Why can’t I suddenly perceive cause and effect anymore?

The Elder’s aged fingers couldn’t help but intertwine, then slowly release, then intertwine again, only for him to force them apart once more. He truly wanted to divine what was happening. However, he was now “retired” and absolutely did not want to get involved in the murky waters of the Great Barren, which reeked of dark qi. To divine even once would be like reaching into muddy water to pluck out threads of cause and effect. It was easy to get his hands dirty, and easy to be noticed. But not to divine was impossible.

A chill crept into the Elder’s heart; he had no idea what was happening. Yet, it also felt like a thousand ants were crawling inside him, an unbearable itch to know exactly what had transpired.

“This array is an ancient Yin-Yang formation, of great significance, which is why I had to subtly tamper with it to obscure the cause and effect. I gave it to him for him to learn, for him to comprehend…”

“What exactly did that boy do with it?”

“Ultimately, what could a Foundation Establishment realm boy do with such an array? Surely, he couldn’t have…”

The Elder’s heart suddenly trembled. What could a Foundation Establishment cultivator do with this array?! What kind of deed could only be accomplished by someone in the Foundation Establishment realm?! The Elder, whose heart had long been as still as an ancient well, felt for the first time in a long while as if his heart was about to leap out of his throat.

“He… no… impossible… it shouldn’t be…”

The Elder finally couldn’t restrain himself. He no longer cared about getting his hands dirty, and his three fingertips pressed together. For just an instant, the Tianji Heart Method was activated, and the threads of cause and effect spun in his mind. The Elder’s heart died completely. That ancient array, which had passed through his hands and been tampered with, had actually been refined into a Natal Array?!

How was this even possible?

The Elder’s expression grew solemn, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper. The cultivation world was vast, filled with countless geniuses. Refining arrays into Natal Artifacts was not unprecedented, and many such inheritances had been passed down. However, refining an array into a Natal Artifact was not as simple as it sounded. It required a profound understanding of the array’s essence, a masterful application of its principles, a deep analysis of human anatomy, and extensive experience in “modifying” the human body. The methods involved were numerous, and the techniques complex. For each specific array within the categories of Five Elements, Eight Trigrams, Three Talents, Four Symbols, Six Yao, Seven Stars, and so on, the inheritance and methods required to refine it into a Natal Array varied. If even the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams categories of “Natal Arrays” were so intricate, the Elder could scarcely imagine what kind of cultivation fortune would be needed to refine an “Yin-Yang” ancient array into a Natal Array.

This Yin-Yang Rebirth Array was something stored by the Tianshu Pavilion, ancient, obscure, and profoundly deep. Even he, as an Elder, had not deeply comprehended it. Even if this boy had extraordinary talent and high comprehension, he was ultimately just a Foundation Establishment cultivator with limited vision and experience. At most, he could have gained some insights, but it was absolutely impossible for him to “master” such an ancient Yin-Yang array.

“Could it be that this boy… is another species?”

“Is he actually not a ‘human’?”

“But even if he were a heaven-and-earth deity born from the Dao, it wouldn’t be this outrageous…”

Moreover…

The Elder quickly realized another problem. This was likely not just about refining a “Yin-Yang Natal Array.” Based on Mo Hua’s style of conduct in the Qianxue State and his personality, which the Elder had discerned during their previous encounter, he was a child of upright character, yet one who often disregarded “rules.” He appeared reckless but was meticulous in his thoughts. Many times, his actions were incredibly audacious, so bold that it sent shivers down one’s spine. But alongside this boldness, everything he did was actually “well-thought-out,” with deep consideration and extremely thorough plans. If he treated other matters with such an attitude, it went without saying how he would approach his own “Natal Array.”

