Chapter 1052: Demon Valley
Chapter 1052: Demon Valley
Inside the Array Hub Hall.
The bodies of the slain Evil Array Masters piled up like a river, and the large amount of loot collected from them formed a small mountain.
Mo Hua arranged for a few people to guard the hall’s periphery. Then, with a flick of his finger, Spirit Ink flowed and formed intricate arrays, spreading throughout the hall. It cleansed the blood and isolated the evil energy before he found a comfortable spot to sit and calmly sort through the loot in front of him.
His divine perception was strong and sharp, allowing him to inspect the loot with incredible speed.
Moreover, Mo Hua was very experienced in this.
He knew what was useful and what was not, what carried evil energy, what was tainted, and which items to keep and which to destroy.
He could discern all of this with just a quick glance.
As a result, the disciples from various sects watched in amazement as Mo Hua’s pale, tender hands moved as quickly as a mole, creating afterimages.
Before long, Mo Hua had meticulously inventoried the mountain of loot.
Items from the righteous and the evil, those that could be used and those that could not, were all neatly categorized by Mo Hua.
The disciples from various sects were all stunned.
His technique was too fast!
Too proficient!
Was Mo Hua killing and looting every day? How else could he be so skilled?
And why did he know so much about the evil path’s items?
When they were all still confused by the pile of evil items, he had already sorted them in a few breaths.
Everyone was a disciple of a sect, trained in the traditional nine-year cultivation education. Why was he so familiar with the evil path?
His background was a bit questionable, wasn’t it?
If it weren’t for Mo Hua’s recent leadership in wiping out eighty Evil Array Masters, these disciples might have suspected that Mo Hua was actually the descendant of some “great evil master,” sent to infiltrate the major righteous sects as a spy.
Everyone’s faces were full of disbelief.
After Mo Hua neatly inventoried the loot, he pointed at a pile of storage bags and instructed:
“These are evil artifacts, which can’t be used…”
“These spirit stones are tainted with blood energy.”
“These elixirs are made from human flesh and blood; don’t touch them.”
“And these cultivation techniques, sutras, and evil techniques, don’t read them. They could corrupt you. Burn them all in the Blood River…”
Then, Mo Hua pointed to another pile of storage bags. “These spirit stones are usable. The elixirs are also standard and commonly used. I’ve checked them with my divine perception; they are free of evil and corrupt energy…”
“You can divide them among yourselves and consume them to restore your spiritual energy. We don’t know what evil entities we might encounter next, so we need to be well-prepared…”
“And these…”
Mo Hua’s instructions were clear and precise, making him look very “professional.”
The disciples from other sects hesitated slightly but followed Mo Hua’s directions.
Gradually, this became the norm.
Some destroyed the evil items, while others consumed the spirit stones and elixirs to restore their spiritual energy. Everyone worked in an orderly manner.
Only then did Mo Hua have the chance to turn his attention to another pile of loot.
This pile was densely packed with complex and obscure array diagrams, sutras, array media, and bone scrolls…
These were the first-hand materials of the evil great array.
This was what Mo Hua wanted most.
Since he had been trapped in the evil great array, his first thought wasn’t to escape but to find a way to study and comprehend the array.
This was a great array, the lifelong pursuit of an array master.
Even if it was an evil great array, it was still a great array.
Constructing a great array was extremely difficult, requiring vast amounts of human labor, spiritual energy, and resources.
Therefore, the number of existing great arrays in the cultivation world was already very few.
A fully activated great array was even rarer.
And for a great array to be fully activated and for him to be able to “experience” it and learn from it, the conditions were even more stringent.
Even the rank of the great array couldn’t be too high.
The Great Array of Geese Landing Mountain had been fully activated in front of Mo Hua, but it was a Fifth Rank array. Its realm was far beyond Mo Hua’s current understanding of array principles. It was like a natural creation, and he couldn’t penetrate its essence, so he couldn’t learn from it.
The evil great array before him, however, was “hybrid-compatible” and fell between Second and Third Rank.
