Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 946: Earth Sect

Mister Pi's gaze darkened momentarily with a shadowy glint, but it passed in an instant.

His expression quickly returned to normal, as if nothing had happened. He once again took out his compass, moved to the front of the group, and—just like before—examined the formations, determined direction, and continued leading the way down the corridor using the compass.

The tunnel remained dim and oppressive, the air heavy with foul stench.

There seemed to be some unknown danger lurking within the darkness, cold and bone-chilling, causing hairs to stand on end.

Everyone stayed on high alert, not daring to relax for even a moment.

Despite being seasoned veterans, Mister Pi and the others were precisely because of that all the more cautious. They knew better than anyone how fatal a moment's carelessness could be.

Seeing this, Mo Hua's thoughts stirred: Could there really be a terrifying tomb buried beneath Lone Mountain?

Otherwise, these men would never have gone through so much trouble or acted so cautiously, as if facing a deadly enemy.

Mo Hua glanced around again and couldn't help but recall what Master Gu had once said, thinking silently:

"If there really is a great tomb here... could it actually contain corpse-transformed or ghost-transformed 'evil things'?"

This tomb might be far more dangerous than he had imagined…

A chill ran down Mo Hua's spine. Without realizing it, he inched a little closer to the tomb raiders—thinking, "Better them than me. If something jumps out, let the Golden Cores die first."

Fortunately, the road ahead remained uneventful.

After walking for another half an hour, the passage gradually widened. The stone walls grew sturdier, the ceiling higher. Eventually, a massive tomb gate came into view.

The moment Mo Hua laid eyes on it, he froze.

Then—goosebumps rose across his skin.

Not just because the tomb gate looked terrifying and sinister…

But because—it was unmistakably—

A Water Prison Forbidden Gate!

The structure of the entire gate was nearly identical to the one depicted on the Water Prison Forbidden Box, the prized treasure of the Water Prison Sect—designed to imprison and punish sinners.

The overhanging roof curved like fangs of a beast, the walls covered in formation runes resembling chains that interlocked like a prison seal.

On the twin doors, two beast-headed humanoid figures were carved—one with an ox head, one with a horse face—each grimacing with fierce majesty, holding chains that locked the tomb gate tightly, as if suppressing something inside, preventing it from escaping.

A chilling, oppressive aura radiated from the entire tomb gate.

Mo Hua, knowing a bit of the Water Prison Sect's history, felt increasingly uneasy the more he looked. He never expected to find signs of that sect's legacy buried beneath Lone Mountain.

Mister Pi and the others, unaware of the Water Prison's deeper secrets, still felt a creeping dread as they stared at the eerie gate.

"Second Master Hui, something's weird about this…"

"Why would a tomb gate look like... this?"

"Doesn't it remind you of... a Dao Prison gate?"

"No wonder it looked familiar… Damn, I spent fifty years locked in one of those. Gives me the creeps just seeing it again…"

"Isn't it strange? If this gate's from a Dao Prison... then isn't this whole tomb basically a jail?"

"Who gets buried and still wants to serve time?"

"It doesn't add up…"

"Didn't they say this tomb buried… that person?"

…

The group muttered uneasily.

Mo Hua perked up his ears to eavesdrop.

After a while, Mister Pi frowned and said, "At this point, there's no turning back. We make our living like this. Heads tied to our belts—we don't get to be picky. Besides, we already took the money. What, you want to back out now?"

"You're right," said the Golden Core called Second Master Hui. "We came for what's inside the tomb. Doesn't matter who is buried here."

"Been crawling through crypts for decades. Weird things are just part of the job. Cowards starve. The brave feast."

That pep talk stiffened some spines.

"Alright, Mister Pi—open the tomb gate," Hui Er-ye said.

"Got it." Mister Pi nodded, and like before, took out the compass, bronze formation brush, and formation paper, beginning to work.

But after a while, Mister Pi frowned, then turned and said, "Go bring down the 'guest' now."

Second Master Hui blinked. "Isn't that a bit early? We agreed to invite them after the gate's broken."

Mister Pi thought for a moment, then shook his head. "This tomb gate's complicated. It'll take some work.

"Plus, we just killed members of the Shen Clan aboveground. People might come looking for revenge. Time's precious—we can't afford delays. You go invite them. I'll handle the formation."

Second Master Hui considered, then nodded. "Alright. I'll leave 'Rat' with you."

