Chapter 502: Helpless

Elder Song was afraid, of course.

Zhang Quan didn't understand, but he did.

This brat looked young, still carrying youthfulness on his face, yet his spiritual sense was solid and his aura profound, capable of manifesting spells and arrays…

This was clearly a spiritual inheritance from some great clan or noble family.

Moreover, he had concealed himself beforehand, launched an array ambush, and his spells could both trap and kill enemies.

Clearly battle-hardened and experienced.

Not to mention that among them, two were dead, one crippled, and the remaining two—himself and Zhang Quan—were both severely wounded, their strength greatly diminished.

Even if all five had been unharmed and at full strength, facing this young cultivator, they would likely lose more than win.

He still didn't know what other cards this brat hadn't played.

Elder Song's heart was frantic:

Run!

Must run!

Not running meant pure suicide.

As for Zhang Quan, he was a junior; it was only natural that he should lead the way for his elders, even sacrifice himself—it was an expression of his filial piety.

Before Zhang Quan's disbelieving gaze, Elder Song's back hunched, fleeing in panic, utterly devoid of the dignity befitting a senior elder.

Just as Elder Song reached the edge of Mo Hua's spiritual sea, about to escape—

Mo Hua pointed a finger and cast the Water Prison Spell.

Blue threads flowed like water, forming a prison that bound Elder Song in place.

Elder Song's eyes widened.

So fast a spell!

His cloudy eyes darted, he crouched low, shedding skin and shrinking bones, like a bamboo shoot peeled of its outer layer, slipping free from the Water Prison Spell.

Mo Hua showed a hint of surprise.

Indeed, no wonder he's a named elder of the Zhang family—he's got some skill.

Mo Hua pointed again; the Water Prison Spell instantly reformed, trapping Elder Song once more.

Elder Song was trapped again, cursing inwardly:

"What the hell kind of spell is this?"

"It doesn't focus on offense—it's all about control."

"How could there be a cultivator who specializes in such disgusting spells?"

Elder Song shed skin and shrank bones again, becoming even smaller, and escaped once more.

Mo Hua's small hand still pointed forward, unremarkably, and the Water Prison Spell reappeared, trapping the shrunken Elder Song again.

Meanwhile, golden array patterns were forming beneath Elder Song's feet.

Within a few breaths, the Golden Lock Array solidified, blazing with golden light, chains of gold binding Elder Song tightly.

The escape route was right before him.

Just a few more steps, and he could be out.

Then he'd report to the Ancestor, gather all past Zhang elders, storm in together, kill this brat, and tear him apart to eat!

But those few steps—he couldn't take even one.

No matter how he struggled, how hard he fought, he couldn't escape the brat's grasp.

Elder Song, furious beyond words, stopped running altogether; his body swelled, his face turned green, fangs protruded, his white eyes turned crimson, veins crawling with blood.

"Fine! Brat, you've gone too far! Today, one of us dies before this ends!"

Elder Song's aura surged violently.

Mo Hua, seeing this, looked solemn.

Elder Song must be of high seniority and long-standing in the Zhang family; Mo Hua wanted to see what other tricks this elder had…

The great battle was about to begin…

A cup of tea later.

Mo Hua looked down at Elder Song, lying on the ground, bruised and swollen, barely breathing, utterly speechless…

You really don't have any tricks at all.

From start to finish, you were crushed by spells and arrays—attacks followed by control via Water Prison and Golden Lock Array.

You took a few steps, got trapped; then Mo Hua picked you off like a target.

You took a few more steps, got trapped again, kept getting blasted by spells.

You never even reached Mo Hua's side—you were knocked down and lay there, barely alive…

For all your earlier "life-or-death" posturing.

Mo Hua, speechless, couldn't help saying to the fallen Elder Song:

"I overestimated you—you're pathetic…"

The Elder Song on the ground spat out a mouthful of blood.

He was utterly bitter inside.

It wasn't that he was weak—it was that he never got a chance to use his strength.

He was controlled the whole way, couldn't get close, never got to strike, couldn't unleash even one-tenth of his full power—anyone in his place would have collapsed.

Five "zombies" from the Zhang family entered.

