"Forget it, focus on the present tasks for now..."
Mo Hua thought to himself before earnestly flipping through the techniques of lower and middle grades.
"Little Five Elements Jue": A lower to middle-grade technique, suitable for cultivators with Five Elements-series spiritual roots, capable of cultivating spiritual power for seventy cycles. To reach completion in the Qi Refinement Realm, at least one thousand spirit stones are needed for refinement, and heavenly and earthly treasures such as Hundred Years Soil are required.
"Spring Return Technique": A lower to middle-grade technique, suitable for those with Wood-series spiritual roots, capable of cultivating spiritual power for seventy-five cycles. To reach completion in the Qi Refinement Realm, at least one thousand one hundred spirit stones are needed for refinement, and heavenly and earthly treasures such as Evergreen Wood or Ten Year Old and Above Evergreen Leaves are required.
"Hundred Flames Jue": A lower to middle-grade technique, suitable for those with Fire-series spiritual roots, capable of cultivating spiritual power for sixty cycles. To reach completion in the Qi Refinement Realm, at least nine hundred spirit stones are needed for refinement, and heavenly and earthly treasures such as Melting Fire Stone are required.
...
The required spirit stones for cultivating middle-grade lower-tier techniques weren't few, but compared with superior-grade techniques, it was already much better.
However, you lose some, you gain some. The lower to middle-grade techniques consumed fewer spirit stones but also produced less cultivated spiritual power.
With Mo Hua's middle-grade lower-tier spiritual roots, cultivating middle-grade lower-tier techniques, his spiritual power in the same realm would be just over half of that of a cultivator with a superior-grade lower-tier spiritual root.
And this was just for the lower tier, the middle and higher tiers of superior-grade techniques would undoubtedly yield even thicker, more robust spiritual power. The further one cultivated, the greater the disparity in spiritual power due to differences in spiritual roots would become, like the difference between the heavens and the mire.
Moreover, spiritual roots were divinely predestined and could not be changed.
"Indeed, some are born under a lucky star..."
Mo Hua shook his head, but since spiritual roots couldn't be changed, there was no point in dwelling on it.
Mo Hua turned to the last page of the "Spell Skills Catalogue" and was completely stunned by the line of small print he saw.
"Inheritance fee... what is that?"
Mo Hua read the footnote below:
The techniques of Tongxian Gate are the painstaking compilation, dedicated study, and meticulous improvement of successive sect leaders and elders, embodying the efforts of generations of predecessors.
Disciples of the sect must pay a certain amount of spirit stones to gain the qualifications to inherit the techniques.
It also detailed the specific costs for inheritance below.
The inheritance fee for a superior-grade lower-tier technique was one thousand one hundred spirit stones, but due to the scarcity of superior spiritual roots, there was a discount, making it only nine hundred and ninety-eight spirit stones.
The inheritance fee for middle-grade techniques was a bit lower, and even lower for the middle-grade lower-tier, but it was still two hundred spirit stones.
Mo Hua was dumbfounded.
What's with this inheritance fee?
He hadn't heard of this before.
Why was the sect charging fees out of the blue? This was extortion!
Mo Hua, with only eight spirit stones to his name, sighed helplessly.
The Tao Cultivation World was proving to be all too real and practical...
"Once you have chosen a cultivation technique and paid the inheritance fee, the sect will impart the technique to you. The choice of technique is critical, so it's best to consult your parents and elders before making a decision. Don't overreach for higher techniques, nor should you miss out on your future in cultivation due to short-sighted choices."
Instructor Yan finished speaking and walked away, seemingly reluctant to handle such matters.
After Instructor Yan left, the disciples gathered in small groups to chat excitedly, some with joyous faces, others frowning in distress, and the room suddenly filled with noise:
"What's this inheritance fee? I've never heard of it before..."
"Who knows, but if the sect is collecting it, can we even refuse to pay?"
"The 'Heaven and Earth, Mystery and Yellow Jue', just the inheritance fee alone is over a thousand spirit stones, tsk tsk..."
"If you really learn it, you'll probably end up in servitude to the sect."
"Thanks, my spiritual root doesn't even qualify."
"Both my parents have middle-grade spiritual roots, so why do I only have a lower-grade spiritual root? There's hardly any technique for me to choose from..."
"You should read 'Treatise on the Evolution of Cultivators' Spiritual Roots' to find out why parents with middle-grade spiritual roots could give birth to someone like you with lower-grade roots..."
"By the way, do we really have anyone with a superior spiritual root here?"
"Yes, I have a distant cousin who has a superior spiritual root, but his father is a gambler and his mother is lazy. Their family is dirt poor, and he only chose a lower to middle-grade technique, completely wasting his good innate potential. It's such a pity..."
"Then even if I have a superior spiritual root, I still won't be able to afford the cultivation."
"You could always marry into a rich family..."
"Not a chance!"
...
The disciples continued to discuss, while Mo Hua also propped up his little chin in thought.
This sect inheritance fee had exceeded his expectations.
The "Spell Skills Catalogue" did list cultivation techniques that Mo Hua could choose from, but his parents had just managed to scrape together his living expenses, and in the short term, they couldn't afford to spend that many spirit stones. Even if they could assemble the funds through borrowing here and there, it would impose a heavy burden on the family.
"Since that's the case, I can't choose a cultivation technique for now. I'll make do with the 'Breath Reclaiming Technique' for the time being. I'll wait until I've saved up enough spirit stones through drawing formations before I select a technique from the catalogue to cultivate. After all, I've only reached the third layer of Qi Refinement. There's still some time before breaking through to the fourth layer."
