Chapter 1500: White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief
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Chapter 1498: White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief
Elder Lu felt as if he had become a puppet on strings controlled by Young Master Mo.
Despite not being under any actual control, he found himself involuntarily acting according to the other’s intentions.
His original purpose for this trip was merely to protect his own Young Master Chén. Yet, for some reason, he was suddenly tasked with destroying a demonic lair.
Moreover, it seemed he had no way to refuse. Righteousness and demonic forces were inherently incompatible, Young Master Chén was watching from the side, and Mo Hua had already planned everything meticulously.
Elder Lu could think of no reason to refuse. After some thought, seeing that the situation was already decided, he could only grit his teeth and say, “Eradicating demons and defending the Dao is our righteous duty. Kill.”
Then, leading over a dozen Zhū Clan guards, he held his breath, concealed his aura, and followed the route Mo Hua had drawn, circling into the courtyard, entering the farmhouse, and charging into the hidden passage.
Mo Hua, along with Zhū Mùchén and the bound youth, remained outside to watch. Zhū Mùchén wanted to go in as well, but Mo Hua didn’t allow it.
After all, as his Little Senior Brother, he still had to care for his Little Junior Brother. Zhū Mùchén had never been fond of killing, and it wouldn’t be good if he got injured in the chaos of battle.
As for the bound youth, Mo Hua was also afraid that his thirst for revenge might drive him to seek death.
The three of them watched from outside the house. Before long, a bloody, murderous intent emanated from within, mingled with howls of sinister winds and billowing black energy.
Spiritual Power at the Golden Core Realm intertwined within the hidden passage, causing the earth to tremble. This fierce, eerie clash of Spiritual Power generated powerful ripples, disturbing the night and startling all the spirit farmer cultivators in the entire Little Wang Village.
Most of them dared not make a sound, staying indoors, trembling with fear. They were low-level cultivators, their cultivation weak, yet they could sense the immense power and savagery within these fluctuations. This was power at the Golden Core level or higher.
For ordinary spirit farmers, this was an unstoppable force. If such power were to slaughter them, it would bring instant, catastrophic destruction. But they were merely lowly spirit farmers, helpless and powerless to resist. All they could do was hide inside their homes, pretending to know nothing, and pray anxiously to the heavens for protection.
They prayed that their entire village would not be massacred and that their loved ones would not die innocent, tragic deaths.
Mo Hua could sense the entire village’s reaction and sighed inwardly. Meanwhile, the battle within the house—which appeared to be a common residence but was actually a demonic lair—soon reached its conclusion.
After roughly the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the entire house was instantly shattered by Golden Core force.
Amidst the rising dust and debris, a group of Zhū Clan guards retreated from the house, covering each other as they took up defensive positions around the area.
Then, two other figures, continuously clashing, their Magical Treasures locked in opposition and their Golden Core powers entangled, surged up from underground, tumbling across the ground as they emerged. Once they had broken through, the two temporarily ceased fighting, each standing firm.
Mo Hua focused his gaze and saw one of them wearing dark robes, holding a Fu Lu golden staff—it was Elder Lu of the Zhū Clan.
The other person was shrouded entirely in a black cloak, his face concealed, making his features invisible, yet two eyes were exposed. One of these eyes had already rotted away, revealing stark white bone.
This white-bone-eyed cultivator exuded a chilling aura of Yin Qi, clearly a Demonic Cultivator, and one with considerable cultivation. Judging from the aura he emitted during the battle, his realm was likely at the peak of the Golden Core middle stage, not far from the Late Golden Core Stage, probably a leader of a Demon Sect.
Seeing this appearance, based on his understanding of Demonic Path sects, three words instantly flashed in Mo Hua’s mind: Skull Cave. This cultivator with a rotten eye was likely a Demonic Cultivator from Skull Cave.
At this moment, the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief, seeing himself suddenly surrounded, couldn’t help but gaze coldly at Elder Lu opposite him, his voice hoarse: “Why kill my disciples?”
