Chapter 756: Secret (Bonus for Patron Shu Shiouo~)

Mo Hua chatted with Cheng Mo for a few more words, telling him to rest and recover, then returned to the disciples' quarters and secretly took out the small segment of the demonic cultivator's arm again.

This arm carried a trace of demonic qi; according to sect rules, it could not be brought inside the sect.

But Mo Hua had explained the full story to Elder Song, thus clearing it through the proper channels with Elder Song.

Though Elder Song did not know why Mo Hua wanted this arm, the item itself counted as a "spoils of war" won by Mo Hua and his companions against the demonic cultivator.

When Mo Hua said he had use for it, Elder Song hesitated for a moment, then returned it to him.

Though traces of demonic qi still clung to this segment of the arm, they were now negligible.

Even if given to Mo Hua, the danger would be minimal.

Moreover, Mo Hua was valued by the teacher.

With the support of Master Xun, as long as Mo Hua's request wasn't excessively outrageous, Elder Song would turn a blind eye.

Mo Hua thanked Elder Song, and as soon as he returned to the disciples' quarters, he began his study.

He first fetched a spiritual herb, soaking the arm to wash away the bloodstains, as well as the tiny fragments of blades and metal-elemental sword qi left over from the Shattered Gold Array's explosion.

This spiritual herb had been specially formulated for him by a "junior brother" skilled in pill refinement.

After washing, the red hue faded from the arm, revealing its natural flesh tone.

Patterns of array markings appeared across its skin.

These array markings, ancient yet eerie, seemed to carry a long lineage, yet their core structure bore a primal, wild aura.

They were Four Symbols array markings!

Upon closer inspection, one could discern these Four Symbols markings resembled pictographic characters, taking on the forms of beasts.

The thick strokes resembled a beast's back, the sharp strokes its claws and fangs, resembling wolf patterns.

It looked like a Four Symbols Wolf Pattern Array.

Mo Hua stared intently, his eyes filled with deep thought.

This was not the first time he had seen Four Symbols array markings.

Previously, on the bald head of the vulture, he had seen similar markings.

Likewise, Master Xun had taught him the basics of Four Symbols array markings.

But these two were entirely different.

The markings Master Xun taught him were upright and majestic—true "beast markings."

The markings on the vulture's head and on this demonic cultivator's arm, however, clearly belonged to another lineage.

Their form was unusual, their lines demonic—more like "demonic markings."

Within the Four Symbols array method, beast markings and demonic markings clearly shared a similar origin.

But what exactly that origin was, which of the two—beast markings or demonic markings—was the true tradition, Mo Hua could not say.

After all, he knew very little about the Four Symbols array method, having only heard fragments of its history from Master Xun.

The Four Symbols array method was an ancestral technique passed down through generations by the wild tribes of the southern wastelands of the Nine Provinces.

The wastelands…

Mo Hua's thoughts stirred slightly; he quickly recalled everything he had seen and heard since entering Qian Xuezhou.

Earlier, through divination and array marking comparisons, he had deduced that the Four Symbols demonic array must have been crafted by "Master Tu."

And the horned demon god worshipped by Master Tu was named "Lord of the Great Wasteland"—this "Great Wasteland" likely referred to the Three Thousand Wild Mountains.

The Four Symbols array method originated from the wild tribes of the wastelands.

The horned demon god was the demon god of the Great Wasteland.

Then did this mean the Four Symbols array method was originally a "tradition" from the demon god's homeland?

Were these demonic cultivators bearing the Four Symbols array also minions of the Great Wasteland demon god?

"If so, what are these demonic cultivators doing hidden inside the Demon Refining Mountain?"

Mo Hua had a faint suspicion, but after turning it over in his mind, he still could not grasp the thread.

He recalled every detail of the Demon Refining Mountain once more—and suddenly froze:

"Demonic beasts!"

Until now, the demonic beasts he had encountered in the Demon Refining Mountain, though rare and many unfamiliar to him, had always carried a strange, subtle sense of familiarity.

The Shattered Gold Sect's first theft of his Boar Demon.

The demonic cultivator's theft of Blood Meihu.

And other ordinary wolf demons, snake demons, ox and horse demonic beasts…

All of these bore resemblance to the demonic, evil creatures he had slain, hunted, and "consumed" along his path while opposing the demon god.

Especially the massive Boar Demon and the pink-skinned, half-fox half-woman fox demon who wielded seduction.

He had previously "ordered" and "consumed" them via the altar.

Demonic creatures—half-human, half-demon, forged through blood refinement.

