Chapter 653: Raiding the Home

Flames of evil raged across the Fire Buddha's body.

Gu Changhuai had just opened his mouth to warn everyone, when Xiao Tianquan let out a cold laugh:

"Evil demons and bandits—just one man. No matter how powerful you are, you're a lone tree unable to hold back a storm."

"All of you, attack together! Surround and kill this demon bandit!"

"Whoever slays the Fire Buddha shall earn great merit!"

Gu Changhuai frowned.

Several executives, driven by greed for merit, upon hearing the words "great merit," gleamed with eagerness and immediately channeled their spiritual energy, rushing full-force toward the Fire Buddha.

Even if the Fire Buddha was strong, he was merely at the peak of Foundation Establishment.

Most of them were at the late stage of Foundation Establishment—their cultivation levels weren't vastly different; even if they couldn't defeat him, they could hold their ground for a moment and wouldn't fall quickly.

If fortune favored them and they slew the Fire Buddha outright, the position of Gu Diansi would be within reach.

Several bold executives charged forward first, rushing to attack the Fire Buddha.

The Fire Buddha was engulfed in flames, unmoving as a mountain.

Suddenly, his expression turned icy, his gaze brimming with killing intent, and his entire aura shifted abruptly.

Gu Changhuai's expression changed. "Damn it!"

Before the words were out, he flicked his folding fan, summoning waves of wind blades that slashed toward the Fire Buddha, trying to interrupt his killing technique.

A cold smile curled on the Fire Buddha's lips; his red cassock surged, coalescing into a wall of fire.

The wind blades struck the fire wall.

The fire wall shattered, and the wind blades vanished entirely.

Gu Changhuai, unable to use Jin Dan power, was stronger than the peak Foundation Establishment Fire Buddha—but only slightly.

In this initial clash, both sides were evenly matched.

After using the fire wall to block the wind blades, the Fire Buddha's eyes turned crimson, his killing intent surging.

Like a ferocious beast baring its bloodthirsty fangs.

Flames of Xiong Xiongliehuo burned upon his body, but in an instant, those flames turned gray and murky; his entire aura began to twist.

In the void, low moans of agony and terrified wails echoed.

As if every soul slain by his technique had become "karmic sin."

Profound karmic sin transformed into eerie sha-qi.

The sha-qi merged with his technique, rising with the flames, gradually spreading, filling the entire hall.

A shadow settled over every heart; their Dao hearts trembled, and fear arose uncontrollably.

At this moment, the Fire Buddha resembled a demon from hell, bound in endless karmic fire, having committed countless murders.

Especially the Dao Ting Si cultivators near the Fire Buddha.

In their eyes, the Fire Buddha had suddenly transformed from the benevolent, kind-faced "Buddha" into a man-eating "demon," his aura grotesque and terrifying.

The sha-qi within the flames invaded their minds.

A bone-deep fear enveloped their hearts.

Their limbs grew weak; though they gritted their teeth, they couldn't stop trembling.

Their bodies and spiritual energy, paralyzed by the fear brought by the sha-qi, lost all control.

Their terror of "death" drove them straight into death.

The Fire Buddha let out a cold laugh, clenching his palm to form a blade of fire, then slashed downward—a crimson streak of flame cut through the air, slaughtering every executive who had been infected by sha-qi, paralyzed by fear, and too terrified to resist.

Gu Changhuai was furious, yet a chill crept into his heart.

"Sha-qi?!"

Gu Changhuai's gaze turned icy. "Monster, how did you come by Mosha Sect's 'Guiding Sha-Qi Into Technique'?"

The Fire Buddha clasped his hands. "The Buddha is compassionate—he granted me this technique, to use karmic fire to 'save all beings.'"

Gu Changhuai cursed: "You bald bastard, shut your filthy mouth!"

The Fire Buddha's expression remained cold, unmoved by anger; he stared straight at Gu Changhuai.

In the glow of the flames, his gaze revealed a flicker of excitement and hatred.

"Back then, you severely injured my heart meridians—I hung between life and death…"

"That terror and agony of facing death—I'll never forget it…"

"Now that I've perfected my Fallen Fire Technique, and transformed killing into sha-qi, refined sha-qi through technique, and subdued sha-qi with the Buddha, I've fused sin, heart, and technique into one—my forbidden art is complete!"

"How will you kill me?"

The Fire Buddha whispered with a cold laugh:

"When I break through to Jin Dan, I will spare no effort to slaughter every person close to you, Gu Changhuai—using your flesh, your hatred, your blood to forge the true… Jin Dan Fire Sha!"

