Chapter 470: Little Tiger
Chapter 470: Little Tiger
"I need to find time to check out the mines..." Mo Hua quietly thought to himself. He was curious about what these walking corpses were doing in the mines.
However, he couldn't leave just yet.
After leaving the stone hall's entrance, Mo Hua casually wandered around some more before returning to bed.
Over the next few days, Mo Hua took advantage of his complete mastery of stealth techniques to secretly explore the stone hall without Lu Chengyun's knowledge.
There were indeed many zombies here, and they were powerful.
They were even stronger than Lu's family on the surface.
If one day, the Lu family decided to remove Lu Chengyun as the head of the family.
With a single order from Lu Chengyun, controlling the iron corpses and walking corpses, he could probably destroy the Lu family...
Mo Hua frowned as he pondered this possibility.
Could it be that the Lu family's old ancestor was wary of this and that's why he made Lu Chengyun the head of the family? But that didn't seem quite right either.
Building such a large stone hall and refining so many zombies would require a lot of body cultivators, formation masters, corpse cultivators, as well as refining herbs, coffins, corpse-controlling bells, and corpses...
When converted into manpower and resources, these were not small numbers.
Without the support of the Lu family, Lu Chengyun would never have been able to accomplish this.
There was probably a secret between the Lu family's old ancestor and Lu Chengyun...
However, with so little information, Mo Hua couldn't guess what it was for the time being.
Mo Hua thought for a moment and felt that it was time to contact his junior male and female cousins.
With their help from the inside and out, it would be much more convenient to act.
In case of any accident, they could also help him.
Mo Hua took out a map, on which was drawn the geographical features of the Lu family's mines.
Mo Hua also took out a piece of paper and sketched out the entrance of the Corpse Mine and the approximate location of the stone hall based on his memory.
By comparing the two, he was able to roughly speculate on the location of the stone hall in the mine.
Then, based on the position, he speculated on which section of the stone wall was the thinnest, making it easier for him to dig his way out.
First of all, the room he was in wouldn't work.
Mo Hua glanced at the map and found that his stone chamber was located deep within the stone hall, and the surrounding mountain rocks were the thickest, making it the most time-consuming to dig through.
Moreover, the area was surrounded by formations, and any digging would trigger them.
These formations must not be touched.
Lu Chengyun was also a formation master, and his skills in that area were not to be underestimated.
He might not have noticed Mo Hua yet, but if Mo Hua tampered with the formations, Lu Chengyun might realize something was amiss sooner or later.
However, Mo Hua also suspected that the formations in this stone hall were interconnected.
Lu Chengyun would definitely use some means to monitor the formations throughout the stone hall.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have discovered Mo Hua as soon as he released the Xianchen Formation.
The release of the Xianchen Formation had been deliberate, to let Lu Chengyun find him.
Now, he couldn't let Lu Chengyun discover his attempt to dig an escape tunnel.
After evading Lu Chengyun's surveillance at night, Mo Hua stealthily made his way to several stone chambers on the right side of the stone hall.
These chambers were empty and obviously newly excavated, with no one living in them and no coffins placed inside.
According to Mo Hua's estimates, these stone chambers were closest to the thinnest section of the outer stone wall, making them the easiest to dig through. Moreover, there were very few formations in this area.
This was the weakest point in the entire stone hall as far as Mo Hua could calculate.
Digging a small tunnel would be sufficient.
Mo Hua took out a small wooden tiger puppet.
This was a gift from Gu Laosi, made of a wood-like material that was exceptionally resilient.
On the small tiger's body, Mo Hua had inscribed the Ling Shu Formation for control.
In addition, he had inscribed the Rui Jin Formation on its paws and teeth, which could make the puppet's claws and teeth sharp enough to easily tear through mountains and create paths.
Mo Hua intended to use the small tiger to send a message to the outside.
He couldn't leave just yet, so he only needed to create a small passageway.
Mo Hua found a hidden corner and placed the small tiger there. Then, he used his spiritual sense to control the Ling Shu Formation on the small tiger, which in turn controlled the small tiger to dig through the mountain rocks.
The formations on the small tiger's body glowed faintly, and it came to life, running around Mo Hua a few times before finding a corner and scratching at it with its tiny claws. Fine stones fell in a shower, and soon the small tiger had dug out a hole large enough for its fist.
The small tiger crawled into the hole and continued to dig outward.
In the tunnel, stones and debris continued to fall.
Mo Hua thought for a moment and drew a concealment earth formation to turn these stones into dust, so as not to be discovered.
After that, Mo Hua returned to his room.
Whether it was day or night, as long as Lu Chengyun wasn't spying on him, Mo Hua would use his spiritual sense to control the small tiger from a distance to continue digging the tunnel.
