Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 680: "The Black Hand"

On the banks of the Mistwater River, within a small grove of trees—

The badly battered Guo Jianglong was kneeling on the ground.

Cheng Mo and the other three stood facing off against a group of hostile-looking young cultivators. Their expressions were grave.

At the front of the group stood a haughty young man in a richly embroidered gold-lined robe, sneering down at them. Around him stood six or seven fellow mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, all clearly unfriendly.

Mo Hua crouched invisibly atop a tree branch, observing from above. After a brief thought, he decided not to reveal himself just yet.

Cheng Mo, still reeling from the golden-robed young man's sneak attack, had managed to block the sword energy—but his blood was still surging chaotically. He couldn't help shouting:

"Who the hell are you people?!"

The golden-robed youth replied with disdain,

"You're not qualified to know."

Then he turned and said,

"Let's go."

Cheng Mo was just about to curse the arrogant bastard again, when his Great Void Token suddenly trembled. He took it out and saw a single character glowing on it—

That was when it hit him.

That familiar sword energy… it matched the one from the Broken Gold Sect's core sword art: the Broken Gold Sword Control Technique, which he'd acquired from Boss Jiang.

"So what if you're from the Broken Gold Sect? We're working on a Dao Judiciary bounty, under sect orders. You planning to steal credit from us?"

The young master, now referred to as "Young Master Jin," gave a lofty nod and said:

"Very well then. This young master is not so petty…"

Being called out on his identity only made him more arrogant.

One of his lackeys stepped up and said with a sneer:

"Young Master Jin, no need to dirty your hands with these brats. Let us handle it. We'll break a few of their ribs, humiliate them properly…"

He clearly didn't dare to go too far...

"Bullshit!" Cheng Mo roared.

"You were staking it out? More like you just showed up to steal our hard-earned credit. Shameless! You're not slapping gold on your faces—you're slapping it on your asses that only look like faces!"

Another Broken Gold lackey laughed, flattering:

"Oh? So you can recognize our sect's sword energy? Not bad, I'll give you that."

Another echoed mockingly:

"Exactly. These fresh rookies need to learn: in this world, you'd best keep your eyes open. Don't offend people you can't afford to."

It was true—he'd practiced it too.

Broken Gold Sect, huh… no wonder…

"Even if they run off and complain, they'll only embarrass themselves."

Young Master Jin, born into nobility and accustomed to deference even within his sect, had never suffered such insults. His eyes grew colder.

Still, Cheng Mo showed no fear. Yang Qianjun gripped his spear, and Situ Jian also stood proudly.

Young Master Jin snorted, glanced at the kneeling Guo Jianglong, and said coldly:

"Leave our prey behind, apologize to this young master, and I'll overlook this offense. Otherwise…"

His face flushed red, stung by the rebuttal.

Although he hadn't studied many sword arts deeply, he could still recognize key traits—especially from prominent sects.

The boys exchanged glances, silently reaching an agreement with a nod.

Situ Jian, a sword cultivator himself, had studied many major sword sects across Qianxue Prefecture and recognized the technique immediately.

"That sword energy earlier—it was from the Broken Gold Sword Control Technique." he said, eyes narrowing.

He flicked his sleeve toward Guo Jianglong and added:

"But it was weak and unrefined—a knock-off imitation. Nothing like the sharp, authentic energy this Young Master just used. No wonder I didn't connect the dots earlier…"

Young Master Jin's smile twisted slightly, a faint golden aura of sword energy flickering around him.

"Don't blame me for being harsh. I'll 'discipline' you lot on behalf of your sect…"

"Broken Gold Sect…"

But killing ordinary rogue cultivators was one thing. If they killed disciples from a major sect, the consequences could get… complicated.

Yang Qianjun snorted coldly, eyes sharp:

"You're from a noble family? So are we. You have a sect? So do we. What—planning to kill us out here in the wilderness?"

Mo Hua's gaze swept across the golden-robed young man's entourage, a thoughtful glint in his eyes.

Young Master Jin scoffed,

"You think we're not here on a bounty as well?"

Mo Hua, still perched on his branch, blinked.

Cheng Mo cursed loudly:

"We've been tailing this scum for days, had him cornered and ready for capture—and you little bastards just come waltzing in and snatch him up? And we're the ones in the wrong?!"

"You brat, you're courting death!"

That last message had come from Mo Hua.

Young Master Jin frowned as he noticed the group's tokens.

"You're disciples of the Great Void Sect?"

Cheng Mo and his crew usually wore casual clothes on missions, not their sect's robes. Though Jin had suspected they were from a sect, he hadn't known which one.

Cheng Mo raised his chin.

"That's right. Scared now, are you?"

