https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-738-What-Are-They-Talking-About-/12543335/
Chapter 739: Riding the Sword
Chapter 739: Riding the Sword
A quick glance and he had mastered it...
Elder Xun's brush paused as he fell silent.
Xun Ziyou, his eyebrows lowered, quietly lifted his gaze to meet Elder Xun's, mustering the courage to ask, "Ancestor, you didn't... teach him this as well, did you?"
Elder Xun's pale eyebrows rose slightly as he glanced at Xun Ziyou and replied indifferently, "What's wrong with that? Are you questioning me, your ancestor?"
Xun Ziyou's courage dissipated instantly, and he mumbled, "I dare not."
He muttered under his breath, "But Ancestor, you can't be so partial... You didn't teach the disciples of the sect or the children of the Xun family, but you taught Mo Hua all these good things..."
"He learned how to create formations by drawing and how to deduce sword qi..."
"Why didn't you teach him the Divine Consciousness Sword Manual as well?"
Elder Xun immediately reprimanded, "What nonsense are you spouting?"
"That technique is not something that can be taught. Do you want to bring harm upon him?"
"Every time the sword is wielded, one's divine consciousness is diminished. This is a path to self-destruction!"
"I've sealed my divine consciousness for hundreds of years and have not used that sword manual. Do you want this child to damage his divine consciousness and cut off his foundation?"
Seeing that Elder Xun was angry, Xun Ziyou dared not utter another word.
Elder Xun frowned, pondering for a moment before instructing, "You and those elders in the sect... Remind them privately once again that no one is allowed to mention the Divine Consciousness Sword Manual in front of Mo Hua..."
"Not a single word!"
Elder Xun's eyes narrowed as he sighed softly.
This child was too clever, with strong divine consciousness and a heavy curiosity. If he ever found out about the existence of such a sword manual in the Tai Xu Sect, he would definitely be eager to learn it.
Xun Ziyou reluctantly cupped his hands and said, "Yes."
Elder Xun glanced at him silently, "You should know the consequences of the Divine Consciousness Sword, right?"
Xun Ziyou was taken aback, and his expression turned desolate.
Although he had said it casually, he was well aware of the truth.
Memories flooded his mind:
The solitary Elder Dugus in the back mountains.
The sword tomb filled with countless broken swords.
The once highly anticipated Elder Dugu Xuan, whose life-bound spirit sword had shattered, disappearing without a trace.
And now, the declining Tai Xu Sect.
Xun Ziyou composed himself and cupped his hands once more, "Yes."
Elder Xun nodded slightly.
"Then, what about the Duan Jin Sect..." Xun Ziyou continued, "Will there be any trouble?"
Elder Xun pondered for a moment before replying, "You take responsibility for this matter. Make sure no one else finds out. Mo Hua is smart and won't talk about it, and since you won't say anything either, the Duan Jin Sect definitely won't know."
"Deducting sword qi..."
Elder Xun paused, unable to help but add, "...is against common sense in cultivation. It's not something that ordinary cultivators can learn."
"As long as you don't let it slip, even if the Duan Jin Sect breaks their heads, they won't be able to figure out what's going on."
Xun Ziyou's heart chilled.
Not something that ordinary cultivators can learn...
That meant that Mo Hua's talent in certain areas might truly be extraordinary.
No wonder... Ancestor placed so much importance on Mo Hua.
Xun Ziyou asked, "But what if the Duan Jin Sect sees the sword formation and suspects the Tai Xu Sect?"
Elder Xun declared, "Then we'll firmly deny it! This is not the sword formation of the Duan Jin Sect!"
Xun Ziyou hesitated.
Elder Xun said calmly, "How can the Duan Jin Sect prove that this sword formation belongs to them? Do they dare to bring out their own sword formation for comparison?"
Xun Ziyou still felt uneasy. "But this is a metal-based..."
Elder Xun raised an eyebrow. "So a metal-based sword formation is the Duan Jin Sect's sword formation? Do they have that much face?"
