Chapter 777: The Mural
Chapter 777: The Mural
Mo Hua continued eavesdropping on the conversation between Jin Gui and the demon cultivator.
Everything was progressing as he had expected.
The Evil Artifact Chamber had been blown up and was now in ruins.
The old demon cultivator who had forged the evil sword had gone insane. There were traces of his remaining flesh and blood at the scene, along with the corpses of two other demon cultivators.
These two demon cultivators had met a tragic end, their bodies bearing the marks of being hacked by a centipede demon cultivator.
It was evident that a fierce battle had taken place.
The old demon cultivator had made his move.
Apart from that, the bone furnace for refining artifacts, the blood pool, the evil sword, and the array formations had all been destroyed. The place was drenched in filthy blood, making it impossible to distinguish which items were problematic and which were not.
Jin Gui flew into a rage, but all he could do was try to calm the situation.
As the one in charge, any mishap would only lead the leader or the young master to question his competence.
Therefore, it was best to downplay the incident.
He didn't dare to make a big deal out of it either.
As for Ouyang Mu, with his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation and wooden personality, even if he managed to escape by chance, he wouldn't be suspected.
Jin Gui was also relieved that Ouyang Mu hadn't perished in the collapse of the Evil Artifact Chamber; otherwise, his troubles would have multiplied.
For now, Little Mu was safe.
As for Linghu Xiao'er and Song Jian, their situation wasn't too bad either.
After all, it hadn't yet come to the point of "the plot revealed and daggers drawn."
Mo Hua could afford to leave for a while.
Mo Hua met up with Linghu Xiao'er and the other two, saying, "I'm going to scout ahead, and I might not be back for a few days. Be careful."
Linghu Xiao'er nodded gravely.
Ouyang Mu said, "Brother Mo, please take care."
Although Song Jian kept a straight face and said nothing, he felt a sudden sense of emptiness inside.
When Mo Hua was around, even though he was often invisible, Song Jian always felt more at ease, and there was also the bonus of having dried meat to eat.
But now that Mo Hua was gone, he suddenly felt a profound sense of insecurity.
Song Jian's heart was in turmoil.
Mo Hua, however, didn't bother with him and gradually faded from view, disappearing from sight.
The three of them looked at each other, and with Mo Hua's absence, they felt that the atmosphere in the Myriad Demon Prison had suddenly become more "eerie."
...
At the top of a prison cell in the Myriad Demon Prison, Mo Hua gradually reappeared.
There were no demon cultivators in the vicinity, only a beast restrained by massive chains, growling softly to itself.
Mo Hua took out the half-bone sword and asked, "Which way?"
The half-bone sword remained silent, giving no response.
Mo Hua threatened, "If you don't speak up, I'll destroy you."
A subtle, aged voice finally emanated from the sword, "Wait... Little Ancestor... I'll tell you..."
The voice paused for a moment and then continued.
"...you didn't hear..."
Mo Hua listened intently and only after a moment did he realize that the old demon cultivator was indeed speaking, but it wasn't exactly "speaking." It was more like...
"Transmitting his thoughts."
Mo Hua was slightly taken aback, "You can transmit your thoughts?"
The old demon cultivator sighed helplessly, "I'm already dead and have no physical body. What's left is residual mental power, so whenever I speak, it's through 'thought transmission'..."
"Oh, right." Mo Hua understood.
He then asked, "If I don't speak and only use thought transmission, can you sense it?"
The old demon cultivator was speechless, but he didn't dare to call Mo Hua "ignorant." Instead, he replied indirectly,
"Little Ancestor, you jest. Cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage are incapable of 'thought transmission.'"
"Why is thought transmission only possible after reaching the Nascent Soul stage?" Mo Hua probed further.
"This..." The old demon cultivator stammered, "I'm just at the Foundation Establishment stage, far from the Nascent Soul realm. There are specific reasons for this, but I'm too ignorant to explain it properly..."
"Oh." Mo Hua was slightly displeased.
This old thing was a bit of a half-wit, knowing the 'what' but not the 'why.'
But it didn't matter.
"So, the situation now is that you can quietly transmit your thoughts, and I can only speak to you?" Mo Hua asked.
"Yes..." the old demon cultivator whispered.
Mo Hua nodded, "Alright then..."
He pointed the half-bone sword forward and asked again, "Which way?"
There was silence from the half-bone sword for a moment, as if it were pondering or recalling the route. After a while, the old demon cultivator transmitted his thoughts to Mo Hua,
"To the right, past the prison cell of the blood-red wolf demon, through the second stone door, and then turn right and go inward..."
Mo Hua glanced to the right and nodded.
He once again concealed himself and prepared to head in the direction indicated by the old demon cultivator.