Elder Lu sneered, “Righteousness and evil cannot coexist. You Demonic Path abominations deserve death, why ask for reasons?”
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief sneered, about to curse Elder Lu, when he suddenly paused and turned to look into the distance. There, a handsome, picturesque young master was observing the battle.
This young master did not intervene, remaining aloof, yet his demeanor was composed, exuding an air of controlling the situation. The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief’s expression changed: “It’s you?!”
Mo Hua was somewhat surprised, “You know me?”
A faint glimmer flashed in the rotten white-bone eye as the Demonic Cultivator said coldly, “Young Master Mo, the prodigy of the Great Void Sect.”
Mo Hua was even more surprised, “How do you know me?”
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief said coldly, “The Demon Slaying Order for your execution has spread throughout all major Demonic Path sects. Which Demonic Path elder above the Golden Core stage doesn’t know your name, Mo Hua, or recognize your face? Killing you would earn a great deal of merit.”
Upon hearing this, Elder Lu of the Zhū Clan and the guards were all stunned.
They hadn’t expected this Young Master Mo to have such a significant background? To be named on a Demon Slaying Order?
Zhū Mùchén, in his astonishment, looked at Mo Hua with concern, thinking to himself, Little Senior Brother, what exactly have you done to provoke such enmity?
The bound youth, though he didn’t understand, was deeply shocked.
Even Mo Hua himself felt somewhat strange, “Am I really that famous?”
Seeing his indifferent demeanor, the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief couldn’t help but twitch his eye. This Young Master Mo of the Great Void Sect—is he truly foolish, or is he playing the fool? Does he have no awareness of his own actions?
“The Demon Slaying Order…” Mo Hua pondered for a moment, not paying it much mind. It was likely just an ordinary Demonic Path bounty, nothing extraordinary. After all, there were already plenty of Demonic Cultivators who wanted him dead. Mo Hua asked, “So, you want to kill me?”
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief stared at Mo Hua, his heart trembling with unease, uncertain of how to proceed. Logically speaking, killing Mo Hua to claim the reward was perfectly reasonable. Yet, those listed on the Demon Slaying Order were never ordinary figures. For an Early Golden Core Stage cultivator to appear on it was already absurd, let alone the rumors surrounding him…
Seeing the demonic chief hesitate, Mo Hua lost patience and ordered, “Elder Lu, hurry up and kill this demonic chief.”
Elder Lu’s brow twitched. The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief’s pupils also contracted sharply.
Elder Lu cursed inwardly—killing him just like that? Did he think a Golden Core demonic chief was as common as cabbage? But given the circumstances, dragging things out was indeed not an option.
After a moment’s thought, Elder Lu once again channeled his Magical Treasure, the Fu Lu Golden Staff, and charged toward the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief. The demonic chief sneered, wielding a pair of hooks forged from human bones.
Amidst the wails of vengeful spirits, he clashed fiercely with Elder Lu. The other guards could only provide support from the sidelines, not daring to engage directly.
They were merely ordinary Golden Core cultivators, intimidated by the demonic chief’s formidable cultivation and sinister Magical Treasure, and thus unwilling to risk a direct confrontation.
The burden of the offensive fell entirely on Elder Lu. Yet, Elder Lu himself hesitated to go all out—his primary duty was to protect Zhū Mùchén. If he expended all his energy and lacked the reserves to ensure Young Master Chén’s safety, any mishap would leave him bearing grave responsibility.
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief was also fighting methodically against Elder Lu. Although his moves were vicious, he was wary of Mo Hua and dared not use his full strength recklessly.
Thus, the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief and Elder Lu fought for over two hundred more rounds, and the demonic power within him was depleted by nearly one-third. If things continued like this, the situation would become unfavorable.
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief swept his Divine-Sense and immediately had an idea: “Why not feign an attack to mislead them, escape into the manor, activate the Soul Transformation Great Art, devour everyone in Little Wang Village to replenish my demonic power, and then plan my next move?”
