Chapter 943: An Old Friend

Watching Mo Hua and the others were invited into the guest hall, where a disciple served fresh fruits and fine tea suffused with spiritual Qi.

This array master introduced himself:

"My surname is Su, a first-rank array master, and I humbly serve as an elder of the South Peak Sect. May I ask, young Mr...."

Watching Mo Hua said, "My surname is Mo, a first-rank array master, and no one has yet invited me to be an elder...."

The array master laughed. "Young Mr. Mo certainly has a witty way of speaking."

Watching Mo Hua was exceptionally gifted, yet not arrogant; his words carried an innocent charm, and when he smiled he looked warm and endearing. The elder set his mind at ease, slowly sipped his tea, and asked:

"May I ask what brings young Mr. here?"

Watching Mo Hua said, "Elder Su...."

"No, no, please just call me Elder Su...."

Elder Su hurriedly waved his hand.

Both being first-rank array masters, he would be too embarrassed to let anyone address him as "Grand Master."

Watching Mo Hua nodded and asked:

"Elder Su, do you know an array master surnamed Yan? His attainment in arrays is half a step into first-rank, or perhaps already first-rank...."

Elder Su paused slightly, stroked his beard, and murmured:

"Surnamed Yan...."

He pondered for a long while, shook his head, and only then said:

"I truly don't know."

"Nanyue City is a place that's both big and small, especially within the circle of array masters. Anyone with a bit of skill has, more or less, crossed paths at some point."

"Array masters surnamed Yan... there are some in Nanyue City, but half a step into first-rank, or already first-rank... I haven't heard of any."

Watching Mo Hua was a little disappointed and added:

"He's from out of town."

Elder Su considered:

"If an outside array master stayed long enough for us to visit back and forth, I should have heard of him."

"Since I haven't, it's possible he only lingered here briefly and then left...."

"Of course, if this array master, upon arriving, lived quietly and never crossed paths with other array masters, then it would be normal for me not to have heard of him...."

Watching Mo Hua nodded slowly.

Since Instructor Yan had come here to hunt down a sect traitor, it wasn't impossible that, to avoid alerting his quarry, he had concealed his tracks and lived quietly.

Elder Su hesitated, then still asked:

"May I ask what relation this Mr. Yan has with young Mr.?"

After asking, Elder Su added apologetically, "Of course, if it's not convenient to say, pretend I never asked."

"Mr. Yan is something of a senior mentor to me. I happened to be passing through and thought I'd pay him a visit."

Watching Mo Hua only gave a rough outline.

Elder Su understood.

Paying respects to one's teacher is only human nature.

He said regretfully, "What a pity. I've never met this array master, so I can't be of help to young Mr."

Watching Mo Hua said politely:

"Elder Su is too kind. It is we who have intruded."

Since he couldn't get any news of Instructor Yan, Watching Mo Hua rose to take his leave; he still had to ask other array masters.

Elder Su thought for a moment, had a disciple bring out a calling card, handed it to Watching Mo Hua, and said:

"This is my calling card...."

"When young Mr. visits other array masters, without showing the Tianshu Ring, you likely won't get through the door."

"But the Tianshu Ring is precious—it draws attention and invites jealousy—so it's best not to display it lightly."

"With this card, calling on people will be far more convenient."

Watching Mo Hua took the card and saw Elder Su's name written upon it, the calligraphy elegant, the ink dusted with gold, and bearing the name of the South Peak Sect.

It looked both valuable and impressive.

Watching Mo Hua said gratefully, "Thank you, Elder Su!"

Elder Su smiled. "While young Mr. is staying in Nanyue City, should you have leisure, feel free to come to my humble residence for tea and a chat about arrays."

Watching Mo Hua thanked him again, but then asked with some hesitation:

"Won't it disturb you when you're entertaining guests?"

Elder Su was both an array master and an elder, and usually had a stream of guests—he must be very busy.

Elder Su shook his head:

"No matter. Whenever young Mr. comes, you will always be an honored guest."

Watching Mo Hua smiled as well. "Thank you for Elder Su's kindness, Elder Su. If I have time, I certainly will."

Afterward, Elder Su personally saw Watching Mo Hua to the door.

Once Watching Mo Hua had walked off into the distance, Elder Su stroked his beard and muttered to himself:

"What the hell—where did this little first-rank array master come from? At such a young age, surely he didn't learn arrays from the womb? But that doesn't add up either...."

The disciple who had been by Elder Su's side all along asked in a low voice:

"Master, could he be a fake?"

"He can't be," Elder Su shook his head:

"Arrays don't lie. It is what it is, and what it isn't, isn't. The moment he lifted his brush to draw an array, I knew—he must be a first-rank array master, without a doubt!"

The disciple felt a pang of bitterness: "Even if he's a Grade-One Array Master, he's still young—aren't you being too courteous to him?"

"What do you know?"

Elder Su glared at the disciple.

The disciple dared not speak.

Elder Su furrowed his brows, pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly:

"That young Mr. Liao Zheyan… I can't fathom him."

"Not just him—I can't fathom the two young cultivators beside him, with their extraordinary appearances and demeanors…"

"They clearly show only Qi Refining cultivation, yet my spiritual sense detects nothing…"

"I'm still at Foundation Establishment, yet I can't see through Qi Refining…"

"This means they must be wearing some spiritual artifact that conceals their aura."

