Mo Shan had hunted a demon yesterday, skinned it, removed its bones, collected its demon core, cleaned up, and was about to head down the mountain to go home when a demon hunter he was somewhat acquainted with approached him, his attitude quite polite.
"Brother Mo, there's something I'd like to ask for your help with..."
This demon hunter's surname was Zhou, given name Cheng, of medium height and somewhat slim build.
Mo Shan was always generous and assumed there was something troubling Zhou, so he said, "Speak up. If I can help, I'll definitely lend a hand."
Zhou Cheng looked a bit embarrassed. "It's not that I'm asking Brother Mo to take action. It's just that there's something I'd like to ask your son for help with..."
Mo Shan was taken aback. "My son, Mo Hua?"
"Yes, yes," Zhou Cheng nodded. "Brother Mo and I have some acquaintance, but I've never met your son, so it wouldn't be quite appropriate to approach him directly. That's why I've come to ask you..."
Mo Shan looked at him suspiciously. "My son Mo Hua is only at the fourth layer of Qi Refining. What can he help you with?"
"He can! He can!" Zhou Cheng hurriedly said, "I have a younger son, fifteen or sixteen years old, at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, who recently became a demon hunter not long ago. But his talent is average, and his martial arts cultivation isn't that great. I'm afraid that if he encounters some troublesome demon in the mountains and something unexpected happens..."
Zhou Cheng sighed, "He's been lucky so far, not encountering any difficult demons and remaining unharmed. But as fathers and demon hunters, we both understand that once we enter the Black Mountain, anything can happen. Just thinking about it makes me unable to sleep peacefully."
Mo Shan deeply empathized and nodded.
"A while ago, I heard that there's a young formation master in your area who can inscribe formations on Vine Armor. At critical moments, it can provide extra defense against demons, potentially saving lives. Later, I found out this young formation master's surname is Mo, and his father is Mo Shan. I thought it was quite a coincidence, so I've come to ask you, Brother, for this favor."
Zhou Cheng looked at Mo Shan eagerly, afraid that Mo Shan might refuse.
Mo Shan hesitated for a moment and said, "It's not that I don't want to help you, but... I only know Mo Hua is learning formations. But I don't really understand formations myself, nor do I know how proficient he is. This formation of yours doesn't look simple, and Mo Hua might not necessarily be able to inscribe it."
"He can, he can," Zhou Cheng hastily replied.
"How do you know he can?" Mo Shan asked in puzzlement.
"I heard it from Old Xu," Zhou Cheng explained, "You know, Old Xu who went demon hunting with me—he used to have some conflicts with you and wanted to challenge you but got knocked down by you with one punch..."
Zhou Cheng chuckled before continuing, "He mentioned that the son of Old Meng's family, Da Hu, was stabbed in the chest by a Scorpion Demon some time ago. It was because a formation was inscribed on the Vine Armor that it didn't injure his heart and saved his life. He also said you're lucky to have such a good son, though he said it in a somewhat ambiguous manner. Don't blame him. After all, you did knock him down..."
"Oh, Old Xu..." Mo Shan recalled.
He had heard about Da Hu's injury before, but at the time, he was still in the mountains. After coming down, he heard that Da Hu was mostly fine, so he didn't pay much attention.
It was common for demon hunters to get injured. As long as they didn't lose limbs or affect their meridians and didn't lose their lives, it was nothing major—they were used to it.
If it was Da Hu, then it was indeed possible. Mo Hua had grown up playing with them since childhood, so it was normal for Mo Hua to inscribe a formation on Da Hu's Vine Armor.
Mo Shan pondered.
Zhou Cheng squeezed Mo Shan's hand, "Brother Mo, you must help me with this favor. Otherwise, I really can't rest assured about my son!"
Mo Shan thought for a moment and said, "Let me go back and ask. If Mo Hua really can inscribe the formation you mentioned, he'll definitely help you. But if he can't, then there's nothing I can do..."
Zhou Cheng was overjoyed and quickly said, "Thank you, Brother Mo! If he can really inscribe it, I'll pay you with as many spirit stones as needed."
Then he looked a bit ashamed, "But recently... I don't have many spirit stones on hand. If it's not enough, can I owe you and pay you back after I go demon hunting next month and distribute the spirit stones?"
Mo Shan waved his hand, "That's a small matter. We can discuss it later."
