Chapter 793

"Another door?"

Xun Ziyou was slightly surprised.

"Mm."

Mo Hua nodded.

He stared again at the Demon Refining Map before him.

In the nightmare constructed by the Demon Refining Map, most of the Divine Path formations had been dismantled by him, and most of the demonic entities had ended up in his stomach.

Now, in reality, the Demon Refining Map had lost some of its sinister aura and much of its formation's spiritual essence, resembling merely the remnants of a formation medium.

And the nightmare reflected reality.

The "nightmare" within the Demon Refining Map was built upon the foundation of the real-world Ten Thousand Demons Valley; while there were differences, their overall layout was similar.

In the nightmare, the Demon Refining Map was a blank mural.

Behind the mural lay another world.

So in reality, behind the Demon Refining Map, there should also be something special…

"Break through?"

"Mm!" Mo Hua nodded, "There's still something inside."

Xun Ziyou frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, then nodded, drew his life-spirit sword, and unleashed sword qi fueled by his Jin Dan cultivation, slashing at the mural.

The mural cracked at once, but the thickness extended endlessly.

Xun Ziyou struck several more times; each sword qi seeped into the stone wall, and after more than ten strikes, he finally cut completely through the mural.

Stone chips rained down, dust swirling everywhere.

When the dust cleared, a narrow passage revealed itself behind the mural, and beyond the passage, a door painted with the head of a ram-horned demonic entity.

"Ram-horned Evil Carving…"

Xun Zijin's face turned pale; he exchanged a glance with Xun Ziyou.

"And demonic entities bearing ram horns are ancient, not to be taken lightly."

"But this ram-horned Evil Carving… I've never seen it before, nor do I know what specific demonic force it symbolizes—I'll have to ask our Ancestor for answers…"

"Oh…" Mo Hua nodded.

"Elder, rest assured, I'll avoid it," he vowed earnestly.

Xun Zijin exhaled slightly in relief.

But Xun Ziyou's expression grew solemn. "Shall we go in?"

Xun Zijin thought for a moment, then said slowly, "Let's go in and take a look."

Mo Hua knew that behind this door, there was likely no danger left.

The greatest dangers were all within the "nightmare" of the Demon Refining Map.

Those dangers had either been eaten by him, killed by him, or scared away by him.

But since the atmosphere had already reached this point, he still put on an "on the brink of disaster" act.

After all, no one else knew what had happened inside the Demon Refining Map—only he did.

Shangguan Xuan remained outside, guarding Linghu Xiao and the other three.

The secret behind the door meant little to him.

Xun Ziyou then used his sword to cleave open the ram-horned door.

The door was painted with Divine Path formations, but such formations were meant to repel spiritual perception and seal demonic entities—they naturally could not resist Jin Dan-level sword qi.

After the door shattered, darkness filled the interior, tinged with an eerie green hue.

After entering, Xun Ziyou looked up and saw a grand hall.

Inside the hall, faint bone lamps burned, flickering with pale green bone flames.

The decorations were solemn yet sinister; the walls bore murals of the same style as the outer Demon Refining Map, clearly sharing the same lineage.

In the center of the hall, a dozen or so people sat in a row.

Each person had a lamp before them.

But all the lamps were extinguished.

These dozen people were icy cold, their breaths entirely gone.

Xun Ziyou and Xun Zijin exchanged a glance, their expressions slightly startled.

And not a single wound marred their bodies—they appeared perfectly intact, as if their spiritual consciousness had simply vanished?

Both involuntarily turned back to look at Mo Hua.

Xun Ziyou asked: "Mo Hua, do you know what happened here?"

Mo Hua shook his head, "Speculating":

"Perhaps they suffered retribution for too many evil deeds, or perhaps they allied with demonic entities and were devoured by backlash—their spiritual consciousness consumed by the demons."

He was not lying.

These people truly had suffered retribution.

Their spiritual consciousness truly had been devoured by the "demonic entity" known as Sword Bone.

Seeing Mo Hua's innocent, guileless expression, Xun Ziyou and Xun Zijin had no words to say, only sighed.

Xun Zijin then said: "Then let it be this way—these people allied with demonic entities, and their spiritual consciousness was devoured by demons."

This statement amounted to a "final verdict."

These people died of their own doing, unrelated to anyone else.

Xun Zijin silently glanced at Mo Hua.

And unrelated to Mo Hua as well…

Elder Xun Ziyou understood his meaning and nodded.

Mo Hua silently glanced at the dozen or so demonic cultivators; his gaze flickered as he recognized Jin Gui, Jin Yixuan, and Jin Yicai—the three Disciples of Duanjin Sect—among them, and gave a slight nod.

