Chapter 684: The Demon God

After returning to the sect, Mo Hua immediately sent a message to Gu Changhuai:

"Uncle Gu, keep an eye on 'Guo Jiang Long'—someone's going to tamper with him."

Gu Changhuai replied quickly, "How do you know?"

Mo Hua: "I heard it…"

Gu Changhuai: "Who from?"

Mo Hua hesitated, then asked, "If I tell you, will you believe me?"

On the other end, Gu Changhuai clearly paused, then said, "Tell me."

"It was a disciple from Duanjin Gate—he's called 'Young Master Jin,'" Mo Hua said.

"Young Master Jin?"

"Mm."

Mo Hua continued, "He told Guo Jiang Long to enter Dao Yu first, then fake his death inside Dao Yu, change his appearance, and reemerge under a new identity…"

Gu Changhuai fell silent, his gaze turning fearsome.

This kind of substitution violates the law and is a grave taboo for Dao Ting Si.

Some minor Dao Ting Si offices might be corrupt and bold enough to do this, but this is Qianxue Prefecture—a Fifth-Rank Dao Ting Si…

Gu Changhuai found it hard to believe.

But this boy Mo Hua, though eccentric and unpredictable, wouldn't speak recklessly on something like this.

Mo Hua said, "So I sent 'Guo Jiang Long' into Dao Yu—watch him, see if you can uncover a mole in Dao Ting Si."

Gu Changhuai was surprised, and after a long pause, replied, "Alright…"

Mo Hua asked again, "Can Dao Ting Si investigate Duanjin Gate?"

Gu Changhuai said, "No. We can't interfere in internal affairs of major sects unless we have clear evidence that a disciple has broken Dao Law and committed a grave crime—otherwise, we can't investigate, let alone arrest."

Mo Hua felt disappointed.

"Have you uncovered something else?" Gu Changhuai asked.

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then didn't hide it:

"I suspect the black-cloaked traffickers in Qian Province are these sect disciples—and this 'Young Master Jin' of Duanjin Gate is very likely one of them…"

Gu Changhuai fell silent again, then spoke slowly:

"Don't get involved in this."

Mo Hua froze, sensing something was off. "Uncle Gu… you already knew?"

Gu Changhuai said nothing.

Of course!

His silence was confirmation.

Mo Hua had already found it strange—if the black-cloaked traffickers were truly deeply entrenched, how could Dao Ting Si know nothing?

Mo Hua hurriedly asked, "Uncle Gu, how much do you know?"

There was no reply.

Mo Hua sent again: "Uncle Gu," "Uncle Gu, are you there?" "Uncle Gu, say something…"

Gu Changhuai couldn't take it anymore, sighed, and said slowly:

"You know about Yu'er's abduction, right?"

"Mm." Mo Hua nodded.

How could he not know?

Gu Changhuai said, "That day, you… by chance, took Yu'er away, and soon after, several black-cloaked figures showed up at the eatery."

"They were there to 'collect the goods.'"

"Dao Ting Si surrounded them—the leader escaped, but the rest were captured, and all of them died without exception. Demon qi destroyed their bodies, corrupted their meridians and spiritual roots, leaving only black, stinking clumps of flesh…"

"This isn't an isolated case."

"Long ago, heirs from noble families with top-grade spiritual roots went missing. Dao Ting Si tracked down the traffickers, but every single one had been obliterated by demon qi—no trace left…"

"So we deduced…"

Gu Changhuai gritted his teeth, "…many noble heirs have fallen to demonhood, become demons' beasts, yet wear human skins and conceal their aura…"

Mo Hua frowned tightly, "Can't you investigate?"

Gu Changhuai sighed, "No. And we can't investigate…"

"The sects are powerful, mostly protective of their own, and tied to colossal noble families…"

"A Fifth-Rank Dao Ting Si in Qianxue Prefecture simply lacks the power to intervene in these great forces and probe such sensitive matters…"

"After all, a disciple falling to demonhood is a massive scandal for any noble family or sect—in severe cases, it could lead to Dao Ting Tianquan Pavilion forcibly demoting the sect's rank…"

"I see…" Mo Hua nodded.

"But that doesn't make sense…" Mo Hua thought again, puzzled. "All major sects in Qian Province strictly forbid disciples from practicing demonic or heretical arts, and ban any demonic, demonic techniques, or evil artifacts from being brought onto the mountain…"

"The sect gates are also fortified with measures to detect demonic and monstrous qi."

