An Xiaofu

"Young Master An?"

The chubby boy in splendid clothes was the eldest young master of the An Family in Immortal City. His name was An Xiaofu. Perhaps his father had not placed too many expectations on him—Xiao Fu meant "modest prosperity brings peace," hence the name.

But because he looked so well-fed, his fellow disciples privately called him Fatty An.

Fatty An was a little slow-witted and sometimes put on the airs of a young master, but he was not bad at heart. He often asked Mo Hua to draw his Array Technique assignments for him.

He did not know Array Techniques and could not draw a single one. He did not want to be punished by the Instructor, nor did he want to go home and get beaten by his father, so he could only beg Mo Hua for help.

At that moment, Fatty An was fuming. "You bastard, Mo Hua! I treated you as a friend, yet you look down on me?!"

Mo Hua was completely baffled. "How have I looked down on you?"

Fatty An pulled an Array Diagram covered in red-ink comments from his robes. "You drew my Array Technique assignment, and there were six whole mistakes! But the one you drew for that skinny monkey Qian Xing did not have a single mistake! Isn't that looking down on me? Doesn't that mean I'm inferior to him?"

The skinny monkey Fatty An spoke of was the skinny young master from before. His surname was Qian, given name Xing, the third young master of the Qian Family's direct line.

The Qian Family was the largest Lineage in Immortal City, with the An Family second. Both families ran trading firms and competed in business. Their ancestors also had old grudges, so the younger generation were locked in tit-for-tat rivalry, determined to outdo each other in every respect. Even in build, one was fat and one was thin, like fire and water that could not coexist.

Yet in cultivation, the two were equally lazy and equally ignorant. In that respect, they were truly neck and neck.

Though both were wastrels, Qian Xing had a worse reputation. Besides being useless and unlearned, he was arrogant and domineering, throwing his weight around and bullying others. Rumor had it that he had done quite a few wicked things behind the scenes, but with his Lineage backing him, everything eventually came to nothing.

By comparison, Fatty An merely ate and drank, swaggered through the streets when bored, and showed off a little. But because his father kept a tight rein on him, he had not gone too far astray.

"So that's what this is about?"

Seeing that Mo Hua did not take it seriously, Fatty An's face turned red with anger.

"I was helping you," Mo Hua said.

Fatty An looked at Mo Hua with a cold sneer. "How were you helping me?"

"How do your Array Techniques compare to Young Master Qian's?"

Fatty An said confidently, "At least I'm not worse than him!"

Mo Hua was a little speechless. Was that something to be proud of?

Mo Hua continued, "Exactly. At his level, how could he possibly draw an Array Technique without a single mistake?"

"Of course! Even this young master can't draw one, so naturally he can't either!"

"Since even you know that, how could the Instructor fail to see it? The Instructor has always been strict and would definitely punish him. The Instructor would also tell his father. Once his father lost face, Qian Xing naturally would not have an easy time of it either..."

Fatty An pondered for a moment. "That does seem to make some sense. But I haven't heard that Skinny Qian got beaten. Are you lying to me...?"

Mo Hua rolled his eyes at him. "Family shame must not be spread abroad. When a father beats his son, he definitely shuts the door first. Why would he let you know?"

Fatty An nodded with lingering fear. "That's right. Whenever my father beats me, he never lets anyone else know!"

Mo Hua added, "This time, Master An not only didn't beat you, he even praised you, didn't he?"

Fatty An immediately became smug. "That's right. The Instructor gave me a Grade B. When my father found out, he praised me for improving and even gave me quite a few good things!"

Fatty An's temper came quickly and went quickly. He immediately stopped being angry, and even felt a little guilty as he said to Mo Hua:

"I wrongly accused you! I'll treat you to something delicious at the Spirit Meal Pavilion. My family owns it, so eat whatever you want!"

Mo Hua had not expected Fatty An to be so unexpectedly generous, but he still declined. "No need. I still have things to do."

Fatty An said unhappily, "My father always teaches me that kindness must be repaid. If you refuse to go, you're looking down on me!"

Thinking of the red, swollen buttocks his father had beaten him into before, Fatty An became even more resolute. "And this isn't a small favor. You have to go!"

Once Fatty An's childish temper flared up, he became rather difficult to deal with.

Mo Hua had a bit of a headache. He looked at the entrance to the Array Pavilion, then suddenly said, "Young Master An, forget about the Spirit Meal Pavilion. But could you do me a favor?"

Fatty An patted his chest. "Just say it!"

"Lend me ten Spirit Stones."

Fatty An frowned. He truly did not have ten Spirit Stones. To keep him from spending Spirit Stones recklessly outside, Master An never allowed him to carry more than five Spirit Stones on him.

If he treated Mo Hua at the Spirit Meal Pavilion, he could put it on his father's account. It was merely food and drink, and there would be records of it, so his father would not say anything when he found out. What his father feared was him spending Spirit Stones on crooked paths with no accounts to check, things his father would know nothing about until disaster struck before anyone noticed.

