Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 897: Expelling the Evil Qi

In the study of the Gu Family Head, Gu Shouyan sat upright like a mountain, brows tightly furrowed.

Gu An and Gu Quan stood respectfully before him, heads bowed.

"...While carrying out a mission for the Dao Court Division, we discovered a demonic sect stronghold in the wilderness, three hundred li west of the third-grade Ma Ridge City. We launched a raid, but were ambushed…"

"Fortunately, Young Master was cautious and had laid out thorough preparations beforehand. During the battle, he charged at the front lines alongside Magistrate Xia, suppressing the opposing Golden Core demon cultivator, stabilizing the situation."

"Reinforcements arrived soon after. After a fierce battle, we managed to annihilate that entire demonic sect branch. But that Golden Core demon cultivator, before dying, actually…"

Gu An paused, gritted his teeth, and said:

"He lunged at the Young Master without regard for his own life—and even self-detonated his Golden Core to perish together with him…"

"The self-destruction of a Golden Core cultivator is immensely powerful."

"Young Master did not retreat—he took the explosion head-on, shielding the Gu family disciples and most of the Dao Court Division cultivators. But he himself…"

Gu An and Gu Quan were filled with guilt and pain.

Gu Shouyan listened with an unreadable expression and only nodded.

"I understand. You two may go. Focus on healing."

Gu An hesitated, "Then… the Young Master—?"

Gu Shouyan waved his hand.

Neither dared to speak further and bowed before leaving.

Only Gu Shouyan remained in the study.

With no one else around, he finally let out a deep sigh.

"A fine seedling… but misfortunes are many. Whether he lives or dies now… is up to his own fate…"

Inside the Gu Family's Pill Pavilion

In the inner chamber, the doors were tightly shut. Several pill elder alchemists were working to save the gravely wounded, near-death Gu Changhuai.

Elder Gu Hong waited anxiously outside.

She wasn't an alchemist and couldn't help, so she could only stand watch.

After a while, a gentle-looking woman in palace robes arrived hurriedly, her face pale with worry. Seeing Gu Hong, she gripped her sleeve tightly and asked with a trembling voice:

"Aunt… how is Changhuai?"

Gu Hong sighed, "The elders are already trying everything."

"Will he…"

Wenren Wan's face was full of anxiety.

Gu Hong wanted to offer words of comfort, but recalling Gu Changhuai's injuries—and that thick, dark deathly aura between his brows—she only shook her head and sighed.

"It's up to the heavens now…"

Wenren Wan turned pale as if her heart had been gouged out.

This younger brother had been raised by her side since he was little—she had watched him grow up.

After a moment, she looked to Elder Gu Hong, nearly begging:

"Aunt… Changhuai… he won't…"

Gu Hong gently patted her hand, her tone full of sorrow.

"Gu family disciples… this is our fate."

"For generations we've served the Dao Court Division—hunting rogue cultivators, suppressing fiends and slaying demons. We've always lived on the edge of the blade. Injuries and even death… are expected."

"As a Gu family member, Changhuai knew this too."

"Now that it's happened, there's nothing we can do but hope… he has the fortune to pull through…"

Wenren Wan clenched her lips, her knuckles turning white.

Gu Hong, despite her composed words, felt a deep sting in her chest.

However much she said this was normal—as an aunt, watching her own bloodied nephew lie half-dead… it still hurt.

Time passed slowly.

Gu Hong and Wenren Wan stood vigil outside, the air growing heavier with each passing moment.

At long last, the inner chamber doors opened. Several Gu family alchemist elders stepped out.

Gu Hong immediately stood up, voice trembling:

"How is he?"

The pill elders frowned, hesitant to answer.

Gu Hong pressed impatiently, "Speak!"

One of them gave a bitter smile:

"It's hard to say… we've stopped the bleeding, and barely kept him alive… but the root of the illness—"

Gu Hong frowned, "What do you mean?"

