Chapter 726 – The Curtain Falls
After breaking through the bottleneck and reaching mid-stage Foundation Establishment, Mo Hua's blood and vitality had grown stronger.
However, due to his naturally frail constitution and lack of body cultivation, even with enhanced vitality, his physical body hadn't improved much.
His spiritual power, on the other hand, had become noticeably more profound.
He could now execute various spells with far more ease and speed, and their power had significantly increased.
Mo Hua could feel it—he'd gotten stronger!
But then he compared himself to Cheng Mo, Situ Jian, and the others... and suddenly realized a troubling truth:
His cultivation had improved, sure, but the gap between him and his peers seemed to have widened.
His spiritual root was lower-mid grade.
Most other disciples in the Great Void Sect started at upper-mid, if not high-grade.
Cheng Mo and Situ Jian? Many of them had upper-mid to top-tier spiritual roots.
Even Hao Xuan had a top-tier root!
While the Heaven's Derivation Art was unique, it didn't enhance spiritual power directly. In terms of foundational quality, it was the same as his spiritual root—just another lower-mid grade cultivation method.
From now on, he needed to figure out how to "feed" it properly.
The Sword Tournament was still ongoing—and nearing its climax.
Every one of the Four Great Sects, including the Heavenly Dao Sect, had at least five disciples like that.
Each one possessed vast, oceanic spiritual power—so much so that just watching them gave Mo Hua chills.
Three years had passed since he'd entered the Great Void Sect.
Unknowingly, he had grown taller and more mature—now appearing like a graceful and refined youth, his features bright and picturesque.
He was stronger than before… but others had grown even stronger, making the gap even wider.
In terms of schemes, strategy, and techniques—they weren't better than Fire Buddha.
Mo Hua smirked.
Looks like he had guessed right all along.
Still—no matter what—he was a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator now!
The next step was late Foundation Establishment.
Only then could he learn the higher-grade second-rank formations—like the 20-rune Secondary Thunderflow Annihilation Array.
He resumed his usual routine: reading formation books and practicing arrays.
But the restrictions of the Heavenly Dao's laws were still in place.
Mo Hua calculated quietly in his heart.
He was just a rogue cultivator by origin—his spiritual root, foundation, inheritance, spiritual power, and vitality all lagged behind others. The gap was normal.
But hey—there's only one Fire Buddha.
Mo Hua finished his cultivation, stood up slowly, and stretched.
Even in early Foundation Establishment, his spiritual power was weaker than others'.
Mo Hua pondered.
Feeding that law of the Heavenly Dao wouldn't work just by slowly training divine sense.
To nourish divine sense, he would need to leave the Qianxue Prefecture.
After breaking through, Mo Hua felt his divine sense had also grown stronger—but the extra bit had been "withheld" by the law.
Only after unraveling the restriction of the Heavenly Dao could his divine sense truly advance.
Mo Hua sighed.
Though he still wasn't on par with Fire Buddha, the difference was narrowing.
But there was no rush. He still needed to finish watching the rest of the Sword Tournament.
Unfortunately, his divine sense was still stuck at seventeen runes.
With such dazzling junior brothers and sisters ahead of him, this kind of gap… Mo Hua had learned to accept.
At this point, those still standing in the tournament were all monstrous talents, each one deeply rooted and terrifyingly strong.
Their cultivation techniques? Also top-tier.
This year, it was best to put aside the matter of divine sense advancement.
Once the year passed, and he had some time to adapt to his new stage, then he could consider how to "nourish" his divine sense.
For now, his emotions were… complicated.
But Mo Hua quickly calmed his mind.
After devouring divine sense, that void law had indeed loosened a little—like it had been partially "fed."
His spiritual root grade was nearly a whole tier lower than theirs.
The sky gradually brightened. The morning sun began to rise.
Time for a bit of "nourishment."
The next step? Golden Core Realm!
Mo Hua's eyes shone like starlight. A brilliant smile spread across his youthful, handsome face.
Especially when thinking of the pride and power of the Four Great Sects.
He wondered—next year, would Old Master Xun finally lift his "grounding" punishment?
Despite his lower root quality, his techniques were stronger than most.
Mo Hua couldn't help but sigh.
As expected of Qianxue Prefecture—as expected of the Four Great Sects. Their heritage was terrifyingly deep, and their disciples, at least in terms of cultivation, were truly one in ten thousand.
