Chapter 943: The Mysterious Traces
Chapter 943: The Mysterious Traces
"Old Ancestor, can you really be at ease...?" Xun Ziyou furrowed his brows.
He was only at the late Foundation Establishment stage, not the late Golden Core stage. In a Second Rank State, it was manageable, but once they reached a Third Rank State, the dangers would be countless.
Especially some situations were truly perilous, and even he, a late Golden Core stage Elder, might not be able to handle them.
Old Master Xun remained silent for a moment, then sighed softly, not answering but instead asking, "Do you think Mo Hua will stay in my Void Gate Sect?"
Xun Ziyou was taken aback. "Are you saying... whether he will enter the inner sect or not?"
Old Master Xun nodded.
Xun Ziyou pondered for a moment and said, "He probably will... He is the Supreme Array Daoist, and although his spiritual roots are somewhat lacking, his innate talent for formations is truly heaven-defying. Moreover, he has made significant contributions to our Void Gate Sect. In terms of emotions and reason, the sect will definitely accept him into the inner sect..."
"And all the elders in the sect also like this child. Mo Hua gets along well with his fellow disciples and is familiar with the elders. If he doesn't enter the inner sect of the Void Gate Sect, where else could he go?"
Old Master Xun shook his head. "This child is destined not to stay in the Void Gate Sect..."
Xun Ziyou was puzzled but didn't dare ask further. He said, "If he doesn't enter the inner sect, then he'll have to travel the world and find a way to form his Golden Core..." Xun Ziyou's brows furrowed with deep concern. "Living in the wild and sleeping under the stars will be tough, and who knows how many dangers he'll encounter..."
It wasn't just a simple matter of 'dangers'.
Old Master Xun didn't elaborate.
Mo Hua's true origin was almost unknown within the Void Gate Sect.
With a great karmic debt on his shoulders, the crises he would face in the future would be even more terrifying.
So terrifying that ordinary people couldn't even imagine it.
The enemies he faced were also incredibly powerful, beyond what one could predict.
"Guarding for a while doesn't ensure protection forever..."
Old Master Xun sighed deeply. "Some dangers he must face and overcome on his own."
"Misfortune is where fortune hides. In this world, crises and opportunities go hand in hand. Only by facing dangers, enduring hardships, and seeking opportunities in the midst of dire circumstances can one truly be reborn from the fire and become stronger."
"The sect, elders, and treasures are all external factors that provide 'strength'.
"Only by relying on one's own knowledge, experience, wit, and strength, facing calamities, and turning them into good fortune, can one truly become 'powerful'."
"A sword's edge comes from tempering."
Xun Ziyou's expression turned solemn, and he nodded in deep agreement.
Cultivators who have lived in comfort often cannot withstand the trials of wind and frost, let alone setbacks. When faced with true tribulations, their Dao heart can easily shatter.
Ordinary people only praise cultivators for their spiritual roots, bloodline, family background, and superficial qualities like appearance.
They are unaware that the most precious thing about a cultivator is a Dao heart that has endured countless tribulations and remains unyielding.
Such a Dao heart is difficult to forge without tempering.
"Old Ancestor, you are truly thoughtful," Xun Ziyou said. "As for what Mo Hua wants to do, I won't interfere."
Xun Ziyou stood up, intending to leave, but Old Master Xun called him back.
"Stop."
Old Master Xun said, "I didn't say you could truly not care."
Xun Ziyou was taken aback. "Huh?"
"You can't just not care at all."
Old Master Xun spoke, having pondered for a while, and in the end, he couldn't bear to let it go.
A sword's edge comes from tempering, and the plum blossom's fragrance comes from enduring winter.
These words were indeed true, but in the Void Gate Sect, Mo Hua was their only precious disciple. If he were to get hurt or, worse, lose his life due to a moment's carelessness...
Just the thought of it made Old Master Xun feel heavy-hearted.
Moreover, Mo Hua was unlike other geniuses; he didn't have a life-prolonging talisman on him.
Without this talisman as a safeguard, even a moment's negligence could be disastrous.