Another alchemist sighed:

"Young Master Changhuai's injuries lie in both flesh and soul. His body needs blood replenishment, meridian repair, foundation stabilization, and removal of demonic qi. These are treatable."

"But the greater issue is his mind. His sea of consciousness seems to have been invaded by some… unknown evil qi—violent and corrosive. It's tainted his spirit, and we alchemists… we have no way to deal with it."

"For now, we can only keep him alive with supportive methods."

"But even if we heal his body—if we can't expel the evil qi…"

He trailed off, unwilling to finish.

Gu Hong snapped, "Don't dodge the truth! Speak clearly!"

The elder hesitated, then sighed heavily:

"If we can't purge the evil qi… once it fully pollutes his spiritual sea, then even if we keep him alive—within two or three days, he'll still…"

Both Gu Hong and Wenren Wan went pale.

Gu Hong pressed:

"Then how do we purge the evil qi?"

The alchemist replied:

"This sort of evil qi doesn't fall under physical or spiritual healing—it's outside the scope of alchemy."

"We can only refine calming and focus-enhancing pills, which help ease the mind—but don't truly remove the root."

"True expulsion of such malevolent qi… requires someone skilled in spiritual or divine consciousness arts—like certain mystics, fate cultivators, wandering diviners…"

"But these paths are niche and scattered. Practitioners are rare, often unreliable. True masters… are as elusive as dragons."

"Even among them, there are many specializations—like fate divination, cause-effect deduction, augury, omen judgment, spiritual rites, curses, spirit banishment… all different arts."

"If you have connections in these circles, you might seek help—someone might know how to banish the evil and save Young Master."

Gu Hong frowned deeply.

In her memory, the Gu family had little contact in that realm—hardly any connections at all.

"Are there any sects or forces that specialize in such arts?"

The alchemist answered:

"As far as I know, there are no cultivation methods for divine sense—so factions specializing in it have mostly declined, hidden away, or vanished over the ages. Only one group is still known today: the Mystic Valley (玄機穀)."

"Mystic Valley?" Gu Hong still frowned. "Our Gu family has no ties with them…"

But Wenren Wan's eyes lit up. She muttered:

"The Shangguan family does. I can ask them—see if we can make contact…"

"The Shangguan family?"

"Yes," Wenren Wan nodded. "A few years ago, when Yu'er went missing, they asked someone from Mystic Valley—a 'Master Mei,' I think—to divine her whereabouts. But that Master Mei… not only failed, he went mad afterward…"

"Went mad?" Gu Hong was startled.

The alchemist sighed:

"That's the danger of this field—filled with unseen karmic entanglements. Touch the wrong one, and madness or sudden death… aren't rare."

Gu Hong and Wenren Wan nodded, half-convinced.

The alchemist added:

"Of course, this is all secondhand knowledge I've picked up over the years. I can't say for certain."

"Also…" He hesitated, voice growing grave. "I must say this upfront: Not all spiritual cultivators can expel evil or calm spirits. Even if Mystic Valley cultivates divine sense, their specialty lies in fate calculation—it's uncertain if they can truly help…"

Gu Hong glanced at the barely alive Gu Changhuai, sighed, and said:

"At this point, we have no other choice…"

All they could do… was hope Mystic Valley had a way.

She turned to Wenren Wan and gripped her hand.

"Time is of the essence, Wan'er. I'll ask the family head to write a formal letter—you take it and see if you can request their aid."

"Let's hope someone from Mystic Valley can be persuaded… and that they can save Changhuai."

Wenren Wan nodded solemnly.

Later, she personally returned to the Shangguan family, using their connections to reach out to several Mystic Valley cultivators who were serving as guest elders near Qianxue Prefecture.

These cultivators practiced karmic arts, and had learned some methods of evil qi expulsion.

Given the urgency and importance of the matter, they traveled day and night—and arrived at the Gu family within a single day.

At the Gu Family's Pill Pavilion…

Several Golden Core cultivators from Mystic Valley (玄機穀) had gathered and greeted each other in formality.

