Chapter 670: Soul Devourer

The black-cloaked leader's chest was blasted through, and he slowly knelt to the ground.

Mo Hua casually tossed two more fireballs, exploding them against the black-cloaked leader's body to verify the "corpse," confirming he was truly motionless.

Then, with his spiritual sense, he probed the black-cloaked leader's vital energy, confirming his corpse's spiritual power was stagnant, his breath utterly cut off—he was truly dead—and only then did he relax.

"Too much trouble…"

Mo Hua let out a long sigh.

Killing just one mid-Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator by himself was exhausting.

He had to scheme, had to lay ambushes.

He had to deceive, had to strike from surprise.

He had to use arrays and forbidden arts.

Only then could he barely manage to kill him.

Throughout, he had to tread as if on thin ice—no mistake allowed; otherwise, with his frail frame, one slip, one opening seized by this black-cloaked bastard, and he'd likely be doomed.

Too hard…

But thankfully, he'd finally killed him.

Mo Hua exhaled again.

The valley was sealed, desolate and secluded, utterly devoid of life.

It was the burial ground Mo Hua had deliberately chosen for the black-cloaked leader—to conceal the deed, unseen by anyone.

Now that the black-cloaked leader was dead, Mo Hua was about to search his body for clues or other valuable items.

But as he glanced closely, Mo Hua froze, his expression shifting slightly.

This black-cloaked leader was dead, yet unlike the other traffickers, his flesh had not been corrupted by demonic energy, had not turned into a pool of black sludge.

His body remained intact.

Mo Hua sensed something wrong and stepped back warily two paces.

In an instant, a stench-filled wind surged.

Mo Hua felt something suddenly draw near—but before him, there was nothing at all.

Mo Hua frowned, then gazed deeply, patterns rising and sinking as he used the Heavenly Mechanism to discern the truth hidden within the void around him.

The instant the Heavenly Mechanism opened his eyes, Mo Hua's pupils contracted.

Before him, a sinister eye had suddenly appeared.

This sinister eye clung tightly to his face, no more than a hair's breadth away.

Mo Hua could clearly see the bulging blood vessels within the eye, the bloody sockets, the writhing pale-red tentacles, and the savage, cold, "inhuman" emotions contained within its pupil…

Mo Hua was startled by this "ugly eye," his expression panicked, and he hastily retreated.

But the sinister eye was faster than him.

In an instant, the tentacles atop the sinister eye unfurled like tangled knots of sin, dense and countless, adhering entirely to Mo Hua's body, clinging tightly to him.

Simultaneously, the deformed sinister eye strained desperately to burrow into Mo Hua's pale forehead.

It had no choice.

Its former host was dead, lifeless—it had to find a new host, to parasitize living flesh.

And in this desolate, sealed valley, the only "living" being was Mo Hua.

It had no alternative.

Though it harbored confusion, bewilderment, anger, wariness, and an unknown "fear" toward Mo Hua in its mind.

Yet before the path of divine annihilation, it had no choice but to use Mo Hua as its new fleshly vessel.

Mo Hua, too, seemed paralyzed by the sinister eye's tentacles, losing all resistance, allowing the crimson demonic intent to erode him.

The sinister eye's plan was gradually succeeding.

The fleshly tentacles forged from demonic intent tightly bound Mo Hua's body.

On the sinister eye, bloody flesh began to peel away, transforming into a pale gold, haughty, majestic eye, inch by inch, drilling into Mo Hua's forehead, piercing his mind sea, entering his spiritual consciousness.

Mo Hua's mind sea was unexpectedly resilient.

Thus, breaching it took considerable time.

Once inside Mo Hua's mind sea, the pale gold sinister eye began to twist and reconstitute flesh.

Crimson blood surged backward, converging upon the sinister eye, gradually solidifying, incubating decayed flesh, coalescing into grotesque, malformed bloodstained remains, finally assembling into a massive, deformed blood demon.