"If these disciples have fallen to demonhood, even if they wear human skin, they should be detected—how can they even enter the sect gates, let alone hide safely within?"

"That's the strangest part…" Gu Changhuai's gaze turned icy, filled with confusion:

"No one knows how they conceal their identities—how, after falling to demonhood and committing acts worse than beasts, they can still move freely within sects, posing as noble scions…"

Mo Hua suddenly remembered something, his eyes sharpening, his expression grave as he asked:

"Uncle Gu, have you heard of the Demon God?"

Gu Changhuai looked plainly startled, "Why bring this up suddenly?"

"Uncle Gu, do you know what the Demon God is?"

Gu Changhuai pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "The Heavenly Demon and Evil God were great calamities from ancient legends; no one seems to know what they truly were."

"Few Daoist scriptures even mention them."

"Why out of nowhere…"

Gu Changhuai froze. "You don't actually think these events are connected to the Evil God…?"

Mo Hua: "Mm…"

Gu Changhuai took a deep breath and sighed.

"Did you read some bizarre Daoist heresies or some weird tales of immortals and gods…?"

You've got quite the imagination…

Mo Hua blinked. "Really…?"

Gu Changhuai shook his head. "This is Qian Province, governed by the Great Dao of Chengqian. Noble families endure, sects abound, and countless cultivators of great power dwell here—how could an Evil God even take root or spread its teachings?"

Mo Hua: "But you don't even know what the Evil God is—how can you say it can't spread its teachings?"

Gu Changhuai was left speechless by Mo Hua's question.

He thought long and hard, realizing he couldn't let himself be dragged down this child's rabbit hole—he'd only get lost in it himself.

Gu Changhuai said, "Focus on your cultivation, solidify your foundation, strive to break through your realm soon, and prepare for Golden Core. Don't dwell on such fanciful, supernatural nonsense—it will disorder your Dao heart and waste your cultivation."

Mo Hua sighed.

But if he didn't think about these "gods and demons," his cultivation wouldn't break through either…

Without gnawing a few bites out of the Evil God, once he hit a bottleneck, he might not even make it past Foundation Establishment mid-stage.

"What if… the Evil God really exists?" Mo Hua tried once more.

Gu Changhuai genuinely tried to imagine it—but the more he thought, the more abstract it became.

The term "Evil God" was too alien.

In his established Daoist understanding, knowledge of "Evil God" was nearly nonexistent; he couldn't picture what it might look like…

He couldn't imagine how, or in what form, an Evil God could possibly descend upon the vast Fifth-Rank Qianxue Province.

Mo Hua gave up.

He tried to see it from Gu Uncle's perspective—it really did seem hard to understand.

Like a child raised all his life in a great mountain who suddenly learns the world has oceans—he'd be utterly bewildered.

Mo Hua suddenly remembered what his master had once said.

Only with sufficiently strong spiritual awareness could one see the truth beneath appearances, the essence of all things in this world.

The Evil God must be one such "invisible" truth.

Ordinary cultivators, unless they walk the path of spiritual awareness, seem unable to perceive gods.

Not to mention the Evil God—even the humble, fallen Mountain Lord Huang Shanjun, most cultivators probably couldn't see…

Mo Hua conceded, and said to Gu Changhuai:

"Yes, I just saw a strange text in the Scripture Hall called 'The Ten Great Evil Gods of Ancient and Modern Times.' It says the Evil God manipulates the spiritual awareness of foolish cultivators and devours people…"

Gu Changhuai fell silent for a moment, then couldn't help saying:

"Your Grand Void Gate's scripture collection really has… peculiar tastes…"

Mo Hua said no more.

Sometimes, ignorance is a kind of happiness.

He himself had too strong a spiritual awareness—sometimes, he couldn't be happy.

Mo Hua suddenly remembered one more thing and warned:

"Gu Uncle, be careful lately—someone's watching you…"

Young Master Jin and his group have pinned all the crimes of every outlaw on your name, believing you're the "mastermind" behind everything.

Gu Uncle has unwittingly become a "scapegoat," shouldering a "huge black pot."

Mo Hua felt guilty.

But Gu Changhuai was used to it. "As Dao Court's Chief Inspector, I'm watched by many anyway—more or less doesn't matter."

Mo Hua still urged: "Then be careful…"

"Mm." Gu Changhuai replied coolly.

Mo Hua was reassured.

