Chapter 8: Young Master An
Chapter 8: Young Master An
"Young Master An?"
The lavishly dressed chubby boy was the eldest young master of the An family from Tongxian City, named An Xiaofu. Perhaps his father didn't have high expectations for him, as his name implied—'Xiaofu' meaning small fortune, indicating a hope for modest gains.
However, due to his plump appearance, his fellow sect members often called him An Xiaopan behind his back, a nickname that alluded to his chubby physique.
An Xiaopan was a bit slow-witted and occasionally threw tantrums like a young master, but he had a good heart. He often asked Mo Hu to help him with his array formation homework for their assessments.
He was terrible at array formations and couldn't draw them at all. To avoid punishment from the instructors and a beating from his father, he had no choice but to seek Mo Hu's assistance.
At this moment, An Xiaopan was fuming, "How dare you, Mo Hu! I treat you as a friend, but you look down on me?!"
Mo Hu was baffled, "How have I looked down on you?"
An Xiaopan pulled out a set of array diagrams with annotations in red ink from his pocket, "You helped me with my array homework, and there were six mistakes in it! But the one you did for Qian Xing, that skinny monkey, was flawless! Isn't this looking down on me? Aren't you saying I'm worse than him?"
The 'skinny monkey' that An Xiaopan referred to was the skinny young master from before, Qian Xing by name, the third young master of the Qian family's main branch.
The Qian family was the largest clan in Tongxian City, followed by the An family. Both families ran businesses and were competitors in trade, with ancestral grudges and rivalries between the younger generations. They sought to outdo each other in every aspect, and even their physiques contrasted starkly—one fat and the other skinny—like fire and water, incompatible.
However, the two of them were equally lazy when it came to cultivation, and equally inept, which was perhaps where they were 'evenly matched'.
Although both were playboys, Qian Xing had a worse reputation. Besides being unskilled and lazy, he was arrogant and often bullied others, relying on his family's power. Rumors also whispered of numerous despicable deeds done in secret, but due to his family's influence, these matters were always swept under the rug.
In comparison, An Xiaopan was merely indulgent in food and liked to flaunt his wealth by parading through the city. However, because his father kept a tight rein on him, he didn't go too far.
"So, it's about this?" Mo Hu asked, understanding the source of An Xiaopan's anger.
An Xiaopan's face turned red with embarrassment.
"I was actually helping you," Mo Hu explained.
An Xiaopan gave him a cold smile, "How were you helping me?"
"How do your array skills compare to Young Master Qian's?"
An Xiaopan replied confidently, "At the very least, I'm not worse than him!"
Mo Hu was speechless. Was this really something to be proud of?
Mo Hu continued, "Exactly. With his level of skill, how could he possibly draw an array formation without a single mistake?"
"Of course," An Xiaopan agreed. "If I can't do it, he definitely can't either!"
"So, you understand now," Mo Hu said. "But do you think the instructor wouldn't realize this? The instructor is always strict, and he will surely punish Qian Xing. He will also inform Qian Xing's father, who will lose face and definitely not let his son off easily..."
An Xiaopan pondered for a moment, "That does make some sense. But I haven't heard of Qian Xing being beaten. Are you sure you're not lying to me...?"
Mo Hu rolled his eyes, "Family shame is not to be publicized. When a father beats his son, he does it behind closed doors. How would you know about it?"
An Xiaopan nodded, still feeling a bit scared, "You're right. My father never lets others know when he beats me!"
Mo Hu added, "Didn't your father not only refrain from beating you this time but also praise you?"
An Xiaopan immediately became proud, "Yes! The instructor gave me a grade of B, and when my father found out, he praised me for my progress and even gave me a lot of good things!"
An Xiaopan's mood swings were rapid—his anger vanished as quickly as it had come. He even felt a bit guilty and said to Mo Hu, "I was wrong to blame you! I'll treat you to a meal at Ling Shan Lou. It's owned by my family, and you can order whatever you want!"
Mo Hu hadn't expected An Xiaopan to be so generous, but he still declined, "That's not necessary. I still have some things to do."
An Xiaopan was displeased, "My father always teaches me to repay kindness. If you don't go, it means you look down on me!"
Recalling the painful memory of his father beating him until his buttocks turned red and swollen, An Xiaopan became more resolute, "This is a big favor, and you must accept my invitation!"
When An Xiaopan got upset, his childish temper made him stubborn and hard to deal with.
Mo Hu felt a headache coming on. He glanced at the door of the array pavilion and suddenly said, "Young Master An, forget about Ling Shan Lou. But there is a favor I'd like to ask of you. Can you help me with it?"
An Xiaopan patted his chest, "Name it!"
"Lend me ten spirit stones."
