Chapter 533: The Shrine

"Our Wuxing Sect keeps its word; we accept defeat and honor our bets."

The Grand Elder glanced warily at Mo Hua, then continued, "Young friends, you may here study my Wuxing Sect's supreme inheritance—the Five Elements Spirit Array."

"The Five Elements Spirit Array, with its first-rank thirteen patterns, is a top-tier ultimate array."

"The value of this array needs no further explanation from me."

"But to learn this array, certain rules must be followed…"

"First, you may study for only five days, two hours per day. If you master it, my Wuxing Sect has nothing to say; if you fail, then each of you must take responsibility for your own fate…"

"Second, during your study, you must not damage a single brick or piece of wood in this room, nor move any furnishing."

"Third, you must not show disrespect to the shrine, nor defile the ancestors of my Wuxing Sect."

"Fourth, whether you learn this array or not, whether you learn much or little, you must not reveal it to outsiders under any circumstances!"

"Fifth…"

The Grand Elder went on rambling, listing a long list of rules.

Mo Hua found it tedious, but endured it for the sake of the Five Elements Spirit Array.

After finishing, the Grand Elder glanced at Mr. Zhuang and said gently:

"On the third floor, we have prepared the rare Lishan Cloud Mist tea. Please, sir, step upstairs to rest and savor it."

This was a polite dismissal.

No outsiders are permitted before the shrine during array study.

Mr. Zhuang nodded, his gaze sweeping over the three faces of Mo Hua, and instructed, "Study well." Then he flicked his sleeve and descended to drink tea.

The Grand Elder followed Mr. Zhuang away.

As the Grand Elder left, he lit incense, cast a murky glance at Mo Hua and the other two, then locked the door and departed.

Before the silent, solemn shrine, only Mo Hua and the two others remained.

They had only five days, two hours each day, to comprehend the Wuxing Sect's thirteen-pattern Five Elements Spirit Array.

They must seize every moment.

Before the shrine stood five meditation cushions.

"Sit upon the cushions, visualize the shrine, and attain the array."

That was the Grand Elder's instruction.

He had also specifically emphasized that "sit" meant "kneel-sit."

But kneeling-sitting was impossible.

The ancestors of the Wuxing Sect meant nothing to Mo Hua; they did not deserve his kneel.

Mo Hua sat cross-legged upon the cushion.

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi glanced at Mo Hua, then sat cross-legged on their own cushions just as he had.

Mo Hua sat in the center, Bai Zi Xi on his left, Bai Zisheng on his right.

The three began focusing intently, visualizing the shrine.

The shrine was black wood with gold lacquer, opulent yet ancient and solemn.

Its surface bore gilded bas-reliefs: ancestral statues, spirit beasts and chariots, rare flowers and exotic grasses, carved beams and painted rafters, various magical treasures…

Mo Hua's eyes grew dizzy from the clutter, yet he could not grasp the purpose of these carvings…

Only at the shrine's center seemed to be a dharma ground.

In the center of the dharma ground stood a massive array platform.

Around it, array masters gathered, their expressions reverent.

Above the dharma ground stood an old man, solemn-faced, pointing to the heavens as if transmitting teachings.

The shrine imparts the Dao.

The dharma ground's array platform.

This was the part of the entire shrine most closely tied to the array.

"Could it be that the Five Elements Spirit Array is carved onto the array platform at the shrine's center?"

Mo Hua speculated, then calmed his mind and focused, visualizing the shrine, directing his thoughts to the central array platform.

Indeed, after a moment, a faint bell-like chime sounded.

The incense smoke from the brazier drifted gently before Mo Hua, then in fine threads, enveloped the shrine's front and coalesced into intricate patterns, manifesting upon the array platform.

Mo Hua's spirit lifted.

"So it is!"

He was about to concentrate fully on the array patterns when, at that moment, a withered voice sounded in his ear:

"I transmit to you the array…"

This feeling was too familiar.

Long ago in Nan Yue City, when Mo Hua seized Zhang Quan's ancestral portrait and visualized it, he had heard the same ethereal, aged voice whispering incessantly: "I transmit to you the Dao," "Help you ascend to immortality," "Grant you eternal life…" and similar phrases.

Mo Hua instinctively recoiled.

