Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 1105: Immortal Child Mo

In the 20,037th year of the Dao Calendar, late spring.

Northern Cangyun Prefecture, Lishu Province — Yundu City.

A cloud-faring ferry boat, rather aged and weatherworn, drifted slowly to a stop at the dock after several months of travel.

All kinds of cultivators disembarked one by one, forming a long line as they stepped down from the cloud ferry.

Amidst the crowd was a youth whose aura was subtle and unremarkable, drawing little attention.

That youth was none other than Mo Hua, long absent from home.

At the age of fifteen, he had traveled alone to Qianzhou to pursue his studies. Ten years passed—ten years filled with trials, change, and peril. Now, at last, he had returned to Lishu, to his long-lost homeland.

Ten years of learning, nine years of cultivation.

Now twenty-five, Mo Hua was at the late Foundation Establishment stage, with a divine sense refined to twenty sigils of Golden Core grade.

He was the Great Void Sect's one and only little senior brother, a second-rank high-tier formation master, and held the dual top ranks in Dao studies and formation arts at Qianxue.

Today's Mo Hua was no longer the boy he once was.

Yet in his humble bearing and restrained presence, none could see his remarkable identity.

At this moment, he was simply a traveler returning home.

Mo Hua lifted his head, gazing out at the vast skies of Lishu and the rolling red-brown mountains in the distance.

The sky of Lishu was unlike that of Qianzhou.

Qianzhou's sky was vast and harmonious, filled with ceaseless vitality.

Lishu's sky was more chaotic and sweltering, tinged with crimson clouds that resembled flowing fire.

But this, too, was the familiar aura of his homeland.

Mo Hua took a deep breath, his heart stirring. Then, following the crowd, he stepped off the cloud ferry.

Once it had dropped him off, the ferry set off again, clouds parting and waves rolling to the sound of its whistling flute, heading toward its next destination.

From that point on, the road he had taken to arrive was severed.

And with it, the karmic ties with Qianxue were temporarily cut.

Mo Hua watched the ferry recede into the distance, bidding silent farewell to all his memories in Qianzhou. Then he turned around, calmed his emotions, and began walking toward home.

"I'm home..."

With the earth of Lishu beneath his feet and its sky above, Mo Hua had only walked a few steps when waves of heat surged against him.

The qi of heaven and earth in Lishu swept over him, as if performing a ceremonial cleansing for his return.

The traces of Qianzhou's aura still lingering on his body, carried from afar on the cloud ferry, were slowly being washed away.

At first, it was barely noticeable—but soon, a change erupted.

The more he walked, the more stifling the heat felt around him.

In contrast, his meridians and blood felt bone-chillingly cold.

This coldness was not from the outside, but a deathly, silent cold from within.

It was the chilling effect of his boundless killing karma.

Mo Hua's pupils darkened, a baleful aura surged to his forehead, and black "veins" of malice spread across the whites of his eyes.

A surge of savage bloodlust flooded his heart.

Suddenly, Mo Hua wanted to kill—desperately.

Only by killing—killing many, extinguishing lives and butchering beings—could he dispel the fury in his chest, find peace, and clear his mind.

Gritting his teeth, Mo Hua forced himself to call upon the divinity within his Dao transformation to guard his human heart. He even reversed his Demonic Dao of Severing Emotion, cutting off all emotions, cutting away the ego, severing the killing intent, and severing the violent rage, before calming himself through meditation.

"I must not kill... I must not kill..."

He silently repeated the mantra. It was unclear how long it took, but eventually, his mind settled and the murderous desire subsided.

Once his mood stabilized and the baleful aura receded, Mo Hua took a deep breath and furrowed his brow.

"This is... backlash from the baleful aura?"

Having left Qianzhou, the support of Qianxue's karmic fortune had waned. The delicate balance between good and evil had been broken, and the evil karma and killing aura had begun to bite back—triggering a reversal in his fate?

Mo Hua's expression turned grave.

These were matters Elder Xun had warned him about.

Master Situ had also repeatedly emphasized them.

The two elders had urged him over and over again that after leaving Qianzhou, he must remain calm no matter what, never act impulsively, and under no circumstances should he kill...

Previously, Mo Hua had thought they were making a mountain out of a molehill.

How could someone as upright and kind-hearted as himself suddenly kill people over nothing?

But now, it seemed the situation was more serious than he had thought.

"Will I really... one day become a bloodthirsty, demonic fiend?"

Mo Hua furrowed his brows, then sighed softly. He concealed his presence and quietly left the crowd.

Since his baleful aura was rebounding, he could no longer remain amidst the bustling masses. Otherwise, should his mind slip even slightly, he could lose control and slaughter the innocent...

