Chapter 813: Eye of Death
Chapter 813: Eye of Death
On the other side, Shui Yamen's expression turned grim.
"Not only is his movement technique superb, but this brat's perception is also extremely sharp. With layers of watery shadows, he somehow discerned which one I launched my killing intent from..."
Why? How did a mere mid-Foundation Establishment brat figure it out?
Shui Yamen was perplexed.
In the brief moment of their pursuit, not far away, Gu Changhuai's breath began to stir, as if he was about to wake up from the 'intimidation'.
Shui Yamen's eyes narrowed.
"As expected of a Golden Core cultivator, to be able to resist for this long..."
He thought silently, then turned to look at Mo Hua.
"We can't delay any longer..."
We must capture this brat as soon as possible!
That way, the Golden Core cultivator will be cautious and dare not act recklessly.
The other two late-Foundation Establishment cultivators are not a threat.
And this peculiar brat will become our hostage. We'll take him back, torture him, and force him to reveal their origins and purposes!
Shui Yamen's figure flickered, merging with the water and transforming into layers of watery shadows as he closed in on Mo Hua.
Mo Hua's eyes narrowed slightly as he released his spiritual sense, perceiving the surroundings. He noticed seven or eight watery shadows appearing around them.
Shui Yamen's figure was elusive, constantly shuttling back and forth between these watery shadows, using them to confuse his enemy while hiding his killing intent.
If one couldn't distinguish between the real and fake shadows, they would easily fall into a passive position.
Not taking action meant waiting for death.
But if one made a move, even the slightest mistake could expose a fatal opening, resulting in a deadly strike.
Mo Hua marveled inwardly:
What a formidable movement technique! It can be used to evade, confuse, and ambush enemies.
Compared to this technique, the Passing Dew Steps might not be as exquisite when it comes to maneuvering in tight spaces, but it clearly surpasses it in terms of elusiveness and lethality.
However, no matter how elusive his movements were, they couldn't compare to the elusiveness of Mo Hua's spiritual sense.
In Mo Hua's spiritual sense vision, he could ignore the interference and clearly discern Shui Yamen's figure.
A moment later, behind Mo Hua, a watery shadow flickered and solidified.
A man with a cold expression and deathly pale skin appeared out of thin air—it was Shui Yamen.
He waved his hand, and a water whip, imbued with water poison, shot toward Mo Hua like a venomous water snake.
This water whip was incredibly toxic. Even if it didn't hit Mo Hua directly, just a slight touch would leave him half-dead.
However, as expected, this whip attack also missed.
Mo Hua's figure flashed, surrounded by watery light. With a light and graceful retreat, he easily dodged Shui Yamen's deadly water whip.
Shui Yamen's expression turned ugly.
"As expected, there's something unusual about this brat..."
Since that's the case, we can't let him live.
We must capture him, torture him slowly, and squeeze out all his secrets, origins, movement techniques, and perception abilities.
Shui Yamen's eyes shone with a sinister light.
Seeing that Mo Hua was about to get away, Shui Yamen remained silent for a moment before suddenly opening his mouth, his voice hoarse as he shouted, "Brat, you're dead..."
Upon hearing this, Mo Hua's heart trembled, and he involuntarily turned his head to glance at Shui Yamen.
Just a glance, and his expression changed.
Shui Yamen's eyes had turned scarlet, as if soaked in blood.
Within this blood-red liquid, countless strange and bizarre figures were condensed. They looked like humans, yet also like demons. They seemed to be undergoing eighteen layers of hell, constantly struggling, suffering, and screaming in pain.
A dense wave of death qi and malevolent energy surged from his eyes.
In the instant that Mo Hua made eye contact with him, this baleful energy invaded Mo Hua's sea of consciousness through his eyes.
Mo Hua felt a sense of mortal fear, a bone-chilling coldness, and the anger and pain of countless vengeful spirits screaming in rage.
These emotions shook his heart and soul.
And then...
There was nothing after that.
All the resentment and baleful energy that touched Mo Hua's divine sense was instantly melted away.
Every trace of malevolent energy disappeared without a trace.
Mo Hua blinked involuntarily, his eyes clear as water.
Shui Yamen, who was using an evil art while maintaining eye contact with Mo Hua, had a smile on his face that froze before it even fully formed.
His heart sank, and his expression changed drastically.
It failed?!
The eye art had no effect?! How is that possible?!
Shui Yamen's eyes widened in disbelief.
When caught off guard, even a Golden Core cultivator in the early stages would be affected by his condensed baleful energy, their eyes shaken for a few breaths.
