Chapter 773: Inheritance

"Yes, right now—use the expression I taught you..."

Mo Hua sent a message to Ouyang Mu, guiding him remotely.

Ouyang Mu suddenly felt an inexplicable surge of joy.

The expression he had practiced all night had finally been put to use.

He first wore a stern expression to show his unwavering Dao heart, unmoved by temptation, yet his gaze still subtly avoided contact, revealing his inner turmoil and longing for a superior forging art...

The evil artifact master smiled faintly.

Hooked!

This brat wears his seven emotions and six desires on his face—every thought is written plainly for all to see.

Though his expression was a bit stiff.

But for a taciturn person, inner conflict naturally shows as rigid features.

The evil artifact master continued: "This Ten Thousand Demons Valley is heavily guarded, sealed on all sides. The only central road out of the valley is controlled by the leader."

The evil artifact master's gaze sharpened. "That road is sealed by an extremely profound and obscure array. To date, I've only ever seen the leader draw it."

"Without mastering the essence of this array, even ordinary third-grade array masters would be helpless—let alone fourth-grade ones..."

Here, the evil artifact master fell into a moment of reflection.

"The gap between array masters is far greater than that between artifact masters."

"The barriers between array techniques are deeper and more inscrutable than those in artifact forging..."

"No wonder our status as artifact masters is so far below that of array masters..."

The evil artifact master turned his head toward Ouyang Mu and spoke in a hoarse voice:

"I tell you this so you understand: since you've entered the Ten Thousand Demons Valley, abandon all delusions. Give up any unrealistic hopes."

"Rather than foolishly resisting and dying here, devoured by demonic beasts with no trace left, better to bear your burden and spend the rest of your life forging swords."

"Even if you walk the path of evil, even if you face eternal damnation, never lose your ambition to forge the supreme sword..."

Mo Hua listened, suddenly enlightened.

This old evil artifact master actually had such ambition—he was surprisingly... impressive.

Moreover, the information he revealed was deeply intriguing.

The only central road out of the valley was controlled by the "leader."

A road sealed by an extremely profound and obscure array.

Even third- and fourth-grade array masters might be helpless...

Could it be... a Divine Dao array?

And if this "leader" could control a Divine Dao array, then he must very likely be a Divine Dao array master?

Mo Hua's heart stirred slightly.

A genuine Divine Dao array master...

He must be a formidable expert!

If I get the chance, I must meet him, learn something from him, then find a way to kill him.

I must learn the Divine Dao array.

But the Divine Dao array master must not be allowed to live!

After hearing the evil artifact master's words, Little Wood was still confused and at a loss.

Mo Hua continued guiding him to keep performing:

"Add a touch of despair to your expression..."

"Act as if you'll never escape—this lifetime you're trapped here, forever doomed to be an evil artifact master, never a true sword forger..."

Ouyang Mu's expression turned genuinely despairing.

"Then show deep thought, a hint of inner conflict..."

"Struggle with whether to cling to the righteous path and die rather than yield—or to compromise, pursuing the path of artifact forging by crafting evil swords..."

This didn't need explaining—Ouyang Mu was already deeply conflicted.

"Finally, your gaze hardens—make your decision..."

"Even if I forge evil swords, I will become an unparalleled evil sword master, forging the greatest evil demonic sword in the world, ascending to the supreme Dao of swordcraft!"

Ouyang Mu automatically replaced the words "evil sword" with "spiritual sword," and instantly felt a surge of passionate fervor within him.

"Yes, that's right—I will become the greatest sword forger!"

Ouyang Mu's taciturn expression became as steadfast as a mountain; his two eyes blazed with fiery determination and zeal.

The evil artifact master stared, stunned—even found Ouyang Mu's intensity almost blinding.

This pure, unadulterated obsession with sword forging stirred a sense of shame within him.

But in an instant, these emotions were buried deep.

The evil artifact master nodded and said: "Good."

People's words may be false, but their emotions never lie.

Ouyang Mu's inner journey had been laid bare on his face—far more convincing than any words he could speak.

The evil artifact master prided himself on his ability to read people—he wouldn't be wrong.

As he had done the day before, he pulled out a white bone and handed it to Ouyang Mu, speaking coolly:

"Refine this bone and fuse it with refined iron. As a disciple of the Ouyang family, you already know the forging techniques—no need for me to explain further..."

His tone was cold, yet his attitude had softened considerably.

Ouyang Mu hesitated for a moment, glanced down at his sleeve, and saw Mo Hua had sent him a single character: "Refine."

This old demon cultivator's words weren't quite right, but actually they weren't far off either.

After a person dies, white bones are just dead matter. Simply refining them and fusing them with refined iron isn't much of anything, and wouldn't cause one to instantly degenerate into an evil artifact master.