Two turned to ash, one was crippled; the remaining two—Zhang Quan and Elder Song—now also lay on the ground…

Zhang Quan, seeing this senior Zhang elder beaten and bound like a grandson, with no way to fight back, turned completely pale.

He finally realized deeply the difference between himself and Mo Hua.

Outside, Mo Hua was merely cunning and troublesome.

But inside the mind sea, Mo Hua was outright terrifying!

How had the Zhang family ever attracted this "Little Ancestor"?

Song Changlao, battered by the Earth Fire Array and Fireball Spell until his body was riddled with wounds, felt his spiritual sense gradually fading—he cried out in desperation and rage:

"Young friend, what exactly do you intend to do?"

Mo Hua smiled faintly: "What you intend to do, I intend to do."

Song Changlao froze, then his face twisted in horror:

This brat—it wants to eat him?!

Song Changlao's mind raced, and he hurriedly said:

"Young friend, you cultivate orthodox methods, walk the righteous path, while we are demons, ghostly thoughts. Listen to this old man's advice: eating us will taint your Dao heart, ruin your Dao foundation, and corrupt your nature—you must not eat us!"

"It won't…" Mo Hua smiled.

That smile, innocent yet tinged with malice.

Won't?

Why won't it?

Zhang Quanyi thought hard, then suddenly shuddered, as if plunged into an ice cellar—he gasped:

"Were the Zhang family's missing ancestors… all eaten by you?!"

The residual souls of the Zhang ancestors dwelled within the Ancestral Portrait; they rarely ventured out unless seeking food.

The last time the Ancestral Portrait was in my hands, it was intact.

Later, Mo Hua stole it; when we retrieved it, several Zhang ancestors had vanished…

They must have wandered into this brat's mind sea—and been eaten…

Just like we are now…

Zhang Quanyi's face turned deathly pale.

Song Changlao's face also showed terror.

All this time, this brat wasn't the feast.

We were!

Mo Hua paused, then smiled, revealing Bai Shengsheng's teeth: "You've figured it out…"

Zhang Quanyi and Song Changlao trembled all over.

Song Changlao cried sharply: "Crossing the Zhang family won't benefit you!"

Yet his tone carried unmistakable hollow bravado.

Zhang Quanyi also spat in hatred: "Our Laozu Sect won't spare you!"

Mo Hua remained unperturbed.

Worse—he licked his lips, his gaze strangely suggestive.

Zhang Quanyi froze, then his eyes widened in horror.

No… no way…

This brat… he doesn't intend to "eat" even our Zhang family's Laozu, does he?!

Song Changlao realized it too.

In an instant, both were flooded with overwhelming fear.

That was their Zhang family's Laozu!

Someone actually dared to lay hands on their Laozu!

What terrified them even more was:

This young cultivator's spiritual sense was profound, unfathomable.

And his cunning was deep, his methods terrifying.

With premeditation against their unpreparedness, he might truly endanger their Laozu!

Mo Hua saw their expressions and sighed:

"You've learned too much…"

Then, before Zhang Quanyi and Song Changlao's terrified eyes, he pointed a finger—a fireball erupted, spiritual energy surging, reducing them to mere shadows, on the brink of annihilation…

The mind sea instantly grew much quieter.

Mo Hua exhaled, sat cross-legged, and began pondering a question:

"Should I 'eat' them?"

Eating them would strengthen his spiritual sense, but it wouldn't reach the Thirteenth Mark.

Between the Twelfth and Thirteenth Mark, spiritual sense has a bottleneck—it's not easy to break through.

And after eating them, he'd need time to refine them.

He didn't have time now.

The Ancestral Portrait still held many Zhang ancestors—if they invaded while he was refining, it would be disastrous.

He was alone, but the Zhang Liezulie Sect all dwelled within that portrait.

It meant he, one man, would face the Zhang family's generations of undead ancestors.

Mo Hua shook his head.

One or two, even three or four—he wasn't afraid. But if numbers grew, it would become unmanageable, and no mistake could be allowed.

If he was caught off-guard, wounded, and surrounded, the trouble would be immense.

Now they were in the corpse mine, not in their master's cave dwelling—no master to protect them, no junior brothers or sisters to lend a hand; if danger arose, no one would cover for them.

So they must be cautious, even more cautious.

Especially since there was a Laozu Sect on the other side.

