Chapter 21: Chapter Twenty-One: The Ling Shu Array

After that, Mo Hua continued drawing the Solid Earth Array, doing so for two full months.

Whenever he didn't understand something in the array, he would go to ask Teacher Yan, who was stern and held high standards for his students, yet always answered their questions thoroughly and without reservation, with detailed and earnest explanations.

Teacher Yan naturally thought Mo Hua's foundation was still too weak to be delving into such advanced arrays, but whenever Mo Hua asked, he patiently explained without annoyance, which deeply moved Mo Hua.

Sometimes Mo Hua skipped class to secretly draw arrays for spirit stones, and Teacher Yan never pursued it too harshly, only warning him:

"Cultivators may specialize, but they must not become overly one-sided. Some techniques may be beyond your grasp, but you must still understand them—otherwise, when you graduate and leave the sect to venture into the cultivation world, blind spots in your understanding will easily lead to being cheated or harmed."

Mo Hua humbly accepted the advice and gained much from it.

But now he had no spirit stones to learn cultivation techniques, so he could only keep skipping class and drawing arrays to accumulate more spirit stones.

One Solid Earth Array contained four array lines and earned two spirit stones; thanks to this, Mo Hua's pace of accumulating spirit stones increased significantly.

One day, two months later, Mo Hua went as usual to deliver his order to Fatty Manager, but upon entering, he found a middle-aged man in a green Daoist robe drinking tea in the usually quiet Youyuan Studio.

The man faced away from Mo Hua, and his back looked familiar; when he turned around, Mo Hua froze.

The man in the green Daoist robe was Teacher Yan…

Mo Hua felt as if he'd been caught skipping class.

"Mo Hua?"

Teacher Yan also spotted Mo Hua and looked surprised.

Fatty Manager sat across from Teacher Yan, pouring tea for him; upon hearing this, he looked up in astonishment: "You know each other?"

Teacher Yan said: "He is my student at Tongxian Gate."

Mo Hua bowed deeply and said: "Disciple greets Teacher!"

Teacher Yan nodded in acknowledgment and asked: "What are you doing here?"

Before Mo Hua could speak, Fatty Manager explained: "He's running errands for his elder brother—his brother draws arrays for our Array Pavilion, and when he finishes, he sends them over with him."

Teacher Yan nodded and dropped the matter.

Mo Hua exhaled in relief, handed over the array to Fatty Manager, collected his spirit stones, and quickly said: "Disciple takes his leave—won't disturb Teacher further."

Teacher Yan must have had matters to discuss with Fatty Manager; seeing Mo Hua's thoughtfulness, he nodded and said: "Return to your sect early, and watch your safety on the road."

Mo Hua respectfully agreed, bowed, and left the Array Pavilion.

Fatty Manager watched Mo Hua's retreating figure and said to Teacher Yan:

"This boy is quite polite and very clever—you're lucky to have taught such a good disciple."

Teacher Yan softly "hmmed," then asked: "You said his elder brother draws arrays for you?"

Fatty Manager pulled out the Solid Earth Array Mo Hua had delivered and handed it to Teacher Yan. "Not bad."

Teacher Yan saw it was a Solid Earth Array and paused in surprise: "His elder brother drew this?"

"Who else?" Fatty Manager said. "Do you think he drew it? At his age, even if he drained every bit of his spiritual sense, he couldn't draw a single complete array."

Teacher Yan nodded, recalling how Mo Hua had once brought him a Solid Earth Array for explanation—it must have been that he saw his elder brother drawing it, had questions, and came to ask him.

"Having a thirst for knowledge in arrays is good," Teacher Yan thought silently. "If he can maintain this mindset, he might truly achieve something in arrays one day."

Thinking this, Teacher Yan let it go, glanced around the secluded, quiet shop, then looked at Fatty Manager and said: "Is this how you plan to spend your whole life?"

Fatty Manager drank some tea and said: "We're fellow disciples—you know me. I'm not like you. You're now a teacher at Tongxian Gate, your array skills are impressive, just one step away from the First Rank. Step over it, and you'll be a true First-Rank Array Master—with connections, status, and no shortage of spirit stones in Tongxian City. Tongxian Gate will surely make you an Elder."

"As for me," Fatty Manager said, "I'm just a laid-back type. I dabble in arrays, can't endure the solitude of cultivation—I'm content just passing the days. Don't look down on me. Look at the scattered cultivators bustling on the streets, exhausted and running nonstop. This leisurely life is something they can only dream of."

Teacher Yan remained silent.

Fatty Manager looked at Teacher Yan and sighed helplessly: "Alright, say it—what do you need me to do?"

Teacher Yan said solemnly: "Help me find the Ling Shu Array Diagram."

Fatty Manager pinched the bridge of his nose. "All these years, and you still haven't given up? You're not young anymore—you should find a Dao partner and settle down."

"Personal matters are small; the transmission of arrays is great."

"Even if you find it, what then? Our ancestor couldn't learn it, our master couldn't learn it—how can you? A First-Rank array with twelve array lines? That's beyond the norm! Even First-Rank Array Masters only need to master nine lines. You haven't even reached First Rank yet—what good will the Ling Shu Diagram do you? By the time you die, you might still not learn it!"

Teacher Yan remained silent.

Fatty Manager pleaded earnestly: "Brother, let it go. Besides, you can't find it anyway. That man betrayed our sect, stole the array, and in all these years, there's been no trace—even Dao Ting Si couldn't track him. You're an array master, not a Dao practitioner—what can you possibly do?"

Teacher Yan remained unmoved, his voice rough: "My master showed me boundless kindness—every bit of my array knowledge came from him. Now he's dead, our sect is shattered, the arrays lost. Every time I think of it, I can't sleep or eat. If I can recover the arrays and pass them on, fulfilling my master's final wish, everything else doesn't matter."

Teacher Yan looked at Fatty Manager again: "I know you love comfort—I won't ask you to do much. Just tell me if you hear any clue about the Ling Shu Diagram. The rest, I'll handle myself."

"How do you know there's any clue to the Ling Shu Diagram in Xiancheng?" Fatty Manager frowned.

Teacher Yan said nothing.

Fatty Manager waved his hand. "Fine. Knowing more won't help me. I'll agree—but I'll warn you: all this effort might end up as empty-handed as drawing water with a bamboo basket."

Fatty Manager, feeling the trouble looming, couldn't help adding:

"I say, spend some effort finding a Dao partner, have a child. Even if you don't find it, your child can keep looking—you won't die alone and miserable. You're not old yet—find one, just one, before it's too late…"

"Your tea's gone cold. I'm leaving."

Teacher Yan rose, swept his sleeve, and departed, ignoring the babbling Fatty Manager behind him.