Chapter 464: Plan Exposed, the Dagger Revealed

Chapter 465: Plan Exposed, the Dagger Revealed

“How is this possible?”

“How could a family as large as the Lu Clan let an in-law cultivator become the head of the family? Moreover, I never heard any rumors about this before,” Mo Hua thought.

He asked, “How do you know?”

Shui Sheng said, “My mother told me.”

Mo Hua’s heart skipped a beat.

Shui Xian knew about this…

“Does anyone else know?” Mo Hua quickly asked.

Shui Sheng thought for a moment and said, “At the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, Aunt Xue Fang and Sister Dan Xiang… they seemed to know as well.”

“And what happened to them…”

Shui Sheng sighed, “They’re all dead.”

Mo Hua’s gaze tightened. “And have you told anyone else about this?”

Shui Sheng shook his head. “No. I don’t have many friends, and my relationship with my fellow disciples isn’t very good. I haven’t even told my master…”

Mo Hua breathed a slight sigh of relief, then his expression grew serious as he warned,

“Don’t ever tell anyone about this. It’s best to forget it entirely, and never bring it up again.”

Although Mo Hua wasn’t very familiar with family politics, he knew that having an in-law as the head of the family was usually taboo.

If it were exposed, even Shui Sheng could be killed to cover it up.

Shui Sheng didn’t understand completely, but seeing Mo Hua’s serious expression, he nodded earnestly.

Suddenly, he remembered something and frowned. “Was it because of this… that my mother…”

Mo Hua shook his head. “Not necessarily…”

Though he said it aloud, Mo Hua suspected that Shui Xian’s death was very likely related to the head of the Lu family.

He glanced at Shui Sheng again and instructed,

“For the time being, stay in the residence with your master. Don’t go out or speak carelessly. Focus on learning formations. That’s the most important thing. Doing well in formations will also make your mother happy.”

Shui Sheng was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

Mo Hua’s gaze grew colder, his expression still tinged with disbelief.

The head of the Lu Clan… Lu Chengyun.

An in-law…

If he really was an in-law, then this Lu Chengyun could very well be the traitor from the Little Lingyin Sect!

But the question was, how could it be possible?

The Lu Clan was a huge and powerful family with many direct descendants. Why would they do such a thing?

Let an in-law become the family head?

Or perhaps…

What exactly did Lu Chengyun do to rise above everyone and successfully become the head of the Lu Clan?

This was trickier than Mo Hua had anticipated.

If the traitor of the Little Lingyin Sect was merely an elder or a minor disciple, Mo Hua could catch them and maybe even use Lu Chengyun’s hand to eliminate them.

But now, the traitor might actually be the head of the Lu Clan himself.

From the current situation, opposing Lu Chengyun meant opposing the entire Lu Clan.

Opposing the Lu Clan…

Would it be necessary to wipe out the entire Lu Clan?

Mo Hua frowned. “This is going to be troublesome…”

He fell into deep thought for a long while, then suddenly remembered that Lu Chengyun was currently at the Su residence, sitting in front having tea and discussing matters with Elder Su.

“I need to move first!”

Mo Hua decided immediately.

Lu Chengyun’s cultivation was profound, at the late Foundation Establishment stage, just one step away from mid-stage.

He was also a traitor of the Little Lingyin Sect, skilled in formations, and the head of the Lu Clan. Even if his methods weren’t quite on par with Mo Hua’s senior peers from noble families, they certainly weren’t weak.

Being alone, Mo Hua thought it best to avoid unnecessary risks and quietly retreat.

But he couldn’t act too timidly, lest Lu Chengyun grow suspicious.

After giving Shui Sheng a few more instructions, Mo Hua left and walked to the front courtyard, politely taking his leave from Elder Su:

“Thank you for your hospitality, Elder Su. I’ve had enough tea. I should return to studying formations, so I won’t bother you further.”

Elder Su stood and said,

“You are free to come and go, young sir. I won’t see you off.”

Mo Hua bowed. “Please stay, Elder.”

Then he bowed to Lu Chengyun: “Excuse my rudeness.”

Lu Chengyun returned the bow with a smile. “No need for formalities, young sir.”

Mo Hua pretended not to know anything and walked out of Elder Su’s residence.

Elder Su watched Mo Hua’s small figure and chuckled, shaking his head teasingly:

“Even though he’s already a first-rank formation master, he still has the heart of a child. Perhaps he got bored and just wanted to go back…”

Lu Chengyun smiled gently too.

But halfway through the smile, his expression stiffened, the smile lingering on his cheeks while his eyes were entirely serious.

Outside the Su residence, Mo Hua walked back.

He appeared slow but was actually moving quickly.

As he walked, he began planning his next moves.

First, he needed to confirm whether Lu Chengyun was truly an in-law.

If he was, then he must be the traitor of the Little Lingyin Sect.

Then Mo Hua would have to figure out how to gather allies and take down the Lu Clan.

On his side, his master and Grandpa Kui likely wouldn’t intervene.

That left just himself, his Little Senior Brother, and Little Senior Sister.

There was also Situ Fang at the Dao Court Division.

Situ Fang had the backing of the Situ family.

But challenging a powerful, deeply entrenched force like the Lu Clan, the Situ family might not agree.

Even if they did, they probably wouldn’t have enough personnel.

Lu Chengyun’s cultivation was strong, needless to say.

He had the Lu family behind him, along with a group of Foundation Establishment disciples.

The Lu family’s elders, retained disciples, salaried advisors, and other recruited outsiders likely numbered at least twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators…

Twenty Foundation Establishment disciples.

That was far too troublesome.

