Chapter 1090: Karma, Fate, and a Thought of Immortality and Devil
Great Void Sect, Ancestral Grounds Behind the Mountain.
Inside an old patriarch's cave dwelling.
Mo Hua lay on the Heaven's Will White Jade Bed, eyes tightly shut, his face shrouded in black qi, body icy cold, radiating an overwhelmingly strong aura of "death."
Endless baleful qi emerged from the threads of karma, constantly pouring into Mo Hua's forehead, eroding his fate.
A cultivator's fate is usually obscure and hard to perceive.
Unless one is a master of Heaven's Will, profoundly versed in karma, and uses Heaven's Will treasures or karmic secret arts, it's nearly impossible to glimpse someone's destiny.
Otherwise, most cultivators cannot perceive another's fate.
But there exists a special condition where a person's fate, once hidden, becomes fully exposed from within their Fate Palace—
This occurs when one's fate encounters a great upheaval.
When struck by calamities and tribulations, faced with life and death, or subjected to heaven-shaking changes or heavy karmic retribution, one's destiny undergoes a fundamental transformation.
At such moments, the fate forged by a lifetime of karma reveals itself, no longer sealed away.
So much so, that even ordinary cultivators can perceive it with the naked eye…
At this moment, Mo Hua's fate was faintly visible before Elder Xun and Master Situ.
His fate was filled entirely with pitch-black deathly baleful qi.
This baleful aura was so strong, so vast, so numerous, so murderous, and so drenched in karmic sin—even Elder Xun, who was at the Void Tribulation Realm, and Master Situ, the Grand Elder of the Mystical Secrets Valley, had never seen anything like it before. Their hearts were gripped with fear.
They didn't dare relax for a second, using every method they knew to suppress the baleful qi consuming Mo Hua.
Soothing sandalwood incense burned within the room.
Master Situ laid down the Lesser Profound Heaven Seven-Star Formation, using the starlight to guard Mo Hua's fate.
With his Heaven-Earth Purity Lamp destroyed and his Six-Sun Red Gold Lamp shattered, he had to use a replacement—an Ancestral Soul Lamp—to stabilize Mo Hua's divine consciousness.
Meanwhile, Elder Xun relied on the Great Void Heaven's Will Compass to activate the Great Void Yin-Yang Heaven's Will Lock around Mo Hua's neck, hoping to resist the incessant tide of baleful qi and dissolve the misfortune befalling him.
But the situation was dire.
Mo Hua's eyes remained shut, his lips pale, his complexion worsening by the moment.
His limbs grew colder, and the baleful qi thickened.
Elder Xun looked on with deep pain.
Master Situ, too, felt deep sorrow—and shock.
Ordinary cultivators—even skilled Heaven's Will cultivators—would've long since had their minds twisted, bodies overwhelmed by baleful qi, souls shattered, and died.
Or been devoured karmically by the backlash of this baleful energy, perishing body and soul.
Yet Mo Hua, so young, only at the Foundation Establishment Realm, had endured this for so long.
His Dao heart was too resilient.
His fate, too… was far too "unyielding."
Remembering Mo Hua's unbelievable feats within the nightmare of the evil god, and his divine sense that rivaled even the gods, Master Situ breathed a faint sigh of relief.
But soon after, his brow furrowed again.
No matter how strong the divine sense, no matter how unbreakable the fate—there's no way one could withstand this tidal wave of endless deathly baleful qi.
This aura was too strong—not just for people—even true deities of heaven and earth might be "corrupted" and fall, becoming malevolent gods.
The situation was utterly grim.
Master Situ and Elder Xun furrowed their brows, worry thick in their hearts.
Even with the Seven-Star Formation, the Soul Lamp, and the Great Void Heaven's Will Lock—in the face of a typical baleful entity, that would be enough.
But the baleful qi now? Boundless. Immeasurable. Incomparably deadly.
And while Mo Hua's divine sense was powerful, his cultivation was simply too shallow. His "Dao foundation" was too weak, making many of the more forceful Heaven's Will techniques unusable.
Elder Xun and Master Situ could only combine their efforts, trying everything they could to suppress the baleful qi on Mo Hua, mitigate his "fate doom," and prolong his life.
This process was both dangerous and grueling.
Prolonged use of Heaven's Will techniques to "dissolve calamity and refine balefulness" drained Elder Xun and Master Situ mentally. Their divine senses began to dry out, their backs soaked in cold sweat.
Yet to save Mo Hua, the two elder experts clenched their teeth and endured.
Thanks to their efforts, the baleful qi on Mo Hua had been partially suppressed.
The situation stabilized slightly.
But before Elder Xun and Master Situ could catch their breath, a new disaster suddenly erupted.
