Chapter 636: Burial at Mount Tu Geng
Chapter 636: Burial at Mount Tu Geng
Hualangjun's death was natural, without any signs of human intervention.
He was captured and brought to the Daotingsi, where he was interrogated and tortured before being thrown into the Daoyu, the prison of the Daotianshi.
After that, it was as if he had never existed.
Chained and deprived of food and water, his wounds worsened, and no one spared him a glance or uttered a word to him. He was left to perish on his own.
Even in death, it seemed that no one knew or cared.
His body was left unclaimed.
However, this was clearly against the rules and regulations of the Daotingsi.
Therefore, Mo Hua suspected that there might be a traitor within the Daotingsi who had managed to kill Hualangjun silently and secretly within the confines of the tightly guarded and lightless Daoyu, thus silencing him permanently.
And Hualangjun had indeed held the clues to Huofotu.
Gu Changhai's face turned grim.
He summoned the executives in charge of the Daoyu and sternly demanded an explanation.
The executives were filled with dread, bowing and pleading, "Please forgive us, Lord Executive, but we truly know nothing about this matter..."
"He was left unattended after the interrogation."
"We don't know why, but he suddenly died."
"I beg your forgiveness, Lord Executive, for my negligence in not paying attention to the life and death of this criminal!"
Their words asked for forgiveness, but their tone was one of evasion and blame-shifting.
Hualangjun's crimes warranted the death penalty.
Negligence had led to the early demise of a prisoner who was already destined to die.
This was not considered a serious offense.
Even if reported, the consequences would likely be nothing more than a reprimand and a small fine.
Gu Changhai was angry, but there was little he could do to punish them severely.
Moreover, these two executives might not have been aware of any conspiracy.
Their "negligence" could very well have been genuine, albeit influenced by someone else.
However, Mo Hua's suspicion about a traitor within the Daotingsi might not be entirely unfounded.
Even the incident with Yu'er previously...
Gu Changhai frowned, deep in thought, when suddenly his heart skipped a beat, and he spun around to face Mo Hua beside him.
He sensed that Mo Hua's aura had suddenly changed—it had become strange and eerie, with a hint of profound and indescribable profundity.
It was as if something had possessed him...
Or perhaps his spiritual sense was undergoing some kind of transformation.
What was happening?
Gu Changhai was filled with suspicion and uncertainty.
Just then, Mo Hua turned around, and the pitch-black gleam in his eyes vanished, leaving them clear and translucent once more.
"Uncle Gu, is something the matter?" Mo Hua asked.
Gu Changhai's eyelids twitched.
Mo Hua's eyes were the same as before—clear like a calm pond, their luster subdued, revealing nothing.
Yet Gu Changhai had definitely sensed that dangerous and uncanny aura...
"Was it my imagination...?"
"Or am I being overly suspicious..."
Gu Changhai's brows furrowed deeply.
Mo Hua blinked innocently.
In that moment when Gu Changhai was deep in thought, Mo Hua had indeed taken the opportunity to secretly employ the Guiyan Algorithm to peer into Hualangjun's karma.
In that fleeting moment, his spiritual sense had undergone a transformation, and it had been noticed.
No wonder he was the Executive of the Daotingsi.
Mo Hua made a mental note to be more cautious in the future.
When dealing with Golden Core Realm cultivators and above, especially the executives of the Daotingsi in the Grand State, he needed to be more discreet when employing these karmic fusion techniques to peek into another's karma.
He didn't want to expose his tricks to those with ulterior motives...
His master's karmic algorithm was somewhat better in this regard, as it dealt with larger karmic connections and appeared more like a righteous method on the surface.
But his uncle-master's karmic algorithm was a different story.
In this world, aside from his uncle-master, there was probably no one else cultivating such a devious spiritual art.
If he were to be discovered as a "little devious cultivator," the consequences would be dire.
Seeing that Gu Changhai was still eyeing him with suspicion, Mo Hua decided to take the initiative and asked, "Uncle Gu, have you figured something out?"
"How did Hualangjun die?"
"Who killed him?"
"Could it be..."
Mo Hua raised his eyebrows and glanced at the two executives standing beside them.
The two executives immediately broke out in a cold sweat and pleaded with Gu Changhai, "Lord Executive Gu!"
"Although we were negligent, this criminal's death has nothing to do with us..."
"How dare we break the law and kill someone in the Daoyu..."
"Lord Executive Gu, please be the judge!"
"Lord Executive Gu..."
