Chapter 412: Swing One Cut

The broker chatted about idle gossip from Nanyue City while introducing Mo Hua to the cave dwelling.

Mo Hua, meanwhile, examined the exterior layout of the cave dwelling while memorizing what Mr. Zhuang had said.

"Observe the spiritual energy, observe the orientation, observe the array, observe the Five Phases…"

Since the Dao Court unified the realm, cultivation has flourished for over twenty thousand years, with cultivators multiplying into hundreds of millions, yet the natural spiritual energy of heaven and earth has gradually thinned.

Today, the naturally occurring spiritual energy is no longer sufficient to sustain cultivators' practice.

Yet spiritual energy still exists in heaven and earth.

But this energy is either too thin, too mixed, or too polluted to be absorbed and refined by cultivators.

Mo Hua silently pondered:

"What is Master asking me to observe in the spiritual energy?"

"What is there even to see in spiritual energy?"

Mo Hua extended his spiritual sense, observing the swirling, lingering spiritual energy above the cave dwelling; after a moment, he gradually understood, and some clarity dawned in his mind.

What Mr. Zhuang wanted him to observe was not the spiritual energy itself, but its flow.

When spiritual energy flows, the qi mechanism is unobstructed, and the cave dwelling becomes habitable.

Wind is not constant, but the flow of spiritual power is ever-present.

Yet this flow is extremely subtle, requiring patience to sense and careful discernment.

Orientation is also easy to understand.

East, south, west, north, up, down—the six directions.

The placement and orientation of a cave dwelling within the overall layout of Xiancheng also follow strict principles.

As for arrays, that goes without saying.

Mo Hua was a Rank-One Array Master, even a Rank-One Primary Array Master who had overseen the construction of the Rank-One Five Phases Great Demon-Slaying Array, with twelve spiritual patterns inscribed upon his consciousness, and had learned an array surpassing Rank-One.

To the current Mo Hua, anything involving arrays was the simplest.

Especially Rank-One Qi Condensation arrays.

Nanyue City was only a Rank-Two Xiancheng.

The highest cultivation level was Foundation Establishment, and the array masters were at most Rank-One.

The arrays used in this cave dwelling were primarily Rank-One, with even Rank-One Nine-Pattern arrays being rare; most were simple six- or seven-pattern arrays.

These arrays, Mo Hua could perceive at a glance without any calculation.

Six- or seven-pattern arrays, to the current Mo Hua, were no different from basic array patterns.

Finally, the Five Phases…

Mo Hua recalled the principles of the Five Phases' generation and overcoming he had applied when designing arrays for the Alchemy Guild.

In Daoist architecture, different chambers and different arrays all involved the principles of the Five Phases' generation and overcoming.

How to use Metal generating Water to store water sources; Water generating Wood to nourish flowers and plants; Earth generating Metal to reinforce structures…

Mo Hua observed, calculated, and muttered aloud as he went.

The broker glanced at Mo Hua in surprise.

This young cultivator didn't seem like a novice.

And he was extremely familiar with the arrays in the cave dwelling…

He clearly had some array expertise.

Could he be an apprentice of some great array master, selecting a dwelling for his master?

The broker's spirits lifted, and his smile became more sincere.

An array master…

Even if he couldn't win favor, he must not offend him.

…

The broker was enthusiastic, taking Mo Hua and the other three to view every cave dwelling in the broker's listings.

After touring them all and carefully considering, Mo Hua narrowed it down to three dwellings and asked Bai Zixi and Bai Zisheng:

"What do you think?"

Bai Zixi said nothing.

Bai Zisheng, however, was dissatisfied.

"Too small, too unimpressive, not enough rooms, and the facilities for alchemy and artifact forging are too basic."

Mo Hua glanced at him. "Why don't you pick then?"

Bai Zisheng thought for a moment and backed down:

"Better not. Master told you to choose—you do it."

All this talk of spiritual energy, layout, arrays, and Five Phases made his head ache.

If Mo Hua picked wrong, Master wouldn't punish him.

But if he picked wrong, who knew—maybe he'd be forced to copy books or draw hundreds of arrays…

Bai Zisheng glanced again at Mo Hua and muttered inwardly:

"Could Mo Hua be a blood relative of Master's? Why else would Master treat him so well?"

Bai Zisheng speculated, then immediately dismissed the thought in his mind:

"Impossible. Master's bloodline couldn't have a spiritual root as poor as Mo Hua's!"

Mo Hua frowned. "Are you talking behind my back again?"

"I didn't say anything!"

"You thought it."

Bai Zisheng opened his mouth, "Mo Hua, have you become a spirit? How do you know what others are thinking?"

Mo Hua gave a light snort and said nothing.

Since his spiritual sense strengthened and he learned the art of calculation, he sometimes felt faint intuitions about certain things.

Of course, he knew what Bai Zisheng was thinking mainly because he knew him too well.

Bai Zisheng was wary of strangers, but with those he knew well—especially his little junior brother who lived with him daily—his thoughts were written all over his face.

Bai Zisheng turned to the matter at hand: "So which cave dwelling should we choose?"

Mo Hua said, "I've already evaluated these three according to Master's criteria—spiritual energy, layout, arrays, and the five elements. They're all nearly identical. Pick whichever you like."

Bai Zisheng scratched his head.

He thought none were particularly good, yet if he had to choose, they were all about the same.

Mo Hua glanced at Bai Zi Xi, "Little sister, which one do you like?"

Bai Zisheng also turned to his sister.

Bai Zi Xi thought for a moment, then gently tapped a slender white finger against a map of a cave dwelling and said:

"This one."

Mo Hua looked at it. The cave dwelling had nothing particularly special—just a pond in the courtyard, a patch of grass beside it, and a large tree on the grass.

