Chapter 1066: Seven-Star Formation
Mo Hua's divine spirit body, due to practicing the Heavenly Evolution Technique, looked like a celestial child of about ten years old, with skin as white and smooth as jade, glowing faintly with golden light. Now, a dragon horn had grown on his forehead, giving him, beyond a half-god half-human appearance, an aura of dignity like that of an evil-repelling divine beast.
As for the Pixiu, legend says it is a dragon offspring from ancient times.
The Pixiu's horn resonated with the dragon soul inside Mo Hua's body, gradually merging with his divine spirit, becoming a perfect unity.
After making the contract, the Pixiu rubbed its large head against Mo Hua.
It did not speak, but Mo Hua, with their "heart telepathy," understood and nodded in agreement:
"It's a deal. I'll definitely help you catch the dirty things coming in!"
The Pixiu was very pleased.
In its eyes, Mo Hua now was like a golden "Fortune Cat."
And in Mo Hua's eyes, this big Pixiu was like a "big tiger" protecting him.
Mo Hua touched his forehead again.
The horn on his forehead had disappeared.
But this horn seemed like a contract, carved into his sea of consciousness, constantly reminding him of the pact with the Pixiu.
If he broke the contract, he would be punished by the divine beast's laws.
At the same time, Mo Hua could feel a force of law coming from the Pixiu.
This force contained the fortune of evil suppression. Although Mo Hua couldn't actively call it upon, it seemed he could passively resist a certain degree of evil spirit power.
This was probably equivalent to the Pixiu's "blessing."
Although Mo Hua was not afraid of evil spirits, the law power of "evil suppression" was a good thing.
This innate divine beast talent was something ordinary people could only wish for. Now carved into his sea of consciousness, maybe someday he could comprehend some of the laws within.
Having been granted a "horn" by the Pixiu meant Mo Hua was regarded as a kindred spirit by it.
The Pixiu no longer stopped him. Shaking its big head, it slowly stood up, moved aside its butt, revealing the entrance to the shrine cave behind it—the exit of the Great Wilderness sacred artifact's seal.
"You can go out now!"
Mo Hua's eyes brightened. He waved goodbye to the big-headed Pixiu, then stepped into the exit. In an instant, his mind connected and suddenly became clear.
In reality, Mo Hua opened his eyes.
His forehead still wore the white bone headband, but his divine awareness flowed freely without any obstruction.
This meant that this Great Wilderness sacred artifact had completely lost effect on him.
The Pixiu's power could no longer seal him.
He had broken the Great Wilderness sacred artifact and the surrounding flesh-and-blood prison.
This prison was created by Mr. Tu using unique blood-thread-controlled formation patterns, controlling the blood sacrifice formation, molding the flesh and blood of the maze into a prison.
Forewarned is forearmed.
Mo Hua had previously devised many methods to open this flesh-and-blood prison and was ready to try them one by one.
But as his mind shifted, it seemed to sense something; the flesh and blood in the prison began to writhe and the prison itself opened by itself.
It was as if the flesh and blood in the maze obeyed his "command."
Mo Hua was stunned, somewhat surprised.
"Is it because I studied the Blood Sacrifice Formation Core and comprehended the Heavenly Enigma Formation?"
"Or because I once 'ingested' an evil fetus, creating a connection and resonance with the evil god's maze?"
Mo Hua frowned.
But now time was urgent, and he had no time to dig deeper.
It was a good thing that the flesh-and-blood maze could not trap him.
Leaving the flesh-and-blood prison, his sea of consciousness was no longer sealed, and Mr. Tu was gone. Mo Hua could finally explore the maze ahead with relative "freedom."
He walked along the flesh-and-blood maze, observing as he moved forward.
The entire flesh-and-blood maze was externally composed of flesh, blood, and bones; internally it was formed by the Heavenly Enigma Grand Formation and the Arhat Blood Sacrifice Formation Core.
Formation patterns and cores, including simple formation theory, had all been taught to him by Mr. Tu.
But theory was just theory; formations still needed to be learned practically, drawn, and applied.
The flesh-and-blood maze before him was the crystallization of Mr. Tu's lifelong effort and achievement—a formation "practical example."
Its true essence was contained within.
Moreover, Mo Hua was certain that regarding the Arhat Blood Sacrifice and Heavenly Enigma Formation, Mr. Tu definitely had many things he kept hidden, never teaching him.
After all, teaching a "disciple" might starve the "master."
In such cases, he had to figure things out by himself.
As a formation master, one must be eager to learn, not expect everything to be fed by others.
One must learn self-reliance, seeking knowledge independently.
Like with the formation before him—what Mr. Tu taught had to be verified by himself; what he did not teach had to be explored and comprehended by himself.
