Chapter 299: Evil Demons

Mo Hua bade farewell to Mr. Zhuang, walked through the bamboo grove, crossed the grassland, passed the pond, and arrived beneath the large locust tree.

Beneath the large locust tree, Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi were reading books.

Bai Zisheng saw Mo Hua, his eyes lit up, and he immediately dropped the book in his hand, asking:

"Where have you been again? I haven't seen you lately."

Mo Hua opened the food box and shared the beef and pastries his mother had prepared with Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi.

"I was delayed by some matters."

Bai Zisheng nodded, asked no further questions, and ate the beef attentively.

His mind was simple; if there was meat to eat, he generally thought of nothing else.

Mo Hua thought for a moment and asked him: "Zisheng, when do you plan to enter Foundation Establishment?"

Bai Zisheng corrected him: "You must call me Brother Bai!"

"If we distinguish precisely, xiexiu refers to cultivators who took up the path mid-journey and fell into evil ways; moxiu refers to cultivators without orthodox demonic lineage who practice demonic arts and Dao methods."

Bai Zi Xi nibbled his pastry slowly, looked up at Mo Hua, then suddenly froze, frowning:

Bai Zi Xi stole a glance at his sister, Bai Zixi.

Mo Hua thought the same, but saw Bai Zisheng shake his head and say:

Mo Hua nodded.

So that was the plan I had in mind.

"Yes, I'm at Qi Condensation Seventh Layer—I must start planning early."

It seemed Mr. Zhuang was right: disciples of clans or sects who wish to walk far on the Dao path never crave quick gains; from the Qi Condensation stage onward, they carefully polish their realm and lay solid foundations.

"Qi Condensation cultivators may lack Foundation Establishment spiritual sense."

"It should be so—have you ever heard of spiritual sense achieving Foundation Establishment first…?"

Regarding the visualization chart, I've only told Mr. Zhuang, because it concerns the spiritual sea, and my spiritual sea holds no Dao Stele—so the fewer who know, the better.

Bai Zi Xi explained in great detail.

Bai Zisheng said: "Because he's too obsessed—Mr. Zhuang fears he'll learn it instantly."

Mo Hua considered: the visualization chart could be mentioned, but the Shanzhai matter—telling Feng Danguan and the others—probably wouldn't hurt.

In Mo Hua's impression, clan disciples were bound by strict rules, acted according to convention, either indulged without restraint or governed by law and order.

Aside from matters related to the visualization chart, Mo Hua also briefly mentioned everything else he could.

Mo Hua feigned calmness, though his eyebrows and eyes still betrayed a hint of quiet pride.

Feng Danguan saw Mo Hua's smile and suddenly startled, asking:

After all, if Mo Hua hadn't entered Shanzhai, he'd only ever seen one xiexiu—the flower thief captured with Zhang Lan, whose leg Mo Hua had broken.

Feng Danguan said solemnly: "Cultivators who slay demons and exterminate evil are true cultivators! If so, how can you slay xie and mo without knowing them?"

"It's nothing urgent," Mo Hua waved his hand. "But I can't tell you yet—if an opportunity arises later, I'll tell you."

"Oh, your spiritual sense achieved Foundation Establishment already."

"Moxiu have more orthodox lineages; xiexiu are unorthodox paths, so moxiu are generally stronger. Of course, within those evil demonic paths, it ultimately depends on how powerful they are—the stronger they are, the more deadly they become, and the more deserving of death."

"Evil arrays and demonic arrays mostly use flesh and blood as array mediums, draw array patterns with evil intent, invert the Great Dao as their core, and refine human lives as array focal points."

"Oh, then that's it," Mo Hua said indifferently.

"There's still some time left—your foundation must be solid before you can enter Foundation Establishment."

As for the term "moxiu," Mo Hua had hardly ever heard it.

Mo Hua ignored him.

Bai Zi Xi stared at Mo Hua, left and right, still unable to believe: "You really achieved spiritual sense Foundation Establishment?"

At least for now, I couldn't tell Bai Zi Xi.

Feng Danguan, seeing Mo Hua's candor, nodded and said: "Good!"

The Eighth Chief regarded me as an ancient demon possessing bodies; logically, moxiu should be stronger and more terrifying than xiexiu.

Mo Hua asked again: "What about evil arrays? How do they differ from other arrays?"