Another fraud!

His eyes flashed; his spiritual sense stirred, clearing his mind and dispelling the illusion.

Moments later, all vanished.

Above the brazier, the incense smoke still curled gently.

But the smoke was merely ordinary smoke—no array patterns, no external manifestations.

The withered voice in his ear was gone.

The shrine remained as before.

The array plate was completely empty.

It seemed everything had vanished, as if discarded by Mo Hua…

When Mo Hua looked again, the altar was still just an altar.

No array, nothing remained…

Mo Hua froze.

He contemplated for a long while again, but still no change occurred.

Mo Hua pondered for a moment, murmuring to himself:

"Did I just ruin it myself…?"

"Was that voice just now trying to transmit the array to me?"

"The incense smoke within the censer, indeed coalesced into profound Wuxing Sect array patterns…"

"But because I saw through the illusion, the ancestors of the Wuxing Sect got upset and stopped teaching me?"

"No way…"

Mo Hua tried several more times, but still achieved nothing.

It seemed the altar truly no longer wished to teach him the array.

The smoke had become mere ordinary smoke, no longer coalescing into array patterns…

Mo Hua sighed helplessly.

Should he blame himself—for having too strong a spiritual sense, too firm a Dao heart, too acute a perception of spiritual fluctuations?

Mo Hua turned his head and glanced at his senior brother and senior sister.

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi were both seated cross-legged, postures straight, eyes focused intently on the array plate before the altar.

In their eyes, flashes of array patterns shimmered, as if they were comprehending something.

They seemed to be learning the Wuxing Spirit Array…

Mo Hua didn't dare disturb them.

Mo Hua tilted his head to the right, glancing at Bai Zisheng.

Then he tilted his head to the left, staring at Bai Zixi for a while, unable to help but sigh inwardly:

Senior sister is truly beautiful!

Her skin is Bai Xi, her features delicate, her eyes like stars in the sky—serene and crystalline.

This is still after she altered her appearance, concealing her true face.

If she were in her original form, she'd be even more beautiful…

Mo Hua stared a while longer, then snapped back to himself:

"Almost forgot—the important matter: the Wuxing Spirit Array…"

Mo Hua once again focused entirely, contemplating the altar.

But no matter how he contemplated, the altar showed not the slightest change.

Even when he tried "pretending to be foolish," sealing his spiritual sense and silently chanting, "Come, deceive me—I won't see through you anymore," it did no good.

The altar still ignored him.

Mo Hua sighed, stared at the altar a while longer, and a doubt arose:

Could this altar have any connection to the contemplation diagrams?

Contemplation diagrams can house spiritual impressions.

These spiritual impressions come in all kinds.

They include understanding of the Great Dao, insights into Heaven's Dao, as well as residual spiritual impressions left by deceased cultivators, or malevolent spirits, zombies, and other dark energies.

Mo Hua had never seen a proper contemplation diagram.

What he'd seen were all improper ones.

Each one contained unclean, malevolent entities.

Could this altar, then, be a proper "contemplation diagram"?

Mo Hua also remembered his master saying that "contemplation diagram" was merely a general term—not all objects of contemplation were "diagrams." A blade of grass, a tree, a brick, a tile, a spiritual artifact—all could contain the Great Dao, or harbor spiritual impressions, or be possessed by malevolent forces.

"So does that mean this altar is another kind of 'contemplation diagram'?"

"Only, other contemplation diagrams are 'diagrams,' while this one is an 'altar'?"

"Could something be dwelling within this altar?"

"A spiritual impression? Or the method of the Wuxing Spirit Array?"

"Either way, it's a valuable thing…"

Mo Hua's eyes lit up, then dimmed again.

"Too bad it's too large to carry away…"

"And the Wuxing Sect would never let me take it."

Mo Hua muttered to himself:

"If only I could carry the altar away, it'd be a permanent solution—I could study it daily, contemplate it constantly, and surely master the Wuxing Spirit Array…"

But alas, it could only remain a fantasy.

Carrying off the ancestors' altar of the Wuxing Sect was truly too outrageous…

But now the question was—how could he possibly learn the Wuxing Spirit Array…?

Mo Hua was stumped, staring blankly at the altar.