Far stronger than himself…
As the Sword Tournament progressed, it became nearly exclusive to disciples of the Four Great Sects.
Especially in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
The rest of the hundred sects of Qianxue had basically all been eliminated.
Of the twelve "low-grade" sects, barely a handful made it far.
Even among the eight "standard-grade" sects, few remained.
Great Void Sect managed to get a few senior brothers and sisters into the top sixteen, but their final standing was just eleventh.
That was the end of their run.
In contrast, Chongxu Sect advanced steadily, finishing eighth.
Tai'a Sect, with its solid sword techniques and razor-sharp spirit swords, charged forward all the way to the top—falling just short of the Four Great Sects.
They were only one step away from the finals.
Unfortunately, luck wasn't on their side. They narrowly lost to the prodigy of Longding Sect, earning fifth place.
That was the best ranking achieved by any sect outside the Four Great Sects.
And so, the semifinals and finals became a pure showdown between the Four Greats—including Heavenly Dao Sect.
The day of the semifinals arrived.
Mo Hua got up early and made his way to Lun Dao Mountain, ready for a good show—when he unexpectedly ran into Ouyang Feng.
Mo Hua's eyes lit up and he greeted him cheerfully:
"Senior Brother Feng!"
Hearing his name, Ouyang Feng turned around. Seeing a clear-eyed, handsome youth calling him "Senior Brother," he froze for a moment.
After taking a closer look, he finally recognized Mo Hua.
With a gentle smile, Ouyang Feng said:
"Long time no see, Junior Brother Mo."
Mo Hua nodded repeatedly.
"Yeah, long time no see."
Back when he first joined the sect, he had followed Senior Brother Feng around for missions.
Later, when Feng went to Demon Refining Mountain, Mo Hua wasn't eligible and had to go it alone.
Then came his period of house arrest.
All in all, it had been over a year since they'd seen each other.
Mo Hua glanced around, noticing that Ouyang Feng was alone. He asked, puzzled:
"Senior Brother Feng, are you here to watch the Sword Tournament by yourself?"
"I came ahead of the others," Ouyang Feng replied gently. "My fellow disciples will be here shortly."
"Oh." Mo Hua nodded.
Then he added with a hint of regret,
"By the way, I watched the match between Tai'a Sect and Heavenly Sword Sect. Tai'a almost won—they were so close to making it into the top four."
Ouyang Feng's expression grew complicated, the corners of his lips tugging into a faint, bitter smile.
"It only looked close. But in truth… there was no way we could've won."
Mo Hua paused, staring at him with suspicion.
Ouyang Feng met Mo Hua's clear, piercing gaze. Snapping back to himself, he gave a warm smile and explained:
"Tai'a Sect is one of the Eight Great Sects, yes—but compared to the Four Great Sects, our foundations are far too thin.
Even though it seemed like we almost won, the truth is… we're missing decades—no, generations—of accumulation.
That can't be made up in a short time. Winning would have been nice, of course.
But losing? That's perfectly normal. No need to be disheartened…"
Mo Hua slowly nodded.
"You're right, Senior Brother Feng."
After a moment, he glanced at Ouyang Feng again and asked,
"Senior Brother Feng, you'll be competing in the next Sword Tournament, right?"
"Yeah," Ouyang Feng replied flatly.
For a brief second, his eyes dimmed. There wasn't even a hint of joy or excitement in them.
Mo Hua's brow twitched.
He was about to say something more, but just then, a few disciples in Tai'a Sect robes approached respectfully and said:
"Senior Brother Feng, the elder is calling for you."
Ouyang Feng gave a slight nod.
"Understood."
Then he turned back to Mo Hua with an apologetic smile:
"Junior Brother Mo, please excuse me."
"Mhm." Mo Hua nodded and waved.
"See you, Senior Brother Feng."
As Ouyang Feng turned and walked away, his face was no longer gentle. In his eyes, there was a brief flicker of shadow.
Mo Hua caught that shadow clearly.
He stood frozen in place, quietly watching Ouyang Feng and the other Tai'a disciples walk off into the distance, his eyes narrowing.
Senior Brother Feng… seems different from how I remember him.
Did something happen?
Mo Hua frowned slightly.
Just then, Cheng Mo arrived with a large group.
They swarmed around Mo Hua and greeted him with cheerful voices:
"Little Senior Brother!"
