Chapter 830: Pulling Teeth from the Tiger

Mo Hua was not worried about the situation inside the island.

First, this operation was fundamentally about "borrowing power"—borrowing the strength of the Dao Ting Si to crush these water bandits.

The Xia family did not need his concern.

The other reason was the array.

The array on the island employed the principles of the Eight Trigrams and Eight Gates, with ingenious design.

But the array master who laid it out had incomplete training, and conditions on this remote, isolated island were limited, so the array constructed was crude.

The layout used the Eight Gates as its framework, but the internal Eight Trigrams array was shoddily built.

There were Eight Gates, but no Eight Trigrams.

It was extremely difficult to gather all eight types of Eight Trigrams arrays.

Li Fire, Kan Water, and Gen Mountain were somewhat easier—they shared commonalities with common Five Element arrays and were simpler to learn.

But the other Eight Trigrams—such as Zhen, symbolizing thunder; Xun, symbolizing wind; Kun, symbolizing earth; and Qian, symbolizing heaven—

these types of Eight Trigrams arrays differed radically from Five Element patterns, their array principles were profound and inscrutable, their diagrams exceedingly rare, and their lineages few and far between.

Aside from a few simple Xun arrays, even Master Xun had never given him even half a page of diagrams for Zhen, Qian, or Kun arrays.

If Mo Hua himself had none, how much less could other disciples of the Grand Void Gate possess them?

Similarly, among this band of water bandits, even within the Gui Water Gate, there was no Second-Rank array master who truly mastered all Eight Trigrams arrays.

And the Eight Gates and Eight Trigrams array on this water island was inherently incomplete.

Because the Eight Trigrams could not be assembled, most of the arrays within were merely patched together using other Five Element arrays.

Some areas didn't even have patched arrays.

This conclusion was reached by Mo Hua after studying it himself and then verifying it with Elder Xun Zixian.

According to Elder Xun Zixian, the true "Eight Gates and Eight Trigrams" array was easy to learn but hard to master—the structure was simple, but its transformations were myriad, a technique only a true master could fully wield.

Mo Hua intended to become an array master.

Therefore, he would study this array carefully, refine it.

The array on the small island was crude and imperfect.

But on this foundation, he could gradually improve it, perfect the Eight Trigrams, and add multiple variations to the flow of the Eight Gates—especially the Life Gate and Death Gate—to slowly unlock the array's full power.

This array, placed on this small island, was a waste of potential. Only in his hands could it be fully utilized.

Mo Hua nodded.

Time passed slowly; the night deepened.

In the thick darkness, a thick, viscous aura of blood permeated the air.

The island's array shifted according to Mo Hua's calculations, the Eight Gates constantly changing as he had foreseen.

The Judicial Constable followed the plan, surrounding and slaughtering the water bandits.

Soon, the water bandits showed clear signs of defeat.

Some bandits fled the island, escaping along the Life Gate.

But the moment they stepped outside the gate, the ground beneath their feet suddenly surged with muddy water, transforming into a quagmire that swallowed them whole.

Simultaneously, the quagmire churned into a vortex, as if countless hands dragged the bandits deeper into the mire.

"Fuck, who laid this trap…"

Before the bandit could finish speaking, his mouth and tongue were sealed by the mud; he struggled desperately, but it was futile.

The Dao Ting Si cultivators arrived and swiftly ended their lives.

The Eight Trigrams Dui array—

Quagmire Array.

This was the array Mo Hua had decided was best suited for the island.

The island had earth; beside it, water; water and earth merged into marsh.

Most water bandits were trapped in the Quagmire Array, struggled in vain, then were beheaded one by one by the Judicial Constable.

Those who escaped the Quagmire Array and leapt into the river were immediately ensnared by fishing nets.

The nets were reinforced with arrays—extremely sturdy, hard to break free, and studded with barbed hooks coated in poison; once caught, they were helpless prey.

If unlucky enough to stumble into the "Death Gate" that Mo Hua had deliberately set, they would be devoured by countless water yao.

Under Mo Hua's meticulous preparations, the water bandits had virtually no chance of escape.

The slaughter continued.

The corpses of the water bandits on the island grew ever more numerous.

Mo Hua estimated the time; he judged the bandits were nearly all dead, the chaos had diminished, and the island's threats were minimal—only then did he move, slipping quietly onto the island.

The island's soil was soaked in blood, sticky and thick underfoot.

Corpses of the bandits lay everywhere.

Mo Hua activated the Minor Five Elements Concealment Technique, extended his spiritual sense, passed through the Kan Gate, and walked toward the depths of the bandit stronghold.

Along the way, if he spotted a bandit feigning death on the ground, he casually fired a Fireball Spell to finish them off—like a little Yan Wang harvesting lives.

