Translator: 549690339
After releasing the Lotus Lamps, it was still not late, and the group wandered down the street again.
Perhaps after several verbal exchanges, Bai Zisheng had grown familiar with Mo Hua and was no longer polite, talking much more.
âMo Hua, what are those Cultivators doing?â
Bai Zisheng pointed to a stage and asked with curiosity.
Mo Hua followed his gaze and saw that on a simple stage, several Cultivators dressed as Monster Hunters were fighting with a âMonster Beastâ that looked like a bull.
The âMonster Beastâ had a copper head and brocade skin, its fur shiny and lifelike, but in reality, it was also a Cultivator dressed in beast skin.
âOh, itâs a Demon Hunting play.â
âDemon Hunting? Hunting Monster Beasts?â Bai Zisheng immediately became interested.
âMost of the Cultivators in Tongxian City make a living from Monster Hunting. They often have to fight to the death with Monster Beasts, so on festive celebrations, Monster Hunters will perform Demon Hunting plays to liven things up, and itâs also a tradition of Monster Hunters.â
As she spoke, the Demon Hunting play on the stage reached an exciting climax.
A few Monster Hunters, each holding a blade, shouted loudly, and the blades suddenly wrapped in flames; another swung his fist with a whooshing sound, and another stood farther away, making hand seals, with several fireballs appearing in front of him and soon entangled in combat with the âMonster Beast,â with Spiritual Power overflowing and light swirling everywhere.
âWow, Fiery Flame Blade, Wind Wrapping Fist, Fireball Technique! â
A child beside them shouted excitedly, clapping loudly.
Bai Zisheng was no less excited, his face flushed with enthusiasm.
Mo Hua couldnât help but ask, âYouâre already in the late stage of Qi Refinement, arenât you? You should have learned some Taoist Skills by nowâ¦â
How could he seem so inexperiencedâ¦
Bai Zisheng shot Mo Hua a glance, âI naturally know how to use Taoist Skills, itâs just that my mother wonât let me; she says that for a cultivator in the Qi Refinement Realm laying a proper foundation is important. To learn some crude Taoist Skills and engage in brawls is the behavior of brutes. If one is injured and the foundation is damaged, it can spoil future cultivation.â
âOh.â Mo Hua made an acknowledging sound.
For Noble Clans, the Qi Refinement Realm was just for laying the foundation. They simply needed to focus on their cultivation. Even if they learned Taoist Skills, they wouldnât have a use for them.
For ordinary Loose Cultivators, who might stay in the Qi Refinement Realm all their lives, it was necessary to learn various Taoist Skills during the Qi Refinement Realm to fight to the death with Monster Beasts, licking blood from the knifeâs edge, striving for survival.
âIf only the Loose Cultivators at the bottom didnât have to live so hard.â
Mo Hua sighed with mixed emotions.
Apart from the Demon Hunting play, there were also some novel Taoist Skill juggling acts, the fascinating shadow plays, the wooden dogs that would run around when fed Broken Spirit Stones, and the fragrant variety of snacksâ¦
After the group took a round, Bai Zisheng was excited and left wanting more, while Bai Zixiâs little face was also blushing, even brighter than the lights in the sky.
As the evening grew darker, they still hadnât had their fill, but they had to part ways and head home.
âThank you for this time, for showing us the customs of Tongxian City.â
Aunt Xue thanked Mo Hua and then produced a small box from somewhere and handed it to Mo Hua.
âThis is some confectionary I picked up along the way; take it as a token of thanks. It didnât cost many Spirit Stones, so you shouldnât refuse it.â
Mo Hua no longer declined and accepted it gracefully, saying happily, âThank you, Aunt Xue.â
Aunt Xue nodded with a smile.