Fatty An took out the five Spirit Stones on him, then looked at the attendants beside him. "Give me all your Spirit Stones. I'll pay you back when I get home."

The attendants were somewhat reluctant, but they still took out all their Spirit Stones. It came to exactly ten Spirit Stones.

Fatty An handed the Spirit Stones to Mo Hua. "Here, take them. No need to pay me back!"

Mo Hua shook his head. "I'll return them in a few days."

Mo Hua weighed the Spirit Stones in his hand a few times, then carefully put them away. After bidding Fatty An farewell, he returned to that Array Pavilion. There were still no customers inside, and the manager was still dozing.

After entering, Mo Hua stood on tiptoe and placed the ten Spirit Stones on the counter.

"I brought the Spirit Stones!"

The manager had only been asleep for a short while when he heard the bell again and saw Mo Hua, along with the ten Spirit Stones on the counter.

The manager picked up the Spirit Stones and examined them carefully. Finding no issue with their quality, he nodded and reached beneath the counter for a Storage Bag.

"There is an Array Diagram for the Bright Fire Formation inside, along with ten sheets of Array Paper and Spirit Ink, enough to draw ten Bright Fire Formations. This order has a ten-day deadline. If you miss it, the entire deposit will be deducted. For every completed Bright Fire Formation, you will receive one Spirit Stone. If you make a mistake or fail to meet the standard, one Spirit Stone will be deducted from your deposit. These are standard rules for trading firms. Your elder brother should know them."

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Mo Hua nodded.

If he successfully drew all the Array Techniques in this batch, he could earn ten Spirit Stones. If every attempt failed, he would lose ten Spirit Stones. As long as more than half succeeded, he would make a profit.

The manager added another reminder, "The deadline is ten days. Don't forget. If it expires, I'll deduct your entire deposit."

Mo Hua hurriedly nodded. Then he bowed to the manager in thanks and left.

After arriving home, Mo Hua shut himself in his room and quietly began studying the Array Technique.

A maximum profit of ten Spirit Stones was already extremely considerable. Though Mo Hua had earned twelve Spirit Stones by drawing Array Technique assignments for his fellow disciples, he could only do that a few times a year.

Besides, doing Array Technique assignments for fellow disciples was not proper work in the end.

Doing it occasionally was fine, but over time, it would hinder their progress.

Things were different with the trading firm. If he did well, he could earn Spirit Stones over the long term while practicing Array Techniques. It was killing two birds with one stone.

Mo Hua spread the Array Diagram of the Bright Fire Formation before him.

The Array Diagram had been drawn in advance by another Array Master and could be used as a template.

Behind the Array Diagram was also an Array Technique illustration, recording the Array Patterns, brushwork, ink, and other points requiring attention. It was the standard diagram used throughout the cultivation world to document Array Techniques.

The illustration for the Bright Fire Formation recorded relevant notes on the formation: where to use fire-element Array Patterns, how to link the patterns together, how to prepare the ink, and the proportions of ink to use. Many of the concepts were unfamiliar to Mo Hua, and he found them somewhat difficult to understand.

This was Mo Hua's first time seeing a formal Array Technique illustration. What he had learned in the sect before were all the simplest Array Techniques—though they were called Array Techniques, most contained only one or two basic Array Patterns and were meant to enlighten and introduce disciples. They differed from the Array Techniques truly used throughout the cultivation world.

At the end of the Bright Fire Formation illustration was a line of notation:

Bright Fire Formation, fire-element Array Technique, contains three Array Patterns, requires Qi Refining Level Three or above.

But what concerned Mo Hua most was the small line of handwritten red text after that notation:

Those below the required realm lack sufficient divine sense. Learn with caution!

Mo Hua, who was only at Second-Layer Qi Refining, could not help frowning.

Every action a cultivator took required divine sense. Guiding spiritual qi, wielding Lingli, using spells, controlling Spirit Artifacts, Alchemy, Artifact Refining—all of it required divine sense.

Drawing Array Techniques consumed the most divine sense of all, something every cultivator knew. Yet this explicitly stated, "lacking sufficient divine sense, learn with caution," and even imposed a realm requirement, written in crimson ink.

That made Mo Hua realize that perhaps he had never understood just how much "more" really meant...

"Could it be that drawing Array Techniques truly requires an enormous amount of divine sense?"

Mo Hua rested his small chin in his hand and pondered.

"Forget it. I'll familiarize myself with the Array Patterns first, then practice on the stele tonight."

Mo Hua memorized the Array Diagram for the Bright Fire Formation, ate dinner with his parents, then returned to his room and practiced several times with ordinary paper and ink to familiarize himself with the Array Patterns. When the Midnight Hour arrived, he lay on his bed. As he closed his eyes, the ancient and Void Broken Stele floated within his Sea of Consciousness.