Gu Changhai's train of thought was interrupted by their clamor, and he forgot about his suspicions regarding Mo Hua for the moment.
"Alright." Gu Changhai's eyes turned cold as he swept his gaze over the two executives. "Handle this matter according to the rules. Punish those who need to be punished. You may leave now."
The two executives did not dare to disobey Gu Changhai and bowed in response, "Yes."
Then they retreated.
Gu Changhai wanted to say something to Mo Hua, but he lifted his head and glanced at the gloomy ceiling of the Daoyu, shaking his head and abandoning the idea.
"Let's leave first..." Gu Changhai said.
"Okay."
Mo Hua followed Gu Changhai out of the Daoyu.
However, as they were leaving, Mo Hua turned back one more time to look at the deceased Hualangjun.
In life, Hualangjun had a face as beautiful as a flower, a graceful and handsome appearance, and he had indulged in the pleasures of the flesh, capturing the hearts of countless women.
But in death, he lay alone and unknown, his clothes tattered, and his body dirty and decaying.
Indeed, all the pleasures of the flesh and the material world were ultimately illusory.
And...
Hualangjun's death was too natural.
There were no signs of any external intervention.
Even when Mo Hua had darkened his pupils and employed the Guiyan Algorithm, he had found no traces of karma.
Whoever had killed him had done so with extraordinary skill.
"The best way to conceal karma is to act naturally and leave no traces of karma..."
Mo Hua made a mental note of this.
"I must learn this well..."
...
After leaving the Daoyu, Gu Changhai's expression was as deep and still as water.
He thought for a moment and then ordered someone to bring Hualangjun's belongings, evidence, and storage bag to him.
Then he retreated to a quiet chamber in the Daotingsi to examine them alone.
"Why not?" Mo Hua asked.
"You're still too young..." Gu Changhai replied.
Mo Hua didn't understand.
Seeing his genuine confusion, Gu Changhai sighed and explained, "Hualangjun was a womanizer..."
Inside the storage bag were things like bedroom techniques, erotic paintings, manuals on aphrodisiacs, and flower-viewing records—all lowbrow and inappropriate for children.
There was no way he could let Mo Hua see any of it.
Otherwise, he might pick up some bad habits.
Realization dawned on Mo Hua, and he remembered how Murong Jie had also prevented him from looking inside Hualangjun's storage bag when he had captured him.
"Alright, if you say so..." Mo Hua said, and he lay down next to Gu Changhai, staring at him intently.
Feeling uncomfortable under Mo Hua's gaze, Gu Changhai became annoyed. "Why are you staring at me? Mind your own business. I'm trying to investigate here..."
Mo Hua held up three fingers. "The three rules!"
"The third rule: If we go out, I follow you everywhere and don't act on my own or do anything reckless..."
"You said this yourself!" Mo Hua asserted.
Gu Changhai's head began to ache. He had been too careless. In his momentary lapse of judgment, he had set a trap for himself.
This kid was too cunning for his age...
He could find and exploit even the tiniest loophole.
"Fine..." Gu Changhai conceded.
Seeing Gu Changhai's helplessness, Mo Hua took the opportunity to do as he pleased, leaving Gu Changhai to examine Hualangjun's storage bag on his own in search of clues.
This storage bag had been sealed by the Daotingsi. Outsiders couldn't tamper with it, and any Daotingsi member who tried would surely leave traces of their actions.
So far, it seemed that no one had touched the contents.
Drawing on his years of investigative experience at the Daotingsi, Gu Changhai carefully inspected each item, looking for any signs or clues that could be of use.
However, most of the contents were distasteful and inappropriate.
As he continued searching, Gu Changhai's expression grew increasingly frustrated.
Finally, his eyes landed on a jade slip, and his demeanor shifted slightly as a glint of understanding flashed in his eyes.
While Gu Changhai had been prevented from looking inside the storage bag, Mo Hua, who had been staring at him the whole time, immediately noticed this subtle change in his expression.
Mo Hua's eyes lit up. "Uncle Gu, did you find a clue?"
Gu Changhai was about to nod when he suddenly shook his head instead, storing the jade slip away and replying nonchalantly, "No."
"I saw it!" Mo Hua insisted.
"What did you see?"
"I saw your expression change," Mo Hua said. "You must have discovered something!"
Gu Changhai's scalp tingled as he silently cursed: This little brat, Mo Hua, must have had his body possessed by some ancient demon! How else could he be so cunning at such a young age?
But Gu Changhai stubbornly denied it. "I said there's nothing, so there's nothing."
