The Quest for Immortality

”So our Taixu Gate is now one of the Four Great Sects of Qianxue? And... even the leader among them?”

Elder Master Xun nodded, ”It should be like this... However, the specifics of the ranking, and how the shares are divided, involve too many interests. In the end, it still needs to be reported to the Dao Court Tianquan Pavilion for approval, so it will take some time for everything to be settled...”

Mo Hua was puzzled, ”The other four great sects surely can’t agree to this result.”

”It doesn’t matter if they disagree; the battle achievements are evident, and...” Elder Master Xun said, ”Time is pressing; we must come to a conclusion...”

”This is the Tao Discussion Meeting; it’s not just about discussing swordsmanship, there’s also pill, formation, talisman, and artifact discussions. If the sword discussion yields no result, the subsequent competitions can’t be held either.”

Mo Hua couldn’t help but ask, ”Is the blood sacrifice disaster so severe? Are we still holding the other discussions normally?”

Elder Master Xun nodded, ”Precisely because the blood sacrifice disaster is so severe, these routine grand events cannot be canceled, or it would cause widespread panic.”

”Subsequent Tao discussions are to gather popular support and calm people’s hearts.”

”The Dao Court, Qianxue’s aristocratic families, and sects will also announce at the Tao Discussion Meeting that they will allocate a batch of Spirit Stone resources to aid loose cultivators and rebuild cities damaged by the blood sacrifice.”

”This is a good thing...”

Mo Hua nodded.

Elder Master Xun looked at Mo Hua, ”You need to participate in this Formation Competition.”

Mo Hua was stunned, ”Can I go out?”

”Yes,” Elder Master Xun nodded, ”You should go, make an appearance.”

The rumors targeting Mo Hua have been brewing for a long time and are becoming hard to suppress.

Fame is a fearful thing.

Mo Hua, as the Formation Leader, performed too well in the Sword Discussion Conference, stealing the spotlight, which easily incites jealousy and hatred.

On the surface, perhaps no one dares to act, but behind the scenes, endless rumors and slander continue to emerge.

Human hearts are unpredictable, and malice abounds, with some people stirring trouble, saying all sorts of things. .

Some say Mo Hua has already ”fallen into demonic ways” and doesn’t dare show his face, fearing his secret will be exposed.

Some claim Mo Hua is in league with the Demon Path and is the mastermind of the Blood Sacrifice Array.

Others question how Mo Hua, a Foundation Establishment Late Stage disciple with poor Spiritual Root, managed to single-handedly surpass the four top bloodline talents of Qianxue and even the Big Senior Brother of Daluo Sect in the Sword Discussion Conference using evil, despicable methods.

”Rumors” like these are useless to respond to, as they are often dismissed as ”self-defense.”

But not responding is seen as ”cowardice,” as if you tacitly agree with the accusations.

”So, you don’t need to say anything; saying anything is useless. Just participate in the Formation Competition and make an appearance in front of everyone.” Elder Master Xun said meaningfully.

Mo Hua nodded but was still uncertain, ”Then what exactly should I do at the Formation Competition?”

”Hold back a little, act mediocre, and simply take first place.” Elder Master Xun said lightly.

Mo Hua: ”...”

Hold back, be mediocre, and simply take first place...

Can these words really be used together?

Nevertheless, Mo Hua understood Elder Master Xun’s meaning and nodded, ”Okay, I’ll hold back.”

...

Three days later, the Tao Discussion Meeting resumed.

The number of attendees was significantly reduced compared to before, yet it still appeared as a sea of people.

Another seven days passed, marking the day of the Formation Competition.

On this day, Mo Hua, who had been secluded and unseen at the rear mountain under Elder Master Xun’s supervision, appeared before the crowd for the first time.

Wearing the Taixu Gate Taoist Robe, his figure was slender, with a fair face and well-defined features. His eyes were bright, looking not much different from before.

Except he seemed a bit leaner, and his eyes a bit brighter.

A crowd of cultivators and disciples discussed spiritedly on the viewing stands.