Mo Hua tossed the "Spell Skills Catalogue" into his storage bag, not planning to bring it back home for his parents to see anytime soon. His priority was drawing formations to earn spirit stones.
In the following days, Mo Hua's life remained the same as before—persisting in his cultivation, attending classes, and drawing formations in his free time.
The Sect's life was monotonous, yet it was also quite comfortable.
Tongling Peak was picturesque, with lush greenery and occasional mists, frequented by birds and surrounded by the fragrance of flowers.
After classes, the disciples of the Outer Gate would often wander through the mountains; the female disciples, pretty and graceful, enjoyed flower-watching together.
The male disciples chased after spirit beasts across the mountains while nascent pairs of male and female cultivators whispered sweet nothings in secluded flower-strewn brooks, and jealous disciples occasionally fought.
However, all this had nothing to do with Mo Hua, who dedicated his entire focus to formations. Aside from eating and attending classes, he spent all his time researching formations, even practicing formation markings on the stone stele in his sleep.
Among familiar peers, Da'hu had reached the fifth layer of Qi Refinement, and Shuanghu and Xiaohu had already attained the fourth layer; they were cultivating on Tongxuan Peak. Although the two peaks were not far apart, knowing that Mo Hua was focused on learning about formations, they generally didn't disturb him without good reason.
With his innocent and intelligent face, coupled with a harmless appearance and amiable demeanor, Mo Hua was quite well-liked on Tongling Peak, and nobody thought of bullying him.
Moreover, Mo Hua's achievements in formations were impressive, drawing the attention of Instructor Yan. Anyone trying to bully Mo Hua would face serious consequences once Instructor Yan found out. Instructor Yan despised strife among disciples and lack of focus on cultivation, dealing extremely severe punishments upon discovery.
Furthermore, Da'hu and the others had always looked out for Mo Hua. They were tall and strong, following the path of body cultivation and planning to enter Big Black Mountain to become Monster Hunters.
In their free time, they would look for opportunities to spar. Whenever there was trouble on Mo Hua's end, they were quick to roll up their sleeves and hurry over from Tongxuan Peak.
Mo Hua, undistracted in his cultivation, had had interactions with only one other disciple—An Xiaopang.
Mo Hua returned the ten spirit stones he had borrowed from An Xiaopang before the New Year.
When Mo Hua gave him the spirit stones, An Xiaopang was stunned, clearly having forgotten about the loan. It took him a while to remember.
As a scion of the An Family from Tongxian City, he truly didn't care much about the ten spirit stones; it was also possible he just had a poor memory.
After ruminating with furrowed brows for a while, An Xiaopang's expression became complicated as he said, "I've grown up like this, and you're the first one who has actually thought of returning the spirit stones after borrowing them."
Mo Hua sighed inwardly, thinking this must be the naivety of a landlord's silly son.
Some of the lent spirit stones might have been forgotten by him, while others might have been deliberately not returned by the borrowers. He really didn't lack spirit stones, so over time, he had simply gotten used to it.
"You're so... kind, be careful not to be deceived by others."
Mo Hua changed his words mid-sentence, from "silly" to "kind," and patted An Xiaopang's shoulder, advising him euphemistically.
An Xiaopang's expression grew even more complicated, with a hint of being moved:
"Little Mo bro, everyone says I'm stupid, but only you know that I'm just kind-hearted. Out of all the disciples I've met, you are the smartest, no wonder you're so good at drawing formations!"
For a moment, Mo Hua was at a loss for words.
After a month or so, the Sect had a ten-day break, granting a two-day holiday.
Mo Hua left the Sect and went to Fated Gathering on North Street, where he handed over the Bright Fire Formation he had drawn to Manager Wang, then asked:
"Do you have a formation that's a bit harder than the Bright Fire Formation, something that could exchange for more spirit stones?"
Manager Wang cast a glance at Mo Hua, "Did your elder brother ask you to inquire?"
"Yes!" Mo Hua nodded.
"There is one," Manager Wang dipped his head and rummaged behind the desk, then drew out a formation diagram, which had several unfamiliar formation markings on it.
"The Solid Earth Formation, which can solidify earth and stone. It's commonly used by cultivators when constructing houses or reinforcing doors and windows. The Solid Earth Formation is a bit more difficult than the Bright Fire Formation, and the compensation for each Solid Earth Formation Method is two spirit stones."
Two spirit stones... that's double the Bright Fire Formation's reward.
"May I take a look at the formation method map first?"
Manager Wang gave Mo Hua a look that said, "What's the use of you looking? Your brother should be the one to see it."
Still, despite his words, he handed the map to Mo Hua. These basic formation method maps weren't particularly rare items anyway, so it didn't hurt to show them to others.
Mo Hua glanced over the map and realized that indeed many of the formation markings were ones he had never seen before, and they were also not taught by the instructors at his Sect.
"I wonder how long it will take to learn this formation..."
The fees for inheriting techniques from the Sect were too expensive; it would take a long time to save up for them by earning through Bright Fire Formation.
Mo Hua wanted to draw a new formation, but he hesitated a bit. If the quality was not good, he might lose spirit stones, and if he couldn't learn it, failing to finish within the deadline, the Formation Pavilion would deduct the entire deposit.
"Well, you can't catch a wolf without risking the sheep!"
Mo Hua made his decision. Even if he didn't learn it within the deadline and all twenty spirit stones were deducted, he could just go back to earning them by drawing the Bright Fire Formation.
To become a Formation Master, he would have to draw formations much more difficult than this. After all, he couldn't spend his lifetime just drawing the Bright Fire Formation.