"Are the Melting Gold Sword Formation, the Breaking Gold Sword Formation, and the Metal-based Sword Formation, which are inherited by the various major metal sword sects in the Nine Provinces, all from the Duan Jin Sect?"
Xun Ziyou considered this and nodded. "That does make sense..."
Catching a thief with the stolen goods.
If they didn't catch the thief in the act and didn't have the evidence, how dare they slander the disciples of the Tai Xu Sect?
Moreover, they had the Ancestor backing them up.
Even if one took a step back and considered the strict definition, the sword formation was not really "stolen" by Mo Hua; he had "seen" it with his own abilities.
If you can use your sword in front of him, how can you stop him from "seeing" it with his eyes?
With just a glance, he could learn your inherited technique. How could this be blamed on Mo Hua?
Xun Ziyou slowly nodded, sighing inwardly. Indeed, the Ancestor was worthy of his title.
Whether it was cultivation or shamelessness.
"Ancestor, I understand," Xun Ziyou said.
Elder Xun waved his hand.
Xun Ziyou stood up and bid his farewell respectfully.
After Xun Ziyou left, Elder Xun sat alone, his brows furrowed deeply.
"Deducting sword qi..."
"How exactly is this deduced?"
"Could it be..."
Elder Xun's heart trembled as the ultimate heavenly algorithm that saw through the mysteries and calculated the myriad truths resurfaced in his mind:
Heavenly Calculation!
"What exactly did that boy surnamed Zhuang teach his disciple..."
"But that's not right..." Elder Xun frowned, "If he didn't teach the Immortal Array Stream, why would he teach the Heavenly Calculation?"
"Is this something a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage can learn?"
Elder Xun's gaze turned solemn.
Peace reigned over Tai Xu Mountain, and the elders' residence was quiet.
Elder Xun continued writing on the paper, and after he finished, he put it away. Then, he took out his own compass, his eyes narrowing as he murmured, "The secrets this child holds might be even more unfathomable than I imagined..."
"It would be best to add another 'lock' to this child's karma..."
...
Mo Hua continued to study the Breaking Gold Sword Formation.
Sword formations were an integral part of sword technique legacies, the core of sword artifacts, and the key to the sword path.
Mo Hua wanted to learn the Divine Consciousness Sword of the Tai Xu Sect.
Back in the small fishing village, he had already learned the basic "Sword Transformation" through causal inference.
However, this Sword Transformation was merely superficial.
Moreover, since he was a novice in sword techniques, his "Sword Transformation" lacked the foundation of profound sword technique understanding, resulting in a crude imitation.
It merely copied the form of a sword by simulating it with divine consciousness.
This Sword Transformation was already quite powerful.
But this power relied on his inherently strong and qualitatively changed divine consciousness, not exquisite divine consciousness techniques.
It wouldn't be appropriate to ask Elder Xun, as he was sure the elder would be unhappy about him diverting from his primary focus. He would definitely think that Mo Hua was being distracted and restless.
Whether it was the unfamiliar or familiar elders, no matter how Mo Hua tried to indirectly inquire, he couldn't gather any information.
Aside from the sword cultivator he met in the small fishing village, Mo Hua had not come across any other Tai Xu Sect members who practiced the art of transforming Divine Consciousness into swords.
This mysterious sword art seemed to have vanished within the Tai Xu Sect.
This was quite bizarre.
Mo Hua sighed.
Since he had no leads, he could only figure things out on his own.
The art of transforming Divine Consciousness into swords relied on a deep understanding of sword techniques as its foundation.
Mo Hua's knowledge of the Sword Dao was dismal.
So, he decided to enhance his comprehension and cognition of the Sword Dao.
Whether it was sword qi or sword artifacts, he could study and explore them further.
He wanted to see if he could indirectly gain insights into the true essence of "transforming Divine Consciousness into swords" through his understanding of the Sword Dao.
The Duan Jin Sword Formation, with its integration of swords and formations, presented a good opportunity for this endeavor.
However, this sword formation was the closely guarded secret of the Duan Jin Sect.