Young Master Jin sneered:

"Great Void Sect? Hardly one of the Four Great Sects. You think we Broken Gold disciples would be afraid of you?"

"Besides…"

He gave a meaningful smile.

"Your sect's discipline is lax, your disciples weak. Your sword tournament gets worse every year. You're not worthy of being one of the Eight Great Sects anymore."

"At this rate, it's only a matter of time before we Broken Gold take your place…"

Cheng Mo cursed:

"You golden clown, keep dreaming! You'll never take our place—not even in your wet dreams!"

A trace of killing intent appeared in Jin's eyes.

Situ Jian quickly grabbed Cheng Mo and whispered:

"Don't escalate. Let's go."

Cheng Mo bit back another insult, reluctantly falling silent.

They were outnumbered and outmatched. The other group was clearly older disciples from the Broken Gold Sect. Picking a direct fight would be foolish.

Cheng Mo gave Guo Jianglong a hard kick, and the group backed away together, tightly gripping their spiritual weapons and watching the other side cautiously as they retreated from the woods.

Seeing them about to leave, one of the Broken Gold disciples leaned over and asked:

"Young Master, should we…?"

Jin's gaze stayed cold:

"They're from the Great Void Sect. We can't just move on them casually. If things escalate, even the Broken Gold Sect can't protect us. Not like with those no-name sects."

"Yes, Young Master."

So the golden-robed crew stayed where they were, sneering as they watched Cheng Mo's group leave.

Outside the grove, once they were far enough away, Cheng Mo and the others fumed.

"Those Broken Gold bastards!"

"Shameless pigs!"

"We did all the work, and they swoop in to take credit?"

"That was six hundred merit points!"

Cheng Mo clutched his chest as if the pain were physical.

Situ Jian and the others sighed.

After all that effort, the credit they had so painstakingly earned was gone just like that.

Yang Qianjun, however, looked puzzled:

"Wait... wasn't this our mission? How did those Broken Gold guys even know about it?"

"They didn't take the mission officially. Are they planning to just capture him and turn him in for the bounty?"

"Or were they just passing by, saw an opportunity, and thought we were easy targets?"

Everyone shook their heads, puzzled.

Then Situ Jian froze:

"Where's Mo Hua?"

He looked around, expecting Mo Hua to be cloaked nearby. He called softly:

"Little Senior Brother~?"

But the surroundings were quiet. No sign of him.

Hao Xuan pulled out his Great Void Token and checked it. He looked up and said:

"Little Senior Brother says we should go on ahead to the ferry. He'll catch up with us later."

Cheng Mo asked,

"What's he up to?"

Hao Xuan shrugged.

"Who knows what he's thinking…"

"Should we go to the ferry?" Cheng Mo asked.

Situ Jian thought for a moment, then shook his head:

"Let's wait here. We're still close to the grove. If Mo Hua runs into danger, we can jump in quickly."

"The Broken Gold crew may be stronger, but they wouldn't dare kill disciples from a major sect. Worst case, we just suffer a bit."

"But Mo Hua… he's officially a rogue cultivator without a family name. If they catch him alone, who knows what they'll do."

Everyone nodded solemnly.

...

In the small grove, Mo Hua was still lying on a tree branch, poking his head out, secretly watching below.

The sky had darkened. The setting sun had withdrawn its rays, and the grove had grown dimmer in the twilight.

Cheng Mo and the others had already left. Aside from Guo Jianglong, only "Young Master Jin" and his group of rowdy sect companions remained in the forest.

Young Master Jin kicked Guo Jianglong over and then stomped on his chest, looking down at him coldly.

"You vile creature, your sins have piled up—did you think this day wouldn't come?"

Guo Jianglong spat out blood and sneered,

"Trash of a sect, sanctimonious beasts—you actually dare to lay a hand on me?"

Young Master Jin pressed harder with his foot, forcing another muffled grunt from Guo Jianglong. Whatever insults were coming next got choked back down his throat.

The other Broken Gold Sect disciples also looked furious.

"Young Master, no need to waste breath on this animal. Crush his throat, cripple his meridians, then toss him to the Dao Judiciary for the bounty."

"Daring to insult the Broken Gold Sect—clearly doesn't know what 'death' means."

Young Master Jin kicked Guo Jianglong again.

"Speak! Where are your other accomplices?"

Guo Jianglong spat out more blood but remained silent.

Frowning, Young Master Jin instructed his men,

"Spread out and search. See if this filth has any nearby allies."

"Yes, Young Master!"

The others split into groups of two or three and gradually fanned out into the surrounding woods.

The grove quickly quieted. Only Young Master Jin and the badly beaten Guo Jianglong remained.

A light dusk mist spread, cloaking the forest in a muted veil.

