Chapter 219: Chapter 218 Annual Ceremony_1 A few days before the festival, Mo Hua paid an early visit to Mr. Zhuang, bringing some new year’s gifts, all personally prepared by Liu Ruhua. Such things as Spirit Stones and Spiritual Artifacts, Mr. Zhuang did not need. Liu Ruhua thought for a long time, not knowing what would be the best gift, so she could only follow the usual custom, making more delicious food to express her sentiment. Liu Ruhua had started preparing more than ten days in advance, busily bustling around until now when she finally finished. There were sauces made from various parts of different monster beasts like oxen, sheep, pigs, and dogs, with different flavors, as well as multicolored pastries made from various grains, and wines brewed from osmanthus, peach blossoms, and wild fruits from the mountains. Even Mr. Zhuang, who was accustomed to such fare, couldn’t help but be somewhat surprised. “So much! How can one finish it all?” He then eagerly started tasting one after the other, occasionally furrowing his brows and asking, “What meat is this? I’ve never tasted it before…” and occasionally nodding in approval, “This flavor is quite good.” Mo Hua sat by Mr. Zhuang’s side, chatting with him. He explained to Mr. Zhuang which monster beef was used, what spices were added, and whether it was cooked with high or low heat for how many hours. Or he would ask minor questions about the Formation, and occasionally, they chatted about amusing incidents from the city. Many of these stories were told to him by An Xiaofu. An Xiaofu, now the young manager of Fulu Building, dealt with customers every day, chatting idly with others, and had heard a bellyful of stories. When he was free, he would chat idlely with Mo Hua, embellishing the tales before retelling them to Mo Hua. Mo Hua found them interesting and recounted them to Mr. Zhuang, who enjoyed listening while drinking and eating. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚 After chatting for a long time, Mo Hua saw the bamboo room was serene and quiet but inevitably a bit lonely and asked: “Gentlemen, are you planning to go out during the New Year? It’s very lively outside.” Mr. Zhuang seemed to have always stayed in this Forgetful Residence, either resting in the bamboo room, watching the water from the bridge, or sitting in the courtyard, gazing at the mountain scenery, enjoying the breeze, the morning sun, and the sunset glow. Mo Hua had never seen Mr. Zhuang leave the residence. Mr. Zhuang smiled, “It’s quiet here; I do not like the hustle and bustle.” “Oh, got it,” Mo Hua nodded. “Then, does my talking to you bother you?” Mr. Zhuang shook his head, “Too much silence can be dull. It’s quite nice to chat with you.” Mo Hua was relieved. A fresh breeze swept through the room, bamboo rustled outside, the plants swayed. Mo Hua and Mr. Zhuang chatted for a long time, their crisp and rich voices weaving together and drifting into the mountains with the wind. It was not until Mr. Zhuang looked a bit weary, perhaps from eating too much and feeling sleepy, that Mo Hua stood up to take his leave: “I won’t disturb the gentleman’s rest. My mother also made some new year’s cakes, sweet, soft, and sticky. I’ll bring some over for you to taste in a few days.” Mr. Zhuang smiled, “Alright, off you go.” After parting with Mr. Zhuang, Mo Hua found Old Kui and also delivered some new year’s gifts. Mo Hua knew what Old Kui liked. Although Old Kui appeared old, he didn’t like soft and sticky foods; he preferred crispy ones, and those that made a sound while eating. Therefore, Mo Hua’s gifts were some crisp snacks and a few boxes of pine nuts, some plain, some spiced, and some hot and spicy. Old Kui tucked his gifts into his sleeve, then took out a chessboard from the same sleeve, glancing at Mo Hua. Seeing that it was still early, Mo Hua nodded, “Let’s play!” The breeze floated by, leaves fluttered down, and the sound of the chess pieces filled the courtyard. The two poor players thus spent half the day immersed in a game of Five Elements Chess. In the evening, Da’hu and the others called Mo Hua to watch the Monster Hunting play. This play was meant for them to perform, and in addition, there were Daping and Dazhu from the Refinery Shop. The swords and Rattan Armor used in the play were ready-made, and