Chapter 362: Rest and Recuperation

Mo Hua recorded this immortal rune, then his spiritual sense was utterly depleted, and he collapsed to the ground.

As he lost consciousness, he faintly sensed many cultivators shouting his name, rushing toward him.

Their voices were filled with desperate urgency.

There was his father, Seeing Mo Shan; Zhang Lan; Elder Yu; Commander Yang; and many others he knew.

After that, he slipped into a daze and fainted.

……

Zhang Lan and Seeing Mo Shan and others arrived by Mo Hua's side, saw the bloodstains at his corners, his breath weak but his pulse steady and his blood qi flowing smoothly—they all exhaled in relief.

Then the group carried Mo Hua to Mr. Feng for treatment.

Meanwhile, Mr. Zhuang still stood on the corridor outside the bamboo pavilion, gazing at the sky of Shenshan, lost in silent thought.

That sky had once held the towering blood qi of the Boar of Heaven, the vast spiritual power of the great array, the collapsing force of annihilation, and the terrifying power of heavenly tribulation lightning.

"His eyes were scorched by something—he often sees things unclearly; that's abnormal, and if left unattended, it will worsen."

All we need to know is: the small array self-destructed, Wu Xiaoyao was killed, and Mo Hua is injured—that's enough.

Earlier, to avoid disturbing Mo Hua's rest, everyone had left.

Earlier, Zhang Lan, Liu Ruhua, Zhou Zhangsi, and others had come to visit Mo Hua and brought him small gifts, mostly food—none for replenishing blood, none for calming the spirit, none for nurturing qi…

For cultivators not versed in arrays, even special arrays appeared as utter gibberish, let alone the small array and its collapse.

There had once been Mo Hua's figure here.

Mo Hua smiled, his eyes crinkling into crescents.

Mr. Zhuang said nothing more, still lost in silent thought.

Mo Hua listened quietly, nodding repeatedly.

Mr. Zhuang's eyes bore tear trails, his hand tightly clutching Mo Hua's large hand—as if he had been tending to him all along—but too exhausted, he had fallen asleep beside Mo Hua.

Elder Yu continued: "Whether you live one more day or one less—there's absolutely no difference…"

Yet Mo Hua's injuries weren't this severe; after several days of recuperation at Mr. Feng's, he returned home a few days ago.

Whether Mo Hua tells the truth or lies, we still can't understand.

Mr. Zhuang frowned again: "We shouldn't have taken such risks before…"

My spiritual sea is healing rapidly; for now, I can't draw arrays or expend much spiritual sense, so Mo Hua is just taking this chance to slack off and rest a few extra days.

"Fine, Mother believes you."

Mo Hua felt warmth in his heart, and a pang of pity—he reached out his large hand and gently wiped the tear trails from Mr. Zhuang's eyes.

Kui Lao couldn't bear it anymore and said coldly: "If you don't rest, you'll die."

Hao Donghua chattered for a long time.

What happened in Shenshan, what Mo Hua did—Seeing Mo Shan and the seven others didn't know, but they didn't press for details; as long as Mo Hua was unharmed, that was enough.

Seeing Mo Shan listened, paused, and felt helpless inside:

Kui Lao frowned.

That was an achievement never before seen in Xiancheng in thousands of years.

Kui Lao was surprised, afraid he might truly seek death, and asked:

Mr. Zhuang froze, then laughed, "Still so greedy for food."

Mo Hua no longer worried—he didn't want to be half-blind.

After a while, Seeing Mo Shan also entered, saw Mo Hua awake, and his expression brightened.

Thinking of this, everyone felt a deep emotion, especially Liu Ruhua.

Elder Yu's body had been devoured by Baiye, yet his eyes shone like starlight, burning with hope.

Elder Yu said nothing, still gazing silently at the horizon.

Mo Hua comforted: "Mother, don't worry—I've planned everything well; nothing will happen, it's just that I see things a bit more clearly now…"

Even if the world's winds and clouds churn violently, they vanish in an instant, like flowing water—leaving not a trace.