The slightest mishap could lead to irreversible consequences.
If they wanted to retrieve him later, it would be too late for regrets.
Old Master Xun had indeed considered giving Mo Hua a life-prolonging talisman to protect him in times of crisis.
However, the Void Gate Sect did not have an elder on the verge of death.
Even if they did, how could they possibly expend their origin source to plant a life-prolonging talisman for Mo Hua, an unrelated child?
Old Master Xun had considered doing it himself.
But the Void Gate Sect had very few elders on the verge of death, and he was the only one who was proficient in formations and had a basic understanding of heavenly secrets.
At this time, in the Qianxue State, the heavenly secrets were obscured, and the situation was ominous and unpredictable.
Many important matters still required his personal planning.
He had to keep his old bones burning to continue the sect's legacy.
It was impossible to sacrifice his origin source for Mo Hua and sever his path by planting this life-prolonging talisman.
So, they had to consider other alternatives.
"If Mo Hua travels the world, leaving the Void Gate Sect and the Qian State, I won't be able to worry about him, even if I wanted to."
"But at least in the Qianxue State, we should leave some backup to ensure his safety."
Old Master Xun took out a white jade pendant and handed it to Xun Ziyou.
"The Void Illusion Dual-Gear Lock is a treasure of our Void Gate Sect. It is now hanging on Mo Hua's neck, protecting his karmic fate."
"This jade pendant is paired with the Void Illusion Dual-Gear Lock and can sense a part of his karmic fate."
"If this jade pendant is white, it means everything is peaceful, and Mo Hua will not encounter any accidents."
"If it turns light red, there is a minor crisis; if it turns deep red, there is a major crisis."
"And if it turns black..." Old Master Xun's eyes darkened, "...that is a sign of death!"
Xun Ziyou's expression turned solemn.
Old Master Xun gave him the jade pendant and instructed, "Hold on to this jade pendant and follow him, but not too closely. Let him handle things on his own, but if he encounters a life-threatening crisis, you must do everything in your power to protect him."
Xun Ziyou solemnly accepted the jade pendant, feeling a heavy burden in his heart.
In a Third Rank State, if everything went as expected, any crisis should be manageable for him, a late Golden Core stage sword cultivation elder of the Void Gate Sect.
But one can never be too careful.
If something went wrong and Mo Hua was in danger, Xun Ziyou might not be able to save him in time. Even if he sacrificed his life afterward, it would be too late.
"Old Ancestor, what if I can't protect him?" Xun Ziyou asked with a frown.
Old Master Xun's expression turned solemn, and after a moment of thought, he said, "If it's truly impossible, then you must..." He paused, "Crush the Void Sword Token."
Xun Ziyou's heart skipped a beat.
This was the second time the Old Ancestor had mentioned the Void Sword Token.
Using the Void Sword Token, one can see Mo Hua's status within the Ancestor.
Or rather, it is Mo Hua's importance to the Void Gate Sect.
But Xun Ziyou still had some doubts, "In the Third Rank State Region, there are cultivation restrictions. Even if I shatter the Void Sword Token, it won't break through the void..."
"You don't need to worry about that, I have my own plans," Old Master Xun said calmly.
Xun Ziyou didn't know what arrangements the Ancestor had made, but he didn't dare to ask.
Old Master Xun's fingers pinched slightly, his eyebrows twitched, and he said, "It's getting late, you should set off early and follow secretly. You're familiar with this matter..."
After saying this, Old Master Xun added, "Don't be like before, a dignified late-stage Golden Core cultivator, keeping an eye on a Foundation Establishment disciple, it's too obvious..."
Xun Ziyou felt a bit ashamed, "This time I'll definitely be more careful..."
Old Master Xun waved his hand, "Go."
Xun Ziyou received the order and left.
In the Elder's residence, only Old Master Xun remained.
He looked at the chaotic and entangled Karmic Compass before him, its fate lines entangled, and his eyebrows furrowed. After a long while, he let out a slow sigh, "I can only protect you to this extent..."
"Whether this journey's opportunity is great or small, whether your fortune is good or bad, it's up to you now..."
