Chapter 270: The Path Between the Cliffs

That night, upon returning, Mo Hua practiced the Concealment Array and Reverse Qi Array on the Dao Stele in his consciousness all night long.

He was already familiar with the Concealment Array, so he merely reviewed it.

The Reverse Qi Array was extremely difficult; a complete one required ten-pattern spiritual awareness, which Mo Hua could not yet draw—he used it only to practice array formation and hone his spiritual awareness.

The next morning, he rose early and performed his usual cultivation for an hour.

After hastily eating breakfast, he set out for Great Heishan, crossed the outer mountains, reached the inner mountains, and walked to the edge of the cliff.

The cliff stood a thousand ren sheer, its base shrouded in swirling mist and clouds, unfathomably deep.

Mo Hua sat cross-legged at the cliff's edge, closed his eyes, extended his spiritual awareness, and looked down into the abyss.

This time, with foreknowledge, his purpose was clearer and his perception more meticulous.

After a moment, Mo Hua opened his eyes, his gaze filled with doubt.

There was still nothing.

If his guess was correct, these criminal cultivators must have hidden themselves using Concealment Arrays, most likely beneath the cliff.

Yet the cliff plunged deep and bottomless.

Within the range of Mo Hua's spiritual perception, there were no figures or unusual energies.

This was strange.

If not beneath the cliff, then perhaps across it?

Mo Hua turned his gaze toward the opposite side.

Opposite lay Shenshan, thick with mist, dense with poisonous miasma, its aura dangerously unpredictable; beneath the miasma, the cliff's edge was invisible.

Since nothing could be seen anyway, there seemed no need for an array to conceal anything.

"Not beneath the cliff, not across it—could it be between the cliffs?"

Mo Hua muttered, then extended his spiritual awareness into the space between the cliffs.

Between the two cliffs, mist and miasma interwove, making it hard to discern clearly for the moment.

As he gazed, Mo Hua suddenly opened his eyes.

There really was something!

Mo Hua's heart leapt, then he closed his eyes again, calmed his mind, focused his spiritual awareness to its utmost, and strained to perceive, suppressing interference from the mountain's miasma as much as possible.

Faintly, Mo Hua finally detected a path leading to the opposite cliff.

When he realized what this path truly was, Mo Hua was stunned.

It was not a mountain trail at all—it was a toppled Shanfeng!

The Shanfeng was slender and its rock unyielding, having toppled from the opposite side and stretched across the two cliffs, forming a natural stone bridge.

An array master had placed a Concealment Array upon the Shanfeng to hide its form, and used the natural miasma between the cliffs to confuse and obscure spiritual perception.

Thus, the Shanfeng became an extremely concealed, unknown path, standing atop a ten-thousand-ren abyss, linking the two cliffs.

Using heaven's mountains and stones as array mediums, and the mountain's miasma as Liao Zheyan, it left no trace, unseen by gods or demons.

Mo Hua was stunned.

He then thought: "This array master is a master!"

He had only just learned the Concealment Array, yet this master had placed this array upon the rocks long ago—his array skill was clearly superior to Mo Hua's.

Since Mo Hua had mastered array formation, this was the first time he had encountered an array master whose skill surpassed his own, aside from the inscrutable Mr. Zhuang.

Mo Hua couldn't help but wonder: who was this array master?

Was he, too, a criminal cultivator, setting arrays to conceal the criminals?

Mo Hua felt a pang of regret—he had finally learned arrays, yet chose to aid evildoers, aiding murder and robbery.

What should he do next?

Mo Hua frowned.

Since he had discovered the criminals' trail, he naturally needed to investigate their strength.

But Mo Hua could not risk going alone.

No one knew how many criminals there were, their cultivation levels, how evil they were, or what their intentions were in their mountain stronghold.

Mo Hua planned to return first, inform Elder Yu, and report to Dao Ting Si.

With Hunter Demon-Slayers and Dao Ting Si's aid, their numbers would overwhelm the criminals and wipe them out in one stroke.

Mo Hua had decided, and turned to leave—but paused, frowning.

