Published at 15th of September 2024 12:56 pm

Chapter 73: Qi Refinement Level 4

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Translator: 549690339

In the days that followed, Mo Hua continued to practice formation as Mr. Zhuang had said, learning through application.

Both Master Chen’s artifact furnace and Old Mr. Feng’s alchemy furnace had been tinkered with by Mo Hua.

In the neighborhood, there was nothing left that allowed Mo Hua to “fully demonstrate his skills”.

Mo Hua had no choice but to seek out simpler formations to practice with, such as the Twin Lock Formation on the doors, the Earth Stone Formation on the walls, the Bright Fire Formation on the lamps, and so forth.

In the Tao Cultivation World, formations were widely used, from offensive spiritual artifacts to defensive armors, as well as in all aspects of daily life like clothing, food, housing, and transportation, all were marked with formations.

However, among the lower-tiered loose cultivators, the use of formations was extremely crude and simple, with some being just a simple pattern or two, not even qualifying as formations.

In comparison, Master Chen’s artifact furnace and Old Mr. Feng’s alchemy furnace were already considered “high-end items”.

Especially Old Mr. Feng’s pill furnace, which even utilized a Compound Formation that combined three formations to harmonize wood and fire spiritual powers. In all of Tongxian City, there were probably not many formation masters who could draw such compound formations.

Mo Hua helped several neighbors repair their doors, walls, and lamps. These were mostly miscellaneous tasks that did not showcase any significant mastery of formations, but the local cultivators were very grateful to Mo Hua.

They were not rich in spirit stones, so they thanked Mo Hua with some of the fruits and spiritual vegetables they grew themselves. The gifts were modest, but the thoughtfulness behind them was profound.

Mo Hua’s family was not wealthy, and there were many loose cultivators in Tongxian City even poorer than Mo Hua’s family. Most loose cultivators would cut corners wherever possible, continuing to use broken things, and they would never hire a formation master to repair worn-out formations.

Sometimes, the spirit stones spent on hiring a formation master to fix a formation might be more expensive than buying a new one.

Formation masters were rare, and most of them, after mastering their skills, would only serve noble clans, sects, or certain powerful forces in the cultivation world, both to earn more spirit stones and to further advance in formations.

“Having mastered arts for government and warfare, one offers his service to the emperor’s court.” This was a phrase from the memories of Mo Hua’s past life.

Once entering the threshold of an upper-class clan or sect, naturally, one would no longer look towards those from a humbler background.

This is both a common human sentiment and a reflection of the warmth and coldness in human hearts.

Thinking this way, Old Mr. Feng, who after becoming a top-tier alchemist, still provided medical alchemy services to poor loose cultivators, deserved even more respect.

So Mo Hua spent roughly a month fixing formations for others.

Most of what he fixed were low-tier formations, containing only two or three patterns, but it was also a review for him, and his memories became much deeper than before.

Previously, when drawing formations on paper, the paper served as the formation media, but in practical use, every brick, stone, and piece of wood could serve as the formation media.

Although formations drawn on paper could operate, they somewhat carried the sense of “being only theoretical”. Also, paper formations generally become void after one use and cannot be utilized for the long term.

Only by truly drawing formations on all things under heaven and earth, using earth and wood, bricks and stones, various spiritual artifacts, to keep the formations functioning for a long time, can one be said to truly comprehend the Heavenly Dao and act in accordance with it.

Drawing formations on different media consumes more divine sense and spiritual power, demands higher precision in brushwork, and is more difficult.

But with diligent practice, one’s understanding of formations becomes more profound.

After practicing for a while, when Mo Hua looked at formations again, he experienced enlightening clarity.

Instead of the obscure and abstract designs, the patterns seemed more vivid and lively, like the pathways through which the spiritual power of the world flowed.

When Mo Hua immersed his divine sense into his Sea of Consciousness again to look at the Mystery Formation woven from spiritual power, he no longer felt the previous confusion.

The flow of spiritual power over the Mystery Formation, each strand, had become much clearer.

One day, Mo Hua started to unravel the formation according to the rules of spiritual power generation and inhibition Mr. Zhuang had taught him.

As the lively small hands of Mo Hua sketched, one after another, the formation patterns condensed and then dispersed, unraveling like extracted silkworm threads, slowly stretching out and dissolving into the Sea of Consciousness.

Mo Hua faintly perceived that with each formation pattern unlocked, the connection between Divine Sense and Spiritual Power became increasingly tight.

