Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 692 – Sword Scar

The moment Mo Hua stepped onto the land, a sharp pain stabbed through his divine sense.

A wave of crimson red flooded his vision.

In his ears echoed grotesque laughter, cries of agony, and wails of despair.

It was as if karma reversed and time flowed backward—scenes of a massacre that occurred in this fishing village centuries ago flashed before his eyes like fleeting illusions.

This village… had been thoroughly slaughtered.

In that brief glimpse, Mo Hua caught a thread of truth.

Amid the blood mist, mournful cries rose and fell. All the fisher cultivators had been slaughtered. Blood seeped into the soil, staining the land—and through the local spiritual veins, that blood taint flowed upward to pollute—

—a faintly golden divine figure looming above the village.

This god…

Mo Hua tried to focus his divine sense, to see the deity's face clearly. But just at that moment, the blood mist surged and obscured everything.

That deity's eyes turned crimson red, and killing intent flared—as if warning Mo Hua, who had dared to peer into karmic secrets.

Mo Hua broke into a cold sweat and snapped his eyes open.

The world around him was dark and oppressive.

The air was thick with the stench of rotting fish and ancient decay. The soil beneath his feet had turned a muddy dark red—where blood and earth had long ago fused together, dried and silent for years.

Aside from that, the surroundings were strangely quiet. The blood mist here was thinner, and there were no drifting blood leeches in sight. Strangely, it seemed… safer than outside the village.

"Little Master Mo, are you all right?" Gu An asked worriedly.

Just moments ago, Mo Hua had turned pale and collapsed, as if he'd seen something terrifying. His expression had been dreadful.

"I'm fine," Mo Hua wiped the cold sweat from his brow. "The atmosphere was too oppressive, so I had a nightmare… to ease the mood."

Gu An and the others: "…"

Mo Hua quietly reviewed the visions he'd seen in his mind and came to a general conclusion.

The fisher cultivators of this village had been corrupted by the Evil God—and then silenced to the last.

The ones who destroyed the village were shrouded in darkness, their appearances indistinct, identities impossible to make out.

And this fishing village… once had a god.

That god radiated faint golden light—a sign of a high rank. But it too had been tainted by the Evil God.

As for the final outcome—

Mo Hua looked around at the current blood-soaked village and couldn't help sighing.

The believers were butchered. The land was defiled.

That divine being's fate… needed no words.

If it wasn't an Evil God before, it was now.

And yet—

Mo Hua frowned slightly.

This tragedy... felt strangely familiar. Like he'd seen something similar somewhere before.

He focused, thinking carefully—his pupils suddenly shrank.

The Xie Family!

The Xie Clan that had been wiped out by the Fire Buddha—they too had been massacred in full, their deaths grisly. And when Mo Hua stepped through their gate, karmic omens had immediately appeared.

Mo Hua thought back again to the events of the Xie Family.

Though the Fire Buddha was now dead, and the Demon Den of Bì Mountain destroyed, Mo Hua always had the feeling… that something deeper remained unresolved.

Could the Xie Clan and this fishing village be… connected somehow?

Mo Hua raised his eyes and looked toward the deepest part of the village, his gaze growing thoughtful.

Still, rescuing the kidnapped children took priority.

He couldn't let two innocent kids become sacrifices to an Evil God.

"I'll sneak in first to scout the situation. You three find a place to hide. If you hear fighting, come rescue me. If you hear nothing, stay put—don't let anyone find you," Mo Hua instructed.

Gu An and Gu Quan hesitated slightly, but still nodded obediently.

Yu Dahe, worried sick about his son, was anxious beyond words—but now could only force himself to stay calm and wait.

Mo Hua nodded slightly.

Although Gu An and Gu Quan had Water Concealment Jades, their effects were limited, and both of them lacked experience in stealth.

This kind of infiltration and eavesdropping? Yeah, this was a job for the professional—himself.

Just as he was about to leave, Mo Hua suddenly remembered something. He pulled out three calming spiritual artifacts from his robe and handed them to the others.

"These are mind-calming spirit tools. Each of you take one and wear it."