the props for portraying Monster Beasts were borrowed; Da’hu and the others joined in both for the fun and to earn some rewards. Originally, it was Da’hu and Daping who would play the Monster Hunters, because they were Monster Hunters themselves. Monster Beasts were to be played by Dazhu and a few Disciples from the Refinery Shop, but Da’hu and his two brothers thought Dazhu and his group weren’t convincing, the Monster Beasts looked too stupid, like idiots, therefore they decided to play the roles themselves. The Monster Beasts in Big Black Mountain were ferocious, and couldn’t afford to be portrayed as dim-witted and dumb. So in the end, it was the three Monster Hunters, Da’hu and his brothers, who played the Monster Beasts, while Dazhu, the Artifact Refiner, played the role of a Monster Hunter. Their performance was quite convincing and had some style. Mo Hua stood by the side, applauding them and rewarding them as well. The surrounding Cultivators also joined in the fun, each taking out a few Broken Spirit Stones to show their encouragement. After the play was over, Da’hu and his group took Mo Hua to find some delicious food and entertaining places to visit and play. Da’hu had already reached the seventh level of Qi Refinement and was considered a late-stage Qi Refinement Cultivator. Mo Hua humbly asked for advice, “What should I pay attention to when breaking through to the late stage of Qi Refinement?” He had already reached the sixth level of Qi Refinement, so one more step would take him to the seventh level, which was the late stage of Qi Refinement. Though he and Da’hu were cultivating different Techniques, he could still listen to advice and take reference to have an idea in his mind. Da’hu scratched his head, “Just keep cultivating normally. Then, you need some Spiritual Objects. The Cultivation Technique I use requires Sunset Grass and Melting Fire Stones, along with some Pills, and then you can break through.” “Is it that simple?” “Not every breakthrough is successful; I was just lucky this time. Otherwise, I might have to try several times,” Da’hu said. Shuanghu on the side said, “I failed once; otherwise, I’d be in the late stage of Qi Refinement now.” “What do you do if you fail?” “Just continue cultivating, save up more Spirit Stones, buy Spiritual Objects and Pills again, then try to make a breakthrough.” Shuanghu said indifferently, “As long as a Cultivator doesn’t die, they have to keep doing this kind of thing, unless they resign themselves to fate, or are too poor to afford Spirit Stones, or they have a family to support and the burdens are too great.” Mo Hua nodded, “It sounds simple, but to persist and do it for a lifetime, that’s not easy at all.” Xiaohu worriedly said, “The main problem is that some Spiritual Objects are too expensive, difficult for Loose Cultivators to buy, and some aren’t even available. One breakthrough consumes everything, and if you fail, you must buy another set.” Daping and Dazhu also nodded in agreement, “Exactly! Where do Loose Cultivators get so many Spirit Stones and such wide connections to buy those Spiritual Objects.” Everyone started to worry. Mo Hua also worried for a bit but then remembered that his practice of Heaven Yan Jue didn’t require any Spiritual Objects and didn’t cost many Spirit Stones; he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. The bottleneck of Heaven Yan Jue lay in the Sea of Consciousness and in Formation, not in Spiritual Objects. That was precisely why he chose this Cultivation Technique. Mo Hua silently congratulated himself on his foresight. But then he thought again, although Heaven Yan Jue’s breakthrough didn’t need Spiritual Objects, it required solving Mystery Formations. Mystery Formations were profound and complex, abstruse and ever-changing; solving them was no easy feat. The Great Dao metes out fortune and misfortune—it seemed relatively fair, not letting you find any loopholes. He just didn’t know what the Mystery Formation in his Sea of Consciousness would be like this time… Mo Hua silently calculated in his mind: “I’m already at the sixth level of Qi Refinement. It probably won’t take long for me to reach the peak of the sixth level. When I try to break through then, I’ll find out what kind of Mystery Formation I have to solve this time.”