Chapter 253: The Hunt
Chapter 253: The Hunt
The next day, they ventured into the mountains to capture the bald monk and, while they were at it, rescue Kong Sheng, whose fate hung in the balance between life and death.
Ten executives from the Taoist Court in Tongxian City were dispatched, led by Chief Executive Zhang Lan, while Lu Hui took charge of the team from Qingxuan City. Only three Beast Tamers joined the mission: Ji Qingbai, Mo Shan, and Mo Hua.
Mo Shan, having a close relationship with Ji Qingbai and concerned for Mo Hua, decided to accompany them into the depths of Dahei Mountain.
Lu Hui initially didn't pay much attention to the personnel arrangements, but after catching sight of Mo Hua, he furrowed his brows.
"Executive Zhang, what is this young cultivator's role in our mission?" Lu Hui inquired, his gaze sharpening as he addressed Zhang Lan.
"We'll rely on him to guide us through the mountain," Zhang Lan replied nonchalantly.
"Guide us? Rely on him?"
Lu Hui's expression turned incredulous, tinged with a hint of scorn.
Zhang Lan shot him a glance. "Do you have any objections, Executive Lu?"
Lu Hui offered a faint smile. "None at all."
Though he refrained from further comment, his thoughts betrayed a silent mockery:
"I wonder if it's because the Beast Tamers are short-staffed or your Taoist Court is incompetent that you'd entrust a mere child with the task of guiding us?"
The group departed from the city and ventured into Dahei Mountain. They traversed the outer reaches and ventured deeper into the treacherous terrain. The forest grew denser, the atmosphere more sinister, and the noxious miasma thickened.
The party consumed Miasma-Dispelling Pills to protect themselves and then established a temporary camp to rest.
"I wonder, Executive Zhang, what are your plans?" Lu Hui inquired.
Though Zhang Lan was initially inclined to disregard Lu Hui, he knew that it was necessary to provide a clear explanation given their joint undertaking.
"The inner mountains are laced with arrays," Zhang Lan explained. "Should any combat occur, we will be immediately alerted."
"Elder Yu also instructed that the Beast Tamers should refrain from hunting beasts in the mountains during these days. Thus, any combat detected will likely be either beasts fighting amongst themselves or the bald monk committing murder and robbery..."
Lu Hui's heart skipped a beat as he grasped the implications. "There's such an array in place? May I inquire whose masterful creation this is?"
Mo Hua, standing nearby, maintained a calm demeanor.
Zhang Lan glanced at him and silently mused, "It's the handiwork of the'master' right by your side."
However, he didn't explicitly reveal this, merely stating, "You'll find out in due course."
Lu Hui's expression reflected his confusion.
Zhang Lan didn't bother elaborating further and instead outlined their next steps. "We'll split into two teams, each equipped with a compass array. Should any combat be detected, we'll head over to investigate. Even if we encounter the bald monk, let's refrain from taking immediate action. We'll wait for the rest of our team to assemble before acting together."
Both Mo Shan and Mo Hua possessed compasses, so they each joined a team. For the next few days, they scoured the mountains, searching for any traces of the fugitive cultivator. At night, the teams regrouped at the camp.
Days passed without any sign of the bald monk, nor even a glimpse of the fugitive cultivator. Unbeknownst to them, a seed of doubt had taken root in their minds.
However, like Beast Tamers searching for prey in the mountains, such endeavors required patience.
After several days of fruitless searching, Mo Hua, who was resting by a dense forest with his team, which included Zhang Lan, Lu Hui, and several other Taoist Court cultivators, voiced his confusion. "It's odd that we haven't been able to locate them."
Zhang Lan furrowed his brows, sharing the same sentiment. "It is rather peculiar."
"Do you think the bald monk might have already left Dahei Mountain?" Mo Hua inquired.
Zhang Lan contemplated this possibility. "It's not entirely out of the realm of chance."
"In that case, I suppose Young Master Kong is as good as dead," Mo Hua remarked, unable to hide his schadenfreude.
Lu Hui shot Mo Hua a cold look. "Youngster, mind your tongue."
"Alright, then," Mo Hua conceded, switching to a more sympathetic tone. "Young Master Kong's chances of survival are likely slim."
Lu Hui's eyelids twitched at the ominous implication.
Zhang Lan sighed. Even at this critical juncture, Mo Hua still found amusement in verbal sparring.