Young Master Jin's sharp eyes swept across the clearing. His spiritual sense scanned the area several times before he finally removed his foot from Guo Jianglong's chest and casually tossed him a light red pill.

"Take it."

Guo Jianglong caught the pill, swallowed it, and visibly regained some strength.

Up in the tree, Mo Hua's eyes flickered in surprise.

"Oh~? So these two… actually know each other?"

Young Master Jin frowned at Guo Jianglong's sorry state.

"What a useless piece of trash."

Guo Jianglong opened his mouth to respond.

Young Master Jin waved him off,

"Wait."

He took out two array flags and flicked his sleeve. The flags flew like darts and embedded into the ground.

Spiritual light flowed from the flags, forming a faint, barely visible white barrier that enclosed both of them.

A soundproofing array?

Mo Hua blinked and muttered inwardly:

"Hmm, pretty cautious…"

Though frankly, pulling these little tricks in front of him was like showing off carving skills in front of a master sculptor.

With a sweep of his spiritual sense and a little deduction, Mo Hua could instantly perceive the energy gaps in the formation and find its weak points.

His powerful and subtle spiritual sense easily pierced the barrier of the soundproof array.

The two below remained completely unaware.

They began whispering their "private" conversation—

"...Trash!"

"It wasn't my fault! Those little bastards were too sneaky—"

"They had fishing nets and arrays… I let my guard down for a second, got caught, dragged ashore, then ambushed by those brats!"

"I wasn't careless, they were just way too thorough!"

Guo Jianglong muttered,

"I bet someone's orchestrating them—someone hiding in the dark, cunning and ruthless…"

"Enough!" Young Master Jin sneered.

"You failed. Don't make excuses. It's not your first day doing this."

His expression darkened.

"If this really blows up, do you think the Young Masters will care about your excuses?"

Mo Hua froze.

Young Masters… plural?

There were more of them?

So this "Young Master Jin"… wasn't even one of the real ones?

Guo Jianglong's face went pale the moment he heard "Young Masters." His eyes filled with dread.

"It… it was my carelessness. I underestimated those brats and nearly ruined the Young Masters' plans."

"It was my stupidity…"

He was trembling with fear.

Young Master Jin finally nodded in satisfaction. But moments later, his brows furrowed again.

"How did those sect disciples find you in the first place?"

Guo Jianglong looked bitter.

"I don't know…"

He cultivated the White Wave Technique, and normally moved freely in water, stirring up waves and causing trouble with impunity.

He never expected that today, out of nowhere, someone would catch his trail, set up a trap, and literally drag him out of the river.

He thought back carefully and muttered,

"Could… could someone be watching me?"

Young Master Jin's face was equally grim, but after a moment of thought, he shook his head.

"Doesn't seem like it…"

"If someone really had an eye on you, they wouldn't have sent just a few rookies to catch you."

"Most likely they took a bounty from the sect to earn some merit… Still, managing to catch you means those brats have some skill."

He let out a cold laugh, then cast another chilly glance at Guo Jianglong.

"I told you to keep a low profile. It was just a hit job! And yet you left a mess behind that the Dao Judiciary could trace?"

"If it weren't for that, those sect brats wouldn't have ended up on your tail."

Guo Jianglong sighed helplessly.

"I didn't mean to. I just wanted to sink their boat and let the water demons eat them…"

"But that Lin guy had a 'Water-Repelling Pearl' on him. The demons couldn't hurt him. I had no choice but to use the Three-Shark Hook and rip open his throat. That's how the traces got left behind and caught the attention of the Dao Judiciary…"

Mo Hua's eyes narrowed.

A Lin?

Among those six victims… the one from a noble family—was he surnamed Lin?

He silently committed the name to memory.

Young Master Jin continued:

"Things are tense lately. I'll send you to the Dao Prison shortly. You'll 'die' in there. The Dao Judiciary will close your case and seal your files. Once the storm dies down, you'll get a new face and name and keep working for the Young Masters."

Guo Jianglong bowed gratefully.

"Thank you, Young Master Jin. But…"

"Speak," Jin said coldly.

Guo Jianglong lowered his voice uneasily:

"Why has the situation gotten so bad recently?"

"All the blood-bound brothers… either arrested, killed, or hiding like stray dogs…"

"The ones still breathing—you can count them on two hands…"

"Even the Venerable One… so close to forming a Golden Core, with terrifying spells—and he..."

He shivered violently.

Young Master Jin's face turned serious, eyes sharp:

"Mister Tu suspects… we've been set up."

"All these years, nothing ever leaked, not a single slip-up—and yet within just over a year, more than half our blood-sworn have fallen…"

"All because of carelessness, leaving behind traces that led the Dao Judiciary right to them. Then the Dao Judiciary posts a bounty, and sect disciples pick it up to earn merit."