Mo Hua did not know what hidden cards Zhang Quan, this Laozu Sect, possessed, nor had he ever fought it.

But without needing to think, having lived this long and devoured so many cultivators, this Laozu Sect's spiritual sense must be powerful, its schemes deep, and its methods numerous.

If things continued this way, not only would he be outnumbered, but he'd also be surrounded by powerful enemies.

It was getting harder and harder.

The danger was great…

"What should I do?"

Mo Hua propped his chin on his hand, pondered for a moment, then suddenly his eyes lit up.

Corpses!

Corpse control!

The ancestral corpses of the Zhang family were all zombies.

And since they were zombies, they could be controlled!

Right in his possession was a profound, top-secret corpse-control technique—the Ling Shu Ultimate Array!

Mo Hua mused to himself:

"Use the Ling Shu Ultimate Array to control the Zhang family's zombie elders and zombie disciples, and make them attack the Zhang family's zombie Laozu…"

"I'll watch from the sidelines, pick up the scraps, deliver the finishing blow…"

"Low risk, and convenient."

"In this way, the one outnumbered is the Zhang family's Laozu; the one surrounded by powerful enemies is still him—the Zhang family's Laozu…"

The situation reversed, and the roles of attacker and defender were swapped!

Mo Hua's eyes gleamed, and he nodded involuntarily.

He then began preparing.

First, he needed to test whether the Ling Shu True Array would work in his spiritual sea.

Mo Hua glanced around and saw three figures.

Elder Song, Elder Si, and Zhang Quan.

They were all spirit forms, shaped like zombies, trapped and slain by Mo Hua's arrays and spells, their spiritual senses suffered severe injury, their forms dim, lying motionless.

Mo Hua thought for a moment, chose Zhang Quan and Elder Song, and with his spiritual sense, manifested array patterns, drawing the Ling Shu Array on the heart meridians of both.

As soon as the Ling Shu Array formed, a flash of bright blue merged into their bodies.

Then the array patterns became like threads, like blood vessels, like tendrils, or like needles and thread, slowly drifting, stitching, and fusing within them, achieving complete control.

Mo Hua suddenly understood.

So this was how the Ling Shu Array worked…

He had only ever used the Ling Shu Array on a wooden puppet tiger.

The puppet was an inanimate object, and its structure was simple, so control was easier.

He had also used it on zombies—one a small zombie, one a Corpse King—but neither was complete.

On the small zombie, he had merely altered the sequence array patterns, never reconstructed the Ling Shu Array.

On the Corpse King, he had merely overlaid his own pattern atop Lu Chengyun's Ling Shu Evil Array, stealing control—not a full construction.

Now, within his spiritual sea, manifesting array patterns with his spiritual sense, controlling the dark essence of the iron zombies, one spirit thread at a time, every detail was crystal clear.

Only now could Mo Hua observe deeply the structure and effect of the Ling Shu Array, truly comprehend its array principles.

Mo Hua finally realized that his previous understanding of the Ling Shu Array had been crude, superficial.

Only now, applying it in practice, manifesting array patterns, controlling iron zombies, and delving into its use, could he grasp it more thoroughly.

This was a perfect opportunity to deepen his understanding of the Ling Shu Array!

Mo Hua's spirit surged; he focused intently, manifesting array patterns while observing the movement of the spirit threads, pondering the spiritual force structure, and training the method of controlling the spiritual nexus…

His mastery and comprehension of the Ling Shu Array also deepened gradually…

Meanwhile, the heart meridians of Zhang Quan and Elder Song's zombie bodies had also been marked with the Ling Shu Array; spirit threads spread throughout their limbs, achieving total control.

Mo Hua stirred his spiritual sense, commanding the two to rise.

The two indeed rose stiffly, obeying Mo Hua's will.

But both kept their eyes closed, devoid of awareness, like true puppets.

Mo Hua controlled Zhang Quan to raise his hand and slap Elder Song, then commanded Elder Song to slap Zhang Quan.

He then made them repeatedly slap each other.

Neither resisted.

Mo Hua then commanded them to fight each other.

They obeyed without hesitation.

But both were severely wounded, and under Mo Hua's control—their movements were clumsy, their power weak.

Mo Hua was disappointed.