Gu Changhuai's rage hardened into bone-deep killing intent:

"Then today, I will flay you alive, and shred your corpse into ten thousand pieces!"

Gu Changhuai's spiritual energy surged violently, summoning a terrifying gale; upon the wind, blades stood thick as scales, dense as wings.

The Fire Buddha's expression shifted slightly; a trace of wariness appeared in his gaze.

"The Gu family's supreme Dao art—Ling Feng Hua Yu Jue!"

Years ago, it was this technique that shredded his heart meridians, leaving him as a dying candle.

After all these years, this supreme Dao art had grown even more terrifying.

Yet the Fire Buddha was not afraid—his gaze burned with even greater battle lust.

Today, he would meet the Gu family's Ling Feng Hua Yu Dao art—the art of generations of Dao Ting Si lapdogs—with his perfected, sha-qi-infused Fallen Fire Forbidden Art!

He would sever his old grudge, and shatter his inner demon.

Huo Fotuo's eyes were murky and evil, his body radiating murderous qi to its peak.

Within a radius of several zhang, all Dao Ting Si cultivators were shaken by the murderous qi, their hearts filled with terror, unable to move.

Then Huo Fotuo spread his arms, and his cassock burst into roaring flames, coalescing into hundreds of points of fire rain.

These fire rains condensed terrifying evil power, and in an instant, like a storm of sparks, they shot outward, striking the Dao Ting Si cultivators paralyzed by fear.

Gu Changhuai frowned.

He too was affected by the murderous qi, but his cultivation was deep, his resolve to kill Huo Fotuo firm, so he suffered no serious harm.

Seeing Huo Fotuo unleash the fire rain, intending to slaughter the Dao Ting Si cultivators,

Gu Changhuai's expression turned icy; he swept his fan sideways, and the wind blades around him, like feathers, surged toward the fire rain.

For a moment, wind blades clashed with fire rain, flickering and rising in turn.

Spiritual energy surged everywhere.

Most of the fire rain was neutralized by Gu Changhuai's wind blades.

A few fire raindrops escaped, striking the cultivators and spreading like seeds of fire—flames instantly erupted, releasing compressed evil power, and flames laced with murderous qi swallowed the cultivators whole.

The cultivators scorched by falling fire writhed on the ground.

Moans rose and fell in succession.

At this moment, the demonic cultivators inside the bronze labyrinth also arrived.

They had killed many Dao Ting Si Zhisi, but many had also been slain by Gu Changhuai; now fewer than a hundred remained.

The three leaders at the front were precisely the ones Mo Hua knew well.

They were Xue Qiaofu, Yin Leizi, and Gui Mian Sha—the three who had once hunted Mo Hua.

"Big brother! We've come to aid you!"

"Kill these Dao Ting Si dog pups!"

A group of demonic cultivators sneered and joined the battlefield.

Gu Changhuai ordered the Zhisi: "I'll handle Huo Fotuo. You all fall back—watch out for the murderous qi!"

Having said this, Gu Changhuai leaped forward alone to confront the Fire Buddha.

The other Zhisi scattered in terror away from Huo Fotuo, engaging in a desperate, chaotic battle with Xue Qiaofu and the demonic cultivators.

The scene grew even bloodier and more chaotic.

Spells flew in all directions; flesh met steel in brutal combat.

Spiritual weapons clashed with demonic artifacts; spiritual energy entwined with evil power.

The demonic cultivators bore wounds, their eyes bloodshot; the Dao Ting Si cultivators, too, fought with bloodshot eyes.

At this moment, none dared flee.

Fight to the death—hold on to one last breath, and you might survive; if you even thought of running, you'd be cut down the moment you turned your back…

Mo Hua could only watch from the side, unable to intervene…

He had only Foundation Establishment early stage cultivation, and his spiritual energy was limited.

These Dao Ting Si cultivators and demonic cultivators all started at Foundation Establishment mid-stage, many even at late-stage.

His Fireball Technique posed little threat.

Especially since some demonic cultivators wore armor or wielded demonic "Blood Armor Technique" or "Poison Armor Technique" for defense.

His Fireball Technique could only tickle them.

As for control…

In this mass melee, with real blades and real blood, his minor control wasn't needed.

He had enough self-awareness to stay hidden, quietly lurking to one side, not drawing attention.

If he rashly intervened and accidentally drew Huo Fotuo's attention—or got caught by the demonic cultivators—he'd only bring great trouble to Uncle Gu and the others…

And…

Mo Hua stole another glance at the central hall, where Uncle Gu battled Huo Fotuo, whose body surged with falling fire like a hellish "Flame Demon," and he couldn't help but whistle.

