Hidden moth

Chapter 321 Borrowing the Startling Flower Tai Chi Formation

What exactly did she mean by being so capable...? After quite some time, the two finally left the Immortal Pot Palace together.

It's dozens of miles from the Immortal Pot Palace back to the Ancestral Master Hall, and there are no roads or tunnels like outside in the cave; you have to cross mountains and valleys.

Both of them possessed the cultivation level of the fifth realm, and they turned their journey of traversing mountains and valleys into a leisurely stroll, taking almost half a day to return to the Ancestral Hall.

As soon as He Kao stepped into the second courtyard, he saw a familiar face and quickly stepped forward to greet him: "Second Uncle, what brings you here?" He had just mentioned Second Uncle today, and here he was again. It's true what they say, you can't help but think about Second Uncle.

On either side of the courtyard stood a towering ancient tree. Xiao Guangnian was standing under one of the trees, smiling as he reached out to help He Kao up, saying, "I am a cultivator from the Lingxi Sect. It is my duty to take turns on duty in the cave."

Then he added quietly, "Your Uncle Jiang specifically asked me to come over."

He Kao immediately understood. Jiang Daozhen wanted to see his junior brother before going into seclusion to undergo his tribulation, and probably had something to tell him.

Wei Luo quickly stepped forward to greet Uncle Xiao. Xiao Guangnian smiled and nodded, saying, "Good. I am even happier to see that you have all made progress in your cultivation! The elders are waiting in the main hall. Please go in quickly."

Upon entering the main hall, besides Jiang Daozhen and Guo Qianhuai, Gu Chun and Li Xiuyuan were also present, the four masters who had surrounded and killed Master Danqiu and his disciples.

Upon seeing Jiang Daozhen again, He Kao felt inexplicably guilty, as if he had stolen someone's cabbage. However, before he could speak, Jiang Daozhen said somewhat displeasedly, "Hurry up and come over after you finish taking the pills. Why did you two dawdle for so long?"

Gu Chun stroked his beard and interjected, "What have you gained from taking this elixir? Can you share your experience?"

He Kao quickly answered, "After taking the first pill, my Body Observation Technique, which I was also practicing, was fortunate enough to break through to the fourth level; after taking the second pill, my Spiritual Insight Technique actually entered the beginner level, and I achieved the first-level Observer achievement."

Jiang Daozhen couldn't hide his joy. He knew very well that the Lingxi Technique was difficult to learn, especially when practicing it in combination with other skills. But at least He Kao had made it to the basics!

Even if He Kao's future cultivation of the Spirit Rhinoceros Technique is not very high, it will still have a different meaning for Jiang Daozhen.

When Guo Qianhuai heard that He Kao had actually cultivated the Body Observation Technique to the fourth level, he was both surprised and delighted. He immediately waved and said, "This is the will of Heaven! He Kao, come with me."

Jiang Daozhen: "You dare talk about destiny in front of me? This is what I taught you!"

The old man glanced at Wei Luo again, whether with divine inspiration or not, it was unclear. Wei Luo, as if suddenly remembering something, jumped up like a little rabbit and exclaimed, "Oh dear! I forgot something!"

After saying that, she ran out of the main hall in a flash.

He Kao followed Guo Qianhuai to the back of the hall, and the other three elders followed as well. The entire Ancestral Hall, when viewed from the air, is roughly in the shape of a nine-square grid. In a temple, the northwest corner is usually where the pagoda is located.

But there is no tower here, only a large courtyard. To the north is a three-story building. In the center of the third floor's eaves hangs a vertical plaque with the words "Zangqi" (藏器), indicating that this is the sect's treasure storage pavilion.

The door to the Zangqi Pavilion is usually closed, but there are tables and chairs under the eaves outside the door. The courtyard in front of the pavilion is as big as three basketball courts, but it is empty and not even a blade of grass grows.

Along the base of the wall on the east, west, and south sides, a row of bamboo was planted. The bamboo was about the thickness of a walnut but could grow as tall as a three-story building. Each section of bamboo had a golden line pattern.

