Chapter 162

Mo Hua went to ask Elder Yu, "Elder, how much longer must we guard the spirit mine?"

Elder Yu took a sip of wine, thought for a moment, and said, "No telling."

Mo Hua didn't quite understand.

Elder Yu explained, "If things continue like this, the Qian family will surely lose—Qian Zhongxuan the old bastard can't turn the tide. But this is a spirit mine; the Qian family won't give up so easily. They'll think of other ways."

Mo Hua nodded.

In the following days, the Qian family lay low, making no major moves.

Until one morning, before dawn broke, in the thin, hazy mist, a large group of varied cultivators entered Great Heishan and arrived beneath the Nameless Peak to pay respects to Elder Qian.

Qian Zhuang finally understood what Elder Qian meant by "even if it costs blood."

He truly paid a heavy price, hiring a large force of late-stage Qi Condensation cultivators from outside Xiancheng.

"How many spirit stones did that cost…?" Qian Zhuang thought, his heart aching.

When Elder Yu heard the news, he widened his eyes and said, "That bastard Qian Zhongxuan really is willing to bleed."

Mo Hua asked, "Elder, where did these cultivators come from?"

"Hired with spirit stones from outside the city. These cultivators usually roam everywhere—whomever pays spirit stones gets their loyalty. They recognize only spirit stones, not people. But hiring them costs a fortune; Qian Zhongxuan is going to hemorrhage."

"Can we beat them?"

"We'll see," Elder Yu sighed.

Both sides lined up again, but now the Qian family's ranks, once uniform in silver-white robes, were mixed with many other cultivators—each differing in form and attire, making the formation look disjointed.

Elder Yu shouted, "Qian Zhongxuan, can your mongrel army even fight?"

Qian Zhongxuan's eyelid twitched. "Old fool, don't you dare mock me!"

"You spent a fortune, didn't you…" Elder Yu clucked. "Cutting your own flesh to lure wolves and drive off tigers—impressive."

Qian Zhongxuan said nothing. He had indeed paid dearly, and every mention made his heart bleed.

"We agreed beforehand this was a dispute between the Qian family and us, the beast hunters. Are these hired cultivators to be counted as Qian family members?" Elder Yu demanded loudly.

Qian Zhongxuan sneered, "I paid them spirit stones—they're my men now."

Elder Yu spat. "Then if I slept with your old mother and paid her spirit stones, would she count as mine too?"

"You—!" Qian Zhongxuan was too furious to speak.

Elder Yu didn't let up. "So by that logic, I'm your cheap old father? Unfilial brat, come kneel and kowtow to your old man! Ha!"

The beast hunters burst into laughter.

Qian Zhongxuan's composure shattered. His finger trembled as he pointed forward. "Kill them all!!"

Elder Yu's smile vanished. His voice turned low. "Kill!"

Both sides surged with momentum—the battle was about to erupt.

After a few moments of combat, Elder Yu observed the battlefield, his brow furrowing.

The Qian family cultivators were still no threat, but the hired ones were troublesome.

The beast hunters were battle-hardened, but only against beasts. These hired cultivators, however, had spent their lives selling their lives for spirit stones—always fighting other cultivators.

In coordination, they couldn't match the beast hunters, but their dark, strange techniques were endless, their cultivation arts wildly varied—they were hard to handle for now.

"Elder Yu, can we win?" Mo Hua asked, worried.

Elder Yu paused, then said, "We should."

He explained, "These hired cultivators seem dangerous only because they're new to us—we're unfamiliar with their methods. Once we've fought long enough to understand them, it'll be much easier."

"Beast hunters have spent years hunting beasts side by side—we have a deep rapport. In mass battles, that's an advantage. Besides, we have iron armor. As long as they can't break it, we'll ultimately prevail."

Mo Hua nodded, relieved.

At first, the beast hunters struggled under the hired cultivators' attacks, but once they adapted, the tide steadied.

The armored beast hunters still moved like ghosts through empty lands—though they killed slowly, wherever they went, whether Qian family or hired cultivators, all had to dodge their blades.

Gradually, the Qian side revealed more openings, slowly being pushed back by the beast hunters.

Watching the armored beast hunters, Qian Zhongxuan's expression remained calm, even revealing a faint sneer.

At the same time, Mo Hua's spiritual sense sensed something odd. He frowned, fixing his gaze on the battlefield.

He saw one armored beast hunter suddenly have his throat slit by a blade—blood gushed out. The hunter clutched his neck, knelt half-bowed, and the hired cultivators surged like hungry wolves.

Fortunately, Yu Chengyi was nearby. He immediately intervened, fiercely blocking the attackers. Seeing Mo Shan arrived to assist; together, they rescued the wounded hunter.

Mo Hua exhaled in relief—but a cloud of suspicion rose in his heart.

What exactly just happened?

He saw nothing—only the hunter's throat suddenly cut.

Though the iron armor was tough, it couldn't cover the whole body. Vital spots—the throat, eyes, joints—were still exposed. In open combat, one could guard against them. But that attack… he felt nothing before it struck.

Mo Hua had only sensed a faint anomaly with his spiritual sense. To his naked eyes, nothing was there.

Mo Hua turned to Elder Yu and saw him frowning, murmuring:

"It's concealment technique."

"Concealment technique?"

Mo Hua was startled. "It can hide someone?"

Elder Yu nodded. "Yes. Concealment technique, as the name implies, is a spell that makes the user vanish—completely invisible to the naked eye."

Mo Hua was awestruck. "Can I learn it?"

If he could master concealment technique, moving through the cultivation world would be so much easier!

"Only water-elemental roots can learn it. You're a minor Five Elements root, right? You have water, but it's mixed with the others—you might not be able to learn it." Elder Yu doused his hopes.

Mo Hua felt disappointed, then worried. "Then how do we counter this spell?"

Elder Yu sighed. "Use spiritual sense. Concealment technique hides only form and partially masks aura—but spiritual energy cannot be concealed. If your spiritual sense is stronger, you'll see through it."

"That's troublesome," Mo Hua said.

Hunters of Demons never excel in spiritual awareness; if they cannot pierce through concealment techniques, they become fish on the chopping block, at the mercy of their enemies.

On the battlefield, more and more Hunters of Demons fell victim to ambushes, bleeding as they collapsed.

Mo Hua's gaze sharpened: in this chaotic melee, the cultivator moved with calm precision—clearly, he not only mastered concealment techniques but also possessed extensive experience, exceptional agility, and extraordinarily keen spiritual awareness.

What should he do? Mo Hua grew anxious.

Just then, Mo Hua suddenly sensed a faint disturbance around Mo Shan, who was fighting fiercely.

"Watch out!" Mo Hua couldn't help crying out.

But he was too far away, and the chaos drowned his voice.

As Mo Shan battled an opponent, he exposed an opening—the concealed cultivator seized the chance to strike.

At the eleventh hour, Mo Shan, relying on his vast experience, instinctively tilted his neck—the dagger sliced past his throat, leaving a thin trail of blood; though he bled, the wound was not severe.

Mo Shan's gaze turned cold—he struck back, but all around him was empty, no one there.

Gone?

Mo Shan frowned; he knew that if things continued this way, the situation would turn dire.

He wiped the blood from his neck, feeling a flicker of relief—he was lucky he'd sensed the killing intent in time and dodged; otherwise, he would have been in grave danger.

Watching this, Mo Hua's heart eased, then his small face hardened.

"You dare ambush my father? I'll remember you!"

For now, I'm still posting ten thousand characters daily, holding out until this major plot arc is finished.

Afterward, I can take it easy, update steadily, and write the story slowly~