"Strangest of all—the Dao Judiciary posts the bounties, the sect disciples take them… but they may not even know what's really going on."

"And on the surface, nothing seems out of the ordinary."

Young Master Jin's tone grew colder:

"Which is why I suspect… there's an enormous, invisible 'black hand' manipulating everything from the shadows…"

He spoke with unwavering certainty.

Up in the tree, Mo Hua couldn't help but glance down at his own fair, delicate hands and blinked in confusion.

Guo Jianglong's face was pale as he rasped:

"Can we not find out who this 'puppet master' behind the scenes is?"

Young Master Jin's gaze sharpened.

"Mister Tu didn't say. But I already have a suspect in mind…"

Mo Hua's curiosity was piqued. He pricked up his ears.

Young Master Jin said solemnly:

"This person is very likely… none other than the Dao Judiciary's Chief Adjudicator…"

He paused, then said coldly:

"…Gu Changhuai!"

Mo Hua froze.

Young Master Jin continued:

"The Gu Clan has served in the Dao Judiciary for generations. They're rigid and old-fashioned—not the same breed as us."

"This Gu Changhuai is a direct descendant, at the Golden Core stage. He's a recluse, moody, unpredictable."

"His cultivation and techniques are all top-tier—his strength should not be underestimated."

"He even possesses forbidden arts. That Fire Lord, said to be invincible beneath the Golden Core level in our second-grade prefecture, died at his hands!"

Young Master Jin's eyes were filled with both resentment and wariness.

"Even if Gu Changhuai isn't the mastermind, he's definitely a key 'chess piece' of whoever is pulling the strings behind the scenes."

"This man… is our life-or-death enemy."

Guo Jianglong nodded seriously, convinced.

Mo Hua didn't even know what to say at this point…

Young Master Jin glanced at Guo Jianglong and said indifferently:

"Remember what I said. From now on, you must act with the utmost caution."

"These are no longer ordinary times. If you slip up and bring trouble down upon the Young Masters, ruining their plans—don't expect to die an easy death."

Guo Jianglong pressed his lips together and nodded shakily.

Still worried, Young Master Jin added:

"And… keep your mouth shut."

"No matter who questions you, say nothing. If they press too hard, just…"

He held up two fingers and drew them across his neck.

Guo Jianglong turned ghostly pale.

Young Master Jin patted his shoulder and said:

"The death of the body doesn't mean real death. You've seen things—you should understand what I mean…"

Guo Jianglong looked terrified and said nothing.

Young Master Jin nodded in satisfaction.

"Remember what I told you…"

Suddenly, there was movement at the edge of the woods—someone approaching.

Young Master Jin flicked out two sword qi bursts, shredding the two soundproof array flags. Then he kicked Guo Jianglong back to the ground.

Guo Jianglong collapsed and pretended to be unconscious.

A moment later, the Broken Gold Sect disciples who had been sent to search earlier returned. One of them bowed and said respectfully:

"Young Master, we found no trace of this bastard's accomplices nearby."

Young Master Jin looked displeased. After a moment, he sighed and said:

"Forget it. Capturing just this one is enough. Pick two people to escort this 'Guo Jianglong' to the Dao Judiciary. Claim the bounty and split it evenly."

The disciples' faces lit up with joy. They cupped their fists and said:

"Many thanks, Young Master!"

Young Master Jin nodded slightly, then gave Guo Jianglong a final, disdainful glance before striding away arrogantly.

The others followed, leaving behind only two men to carry off the "unconscious" Guo Jianglong and escort him to the Dao Judiciary.

Soon, the grove was empty again and quiet returned to the woods.

Mo Hua, who had remained hidden the whole time, finally leapt down from the tree and slipped away without a trace.

He had originally planned to head straight to the ferry crossing to meet up with Cheng Mo and the others—but before he'd gone far from the grove, he unexpectedly ran into them.

The four of them were lying in wait in a patch of grass, eyes fixed on the grove, clearly watching and waiting for him.

Mo Hua's heart warmed slightly. He revealed himself.

The four of them jumped in surprise and immediately asked:

"Mo Hua, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Mo Hua replied.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief. Then Cheng Mo asked:

"Should we… go back to the sect now?"

His expression was a bit downcast. The others—Situ Jian and the rest—also looked disappointed.

Their target had been taken. The original reward of 120 contribution points each was gone.

But Mo Hua shook his head.

"No rush. We're not leaving empty-handed."

Everyone was stunned and turned to look at him.

Mo Hua said confidently:

"A gentleman takes revenge the same day it's dealt! They dared to rob us—now it's our turn to rob them!"

(End of Chapter)