After the opening of the Fulu Building, it gradually got on the right track, and a month later, it was the New Year festival.
With half a month to go before the New Year, the Alchemist’s Business was finally completed.
Master Ban settled the Spirit Stone payments, and the craftsmen were all able to go home for the New Year with high spirits.
Before leaving, Master Ban, along with some lead craftsmen, visited Mo Hua to express their gratitude and even brought some New Year’s gifts.
Without Mo Hua’s swift and quality Formation drawings, such a large Taoist building project wouldn’t have been completed until after the New Year.
In that case, they would either not be able to return home for the festival or, even if they did go back, they would be without Spirit Stones, making it a difficult year.
Master Ban praised Mo Hua, and Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua were also very happy, so they invited Master Ban and his team for a meal.
Everyone enjoyed a lively meal together, drinking plenty of wine.
After the meal, it was time for Master Ban and his team to set off on their journey.
Before leaving, Master Ban made a point of telling Mo Hua that if she ever needed craftsmen, they were just a call away, with a promise of no shoddy work and guaranteed satisfaction.
He also invited Mo Hua to visit the neighboring Qingxuan City when she had time, offering to show her around and introduce her to the local customs and culture.
Mo Hua nodded her agreement, waving goodbye as Master Ban left.
The group of craftsmen, each with a storage bag on their back, and pushing small wooden carts laden with worn Storage Boxes; tools that didn’t fit in the boxes were haphazardly piled on top.
Step by step, they walked along the cobblestone streets, departing through the gates of Tongxian City, embarking on the dusty road home.
Mo Hua stood at the doorway, watching their receding figures, waving farewell once again.
She hoped they would all return home safely and have a wonderful New Year.
She also hoped that in the years to come, they would all be able to return home safely and joyfully for the New Year.
About ten days later, every family in Tongxian City was preparing for the New Year.
The streets were decorated with lanterns and tinsel, bustling with festive cheer.
This might have been the wealthiest and liveliest New Year that the ordinary Loose Cultivators of Tongxian City had experienced in a century, or perhaps even several centuries.
The essential industries for Tao Cultivation were all in place.
The Refinery Shop produced Spiritual Artifacts, the Alchemist’s Business concocted Pills, and the Fulu Building cooked meat dishes.
With Spiritual Artifacts, Monster Hunters could suffer fewer injuries, with Pills, lower-level Loose Cultivators could experience fewer ailments, and with the Food Building, everyone’s diet could improve.
And whether it was the Refinery Shop, Alchemist’s Business, or Fulu Building, all could provide Loose Cultivators with a means of livelihood or a way to earn Spirit Stones.
Monster Hunters, Artifact Refiners, Alchemists, Meal Masters, or just ordinary Loose Cultivators, all could find stable work and earn Spirit Stones for living and cultivation.
Their apparel, necessities, and overall standard of living had also improved from before.
So, this year was exceptionally prosperous, and naturally, it was also exceptionally lively.
Cultivators bustled through the streets, streaming endlessly back and forth.
Market Towns were everywhere, with stalls displaying a medley of goods, offering a dazzling selection of food, drinks, entertainment, and all kinds of leisure items.
There were many ingenious toys, distinctive snacks, wine fragrant enough to waft for miles, and entertainers competing in splendor.
Caught up in such a lively atmosphere, Mo Hua, too, began to feel joyful.
The life of a Cultivator, seeking the Tao, is arduous, as is the struggle to make a living.
As for other matters, there wasn’t much Mo Hua could do; what she could do was, within her capabilities, make life better for the Loose Cultivators in Tongxian City.
Having grown up there, she had received much care from her neighbors and her uncles and aunts.
Now that she had learned Formation, she naturally wanted to help the community.
At this thought, Mo Hua once again felt fortunate.
It was a good thing her Sea of Consciousness contained a Taoist Stele, and it was a good thing she had learned Formation.
Formations followed the principles of the Heavenly Dao, and perhaps it was only with Formations that she could help so many Cultivators.