Chapter 299: Never Lose One’s True Heart

Proving the Dao through Divine-Sense… with supreme Divine-Sense, one perceives the Great Dao itself.

Mo Hua was utterly astonished.

As he carefully pondered it, he realized that cultivating through Divine-Sense truly was the path most suited for him.

All of his cultivation and skills depended upon Divine-Sense.

First of all, array drawing required Divine-Sense. Without a strong Divine-Sense, one could neither comprehend arrays nor hope to learn and deploy them.

And arrays and Divine-Sense complemented one another. Constant practice of array drawing tempered the Sea of Consciousness, thereby strengthening Divine-Sense itself.

Secondly, the cultivation method Mo Hua practiced contained a bottleneck—a maze formation hidden within his Sea of Consciousness.

If his Divine-Sense were not strong enough, he could not unravel the maze, nor shatter that bottleneck; his cultivation would forever stagnate.

Lastly were his spells. Whether it was the Fireball Art, which demanded precise Divine-Sense targeting and unrivaled speed, or the Flowing-Water Step, which required manipulating spiritual power to guide the body, or even the Concealment Art, which relied on subtle Divine-Sense to hide one’s presence—

all of these grew stronger the more powerful one’s Divine-Sense became.

In that light, proving the Dao through Divine-Sense was indeed the most suitable—and perhaps the only possible—path for him.

Mo Hua nodded slightly, then suddenly thought of something and asked,

“But… my Divine-Sense has already reached Foundation Establishment. What else is there to ‘establish’?”

Zhuang Mister replied calmly,

“It’s not enough.”

“Not enough? My Divine-Sense has already formed a foundation—how can that still be insufficient?”

Wasn’t it said that during the Qi-Refining Realm, reaching Divine-Sense Foundation was extremely rare? How could that still be not enough?

Mo Hua scratched his head in confusion.

Zhuang Mister said,

“For others, it would be enough. But for you—it’s not.”

“Why?”

Zhuang Mister didn’t answer directly. Instead, he asked,

“Zi Sheng and Zi Xi—don’t they both have greater talent than you? They’re older, their inheritances deeper, their resources and spirit stones more abundant…”

He listed so many advantages that Mo Hua could only sigh inwardly.

Comparing people really was a quick path to frustration.

Among Zhuang Mister’s registered disciples, it seemed Mo Hua was the one dragging the average down… and dragging down a pair of geniuses at that.

After enumerating the Bai siblings’ merits, Zhuang Mister asked,

“Do you know why they haven’t reached Foundation Establishment yet?”

Mo Hua thought for a moment and replied,

“They’re tempering their realm?”

“Correct,” Zhuang Mister nodded. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Qi-Refining is the first realm, the true starting point of cultivation. It’s where one must consolidate the foundation and cultivate the source—it cannot be rushed.”

Mo Hua frowned slightly.

“But, sir, if that’s the case, then shouldn’t Qi-Refining itself be the Foundation Establishment stage? Isn’t it in the Qi-Refining Realm that we lay the foundation of the Dao?”

Zhuang Mister shook his head.

“Qi-Refining stabilizes the roots, but it’s not the same as Foundation Establishment.”

“Then what makes Foundation Establishment so extraordinary?”

Zhuang Mister’s expression turned solemn.

“Foundation Establishment is the first great breakthrough among all realms of cultivation.”

“When a cultivator establishes the foundation, their spiritual power transforms—condensed into liquid. The body transforms—blood and essence become dense as mercury. And at the same time, the Sea of Consciousness expands, and Divine-Sense doubles.”

Divine-Sense doubles!

Mo Hua’s heart skipped a beat.

“Then that means…”

Zhuang Mister gave a faint nod, his gaze deep.

“It means that no matter how strong one’s Divine-Sense is during Qi-Refining, after Foundation Establishment, it will directly double.”

Mo Hua’s heart trembled violently, his face full of disbelief.

For other cultivators, their Qi-Refining Divine-Sense would double into the Foundation level.

But his Divine-Sense was already at Foundation level—so if that doubled… just how powerful would it become?

He could hardly imagine it.

“Then my Divine-Sense…” he ventured.

Zhuang Mister answered,

“Your current Divine-Sense is roughly at the early Foundation level. After doubling, it will reach the mid-Foundation level.”

After a brief pause, he added,

“And if someone were to have mid-Foundation Divine-Sense before Foundation Establishment, then after the breakthrough—though not equal to a Golden Core cultivator—they’d likely have Divine-Sense at the late Foundation peak.”