However, upon further reflection, Zhang Lan acknowledged that this matter had little to do with Mo Hua, who probably wished for nothing more than the bald monk to finish off Kong Sheng.
In truth, Zhang Lan shared a similar sentiment, but duty-bound by the task at hand, he couldn't simply shirk his responsibilities.
The group took a brief respite before resuming their search, guided by the lights on their compasses.
However, the lights mostly indicated beast battles or foreign Beast Tamers hunting in the area, with no sign of the fugitive cultivator.
Mo Hua asked, "Where are you demon hunters from?"
One of the demon hunters laughed and replied, "We're from Tongxian City, little brother."
After asking for directions, Mo Hua also inquired if they had seen any strange cultivators.
The group of demon hunters answered, "We haven't seen any other cultivators."
Mo Hua nodded and then parted ways with them. After taking a few steps, Mo Hua signaled to Zhang Lan.
Zhang Lan's eyes narrowed as he gave a slight nod and gestured to the other cultivators from the Taoist Court. They quietly doubled back and stealthily followed this group of demon hunters to a valley.
As the demon hunters entered the valley, they disappeared from sight.
"Their nest must be here," Mo Hua said.
Lu Hui, puzzled, asked, "How do you know they aren't demon hunters?"
"Because they claimed to be from Tongxian City, but I've never seen them before," Mo Hua explained.
Lu Hui frowned. "There must be nearly a thousand demon hunters in Tongxian City. Do you know all of them?"
Ignoring Lu Hui, Mo Hua turned to Zhang Lan and said, "I think we should make our move."
Zhang Lan nodded. "I'll gather everyone together."
Following Zhang Lan's instructions, the cultivators from the Taoist Court sprang into action, each carrying out their assigned tasks.
Only Lu Hui's gaze toward Mo Hua held a hint of darkness.
As night fell, flickers of firelight and the murmur of voices could be seen and heard from within the valley.
Zhang Lan's team assembled outside the valley, using a large boulder and the surrounding tall grass as cover.
Zhang Lan whispered, "I've been keeping an eye on them all afternoon. There are about twenty of them, including the bald monk and the one-eyed cultivator."
This was more than they had anticipated. Either the bald monk had been hiding some of his men, or he had recently gathered more rogue cultivators.
They were now outnumbered, so if they wanted to take action, they would have to strike when their opponents were least expecting it.
Ji Qingbai suggested, "They're probably drinking right now, so this would be a good time to strike. However, it's too dark, and some may escape. It would be best to make our move at dawn when it's still dim."
Mo Shan nodded in agreement. "Yes, at dawn. They'll be drowsy from drunkenness, and the timing will be perfect."
Zhang Lan also nodded. "Then we'll follow Mo Hua's suggestion."
After further discussion of the details with Mo Shan and Ji Qingbai, Zhang Lan concluded, "We also need to find a way to block the mountain pass."
The valley was quite secluded, with only one entrance—a narrow mountain pass that was easy to defend but difficult to attack. However, because there was only one pass, blocking it would trap the rogue cultivators like turtles in a jar, leaving them with no escape route.
But the pass, while not large, wasn't exactly small either, and it would be challenging to guard solely with manpower.
Zhang Lan looked at Mo Hua.
Mo Hua nodded. "I'll seal off the mountain pass."
Using his spiritual sense to scan the valley and confirm that the rogue cultivators were deeply engrossed in their drinking, unaware of any danger, Mo Hua quietly approached the valley under the cover of night.
The darkness provided concealment, and hiding in the grass, Mo Hua was confident that even if the rogue cultivators looked in his direction, the blurred vision afforded by the night would protect him, especially with his rudimentary stealth technique.
His stealth technique wasn't perfect and was useless during the day, but it became much more effective at night.
Moreover, Mo Hua's powerful spiritual sense allowed him to deliberately conceal his aura, ensuring that even if the rogue cultivators used their spiritual sense to scan the area, they wouldn't detect him.
Time was of the essence, and Mo Hua hadn't prepared a Fire Lock Array beforehand, so he had to draw it on the spot.
Mo Hua crouched at the valley entrance, took out his array brush, and with swift, skillful strokes, he began drawing the Fire Lock Array on the rocky ground of the mountain pass, his brush dancing with ink.
Zhang Lan and the others were used to such displays by now.
Only Lu Hui was stunned, never expecting that this young boy was also an array master!
(End of Chapter)
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