Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 686 – The Well

When had he been corrupted?

The first thing Mo Hua thought of… was that Golden Lotus Tricolor Carp.

"I ate the fish… drank the soup… could that be how the River God's evil intent invaded my sea of consciousness?"

His thoughts turned sharply—and suddenly, his heart tightened.

Yu'er!

Yu'er had also eaten the Golden Tricolor Carp. If Mo Hua's sea of consciousness had been contaminated, then Yu'er's must have been too.

Night had already fallen. Without hesitation, Mo Hua sprang to his feet and rushed to the next door. Before he could even knock, the door opened.

Wenren Wei stood at the doorway, his expression calm but surprised.

"Young Lord Mo?"

"I came to check on Yu'er," Mo Hua said at once.

Though puzzled, Wenren Wei saw the urgency on Mo Hua's face and didn't dare delay. He immediately invited him in.

Mo Hua stepped past layers of elegant screens and refined yet childlike furnishings, entering the inner bedroom.

There, Yu'er lay on the bed, drooling slightly, sleeping sprawled out in all directions… snoring softly.

He slept soundly. His divine sense was calm, with no signs of disturbance.

Mo Hua's pupils darkened as he extended his spiritual sense, scanning Yu'er several times. After confirming there was no evil taint clinging to him, he finally exhaled lightly in relief.

Still, Mo Hua's brows furrowed slightly.

"Yu'er's fine…"

"Young Lord Mo?" Wenren Wei asked in a low voice. "Is there something wrong with Young Master Yu?"

Mo Hua snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head. "No, it's nothing. I was just overthinking."

Wenren Wei relaxed and respectfully replied,

"Thank you for your concern, young lord."

Mo Hua smiled faintly, then quietly took his leave so as not to disturb Yu'er's rest. He returned to his room and sat at his desk, deep in thought.

It was late, but Mo Hua had no intention of sleeping. His heart was a jumble of thoughts.

"That Golden Lotus Tricolor Carp was stewed into soup and eaten by both Yu'er and me… but Yu'er is completely fine."

"That means it's not the fish that's the issue."

"Then what is the issue…?"

Mo Hua frowned and began mentally reviewing the past few days in detail.

From tracking Guojianglong, entering the fishing village, the blood mist, Old Yu, the Wang family cultivators, then leaving with the basket of fish containing the Golden Carp…

If it was something he saw, and evil intent entered through his eyes, he would've noticed it.

So if not something he saw—then something he smelled or ate.

And crucially, it had to be something he consumed that Yu'er didn't.

"If it wasn't the tricolor carp… then…"

Mo Hua's eyes narrowed.

"The fish soup at Old Yu's house?"

That was the only thing he had eaten recently that Yu'er hadn't.

He frowned.

"So… I get corrupted just from crashing one free meal at Old Yu's? Seriously?"

But why?

Why would a simple pot of fish soup be contaminated?

Mo Hua couldn't make sense of it.

—And then, a flash of red flickered in his mind.

He froze.

He remembered now: beside the fish tank that held the silver-scaled fish, Old Yu had a small, sealed fish tank. The lid was closed, and the inside was too dark to see clearly—except for the occasional flash of red.

Old Yu claimed it housed a type of Redwater Carp that couldn't tolerate light.

But now, thinking back on it… Mo Hua realized:

That so-called "Redwater Carp" had a spiritual signature extremely similar to those blood-colored fish that had invaded his sea of consciousness.

Old Yu…

Mo Hua's gaze turned icy.

"Looks like… I'll have to pay that fishing village another visit."

If Old Yu's fish soup was corrupted, then the entire fishing village—all its fishermen—could already be infected, their divine senses subtly tainted by the evil god.

And no one had realized it.

The suffering of the fishermen… is the soil in which evil gods thrive.

Mo Hua blinked. The corner of his eye felt dry—there were still faint streaks of tears left from earlier.

Scenes from that dream replayed in his mind.

The moments of joy and sorrow… life and death… the desperate struggle to survive, the crushing despair of helplessness…

Even love—so real, yet impossible to hold onto.

They all wove together in his chest like a net.

Mo Hua let out a long, deep sigh.

"To me, it was just a dream.

But to many others…

It might be their entire life."

Gu Changhuai's men continued watching the fishing village, but days passed with no sign of Guojianglong.

So when the next Ten-Day Rest period arrived, Mo Hua wasted no time and returned to the village.

It was midday. Sunlight poured down; the fishing villagers bustled about, busy with their lives.

From a distance, it all seemed peaceful and ordinary.

But Mo Hua already knew—things were far from simple.

Just one bowl of fish soup had let an evil god's will invade his consciousness.

Then what about the other villagers?

Most of them likely had those same blood-colored fish lurking in their seas of consciousness.

Other people's divine senses were locked inside their minds—Mo Hua couldn't enter them. He had no way to see what was hidden there.

All he could do… was look for clues from the outside.