He had to learn it secretly and ensure that the Duan Jin Sect remained unaware of his actions.
At the very least, they must not know that he possessed their Duan Jin Sword Formation.
In the following days, Mo Hua devoted himself wholeheartedly to studying the sword formation, delving into its sword patterns, configurations, applications, and principles.
Although the sword formation was incomplete, and he couldn't master it fully, his understanding of the Duan Jin Sword Qi deepened with each passing day.
Based on the principles of the Duan Jin Sword Qi, Mo Hua improved the design of the Ke Jin Armor.
Within the armor, he incorporated the bones of Fire Demons, which had the ability to block sword qi, and he also added a formation to counteract sword qi.
Mo Hua drew up the blueprints and handed them over to Master Gu.
Even though it was just a single set of armor, Master Gu did not slack off. He personally crafted and refined the "Ke Jin Armor," working overtime to bring Mo Hua's design to life.
To differentiate it from the previous version, Mo Hua named this set of armor the "Duan Jin Armor."
As the name suggested, this armor was specifically designed to defend against metal-attributed sword qi, with the purpose of countering the Duan Jin Sect.
However, this Duan Jin Armor was still just the first iteration, requiring further improvements, and the Duan Jin Sword Formation was also not yet fully derived.
"I still need to rely on that pretty boy..."
Mo Hua thought to himself.
Soon, the day of the duel arrived, marking the end of a ten-day period.
Inside the Refining Demon Mountain...
Cheng Mo donned the brand-new "Duan Jin Armor" crafted by Mo Hua and started taunting Song Jian once again.
Although he had been injured before, a full ten days had passed, and his wounds had healed.
Cheng Mo, with his thick skin and resilient body, soon forgot about the pain and boldly provoked, "Pretty boy, you were just lucky last time and managed to escape. Today, I'll beat you to your knees and make you call me grandpa!"
Song Jian's face turned ashen, and he retorted, "You're asking for death!"
The two of them quickly engaged in combat once more.
This time, Song Jian was even more ruthless, and his sword qi was more fierce.
Cheng Mo put on a brave front, but he was actually worried. However, as soon as they started fighting, he felt a significant reduction in pressure.
Song Jian's sword qi, dazzling with golden light and sharp enough to pierce the eyes, seemed to lose much of its power and inflict less pain when it struck Cheng Mo's body.
This set of armor not only defended against metal-attributed spiritual energy but also mitigated a considerable portion of the sword qi's might.
Cheng Mo was astonished.
The spiritual artifacts crafted by his junior disciple brother were becoming more and more outrageous. They could even defend against the sword techniques of a second-rate sect's signature move...
Cheng Mo was left speechless.
With this set of armor, he could withstand Song Jian's attacks for longer, earning him more merit points!
Cheng Mo's spirits lifted, and he roared with enthusiasm, engaging Song Jian in another fierce battle.
The situation reached a stalemate.
Mo Hua stood by, watching and using the Heavenly Calculation to deduce Song Jian's spiritual sword qi, thereby completing the Duan Jin Sword Formation.
At the same time, he gauged the effectiveness of the Duan Jin Armor based on the diminished power of Song Jian's sword qi.
Song Jian had unknowingly become Mo Hua's guinea pig.
However, he himself remained oblivious to this fact.
After fighting for nearly an hour and a half, Mo Hua once again employed his old trick, using the scent of blood to attract demonic beasts and cause a ruckus, providing him with an excuse to call off the duel.
Cheng Mo, as usual, hurled insults and threats before leaving.
Song Jian was trembling with rage, but there was nothing he could do.
Subsequently, under Mo Hua's covert manipulation, Cheng Mo and Song Jian arranged several more duels.
Song Jian's temper flared, and he became obsessed with fighting Cheng Mo, disregarding everything else.
Each time he saw Cheng Mo, he would immediately draw his sword and attack, his eyes red with fury, as if he wanted to chop Cheng Mo into a thousand pieces.
Cheng Mo, on the other hand, didn't mind at all.