This was the most viewed event since the Tao Discussion Meeting resumed.

Almost every gaze was fixed upon Mo Hua.

The rumors about Mo Hua swirled like undercurrents among the tide-like crowd.

Mo Hua, remembering Elder Master Xun’s instructions, kept a low profile, restraining himself, and maintained a simple and unassuming demeanor, not paying attention to others’ gazes and discussions.

The upper echelons of major aristocratic families and sects all watched Mo Hua, each with different intentions, but all kept silent.

In the audience, Gu Changhuai, Zhang Lan, the Taixu Gate Elders, disciples, and many cultivators who were concerned about Mo Hua relaxed when they saw he was unharmed and as usual.

The Elders of the Mount of Tao were quite the opposite.

They were all anxious as if facing an imminent threat, staring intently at Mo Hua, who was firmly on their ”blacklist,” fearing he might cause another uproar and upheaval on the Mount of Tao.

Reasonably speaking, a Formation Competition is not a Sword Discussion; it shouldn’t stir up as much commotion.

But the issue is, with Mo Hua, reasoning doesn’t apply.

Amidst this complex and subtle atmosphere, the Formation Competition began.

Mo Hua was placed in the first seat, in the first row, an individual seat, exuding an air of ”standing alone at the top.”

The originally low-key Mo Hua sighed helplessly.

There was nothing he could do; he wanted to be low-key, but his strength wouldn’t allow it.

He was the ”Formation Leader.”

There was no precedent for a Formation Leader participating in a Formation Competition before, so he could only sit in the first row, taking the solitary first seat, under the watchful eyes of thousands.

Mo Hua felt slightly uneasy.

However, having experienced so many grand situations, he quickly calmed down.

Then came the issuance of topics and the exam.

The entire process didn’t differ much from the previous edition.

Those who could draw would stay, and those who couldn’t would leave.

Each disciple had three chances for mistakes.

Mo Hua found the processes familiar, cordial, yet a bit boring.

Because these formations were simply too easy.

Each year, the Formation Competition hardly saw any difference in formation strength among the disciples, but Mo Hua had grown far stronger than he was three years ago.

With Divine Sense at 20 Patterns and having learned the Ultimate Formation, Formation Pivot of the Blood Sacrifice Formation, his mastery of formations had reached a new level, having even dismantled the Blood Sacrifice Array.

Looking back now, participating in the Formation Competition and replicating the formations from three years ago, Mo Hua felt like he was ”playing house” with children.

”Hold back a little...”

Mo Hua sighed, then picked up the pen and began drawing on the Formation Paper, looking listless, yet earnest.

No matter which formation, he drew them with a lazy and slow demeanor.

Mo Hua thought he was ”holding back” enough, yet he didn’t realize how much pressure his ”laziness” was putting on the geniuses of Qianxue behind him.

Everyone present was a Formation Master, a formation genius of Qianxue, and there was no way they didn’t know about Mo Hua.

No way they didn’t know of Mo Hua’s deeds.

No way they hadn’t seen Mo Hua’s profound formation mastery and extraordinary formation techniques.

Even the thrilling scenes from the Sword Discussion Conference were still vivid in their minds.

Now, Mo Hua stood alone, ahead of everyone.

All formation geniuses could only see his back.

This figure wasn’t particularly tall but was terrifyingly profound.

He was a mountain in formation expertise that was impossible to scale, a chasm that was impossible to cross.

They weren’t even sure how high the mountain or how deep the chasm was.

In formations, a difference wasn’t frightening.

What was frightening was not even being able to see where the difference lay.

Those who didn’t study formations had no clue of Mo Hua’s terror.

Only those who studied formations to a certain level could experience the despair brought by this ”evil monster” Mo Hua.

Thus, despite Mo Hua’s lazy demeanor.

His profound presence enveloped the entire scene.

Behind him, many formation geniuses only felt enveloped in the shadow of an ”evil monster,” cold sweat ran down their backs, and they couldn’t stop their hands holding the Formation Pens from trembling...