Mo Hua's pupils narrowed, and golden light flickered in his eyes as he released his spiritual sense, carefully scanning through the village.

Only then did he notice things he had missed before.

The fishermen worked hard and without complaint, striving to survive.

But occasionally, when their eyes shifted—there would be a fleeting moment of confusion, and deep within their gaze… was a dead-eyed numbness.

It was like the early signs of their divine sense being slowly consumed…

Mo Hua spotted Old Yu.

Old Yu was the same—his gaze occasionally blank and lifeless—but overall, he looked much better than before.

Perhaps because he now had spirit stones and could send his two grandsons to join a sect and pursue a better future, no longer doomed to poverty.

His whole demeanor was brighter, like someone seeing light after a lifetime of darkness. There was a faint spark in his eyes now.

It was midday.

Like the rest of the village, their family was eating lunch—fish soup again.

Mo Hua stared at the soup.

But unexpectedly… he couldn't see anything wrong.

It looked like just an ordinary bowl of fish soup.

This is just ordinary fish soup.

The fish used to make it were caught from the Yanshui River—ordinary spirit fish.

Old Yu did keep a small tank of strange "Redwater Carp",

But that fish tank had been sealed the whole time. He never touched it.

Mo Hua frowned.

Could I have guessed wrong?

Was it not the fish soup?

Mo Hua thought for a moment, but still didn't enter the village. Instead, he cloaked himself again and began scouting the area around the fishing village.

The village was built against the mountains, nestled on a flat piece of land at the base. It was surrounded by forest, with a road separating it from the nearby Yanshui River.

Mo Hua walked the perimeter—and found himself even more confused.

"There's nothing…"

No evil god statues for preaching.

No parasitic relics of a dark god.

No signs of evil or demonic cultivator hideouts. No demonic temple like the one at the Bishan Demon Cavern.

Not even a single altar.

No matter how you looked at it, it was just an ordinary fishing village.

Of course, if it really was ordinary… that would actually be a good thing.

Mo Hua's expression turned serious.

Hunting required patience. He decided to wait.

So he made his way to a tall tree outside the village. Casting Flowing Water Steps, he used spiritual power to adhere to the trunk and calmly walked straight up to the top.

Then, he sat cross-legged on a branch, back straight, hands clasped behind him—his sharp eyes fixed on the village below.

He wanted to see if he could uncover any more clues.

Just like that, Mo Hua sat all the way until nightfall.

The dusk crept in like a layer of black gauze, slowly shrouding the village.

Everything dimmed.

The sky darkened without stars, only a cold half-moon hung overhead, casting a lonely, chilly glow.

He'd found nothing the whole afternoon—but now, as night deepened, Mo Hua suddenly felt invigorated.

He had a vague sense… that something was about to happen.

And sure enough, nearly an hour later—

Night had grown darker. Most of the fishermen had extinguished their lanterns, leaving only a few flickering fishing fires scattered like specks in the dark.

In Old Yu's home—

The old man, who had been pretending to nap, opened his eyes.

He glanced around. Once he confirmed his family was asleep, he quietly got up and carefully picked up the sealed tank of "Redwater Carp," tying it securely to his back with hemp rope.

Then, hunched over, he stepped out into the night.

Far away, Mo Hua's gaze sharpened. Quietly, he climbed down from the tree, merged into the darkness with a concealed breath, and followed.

The fishing village under nightfall was eerily silent.

Old Yu, hunched and shadowed, carrying that fish tank on his back, looked like a river wraith crawling out from the water.

He walked forward without pause.

Mo Hua silently tailed him.

Until Old Yu reached the back of the village, to a barren courtyard where no one lived and few ever came.

There, he stopped.

In the middle of the courtyard stood a well.

The well was built with pale white stone. Under the moonlight, it looked ghostly and cold.

Old Yu placed down the tank, undid the seal, and pulled out several blood-red fish with sharp fangs and twisted fins.

They looked just like the ones from Mo Hua's dream.

Mo Hua wasn't a fishing cultivator, so he couldn't identify the species—but he was certain:

These were not carp.

Old Yu reverently tossed the blood-colored fish into the well, then knelt down and kowtowed three times, sincerely praying:

"River God above, Old Yu has come to fulfill his vow…"

"Thank you, River God, for your blessing…"

He kowtowed again, voice full of gratitude:

"That day, when the wind and waves struck, I was halfway into the river and nearly drowned.

But thanks to your protection, I survived…

And I even caught that prized Golden Lotus Tricolor Carp…"

"With that fish, my two grandsons now have a future.

Our family finally has a chance to escape a life of storms and monster tides.

We won't have to risk our lives for a living forever…"

Old Yu sighed deeply.

"But then… someone tried to steal that fish.

Fortunately…"

"Fortunately, a noble young benefactor stepped in and drove off the Wang family thugs—and even bought my fish…"

"That young man… he's a good one. I was truly lucky."

