The Quest for Immortality

Mo Hua and several others were invited into the living room, where disciples served fresh fruit and tea enveloped in spiritual energy.

The Formation Master introduced himself:

”My surname is Su, a first-rank Formation Master, and I have the honor to be an Elder of South Yue Sect. May I ask the young master’s name...?”

Mo Hua replied, ”My surname is Mo, also a first-rank Formation Master, but no one has invited me to become an elder yet...”

The Formation Master smiled, ”Young Master Mo speaks with quite a sense of humor.”

With exceptional talents, Mo Hua was neither arrogant nor haughty. He spoke with an innocent tone and a charming, affectionate smile. The elder thus let down his guard, leisurely sipping his tea before inquiring:

”May I ask what brings the young master here?”

Mo Hua then said, ”Master Su...”

”Please, no need for formalities, just call me Elder Su...”

Elder Su hastily gestured with his hands.

As a fellow first-rank Formation Master, he was too modest to let anyone address him as ”Master.”

Mo Hua nodded and asked:

”Elder Su, do you know of a Formation Master surnamed Yan with a half-step First Rank cultivation or perhaps already at the First Rank?”

Elder Su was taken aback for a moment, stroking his beard as he murmured:

”Surname Yan...”

After pondering for a long time, he shook his head and finally said:

”I truly do not know of anyone.”

”The city of South Yue is both big and small, especially when it comes to the circle of Formation Masters. Anyone with some level of skill is bound to have crossed paths with others, more or less.”

”A Formation Master surnamed Yan... there are a few in South Yue City, but half-step First Rank or already at First Rank... I have not heard of any such person.”

Mo Hua felt somewhat disappointed and added:

”He is from outside.”

Elder Su pondered:

”If he’s an external Formation Master who stayed here a while and interacted with others, then I should’ve heard of him.”

”If I haven’t heard of him, it’s possible he only stayed here briefly before leaving...”

”Of course, if this Formation Master secluded himself upon arriving here and did not mingle with other Formation Masters, then it’s normal that I haven’t heard of him...”

Mo Hua slowly nodded his head.

Since Instructor Yan was on a quest to find a renegade from his sect, it was plausible for him to seclude himself and hide his traces after arriving here to avoid startling the quarry.

Elder Su hesitated for a moment before asking:

”May I ask what is the relation between you and Mr. Yan?”

After asking, he added with an apologetic tone, ”Of course, if it’s inconvenient to disclose, please pretend I did not ask.”

”Mr. Yan is something of a predecessor and mentor to me. Since I happened to be passing by, I thought to pay him a visit,”

Mo Hua provided just a brief explanation.

Elder Su understood.

Visiting one’s mentor was a natural human sentiment.

He then expressed regret, ”It’s a pity that I have never met this Formation Master and can’t be of help to you, young master.”

Mo Hua politely responded:

”You are too kind, Elder Su. We apologize for the intrusion.”

Since he couldn’t find out any news about Instructor Yan, Mo Hua stood up to take his leave, intending to inquire with other Formation Masters.

Elder Su paused to think, then had a disciple fetch a name card, which he handed to Mo Hua, and said:

”This is my name card...”

”When visiting other Formation Masters, without showing the Heaven Shu Ring, it may be difficult to gain entrance.”

”However, the Heaven Shu Ring is valuable and not only draws attention but may also invite envy, so it’s best not to reveal it lightly.”

”Having this name card will make it much more convenient.”

Mo Hua took the name card, noticing the Elder Su’s elegant and dignified signature, with golden specks on the ink and also bearing the emblem of South Yue Sect.

It looked both precious and reputable.

”Thank you so much, Elder Su!” Mo Hua expressed his gratitude.

Elder Su replied with a smile, ”If young master has some free time while staying in South Yue City, please feel free to visit my humble abode for tea and discussion on Formation theory.”

Mo Hua thanked him again, yet hesitated, saying:

”Won’t I disturb your entertaining of guests?”

Elder Su, being a Formation Master and an Elder, would surely be busy with a host of guests.

Elder Su shook his head, ”Not at all. Whenever you come, young master, you will be an honored guest.”

Mo Hua then smiled, ”Thank you for your kind offer, Elder Su. I will definitely make time if I can.”

Afterward, Elder Su personally escorted Mo Hua to the door.

Only after watching Mo Hua walk away did Elder Su stroke his beard and mutter to himself:

”Seen a ghost I have, where does this junior Formation Master hail from? So young, surely he couldn’t have been learning Formation from the womb, and yet, that doesn’t seem right either...”

The disciple who had been by Elder Su’s side asked softly:

”Master, could he be an imposter?”

”Impossible,” Elder Su shook his head:

”Formation skill doesn’t lie. If it’s genuine, it’s genuine, if not, it’s not. The moment he began Drawing Formation, I knew for certain that he must be a first-rank Formation Master!”

The disciple felt a twinge of jealousy, ”Even if he’s a first-rank Formation Master, he’s still young. Weren’t you a bit too courteous to him?”

”What do you know?”

Elder Su glared at the disciple.

The disciple didn’t dare say another word.

Elder Su knitted his brows in thought for a while before slowly saying:

”This young gentleman... I cannot see through him.”

”Not only him, but I also cannot see through the two young Cultivators accompanying him, distinguished in appearance and temperament...”

”They seem like mere Qi Refinement Cultivators, yet Divine Sense reveals nothing...”

”I remain at Foundation Establishment, yet cannot see through Qi Refinement...”

”This suggests that they must be wearing some kind of Spiritual Artifact to conceal their aura.”

”Such Spiritual Artifacts cannot possibly be owned by Cultivators of ordinary status and background.”

The disciple became solemn inwardly, ”Could these three young Cultivators be of no small origin?”