...
On the mountain path of Qianxue State, Mo Hua sat in a carriage, heading towards the remote Lonely Mountain City.
After about half a day, Mo Hua arrived at Lonely Mountain City.
The dilapidated city was built against the mountain, with dark rocks and desolate forests. From a distance, it seemed normal, but Mo Hua felt that something strange was hidden in the mountains.
Upon entering Lonely Mountain City, Mo Hua first went to find Shen Xiuyan.
In a secluded teahouse room, Shen Xiuyan handed Mo Hua a storage bag.
"Everything you need is in this bag. But time is urgent, and my authority is limited. I've only gathered some miscellaneous items from the edges, and they might not be of much use."
Shen Xiuyan spoke softly to Mo Hua.
Mo Hua took the storage bag, glanced inside, and then cupped his hands, "Thank you."
"As long as I can help you, that's good," Shen Xiuyan said, and then his face showed some apology, "I can't stay long."
He was an elder of the Shen family, and Mo Hua was the pride of the Void Gate Sect.
Although the relationship between the Shen family and the Void Gate Sect wasn't as bad as being at odds, it was still easy for those with ulterior motives to become suspicious if they saw them together.
Especially since, in a certain sense, Shen Xiuyan was indeed doing something that could be considered "betraying" the Shen family.
Once discovered, it would be hard to explain.
Mo Hua understood this as well, and he cupped his hands, "Elder Shen, please feel free to leave. I won't see you out."
Shen Xiuyan heaved a sigh of relief, stood up, and bid farewell with a bow.
Only Mo Hua was left in the teahouse.
After some thought, Mo Hua didn't leave but instead opened the storage bag and started reading the files Shen Xiuyan had given him while sipping tea.
The teahouse was quiet, and no one disturbed him.
Mo Hua's spiritual sense was powerful, and he focused intently on reading. After half an hour, he had skimmed through all the files and then fell into deep thought.
The files recorded the Shen family's mining operations in Lonely Mountain over several hundred years, covering various aspects, including cultivator deployment, project arrangements, spirit mechanism structures, spirit contract regulations, mineral flow, spirit stone prices, copper mine inventory estimates, wandering cultivator clan records, and more.
It even included records of several conflicts between the Shen family and wandering cultivators.
These files and documents covered a wide range of topics, but they were also fragmented, representing different time periods over several hundred years, capturing snippets of events related to the mines.
Through these, Mo Hua gained a preliminary and concrete impression of the mining operations.
However, the deeper truth remained elusive, and he couldn't grasp the full picture.
The only thing that caught Mo Hua's attention was the "orphans" of Lonely Mountain City.
As Mo Hua flipped through the files, he noticed that during a particular period, the number of orphans in Lonely Mountain City had increased significantly, but there were no records explaining what had happened before and after.
It was unclear whether no one had bothered to record the conditions of the wandering cultivators, or if there were records but they had been sealed by the Shen family.
Or perhaps they had been destroyed?
Mo Hua's eyebrows furrowed, and his confusion deepened.
"What exactly did the Shen family do in Lonely Mountain?"
"Could the Shen family's affairs be related to the evil embryo?"
"A cunning rabbit has three burrows, and a mountain, a river, and a person... Is there really an evil embryo hidden in Lonely Mountain?"
"If there is, where could this evil embryo be hiding?"
For the rest of the time, Mo Hua carefully read through these files, hoping to find some clues.
But after flipping through them repeatedly, he found nothing.
Mo Hua decided to go to the Shen family's mountain territory to investigate in person.
He didn't call upon Master Gu but instead planned to go alone.
He knew concealment techniques and could investigate while hidden, making it more convenient for him to go alone. Moreover, he didn't want to involve Master Gu.
He had the backing of the Void Gate Sect and had no attachments in Lonely Mountain City, allowing him to come and go freely.
But Master Gu's situation was different. He held a low position in the Gu family and had to manage the livelihoods of the many apprentice disciples in the forging business. If he truly went against the Shen family, he would surely face retaliation, and the trouble would be immense.
Mo Hua had also made his calculations.