Then Bai Zisheng said to Mo Hua, âIf you have time to visit Qian State someday, Iâll show you the grand ceremony for worshipping heaven. Although itâs not as lively here, the scale is huge, with all kinds of exotic Spirit Beasts and flying boats and carriagesâI guarantee it will be an eye-opener for you.â
âMm-hmm!â
Mo Hua was quite looking forward to it, curious about what kind of grandeur the ancient Noble Clans and Sects of Qian State held.
However, he did not know if he would ever be able to go in his lifetime.
The vast Tao Cultivation World stretches boundless, and Li State alone contains countless Immortal Cities. Tongxian City is just one of the many unremarkable Little Immortal Cities, and with Mo Huaâs cultivation, even leaving Tongxian City would be difficult, let alone leaving Li State to go to the yet unknown Qian State.
After bidding farewell to the Bai siblings, Mo Hua found Daâhu and the other two.
The three children had also enjoyed themselves thoroughly. Upon seeing Mo Hua, they stuffed a bunch of odd and curious things into his arms, including various small toys and a sugar figurine of a white little tiger.
âYou should eat the sugar figurine quickly, or it will melt,â Xiaohu reminded Mo Hua and then proceeded to excitedly introduce the little toys, explaining to Mo Hua how to play with them.
Those items werenât very expensive, with most costing just a fraction of Broken Spirit Stones, but their novelty and ingenuity were what made them specialâsome Mo Hua had truly never seen before.
Mo Hua shared the pastries Aunt Xue had given him with his three little friends, then studied the toys in his hand while licking the sugar figurine.
As Daâhu and the others munched on the pastries, they walked home with Mo Hua. Midway, Xiaohu suddenly asked,
âMo Hua, are you always going to be with the young master and young mistress of the Bai family?â
âWhatâs up?â
Xiaohu shook his head, saying nothing.
Mo Hua thought they had a grievance with the Bai siblings, but after a moment, Xiaohu hesitated and said,
âThat little girl from the Bai family, sheâs too prettyâ¦â
Mo Hua paused, âIsnât being pretty a good thing?â
Xiaohu said, âYou canât play with girls who are too pretty.â
Daâhu and Shuanghu quickly nodded in agreement.
âWhy notâ¦â
Shuanghu solemnly said, âMy mother told me that pretty girls make men dumb, and the prettier the girl, the dumber a man will get!â
âExactly, exactly, my dad saw a pretty woman, ran away from home because of her, ended up getting swindled out of all his money and even lost his life.â
âThatâs right, thatâs right, Iâve also heard that many cultivators with good Spiritual Roots have squandered their cultivation because they married beautiful wives and ended up achieving nothing in the end.â
âYes, yes, I only glanced at that girl once and was stunned for a moment, my mind went blank. If I looked a few more times, who knows, I might have become an idiotâtoo scaryâ¦â
âIndeed, too scaryâ¦â
Shuanghu patted Mo Huaâs shoulder, âMo Hua, youâre the smartest among us, and you might even become a Formation Master in the future. It would be troublesome if you turned into an idiot.â
Daâhu and Xiaohu looked at Mo Hua with concern.
Mo Hua was caught between laughter and tears but eventually thought it over and felt⦠they had a point, so he said,
âBut thereâs nothing I can do, weâre all learning formations from the gentleman, bumping into each other all the time.â
âThen weâre doomed.â All three kidsâ expressions turned grave.
Mo Hua smiled and said, âDrawing Formations is supposed to make one smarter, so if I draw more formations, I should not become too dumb.â
âCan Drawing Formations really make you smarter?â Xiaohu asked.
âOf course,â Shuanghu said, âMo Huaâs formation paintings are so good, which is why heâs smarter than us, right?â
Mo Hua said, âWould you guys like to learn formations? I could teach you.â
All three kids had decent Body Refinement talents, but none were naturally gifted in Drawing Formations, finding the dense Formation Patterns headache-inducing.
Xiaohu hesitated for a long time, but eventually made up his mind and declared,
âForget it, if Drawing Formations is the only way to become smarter, then Iâd rather be an idiot for life!â