This Huo Fotuo… is he really that strong…

Far stronger than he'd imagined.

Murderous qi, fire cassock, and the Falling Fire Forbidden Art…

The murderous qi could intimidate and control enemies.

Once terrified by the murderous qi, those with unstable Dao hearts and weak wills would instantly lose resistance, becoming meat on the chopping block, at Huo Fotuo's mercy.

In that case, surrounding him became meaningless.

As soon as he unleashed the murderous qi, all enemies would be paralyzed by fear, and then Huo Fotuo could activate his forbidden art and slaughter at will.

It was simply absurd…

Unless one had an unshakable Dao heart and righteous qi, or had brought a spiritual artifact that repelled murderous qi, ordinary cultivators of the same stage had no chance against Huo Fotuo.

But artifacts that repelled murderous qi were probably rare, and likely extremely expensive.

Dao Ting Si couldn't possibly equip one to every cultivator…

That cassock was surely no ordinary spiritual artifact.

And then there was the Falling Fire Technique…

Huo Fotuo fought Uncle Gu with wide, unrestrained strikes, giving everything, holding nothing back.

This gave Mo Hua a chance to study it.

Mo Hua observed and pondered for a long time from the side, discovering that this Falling Fire Technique differed greatly from what he had assumed.

First, though it was a forbidden art and possibly stronger than top-tier spells, it was still a "technique-altering" spell, not a "spirit-altering" spell.

It is a Technique-Transformation spell, not a Spirit-Transformation spell.

This spell of Falling Fire has a forward structural design: spiritual energy flows through the formula to form the spell.

Not a reverse one that triggers formula collapse and alters the spiritual energy structure.

But this spell accumulates too much spiritual energy, its power is too great, it easily goes out of control, likely corrupts the user's mind, and breeds excessive slaughter—hence it was classified as a "forbidden technique."

Mo Hua sighed.

He probably couldn't learn the original version of the Falling Fire spell.

Because the spiritual energy required to form the spell is simply too vast.

The fire Buddha before him radiated chaotic energy like an ocean, his entire body resembling a fire-elemental beast, his qi sea's power seemingly endless.

In comparison, his own spiritual energy was like a small stream…

Not quite this extreme, but close enough.

Without a top-grade spiritual root, without cultivating a top-grade scripture, without a qi sea brimming with vast spiritual energy—one cannot master such a high-casualty forbidden technique…

And it's not just that.

Observing the flow of spiritual energy on the fire Buddha's body, Mo Hua realized the fire Buddha possessed two qi seas.

Those two "Flame Hearts."

The two Flame Hearts burned with Xiong Xiongliehuo, storing spiritual energy and catalyzing spells simultaneously.

Together, they made the fire Buddha's fire spells even more terrifying…

But the underlying principle remained a mystery to Mo Hua.

He couldn't fathom how such a spell was structured.

After all, though his eyesight was sharp, some things could not be fully understood by sight alone…

"Falling Fire spell…"

Mo Hua felt envy stir within him.

If only he had such a superior spiritual root, such profound spiritual energy, he could learn this high-tier spell—or forbidden technique—that consumed immense energy and delivered immense power…

He wouldn't have to rely on tiny fireballs to burn people every day…

But Mo Hua was not discouraged.

Though he couldn't learn the original Falling Fire spell, studying its formula structure and spell composition principles should be possible.

That was his original plan.

At this thought, Mo Hua froze, then his heart lurched.

He had almost forgotten a critical issue.

If the fire Buddha were captured—or killed now—his Falling Fire spell would fall into Dao Ting Si's hands, and Mo Hua would never obtain it in his lifetime…

What should he do?

He couldn't possibly sabotage things behind the scenes to let the fire Buddha escape, could he?

If the fire Buddha escaped and went on killing again, his own guilt would be immense.

And judging by the current situation, Uncle Gu might not even be able to kill the fire Buddha…

This is within the territory of a second-rank Xiancheng; Uncle Gu dares not unleash his full power.

Letting the fire Buddha flee outright is even worse.

Mo Hua gazed at the fire Buddha, wreathed in flames, locked in fierce combat, and slowly frowned.

"The incantation of the Falling Fire spell… would the fire Buddha carry it on his person?"

If he carried it, Mo Hua would never get his hands on it…

If he didn't carry it, where would he hide it?

Mo Hua shifted his gaze and stealthily scanned the entire hall.

The hall was grand and imposing, ancient and eerie, clearly used by demonic cultivators for gatherings and worship.

But based on Mo Hua's experience and instinct, he felt certain the hall contained something like a "ritual altar."

Many corpse cultivators, demonic cultivators, and evil cultivators he knew favored setting up altars.