Inside the bandit stronghold, everything was in ruins.

The slaughter continued.

Firelight, bloodlight, mud, bodies sprawled haphazardly, countless footprints—all intertwined.

Mo Hua made a rough calculation and could deduce the approximate locations of Gu Changhuai, Xia Diansi, and the bulk of the Judicial Constables.

After all, their path through the array had been planned by Mo Hua himself.

But he had no need to follow that same route.

By now, no one understood the stronghold's array better than he did—not even the bandit leader, Water Yanluo.

In his spiritual awareness, the transformations of the array were clearly discernible.

Mo Hua's gaze was deep, perceiving the flow of the array, then locking onto a direction, walking toward the array's core.

Along the way, there were also various scattered trapping and killing arrays.

But in Mo Hua's eyes, these petty trapping and killing arrays were crude to the extreme—they couldn't trap him at all, let alone kill him.

Mo Hua passed through these arrays effortlessly, moved in stealth for a while, avoided scattered water bandits, and casually finished off several severely wounded bandits before arriving at the center of the bandit stronghold.

Because everything so far was proceeding according to plan.

So this timing was perfect—just enough to make some small moves.

If Mo Hua's guess was correct, Water Yen Luo was at the center of the island's array.

Even if Water Yen Luo wasn't here, this was the control hub of the array and the key to the entire bandit stronghold—there must be secrets hidden inside.

He could slip in first and see if he could fish in troubled waters, snatch some benefits.

This Water Yen Luo bore the inheritance of the Water Prison Sect; he was covered in treasures—absolutely could not let him go.

But this crackdown on the water bandits was led by Xia Diansi, with the Xiao family involved; Uncle Gu couldn't make the call, and neither could Mo Hua exploit backdoors.

If Water Yen Luo was truly captured and fell into the hands of the Xia family, everything valuable on him would be out of Mo Hua's reach.

At best, he'd get some Spirit Stones and merit points afterward.

Spirit Stones were valuable, but Mo Hua wasn't short of them now.

Merit points were even less of a concern.

Mo Hua had more merit points than he knew what to do with.

But the things on Water Yen Luo's person couldn't be bought with Spirit Stones or merit points.

Therefore, if you wanted to eat meat, you had to learn to seize opportunities.

If there was no opportunity, you had to create one.

This moment right now was the "opportunity" he had meticulously crafted using the Eight Gates and Eight Trigrams principles, and his suggestions regarding Xia Diansi's crackdown plan.

At this moment, most of the water bandits were dead.

The array couldn't stop him.

Water Yen Luo was being besieged by Dao Ting Si—he'd be exhausted and on the run.

Mo Hua could perfectly use stealth to fish in troubled waters.

And roughly half an hour from now, Uncle Gu and Xia Diansi would lead Dao Ting Si cultivators to arrive here.

This was his escape route.

If anything went wrong, he only needed to find a way to stall for half an hour until Uncle Gu and the others came to rescue him.

Whether or not he could eat meat depended entirely on these thirty minutes.

Mo Hua's eyes narrowed slightly, glowing in the darkness, exuding the aura of a hunter.

He remained hidden, drawing closer to the center of the bandit stronghold.

The center of the bandit stronghold was a large stone fortress, surrounded by wooden palisades.

This appeared to be the leader's residence, the place where the water bandits gathered for meetings, and the very heart protected by the Eight Gates and Eight Trigrams array.

Outside the stone fortress, many water bandits guarded the area, and some arrays had been set up.

But these arrays were not sophisticated.

Most importantly, there were no arrays deliberately placed to counter concealment—no Shadow-Revealing or Dust-Display arrays.

Generally speaking, they truly had no need for them.

But the current situation was unusual.

Relying on his exquisite Minor Five Elements Concealment Technique, Mo Hua slipped into the stone fortress like a ghost.

No one noticed him.

Inside the stone fortress, Mo Hua raised his eyes and immediately spotted Water Yen Luo in the hall.

At this moment, Water Yen Luo was gathered with several men who looked like minor bandit leaders, discussing something at the center table.

Calling it a discussion was better described as "yelling and cursing."

"... Who the hell brought these Dao Ting Si bastards here?!"

"How the hell should I know?"

"Someone must have leaked word..."

"We've got a traitor among us!"

"The river terrain around the stronghold is treacherous—I don't even know the way myself."

"I don't believe for a second they could sneak in without an inside man guiding these dogs."

"And the array..."

"Wasn't this array supposed to be impregnable, impossible to break? How the hell is it as flimsy as paper?"

"Every move they make, in and out, was calculated by the enemy."

"What's the point of talking about this now? The urgent task is to figure out how to defend ourselves!"

"You know the saying: to repel the foreign, first secure the internal—do you understand?"

The group shouted and argued, each holding their own view, talking incessantly.