Gu An recognized them immediately. These were the same spirit tools that Lord Changhuai had ordered them to retrieve from the Gu Family's treasury and deliver to Little Master Mo.

Gu An was puzzled. "Young Master, what are these actually for? Surely not just for easing the mind…"

"They're to protect your sea of consciousness."

"Our… sea of consciousness?"

"Yes." Mo Hua nodded. "It's complicated to explain. Just know this: they're for protecting your life. Very important."

"Understood!" Seeing Mo Hua speak with such seriousness, Gu An accepted the item solemnly—but then glanced at Mo Hua with concern. "You gave all three to us. What about you, Young Master?"

"I don't need them," Mo Hua replied confidently.

In truth, these spirit tools weren't of much use to him.

His divine sense itself… was already a high-grade protective artifact.

Gu An and Gu Quan didn't fully understand, but looking at Mo Hua, they couldn't help but feel—

Little Master Mo really is amazing...

The three of them stayed behind to wait.

Mo Hua concealed his presence and began stealthily exploring the fishing village.

It was entirely deserted. All around were collapsed stone walls, withered thatch huts, and signs of destruction from when the village had been annihilated.

After walking a few steps, Mo Hua saw a large fisher's house not far ahead. Faint light flickered inside, and several shadowy figures could be seen moving.

Mo Hua raised an eyebrow and crept silently forward.

But before he reached the house, something caught the corner of his eye.

His expression froze.

"…This is—?"

He turned and walked over to get a closer look—on the roadside stood a stone pillar, half of it cut clean off, with a distinct sword scar running through the break.

"A sword mark?"

Mo Hua's eyes lit up, and he thought:

"Could this be left behind years ago—by that swordsman senior who once entered the village and fought with someone or… something?"

He touched the cut surface of the stone pillar.

The break was smooth—clearly left by a blade of extreme sharpness.

However, after all these years, the sword energy had long faded, and the surface was now coated in a layer of sticky grime.

Mo Hua wanted to examine the mark and comprehend the sword technique behind it.

But with his shallow understanding of sword arts, he couldn't even begin to comprehend something of this level.

Okay… sword energy didn't work. What about Sword Intent?

Mo Hua released his divine sense —and began trying to sense the Sword Intent sealed within the scar.

If sword Qi doesn't work… what about Sword Intent?

Mo Hua released his divine sense and tried to sense the lingering Sword Intent.

From the severed surface, a faint glimmer of sword radiance emerged—so subtle it had persisted even after centuries. Mo Hua was utterly shocked.

But the sword radiance was still too weak—there was little he could comprehend from it.

Mo Hua's pupils deepened, and heavenly patterns flashed across his eyes. He activated his Heavenly Fate Calculation, enhancing it with layered deductions. When he looked again, the severed surface suddenly pulsed with an incredibly sharp aura.

A piercing, pale-blue glint of frosty sword light emerged—its edge as keen as death.

Mo Hua's eyes stung slightly, and even his sea of consciousness felt a powerful pressure—as if a master swordsman were pressing the tip of a razor-sharp blade against the space between his brows.

And then, it vanished.

The faint sword glimmer on the broken stone was completely gone.

Even the Sword Principle stored within karmic threads during his Heavenly Fate Calculations had faded without a trace.

Mo Hua stared blankly for a moment, stunned with a sense of loss.

"So this is… Sword Manifestation through Divine Sense..."

That pure, absolute killing intent, the frigid and peerless Sword Intent, and that flash of brilliance born from divine sense—it all left Mo Hua shaken to his core, unable to calm his heart.

After a moment of daze, his eyes lit up, brilliance surging.

"This is it—Sword Manifestation through Divine Sense..."

"And very likely… it's the Great Void Sect's very own technique: the Great Void Divine Sense Sword Art!"

He had finally witnessed it—truly experienced a sword forged purely of divine sense!

Mo Hua reached out to touch the broken pillar again.

But unfortunately, nothing remained there anymore.

Still, that was fine.

Where there's one, there's more.

That sword cultivator senior who had once entered this dangerous, Evil-God-polluted village couldn't have drawn his sword just once.