Though the layout differed slightly, it bore some resemblance to the mountain retreat where they had studied under Mr. Zhuang on Nanshan in Chengnan.

Especially the large tree in the courtyard.

Mo Hua nodded. "Then we'll take this one."

Mo Hua showed the cave dwelling's blueprint to Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang glanced at it once and nodded. "Good."

Mo Hua felt a surge of joy—he must have been right about his earlier considerations.

Since Mr. Zhuang approved, the next step was to find a broker to rent the cave dwelling.

The broker was greatly surprised.

He hadn't expected Mo Hua and the others to actually rent.

"You really want to rent?" the broker asked again.

Mo Hua nodded, but before he could speak, Bai Zi Xi's clear voice cut in:

"We won't rent."

Not only the broker, but Mo Hua too was stunned.

Bai Zi Xi said calmly:

"We'll buy."

Mo Hua whispered, "Little sister, buying will cost a lot of spirit stones..."

Bai Zi Xi shook her head. "Not much."

She lightly patted the gold-threaded brocade phoenix-patterned storage pouch at her waist and whispered to Mo Hua:

"Before we left, Sister Xue gave me all the spirit stones..."

Worried he might be anxious, she added:

"A lot... a lot..."

Mo Hua was stunned.

His little sister was a little fortune-teller...

Then he felt puzzled: "Can this small storage pouch even hold that much?"

Bai Zi Xi nodded. "It can hold it."

Mo Hua understood.

This storage pouch must be an extraordinary spiritual artifact.

Ordinary cultivators' storage pouches had limited space and couldn't hold much.

For transporting large items, one needed a storage chest.

But Mo Hua knew some spiritual storage artifacts had vast internal space—though they were extremely expensive, far beyond what he could afford.

Mo Hua glanced again at the gold-threaded phoenix-patterned storage pouch, curious to know just how much it could hold.

But he felt too shy to rummage through his little sister's pouch.

On the other side, the broker was overjoyed.

Originally meant to rent, now it had turned into a purchase.

A big deal had become an even bigger one.

The broker immediately smiled: "This cave dwelling's original price is forty thousand spirit stones. If you young friends wish to buy, our shop offers a discount: thirty-eight thousand spirit stones!"

Bai Zi Xi was about to nod, but Mo Hua burst out angrily:

"Wait!"

Thirty-eight thousand spirit stones?!

Are you kidding me?

An ordinary cultivator reaching Foundation Establishment spends about ten thousand spirit stones.

That ten thousand requires an ordinary cultivator to save for over thirty years without eating or drinking.

But how could an ordinary cultivator possibly eat or drink nothing?

And how could they ever have a smooth path?

If misfortune struck and they urgently needed spirit stones, they'd likely spend more than they earned—unable to save even ten thousand, let alone one thousand.

This one cave dwelling costs thirty-eight thousand spirit stones?

Save up for a hundred years without eating or drinking?

It's just a cave dwelling—why is it so expensive?

Mo Hua frowned, somewhat angry.

The broker sighed helplessly: "The market is just like this—we can't help it…"

Then he added more about Dao Ting Si, family holdings, and land prices, implying the cave dwelling was indeed expensive, and it wasn't their fault.

"The market has been like this for years…"

Seeing they truly had no choice, Mo Hua said:

"Then lower the price a bit."

Even though he didn't have to pay the spirit stones himself, his little sister's spirit stones were still spirit stones.

Over thirty thousand spirit stones—he felt sorry for his little sister.

"We can't lower it any further…" The broker looked troubled. "Young brother, you've got good eyes—this cave dwelling may look unremarkable, but the wind and water flow perfectly; it's an excellent choice…"

Mo Hua's eyes narrowed slightly. "The array here is flawed."

The broker blinked, slightly annoyed:

"How could the array here be flawed? Let me tell you—this array balances the Five Elements, defends and attacks equally; it wards off thieves and enemies, circulates air and nourishes Qi. And the array's tier? Every single one is a genuine Grade-One array, drawn by a master array artisan, and nearly brand-new…"

The broker spoke fluently, spinning a dazzling tale.

Mo Hua pointed to a spot on the ground. "This part of the array is broken."

The broker froze. "Broken… broken?"

Mo Hua nodded. "The Earth-Stone Array—the second array line's array medium is damaged…"

Mo Hua took a few steps forward, looked up, and added:

"This array is drawn incorrectly."

"The Bright Lamp Array—the fourth array line, the fifth stroke is wrong…"

The broker's mouth hung open.

Mo Hua turned his head, glanced at the courtyard. "Originally, there were four arrays here—but they've all failed, never repaired. You probably didn't even know…"

"Also, this array is wrong too…"

"This one isn't wrong, but it uses inferior spirit ink—it'll fail in two months."

"And here—the arrays conflict…"

"What even is this drawn here…"

"And here…"

…

The broker was utterly stunned.

Just who is this young cultivator?

He hadn't even shown the young man the cave dwelling's array diagram…

Arrays are secrets; diagrams are sealed. No transaction completed, no diagram may be shown.

Yet this young man, after just a few glances, listed every flaw in the cave's arrays as if he knew them by heart?

Whether the cave looks nice, is comfortable to live in, or has good layout—

These are subjective matters.

Everyone has their own opinion; they can't be trusted.

But array flaws? Those are concrete, impossible to fake…

And yet, someone had seen them so clearly, so plainly…

The broker was dazed, sweat pouring down.

Having listed nearly all the flaws, Mo Hua's gaze flickered—and seized the moment to strike hard:

"Twenty thousand spirit stones!"

A lion's demand—almost halved the price.

The broker shuddered violently, nearly lost his balance…

(End of Chapter)