On the demon's head were grotesque ram horns.

On its forehead was a pale gold eye.

The golden eye flashed—the massive demonic flesh body trembled, then opened two crimson demonic eyes, gazing down with superiority upon this human's mind sea.

Though it had lived long, been exalted, parasitized countless "servants," and devoured innumerable "offerings," it was still awed by the sight before it.

Such pure spiritual consciousness!

And so rich, so abundant.

To possess such a perfect spiritual consciousness, this human brat was far too precious to be merely an "offering."

Had his bloodline not been so inferior, he could have served as a vessel for a "divine embryo."

Yet…

The ram-horned demon's gaze darkened, his mind puzzled.

"Why… do I feel wariness? Even fear?"

"Why do I sense murderous intent as if facing a mortal enemy?"

"He is but a mere human, a dog beneath the path of the divine…"

"Why do I feel fear?"

What am I really afraid of?

The goat-horn demon's bloody gaze swept the surroundings, but found no other suspicious signs.

The golden evil eye on its forehead emitted a solemn pale golden light, yet under this golden glow, there was still no anomaly.

The goat-horn demon felt something was odd.

But upon further thought, this seemed normal enough.

No matter how profound one's cultivation or exalted one's status, a cultivator is still just a human.

Strip away worldly fame and fortune, and the outer shell—within, mortal spiritual awareness is either crude and vile, or corrupt and fallen, or shallow and weak.

Jin Yuqiwai, rotten at heart.

Strong cultivation, feeble will.

Such cultivators are everywhere.

Especially this mere Foundation Establishment beginner.

Probably just because he's young and hasn't been tainted by worldly desires, his spiritual awareness is so pure.

What else could you expect from him?

The goat-horn demon's eyes gleamed with greed, its mouth curled into a cruel smile.

"Eat him!"

No matter what schemes or hidden dangers lurk.

Once eaten, all problems vanish.

Humans are nothing but bait for the Dao, fodder for the gods, inherently base.

To be devoured by me is his honor.

Consume his spiritual awareness, use this mental sea as a breeding ground.

This brat is far better than those "foolishly loyal" idiots.

The goat-horn demon opened its bloody maw and began sucking in the abundant, pure spiritual awareness within the mental sea.

The moment the spiritual awareness entered its mouth, it widened its eyes.

These spiritual awarenesses are incredibly delicious!

So delicious, they don't even seem like human spiritual awareness!

The goat-horn demon was stunned, then its gaze turned greedy as it devoured even more spiritual awareness in huge gulps.

The sweet spiritual awareness filled it with bliss.

Its two blood-red demonic eyes narrowed slightly; the golden evil eye on its forehead glowed faintly, appearing almost drowsy.

As the goat-horn demon grew careless, it failed to notice a hidden figure slowly approaching.

Then, that figure suddenly leapt onto its head.

A small, pale hand suddenly appeared and seized the golden evil eye on its forehead.

As if trying to rip the golden eye out entirely.

Facing imminent danger, the goat-horn demon instantly shut its third eye.

But it was just a fraction too slow.

The pale hand still scraped against the golden evil eye, its force immense—tearing open several wounds that bled golden fluid like blood.

Yet the hand was too small and too slow—it failed to pluck the eye out.

The goat-horn demon had already closed its third eye.

At the same time, its demonic claws, laced with stench, lashed upward in fury.

Mo Hua had no choice but to leap off its head, take several backward steps to create distance, then stabilized his stance and revealed his form.

Eyebrows like brushstrokes, lips red, teeth white, like a porcelain doll.

His spiritual awareness body, shaped by the transformation of his spiritual essence, had nearly solidified in form—his age even younger than his original body.

The goat-horn demon saw Mo Hua's appearance and stared in shock.

"Spiritual awareness avatar?"

"A brat?!"

The golden evil eye on its forehead, wounded by Mo Hua, throbbed faintly.