In the silent corpse mine, amidst the black and gray mountain rocks.
The little tiger dug and dug, gradually digging its way farther and farther.
A few days later, Mo Hua's spiritual sense suddenly felt lighter, and he realized that there was nothing left for the little tiger to dig through.
"It's out!" Mo Hua's heart leaped with joy.
Then, Mo Hua had the little tiger lie in the grass, waiting for his junior male cousin or junior female cousin to discover it.
With the open area around the mines, the chances of it being picked up by other cultivators were slim.
Mo Hua waited until dawn, then with a slight stir of his spiritual sense, he detected that the little tiger had been picked up, and the person's aura was very familiar.
It could be none other than his junior male cousin or junior female cousin.
Something seemed to have been stuffed into the little tiger after it was picked up, and a moment later, it was tossed back onto the mountain path.
Mo Hua controlled the little tiger to crawl back.
When the little tiger reached the cave entrance, it quietly waited.
Mo Hua remained hidden until after Zi hour when Lu Chengyun's spiritual sense had left, then he emerged, picking up the dusty and grimy little tiger.
There was a note tucked into the little tiger's belly.
Mo Hua unfolded the note, admiring the graceful and beautiful handwriting. It read:
"Where have you been?"
There was also a simple sketch at the end of the note.
It depicted a small face with a stick tapping on its head.
This sketch was unmistakably drawn by his junior female cousin; he had seen her draw it before.
The sketch portrayed Mo Hua with a stick tapping on his head.
It seemed that his junior female cousin was a little angry...
Mo Hua felt helpless and took out a pre-written note, stuffing it into the little tiger's body. The note explained the previous events, including the Corpse Mine and the Stone Hall.
There was also a small formation diagram drawn on the note, and if it fell into the hands of others, Mo Hua would activate it to burn the note.
Mo Hua then placed the little tiger back at the cave entrance.
The little tiger scurried and began climbing up again.
The next evening, the little tiger scurried back.
Mo Hua retrieved the little tiger and found a new note, which simply said:
"I know now."
There was also a small face drawn at the back, expressionless, but it seemed that his junior female cousin was no longer angry...
Mo Hua breathed a sigh of relief and left the little tiger on the mountain path to continue communicating with his cousins.
He himself would not make any hasty moves for now.
With his cousins outside, they could now be better prepared, knowing the situation.
Two more days passed, and finally, Lu Chengyun found Mo Hua. He cupped his hands and politely said:
"Lu has made all the necessary preparations. I ask Little Master to help me with something."
Mo Hua's eyes lit up, and he asked, "What does the family head want me to help with?"
"Please follow me, Little Master."
Lu Chengyun made a welcoming gesture.
Mo Hua followed him out the door, through the corridors of the stone hall, turning a few corners until they reached the previous grand hall.
Zhang Quan was also present in the hall, and upon seeing Mo Hua, he coldly huffed.
However, he did not say anything nor dared to make a move against Mo Hua.
Mo Hua also huffed in response, his mind already plotting how to trick Zhang Quan and steal away his ancestor's body.
Lu Chengyun noticed their mutual dislike but saw that they were both restraining themselves, neither speaking nor acting out. He nodded slightly.
"Zhang, open the door."
Zhang Quan's eyes narrowed at the command, and he nodded, "Alright."
Mo Hua was taken aback, confusion clouding his features.
"Open the door? What door?"
Where was there a door here?
Mo Hua frowned, then watched as Zhang Quan walked towards a massive wall.
On the wall was a mural depicting cruel and hideous zombies, terrified cultivators, countless overturned coffins, and hands reaching out from within.
Zhang Quan chanted incantations and performed intricate hand seals in front of the mural.
Mo Hua was momentarily stunned.
Zhang Quan's actions seemed oddly familiar.
They resembled the movements Zhang Quan had made in front of the screen in the Walking Corpse Village, although these were more complex, and the incantations longer.
So, just like the screen, this mural was also an entrance to a secret chamber?
Indeed, after a moment, the lines on the mural became chaotic and merged, forming a pool of ink that gradually took on layers and shapes, eventually forming a half-human, half-zombie face.
The face was stern and austere, with a greedy gaze.
And because it was now part zombie, it exuded a terrifying and hideous aura.
Once the half-human, half-zombie face manifested, it opened its mouth wide, wider and wider, until the entire face became a gaping maw.
The sides of the mouth were lined with sharp fangs, and the upper and lower jaws were equally sharp, resembling those of a mythical beast.
This mouth was the entrance.
"Little Master, please," Lu Chengyun said, gesturing towards the mural.
Without waiting for a response, he walked towards the mural himself.
Mo Hua hesitated for a moment, then followed behind him, stepping into the blood-curdling maw of the zombie.
(End of Chapter)
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