Chapter 319

How did Mo Hua even know? Had he seen that pig?

But how could that be possible?

Qian Xing's expression was stunned.

Mo Hua's face was expressionless, but inside he was even more shocked than Qian Xing.

He hadn't expected that someone from the Qian family had actually been to Great Heishan—and that person was Qian Xing!

Who had taken him to Great Heishan?

Mo Hua asked, "Who took you there?"

Qian Xing refused to speak.

"If you won't speak, do you think I don't know?"

Qian Xing stuck out his neck and said, "If you knew, why would you ask me?"

Shi Qing shook his head, "You know, after so many years, the face is already blurry; you only remember me shouting things like, 'The Qian family deserves to die.'"

"But… but that cultivator hadn't died yet… one part was being eaten, the other screaming in despair—your expression then, still alive, how could you possibly forget…"

The Ceng Zu opened wide eyes, "Impossible! It's just killing a person, just killing a person… how could it be…"

Mo Hua blinked, "Ceng Zu?"

Shi Qing, still trembling, said, "Ceng Zu looked at me, his eyes holding not a trace of killing intent. I kowtowed to him, called him 'Ceng Zu,' begged him tearfully, swore I'd never tell. Ceng Zu seemed moved by pity, yet still hesitated, unsure whether to spare me."

After speaking, Shi Qing was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath in shallow, ragged breaths.

Mo Hua blinked, "What kind of thing is this?"

Mo Hua's gaze slowly turned icy.

"What if we made a bet?"

"He's lying to you!"

Qian Xing, fearing exposure, kept the matter secret even from Qian family disciples—not to hide it from outsiders, but to prevent Dao Ting Si from learning of it and sending Dao soldiers to exterminate them.

Shi Qing hurriedly said, "He saved your life—tell him everything!"

The Ceng Zu, panicked, fell to his knees before Mo Hua, "Mo Hua, save me! He's so foolish—he must be able to save me!"

Mo Hua asked again, "Why did Qian Xing take you into the mountains—and let you learn about him feeding humans to beasts?"

He had just thought Qian Xing was a fool, and now this fool had blurted out the truth himself.

Shi Qing, terrified, said, "Impossible—how could that be a secret…"

Qian Xing, filled with regret and fear, his voice trembling, said:

I've had nightmares for years—dreaming of the pig beast devouring people.

Mo Hua's heart jolted.

I've buried that incident deep inside me for years, never daring to speak of it.

Shi Qing's gaze was blank, "What don't I know?"

Mo Hua's eyelid twitched, "He took you to Great Baishan?"

"Ceng Zu's lifespan is nearly over; his Qi is fading, his body aging. The Ceng Zu you see daily is an old, frail, withered man—but that night…"

"You heard Ceng Zu say: don't treat humans as humans. They work for us like beasts of burden—it's their duty. That cultivator eaten by the pig? He wasn't even human. Dead is dead. Eaten? Just feed the pig."

The thought had barely formed when the Ceng Zu snuffed it out himself.

Mo Hua was slightly startled—he'd thought Qian Xing was a fool, yet now he'd suddenly become clever.

"Fine. Then tell me everything—from beginning to end—about how Qian Xing killed people to feed beasts."

"Have you ever seen him, day to day, arrogant and domineering—like a man with no shadows in his heart?"

Mo Hua was no longer the same man he once was—he was no longer someone I could provoke. I was no match for Mo Hua. Even if I played tricks, he'd see right through me.

Shi Qing shook his head, "Ceng Zu told me not to speak of it—not about that matter."

Mo Hua remained unmoved, puzzled:

"Are you not mad? Why should I save you? Killing you would be right."

Mo Hua paused to think, then sat down on a tree stump:

In an instant, Shi Qing felt utter despair, like a drowning man gasping for air—until suddenly he spotted a straw of salvation.

"And then?"

"It wasn't Ceng Zu—he told me: don't treat humans as humans."

Mo Hua asked again—he wanted to know what happened next.

Even if I'm Qian Xing's great-grandson…

"Is he Foundation Establishment?"

A bet is useless—winning brings no benefit, losing means death.

As Mo Hua had suspected, most Qian family disciples knew nothing of the Great Heishan incident.

Mo Hua stared at him with deep eyes, "It seems you know nothing."

Mo Hua looked at the Ceng Zu with a half-smile, "Because you betrayed the secret—Qian Xing might kill you first!"

The Ceng Zu nodded, "True—I'll tell you everything!"

Between life and death lies great terror.

If he remembered correctly, rumors said the Qian family's Ceng Zu was already half in his coffin, nearly dead.

"Probably." The Ceng Zu nodded, then continued:

Mo Hua sighed inwardly, then frowned suddenly:

"If you tell Dao Ting Si about this, your entire Qian family could be executed!"

So after the illusion, he became utterly insane.

