Chapter 404: Little Lingyin Sect
During the rest of the journey, Mo Hua would occasionally stick his little head out the window, watching the scenery of the world.
He would look at the mountains, the immortal cities, the ruins and broken temples, searching for any trace of formations.
If he detected any signs, he would release his Divine Sense and carefully calculate.
If he traced the spiritual energy of a formation, he would stop the carriage and investigate personally.
He would ask local cultivators, visit local formation masters, or climb to a rarely trodden mountaintop to examine an ancient stone stele standing there…
This way, traveling and stopping along the route, two months passed.
Mo Hua had indeed discovered some special formations, even two absolute formations.
But one was incomplete, and the other had only ten lines—and those were simple lines, containing only basic Daoist essence.
Even without consulting a Dao Monument, Mo Hua learned them in just a few days.
After that, there were no signs of any absolute formations.
No ten-line first-grade formations, no eleven-line first-grade formations, let alone twelve-line first-grade formations.
Mo Hua sighed.
The Dao Monument in his Sea of Consciousness had “gone on strike” and hadn’t recovered yet, so he practiced far fewer formations daily.
He could only rely on drawing the Thick-Earth Formation to enhance his understanding and sharpen his Divine Sense.
But his Divine Sense had already reached twelve lines.
Drawing an eleven-line Thick-Earth Formation was effortless and no longer honed his Divine Sense much.
In recent days, his Divine Sense had grown extremely slowly.
He was still far from thirteen-line Divine Sense.
By comparison, his cultivation progress had advanced much faster.
It was likely that even until the peak of Qi-Refining ninth layer, his Divine Sense would remain at twelve lines, never reaching thirteen, let alone mid-Foundation Establishment level.
Foundation Establishment with twelve-line Divine Sense…
Mo Hua sighed again; this was much worse than he had anticipated.
He would need to think of a way…
After some thought, Mo Hua went to see Mister Zhuang and asked,
“Master, are twelve-line formations really that rare?”
Mister Zhuang sipped his tea leisurely and said,
“Any absolute formation is rare. Whether you encounter one depends first on fate, second on discernment.
“If fate doesn’t allow, you won’t find it; if your discernment isn’t enough, even if you encounter it, you won’t recognize it.
“You encountering the Thick-Earth Formation already shows deep fate; you can’t expect an absolute formation at every turn.
“Searching for formations requires long patience and time.”
Mo Hua nodded, then frowned and sighed,
“But if this continues, before I reach Foundation Establishment, I’ll only have twelve-line Divine Sense…”
Mister Zhuang tapped Mo Hua’s forehead lightly and smiled,
“Speak plainly if you have something to say; don’t play such tricks with me.”
Mo Hua grinned, “I’ve heard of a twelve-line formation.”
Mister Zhuang nodded slightly. “Tell me about it.”
“Master, do you remember Instructor Yan?” Mo Hua asked.
Mister Zhuang’s eyes moved subtly. “The Spirit-Pivot Formation Diagram?”
Mo Hua was shocked. “Master, you even know about this?”
Seeing Mo Hua’s astonished expression, Mister Zhuang’s eyes hinted at a smile,
“I met Instructor Yan once, but only because of this formation.”
Mo Hua pondered and gradually understood.
Mister Zhuang, so profound and reclusive, hiding his tracks in the mountains, was someone ordinary cultivators could never meet.
In Tōngxiān City, no one had ever seen Mister Zhuang except himself.
Even Mo Hua’s parents, Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua, only knew his name, not his appearance.
Instructor Yan was different.
Mo Hua had always thought Yan’s formation skills were exceptional.
But that was because he had been a disciple of Tōngxiān Sect, guided by Yan, and grateful for his instruction.
In reality, Yan was only a Qi-Refining cultivator, not even a first-grade formation master.
Such mastery in Tōngxiān City, a minor immortal city, was considered strong.
But in Mister Zhuang’s eyes, it was probably insignificant.
Based on formation skill alone, Yan wouldn’t likely have the chance to meet Mister Zhuang, let alone recommend Mo Hua to become a registered disciple.
It seemed Mister Zhuang recognized the causal inheritance of an absolute formation in Yan, which is why he paid special attention.
This led to Mo Hua’s fateful opportunity to become his disciple.
Mo Hua asked, “Master, is the Spirit-Pivot Formation powerful?”
Mister Zhuang nodded,
“Absolute formations all have extraordinary effects, following spiritual energy principles that are far beyond the ordinary, approaching the Dao.
“The Reverse-Spirit Formation is like this, the Thick-Earth Formation is like this, and the Spirit-Pivot Formation is the same.
