Chapter 196: 196 Chapter Wise (Five Updates)_1
The taller a tree grows, the stronger the wind it faces.
He was still undecided about whether to make an effort to undertake the assessment, but now that Mr. Zhuang had spoken this way, he decided not to consider it for the time being.
Mr. Zhuang was knowledgeable and experienced; if he advised not to rush into the assessment, it must mean the timing wasn’t right.
As a Loose Cultivator with low cultivation, going to the Taoist Court for an assessment and standing out too much might not be a good thing.
A Formation Master’s foundation is the level of mastery in Formations; as long as one learns Formations well, everything else will follow naturally. There’s no need to be hasty.
Seeing the expression on Mo Hua’s face and knowing he understood, Mr. Zhuang secretly nodded in approval.
The temperament of this child Mo Hua was indeed commendable. At his age, not all Formation Masters could devote themselves wholeheartedly and patiently to learning Formations.
What’s more, he was only at the sixth level of Qi Refinement. If he went for the assessment and did not succeed, that would be one thing, but if he did succeed, how would those Formation Masters in their twilight years feel?
The more exceptional one’s talent, the more likely one is to be envied.
Mr. Zhuang sighed to himself and then said, “Go for the assessment when you reach the eighth or ninth level of Qi Refinement.”
“Yes, sir,” Mo Hua nodded and replied.
After bidding Mr. Zhuang farewell, Mo Hua focused all his thoughts on Formations, solidifying his foundation, learning more Formation patterns, constantly pondering, and practicing repeatedly.
Just as Mr. Zhuang said, it was important to “settle and accumulate.”
Currently, Mo Hua’s most important task was to draw the Compound Formation on the Refining Furnace.
The First-grade Melting Fire and Controlling Spirit Compound Formation pattern was complex, containing two sets of first-grade Formation Methods, as well as several different types of Formations, including a special Formation Pivot for controlling the Spiritual Power of the Formation.
Mo Hua had to integrate these into one Compound Formation while matching it with the inner structure of a large Artifact Furnace, which was highly difficult.
In the middle of the night, within the emptiness of the Sea of Consciousness, an ancient and mysterious Taoist Stele emerged.
Mo Hua began to study the Compound Formation on the Taoist Stele.
In this set of Compound Formations, the most challenging part lay in the Formation Pivot.
The Formation Pivot in this Compound Formation was particularly demanding in terms of Divine Sense intensity because it had to be compatible with two first-grade Formation Methods. Moreover, its function was special, involving the opening, closing, and controlling of Spiritual Power—a kind of formation pivot Mo Hua had never encountered before.
The Formation Pivots Mo Hua had drawn in previous Compound Formations only served to connect Single Formations and were relatively simple. Now, with more complex functions, the structure of the Formation Pivot naturally became more challenging.
Mo Hua started drawing the Formation Pivot on the Taoist Stele.
The first two attempts failed because his Divine Sense wasn’t strong enough to completely draw the Formation Pivot.
Divine Sense is always the first hurdle: without sufficient strength of Divine Sense, no matter what, one cannot successfully draw a Formation.
Mo Hua could only resort to the old method, erasing the Formation Pivot, restoring his Divine Sense, and starting to draw again.
Mo Hua drew the Formation Pivot over and over again, becoming familiar with its structure, while also using the practice with the Taoist Stele to enhance his Divine Sense.
Now, Mo Hua’s Divine Sense was strong enough to support him in learning most first-grade Formations and the majority of simple Compound Formations.
A situation like the present, where Mo Hua felt a clear insufficiency in his own Divine Sense, necessitating non-stop practice with the Taoist Stele to strengthen it, had not occurred to him in a long time.
Mo Hua even felt somewhat nostalgic.
He remembered Mr. Zhuang’s words: as long as one kept drawing, one would always make progress in Formations, and one would always be able to learn them.
This was the simplest truth, but it was also the hardest to put into practice.
Mo Hua calmed his heart, focused his spirit, and started practicing the Formation Pivot of the First-grade Melting Fire and Controlling Spirit Compound Formation over and over again.
If he drew it wrong, he would erase it and start over. If his Divine Sense was insufficient to complete it, he would continue to erase and redraw.
The night passed in this manner, and Mo Hua gained a thorough understanding, but he still hadn’t fully mastered it.
Mo Hua wasn’t in a rush. If success couldn’t be achieved in one go, one had to show the same tenacity as the dripping water that pierces the stone, persisting without arrogance or impatience.
