Chapter 454: Opening the Diagram

Chapter 455: Opening the Diagram

After Mo Hua left, in the quiet room, Old Kui slowly appeared again.

He glanced at Mister Zhuang, whose expression was calm, and frowned:

“What you teach him… why is it always such strange, twisted stuff?”

Mister Zhuang raised an eyebrow. “Strange and twisted is exactly right. It’s better to be strange yourself than to have your enemy be strange.”

Old Kui frowned, silently thinking:

“If this kid Mo Hua keeps learning like this, I’m going to have trouble keeping up…”

Advanced Divine-Sense, Divine-Sense combat, exceptional talent, formation manifestation…

Just thinking about it felt extremely tricky.

He wasn’t sure whether training Divine-Sense like this was ultimately good or bad…

Suddenly, Old Kui recalled something, a chill running through him, and he spoke gravely:

“Aren’t you afraid he’ll follow your senior brother’s path and become a second Strange Daoist?”

Mister Zhuang was silent, his gaze a little dim, and only after a long while did he slowly reply:

“Who can say what will happen in the future?”

“The lifespan of cultivators is long, and life itself is long.”

“In a lifetime, one will meet many people, face many events, make countless choices… Whether he can uphold his original intentions, strengthen his Dao-heart, that depends entirely on himself. I… cannot accompany him that long…”

Mister Zhuang’s expression fell as he sighed:

“He is my little disciple.”

“All I hope is that he can live well, keep cultivating, keep learning formations, remain true to himself, and pursue the Heavenly Dao…”

“Just to live well…”

“Even if he becomes a second ‘Strange Daoist’… it’s better than him becoming a Daoist under the Strange Daoists…”

Becoming a second Strange Daoist would at least mean he was still alive.

But if he became a “Daoist,” that would mean falling into the hands of the Strange Daoists, his Divine-Sense obliterated, reduced to a puppet.

Old Kui understood and remained silent.

After a moment, he sighed and said no more, gradually fading from view.

…

Mo Hua returned to his room and began practicing Divine-Sense manifestation.

His room was not large, but everything was arranged, exquisite and elegant, adjoining the rooms of his senior brothers and sisters, with the same layout.

Mo Hua sat cross-legged on the bed and first carefully read through Essentials of Divine-Sense Manifestation given by Mister Zhuang, grasping the general idea.

The key to manifestation was, in fact, visualization.

First, through visualization, perceive external objects, then within the Sea of Consciousness, use Divine-Sense to manifest their form.

After grasping the basic principles, Mo Hua began to try manifestation.

He first attempted manifesting people, but it didn’t work.

Whether his parents, Mister Zhuang, senior brother, senior sister, or even Elders Yu, Big Tiger, and Big Zhu from Tōngxiān City, none could be manifested.

People wouldn’t work…

No, except for himself, it wouldn’t work.

At least, not yet.

If people couldn’t be manifested, what about beasts?

Mo Hua thought of the little cat demon he had caught, and later the big tiger it became, but still, manifestation failed.

He considered Feng Xi… but gave up…

If a little cat demon couldn’t be manifested, a great demon was out of the question.

If beasts didn’t work, what about spirit beasts?

Mo Hua thought of Da Bai.

He tried, but Da Bai also could not be manifested.

Mo Hua sighed. At least for living beings, he couldn’t manifest them—for now.

He could only manifest inanimate objects.

He began trying to manifest the stools, tables, screens, formation pens, formation paper, teacups, and so on in his room.

All attempts failed.

Probably because he wasn’t familiar enough.

He thought a moment and decided to manifest the Thousand-Pound Rod.

He was very familiar with the rod—he had watched Master Chen forge it, drew all the formation marks on it himself, and had used it many times to strike in stealth.

Mo Hua took out the rod, widened his eyes, and carefully studied its shape, structure, and formations, committing them all to memory.

Then he closed his eyes, sank into the Sea of Consciousness, and tried to manifest the rod.

After a moment, a phantom of the rod appeared in his hands.

Mo Hua was overjoyed.

Though it was only a phantom, it marked clear progress.

In his Sea of Consciousness, he could now strike stealthily with the rod.

