Seeking Knowledge

The Mo family was overjoyed to hear that Mo Hua had been recommended by Instructor Yan to study under a respected formation master, and they had no worries at all.

Instructor Yan had taught at the Tongxian sect for many years and had a good reputation. Anyone recommended by him naturally held a distinguished status.

The Mo family were ordinary wanderers, without spirit stones or property, so they had no reason to suspect anyone's intentions toward them.

Moreover, formation masters of this status were usually inaccessible. This opportunity was indeed rare.

Now that Mo Hua was learning formations, he stayed and ate at home every day. Liu Ruhua could see her son daily and cook for him, which made her even happier.

Early the next morning, after finishing the lavish breakfast prepared by Liu Ruhua, Mo Hua set off for the southeastern mountains to visit Mr. Zhuang for his studies.

Arriving at the foot of the mountain, Mo Hua followed the path and reached the bamboo gate, where he noticed a plaque in front of the courtyard.

The plaque read "Zuowang Residence," which Mo Hua hadn't noticed yesterday.

Entering Zuowang Residence, Mo Hua found Mr. Zhuang lazily sitting by a pond, chin resting on his hand and holding a fishing rod made of green bamboo, but the line was empty without any bait.

Mo Hua peered into the pond and saw that there were no fish at all.

Mo Hua thought Mr. Zhuang might have some deeper meaning behind this, so he glanced up at him and realized Mr. Zhuang wasn't even fishing; he was just dozing off.

Fortunately, the old man Mo Hua had met yesterday called him aside and said, "The master often dozes off. Just ignore him when he does, and certainly don't disturb him."

"Oh, okay."

Mo Hua nodded in puzzlement.

The old man continued, "I am the steward here... taking care of the master's daily life. You can call me Kui Lao."

Mo Hua politely said, "Grandpa Kui."

Kui Lao glanced at Mo Hua but said nothing. Instead, he took out a chessboard and asked, "Do you play chess?"

Mo Hua looked at the chessboard. "Is this Wu Xing Chess?"

There were many types of chess in the cultivation world, such as Bagua Chess, Wu Xing Chess, Tianyuan Chess, and San Cai Chess. Wu Xing Chess was the simplest and most popular among children for enlightenment in the Five Elements cycle.

The rules were simple: each side had two types of pieces, and the board randomly generated different elemental pieces. Only when turned over would they reveal their attributes. A player's pieces that generated their own element were stronger, and pieces opposing in the Five Elements cycle could capture each other.

Simple, fun, and requiring little thought, it was an excellent game for young cultivators to develop their minds.

Mo Hua wasn't particularly good at Wu Xing Chess himself, but Kui Lao, who looked weathered, also played...

Kui Lao seemed to see through Mo Hua's thoughts. "Do you find Wu Xing Chess too simple?"

Mo Hua hesitated for a moment and replied honestly, "The greatest truths are often the simplest. Returning to simplicity is returning to the truth. The simpler something appears, the more complex it may actually be."

Kui Lao was taken aback, pondered for a moment, and then nodded in realization. "That's a good reason. Next time I play chess with someone, I'll say that."

Mo Hua: "..."

Thus, Mo Hua began to play chess with Kui Lao.

Initially, Mo Hua thought Kui Lao must be a skilled player and played with great concentration. However, after a few rounds, he found that Kui Lao and himself were evenly matched, neither better nor worse than the other. Relieved, they played happily.

Unknowingly, it was already noon. Mo Hua suddenly remembered why he had come here...

Mr. Zhuang had been napping by the pond all morning. Now, he opened his eyes, glanced at the sun, nodded, and said, "It's time for lunch."

Thus, Mo Hua spent the entire morning playing chess and wasting time with Mr. Zhuang by the pond, and then enjoyed a meal.

The meal was prepared by Kui Lao, with meat, vegetables, and rice, rich in spiritual energy but difficult to describe in taste.

Judging by Kui Lao's appearance, he certainly didn't seem adept at cooking.

However, Mr. Zhuang didn't mind. Grains entered the stomach, transformed into blood and energy—taste and sensation were all illusory. Regardless of the taste of the food, each bite was serene and elegant, as if not eating grains, but the dew of heaven and earth.