Two other Golden Core cultivators, who also practiced divine sense techniques, had come at the Gu family's invitation to join them. In the mysterious and unpredictable path of divine sense, one more practitioner meant broader insight—and an extra layer of strength.

But after seeing Gu Changhuai's condition, everyone's expressions turned extremely grim.

"The center of his brow is black as ink… this isn't an ordinary evil presence…"

"I've never seen anything like it before…"

"A Golden Core demon cultivator self-destructing just to take him down… Such ruthless resolve. It's strange… Perhaps he was bewitched by some evil entity, driven to madness, and only then dared to destroy his own cultivation and self-detonate."

"A Golden Core can be bewitched? If that's the case, this evil qi must have an incredibly terrifying origin… Was the entity behind it a corpse, a ghost, a monster… or a demon?"

"Whatever it is—it's a hard bone to crack. We'll need to plan carefully and proceed cautiously…"

"We don't have time for caution," one of them sighed. "Look at Young Master Gu. The evil qi has entered his mind, and his brow is sunken. These are signs of his spiritual sea being devoured…"

"He won't last long at this rate. A few more days, at most…"

"If we don't act now, it'll be beyond saving."

"Indeed. We can't delay…"

"We accepted this responsibility. Let's join forces and find a way—if we can save Young Master Gu, it'll be a blessing and a great karmic merit."

"Then let's do it…"

The group held a brief and focused discussion, exchanging their divine sense techniques, identifying taboos, and settling on a step-by-step procedure for the "Evil Qi Expulsion."

They elected a lead—Mister Mei, a Golden Core cultivator from Mystic Valley with the deepest attainments in divine sense. He was a mid-stage Golden Core, and a clan brother of the infamous "Master Mei" who had once served as a guest cultivator to the Shangguan family. The two shared deep roots.

Thus, Mister Mei would lead the expulsion.

The others contributed in their own ways—offering techniques, lending artifacts, donating pills and spirit wine—all of which were handed over to Mister Mei.

Once preparations were complete, Mister Mei donned a ritual robe of warding, strapped on a spirit-protecting mirror, took out a copper-coin sword, set down eight trigrams boards, lit a guardian lamp, burned tranquil incense, and finally, poured himself a blazing hot cup of realgar wine, famed for its powerful evil-banishing qualities.

The realgar wine was pungent and searing.

Mister Mei downed it in one gulp. It felt like swallowing fire—his throat and tongue burned, but soon, a surge of yang energy coursed through his limbs, and his spirit swelled with courage.

Meanwhile, the others had arranged defensive formations within the chamber—one to protect Gu Changhuai's body, and another to prevent the evil qi from leaking out.

Mister Mei began the ritual, holding the copper-coin sword in one hand, stepping atop the trigrams, draped in his exorcism robe. Empowered by the wine, he gathered his courage and stepped into the inner chamber.

The doors closed tightly behind him.

The expulsion ritual was secretive and dangerous—outsiders were not allowed to observe. This was to prevent both the leakage of divine techniques and the risk of the evil qi lashing out.

Outside the chamber, Elder Gu Hong and other elders from Gu Changhuai's bloodline stood waiting, expressions tense.

Wenren Wan held little Yu'er in her arms, just as anxious.

Yu'er looked up at his mother, worry written all over his small face.

"Mother… Uncle Gu… he'll be okay, right?"

Though Uncle Gu often looked cold and fierce, he was always kind to Yu'er—sharing treats and toys, and never scolding him harshly. Yu'er didn't want anything bad to happen to him.

Wenren Wan gently stroked his head, smiling softly:

"He'll be fine…"

But her smile was a little forced.

Yu'er's heart sank.

Wenren Wan then gently said:

"You've finished your rest day. You still need to cultivate. Let Uncle Wei take you back to the Great Void Sect."

Yu'er shook his head.

"I'm worried about Uncle Gu…"

Wenren Wan's heart warmed with bittersweet emotion. She sighed gently:

"Alright. We'll wait here together."