Gu Uncle had so many debts he didn't care, so many lice he didn't itch—he probably wasn't dragged down by me…

Gu Changhuai pondered for a moment, then said to Mo Hua:

"I'll keep an eye on that overlord. As for Young Master Jin and Duanjin Gate, I'll pay attention too…"

"Don't meddle in the matter of sect disciples falling into demonic corruption or the black-cloaked traffickers—it's deeper than you know. Don't get yourself trapped."

After speaking, Gu Changhuai realized his words were useless—Mo Hua would do what he wanted anyway, and he couldn't stop him—so he added:

"Be careful. If you find any clues, tell me. If you run into trouble, come to me."

"Mm-mm!"

Mo Hua nodded eagerly.

He wasn't a fool.

Whether it was the black-cloaked cultivators or the sect disciples falling into demonic corruption, neither was something he could solve alone. Now that there was a ready ally, he wouldn't refuse.

Their conversation ended here.

In the days that followed, Mo Hua trained as usual, practicing arrays and refining his spiritual awareness.

His cultivation advanced steadily, inch by inch.

Because he didn't emphasize foundations, only speed, his progress was neither fast nor slow compared to his peers.

His spiritual power had grown much deeper since his Foundation Establishment, but he was still some distance from breaking through to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

But beyond that, the realm of his spiritual sense was grueling.

His spiritual sense was already far too strong, far exceeding the early-stage Foundation Establishment realm, and now stuck at the bottleneck of late-stage Foundation Establishment spiritual sense.

Thus, relying solely on drawing arrays to wear it down was like dripping water piercing stone—far too slow.

And with his spiritual sense stuck at sixteen-pattern, his array skill naturally could not improve.

During this time, Mo Hua could only try to broaden the scope of his array knowledge, learning more Five Elements and Eight Trigrams arrays.

But Mo Hua was already tired of drawing sixteen-pattern arrays.

He longed to draw seventeen-pattern and higher, second-rank high-grade arrays.

Especially seventeen-pattern and higher Meta-Magnetism arrays, which would inevitably involve deeper Meta-Magnetism array principles and more advanced array applications.

Mo Hua's heart burned with anticipation.

But without breaking through his spiritual sense, all of it was empty talk.

The demons in Yu'er's nightmares had also grown fewer.

Yu'er's complexion improved day by day, and Mo Hua was quite pleased.

But his own "food supply" was dwindling day by day, and Mo Hua still felt a pang of regret.

"I wonder when I'll get to 'feast'…"

Mo Hua muttered to himself.

Otherwise, he'd have to wait another year, until his cultivation broke through and his spiritual sea expanded, before he could overcome the spiritual sense bottleneck.

And then there was the matter of the "Evil God"…

Others could ignore it, but he couldn't.

These days, Mo Hua had pondered deeply.

According to Huang Shanjun's earlier words, Mo Hua had deduced that spiritual sense advancement had two dimensions.

One was the "grade" of spiritual sense, the other was its "tier."

Consuming demons, ghosts, and monsters enhanced the "grade" of spiritual sense—the "quantity"—what is called spiritual sense realm;

Ingesting spiritual marrow enhanced the "tier" of spiritual sense—the "quality"—what is called the divine rank.

Ordinary cultivators' spiritual sense advancement only involved "grade," merely quantitative change.

But since he learned the Great Expansion Scripture, his spiritual sense seemed capable of qualitative change, like a deity, elevating its "tier."

This meant that if he wished to "attain Dao through spiritual sense," he must cultivate both quality and quantity, raising both grade and tier together.

Raising spiritual sense grade was already troublesome enough; now he must also raise tier.

Mo Hua's head ached.

The only path now was to find a way to inch closer to the Evil God.

Demons were the Evil God's lackeys; spiritual marrow was hidden within the Evil God's divine corpse.

For spiritual sense, both were supreme nourishment!

But the Evil God hid too deeply…

Gu Shuji, such a spiritual sense fool, wouldn't believe him even if he told him.

And now that Huo Fotuo was dead and Bishan Demon Temple had sunk, the only clue left was the outsider on the same list as Huo Fotuo.

But he couldn't keep watch on the outsider.

He couldn't leave the sect, nor enter Dao Prison—he was too far away. This matter could only be entrusted to Gu Shuji.

Moreover, this involved a traitor within Dao Ting Si—it was already an internal Dao Ting Si matter.

He couldn't interfere.