He was carrying out his orders to "take a beating."
In their first encounter, his armor had been inadequate, and he had sustained quite a few injuries.
But with each subsequent duel, the armor crafted by Mo Hua became stronger, capable of countering both metal-attributed attacks and sword qi, filling Cheng Mo with increasing fearlessness.
Moreover, his junior disciple brother had also provided him with a "salary."
For every half-hour of fighting, he earned a hundred merit points, a rather generous sum.
After several more duels and through Mo Hua's observations of the Duan Jin Sword Qi, he finally managed to deduce the complete Duan Jin Sword Formation.
This was an extremely rare and powerful formation unique to the Duan Jin Sect.
Mo Hua couldn't wait to start learning the Duan Jin Sword Formation.
He wanted to uncover the deeper principles of the formation and the more profound nature of the Sword Dao.
This would greatly aid him in his quest to comprehend the Sword Dao.
A few more days passed, and after dozens of simulations of the Duan Jin Sword Qi and further contemplation on the Duan Jin Sword Formation, Mo Hua gradually mastered the sword formation.
However, at the same time, he suddenly realized a startling fact:
The essence of the sword formation lay in using formations to achieve a morphological change at the spiritual power level, thereby enhancing offensive capabilities.
In other words, the essence of sword qi was the "morphological transformation" of spiritual power.
The sword formation was a means to transform spiritual power into sword qi.
"Morphological changes in spiritual power..."
Mo Hua was astonished, and his thoughts raced as he made connections. Suddenly, he thought of two other types of spiritual transformations: the reverse transformation of the Reverse Spirit Formation and the aggregation transformation of the Small Meteorite Technique.
Formation breakdown, spell aggregation, and sword morphological change...
While these three forms differed in appearance, their essence was the same: the internal spiritual power structure, in accordance with the grand dao's principles, gave rise to myriad variations.
And the so-called "sword techniques" were essentially a method of "morphologically transforming" spiritual power.
This method did not involve deep, intrinsic changes to spiritual power but altered its external form, making it "sharper" and more sword-like, thereby augmenting its destructive power.
"If spiritual power can undergo a morphological change through a sword formation, turning into sword qi...
Doesn't that mean that even without a foundation in sword techniques or cultivating sword qi, I can still use a sword formation to transform and unleash powerful and deadly sword qi?"
'Playing to my strengths and avoiding my weaknesses.'
Mo Hua's heart skipped a beat as he contemplated this idea.
"If I do this, then even without a foundation in sword cultivation, I can still walk the path of a 'sword cultivator'?"
Of course, he would not be a typical sword cultivator, but one who heavily relied on sword formations.
However, Mo Hua did not mind.
Whether it was sword qi or sword formations, as long as it could kill enemies, it was a good sword cultivation technique.
But... how to kill?
Mo Hua pondered silently, leaning on the desk in his disciple's residence.
First, he needed to forge a spirit sword.
This was indisputable.
Without forging a spirit sword, there would be no medium to contain the "sword formation," and without a sword and a formation, there was no point in talking about "sword cultivation" or the path of the sword.
As for the specifics of how to forge the spirit sword, that could be figured out later.
The problem was, once he forged the spirit sword and drew the sword formation on it, then what?
How could he use the sword for killing? Mo Hua frowned.
Using the sword for close-quarters combat was definitely not an option.
He did not have the physical strength for that.
What about projecting sword qi from a distance?
Mo Hua shook his head.
That wouldn't work either...
His spiritual power was insufficient, so the projected sword qi would inevitably be weak and incomparable to that of other sword cultivators.
Moreover, these two attack methods were common techniques used by ordinary sword cultivators and had little to do with sword formations, failing to leverage his advantages.
In addition, his own rudimentary sword techniques would be a disadvantage, as trying to imitate other sword cultivators would only result in a poor imitation.
Mo Hua sighed.
Indeed, everything sounded simple, but in practice, it was difficult.
The principles of cultivation were one thing, but their actual application was another matter entirely.