After that, Yu'er fell silent.

His round, jet-black eyes stared at the closed chamber door—partly anxious, and partly… afraid.

It was as if something terrifying lay behind that door.

Something just like the monsters from his nightmares—only far worse…

Yu'er pressed his lips together tightly. He didn't want to stay here, but knowing Uncle Gu was inside, he refused to leave.

The atmosphere turned deadly silent. You could hear a pin drop.

Everyone's expression was heavy and grim.

Time crawled by, each moment more suffocating than the last—

Then suddenly, a sinister wave burst out from the chamber.

A scream of agony tore through the air, followed by a crashing sound—and faintly, howls of tormented souls echoed within, chaotic and horrifying.

Everyone outside turned pale.

Two Mystic Valley Golden Core cultivators sprang up in alarm:

"Not good! The expulsion failed—save him!"

They rushed to the door—but before they could reach it, the door burst open.

Amid flying splinters, Mister Mei stumbled out, unable to suppress the evil qi any longer. Blood gushed from his mouth.

He looked utterly wretched.

The spirit-protecting mirror on his chest was shattered. A black-red burn mark streaked across his ritual robe. His brow now glowed with a greenish hue, slowly darkening toward black.

Then Mister Mei screamed—a sound not entirely human nor beast—clawing at the ground, writhing uncontrollably, teetering on the edge of complete loss of self.

The other two Mystic Valley cultivators acted quickly.

Their faces turned grim as they leapt forward, binding him tightly with a yellow rope inscribed with red talismans.

Then, they pressed an eight-trigram disk to his chest.

One placed a jade talisman to his forehead; the other poured realgar wine into his mouth to burn out the evil.

They struggled for quite some time.

Eventually, the jade drew out the evil qi, and Mister Mei stopped thrashing.

The black qi on his brow slowly faded, and his breathing began to stabilize.

Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

All eyes then turned toward the inner chamber.

Inside, Gu Changhuai still lay unconscious—his life or death uncertain.

The room, however, was a complete wreck.

The altar had exploded, the incense burned out, the guardian lamp extinguished, the copper-coin sword snapped, coins scattered across the floor, and the entire formation shattered and rendered useless.

To the average person, it was just a chaotic mess.

But to the Mystic Valley cultivators who understood the intricacies—

Their expressions turned pale.

A chill shot straight up their spines.

"A dreadful evil spirit!"

"How… how could something like that have been provoked?"

Their voices turned cold as they spoke, and just as they were still reeling from the shock—another change erupted.

Gu Changhuai, who had been lying motionless on the bed with his life hanging by a thread, suddenly jerked his eyes open. Like a walking corpse, he slowly sat up.

His eyes had been tainted by evil qi: the whites turned black, his irises blood-red. With a sinister chill in his gaze, he swept his eyes across everyone present—

—until his stare locked onto the small figure of Yu'er.

"Gu Changhuai's" face was deathly pale. He slowly twisted into a wicked grin and rasped out in a hoarse, gravelly voice:

"Found… you… my…"

He never finished the sentence.

But that alone was enough to send chills down every spine.

None of them understood what he meant—but all knew something was terribly wrong. If they let this go on, disaster would surely follow.

One Mystic Valley Golden Core cultivator immediately fired several golden needles to seal Gu Changhuai's meridians.

Another clenched his jaw and summoned a jade ruyi scepter, pressing it to Gu Changhuai's forehead while his movement was restricted—suppressing the surge of evil qi.

Fortunately, while the evil intent within Gu Changhuai was fierce, his body had already suffered severe injuries.

And that jade ruyi was clearly a treasure of high grade.

Gu Changhuai was quickly subdued. His body could no longer move, the evil intent ceased surging, and at last—after one final, deep stare at Yu'er—he slowly lay back down, once again slipping into unconsciousness.

Only then did everyone's tense hearts ease… slightly.

But Yu'er's little face had turned deathly white.