The incense smoke within the censer gradually dissipated.

Time passed slowly…

Before they knew it, the time had come.

The incense in the censer had gradually burned out.

Mo Hua only then realized two hours had passed, yet he hadn't learned a single array pattern…

It was like an exam, with the submission time near, and he hadn't written a single word…

Mo Hua's little heart trembled.

Then he remembered this trial lasted five days; if he didn't learn today, he still had four more—this eased his breath slightly.

The censer burned out.

All the misty qi had vanished.

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi snapped back to awareness, blinked, their eyes glinting faintly, withdrawing from their visualization state.

They simultaneously glanced at Mo Hua—and found him looking like someone who'd sat through a lesson and learned nothing, then just gave up entirely—both froze.

At that moment, the Grand Elder opened the door.

His gaze swept over the three faces of Mo Hua, then he asked nothing, only said calmly:

"Today's time is up. Come again tomorrow."

Mo Hua and the others bowed politely, then followed Mr. Zhuang out.

Back in the room, Mo Hua spoke with a tinge of guilt:

"Master, I didn't learn anything…"

Mr. Zhuang was slightly surprised, then curious, his interest piqued:

"What did you see?"

Mo Hua answered honestly: "I saw the array patterns on the array disc, and heard an old man speaking. Then, out of habit, I cleared my distractions—and after that… I saw nothing more…"

Except for a little time spent sneaking glances at Little Sister, the rest was spent pondering the visualization diagram and just zoning out…

"Master, why is that?" Mo Hua asked.

Mr. Zhuang paused thoughtfully, then sighed: "Perhaps your spiritual sense is too strong…"

Spiritual sense too strong—penetrates the essence.

Dao heart pure—unaffected by illusion.

But precisely because of that, you cannot see the shrine's illusory diagrams, and thus cannot perceive the Wuxing Sect's inheritance.

Mo Hua muttered: "The Wuxing Sect is ridiculous—why use such a bizarre method to pass down the ultimate arrays…"

Mr. Zhuang silently glanced at Mo Hua, thinking: It's not the Wuxing Sect that's ridiculous—it's your spiritual sense that's ridiculous.

At the First Rank Qi Condensation realm, you have thirteen-pattern spiritual sense.

The Wuxing Sect's ancestors probably never anticipated this…

Mr. Zhuang turned to Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi: "And you two?"

Both nodded.

Bai Zisheng said: "We learned. Sitting on the meditation cushion, visualizing the shrine—the array disc at the center of the shrine's domain would manifest array patterns..."

"And an old man would explain key points for learning the Wuxing Spirit Arrays…"

Mr. Zhuang said: "Draw them for me."

Bai Zisheng stammered: "I didn't learn it all…"

"No matter," Mr. Zhuang said, "draw whatever you remember."

"Mm."

Bai Zisheng nodded, then took out paper and brush, beginning to draw the Wuxing Spirit Array he'd learned from the shrine.

Bai Zi Xi, slender fingers holding the brush, moved with graceful poise, and began drawing too.

When finished, they handed the drawings together to Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang glanced once, then nodded: "Indeed, a First Rank Thirteen-Pattern Wuxing Spirit Array."

Mo Hua leaned in to take a look.

Bai Zisheng's drawing was a Fire-element ultimate array—unfinished, but clearly the Fire Spirit Array of the Wuxing Spirit Arrays.

Bai Zi Xi's drawing was a Wood-element ultimate array—thirteen array patterns, not one missing—a complete Wood Spirit Array.

Clearly, Bai Zi Xi's array talent far surpassed Bai Zisheng's.

A complete First Rank Thirteen-Pattern Wood Spirit Array…

Though using the Xiantian Array Style, she'd memorized it fully in just two hours.

Mo Hua couldn't help praising: "Little Sister, you're amazing!"

Bai Zi Xi nodded, accepting Mo Hua's praise, her eyes sparkling.

Bai Zisheng pouted, though annoyed by Mo Hua's "flattery," he still worried:

"Younger brother, if you can't see the domain's array diagrams, how will you learn the Wuxing Spirit Arrays?"

For him and Zi Xi, the Wuxing Spirit Arrays were merely icing on the cake.

They didn't rely on arrays.

But Mo Hua was different.