"Alright then," Mo Hua sighed.
Seeing Gu Changhai, a respectable Golden Core Realm cultivator and official of the Daotingsi, stoop to such petty behavior, Mo Hua had no choice but to back down. He decided to ask another question instead. "Uncle Gu, where are we going next?"
Without hesitation, Gu Changhai replied, "Hualangjun is dead, so the 'clue' is gone..."
Noticing Mo Hua's skeptical look, Gu Changhai coughed and averted his gaze, trying to sound casual as he added, "We can head back now."
Mo Hua nodded. "Then, Uncle Gu, you can go back first."
"Mhm," Gu Changhai agreed, but then hesitated. "You're not coming?"
"I have something else to do," Mo Hua said.
"What is it?" Gu Changhai asked.
"I want to go to Bishan City and take a look at the Xie family, who were wiped out," Mo Hua replied without hiding the truth.
Gu Changhai frowned. "The Xie family's residence has been burned to the ground and sealed by the Daotingsi. You won't be able to get in. Besides, Bishan City is a bit dangerous right now, so you can't go there."
Mo Hua lowered his voice. "Then, can you take me there?"
"No," Gu Changhai refused.
"Then I'll go by myself," Mo Hua said. "You go back and tell Wan'er that I won't be returning to the Gu family. After I've been to Bishan City, I'll head back to the sect on my own."
Mo Hua's expression was calm, but his eyes held a mischievous glint.
Gu Changhai paused for a moment before realizing what Mo Hua was up to.
This little rascal was threatening him!
Since he had brought Mo Hua out, he had to take him back safely, or else he would face his sister's reprimand and worry.
He had no choice but to bring Mo Hua back unharmed.
Moreover, if Mo Hua didn't want to return, he couldn't force him. If he did and Mo Hua complained to his sister, he would be in even deeper trouble.
After all, on the surface, Mo Hua was the "benefactor" of the Shangguan family, and they had to respect that.
So, for now, he had to give in to Mo Hua's demands and follow him wherever he wanted to go...
Gu Changhai gritted his teeth in frustration.
Mo Hua maintained his composure, waiting for Gu Changhai's response.
After a long moment of contemplation, Gu Changhai finally relented. "Fine, I'll take you there, but after we've been to Bishan City, you have to come back to the Gu family with me. No more scheming."
"Yes, yes!" Mo Hua smiled brightly. "A deal's a deal!"
...
As it was already late, they decided to stay the night at a guesthouse in Lushan City before setting off the next morning.
After a quick breakfast, they departed Lushan City and made their way toward the nearby Bishan City.
This was Mo Hua's second time entering Bishan City.
Sheer cliffs loomed overhead, rising thousands of feet into the sky, with mountain ranges crisscrossing the landscape.
Most of the cave dwellings and buildings were constructed on the steep cliffs, creating a spectacular and majestic sight.
However, the atmosphere in the city was oppressive.
People on the streets kept their mouths shut, their faces filled with apprehension and gravity.
Fire Buddha Tuo had slaughtered the entire Xie family in front of the Daotingsi and all the cultivators in the city.
The Xie family's residence had been reduced to ashes, their centuries-old legacy destroyed in an instant.
The people of Bishan City felt a sense of impending doom.
Gu Changhai's expression turned even grimmer as they traveled, his face like thunder as he wished he could immediately execute Fire Buddha Tuo and his band of criminal cultivators.
Embedded in the ground outside the Xie family property were rows of bricks inscribed with array patterns. These bricks, connected end to end, supported an invisible barrier that sealed off the charred remains of the Xie family, prohibiting outsiders from entering.
This was the Daotingsi's warning array.
"You stay out here and look," Gu Changhai instructed.
Mo Hua objected, but seeing that he had no other choice, he could only peer inside from outside the warning array.
As he did so, he noticed something amiss.
Even though everything was burnt to a crisp, traces of array patterns could still be discerned on the outskirts of the Xie family property.
"A second-grade Golden Earth Mountain Restoration Array..." Mo Hua murmured.
Upon hearing the name of the array, Gu Changhai was taken aback.
Mo Hua continued to observe, releasing his spiritual sense and, instead of using the Guiyan Algorithm, he employed the Yansuan to deduce the residual traces of the array, muttering softly:
"The Xie family's outer perimeter..."
"...originally had a second-grade Golden Earth Mountain Restoration Array, a defensive array combining the five elements of metal and earth with the eight trigrams of the mountain..."
"However, someone altered the array patterns..."