But just as he took a step, he suddenly remembered something. He shook the half-bone sword in his hand and warned, "Old thing, don't you dare deceive me, or I'll show you what true 'terror' is."
The old demon cultivator quickly assured,
"I dare not, I dare not..."
At least for the moment, it had been intimidated by Mo Hua and dared not harbor any devious thoughts.
Moreover...
The old demon cultivator whispered, "Don't call me 'old thing'..."
His voice was very soft, but Mo Hua still heard it.
"That's true. If you're not 'old thing,' then what's your name?" Mo Hua asked curiously.
The old demon cultivator sighed and said with emotion, "Before I degenerated into a demon cultivator, I was a disciple of the Taihe Sect, surnamed Ouyang, and my name was..."
Before he could finish, Mo Hua interrupted, muttering to himself,
"Calling you 'old thing' isn't very nice, and it's a bit impolite. I'll give you a nickname. I'm quite good at coming up with nicknames..."
The old demon cultivator fell silent.
Mo Hua thought for a moment, and a spark of inspiration flashed in his mind, "You're a sword demon, a sword yourself, and a bag of bones. I'll call you 'Sword Bones.'"
The old demon cultivator almost thought that Mo Hua was cursing him as a "worthless bone."
He was a bit angry.
His dignity did not allow him to accept such a humiliating name.
But his courage was not enough to support even a tiny bit of protest.
Fine, Sword Bones it is...
The old demon cultivator reluctantly accepted the name and even had to flatter Mo Hua against his better judgment,
"What a wonderful name... Young Master is truly a master at naming."
Mo Hua happily accepted this flattery and then said,
"Lead the way, Sword Bones."
The old demon cultivator, now named Sword Bones by Mo Hua, had no choice but to resign himself to his fate and said, "Yes..."
And so, Sword Bones began to guide the way.
Fortunately, "Sword Bonehead" was experienced and well-versed in the layout of the Myriad Demon Valley. Coupled with the fact that he was under Mo Hua's control and dared not act rashly, he served as a reliable guide.
After walking for an unknown duration, Mo Hua arrived at a grand gate.
This gate, towering and majestic, was flanked by two colossal demon beast statues, intricately carved with hideous and terrifying demon patterns.
This was the entrance to the Myriad Demon Prison.
There was a lock-type array formation guarding the gate, but it wasn't particularly sophisticated. The main challenge came from the several demon cultivators standing guard, which could pose a problem.
"Every six hours, the demon cultivators change shifts, leaving a gap of about ten breaths..."
"Sword Bonehead" secretly transmitted his thoughts.
However, Mo Hua didn't have the patience to wait.
He quietly hid in the shadows and targeted one of the guard demon cultivators, a red-maned hound demon with a four-image demon mark.
Mo Hua had previously analyzed this type of demon mark and had identified the corresponding array pivot, which was now included in his "Four Image Demon Mark Library."
Taking advantage of the hound demon's momentary lapse in attention, Mo Hua began to manipulate his spiritual ink with his spiritual sense.
A blob of spirit ink floated in the air, forming a slender ink line that quietly slithered and attached itself to the demon cultivator's leg, creating the four-image hound demon mark array pivot.
The hound demon had thick and rough skin, resulting in slower sensory perception.
The hound demon initially felt a slight chill on his leg but didn't pay much attention to it.
However, by the time he realized that the chill was somewhat peculiar, it was too late.
The demon mark flashed, and his demonic power suddenly spiraled out of control. Under Mo Hua's manipulation, the demonic power flowed in reverse, surging towards his heavenly soul.
The hound demon's spiritual sense went haywire, and his violent nature erupted. He pounced on the nearby demon cultivators, initiating a bloody clash.
Chaos erupted as the demon cultivators turned on each other.
Howls and curses filled the air, and blood splattered the ground.
Amidst the chaos, Mo Hua strolled out of the Myriad Demon Prison without attracting any attention.
The "Sword Bonehead," whose consciousness was attached to the white bone broken sword, witnessed this scene, his heart turning cold.
He completely missed how Mo Hua had quietly manipulated the demon cultivator, causing him to lose control and incite a mutual slaughter among his peers.
These guard demon cultivators were quite powerful, but in Mo Hua's hands, they seemed like mere "playthings."
It was truly terrifying...
The "Sword Bonehead" felt his already faint hopes diminish further.
Beyond the Myriad Demon Prison, several avenues stretched out before them.
"Which way now?" Mo Hua asked.
"To the left..." the "Sword Bonehead" replied in a trembling voice.
Mo Hua nodded and headed down the left path.
As they ventured deeper, the surroundings became increasingly spacious, and Mo Hua's astonishment grew.
The Myriad Demon Valley was indeed massive.
The Myriad Demon Prison was just a fraction of it.
