Chapter 437: Disdain

When uncertain, it’s better not to act tough—asking Mister Zhuang would be safer.

So Mo Hua went to the bamboo chamber to see Mister Zhuang.

Mister Zhuang sat in a bamboo chair, brewing tea, a gentle breeze passing through, eyes slightly squinting, expression relaxed.

Mo Hua waited outside for a while, then suddenly looked up and saw Mister Zhuang watching him. His eyes brightened, and he ran forward, handing over the formation he had reconstructed, asking,

“Master, may I learn this formation?”

Mister Zhuang didn’t even look and nodded:

“Yes, you may.”

Mo Hua was slightly stunned. “Isn’t this an evil formation?”

Mister Zhuang’s gaze deepened subtly as he asked,

“Do you know the difference between an evil formation and a proper formation?”

Mo Hua frowned and shook his head honestly.

He hadn’t studied evil formations, only briefly glanced at a few patterns, and didn’t really know the difference.

To know is to know; not to know is to admit ignorance.

Since he didn’t understand, he felt embarrassed to make things up in front of Mister Zhuang.

“What about the similarities?”

Mister Zhuang asked again.

Mo Hua pondered for a moment and tentatively said,

“Whether it’s a proper formation or an evil one, the basic framework is the same: all have formation mediators, formation eyes, formation pivots, and formation patterns…”

“Only the specific composition differs. Evil formations are more sinister, and the methods more bloody and cruel.”

Mister Zhuang nodded slightly. “Correct.”

He then picked up the twelve-patterned absolute formation Mo Hua had reconstructed, his eyes showing subtle appreciation, and explained:

“So for this formation, apart from the Bone Mediator, the Human-Blood Patterns, and the Human-Heart Eye, the rest of the formation principles are indeed manifestations of the Heavenly Dao, falling within the category of proper formations. In other words…”

Mister Zhuang looked at Mo Hua.

Mo Hua’s eyes gradually brightened as he continued,

“In other words, this is actually a proper absolute formation, just drawn using evil and bizarre methods?”

Mister Zhuang nodded with satisfaction. “Exactly.”

Mo Hua frowned again. “If it’s a proper absolute formation, why not use it properly? Why resort to these evil paths?”

Mister Zhuang’s gaze turned subtle:

“Because if you try to draw it properly, he cannot do it…”

Mo Hua was slightly taken aback.

Mister Zhuang was silent for a moment, then sighed:

“Walking the proper path is actually very difficult…”

“The so-called proper-path cultivators in the world include those who crave fame and respect, who act noble on the surface, but there are also those with a truly upright and steadfast Dao-heart.”

“Such cultivators surpass ordinary people in character, methods, and vision. And the effort they expend, the trials they endure, the hardships they bear, and the criticisms they face are all far beyond ordinary experience.”

“The same applies to formations.”

“The deeper a proper formation goes, the harder it is to learn. Even if you put in ten times the effort, you might only achieve one-tenth of the results.”

“So many cultivators start seeking shortcuts.”

“That shortcut is the evil formation.”

“If their Divine-Sense is insufficient, they simply visualize blindly, borrowing others’ or external divine energy without discernment or refinement.”

“If their formation practice is lacking, they draw on the skin of people with compatible spiritual energy to reduce the difficulty of the formation.”

“If their understanding of the formation pivot is shallow, they use human blood as ink and human hearts as eyes, forcibly accelerating the formation’s energy flow…”

“The so-called evil formations, in principle, follow the same formation logic as conventional formations.”

“It’s just that some cultivators don’t want to think, learn, practice, or comprehend, so they take shortcuts, using human life and flesh as the formation’s framework and pivot, to draw formations they otherwise couldn’t complete…”

Mister Zhuang finished speaking, looking at Mo Hua with deep sincerity:

“That’s why I didn’t teach you the principles of evil formations before—to let you patiently study formations, practice them repeatedly, without rushing, without seeking shortcuts.”

“You have great talent and high comprehension. If you seek shortcuts and learn evil formations, falling into demonic paths, your formation skill might leap forward overnight.”

“But once you taste that sweetness, you won’t practice properly, nor see the true Dao.”

“Learning evil formations is like pulling up seedlings prematurely—it can’t last.”

“In the presence of a formation master who truly comprehends the Heavenly Dao, the so-called evil formation master is merely an opportunistic trickster…”

“The so-called evil formation is only a sham, steeped in blood and filth, empty in form; evil cannot suppress righteousness, and it’s easily defeated!”

Mister Zhuang’s gaze sharpened, his entire presence like a hidden-edge immortal sword, radiating astonishing momentum.

“Remember, as cultivators, we do not walk the demonic path—not because we cannot, but because we disdain it!”

Mo Hua’s heart shook, filled with admiration.

Not walking the demonic path—not because you cannot, but because you disdain it!

Mister Zhuang’s words left a deep impression on his mind.

It felt as if someone had carved this sentence onto his Dao-heart with a sword.

Mo Hua’s gaze gradually hardened, his expression growing resolute.

Looking at the evil formation in his hands, he felt calm. Even though it was a demonic, bizarre formation, his mind was at peace, free of worries.

“Master, your disciple remembers!”

Mo Hua solemnly nodded.

In the following days, Mo Hua began studying the absolute formation.

He extracted the formation principles and discarded the dross.