As for how exactly to explore and comprehend, Mo Hua had rich experience.
He took out a jade slip, walking and reading at the same time.
He recorded on the jade slip all the formation patterns and core details along the way that seemed somewhat profound or unclear.
At the same time, in his mind, he reconstructed the entire structure of the flesh-and-blood maze, and the deeper, more complete formation structures of the Arhat Blood Sacrifice Formation Core that Mr. Tu hadn't taught him.
The details Mo Hua recorded increased.
His mental picture of the flesh-and-blood maze and the Arhat Blood Sacrifice layout grew more complete.
Meanwhile, he became more and more familiar with the surrounding environment.
But one thing made him feel a bit strange.
That was, although this flesh-and-blood maze was bloody, gruesome, eerie, and disgusting, walking in it always gave Mo Hua a sense of "familiarity," as if he were walking in his own home.
The flesh-and-blood maze also seemed to resonate faintly with his sea of consciousness.
At that moment, Mo Hua even wondered if he might be...
An "evil fetus" born when some evil god descended into the world?
Mo Hua frowned, thinking deeply for a moment, then gradually calmed down.
Evil gods' rebirth also depended on "people."
Only those like Yu'er—born to noble families, carrying dragon bloodlines, with superior spiritual roots—were prime "divine fetuses."
Which evil god would blindly choose someone like him—no bloodline, poor spiritual root, weak body, and a poor solitary cultivator—to reincarnate?
His family was so poor in childhood that even thieves wouldn't bother; let alone evil gods.
If an evil god wanted to invest in his fetus, it would be absurd to make him experience mortal suffering from birth.
Thinking this way, Mo Hua felt a lot more assured.
He refocused and continued familiarizing himself with the environment, studying the formations in the flesh-and-blood maze.
The more he studied, the more he gained.
But he dared not study too long or delve too deeply.
Because he didn't know when Mr. Tu might return, and if discovered that he had broken the seal and was roaming freely, Mr. Tu would surely become alert, perhaps furious, and might kill him immediately without hesitation.
Therefore, prudence was best; better to stop when appropriate.
So Mo Hua made a round, recorded many formation details and questions, then returned to the flesh-and-blood prison, obediently wearing the white bone headband, eyes fixed on the formation core Mr. Tu left, pretending to study while pondering other deeper issues in his mind.
After an unknown amount of time, a chilling aura descended.
Mo Hua immediately straightened up.
He knew Mr. Tu had returned.
Sure enough, after a short while, Mr. Tu's figure appeared outside the door.
Mr. Tu had indeed been delayed by something, and the first thing he did upon returning was to "inspect the room" to check on Mo Hua's situation.
Seeing everything intact around, Mo Hua wearing the white bone sacred artifact, quietly studying the formations he arranged, Mr. Tu felt relieved.
He even thought he had been overthinking.
After all, such a mighty Great Wilderness sacred artifact was being used to suppress a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator—how could it not work?
Seeing Mr. Tu, Mo Hua, afraid he might think too much, quickly asked with a worried look:
"Mr. Tu, you seem to be in a hurry. Did something happen?"
Mr. Tu was startled, pupils narrowing slightly. "Yes, something happened."
"What happened?" Mo Hua asked softly.
Mr. Tu frowned. "The Xuantian Northern Dipper Seven Star Formation…"
Mo Hua was shocked. "What?"
Mo Hua was startled, "What?"
Mr. Tu was also momentarily stunned, then furrowed his brow, confused in his heart.
Why did he feel like answering this kid whenever he asked a question?
What good would telling him about this formation do?
Mr. Tu casually shook his head, "Nothing."
Seeing that Mo Hua looked like a cat smelling fish, full of curiosity and wanting to ask more, Mr. Tu asked back first:
"How is your formation learning going?"
Mo Hua's curiosity was indeed interrupted.
When Mr. Tu asked questions, he usually had to think carefully before answering, otherwise he might slip up and it wouldn't be good for his own plans.
Mo Hua originally wanted to say, "This formation core is too difficult, I still can't master it," but just as the words reached his lips, he suddenly changed his mind and said:
"Not bad, I've realized a little bit."
Mr. Tu's eyes narrowed.
Without borrowing human skin, human bones, or human blood to activate the spiritual awareness and amplify the formation skill while lowering the threshold, he could still comprehend such an extremely obscure blood-sacrifice formation core...
How exactly did he realize it?
Mr. Tu frowned.
Back then, relying solely on his own strength, he hadn't figured out the essence of this blood-sacrifice formation and was "corrupted" by the evil god, taking a wrong step that led him to where he was now. So he harbored quite a grudge against Mo Hua's "aptitude."