"Now Duanjin Sect can't escape…"

"Even if they don't die, they'll lose a layer of skin."

But he said nothing, feigning indifference.

After all, the elders could easily uncover these people's identities with a simple check.

Mo Hua's gaze left the dozen dead demonic cultivators and turned upward.

Above hung an ornate screen, with jade bead curtains.

Behind the screen and curtains, a luxurious demonic hide chair was faintly visible.

Elder Xun Ziyou and Elder Xun Zixian also noticed it; their expressions darkened.

The presence of such a chair meant that behind the Ten Thousand Demons Valley lay a noble figure pulling the strings.

Both of them flashed forward, shattered the screen, tore aside the bead curtains, and stepped into the upper hall.

The surroundings were empty—no one was there.

Nor was there any trace left behind.

Mo Hua stirred his spiritual sense and quietly employed Heavenly Mechanism Divination, perceiving a faint thread of karmic residue.

These karmic traces were faint, yet not yet fully vanished.

It meant someone had been here just moments ago.

Soon, Elder Xun Zixian's gaze sharpened as he fixed on a corner—a seemingly ordinary screen painted with brocade landscapes. He slapped it, and spiritual energy seeped into its surface.

The screen trembled; its array patterns flashed briefly, then shattered completely, revealing an entrance.

"Hurry! Go see!"

Elder Xun Zixian said grimly.

Then he led the way, stepping into the entrance.

Elder Xun Ziyou and Mo Hua followed inside.

But after only a few steps, they reached the end. All of them looked up—and froze.

Before them was a chamber more than two zhang in length and width.

It stood in stark contrast to the atmosphere of the outer hall.

The grand hall was grim and oppressive, but inside this chamber, it was luxurious yet refined, with sweet sandalwood incense burning, more like a Young Master's "study" than a demonic valley secret room.

Yet now, the study held no books or jade slips.

In fact, to avoid leaving traces, every single furnishing had been destroyed—clean, spotless, not a single item left behind.

The only thing left was a faint, lingering scent of sandalwood.

"Ran away?"

Elder Xun Zixian frowned.

Elder Xun Ziyou snorted coldly. "He ran fast, didn't he?"

Mo Hua was not surprised.

He had guessed the Young Master had fled long ago.

Within the Nightmare, the only chance Mo Hua had to capture this mysterious Young Master was to seize his soul and seal it with the Soul Binding Array, turning him into a "plaything" under his control.

Once the Young Master escaped the Nightmare, he would be impossible to catch.

Unless this "Young Master" was an idiot.

But that was impossible.

Since he was revered as "Young Master," his lineage must be noble, his talent, intellect, and methods extraordinary.

Otherwise, he could never have been chosen by the Great Wilderness Demonic God, feared by so many demonic cultivators, and won the heartfelt loyalty of disciples who had turned to demons or devils.

Even Mr. Tu had destroyed his own fragmented soul to help him escape.

The Young Master's true origins must be extraordinary.

Otherwise, Mo Hua would have no way to deal with him.

But this matter, Mo Hua was uncertain about.

After all, he was a lone cultivator, not a direct scion of a great clan—he had no Void-Perceiving Ancestor, nor any Ancestor willing to plant a Life-Long Seal for him.

His understanding of the Life-Long Seal was extremely limited.

"If I get the chance later, I'll ask Elder Xun the Elder about the Life-Long Seal."

"If I ever encounter a heavenly prodigy—noble-born, with too 'hard' a background—who has had a Life-Long Seal planted, I'll at least be prepared…"

Mo Hua focused his thoughts.

On the other side, Elder Xun Ziyou and Elder Xun Zixian searched the study again—but found nothing.

"Like a gecko severing its tail—cleanly cut…"

Elder Xun Ziyou shook his head with a cold laugh. "Let's return. Later, summon the sect to dig this valley up to three feet deep, inch by inch—I refuse to believe we won't find other clues…"

"Mm."

Elder Xun Zixian gave a slight nod.

But Mo Hua suddenly said: "Something's wrong."

Elder Xun Ziyou blinked. "What's wrong?"

Mo Hua hesitated. "There must be another 'secret passage'…"

From the moment he scared off the Young Master in the Nightmare, to leaving the Nightmare and reviving Xiao Mutou and the others, to breaking through the mural and entering the grand hall, to finding this study…

All these events together took barely half an hour.

Within this half-hour, if the Young Master wishes to escape, he must have left a hidden passage.

This secret passage leads out of Ten Thousand Demons Valley and avoids the group of Jin Dan cultivators led by Elder Xun Ziyou who have already entered the valley…

But even Mo Hua had not found this secret passage just now.