Elsewhere in the valley, numerous peculiar cultivation structures stood tall.
It would take a long time to explore each one individually.
With limited time, he could only bypass them for now.
After walking for a while longer, the scent of blood suddenly became overwhelmingly pungent.
Mo Hua frowned and looked ahead, where a vast area filled with numerous large execution platforms came into view.
On each platform lay a thick chain as thick as a man's body, along with a massive guillotine driven by an array formation.
At that moment, a bear demon was bound to one of the platforms by the thick chains.
Once the array formation was activated, the massive guillotine swooped down, severing the bear demon's head. A fountain of blood gushed out, flowing into the blood pool below the platform.
On the other platforms lay the headless bodies of various demon beasts.
Several demon cultivators were busy dissecting the corpses of the slain demon beasts, separating the pelts, bones, heads, demon cores, and internal organs into different categories for storage.
"This is the slaughterhouse..."
The "Sword Bonehead" transmitted his thoughts.
"Slaughterhouse..."
Mo Hua frowned, his eyes narrowing as he muttered.
The "Sword Bonehead" continued, "This place originally had no name, but the demon cultivators started calling it the 'Slaughterhouse.' All the demon beasts captured and brought to the Myriad Demon Prison end up here, where they are butchered..."
Mo Hua nodded and continued walking forward.
After another hour of walking, they came upon a tower-like structure.
"This is the Refining Demon Urn," the "Sword Bonehead" said.
Mo Hua was puzzled and lowered his voice to ask, "Isn't this a tower? Why is it called a refining demon urn?"
The "Sword Bonehead" explained, "It is said that the Refining Demon Urn is a type of cultivation structure from the Southern Barbarian Lands of the Great Wilderness. It takes the form of a 'urn,' with a tower-like structure adorned with coiling dragon and snake patterns. It serves both as a building and a spiritual artifact."
Mo Hua looked up and noticed that the entire tower, indeed, resembled an urn, with a narrow middle section and a wider upper and lower half. The exterior was adorned with demon statues, giving it the appearance of a coiling dragon and snake.
"The naming customs in the Great Wilderness sure are peculiar..."
Mo Hua muttered to himself.
The old demon cultivator, now named "Sword Bonehead" by Mo Hua, paused, unsure how to respond.
"Have you ever been inside this tower... this Refining Demon Urn?" Mo Hua asked.
"No," the "Sword Bonehead" replied with a solemn tone, "I'm not sure what's inside, and as a refiner, I was always busy forging swords and didn't have the opportunity to enter the Refining Demon Urn."
"Alright then," Mo Hua nodded, "let's bypass it for now."
It was important to prioritize and focus on the most pressing matters.
The Myriad Demon Valley was simply too vast to explore in its entirety, so it was best not to get sidetracked.
"Lead the way," Mo Hua instructed.
The "Sword Bonehead" obediently continued to guide Mo Hua.
After walking for a while longer, they stumbled upon a large area filled with dozens of alchemy chambers.
Within each chamber stood a white bone alchemy furnace.
Numerous demon cultivators were tirelessly refining evil pills.
Freshly harvested internal organs and other materials from the recently slaughtered demon beasts were rushed to these chambers, where they were swiftly turned into pills while still dripping with blood.
Mo Hua furrowed his brows, puzzled by the sheer number of alchemy chambers.
"Why are there so many alchemy chambers in the Myriad Demon Valley?
Sword Bonehead patiently explained, "Pills are consumables, while artifacts are durable goods; they are not the same..."
"Moreover, most of the cultivators in this valley are demon cultivators. They rely more on their own claws and fangs when killing, rather than artifacts. Only those who must rely on artifacts to cast their demon techniques, or sword cultivators who refuse to give up their sword techniques even after turning into demon cultivators, will use artifacts."
"So, the consumption of artifacts is far less than that of evil pills."
"Also, I'm not the only artifact forger in this valley. There were a few others before, but they couldn't withstand the pressure and eventually died."
"In the end, only I was left..."
"Oh." Mo Hua nodded, then suddenly realized something was amiss. "Did you kill the other artifact forgers?"
Sword Bonehead chuckled softly, "To be honest, young master, the fewer artifact forgers there are, the more valuable the remaining one becomes. That's why I'm still alive after all these years."
This Sword Bonehead was indeed not a good person...
Mo Hua silently criticized him in his mind.
But it didn't matter. After all, the dead were all artifact forgers.
Mo Hua asked, "Are there artifact forging chambers, pill refining rooms, and also places for drawing formation arrays in this valley?"
Sword Bonehead was taken aback and shook his head, transmitting his thoughts, "I don't know about that. There are almost no formation masters among the demon cultivators."
"No formation masters?" Mo Hua was a little surprised.