It was as if he had seen what he was never meant to see—the patterns containing the ultimate truths of the world.

A portion of that was Mo Hua's achievement.

When asked about the collapse of the small array, Mo Hua avoided the obscure term "collapse," saying only that he found a way to make the small array "self-destruct."

Kui Lao's gaze sharpened slightly: "What are you trying to do?"

"Mr. Feng has already brewed several batches of pills—have him take one daily, and after a while, bring him back to Mr. Feng for another check…"

The sky grew darker, the night deeper.

Collapse is a secret array lineage—better not to speak of it lightly.

"I'm thinking…" Elder Yu said softly, "how long can you really hide?"

But now, all is gone—the horizon is vast, empty, as if nothing had ever been there.

Earlier, you added: "Mr. Feng said his spiritual sea was damaged, but only slightly—rest well for a few days and he'll be fine."

As for how it self-destructed, Mo Hua spoke vaguely, mentioning terms like array pivots and array runes.

"Who doesn't die?"

Hao Donghua and the others silently committed this to memory.

"Really!" Mo Hua nodded. "Arrays don't lie—life isn't life, death isn't death—I left a door open, so it won't be death!"

He watched from twilight until deep night.

Mr. Zhuang jolted awake, opened his eyes suddenly, saw Mo Hua's smiling face, and slowly relaxed.

The collapse of the small array, the dispersal of the tribulation lightning, Mo Hua's figure standing beneath Great Baishan—these were deeply etched into Elder Yu's mind.

Hao Donghua wasn't fully convinced, skeptical: "Really that good?"

Mr. Zhuang gazed at the horizon, lost in thought, wondering what he was thinking about.

"But his eyes saw something—something that wounded him. During those days, he likely went blind often; when he could see clearly, he must be extra careful."

……

"How long can you keep running away? Are you going to stay like this forever, just getting by day by day?" Old Kui asked sharply.

Mo Shan also exhaled in relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

Mo Hua helped Xiancheng, and he helped us too…

When Mo Hua woke up dazedly, he found no one beside him—only his mother, Mr. Zhuang.

All his concern was buried deep inside; for a moment, he didn't know how to speak, so he asked dryly, "Is something wrong…?"

Aside from that, his eyes often went blind as well.

Old Feng did not know what Mo Hua had seen; he stated plainly, based only on the injury:

Mo Shan, watching his wife and child, his gaze grew stern.

For an Array Master, a small array is already deeply obscure—let alone the collapse of a small array.

Elder Yu sighed, "But what meaning is there in that?"

Mo Hua's eyes lit up and picked out a small pile of things he wanted to eat.

You let out a long breath, the heavy stone in your heart finally settled, and said gently:

Mo Hua was deeply grateful, and deeply satisfied.

"What is he thinking about, for so long?"

So now, when he looks at other things, the scenes he sees are often illusory, as if overlaid with a layer of white, phantom shadows—true and false, indistinguishable.

Mo Hua nodded. "Mm!"

This is Heaven. This is the Dao.

"Then at least die in a more dramatic way—don't die so blandly."

"He's awake. What does he want to eat? Mother will make it for him."

Making such a terrifying commotion—Feng Xi reduced to ash, the heavenly lightning summoned—can you really say 'it's a bit safer now'…?

He hadn't expected that everyone, united, had actually killed a Wu Xiaoyao.

Mr. Zhuang didn't understand at all, but seeing Mo Hua's confident, self-assured expression, he couldn't help pinching Mo Hua's cheek and laughed irritably:

Everyone, seeing Mo Hua speak as if it were nothing, believed him.

Thank you to patrons Yeshu Xueshujia, Ze Yu Yuan, and gchen for your rewards~

Thank you all for your support.

The major conflict of Volume One is finished; I'm tying up loose ends, and then I can begin Volume Two~