He focused only on the formation’s essential principles, ignoring the opportunistic methods like human-skin patterns, flesh pivots, or heart eyes.

This made the formation far more difficult.

For a top-grade twelve-pattern formation, Mo Hua’s Divine-Sense had only just reached the threshold.

And Divine-Sense was only the beginning.

With this Divine-Sense, he still needed to practice the formation’s patterns, analyze the layout, and comprehend the principles.

This required immense time and repeated effort.

The process was tedious and monotonous.

His Divine-Sense would be exhausted repeatedly, then slowly recover, only to be spent again…

Since the Dao Monument hadn’t fully recovered, Mo Hua could only rely on his own effort, spending extra time and energy, practicing repeatedly, slowly gaining understanding.

He kept Mister Zhuang’s teachings in mind and, despite slow progress, remained humble and patient.

Cultivation is like water wearing through stone.

Formation practice is no different.

Every practice session is a drop of water, every thought a raindrop falling on stone.

Persist long enough, and the water will carve the stone. The formation principles will be revealed, and the formation fully understood and mastered.

After days of practice, Mo Hua gradually grasped the essence of the formation. For this “corpse-refining” evil formation, he gained some insight.

Yet the understanding was shallow, hazy, like seeing through a thin veil.

“Seems I haven’t practiced enough, thought enough, or experienced deeply enough…”

Mo Hua sighed internally.

Just as he thought more time was needed, his Sea of Consciousness trembled, and the Dao Monument began to revive.

Mo Hua rejoiced and quickly sank his Divine-Sense into the Sea of Consciousness.

The gray on the Dao Monument gradually faded, and its ancient, mystical aura returned slightly.

He tried drawing several formations and found the Dao Monument usable, though still weaker than before.

After drawing a formation and erasing it, only half the Divine-Sense could be recovered.

Mo Hua felt a twinge of regret.

Clearly, it hadn’t fully recovered yet.

Still, it was usable—better than nothing.

With the Dao Monument, even in its “incomplete” state, Mo Hua’s daily practice of the absolute formation increased two to threefold.

His comprehension of the formation also accelerated.

After a few more days, Mo Hua could finally draw the absolute formation.

Within it, spiritual energy transformed into fine threads, moving independently yet responding to each other, converging…

Yet Mo Hua frowned.

Something was wrong…

“This absolute formation… is incomplete…”

Or rather, it was only part of the whole formation.

Though Mo Hua had drawn it, it still felt like something was missing. The spiritual energy flowed and had special effects, but it felt disjointed, as if abandoned.

“How could it be incomplete?”

Mo Hua didn’t understand.

The formation eyes, pivots, and patterns were all intact.

What exactly was the effect of this formation?

The spiritual energy within the formation was split into finer threads, twisted together, each with unique movement.

It looked strange and wondrous, yet confusing…

And drawn on a zombie’s meridians—what could it actually accomplish?

Mo Hua couldn’t figure it out and decided to ask Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi.

Bai Zixi frowned slightly:

“Maybe it’s for corpse control…”

“Corpse control?”

Mo Hua asked in confusion, “Wouldn’t corpse-refining cultivators have their own control methods? Why use an absolute formation?”

If an absolute formation was necessary for corpse control, then in this world, very few cultivators could refine corpses at all.

After all, formation masters capable of absolute formations are rare.

Yet corpse-refining and control is a notable branch of the demonic path.

Corpse-refining cultivators are not uncommon in the demonic path.

Bai Zixi thought for a moment: “Controlling corpses is easy, but the number is a problem.”

“Number?” Mo Hua was slightly taken aback.

Bai Zisheng nodded, recalling:

“Right. Normally, corpse cultivators can’t control this many zombies.”

“Controlling dozens of zombies, like Zhang Quan does with ease, is unusual. He may have refined even more zombies—that’s suspicious…”

Mo Hua understood.

If a corpse cultivator could control so many zombies, then using a “zombie horde” tactic, other cultivators of the same rank would be no match.

Clearly, that’s excessively strong.

Bai Zixi said: “Normally, a corpse cultivator controls only a few to a dozen zombies—not dozens.”

Mo Hua’s gaze tightened.

So, Zhang Quan likely relies on the absolute formation to control so many zombies.

Where is the rest of the formation?

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then his eyes lit up:

“That copper bell?”

Bai Zixi and Bai Zisheng nodded slightly.

If Zhang Quan controls zombies with a copper bell, and the formation is incomplete, it’s likely the other part of the formation is embedded in the bell.

As for the principle behind this formation, Mo Hua would need to find the complete formation to study it.

“Looks like I need to find Zhang Quan after all…”

Mo Hua nodded, murmuring to himself.

At the same time, he had another question.

Could this top-grade twelve-pattern formation for corpse control be… the Spirit-Pivot Formation of the Little Lingyin Sect?

Mo Hua frowned, thinking carefully.

A top-grade twelve-pattern formation is extremely rare.

In a small Great Wilderness territory, it’s unlikely there would be two such formations.

Moreover, the Spirit-Pivot Formation—the pivot, the spiritual energy hub—also fits corpse control.

If this formation really is the Spirit-Pivot Formation, who drew it?

Who could master an absolute formation and draw it for Zhang Quan’s corpse control?

Could the person who drew it be the traitor from the Little Lingyin Sect?

Or… Instructor Yan?

Mo Hua shivered inwardly, his expression complex.