The Quest for Immortality

But this kind of Calculation, involving the Ultimate Formation, is not particularly difficult, but very time-consuming.

By the time four hours had passed, Mo Hua still hadn’t figured out any clues.

The three of them left the Shrine and returned to the guest rooms at the Five Elements Sect.

Mo Hua sat down for a simple meditation, resting for a moment, waiting for his Divine Sense to replenish before continuing to calculate the relationship between the Five Elements Spirit Formation and the Shrine.

On the Formation Diagram of the Shrine, Mo Hua drew five separate Five Elements Spirit Formations according to their positions.

Then, based on the results of the Calculations, he continued to sketch between the Formations.

Line after line, crisscrossing, connecting, interweaving...

Although Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi were versed in the Immortal Sky Formation Flow, they lacked the skills of Calculation and could only watch as Mo Hua calculated and sketched on his own.

Mr. Zhuang was also silently watching, offering no hints or conversation.

Clearly, he wanted to let Mo Hua independently rely on his own abilities to solve the puzzle, break the enigma, and comprehend the Formation.

Because he knew that he couldn’t help Mo Hua for the rest of his life.

Even, he might not be able to help him for much longer...

Mo Hua worked tirelessly, calculating the Formation, and at night his Divine Sense plunged into the Sea of Consciousness, continuing the calculations on the Taoist Stele.

Within the Taoist Stele, Divine Sense could be traced back.

The efficiency of the Calculation was thus higher.

Finally, by the next morning, Mo Hua had calculated the relational map of formations in the Five Elements Formation Diagram of the Shrine.

In the structural diagram of the Shrine, with the Shrine as the core and the Five Elements Spirit Formations as its wings, the Formation Patterns were precise, spiritual power trajectories intricately woven, forming a complex and profound Spirit Path map.

These spiritual power trajectories had a total of six convergence points.

Five of which were the locations of those five meditation cushions, and one more was a hidden position.

This position, on the fourth floor of the Formation Pavilion, was hidden with no meditation cushion nor any other markers.

Even Mo Hua suspected that this location might not even be known to the Chief Elder of the Five Elements Sect...

Because calculating it was too complex.

Moreover, it had to be extremely accurate; not even the slightest error was permissible.

The Method of Divine Sense Calculation for calculating the pathways in the Ultimate Formation might not have been anything special to the Five Elements Sect of the past.

But times have changed, and for the current Five Elements Sect, it might really be as incomprehensible as a "heavenly script."

Mo Hua let out a sigh of relief.

Regardless, having calculated this position, he had taken one step closer to the essence of the Five Elements Spirit Formation...

...

On the fourth day.

After the Chief Elder had finished burning incense and left, the apparently meditating Mo Hua immediately stood up, took out the calculated Shrine’s Five Elements Diagram, and then, following the calculated Spirit Path, looked for the correct position.

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi were also helping to search.

The entire floor of the fourth level of the Formation Pavilion was covered in a single, complete stone tile.

The stone tile was smooth, without patterns or any reference points, so determining the position took some time.

After a cup of tea had passed, Mo Hua dropped a dot of ink on a spot that looked very ordinary.

This dot of ink was the convergence point of the Five Elements Spirit Path.

It was also the sixth "meditation cushion" for Ponder the Shrine.

Mo Hua sighed, "The forebears of the Five Elements Sect really were quite cunning."

Bai Zisheng and Bai Zixi glanced at Mo Hua and said nothing, but they both muttered in their minds:

"Cunning as they were, they weren’t as crafty as you..."

All the forebears’ elaborate tricks and deeply hidden secrets were still unearthed by you...

"Try pondering."

Urged Bai Zixi.

There wasn’t much time left, it was already the fourth day, and the deadline of five days was approaching. They couldn’t afford to waste a single moment.

"Mm."

Mo Hua nodded, then sat cross-legged, positioned at the convergence point of the Five Elements, "sitting" on the sixth imaginary meditation cushion to Ponder the Shrine.

This time, what he saw was no longer the Taoist Field.

It was a gate.

The gate of the Shrine!

The gate was profound and simple, with five types of complex Patterns engraved on it.

These Patterns were very familiar to Mo Hua, precisely the Thirteen Stripes of the first-grade Five Elements Spirit Formation’s Patterns.

But... the gate was closed tight...

Mo Hua sighed.

He finally understood how the Five Elements Spirit Formation of the Five Elements Sect got lost.

This gate was designed to block both villains and the virtuous.

It guarded against outsiders and insiders alike...

The Patterns on it were clear, obviously a Mystery Formation.

The pathway of the Formation had been tampered with, as if "encrypted."

One needed proper Calculation to solve the Formation and open the gate.

How could an average Formation Master possibly do that?

Maybe the Five Elements Spirit Formation wasn’t even meant to be learned by first-grade Formation Masters?

The ancestors of the Five Elements Sect must have had some quirks in their thinking...

They wrapped their own legacy tightly, like a zongzi, completely secure.

Mo Hua was somewhat speechless.

But it was clearly not the time to be critical.

He immediately spread out the paper, took out the ink and brush, and seriously, stroke by stroke, copied the entire Five Elements Mystery Formation from the gate into a Diagram.

After the copying was done, almost four hours had passed.

Mo Hua then wiped away the ink mark he had made.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before the Chief Elder arrived.

"Time is up, please leave now."

The Chief Elder’s tone was polite, but within his gaze was a hint of a mocking smile.

Mo Hua and the others could only go back.

Mo Hua could calculate and solve the Five Elements Mystery Formation on the Shrine gate on his own, but it would take some time.

But before that, he still went to consult Mr. Zhuang.

Mo Hua showed the copied Formation Diagram to Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang appeared surprised, but not shocked.

Mo Hua had his guess confirmed:

"My teacher must have encountered this Mystery Formation before, perhaps even solved it himself and entered the Shrine."