The demonic creatures under the Great Wasteland demon god were composed of grotesque, bloody remnants: half human, half demon.

The human remnants came from cultivators who had been kidnapped, exterminated, slaughtered, and dismembered.

Then the "demon" remnants within these demonic creatures mostly came from…

The Demon Refining Mountain?!

Mo Hua's heart turned cold.

Then did this mean the Demon Refining Mountain was, in the Great Wasteland demon god's scheme, an "animal farm" for breeding a demonic army?

"Not only that…"

Mo Hua frowned.

If the demonic beast materials for blood-refined demons mostly came from the Demon Refining Mountain, then the number of demonic cultivators who had become the demon god's minions must be vast.

Moreover, relying solely on demonic cultivators won't suffice.

Demonic cultivators can at most hunt demonic beasts.

This entire process must also involve others to handle transportation, dismemberment, consecration, and so on…

And most importantly, it must be concealed.

No one must discover it.

Mo Hua recalled again that vast, lifeless forest, fused with the Divine Path formation array, where even spiritual sense could detect no trace of energy—a chill surged through his heart.

Within that seemingly ordinary mountain forest, perhaps lurked secrets even more terrifying than he had imagined…

"Besides demonic cultivators, who else is aiding the Evil God?"

Mo Hua pondered only a moment, and a suspicion arose in his heart.

Duanjin Gate…

That fat pig-headed demon was competing with him for the prize—Duanjin Gate was behind it.

At that time, he had merely assumed Duanjin Gate was shameless by nature, always acting this way, fond of seizing others' possessions.

Of course, Duanjin Gate truly was shameless and truly loved seizing others' things.

But now, upon closer thought, there might be other hidden motives here.

Moreover, after Duanjin Gate suffered losses, they truly fell silent, ceasing all conflict with Grand Void Gate.

This was certainly not Duanjin Gate's usual style.

Now it seemed, their silence was perhaps to prevent some conspiracy from being exposed—forcing them to bide their time and act discreetly.

This secret might be…

Duanjin Gate is aiding the Evil God in hunting demonic beasts and consecrating demonic entities!

Mo Hua's heart trembled, then grew even more puzzled.

Where did Duanjin Gate get such audacity?

Don't they fear the Dao Court holding them accountable, severing their Dao lineage, destroying their foundation, sealing their transmission, and erasing their name?

And… to what extent has Duanjin Gate truly participated in this?

Has everyone from top to bottom been involved?

Or is it only a small faction of disciples or family lineages scheming in secret?

Does the Duanjin Gate sect leader know?

What about their elder ancestors in seclusion?

And do they even know what they're truly doing?

The Great Wild Evil God is a true, immensely powerful Evil God who has forsaken the Path of the Divine…

This is no longer merely a matter of bargaining with tigers.

In the eyes of the Evil God, all things are but grass and dogs—humans aren't even considered "human."

Don't they fear being manipulated by the Evil God, becoming his puppets or sacrifices, doomed to eternal death with no hope of transcendence?

Mo Hua shook his head, feeling a deep sigh within.

These people have no idea how terrifying the Evil God is!

If not for having "consumed" several of the Evil God's divine relics and incarnations, he wouldn't know either.

To ordinary cultivators—especially those who don't cultivate spiritual thought—the Evil God is a true "taboo," a dread that cannot be seen, known, or opposed…

Mo Hua knew this well.

But the matter of the Evil God is hard to speak of to others.

The heavenly secrets involved are too great.

First, if he spoke, others might not believe him.

Second, words invite disaster—if anyone with intent learned of it, he might incur great karmic entanglements and bring trouble upon himself.

Moreover, matters concerning the Evil God involve too many secrets: heavenly calculations, heavenly machinations, Huang Shanjun, the Study of the Divine, spiritual sense attaining Dao, spiritual thought consumption… and more.

He couldn't possibly explain them clearly.

So it's better to avoid stirring up trouble.

Besides, in Qianxue Province, there are so many powerful cultivators—it's unnecessary for a lowly cultivator like him to worry about everything.

He should just focus on his own affairs.

Mo Hua pondered, considering what he should do next.

First, the secret of Lianyao Mountain concerns the Evil God—he must investigate it.

He should disrupt the Evil God's conspiracy whenever possible.

Even if he doesn't mention the Evil God to others, he must expose Duanjin Gate's secrets, to prevent them from doing further harm.

And the altar…

In Lianyao Mountain, there may be an altar of the Evil God.

If there is, it's a feast—he absolutely cannot miss it.