Boundless karmic bloodshed summoned even more baleful qi into Mo Hua's fate. This influx churned his original fate and triggered an even more terrifying variable hidden within.
A sinister, blood-colored glow began seeping from Mo Hua's fate.
Ancient evil thoughts began to enshroud his destined path.
The true "great horror" within Mo Hua's fate finally revealed its fangs.
The domain of karmic corpses and bloody seas spread forth.
A corpse king wrapped in Dao sins, ruling over legions of the dead, devoured boundless black baleful qi and let out an earth-shattering roar.
And beneath the sea of corpses and blood, a pitch-black "evil fetus" bearing Mo Hua's facial features began to open its eyes, nurtured by the baleful aura.
Ancient evil will began to evolve…
Corpses piled high, karmic sins emerged, the corpse king roared, and the evil fetus awakened.
Master Situ's soul nearly fled from sheer terror.
Elder Xun felt chilled to the bone, his hand trembling uncontrollably.
"What… what are these things?"
"How could Mo Hua's fate contain… such utterly terrifying karmic horrors of heaven and earth?!"
"This is… bad!"
Elder Xun's expression changed drastically.
In a split second, under the stimulation of murderous karma and deathly baleful qi, all corpse qi, evil qi, and baleful qi within Mo Hua's fate converged, merged, and condensed.
His fate began to transform.
Mo Hua's entire being became entangled in liquid shadows—black, gray, and blood-red—emitting a terrifying, demonic aura, like a world-ending demon reincarnated.
And Mo Hua's Dao heart was being consumed by this demonic will.
Soaked in corpse, evil, and baleful qi, Mo Hua resembled a "primordial demon fetus."
And what would hatch from this demon fetus… would be a heaven-shaking devil.
Sensing this demonic aura, the gates of the Great Void Sect began to tremble.
The ancient halls, infused with sword intent meant to uphold the heavens, stirred to life.
Mist swirled above the back mountain; the ancestral tablets of the Great Void Sect began to shiver.
Elder Xun's eyes widened in terror.
Mo Hua's fate was mutating in reverse!
From a once pure-hearted youth, who aspired to learn formations and comprehend the Dao to benefit all beings—he was transforming into a world-ending demon lord, born of corpse and blood, reigning through karmic sin, sealed by an awakened evil fetus!
"Not good!"
Elder Xun immediately pressed a finger to his own forehead, channeling divine thought to activate the Great Void Yin-Yang Heaven's Will Lock, sealing Mo Hua's qi and karma, suppressing his baleful qi, doing everything in his power to halt his Dao heart from falling into the abyss.
Despite his injuries, Master Situ also clung to the last vestiges of strength, enduring the agony of a cracking soul sea, using the Seven Stars to protect Mo Hua and the Soul Lamp to calm his spirit.
But in the face of such monstrous karma—Dao sins, evil fetus, and endless deathly baleful qi— these Heaven's Will techniques were like a cup of water against a burning cart.
Mo Hua's fate was still mutating.
His body was still being slowly devoured by corpse, evil, and baleful qi…
Staring at Mo Hua's pitch-black face, Elder Xun's heart bled.
Master Situ, too, was gripped with dread.
And just then—another change occurred. The earth began to tremble.
A thick, ancient, and warm Dao resonance suddenly surged from the earth veins. The profound radiance of the Earth Dao flowed into Mo Hua's body, dispelling his catastrophe.
Elder Xun's face showed astonishment: "The Dao of the Earth… is protecting Mo Hua…"
Could this be… repaying kindness?
And that wasn't all— Another ancient and majestic aura began to gather between Heaven and Earth.
Elder Xun looked up sharply, pupils contracting— The heavens had changed.
A storm had risen. Mountains and forests howled.
A violent wind suddenly surged, howling through the mountains and forests.
As wind and clouds stirred, the vast sky for hundreds and thousands of miles around became a roiling sea of clouds. At this moment, all of it converged above Taixu Mountain, forming an unimaginably massive vortex of clouds, enough to obscure the heavens and block out the sun.
Within it surged a torrent of pure, overwhelming Heavenly Will—unyielding and unstoppable.
Countless cultivators across the entire Qianxue Province, including all Nascent Soul Patriarchs, raised their heads to look toward Taixu Mountain. Their expressions were shaken, their gazes filled with awe and doubt.
"Heaven moves with strength; a gentleman should strive unceasingly."
"This is… the Heavenly Will of the Qian Path!"
"The Qian Path's Heavenly Will is gathering above Taixu Sect…"
"What in the world is happening…"
Before the voices faded, a beam of pure white auspicious qi descended from the sky. Majestic and boundless, it shone directly upon the rear mountains of Taixu Sect, piercing through layers of formations and pavilions, enveloping Mo Hua.