Speaking of that, Shi Qing's expression suddenly brightened:

"I said it, and my Ceng Zu still wouldn't spare me!"

"If you don't speak, you won't live to go back." Mo Hua threatened again.

Shi Qing doubted Mo Hua's words, yet deep inside he vaguely knew Mo Hua was right.

"In front of you, my Ceng Zu fed this cultivator to that pig."

"What exactly… does he know?"

If I kill Mo Hua now, someone will find out.

Mo Hua frowned, "No one seeks revenge—my Ceng Zu killed someone, and if he speaks of it, what does it matter?"

"Once you think like that, your heart feels much better, and you no longer have nightmares often."

"You treat this dead cultivator as a person, so you find it terrifying. But if you treat me as a person, it's just pig eating dog, dog eating pig—what's there to fear?"

This matter cannot be revealed—if outsiders learn of it, Qian Xing will kill me first.

Mo Hua looked at the Old Ancestor, said nothing, but asked: "Have you been to Great Baishan Shanzhai?"

Mo Hua looked at Qian Xing, his expression complex.

The illusion made him feel as if he were truly being slowly, painfully swallowed alive by the pig demon.

"I won't speak," Shi Qing's face turned ashen.

Mo Hua's eyes flashed. "Really?"

But why did I tell the Old Ancestor about this?

Qian Xing, of the Qian family, had indeed taken the Longevity Pill to extend his life.

"Besides the Qian family, no—besides himself—all others are not human. They are pigs and dogs, oxen and horses, laborers, tools, the foundation upon which his Dao is built. He must step on us to attain Immortality!"

If he said my Ceng Zu wouldn't spare him, then the one who brought him into the mountains must be my Ceng Zu.

The Old Ancestor looked startled. "What is Great Baishan Shanzhai?"

Mo Hua merely stared at Shi Qing: "But you've already spoken—you've already revealed the Qian family's most secret matter."

"Does he know what his Ceng Zu did?"

The Old Ancestor explained: "Ever since then, you've had nightmares every day—dreaming of the pig demon devouring people, dazed and confused. My Ceng Zu told you…"

"My Ceng Zu thought for a moment, then asked you, 'Do you want to become head of the Qian family?' You said 'No.' My Ceng Zu's eyes clearly showed disdain. You quickly added, 'I do!' Then my Ceng Zu smiled and said, 'Then come with me.'"

So he took the Longevity Pill just to avoid death…

Qian Xing's face turned instantly pale.

"You saw the blood and screamed in terror. My Ceng Zu was surprised—probably because your cultivation was too high, your aura too strong, and he hadn't noticed. Then he warned you not to speak of what you saw."

"Who was that cultivator?" Mo Hua asked.

Shi Qing swallowed hard, his voice trembling: "His eyes were red, his body muscular, his hair half-white—he looked terrifying…"

The Old Ancestor recalled the events, his face pale, and spoke:

"Remember this: those who seek great achievements must not treat people as people."

Because in the illusion, what he saw was not the most terrifying scene from his memory—the pig demon devouring people.

The Old Ancestor felt both fear and rage.

Shi Qing shook his head again: "I don't know—I was half-asleep when my Ceng Zu led me into a pill chamber. The chamber was red—the walls, the pill furnace, the herbs—all red. The floor tiles looked like they were paved with blood. The air made me sick. And inside the chamber, there was already a pig…"

The Old Ancestor, dazed, murmured: "It's just killing a person and feeding a beast—what's so great about it? He wasn't even one of our Qian family's cultivators. Whether he lived or died, what difference does it make?"

It must be someone seeking revenge on the Qian family. The Qian family has committed so many atrocities, they've amassed many enemies.

"But you needn't worry—you probably won't live to see the day the Qian family is exterminated…"

The Old Ancestor nodded.

Shi Qing, though a direct descendant, was a playboy. His spiritual root was mediocre, yet he was industrious in his own way—his mind was spent bullying others under the family's power, unlike the core disciples the Qian family heavily cultivated.

"When I was one year old, I went to play at my Ceng Zu's place. I grew tired and fell asleep on his bed. Half-asleep, I was awakened by noise. I opened my eyes and saw a cultivator, his chest pierced through by my Ceng Zu's arm…"

The Old Ancestor still hesitated, thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth: "Fine!"

The Old Ancestor revealed his deepest secret. He no longer looked arrogant—he turned pale and said:

Mo Hua said: "If you speak, I'll teach you how to save yourself."

"Which part of Great Baishan?"

Once the human heart is extinguished, guilt naturally vanishes.

It was… the Qian family's Old Ancestor.

Qian Xing's Ceng Zu was… the Qian family's Old Ancestor!

Mo Hua frowned. "What do you mean?"

It seems Shi Qing knew exactly where he had gone…

Shi Qing's expression was resolute.

The Old Ancestor struggled, held firm for a long while, then finally admitted honestly:

Even many Qian family elders may not know.