Mo Hua must walk the path of arrays, must constantly learn arrays, must constantly strengthen his spiritual sense.

The Wuxing Spirit Arrays are vital to Mo Hua.

Mo Hua sighed again.

He had no good solution.

If the shrine's domain never revealed the array diagrams, he was truly helpless.

He couldn't just smash the shrine…

Bai Zixi thought for a moment, her beautiful eyes brightening slightly. "My brother and I will teach you!"

Bai Zisheng was stunned for a moment, then understood as well:

"Not bad. I'll go learn with Zixi, and once we've learned it, we'll teach you."

Mo Hua was slightly startled, then pondered it for a moment, and his eyes lit up.

It seemed... it wasn't entirely unworkable.

Learning from anywhere was still learning.

His own senior brother and senior sister teaching him formations could be considered perfectly proper.

"But does this count as unauthorized transmission?"

According to the Grand Elder of the Wuxing Sect, one could only learn and practice by oneself.

Bai Zixi shook her head and said, "It doesn't count as unauthorized transmission."

Mo Hua thought it over, nodded, and felt she was right. They were all of the same sect, all qualified to learn the Absolute Formations, and exchanging knowledge naturally didn't count as unauthorized transmission.

So Bai Zixi and Bai Zisheng began teaching Mo Hua the Wood Spirit Formation and the Fire Spirit Formation.

Bai Zixi's expression was calm.

Bai Zisheng, on the other hand, was full of excitement—he rarely had the chance to teach Mo Hua formations.

The two of them taught the formation patterns while also sharing with Mo Hua all the key points and insights they had heard from the old man.

Mo Hua studied intently, memorizing the formation patterns while listening to the explanations, asking questions whenever he had any.

By evening, Mo Hua had finally roughly grasped the formation patterns of the Wood Spirit Formation and the Fire Spirit Formation.

However, although Mo Hua could draw these formation patterns, they had no effect.

Just like the other Absolute Formations, it seemed to be missing something important—only the formation pattern's Chen Xinghai, without the formation's spiritual essence.

This was within Mo Hua's expectations.

But there was another question that concerned him:

"Why are there only the Wood Spirit Formation and the Fire Spirit Formation?"

Where were the other three series of Five Elements Spirit Formations?

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi looked at each other, both shaking their heads.

"What I saw was only this one spirit formation..."

"Does one learn them one by one, and only after mastering one can one learn the others?"

"If it's step by step, then why would the order be different? There's Wood, there's Fire—how is this order determined?"

None of the three could figure it out.

Mo Hua sighed: "We can only take another look tomorrow..."

Bai Zisheng also said: "It can only be this way."

Bai Zixi frowned as well, a look of puzzlement in her eyes.

Mr. Zhuang looked at the three of them, smiled faintly, and said nothing.

Meanwhile, on the fourth floor of the Formation Pavilion, before an ancient and stately shrine.

The Grand Elder lit three sticks of incense and inserted them into the incense burner.

The incense smoke curled upward.

After a while, of the three sticks of incense, two were short and one was long.

The incense on the left burned the most and was left the shortest, but still had a long stub remaining.

The incense on the right was next, having burned a little, but not too much.

The incense in the middle hadn't moved at all.

The Grand Elder was delighted in his heart and nodded, saying:

"Not learned—good..."

Not only not learned, but not learned at all!

The Grand Elder felt both relieved and deeply moved.

Talent was there, the foundation in formations was solid, and what he knew was correct, but after all he was too young in age. Learning too much leads to confusion, and his comprehension was a bit lacking...

He hadn't understood the Five Elements Absolute Formation at all.

It seemed his guess was correct.

His senior brother and senior sister were indeed stronger than him.

But no matter how strong they were, or how high their talent, truly penetrating the Five Elements Spirit Formations was still far off...

Of the three sticks of sandalwood incense in the burner, aside from the middle one, the remaining two still had a very long way to go before truly burning out...

The Grand Elder breathed a sigh of relief.

He cupped his hands in salute toward the shrine and said piously:

"... Bless my Wuxing Sect, that its legacy be unbroken and the Dao of Formations flourish!"

There was no response from within the shrine.

But the wooden statue of the old man in the Dao arena opened its eyes.

(End of chapter)