Second, he must capture several demonic cultivators and strip off their Four Symbols formation arrays for study.

Lastly, there is the Divine Path formation array.

The Divine Path formation array contains mastery over spiritual thought energy, and it restrains the Divine.

In the near future, he may have to face the Evil God directly—or other powerful malevolent entities—and he must learn the Divine Path formation array.

But now, the Evil God's conspiracy is too profound and elusive to probe.

The demonic cultivators are too strong to capture easily.

Only the Divine Path formation array, spread across the forest, motionless and unmoving, seems "within reach."

But that mysterious mountain forest, Mo Hua dared not enter lightly.

No one knew what one might encounter inside the forest.

If you ran into a large group of demonic cultivators, or a Jin Dan realm heretic, you'd be done for.

It would be best to find a bodyguard.

But where could you find a bodyguard so easily?

Mo Hua thought of Gu Changhuai, then shook his head.

"What a pity…"

Uncle Gu isn't a sect cultivator—he can't enter Lian Yao Mountain.

Otherwise, with him backing me up, I could venture into the forests of Lian Yao Mountain to "pick vegetables" without a care.

I need a Jin Dan cultivator, and one from a sect, and one who can enter Lian Yao Mountain.

With all these requirements, there's almost no one left.

Mo Hua let out a long sigh.

But halfway through that sigh, he suddenly froze.

A figure, and that familiar aura, surfaced again in Mo Hua's memory.

Mo Hua frowned.

He remembered that when he first entered Lian Yao Mountain, he'd sensed someone watching him.

Later, while hunting demons in Lian Yao Mountain, he often felt the same thing.

When he was calculating Song Jian's sword aura and deducing the Duan Jin Array, that feeling was strongest.

Originally, Mo Hua had thought it was his imagination.

Until later, when he met that elder named "Xun Ziyou" at Elder Xun's doorstep…

Xun Ziyou was Elder Xun's junior.

When he saw Mo Hua, his expression betrayed a moment of guilt.

Though his tone with Mo Hua was distant, his gaze held an odd familiarity.

Moreover, the aura on his person felt strangely familiar to Mo Hua.

Now, tying all this together, Mo Hua slowly understood.

"Maybe I don't need to go looking for this bodyguard?"

Mo Hua's expression paused slightly as he murmured softly:

"Perhaps… I already have a 'bodyguard'?"

…

Lian Yao Mountain, deep within the dense forest.

A dark, lightless, unseen place.

A demonic cultivator, missing one arm and half his body shattered, crawled and staggered into a valley.

He pulled out a white bone and ignited it with greenish flame.

A sinister, green-glowing demonic aura rose in wisps.

The demonic cultivator waited in place.

Soon, heavy footsteps sounded, and a tall black-clothed man slowly walked over, as if appearing from nowhere.

"What happened?"

The black-clothed man's voice was dull, icy.

"I…," the demonic cultivator's breath came in gasps, "was ordered to capture a Blood Meihu, but halfway, I was intercepted by several sect disciples."

"Blood Meihu are rare—I spent a month tracking this one."

"I didn't want to make a scene—just needed to profit from their fight, snatch the demon beast while they were busy."

"But… I…"

The demonic cultivator's face turned deathly pale. "My demonic tattoo malfunctioned—demonic energy reversed, surged into my mind sea, and scrambled my spiritual sense."

"After that, I don't remember what happened—only vague memories: I seized the demon beast, nearly killed one disciple, then the disciple's companions came after me."

The black-clothed man frowned. "What realm?"

The demonic cultivator whispered, "Foundation Establishment mid-stage."

The black-clothed man sneered. "You're Foundation Establishment late-stage, trained in demonic arts, marked with demonic tattoos—and you can't handle a few Foundation Establishment mid-stage sect disciples? Can you be any more useless?"

The demonic cultivator panicked and hurriedly defended himself:

"It's not my fault—those disciples were too strange."

"Which sect?"

"They weren't wearing sect robes, and their techniques were all over the place—sword arts, spells, arrays, everything. I couldn't tell…"

The black-clothed man grew increasingly impatient.

To fight someone and not even recognize their background?

Obviously, practicing demonic arts had rotted his brain.

"What sword arts and arrays did they use?"

The demonic cultivator said, "One fire-based sword art—powerful, but not too troublesome."

"The spells were water-based—disgusting…"

"They laid too many arrays, and their power was extreme, but… I know nothing about arrays, couldn't tell them apart…"

"Besides that, there was a sword cultivator disciple—eyebrows like blades, aura overwhelmingly strong, wielding a moon-white longsword, his sword qi razor-sharp—not at all like a Foundation Establishment mid-stage disciple…"

Upon hearing this, the black-clothed man's pupils shrank sharply.