"Enough!"

On the high seat, Bai Xi, with his arrogant eyebrows and eyes, wore a deadly expression.

It seemed Water Yen Luo possessed great authority—the water bandits below fell silent, no longer daring to speak.

After a moment, someone finally spoke in a low voice:

"Big Brother, the Dao Ting Si is about to storm in—what do we do now?"

Someone shouted: "Big Brother, let's kill this bunch of bastards!"

"How are you going to kill them? They've got a Jin Dan," sneered the water bandit beside him.

"So what if they have a Jin Dan? This is a second-grade prefecture—if we fight to the death, it's not certain who'll die…"

"What big talk! You think a Foundation Establishment can kill a Jin Dan? Go ahead, kill one for me!"

"You son of a bitch, you look down on me…"

……

The gang of bandits, as they spoke, began quarreling again.

Water Yánluó's face was like frozen frost; inside, he cursed: a bunch of fools, all they know is fighting and killing, not a single brain among them.

"Enough!" Water Yánluó snapped. "As long as the green mountains remain, there will always be firewood. I've left a backup plan—we leave through the secret passage."

"Big Brother, how can we do this? We've lost many brothers—just running away like this is too shameful…"

Water Yánluó flicked his hand, and a venomous water-whip lashed out.

The water bandit lieutenant's face bore a fresh bloody gash; he winced in unbearable pain.

Water Yánluó's gaze was icy: "Can't you hear what I said?"

The lieutenant immediately grew fearful, dared not speak again; the others fell silent.

Water Yánluó gave a slight nod, eyes cold: "The brothers' vengeance will be repaid—eventually. No need to rush now. Our priority is to avoid their edge; we'll settle these accounts later."

"Yes!"

"Big Brother speaks wisely!"

"We follow Big Brother's orders!"

……

The water bandits all echoed in agreement.

Water Yánluó said: "You all withdraw. I'll give you one incense stick's time to gather your things—then we depart."

"Yes!"

The bandits rose and took their leave, one by one exiting the hall.

Inside the hall, only Water Yánluó remained.

Water Yánluó's face remained as still as water; after a moment, he spat and muttered: "They really sent Dao Ting Si's hounds…"

Though his voice was low, it reached Mo Hua's ears.

Mo Hua, hidden in the corner, frowned at the words.

What did that mean?

Had Water Yánluó heard rumors beforehand? But if so, why hadn't he been more cautious?

Who told him?

As Mo Hua pondered, Water Yánluó rose and walked toward a stone chamber inside the hall.

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then silently followed.

Based on his experience, Water Yánluó was almost certainly gathering valuables before fleeing.

With the Dao Ting Si at the door and disaster looming, whatever he collected would be life-or-death treasures.

Mo Hua followed Water Yánluó into the stone chamber.

Inside the stone chamber was a hidden room.

Right before Mo Hua's eyes, Water Yánluó opened the hidden room's door and stepped inside.

Perhaps due to the imminent threat, Water Yánluó was distracted and failed to notice Mo Hua silently trailing behind him.

Once inside the hidden room, Mo Hua was taken aback.

This hidden room was nothing like he'd imagined.

In his mind, this chamber should have held an altar—he could have found a way to lure Water Yánluó away, sat upon the altar, and "ordered" what he needed.

Then, after returning to his sect, he'd feast on its power.

His Nineteen-Stripe Spiritual Sense could advance further.

But the hidden room before him held no such altar.

Not even a single demonic deity statue.

It was merely a simple chamber for storing spirit stones, pills, and looted goods.

Mo Hua was deeply disappointed.

Though this room held treasures amassed over years of plunder—valuable indeed—it paled beside a true altar.

As Mo Hua despaired, his pupils suddenly contracted.

He saw Water Yánluó ignore the dazzling treasures filling the room, walking straight to its deepest corner, turning a candlestick, and retrieving a box from a hidden wall niche.

The box was wrapped in black cloth.

An icy, sinister aura, thick with murderous intent, instantly spilled forth.

"A box…"

Mo Hua's heart leapt.

The usually stern and cold Water Yánluó, upon seeing this box, suddenly grew agitated—his eyes glowed with excited brilliance, and his hands trembled slightly as he held it.

To him, the box weighed more than life itself.

Water Yánluó cherished and valued the black cloth as he lifted it.

Beneath it lay a sapphire jade casket.

Upon the jade casket was carved a grim, icy map of the Dao Prison.

The drawing depicted a prison, filled with all manner of torture devices, each one bearing a prisoner undergoing punishment—screaming in agony, struggling desperately, crying out in despair.

The jade casket was aquamarine, yet this image was drenched in blood, as if imbued with cruel intent and icy malevolence.

Water Yama glanced at it once, and his expression grew entranced.

