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"Young Master An?"
The chubby boy dressed in fine clothes was the eldest son of the An Family in Tongxian City. His name was An Xiaofu. Perhaps his father didn't have high expectations for him, so Xiaofu, meaning 'little wealth,' was chosen to symbolize contentment with what they had.
However, because of his plump appearance, his sectmates privately called him An Xiaopang.
An Xiaopang was a bit clumsy, sometimes displaying the temper of a spoiled young master, but he wasn't malicious. He would often ask Mo Hua to help him with formation assignments for assessments.
He couldn't draw formations at all, not even a single bit, and he didn't want to be punished by the instructor. At the same time, he didn't want to return home and get beaten by his father, so he could only beg Mo Hua for help.
At this moment, An Xiaopang was fuming with anger. "Mo Hua, how dare you! I treated you as a friend, but you look down on me?!"
Mo Hua was utterly baffled. "How am I looking down on you?"
An Xiaopang pulled out a formation diagram with red pen annotations from his pocket. "You helped me draw formation homework and made six mistakes! But when you did it for Qian Xing, that skinny monkey, there wasn't a single mistake! Isn't this looking down on me? Isn't this saying I'm inferior to him?"
The "skinny monkey" that Xiaopang mentioned was Qian Xing, the lanky young master from earlier. He belonged to the Qian Family, the third young master of their direct lineage.
The Qian Family was the largest family in Tongxian City, with the An Family ranking second. Both families owned businesses, competing fiercely in trade. Their ancestors had grudges, and their younger generations clashed incessantly, constantly comparing themselves in every aspect—even in body shape, one fat and one thin, like water and fire.
Though both were equally lazy in cultivation and devoid of learning, in this regard, they were "on par."
While both were idlers, Qian Xing's reputation was slightly worse. Not only was he lazy and poorly educated, but he was also arrogant and abusive, often using his family's influence to bully others. Rumor had it that he'd done many bad things secretly, but because his family shielded him, these matters ultimately went unresolved.
In contrast, An Xiaopang indulged in eating, drinking, and flaunting himself on the streets, showing off occasionally. However, because his father was strict, he rarely crossed the line.
"Oh, so it's about that?"
An Xiaopang's face flushed as he noticed Mo Hua's indifference.
"I was actually helping you," Mo Hua said.
An Xiaopang sneered at Mo Hua. "How exactly were you helping me?"
"How does your formation painting compare to that of Young Master Qian?"
An Xiaopang responded with confidence, "At the very least, it's not worse than his!"
*Mo Hua was speechless. Was this really something to be proud of?*
Mo Hua continued, "Exactly. With his skills, how could he possibly draw a faultless formation?"
"Of course! Even I couldn't do it—there's no way he could either!"
"So if you know this, how could the instructor not notice? The instructor is always strict and will certainly punish him. They might even report the matter to his father, which would embarrass his father. Naturally, there wouldn't be anything good in store for him..."
An Xiaopang paused in thought. "It kind of makes sense, but I haven't heard about Skinny Qian getting punished. Are you tricking me...?"
Mo Hua rolled his eyes. "Family scandals are never aired out. Fathers punish sons behind closed doors—you wouldn't know about it."
An Xiaopang nodded with anxiety. "That's true. When my father punishes me, he never lets anyone find out!"
Mo Hua added, "This time, didn't Old Master An not only not punish you but also praise you?"
Instantly, An Xiaopang grew smug. "Exactly! The instructor gave me a B-grade, and my father, upon hearing this, praised me for improving and rewarded me with many goodies!"
An Xiaopang's temper faded quickly and was replaced with guilt. He said to Mo Hua, "I wronged you! Let me invite you to the Spiritual Meal Building to enjoy a feast—my family owns it, so eat all you want!"
Mo Hua didn't expect An Xiaopang to be so generous but still declined. "No need, I have things I need to do."
An Xiaopang pouted and said, "My father always teaches me to reciprocate kindness. If you don't accept, that means you're looking down on me!"
Thinking about his previously bruised bottom from his father's punishment, An Xiaopang became even more persistent. "This favor isn't small—you must accept!"
When An Xiaopang's childish temper flared, he became quite difficult to deal with.
Mo Hua was getting a headache. Looking toward the Formation Pavilion's door, he suddenly said, "Young Master An, let's skip the Spiritual Meal Building, but can you do me a favor?"
An Xiaopang patted his chest. "Just tell me!"
"Lend me ten spirit stones."
An Xiaopang furrowed his brows. He really didn't have ten spirit stones. Old Master An, to prevent him from wasting spirit stones recklessly, never allowed him to carry more than five at a time.
