The Quest for Immortality

The little silverfish swam away.

Mo Hua didn’t mind; seizing the opportunity before the nightmare shattered and the River God Temple collapsed, he continued to search the altar meticulously, not sparing a single bottle, jar, candle, or pedestal.

But after a long search, he still came up empty-handed.

After contemplating for a moment, Mo Hua, with a single thought, took a seat on it himself.

He felt a subtle sensation.

As if, in the dark, he had connected to something.

But that was all.

Unknown if it was because the altar had been destroyed by him, the offering table overturned, so even though he sat on it himself, it didn’t feel significant.

Unlike the altar in the Bi Mountain Demon Cavern, where the moment he sat down, Demon Monsters would kowtow, divine essence would surround him, countless mysteries culminated within him, and his Divine Sense felt relaxed and expansive.

Mo Hua looked at the desolate altar and sighed helplessly.

It seemed like this was it...

Time was up, and the River God Temple began to collapse.

The nightmare started to distort.

Mo Hua also felt a powerful force of rejection; if he didn’t leave now, his Divine Sense would perish along with the dreamland.

Mo Hua no longer resisted and slowly closed his eyes.

It was yet another moment of the world turning upside down, and his Divine Thought transformed.

When Mo Hua opened his eyes again, he found Gu An and several others from the Gu Family watching him with concerned expressions.

Seeing Mo Hua awaken, everyone finally sighed with relief.

”Young Master Mo, are you alright?” Gu An asked.

”Mhm.”

Mo Hua observed his surroundings and saw that not a single Cultivator from the Gu Family was missing, and everyone was intact. Yu Dahe had also awoken, seemingly without any serious issues, which made him nod in satisfaction.

What’s started must be finished.

Since he had brought them here, he also had to ensure their safe return.

But Yu Dahe was still deeply worried.

He held his two sons tightly in his arms, his face showing both bewilderment and anxiety. He couldn’t tell the condition of his two sons, whether they were dead or alive.

Mo Hua glanced at the two children, nodded slightly, and said:

”It’s alright now, their Divine Souls have returned...”

No sooner had Mo Hua finished speaking than the two children murmured softly.

Yu Dahe rejoiced.

But the two children still didn’t wake up; they just frowned, trying to open their eyes but couldn’t, and fell back into a deep sleep.

Yu Dahe panicked again and hurriedly looked towards Mo Hua.

Mo Hua said, ”Their Divine Senses aren’t fully adjusted yet. Take them home to rest and recuperate, they’ll be fine after some time.”

Only then did Yu Dahe completely relax, and overwhelmed with joy, his eyes reddened as he kept saying:

”Thank you, thank you, Young Master Mo...”

Mo Hua was also relieved.

Gu An looked around and said in a low voice, ”Young Master, it’s not safe to stay here long. Should we leave now?”

Mo Hua thought for a moment and shook his head, ”No rush, I still have something to do...”

The River God’s head had been severed by him.

This River God Temple, though still seeming eerie, no longer held any terror.

Compared to that, there were still matters to take care of.

”Little Brother An, Little Brother Quan, please protect the Formation for me...”

As Mo Hua spoke, he took out a black strip marked with several Formation Patterns and then a stick wrapped in thick cotton.

”If I start meditating and my expression becomes abnormal, or my gaze turns evil, use this black strip to cover my forehead.”

”And if I go mad, use this stick to knock me out!”

Mo Hua, afraid of getting hurt, had wrapped the stick in thick cotton.

After biting his teeth, he handed the stick to Gu Quan, but didn’t forget to admonish:

”Remember, go easy with the hits...”

He wasn’t a Body Cultivator, and his delicate skin couldn’t take much punishment.

Gu Quan took the stick, and the others exchanged puzzled glances, asking in a low voice:

”Young Master, what are you planning to do?”

Mo Hua waved his hand dismissively, ”The matters of a Formation Master, you wouldn’t understand even if I explained. Just remember what I just said.”

Gu Quan nodded hesitantly.

The others didn’t ask any further questions either, but stood guard around Mo Hua with a vigilant demeanor.

After preparing everything thoroughly, Mo Hua sat down to meditate on the spot and his Divine Sense delved into the Sea of Consciousness.

Within the Sea of Consciousness, the incarnation of Mo Hua’s Divine Thought opened its eyes, with a glimmer of light flashing within them.

He prepared to first refine the Evil Thoughts of the River God.

On the surface, the River God was dead, turned into a pool of bloody Evil Thoughts, swallowed by Mo Hua into his belly.

However, the ways of the deity are profound and unfathomable.

Mo Hua wasn’t sure whether the River God was truly dead or not, so he decided to refine its Evil Thoughts first, to ”eat” them clean, completely eliminating any future troubles and prevent long nights full of dreams.

The vast Evil Thoughts of the River God, swallowed by Mo Hua, also entered Mo Hua’s Sea of Consciousness with the Dreamland’s restoration.

Directly using Divine Thought, Mo Hua formed the Li Fire Formation and began to incinerate these Evil Thoughts bit by bit.

The Divine Thought of the River God was powerful, but a large part of it was composed of foul Evil Thoughts.

Mo Hua aimed to completely refine these Evil Thoughts, expelling Evil Spirits, purging filth, preserving the pure Divine Thought, to truly absorb and fully digest them.

The Evil Thoughts were crimson, incinerated by the fiery red Formation, turning into wisps of white smoke that Mo Hua inhaled into his belly.

This white smoke wasn’t completely clean; it still contained a lot of residual instinctual Evil Thoughts, which, after being devoured, continued to erode Mo Hua’s will.

Mo Hua, following his usual practice, used these Evil Thoughts to temper his Taoist Heart.

To maintain his original intention amidst the tumultuous currents of evil desires.

To preserve his humanity amidst the hidden contamination of Evil Spirits.

Body and mind as one, clear as a mirror.

This dedication of the Taoist Heart puts a severe test on one’s resolve, but fortunately, Mo Hua had grown accustomed to it, even somewhat taking it for granted.

Through a myriad of evils, the heart emerges without a trace.

So it was, as he incinerated Evil Spirits, absorbed Divine Thought, and tempered his Taoist Heart.