Although Lonely Mountain City was a Third Rank State, it was a very poor one.
The Golden Core cultivators who passed through were usually only at the early stage.
Mo Hua's movement technique now incorporated concealment techniques, and with the Flowing Water Steps and Water Shadow Illusion Body, he could escape even if he couldn't defeat early-stage Golden Core cultivators.
After careful consideration, Mo Hua tidied up a bit and then entered Lonely Mountain alone, hidden from sight.
...
As Mo Hua entered Lonely Mountain, in Lonely Mountain City, Shen Xiuyan had already boarded a carriage, preparing to return to the Little Spirit Sect.
He had given Mo Hua the Shen family's files, even some less important ones, which could be considered a "leak."
Although it wasn't a serious mistake, it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.
After completing the task, he wanted to leave early to avoid getting entangled.
Moreover, to be honest, whenever he saw Mo Hua and thought of his background, he couldn't help but feel a sense of dread and didn't want to deal with him.
Shen Xiuyan drove the carriage, ready to return to his sect.
But just a few steps into the journey, he encountered someone coming from the opposite direction.
This person had an ordinary appearance but an extraordinary aura, dressed in the attire of a Shen family elder, and it was indeed Shen Shouhang, a powerful elder of the Shen family.
"Shouhang?" Shen Xiuyan asked.
Shen Xiuyan had no choice but to greet him, "Brother Shouhang."
"Are you returning to the sect so early?" Shen Shouhang inquired.
"There's something I'd like to discuss with you regarding the sect."
Shen Shouhang nodded and said, "I have something to ask you. Please come with me."
Shen Xiuyan's heart skipped a beat, but with Shen Shouhang's superior cultivation and authority, he couldn't refuse.
Although the two had a personal relationship, in the world of aristocratic families, personal connections couldn't compete with interests.
"Okay," Shen Xiuyan agreed.
They went to the living room, where tea was served.
Shen Shouhang dismissed the attendants, ensuring they were alone. After a moment of silence, he turned to Shen Xiuyan and said, "A few years ago, you sought a divination for me..."
"A divination?" Shen Xiuyan was taken aback, then slowly relaxed.
He had thought it was about Mo Hua, but it turned out to be a false alarm...
"That divination said," Shen Shouhang frowned, "that in this life, I would only have one son?"
Shen Xiuyan was puzzled as to why Shen Shouhang brought up this matter. After some hesitation, he suddenly understood.
Shen Shouhang had 'over-cultivated' and wanted to seek a new divination.
Shen Xiuyan nodded, "That's right."
"Can this divination symbol be changed?"
Shen Xiuyan pondered for a moment, then said, "This divination was obtained through a connection in Xuanji Valley. The elder there said that the cause and effect were predetermined, and this is your fate. Whatever actions you take, whatever fruits you bear, cannot be altered."
This divination was indeed strange.
He had originally intended to ask Old Man Wen to perform this divination.
Old Man Wen, from Xuanji Valley, possessed a treasure called the Three Talents I Ching Coins, which was renowned for its accurate predictions.
In the past, Shen Xiuyan had accompanied Old Man Wen and Young Master Yun on a journey to Immortal Passage City, Nan Yue City, and Li Prefecture City.
Along the way, they had greatly benefited from Old Man Wen's divination skills.
However, after experiencing that incident and returning, Old Man Wen was so frightened that he sealed away his divination skills, fearing entanglement in mysterious karmic debts.
For fifty years, he avoided asking about heaven's secrets and observing cause and effect, focusing solely on preserving his life.
Having no other choice, Shen Xiuyan asked Old Man Wen for an introduction and sought the help of another elder from Xuanji Valley to perform the divination for Shen Shouhang.
After calculating Shen Shouhang's divination, the Xuanji Valley elder's face turned ashen, and he spoke harshly.
Shen Xiuyan couldn't relay the exact words, so he chose to convey the general idea, telling Shen Shouhang about the 'predetermined cause and effect' and that he would only have one son in this lifetime.
However, this divination was just a casual reading.
Initially, neither Shen Xiuyan nor Shen Shouhang had taken it seriously.