The Elder could almost conclude that Mo Hua, at this moment, could not possibly know the true secret of the Yimu Rejuvenation Array. This was because he had personally laid down the means within it. At most, Mo Hua would have some suspicions—after all, it was a reward from the Sword Discussion Assembly, so it couldn’t truly be ordinary. If he typically used this array to save people, performing acts of “healing and aid,” he should be able to comprehend certain things from the array’s operation, then gradually, step by step, ponder its inherent laws. This would greatly benefit his future cultivation. As for how much he could comprehend, that would depend on Mo Hua’s own fortune. This was also the Elder’s prediction for Mo Hua’s progress after obtaining the array. Mo Hua, in the short term, could not “see through” this array, let alone comprehend it. Something he could not “see through,” given Mo Hua’s “cautious” character, could be used for research. But to truly use it as a “Natal Array” with which to cultivate his life was absolutely impossible.

This implied that the “Natal Array” Mo Hua had designated for himself was, in fact, something else. This ancient Yin-Yang array was very likely something Mo Hua, for reasons unknown, had “incidentally” added to it. “Incidentally”! He had incidentally refined this heaven-shaking, ghost-wailing ancient Yin-Yang Rebirth Array into his own Natal Array…

The Elder’s emotions were too complex to describe. At the same time, he found it incredibly unbelievable. How exactly was this child’s mind structured? What inheritance, what motive, what thought process, what method was he using to refine his Natal Array? And what exactly had he… brought into existence?

The Elder’s heart now felt as if ten thousand ants were crawling within it. He truly wanted to use the “Yimu Rejuvenation Array” he had given as a “causal thread,” follow the vine to find the melon, and unearth all the details of Mo Hua’s Natal Array, all the underlying laws that constituted it, to understand it clearly. The Elder’s fingers couldn’t help but twitch together again. But he finally, with great difficulty, restrained himself. Peering into someone’s natal foundation was a great taboo in cultivation.

Of course, for figures like the Elder, this was not truly a “great taboo.” They had lived for too long, cultivated too highly, possessed too strong a divine sense, and had too deep an experience, perceiving the celestial mechanisms and mastering the threads of cause and effect. Many times, when others walked past them, they needed only a brief glance to clearly discern that person’s “Dao.” What their character was like, what their foundation was, what their inheritance was, what Dao they cultivated, what path they walked… all clear and plain.

But Mo Hua was not an ordinary person. His Dao heart was pure, his demeanor sincere, like unpolished jade. Yet, upon deeper investigation, he seemed like a bottomless abyss, containing immense cause and effect, and profound celestial mechanisms… The Elder thought about it and decided against it. “I’m retired, I’m retired, I’m retired…” The Elder chanted three times before finally dispelling the curiosity and obsession in his heart.

But the波动 in his heart still lingered, unable to calm down for a long time. The Elder sat by the pond, his gaze deep, watching the gently rippling water and the fish swimming within it, slowly replaying the entire sequence of events in his mind. Yet, the more he replayed it, the clearer the Elder’s heart became…

The situation in Qianxue State was originally a “dead end.” More people would have died, countless forces would have been implicated, and many aristocratic families and sects would have been annihilated. Most people had no concept of the words “disaster.” They simply didn’t know what the word “disaster” truly meant. They didn’t know the horror of the Evil God. They didn’t know that Qianxue State had truly been on the brink of collapse. They didn’t know that their lives and deaths had truly hung by a thread.

And now, Qianxue State seemed to have “eased up” again, with aristocratic families continuing to vie for power, and sects continuing to compete for profit. Under the accumulation of fame and fortune, it presented a scene of “flourishing prosperity.” People’s memories of that great disaster also began to fade. It was human nature to forget the pain once the wound healed. But the Elder was the one pulling the strings; he understood better than anyone. If no one had broken the deadlock, if no one had secretly taken responsibility for all this, pushing these events forward, if no one had risked their lives to sabotage the Great Barren Evil God’s scheme, then the “Qianxue Cataclysm” of several years ago would already have been the end of Qianxue State.