That one glance from "Gu Changhuai" had left him trembling violently—his small body turned cold as ice in an instant.

In that stare, he had seen something… like fate itself.

And in that fate, he was just a shell—with nothing inside.

No mother.

No one he cared about.

Everyone he loved had vanished.

All that remained was an endless void… and terror.

Yu'er's body began to shiver harder, his forehead breaking into cold sweat.

Wenren Wan immediately noticed something was wrong. She reached out and touched Yu'er's forehead, concerned.

"Yu'er? What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Yu'er nodded weakly.

A Mystic Valley cultivator stepped forward and tapped his forehead with two fingers, but sensed nothing unusual. He frowned and said:

"Perhaps the recent surge of evil qi frightened the young master, and his spirit was shaken."

Wenren Wan's heart ached.

Elder Gu Hong gently offered:

"Take Yu'er to the side room to rest. He's frail, and this place is too noisy—he might get startled again."

Wenren Wan looked toward Gu Changhuai, then at the boy in her arms. She nodded slightly—but just as she began to rise, Yu'er softly shook his head.

"Mother, I want to stay here."

Here, there were more people. More warmth, more presence.

The side room, while quiet, was too cold and empty. Too easy for fear to creep in.

Wenren Wan understood. Her heart ached even more. She kissed his forehead and whispered:

"Then close your eyes and rest for a bit. You'll feel better when you wake up."

"Mm…"

Yu'er nodded gently, and soon his eyelids drooped. Overcome with exhaustion, he drifted into sleep.

Wenren Wan stayed by his side, watching over him.

With Yu'er calmed, the room slowly settled. The chaos eased.

Now, everyone turned somber, discussing what to do next.

"What now?" a Mystic Valley cultivator asked, brows furrowed.

"That evil qi was far too strong. Even Mister Mei couldn't handle it."

"With our cultivation, we're even less capable."

"The protective mirror's shattered, the trigram disk cracked, and the exorcism robe couldn't stop it…"

"Mister Mei's down… not even sure how much sanity he has left…"

"This is dire. Should we… write a letter to the Grand Elder, ask Immortal Master Situ to come?"

"Too far. By the time he arrives—it'll be too late."

"Besides, ever since the bloodbath in Lizhou City a few years ago, the Grand Elder's been constantly traveling. He rarely returns to the valley anymore… makes one wonder if he's hiding something…"

"What could the Grand Elder be hiding?"

"How would I know what he's plotting?"

"Then what do we do now?"

"Wait until Mister Mei wakes up."

"And if he doesn't? Even if he does—what then? With such a terrifying evil spirit… who could possibly restrain it?"

"…This…"

The room fell silent again, all brows tightly furrowed.

Just then, the sleeping Yu'er began to tremble again—his face twisted in pain, growing even paler, sweat pouring down.

"Is he… having another nightmare?"

Wenren Wan's heart twisted. She wanted to wake him—but he was trapped in his dream, unreachable.

She didn't know what to do.

And then—amid his pain and terror—Yu'er mumbled a name, voice trembling:

"Mo… gege…"

Wenren Wan froze. A realization struck.

She turned instantly to Wenren Wei and said:

"Brother Wei—quick! Take Yu'er back to the Great Void Sect. Send him to Mo Hua!"

Only by Mo Hua's side would Yu'er stop having these nightmares.

Wenren Wei cupped his hands and said solemnly:

"Yes!"

But a moment later, he hesitated, then carefully suggested:

"Or… should I go to the Great Void Sect and invite Young Master Mo here to the Gu family?"

Wenren Wan shook her head.

"How could we? Mo Hua's busy cultivating—we can't interrupt him. Just take Yu'er back."

"That's not it," Wenren Wei said after thinking a moment. Then he finally voiced what had been on his mind all along:

"Invite Young Master Mo here—not just for Yu'er, but… also to have him take a look at Young Master Gu's condition."

Wenren Wan was stunned.

And so was everyone else in the room.

(End of this Chapter)