But this brat...
How could a mere mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator, who was completely unprepared and had looked directly into his eyes, be unaffected by his eye art? Not only that, but after being affected by the eye art, the brat's eyes became even brighter, and he even seemed excited, as if...
A hunter who had spotted his prey?
"Arrogant brat!"
Shui Yamen revealed a murderous intent and was about to make another move against Mo Hua when a warning sign suddenly appeared in his heart. He immediately used a movement technique to take a step back.
Then, a sword light slashed viciously along the path where his head had been.
Since Shui Yamen had retreated, the sword light didn't hit him directly, but it still grazed his face.
A bloody gash appeared on his face, his hair bun came undone, and he looked disheveled and pathetic.
The solemn Gu Changhuai, holding a long sword, appeared in front of him, blocking Mo Hua.
"Damn it!"
Shui Yamen cursed inwardly as his thoughts raced.
"I miscalculated. I didn't expect this brat to be so bizarre and possess so many tricks up his sleeve, rendering all my previous plans useless..."
He never imagined that he, a peak-Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator who had killed countless people, would fail to capture even a mid-Foundation Establishment brat!
Now, with a Golden Core cultivator standing in his way, he had no chance of capturing the brat.
He had already used his eye art several times, and his spiritual sense was exhausted. He couldn't use it again in a short period.
Especially against a Golden Core cultivator, the eye art consumed a massive amount of spiritual energy.
Gu Changhuai swept his spiritual sense, and after a few breaths, he vaguely discerned Shui Yamen's true body from the layers of ghostly shadows. He waved his longsword, sending a sword light slashing towards Shui Yamen.
The sword light cleaved through the air but landed on empty space.
Shui Yamen's figure flickered, narrowly avoiding the attack, but his heart tightened, and he couldn't help but curse under his breath.
Without hesitation, he urged his movement technique to its limit and sped towards the shore.
Just then, a strange sense of crisis emerged once more.
Who was locking onto him with their spiritual sense?
Shui Yamen's expression changed.
In the next moment, a beam of water light descended, transforming into a binding chain that instantly restrained him securely.
However, after just a moment, Shui Yamen's body shimmered, as if coated with a layer of water light. The water currents flowed, and he easily broke free from Mo Hua's infallible water prison technique.
After breaking free, Shui Yamen had already reached the water's edge.
But instead of escaping, he turned around and looked at Mo Hua with a mixture of disbelief and sudden realization.
"Orthodox Water Prison Technique! You're actually... a remnant of the Water Prison Sect?! No wonder, no wonder..." Shui Yamen mumbled.
Mo Hua was taken aback.
Water Prison Sect?
This Shui Yamen had mistaken him for someone from the Water Prison Sect?
However, Gu Changhuai didn't want to waste time arguing and swung his longsword horizontally. Within a few steps, he closed in on Shui Yamen, intending to capture him once and for all.
Shui Yamen glanced at Mo Hua one last time, his eyes icy with killing intent.
"Anyone from the Water Prison Sect must die!"
Then, he forcefully withstood another sword strike from Gu Changhuai, his qi and blood trembling, and his face turning pale. Knowing that he had no chance, he no longer hesitated and leaped into the Yan Shui River.
As soon as he entered the river, he was like a dragon returning to the sea.
Shui Yamen's aura merged with the entire river, and his movement technique became even faster. Like a water demon, he transformed into a torrent and disappeared into the depths of the Yan Shui River.
Gu Changhuai stood at the riverbank, chasing after him for a few steps. But when he looked up, there was no trace of Shui Yamen, and his expression turned solemn.
This Shui Yamen was extremely proficient in water-based techniques, moving freely within the river.
It was as if the Yan Shui River was his natural habitat.
A cultivator with such mastery over water would be incredibly difficult to capture once they entered the water, like a tiger returning to the mountains. It would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
Even finding him again would be challenging, let alone capturing him...
Gu Changhuai looked at the surging and bottomless Yan Shui River, his expression growing even graver.
He had no choice but to sheath his longsword and turn to check on Gu An and Gu Quan's conditions.
Gu An and Gu Quan had regained their senses, but their lips were pale, and their bodies still trembled slightly, as if the malevolent energy had disturbed them.
Mo Hua examined their eyes and let out a sigh of relief. "It's fine. It's just the malevolent energy entering their bodies. They just need to calm their minds and rest for a while."
Shui Yamen had used malevolent energy, not evil spirits.
If it were evil spirits, it would have been much more troublesome.
