Chapter 183: Progress
Mo Hua followed the prearranged architectural formation plans, drawing one formation after another, one layered array after another, proceeding methodically and without haste.
When his Divine-Sense was exhausted, he would sit and meditate to recover. When he was tired, he would rest to the side for a while, pick up a formation theory book to read and ease his fatigue.
Once rested, he resumed drawing formations.
Formations for such a large-scale construction were densely packed with formation patterns. Though not particularly difficult, they were exceedingly tedious and demanded immense patience and focus from a formation master.
Fortunately, Mo Hua was long accustomed to drawing formations. Having practiced tirelessly day and night in the past, he found the actual work quite manageable.
Moreover, he had accumulated a thousand bottles of demon blood, all refined into spiritual ink. If not used soon, the ink's potency would diminish over time, which would be a tremendous waste.
Each bottle was painstakingly extracted by Mo Hua himself from demon beasts.
Days passed like this, with Mo Hua working alone on the formations.
Master Ban had finally understood that Elder Yu indeed had not invited any other formation masters, the only one drawing formations was Mo Hua.
Such a massive Refining Workshop, with so many structures and so many formations, each containing countless formation patterns... all to be drawn by a single person?
Just thinking about it made Master Ban's scalp tingle.
Would this take until the Year of the Monkey(leap year) to finish?
Master Ban was anxious beyond words, yet he could not bring himself to question Mo Hua directly.
First, Mo Hua was entirely focused on his formation work and should not be disturbed.
Second, ever since learning that Mo Hua was a formation master capable of drawing first-grade formations, Master Ban had developed a sense of reverence and dared not speak to him casually.
Formation masters had always held exalted status, entirely unlike craftsmen such as himself.
As a craftsman, Master Ban often interacted with formation masters, and most were unpleasant to deal with, some arrogant, some greedy, others polite only on the surface while looking down upon craftsmen in secret.
After all, craftsmen were laborers, doing hard, dirty work, utterly incomparable to the lofty formation masters.
They dared not offend such people and often had to endure their unreasonable demands.
If a construction material was deemed unsuitable, they would be forced to replace it.
If a layout did not match the formation plan, they would have to tear it down and rebuild.
Sometimes, even when the formation master made a mistake in the drawing, it was still the craftsmen who were blamed and ordered to redo the work.
So, despite his growing impatience, Master Ban hesitated for several days and still did not dare ask Mo Hua anything.
Yet, a few days later, he was astonished to find that many of the foundation layers and inner walls already had formations drawn upon them.
He checked back and forth, comparing carefully with the architectural formation plans, and discovered that they matched perfectly, down to the smallest detail.
Master Ban stood frozen. The progress was unbelievably fast!
So many formations completed in such a short time... was it truly possible for one person to achieve that?
He secretly observed Mo Hua again.
Only then did he realize that Mo Hua's brushwork was incredibly practiced, his strokes flowed without hesitation, as though every formation rune was etched deeply in his mind. The brush moved like a flowing river, the speed astonishing.
In Master Ban's experience, formation masters would usually deliberate long and carefully before each stroke, draw with extreme caution, and after finishing even one formation, would turn pale, sip tea, and rest for half the day.
Mo Hua, however, drew with decisive precision, once the brush touched the surface, a formation took shape. Upon finishing one, he would immediately begin the next.
Even when resting, he merely meditated for a short while, then resumed work, full of energy.
By this measure, four or five formation masters combined might not work faster than Mo Hua alone.
Master Ban was thoroughly astounded.
In all his years, he had never seen anyone draw formations as effortlessly as drinking water.
"Could it be... he really can finish all these formations alone within the construction period?"
The thought left Master Ban both incredulous and full of anticipation.
Mo Hua continued drawing calmly yet with the grace of flowing clouds and water.
...
Meanwhile, the grand commotion of building the Refining Workshop had already become well-known among the major families of Tōngxiān City.
Not far from the construction site stood a bustling street with a teahouse. In a refined private room on the second floor, decorated with antique elegance and filled with fragrant tea steam, sat the old master of the An family and the current family head, An Yonglu.
An Yonglu poured tea for his father, frowning slightly.
"Elder Yu really is going all out this time, building such a massive Refining Workshop..."
"After seizing the spirit mine, he has the capital. Naturally, he intends to do something grand."
"Then the Qian family truly lost big this time, losing both the money and the advantage," An Yonglu said with thinly veiled schadenfreude.
The old master gave him a sidelong glance and sighed. "Do you actually think this is good news for us?"
An Yonglu blinked. "Isn't it good that the Qian family suffered a setback?"
The old man's tone turned cold. "Let me ask you, once such a massive Refining Workshop is complete and starts producing large quantities of spiritual artifacts, not only the Qian family but even our An family's business will be affected."
"Judging by the layout, it's not just a Refining Workshop, there will also be an Alchemy Workshop. If Elder Yu truly completes both, how are we supposed to compete?"
"That's for the Qian family to worry about first," An Yonglu muttered. "We don't deal much in refining or alchemy anyway."
The old master glared at him. "Do you intend to run restaurants for the rest of your life? What future is there in that?"
"I know... but the Qian family's methods are ruthless. We can't compete in refining or alchemy, so we stick to peaceful trades like food and lodging," An Yonglu replied in a small voice.
The old master sighed. "You're not to blame, but your son is no better, both of you are disappointments."
An Yonglu protested weakly, "Father, Xiaofu is worse than me! If he had half my ability, he could easily be the family head."
The old master snorted coldly. "You're really proud, aren't you, comparing yourself to your own son."
An Yonglu awkwardly scratched his head and said nothing.
The old master lifted his teacup and took a slow sip, falling silent, his gaze drifting toward the half-built Refining Workshop in the distance.
Such a grand design, such an ambitious layout, Elder Yu's vision was truly remarkable.
The old master sighed inwardly. He was old now; even if he had the capital, he no longer had the drive or ambition for such undertakings.
After a pause, An Yonglu asked, "Father, do you think such a huge Refining Workshop can actually be completed?"
The old man gave him a meaningful glance.
An Yonglu continued, "The Qian family won't take this lying down. They won't just watch these independent rogue cultivator s get rich. After all, when the sheep grow strong, the shearers suffer. The Qian family's entire business has always been built on shearing the weak."
"You're not wrong," the old master nodded slightly.
"So what should we do?" An Yonglu asked.
The old master raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "We wait and see."
An Yonglu nodded. Indeed, it all depended on what the Qian family would do next.
Elder Yu's massive undertaking made the An family uneasy, but they had no reason to panic. Their main trade was in restaurants and lodging, already marginalized by the Qian family's dominance in refining and alchemy.
The Qian family, however, was different. Their core industries were precisely those two fields. No doubt, they would be the most anxious of all.
(End of Chapter)