Because it was activated in a hurry, some of the array structures were incomplete, and some of the array hub structures were not fully “sealed.” The cycle of the array eye and the flow of evil energy had not formed a closed loop.
This was almost the perfect example for studying the construction of a great array above the Second Rank.
For Mo Hua, this was a rare and precious opportunity.
Mo Hua gathered his spirit and began to browse through the large number of great array “patterns” he had obtained from the Evil Array Masters.
He didn’t need to learn the specific array techniques, as they were all evil arrays that would “pollute” his mental array library.
But the structure and core of the great arrays were essential to study.
Ignoring the specific, superficial evil array techniques, he delved into the essence of the great arrays, sensing the flow of their core power, and reconstructing the macroscopic central structure of the great arrays.
This was about the perspective of an array master.
It was also about the experience of a chief array master in constructing a great array.
This was the highest level of array knowledge.
Mo Hua thus continued to flip through the pages, perform calculations, and take out paper and pen to sketch the central structure of the great arrays.
Many sect disciples, while meditating to restore their spiritual energy, couldn’t help but sneak glances at Mo Hua, curious about what he was drawing.
But just one look made their scalps tingle.
The strokes were messy, the structures complex, and the patterns obscure, extremely abstract.
They could understand a bit of the individual array patterns, at least recognizing them as Second Rank patterns, but when combined, they looked like a cryptic text, and they couldn’t figure out the meaning of any line or pattern…
“This is the world of an array master…”
Everyone stared at Mo Hua, secretly astonished.
On the surface, they all looked human, but their minds certainly didn't belong to the same "species."
At the very least, normal people shouldn't, and shouldn't be able to, understand these "abstract" array patterns.
Even the disciples of the Myriad Array Sect, many of whom had already been certified as Second Rank Array Masters, felt their minds tremble and their hearts suffocate as they watched Mo Hua casually draw these array patterns and pivot lines up close.
For a moment, they even began to doubt themselves deeply.
Did they really learn array techniques before…?
Did they really pass the Second Rank Array Master examination…?
Why did the array diagram in front of them, clearly a Second Rank, seem so unfamiliar and so hard to understand?
"Array techniques… are drawn like this?"
"Was everything we learned before just fake array techniques?"
When they were at Lunjian, they hadn't felt it as strongly.
But now, standing right next to Mo Hua and watching him study the array techniques, especially the principles of grand arrays, the impact was too intense, too mind-bending.
Many felt a shock of horror, unable to calm down for a long time…
Time slipped by bit by bit.
Mo Hua remained focused, studying the grand evil array.
He bypassed the evil parts of the array and gradually extracted the pivot structure.
The overall framework, like the branches and trunk of a tree, was meticulously and deeply inscribed by Mo Hua onto the array paper with his rough yet profound brushwork.
The main trunk of the grand array became increasingly clear in Mo Hua's mind.
But as he calculated, his frown deepened.
"Can't fully compute?"
What he had deduced was the structure of a grand array centered around his position, extending to cover most of the Geese Landing Mountain.
However, this structure couldn't form a pivot cycle.
This meant that the grand array of Geese Landing Mountain was not the entirety of the evil grand array.
The scale of this entire evil grand array was much larger than Mo Hua had initially thought.
Even the Geese Landing Mountain area was just a "sub-array block" of the entire evil grand array.
This somewhat exceeded Mo Hua's existing experience with grand arrays.
At least, it was completely different from the structure of the First Rank Five Elements Demon Slaying Array he had constructed before.
"Truly worthy of being a near Third Rank grand array…"
Mo Hua sighed slightly.
Even with his current divine perception and expertise in array techniques, he found it extremely challenging to comprehend.
Mo Hua flipped through the "relics" left by the Evil Array Master and found a few words on an ancient array diagram fragment:
"Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation."
Mo Hua's heart trembled.
"Is this the name of the grand array? Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation Grand Array…"
These words indeed carried a sense of ancient and immense malevolence, sounding bloody and cruel.
Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood…
The key might lie in the word "sacrifice." This kind of grand array used for "sacrifice" was definitely different from ordinary grand arrays and didn't fall within the scope of his previous studies…
Mo Hua's frown deepened.
