..."
Mo Hua sighed.
After understanding these distinctions, Mo Hua realized who his instructor was and what his status was within the sect.
Some crucial courses, such as the cultivation class, were of utmost importance, so they were taught by true inner sect elders.
Mo Hua's cultivation instructor, surnamed Gongsun, was a Feathering Transformation cultivator and a true inner sect elder of the Tai Xu Sect! Occasionally, a Golden Core instructor would substitute for him.
This Golden Core instructor was a direct disciple of Elder Gongsun and also a true inner sect disciple.
However, other courses that focused on cultivation techniques were not as strict.
For example, the instructor for talisman refining was an externally hired Golden Core instructor;
The instructor for pill refining was a Feathering Transformation guest elder;
The instructor for artifact refining was an ordinary inner sect elder;
There were also externally hired instructors for courses on cultivation world miscellaneous knowledge, historical books, and scriptures, some of whom were not very advanced in their cultivation but had traveled extensively and were knowledgeable, despite their advanced age and mere Golden Core stage.
Without understanding these intricacies, one wouldn't know who exactly was imparting wisdom in the lecture hall.
And even with this knowledge, it was sometimes difficult to discern their identities.
What confused Mo Hua the most was the "old elder" that Shang Guan Xu had mentioned.
"He teaches array techniques, and he's very, very old. He has a temperamental personality and is extremely strict. He can't tolerate any sloppiness or carelessness from his disciples..."
The disciples respectfully addressed this old elder as "Master Xun."
Master Xun wore a simple Tai Xu Sect robe without any embroidered sword patterns, and its style seemed outdated, perhaps from many generations ago.
He appeared old and frail, his aura weak, and his cultivation didn't seem high.
The only impression he gave off was that of being "old."
His face was full of wrinkles, his back slightly hunched, and his hair and beard were completely white, except for his eyes, which shone with stubbornness and sternness.
He was even stricter than Yan Lao Shi.
Master Xun taught Mo Hua array techniques.
At first, Mo Hua attended Master Xun's classes with utmost seriousness, sitting up straight.
But after a few lessons, he became a bit lax.
He discovered that the Tai Xu Sect's array techniques for Qi Refining cultivators only taught first-grade arrays...
Learning first-grade arrays at the Qi Refining stage was considered standard.
Moreover, some disciples weren't adept at arrays, so teaching them first-grade arrays was already somewhat beyond their capacity, and they struggled to keep up.
However, Mo Hua found it rather boring...
He had already memorized these basics long ago.
Master Xun's voice was hoarse but serious, and he heavily emphasized the fundamentals of array techniques:
"Arrays emphasize a solid foundation. Without a strong foundation, attempting to learn more advanced arrays is like a vine trying to climb without roots of its own.
At first, Master Xun's lessons offered some new insights, and his understanding of first-grade arrays was indeed profound, so Mo Hua could still learn a thing or two.
However, it was still just a first-grade array, and the examples used were common five-element arrays.
After a class or two, Mo Hua had more or less figured it out, and the subsequent lessons became pure, tedious repetition.
Mo Hua couldn't help but become a little lax.
With nothing else to do, he could only study his own things during class.
While appearing to listen, he was actually deriving and sketching second-grade arrays in his mind, occasionally previewing the more challenging array lessons ahead to see if there was anything new he could learn.
However, this derivation was extremely taxing on his spiritual sense.
On this particular day, while in class, Mo Hua's spiritual sense became depleted without him noticing.
Since he was in class, he couldn't meditate to restore his spiritual sense, and he felt his consciousness growing fuzzy as his eyelids drooped.
Mo Hua could only force himself to stay awake.
But at that moment, Master Xun's dull and monotonous voice echoed in his ears, like a lullaby.
"Arrays emphasize a solid foundation. Without a strong foundation, attempting more advanced arrays is like a vine trying to climb without roots..."
Unknowingly, Mo Hua dozed off, his little head drooping.
When he opened his eyes, he found the room eerily quiet.
It was so quiet that it was a little scary.
Mo Hua lifted his head and indeed saw Master Xun standing before him, his face as stern as still water, clearly suppressing his anger.
Mo Hua felt a twinge of guilt.
Master Xun didn't reprimand him right away but followed the usual routine instead. "Go up and draw the array I just described."
