The Quest for Immortality

Zhang Quan, the Spiritual Pivot Formation, the traitor of the Minor Hidden Spirit Sect.

There must be a connection between these three.

However, there aren’t many clues, and it’s not easy to investigate.

For now, the Formation is what’s important.

In the courtyard where the gentle breeze blew, Mo Hua was still practicing the Spirit Pivot Formation.

But as he practiced, he suddenly felt as if he had forgotten something.

What had he forgotten?

Mo Hua paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered.

Zhang Quan’s ancestor was still tucked away in his Storage Bag...

That Ancestral Master Picture of the Zhang Family!

The one depicted on the picture should be an ancestor of the Zhang Family.

When Zhang Quan held a ceremony and burnt incense to worship the Ancestral Master Picture, he could borrow the Divine Thought of his predecessors to refine and control the Corpse Controlling Bell.

The Picture contains Divine Thought.

This indicates that the Ancestral Master Picture is very likely to be a Contemplation Map.

And the offering for the ceremony is a person’s Divine Sense.

Therefore, the beings residing inside this Contemplation Map, even if not ghosts like the Little Green-faced Ghost, must be some foul and evil thoughts.

Zhang Quan practiced Corpse Refinement.

His method of Corpse Refinement was passed down from his own ancestors.

Then, his ancestor must also be no good.

Mo Hua touched the Storage Bag, his expression somewhat hesitant.

”Should I take a look?”

There would probably be risks involved in looking at it.

Just like in Black Mountain Stronghold, there might be some evil spirits in this Ancestral Master Picture waiting to invade his Sea of Consciousness.

And the Taoist Stele has only recovered halfway.

If the Taoist Stele can’t suppress the evil spirit and he rashly allows it to invade, it would be like inviting a wolf into his house, which could lead to disaster.

Possibly even risk exposing the secret of the Taoist Stele, making it even more dangerous.

But not looking at it wouldn’t be good either.

This Picture can’t be kept.

If kept, once it falls into Zhang Quan’s hands again, it would be helping the tyrant do evil.

If it doesn’t fall into Zhang Quan’s hands and instead is obtained by other cultivators, it could also harm lives by providing Divine Sense for the evil spirit housed within the Picture to consume.

If he keeps it himself, the risk is quite high.

Who knows, at a critical moment of life and death, the evil thoughts within this Picture might emerge and cause trouble.

So it can’t be kept.

If not kept, then it can only be destroyed.

A fire would burn Zhang Quan’s ancestral master to ashes and scatter them to the winds.

If Zhang Quan knew about this, he would probably be angered to death.

Mo Hua couldn’t help but sneer internally.

But after some thought, Mo Hua felt somewhat reluctant.

After all, Contemplation Maps are quite rare.

So far, Mo Hua had only come across two:

One was the Landscape Taoist Child Painting from the Black Mountain Stronghold.

The other was this Ancestral Master Picture of the Zhang Family.

Both Paintings were extremely precious and deeply treasured, difficult for one to come by.

To destroy it would be an awful waste.

More importantly, if he could refine the Divine Thought within the Contemplation Map, it could enhance his Divine Sense.

Mo Hua’s strongest attribute was his Divine Sense, which was also what he lacked the most.

His Divine Sense was far beyond that of a Qi Refinement cultivator and no inferior to that of an average cultivator in the initial stage of Foundation Establishment, even slightly more profound.

But this Divine Sense was still far from enough.

He must find a way to break through his Divine Sense to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment.

That is, to the realm of fourteen Patterns.

Then he would be able to establish his foundation and construct the Taoist Foundation of Divine Sense, and walk the path of Proving the Dao with Divine Sense.

Currently, he lacked difficult Formations to refine his Divine Sense.

The Spiritual Pivot Formation was made of twelve Patterns, but it wasn’t complete.

It would probably take some trouble to acquire the complete Spiritual Pivot Formation Chart.

Under these circumstances, if he could refine the Contemplation Map, his Divine Sense would progress much faster.

And Mo Hua would be able to achieve Foundation Establishment sooner.

After some thought, Mo Hua still went to ask Mr. Zhuang for advice.