There had to be other traces of "Divine Sense Sword Manifestation" somewhere in the village.

If Mo Hua could observe all of them—even if he couldn't master the technique—he might still imitate its form and grasp some rudimentary divine sense techniques.

Mo Hua was filled with anticipation.

Now the only question is… where else in this fishing village might more sword scars be hiding?

He was still pondering this when he suddenly froze, realizing he had gotten completely distracted.

"Rescue first. Saving lives comes first…" Mo Hua reminded himself.

Sword scars could wait.

He once again concealed himself and continued toward the large fisher's house up ahead.

There were no formations or protective measures around the house.

Apparently, the cultivators residing here didn't expect outsiders to ever reach this place—so they hadn't bothered with security.

Lucky for Mo Hua.

The main door was shut tight. Voices could be faintly heard from inside.

Mo Hua nimbly climbed onto the thatched rooftop, peering through a gap between the straw to look inside.

Though the house was large, its furnishings were crude. A dim lantern cast pale light in the room.

Inside, several cultivators were drinking around a table.

Most of them wore black robes. Only one stood out—a bearded man with thick facial hair and a muscular, tanned body—Guo Jianglong himself.

The wine was strong, the scent pungent. On the table were a few plates of fried snacks and dried fish as side dishes.

The group drank and chatted idly, complaining about various things.

Mo Hua perked his ears.

The conversation was full of grumbling:

"Crappy weather,"

"Damn gloomy place,"

"People dying,"

"Just bad luck…"

And then, unexpectedly, he heard—

"Gu Changhuai?"

"That bastard Gu Changhuai…"

"Don't know what lunacy's possessed him. He's been tailing me for months—won't leave me the hell alone!"

"I swear I'll kill him one day!"

"Shut your trap. You're just Foundation Establishment—got a death wish trying to take out a Golden Core?"

"You know jack! Never underestimate a poor, young cultivator! One day I'll form a core, refine mercury into Dao, reach Upper-Grade Golden Core, learn the sect's sword technique—and I'll take that Gu guy head-on."

"Heh. I'll humiliate him in every way possible—then finish him off!"

"Keep dreaming…"

Someone else frowned and muttered,

"Kinda weird, though. That Gu guy's a Grade-3 Warden. Used to only go after criminal Golden Core cultivators. Why's he suddenly targeting Foundation Establishments this past year?"

Another black-robed man spoke, his voice low and grim,

"Could it be… he's found something out?"

The mood stiffened instantly.

The man at the head of the table narrowed his eyes, took a sip of wine, and said quietly:

"According to Sir's explanation—there's some expert behind the scenes, secretly guiding Gu Changhuai to oppose us."

"Who?"

One of them grunted impatiently,

"Damn it, didn't we already say it's some hidden expert? How would we know who it is?"

"True experts always hide themselves deep, don't they?"

"You son of a—"

"Enough!" the leader snapped coldly. "We're all descendants of noble families. Watch your words."

"Yes, Big Bro…"

Everyone quieted down and resumed drinking. After a while, someone changed the subject, and the group started chatting again.

Unfortunately, the new topic was no better—just more vulgar gossip.

They talked about which clans had the prettiest women, which sects had the best figures, or which spiritual-rooted ladies were the most "lively and juicy"…

Mo Hua's face twitched. His brows furrowed deeper by the second.

Can these guys grow up?

I'm not even trying to listen to this—and they still won't shut up?

Can't you just… talk about something useful!?

But nope. They kept right on with the sleaze.

After a bit, someone turned to Guo Jianglong and asked,

"Li Yu! What's wrong with you? You've been drinking in silence this whole time."

Guo Jianglong frowned, distracted.

"I don't know… I just have this bad feeling…"

"What kind of bad feeling?"

"What feels off?"

Guo Jianglong's gaze narrowed slightly. "I keep feeling… like someone is watching me."

On the rooftop, Mo Hua's heart jumped. He instantly retracted his gaze and obediently lay flat, silently activating Flowing Water Step—ready to bolt the moment things got spicy.