He swung it a few times, trying “Sweeping Through the Army” and “Might of a Thousand Pounds,” and found it felt even more natural than outside.

After playing with it for a while, he reluctantly stored the “Thousand-Pound Rod.”

After almost half a day, he had tried nearly everything, confirming that among external objects and people, he could only manifest the rudimentary form of the rod.

Next, he needed to attempt manifesting his own spiritual power and spells, as well as formations.

Mo Hua first tried manifesting his spiritual power.

He visualized himself, simulating the circulation of his meridians, and soon felt a subtle energy flowing through his body.

Excited, he concentrated further, visualizing more intensely.

After several hours, the Mo Hua in his Sea of Consciousness opened his eyes and found a faint layer of spiritual energy surrounding him.

This energy wasn’t true spiritual power—it was Divine-Sense manifestation.

On the surface, it appeared as spiritual power, but in essence, it was still Divine-Sense.

Though Divine-Sense, its effect was nearly identical to spiritual power.

It was both real and unreal, tangible yet intangible—like seeing a mountain as a mountain, then not a mountain, and then a mountain again.

Spiritual power was the basis of spells.

Having manifested spiritual power, Mo Hua began trying to simulate spells with it.

Within his Divine-Sense phantom, he could seemingly see pale blue spiritual energy flowing along his meridians to his dantian and arms, condensing at his fingertips to form spells.

But the first Fireball Technique he formed flickered a few times and went out.

His first attempt had failed.

Yet Mo Hua was undeterred.

He tried several more times, each attempt improving slightly.

After countless repetitions, his Divine-Sense was exhausted.

Manifesting spiritual power with Divine-Sense consumed it—no Divine-Sense, no spiritual power, and no spells.

He meditated to restore his Divine-Sense and continued practicing.

After two days of tireless effort, Mo Hua finally successfully cast his first Fireball Technique.

Its power was modest, just an ordinary Fireball Technique.

But its significance was immense.

He could finally use spells within his Sea of Consciousness!

Now, if any intrusive malicious intent invaded his Sea of Consciousness, he had basic offensive means.

Mo Hua felt reinvigorated.

He then practiced the Water Prison Technique, Flowing-Water Step, and Invisibility Technique.

Flowing-Water Step worked.

But the Invisibility Technique was uncertain—inside the Sea of Consciousness, he couldn’t tell if he had truly disappeared; he would have to try again later.

Having manifested these spells, Mo Hua felt a sense of security.

Now, even in danger, he had methods to fight back.

Next, he turned to manifesting formations.

He began with the simpler Seven-Line Earthfire Formation.

He first expended Divine-Sense to manifest spiritual power, then controlled the spiritual power, gradually drawing the formation according to its pattern.

Pale blue spiritual energy flowed along the floor of his Sea of Consciousness, twisting and turning into formation patterns.

But after only three lines, he made a mistake.

Mo Hua’s Divine-Sense faltered, and he lost control of the spiritual power’s flow, ruining the formation.

“Controlling spiritual power purely with Divine-Sense… seems really difficult…”

He muttered, frowning.

He knew how to draw the formation, but could not precisely control the flow of spiritual power to condense it into a formation as he wished.

Several more attempts yielded only slight progress, and drawing formations this way was slow.

He frowned.

This didn’t match what Mister Zhuang had said…

Had he overlooked something?

He reviewed the key connections.

Heavenly Evolution Art, Spirit-Pivot Formation, Divine-Sense Derivative Algorithm…

Could it be the Spirit-Pivot Formation?

He recalled Mister Zhuang’s words:

“The core of the Spirit-Pivot Formation is control, but control is only superficial; analyzing the structure of spiritual power is the essence of the Spirit-Pivot Formation.”

Controlling corpses or objects was perhaps only a surface application.

Its essence lay in understanding the structure of spiritual power.

Mo Hua stopped trying to control spiritual power with Divine-Sense to draw formations.

Instead, he calmed his mind, studied the Spirit-Pivot Formation, and used Divine-Sense to perceive the essence of spiritual power.

After a tea break, his mind tingled with clarity.

He realized his spiritual power had changed.

The spiritual power manifested by Divine-Sense had become finer, thread-like.

These threads represented subtler components of the spiritual power’s structure.