He realized he had underestimated the evil grand array.
This grand array was even more vast and complex than he had imagined.
And it must contain deeper array secrets that he couldn't fully comprehend just by tracing the array patterns and deducing the pivot structure…
Mo Hua continued to study for a while longer, and the outline of the grand array became clearer in his mind.
But that was as far as it went.
The existing evil array diagrams he had obtained from the Evil Array Master were no longer sufficient to support his deeper research.
Mo Hua couldn't help but think of the four Golden Core Evil Array Masters in the secret pivot room, who drank wine with deformed eyes.
These four Golden Core Evil Array Masters controlled the core pivot, and they definitely had more secrets about the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation Grand Array.
"Kill them, search them, and then study the more secret pivot structure?"
Mo Hua's thoughts were restless, but after some consideration, he suppressed his urge to kill.
Third Rank Golden Core, this was another major realm, a different level of cultivation.
Moreover, Geese Landing Mountain was a Third Rank domain. Within this domain, Golden Core Array Masters, especially Evil Array Masters, were not suppressed by the Tao. They could fully utilize their cultivation and activate the Third Rank evil arrays, which were extremely sinister and terrifying.
Especially since this was the Evil Array Master's stronghold.
There were four Golden Core Evil Array Masters…
Mo Hua wasn't too willing to take the risk.
Despite having hundreds of disciples under his command and his divine perception transformed into a sword, he should have a chance to kill the four Golden Core Evil Array Masters if he acted.
But the cost would be certain deaths.
Exactly how many would die depended on specific strategies, luck, and the cultivation and skills of the four Golden Core Evil Array Masters.
The most crucial point was that Mo Hua, for caution, hadn't dared to probe the four Evil Array Masters, so he didn't know their exact cultivation levels.
If they were just early-stage Golden Core, it would be better.
But if one or two were mid- to late-stage Golden Core Evil Array Masters, the outcome would be much worse.
If they clashed, many disciples from the various sects would die.
Before, it wouldn't have mattered much, but now Mo Hua was the "big brother." These disciples were following him, and he couldn't just let them die.
"Never mind, better safe than sorry. Acting against the Golden Core Evil Array Masters now would be somewhat rash. I'll spare them for now…"
Mo Hua pondered.
He could also put the study of the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation Grand Array on hold.
The current priority was to leave the evil array of Geese Landing Mountain as soon as possible.
Over eighty Evil Array Masters had been wiped out by him and his followers. Once this was exposed, it would certainly provoke retaliation from the Evil Deity and Demon Cultivators.
No matter how secretive the operation, it could only deceive for a short while, not indefinitely.
Moreover, the malevolent aura in the air was growing increasingly dense.
If they didn’t escape soon, the longer they lingered, the more severe the problems would become.
"Find a way out and lead everyone to safety..."
Mo Hua pondered, then without hesitation, he said to everyone, "Pack your things and follow me."
It was difficult to enter the grand array from the outside, but it was relatively easier to leave from the inside.
Especially since Mo Hua had killed a large number of Evil Array Masters and used their array diagrams to analyze the structure of the grand array around Geese Landing Mountain to a considerable extent.
This analysis was currently limited to the surface level, far from enough to "insight", "control", or "reconstruct" the grand array, and far from meeting Mo Hua’s standards.
But it was more than enough to find a path out.
After all, building a house from scratch and simply leading people out of it were entirely different in difficulty.
As long as he could lead these hundreds of Tianjiao and his junior disciples out of Geese Landing Mountain alive, his mission would be considered accomplished.
With a plan in mind, Mo Hua took the lead.
The Tianjiao disciples followed silently, trailing behind Mo Hua.
One by one, they left the central array hall, navigating various hidden passages toward the outside of Geese Landing Mountain.
The path was winding and twisting, sometimes descending, sometimes ascending, sometimes climbing rocks, sometimes scaling beams, and sometimes crawling through tunnels...
Mo Hua moved with ease, as if he had built the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation array himself. He walked through the evil array as if it were his own backyard, leaving the others in awe.