Recalling the scene just now, the goat-horn demon felt dread—and then fury surged within:

What a treacherous brat!

What does he intend to do?!

Mo Hua's small hand was still smeared with "golden blood."

He put the finger coated in golden blood into his mouth and licked it, then his eyes lit up brightly.

This taste!

The taste of golden spiritual bone marrow!

The goat-horn demon witnessed this and was stunned, enraged, and even tinged with fear—it trembled as it rasped out:

"Audacious!"

"You… you dare… dare consume 'Spiritual Marrow'?!"

"Spiritual Marrow?" Mo Hua paused, unable to resist putting his finger back in his mouth and sucking it again, then nodded with a beaming smile:

"Tastes great!"

The goat-horn demon's eyes instantly turned blood-red.

It felt its dignity had been insulted.

Its divine essence had been desecrated.

Mortals who should have been sacrificed and consumed by the gods had the audacity to sip the divine marrow and taste the "blood of the gods."

Arrogant! Ignorant! Audacious beyond measure!

The ram-horned demon was furious, but when it looked again, the little ghost's figure had vanished once more.

"Invisibility?"

The ram-horned demon's pupils shrank slightly.

Why could it not pierce through?

Outside, it should have been visible.

Could it be that what it saw outside was the fleshly vessel, but within this mind sea, it could not perceive his spiritual form?

How could that be?

The ram-horned demon was stunned.

But it had no time to ponder, for it knew that once the little ghost vanished, the next attack would come soon…

As expected, moments later.

A flicker of spiritual energy on the right— a tiny figure leapt up and punched the ram-horned demon's head.

The ram-horned demon's face hardened; it instantly turned and swung its fist to meet the blow.

A pale, delicate little fist collided with a massive, bloody, monstrous demon fist.

Powerful spiritual energy rippled outward.

Mo Hua's little fist remained unharmed.

But the demon's fist now bore thin trails of blood.

The ram-horned demon was horrified.

What… is this little ghost?

Could a human cultivator's spiritual body surpass a demonic entity born of malice?

Mo Hua, finally getting to indulge his "body cultivator" fantasy, eyes gleaming with excitement, swung his fists again.

The ram-horned demon fought desperately, but despite its massive, bloody, monstrous form, it was losing ground.

"Wrong!"

The ram-horned demon's gaze sharpened; it struck first, its crimson claws slashing violently toward Mo Hua.

Mo Hua evaded with the Step of Flowing Water, nimble and swift.

Seizing the opening, the ram-horned demon reopened the golden demonic eye on its forehead.

A beam of Jin Guang shot from the demonic eye and struck Mo Hua.

On Mo Hua's body, several faint golden threads—like bone marrow—appeared.

The ram-horned demon's expression turned to shock, its voice sharp and hoarse:

"You're not human!"

Mo Hua froze.

The ram-horned demon's gaze trembled:

"Marrow fused into the spiritual body, forming a divine embryo… you… whose divine infant are you?"

Mo Hua blinked, stunned.

But then the ram-horned demon frowned, puzzled:

"No, still wrong…"

"You have the foundation of spiritual cultivation, yet why is your divine marrow so faint?"

"Why are there no traces of 'food-offering'?"

"Why is your humanity abundant, yet your divinity negligible?"

"This is impossible…"

The ram-horned demon's gaze sharpened, locking onto Mo Hua:

"Where did your divine position come from?"

"What incense do you consume? Whose faith do you receive?"

"Where is your authority?"

"What 'Dao' do you follow?"

…

Mo Hua was bewildered by its questions.

Divine embryo, spiritual cultivation, divine marrow, food-offering… divine position, incense, authority…

What in the world was this ugly, ram-horned demon asking? He understood nothing…

Was this… divine knowledge?

What should he do if he didn't know?

Mo Hua blinked, then decided to pretend—he grew cold and aloof, lifting his chin, assuming a haughty, superior posture.