As if the prisoners, tortured to death in the Dao Prison, were the most beautiful sight in this world.

He couldn't help but caress the jade casket, reluctant to let go; only after a moment did he remember the crisis at hand—escape was paramount.

Water Yama carefully inspected the jade casket once more, confirming it bore no damage, no anomaly, before finally relaxing.

He re-covered the jade casket with black cloth, then prepared to store it in his storage pouch…

At that very moment, a chill surged straight to his crown.

A darkness most foul, a cruelty most extreme, surged up from his back.

Water Yama felt his spirit and mind tremble.

"Someone… wants to kill me?!"

As death's omen descended, at this critical instant, he bit his teeth until they bled, driving every ounce of his spiritual power to its limit, desperately evading the killing intent behind him, while simultaneously swinging his whip without hesitation toward his back.

His efforts bore fruit.

The killing intent behind him vanished.

Water Yama reacted with lightning speed; his whip, swift and venomous, forced the assassin behind him to abandon his half-formed spell and dodge aside.

In the corner of his eye, Water Yama caught a few flickers of extinguished flame.

Though only faint traces remained, they pressed upon him with overwhelming force.

It seemed that had the spell fully formed and he failed to evade, he would die on the spot.

"What… exactly is this spell?"

Water Yama's gaze trembled with shock.

And who is attacking me?!

Water Yama's fear receded, replaced by furious rage.

Just barely—he had nearly been undone!

Water Yama unleashed his aura to its peak, muscles coiling like serpents, venomous water energy swirling through his meridians, his eyes brimming with malevolence.

Yet before he could pinpoint his enemy's location, another killing intent surged from his back.

Twisted flames flared to life.

A faint, searing pain sent a chill through him.

Water Yama was stunned, instantly dodging with blinding speed and lashing his whip backward.

The flames vanished again.

The spell was interrupted once more.

That terrifying spell failed to form.

Water Yama exhaled in relief.

The coward hiding in the shadows, having failed twice, seemed restless and frustrated.

Water Yama's heart stirred; he roared:

"You vile beast! How dare you steal from Hukou? You have audacity beyond measure! Even with a great enemy before me today, I will catch you—and torture you to death with every cruel device!"

Water Yama's eyes brimmed with killing intent.

This man only knows how to hide and strike from behind—he is no threat in open combat.

As long as I remain vigilant, once I catch his mistake, he is dead.

Yet before he could think further, a sliver of red light flared in the dark chamber.

"Again—from behind!"

Water Yama sneered.

After two ambushes, he felt he understood the attacker's methods perfectly—he immediately channeled venomous spiritual energy and struck backward.

But this time, it was different.

The flames formed with terrifying speed; the spell completed in an instant, and fire already pressed against his back, bringing a faint searing pain.

Water Yama was startled—but then calmed.

Only a mild burn on his back, negligible injury—it was merely an ordinary fireball spell, not that heart-stopping, terrifying fire technique.

"What is this?"

This fireball could barely scratch.

At that moment, another fireball struck his arm.

His arm burned slightly, went numb—but nothing more.

Water Yama didn't even bother to check the wound; he sneered dismissively: "You think this pathetic magic can kill me?"

Yet no one answered.

Water Yama frowned.

"Fled?"

Did he give up so easily?

What a coward…

Water Yama's lips curled with mockery.

But the next instant, he sensed something was wrong…

The fireball had struck his arm, bringing mild burn and numbing his senses; yet now, after several cycles of water spiritual energy, the pain faded and sensation returned—Water Yama suddenly realized the weight in his hand felt off…

It seemed… lighter.

Water Yama's pupils shrank, and he immediately looked down—his spirit and mind reeled.

The black cloth was clenched in his hand, and within it lay a jade casket; even in life-or-death combat, he had never let go.

But now, a slit had been cut into the black cloth—and the jade casket inside…

Was gone?!

Water Yama's lips turned white, trembling with rage.

He suddenly understood!

First, he used a terrifying technique to instill in him an overwhelming sense of danger, forcing him to focus entirely on defense.

Then, he used an ordinary technique to lull him into complacency.

Finally, he struck his left arm with an extremely swift Fireball Technique.

While his arm burned with pain and his perception dulled for a few breaths, he slit the black cloth and stole the jade casket!

Water Yama instantly lost his reason, his eyes turning blood-red.

"Damned thief!!"

"I will tear you into a thousand pieces, grind your bones to dust, and scatter your ashes!!"

And at this moment, outside the Stone Village.

Mo Hua, knowing when to stop, pushed his Fading Water Step to its limit, clutching the jade casket as he sprinted, his eyes gleaming brightly.

A priceless treasure!

I've hit the jackpot!

Run faster!

Then he launched a smoke signal and shouted toward the distance: "Uncle Gu, save me!"

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