But forbidding the use of human blood, human skin, and human bones in artifact refining…

This kind of law is strictly mandated by the Dao Ting Si.

Because once it isn't strictly enforced, people will start looking for loopholes.

Once an artifact master begins using human bones to refine artifacts, over time it becomes a habit, and eventually they'll even take the initiative to kill people, wipe out whole clans, and strip human bones to refine artifacts.

Do not do evil because it is small.

So nipping it in the bud is a must.

Right now Ouyang Mu's situation is special—he was coerced by the demon cultivator. If he didn't step out of line and refine a bit of human bone, his life would be gone, so it's excusable.

Even at the Dao Ting Si, there's a term for it.

It's called "emergency avoidance."

Mo Hua often deals with Gu Diansi of the Dao Ting Si, so he knows quite a lot of these little bits of knowledge.

Ouyang Mu set his mind at ease.

"Senior Brother Mo knows a lot. If he says to refine it, then refine it…"

So he silently took the white bone, and following proper artifact-refining procedure, obediently refined the bone and fused it into the refined iron beside him.

The old demon cultivator watched for a while, then set his mind at ease and turned to attend to his own affairs.

In the greenish furnace fire, the white bone melted bit by bit, fusing with the refined iron…

Once he starts refining artifacts, Ouyang Mu becomes very focused, and his attitude is meticulous.

After a while, Mo Hua couldn't stand watching anymore, so he sent a message:

"Drag your feet a bit…"

"Huh?"

Ouyang Mu was taken aback.

The old demon cultivator nearby heard the sound, frowned and looked over, asking: "What's wrong?"

Ouyang Mu shook his head. "Nothing, I slipped up…"

Slipping up while refining artifacts is perfectly normal.

The old demon cultivator didn't care, turned his head back, and continued staring at a piece of demon-hide paper in his hands—whatever was recorded on it was unclear—and racking his brains over it.

But he still split off some attention to keep watch over Ouyang Mu.

Ouyang Mu put on an act of being obedient for a while longer, then went to check the transmission talisman and saw Mo Hua's message:

"Daundle along for a bit, don't refine so fast. Show that you're feeling tormented inside—although you've decided to set foot on the path of an 'evil sword master,' your heart hasn't fully turned yet, so you're hesitating…"

"Otherwise, if you refine this fast and finish that white bone, that old thing will definitely make you refine something even more evil…"

Ouyang Mu nodded.

Truly worthy of Senior Brother Mo, his considerations are really thorough.

These things he himself wouldn't have thought of.

So he put on a conflicted look, slowed down his pace of refining the white bone, occasionally frowning, his expression pained, and even deliberately making small mistakes to appear distracted.

All of this the old demon cultivator saw with his own eyes.

He said nothing.

It wasn't until Ouyang Mu finished refining that white bone that most of the time had already passed. The old demon cultivator said:

"That's enough for today. Tomorrow I'll teach you something else."

Ouyang Mu set down the refined iron in his hands—iron that had been fused with a dead person's white bone—and silently let out a long breath. He cupped his fists toward the old demon cultivator but said nothing.

After a while, a demon cultivator came in and led Ouyang Mu away.

After Ouyang Mu left, the old demon cultivator picked up that piece of refined iron, glanced at it once, and nodded: "It is the Ouyang family's sword-casting method…"

Having said that, his expression was quite emotional.

Then he let out a cold laugh. "Dragging his feet, trying to fool me…"

"But it doesn't matter," the old demon cultivator sighed long and hard, his gaze meaningful, and murmured: "As long as he can refine the sword for me…"

After the old demon cultivator finished speaking, he took out the demon-hide paper again, his fingers trembling as he caressed the drawing on it, his gaze as if it were a treasure.

Mo Hua was far away, and the angle was bad too. Vaguely, he couldn't make out at all what exactly was drawn on that demon-hide paper.

He wanted to take the chance to get closer and look, but felt there was risk, so he let it be.

There'll be other chances anyway.

Mo Hua once again silently retraced his path back.

He first returned to his own array hub chamber.

Now, this long-sealed chamber within the Myriad Demon Valley had already become his "base."

Mo Hua first reported the situation to Elder Xun Ziyou, so they'd have some idea in mind.

Then he compiled all the intelligence he had gathered.

Then Mo Hua scratched his head and realized a problem:

It seemed he had already been in this Myriad Demon Valley for a very long time…

He himself didn't mind—he could keep blending in indefinitely—but the three little Mu brothers were different. They had been captured, and the longer they stayed, the worse their situation would be.

Moreover, Mo Hua almost forgot—he was currently a sect disciple.

