Chapter 1031: Shadow

The Wan Xiao Sect and the Grand Void Gate were merely ordinary sects in relation to each other.

There was little interaction between their disciples, no particular "grudges" or "debts of gratitude or enmity."

Today was merely a swordsmanship discussion contest.

Meeting at the entrance was perfectly normal.

At most, it was merely because Duanmu Qing's beauty and aura caused a momentary daze.

Duanmu Qing's expression was as calm as still water.

The gazes of men in the world—whether awed, admiring, or stunned—she had long grown accustomed to, and not a single ripple stirred in her heart.

Duanmu Qing tilted her snow-white neck slightly, gazed coldly ahead, and walked with dignified grace, leading several other brilliant young disciples of the Wan Xiao Sect straight into the inner mountain.

She wore a five-colored, exquisitely beautiful robe, her appearance otherworldly, her figure elegant, yet carrying a frosty, untouchable aura like a snow-capped peak, causing all to hesitate and dare not speak to her.

Thus, the disciples of the two sects passed by each other.

Throughout, not a single person spoke a word.

But as they passed, Duanmu Qing's gaze inevitably, if unintentionally, flickered toward Mo Hua.

First, Mo Hua's eyebrows and eyes were like a painted scroll, his appearance and aura equally outstanding.

Second, Mo Hua was not tall, making him stand out "exceptionally" among a crowd of prodigies.

Third, although Mo Hua had a poor reputation and much controversy, his fame was truly immense.

Not to mention the deeds he had done, the enemies he had made, the prodigies he had "humiliated" at the Sword Debate Assembly…

Even the title "Sovereign of Array Art" alone was legendary enough.

He was the true, undisputed foremost master of Qian Xue Array Art.

And he had earned it while still at Foundation Establishment mid-stage—almost unimaginable.

Even Duanmu Qing, a prodigy fairy "unaffected by worldly dust," could not have failed to hear Mo Hua's name.

Of course, that was all.

Duanmu Qing had merely cast a fleeting sidelong glance at Mo Hua, then passed on.

Yet that fleeting glance had imprinted itself on Mo Hua's eyelids.

Mo Hua pondered that gaze, startled inwardly, and couldn't help muttering:

"Dao heart… dirty?"

His voice was very soft, almost instinctive.

Even those beside him—Linghu Xiao and the others—didn't clearly hear what he said.

But Duanmu Qing, who had already passed by, halted, slowly turned her head, and fixed Mo Hua with eyes as cold as swords.

Mo Hua looked back at Duanmu Qing.

His gaze was clear to the bottom, as if reflecting Duanmu Qing's very image.

And it carried a profound clarity.

For a moment, Duanmu Qing felt as if her heart had been laid bare, and an inexplicable sense of shame washed over her.

Followed immediately by deep, buried shame, hatred, and fury.

Her originally cold and beautiful face instantly froze over with frost.

A biting killing intent nearly solidified; her clear, glass-like eyes turned glacial, brimming with profound revulsion as they locked onto Mo Hua.

Mo Hua froze.

What did that mean?

Before he could react, an astonishing spiritual pressure rose from Duanmu Qing.

The five colors of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth blazed brilliantly, like radiance from the highest heavens, making Duanmu Qing appear like a divine being.

Her eyes were piercingly sharp; her entire body exuded a beautiful yet terrifying killing aura.

Powerful Five Elements Dao techniques, laden with overwhelming might, locked tightly onto Mo Hua.

Mo Hua was truly stunned now.

High-grade Wan Xiao technique?!

"Wait… this woman… doesn't actually want to kill me?"

"This isn't the Sword Debate arena…"

"Is she insane?"

Mo Hua instinctively tapped his foot, activated the Flowing Water Step, and retreated several zhang.

His junior disciples were equally shocked and bewildered, yet instinctively shielded him.

Cheng Mo stepped forward, blocking Mo Hua's front.

Linghu Xiao charged the Void-Piercing Sword Art.

Situ Jian and Ouyang Xuan began activating sword qi.

As spiritual energy intertwined, the atmosphere grew taut as a drawn bowstring.

Duanmu Qing sneered, pointed two fingers, and immediately prepared to unleash her technique and obliterate Mo Hua.

At that moment, an old, deep voice rang out:

"Nonsense!"