This pure white, resolute and mighty Heavenly Dao aura was protecting Mo Hua's fate.
The black aura of death and killing immediately began to dissipate.
The reversed transformation of Mo Hua's fate began to turn back.
Elder Xun's expression was deeply shaken. He exchanged a glance with Daoist Master Situ, and in that moment, both understood.
This was… not just the fortune of Qianxue Province, but the blessing of the entire Qian Province's destiny. The will of the Qian Path had descended.
Although Mo Hua had committed countless killings, at the same time, he had also saved innumerable lives.
If he hadn't destroyed the great formation and annihilated all the demonic cultivators, once the blood sacrifice array spread and the demonic cultivators ran rampant, Qianxue Province—and even the whole of Qian Province—would have faced catastrophic slaughter and ruin.
Between Heaven and Earth, karma must remain in balance.
He had killed countless beings and incurred immense karmic sin, which summoned the terrifying "Fate Doom."
But he had also saved countless lives. The great merit he earned attracted auspicious omens and the Qian Path's fortune descended upon him.
With a Dao heart as pure as an infant's, he saved an entire land, a realm, even a province's living beings.
This… was the embodiment of true "Great Fortune."
And under the blessing of the Qian Path's destiny, Mo Hua's "Fate" was undergoing intense transformation.
The opposing forces of righteousness and evil began to carve out territory and clash within him.
The Dao essence of the Earth, rooted in "Preservation," used the life force of "bearing with great virtue" to protect Mo Hua's foundation, ensuring his qi flowed unceasingly. It also suppressed the innate fearsome corpse aura, karmic filth, and evil qi within his fate.
Meanwhile, the fortune of the Qian Path governed "Destruction."
That pure white Heavenly Dao fortune, ever-striving, contended with the deep black aura of death and killing, constantly balancing and neutralizing one another.
One was the karmic retribution from killing; the other, the merit of saving lives.
World-ending killing qi and world-saving fortune—black and white—intertwined upon Mo Hua's fate, vast and mysterious, forming the shape of a Taiji, eternally revolving.
These two forces maintained a delicate balance and ultimately fused into Mo Hua's fate.
At last, all karmic retribution and fatal omens were dispelled.
Corpse qi and evil qi were suppressed; the Dao essence of the Earth fell into dormancy.
Killing qi and Heavenly Will merged and sustained equilibrium.
Above Taixu Sect, the fortune of the Qian Path faded. The auspicious white light disappeared. The vortex of cloud sea scattered into puffs of cloud, adorning the distant sky.
The ominous signs in Mo Hua's fate had vanished completely.
The black killing qi, the blood-red evil qi, and the gray corpse qi that had entwined around him all receded into concealment.
Mo Hua's pale face regained color.
His icy limbs regained warmth.
His breathing stabilized and even grew gentle, as though he were merely asleep.
Elder Xun and Daoist Master Situ stood there in a daze.
Having personally witnessed and experienced the strange phenomena of karmic cause and effect between Heaven and Earth, both men remained deeply shaken, holding their breath and staring fixedly at Mo Hua.
Only when Mo Hua's qi steadied, his breathing became even, and no other danger remained, did the two finally begin to relax and sigh in relief.
Elder Xun gently checked Mo Hua's pulse and felt a weight lifted from his heart.
He then took out a translucent golden pill and fed it to Mo Hua, burned another calming incense, and once the soothing fragrance filled the air, he and Daoist Master Situ quietly left the cave abode.
After leaving, they closed the heavy doors, sealed the formation, and dared not wander far. They merely stayed in the courtyard, setting a table and boiling tea to rest.
Daoist Master Situ took a sip of tea, as though his soul had returned, and let out a long sigh. Only then did he realize his entire Daoist robe was drenched in cold sweat. With a bitter smile, he said:
"There really are people in this world who can have a fate like that…"
Daoist Master Situ couldn't find a proper word to describe it. He could only sigh, "Such a fate… one that 'shakes Heaven and moves the spirits'…"
"Today, I've truly seen what lies beyond the ordinary world…"
Elder Xun remained silent for a moment before also letting out a sigh. "I didn't expect this either…"
He thought he understood this child, Mo Hua, quite well. But the more he learned, the more he realized how little he actually knew.
Mountains of corpses, Daoic sin, evil fetus, fatal omen… any one of these terrible karmic forces would doom an ordinary cultivator to a miserable end.
Yet Mo Hua carried them all.
It seemed as if nothing less than immense horror was even worthy of touching him…
Elder Xun's expression was already somewhat numb.
Daoist Master Situ continued to sip his tea, still suppressing his lingering fear.
For a time, the courtyard was silent.