This way, whether fighting, killing, battling, or fleeing, he would have the confidence. But as soon as this thought arose, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Following the sensation, he saw Mo Hua staring at him with icy eyes, as if seeing through all his thoughts. At the same time, Mo Hua’s indifferent voice echoed in the distance, yet it seemed to reverberate right beside his ear.
“You’d better behave,” Mo Hua said coldly. “If you don’t harm the innocent, I won’t intervene.”
“Even if you kill Elder Lu, I won’t bat an eye.”
“But if you harm or devour even one innocent cultivator in this village, you will die here today…”
Elder Lu’s expression changed upon hearing this, while the other Zhū Clan guards looked even more shocked and bewildered.
This Young Master Mo spoke with such arrogance. Yet what they found even more incomprehensible was that the demonic chief at the peak of the Golden Core middle stage, who had been so insulted by Mo Hua’s words, did not retort.
Not only did he not retort, but the fear in his eyes grew even more intense, as if Young Master Mo’s words weighed on his heart like a mountain.
After another hundred or so rounds of fighting, the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief seemed to have realized something. He could no longer bear the invisible pressure Mo Hua exerted.
Even though Mo Hua hadn’t actually taken action, he couldn’t endure the gaze from those deep eyes, which seemed to conceal a terrifying killing intent at any moment.
The White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief took out a skull, crushed it directly, and released a burst of Yin Qi, with ghostly faces contorting in ferocity.
Elder Lu hurriedly shouted, “Fall back!” The others dared not confront it head-on and retreated ten zhang away. When the Yin Qi dissipated, they looked around and found that the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief had vanished. He had fled for his life.
Elder Lu frowned deeply and couldn’t help but look at Mo Hua, asking, “Young Master Mo, should we pursue him?”
Mo Hua shook his head. “We can’t kill him, so let it be.”
Elder Lu was unwilling to risk his life, and the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief couldn’t be killed anyway, so keeping him around was pointless. Depleting some of his demonic power and intimidating him was enough. Prolonging the fight would only waste time.
Mo Hua said, “Let’s go check the secret passage.”
Elder Lu hesitated. “This…”
“What is it?” Mo Hua asked. “Can we not go?”
Elder Lu sighed. “The secret passage is gloomy, sinister, and tainted. It’s not really suitable to visit.”
Mo Hua replied, “It’s fine.”
He had experienced countless battles and seen far more bloody, gloomy, and tainted things than this, this small scene was nothing to him.
“What about Young Master Chén…” Elder Lu hesitated.
Mo Hua hinted meaningfully, “Sooner or later… he will have to face these things…”
Elder Lu’s pupils contracted, and he offered no further objection.
The ground had been deformed by the fierce battle between Elder Lu and the White-Bone-Eyed Demonic Chief. After Elder Lu led his men in a brief cleanup, he walked ahead, guiding Mo Hua and the others into the demonic lair concealed underground.
The entrance was narrow. As Mo Hua descended the steps, he found himself in an underground passage, which led to a spacious subterranean stronghold.
Just as Elder Lu had said, the stronghold housed various eerie and terrifying objects: skulls, assorted bone joints, blood pools, half-finished Yin Soul Banners, dried human skins, and numerous skulls… all used for refining evil artifacts.
Zhū Mùchén watched, his face pale and his heart unsettled. The refugee boy, meanwhile, stared in horror, his expression filled with despair. Then, as if recalling something, his face twisted with immense pain.
He had likely guessed that his parents, his sister, and the familiar uncles and aunts among the refugees had all been treated as ‘consumables’ by these demonic cultivators, their souls extracted and spirits refined to craft these evil artifacts.
The thought alone made his heart ache with anguish. Stirred further by the bloody human skins and sinister artifacts around him, his throat tightened, and his stomach churned with sour bile.
Seeing this, Mo Hua’s gaze shifted. He immediately pointed a finger to the boy’s forehead. At the touch, the refugee boy felt his divine sense grow hazy. His eyes closed, and he fell into a dazed slumber.
Zhū Mùchén glanced at the boy with sympathy before turning to Mo Hua. “Little Senior Brother, is he alright?”