"Secret passage…"

Xun Ziyan's gaze turned solemn; he released his spiritual sense once more, scanning the room, then suddenly his expression shifted. He walked to a wall on the right side of the study—utterly plain—and infused his spiritual power into his palm, where faint white crystalline light flickered, before striking the wall.

But the wall did not budge.

Xun Ziyan's expression changed instantly. "Call for help! Summon the other Jin Dan elders!"

Xun Ziyou did not delay; he immediately sent a spiritual message.

In the time it took to drink a cup of tea, several more Profound Heaven Sect elders entered.

Most of them Mo Hua recognized.

A few looked unfamiliar to him—he guessed they were newly promoted elders.

But none of these elders failed to recognize Mo Hua.

After all, in the past several centuries of the Profound Heaven Sect, there had been disciples favored by Elder Xun, but none favored to this extent except Mo Hua.

The group of elders entered, silently glancing at Mo Hua first, then discussing with Xun Ziyan and Xun Ziyou.

Xun Ziyan said: "Behind this wall is a high-grade array."

At this, everyone tensed.

Mo Hua was also taken aback.

Even Elder Xun, a third-grade array master, called it a "high-grade array"…

One elder asked: "What grade?"

Xun Ziyan shook his head. "Hard to say."

"What do we do now? Try to dismantle the array?"

"Can't dismantle it."

"Then… break it?"

"Can't break it… This array is too strong, and forcing it would cause too much disturbance. The consequences are unpredictable," Xun Ziyan said.

"... Then what do we do?"

Xun Ziyan said grimly: "Tear it down."

"Tear it down?"

"Yes," Xun Ziyan nodded, pointing to a rough area. "The array is powerful, but its scope is small. We dig through the adjacent stone wall, avoiding the array's patterns entirely…"

"It seems troublesome, but it's the only viable option now."

After brief thought, everyone nodded.

Xun Ziyan turned to Mo Hua. "Mo Hua, wait outside. All here are Jin Dan cultivators—when we move, spiritual energy will scatter. Don't want you accidentally hurt."

"Yeah, yeah."

Mo Hua obediently nodded.

He had a clear understanding of his own physical strength.

Afterward, Mo Hua left the study and waited in the main hall.

The Profound Heaven Sect's group of Jin Dan elders began carving through the walls—using their bodies, sword qi, or various spiritual artifacts—following Xun Ziyan's marked range, avoiding the array's patterns.

Though waiting outside, Mo Hua was curious and still paid attention to the sounds within.

After a stick of incense burned, the noises inside ceased.

Mo Hua blinked, then quietly slipped back in.

The entire study had been torn apart—only one wall remained intact; the other two had been completely hollowed out.

Behind the wall, a passage had indeed been dug out.

Xun Ziyan said: "Let's go inside and see…"

He turned and saw Mo Hua again. He opened his mouth to speak, but Mo Hua had already run behind Xun Ziyou, looking sweetly obedient.

Xun Ziyan had no way to deal with him, so he said nothing.

The group of Jin Dan elders, alert and watchful, moved forward.

Walking further, they entered a small cave.

The cave was narrow and crude.

The surroundings were empty—only a simple, ancient stone platform remained in the center, unremarkable in appearance.

At this sight, everyone's expressions changed.

Xun Ziyou broke into cold sweat and immediately reached for the Void Sword Token to summon the Ancestor—but Xun Ziyan seized his wrist.

Xun Ziyan shook his head. "The array is already destroyed…"

Xun Ziyou finally exhaled deeply.

A complete fifth-grade array, if it contained void power and was a killing array, would kill them all instantly if triggered.

If it were a teleportation array designed to summon a powerful enemy, kill them, then vanish—it would leave them helpless, dead with no recourse.

Life and death hung by a single thought.

That's why Xun Ziyou had instinctively reached for the Void Sword Token the moment he saw it.

But since the fifth-grade array was already destroyed, there was no need to summon the Ancestor now—better to avoid drawing attention.

Xun Ziyou frowned. "When was this array destroyed?"

Xun Ziyan's gaze darkened slightly. "Just recently…"

"No sound at all?"

"A formation master set up measures in advance. Once self-destructed, the formation patterns erase themselves. The disturbance isn't large, and it won't leave too many traces—especially the core formation…"

Elder Xun Ziyou frowned deeply, then slowly sighed:

"The waters here run terrifyingly deep…"

"Once this formation is exposed, it proves that behind these cultivators, there's at least one fifth-rank formation master at the Dongxu realm."

