Chapter 564: One Derivation, One Deception

Immortal Heaven Thunder Patterns erase all!

The Deceiver Daoist glanced once and felt his whole body tremble, his heart pounding with terror.

This was fear from the Dao itself.

At the same time, his black soul robe—the one impervious to spells, invulnerable to spiritual probes, unbreakable by arrays, forged with heavenly machinations and the fury of residual souls—was instantly shredded by the tribulation lightning, each thread turning to ash.

"Uncle, I told you not to look…"

Mo Hua sighed in tone, but his face smiled like a little fox.

"... Looking will turn you to dust and smoke!"

The Deceiver Daoist could not believe it.

This innocent, harmless little thing—he…

He was a little liar after all!

Not just him…

But also his junior brother…

Only now did the Deceiver Daoist understand.

His junior brother had pretended to be a man who had exhausted all schemes, lost all hope, found life meaningless, and accepted death calmly…

Yet he had already calculated everything with perfect clarity!

The Deceiver Daoist froze; the last words his junior brother spoke before death surfaced again in his mind:

"Senior brother… for the sake of our brotherhood, don't trouble… my few little disciples…"

At first, he had only looked down on this junior brother, once so ambitious.

Dying soon, he refused to strive, yet still pinned his disciples' lives on others' mercy.

He himself had fallen into darkness, cold and heartless—he would kill when necessary, and pleading would do no good.

But now he realized, his junior brother must have known all this perfectly.

Pleading was useless from the start…

So this remark was never meant as a plea to me.

It was meant to… lure me in?

Specifically mentioning "little disciples," telling me not to trouble them, was actually a hint:

He cared deeply for his little disciples—there were secrets hidden on them…

He thus naturally drew me to act, causing me to plant demonic seeds in my Dao heart and enter this little thing's spiritual sea.

Then, inevitably, I would use heavenly machinations to solve the Great Array for his little disciples, breaking their Foundation Establishment bottleneck.

Even this spiritual realm's deadly tribulation, he had foreseen!

He may not have known what the deadly tribulation was, may not have known the broken stele, may not have known this lightning—but he certainly calculated that once I entered… I would die within his little disciple's spiritual sea!

Knowing death was certain, he orchestrated the entire scheme with his own body…

It seemed as if he had calculated every heavenly pattern, yet every move was a trap.

"Heavenly machinations… so this is where they were used…"

The Deceiver Daoist's dark gaze turned cold, his face filled with anger, still tinged with lingering shock—but his lips curled slightly…

"Even dead, you still manipulate me…"

The Deceiver Daoist murmured, then turned his gaze back to Mo Hua.

All of Mo Hua's traits flashed before his eyes.

Powerful spiritual awareness, exquisite control, refined spells, manifested arrays, diligent study, sharp insight, cunning and deceitful…

His junior brother was gone—but there was still this little thing…

The Deceiver Daoist's robe shattered, his body disintegrated inch by inch.

He cast one final glance at Mo Hua, his strange face offering a faint smile, his voice ethereal and fractured:

"Young nephew… we shall…"

"Meet again…"

Before the words ended, the Deceiver Daoist was utterly erased by the tribulation lightning, his demonic thoughts scattered!

Mo Hua frowned, released his spiritual awareness, and sensed his own spiritual sea.

Only after confirming that the demonic seed planted by "Senior Brother" had been obliterated, shattered, and completely extinguished by the tribulation lightning did he plop down on the ground and take a long, deep breath.

Senior Brother's demonic thought was too strong.

This was the strongest spiritual presence Mo Hua had ever encountered—and likely would be for a very long time to come…

He was merely at the peak of Foundation Establishment, yet his oppressive aura seeped everywhere.

In direct combat, he was no match.

Mo Hua could only act, tricking Senior Brother into glancing at the Heavenly Dao Thunder Pattern.

This was something he had learned from "Senior Brother."

In the Demon Hall of Wumu Cliff, Dali Mountain.

