The Large Formation was the ultimate aspiration of a Formation Master.
A Formation Master who does not wish to construct a Large Formation is not a good one.
Since he wanted to be a Formation Master, sooner or later, he would have to comprehend and construct a Large Formation.
Not only that, he wanted to be the chief Formation Master of the Large Formation.
To lead the design and construction of the Large Formation, to be at the very core of the Formation Master team, and not just a common Formation Master participating in the construction.
But constructing a Large Formation was incredibly difficult, requiring vast amounts of labour and resources.
Typically, the selection of the chief Formation Master is carefully chosen with the utmost scrutiny.
Either one is widely respected, comes from a family with deep Formation Study, excels in Formation Study, or has an exceptional reputation.
At the same time, it is essential to have experience in leading the construction of a Large Formation.
All these requirements have nothing to do with Mo Hua.
Leaving Tongxian City, there would be no power willing to take the great risk of hiring him, a Formation Master of Loose Cultivator origin, to lead the construction of a Large Formation that is vast in scale and massive in size.
Right now was his first opportunity, not to talk idly on paper, but to actually learn and attempt to build a Large Formation.
If he missed out, this first chance could very well be the only one in his life.
The beginning is the hardest part.
As long as he had the experience of leading the construction of a Large Formation, he could step by step comprehend and lead the construction of even higher grades of Large Formations.
But if he didn’t make the first step, without the experience of leading the construction of a Large Formation, he might never have a chance with Large Formations in his lifetime.
So, whether for his own pursuit in the Formation Study or for Loose Cultivators in Tongxian City, he must take this step.
Even if he was not successful, he must try his best.
Mo Hua’s expression was resolute, and Mr. Zhuang felt a slight sense of relief in his heart, but he still reminded him:
"Large Formations are very hard to learn."
"Even if it’s hard, I must learn it!" insisted Mo Hua.
"Do you really want to learn?" Mr. Zhuang’s expression was somewhat meaningful.
"Yes!"
"What if you can’t learn it?"
Mo Hua said frankly, "If I can’t learn it, then it’s because of my insufficient abilities, and there’s nothing to be said about it; but if I don’t try to learn, then it means I fear the Formation, my Taoist Heart is timid, and it would be difficult to go far in the study of Formations."
Mr. Zhuang nodded slightly, showing approval.
Seeing Mr. Zhuang’s expression, Mo Hua let out a slight sigh of relief, then whispered:
"Gentleman, I can actually learn the Large Formation, right?"
Mr. Zhuang was taken aback, "How do you know?"
Mo Hua explained, "If I really couldn’t learn, then you would have rejected me from the start instead of letting me go back to think it over."
"Since you told me to consider it, that means it’s within my abilities."
Mr. Zhuang shook his head helplessly, then took out a set of ten Jade Slips and placed them on the table, saying seriously:
"These are the Jade Slips for the Large Formation!"
Mo Hua’s eyes brightened, his guess was right; Mr. Zhuang had indeed been prepared all along.
"Before you learn the Large Formation, there are some things I need to make clear to you first," said Mr. Zhuang.
Mo Hua sat up straight and listened attentively.
Mr. Zhuang started by asking, "What is a Large Formation?"
"It’s a more complex and massive Compound Formation."
Mr. Zhuang had told him this before, and Mo Hua remembered it very clearly.
"And what about Compound Formations?"
"They are Compound Formations formed by connecting Single Formations through a Formation Pivot."
"What is the essential difference between Compound Formations and Single Formations?"
"The Formation Pivot is different."
Mr. Zhuang nodded slightly, "The Formation Pivot of a Single Formation is simple, that of a Compound Formation is complex, and the Formation Pivot of a Large Formation is even more complex."
"How exactly is it complicated?" Mo Hua couldn’t help but ask.
"The Formation Pivot of a Single Formation needs to connect Formation Patterns; the Formation Pivot of a Compound Formation needs to connect Single Formations; whereas the Formation Pivot of a Large Formation needs to connect an immense number of Single Formations."
"This leads to the Formation Pivot of a Large Formation requiring stronger Divine Sense, more Single Formations to connect, more complex tracks of Spiritual Power, while also considering the compatibility issues between the Pivots of the Large Formation and the Single Formations."
Mo Hua pondered carefully, then said:
"So the core of a Large Formation is actually the Formation Pivot. As long as I can master the Formation Pivot, facilitate the flow of Spiritual Power, and ensure the compatibility of Single Formations, I should be able to control the Large Formation, right?"
Mr. Zhuang nodded. "That’s about right."
"What are the difficulties?"
"Divine Sense."
"Divine Sense again..."
Mr. Zhuang nodded, "All problems of a Formation Master, in the end, boil down to insufficient Divine Sense."
Mo Hua felt somewhat fortunate, grateful that his Divine Sense was decent.
Though Divine Sense was his only strength...
Then Mo Hua weakly asked, "Is the Divine Sense of Foundation Establishment enough?"
"Divine Sense of Foundation Establishment is enough, but just barely so," explained Mr. Zhuang. "Divine Sense is intangible and cannot be precisely quantified, we can only have a rough reference."
"The most objective criterion is based on the standards of Formation Masters, determined by the number of Formation Patterns they can draw before their Divine Sense is exhausted, to decide the strength of their Divine Sense."
"But even so, this reference standard is very difficult to fine-tune."
"This leads to a situation where, superficially, two formations both require the Divine Sense of ten Patterns, but some formations are simple, and in reality, the actual requirement might be less than ten Patterns, while others are exceptionally complex and, in practice, the consumption of Divine Sense far exceeds ten Patterns, yet doesn’t quite reach the level of eleven Patterns."
"A Large Formation belongs to the kind of formation that starts with the Divine Sense of ten Patterns, but due to its complexity, requires much more Divine Sense."
"Divine Sense of ten Patterns to start with..." Mo Hua murmured to himself.
And it sounded so complicated too...
Mo Hua felt a bit of a headache coming on.
"So, as I said," Mr. Zhuang looked at Mo Hua and spoke slowly:
"A first-grade Large Formation is actually not meant to be learned by a first-grade Formation Master."