Crystal-clear, feather-like spiritual energy, carrying the overwhelming True Person pressure, descended instantly upon Duanmu Qing and Linghu Xiao and the others, sealing all spiritual flows and cutting off the flow of Dao techniques and sword arts.

Everyone's expression changed.

But Duanmu Qing's eyes still burned with unyielding killing intent, even attempting to activate her technique again.

From within the inner mountain stepped an elderly elder, rebuking sharply:

"The Dao Debate Mountain is a sacred place—no reckless behavior allowed!"

"As a prodigy of the sect, how can this be acceptable?"

"If you cause any more trouble and break the rules, I'll declare you all losers!"

Duanmu Qing fell silent for a moment, clenching her silver teeth in silence, then retracted her killing intent and spiritual power, folding her sleeves and bowing respectfully.

"Forgive this elder's transgression."

Her voice was crisp and clear, like a silver vase suddenly shattering.

The elder's gaze was dim; he glanced at her silently, his face expressionless, but inside he was rattled—Duanmu Qing was always cold and detached, untouched by worldly matters, yet today, why had she erupted with such fury?

The elder of Lun Dao Mountain also glanced at Mo Hua, who had retreated far away, and felt a surge of astonishment.

"Could it be… he molested her?"

"That can't be."

"With Mo Hua's looks, if he really did, she wouldn't even be at a disadvantage..."

The elder muttered to himself, yet on the surface he maintained a stern expression and warned sharply:

"No fighting within Lun Dao Mountain."

"If you want to fight, wait until the Lun Jian Arena. Otherwise, don't blame me for showing no mercy."

Duanmu Qing bowed.

Mo Hua and the others also bowed respectfully: "Yes, Elder."

Seeing this, the elder of Lun Dao Mountain gave a slight nod and slowly withdrew.

The arena gradually fell silent.

Duanmu Qing turned her head and cast a cold glance at Mo Hua; in her autumn-water eyes, the killing intent still could not be fully concealed.

Mo Hua was startled again, thinking the woman was about to strike again.

But the elder of Lun Dao Mountain's words still carried some deterrent power.

The rules of Lun Dao Mountain were strict.

Fighting was strictly forbidden outside the Lun Jian Arena.

If any further incident occurred, no matter which of the Sida Sect or Eight Gates they belonged to, these Lun Dao Mountain elders would show no mercy.

Duanmu Qing slowly drew a breath, fixed her gaze on Mo Hua, murmuring his name softly:

"Mo Hua… I'll remember you."

Then she said nothing more, turned, and walked away, leaving only a graceful silhouette.

The other Wanshao Sect disciples followed her.

Only after Duanmu Qing had vanished far away did Mo Hua finally exhale in relief.

Linghu Xiao and the others also felt a sense of relief.

But then, all eyes turned to Mo Hua.

Cheng Mo glanced at Mo Hua curiously and asked: "Little Master, do you know this… Duanmu Immortal?"

Mo Hua shook his head.

"No past grudge?"

"None."

"Then why just now… did she want to kill you?"

Mo Hua nodded. "Seems so."

Cheng Mo was puzzled.

First meeting, and she wanted to kill Little Master?

But Situ Jian, more observant, asked: "Little Master, did you say something to her just now?"

Mo Hua didn't deny it; he nodded. "I noticed her cultivation had an issue, so I kindly gave her a warning."

Cheng Mo asked curiously: "What did you warn her about?"

"I…"

Before Mo Hua could speak, Situ Jian immediately cut him off: "Don't say it, Little Master. No one says a word."

One sentence from Little Master, and the Wanshao Sect's Duanmu Immortal wanted to kill him on the spot.

If Little Master revealed that sentence and we all heard it, we'd all likely be hated in return.

So it's better not to say anything.

That sentence carried Duanmu Qing's naked killing intent—the Sida Sect's top prodigy's wrath. We lack Little Master's stature; we're not worthy to know.

Meanwhile, Situ Jian sighed inwardly, remarking:

"Little Master is truly Little Master—born with the cursed talent of provocation."

"Just one sentence, and even the cold, detached prodigy-immortal wants to kill him..."

Cheng Mo also sighed.

But in his sigh, admiration outweighed everything else:

"Little Master is truly Little Master—just one sentence, and the Sida Sect's top prodigy-immortal can't forget him..."