"You're not worthy to know these things!"

The ram-horned demon's face darkened, but dared not speak out.

If this boy truly was a divine embryo, hatching some unknown god within his mind sea, then this fragment of an eye alone could not touch him.

If he was a divine embryo, then matters were simpler…

The earlier fear must have stemmed from dread of a complete divine embryo.

And…

The ram-horned demon's gaze grew dim.

Though he did not know what divine position this divine embryo occupied, the aura above its position bore a certain resemblance to his own.

It seemed to also originate from Da Huang.

There was likely some connection.

Yet he did not know where this divine position had come from…

Mo Hua saw that the ram-horned demon had been startled by his bluff, and felt a flicker of satisfaction; he then hardened his expression and demanded sternly:

"You have violated my taboos!"

The ram-horned demon's heart tightened, his gaze solemn.

Mo Hua added: "Reveal your origins, and I shall forgive you!"

The ram-horned demon spoke with solemn authority:

"I am the Lord of Da Huang!"

Mo Hua frowned. "Nonsense. The Lord of Da Huang is the master of Da Huang—how could he be so weak?"

Mo Hua wanted to learn more.

But no sooner had he spoken than the ram-horned demon's expression changed drastically; his gaze turned icy:

"You are not the Divine Lord!"

Mo Hua's heart skipped.

The ram-horned demon's eyes sharpened. "The Divine Lord would never ask such a shallow question. You are fake—you know nothing!"

Mo Hua sighed helplessly.

This was the drawback of lacking cultivation knowledge… no, divine knowledge.

He had tried to pretend he understood, but one encounter with a true expert exposed him in two sentences.

"I just woke up—I forgot…"

Mo Hua made up an excuse to buy time.

The ram-horned demon sneered: "How could something etched into your origin be forgotten?"

Mo Hua was exposed, and a flush of anger rose in him.

This ugly ram-horned brute—don't push your luck!

If you won't let me play pretend, then I won't play— I'll just kill you!

Without another word, Mo Hua vanished in an instant, reappearing before the ram-horned demon, and punched straight for its face.

The ram-horned demon crossed its arms and blocked the punch.

But cracks appeared on its arms, and its body involuntarily recoiled backward, shock surging within it.

"Why is this brat's divine thought avatar so powerful?"

"Is he even a god?"

Before it could think further, Mo Hua charged again—another plain, unadorned punch.

The ram-horned demon blocked again.

After several rounds, having taken many of Mo Hua's punches, the ram-horned demon grew furious.

"Unthinkable!"

For all these years, it had towered above all creatures of heaven and earth—never had it suffered such humiliation, being treated like a punching bag by a child?!

The ram-horned demon's golden evil eye on its forehead suddenly widened.

Pale golden divine essence, like blood, flowed throughout the demon's entire body.

Its body instantly swelled; its flesh shifted from crimson to pale gold.

An astonishing aura radiated from its entire form.

Mo Hua was startled, but still, with a try-it-and-see attitude, he punched forward again.

The pale gold ram-horned demon sneered contemptuously, and with a backhanded slap, sent Mo Hua flying.

Mo Hua crashed to the ground, slid a distance, then slowly rose to his feet.

His divine thought avatar was extremely resilient—no visible injuries marred his body.

But in pure physical strength, he was clearly no match for the ram-horned demon.

The ram-horned demon looked at Mo Hua coldly:

"You insolent brat—do you truly think I cannot kill you?"

Mo Hua sighed, helpless.

Though being a body cultivator was fun, it was exhausting—and hard to win against tricky opponents like this.

Seeing Mo Hua's expression, the ram-horned demon felt a bad premonition.

This brat… has other tricks?

What other tricks could he possibly have?

Then he saw Mo Hua point at him from afar.

The ram-horned demon's pupils shrank—and then saw pale blue water chains coil around its body, binding its demonic thought-form tightly.