Mo Hua’s jaw dropped.

If that were true, then after Foundation Establishment, his Divine-Sense would be unimaginably strong! Becoming a Second-Rank Array Master would be effortless; bottlenecks would crumble; his Fireball Art would be faster, his Flowing-Water Step lighter, and his Concealment Art almost impossible to detect.

He couldn’t help but feel an eager excitement rise within him—until he noticed Zhuang Mister watching him with a faint, knowing smile.

Mo Hua’s heart skipped again.

From experience, that look meant his teacher had more to say.

“It’s not that simple… is it?” he asked quietly.

Zhuang Mister chuckled softly.

“Tell me, how do you plan to strengthen your Divine-Sense?”

Mo Hua thought for a moment.

“Same as before—drawing arrays, practicing formations?”

“At your current level, drawing First-Rank arrays barely increases your Divine-Sense at all.”

Mo Hua froze.

That explained why, lately, drawing First-Rank arrays had felt dull and flavorless.

They were simply too easy now—no longer able to temper Divine-Sense or deepen his comprehension of Dao Laws.

“Then… should I ‘eat’ another Visualization Diagram?” he asked in a whisper.

Zhuang Mister couldn’t help knocking him lightly on the head.

“Leaving aside whether you can even discern a diagram’s true nature or predict its consequences—even if you could devour it, do you really think you’d be lucky enough to find another one?”

“Besides, not all Visualization Diagrams are equal. Some contain entities too powerful. In that case—who eats whom isn’t so certain.”

Mo Hua thought of the Dao Monument within his Sea of Consciousness. Even if he might not be devoured, he didn’t wish to invite disaster.

If some mighty evil entity entered his Sea and saw that Monument—and if he failed to suppress it—then things would become truly dire.

He nodded earnestly.

Since devouring diagrams was off the table, and ordinary arrays were too shallow, there was only one path left.

“Then I’ll practice the Spirit-Reversal Array,” Mo Hua said.

“Not only that one,” Zhuang Mister replied. “Any First-Rank Ten-Pattern array that contains a Heavenly Dao anomaly can strengthen your Divine-Sense.”

“There are others like that?”

“There are,” Zhuang Mister said, “but not in my possession.”

Mo Hua’s eyes brightened.

“Can they be obtained?”

Zhuang Mister chuckled.

“We’ll speak of that later. For now, master the Spirit-Reversal Array. Once you’ve truly grasped it, I’ll teach you something new. If you can fully comprehend it, I’ll find other Heavenly-Dao anomaly arrays for you.”

Mo Hua bowed deeply, full of gratitude.

“Thank you, sir.”

Zhuang Mister spoke at length, and weariness crept across his features.

Mo Hua rose quietly, not wishing to disturb him further—but just as he turned to leave, Zhuang Mister spoke again.

“I nearly forgot to tell you…”

Reclining in his bamboo chair, he gazed at Mo Hua with calm warmth.

“Those evil thoughts—they’re not entirely useless.”

“The evil thoughts of that blue-faced ghost?”

“Yes.”

“What use can they have?”

“Use them to temper your heart.” Zhuang Mister’s eyes grew intent as he said,

“For a cultivator seeking the Dao and immortality, there are countless obstacles and dangers. Beyond cultivation realms, the greatest peril lies in the Dao Heart itself.”

“Can one lose their Dao Heart?”

“Yes.” Zhuang Mister nodded, his expression distant.

“The path of cultivation is long. At the beginning, one’s heart may be pure, wholly devoted to the Dao. But as the years pass, worldly desires stain the mind. In time, one forgets what they sought—or even why they live at all.”

“Those who once pursued the Dao fall to indulgence in pleasure; those who vowed to slay demons become demons themselves; those who cherished all living beings end up tormenting them; those once full of compassion grow numb and unfeeling…”

“The human heart is the most resilient thing in existence—and also the most fragile.”

“The vast world is full of illusions; endless time corrodes the Dao Heart.”

“That is why I told you to prove the Dao through Divine-Sense.”

“A strong Divine-Sense can pierce through illusion; a clear heart can repel all corruption. No matter what happens in the future, I hope your Dao Heart remains as it was—true to yourself, unwavering, never losing your origin.”

Having spoken these words with deep gravity, Zhuang Mister suddenly seemed overcome with fatigue. His eyes closed, and he drifted into a peaceful sleep.

Mo Hua bowed respectfully, silent and reverent.

He committed his teacher’s words firmly to heart—especially the final two lines:

Never lose one’s path. Never forget one’s true heart.

(End of Chapter)