Sword Bonehead explained, "Once demon cultivators step into the path of demons, their physical bodies become stronger due to the amplification of their demonic power, but their spiritual sense weakens, and their minds become abnormal."
"The key to being a formation master lies in one's spiritual sense. Not only must it be strong, but one's mind must also be clear and lucid."
"With a weakened spiritual sense, one cannot draw formation arrays, and with an abnormal mind, one will gradually forget even the basic formation patterns. That's why there are hardly any formation masters among the demon cultivators..."
Sword Bonehead's voice turned slightly solemn, "At least in the hundreds of years that I've barely survived in the Myriad Demon Valley, I've only seen a handful of formation masters."
"The few that existed either couldn't adapt to the life of a demon cultivator and died early, or their minds became abnormal after turning into demons, gradually forgetting that they were formation masters in the first place..."
Mo Hua frowned, "Then where do the formation arrays in this Myriad Demon Valley come from?"
Sword Bonehead was hesitant to answer.
Mo Hua gripped the sword hilt and slammed it onto the ground a few times.
Sword Bonehead reluctantly replied, "It's the leader."
A chill ran down Mo Hua's spine as he asked, "The leader? A Golden Core demon cultivator?"
"No, not a Golden Core," Sword Bonehead shook his head. "He's at the Foundation Establishment stage, not yet at the Golden Core stage. There are only three Golden Core elders in the Myriad Demon Valley."
"How can a Foundation Establishment cultivator be the leader?" Mo Hua was puzzled.
Sword Bonehead solemnly explained, "Because all the demon marks on the bodies of the demon cultivators in the Myriad Demon Valley were personally drawn by the leader..."
Mo Hua furrowed his brows.
All the demon marks on the demon cultivators were drawn by this leader?
This implied that the leader had a profound understanding of various types of Four Image Demon Arrays.
At the same time, he also possessed a deep knowledge of divine formation arrays. Could he be... even more powerful than Mo Hua? How could a Foundation Establishment cultivator have such a high attainment in formation techniques?
Mo Hua didn't believe it.
Or rather, he refused to accept it.
So far, he had never met anyone at the same cultivation level who was more skilled in formation techniques than him.
"That's not right..."
Mo Hua pondered for a moment and soon realized something was amiss. He frowned and asked, "Are you saying that all the demon marks on the demon cultivators were drawn by this 'leader'?"
"But this Myriad Demon Valley has existed for at least several hundred years, right?"
"How could this leader, if he's only at the Foundation Establishment stage, live for so long?"
Sword Bonehead shook his head, "I don't know about that. The leader of this valley acts in mysterious ways, and in the hundreds of years that I've been here, I've only seen him a handful of times from a distance. I have no idea about his background."
"That's a bit strange..."
Mo Hua muttered.
This "leader" definitely had some secrets.
However, with the urgent situation at hand, there was no time to dwell on it.
The top priority was something else...
Mo Hua didn't plan to stay in the pill refining room either, as the pills refined there were all evil pills, which would be of no use to him even if he stole or snatched them.
"Lead the way," Mo Hua instructed. "Take me to see that mural of demon refinement."
Sword Bonehead hesitated, especially since he was currently in a "possessed" state, and for some reason, he felt even more fearful of the mural.
He cautioned, "That mural is very dangerous. It's best not to act rashly..."
"How dangerous is it?" Mo Hua asked.
Sword Bonehead was about to speak when he suddenly paused, realizing that while the mural was dangerous, it might not be any safer for him, being "possessed" by Mo Hua.
Sword Bonehead sighed.
Oh well, neither of them was a good person.
He might as well lead the way.
Hopefully, this accursed young master would perish in front of the mural, and he would finally be free.
Perhaps then, he could find another "sword slave" and turn the situation around, escaping this hellish place and seeing the light of day again.
No one would dare call him "Sword Bonehead" again! A spark of hope ignited in Sword Bonehead's heart.
He became even more diligent in his guidance.
In his eyes, Mo Hua was like an evil ghost.
The mural was like a hellish prison.
An evil ghost should naturally enter hell.
What he needed to do now was to lead this evil ghost, Mo Hua, toward the mural, the "hellish prison," so that he could have a chance to free himself.
"Young master, follow me. I know this path very well, and I assure you that there won't be any mistakes," Sword Bonehead said.
Mo Hua nodded in satisfaction.
Following Sword Bonehead's lead, Mo Hua traversed through dozens of pill refining rooms, walked along several wide stone paths, avoided numerous patrolling demon cultivators, climbed up a steep cliff, and finally looked up ahead.
In the distance, on the towering cliff wall, a massive mural depicting a chaotic dance of demons and monsters caught his eye.
Mo Hua's heart trembled as he realized:
"This is... the Mural of Demon Refinement?!"
(End of Chapter)
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