His jealousy reignited.
It took Mr. Tu a great effort to suppress the jealousy in his heart.
The resurrection of the deity master was a big matter; he couldn't let his own narrow-mindedness ruin the grand plan of the deity master.
Besides, he really didn't have much time to waste on Mo Hua.
"Keep learning."
Mr. Tu left after saying this.
Mo Hua followed his instructions and continued learning the blood-sacrifice formation core.
In the following days, Mr. Tu would still come by every now and then to check on Mo Hua to prevent him from causing trouble.
But these checks came less and less frequently.
Mo Hua's chances to "move freely" grew more and more.
Except for the deepest parts of the labyrinth, which he hadn't been to and dared not go, he had explored almost all the peripheral areas and studied the formation core's structure quite thoroughly.
Those intricate labyrinths, writhing flesh, identical bone walls—what might look bloody and oppressive and indistinguishable to others—
Were as familiar to Mo Hua as his own "home."
With just a glance, based on the aura of the flesh and the internal formation patterns, he could tell which piece of flesh corresponded to what position in the labyrinth.
Seeing through appearances, he glimpsed the essence of the formation.
Based on the formation patterns, he discerned its positional layout.
Knowing what others don't know—that was the strength of a formation master.
Mr. Tu's visits grew rarer and rarer, seeming busier and busier. Mo Hua guessed he must have run into some trouble.
"Xuan Tian Big Dipper Seven-Star Formation…"
Mo Hua murmured.
He had heard this name from Mr. Tu.
It seemed that recently this Xuan Tian Big Dipper Seven-Star Formation was putting great pressure on Mr. Tu, making him look serious and unable to care about other things.
"Seven stars…"
Mo Hua frowned, gradually recalling what Old Master Xun had explained in the formation class at Tai Xu Sect:
"The Seven-Star Formation is a major category of formation based on the seven stars of the Big Dipper—Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, Tianquan, Yuheng, Kaiyang, and Yaoguang—condensing celestial star patterns to form the formation."
"The Seven Pavilions of the Dao Court are named after the Big Dipper's seven stars."
"So the orthodox inheritance of the Seven-Star Formation lies in the Dao Court's central seven pavilions and the Imperial Astronomy Bureau that stands alongside them."
"This type of formation inspects celestial phenomena and calculates heavenly secrets; when mastered deeply, it can command the power of the stars…"
"It is a Dao Court secret formation involving celestial phenomena and calculations, extremely profound, not something ordinary cultivators or even ordinary formation masters can comprehend."
"You probably won't have the chance to learn it in this life, and even if you did, you likely wouldn't master it…"
Mo Hua pondered deeply.
"Dao Court secret formation… inspecting celestial phenomena, calculating heavenly secrets, borrowing the power of heaven, earth, and stars…"
"Is the Dao Court taking action?"
"Are there heavenly secret cultivators using the Dao Court's Seven-Star Formation to counterbalance the Arhatian Blood-Sacrifice Great Formation, suppressing the spread of evil energy and putting pressure on Mr. Tu?"
Mo Hua thought it very likely.
He just didn't know who these heavenly secret cultivators were.
And also, he wondered if he could one day get his hands on a Seven-Star Formation to study...
"Seven-Star Formation, huh."
Mo Hua's eyes glimmered with desire.
But now was not the time to think about that.
His gaze flickered slightly.
Now that Mr. Tu was being suppressed by the Dao Court's side and pressured by the Seven-Star Formation, Mo Hua instinctively sensed this was a good opportunity.
Opportunities might be fleeting; he had to seize this moment and do something.
But what to do?
Mo Hua frowned, thinking for a moment, then gradually formed an idea.
The next time Mr. Tu came to ask about his formation progress, Mo Hua wouldn't pretend anymore; he would reveal everything:
"Mr. Tu, I've learned it."
Mr. Tu was stunned, "What?"
Mo Hua nodded, "The Arhatian Blood-Sacrifice formation core you taught me—I've learned it all."
Mr. Tu's pupils suddenly twitched; looking at Mo Hua, his expression gradually grew cold.
He had indeed intended to teach Mo Hua the formation.
But his real purpose was to increase the difficulty so Mo Hua would face the dilemma of formation comprehension, succumb to temptation, gradually break his own bottom line, and finally get used to and completely rely on drawing formations with human blood and skin, completing his transformation from a dry learner of "Formation Path Master" to the Arhatian "Evil Formation Genius."
The formation was a "bait," and beneath the bait was a big pit.
But Mo Hua directly skipped the pit and ate the "bait."
That was nothing much.
This is no big deal.