Mo Hua looked annoyed.

Situ Jian thought for a moment and added: "Little Master, be careful in the upcoming Lun Jian match. Duanmu Qing won't let you go."

Linghu Xiao also looked at Mo Hua with concern.

Cheng Mo did too, though his concern held a tinge of envy.

Mo Hua frowned. "It shouldn't be that bad..."

This is the Lun Jian Assembly—she's a sect prodigy; she can't possibly settle personal grudges publicly...

…

Then the formal sword debate began.

Duanmu Qing spent the entire match relentlessly targeting Mo Hua for annihilation.

She unleashed every kind of mid- and even high-tier secret technique from the Wan Xiao Sect, dumping them onto Mo Hua without restraint.

She wished to tear Mo Hua into a thousand pieces.

The mountain rocks were sliced apart by Jin Guang.

The forest trees were charred by firelight.

The mud pits were swallowed by flowing sand.

The entire debate arena, subjected to Duanmu Qing's dense and furious "spell bombardment" as a top-tier spell prodigy of the Wan Xiao Sect, immediately began to deform.

Even Mo Hua could only flee desperately, relying solely on his body movement.

For the first time, he truly felt the power of the highest-level spiritual cultivators.

In his previous understanding, Sister Murong Caiyun's Grand Void Radiance technique was already powerful enough.

But Duanmu Qing's spell mastery was clearly one level higher still.

Duanmu Qing, of noble bloodline, a direct descendant of the fifth-rank Duanmu family, possessed an upper-upper-grade spiritual root and cultivated the upper-upper-grade scripture.

Her Zhou Tian scripture was nearly perfected, her spiritual energy vast as an ocean.

Moreover, Duanmu Qing's spiritual root type was the supreme Great Five Elements spiritual root.

The Great Five Elements spiritual root and Mo Hua's "Small Five Elements spiritual root" differed by only one character, yet their gap was as vast as heaven and earth.

The Great Five Elements spiritual root has high quality, immense spiritual energy capacity, and perfect interplay and cyclical unity of the Five Elements, granting strong affinity to all Five Elements.

Cultivators with this root type are naturally more adept at comprehending the Five Elements laws of heaven and earth.

They learn Five Elements spells faster, and their spells are more potent.

In comparison, Mo Hua's Small Five Elements spiritual root was rudimentary to the extreme.

Its only feature was the ability to learn Five Elements spells.

Beyond that, it was merely a "raw" spiritual root—nothing else.

Compared side by side, if Duanmu Qing's Great Five Elements spiritual root was a luxury mansion, Mo Hua's Small Five Elements spiritual root was nothing but a bare, dilapidated shack.

Moreover, Duanmu Qing's spell lineage was also similar to Mo Hua's.

Duanmu Qing, born in the Wan Xiao Sect, cultivated the sect's "Wan Xiao Dao Law," which bore a faint resemblance to Mo Hua's "All Techniques Are Accessible."

Of course, Duanmu Qing's spell casting was not as fast as Mo Hua's.

The flow of the Five Elements was not as natural as Mo Hua's.

But her spells were of higher rank, broader range, and greater power, supported by her upper-upper-grade spiritual root, upper-upper-grade scripture, and immense Zhou Tian reserves of spiritual energy—when fully unleashed, a "river" of spells flowed across the entire mountaintop.

Within the debate arena, spell lights covered the ground.

Explosions rose and fell in succession.

Mo Hua "ducked and ran like a rat."

Outside the debate arena, spectators clapped and cheered, delighted beyond measure!

"Excellent! No wonder she's Duanmu Immortal Miss!"

"Use her own method against her enemy—blast that brat Mo Hua to death with spells!"

"Let that brat keep boasting, sneaky and vile—now he's finally getting his comeuppance."

Someone exclaimed: "Duanmu Immortal Miss's spells are truly peerless in the world…"

Someone sighed wistfully: "Not only powerful, but beautiful."

"Beautiful as an ethereal immortal, untouched by mortal dust."

"When will Duanmu Immortal Miss ever look at me? Just one glance… that's all I ask…"

"Can you have a little dignity?"