No one knew how long had passed before Daoist Master Situ frowned again and said, "This matter… is far from over…"
Elder Xun paused, realizing what Daoist Master Situ meant, and also furrowed his brow.
Daoist Master Situ's voice grew incredibly heavy: "This fate of his—'great misfortune' isn't even enough to describe it."
A great misfortune sign refers to a person's fate.
But this… could no longer be treated as simply "a person."
"Each of those ominous forces alone is dangerous enough. But all of them gathered in one body? That's not just extremely inauspicious—it has become a terrifying 'Gu incubation' fate formation."
What kind of "Gu" would eventually be nurtured from this, no one could say.
But to be born from mountains of corpses, Daoic sin, evil fetus, and Heaven-and-Earth death qi—one could imagine the terror without needing to ask.
Daoist Master Situ felt his scalp go numb.
"Right now…" he inhaled sharply, "right now, the Dao essence of the Earth protects him, and the Qian Path's fortune balances him. Mo Hua's fate is temporarily stabilized. But those baleful forces… are merely 'in balance.' They haven't been erased. If…"
His voice trembled slightly, "If an external force interferes, or his Dao heart is internally disturbed, breaking that balance… then the ominous forces in his fate will once again awaken."
"And Mo Hua will suffer an even fiercer backlash… The 'demonic transformation' from earlier would return—and likely even worse than before…"
"When that time comes…"
"At that time..."
Perfected Master Situ's face turned pale. He didn't dare continue.
A heavy shadow clouded Old Mister Xun's expression as well.
The immense karma of salvation and annihilation had both gathered on a single person.
With one thought, he could save the world.
With another, he could destroy all living beings.
Karma is unpredictable, the will of Heaven uncertain, and fortune ever-changing. Just how Mo Hua's fate would ultimately evolve—no one could say.
"There's still another problem…"
Perfected Master Situ continued in a grave tone, "Even if this fate can remain stable under the blessing of Heaven's fortune, unmoved by reversal, it may still subtly and gradually influence the child's temperament."
"Especially that aura of deathly malice—it may imperceptibly make him grow violent, cruel, bloodthirsty… make him want to kill at the slightest provocation…"
"Over time, he could still become… a demon lord who slaughters without blinking."
His voice carried a chilling weight.
Old Mister Xun furrowed his brows and asked,
"For cultivators with this kind of fate, according to the laws of Heaven and karma, what's the usual course of action?"
Perfected Master Situ fell silent, then slowly replied:
"There's a record in the Mystical Secrets Valley: cultivators with such deathly cursed fates… their minds are prone to instability, their lives filled with unpredictable change, and the risks are immense. Eight or nine out of ten will be consumed by the malice and become bloodthirsty devils."
"The usual practice is…"
He paused briefly, then said in an icy tone,
"To take preemptive action—to strangle the threat in the cradle."
Old Mister Xun's eyelids twitched.
Perfected Master Situ sighed again,
"But these methods… don't quite apply to Mo Hua. That child's fate is far, far more dangerous than any ordinary case. Plus, he now carries the fortune of the Qian Dao, making things even more complicated. It's not something that can be resolved by simply deciding to eliminate him."
Even if it truly came to killing him…
Perfected Master Situ couldn't bring himself to do it.
Mo Hua had saved his life. He couldn't repay such kindness with betrayal.
And Old Mister Xun? He couldn't possibly bear it.
Mo Hua was dearer to him than his own grandson.
Unless Mo Hua truly became a peerless, unredeemable devil steeped in monstrous sin, neither Perfected Master Situ nor Old Mister Xun could bring themselves to kill him.
Old Mister Xun fell into thought, then sighed deeply.
"It's too soon to speak of all this. Let's wait until the child wakes up."
Perfected Master Situ nodded.
The two of them fell silent and drank their tea in quiet, though their hearts were clearly burdened with heavy thoughts and troubled brows.
Meanwhile, the world outside was in chaos.
The collapse of the blood-sacrifice grand array, and the complete massacre of the demonic cultivators, sent shockwaves through all factions, stirring up speculation, disputes, and a series of ensuing conflicts.
But none of it concerned the Great Void Sect.
Following Old Mister Xun's orders, the sect sealed its gates completely, cutting off all interference and karmic divinations.
Turbulence surged outside.
But within the Great Void Sect, from the ancestors down to the disciples, everyone cared only for one thing—Mo Hua's safety.
Finally, on the seventh day, within the ancestral cave at the rear of the Great Void mountain, Mo Hua, who had been sleeping for a long time, slowly opened his eyes.
His fate was reflected in those eyes.
The aura of deathly malice and the fortune of the Qian Dao had merged into one—black and white intertwining, gently circulating…
(End of this Chapter)