"A fifth-rank formation master—throughout the entire Qianxuezhou realm, you can count them on one hand…"

"And this fifth-rank formation master was actually able to evade the eyes and ears of all the great power cultivators in Qianxuezhou, secretly laying down a fifth-rank formation within the Demon Refining Mountain. I'm afraid…"

Before he could finish, Xun Zixian gave him a look.

Call Ziyou turned his head and saw Mo Hua beside him, face solemn, listening very attentively, and couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache.

Xun Zixian said, "Let's head back first and talk."

When he said this, he was looking at Mo Hua.

The meaning was: hurry and take this child Mo Hua back.

Call Ziyou naturally understood. Matters at the Dongxu level—even for them Jin Dan cultivators—one careless moment and it was easy to end up with no bones left to bury.

Let alone Mo Hua, this little Foundation Establishment disciple.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me…" Mo Hua said.

Dongxu formation master, fifth-rank formation, void teleportation…

He still wanted to hear more of the secrets behind it.

But the moment he finished speaking, his consciousness sea suddenly trembled, and a stabbing pain shot through.

It was as if ten thousand demons and monsters were roaring and snarling in his ears.

Fiendish spirits ferocious, evil shadows swirling, murderous thoughts clinging to him, slowly eroding his Dao heart.

At the same time, an irrepressible impulse of "bloodlust" welled up within him.

As if he were about to transform into a "demon beast."

Noticing Mo Hua's abnormality, both Call Ziyou and the other were startled.

"Mo Hua, what's wrong?"

"I'm, not…"

Mo Hua gritted his teeth, furrowed his brow, desperately trying to suppress the murderous thoughts in his heart, but in the end still couldn't hold them back.

His gaze suddenly turned fierce and vicious. He opened his mouth and bit down on Call Ziyou's arm.

Like a "little tiger" choosing someone to devour, his expression also turned fierce.

Call Ziyou: "…"

Mo Hua gnawed twice, but couldn't bite through.

Call Ziyou's face was blank, at a loss for what to do.

Xun Zixian, standing to the side, had his expression grow solemn. His sleeve swept past Mo Hua's face, and a gentle stream of spiritual power brushed past the acupoint on Mo Hua's forehead.

Mo Hua's gaze gradually grew vacant, and then he fell into a deep sleep.

Call Ziyou looked at the unconscious Mo Hua, his expression somewhat solemn as he asked Xun Zixian:

"What's wrong with this child? Did he get possessed?"

Xun Zixian frowned and said, "A little bit…"

Call Ziyou thought for a moment, then exclaimed, "Could it be that he picked up some fiendish aura inside the Demon Refining Map?"

Xun Zixian said slowly, "Very likely…"

"Then what do we do? Can he be saved?"

Xun Zixian thought for a moment, then sighed, "Let's take him back first and let the Old Ancestor take a look…"

He did know some methods for dealing with fiendish aura, but such methods varied from person to person, and also varied depending on the type of "evil."

Useful for some people, useful against some "fiendish spirits"—sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. The effects were hard to say, and he couldn't guarantee it either.

Moreover, this child Mo Hua was a bit special, and he didn't dare act rashly.

If something went wrong, they couldn't bear the responsibility.

First knock him out, bring him back to the sect and let the Old Ancestor take a look—that should be the safest course.

Xun Zixian thought to himself.

"Alright!" Call Ziyou nodded.

"Oh right," Xun Zixian suddenly remembered something and added, "This child bit you…"

Call Ziyou said calmly, "I'm fine."

Xun Zixian shook his head, "No, look and see if his teeth are okay…"

Call Ziyou was taken aback, "He's the one who bit me…"

Xun Zixian nodded, "I know, but if you 'cracked' his teeth, the Old Ancestor probably won't give you a pleasant look either."

Call Ziyou's scalp went numb. He pinched Mo Hua's cheeks, checked his teeth, then breathed a sigh of relief, "Good, they're not broken."

"That's good…"

"Mm." Xun Zixian nodded.

After that, Call Ziyou didn't waste any more words and directly brought the "possessed" Mo Hua back to the sect.

……

Two days later.

Grand Void Gate.

Inside a quiet alchemy chamber.

Mo Hua opened his eyes—a vast expanse of white.

He still felt dizzy, and unidentifiable demons still wailed like ghosts beside his ears, making his skull ache.

This seemed to be a "side effect" of eating too much at once, overfilling his stomach before digestion could catch up.

Mo Hua had not yet recovered.

Mo Hua lifted his head, squinting, and saw Master Xun, his white hair gleaming, seated beside his bed, holding a red brush and marking something on a thick stack of array papers—as if grading array assignments.

(End of Chapter)

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