"Exactly…"

Some ambitious young talents sighed:

"I only wish in this life to compete against Duanmu Immortal Miss on the debate arena, to display all I've learned before her, to challenge her to a duel—even if I die in her hands, I will die without regret…"

Their words were filled with melancholy and a touch of solemnity.

The sect disciples watching the battle imagined themselves dueling with the lofty, ice-capped-immortal, untouched by worldly filth.

They imagined the scene of their Dao arts colliding.

They pictured the tragic yet beautiful moment of dying in her hands—and somehow felt a faint envy and longing.

But soon, someone spoke a harsh truth:

"Your wish… seems to have been fulfilled by that brat Mo Hua."

Like a bucket of ice water dumped over their heads, everyone's face darkened instantly.

Mo Hua, the sect's prodigy, had debated with the Immortal Miss.

He had even used spells to clash with her.

Now, he was indeed about to die in her hands.

The "wish" they had longed for—Mo Hua had nearly achieved it, missing only one thing: dying in Duanmu Qing's hands.

Some young talents felt as if they'd swallowed a fly, their hearts inexplicably sour.

Many even silently thought:

"Let that brat Mo Hua die by anyone's hand—but not Duanmu Immortal Miss's! Otherwise, it'd be too generous to him…"

…

Inside the debate arena.

Mo Hua, fully focused on the debate, had no idea of the drama swirling in these people's hearts.

But he was also truly speechless.

Wasn't she supposed to be a "cold and aloof" fairy?

How could she be like a "shrew," relentless, chasing him down to kill him?

He had only muttered four words under his breath—was it really worth all this?

Could those four words really carry that much killing power?

But Duanmu Qing paid no heed, single-mindedly using spells to launch a large-scale "cleansing" bombardment on Mo Hua's position.

Linghu Xiao wanted to support Mo Hua.

But the more cold and aloof a person is by nature, the more ungovernable they become once angered—not even nine oxen could drag them back.

Linghu Xiao's sword Qi simply couldn't suppress Duanmu Qing's spells.

Worse still, he too earned Duanmu Qing's grudge, and was "implicated" together with Mo Hua, drawn into the range of Wan Xiao's spell bombardment, suppressed to the point he couldn't fight back at all.

For a moment, Linghu Xiao personally experienced just how terrifying a woman in a rage could be.

And Cheng Mo and the others weren't faring well either—they too were being "bombarded" by spells from the other Wan Xiao Sect disciples, with no time to spare for anything else.

Just like that, the Grand Void Gate was suppressed and beaten the entire match.

During this time, Mo Hua made several attempts to see if he could use spells or formations to change the situation.

But every time he made the slightest move, he would instantly "enrage" Duanmu Qing, drawing an even larger-scale, fiercer spell "retaliation."

As a top-tier prodigy of the Si Sect, Duanmu Qing was already strong enough to begin with.

Let alone the fact that this was the "berserk" version of Duanmu Qing.

Mo Hua gave up in helplessness and decided to lie flat.

And as time went on, the Grand Void Gate disciples one by one exhausted their strength and fell back, being sent out of the arena.

Linghu Xiao took one last look at Mo Hua, gave him a "there's nothing I can do" expression, and was also "killed."

In the end, only Mo Hua was left again.

Mo Hua naturally remained "unyielding to the death," but seeing no chance of winning at all, he tapped his own forehead, shattered the Discourse Jade, and conceded defeat to leave the field.

Duanmu Qing wanted to use a spell to keep Mo Hua there.

A surge of vast Wan Xiao Five-Element spell light swallowed Mo Hua whole.

But her casting speed was, after all, still a beat slower than Mo Hua's.

Just before that, a flash of blue light around Mo Hua, his figure faded, and he had already left the field.

Duanmu Qing stared coldly at the spot where Mo Hua had vanished, her voice low and icy:

"Next time, I will kill you…"

"Mo Hua…"

……

The Sword Discourse had ended.

Wan Xiao Sect had won a thoroughly satisfying victory.

The audience had also watched a thoroughly refreshing Sword Discourse.

The only flaw was that the treacherous and despicable brat Mo Hua hadn't died again.

But once they thought about it—mere Mo Hua wasn't worthy of dying at Fairy Duanmu's hands—most people felt relieved in their hearts.

The Grand Void Gate had lost.

The sect cultivators felt some regret, but not too much disappointment.