"Divine thought technique?"

The ram-horned demon frowned, then a flash of golden light surged over its body, breaking free of the water prison.

It turned to charge at Mo Hua again—only to find red patterns had already emerged beneath its feet, interwoven with flames.

"This is… an array?!"

The ram-horned demon's gaze trembled; it snapped its eyes to Mo Hua, voice solemn:

"You are truly not a god!"

Mo Hua blinked in slight surprise.

What does that mean?

Just because you used an array, does that make you not a god?

Can a god not use arrays?

Though puzzled, Mo Hua didn't hesitate—he immediately detonated the Li Huo Array.

Flames swallowed the goat-horn demon.

Moments later, the fire faded, revealing the goat-horn demon's form—its pale golden flesh was cracked.

Though disheveled, the goat-horn demon's expression was unnervingly calm.

Even its lips curled into a faint smile.

"In the mind sea, manifesting an array…"

"I've lived for so many years, 'consumed' so many cultivators—those who can manifest arrays in the mind sea are few and far between."

"I never expected someone so young could reach this level…"

"But this level of array is still insufficient."

The goat-horn demon's forehead began to split open.

That golden evil eye protruded from its skull, tendrils spreading into the air, radiating a vast, irresistible, divine pressure.

"As long as you're human, it's easy…"

"Fear of gods is etched into the soul…"

"I'll let you feel the true majesty, originating from the divine source."

Instantly, the golden evil eye trembled violently, its inner Jin Guang surging.

A powerful Dao essence, infused with unknown laws, instantly spread out.

Mo Hua was engulfed in Jin Guang—his expression changed drastically.

He struggled desperately, yet seemed paralyzed by the Jin Guang's might; after a moment, his expression grew vacant, his resistance gone.

The goat-horn demon sneered.

A mere human dares defy a god?

The golden evil eye trembled, as if ravenous.

It wanted to savor this rare offering—worthy of a divine embryo.

Fleshy tendrils extended from the evil eye, binding Mo Hua like a rice dumpling.

Then they pulled him back, dragging him toward its gaping, bloodied maw.

Fanged jaws yawned like a chasm.

Saliva dripped from the goat-horn demon's lips.

Just as it was about to swallow Mo Hua whole—

Mo Hua, bound like a rice dumpling, expression vacant, suddenly blinked—and grinned slyly.

The goat-horn demon froze—then instantly realized what had happened, sending more tendrils surging toward Mo Hua.

Mo Hua's eyes gleamed; he whispered:

"Open!"

The ground suddenly erupted with vast arrays.

Lishan Huo Zang Fu Zhen!

These arrays crisscrossed, interlinked, forming a massive compound array.

Rocks rose in ridges, forming a prison that completely trapped the goat-horn demon's fleshly body.

Countless Li Huo explosions detonated, burning each tendril to ash.

Mo Hua surged free, leapt instantly onto the goat-horn demon's forehead, and grinned innocently at the protruding golden evil eye.

The golden evil eye panicked.

It unleashed even fiercer divine might—but Mo Hua remained utterly unaffected.

It tried to retreat—but Mo Hua wouldn't allow it.

With both small hands, he gripped the evil eye tightly, as if seizing a treasure, then gritted his teeth and pulled with all his strength.

A piercing, shrill scream rang out.

The golden evil eye was ripped from the goat-horn demon's flesh, born of demonic thought.

Mo Hua seized the chance and leapt away.

The ground's Li Huo Fu Zhen exploded fully, incinerating every scrap of crimson demonic flesh and tendril.

The golden evil eye trembled violently in Mo Hua's grasp.

A human's spirit cannot be immune to a god's majesty…

It shrieked in fury:

"You're not human!"

"You're not a god!"

"Then… what the hell are you?!"

Mo Hua stared at the pale golden divine eye, unable to resist licking his lips:

"I'm… the one who 'eats' gods!"

(End of Chapter)