In the streets of Yundu City, once Mo Hua's figure disappeared—

Only then did the nearby cultivators feel a creeping chill that had blanketed the area.

But that chill came and went swiftly, vanishing without a trace.

Only a lingering sense of dread remained in their hearts.

...

——

Beyond the borders of Yundu City, Cangyun Prefecture.

In the quiet and desolate mountain forest.

Mo Hua traveled alone, continuing on his journey while reconnecting with the Dao essence of Lishu's land, sensing the heavenly laws of the region, adapting to this world's aura, and constantly adjusting his mindset to suppress the murderous thoughts within.

The silence of the forest helped calm his heart.

And a tranquil mind suppressed his killing intent.

Without murderous intent, the baleful aura retreated quietly into his fate star.

Far from Qianzhou and with Qianxue's fortune waning, Mo Hua could now only rely on himself to counter the backlash brought by endless slaughter.

In other words, the road of "deathly karma" ahead could only be endured—alone.

After walking alone through the wilderness for half a day, the baleful aura fully subsided, and his murderous thoughts were buried deep in his heart.

Mo Hua silently recited in his heart:

"I want to kill... I want to kill..."

He repeated it twice. Though the thought surfaced, his mind remained calm—this meant the deathly karma had truly been suppressed for now. Only then did Mo Hua finally feel at ease.

He left the desolate mountains and entered the nearest immortal city. Blending into a merchant caravan by paying a few spirit stones, he set off toward Tongxian City together with them.

This way, he wouldn't have to walk by himself.

It also helped him gradually readjust to being around others—without stirring up the urge to kill.

Mo Hua concealed his aura and traveled with the caravan for a while.

Sensing the living energy around him, he searched his own heart and confirmed that no murderous intent had stirred—only then did he truly feel at peace.

He let out a soft breath of relief.

Only now did he have the mental space to observe the merchant caravan traveling with him.

It was an extremely ordinary group.

There were about ten cultivators in total, differing in identity and age.

The strongest was a man at the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, around eighty or ninety years old—clearly the leader.

The weakest was at the sixth layer, in his thirties.

At least sixth stage of Qi Refining, around thirty years old.

The rest of the group were also in the mid to late stages of Qi Refining, their ages ranging from thirty to eighty.

At such an age and with such cultivation, it might seem low, but in reality, this was the norm for the vast majority of low-level cultivators in the world.

Low-level cultivators lacked resources, making cultivation incredibly difficult—just advancing through Qi Refining was a struggle, and Foundation Establishment was an even more daunting task.

Countless rogue cultivators in their fifties, sixties, or even nearing a hundred remained stuck in Qi Refining, unable to advance any further.

All they could do was rely on their meager cultivation and what little strength they had to make a living, doing their best just to survive.

To think of breaking through to Foundation Establishment and defying the heavens to change their fate in this lifetime—it was almost impossible.

Mo Hua couldn't help but feel a sudden wave of emotion.

Having just returned from the Fifth-Rank Qianxue State Domain, he had seen Void Tribulation cultivators, Ascension Realm experts, Golden Core masters, and countless Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Now, back in Lìzhou, looking at these small locales where the cultivators were so weak they barely reached Qi Refining—and would likely remain stuck there for life—

the contrast was like heaven and earth.

A powerful sense of dissonance surged in Mo Hua's heart.

He even began to wonder: were these two domains, and these two types of cultivators, really part of the same cultivation world?

All were human, born under the same heavens and earth—yet simply because of differing birth circumstances, could there really be such an immense gulf between one person and another?

Mo Hua's gaze grew deep and distant.

The group of ten or so continued along the mountain path.

Along the way, everyone in the trade caravan was extremely cautious.

They were doing small business—or rather, calling it "small business" might be giving them too much credit.

They were merely picking through scraps: unwanted, discarded, or looked-down-upon remnants of demonic beasts—bits of skin and bone—cleaning and refining them into waste materials for novice artifact refiners to practice with.

The profit in this was pitifully thin.

But that's life at the bottom: too many monks and too little gruel.

Jobs that earned spirit stones were few and far between. Anything that made decent profit had long since been carved up by others—there was no place for people like them.

This was practically their only steady means to earn a few scattered spirit stones, just enough to subsidize cultivation or feed their families.

And even so, the job was far from easy.

They had to transport goods from a small second-rank immortal city in the northern part of the Cangyun domain all the way to the Dàhēishān domain, earning a sliver of profit from the price difference.

Along the route were threats—demonic beasts, bandits, and even vicious fugitive cultivators with bounties on their heads.

Bandits and fugitives were manageable—they were human, driven by greed, and might spare them once they saw how poor the caravan was.