Going up against a top prodigy like Duanmu Qing, the odds of winning had always been slim to begin with, so losing was unavoidable.

They could only blame their bad luck.

They could only blame the trashy Discourse Heavenly Instrument for not dealing the Grand Void Gate a good hand.

Counting it up, of the four Qianxue prodigies, the Grand Void Gate had now run into three of them, and these three Earth-rank Sword Discourse matches were almost all "guaranteed losses."

Which meant they had lost three winning rounds for no reason at all.

Generally speaking, luck isn't usually this bad.

But if luck really is this bad, there's nothing to be done—fortune is sometimes just like that; when you're down on your luck, even drinking cold water can give you a toothache.

They couldn't exactly go settle accounts with the Discourse Heavenly Instrument.

But what Mo Hua truly cared about in this Sword Discourse wasn't this point.

Grand Void Gate.

Nightfall. Disciples' quarters.

Mo Hua lay on his bed, still thinking about Duanmu Qing.

The scenes from the day kept replaying in his mind.

Especially the very beginning, when he brushed past Duanmu Qing and saw her eyes.

Duanmu Qing was beautiful, and her eyes were beautiful too.

But within her gaze, beneath the clear, icy-cold base, looking deeper, there was a patch of pitch-black "shadow."

This shadow was somewhat murky, as if etched into her very soul.

Mo Hua was caught off guard for a moment, which was why he had subconsciously warned her… "Your Dao heart is dirty."

But Duanmu Qing's reaction was truly too extreme.

Those four words seemed to have pierced through her heart's defenses.

Peering into some secret buried in her heart.

She had actually wanted to kill him on the spot…

Very strange…

"What exactly is the murky shadow in her eyes…"

It was deep night, silent and still; Mo Hua lay in bed, quietly recalling while his spiritual sense began to calculate, the threads of fate and cause-and-effect flowing through his heart.

After an unknown length of time, Mo Hua's heart suddenly lurched; he sat up straight, with a solemn expression.

He remembered one thing:

The Crimson Boat!

The shadow in Duanmu Qing's eyes was remarkably similar to the aura of the Crimson Boat—especially the malevolent fetus's energy enshrined on the altar in the Long Wang Temple.

Mo Hua's heart trembled:

"Could Duanmu Qing also have boarded the Crimson Boat?"

"Is she also connected to the demonic god?"

Such a pure, otherworldly immortal lady…

Mo Hua frowned. "That can't be…"

But the cause-and-effect was clear; no matter how impossible it seemed on the surface, if the threads of fate pointed to it, he had to accept it.

And it wasn't just that.

Mo Hua pondered carefully: "Duanmu Qing is one of the four supreme prodigies among the Sida Sect in Qianxue Province…"

"If she also boarded the Crimson Boat, what about the other three?"

"Shen Lin, Xiao Wuchen, Ao Zhan—did they all board the Crimson Boat too?"

"Then who is the 'Young Master' frequently mentioned by the demonic god's minions, who prowls the Ten Thousand Demons Valley?"

"And who is the 'Young Master' I saw that night, within the poppy-like chains of cause-and-effect by the Yan Shui River?"

"Is he one of these four?"

"Is he… Shen Lin?"

No matter how Mo Hua looked at it, Shen Lin seemed the most suspicious.

Especially since he was from the Shen family and connected to the Qiandao Sect.

As for the other three, Duanmu Qing likely had some connection to the Crimson Boat as well.

As for Xiao Wuchen and Ao Zhan, they probably weren't uninvolved either…

But…

Another question arose in Mo Hua's mind: "Why didn't I notice this before?"

At the Sword Forum, he had already fought three of them.

And he had encountered Shen Lin previously in Qingzhou City.

If these four truly had ties to the Crimson Boat, the Long Wang Temple, and the malevolent fetus, they must have been tainted by the demonic god's aura.

Given his own "connection" to the Great Wilderness Demonic God, he should have sensed something.

Yet now, only by chance did he detect this faint clue on Duanmu Qing…

Why?

The demonic god… or rather, that Mr. Liao, used some method to conceal all these auras?

Concealed them so thoroughly that even I, a half-god who swallowed the "malevolent fetus," couldn't perceive them?

Mo Hua's brow tightened further.

(End of Chapter)