In his sea of consciousness, Mo Hua feared neither demons nor monsters.
However, in someone else's sea of consciousness, he currently had limited means to help.
Hearing Mo Hua's assessment, Gu Changhuai also relaxed.
Mo Hua understood these strange occurrences better than anyone.
"Let's head back first, and we'll discuss Shui Yamen's matter later..." Gu Changhuai said in a low voice.
"Mhm." Mo Hua nodded and turned to look at the vast Yan Shui River, his expression complicated.
...
After Gu An and Gu Quan had rested for a while and their conditions stabilized, the group returned the way they came and arrived at the previous post station.
Inside the post station, the captured bandit cultivators were still tied up.
"Are we taking these bandit cultivators back to the Dao Court?" Mo Hua asked.
"Yes," Gu Changhuai nodded, then his eyes flickered as he added, "Take them to the Dao Court in Qingzhou City."
Mo Hua understood.
The Gu family was based in Qingzhou City, and most of the officials in the Dao Court there were from the Gu family. Therefore, it would be safer to hold them there.
However, the situation was different at the fifth-grade Dao Court in Qianxue State, where various sects were mixed, and there were many prying eyes.
Gu Changhuai used a transmission order to send for someone.
After a while, someone from the Gu family arrived, following Gu Changhuai's orders. They had hired two horse carriages from a nearby immortal city and rushed over.
One carriage was for transporting the captured bandit cultivators.
Gu Changhuai, Mo Hua, and the others boarded the other carriage and began their journey back to Qingzhou City.
Along the way, Gu An and Gu Quan meditated to recover. They had been affected by Shui Yamen's sinister malevolent energy technique and needed to rest.
Gu Changhuai sat quietly, drinking tea and deep in thought.
Mo Hua pondered for a moment before quietly asking, "Uncle Gu, do you know about the Water Prison Sect?"
Gu Changhuai thought for a moment and shook his head. "I haven't heard of it before."
Mo Hua frowned.
How could Uncle Gu not have heard of it? That didn't seem right...
He vaguely remembered that when he was learning the Water Prison Technique, there seemed to be a related record in the secret manual.
However, he couldn't quite recall the details at the moment.
Gu Changhuai was also puzzled and asked Mo Hua, "Why did that Shui Yamen call you a 'remnant of the Water Prison Sect'? Are you secretly colluding with the Water Prison Sect, or did you steal their techniques?"
"How could I steal it!" Mo Hua exclaimed, his face serious. "Uncle Gu, don't spread baseless rumors and tarnish my reputation! All my techniques were properly learned from my sect!"
Of course, he didn't count the Small Meteorite Technique.
That was something he had learned from Huo Fotuo.
Nor did he count the Passing Dew Steps.
That was something Uncle Zhang Lan had taught him.
Oh, and the Unbreakable Golden Sword Technique didn't count either.
That was something he had seized from the human trafficker, Elder Jiang...
As Mo Hua thought about it, he felt a little guilty.
Many of the techniques he possessed didn't seem to have been taught by his sect after all.
Uncle Gu was a great person, but he wasn't very sociable and sometimes liked to play coy.
Mo Hua shook his head silently.
Nevertheless, he felt that there was something amiss about this matter.
He would have to investigate it thoroughly later...
"It's getting late. You still need to return to the sect for cultivation. As for Water Yanluo, I'll keep an eye on him and make sure he's captured and brought to justice as soon as possible..." Gu Changhuai said.
However, he knew that this matter wouldn't be as simple as it seemed.
Based on their previous encounter, Water Yanluo was definitely not someone to be underestimated.
"What about the instructor from Hundred Flowers Valley?" Mo Hua asked.
A displeased expression appeared on Gu Changhuai's face as he replied, "I've also asked someone to keep an eye on her."
"Having someone keep an eye on her isn't enough," Mo Hua said. "You need to do it yourself. It's best to meet with her a few more times, have meals and tea together. This will not only alleviate her suspicions but also provide an opportunity to gather more information..."
Gu Changhuai was stared at intently by Mo Hua, and after thinking for a moment, he reluctantly agreed.
"Alright..."
Mo Hua nodded in satisfaction.
After that, he rode in the horse carriage with Gu Changhuai all the way back to Qingzhou City.
Upon arriving at the Gu family residence in Qingzhou City, they had a meal with Wan'er and Yu'er. Afterward, they boarded another carriage provided by the Gu family and safely returned to Tai Xu Gate.
