Chapter 1315: Ling Huxiao (3)

Xun Ziyou remained silent.

The Chongxu Sect Elder snorted, glanced at the departing Mo Hua, and mused, "His demeanor and temperament are indeed somewhat exceptional, but his aptitude... seems rather average at first glance."

The Chongxu Sect Elder turned his head and asked Xun Ziyou:

"What’s this kid’s background? Where did he come from? What’s so special about him that you have to personally keep an eye on him?"

Xun Ziyou knew he couldn’t hide it, so he pondered for a moment and sighed:

"His talent in Formation is quite good..."

"Formation?" The Chongxu Sect Elder was momentarily stunned, "Since when did your Taixu Gate focus on cultivating Formation?"

"What about Swordsmanship?"

The Chongxu Sect Elder expressed frustration, "Even the Tai’a Sect, which is primarily known for Sword Casting, focuses heavily on Swordsmanship. Our Chongxu Sect may lag in some areas, but when it comes to Sword Qi, we’re still the leaders in the Qianxue State Boundary. And your Taixu Gate? What about your Swordsmanship?"

Xun Ziyou shot him a glare, "Divine Thought into Sword—would you dare to learn it if offered?"

The Chongxu Sect Elder froze, thought for a moment, and then nodded:

"True. I wouldn’t dare to learn it. I’m not worthy..."

The idea of "self-destruction"—only a deviant would willingly study something like that.

Xun Ziyou let out a long sigh, "With our sect split into three factions, Taixu Gate’s true expertise can’t even be passed on. What can we do? We just muddle along..."

The Chongxu Sect Elder didn’t respond.

Indeed, from the perspective of Taixu Gate, their situation was undeniably difficult.

"But," the Chongxu Sect Elder added with some doubt, "That kid—his name is ’Mo Hua,’ right? How good could his Formation skills possibly be to warrant your personal attention?"

Xun Ziyou thought to himself:

If I told you, it would scare you to death.

But I won’t tell you.

"Just average, really. Picking the tallest among the short ones, slightly better than his peers—by a hair’s breadth." Xun Ziyou said with deliberate ambiguity.

The Chongxu Sect Elder was unconvinced.

A disciple whom the ancestor had ordered Golden Core Elders to secretly supervise—his Formation level absolutely could not be "average."

This shameless Xun Ziyou must be lying.

The Chongxu Sect Elder mused silently.

Yet, as to how exceptional the kid might truly be, he remained skeptical...

Taixu Gate was not a Formation Sect, nor renowned for Formation expertise.

No matter how strong this disciple was in Formation, could he surpass Twelve Streams’ Ten Thousand Formations Sect, or the Four Great Sects—especially the Qian Daoist Sect with its Formation roots?

But the circumstances were what they were; even a resourceful woman cannot cook without rice.

Taixu Gate had done their best, and for now, this was all they could do.

The Chongxu Sect Elder was understanding.

"Let’s have a drink together sometime." The Chongxu Sect Elder said.

"We’ll see when the time comes..."

Xun Ziyou’s expression was complex.

That Mo Hua kid never let him have peace of mind.

The Chongxu Sect Elder was just casually suggesting this anyway; he was also very busy. Watching over the aloof, Sword Heart Clarity-bearing genius of Sword Dao was no easy task.

Before leaving, he paused to remind:

"You’re aware of the sect reforms, I take it. There’s no need for me to speak further. Just be cautious yourself."

Xun Ziyou frowned, "Tai’a Sect wants to join the Four Great Sects. Is that what Chongxu Sect is aiming for as well?"

The Chongxu Sect Elder chuckled, "Our Chongxu Sect is far from that. It’s just..."

He sighed lightly, "Once the reforms take place and the dynamics shift, the sect will be like a boat going against the current—either advancing or fading away."

"For our Chongxu Sect, the goal is merely stability through advancement—remaining among the ’Eight Great Gates’ is sufficient. As for the Four Great Gates, it’s not something we’re considering for now..."

Xun Ziyou nodded slightly.

The Chongxu Sect Elder smiled faintly but held a trace of contemplative thought in his heart.

"For now" they weren’t considering it...

If Ling Huxiao could fully unleash his talents and master Chongxu Sword Qi to its peak...

Chongxu Sect might have the potential to go further.

On the surface, Tai’a Sect appeared to be the strongest of the two, but ultimately, who would make the leap into the Four Great Sects first?

Until the dust settled, it truly was hard to say.

Ling Huxiao’s talent in Sword Dao was far more terrifying than outsiders could imagine...

Even within Chongxu Sect, only a handful of direct-lineage Elders, alongside the ancestor, were privy to the extent of his abilities.

The world only knew that Chongxu Sect had produced a Sword Dao genius seen only once every five hundred years, but few knew exactly how far this genius went in terms of being a "genius."

The Chongxu Sect Elder’s heart quivered slightly.

Xun Ziyou naturally had no idea what he was thinking.

The two chatted idly for a while before bidding each other farewell.

...

Meanwhile, this Sword Dao genius of Chongxu Sect was already silently following behind Mo Hua, traversing mountains and crossing ranges, arriving at the mountain gate of Refining Demon Mountain.

"Materials from a Second Grade Middle-level Demon Wooden Eagle—in exchange for merit points, please."

Mo Hua handed over a storage bag and spoke politely.

"Second Grade Middle-level?" The disciple managing materials at the mountain gate was taken aback, "Didn’t you usually hunt Second Grade Primary-level creatures? You managed to kill a Middle-level one?"

Mo Hua had often sought him out before to trade merit points for materials from Second Grade Primary-level hawk and eagle demon types, so this disciple was quite well-acquainted with Mo Hua.

Mo Hua smiled, "I got lucky and scored an easy kill."

The disciple shook his head.

Luck isn’t always that convenient...

Still, it wasn’t his place to ask too many questions.

Regardless of the method used, killing a monster beast was an accomplishment.

He quickly checked the feathers, bones, claws, fangs, and head of the Demon Wooden Eagle, calculated in his mind, and said:

"A total of 2,672 merit points—take a look."

Mo Hua reviewed the inventory list, verified there were no errors, and nodded in confirmation.

The merit points were transferred into his Taixu Token, and Mo Hua then divided half of them and handed them to Ling Huxiao.

Ling Huxiao was startled.

He hadn’t expected Mo Hua to be so generous, giving away such a large sum of merit points without hesitation.

Up until now, Ling Huxiao had never met a sect disciple so "wealthy" and generous.

Moreover, the person being so generous to him wasn’t a member of Chongxu Sect but rather a Taixu Sect disciple he had only met once—and with whom he’d had a minor misunderstanding.

Ling Huxiao felt conflicted.

Mo Hua, however, was scrutinizing Ling Huxiao, his thoughts shifting slightly.

This young Sword Dao genius truly had exceptional Swordsmanship.

Judging from his Sword Qi, Ling Huxiao was likely cultivating Chongxu Sect’s sect-protecting ultimate technique, the Chongxu Sword Qi Skill.

Such a sword technique was definitely beyond Mo Hua’s ability to learn.

Such sword qi was also not something Mo Hua could achieve.

But if such a formidable sword cultivator could be roped in, even just as a "henchman," it would be advantageous...

Mo Hua’s eyes twinkled mischievously, resembling a cunning little fox as he grinned.