Mo Hua smiled and returned the greetings.
Cheng Mo said,
"Mo Hua, I found a great spot with the best view. I'll take you there."
"Alright," Mo Hua nodded.
The group set off, heading toward the southeast corner of the arena.
On the way, someone sighed,
"I wonder when our Great Void Sect will ever make it to the finals…"
"Forget the finals—making it to the top four would already be amazing."
"The top four sects get a bigger share of the spirit stone mines in Dragon Ridge Mountain, not to mention extra rewards from the Dao Court."
"Rewards from the Dao Court?" Mo Hua blinked in surprise.
A fellow disciple explained,
"Yeah. For big events like the Sword Tournament in the Qianxue Prefecture, the Dao Court often gives out extra prizes."
"The rewards are different every time."
"Sometimes it's powerful Dao arts from the Dao Court's collection, rare pills, treasures for cultivation… Sometimes arrays and talismans too."
Mo Hua's curiosity was piqued.
"What kinds of arrays?"
The disciple shrugged,
"No clue…"
"I heard they didn't give any array rewards this year."
"Same with the last one."
"Now that you mention it, it's been quite a few tournaments since arrays were among the prizes."
"Arrays are the least practical. If you're not a formation master, it's useless. You'll just end up trading it or handing it over to your clan for merit."
"Yeah, not as practical as spiritual tools, Dao arts, or pills—things any cultivator can use…"
The group of disciples continued discussing excitedly.
Mo Hua simply nodded, inwardly curious.
I wonder what kind of arrays have ever been rewarded in the Sword Tournament…
—
The Sword Tournament resumed as scheduled.
From the semifinals to the grand finale, Mo Hua watched every match without missing a single one.
The Four Great Sects' prodigies truly lived up to their titles—every one of them was peerless, with few weaknesses in cultivation, Dao arts, spiritual tools, and more.
Inside the Void Arrays, their battles were fierce and unrestrained. With immense spiritual power, they unleashed superior Dao techniques backed by top-tier spiritual artifacts—their might was overwhelming.
The surrounding disciples were stunned.
Even the elders—and upper-level figures from the Dao Court and other major forces—looked on in approval.
Mo Hua finally saw what it looked like to stand at the very top of the entire Sword Tournament.
These paragons of the heavens fought beneath the watchful eyes of the crowd, dazzling everyone with their power and grace, drawing admiration from all.
And Mo Hua?
He simply watched silently from below.
Though he was known as "Little Senior Brother" in the Great Void Sect, within the grand stage of the Sword Tournament—or the entire Dao Conference—he was still just an unknown junior disciple.
Outside of his sect, few even knew his name.
Among the vast sea of disciples, packed densely like waves upon waves, Mo Hua was just a drop in the ocean. No one paid him any mind.
In the vast crowd, unnoticed and unremarkable, Mo Hua quietly watched the battles, his mind calculating, and in his clear eyes, a spark flickered—one that few could ever perceive.
—
Finally, after a series of brilliant, dazzling battles…
Heavenly Sword Sect—one of the Four Great Sects—emerged as the champion of the Sword Tournament.
Heavenly Dao Sect took second place.
Longding Sect was third.
And Wanxiao Sect came fourth.
With that, this session of the Dao Conference came to a full and glorious close.
Behind the scenes, the upper echelons of every major sect were already playing their political games—openly and in secret—vying for the most favorable standings and rewards for their sects…
...
Inside the Great Void Sect, in the Sect Master's Residence.
Elder Xun sat opposite the Sect Master of the Great Void Sect, sipping tea.
The room was elegant, filled with the gentle fragrance of tea.
Their expressions were calm, yet their eyes carried deep contemplation.
"In this Dao Conference, the Tai'a Sect ranked first among the Eight Great Sects, only slightly behind the Four Great Sects…"
"Chongxu Sect made progress and rose to the upper-middle tier."
"Only our Great Void Sect lingered on the edge of the lower ranks—neither advancing nor retreating."
"But since the other two sects advanced, us staying the same is, in truth, a step back…"
The Sect Master took a sip of tea and spoke blandly.
The tea was fragrant, but its aftertaste held a trace of bitterness.
He raised his eyes to glance at Elder Xun. Seeing the elder's composed, even serene expression, he couldn't help but ask:
"Elder… isn't this situation a little concerning?"
Elder Xun replied calmly,
"You are the Sect Master."
