Chapter 724 – Dao Discussion
After returning to the sect, Mo Hua immediately and carefully stored all the formation diagrams inside his Storage Ring.
These were valuable treasures—he had to keep them safe.
And he had to study them in secret, making sure no one found out. He couldn't let Aunt Wan get into trouble.
Even though she had acted like it didn't matter, Mo Hua knew deep down: these formation diagrams were legacies of the Shangguan and Wenren clans, incredibly precious.
Aunt Wan was a direct daughter of the Wenren family and the wife of the Shangguan family.
But that also meant… she was a daughter married out of the Wenren family, and a wife married into the Shangguan clan—a kind of "outsider."
Giving away legacy formations from both families to Mo Hua… if this were discovered, there would undoubtedly be backlash. People would criticize and target her.
Her position in both families would become even more difficult.
Not to mention—one of those diagrams was a Perfect Formation!
Aunt Wan didn't specialize in formations. She might not even realize what kind of formation she had handed over.
Second-rank. Twenty runes. A Perfect Formation…
"Mid Foundation Establishment…"
At present, Mo Hua's divine sense could barely support seventeen runes. He was right on the cusp of eighteen, so you could call it "barely quasi-eighteen."
But when it came to Primordial Magnetic formations, he'd only learned a handful. His foundation was weak, and his understanding shallow.
The Sub-Thunderstream Array!
Mo Hua tried to resist, but ultimately couldn't help himself. He took out the diagram again and gently rubbed it in his hands, smiling like a fool.
He had to raise his cultivation to mid-Foundation Establishment as soon as possible. Then he could worry about the rest.
The fastest way to "eat" evil spirits was to find an altar.
He had a solid foundation in Five Elements Eight Trigrams formations—his understanding was deep.
But… right now, he couldn't even leave the sect.
Mo Hua sighed.
Ever since he obtained the Dao Tablet, he had been practicing daily without pause. So he had no complaints there.
But with no way out, no altar to find, and no evil spirits to "order for takeout," he was effectively grounded.
Aside from relentless formation practice, the only path left was to increase his divine sense through cultivation.
And by honing his divine sense through large volumes of formation-solving practice.
Mo Hua put aside all distractions and focused entirely on cracking formation puzzles, determined to break through the bottleneck to mid-Foundation Establishment.
It wouldn't be easy. This hurdle would take a long, grueling effort to overcome.
Still, no matter what, he had to keep advancing his divine sense!
With great reluctance, he put away the second-rank twenty-rune Sub-Thunderstream Perfect Formation, then steeled his resolve.
The last path, like most ordinary cultivators, was simply to raise his cultivation realm, which in turn would naturally raise his divine sense.
But first, his Primordial Magnetic formation foundation needed work.
Especially the leap from nineteen to twenty runes—that's the divide between Foundation and Core Formation.
By seizing the power of an evil god, he might "order takeout" that gave an instant full belly.
But this… was a Perfect Formation!
He still planned to visit Master Gu when he could—for meals and formation refinement talks.
"I have to find a way to feed the Dao Laws, break through the limits, and boost my divine sense—reach twenty runes and comprehend the Sub-Thunderstream Perfect Formation!"
Meanwhile, the Five Elements Source Armor was still being forged.
"Can't learn it yet…"
After skimming it again, Mo Hua realized—he still wasn't capable of learning it.
As for the more advanced Sub-Thunder formations—being a Perfect Formation, it was even more impossible at the moment.
He was at quasi-eighteen runes—twenty was still a long way off.
His divine sense wasn't strong enough.
But honestly, improving his divine sense was something Mo Hua was doing every single day.
A twenty-rune formation obviously required twenty-rune divine sense.
So for now… this path was blocked.
A second-rank Perfect Formation sat right in front of him, but all he could do was look at it—not study it.
Thankfully, Mo Hua's divine sense was already very strong. With the Dao Tablet's divine sense rewind, his daily formation practice was several dozen times more than peers at his level.
Unless… he got to "eat" a super-meal to trigger a breakthrough.
Mo Hua nodded to himself.
Especially since this wasn't just any formation—it was the Sub-Thunderstream Perfect Formation, the one closest to the essence of Primordial Magnetism in the Thunder-derived branch of the Eight Trigrams.
Mo Hua was absolutely itching to study it.
As for Yu Family Water Stronghold and the Water Yama Lord… he decided not to worry about those matters for now.
The fastest way to boost divine sense was still to eat evil spirits.
Mo Hua mulled it over.
He helped his fellow disciples complete bounties when asked—fulfilling his role as a "Senior Brother."
At Master Gu's side, he could still sell a few custom spiritual tools, earning some spirit stones.