"Such spiritual artifacts aren't something just any cultivator with ordinary background could possess."

The disciple's heart tightened: "Could these three young cultivators have powerful connections?"

Elder Su nodded, then shook his head, suddenly froze, then frowned at the disciple:

"Why do you care so much? Go study your array techniques!"

"If you'd devoted half this much thought to arrays, you wouldn't still be nothing but an apprentice."

"Of all my disciples, you're the dumbest."

"If it weren't for your mother's sake, I'd have kicked you out long ago."

"Look at him—he's barely ten and already a Grade-One Array Master. Look at you—you won't amount to anything even if you live to a hundred…"

…

Elder Su scolded him mercilessly.

The disciple sulked and hurriedly said:

"I'm sorry, Master—I'll go draw arrays right away."

Then he dashed off, yet his expression showed no real panic.

Seeing this, Elder Su sighed helplessly:

"Back in my day, how did I ever let myself get tangled up in such a romantic mess?"

…

Mo Hua left Elder Su's residence; Bai Zisheng asked:

"Shall we visit the other Array Masters too?"

"Mm." Mo Hua nodded. "Even if there's likely no lead, we still need to go—just to get our faces known."

They were strangers here; in Nanyue City, knowing more cultivators couldn't hurt.

Besides, these cultivators were all Array Masters.

Local Array Masters were usually prominent figures.

Building even a little rapport would help if any conflict arose.

Without any connection, trouble would likely turn to violence.

Even a mere nodding acquaintance would make things easier to handle.

He'd learned this from Master Luo.

Master Luo thrived in Tongxian City, getting along smoothly with every Array Master—listening to his advice was always wise.

Bai Zisheng nodded.

The group then used Elder Su's letter of introduction to visit every prominent Array Master in Nanyue City.

They inquired about Yan Jiaoxi's whereabouts, while also building connections.

Elder Su was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, a Grade-One Array Master, and an elder of Nanyue Sect—apparently even an Inner Sect elder.

His letter of introduction was indeed very effective.

Mo Hua smoothly visited every Array Master's residence in Nanyue City.

Everyone was polite and amiable.

With Elder Su's letter, Mo Hua didn't need to reveal his own Grade-One Array Master status—it wasn't necessary.

Elder Su's status was enough.

Even if some Array Masters were arrogant, after a few words of conversation about arrays, they'd grow friendly.

Array Masters got along well with each other.

Especially when discussing arrays—whether someone was an expert became clear in just a few sentences.

Mo Hua's age and array mastery left them all astonished.

Mo Hua spent the whole day visiting everyone and became familiar to all.

As the saying goes: a powerful dragon doesn't suppress local snakes.

Mo Hua, once barely a "cross-river dragon," now, after this round of visits, had become a "little local snake" of Nanyue City's array circle.

Walking through Nanyue City, Mo Hua held his waist even straighter.

Bai Zisheng was puzzled.

He had seen with his own eyes: every Array Master, no matter how arrogant at first, ended up treating Mo Hua with kindness.

They all seemed eager to give him face.

Was his popularity really that good?

Or was it because Mo Hua was an Array Master?

But Mo Hua hadn't even said he was a Grade-One Array Master—he'd only claimed he knew "a little" about arrays.

Bai Zisheng did not understand.

Mo Hua did not know what Bai Zisheng was thinking.

He was still thinking about Instructor Yan.

As expected, every array master he asked knew nothing of Instructor Yan's whereabouts—not even heard of him…

Mo Hua could not help frowning.

Where had Instructor Yan gone?

Was he still even in Xiancheng?

…

After returning, Mo Hua told everything to Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang was not surprised, as if he had already anticipated it; he merely nodded slightly.

"Then, Master, should we keep looking?" Mo Hua asked.

He feared wasting Mr. Zhuang's time.

"Keep looking," said Mr. Zhuang. "Search for a few more days."

"Understood."

…

In the following days, aside from his daily cultivation and drawing arrays, Mo Hua spent all his other time with Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi, wandering the streets and alleys of Xiancheng, asking about Instructor Yan's whereabouts.

After five or six days, there was still no lead.

Although they had not found Instructor Yan, Mo Hua encountered other acquaintances.

One day, as Mo Hua walked the streets, he saw several people arguing; among them was a beautiful female cultivator who looked familiar.

Mo Hua could not help glancing at her several times.

Bai Zi Xi looked at him curiously.

Mo Hua blinked, suddenly remembered, his eyes brightening, and waved his hand calling out:

"Sister Situ!"

The woman was Situ Fang.

Several years ago, outside Tongxian City on Great Heishan, she and Zhang Lan had been hunting down evil cultivators when they met Mo Hua.

Mo Hua guided them to the evil cultivators, lent a small hand in subduing them, and even broke one of the evil cultivator's legs.

Mo Hua remembered that Situ Fang had treated him well, and later, together with Zhang Lan, had invited him to dine at Lingshan Restaurant.

A whole table full of dishes!

Situ Fang, wearing the black Dao Ting Si Gu Diansi robe, turned at the sound, startled; she saw a fair-lipped, white-toothed young cultivator waving at her, calling her "sister" in a clear voice.

Situ Fang stared for a long moment before recognizing him, her mouth opening slightly:

"Mo… Mo Hua?!"