Judging movement technique alone, Elder Yi thought giving him a "Grade A" would’ve been more than fair.
Even if he suppressed his cultivation to Initial Golden Core, there were few disciples in all of Taixu Gate who could last twenty rounds against him, let alone someone like Mo Hua who could go toe to toe in a real exchange.
Giving a "Grade B" was just to keep things low-key.
Besides, no matter how good his movement technique, that’s all it was—movement technique.
His weakness in Spiritual Power meant his Spell techniques would never be highly accomplished—at least, not to the Sect’s assessment standards, and thus hard to get a good evaluation.
Mo Hua didn’t care much for the "Grade B."
He just felt vaguely uneasy inside.
Whenever strange things happen, there’s a catch.
His results, which never changed year after year, had suddenly shifted. For someone like Mo Hua, who had a basic grasp of cause and effect, it felt like a harbinger that some new development was coming.
And then, it was time for the festival again.
This was his seventh festival at Taixu Gate, and Mo Hua had begun to get used to it.
And since Uncle Gu had already invited him in advance, he just went with the flow, stopped by the Gu Family, and planned on mooching a festival feast—eating something decent for a change.
There was still some time before the feast.
Mo Hua took Yu Er around Qingzhou City for a stroll.
Qingzhou City was lively. Yu Er was grinning with joy, though there was a faint trace of worry in his smile.
It was a subtle shift that others probably wouldn’t notice, but it couldn’t escape Mo Hua’s eyes.
Mo Hua bought a few skewers of candied hawthorns, handed them to Yu Er, then asked softly:
"Yu Er, is something on your mind?"
Yu Er’s smile immediately stiffened, then his face became weighed down with concern.
He was still young, unable to hide his feelings.
Mo Hua looked at him gently.
Yu Er hesitated for a long time before stammering, "Brother Mo, I... dreamed again."
Mo Hua was slightly surprised.
The dream again...
"A nightmare?" Mo Hua asked.
Yu Er nodded, then shook his head. "Not exactly... it’s different from before..."
"What did you dream?"
"I..." Yu Er seemed timid, but looking at Mo Hua’s eyes, he finally spoke slowly, "I dreamed of myself."
Mo Hua raised his brows. "Yourself?"
"Mm..." Yu Er’s eyes flickered, his words a bit disjointed. "It was me, but didn’t really feel like me..."
"And then?"
"Then... there were three of me: one in the mountains, one in the water, and one inside my heart. They all just stared at me in silence. I was really scared. They said, said..."
Yu Er looked at Mo Hua, teary-eyed. "They said my mother would die, and Brother Mo, you’d die too..."
Those words seemed to have weighed on him for a very long time.
Pure and kind-hearted Yu Er had wanted to speak, but always held back out of fear.
Mo Hua looked at Yu Er, seeing the worry, fear, and tears in his eyes. He smiled kindly and spoke softly:
"Demon Monsters and Evil Spirits can take human form and deceive the mind. Those three ’yous’—they’re all Demon Monsters, just trying to scare you."
Yu Er’s cheeks were still streaked with tears. "Really?"
"When have I ever lied to you?"
Yu Er thought for a moment, then nodded. Brother Mo had always treated him well, never lied to him.
Mo Hua patted Yu Er on the head and said gently:
"You don’t have to be afraid of anything in your dreams. Whatever shows up, so long as they dare to show themselves, I’ll cut them down—all of them—with a single sword."
No matter what, I’ll cut them down, every last one, with a single sword...
Those words gave Yu Er a world of courage.
Yu Er’s eyes gradually brightened; a smile appeared on his young face as he nodded to Mo Hua with all his might: "Mm!"