Too weak…

At this level, they could never threaten the Zhang family's Laozu.

"What if I wake them up?"

Mo Hua decided to try.

He completely incinerated the two Zhang family disciples and the severely wounded, unconscious Elder Si with the Melt-Fire Array, then fed them to Zhang Quan and Elder Song.

Indeed, their wounds had healed, and their qi gradually strengthened.

Moments later, Zhang Quan and Elder Song opened their eyes.

They were astonished to find their injuries gone and their strength restored to seven or eight tenths.

Then they discovered, even more strangely, that their "bodies" were no longer their own.

No matter what they tried to do, their bodies remained utterly still.

Nearby, Mo Hua watched them with a smiling expression.

Their hearts turned cold.

What evil scheme is this brat concocting now?

"You are now my 'people'—you will obey my commands!" Mo Hua ordered.

Zhang Quan felt utter absurdity.

What is this brat talking about?

How could I possibly be your "person"? How could I ever obey your orders?

I wish to kill you right now!

Mo Hua commanded: "Zhang Quan, slap Elder Song."

Zhang Quan sneered inwardly, "You tell me to slap, and I slap? How could I possibly commit such an act of gross disrespect…"

Before he finished thinking, he realized his hand had already struck Elder Song's face…

Zhang Quan was stunned.

Elder Song was even more stunned.

Zhang Quan, a junior, had actually obeyed this brat's command and slapped his elder?

Mo Hua was satisfied, then turned to Elder Song and said:

"You slap him back."

Elder Song, indeed, slapped Zhang Quan in return.

Now both Zhang Quan and Elder Song realized something was terribly wrong.

Zhang Quan growled, "Brat, what have you done to us?"

Elder Song also cried out in shock and fury, "What exactly are you trying to do?"

Mo Hua was speechless: "Why would I tell you? Do you think I'm stupid?"

Then he muttered, "I can't let them speak—they'll expose my plan…"

Can I make them fall silent?

Mo Hua's mind stirred; blue light flickered faintly at the pulse points of Zhang Quan and Elder Song, revealing intricate array patterns. These patterns sprouted spiritual threads, rising like needles and thread, sewing both their mouths shut.

Zhang Quan and Elder Song widened their eyes in terror, but could not speak.

Mo Hua smiled with narrowed eyes.

That's better.

A zombie should behave like a zombie—no nonsense!

Then he concealed his form, sat cross-legged, and prepared to wait patiently for other Zhang family zombie elders to arrive, testing the control effect of the Ling Shu Array.

After a while, another zombie elder arrived with two zombie disciples, entering Mo Hua's spiritual sea.

The zombie elder had barely begun to marvel at the depth and purity of Mo Hua's spiritual sense when he noticed Zhang Quan and Elder Song standing like wooden stakes.

Their appearance was strange.

Their robes were tattered, covered in scorch marks, as if they had endured a fierce battle.

Yet their qi was calm and steady, even somewhat balanced and harmonious—not at all like someone who had just fought…

"Elder Song?"

The zombie elder frowned and asked.

Elder Song remained motionless, eyes open but showing no reaction whatsoever.

The zombie elder muttered to himself and called again, "Elder Song?"

"What happened?"

"Where's Elder Si? And the two disciples?"

"Why are you… like this?"

The zombie elder asked for a long time, but Elder Song said nothing.

The zombie elder's frown deepened.

At that moment, Elder Song suddenly struck—fingers like sharp claws, swift as wind, aimed straight at the zombie elder's pulse point.

The zombie elder was shocked and barely dodged, but his chest was torn open, oozing black blood.

The zombie elder roared in fury, "Elder Song, what is your meaning?"

Elder Song's assault intensified, relentless and lethal, as if he had no regard for his own life.

The zombie elder struggled desperately, gritting his teeth:

"Zhang Song, what are you trying to do?"

"Are you planning treason?"

"Killing your own elder?"

"How will you answer to Laozu?"

"Are you trying to rebel?!"

Elder Song's face was expressionless, but his heart ached:

I don't want to kill my own kind—I'm powerless too…

It's not my fault…

Blame that wicked, hateful, despicable, treacherous, shameless brat!

It's him who made me lose control of myself!

Today I'm busy—only this chapter, over 4k words~

(End of Chapter)