The Quest for Immortality

The Qian Family Patriarch was a mid-stage Foundation Building cultivator.

If he took the Longevity Pill to extend his life, with his vitality and spiritual power undiminished, he would likely be the most powerful Foundation Building cultivator in Tongxian City.

Moreover, he was certainly a demonic cultivator, practicing a bizarre yet powerful dark cultivation technique.

Thus, the plan to eliminate the Qian Family Patriarch had to be meticulous and thorough.

The next evening, the Dao soldiers broke camp, pretending to leave Tongxian City.

At midnight, they secretly returned, lodging at Dahei Mountain for the night. At dawn, they donned Demon Hunter robes, disguised themselves, and stealthily hid in houses around the Qian family estate.

The hiding place was provided by the An family.

Mo Hua also rose early, finding a secluded house, climbing to the roof, and using his spiritual sense to observe the Qian family’s movements.

His cultivation was low, so there was no need for him to participate in the ambush against the Qian Family Patriarch.

Moreover, this matter was extremely dangerous; he couldn’t risk exposing himself.

What he could do was draw the array diagram of the Qian family mansion, facilitating Commander Yang and others in their ambush.

At this moment, he could only watch from afar.

Fortunately, his spiritual sense was strong, with a wide range of perception. Even from a distance, he could roughly understand the situation.

The first step of the plan was to enter the Qian family and probe the strength of the Qian Family Patriarch.

The morning sunlight shone on the bluestone streets.

The streets were deserted, with few people around.

Elder Yu had notified all the independent cultivators in advance, advising them to stay indoors today.

He himself arrived early at the Qian family gate, knocking and shouting curses.

Elder Yu’s cursing was harsh.

Over the years, this was a common occurrence for Elder Yu.

Before long, the Qian family stirred, and an elder came out to argue with Elder Yu.

The argument was relentless. Elder Yu refused to leave, fabricating a lie that a Demon Hunter had died and blaming the Qian family.

The Qian family elder believed it to be true.

Such things were not uncommon for the Qian family, so he did not suspect Elder Yu of lying.

But the Qian family naturally would not admit it, only accusing Elder Yu of slander.

Elder Yu was indeed slandering them, and he cursed even more fiercely, loudly threatening to report to the Dao Court to seek justice.

The Qian family elder, infuriated, retorted, “Fine, then let’s have the Chief Supervisor come and we’ll settle this!”

The Qian family went to fetch the Chief Supervisor.

The Chief Supervisor arrived slowly, intentionally showing reluctance, advising both parties to seek peace and avoid further trouble.

Elder Yu, with a flushed face, argued with the Chief Supervisor, “Since the deceased is not from the Dao Court, you can talk big.”

The Chief Supervisor, angered, replied, “What do you intend to do?”

Elder Yu said, “I want Qian Hong, that old turtle, to give me an explanation. If he can’t, there’s an even older turtle in the Qian family. I demand an explanation from them!”

At this point, Qian Hong had no choice but to appear.

Elder Yu and the Chief Supervisor then entered the Qian family mansion.

The Qian family had arrays isolating the area, preventing Mo Hua from seeing details.

But if the plan went smoothly, Elder Yu would escalate the matter, the Chief Supervisor would fan the flames, forcing the Qian Family Patriarch to appear, and they could confront him directly.

Elder Yu would then launch a sudden attack, testing the Patriarch’s power to determine if he was hiding his strength and any secrets he might have.

Only Foundation Building cultivators could undertake this task.

Commander Yang couldn’t do it; as the Dao soldiers’ commander, his presence would raise suspicion.

Old Master An couldn’t do it either; he had a grudge against the Qian family, who wouldn’t let him in.

After consideration, Elder Yu was deemed the most suitable.

Though he had grievances with the Qian family, he frequently visited, causing trouble and negotiating, without raising too much suspicion.

Moreover, he had to go with the Chief Supervisor, so they could support each other.

The Qian Family Patriarch was mid-stage Foundation Building. If he suddenly attacked, Elder Yu might be in mortal danger.

With the Chief Supervisor accompanying him, at least he’d have some backup.

Mo Hua didn’t know what happened after Elder Yu entered the Qian family.

About an hour later, a violent wave of spiritual power erupted from the Qian family, shaking Mo Hua even from a distance.

Simultaneously, a house in the Qian family collapsed, dirt and stones flying, arrays shattering.

From afar, Mo Hua heard Elder Yu’s sharp cry, “Attack!”

Before the shout had faded, disciples of the An family, Demon Hunters, Dao Court cultivators, and Dao soldiers swarmed towards the Qian family.

The Dao soldiers led the charge.

The Qian family’s defensive arrays lit up layer by layer, only to be shattered by the Dao soldiers’ spears, turning into rubble.

Other cultivators followed the Dao soldiers, attacking and charging into the Qian family.

Mo Hua had previously identified the weak points in the Qian family’s arrays, marking them for Commander Yang. This allowed the Dao soldiers to break through the arrays much faster.

Caught off guard, Qian family disciples emerged from everywhere, drawing their swords and confronting the attackers.

But when they saw the attackers were led by Dao soldiers, they were stunned, not knowing what to do.

Dao soldiers were the most powerful cultivator army of the Dao Court, representing its authority and prestige.

Fighting against Dao soldiers was tantamount to rebelling against the Dao Court, warranting extermination of the entire family!