Since there is bait, naturally there must be an awareness of being baited.
But right now, there happens to be something that only the "bait-eaten" Mo Hua can help him accomplish.
If Mo Hua can help, it would indeed relieve his urgent crisis.
This should have been a good thing, but everything is spoiled by how coincidental it is.
So coincidental that Tu sensed he was being "calculated" by the seemingly innocent Mo Hua.
Tu looked at Mo Hua.
The clearer those eyes were, the more they revealed a hint of strangeness, making Tu uneasy.
The impression Mo Hua left in his heart grew increasingly bizarre.
Tu's deadened eyes stared at Mo Hua for a long while, yet in the end he held back from speaking, merely perfunctorily saying, "The art of formations is vast and profound; keep studying," and then left.
But his leaving without asking Mo Hua for help didn't mean the problem disappeared.
The star radiance of the Xuántiān Big Dipper Seven-Star Formation still hung in the sky.
Tu felt like a bone stuck in his throat.
Not only the Seven-Star Formation — inside the Blood Sacrifice Great Formation, a group of demon lords began causing disturbances, and the morale was unstable.
A few days later, at another Gathering of Ten Thousand Demons,
the transformed ancient demon of the Yin Corpse Valley questioned Tu: "When exactly will the Divine Lord be resurrected?"
The demon lords of the Demon Sword Sect also spoke hoarsely: "It's been delayed too long; our Demon Sword Sect can't wait that long."
The battle between the righteous and demon paths was fierce, but the righteous side was stronger; for every day delayed, disciples of the Demon Sword Sect died.
Yin Corpse Valley still had walking corpses and iron corpses used as cannon fodder.
But those dying in the Demon Sword Sect were disciples who resonated with the demon swords.
Now that the demon path had declined and recruiting disciples was difficult, they couldn't afford such losses.
Shangguan Wang said nothing but wore a solemn expression as he looked at Tu.
Tu could only reply, "Soon."
The transformed demon of Yin Corpse Valley sneered, "Ten days ago, you said the same. Even twenty days ago, you said that."
"Now the Seven Stars hang high, the Great Formation is obstructed, Tu… what exactly do you plan to do?" The eyes, dead and rotting but tinged with blue, stared at Tu full of resentment and venom.
All the demon cultivators present looked at Tu.
Normally, they would never dare "pressure the throne" like this.
But now, with the Qianxue ancestor presiding, the great clans and sect cultivators numerous, and the Dao Court's agents everywhere—such powerful enemies looming outside—the progress of the Blood Sacrifice was repeatedly delayed and slow.
If this dragged on any longer, they would all die.
Tu's expression was icy cold.
The demon lords were crazed and greedy, refusing to be controlled; only the resurrection of the Divine Lord could fulfill their pact.
Likewise, only the Divine Lord's resurrection could use his authority to suppress them.
If delayed further, these demon cultivators would rebel on their own.
At present, only one person could solve his problem.
Only one person could help the Divine Lord "resurrect."
However…
Intuitively, Tu still felt heavy misgivings and an unexplainable fear.
This fear was strange—even Tu himself didn't know what exactly he feared about Mo Hua.
The parasitic god was sealed by a sacred artifact.
Though the divine sense was strong, it was only strong compared to the same realm.
In fact, his cultivation was only Foundation Establishment level.
Why should a transformed being like him fear a Foundation Establishment cultivator?
Tu felt somewhat absurd about it but couldn't help frowning, troubled and unable to decide for a long time.
This Gathering of Ten Thousand Demons naturally ended in discord.
The hostility surged within these demon cultivators; if not vented soon, a rebellion would erupt, and the situation would spiral out of control.
Back in the secret chamber, Tu sat alone, deep in thought.
After much consideration, he had only one choice.
Outside were the Qianxue forces, the Dao Court, and the Xuántiān Big Dipper Seven-Star Formation.
Inside were the urges of the evil god and the threat of demon cultivator rebellion.
Under this external and internal crisis, Tu had no choice.
He had to use every means to make the Divine Lord descend as soon as possible.
"As for Mo Hua…"
Tu stroked the human skin paper in his hand, which depicted a demon figure with Mo Hua's head on it…
"I'll just use him for a while…"
…
Inside the flesh prison.
Mo Hua was still drawing formation diagrams, feeling bored when suddenly a chill ran down his back.
He turned to see Tu's dead face standing behind him, gaze indifferent.
Mo Hua was slightly startled, "Tu?"
Tu said calmly, "There's something I need your help with."
Mo Hua asked suspiciously, "What?"
Tu paused slightly, eyes cold, and said slowly, "I want you to draw a formation to lead the Divine Lord's resurrection…"
(End of this Chapter)