The outsider was a worm; he must be used as bait.

But fishing required patience—never rush.

Wait for the fish to bite, wait for the big fish to take the hook.

Thus, only Xu Xu could be pursued…

Mo Hua sighed.

It seemed he'd have to go hungry a while longer…

"Where exactly is the Evil God's divine corpse hidden…"

…

While Mo Hua plotted against the Evil God, in a forbidden zone, Mr. Tu suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils contracting sharply.

That heart-stopping sensation came again…

This time, he was utterly certain: someone was daringly coveting the Divine Lord!

Suddenly, Mr. Tu's face cracked, his pupils black and hollow, as if parasitized, his voice rasping out sharply:

"Find him!"

"Find whoever it is!"

Mr. Tu instantly became terrified, trembling as he whispered: "Yes, yes…"

"Divine Lord, calm your wrath…"

"It's all my fault, my fault—I searched, but couldn't find him…"

"Ages over a hundred, hawk-like nose, deep nasolabial folds, piercing eyes with hidden brilliance, outwardly gentle, smile soft yet cruel…"

"Though there are a few such men in Ganxue Province, none match the description."

"They lack the power to disrupt the Divine Lord's grand plan…"

From Mr. Tu's mouth suddenly erupted a terrifying, authoritative roar—not human at all.

Afterwards, Mr. Tu's face turned even paler.

"Yes…"

"But the lackeys on the list have suffered too many losses, the altar of the Bishan Divine Hall was destroyed, and the demon slaves were nearly wiped out…"

"Too many of the Shen-chu who trafficked in humans and livestock have died, so the humans and livestock have dwindled, and the sacrificial offerings are being raised more slowly. The progress of that formation can only…"

Before Mr. Tu could finish, blood suddenly poured from his seven orifices. He collapsed uncontrollably to the ground, his four limbs contorting.

"Yes, yes, it was this old servant who spoke out of turn…"

Mr. Tu endured the agony, his voice hoarse.

After a while, the evil power receded slightly. Only then did he slowly crawl up, trembling, and once more kneel on the ground, devoutly saying:

"My loyalty to the Divine Lord is immortal and indestructible!"

"One day, the great Divine Lord shall awaken from his long slumber and descend upon the Great Wasteland!"

After Mr. Tu finished this sentence, his taut body eased slightly, and he visibly let out a breath of relief.

He then continued slowly: "Someone is obstructing the Divine Lord's great plan…"

"All of this is entirely because… someone is secretly manipulating things from the shadows."

"The divine fetus has been protected by someone. The demons who borrowed the Divine Lord's authority to issue commands have also gone, never to return…"

"Even… one divine servant died, and the Divine Eye—one of the ten thousand divine remains—that had taken lodging in his body, also… perished."

"Only then did I realize that I was wrong."

"I underestimated him."

"This person is certainly no ordinary formation master."

"This person who has repeatedly defiled the Divine Lord and obstructed the Divine Lord's great plan is very likely a Divine Dao formation master who cultivates Divine Dao formations, or a terrifying sword cultivator who cultivates Divine Sense arts."

"If he cultivates Divine Dao formations, I would not be afraid."

"But if it is Divine Sense sword arts…"

In Mr. Tu's eyes, an intense wariness arose.

A terrifying art of transforming Divine Sense into swords, which had already been classified as a forbidden technique, resurfaced in his mind.

Mr. Tu finally kowtowed toward the human-faced ram's horn before him—with its savage fangs, bloodstains, and ghastly white bone—and said:

"I will find out…"

"All those who dare to obstruct the Divine Lord's great plan shall in the end become lowly dogs, sinking into the mountain purgatory, their divine souls utterly destroyed, never to be reborn across all eternity!"

"Grand Void Gate…"

Mr. Tu's voice gradually faded until it could no longer be heard.

After he finished speaking, he did not dare look directly at the human-faced ram's horn statue. With lowered gaze and bowed body, he retreated backward in a humble fashion.

Only after retreating out of the altar did he slowly stand up, pull out a human skin, and drape it over himself.

The human skin covered his body and gradually spread, concealing his deathly white, wrinkled face, as well as his skin—long soaked in blood water, stained with blood, and full of cracks.

Mr. Tu thus transformed into a tall and slender middle-aged cultivator with fair skin and a gentle, refined gaze.

He shed the ugliness and servility of moments before, and with a warm smile, slowly walked out of the grim forbidden ground.

(End of chapter)