An Xiaopan frowned. He really didn't have ten spirit stones. To prevent him from recklessly spending spirit stones outside, An Xiaopan's father never allowed him to carry more than five spirit stones at a time.
He could treat Mo Hu to a meal at Ling Shan Lou and have it charged to his father's account. After all, it was just food and drink, and his father wouldn't make a fuss about it.
An Xiaopan handed the stones to Mo Hu, insisting, "Take them; you don't have to return them!"
Mo Hu shook his head. "I'll pay you back in a few days."
Mo Hu weighed the spirit stones in his hand, carefully stored them away, and bid farewell to An Xiaopan. He then returned to the same array pavilion, where the manager was still dozing off, and no customers were in sight.
As Mo Hu stepped inside, he tiptoed and placed the ten spirit stones on the counter.
"I've brought the spirit stones!" he announced.
The manager, who had dozed off not long ago, was abruptly awakened by the sound of the bell and the sight of Mo Hu, along with the ten spirit stones laid out on the table.
He picked up the stones, examined them carefully, and nodded in satisfaction. Then, he reached under the counter and produced a storage bag.
"Inside this bag, you'll find an array diagram for the Bright Fire Array, along with ten sheets of array paper and spirit ink. This should be enough for you to draw ten Bright Fire Arrays. Please note that this order has a deadline of ten days. If you exceed this deadline, the full deposit will be deducted. For each successfully drawn array, you will receive one spirit stone. However, any mistakes or failures to meet the standards will result in a deduction of one spirit stone from the deposit. These are standard rules applied by the trading house, and your brother should be well aware of them."
Mo Hu nodded in understanding.
If he could complete all the arrays successfully, he would earn ten spirit stones. Conversely, if he failed entirely, he would owe ten spirit stones. Thus, a success rate of more than half would be considered profitable.
The manager added a final reminder, "Remember, you have ten days. Don't miss the deadline, or I'll deduct the full deposit."
Mo Hu hastily nodded and bowed to express his gratitude before leaving the pavilion.
Upon returning home, Mo Hu sequestered himself in his room, focusing his attention on studying the intricacies of array formations.
The potential earnings of up to ten spirit stones were already quite substantial. While Mo Hu had earned twelve spirit stones by helping his fellow sect members with their array homework, such opportunities only arose a few times a year.
Moreover, assisting his fellow disciples with their homework wasn't exactly a proper undertaking. Although it could be done occasionally, doing it too often would hinder their progress.
On the other hand, working with the trading house was a different matter. If he performed well, he could earn spirit stones regularly and also improve his array skills—a win-win situation.
Mo Hu spread out the array diagram for the Bright Fire Array in front of him.
The diagram had been drawn by another array master and could be used as a template.
On the back of the diagram was an array explanation, which included the array's patterns, the type of brush and ink to be used, and other pertinent instructions. This was a standard format used by the cultivation world to record array formations.
The explanation for the Bright Fire Array included annotations on where to use the fire-attributed array patterns, how to connect the patterns, and the ratio for mixing the ink. Many of these concepts were unfamiliar to Mo Hu, making them challenging to understand.
This was the first time Mo Hu had seen such a formal array explanation. The arrays he had learned in the sect were much simpler, often consisting of only one or two basic patterns for disciples to practice and learn the fundamentals. They were a far cry from the more complex arrays used in the cultivation world.
At the end of the Bright Fire Array explanation was a note:
Bright Fire Array, a fire-attributed array, contains three array patterns, requires a cultivation base of the third layer of Qi Refinement or higher.
However, what truly caught Mo Hu's attention was a line of small characters written in vermillion ink below the note:
"Those who have not reached the required realm will have insufficient spiritual sense. Proceed with caution!"
Mo Hu, who was only at the second layer of Qi Refinement, furrowed his brows.
Spiritual sense was essential for cultivators in every aspect of their practice, from guiding spiritual energy and manipulating spiritual power to using spells, controlling spiritual artifacts, and refining pills and treasures.
It was common knowledge that array formation required a significant amount of spiritual sense, but the explicit warning about insufficient spiritual sense and the restriction on cultivation base, written in vermillion ink, gave Mo Hu pause.
He began to realize that he might not have fully grasped just how much spiritual sense was required for array formation.
"Could it be that array formation truly requires an extraordinary amount of spiritual sense?" Mo Hu pondered, stroking his small chin.
"Never mind, I'll familiarize myself with the array patterns first and practice on the stele tonight," he decided.
After memorizing the Bright Fire Array diagram, Mo Hu had dinner with his parents and then retired to his room. Using ordinary paper and ink, he practiced the array patterns a few times to get a feel for them. When the hour of the rat arrived, he lay down on his bed, closed his eyes, and the ancient and ethereal remnant stele appeared in his spiritual sea.
(End of Chapter)
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