Elder Su nodded, then shook his head, and suddenly looking perturbed, said to the disciple:

”Why do you care so much? Just focus on learning your Formation!”

”If you put even half that amount of attention into Formation, you wouldn’t still be just an apprentice.”

”Of all the disciples I’ve taken, you’re the most blockheaded.”

```

”If it weren’t for your mother’s face, I would have told you to get lost a long time ago.”

”Look at others, already a top-grade Formation Master at barely over ten years old. Now look at you, even if you live to be a hundred, you might still not amount to much...”

...

Elder Su gave the disciple a severe scolding.

The disciple left sullenly, quickly saying:

”I know my mistake, I will go and work on Drawing Formations right away.”

Then, he ran off hastily, though his expression did not show much panic.

Seeing this, Elder Su sighed helplessly:

”Back in my day, why couldn’t I control myself and avoid getting involved in such a romantic mess?”

...

After leaving Elder Su’s residence, Bai Zisheng asked:

”Shall we visit the other Formation Masters as well?”

”Hmm,” Mo Hua nodded, ”Though it’s highly likely we won’t find any clues, we should still make the trip, at least to become acquainted.”

Being strangers in South Yue City, it was good for them to get to know more Cultivators.

Moreover, these Cultivators were all Formation Masters.

Local Formation Masters generally held prestigious positions.

Building some rapport could be beneficial in the event of conflicts.

Without any connections, the likelihood of resorting to physical confrontations in disputes was high.

With connections, even if it’s just a nodding acquaintance, negotiations tended to be easier.

This was something he had learned from Master Luo.

Master Luo was highly successful in Tongxian City, navigating among the Formation Masters with ease. Taking his advice was always the right decision.

Bai Zisheng nodded.

Afterward, several of them, holding Elder Su’s name card, visited all the influential Formation Masters of South Yue City one by one.

They both inquired about Instructor Yan’s whereabouts and took the opportunity to socialize.

Elder Su was a Foundation Building Cultivator, a top-grade Formation Master, and an elder of South Yue Sect, apparently even from the Inner Gate.

His name card proved to be extremely useful.

Mo Hua easily visited the residences of all the Formation Masters in South Yue City.

Everyone was mostly polite and amiable.

With the name card, Mo Hua did not need to reveal his status as a top-grade Formation Master, as it wasn’t necessary.

Elder Su’s status was more than sufficient.

Even if some Formation Masters were initially arrogant, after a few conversations and discussions about Formations, they became amicable.

When Formation Masters interact with each other, communication is easier.

Especially when discussing Formations, it quickly becomes apparent who is knowledgeable based merely on a few comments.

Mo Hua’s youth and knowledge of Formations impressed them.

Mo Hua spent a whole day asking around and managed to make himself known.

As the saying goes, a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake.

Initially a mere ”Crossing River Dragon,” Mo Hua, after mixing in the social circles, had practically become a ”local snake” in the Formation community of South Yue City.

Walking the streets of South Yue City, Mo Hua carried himself even more upright.

Bai Zisheng didn’t quite understand.

He had seen with his own eyes; all Formation Masters, no matter how arrogant at first, ended up treating Mo Hua cordially in the end.

It seemed that they were quite willing to give face to Mo Hua.

Was this popularity simply too good to be true?

Or was it because Mo Hua was a Formation Master?

But Mo Hua hadn’t said that he was a top-grade Formation Master. He had only mentioned he knew ”a little” about Formations...

Bai Zisheng couldn’t grasp it.

Mo Hua was unaware of what Bai Zisheng was thinking.

He was still concerned about Instructor Yan’s whereabouts.

As expected, none of the Formation Masters he inquired about knew where Instructor Yan was, some haven’t even heard of the man...

Mo Hua couldn’t help frowning.

Where on earth had Instructor Yan gone?

Was he still in South Yue City at all?

...

Upon returning, Mo Hua reported everything to Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang was not surprised, as if he had anticipated this, and simply nodded slightly.

”Master, shall we continue our search?” Mo Hua asked.

He didn’t want to waste Mr. Zhuang’s time.

”Let’s continue searching,” Mr. Zhuang said, ”Give it a few more days.”

”All right.”

...

In the following days, apart from his daily cultivation routine and working on Formation Painting, Mo Hua, along with Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi, wandered the streets and alleys of South Yue City, sightseeing while inquiring about Instructor Yan’s whereabouts.

After five or six days, they still hadn’t turned up any leads.

While they hadn’t found Instructor Yan, Mo Hua did bump into other acquaintances.

One day, as Mo Hua was walking through the city, he saw a group of people in a dispute, among them a pretty female Cultivator who looked somewhat familiar.

Mo Hua couldn’t help but take a few extra glances.

Bai Zixi curiously watched him.

Mo Hua blinked his eyes and suddenly remembered, his eyes lighting up as he waved and called out:

”Sister Situ!”

The woman was Situ Fang.

Years ago, outside of Tongxian City at Big Black Mountain, she and Zhang Lan were apprehending Evil Cultivators when they came across Mo Hua.

Mo Hua helped them find their way to the Evil Cultivators, and even modestly assisted them in subduing the Evil Cultivators, even going as far as to break one of their legs.

Mo Hua remembered that Situ Fang had treated him well. Afterwards, she and Zhang Lan had even treated him to a meal at the Spiritual Meal Building.

An entire table full of dishes!

Situ Fang, dressed in a black Taoist Court uniform, was startled by the call, turned around and saw a young cultivator with rosy lips and white teeth waving at her, calling her ”sister” with a ringing voice.

Situ Fang was puzzled for a moment before recognition dawned, and her mouth fell open:

”Mo... Mo Hua?!”

```