The courtyard was perfectly surrounded by bamboo on three sides and a pavilion in front. He Kao could sense that both the pavilion and the courtyard were protected by separate array formations.

Guo Qianhuai stopped in the middle of the open space and said, "This courtyard in front of the Crafts Pavilion is sometimes used as a place for performing magic, so the noise won't affect other places... Of course, we don't need to make such a big commotion."

He Kao: "Why did you call me here specifically to demonstrate some kind of magic?"

Guo Qianhuai: "Is the Hidden Moon Veil on you?"

He Kao quickly replied, "I carry it with me at all times."

He had previously wondered if Guo Qianhuai knew his hidden identity. Now he was certain that this Guo Taishang probably did know, but was just deliberately not revealing it.

Guo Qianhuai pointed at Li Xiuyuan: "Give it to him."

He Kao took out the Hidden Moon Silk and handed it to Elder Li. Guo Qianhuai then took out the Reflection Mirror that he had borrowed the day before, and sent a divine thought, which was the mental imprint he used to study and comprehend the wonderful uses of this precious mirror, and asked He Kao to refine and collect it.

He Kao had already refined the Reflection Mirror before, and now, having received the Heart Seal from Guo Qianhuai, he saved a lot of effort. He finished refining it in about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, and the magic weapon was transformed back into a mark on his left palm.

Guo Qianhuai instructed Li Xiuyuan, "You transform into one."

Li Xiuyuan: "Change what?"

Guo Qianhuai: "Whatever you want, transform into whatever you want. If you're so capable, transform into a toad."

Li Xiuyuan put the Hidden Gauze on his face and transformed into Jiang Daozhen. Except for wearing the same clothes as before, there was almost no flaw in his appearance. The other Jiang Daozhen stood to the side.

He was completely addicted to impersonating Jiang Daozhen. He remembered doing it when he gave Yin'e Sha to He Kao, and now he was impersonating her perfectly.

Jiang Daozhen pursed his lips but didn't swear, while the other two old men laughed.

Without Guo Qianhuai giving any further instructions, He Kao stretched out his left hand and produced the Reflecting Mirror. He used the mirror to lock onto Li Xiuyuan's reflection, then turned the mirror to look at him. The scene he saw was unchanged, except that Li Xiuyuan in the mirror had returned to his original appearance. This precious mirror was actually the same as the Demon-Revealing Mirror behind the entrance hall of the Ancestral Hall; it could also expose illusions and disguises. The difference was that the Demon-Revealing Mirror only had this function, while the Reflecting Mirror obviously had many more uses.

Guo Qianhuai then cautioned, "You have the Hidden Moon Veil, which can transform into different forms. This is an excellent means of self-protection, but there are also treasures in the world that can expose its transformations."

The known Demon-Revealing Mirror is in the Ancestral Hall, and it's impossible for anyone to carry it around. The other Reflecting Mirror is in your own hands, but don't forget that there should be another magic weapon that can do the same.

Therefore, you must be on guard when you change your appearance using the Hidden Silk Gauze in the future! It would be best if you could take the Bone-Penetrating Treasure Mirror back to the Body-Observation Gate as soon as possible.

"I'm returning the mirror to you. This old man should go and take his Pure Yang Pill now..."

If there is any other treasure in the world that can see through the changes in the Hidden Beauty Veil, it is of course the Bone-Penetrating Mirror. It should be known that the Reflecting Mirror is a replica of the Bone-Penetrating Mirror, therefore He Kao must be wary of anyone who might possess it.

Guo Qianhuai was over ninety years old. Since retiring as the head of the Ruwei Sect, he had been cultivating in seclusion for many years, but he had never been able to break through the threshold of advancement. He originally thought that his potential had been exhausted.

However, the Zongfa Hall happened to refine the Pure Yang Pill at this time, and he also obtained it. After thinking about it, he decided to take it and give it a try, hoping that he might still have a glimmer of hope to break through to the next realm.

Jiang Daozhen said, "Uncle-Master, don't be in such a hurry. Let's eat first and then leave. He Kao will cook; he's quite a good cook."