Cause and effect were elusive, and divination symbols were just symbols, unable to prove anything.
But now, Shen Shouhang truly had only one son. Despite having many concubines in addition to his official partner, not a single one showed signs of pregnancy.
This was odd.
And now, his only son, Shen Qingsheng, was a troublemaker, causing all sorts of problems.
Raising a child was like planting a tree; if it grew crooked, you could still prune the branches and straighten it.
But a son, once raised crooked, was truly crooked, with no solution in sight.
As Shen Xiuyan pondered this, he began to empathize with Shen Shouhang, the powerful elder, "Do you want... to seek another divination?"
Shen Shouhang nodded, "Please, Brother Xiuyan."
"What if..." Shen Xiuyan hesitated, "...the divination symbol remains the same?"
Shen Shouhang furrowed his brows, "Then I ask Brother Xiuyan to help inquire if there is a way to 'reverse fate and alter destiny'..."
"Reverse fate and alter destiny..." Shen Xiuyan repeated, momentarily distracted, then nodded, "Alright, I'll ask for you..."
"Thank you!" Shen Shouhang bowed in gratitude.
After their conversation, there was nothing more to say.
Shen Shouhang finished his tea and prepared to leave, but as he turned and took a few steps, he noticed that Shen Xiuyan was still sitting motionless in his chair.
Shen Shouhang was puzzled and frowned, "Brother Xiuyan?"
Shen Xiuyan sat there in a daze, his expression distant, as if he hadn't heard Shen Shouhang and had lost perception of his surroundings.
"You..."
Shen Shouhang's brows furrowed even deeper.
At that moment, a deep voice spoke, "No need for divination."
"What?" Shen Shouhang was taken aback.
Shen Xiuyan slowly lifted his head, his eyes dull with a hint of gray, "I've divined for you... you will only have this one son in this lifetime."
Shen Shouhang's eyes met Shen Xiuyan's, and he too was momentarily lost in thought, his gaze dimming as he muttered, "I will only have this one son in this lifetime."
Shen Xiuyan's voice was deep and strange, "If this son dies, you will be left without an heir."
"If this son dies, I will be left without an heir," Shen Shouhang echoed, repeating the exact same words.
These words took root in his heart like seeds, slowly sprouting and growing...
"I will only have this one son in this lifetime."
"If this son dies, I will be left without an heir..."
"Without an heir..."
Shen Shouhang's eyes dimmed for a moment, but they gradually brightened, and his spirit returned. He turned to look at Shen Xiuyan.
Shen Xiuyan was also taken aback, then stood up and bowed, "It's getting late, I should return to the sect."
"Then I won't keep you, Brother Xiuyan," Shen Shouhang said.
"Farewell."
"Take care."
The two parted ways as if nothing had happened.
Shen Xiuyan boarded the carriage, and the sound of hooves and wheels carried him away from Lonely Mountain City, heading towards Little Spirit Sect.
The scenery on both sides of the road flashed by.
In the carriage, Shen Xiuyan was momentarily distracted, then frowned.
"Did I just... say something to Shen Shouhang?"
"It seems... I didn't say much? We just had a simple cup of tea?"
"That's right, I don't have much to discuss with him."
"I can't quite remember..."
Shen Xiuyan shook his head, "Perhaps I'm too tired, or maybe I've been dreaming too much, and my mind is weary..."
Recently, he had been having dreams from time to time.
He dreamed of the dark, dilapidated temple outside Li Prefecture City.
But this time, it wasn't a nightmare, and he no longer wanted to slash his own neck with a knife.
It was just an ordinary dream, and everything in it was less frightening, less dark, and less bloody.
The figure of Mo Hua, roasting sweet potatoes in the dream, became increasingly vivid and clear.
Shen Xiuyan breathed a sigh of relief.
He sat comfortably in the carriage, heading towards Little Spirit Sect.
At this moment, he didn't realize that in his dreams, Mo Hua's figure was becoming clearer, and the silhouette of the Daoist in the shadows was also becoming more distinct...
(End of Chapter)
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