Mo Hua had considered settling for the simpler First-grade Melting Fire Compound Formation, but after some thought, he decided against it.
The key to opening a Refinery Shop was the Artifact Furnace, and this Artifact Furnace was crucial to the success or failure of the Refinery Shop. It was even closely related to the livelihoods of Monster Hunters and all Loose Cultivators in Tongxian City thereafter. Naturally, it needed to be perfected and be the best it could be.
Furthermore, as Mo Hua would encounter many thresholds in his future studies of Formation methods, the First-grade Melting Fire Compound Formation was just one of the many. If he gave up now, he would also develop the habit of surrendering.
Seeing that Mo Hua still needed some time to study Formation methods, Elder Yu immediately started the construction of the second phase of the Alchemist’s Business.
The Alchemist’s Business was built adjacent to and resembling the Refinery Shop, with the same layout. Having had experience with the Refinery Shop, the construction of the Alchemist’s Business was much quicker. Some of the construction processes and personnel arrangements were also smoother.
For now, the Formation methods would be left unattended until Mo Hua had time to take care of them.
Meanwhile, at the Qian Family.
Master Qian had already drawn the First-grade Melting Fire Formation on three First-grade Refining Furnaces.
After Master Qian finished the drawings and put down his brush, Qian Hong immediately ordered the Artifact Furnaces to be sent to their Qian Family Refinery Shop and instructed his disciples to press the Artifact Refiners there to work overtime and hurry to forge Spiritual Artifacts.
He must stockpile a large quantity of standard Spiritual Weapons by forging them before the Monster Hunter’s Refining Furnace was built and went into production. Only by doing so could he gain the upper hand in the ensuing competition with Yu Changlin.
The Artifact Refiners at the Qian Family Refinery Shop forged wrought iron with sweaty brows, tirelessly crafting Spiritual Artifacts day and night.
Piece after piece of Spiritual Artifact embryos were thrown into the Refining Furnace, heated to a red glow, and then taken out, shaped by the Artifact Refiners in various ways, before being fixed into shape through special processes, cooled, and polished. Finally, they became completed Spiritual Artifacts, neatly lined up in the courtyard.
The Artifact Refiners were drenched in sweat and tirelessly working. Qian Hong was very pleased with what he saw.
With these three Refining Furnaces bearing the First-grade Melting Fire Formation, and the persistent hard work of the Artifact Refiners day and night, the output of Spiritual Artifacts was considerable.
In this way, even if Yu Changlin’s Refinery Shop was completed, he could not compete with him.
Moreover, those Monster Hunters might not necessarily be able to purchase a First-grade Refining Furnace, and even if they did, they would not have the First-grade Melting Fire Formation.
The Refining Furnace is the core of the production in a Refinery Shop. If the furnace was inferior, they would have no chips for competition and would only have a slow death.
While the Qian Family Refinery Shop was bustling, the Artifact Refiners were exhausted to the bone.
Among these Artifact Refiners, a very few were distant relatives of the Qian Family bloodline with scant influence. The vast majority were ordinary Loose Cultivators employed by the Qian Family.
These Loose Cultivators had learned the skills of Artifact Refining but could not afford a Refining Furnace and could not open a Refinery Shop, so they could only work under someone else’s roof, in the Qian Family’s Refinery Shop, to earn their livelihood.
But this livelihood was hard to come by.
An overseer suggested to Qian Hong, “The weather is extremely hot, and the furnace fire is unbearable. The Artifact Refiners are overstressed and too exhausted. How about letting them take a little rest?”
Qian Hong remained unmoved.
The overseer steeled himself and implored, “Please reconsider, Family Head.”
Qian Hong gave the overseer a cold glance, “If they don’t work hard, how can our Qian Family grow? If they don’t suffer, should our Qian Family suffer instead? The current prosperity of our Qian Family is built on their hard work and suffering.”
The overseer fell silent, then after a moment said, “I fear they will harbor resentment and become difficult to manage.”
“That’s not a problem,” replied Qian Hong indifferently. “Tell them this from me: whoever forges the most Spiritual Artifacts this month will receive an additional three hundred Spirit Stones as a reward. They will give it their all in forging, and even if it is hard, they will do it willingly. No blame can fall on us.”
After mulling it over for a moment, the overseer bowed and said, “Family Head is wise!”