Chapter 397: Intimidation
He recognized the array patterns individually, but when put together, he didn’t recognize them at all.
The formation pivot was completely unfamiliar, beyond his understanding of arrays. He couldn’t make sense of it.
And this array eye—how could it belong to any other formation?
And this formation, clearly only First-Grade, yet it contained eleven patterns?
Sun Yi’s vision went black for a moment, utterly baffled.
Then he thought:
“Is this kid lying to me?”
“Did he give me a fake formation?”
Sun Yi speculated, then immediately rejected the thought.
Impossible…
Though he couldn’t understand it, he vaguely felt that this was indeed a complete formation—a highly profound one.
More likely, it was the formation left behind by the Sun family’s ancestor!
In that case, it made sense that he couldn’t understand it.
Because it was a formation passed down from his ancestor.
His own formation skills were far inferior; it was normal that he couldn’t learn it.
But what he couldn’t accept was this:
He couldn’t learn the formation, yet this little array master named Mo Hua could?
He was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and this kid was only in Qi-Refining.
If he could draw the formation left by the ancestor, wouldn’t that mean this kid’s formation skill could rival the Sun family’s ancestor?
A storm of shock rose in Sun Yi’s heart, and he muttered:
“Impossible…”
Beside him, Sun Ze saw his father completely dumbfounded, his expression shifting constantly, and whispered:
“Father…”
Sun Yi snapped back to himself but still felt uneasy.
Sun Ze asked, “Father, is it this formation?”
Sun Yi furrowed his brows, nodded slowly, then shook his head again.
“Father, what do you mean?” Sun Ze didn’t understand.
Sun Yi said nothing.
He couldn’t exactly admit in front of so many people that he didn’t understand it, couldn’t learn it, and therefore wasn’t confident…
Sun Ze, thinking carefully, tentatively suggested:
“Should we capture this kid and interrogate him?”
Sun Ze clenched his fist lightly. “No matter how tight-lipped he is, a few blows with a fist will make him talk.”
Sun Yi hesitated.
But at that moment, Mo Hua’s clear voice came:
“The formation is yours. Time to make way. Those who break their word never have a good end!”
“Father…” Sun Ze pressed him as well.
Sun Yi’s brow furrowed, his expression conflicted.
He dared not, yet he was unwilling.
If this kid truly had such profound formation talent, he would never dare act.
But letting him leave so easily left a bitter taste.
Previously, he had planned to trick the formation from Mo Hua, then capture him and force him to marry into the Sun family, serving them.
Back then, he thought Mo Hua merely had talent, and his skill wouldn’t surpass his own.
Now, seeing this formation, he realized he had underestimated this little cultivator.
And at the same time, overestimated himself.
He had mocked the kid, saying he could never learn the ancestor’s formation. Now, the one who truly couldn’t learn it… was himself.
But could a Qi-Refining Seventh Layer really draw such a formation?
Sun Yi still didn’t believe it.
Was this kid lying to me?
Sun Yi frowned. “Kid, have you learned this formation?”
Mo Hua nodded. “You could say so.”
Sun Yi’s eyelid twitched.
After a moment’s thought, his expression darkened. A false smile played across his lips:
“This formation is the Sun family’s ancestral legacy, not to be shared. Since you’ve learned it, that makes you part of the Sun family. You must enter the Sun family, serve it, and repay its favor.”
The favor was fake; keeping him was real.
Sun Yi decided to gamble.
He realized one truth:
The ancestor’s formation was so profound that he might never learn it in his lifetime.
He couldn’t learn it, but this kid probably could.
Even if he couldn’t, it didn’t matter.
With the kid’s formation talent, he would make him marry into the Sun family, leaving descendants with Sun family blood.
Formation geniuses are rare.
He wanted this kid’s talent to stay in the Sun family, passed down through generations.
So whether this little array master had learned the formation or not, he would keep him today.
Sun Yi’s words meant going back on his previous promise, tearing off the mask.
Sun family cultivators tensed, ready to act.
The spiritual farmers gripped their tools, wary.
Ding Dachuan furiously cursed, “A family head who doesn’t keep his word is like spouting nonsense!”
Sun Yi just sneered, ignoring him.