Bai Zisheng's long, pale lashes fluttered slightly; his eyes, like autumn water, filled with thought as he recalled the book's records, then continued:

Bai Zi Xi opened his mouth wide; Bai Zisheng stared at him, dumbfounded, the pastry forgotten in his hand.

Although Mo Hua had never denied being called "Big Brother"…

"Your spiritual sense…"

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then asked:

Bai Zisheng, eating Mo Hua's beef, couldn't very well refuse to answer, so he said:

"Why did you suddenly smile so sinisterly, with a whiff of evil aura?"

Bai Zi Xi dared not joke—if he said something wrong and lost face before Mo Hua, he could no longer cling to the title of "Big Brother."

"Mr. Zhuang won't tell you."

"Do you know the difference between xiexiu and moxiu?"

Bai Zisheng, upon hearing this, studied Mo Hua closely, then startled: "Mo Hua, what's wrong with your spiritual sense?"

"As for more specifics, the book doesn't say—it's also unclear to me how evil arrays differ from demonic arrays."

Bai Zi Xi's righteous, chivalrous nature truly came from nowhere.

"What have you been up to lately?"

Feng Danguan scratched his head, murmuring:

"Why is it impossible?"

Feng Danguan, somewhat helpless, said:

But evil cultivators and demonic cultivators are no different—Mo Hua had always wanted to clarify this, so he asked Elder Yu, but the explanation was vague and cursory, probably because he had never had contact with them in normal times, so what he knew was very little.

Mo Hua smiled.

Feng Danguan listened, his heart pounding with shock, and his sense of justice burning with righteous fury.

"Evil arrays and demonic arrays are strictly forbidden by the elders outside the clan, and the instructors within the clan will also mention them, but you saw a few words here and there in a book…"

……

One moment worrying for Mo Hua, the next moment indignant at the evil cultivators' atrocities, so angry he wished he could charge into Great Baishan, kill his way in and out, and cut down every last evil and demonic cultivator.

"Impossible!" Feng Danguan said.

Mo Hua rubbed his cheeks, "It's nothing, you've used your brain too hard, give it a while and it'll be fine."

Bai Zi Xi listened with unusual clarity, but did not probe further, and instead asked curiously:

Only then did Bai Zixi remember, and said apologetically:

Mo Hua was slightly startled, then recalled—it must be the evil thoughts of the Green-Faced Great Ghost, which would still surface from time to time; once he laughed like that, he looked just like that Green-Faced Great Ghost, carrying a sinister, eerie air.

"Evil cultivators and demonic cultivators are both bad things, both cultivating the arts of evil and demonic paths; it doesn't really matter whether you call them evil cultivators or demonic cultivators."

Mo Hua was taken aback, and couldn't help asking: "Why?"

Mo Hua's level of array formation was something he himself knew clearly in his heart—compared to ordinary Qi Refining stage array masters, it was already incomparably higher.

Mo Hua picked up a piece of pastry, popped it into his mouth, and chewed with a smile.

"I shouldn't have asked; every cultivator has their own opportunities, and that's not something to say to outsiders."

Mo Hua then picked and chose from the events of Great Baishan, and told them to Bai Zi Xi.

Mo Hua sighed, "Fine then."

"How did your divine sense reach Foundation Establishment?" Feng Danguan couldn't help asking again.

"Didn't you say it was impossible?"

Moreover, they were members of the Bai family, with a deep family heritage, so perhaps they might know some other clues.

"Brother!" Bai Zisheng's voice was clear and crisp, with a hint of reproach in his tone.

Mo Hua nodded.

Bai Zisheng asked Mo Hua again: "Are you planning to reach Foundation Establishment?"

When it came to array formation, especially in front of Mo Hua, Bai Zixi couldn't help feeling a little timid.

From the hidden mountain path between the cliffs, to the foggy forest filled with mist arrays, to the eighth watch at midnight, the fat and thin cultivators coming to inquire about the way, and finally to the blood-colored pill room and the white-bone pill furnace…

Feng Danguan said in a low voice: "How about, you go ask Mr. Zhuang?"

"I know this one!" Feng Danguan laughed with a hint of pride, and in front of Bai Zisheng, he rarely showed off his learning:

Mo Hua suddenly understood, but then felt a bit puzzled, "How do you know it so clearly?"

Bai Zisheng was also listening intently from the side, the book in his hand dropping to the ground without him noticing.