The Qian family disciples hesitated, unsure of what to do.

Their gazes involuntarily turned towards the center, where the spiritual power had surged, and walls had crumbled—where the Qian Family Patriarch was in seclusion.

As the dust settled, three figures appeared.

One was stern-faced, pale— the old Chief Supervisor of the Dao Court;

One had lost an arm, blood at the corner of his mouth, and a gaunt face—the Demon Hunter Elder Yu;

The third had half-white hair, blood-red eyes, with half of his shriveled skin peeled off, exuding a powerful and dangerous aura.

“Who is this?”

The Qian family disciples looked at each other in confusion.

Some Qian family elders were shocked, “Is this… the Patriarch?”

The Qian family was instantly in an uproar.

“The Patriarch?”

“How did he become like this?”

“Why are his eyes blood-red?”

Some Qian family elders had a horrifying suspicion, their faces turning pale.

Their Patriarch… turned out to be a demonic cultivator!

Demonic cultivators were intolerable to the Dao Court.

The atmosphere became instantly tense.

Commander Yang and Old Master An stepped forward, along with Elder Yu and the Chief Supervisor, surrounding the Qian Family Patriarch.

Elder Yu coughed up blood, saying, “Be careful, his technique is demonic, it corrupts blood qi…”

He had launched a surprise attack but was detected by the Patriarch, resulting in a clash. He lost an arm and had his blood qi corrupted by the demonic spiritual power.

The Chief Supervisor, supporting him, had also clashed with the Patriarch, though he wasn’t injured, his meridians were in discomfort.

Commander Yang nodded.

Old Master An, seeing the Patriarch’s current state, was both shocked and furious, “I never expected you to become this abomination.”

The Patriarch sneered, “As long as I can seek the Dao, what does this form matter?”

Old Master An, not wanting to waste words, said angrily, “Qian old dog, I want you to pay for my An family disciples’ lives!”

The Patriarch, with blood-red eyes, showed disdain, “You want to kill me, the Patriarch of the Qian family, on our territory?”

A tall, thin Qian family elder shouted, “We can’t let them harm the Patriarch!”

The Qian family disciples raised their swords and knives, eyes filled with battle intent.

The Chief Supervisor coldly glanced at them, “The Dao Court has decreed, the Qian Family Patriarch practices demonic techniques and colludes with demonic cultivators. His crimes are unforgivable and punishable by death according to the law!”

“Any Qian family disciple who obstructs will be killed without mercy!”

“If the Qian family knowingly aids him, the entire family will be executed!”

The Chief Supervisor’s tone was stern and cold.

The Qian family disciples, terrified, hesitated.

The Qian family elder, seeing this, cursed angrily, “The Dao Court is not our Qian family’s Dao Court, the Patriarch is our Qian family’s Patriarch. Can’t you tell which is more important? We must protect the Patriarch at all costs!”

Before he finished speaking, another elder quickly interjected, “Shut up! Do you want to get our entire family executed?”

“Qian Zhongli, do you intend to abandon the Patriarch?”

Qian Zhongli replied, “The Patriarch is our Patriarch, but the Qian family is not his alone. Do you want to doom all the cultivators of our Qian family?”

“You coward!”

“You blindly loyal fool!”

The two Qian family elders insulted each other fiercely.

Some Qian family disciples, fearful, quietly discarded their swords. Gradually

, more and more Qian family disciples abandoned their weapons.

In no time, most of the Qian family disciples were unarmed.

Seeing this, the disciples who intended to fight also gave up their plans.

Elder Yu sneered, “Qian old dog, you are abandoned by your own kin.”

The Qian Family Patriarch shook his head and sighed, “I was right. In times of great danger, even blood relatives can’t be trusted.”

Elder Yu, holding his sword in his remaining hand, pointed at the Patriarch, “Someone like you doesn’t deserve kin.”

“I have one question that I can’t figure out…”

The Qian Family Patriarch, seemingly in a desperate situation, showed no panic but rather curiosity.

“Heishan Stronghold acted in secret, killing and robbing without being discovered for over two hundred years. Those who knew of Heishan Stronghold either joined or were dead.”

“I hid well. Except for a few, no one knew of my connection to Heishan Stronghold, that I built it, harbored so many demonic cultivators, and used them for a specific purpose…”

“But why?”

The Qian Family Patriarch frowned slightly, his gaze sharp.

“How was Heishan Stronghold discovered so quickly?”

“How did the Dao soldiers arrive so fast?”

“I don’t even know how the news leaked.”

“All I know is that someone tampered with the arrays in the stronghold.”

“But who had the skill to do so under the watch of four Foundation Building leaders and hundreds of demonic cultivators?”

“Who unraveled my secrets bit by bit?”

“Who destroyed my two-hundred-year effort in Heishan Stronghold?”

The Qian Family Patriarch looked around, his blood-red eyes shining brightly, “Whoever it is, I want to meet them!”

His aura surged.

Mo Hua, hiding far away and eavesdropping, was stunned.

The person the Patriarch was talking about… seemed to be him?

Mo Hua was startled, quickly shrinking back.

He definitely didn’t want to meet the Patriarch. It would be best if they were separated by life and death—the Patriarch dead, and him alive, never meeting…

Mo Hua thought to himself, suddenly puzzled.

Wait!

How could the Patriarch not guess it was him?