But demonic beasts were another story. To a beast, there was no rich or poor—only flesh and blood.

Thus, to these poverty-stricken Qi Refining cultivators, bloodthirsty beasts along the way were the deadliest threat.

The first half of the journey was fine—it passed through the barren stretches of the Cangyun Mountains, where beasts were rare.

But later on, especially after entering the Dàhēishān mountain range, demonic beasts became more and more common.

Even a single first-rank beast posed a serious threat to the caravan.

After all, they were all rogue cultivators with poor spiritual roots, low cultivation, and subpar techniques—none of them trained beast hunters. So each encounter with a demonic beast demanded their full focus and caution.

Their goal wasn't even to kill the beasts—if they could just scare them off, it was already a blessing.

But whether it was luck or misfortune, ever since entering the Dàhēishān range, beasts had been attacking them with alarming frequency—leaping out with crimson jaws, ready to devour them alive.

Each time, the Qi Refining cultivators in the caravan were terrified and struggled to defend themselves.

The fights were always extremely dangerous.

Mo Hua couldn't bear to watch. Quietly, without drawing attention, he began to help.

He conjured a few subtle water blade techniques at his fingertips and shot them out in secret, severing the limbs of the beasts.

Now that he was in the late stage of Foundation Establishment, dealing with first-rank beasts was effortless.

But he didn't make it obvious—he only used small tricks to cripple the beasts' claws or strike their heart vessels, leaving the finishing blow to the caravan cultivators.

After killing three or four beasts this way, the cultivators in the caravan began to notice something strange.

"Big Brother… are we really this strong?"

"These first-rank beasts used to be vicious monsters—why are they all like limp shrimp today, just waiting for us to kill them?"

"Isn't that… kinda suspicious?"

The man they called "Big Brother" was the caravan leader and the only one at the ninth stage of Qi Refining.

He frowned deeply. "Something's definitely off…"

"Could there be… an expert helping us in secret?" someone whispered.

"No way…"

"But who would it be? Why would an expert help people like us? They've got nothing better to do?"

The caravan leader scanned the crowd but didn't spot any "experts." His brows furrowed even tighter.

Then, suddenly, his expression shifted. A realization struck.

"I know who it is!"

Everyone looked at him in confusion.

"It's the Immortal Child Mo!" the caravan leader said devoutly. "This is his territory—Dàhēishān. He must be protecting us!"

Mo Hua: "..."

A burly man frowned. "Big Brother, are you nuts? What's this got to do with Immortal Child Mo? Why would he care? He's got time for this?"

The caravan leader snapped, "Do not speak disrespectfully of the Immortal Child!"

The man didn't dare argue.

The leader said solemnly, "Immortal Child Mo is a celestial incarnate, a savior of the suffering. Born with extraordinary talent and godlike strength. Legend says that when a great demon descended upon Tongxian City, Immortal Child Mo constructed a grand formation to fight it. In the end, he summoned wind and rain, commanded thunder and lightning, and called down a heavenly tribulation that obliterated the demon completely."

"That battle was truly earth-shattering. The mountains and skies changed color. Even Dàhēishān's terrain was altered by it."

"The mountains didn't used to look like this. It was the Immortal Child Mo who shattered them with heavenly might."

"To change the heavens and earth while still in Qi Refining—how could he not be a celestial incarnate?"

Mo Hua was utterly embarrassed—but couldn't help listening on with interest.

Someone added, "Big Brother, that's not quite right. I heard Immortal Child Mo wasn't a celestial incarnate, but a divine child—a formation genius not seen in a hundred, no, a thousand years."

"They say he killed the great demon of Tongxian City by mobilizing the city's full strength to build a formation—not quite as mystical as the legends say…"

Others objected, "What do you know? Do you even understand formations? A Qi Refining cultivator able to construct a formation powerful enough to slay a great demon—that's not mystical?"

"Honestly, I'd rather believe he was a celestial incarnate. That's more plausible than some Qi Refining kid building a demon-killing formation…"

"No, I heard that this 'Immortal Child Mo' already died. Perished in the tribulation with the great demon. That's why there's a monument outside Tongxian City honoring him."

"You're all wrong—I heard this 'Immortal Child Mo' is just a made-up character. There's no such unbelievable person in reality. Tongxian City fabricated the story to gain fame…"

...

For a while, opinions flew in all directions, with no consensus.

Mo Hua, on the other hand, was thoroughly entertained.

There was a flurry of speculation, with no consensus in sight.

Mo Hua, on the other hand, was listening with great interest.