Even if the Situ family agreed, they probably couldn’t mobilize that many in a second-rank region like Xiao Huang Prefecture.

Moreover, the South Yue City officers had been corrupted by the Lu family, working in their interests.

Any action by Mo Hua would inevitably be constrained.

“If all else fails…”

Mo Hua looked at the Lu Clan and silently thought,

“Should I collapse a formation and send the entire Lu Clan to the afterlife?”

But he shook his head. That wasn’t right either.

If the formation collapsed, the spiritual energy would reverse, annihilating everything. Likely, no one in the Lu Clan would survive.

That would be too much karmic debt.

The Lu Clan deserved punishment, but not every single member.

Moreover, his master had instructed him not to collapse formations unless absolutely necessary.

Even if he used it, no one should see.

Mo Hua sighed.

It seemed he could only return and make further plans.

He needed to investigate Lu Chengyun’s background, figure out how he rose to power, why he was buying corpses and hoarding them in the mines, and what his intentions were.

Then he could devise a way to eliminate him.

Seize the Lingshu Formation Diagram in his hands!

Avenge Instructor Yan, resolve the Little Lingyin Sect’s feud, and learn the complete Lingshu Formation. This would allow him to master the true first-rank Twelve-Pattern Absolute Formation, comprehend the central structure of spiritual energy, and further enhance the manifestation power of his Divine Sense…

Mo Hua thought carefully while walking.

But as he went, he suddenly paused.

He hesitated for a moment, changed his route, and took a large detour.

After walking for a while, he paused again.

Then he turned left, taking another big detour.

No matter how many turns he took, Mo Hua discovered that a Foundation Establishment cultivator was waiting for him ahead.

All around, a revelation array had been set up without him noticing.

Where there was no revelation array, Foundation Establishment disciples blocked the path, holding a compass-like spiritual tool.

Mo Hua didn’t know exactly what this device was.

But it appeared to be for detecting hidden cultivators.

Eight Foundation Establishment disciples, more than ten revelation arrays, six detection devices…

Mo Hua wisely chose not to use his concealment technique.

The streets remained bustling, the surrounding cultivators unaware.

He pressed forward boldly.

After a while, he saw Lu Chengyun not far ahead, sitting at a street-side tea stall in fine clothes.

Lu Chengyun sipped tea calmly, two elders standing behind him, both clearly Foundation Establishment.

Mo Hua acted shamelessly, pretending not to notice him, walking past.

He didn’t even glance at Lu Chengyun as he passed.

Lu Chengyun set down his teacup, slightly helpless: “Young sir.”

Mo Hua continued pretending not to hear.

Lu Chengyun shook his head. The two disciples behind him blocked Mo Hua’s path politely:

“Young sir, the family head requests your presence.”

Mo Hua was stunned. “Family head?”

He turned his head, feigning surprise at seeing Lu Chengyun. “Head of the Lu Clan, what are you doing here? Weren’t you having tea with Elder Su?”

His acting was a little clumsy.

Lu Chengyun had surely noticed him long ago. That was why Mo Hua had taken several long detours, causing him to patrol multiple revelation arrays.

Lu Chengyun didn’t mind, smiling:

“Young sir, you don’t want to see me?”

Mo Hua asked in surprise, “Why would the head of the Lu Clan say that?”

“You’ve been avoiding me.”

“Impossible. Didn’t we just meet?”

“Just now…”

“Oh, just now I suddenly remembered I forgot to buy something, so I took a detour to get it.”

Mo Hua’s hands were empty, yet he lied without blushing.

Lu Chengyun gave up.

This young sir was clever and a little rogue.

Chatting with him here would probably drag on until evening, without a single serious word.

Lu Chengyun got straight to the point:

“I’d like to ask young sir to do me a favor.”

Mo Hua politely declined: “The Lu Clan is powerful, and you yourself are formidable. I’m just a minor cultivator. I’m afraid I can’t help.”

Lu Chengyun shook his head: “This favor can only be done by you, young sir.”

Mo Hua realized he couldn’t refuse and asked,

“All right, what favor do you need?”

Lu Chengyun’s gaze turned slightly cold, and he said faintly,

“I want you to help me refine corpses.”

Mo Hua blinked. “Refine stones?”

He then nodded, “Sure. Is there any stone in this mine that needs my formation techniques?”

Lu Chengyun paused.

He hadn’t expected this young sir, so young, to be so brazen.

Lu Chengyun sighed: “Not stones. Corpses.”

“Refine what?”

“Corpses.”

“Corpses?” Mo Hua feigned ignorance. “What corpses? I don’t know anything about that.”

Lu Chengyun said, “Young sir, you’re being modest. You stole an iron corpse, dismantled it to study formations. How could you not know what kind of corpse it is?”

Mo Hua’s heart skipped a beat. Clearly, Lu Chengyun already knew.

He realized he couldn’t bluff his way out.

Mo Hua had no choice but to admit, “I’ve only learned legitimate formations. I don’t know how to refine corpses.”

“No matter,” Lu Chengyun smiled. “It’s easy to learn. With your talent, young sir, you’ll pick it up quickly.”

Mo Hua was helpless.

Having great talent could also be a burden.

No wonder they say: fame makes people wary, just like fattened pigs get slaughtered. Once you gain fame, others take notice.

Mo Hua pondered for a moment, confused:

“If it’s just an iron corpse, the head of the Lu Clan can refine it himself, right? He wouldn’t need me.”

Lu Chengyun fell silent for a moment, then his gentle face twisted into a strange smile, revealing white teeth. His gaze gleamed with ambition:

“It’s not an iron corpse…”

“It’s a corpse superior to iron corpses… a much stronger zombie!”