However, matters of the Divine Dao were shrouded in secrecy and fraught with unpredictable dangers. Even the Elder, at first, did not have a very good “chess piece” to break this deadlock, to find ways to minimize the casualties of the common people in these various states amidst the disaster of the Evil God. Fortunately, there was Mo Hua. But Mo Hua, at first, only wanted to be a “salted fish” and not get too involved. Therefore, the Elder spared no expense, even risking grave disapproval and violating the taboos of the Dao Court, using the “Yin-Yang Rebirth Array” as bait to lure out Mo Hua, this “little golden dragon fish,” to stir the waters, break the Qianxue deadlock, and ultimately allow Qianxue State to survive.

Such things were very dangerous and very risky. But as it concerned the greater picture, the Elder, as such a figure, naturally plunged in without hesitation. It was just that the Yin-Yang Rebirth Array involved truly immense karma. If it were ever discovered, he, as an Elder, would find it difficult to shirk responsibility. So, he simply “resigned” and fled first. Of course, doing so was not solely about this “golden dragon fish.” He had been an Elder for so many years, observing celestial mechanisms and strategizing, incurring countless major karmic debts. There was an even more terrifying karmic debt waiting for him below. To seek the preservation of his life by the Heavenly Dao and to step out of the game to observe this chess match as an outsider, “retreating bravely in the face of surging currents” was the best choice.

But now, as the Elder traced the lines of cause and effect, he realized a rather serious problem. This serious problem lay with this “golden dragon fish.” In Qianxue State, this golden dragon fish bit the “bait” he had thrown, and following his line, broke the Qianxue deadlock. This was within his expectations. Moreover, this “bait” was too big, too hard, too old, and this little golden dragon fish surely couldn’t swallow it. As long as the “bait” remained, the line connected to this “bait” would also remain. This was also the causal “dark line” the Elder had left as a contingency. In the future, if those old fellows from the Dao Court truly came to “audit” him, he could follow the line and retrieve the “bait.”

But now, something was wrong… This golden dragon fish had swum out of Qianxue State, far into the Great Barren, and after doing who knows what, it suddenly “ate” the bait, swallowed it into its belly, and was preparing to digest it. This bait had become the key for this “golden dragon fish” to shape its Natal Array. In other words, his actions were assisting this golden dragon fish in “forming its core” and transforming into a dragon. Now, this karma… had truly reached heaven, becoming immense. The Elder traced the cause and effect of this matter, and the more he thought about it, the more alarmed he became. It was as if he was fishing on the bank, only to be swallowed by the fish, pulling him by the line, headfirst into the water. And he was utterly speechless. After all, the Yin-Yang Rebirth Array was truly “given” away by him, an Elder.

Now, this Yin-Yang Rebirth Array had been integrated by that boy as his Natal Array… Such an outrageous thing… If he, this “old and cunning” Elder, claimed he truly didn’t do it on purpose… he wondered if anyone would believe him. Anyway, it would probably be difficult to make those suspicious old fellows in the Dao Court believe him… The Elder himself didn’t quite believe it. He didn’t believe that this ancient “bait” could actually be eaten by a fish. Nor did he believe that after fishing all his life, he had now truly been dragged into a vortex of cause and effect by a small fish.

The Elder’s brow, which had only recently relaxed, furrowed deeply again: “Trouble… is great now…” “If it explodes later, I won’t have a moment’s peace for the rest of my life…”

The Elder pondered for a moment, then gently pinched his fingers again, calculating a little more. He calculated what Mo Hua had done in the Great Barren, and whether he could extract himself from this causal connection… But with this calculation, the Elder’s face immediately changed, and his pupils suddenly trembled: “This boy is truly capable of stirring up trouble…” “What kind of monstrous rebellion is he… stirring up… in the Great Barren?!”