The fire Buddha wouldn't be an exception.

And given the fire Buddha's habit of hiding things away, his decision to intercept everyone and engage in battle within this hall suggests this hall is not the true inner sanctum's secret.

Beyond this hall lies a deeper layer of secrecy…

Should he search for it?

After all, he couldn't help here anyway.

Mo Hua stole another glance at the fire Buddha and saw that he and Uncle Gu were now fighting with bloodshot eyes; he slowly nodded.

Thanks to his concealment technique, no one knew Mo Hua's movements.

He remained hidden, slipped past the fire Buddha and other demonic cultivators, and walked deeper into the hall…

Let them fight their battle.

He was going to steal the house…

The hall was vast; the rear was beyond the reach of the lamps, dim and shadowed.

But as he walked all the way to the end, he found no other suspicious spots—only at the very rear was there carved a massive mural.

Under the hazy glow of the demonic hall's lamps, Mo Hua faintly saw the mural depicted countless wild, ancient Dashan, their terrain choked with thorns, perilous and treacherous, teeming with demons and monsters.

"Is this… the Wild Ancient Dashan Map?"

"What does it mean…"

Mo Hua frowned, unable to understand.

He looked around again and found only this mural remained; all other statues, architecture, and furnishings had either been removed or destroyed, leaving no clues.

The only clue might be this vast, magnificent mural.

"A mural, huh…"

Mo Hua remembered it again — that mural in the great hall of the Lu family's Corpse Mountain Shi Dian, in Nanyue City, Lizhou.

On the mural was carved the head of the Lu family's ancestor zombie.

The zombie's gaping mouth was the entrance to the altar.

Generally speaking, these corpse cultivators and demonic cultivators always left traces behind in what they did…

"Then this mural is also hiding an entrance?"

Having seen much really did have its benefits…

Mo Hua released his divine sense to check whether there was a formation on the mural.

Every single detail of the mural was taken in by Mo Hua — the demons and monsters, grotesque and ferocious; the mountains, perilous and jagged; the Lin Mu, silent and deep…

But after searching for a long while, he detected not the slightest trace of a formation.

Mo Hua was startled. "No formation?"

That made sense, too…

The best way to guard against formations was to not draw one.

Without a formation, in the eyes of a powerful formation master, there were no traces, no tells, and no flaws to be seen.

But though there was no formation, there seemed to be another kind of presence.

Mo Hua closed his eyes and felt, and indeed sensed a faint, very subtle presence, carrying a few threads of familiarity.

Following that thread of presence, Mo Hua came to a corner.

The mural here was simple — just a few clumps of grass, a few Lin Mu, and a narrow mountain path.

The mountain path wound backward, threading through the forest, seeming to run through the entire wild Dashan.

And the spot before him seemed to be both the starting point of the mountain path and the entrance of the mural.

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then tried reaching out to push.

The instant he pushed, everything before his eyes flipped, and a wave of wild, primal presence washed over him, as if the scenery on the mural had become real.

When he opened his eyes again, Mo Hua found himself inside a mountain.

Mo Hua's heart gave a slight jolt. He looked around, and only then realized that this mountain was a rockery.

It looked as if it had been deliberately carved out, but on no small scale.

The entire demon palace was built atop this rockery.

The rockery was intricate and complex; its terrain, mountain contours, and style were very similar to the wild Dashan depicted on the mural outside.

It seemed to have been built in imitation of the "Wild Dashan."

Mo Hua surveyed the mountain layout again and discovered that this Dashan also secretly conformed to the pattern of the "Sky-Riddle Formation."

The inner mountain layout and the outer labyrinth echoed one another, inside and out.

It gave quite the feeling of "a riddle within a riddle, a formation within a formation."

"This demon palace is full of all sorts of strange things…"

For the moment, Mo Hua was a bit at a loss.

Could all of this really have been built under Huo Fotuo's direction?

What exactly was this demon palace built for?

Sacrificial rites? How would they be performed?

And what, in the end, was Huo Fotuo's role in all this? What had he done?

Unable to figure it out, Mo Hua shook his head and continued deeper along the rockery.

Since it conformed to the "Sky-Riddle Formation," the rockery's layout and its tangled mountain paths could not stop Mo Hua.

Within the rockery, every mountain, every stone, every blade of grass, every tree exuded an eerie presence.

But in Mo Hua's eyes, they were all just crude, superficial facades.

Mo Hua kept his body concealed and kept walking into the mountain.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he reached the middle of the rockery.

Just as Mo Hua had expected, at the center of the rockery's riddle-formation there was indeed an altar.

(End of chapter)