Below, Guo Jianglong continued, "To tell the truth, even when I was in the Dao Prison, I already had that sensation—like I was being watched. After I faked my death and escaped into Yanshui River, I felt free at first."

"But after a while, for some reason, it felt like… something was watching me again."

"It's not constant—just comes and goes. Watches for a bit, then disappears for a while. About once every ten days or so. I don't know why…"

Mo Hua silently thought to himself:

Because I have classes in between.

Guo Jianglong looked perplexed. "But that shouldn't be possible. On land, fine—but in the water, with the White Wave Art and White Wave Body Technique, I've become one with Yanshui River. After so many years, no one's ever been able to track me…"

"So this… really makes no sense."

The black-robed leader's eyes darkened. "Did you investigate?"

"I did," Guo Jianglong nodded. "Used every method I could think of. But I found no trace of anything."

"Then that settles it."

"You're just being paranoid."

"But—" Guo Jianglong hesitated. A heavy look flashed through his eyes. "Just now… I had that same feeling again—like someone was watching me…"

Everyone in the room stiffened. Then:

"Coward!"

"Paranoid freak…"

"Don't tell me one failure against a few newbie sect disciples turned you into a frightened bird?"

"Maybe you were being watched outside, but here? In this place? Come on!"

"If someone really made it in…" the black-robed leader said coldly.

Silence fell.

His eyes swept the room before he continued:

"...Then it would mean there's a traitor among us."

Everyone's expression froze.

The leader's voice turned icy.

"Someone leaked the well's formation pattern, the fish demon's feeding method, and the sacred route into the village…"

The room tensed instantly.

"Big bro, you know I'd never—"

"I've always been loyal and dedicated—"

"Big bro, please—"

The black-robed leader raised his hand to stop them.

"Relax. I trust your loyalty. Which is precisely why the fishing village's secrets should be impossible to leak."

"In a Tier-2 provincial region like this, anyone who doesn't know the well's formation, the demon feed, or the entrance path, cannot sneak in here unnoticed."

He turned to Guo Jianglong. "So you don't need to overthink it."

Guo Jianglong let out a long breath and smiled obsequiously.

"You're right, big bro. We're all sworn brothers—who'd dare leak something like that?"

The leader nodded in satisfaction.

"Just focus on what the Young Lord ordered. He won't mistreat you—and he'll guarantee your safety."

Guo Jianglong bowed slightly. "Yes, sir."

Meanwhile, on the rooftop, Mo Hua furrowed his brow.

"Again with this 'Young Lord'? Who is it this time?"

"Could it be… that golden-robed Young Lord?"

"…No, probably not."

As he puzzled over it, someone inside spoke again:

"Big bro, how much longer do we have to stay in this village?"

"Yeah, it's creepy as hell. The whole place reeks of weirdness—no way this is a place for the living."

The leader replied calmly:

"Not much longer. Once the River God finishes the offerings, we'll use them to refine pills. After that, we're free to go."

Mo Hua's heart turned cold.

"Once the River God finishes the offerings… they'll be used for alchemy?"

"The offerings… can't be those two little grandsons of Old Yu, can they?"

"The River God is already eating…?"

His expression turned grim.

"Time's running out."

This was worse than he had expected.

Mo Hua silently crept away from the large fishing house. After scanning the area, he chose a direction and slipped across the rooftops toward the rear of the village.

Behind the big fisher house was another sealed fishing hut.

Mo Hua climbed to its roof, found a crack, and peered down through narrowed eyes.

The moment he saw the inside—his pupils contracted.

A pill-refining chamber.

The room was filled with dissected skeletal remains—clearly cultivator corpses.

At the center sat a bone pill furnace, burning with a ghostly green flame. The sight was deeply eerie.

Before the furnace were several ingredients laid out.

Purple, green, and red herbs twisted together unnaturally—and worse, they were squirming slowly.

In front of the bone furnace stood a cultivator in alchemist robes, hair disheveled, face inked with blood runes, his aura manic and malevolent.

Clearly—he was a Demonic Alchemist.

(End of this Chapter)