Chapter 377: The Small Town

Mo Hua returned to his room and practiced the Reverse Spirit Array again.

Indeed, he felt his spiritual sense was growing slower, not as fast as before.

"Looks like I need to find a harder array to learn."

Mo Hua thought silently.

After practicing the array for a while longer, once his spiritual sense was exhausted, Mo Hua rested for a moment, thought it over, and opened his storage bag again.

He didn't know what he'd encounter on the journey ahead, so he wanted to inventory what he had on him.

First, the spirit stones.

Mo Hua carried over a thousand spirit stones on his person.

There were several thousand more stored in the carriage, sealed by an array, watched over by Master Zhuang.

These spirit stones were meant for Mo Hua's Foundation Establishment.

According to Zhou Zhangsi, I applied downward and had the Bad Shao Merit points allocated outside that waist token.

Without poverty, there is no wealth; without wealth, naturally there is no poverty.

Elder Yu nodded in approval, "It's wrong."

As for how much merit exactly, and what it could be exchanged for, I haven't exchanged any yet, so I don't know yet, but I suppose it must be substantial.

"You'll be staying here for a while."

In a town this large, how could there not be an Absolute Array?

Mo Hua faintly sensed the presence of some array's Dan Yu, too distant; their energy was obscure, and his calculations yielded nothing—he could only guess by instinct.

Mo Hua's Tian Shu Ring now glowed with only one star, meaning the Tian Shu Pavilion had recognized him as a Rank-One Array Master.

Besides Dan Yu, Mo Hua also wore around his neck a Yao Yao Ling.

These benefits were the merit points on the bronze waist token.

"So one must perceive with spiritual sense, calculate within the spiritual sea, and through understanding of arrays and recognition of Dan Yu's movement, determine whether this place conceals a lost array…"

The group set out on their journey, passed through the city gate, and walked down a narrow path.

No obvious array patterns were visible, meaning Pei Jiangcong had not seen any specific array.

Mo Hua placed the Tian Yan Jue jade slip and several rare array diagrams inside his Tian Shu Ring, tied a string to it, and hung it around his neck as well.

Mo Hua didn't understand, so he asked Elder Yu:

We had no idea what Mo Hua and Elder Yu were even talking about…

This was not much different from the large towns Mo Hua had seen along the way.

"Eyes deceive, but spiritual sense does not; appearances deceive, but the essence of Dan Yu does not."

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi exchanged glances.

"Absolute Arrays are not like ordinary arrays—they are a more refined, more essential, and more advanced use of Dan Yu."

"Master, how do you know there's an Absolute Array here?"

Mo Hua also kept the Dao Ting Si bronze waist token inside his storage bag.

After Mo Hua used a great array to destroy Feng Xi, a blood mark appeared on his Yao Yao Ling.

Xiao Bai grunted a few times and rubbed its head against Mo Hua's big face.

"You cannot find the traces of an array merely by looking with your eyes."

Other Yao Yao Shi, upon killing a beast, would gain a thin red blood line on their Yao Yao Ling.

But Mo Hua noticed his seemed different somehow.

"The Reverse Spirit Array reverses Dan Yu; the Great Array accumulates Dan Yu; other Absolute Arrays, too, in varying degrees, all have some unusual qualities."

This ring was called the Tian Shu Ring, forged and issued by the Dao Ting Si Tian Shu Pavilion to Array Masters who passed their ranking.

"Master, is there an Absolute Array in this town?"

After inventorying his belongings, Mo Hua sat in meditation, then resumed drawing arrays.

Even the poorest-looking mansion here used arrays Mo Hua could see through at a glance.

There was also a Rank-One spiritual weapon: the Yang Yang Qianjun Club.

Around Mo Hua's neck hung a Dan Yu as well.

When Mo Hua leaves here, if needed, he can exchange the merit points recorded in the Merit Ledger for spirit stones or spiritual items, to prepare for unforeseen needs.

Like the storage bag, it cannot store items, only holds greater space, and is meant only for secret or valuable objects.

Mo Hua's status was unusual—an eighteen-year-old Rank-One Main Array Master; if reported, few would believe it. Zhou Zhangsi never officially informed Dao Ting Si, but secretly granted Mo Hua several benefits.

But this blood mark was half a finger thick, a pale golden streak.

Here, the most important item was the Rank-One Array Master's ring.

After walking another half-day, they encountered a large town.

Qianjia Town had few people, but all were clearly cultivators without sects, and their clothes were all stained with mud.

This Yao Yao Ling was originally given to me by Master Zhuang; every Yao Yao Shi receives one.

The houses in town were inscribed with arrays, but most were ordinary, bearing only a few faint array lines.

Elder Yu pulled back the curtain, glanced at the town, and nodded:

Mo Hua extended his spiritual sense; the world turned a blank white, then Dan Yu of all colors appeared one by one.

"How did you know?"