“The Reverse-Spirit Formation destroys, the Thick-Earth Formation nurtures, while the Spirit-Pivot Formation focuses on the word ‘Pivot.’
“The Spirit-Pivot is the core of spiritual energy, concerning the essential structure of spiritual power…”
Mister Zhuang paused, as if stopping himself from saying more.
Mo Hua, eager for knowledge, quickly asked,
“Master, why did you stop?”
Mister Zhuang smiled. “The rest, if you obtain this formation, you can comprehend yourself. If you don’t obtain it, explaining it would be meaningless.”
Mo Hua thought silently, Master is teasing me again…
Looking up, he saw Mister Zhuang watching him with a faint smile.
Mo Hua smiled sheepishly.
He had just thought ill of his master, and the master had already noticed.
Mister Zhuang shook his head indulgently, saying nothing further.
Mo Hua then asked, “Master, what is the origin of the Spirit-Pivot Formation? And Instructor Yan’s sect—what inheritance is that?”
Mister Zhuang thought briefly, then slowly said,
“Instructor Yan’s sect is called the Little Lingyin Sect.
“The root of the Little Lingyin Sect lies in the formation sect that declined a thousand years ago, the Great Lingyin Sect.
“A thousand years ago, the Great Lingyin Sect was destroyed, its disciples scattered, and its inheritance dispersed.
“They didn’t want the sect’s name to be lost but didn’t dare call it ‘Great Lingyin,’ so they changed a character and called it ‘Little Lingyin Sect.’”
Mister Zhuang looked at Mo Hua and added,
“Besides the ‘Little Lingyin Sect,’ other sects with ‘Lingyin’ in their names, like Little Lingyin Mountain, Lingyin Gate, or Lingyin Valley, may all be related to the Great Lingyin Sect.
“If you happen to encounter them, you could visit and make connections, perhaps finding remnants of their inheritance.”
Mo Hua nodded, remembering the words “Lingyin.”
Mister Zhuang sighed lightly, then continued,
“I originally wished to meet Instructor Yan just to see the Spirit-Pivot Formation Diagram of the Lingyin Sect.
“Unfortunately, the Little Lingyin Sect fell, and the formation was stolen and lost.
“Though I didn’t see the diagram, Instructor Yan is upright and generous in teaching, reflecting the style of formation masters from the Great Lingyin Sect.
“I admired him for this, which is why I allowed him to visit when necessary…”
Mister Zhuang looked at Mo Hua’s clear eyes and silently thought,
“Who would have known that the next time he came, he would bring along a prodigiously talented and clever little disciple…”
Mo Hua didn’t know what Mister Zhuang was thinking, only frowned in thought and asked,
“What happened to cause the Little Lingyin Sect to fall?”
Mister Zhuang said, “Since you now know the Spirit-Pivot Formation Diagram, you should also know about the fall of the Little Lingyin Sect.”
“Mm,” Mo Hua nodded. “I heard a traitor killed the master and ancestors and stole the formation diagram.”
Mo Hua felt anger.
Instructor Yan was diligent, responsible, and a good teacher.
His master must have been a devoted formation master and teacher.
Yet such a person was killed by a treacherous disciple.
And that disciple stole the sect’s secret diagram, causing the sect to collapse…
Mister Zhuang sighed,
“Human greed blinds loyalty. Many cultivators in this world are like this.
“Do not assume that because Tōngxiān City’s people are simple and wandering cultivators help each other, that all cultivators are the same.
“Among cultivators, there are good people, evil people, and some who fluctuate between good and evil depending on circumstance.
“The path of cultivation is unpredictable, and the human heart is perilous and inscrutable.
“One must guard not only against evil but also against the good turning evil under temptation…”
Mister Zhuang tirelessly lectured.
Mo Hua listened, nodding repeatedly:
“Master, I understand. Those who are good to me, I will be good to; those who are bad to me, I will be bad to.”
Mister Zhuang couldn’t help smiling at Mo Hua’s somewhat childish words, then asked,
“And if the one good to you is evil, and the one bad to you is good?”
“As long as I do no evil, those who harm me are naturally evil; those who help me are naturally good,” Mo Hua said clearly.
Mister Zhuang nodded with a smile,
“That is indeed the principle.”
Mo Hua also smiled.
Mister Zhuang continued,
“Since you bring this up, have you discovered any clues?”
Mo Hua nodded, “Before leaving, I went to see Manager Mo…”
“He’s also from the Little Lingyin Sect, essentially Instructor Yan’s junior disciple.
“He told me Instructor Yan went to the Xiao Huang Prefecture, Nanyue City, probably to confront the traitor from his sect.
“And that traitor likely possesses the secret Spirit-Pivot Formation Diagram of the Lingyin Sect, a first-grade twelve-line formation!”