If he was the one helping, whether he accepted spirit stones or not was fine. But this was about finding Mo Hua. He needed to go back and ask his son's opinion first.
However, about this Vine Armor formation... Can Mo Hua really inscribe it?
Mo Shan returned home with doubts and directly asked Mo Hua, "Can you do it?"
"Yes." Mo Hua nodded.
"Then, are you free these days?"
"Yes."
"Can you help him with this?"
"Sure."
Mo Shan hadn't expected it to go so smoothly.
Yesterday, when someone asked him for help, their attitude was extremely sincere, leading him to think it was something difficult. But looking at Mo Hua now, it seemed like a trivial matter.
"How long will it take to inscribe?"
"Very quickly, half a day." Mo Hua said.
In reality, it wouldn't even take an hour. Mo Hua now had strong spiritual awareness and adept control over it. He was very familiar with the Iron Armor Formation, so there was almost no difficulty in inscribing it. Nevertheless, it's always good to allocate extra time.
Mo Shan nodded and then asked, "So... what's the usual compensation for inscribing formations?"
Seeing Mo Shan's hesitant expression, Mo Hua asked, "Dad, do you have something else on your mind?"
Mo Shan thought for a moment and said, "Their family isn't well-off either. Their younger son is a demon hunter, and everything must be provided. They probably don't have many spirit stones. If possible, accept less compensation. But it's up to you, since you're the one doing the formation."
Previously, Mo Shan had thought Mo Hua's cultivation wasn't high, and the formations he learned weren't particularly profound. Helping neighbors with simple formations, whether receiving spirit stones or not, was fine—losing a bit was no big deal.
But now Mo Shan realized it was different. Formations useful to demon hunters weren't just simple arrays with a couple of lines.
Mo Hua could inscribe such formations, almost comparable to ordinary formation masters in the city.
Mo Shan knew how difficult it was to become a formation master. Even for the most basic formation master, it took twenty years of painstaking study.
And Mo Hua was barely eleven or twelve years old, spending almost all his available time studying formations. While other children complained about cultivation and thought about where to play every day, Mo Hua studied formations day and night.
Mo Shan remembered that every time he returned from demon hunting, Mo Hua was almost always inscribing formations in his room. Occasionally, when Mo Shan returned late, the light in Mo Hua's room was still on.
Mo Shan felt a pang of sadness and didn't want his son to suffer losses.
Mo Hua didn't notice Mo Shan's deep thoughts. After some consideration, he said, "Bring over the Vine Armor and prepare a bottle of high-quality gold attribute spiritual ink. If the spiritual ink is better, the formation's effectiveness will be enhanced. But if we can't afford such good spiritual ink, ordinary ink will do. As for compensation, Dad, how much can you earn from demon hunting? About how many spirit stones per day?"
"Probably about five spirit stones per person."
Five stones a day, but no one could be in the mountains every day, nor would they encounter demons every day. Even if they did encounter them, they might not necessarily kill them. If they encountered a tough one and got injured, they'd have to spend money on medicine. So, these spirit stones weren't much, especially considering how dangerous demon hunting was.
"In that case, accept five spirit stones." Mo Hua said.
Mo Shan nodded, unable to resist asking, "Five spirit stones... Aren't you losing out?"
Hiring a formation master to inscribe a formation required a lot of spirit stones. Although Mo Shan had never hired one or had the spirit stones to hire one, he had lived in Tong Xian City for so long and knew a bit about such matters.
Mo Hua replied, "I'm still learning formations. It doesn't matter how much I earn. Having the opportunity to practice formations is what matters. Besides, Dad, haven't you always said we should look out for each other among fellow cultivators? When our family was in difficulty before, these uncles and aunts helped us a lot. Now that we're in a better position, it's only right to help them."
Mo Hua smiled and added, "Being able to help others, practice formations, and earn some spirit stones—sounds like a win-win situation, doesn't it?"
"Good," Mo Shan couldn't help but pat Mo Hua's head, "I'll have them prepare everything tomorrow for you to inscribe the formation."
After dinner, Mo Hua returned to his room to rest.
Mo Shan sat alone, thinking more and more contentedly. He thought about what his son had just said and about how his son was already considered a formation master. Mo Shan, who was usually steady and calm, couldn't hide the smile on his face.
(End of the Chapter)