"You'll have to work hard again."

Every time Mo Hua looked at it, he felt it contained much kindness.

"Some Absolute Arrays are buried underground, sealed in ancient ruins, or painted in the corners of obscure large towns, operating silently, unknown to all…"

Elder Yu glanced at Mo Hua and snapped, "Guess."

Mo Hua asked Pei Jiangcong, and Mr. Zhuang also looked puzzled, saying he had never seen it, not even in any hunter's records.

After setting out, Mo Hua affectionately wrapped his arm around Bai Yu's neck and patted its back, saying:

Then Elder Yu patiently explained:

Mo Hua had heard his father Mo Shan say that cultivation included the category of "Spiritual Agrarian," who cultivated various cultivation crops or grew medicinal herbs for a living.

Yet on this Dan Jade, it seemed as if it truly carried the merit of Master Feng healing and saving lives, radiating a gentle, warm glow.

In the town, there was one clearly grand and luxurious mansion—likely the residence of the poorest local family.

This was given to me by Master Feng, carrying a faint warmth that could refresh and calm the spirit.

In Xiancheng Town, killing the Fengxi boar earned the local Dao Ting Si great merit.

Elder Yu spoke with profound mystery: "Figured it out."

"Was it deduced through spiritual perception?"

He was very curious inside.

Morning glow spilled across the sky, falling upon the road.

Mo Hua and the two others exchanged glances, unsure why they were staying here.

Spiritual perception, Dan Jade calculation, array pattern deduction, searching for lost arrays…

The ring's body was engraved with four star patterns, each pattern bearing eight star lines, symbolizing fourth-rank arrays, each rank with eight tiers.

Qianjia Town.

Mo Hua recalled what Elder Yu had told him, his eyes brightening slightly, and asked:

He had originally wanted to wear it on his hand, but his hand was too large—the Tian Shu Ring could only fit on his pinky, like a thumb ring.

Or rather, had he sensed something?

That would mean Elder Yu also knew beforehand that this place held a lost array.

Zhou Zhangsi, in his later years, achieved a feat he never expected, grinning from ear to ear.

Kuai Lao stopped the carriage.

This Yang Yang Qianjun Bang, Mo Hua had re-forged with Master Chen's help; its material was now sturdier, and he had reinforced it with a Yang Yang Qianjun Fu Array, making it even more effective for ambush strikes.

Mo Hua suddenly understood, nodding repeatedly.

Since the array patterns were invisible, one could reverse-engineer them through the array's flow, deduce their spiritual strength, and thus conclude that a lost array lay here.

Mo Hua studied the town again.

Among them, those who farmed were specifically called "Spiritual Farmers."

Many cultivators were bent over, laboring in the fields.

Not having seen anything, but acting on sudden impulse, they had paused here.

Mo Hua sensed with his spiritual perception for a while, then his eyes brightened slightly, tentatively saying:

Mo Hua glanced once more at the distant town.

Elder Yu nodded slightly.

It wasn't just his own earnings, but also savings from his parents, and some given by Elder Yu.

Anyway, the bloodstains on this Yao Yao Ling were red, or gold—it made no difference now, and there were no immediate drawbacks; he'd figure it out later when he had time.

Mo Hua looked up and saw from afar the town's signboard:

"The world changes, seas turn to mulberry fields; appearances shift and flow endlessly."

Mo Hua smiled wearily.

After Pei Jiangcong's hint, Mo Hua suddenly understood.

He constantly feared it would fall off, so he threaded a string through it and hung it around his neck.

Near the town lay a large expanse of connected spiritual energy.

Mo Hua frowned.

Within his line of sight, the entire town came into view.

Now he wore eight items around his neck, all heavy, making it tiring to carry.

Bai Yu inlaid with Jin Se, ancient and noble.

This merit also owed much to Mo Hua.

After dinner, everyone rested at the inn for the night and would set out again the next day.

Dinner was eaten at the inn; everyone ordered a few dishes—neither bad nor good, not as good as what Mo Hua cooked himself.

Although Master Feng said, "Merit is ethereal and insubstantial."

After traveling a stretch of road, they passed a mountain path, flanked by towering peaks, with sparse human presence—only the rhythmic sound of hooves echoed.

Mo Hua patted the waist token, feeling more at ease.

Mo Hua pressed further, asking:

Faint golden bloodstains…

At least until Foundation Establishment, it should be sufficient.

And they were merely passing through, stopping temporarily.

Elder Yu made him guess, not guess blindly—this meant he himself knew this method too.

What had he seen?

These cultivators tilling the spiritual energy must be the "Spiritual Farmers" his father Mo Shan mentioned.

Mo Hua didn't understand, so he left it for now.

Houses varied in height, bricks and stones worn and broken; many places had deteriorated over years, clearly most cultivators lived poorly.

The Tian Shu Ring is both proof of an array master's identity and a large storage ring.