Chapter 385

Sun Ze said in disgrace: "Yes..."

Sun Yi was momentarily dazed, and after a long while, murmured:

"I misjudged him..."

He had originally thought that the smallest-looking young cultivator was merely a disciple who fetched tea and water and served their master.

But he never expected that this disciple not only knew formation arrays, but also wielded spells of such power.

Moreover, his mind was sharp, he could fight alone against many, and his battle experience was remarkably seasoned.

Sun Ze growled: "Father, we must avenge this insult!"

Sun Yi did not reply, but coldly stared at his son: "Did you tell him everything about our Sun family's secrets?"

"No! Father, you must believe me!" Sun Ze swore earnestly.

Sun Yi let out a cold snort.

The core of the Absolute Array should not differ greatly from special arrays.

Ling Li gave me a glance.

He wanted to find some connection among those arrays.

"And in your rice fields, you have this Foundation Establishment cultivator, besides which there are hundreds of Qi Refinement disciples."

Especially his head, which Mo Hua had struck several times with sticks, still rang dully.

Ling Li snorted again: "Even if that demon spell is powerful, it can only defeat four or four at most—it's the limit. Dozens, even hundreds of cultivators, even if they just wear him down, can exhaust his energy."

"What if among us there is a Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

He had already searched thoroughly but still had no leads.

"He still thinks from those angles, but must not be limited by the array knowledge he already possesses."

All Sun Ze were as one, responding to each other.

That innocent-looking demon boy was actually a rare array prodigy.

Bai Zisheng placed another bamboo chair outside the courtyard; when idle, he sat on it, leisurely watching the green mountains, clear waters, blue sky, and white clouds.

But the arrays were simple, their patterns numerous, and the Sun family could not draw them, so they had to find things to draw themselves.

Sun Yi calmed down, and for the first time thought carefully—his heart lurched:

Mo Hua sighed, raised his head, and found Ding Sunjia also sitting on the ground, gripping a branch, imitating Mo Hua, drawing something unknown.

He had never even seen a Level-One Four-Stripe array, let alone an Absolute Array below Four-Stripe.

Bai Zisheng said, then turned his gaze to the nearby heavens and earth, his expression profound:

"Search well—for your rice fields, find that lost array..."

The rice fields could not be left behind, so Bai Zisheng rented lodging at Ding Lao's house.

Otherwise, back in Xiancheng, I would have followed Mo Hua into Great Baishan to hunt demons and shown off my skills.

"Even better than you... drew..."

"If his energy is exhausted, he cannot escape even with wings."

Judging by the basic array framework, there should be no other arrays within Sun Ze.

But what the Sun family drew looked like an array, yet not quite an array.

Mo Hua was indeed searching for arrays, but after searching for a long time, still had no leads.

"An array prodigy... we provoked him—wasn't that unwise..."

"Arrays are vast and profound; what you have seen and learned is still only a fraction of an iceberg—the unknown mysteries remain countless."

Sun Yi became somewhat alert, and asked in confusion:

Mo Hua nodded slightly, then suddenly froze.

Ling Li said: "I've planned this well—among us, even if there is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, there is at most only one..."

"Beyond heaven there is heaven, beyond people there are people..." Ling Li sighed.

Since Liang Shan had no visitors, Mo Hua naturally had no disturbances.

"When he grows older, pick a boy from the rice fields and force a marriage with him; once a child is born, he will be bound to your rice fields."

Array patterns should also exist beneath Tian Geng.

Yet Mo Hua had scoured every inch of Sun Ze and still found not a trace of an Absolute Array.

Sun Ze could not swallow this humiliation.

"When the fight begins, I'll hold the Foundation Establishment cultivator off—can't your hundreds of rice field disciples handle the remaining few Qi Refinement cultivators?"

Liang Shan immediately laughed: "Impossible!"

"Father, what exactly are you planning?"

"That demon boy's identity is unusual, his spells are not ordinary, and his array expertise seems exceptionally peculiar."

Arrays... Sun Ze...

Sun Yi's gaze flickered; after a moment's thought, he slowly said:

"Master, are the arrays within Sun Ze?"

"It seems... possible after all."

Ling Li snorted: "Speak."

He went to see the alchemist, who said his arms were fully burned by fierce flames and he could not use spiritual energy for a while; other parts of his body also bore various injuries.

Mo Hua calmed his mind, found a branch, and began drawing something on the ground.

But after several days of searching with no progress, he sat cross-legged by the field, chin in hand, lost in thought.

Mo Hua's thoughts were a little disordered.

"Why give up?"

"Zinan doesn't have your Tian Geng bloodline, no blood connection—I'm still half a Tian Geng person, so naturally I must do my utmost to serve your Tian Geng…"

The spiritual power gaze sharpened. "Wait."

Mo Hua scratched his head, utterly baffled.

The wind carried a faint sweetness of rice seedlings.

"Liang Shan, what is he drawing?"

"Learn to use known knowledge to think—but not be limited by those things."

"Let's hold our ground for now."

But judging by Bai Zisheng's demeanor, Mo Hua was certain that within Sun Ze, there must be concealed an ultimate array…

He trusted his son too much—he must have said everything he should and shouldn't have said.

"What are the key elements of an array?"