Moreover, they resonated with his Divine-Sense, integrating as one.

Where the mind moved, the energy followed naturally.

Controlling the threads with Divine-Sense felt as effortless as breathing.

Mo Hua was astonished.

He realized the subtlety of the Spirit-Pivot Formation’s spiritual principles.

Though he had previously learned and applied it, he hadn’t deeply comprehended its mystery.

Truly, this was the secret legacy of the Little Lingyin Sect… or perhaps the top-secret inheritance of the old Great Lingyin Sect…

Such formations, if used merely to control corpses, were a waste of heaven’s resources.

Mo Hua felt a sense of awe.

He then tried controlling spiritual power with Divine-Sense, refining it into threads, and drawing formations with the threads.

This time, the spiritual power flowed more flexibly, accurately, and swiftly.

With just a few thoughts, the threads on the floor condensed into a complete Seven-Line Earthfire Formation!

No pen, no ink; the formation formed automatically with his thoughts.

Fast and convenient.

Now, even though there were no formations visibly in his Sea of Consciousness, one thought could make formations appear anywhere!

Mo Hua was speechless with astonishment.

Though it was only a seven-line formation, the speed of drawing it was incredible.

Then he felt a tinge of regret.

This method could only be used inside his Sea of Consciousness; it wouldn’t work outside.

“I wonder if one day I can form formations instantly outside my Sea of Consciousness with just my Divine-Sense…”

He couldn’t help but imagine.

Of course, for now, it was just imagination…

Having mastered spell and formation manifestation, all that remained was continuous practice and refinement.

The Fireball Technique’s power was still insufficient and needed more practice.

The seven-line formation could be drawn quickly, but more complex eight or nine-line formations would be much slower.

Mo Hua planned to practice first-grade nine-line formations in his Sea of Consciousness.

After one to two weeks of tireless practice, his Divine-Sense combat skills had finally seen some progress.

Next, it was time for a small test.

Mo Hua brought out the Zhang family’s Ancestor Diagram.

Just in case, he called Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi to act as bodyguards.

“Senior Brother, Senior Sister, you absolutely must not look at this diagram!”

“No matter what you hear, don’t believe it!”

Mo Hua gave careful instructions, then continued:

“I’ll take a quick look and then close it…”

“If everything is normal, you don’t need to do anything.”

“If I stare blankly at the diagram and don’t close it, you must close it and throw it on the ground, kicking it hard.”

“If my temperament changes while looking, knock me out and call Master.”

“If there’s any anomaly or something tries to come out, burn it immediately! Scatter the ashes!”

…

He considered all possibilities and arranged everything clearly.

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi were confused but nodded.

After preparation, Mo Hua opened the Zhang family Ancestor Diagram.

He glanced at it, lightly touching the surface with his eyes.

With just one look, he saw the whole picture.

It was a group portrait, showing the ancestor teaching disciples.

A tall pavilion, solemn and majestic, incense curling in the air.

At the center sat an elder, hair and beard white, respected and dignified, delivering a lecture.

Rows of disciples sat below.

They were arranged by seniority, from high to low.

All wore white, sitting with dignity and respect.

It was a solemn ancestral teaching scene.

But in that single glance, the scene changed abruptly.

The people in the picture seemed to subtly come alive.

Mo Hua then heard a tempting voice from the elder:

“You are gifted…”

“Your roots are extraordinary…”

“Join my sect… and you will attain the Dao…”

“Join my sect… and you will become immortal…”

“Join my sect…”

…

At the same time, the disciples under the elder suddenly turned their heads in unison, looking at Mo Hua, faces stiff like zombies.

Mo Hua was slightly alarmed.

Was the Zhang family ancestor teaching zombies?

Or had the entire Zhang family turned into zombies?

Before he could think further, a zombie disciple at the far end of the seating suddenly revealed a ferocious face, leapt up, and lunged toward Mo Hua’s forehead, entering his Sea of Consciousness.

Mo Hua’s gaze blanked for a moment, then quickly cleared.

As the other zombies moved menacingly, trying to invade his Sea of Consciousness,

Mo Hua’s reflexes were sharp; he quickly closed the diagram.

The group of zombies remained trapped in the diagram.

And one zombie was confined in his Sea of Consciousness.