"Is there any way to play to my strengths and avoid my weaknesses, hiding my shortcomings in spiritual power and sword techniques, and thus maximizing the power of the 'sword formation'...?"
Mo Hua went through all the sword cultivator techniques he knew in his mind and suddenly thought of two words: "Sword Riding."
Mo Hua's memory blurred for a moment.
A long time ago, under the big elm tree in Zuowangju.
His senior disciple brother's excited voice echoed in his ears once again:
"After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, you can control objects..."
"Controlling these tables and chairs is nothing special, but you can control a sword!"
"Just imagine, using your divine sense to control a sword! From a distance, with a mere thought, the sword will whoosh over and kill the enemy a thousand miles away! Isn't that amazing...?"
...
In that moment, Mo Hua felt as if he had "lived a completely different life."
These words seemed like they were spoken a long time ago, yet it also felt like it was just yesterday.
"Senior disciple brother..."
Mo Hua sighed softly, then began to calm down and seriously contemplate the matter of "Sword Riding."
At the Foundation Establishment stage, one could use divine sense to control objects, so naturally, they could also control a sword.
However, up until now, he had not witnessed true "Sword Riding."
The Duan Jin Sect's Duan Jin Yu Jian Jue (Sword Riding Manual)
did have the word "riding" in its name, but this manual focused more on "sword qi."
It used the spirit sword to store power and unleash more powerful Duan Jin sword qi.
This was quite different from what his senior disciple brother had described and from his own understanding of "using divine sense to control a sword and kill enemies from a thousand miles away."
He wondered if the Duan Jin Sect's Sword Riding Manual was inherently like this.
Or perhaps they had only learned the initial stages of Sword Riding and had not yet reached the true level of "Sword Riding."
"Sword Riding..."
Mo Hua pondered for a moment, and his eyes lit up.
Using divine sense to control a sword, using the sword as a medium for the formation, and using the formation as the core, he could simulate sword qi through the formation and thus achieve killing moves...
Following this train of thought, Mo Hua was astonished to discover that "Sword Riding" seemed to be a perfect way to play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses, addressing all his shortcomings in sword cultivation.
Since his spiritual power was lacking, he could use spirit stones instead.
If his sword qi was weak, he could rely on sword formations, using the morphological change of spiritual power to derive powerful "sword qi."
And since his physical body was weak, he would simply not let anyone get close to him.
By using Sword Riding, he could kill enemies from a thousand miles away, relying on his powerful divine sense to control the sword, thus achieving long-range "sniping."
Mo Hua's expression brightened, and his eyes shone with excitement.
Just thinking about this scenario made his blood boil.
However, Mo Hua soon realized that if he used this method of "Sword Riding," the spirit sword could only be used once.
Whether or not he managed to kill the enemy with a single strike, the sword would be lost.
The cost was indeed a bit high.
But sometimes, sacrifices had to be made.
The cost of a few spirit swords was nothing compared to the value of a powerful killing technique.
This long-range sniping method of Sword Riding, if mastered, would likely surpass ordinary sword cultivators' sword techniques in terms of range, power, stealth, and safety.
Sacrificing a few spirit swords would be worth it.
Mo Hua nodded slightly, then began to work on refining a true "Duan Jin Armor" using his understanding of the Duan Jin Sword Formation.
He planned to have his junior disciple brothers wear this armor when they went to claim territory from the Duan Jin Sect in Refining Demon Mountain.
With the Duan Jin Armor, the Duan Jin Sect would not stand a chance.
After defeating the Duan Jin Sect disciples and securing the territory, they could efficiently hunt demonic beasts and gather materials.
Previously, they had hunted for merit points and demon blood.
Now, Mo Hua had another purpose: to forge swords!
According to his own design, he would forge special spirit swords imbued with "sword formations" to further experiment with true "Sword Riding" and achieve long-range killing moves!
If one day, he mastered Sword Riding...
Then, wherever his divine sense reached and his sword formations extended, he would hold the power of life and death in his hands!
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