Yet no matter how many times he turned them over, the arrays remained exactly the same—nothing ordinary about them.

That was a basic array question; Mo Hua answered fluently.

Sun Jia drew Sun Ze, but following Mo Hua's brushwork, what emerged was both array and not array.

Especially as an older brother helping the eldest junior brother fight—it's only natural, Liang Shan Teng wouldn't blame me.

A fireball surged toward him; though Sun Ze had covered his face, he was still burned, leaving several scorch marks on his skin.

Among that group, perhaps that Great Ghost was the true key figure.

Ling Li smiled faintly, turned his head, and looked toward the living Sun Ze, his eyes filled with expectation:

"Father, does he have any plans beyond what I know?" Sun Yi asked.

Most crucially, there's no array eye.

Here, then, is the array pivot.

Beneath Tian Geng, stones were laid—soft in texture, easy to carve arrays into.

Mo Hua glanced a few times, puzzled, and asked:

"Wait for the Great Ghost to uncover your Tian Geng's ancestral array, then sweep us all away and reap the benefits."

"We capture all of you, threaten you with my master or senior and junior siblings—there's no way he won't obey."

Liang Shan Teng spoke leisurely, utterly unhurried.

Mo Hua suddenly stood up, his heart surging with turbulent waves.

"Wait?"

Sun Yi pondered again:

Ling Li had no anger, yet his heart leapt—he knew it was true.

Array medium, array pattern, array pivot, array eye…

"I destroyed all the flawed arrays he drew—I didn't pay attention then, but now I recall: these arrays were drawn extremely well. And drawn slowly and well—better than Father…"

"But Father, I can't swallow this insult."

Great Liang Shan still ran after him every day.

Ling Li smiled warmly. "When the time comes, Tian Geng's arrays will return to their rightful owners, and the Great Ghost who can draw arrays will serve your Tian Geng."

Ling Li rubbed his chin and asked in return:

Arrays require an array eye to supply Liang Shan, yet within Sun Ze, there was no viable array eye to sustain an ultimate array.

The key point is, he's still so young.

Ling Li smiled again and continued:

He drew every array involved in Sun Ze—the soil-nourishing array, the water-storage array, the insect-repelling array, and more—each one meticulously rendered.

He'd drawn cows, chickens, everything.

Sun Ze hissed.

Another mountain breeze swept through, stirring the rice seedlings into rolling waves of green, layer upon layer, merging all of Sun Ze into one vast expanse, rippling outward.

He went to ask Bai Zisheng:

That doesn't sound like Father's way of doing things.

Within Sun Ze, there was only the eight-pattern soil-nourishing array, plus a few other water-and-soil-related arrays.

In Qianjia Town, Tian Geng has always been vengeful—when did they ever yield?

A light breeze blew, rippling the rice waves.

Mo Hua frowned, vaguely grasping something.

Mo Hua nodded. "I think so."

Snow Auntie was lenient with him, especially allowing him to fight others.

Most importantly, he was disfigured.

Sun Yi snorted. "Can't swallow it? Then swallow it anyway."

Sun Jia waved his hand backward. "The Sun Ze drawings."

Bai Zisheng, seeing Mo Hua's furrowed brow, offered a hint:

For the past few days, Mo Hua still went to Liang Shan every day.

So Liang Shan Teng, eager to prove himself, wandered daily around Sun Ze, constantly lifting his head, watching for any Tian Geng cultivators to come bother us, so he could show off his skills.

"What if… Father… we just let it go?" Sun Yi ventured.

"What good is an array genius?" Ling Li sneered. "The cultivation world is vast, with billions of cultivators—how many geniuses are there? Even with the finest talent, if he doesn't grow, he's no different from a mediocrity."

"Array medium, array pattern, array pivot, array eye."

Now that Snow Aunt is by my side, Liang Shan lets me do as I please, and I'm free as well; Sun Yi Leng has long wanted to find someone to fight and test his skills.

There's certainly no absolute array in Sun Ze; this must be using Tian Geng as the array medium.

"You say, that big ghost—could he really find your spirit field's ancestral array?"

Mo Hua showed no sign of worry.

Hearing Mo Hua ask me, Bai Zixi smiled with an inscrutable expression. "What do you think?"

"Since there's no guessing left, keep searching patiently."

Liang Shan's anger hadn't faded; suddenly he frowned.

Sun Yi Leng and Bai Zi Xi had other matters, yet followed Mo Hua to help him search for the array.

Bai Zixi gave directions.

Now it's Sun Ze's turn.

Sun Yi Leng would still wander far away when he had nothing to do, but he never came near the spirit fields to cause trouble.

Unfortunately, the people of Tian Geng were sensible and never showed up.

Mo Hua found nothing—within Sun Ze, there existed no ordinary array pivot.

Though Ding Laotou's family was poor, their courtyard was quite small.

Sun Yi felt some concern:

Mo Hua, as if struck by sudden insight, nodded eagerly.

Sun Yi still had reservations: "Even if you capture him, can he obey Liang Shan's orders?"

Sun Yi stopped mid-sentence, daring not to speak further.

I watched Mo Hua draw the array, and followed along, drawing it myself.

Sun Yi was deeply shaken. "Father, you're truly… cunning—brilliant."