Chapter 65: Unraveling the Array
Chapter 65: Unraveling the Array
After Mo Hua returned home, he had dinner with his parents. He then asked his mother to help prepare some beef jerky, snacks, and sweet rice wine before confining himself in his room to focus on unraveling the array.
He started by drawing a fire-elemental array pattern on paper. The array, when completed, appeared faintly red and emanated a slight burning sensation.
Following the instructions in the book, Mo Hua then drew a water-elemental array next to the fire array, at the Kan position.
As he finished drawing, the redness of the fire array gradually faded, along with the faint reddish spiritual energy that had been hovering around it. Touching it no longer yielded any sensation of warmth.
This meant that the fire array had been neutralized.
Mo Hua's spirits lifted, and he proceeded to test the other five elemental arrays, successfully neutralizing each one based on the principles of the Five Elements' generative and overcoming cycles.
Next up were formations. Mo Hua spent some time drawing the Bright Fire Formation, which consisted of three array patterns and was the simplest type of formation.
When Mo Hua had first drawn the Bright Fire Formation for Master Mo, he had merely copied what he saw without delving deeper. Now, as he recreated the formation, it was a breeze.
Within the time it took to drink a cup of tea, a neatly drawn Bright Fire Formation emerged on the paper.
Mo Hua studied the formation thoughtfully.
When he had drawn it before, he had simply imitated without truly understanding. Now, as he examined it closely, he realized that within the seemingly simple formation, there was indeed an array pattern responsible for gathering spiritual energy. The other two array patterns were ordinary fire-elemental arrays used to activate the formation's illuminating effect.
Mo Hua carefully compared his work with what Bai Zisheng had taught him.
The array eye was the spirit-gathering array pattern, the pivotal point was the Three Powers position, and the paper used for drawing the formation was the medium.
Mo Hua tore the paper, creating a gap in the formation, and as expected, the Bright Fire Formation became inactive. He then redrew the formation and altered the spirit-gathering array pattern, which served as the array eye, and once again, the formation was neutralized.
"So this is what they mean by 'damage its medium, destroy its eye, and thus break the formation'..."
"This method is rather... straightforward and brutal. Even someone who doesn't understand formations can break one this way. Hmm, if you don't understand formations, this is probably the only way to forcibly break one."
"Then what serves as the array eye and medium for the mysterious formation within my sea of consciousness?"
"The spiritual power in a formation comes from its array eye. So, the Qi Sea is the array eye, and since the mystery formation resides in my sea of consciousness, that would make it the medium. If I were to break the formation, then..."
"Would I have to destroy my own Qi Sea and sea of consciousness?"
Mo Hua broke into a cold sweat.
"Never mind... That's too extreme."
Breaking formations in such a forceful manner lacked the refinement of an array master and did not showcase their true skill.
Mo Hua cleared his mind of these thoughts and drew the Bright Fire Formation again. This time, he drew a water-elemental array pattern at the Kan position of one of the fire-elemental array patterns.
Upon completing the water array, the Bright Fire Formation did not deactivate, but its radiance dimmed slightly.
The array-unraveling technique had worked, but not entirely.
Mo Hua then drew another water-elemental array pattern next to one of the remaining fire arrays, and instantly, the light from the Bright Fire Formation vanished, and the entire formation became inert.
"It's unlocked!"
Mo Hua was thrilled. He then pondered further, "To unravel a fire-elemental array, I needed to draw two water arrays. So, for the spirit-gathering array, which serves as the array eye, would drawing just one water array be enough?"
"The Five Elemental Arrays can be neutralized through the generative and overcoming relationships. But what about the spirit-gathering array? How do I unravel that? There shouldn't be a generative or overcoming relationship with an array used for gathering spirits, right...?"
Mo Hua began flipping through the array manuals Mr. Zhuang had given him and finally found a page that explained how to unravel the spirit-gathering array.
While the Spirit-Gathering Array converged spiritual power, the Reverse Spirit Array caused it to diverge and scatter. This concept of convergence and divergence aligned with the principles of generation and overcoming. However, Mo Hua had never learned the Reverse Spirit Array before, and despite searching through related books, he could only find textual records and no diagrams or illustrations.
According to the records, the Reverse Spirit Array was an advanced and profound array, often passed down exclusively within influential families skilled in the art of formations. It was not something that was easily learned or accessible to outsiders.
Given the complexity of the array, Mo Hua decided to set it aside for the time being.
There was another method mentioned, which involved using a Spirit-Gathering Array to undo another Spirit-Gathering Array. By drawing another Spirit-Gathering Array near the original one, one could absorb the spiritual power of the array's eye, causing it to lose its driving force and effectively disabling the formation.
Mo Hua was amazed by this concept of using a similar array to undo another. It was something he had never considered before.
However, the text also warned of potential issues with this method. The Spirit-Gathering Array used for undoing the formation might absorb too much spiritual power, leading to an uncontrollable release of energy and unpredictable dangers.
Moreover, as Mo Hua suspected, the array eye of the mysterious formation within his sea of consciousness was likely his own Qi Sea. Attempting to absorb his Qi Sea with another Qi Sea or inscribing a Reverse Spirit Array within it to disperse the spiritual power sounded like suicidal ideas.
Not to mention, these methods were practically impossible to execute.
In other words, disabling the array eye was not a viable option for unraveling the formation.
Mo Hua rested his chin in thought, "I guess I'll have to learn to unravel each array pattern one by one. As expected, there are no shortcuts in the end. After tens of thousands of years of development in the cultivation world, there are unlikely to be any loopholes to exploit."
Mo Hua drew another Bright Fire Formation and proceeded to unravel it completely. Suddenly, he realized that his method was extremely wasteful in terms of ink and paper. He would have to redraw the formation each time he made a mistake, and the amount of paper and ink consumed for practice far exceeded his usual usage for cultivating array techniques.
The issue of spirit stones was still pressing, even though their family's financial situation had improved due to the restaurant's income. While they weren't lacking in spirit stones for daily use, it was always good to be prudent and save for future expenses.
"The stele in my sea of consciousness should be perfect for practicing unraveling formations..."
With that thought, Mo Hua immersed his consciousness within his sea of consciousness.
In the vast and ethereal sea of consciousness, the enigmatic formation woven from strands of spiritual power remained. The stele also existed within this space, seemingly unaffected by the swirling spiritual power.
With practiced ease, Mo Hua inscribed the Bright Fire Formation on the stele and proceeded to unravel it. As expected, the formation dimmed and lost its luster.
Mo Hua erased the formation and the unraveling patterns, and the spiritual power he had expended was restored.
"As expected!"
Mo Hua was elated. The stele was not only ideal for practicing formations but also perfectly suited for honing his unraveling skills without wasting resources.
By drawing and erasing the formations, he could conserve spiritual power, effectively practicing without incurring any cost.
Thus, Mo Hua dedicated himself to practicing unraveling formations within his sea of consciousness until the yin hour before withdrawing from his sea of consciousness. After meditating for an hour with his eyes closed, he felt refreshed and rejuvenated.
Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua were also early risers. Mo Shan was preparing to hunt demons in Black Mountain, while Liu Ruhua was busy with the restaurant's business.
After a simple yet delicious and hearty breakfast, Mo Hua slung a lunch box over his shoulder and set off to visit Mr. Zhuang.
(End of Chapter)
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