"Moon-white longsword, piercing sword qi... Chongxu Gate..."

The name of a Chongxu Gate sword prodigy surfaced in his mind.

The black-robed man's gaze sharpened; he glanced at the demonic cultivator and asked, "Were you wounded by this sword disciple?"

"No, not him..." The demonic cultivator's eyes still held terror, his voice trembling. "I was wounded by... Break-Gold Sword Qi!"

At these words, the black-robed man immediately roared in fury:

"What nonsense are you spouting?!"

His gaze turned icy. "How could you possibly be wounded by Break-Gold Sword Qi?"

"It's true..." the demonic cultivator quavered. "And not just ordinary Break-Gold Sword Qi—it was Sword Control! A proper, powerful 'Break-Gold Sword Control Technique'—a spiritual sword, launched from over one hundred and sixty zhang away, slicing off my arm and nearly killing me!"

The demonic cultivator was both furious and deeply fearful.

The black-robed man's gaze, sharp as a blade, swept over the demonic cultivator's wound—and there, indeed, lay the sharp edges of Break-Gold Sword Qi. His face turned as cold as frost as he asked in a low voice:

"Who controlled the sword?"

The demonic cultivator shook his head. "I don't know—but it wasn't any of those sect disciples..."

"A sword control distance of one hundred and sixty zhang, with such overwhelming sword power—only a Foundation Establishment peak, or even a Jin Dan beginner, could master such a technique."

"Those sect disciples? They're not worthy."

"Besides, I've fought them. None of those five wield the Break-Gold Sword Control Technique."

"Therefore, the one who sought to kill me with sword control must be a hidden sword master, striking from the shadows!"

"And this person didn't just learn the Break-Gold Sword Technique—he learned the most orthodox, most refined Sword Control art of the Break-Gold Gate!"

The demonic cultivator's voice turned chilling.

The black-robed man's face was unreadable. "You mean..."

The demonic cultivator lowered his voice, gritting his teeth: "The Song family!"

The black-robed man's gaze instantly turned ferocious.

The demonic cultivator pressed on, stubbornly: "There's no other explanation."

The Song family cultivates the orthodox Break-Gold Sword Control Technique.

The Song family has long been enemies with the Jin family.

The Song family understands the Jin family best.

And outside the Jin family disciples, only the Song family disciples can wield such powerful Break-Gold Sword Control.

"I suspect..." The demonic cultivator spat blood, his voice steady. "Our plans have been uncovered by the Song family. They want to use others as blades—to bring down the Jin family, then seize power for themselves..."

The black-robed man remained silent, but the killing intent surging around him grew fiercer.

A bloodthirsty demonic force circled his body, like a coiling dragon-serpent, ready to burst into the sky.

Fortunately, the black-robed man forcibly suppressed the savagery within.

After a moment, the killing intent subsided.

The black-robed man's aura calmed, becoming as deep and still as a mountain.

"I understand..."

He said softly.

Then he glanced at the demonic cultivator and asked in a low voice, "Where is your severed arm?"

The demonic cultivator winced. "It was shredded by the sword qi—turned to a mist of blood..."

The black-robed man nodded. "Good."

He looked at the demonic cultivator and tossed him a crimson flesh-repair pill. "Eat it."

The demonic cultivator's eyes lit up; he quickly swallowed the flesh-repair pill and bowed deeply in gratitude.

"Thank you, Boss!"

The black-robed man gave a faint "Mm," then said coolly, "After you heal, don't forget your mission. Mr. Tu said the plan has been moved up—move faster."

"Yes!" The demonic cultivator bowed his head.

After taking the pill, a surge of blood qi surged through his body, healing his wounds and restoring his flesh.

Though such rapid healing with a flesh-repair pill carried lingering side effects.

But as long as he ate more flesh and took more tonics afterward, he could slowly recover—better than dying now.

The black-robed man said, "Follow me back to the valley."

The demonic cultivator followed respectfully behind.

After walking a few steps, the black-robed man suddenly stopped, turning to glance toward the direction beyond Lianyao Mountain, and sneered inwardly:

"Chongxu Gate... Song family..."

"Dare to ruin my grand plan? I will make you pay—sooner or later!"

The black-robed man sneered, then turned and led the demonic cultivator into the darkest, bloodiest depths of the forest...

(End of Chapter)

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