He still had classes to attend.

Although Elder Xun's side could ask for leave on his behalf, asking for too much leave wasn't good either—his coursework would fall behind.

Not to mention, there was still Mr. Xun.

By now, Elder Xun Ziyou probably knows everything—so I mustn't let the old man worry any further.

Mo Hua nodded.

"We need to speed up…"

The current progress is still too slow.

The Ten Thousand Demons Valley is so vast; by the time I fully understand it, who knows how long it'll take.

"First, rescue Xiao Moutou and the other two, then follow the old rule—call Elder Xun to level the Ten Thousand Demons Valley, and after that, I'll slowly shear the wool…"

……

Outside the Ten Thousand Demons Valley.

Elder Xun Ziyou stared at the blood-red valley before him, his brow tightly furrowed.

These past days, he had stationed inner sect elders and disciples outside, but he couldn't just sit idle.

Yet the bone-white blood stream blocked their passage.

Elder Xun Ziyou had summoned a third-grade array master from Grand Void Gate to examine it.

Several array master elders studied it for days; their expressions first grew confused, then increasingly solemn.

"Ziyou, this is a place that nurtures evil spirits."

A refined, scholarly array master from Grand Void Gate spoke.

This array master was also a junior of Elder Xun Ziyou's, surnamed Xun, named Ziyan, and one of Grand Void Gate's top third-grade array master elders.

"Nurturing evil spirits?"

Elder Xun Ziyou froze.

"Indeed," said Elder Xun Ziyan. "You were right earlier—Mo Hua's insight is truly sharp; he saw most of the essentials…"

Elder Xun Ziyan sighed: "This place indeed holds an evil array, using bones as medium and blood as ink, forming a 'nurturing evil' site."

"But Mo Hua is still only a second-grade array master; though his talent and ability are… astonishingly brilliant…"

Elder Xun Ziyan used the four characters: "astonishingly brilliant."

He was a Jin Dan realm elder, from a prestigious family of array masters, with vast experience.

Yet even so, he found Mo Hua's array talent utterly unbelievable.

Indeed, precisely because of his family background and vast experience, he truly understood that those four words—"astonishingly brilliant"—were not an exaggeration when applied to Mo Hua.

None of the elders and disciples here, lacking family lineage in arrays or deep array knowledge, could possibly grasp just how absurdly advanced Mo Hua's array mastery was.

But then again, Mo Hua is still only a second-grade array master.

Elder Xun Ziyan said: "Due to his cultivation realm and array master rank, there are certain aspects Mo Hua simply cannot perceive."

Of course, this was a matter of realm limiting array vision—not his fault…

Elder Xun Ziyan silently added inwardly.

"What do you mean?" Elder Xun Ziyou asked.

Elder Xun Ziyou looked up at the Ten Thousand Demons Valley before him, his tone solemn:

"This Ten Thousand Demons Valley is a massive evil structure, its entire layout woven through by a grand array; these evil arrays are merely a part of it."

"Moreover, this structure is highly unusual—it must originate from some ancient demonic sect. If I'm not mistaken, it should be…"

"Ten Thousand Demons Mountain?" Elder Xun Ziyou interjected.

He was a Grand Void Gate elder and knew quite a bit about these demonic giants.

Elder Xun Ziyan nodded.

Elder Xun Ziyou frowned. "It's Ten Thousand Demons Mountain…"

Yet he still asked, puzzled: "But how can this evil array be so powerful? Is it second or third grade? Why can't all of us Jin Dan elders force our way through?"

Elder Xun Ziyan said: "I won't waste words on you—just know you can't pass for now."

He appeared refined, but sometimes his words were irritating.

Array masters all had this arrogant habit.

Compared to him, Mo Hua seemed far more "likable."

Elder Xun Ziyou sighed. "Just explain simply—I just need a rough idea. This matter is critical. Normally, I wouldn't press so hard, but the situation is unusual—tell me at least something."

Elder Xun Ziyan fell silent, realizing it made sense. After a moment's thought, he pointed at the blood-stained bone field before them and said:

"Ahead, many evil spirits are being nurtured."

"I know that—you and Mo Hua both said so," Elder Xun Ziyou replied.

"But these evil spirits aren't actually nurtured here."

Elder Xun Ziyou froze. "What do you mean?"

Elder Xun Ziyan frowned. "I can't be certain of the underlying mechanism without seeing the actual array diagram, but from observation, this array is a blend of real and illusory."

"A blend of real and illusory?"

Elder Xun Ziyan said: "It uses some great power to preliminarily merge and reflect the material world with spiritual perception, constructing it through the array."

Merging material world with spiritual perception?