Guo Qianhuai: "Alright, then I'll wait here in Jinghua Cave. After this meal, I'll go to Guanshu Cave to take the pill."

Li Xiuyuan interjected, "Who are you taking the pill with, Uncle-Master? Have you already found someone?"

Li Xiuyuan: "You don't need to worry about that."

The other three old men didn't move, clearly indicating they had other things to do.

He Kao suddenly remembered that Lin Qingshuang had given him some instructions before he left, so he said to Gu Chun, "Master Gu, before I came to Fengwei Township this time, Senior Lin Qingshuang asked me to pass on a message to you."

Gu Chun: "What did you say?"

He Kao: "Senior Lin told me, 'Please pass on a message to Elder Gu for me'—that's the sentence."

The elders all understood, and Jiang Daozhen and Li Xiuyuan chuckled as they looked at Gu Chun. Gu Chun, however, remained calm and nodded slightly with composure, saying, "Oh, I understand."

He Kao was quite diligent in his work, and then asked, "So how should I answer Senior Lin when I get back?"

Gu Chun: "Just tell her—I understand! You don't need to go back to Qiyuan to reply. Just call her as soon as you leave the cave."

Jiang Daozhen asked with a smile, "Master Geomancer, is there anything we can help you with?"

Gu Chun looked at him and said, "I really do need your help. Could you lend me the Taiji Yin Yang Formation in Jinghua Cave? I'll have He Kao take you to Qihuang Lingyuan to choose a place to settle down."

Jiang Daozhen glared and said, "Why don't you dismantle the Tai Chi Yin Yang Formation of your Xinpan Sect?"

Gu Chun replied irrelevantly, "I'm just borrowing it for a while; I'll return it to you later!"

Jiang Daozhen: "I thought of that long ago! I've already instructed Wei Luo to dismantle the formation and bring the array artifacts. Mei Guyu is still in Qiyuan, so she can use them too."

What Wei Luo had just forgotten was this very thing. Jiang Daozhen had instructed her to dismantle the small Taiji Yin-Yang Array and bring it to him after she finished taking the pill, but she had probably been distracted by something else and had completely forgotten.

It seems that even with a fifth-level cultivation, people can still lose focus.

At this moment, Jiang Daozhen turned to He Kao and instructed him: "Take that Taiji Yin Yang Formation to Qihuang Lingyuan and tell Lin Qingshuang not to make a fuss. When needed, Elder Gu will arrange it himself."

If word gets out and someone asks, just tell the truth—it's true, Lin Qingshuang invited Elder Gu to take the pill together, but Elder Gu is too shy to publicize it..."

The wondrous uses of the Tai Chi Yin Yang Formation are not limited to assisting in the consumption of Pure Yang Pills and Peonies. It can be said that it was precisely because of the existence of a small-scale Tai Chi Formation that the Observation Sect was able to develop this method of consuming pills.

The materials used are extremely rare, and the techniques for refining array artifacts are very demanding, especially the creation of small arrays, which are even more difficult. There are a total of seven sets of these arrays, all of which have been passed down from ancient times.

These seven small Tai Chi Yin Yang formations were fortunately not lost during the internal strife of the magic sect a thousand years ago. Now each sect possesses one, which is stored in their grotto heaven. This time, they are being used.

If one wanted to secretly dismantle one, the one in Jinghua Cave Heaven would be the most convenient and easiest to keep secret. If word got out, it wouldn't be the Lingxi Sect that leaked the secret; it would only be the Qihuang Lingyuan that accidentally leaked it.

Why did these elderly people do it so secretly? It was to provide a plausible explanation for quietly dismantling a Tai Chi Yin-Yang formation.

This Tai Chi Yin Yang Formation still needs to be returned to the Lingxi Sect, but there might be other arrangements during the return process.

When Jiang Daozhen spoke to He Kao, he also secretly sent a divine thought, telling him that the Tai Chi Yin Yang Formation could be lent to "Mr. Mi" when necessary.

Who is Mr. Mi? This is someone's code name.

**
(End of this chapter)