In the end, the leader of the caravan waved his hand and declared:

"You're all talking nonsense. I'm the boss, so what I say goes. Immortal Child Mo is truly an Immortal Child—an immortal descended to the mortal world. He must never be offended. Besides..."

The caravan leader's expression grew solemn: "...I've heard that ever since Immortal Child Mo killed that great demon and reshaped the very heavens of Black Mountain, he became the mountain god of Black Mountain."

"Once you step into Black Mountain, you're in his domain. If you want to make a living here, you'd best be reverent, worship the Immortal Child, and never speak disrespectfully. If you displease him... we'll all suffer disaster…"

His words made everyone's expression turn serious.

Someone suddenly had a flash of insight and exclaimed, "So, all the demon beasts we've killed on this journey were actually gifts from the Immortal Child! Out of his great compassion, he saw how hard our lives were, so he sent us beasts to exchange for spirit stones and continue our cultivation!"

This explanation was quickly accepted by everyone.

The caravan leader then led the group in kneeling toward the depths of Black Mountain and bowed three times, saying:

"Immortal Child above, may prosperity last forever. We ask for your blessing, so that we may be safe, smooth, and free of calamity."

The others followed suit, bowing three times and calling out "Immortal Child," wishing for eternal prosperity.

Among the crowd, Mo Hua stood dazed, feeling somewhat helpless.

With them praying so sincerely to him... it felt a bit wrong not to offer some "blessing" in return…

On the rest of the journey, Mo Hua acted in secret, killing a few more demon beasts and helping the caravan harvest materials. He also subtly guided their way, allowing them to pass safely through Black Mountain and arrive outside Tongxian City.

From afar, they could already see the imposing Demon-Suppressing Stele, and at its top, two gilded characters:

Mo Hua.

The caravan members stood before the stele and respectfully saluted:

"Thank you, Immortal Child, for protecting us on our safe journey."

"May the Immortal Child's blessings last forever, his life as long as the heavens…"

Mo Hua, standing among them, had a rather complicated expression.

After the respectful rites were done, the caravan leader said, "Let's go," and led the group toward Tongxian City.

Mo Hua followed behind the others, walking toward the city.

After a few more miles, the grand city of Tongxian finally appeared before them.

Mo Hua raised his eyes and was slightly surprised.

Though it had only been ten years, the Tongxian City before him was already different from the one he remembered.

The walls were taller than before.

Inside the city, it was bustling with noise and activity. Towering smithing halls and alchemy guilds rose high, their white smoke visible from afar.

The flickering light of the forges shone brightly.

The rich aroma of pills carried for miles.

The road to Tongxian City was packed with all kinds of rogue cultivators.

These rogue cultivators lined up in neat ranks, like tides flowing in from all directions, converging toward the city.

Tongxian City resembled a "giant behemoth," inhaling and absorbing millions of rogue cultivators from across the Black Mountain prefecture.

The others in the caravan were also visibly shaken:

"As expected of Tongxian City…"

"The most prosperous immortal city in the hundreds of miles of Black Mountain Prefecture—no matter how many times you see it, it's still awe-inspiring…"

"A city blessed by the Immortal Child truly is different—flourishing fortune and endless blessings…"

"Compared to this, our Cangyun Prefecture's Baijia City feels so pitiful and hopeless…"

Someone sighed with envy: "If only one day, we too could settle down and live in Tongxian City…"

"Ah, but that's a dream…"

"Talking won't change anything. Let's hurry and get things done…"

"Right…"

The cultivators in the caravan all nodded and stopped discussing it.

Only Mo Hua's eyes flickered thoughtfully.

...

There were many rogue cultivators entering the city. Mo Hua didn't skip the line—he queued up with the rest, from early morning until afternoon, before finally entering Tongxian City with the caravan.

Once inside the city, it was time to part ways.

The caravan leader cupped his hands to Mo Hua and said:

"Little brother, we still have business to attend to, so we can only see you off this far. Do you have a place to stay in Tongxian City?"

Mo Hua nodded. "I do."

The caravan leader looked relieved. "That's good, then. Oh, I nearly forgot…" He looked a bit embarrassed. "We've traveled together all this time, and I still haven't asked—what's your name, little brother?"

Mo Hua smiled slightly. "My surname is Mo. My given name is just a single word—Hua."

"Mo... Hua…" The caravan leader nodded as he repeated it—but then suddenly froze mid-sentence, a shock running through him.

Mo… Hua?!

He snapped his head up, only to find that the young man who had been standing before him just a moment ago had mysteriously vanished.

The crowd bustled around him, but there was no trace to be found.

The caravan leader stood there in a daze, disbelief written all over his face, muttering:

"It really was... the Immortal Child's blessing…"

(End of this Chapter)