Senior Brother had, before his eyes, used tribulation lightning to slay the demonic cultivator Liu Yuhua.

Mo Hua remembered it vividly.

"Heavenly tribulation is also a weapon!"

Right now, he had just applied what he learned—using a single Immortal Heaven Thunder Pattern infused with tribulation lightning to trap and kill Senior Brother's demonic thought.

"There's still much more I can learn from Senior Brother!"

Whether it was planting demonic seeds in the Dao heart, or heavenly machinations…

Or the idea of using Heavenly Dao principles to crush powerful foes—Mo Hua had gained immensely.

I must forever remember Master Bo's teaching by example!

Mo Hua nodded seriously.

Then he blinked, gazing at the drifting, abundant spiritual sense within his mind sea, and couldn't help licking his lips.

The demonic thoughts of the Dao Heart Seed Demon had been erased by the calamity thunder, their intent shattered, yet they left behind a dark, impure but immensely thick and extraordinarily vast heretical spiritual sense.

This heretical spiritual sense was black-gray in hue.

It was a powerful, ownerless spiritual sense that had been ground down by the Great Dao and erased by calamity thunder, infused with heretical transformations.

Mo Hua's eyes glinted slightly.

"This is Master Bo's 'gift' to me—naturally, it's mine!"

"Master Bo is truly a good person!"

Mo Hua silently felt gratitude, and his two eyes sparkled brightly.

If I refine this powerful heretical spiritual sense, might my spiritual sense finally break through its long-standing bottleneck…

Mo Hua's heart warmed slightly; he immediately sat in meditation.

He began slowly devouring these heretical thoughts.

The Dao Stele had already ground them down for me, and the calamity thunder had erased them for me—so these heretical thoughts should be safe; I need not manifest an array to reburn them…

The thick, ocean-like spiritual sense filled the air around him.

Mo Hua held his breath, focused his mind, and opened his small mouth.

Thin streams of black-gray spiritual sense, carrying strange energies, were drawn into Mo Hua's abdomen.

Mo Hua's spirit trembled, and he involuntarily opened his eyes.

These spiritual sense threads…

Something seems off.

They seem to contain traces of heavenly mechanism heretical calculations, and insights into heretical spiritual sense…

These insights appear to be Master Bo's own…

Although Mo Hua didn't know what use these insights held, he thought: Master Bo is so powerful—these insights must be extraordinary.

Even if they don't grant me instant enlightenment, they will surely deepen my understanding of heavenly mechanism heretical calculations.

Mo Hua's heart leapt with joy; he calmed himself, absorbing, exhaling, and refining the spiritual sense while simultaneously contemplating, comprehending, and realizing.

He slowly sank these ineffable, elusive, and ever-shifting insights into his heart, crystallizing them upon his Dao Heart…

Time slipped away gradually.

The residual spiritual sense of the heretical Daoist was slowly devoured by Mo Hua.

Mo Hua's spiritual sense was gradually growing stronger.

His understanding of the heretical Dao was also deepening bit by bit…

Mo Hua felt his mind sea was "full"—he had eaten too much—but he still endured, calmly refining.

This was a once-in-a-millennium opportunity.

Master Bo won't be giving me gifts every day.

Next time Master Bo "gifts" me, I may not dare accept.

This time, heaven's timing, earth's advantage, and human fortune aligned—Master Bo was unprepared, and thus stumbled into a small ditch.

Next time, I won't be so lucky…

So when it's time to eat your fill, don't be polite!

Mo Hua, "ravenous," continuously refined the spiritual sense, strengthening his spiritual awareness.

Endless spiritual sense trickled drop by drop into Mo Hua's mind sea, filling the chasm-like gap between the thirteenth mark and the fourteenth mark.

He did not know how long passed.

He did not know how long he filled it…

Finally, the chasm between Foundation Establishment early stage and Foundation Establishment middle stage—the spiritual sense divide—was completely filled!

The abyss vanished; spiritual sense ascended!