This was giving him a chance.
If he could draw it, then all would be well...
Mo Hua breathed a sigh of relief.
Drawing an array would be easy...
At the front of the array chamber was a large array plate, and Master Xun would draw arrays on it while explaining the principles behind them.
Mo Hua respectfully walked up to the array plate, picked up a brush, and looked up, only to pause in surprise.
He had been a little nervous earlier and forgotten to look, but now that he looked up, he realized there were a total of four arrays on the plate.
"Draw the array I just described..."
Which one did Master Xun describe?
Mo Hua had been dozing off, so how would he know...
Mo Hua held the brush, hesitating, and could only stand there, clueless.
The other disciples below also held their breaths, whispering:
"He's done for..."
"He even dared to doze off during Master Xun's class..."
"He won't be able to draw it. He's in big trouble now..."
"I can't take it. I'm getting nervous just watching..."
"Oh no, I zoned out too... I hope Master Xun didn't notice me. Please don't call me up next. I don't know how to draw it either... Ancestor Cheng, please protect me..."
...
As Mo Hua hesitated, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
This was... Master Xun's spiritual sense?
Mo Hua's heart skipped a beat.
He was in deep trouble now...
"Oh well, I'll just guess then..."
Mo Hua closed his eyes, picked the most challenging one, and with a few swift strokes, completed the array in no time...
After he finished drawing, the transmission room fell silent...
The chill on Mo Hua's back lessened slightly.
"He guessed correctly..."
Mo Hua breathed a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, the whispers started again, and the disciples murmured:
"Just now..."
"His little hand moved so fast, I couldn't even see clearly..."
"He drew it so quickly!"
"How can he be so proficient..."
"...But he drew the wrong one, it's not that one..."
Mo Hua, with his keen spiritual sense, heard them clearly and complained in his mind:
"It's not that one? Then tell me which one it is!"
Mo Hua was helpless, and he looked at the other three arrays, feeling the chill on his back intensify as he realized Master Xun was getting angry again.
He decided to go all the way! Mo Hua randomly guessed another one and swiftly completed the drawing with a few more strokes.
The transmission room became even quieter.
You could hear a pin drop.
Before Mo Hua could breathe a sigh of relief, the disciples whispered again:
"Even faster..."
"Is this the hand speed of a Foundation Establishment cultivator?"
"Was he raised on array diagrams?"
"Which family's cultivator is he? His array drawing is both fast and good. Is he from the Ming family? Or the Zheng family?..."
"I'm so envious. I wish I could borrow those hands to draw arrays..."
...
"But Master Xun didn't describe that one either..."
Mo Hua silently took a breath.
Still wrong?!
He felt helpless, and a hint of annoyance started to grow within him.
Wrong again?!
Fine, I won't guess anymore. I'll draw them all! If I draw all four, I can't possibly be wrong! Mo Hua waved his hand, and his wrist left afterimages as his brushstrokes flowed like the wind, as swift as clouds, and as fluid as water. In no time, he completed the remaining two arrays...
The transmission room fell into an even deeper silence.
The disciples below all had their mouths wide open, unable to speak, looking at Mo Hua as if he were a "little array demon"...
After drawing the four arrays, Mo Hua put down the brush, lowered his head, and stood quietly to the side.
Master Xun's eyes were cloudy as he stared at Mo Hua, silent for a long while, deep in thought. Finally, his voice turned stern, but it trembled slightly:
"Even with talent, one must not be proud or complacent..."
"Don't let this happen again!"
His tone was stern, but he said, "Don't let this happen again."
Mo Hua knew he had escaped disaster, and he heaved a long sigh of relief, respectfully saying:
"I will remember the Master's teachings!"
Master Xun nodded slightly. "Today's lesson ends here. You may leave."
The other disciples also felt like they had been pardoned and quickly stood up, respectfully bowing as they said, "Disciples take our leave!" Then, they quietly filed out of the transmission room.
Mo Hua also slipped out with the crowd.
Master Xun didn't say anything.
It wasn't until all the disciples had left that he looked at the array plate, where Mo Hua had swiftly drawn the four arrays with his brush, each one impeccable and flawless, first-grade arrays.
Master Xun's cloudy eyes opened slightly, revealing a glint of sharpness.
(End of Chapter)
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