"...they only modified the metal-based patterns, leaving the others untouched..."
"...by changing the metal patterns, they caused a shift in the earth-based patterns, altering the array's effect..."
"The second-grade Golden Earth Mountain Restoration Array was transformed into..."
"...a second-grade 'Burial' Earth Mountain Restoration Array..."
"...an entrapment array that buried the entire Xie family within their own home..."
...
As Gu Changhai listened, his expression grew more and more astonished, and he asked in a solemn tone, "Who told you about this?"
"What?" Mo Hua was slightly confused.
"About the Xie family's array," Gu Changhai said, his face grave.
"Do I need to be told about this?" Mo Hua asked, puzzled. "Can't I just see it for myself?"
'See it for yourself'?
Gu Changhai turned his head to look at the blackened, charred earth before them.
'See it for yourself'? How could anyone see anything in this mess? It was pitch-black and burnt to a crisp, with nothing but remnants and ashes. Gu Changhai found it hard to believe.
What Mo Hua had deduced matched almost exactly what the Daotingsi had discovered through their investigation.
The difference was that the Daotingsi had invited several second-grade array masters who spent three whole days examining the site and carefully comparing their findings before they could piece together the changes made to the arrays from the ruins.
Thus, they were able to determine what alterations had been made to the Xie family's arrays.
But Mo Hua...
He had just walked up, taken a glance, and seen it all...
He hadn't even stepped inside the warning array, yet he had seen everything. Gu Changhai's feelings were complicated.
While the facts were right before his eyes, his common sense refused to accept such an outrageous claim.
"You... you really saw all that just now?" Gu Changhai asked, his brow furrowed.
"Of course!" Mo Hua replied proudly. "I am a disciple of the Tai Xu Sect!"
Moreover, he had been studying arrays with Master Xun.
With his recent achievements, he had been exchanging his merit points for array manuals in the Merit Hall, and he had learned countless second-grade arrays.
With the guidance of Master Xun and the rich array legacy of the Tai Xu Sect's predecessors, Mo Hua now had a solid foundation in arrays, comparable to that of a true second-grade array master from a major sect!
He just hadn't been officially graded yet.
Gu Changhai's brow furrowed even deeper.
What did this have to do with the Tai Xu Sect?
The Tai Xu Sect wasn't a sect that specialized in arrays. How could their disciples possess such outrageous array mastery?
Even if it were a sect that specialized in arrays, it would still be impossible! Especially since Mo Hua had only joined less than a year ago...
How much could he have possibly learned in that time?
Gu Changhai stared at Mo Hua for a moment, his mind working, before he asked, "Do you want to go inside and take a look?"
Mo Hua was taken aback. "Really?"
Gu Changhai nodded.
Mo Hua hesitated, a bit suspicious of Gu Changhai's sudden change of heart.
Previously, when he had wanted to take a look, Gu Changhai had refused.
Now, without Mo Hua even asking, Gu Changhai was offering to let him go inside.
However, Mo Hua wasn't one to refuse a good opportunity.
"Alright!" Mo Hua agreed.
Gu Changhai took out a golden waist token.
The token was made of pure gold, elegant and luxurious, clearly more valuable than Mo Hua's own bronze token.
Mo Hua eyed it enviously.
But for now, he could only look.
Gu Changhai held the golden token and lightly traced it along the warning array.
The invisible barrier that had sealed off the area dissipated.
"Let's go," Gu Changhai said, stepping forward.
Mo Hua hesitated for a moment, then followed, stepping over the warning array and into the remains of the Xie family, where the entire clan had been slaughtered.
As soon as his foot touched the ground, charred and blackened with dried blood, he heard a piercing scream.
The scream was filled with unbearable agony.
In broad daylight, Mo Hua's vision blurred.
A sea of fire appeared in the darkness.
Within the flames, countless figures ran, struggled, and screamed in pain, like tortured souls in hell.
Wielding their butcher knives, the executioners with demonic faces danced and celebrated as they slaughtered, dismembered, and eviscerated their victims, pulling out blood-soaked organs...
The sea of fire boiled, blending blood and flames.
The faces of the damned twisted in agony, their bodies writhing like demons.
And those who died miserably were like slaughtered cattle...
...
Thank you to fellow daoists Xiu Xian PYHuang, Seattle Don't Cry for Me, Leek History, 101101hong for your support!
Happy New Year!
May the Year of the Dragon bring you good luck and fortune!
May you have happiness and joy!
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(End of Chapter)
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