Aside from that, Mo Hua poured all his time and energy into breaking through the bottleneck to mid-Foundation Establishment.
The bottleneck of Tianyan Art was, to ordinary people, practically inconceivable.
Intricate rune patterns. Massive quantities of puzzle formations. A qualitative transformation of his divine rank.
To the average cultivator, each step was like crossing a canyon.
But Mo Hua had gotten used to it.
To him, this was just… the "normal" level of difficulty.
Within his sea of consciousness, with his vast formation knowledge, strong divine sense foundation, deep deduction skill, and rapid multi-threaded logic…
The vast and tangled web of puzzles melted away like snow in hot soup.
Even the bottleneck was beginning to loosen.
About a month passed like this.
Just as Mo Hua had nearly cracked the Tianyan Art's formation puzzles and was about to break through to mid-Foundation Establishment, Cheng Mo suddenly came to find him.
"Senior Brother, are you going to the Dao Discussion Conference?" Cheng Mo asked.
Mo Hua blinked.
Dao Discussion Conference?
He'd heard the term before.
Disciples often mentioned it in passing, but the details were always vague.
Mo Hua figured it was something that didn't concern him yet, so he never looked into it.
Of course, the one he heard most often was the Sword Discussion Conference.
"What's the difference between the Sword Discussion Conference and the Dao Discussion Conference?" Mo Hua asked.
Cheng Mo replied:
"The Dao Discussion Conference is the general term. It includes five types of contests: Alchemy, Crafting, Talismans, Formations, and Swordsmanship. The Sword Discussion is just one of those."
"The first four test cultivation skills. The Sword Discussion is a test of combat, where disciples from sects across Qianxue Prefecture challenge each other in duels."
Mo Hua frowned.
"If it includes duels, spells, and sparring… why is it only called the Sword Discussion?"
Cheng Mo scratched his head.
"I don't know. Maybe… sword cultivators are the coolest?"
Mo Hua stared at him silently.
Cheng Mo chuckled awkwardly.
"How about I go get Situ Jian? He's a sword cultivator—he'll know."
Sure enough, Cheng Mo ran off to find Situ Jian.
When Situ Jian arrived, Mo Hua realized—it had only been a short while, but the guy had already reached mid-Foundation Establishment.
Everyone progressed at their own pace.
Depending on cultivation methods, dao techniques, resources, and whether they took time to solidify their foundation or fully refine their spiritual cycles, disciple progress varied.
Situ Jian had everything ready—spiritual materials, full cycles—so he advanced quickly.
Others like Cheng Mo or Yang Qianjun still needed time to temper their blood qi, so they were slower.
As for Mo Hua...
He didn't need anything fancy—just a way to break through his current realm. Blood Qi, spiritual energy? He wasn't picky.
With his spiritual root, there wasn't much to be picky about anyway.
Situ Jian explained to Mo Hua:
"The term 'Sword Discussion' actually has a long history…"
"At the beginning, the Sword Discussion Conference was purely about swordsmanship—sword cultivators dueling to determine who was the best with the sword."
"Whoever won first place was crowned the Sword Discussion champion, and was usually regarded as the top disciple of their generation in terms of strength."
"But body cultivators and spiritual cultivators refused to accept that. Why should a sword cultivator automatically be considered the best?"
"So later, body and spirit cultivators joined the fray."
"But they didn't use swords—so if they beat sword cultivators, it became awkward. A non-sword cultivator winning a 'Sword Discussion' sounded wrong."
"So the format changed. Sword cultivators teamed up with one body cultivator and one spiritual cultivator—three-man teams battling each other."
"Later, the model was revised again, imitating the Dao Soldier unit structure—five-man teams dueling each other."
"At first, it was just brute force—whichever team won was strongest."
"But then some Dry Prefecture ancestors felt that was too reckless and unrealistic for real combat. So they refined the rules, adding elements like flag capturing, demon hunting, sword snatching, and so on."
"That eventually evolved into today's Sword Discussion Conference."
"Now it's five disciples per team, from the same sect. They have to work together to complete objectives—testing not just cultivation and Dao techniques, but also teamwork and strategy. If they win, all five share the glory. If they lose, all five are eliminated—shared glory, shared loss."
Mo Hua nodded. He got the gist of it.
Cheng Mo patted Situ Jian's shoulder and praised,
"You really do know everything."
Situ Jian replied helplessly,
"You could try using your brain once in a while instead of just swinging your axe…"
Cheng Mo chuckled, then turned to Mo Hua,
"Senior Brother, want to come see it with us? It's a major event in the entire Qianxue Prefecture—only happens once every three years!"
Situ Jian added,
"For us, it might be the only time we ever get to participate in our lives."