When Mo Hua unraveled the last formation pattern, he realized that the entire Mystery Formation within the Sea of Consciousness had dissipated, and the Sea of Consciousness had returned to its original state, as if nothing had happened—except for the Taoist Stele in the midst of the Sea of Consciousness, which still stood conspicuously in place, unchanged.

“Is this considered unlocked?”

Mo Hua scratched his head, then tried to mobilize his Spiritual Power, only to discover that the Sea of Consciousness suddenly began to tremble, like a belly that had not been fed for several days, and suddenly became famished with hunger.

Mo Hua was startled and quickly took out a Spirit Stone, absorbing the Spiritual Energy within. It took refining more than a dozen Spirit Stones before the Sea of Consciousness gradually calmed down.

Upon internal inspection, Mo Hua found his Spiritual Power much more abundant, and his Divine Sense also stronger.

“I’m at the fourth level of Qi Refinement now!”

Mo Hua was so thrilled he couldn’t fall asleep on his bed.

He got up, lit a lamp, spread out paper, ground some ink, and drew a Three Talents Formation.

The Three Talents Formation contains six first-grade formation patterns.

Before, Mo Hua was constrained by his Divine Sense. Although he could also draw it, it was still somewhat difficult. Now that his cultivation had broken through and his Divine Sense had grown, drawing the Three Talents Formation had become much easier.

After finishing the drawing, Mo Hua remembered it was past 1 a.m. and he could have drawn the formations on the Taoist Stele in his Sea of Consciousness; he had wasted good paper and ink for nothing.

A mosquito may be small, but it’s still meat.

Mo Hua felt a slight pain in his heart, then sank his Divine Sense back into the Sea of Consciousness and unreservedly drew formation patterns on the Taoist Stele.

Formations that once seemed strenuous, thanks to the breakthrough in cultivation and the increase in Divine Sense, became much easier. No wonder others often say that realm is the foundation of a cultivator.

Mo Hua kept drawing formations until dawn and then couldn’t wait to share the good news with his parents.

Mo Shan had just returned from the mountains after hunting a few Wild Cattle Monsters with his companions and was resting at home for a few days. On hearing the news, the couple was overjoyed and began preparing to host a feast for neighbors and familiar friends nearby.

Advancing from the third to the fourth level of Qi Refinement is stepping from the early phase into the middle phase of cultivation—a middle category breakthrough, and according to custom, one ought to host a celebration. Da’hu and his two friends had also hosted celebrations when they reached the fourth level of Qi Refinement; however, the Meng Family’s financial situation was not good, so the three children pooled together and hosted only once.

The eatery closed for a day, and Mo Shan had someone carry the whole Wild Cattle Monster they had hunted a few days earlier to home. After skinning and butchering, Liu Ruhua, having seasoned the meat, started to stew it and directly set up a feast in the eatery.

Master Chen and Dazhu, along with Master Chen’s other apprentices, all came to the feast. Da’hu and his two friends went without saying. Some Loose Cultivators who were not very well acquainted but had received Mo Hua’s help in the past brought some modest gifts and did not stay to eat. Liu Ruhua prepared some beef as a return gift for them.

Although it was a celebration, what was eaten was just slightly better than usual. There was no Spiritual Meat, as it was too expensive. However, there was abundant Wild Cattle Meat and, coupled with Liu Ruhua’s culinary skills, which were highly praised by everyone, the affordable dishes were delicious. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed eating meat and drinking wine.

Mr. Zhuang didn’t like the noisy atmosphere, and the Bai siblings had a special status, so Mo Hua didn’t invite them. Instead, he prepared some extra delicacies and sent them to Mr. Zhuang the next day.

Bai Zixi expressed his thanks, enjoying the crispy pastries and sweet wine to his heart’s content.

But Bai Zisheng felt quite regretful. He too wanted to join in the festivities, drink heartily, and eat his fill of meat. But he also knew it was just a fanciful thought; despite Aunt Xue’s gentle temperament, she was strict with them, and it would be absolutely impossible for her to agree.

Mo Hua initially felt some sympathy for him, but then Bai Zisheng asked with a hint of doubt,

“Is reaching the fourth level of Qi Refinement really worth such a celebration?”

The little bit of sympathy Mo Hua felt instantly dissipated.

For an average Loose Cultivator, the Qi Refinement Realm might be the endpoint of their Tao Cultivation, so every step forward is not easy.

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