He placed the crumpled, incense-ash smudged, wrinkled Ancestral Master Picture of the Zhang Family in front of Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang looked at this dirty lump of a thing with an expression that was somewhat at a loss for words.

”How did it get crumpled like this?”

Mo Hua, with a serious face, said:

”I was afraid it would bewitch me!”

Mr. Zhuang was silent for a moment, then asked, ”Did it bewitch you?”

”Mhm,” Mo Hua nodded.

”How did it bewitch you?”

”It praised my talent, promised me opportunity, and even wanted me to look at it...” Mo Hua snorted, ”It wishes!”

”And then...”

”Then I taught it a lesson, and it quieted down,” Mo Hua replied.

Mr. Zhuang took another look at the Painting.

The Painting was creased from being crumpled by Mo Hua’s small hands; it was covered in ash and even had a few little footprints on it.

It looked indeed as if it had been ”taught a lesson”...

Mr. Zhuang couldn’t help but chuckle.

Mo Hua asked softly:

”Master, can I look at this Painting?”

Mr. Zhuang thought for a moment, then shook his head:

”Not yet.”

Mo Hua was a bit disappointed, then his eyes lit up, and he asked:

”Not yet... So, Master, when can I?”

Mr. Zhuang didn’t answer but instead asked:

”How have you progressed with the Spiritual Pivot Formation?”

”I’ve learned a little...”

Mo Hua conveyed his insights and understanding of the Spirit Pivot Formation to Mr. Zhuang.

After listening, Mr. Zhuang nodded slightly.

Unable to restrain himself, Mo Hua said,

”Master, isn’t this Spirit Pivot Formation a bit too simple...”

Mr. Zhuang paused, and couldn’t help but tap Mo Hua’s forehead with his finger, ”Don’t say that outside.”

Otherwise, certainly, some Formation Masters would get annoyed and couldn’t help wanting to beat you up.

Mo Hua grinned sheepishly, but still puzzled, he said,

”Master, I thought the Spirit Pivot Formation would be more difficult...”

”Like the first-grade, ten-pattern Reversed Spirit Formation, or the eleven-pattern Thick Earth Formation, which require the comprehension of something deeper to master the Formation...”

”But this Spirit Pivot Formation doesn’t seem to require much comprehension, and I just learned the basics...”

Mr. Zhuang smiled somewhat meaningfully, ”How do you know you haven’t comprehended anything?”

Mo Hua was startled, ”What have I comprehended?”

I don’t even realize it myself...

Mr. Zhuang asked, ”What is the core of the Spirit Pivot Formation?”

”Spiritual Power control,” Mo Hua blurted out.

”How to control it?”

”Through the Formation, decipher the essential structure of Spiritual Power, then parse the Spiritual Power, forming filaments. Divine Sense takes the Formation as the pivot, controlling the Spiritual Power filaments to manipulate external objects.”

Mr. Zhuang said with a profound smile,

”Does that sound familiar?”

Mo Hua furrowed his brow in thought.

Divine Sense controlling Spiritual Power...

After a moment, Mo Hua suddenly came to a realization.

”Heaven Yan Jue!”

Heaven Yan Jue is also a Cultivation Technique for cultivating Divine Sense manipulation.

The more profound the practice of Heaven Yan Jue, the sharper the control by Divine Sense.

”Correct!” Mr. Zhuang nodded, ”The Spirit Pivot Formation emphasizes Spiritual Power control. Heaven Yan Jue is about Divine Sense manipulation. They are related by the same origin...”

”When you studied the Spirit Pivot Formation, it’s not that you failed to comprehend.”

”Rather, you have gradually comprehended these Formation principles while practicing Heaven Yan Jue over time.”

”Therefore, comprehending the Spirit Pivot Formation was actually not that difficult for you.”

”After comprehending the Ultimate Formation, it was just an everyday comprehension that deepened a bit, without the feeling of a Sudden Enlightenment...”

Mo Hua nodded slowly, understanding in his heart.

A moment later, he furrowed his brow again and asked,

”But Master, the control of Spiritual Power involved in the Spirit Pivot Formation and Heaven Yan Jue is still different, right?”