Mo Hua admired Mr. Zhuang's poised and graceful demeanor and couldn't help but feel a hint of envy.

Mo Hua tried to emulate Mr. Zhuang's slow and elegant way of eating, but he couldn't quite manage it. It felt awkward to him in various ways, so in the end, he simply picked up his bowl and ate his meal honestly.

Although the taste of the food wasn't great, the ingredients were of excellent quality and imbued with spiritual energy. Besides, Mo Hua was never a picky eater.

Watching Mo Hua enjoy the meal, Kui Lao even picked out a few pieces of meat for him.

After the meal, Mr. Zhuang seemed to finally remember why Mo Hua had come. He led Mo Hua to a bamboo pavilion in the courtyard.

There was a gentle breeze all around, along with the rustling of bamboo leaves.

"I've had disciples before, but they pursued different paths from yours. It's not fair to generalize their progress. Let me see how far you've come with your formation studies," Mr. Zhuang said.

Mr. Zhuang then asked Mo Hua several questions, each of which Mo Hua answered carefully.

After Mo Hua finished answering, Mr. Zhuang pondered for a moment, then fetched a thick tome and began to instruct Mo Hua.

"Your knowledge of formation theory is too weak. What you've learned so far are mostly basic formation patterns, fragmented and incomplete. Without a solid foundation, it will be difficult to grasp more profound formations in the future. You must first master the fundamental theories contained here about formations in the cultivation world. Different schools, attributes, and lineages are all covered. Memorize what you can and ask me about what you can't. Once your foundation in formation theory is solid, I will teach you how to draw formations."

Mr. Zhuang handed the thick tome to Mo Hua. "Thank you, Master!"

Mr. Zhuang waved his hand. "Feel free to find a comfortable spot in the courtyard to read. I need to rest my eyes."

Mo Hua bid farewell and then, clutching "Theory of Formation Sources," found a cool, shaded spot under a tree. He lay down on the soft grass and began flipping through the pages.

The beginning of "Theory of Formation Sources" expounded on how ancient immortals observed astronomy and examined geography, comprehending the Dao of heaven and earth. They manifested this understanding into formations, mimicking the operations of the Dao, thus possessing unpredictable power.

Among all paths of cultivation, formations were the most direct and fundamental method to comprehend the dao, yet they also demanded the most stringent requirements of spiritual perception.

Formation masters were ranked into nine grades, with those beyond the ninth grade being known as immortal formation masters. However, immortal formation masters were mere legends. In the past twenty thousand years, no one had truly ascended to immortality, and thus, there were no immortal formation masters. No one knew what the legendary formations capable of altering heaven and earth truly entailed.

Not only immortal formation masters, even ninth-grade formation masters were undocumented. Eighth-grade masters were also legends, with records only of several sixth and seventh-grade masters, who were all figures of great power from ancient clans, ancestral sects, or high-ranking officials of the Daoist court—unreachable masters of cultivation.

Records continued from fifth grade down to third, where some formation masters were noted. Below that, records ceased. Obviously, formation masters of lower grades were only included in the books if they had made unprecedented breakthroughs in formations, otherwise, they weren't worthy of being recorded.

After detailing the history of formations, the book delved into various schools of formation and analyzed various formation techniques and terms.

Due to different families, sects, and regions, formations varied widely. Even within the same type of formation, there might be numerous branches. The inheritance of different branches led to a situation where formations blossomed in diversity yet remained stagnant in their own ways.

Formations were categorized by their core components into different types like Taiji formations, Three Talents formations, Four Symbols formations, Five Elements formations, Six Harmonies formations, Seven Stars formations, Eight Trigrams formations, and so on. Among these, Five Elements and Eight Trigrams formations were the most widely circulated and applied, while other formations had their own specific uses.

...

Mo Hua spent half a day roughly browsing through "Theory of Formation Sources." After finishing it, he felt enlightened but also more aware of his own insignificance.

To Mo Hua, becoming a first-grade formation master was already not easy, let alone aiming for seventh, eighth, ninth grades, or even immortal grades. The path of formations was like an ocean, and Mo Hua, a mere speck within it.

(End of the Chapter)