He looked at Mo Hua and asked loudly: “Young brother, what do you say? If you join the Sun family, we will treat you well.”
Mo Hua shook his head: “Your Sun family is too small. I might not fit in.”
Sun Yi was stunned, then laughed: “Our Sun family is very large; there’s plenty of room for you!”
Mo Hua replied with composure: “I have status of my own.”
Such a young age, and what status could that be?
Sun Yi sneered inwardly, smiling outwardly: “No matter your status, our Sun family can accommodate it.”
“Really?”
Mo Hua smiled faintly and took out a ring, placing it on his delicate hand.
The ring was white jade inlaid with gold, simple yet exquisite.
Engraved with nine star marks, representing a Ninth-Grade Formation.
Above the star marks was a single point of starlight, signifying the Dao Court’s recognition of a true First-Grade Formation Master.
Sun Yi’s smile vanished; his pupils dilated.
“The Tianshu Ring?!”
Sun Ze, puzzled by his father’s reaction, asked: “What’s the Tianshu Ring?”
Sun Yi’s voice trembled: “The Tianshu Ring… he… is a First-Grade Formation Master…”
At this, all the Sun family cultivators gasped, disbelief on their faces.
The Sun family had formation traditions, though few.
Many in the family were formation masters.
They knew well the difficulty of First-Grade certification.
In remote regions, a certified First-Grade Formation Master was extremely rare.
Even Sun Yi himself, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, had yet to attain First-Grade.
And now, a little cultivator of just over ten years old was a First-Grade Formation Master?!
Even learning formations in the womb wouldn’t achieve that…
First-Grade Formation Masters are certified by the Dao Court’s Tianshu Pavilion.
Uncertified masters were merely self-proclaimed.
Only through the Dao Court’s evaluation could one truly be recognized.
In other words, a certified master stood behind the Tianshu Pavilion, one of the seven central pavilions of the Dao Court.
It was a leap in status and identity, far above ordinary cultivators.
“Is that really the Tianshu Ring?”
“How should I know?”
“The family head said so, it must be…”
The Sun family cultivators whispered among themselves.
Most hadn’t even qualified for certification, much less seen a Tianshu Ring.
Sun Ze asked softly: “Father, is that really the Tianshu Ring?”
Sun Yi, still shocked, nodded slowly.
He had visited several First-Grade Formation Masters, seeing their white jade rings inlaid with gold, the Tianshu certification.
He had been both envious and jealous, so it left a deep impression.
He had dreamed of one day attaining certification and having his own Tianshu Ring.
Yet he hadn’t even attained it, and now this little cultivator already had one.
“Could it be stolen?” Sun Ze asked.
Sun Yi frowned again.
He thought it might be stolen but felt it was unlikely.
Formation masters treated the Tianshu Ring as life itself—how could it be stolen?
Even less likely would someone dare flaunt a stolen Tianshu Ring.
Sun Yi looked at Mo Hua.
Mo Hua’s delicate hand, wearing such a solemn, exquisite ring, looked almost unreal.
And the aura and demeanor he displayed while wearing it were indeed those of a First-Grade Formation Master.
Sun Ze’s eyes gleamed greedily; he whispered:
“Father, let’s take the ring!”
Sun Yi couldn’t hold back and slapped him.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed?!”
Sun Ze was stunned, bewildered, not understanding what taboo he had crossed.
Sun Yi gritted his teeth and explained softly:
“You’re not a bandit or a thief, you’re a family cultivator!”
“With a name, a family, and property; such a large estate built in Qianjia Town, with every cultivator in the family registered with the Dao Court.”
“How dare you try to snatch a First-Grade Formation Master’s Tianshu Ring?!”
“A First-Grade Formation Master is certified by Tianshu Pavilion, backed by the Central Dao Court!”
“To steal a Tianshu Ring is to offend the Pavilion, to defy the Dao Court.”
“If they trace it, our entire Sun family could be executed!”
…
Sun Yi grew angrier, slapping Sun Ze again.
Sun Ze was terrified, silent.
Sun Yi’s anger subsided slightly; he sighed deeply, wary:
“This little cultivator, our Sun family cannot afford to offend…”