Mo Hua's mind sea suddenly trembled; he felt his spiritual sense surge violently, expanding outward, becoming thicker and more potent.

His spiritual sense had finally crossed the threshold—reaching Foundation Establishment middle stage—

Fourteenth-mark spiritual sense!

…

Meanwhile, outside the mind sea.

At the instant his mind sea broke through, Mo Hua's spiritual sense overflowed; the fourteenth-mark Foundation Establishment spiritual sense erupted in violent ripples, spreading outward.

All the True Persons present were startled.

"That just now…?"

"Foundation Establishment spiritual sense?"

"Foundation Establishment… middle stage?"

They all turned instinctively toward Mo Hua, hidden beneath the Brocade River-and-Mountain Umbrella.

Foundation Establishment spiritual sense fluctuations were indeed weak to them—True Persons—even negligible…

But one must consider who emitted this spiritual sense…

"Was that spiritual sense fluctuation… from this young cultivator?"

One True Person murmured.

"It must be…"

Others were uncertain.

If it weren't, with so many Liu Yuhua cultivators watching, it couldn't be wrong.

But if it was…

The spiritual sense of a Foundation Establishment mid-stage…

They glanced again at the tiny Mo Hua.

Is this the spiritual strength appropriate for someone his age, his realm, his level?

Even Bai Qingcheng showed surprise, her expression momentarily dazed.

Yet Sister Situ's expression was solemn.

Just now, that spiritual sense fluctuation was undeniably a Foundation Establishment spiritual sense.

But when the spiritual sense fluctuation faded, Sister Situ tried probing with her awareness again—only to find Mo Hua surrounded by mist, chaotic and strange, utterly imperceptible.

Clearly, someone or something had concealed his qi and his karmic threads.

If it were Mr. Zhuang, that would be fine—but if it were… the Weird Daoist…

Sister Situ's expression turned grave, her gaze sharpening.

There could be no spiritual sense fluctuation without cause.

Unless something abnormal had occurred within this child's mind sea.

Now that he has been seeded with the Demon of the Dao Heart, the only possible anomaly could be…

The Weird Daoist swallowed this child's spiritual sense?!

Sister Situ's heart turned cold; she knew disaster was imminent.

At that moment, Mo Hua suddenly moved.

He clutched his head, his expression showing pain, discomfort, and confusion…

Everyone was startled, their expressions changing drastically, all as if facing a deadly foe!

The Weird Daoist… awakened?

Someone drew a blade, someone unsheathed a sword, someone summoned a magical artifact…

Yet, for the moment, awed by the Weird Daoist's authority and terrified by the mystery of the Demon of the Dao Heart, none dared move.

The room fell silent, not even a pin could drop.

Beneath the Brocade Shanhe Umbrella, Mo Hua's pupils remained pitch black.

Right before everyone's eyes, he shook his head, regained a little spiritual sense, then raised his small hand and rubbed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again…

The black within them gradually faded; his gaze returned clear and bright.

Everyone froze in place.

"This is…"

"What happened?"

The Demon of the Dao Heart means certain death—either madness at best, or total loss of body and soul, with no burial place at worst!

How could he be unharmed?

Sister Situ stared at Mo Hua's eyes for several moments; seeing those pupils, sharply divided between black and white, pure and clear, vivid and nimble, she drew in a sharp breath.

"This… how is it possible…"

"Can the Demon of the Dao Heart heal itself?"

Utterly unheard of?!

Sister Situ's heart trembled.

Who exactly is this young cultivator?

Sister Situ's gaze flickered with confusion; then she looked again at Mo Hua, paused, and, in a daze, realized he had changed in some way.

His face was still innocent and pure.

But his gaze was deep—half clear, half strange, the two merging seamlessly.

One aspect of evolution, one of strangeness—naturally complete…

Thank you to Wind's Chocolate, the Burned Fire Mage, katiestar, and Duke of the Wind's donations~

(End of Chapter)