Moreover… was it not only a rebellion against humans, but also a rebellion against “gods”? The Elder gasped, a slight tremor in his heart. The situation in the Great Barren was too chaotic, the celestial mechanisms turbid, the schemes intertwined. Many high-level cultivators were laying out plans, deceiving and obscuring each other, making it difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood. If the Elder had not personally met Mo Hua before, played chess with him, and still held this “Yimu Rejuvenation” causal thread, he might not have realized what Mo Hua was truly doing. Or rather, he might not have realized that the person doing these things… was Mo Hua. After all, who would have thought that a young disciple of the Tai Xu Sect could run off to the Great Barren, to rebel against the Great Barren, against the Dao Court, and even against the gods of the Great Barren. This child was truly capable of “making trouble”…

The Elder held his breath, unable to utter a single word. After a long while, the Elder’s gaze gradually grew solemn, and he slowly sighed, murmuring, “Doing such things… do you not know how many people… would want you dead…” “Gods want to kill you, the Great Barren wants to kill you, the barbarians want to kill you, the Dao Court wants to kill you, the aristocratic families want to kill you… even your own divinity… will kill you…”

For a moment, the Elder even found himself thinking: perhaps it would be better for this boy to simply “die” in the Great Barren. If he died in the Great Barren, all the karma would be “severed.” What he, the Elder, had done would remain unknown. It would both destroy the body and erase the “accounts” of stolen goods. This would prevent him, a dignified Elder, from becoming an “accomplice” to this “terrorist” who rebelled against “gods,” against the Dao Court, against the Great Barren… and who knows what else he would rebel against in the future. Thousands of years of good reputation would be ruined in an instant. The Elder fell silent. The thought “just let him die” floated in his mind again and again, like a small demon.

But at the same time, that handsome and amiable smiling face, those eyes as clear as water, that Dao heart as pure as jade. And those brief but mutually appreciative moments of playing chess, rivaling each other, also echoed in the Elder’s heart. Finally, the Elder sighed deeply. “A life of endless toil, unable to bear even a hint of leisure…”

The Elder slowly sat up and looked at the chess board beside him. This game of chess, with its clear black and white pieces and faint golden gleams, still looked evenly matched, but it was already close to the “endgame” where victory, defeat, life, and death would be decided…

In the third-grade Lüyoushan Realm.

Inside a hidden mountain cave.

Mo Hua opened his eyes. A golden light flashed in his eyes, but this golden light no longer held its previous clarity and agility; instead, it was deep and indifferent. It was as if a god had opened its eyes, looking upon this world. At the same time, a deep blue light suddenly flickered around Mo Hua’s body. The Taotie patterns, like “array creatures” under his skin, lit up from Mo Hua’s bones, circulating a full cycle along his twelve main meridians. And within the blue light, a faint golden-jade light shone through. This was the wood-white golden-jade bone. And within this golden-jade light, a hint of Yimu aura was intertwined. This was the Yimu Rejuvenation Array.

At this moment, Mo Hua’s natal system was finally completely formed. His aura also suddenly increased by a small margin. Foundation Establishment Peak. For a cultivator, casting a Natal Artifact and entering the stage of nurturing the artifact embryo within the body signifies truly stepping into the Foundation Establishment Peak realm. Once the artifact nurturing is complete and the foundation is stable, one can truly attempt to break through to the Golden Core realm. Upon entering the Golden Core, the Great Dao transforms, and one undergoes a complete metamorphosis.

Mo Hua’s eyes held authority, and his aura already showed the initial signs of “transformation.” But just as he was about to get up, he suddenly froze. Because he discovered that while his divine sense was focused inward, entirely on forging his Natal Array, some “strange” things had appeared beside his external flesh-and-blood body at some unknown point. These things had pointed mouths and fangs, small eyes and long tails, and their pupils resembled copper coins, emitting an unrighteous golden light, like evil spirits or demons, secretly gnawing at his Dao body…

This was… Mo Hua’s pupils constricted slightly. “Jinqian Shu (Money Mice)?”