Mo Hua raised a brow.
"Only once?"
Situ Jian nodded slightly,
"Usually, only disciples who've trained for over nine years, reached late Foundation Establishment, maxed out their spiritual energy and blood Qi, and haven't yet reached Core Formation are allowed to compete."
"If you're from a younger cohort and have fewer years of experience, your cultivation and stats will be way behind—there's no competing with the true elites from other sects."
"Oh…" Mo Hua nodded.
Cheng Mo sighed,
"I wonder if I'll get to participate in the next round…"
"Don't count on it," Situ Jian shook his head. "More like the one after the next."
Cheng Mo looked a little indignant.
Situ Jian continued,
"The Dao Discussion Conference is a big deal. It's not just about personal cultivation—it's tied to the fate of entire sects. The selection process is extremely strict, and every single spot is precious."
Cheng Mo was a little upset, but deep down he knew Situ Jian was right.
Mo Hua, on the other hand, was curious.
He could understand the personal benefit—if someone shined at the conference, they'd be valued by the sect, noticed by outside powers, maybe even rewarded with significant merit.
But what did that have to do with the development of a sect?
"It's just a Dao discussion, right? Is it really that important?" Mo Hua asked.
Situ Jian smiled,
"Senior Brother, have you heard of the Qianlong Mountain Range?"
"Qianlong Mountain Range?" Mo Hua frowned. The name rang a bell.
Situ Jian explained:
"It's a massive mountain range that spans across Qianxue Prefecture—and inside it lies a giant spiritual stone mine with immense output."
A giant spirit stone mine, with incredible yield!
Mo Hua was immediately intrigued.
Situ Jian lowered his voice:
"I heard all this from my grandfather…"
"Back in the day, the Dao Court tried everything to claim this Qianlong Spirit Mine. They used every trick in the book—but in the end, they were blocked by a united front of the major aristocratic clans in Dry Prefecture."
"Still, the Dao Court wouldn't let it go."
"And the clans, for their part, refused to give an inch."
"In the end, they reached a compromise: a small portion of the mine's output would be handed over to the Dao Court as a 'spirit tax', and the rest would be distributed among the sects of Qianxue Prefecture."
"With these spirit stones, the sects could grow stronger, recruit disciples, teach the Dao, and cultivate talent. That way, the stones from Qianlong Mine would be used to benefit the cultivation world at large."
"The Dao Court accepted the deal, and the aristocratic families had no more objections."
"So, the Qianlong Spirit Mine was placed under the management of the hundreds, if not thousands, of sects across Qianxue Prefecture."
"But then the issue became—how to divide it all up…"
Mo Hua's eyes lit up.
"The Dao Discussion Conference?"
"Exactly." Situ Jian nodded. "Each sect's disciples compete in the Dao Discussion. Rankings determine the status of their sect."
"And a sect's rank determines their share of the Qianlong Spirit Mine."
"It's an enormous spirit stone deposit. Even a tiny share equals a mountain of wealth."
"And spirit stones are the foundation of a sect's development."
"That's why the Dao Discussion affects both personal cultivation and the future of the sect itself."
"So that's how it works…" Mo Hua finally understood and nodded thoughtfully.
"Senior Brother," Situ Jian asked, "the conference has already started. Want to come see it?"
Mo Hua thought for a moment.
"Alright."
He wanted to see for himself—what exactly this Dao Discussion Conference was all about.
As for breaking through to mid-Foundation… he was almost there anyway. A couple of days wouldn't hurt.
So Mo Hua gave himself half a day off and joined Cheng Mo and Situ Jian to go watch the event.
The Dao Discussion Conference was held at Mount Daolun, right at the center of Qianxue Prefecture.
From the outside, Mount Daolun looked majestic and solemn. Surrounding it was a massive formation array.
One look, and Mo Hua could tell—it was a grand formation.
But it wasn't fully activated. Just partially open.
Light flowed gently along its runes, giving off a powerful aura—like a slumbering giant beast, breathing slowly.
"This formation is…"
Mo Hua glanced at Cheng Mo and Situ Jian, just about to ask them something—but upon seeing that both of them looked even more shocked than he was, he swallowed the question.
Forget it. When it came to formations, better not make it hard on them.
The entry requirements for the Dao Discussion Conference weren't strict. As long as one was a sect disciple within the Qianxue Prefecture, they could attend.
Once the three arrived at the mountain gate and presented their Great Void Tokens, their sect status was verified, and they were granted entry to Mount Daolun.
Entering Mount Daolun meant stepping directly into the massive formation.
Cheng Mo and Situ Jian looked confused—clearly unable to make heads or tails of it.