From then on, Mo Hua temporarily stopped inquiring about the aftermath of the incident at the post station, the captured bandit cultivators, comforting Hua Ruyu, and the investigation into Water Yanluo.
Even if he wanted to inquire, he couldn't.
Being in the sect meant that he was far removed from these matters, and it was difficult for him to get involved.
He could only leave these matters to Uncle Gu and occasionally use the transmission order to ask about the progress.
Moreover, he had his own matters to investigate.
After returning to the sect, Mo Hua settled Yu'er in and then returned to the disciples' residence.
It was quiet all around.
Mo Hua immediately took out the Tai Xu Token and began flipping through the pages of the "Merit Roll." Before long, he found the record related to the Water Prison Technique:
"Water Prison Technique, a rare art..."
"Once the exclusive legacy of the Water Prison Sect, never to be passed on externally."
"In the winter of 19,080 of the Dao Calendar, the entire Water Prison Sect fell into demonic cultivation and was suppressed and destroyed by the Dao Court. After its destruction, the Water Prison Technique spread throughout the world, but many parts of the technique were missing..."
"In the year 19,900 of the Dao Calendar, this technique was compiled and organized by Yi Zhenren and then collected by Tai Xu Gate..."
"The Water Prison Technique is a niche art that is easy to learn but difficult to master. Use with caution."
Mo Hua stroked his chin, deep in thought.
The winter of 19,080 of the Dao Calendar...
That was almost a thousand years ago.
It was indeed a long time ago.
Since Uncle Gu was only over two hundred years old, it was understandable that he didn't know about it, as the Water Prison Sect had been eradicated long before his birth.
But the question remained.
"The entire sect fell into demonic cultivation..."
The Water Prison Sect's legacy, as the name suggested, should have consisted of orthodox water-attributed techniques and methods.
If that was the case, how could the entire sect suddenly fall into demonic cultivation?
"It's understandable if one or two individuals fell into demonic cultivation, and it's not impossible for even half of the disciples to do so. But for the 'entire sect' to fall, that's rather odd."
A single rotten apple spoils the barrel.
But it didn't make sense for every apple in the barrel to be rotten...
The fact that the entire sect fell into demonic cultivation and was then suppressed and eradicated so absolutely suggested that there was something amiss.
Another strange thing was the timing of the Water Prison Technique's inclusion in the sect.
"In the year 19,900 of the Dao Calendar, Yi Zhenren compiled and organized the Water Prison Technique, and it was then collected by Tai Xu Gate."
This timing was only about a hundred years ago.
The Water Prison Sect was destroyed a thousand years ago, but the Water Prison Technique was only incorporated into Tai Xu Gate a hundred years ago.
There was a gap of almost nine hundred years between these two events.
No matter how one looked at it, something seemed off.
"Water Prison Sect... Water Yanluo..."
Mo Hua's mind recalled Water Yanluo's shocked expression when he saw the Water Prison Technique, and he couldn't help but frown.
It seemed like the Water Prison Technique was ineffective against Water Yanluo? This niche and tricky-to-master control art, which was exceptionally useful, seemed to be countered by the water energy cultivated by Water Yanluo.
This didn't seem like a coincidence.
"Could Water Yanluo's abilities... be related to the eradicated Water Prison Sect somehow?"
Apart from being unaffected by the Water Prison Technique, there were two other abilities of Water Yanluo that Mo Hua found intriguing.
One was his movement technique.
This technique, like the Passing Dew Steps, was a water-attributed movement skill, but when used, it left behind water shadows filled with deadly intent.
Mo Hua couldn't help but think that if he could acquire this technique and fuse it with the Passing Dew Steps, his movement skills would surely reach a whole new level.
With such a skill, he could not only use it for stealth but also to confuse and ambush enemies during direct confrontations.
The other, and most important, ability was...
The eye art!
Water Yanluo's eyes could condense baleful energy, which he could then release through his gaze to intimidate others' spirits!
This eye art was incredibly powerful and hard to guard against.
Even Gu Changhuai, a Golden Core cultivator, had been affected by it momentarily.
Eyes containing baleful energy!
In terms of form, this art was similar to the "eyes containing sword light" technique allegedly used by the legendary sword cultivator predecessor of Tai Xu Gate, as described by Huang Shanjun.
If he could acquire this art and comprehend it...
Could he also use his eyes as a conduit, projecting his spiritual sense as a sword to attack his enemies?
Mo Hua's eyes lit up with excitement as he thought about these possibilities.
This Water Yanluo was indeed a treasure trove of abilities.
He was no less valuable than Huo Fotuo.
(End of Chapter)
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