Chapter 218: New Year Gifts

A few days before the New Year, Mo Hua went early in the morning to visit Mr. Zhuang, bringing some New Year gifts, all prepared personally by Liu Ruhua.

Mr. Zhuang had no need for things like spirit stones or spirit weapons.

Liu Ruhua thought long and hard but could not decide what to give, so she could only follow tradition and prepare many delicious dishes to express her goodwill.

Liu Ruhua had begun preparing over ten days in advance, bustling about until now, finally finishing everything.

There were cured meats made from different parts of various demonic beasts—oxen, sheep, pigs, dogs—each with distinct flavors, colorful pastries made from different grains, and wines distilled from osmanthus, peach blossoms, and wild mountain fruits.

Even Mr. Zhuang, accustomed to fine food, could not help but be surprised.

"So much? How could anyone possibly finish it all?"

He immediately began tasting each dish with great enthusiasm, occasionally frowning and asking, "What kind of meat is this? I've never tasted anything like it…" and occasionally nodding in praise: "This flavor is excellent."

Mo Hua sat beside him, chatting with Mr. Zhuang.

He explained which demonic beasts' meat each dish used, which spices were added, and how many hours they were cooked over high or low flame.

Sometimes he asked minor questions about arrays, or shared amusing stories from the city.

Many of these stories came from Young Master An.

Young Master An was now the junior shopkeeper at Fushan Restaurant, dealing with diners every day, gossiping with others and collecting a wealth of tales, which he would casually recount to Mo Hua, embellishing them with flair.

Mo Hua found them entertaining and told them to Mr. Zhuang, who listened with great interest as he drank and ate.

After chatting for a long while, Mo Hua noticed the bamboo chamber was serene and secluded, yet inevitably lonely, so he asked:

"Mr. Zhuang, will you go out for the New Year? Outside is very lively."

Mr. Zhuang always seemed to remain within the Zuowang Pavilion, either napping in the bamboo chamber, watching the water from the bridge, or sitting in the courtyard, gazing at the mountain hues, the clear wind, the morning sun, and the evening glow.

Mo Hua had never seen Mr. Zhuang leave the premises.

Mr. Zhuang smiled. "It's quiet here. I dislike noise."

"Oh, okay." Mo Hua nodded. "Then am I disturbing you by coming to talk to you?"

Mr. Zhuang shook his head. "Too much silence becomes boring. Talking with you is quite pleasant."

Mo Hua felt reassured.

A gentle breeze stirred inside; outside, the bamboo grove rustled, and flowers swayed.

Mo Hua and Mr. Zhuang chatted for a long time, their crisp and mellow voices intertwining, carried by the wind into the mountains.

When Mo Hua noticed Mr. Zhuang's expression growing weary—perhaps from eating too much and feeling drowsy—he rose to take his leave.

"I won't disturb your rest. My mother made some rice cakes—sweet, soft, and glutinous. I'll bring some to you in a few days."

Mr. Zhuang smiled. "Go ahead."

Mo Hua bid farewell to Mr. Zhuang and then found Old Puppeteer, bringing him some New Year gifts as well.

Mo Hua knew Old Puppeteer's tastes.

Although Old Puppeteer looked old, he disliked soft, glutinous foods; he preferred crisp textures and things that made a crunching sound when eaten.

So Mo Hua brought him crisp pastries and several boxes of pine nuts—in original, five-spice, and spicy flavors.

Old Puppeteer tucked everything into his sleeves, then pulled out a chessboard and glanced at Mo Hua.

Seeing the day was still early, Mo Hua nodded. "Alright!"

The breeze stirred, leaves drifted past, and the sound of stones falling on the courtyard chessboard rose and fell in rhythm.

The two mediocre players spent half the day playing Five Elements Chess.

That evening, Brother Da Hu invited Mo Hua to watch a Demon-Fighting Play.

The performers were Brother Da Hu and his group, along with Zhou Daping and Chen Dazhu from the Artificers' Guild.

The swords, daggers, and vine armor were already available; the props for portraying demonic beasts were borrowed. Brother Da Hu and the others were doing it partly for fun and partly to earn tips.

Originally, Brother Da Hu and Zhou Daping were to play the demon hunters, since they were actual demon hunters.

The demonic beasts were to be portrayed by Chen Dazhu and several disciples from the Artificers' Guild, but Brother Da Hu and his brothers thought they performed poorly—the demons looked dull, like fools—so they decided to play them themselves.

The demonic beasts of Great Heishan were fierce; being slow-witted wouldn't do.

So in the end, Brother Da Hu and his two brothers played the demonic beasts, while Chen Dazhu, the artificer, played the demon hunter.

The performance was surprisingly convincing.

Mo Hua stood to the side, clapping and giving them tips.

The watching cultivators also joined in the fun, pulling out small pieces of spirit stone as encouragement.

After the play, Brother Da Hu and the others took Mo Hua to visit various tasty and entertaining spots, strolling and enjoying themselves.

Brother Da Hu had reached Qi Condensation Seventh Layer, making him a late-stage Qi Condensation cultivator.

Mo Hua humbly asked, "What should I pay attention to when breaking through to late-stage Qi Condensation?"

He himself was already at Qi Condensation Sixth Layer; the next step was Seventh Layer—the late stage.

Although his cultivation method differed from Brother Da Hu's, he could still listen for advice and gain some insight to prepare himself.

Brother Da Hu scratched his head. "Just train normally, gather some spirit materials—I use Falling Sun Grass and Molten Fire Stone, combined with some pills, and you can break through."

"Is it really that simple?"

"Not every breakthrough succeeds. I was just lucky—if not, I'd have had to try several more times," Brother Da Hu said.

Twin Tiger added, "I failed once already; otherwise, I'd be in late-stage Qi Condensation too."

"What do you do after failing?"

"Keep training, save more spirit stones, buy more spirit materials and pills, then try again."

Twin Tiger shrugged. "As long as a cultivator isn't dead, he has to keep doing this—unless he gives up, runs out of spirit stones, or settles down, burdened by family and responsibilities."

Mo Hua nodded. "It sounds simple, but to persist through it all, for a lifetime—that's not simple at all."

Little Tiger frowned. "The main problem is that some spirit materials are too expensive. It's hard for lone cultivators to buy them, and some aren't even available. One breakthrough consumes everything—you have to buy it all again if you fail."

Zhou Daping and Chen Dazhu nodded in agreement. "Exactly! Where do lone cultivators get so many spirit stones and such wide connections to buy those materials?"

Everyone grew troubled.

Mo Hua also grew troubled, but suddenly remembered that his cultivation of the Great Expansion Scripture required no spiritual items and consumed little spirit stone—this made him quietly exhale in relief.

The bottleneck of the Great Expansion Scripture lies in the mind sea and in arrays, not in spiritual items.

He had chosen this scripture precisely because of this.

Mo Hua silently rejoiced at his foresight.

But then he thought again: although the Great Expansion Scripture's breakthrough required no spiritual items, it demanded solving mystery arrays.

The mystery arrays were profound, complex, obscure, and ever-changing; unraveling them was no easy task.

The Dao grants every sip and every bite fairly—it does not let you slip through any cracks.

He wondered what kind of mystery array awaited him in his mind sea…

Mo Hua silently calculated within himself:

"I'm already at Qi Refinement Sixth Layer; I won't take long to reach its peak. When I attempt the breakthrough, I'll find out what kind of mystery array I must solve."

Thank you to Wang Wang Shui Lun Lian for the reward~