The journey was relatively smooth.
Mo Hua managed to avoid most of the patrolling Demon Cultivators and warning arrays.
Occasionally, when they encountered a few Demon Cultivators that couldn’t be avoided, Mo Hua would control them, and the other Tianjiao would eliminate them, leaving no trace.
As they continued, the exit of Geese Landing Mountain was in sight.
All that stood before them was a long stone bridge and a dark, deep valley below.
Mo Hua suddenly stopped, his expression growing serious.
"Senior Brother, what’s wrong?" Simu Jian asked.
Mo Hua shook his head and sighed. "We can’t leave for now."
Simu Jian frowned, and the others were also puzzled.
Mo Hua pointed into the valley. "Look down carefully, hold your breath, and don’t reveal your presence."
Everyone followed Mo Hua’s instructions, holding their breath and suppressing their aura as they peered down.
At the sight, everyone’s faces turned deathly pale.
The valley was extremely deep and pitch black, but in the distance, they could faintly see the ground veins at the bottom, dyed red with blood.
Within the ground veins, there were clusters of writhing flesh.
These clusters resembled embryos, floating in dark amniotic fluid, enveloped in a foul, sticky membrane. Through the membrane, they could vaguely see deformed human limbs and various demonic creatures intertwined and growing together.
The ground veins nourished them.
Some embryos were still growing slowly, while others had shed their skin and transformed into blood-soaked, flesh-covered demons, their mouths filled with sharp fangs, tearing at the surrounding flesh and bones, gradually feeding and evolving...
These demons were densely packed, almost filling the entire valley, and they continued to spread along the blood river, extending into the distant darkness, seemingly endless.
In the blood-red ground veins and endless darkness, countless more embryos were hatching, nourishing even more demons...
The hellish scene sent shivers down the spines of all the disciples, making them feel as if they were in an ice cellar.
If anyone fell into the valley, the outcome was unimaginable.
Even the slightest mistake that drew the demons’ attention, leading to an attack by the countless demons in the valley, would mean certain death without a trace.
If these demons were to leave the valley and flood the land like a tide, it would mean a catastrophic disaster, a massacre of all living beings.
Most low-rank cultivators would become nothing more than food for these blood-flesh demons.
All the disciples were filled with fear.
Mo Hua, while still shaken, finally understood...
Why Mr. Tu had killed so many people and raised so many demons.
He understood why he had killed so many evil spirits and demons in his nightmares but had seen so few blood-flesh demons in the real world.
These blood-flesh demons were all being raised by Mr. Tu in the blood-red ground veins, within the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation array.
Mo Hua’s gaze sharpened, and he slowly understood what the "Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation" truly meant.
The demons cultivated by the Wasteland were of two types: tangible and intangible.
The tangible were the blood-flesh demons; the intangible were the evil spirits.
The followers of the Evil Deity sold cultivators, massacred entire families, and created sacrifices through slaughter.
The blood and flesh of cultivators were used to cultivate blood-flesh demons.
The remaining souls of cultivators were used to cultivate evil spirits.
The blood-flesh demons waged war in the real world.
The evil spirits created nightmares.
In other words, Mr. Tu had two "demon armies" under his control.
One army of evil spirits was raised in the altar of the Tree of Divine Authority.
One army of blood-flesh demons was raised in the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation array.
Once the Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation array was activated, the evil power would shroud the sky, and both demon armies would emerge, descending upon the world. They would slaughter countless cultivators and devour countless souls, bringing death to the real world and despair to nightmares.
The heavens were indifferent, treating all beings as mere fodder.
Ultimately, the boundary between the real and the dream would be shattered, and the real world and nightmares would merge. The Evil Deity would truly descend upon the world.
At that time, all cultivators would be plunged into suffering and despair, slaughter and fear. Whether it was their blood and flesh or their souls, they would all become "sacrifices" to the Lord of the Wasteland.
From life to death, from blood and flesh to souls, none would be spared.
This was the ... Heavenly Sacrifice of Blood and Desolation.
(End of Chapter)
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