But to Mo Hua's senses, the vast, mysterious, and majestic aura of the formation was overwhelming.
He could even faintly perceive the tremors of high-grade, subtle formation runes embedded in the mountain—alongside the deep, oceanic, yet unnervingly still sea of spiritual energy flowing within…
Mo Hua was shaken. His eyes were opened wide to a whole new world.
No wonder Qianxue Prefecture was ranked as a Fifth-Grade Domain—so many treasures!
He didn't know when he would ever be able to lay down such a high-grade formation himself…
But the longing had taken root.
Situ Jian, leading the way, explained as they walked:
"The Dao Discussion Conference tests alchemy, artifact refinement, talisman crafting, and formation mastery—in that order."
"Sword discussions are a bit different. Since the matches take longer and the duels are more intense, their schedule shifts slightly each time. Usually, they're staggered so they don't overlap with the other categories."
As they chatted, they neared the main arena—and sure enough, the place was absolutely packed.
Not just the Great Void Sect—disciples from the Four Great Sects, Eight Great Gates, Twelve Prominent Schools, and the entire Hundred Sects of Qianxue had all come to watch.
All around the arena, it was buzzing with activity. Disciples in all kinds of sect robes crowded the area—elegant young men and graceful young women alike.
Cheng Mo looked wistful:
"What if, six years from now, I dominate the Sword Discussion Conference—sweeping the field with unmatched power. Do you think all these junior sisters and senior sisters will admire me so much they'll want to pledge themselves to me or something…"
Situ Jian gave him a pat on the shoulder and sighed:
"Lot of people here, man. If you're gonna daydream, find a quieter spot."
Cheng Mo froze—then got a little angry, and muttered:
"Wow, Situ—you dare look down on me? Let's spar and find out—see whether your sword is faster or my axe is harder…"
Mo Hua looked helpless and sighed.
"Enough."
"Got it, Senior Brother!" Cheng Mo instantly yielded, then shot a look at Situ Jian and whispered:
"For Senior Brother's sake, I'll let you off this time."
Situ Jian just shook his head.
Down below, the Alchemy Competition had already begun.
The massive arena was filled with countless pill furnaces.
Many late Foundation Establishment disciples were present—clearly older, taller, and with deeper cultivation than Mo Hua and his group. Each wore a solemn expression as they ignited their flames and began refining pills.
Elders oversaw the exam from above.
Disciples surrounded the field, watching.
By now, the atmosphere had grown solemn—no one dared speak too loudly.
The participants focused intensely on pill refining. After completing their concoctions, they presented them to the overseeing elders. Each pill was judged and graded as A, B, C, or D, and the final verdicts were announced to the crowd.
Those eliminated would sigh to the sky and leave dejected.
Those who passed would bow joyfully to the elders.
Then the next group would come forward, and the cycle would repeat…
Mo Hua watched for a while—then quickly found it all incredibly boring.
Sure, the Dao Discussion Conference was a major event—but standing around just watching it? Way too dull.
And alchemy? That wasn't exactly his thing.
While he wouldn't say he knew nothing about alchemy, his knowledge was very limited.
He only had a rough understanding of practical pill functions—like which pill healed which injury, cured which poison, or had what effect.
And, of course, which pills were best for traps and sabotage…
Aside from that, he hadn't really studied the art of pill refinement.
Honestly, he'd barely succeeded in refining a few batches of pills in his life.
If his Senior Sister were refining pills, maybe he'd have stuck around to watch.
But the ones on stage now were all strangers from other sects.
So after a while, Mo Hua started getting sleepy.
Cheng Mo was even worse.
Situ Jian was holding up a bit better, but not by much.
The three exchanged a glance, gave each other a slight nod, and silently slipped away from the crowd.
"Alchemy's kind of boring…" Cheng Mo said. "Unless you're dead set on becoming a pill master, or have high ambitions in alchemy, most disciples don't really watch these kinds of matches."
"Not like the Sword Discussion—punches flying, spells clashing, blades dancing in the air. That's entertaining!"
Situ Jian nodded:
"True. These cultivation arts—alchemy, artifact crafting, talismans, formations—don't usually attract many viewers."
"It's just that the Dao Discussion has just started, and people are curious. A few days from now, the crowd will thin out."
"Once the Sword Discussion begins—that's the real spectacle!"
"The Dao Discussion is a major event in Dry Prefecture—but the Sword Discussion is the highlight of the Dao Discussion!"
"Not just Qianxue Prefecture—even the central Dao Court and many powerful clans and sects from outside the region will send people to watch."
"If you can seize the top spot in the Sword Discussion, that's when you truly rise above the crowd—bringing glory to your sect and fame to your name!"
(End of Chapter)