The Sect Master let out a wry smile.
He might be the Sect Master, but in front of the patriarch, what did that even mean?
Elder Xun glanced at him, put down his teacup, brushed his sleeve lightly, and asked with a slight frown:
"You've heard something, haven't you?"
The Sect Master hesitated briefly before answering cautiously:
"You know, my family's influence isn't exactly minor…"
Elder Xun gave him a look,
"No need to be so modest."
The Sect Master smiled slightly, then collected his thoughts and said solemnly:
"I have connections in my clan. I heard from the Dao Court that the Shen Family of the Heavenly Dao Sect, along with the Heavenly Sword Sect and the other three, have submitted a joint petition to the Dao Court to propose…"
His gaze turned colder, and his voice dropped:
"A restructuring of the sect system."
Elder Xun's eyebrows lifted in surprise.
"What kind of restructuring?"
The Sect Master shook his head.
"That I don't know…"
He rubbed the jade-inlaid porcelain cup in his hands and continued,
"But no matter what changes they propose, I don't think they'll be good for us…"
"Our Great Void Sect is already in decline. With the Divine Thought Sword not passed down anymore, it's like we've severed our own arms. We can't compete with the others. Holding on to our current position is already the best we can hope for."
"If the Four Great Sects unite with the Dao Court and force this restructuring… in the resulting storm, our sect is bound to be shaken—possibly even…"
His tone grew colder,
"…pushed out of the Eight Great Sects entirely."
Elder Xun's expression grew serious, lost in thought.
The Sect Master tried to read his expression but couldn't discern anything. He knew his cultivation was still shallow and couldn't see through Elder Xun, so he sighed and laid out his concerns:
"On the surface, this seems like the Four Great Sects and their allies pushing for reform to gain more power…"
"But I can't shake the feeling that… they're specifically targeting our Great Void Sect."
He furrowed his brow.
"Why, though?"
"I can point to a few old grudges… guess at some political motives…"
"But none of them feel like the real reason."
"There's definitely something deeper behind this."
Elder Xun looked at him with faint surprise, his gaze growing more weighty.
As expected of a cultivator from that family… not one to be underestimated.
He gave a subtle nod.
"I understand…"
The Sect Master waited for Elder Xun to continue, but the old man fell silent.
…And then?
The Sect Master looked at him in confusion.
Elder Xun calmly took another sip of tea.
"I have my own plans."
What plans?
The Sect Master was dying to ask, but judging by the elder's demeanor, he knew that even if he did, Elder Xun wouldn't answer.
His expression turned grim.
Elder Xun noticed and nodded slightly in approval.
Though born of a noble family and not from our sect's main Dao lineage, since he's in this seat, he's taken up the burden. At least he's worrying about the sect's safety.
In an uncharacteristic gesture, Elder Xun poured him a cup of tea and spoke in his aged voice:
"If the mountain rain comes—stay unmoved in the face of endless change."
The Sect Master was startled by the gesture and sipped the tea respectfully.
But in his heart, his confusion only deepened.
If the storm is coming… what "unchanging" force can withstand all that change…?
The Sword Tournament concluded.
Though the disciples were still buzzing with excitement, and there were still follow-up events, none of it had anything to do with Mo Hua.
He'd watched all he needed to. The rest didn't concern him.
Matters of sect rankings and benefits—those were far above his pay grade.
Fame and fortune are external things.
The path of cultivation is long. What matters is calming the heart and seeking truth.
Mo Hua returned to the sect and resumed his relentless cultivation.
His next goal: late Foundation Establishment.
The rest of his time was devoted to studying array formations.
He compared the Five Elements Eight Trigrams system passed down by Elder Xun with the versions preserved by the Shangguan and Wenren clans—cross-referencing, validating, and enriching his understanding.
The improvement of the Five Elements Source Armor also progressed steadily, refining through iteration.
Yu'er had become more lively.
With Mo Hua looking after her, she flitted through the Great Void Sect like a joyful little swallow—carefree and unbound.
This, too, was one of the happiest times of his life.
Time flew. Before he knew it, another year had passed.
The New Year came and went as it always did.
With his cultivation now at mid Foundation Establishment, Mo Hua advanced to the next class.
A new batch of disciples entered the Great Void Sect—one year his junior. They were now his true junior brothers and sisters.
And just like that, Mo Hua had truly become a "Senior Brother."
(End of Chapter)