Mo Hua said nothing, only sighed and called over a guard. “Take care of him.”
“Yes,” the guard replied, taking the boy.
Only then did Mo Hua turn to survey the surroundings. He asked Elder Lu, “Have you searched the place?”
Elder Lu was taken aback. “Searched for what?”
Mo Hua replied, “Naturally… the origins of this small demonic lair, documents, orders, scrolls, jade slips, and any confidential items…”
Elder Lu shook his head. “This stronghold only contains these evil artifacts. Written records, jade slips, and the like were likely taken away by that… demonic chief from earlier.”
Mo Hua nodded and turned his attention to the corpses on the ground. These were likely demonic cultivators from the Skull Cave, ten in total.
Elder Lu explained, “Following Young Master Mo’s instructions, we wrapped our heads in black cloth, circled in, and easily killed these demonic path scum. They attempted some dark arts, but it seemed ineffective. Only that Golden Core middle-stage demonic chief was too powerful; we couldn’t subdue him.”
Mo Hua offered no comment and asked instead, “Elder Lu, what do you plan to do with this demonic lair and these corpses?”
Elder Lu pondered for a moment before slowly replying, “Destroy it all… burn the demonic cultivators’ corpses as well.”
Mo Hua remained calm. “Won’t you call the Dao Court Division to investigate?”
Elder Lu said, “These are all demonic path evil artifacts; keeping them would bring endless harm. The corpses shouldn’t be left for long either, they’ll pollute the earth qi. All demonic path filth should be incinerated as soon as possible. If the Dao Court Division gets involved, their investigations could drag on indefinitely. If evil artifacts go missing or the earth qi becomes contaminated, it would be troublesome…”
Mo Hua fell silent.
Seeing this, Elder Lu sighed and said, “Moreover, to be frank with you, Young Master, we aristocratic families truly do not wish to deal with the Dao Court Division. The Dao Court Division is a tiger that devours flesh, insatiably greedy. I beg you, Young Master, for Young Master Chén’s sake, to show some leniency. After all, most of the Demonic Cultivators who committed evil in this matter have already been eliminated…”
Having spoken to this extent, Mo Hua found it inconvenient to say anything more and nodded, “Very well.”
Seeing Mo Hua relent, Elder Lu let out a long sigh of relief and clasped his hands, saying, “Thank you for your understanding, Young Master.”
…
The night passed, and by the next morning, Mo Hua had Elder Lu establish a new cemetery near the wasteland, where over thirty displaced people were laid to rest one by one.
The tombstones in the cemetery were carved by the youth himself. Apart from his own parents and younger sister, he did not know the full names of his companions, so he inscribed them based on memory with titles such as “Tomb of Uncle Zhao,” “Tomb of Liu Da,” “Tomb of Elder Brother Yang,” and “Tomb of Sister Feng.”
After finishing the inscriptions, the youth knelt before the graves of his parents and sister, silently weeping, his face filled with confusion.
No matter how difficult life had been before, at least his loved ones were still alive. But now, all his relatives were dead, and his life seemed to have been drained in an instant, leaving only endless regret and emptiness… And he was still just a youth, not yet old.
Mo Hua stood behind the youth, watching silently, his gaze heavy.
In his short thirty-plus years of cultivation, he had experienced the Corpse Transformation of Nanyue, the blood sacrifices of Qian Province, the brutal battles of the Great Wilderness, and the Strange Transformation of the abyss…
He had witnessed far too many people who had perished in war and calamity…
Yet even so, thinking of this youth’s experience, Mo Hua could not help but feel a complex and indescribable emotion in his heart.
The reversal of Heavenly Secrets, the upheaval of the greater situation, and the rise of the Demonic Path, any trace of evil born from these, when it falls upon an individual, becomes an inescapable and hopeless fate.
Mo Hua could not yet see the Heavenly Secrets of Kun Province, but he could roughly deduce that, under the influence of various causes and effects, tragedies like the one before him would likely continue to occur alternately across the land of Kun Province in the future. More and more people would be displaced and lose their loved ones…