This seemed problematic.

Returning to gather others, though it meant strength in numbers, would inevitably alarm the criminals and put them on guard.

They might have many, but what if the criminals had even more?

After lying low for two or three hundred years and recruiting outlaws from all corners, their power was likely substantial.

If the criminals used the terrain to ambush them mid-mountain, Dao Ting Si and the Hunter Demon-Slayers would suffer heavy losses.

Mo Hua had close ties with Dao Ting Si and deep bonds with the Hunter Demon-Slayers.

This was not what Mo Hua wanted to see.

Moreover, without knowing the criminals' true strength, a hasty strike stood little chance of success.

If the criminals escaped, it would be impossible to root them out again.

Furthermore, all of this was merely Mo Hua's speculation.

Though it was seven or eight tenths likely, without亲眼所见, he could not be certain.

What if there were no criminals behind the cliff?

What if it were a hermit like Mr. Zhuang, or a reclusive high-level array master?

Gathering a group of cultivators to confront them would surely make an enemy.

Mo Hua was torn.

After thinking it over, it seemed the best solution was for him to go alone into danger…

His spiritual sense was strong, allowing him to detect danger early; with Shi Shui Step, ordinary cultivators couldn't get close, and most importantly, he could now conceal himself.

He was the only cultivator among all the demon hunters in Xiancheng who could conceal himself.

With the concealment technique and concealment array, his concealment was even stronger than ordinary concealment techniques—even a Foundation Establishment cultivator, if careless, might not detect him.

If the other side was a high-level expert, they likely wouldn't bother with a lowly cultivator like him.

If the other side truly were criminal cultivators, sneaking over wouldn't alarm them.

They killed and plundered without a trace; he would likewise probe their true situation without a trace.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be endangered in a hundred battles.

Once he clarified their true situation, he could naturally devise a strategy.

Mo Hua nodded.

A little risk on his part could save many lives among the demon hunters or Dao Ting Si—this risk was worth taking.

He'd just sneak over carefully to take a quick look, confirm the situation on the other side, then sneak back.

Not all the criminal cultivators on the other side would necessarily detect him.

After all, he hadn't studied his concealment technique and concealment array for nothing.

Mo Hua gradually made up his mind:

"First, sneak over using the concealment technique to probe their true situation, then sneak back."

This way, he wouldn't alarm them, nor would he take excessive risk.

Mo Hua picked up a handful of pebbles nearby and found a branch, then opened his storage bag, took out a bottle of spirit ink, used his spiritual sense to sense briefly, and flung the spirit ink down from a spot at the cliff's edge.

The golden spirit ink poured downward, and after a moment, as if blocked by something, splashed apart, solidifying into a patch of ink in midair.

"There really is a path."

Mo Hua nodded, then casually tossed a few pebbles down, confirming they too landed in midair and didn't fall into the cliff—only then did he feel reassured.

Mo Hua first activated the concealment array, then triggered the concealment technique to hide his form, then activated Shi Shui Step and leapt lightly from the cliff into the mist.

After a moment, a slight numbness beneath his feet told him he had landed on the invisible stone path.

The spirit ink he had flung and the pebbles he had thrown lay beside his feet.

Mo Hua let out a breath of relief.

Though he knew the path existed, actually jumping down from the cliff still sent chills through him.

Mo Hua glanced downward—and instantly his limbs went weak, his face pale.

Beneath the cliff lay a ten-thousand-zhang abyss; falling meant being crushed to dust.

At this moment, he stood as if suspended in midair, atop the ten-thousand-zhang abyss.

Mo Hua took a deep breath and thought to himself:

"Don't look down, don't look down…"

Then, gathering his courage, he stepped forward, walking slowly, testing the path ahead with the branch.

Between the two mist-shrouded cliffs, on a hidden mountain path, a concealed young cultivator was silently, step by step, walking toward the opposite shore.

For two or three hundred years, the demon hunters had never discovered the hidden path—and now, at this very moment, the criminal cultivators had not discovered the concealed Mo Hua.