There’s still quite a disparity between the two.

That’s why he didn’t think of this at the beginning.

Mr. Zhuang looked at him approvingly and nodded,

”They take similar paths but to different ends. Their essence is similar, but their focuses are different...”

”Heaven Yan Jue emphasizes Divine Sense manipulation, focusing on the Divine Sense itself.”

”The Spirit Pivot Formation emphasizes Spiritual Power control, focusing on Divine Sense manipulating objects, or rather, Divine Sense controlling Spirit, meticulously controlling Spiritual Power with Divine Sense.”

”One is internal, the other external; they complement each other.”

”You’ve practiced Heaven Yan Jue, and your Divine Sense control is strong, so you find it easier to understand the principles of the Spirit Pivot Formation and comprehend them more thoroughly.”

”Divine Sense Manipulation...” Suddenly, an idea struck Mo Hua, and he asked, ”Does this have anything to do with Divine Sense Manipulation in the Foundation Establishment Stage?”

Mr. Zhuang explained,

”The principle is the same; both are about manipulation, but the forms are different. Divine Sense Manipulation is about strength, while controlling objects with Divine Sense is about finesse.”

Mo Hua said, ”So can I do Divine Sense Manipulation now?”

”No,” Mr. Zhuang said, ”You can only learn it upon reaching Foundation Establishment. Although your Divine Sense is sufficient, your Cultivation is not.”

Mo Hua was a bit disappointed, but after some thought, it made sense.

The techniques of Foundation Establishment are not so easily learned by those in Qi Refinement.

After listening to Mr. Zhuang’s explanation, Mo Hua understood a lot, but he also had many questions.

”Master, what do these have to do with the Contemplation Map?” Mo Hua asked.

Mr. Zhuang’s gaze grew concentrated as he said,

”Do you remember me saying I would teach you the spell point of Divine Thought Slaughter?”

Mo Hua’s heart tightened, and he showed expectation, nodding again and again.

Mr. Zhuang’s gaze was profound as he spoke slowly,

”Divine Thought Slaughter is based on Divine Sense, manifesting form, and controlling objects with Divine Sense is the spell point.”

”Divine Sense as the base, manifesting form, and controlling objects with Divine Sense is the spell point...”

Mo Hua quietly repeated these words.

Mr. Zhuang asked, ”Do you understand now?”

Mo Hua honestly shook his head.

He understood the words ”Divine Sense,” ”manifesting,” and ”controlling objects” when taken separately, but when Mr. Zhuang strung them together, he was somewhat confused.

”No matter,” Mr. Zhuang said with a smile, ”Let’s take it step by step...”

”Divine Thought Slaughter is considered an extremely unorthodox method, and it is very difficult and extremely dangerous. Normal Cultivators don’t learn it.”

”Even among Demon Path cultivators, not many can do it.”

”I am teaching you because you aim to Prove the Dao with your Divine Sense, and you will inevitably face deadly threats at the level of Divine Sense.”

”In fact, you have already encountered it...”

For example, the Little Green-faced Ghost in the Contemplation Map of Black Mountain Stronghold...

Mr. Zhuang silently contemplated.

He didn’t know how Mo Hua had resolved it, and he didn’t ask further.

Some secrets are meant to be kept.

Mr. Zhuang gave Mo Hua a meaningful look and admonished,

”Possession counts for advantage, but absence serves as utility.”

”External objects can be relied on, but should not be depended upon.”

”You must continually strengthen your Divine Sense, mastering the spell point.”

”Learn to rely on your own strength, to face the various dangers hidden within Divine Thoughts...”

”It’s you who aims to Prove the Dao with Divine Sense, not any external object.”

Mo Hua was stunned for a moment, then enlightened, his young face serious, as he earnestly nodded.

Seeing the clarity in Mo Hua’s eyes, Mr. Zhuang felt reassured and nodded slightly.

Then he pointed to the table, at the bundle of wrinkled old ancestral pictures of the Zhang Family,

”Once you’ve learned the spell point of Divine Thought Slaughter, you can use this picture for practice...”