Elder Xun Ziyou drew in a sharp breath. "What level of power could achieve this?"

Elder Xun Ziyan shook his head, his gaze solemn.

He had a hunch, but dared not speak it aloud.

Moreover, part of it involved the secret of Grand Void Gate's Divine Mind Sword Technique: "Slaying the Soul"—he had once, as an array master, been interested in spiritual perception and studied a little of its methods.

But spiritual perception arts were too profound and harsh—he could not master them.

And some rumors, true and false hard to tell apart, were too uncertain to confirm.

"You say this is a large array—could it really be… a Grand Array?" Elder Xun Ziyou asked, uneasy.

"No, grand arrays aren't that easy to build," said Elder Xun Ziyou.

"That's good…" Xun Ziyou exhaled, then asked, "Can you dismantle this array?"

Xun Ziyou sighed, "If I could dismantle it, I would have done so already."

Then he wore an expression of disdain, as if forced to lecture a cow:

"Besides, I already told you before: this array's foundation is built from spiritual perception; the true array mediums, patterns, pivots, and focal points are all hidden deep within the Ten Thousand Demons Valley."

"The malevolent entities before you seem close at hand, but if you rashly approach, they'll devour your spiritual perception."

"Yet their true bodies aren't here at all."

"This is a place that nurtures malevolence—but only a projection of the true nurturing ground. We have no idea where these malevolent entities are actually being 'raised'…"

Xun Ziyou had said this more than once.

But Xun Ziyou still didn't fully understand, so even though Xun Ziyou repeated it again, he remained half-understanding.

Still, he couldn't say so outright; he could only nod, pretending to comprehend.

Then he frowned. "What is the origin of this bizarre array?"

Xun Ziyou's expression turned solemn; he furrowed his brow in thought, then suddenly asked:

"Didn't Mo Hua mention 'Spiritual Dao Arrays' to you?"

"Yes," Xun Ziyou nodded, then asked, "Is this a Spiritual Dao Array?"

Xun Ziyou weighed his words carefully, sighed, "It resembles one… but I can't be certain. Spiritual Dao Arrays are nearly lost. Not even complete array diagrams remain—fragmented records are exceedingly rare."

"But if this truly is a Spiritual Dao Array…"

Xun Ziyou's gaze grew profoundly solemn, his tone much more serious: "Then the Ten Thousand Demons Valley likely conceals an entire lineage of extremely profound Spiritual Dao Array transmission."

"Otherwise, it would be impossible to construct such a complete, exquisite, and vast Spiritual Dao Array system…"

"And the array master who could lay down such a massive, nearly lost Spiritual Dao Array… must also be… terrifyingly formidable…"

Xun Ziyou's expression changed. "Then aren't Mo Hua and the others in danger?"

Xun Ziyou nodded, sighing. "Hold the Void Sword Token I gave your ancestor in your hand. If anything goes wrong, don't hesitate to use it."

Xun Ziyou nodded solemnly.

Then he remembered he needed to tell Mo Hua these things too.

The more Mo Hua knows inside, the better.

But these words were too numerous, and the magnetic sense was disrupted; he couldn't send them out all at once, and even if he did, they came out fragmented.

He could only patiently send them out bit by bit.

…

Inside the Ten Thousand Demons Valley.

Mo Hua received the message, but it came intermittently, the ink smudged and clumped together, unreadable for now.

Large blocks of text, if not read as a whole, easily caused misinterpretation.

He decided to examine them later.

Soon after, Ouyang Mu began, under Mo Hua's guidance, learning demon-sword forging from the old demon cultivator.

As for the specific forging techniques, Mo Hua was naturally less skilled than Ouyang Mu.

But he could clearly tell which materials were usable, which methods were flawed, and which would let demonic thoughts seep into the mind.

Thus, Ouyang Mu forged with some carelessness.

Yet the old demon cultivator seemed to turn a blind eye, utterly unconcerned.

After forging for a while, the old demon cultivator nodded, his cloudy eyes hiding a faint, almost imperceptible sharpness:

"Now, I'll teach you to forge the sword's core."

Ouyang Mu frowned.

He could bluff about everything else, but the sword core—this was the heart of forging; its nature, righteous or demonic, was absolute, impossible to fake.

Ouyang Mu said, "I know how to forge a sword core…"

"No, you don't," the old demon cultivator chuckled darkly, his voice hoarse. "What I'm teaching you isn't an ordinary sword core—it's…"

The old demon cultivator paused, his cloudy gaze unnervingly deep, his tone strangely peculiar.

"The sword core for your Core Formation Jin Dan!"

(End of Chapter)

dengbidmxswqqxswyifan

shuyueepzwqqwxwxsguan

xs007zhuikereadw23zw