He could invite Mo Hua to the Spiritual Meal Building, which would be charged to his father's account. After all, it was only food and drink, recorded into the books, and his father wouldn't mind. What his father worried about was him spending spirit stones on dubious activities without clear records. If his father didn't know, trouble could quietly arise.
An Xiaopang pulled out five spirit stones from his pocket, then looked at the servant beside him and said, "Give me all your spirit stones. I'll reimburse you when we get home."
Though the servant hesitated, he still handed over all of his spirit stones, managing to gather ten altogether.
An Xiaopang handed the spirit stones to Mo Hua. "Here you go—no need to repay them!"
Mo Hua shook his head. "I'll return them in a few days."
Mo Hua weighed the spirit stones in his hand before carefully storing them. He parted ways with An Xiaopang and returned to the Formation Pavilion, which was still devoid of customers, with the manager dozing off again.
Mo Hua entered, tiptoeing to place the ten spirit stones onto the counter.
"I've brought the spirit stones!"
The manager, awakened by the jingling sound, noticed Mo Hua and the spirit stones on the counter.
The manager picked up the spirit stones and, after closely inspecting their quality, nodded his head and retrieved a storage bag from under the counter.
"Inside here is a formation diagram for the Bright Fire Formation, ten sheets of formation paper, and spiritual ink—enough to draw ten Bright Fire Formations. The deadline is ten days. If you're late, the entire deposit will be deducted. For every completed Bright Fire Formation, you'll earn one spirit stone. If any are misdrawn or fail to meet standards, you'll lose one spirit stone from the deposit. These rules are standard practice by merchants, and your elder brother should already understand."
Mo Hua nodded.
If this batch of formations were executed successfully, he could earn ten spirit stones. If he failed completely, he'd lose ten spirit stones. But as long as he succeeded at least fifty percent, it'd be profitable.
The manager reminded him, "Don't forget, the deadline is ten days. If you're late, I'll deduct the entire deposit."
Mo Hua nodded hurriedly, bowed and thanked the manager, then left.
Mo Hua arrived home, locked himself in his room, and began concentrating on studying formation techniques.
Earning a potential ten spirit stones was already an impressive amount. While he'd helped sectmates with formation homework and earned twelve spirit stones, it was not something he could do often.
Plus, helping sectmates cheat on formation homework ultimately wasn't proper.
Occasionally was fine, but doing it for a long time could hamper their progress.
The merchant business was different. If done well, it could yield consistent profit while also allowing him to practice formations—a win-win.
Mo Hua spread out the Bright Fire Formation diagram before him.
The diagram was pre-drawn by other formation masters and could be used as a template.
On the back of the diagram were explanatory notes on the formation, detailing specific formation patterns, the required pens and spiritual ink, and other key points—a widely used format for recording formations in the Tao Cultivation World.
The diagram's explanation covered the Bright Fire Formation, including notes on fire-series formation patterns, pattern connections, ink formulation, and ink usage ratios. Many of the concepts were unfamiliar to Mo Hua, and he struggled to comprehend them.
This was the first time Mo Hua had encountered a formal formation diagram. In the sect, he had learned only the simplest formations—rudimentary ones containing one or two foundational patterns meant for beginner disciples to study and gradually grasp. These were far removed from the formations widely applicable in the Cultivation World.
At the end of the Bright Fire Formation's explanatory notes, there was a bold annotation:
Bright Fire Formation, a fire-series formation consisting of three patterns, requiring a third-level Qi Refinement realm or higher.
What caught Mo Hua's attention most was a handwritten note in red ink following the annotation:
Caution: Insufficient Divine Sense. Exercise prudence before learning!
Mo Hua, who was only at the second level of Qi Refinement, frowned deeply.
*A cultivator's every action required Divine Sense—to guide spiritual energy, wield spiritual power, cast spells, manipulate spiritual artifacts, refine pills, and craft artifacts—all necessitated the use of Divine Sense.*
*Among these, formation painting consumed the most Divine Sense, a fact well known among cultivators. But this note specifically mentioning 'Insufficient Divine Sense' and advising caution, with the realm requirement emphasized using bold red ink, made Mo Hua realize there might be a level of challenge he hadn't yet fully grasped.*
"Could it be that formation painting requires far more Divine Sense than I expect?"
*Mo Hua rested his small chin in thought.*
"Forget it, I'll familiarize myself with the formation patterns first and practice on the tablet later tonight."
Mo Hua memorized the Bright Fire Formation diagram, ate dinner with his parents, then returned to his room to practice the patterns using ordinary paper and ink. By the time 1 a.m. rolled around, he lay down on his bed, closed his eyes, and the ancient, ethereal remnant tablet surfaced in his Sea of Consciousness.