"But thinking about it, all of this… was probably thanks to your guidance, River God.

It was you who brought that young man to save me…"

Old Yu kowtowed a few more times, then clasped his hands together in prayer:

"Now, I've no other wishes left…

I only beg that the River God bless my two grandsons, that they may enter a sect smoothly…"

"I don't ask for wealth or immortality.

Just let them make a living without facing storms and water demons…

Let them live a peaceful life…

Then I, Old Yu, will have no regrets when I die…"

"Whatever you want, River God… I will give it to you."

"Please… I beg you…"

"I'll raise these blood-red fish well.

Once they're fat and grown, I'll offer them to you again…"

As he finished speaking, a sound of splashing water came from the well. A faint flash of scarlet rippled past—then everything calmed down.

As if… something in the well had accepted the offering.

The fish were dead. Their blood had blended into the well water.

Mo Hua froze—then suddenly, realization struck him like lightning.

It's the well water!

If Mo Hua's guess was right, then the entire fishing village's cultivators had been drinking from this well.

Old Yu had thrown those blood-colored little fish into it, tainting the water.

And all the fishing cultivators who drank from it... were essentially corrupted by the evil god.

As for Mo Hua—

It was because he had drunk fish soup made with that very well water at Old Yu's place, that his divine sea had been invaded by the evil god's wicked thoughts.

That's why, come midnight, he had involuntarily fallen into those painful nightmares.

But—

Not nightmares woven by the evil god…

Mo Hua glanced at Old Yu, still kowtowing endlessly, and sighed internally.

They were dreams… "woven" by the countless suffering fishing cultivators of this village,

stitched together by their shared, bitter memories.

After tossing the blood-colored fish into the well, Old Yu carefully resealed the tank.

There were still a few fish inside—not yet mature. He'd raise them well and offer them later.

With the offering done, he got up and prepared to leave…

When suddenly, in the silent dark, a clear voice rang out:

"Grandpa Yu…"

Old Yu froze. Terrified, he slipped and fell flat on the ground.

He scrambled back up, eyes darting in panic—

Then spotted, not far off in the darkness, a small figure slowly emerging.

That figure… was familiar.

Under the pale moonlight, Old Yu finally recognized him—it was the young "little benefactor" who had helped drive away the Wang family cultivators a few days ago… and bought his Tricolor Carp.

But now—

This "little benefactor" no longer wore that kind, gentle smile.

The moonlight cast his face in cold, pale white.

His gaze was deep, unreadable.

Old Yu glanced back at the well, then back at Mo Hua, voice trembling:

"Y-You… young man… did you see everything?"

Mo Hua slowly nodded.

Old Yu's face twisted in anguish. Suddenly, he begged:

"Please… please don't tell anyone…"

Mo Hua said nothing.

"No one can know about this," Old Yu pleaded, eyes wild.

"If word gets out… everything I did… it'll all be for nothing!

My grandsons' futures will be gone… and I… I'll be punished by the River God…"

"Please… I beg you…"

Still, Mo Hua remained silent.

Old Yu kept pleading, but as Mo Hua stood unmoved, something changed.

His sorrow turned to rage.

At some point, his eyes had turned blood-red—and the sound of his voice was no longer quite human.

More like… the screeching of a fish demon.

He snapped.

His face contorted with madness. In a flash, he lunged at Mo Hua.

"If you won't agree, then you'll die!"

But the moment he got close—he saw Mo Hua's calm, moonlit eyes, full of pity.

And Old Yu froze.

In that instant, memories flashed through his mind—

Mo Hua helping him set up array formations,

Mo Hua chasing away the Wang family thugs,

Mo Hua paying him handsomely for the Tricolor Carp…

The blood-red hue in Old Yu's eyes slowly faded.

The rage drained from his face, leaving only a helpless sorrow.

He sank to his knees before Mo Hua, tears flowing freely.

"Please… I beg you…"

He kowtowed again and again.

Life's suffering had driven him to his knees.

All he could do was bow, and beg, and pray…

Mo Hua felt a sharp ache in his chest. He sighed.

"Fine. I won't tell."

Old Yu froze.

Mo Hua continued, voice calm:

"I won't say a word—but in return, you'll tell me everything."

"Who taught you to raise those blood-colored fish?"

"Who told you that raising them would fulfill your wishes, and protect you from disaster?"

Old Yu hesitated, eyes still filled with pleading.

Mo Hua said firmly:

"I mean what I say. If you tell me, I'll stay quiet.

If not…"

A chill gleamed in Mo Hua's eyes.

Old Yu flinched. He suddenly remembered—

Even those two Wang family Foundation Establishment cultivators, along with a handful of Qi Refining disciples, had been completely overwhelmed by this young man.

As a simple fishing cultivator, Old Yu didn't know any combat spells.

He'd never stand a chance against this terrifying young lord.

Old Yu let out a deep, bitter sigh.

"Alright… I'll tell you everything."

(End of this Chapter)