He pointed to the short, wiry Golden Core cultivator with long, thick fingers—the one who crushed Shen clan heads with his bare hands.

Tomb raiders all used nicknames to avoid revealing their real identities.

"Rat" was this one's codename.

"No need," Mister Pi said. "Take both Rat and 'Stone' with you. These 'guests' have a notable background—stay cautious. I can handle the array myself."

Second Master Hui had no objection.

Mister Pi was a veteran tomb raider and a secret Earth-Formation master. His cultivation may not be high, but in tombs, he had more experience than all of them combined.

Second Master Hui knew—even if they died—Mister Pi might still walk out alive.

"Alright." Hui Er-ye nodded.

Mister Pi drew a map on a piece of paper, marked directions, then handed it to Hui Er-ye.

The man left with his two Golden Core companions.

Now only three remained: Mister Pi, Mo Hua, and the unconscious Shen Qingsheng.

Mister Pi focused fully on decoding the formations sealing the tomb gate.

This time, Mo Hua didn't peek.

He was afraid of raising suspicion again. Instead, he simply stared at the tomb gate, observing tiny details, while his mind was full of questions:

"Who built this tomb? Who exactly is buried inside?"

"Why does it use the design of the Water Prison Sect's legacy?"

"And this gate… it's practically the very 'Prison Gate' itself. Its style even resonates with the Water Prison Sect's Qi-Blood Eye Technique… What's the connection?"

His brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

While deep in thought, he suddenly noticed how still everything had become. The air had grown disturbingly silent—even the soft rustle of brush on paper had vanished.

Mo Hua blinked, glancing around, then frowned.

"Weird. Where's Mister Pi…"

He muttered in confusion—then turned his head slightly—and froze.

Mister Pi was standing right behind him, face grim, holding a dagger, quietly stabbing toward his back.

Mo Hua's face turned pale. His knees buckled, and he stumbled to the ground.

That accidental fall just happened to let him narrowly dodge the dagger's poisoned tip.

Mister Pi looked stunned. "Tch… this brat has some luck."

Mo Hua cried out in fear, "S-Senior, what are you doing?!"

Mister Pi gave a twisted smile. "What do you think?"

"You... you want to kill me?"

"Ding ding ding. Right answer. Too bad it doesn't help." Mister Pi's voice was flat. He stepped forward, dagger flashing once again toward Mo Hua's heart.

Bound by second-grade shackles on both hands and feet, Mo Hua couldn't fight back. He could only roll awkwardly on the ground, barely dodging the strike.

He gasped, "Wait! You needed my help, didn't you? If you kill me, how will I help?!"

"That Shen brat can offer tributes in your place. Whether you live or die makes no difference."

"At least keep a spare, right?" Mo Hua tried to reason.

But Mister Pi didn't care.

He only wanted Mo Hua dead. The dagger in his hand gleamed with cold light, each stab targeting Mo Hua's vital points—but somehow, Mo Hua managed to barely dodge every strike.

Frustration flared in Mister Pi's heart. Then, with a cold sneer, he said, "Not bad, brat. You've got some decent movement skills."

Mo Hua ignored him, just focused on staying alive.

Mister Pi's smile deepened. "But this is where your luck ends."

Mo Hua's heart sank. Just as he was about to shout, the ground beneath him trembled. The flow of earth energy surged, and suddenly—a stone cage rose up and trapped him inside.

It was a formation.

Even though Mo Hua's hands and feet were shackled, Mister Pi had still pre-embedded a formation in advance, just to ensure everything went perfectly.

And this formation, derived from Earth Array inheritance, was incredibly subtle—so subtle that ordinary cultivators, even most formation masters, wouldn't be able to detect it.

Mo Hua, now trapped inside the array, looked pale as a sheet.

Mister Pi sneered, "Go on then—run some more."

Mo Hua looked like a frightened little deer caught in a snare. Eyes full of panic, he asked in a trembling voice, "Senior, you and I bear no grudges… why must you kill me?"

Seeing Mo Hua trapped, with no chance of survival, Mister Pi gave a small smile and slowly walked forward, saying, "In my life, I've traveled far and wide, met countless cultivators. I could tell at first glance that you were different."

"At first, I thought you were just talented—with sharp insight into formations. But when you pointed out the error in my array earlier, that proved it. You've got an impressive lineage and deep foundations in the Dao of Formations."

Mo Hua mumbled nervously, "I was just lucky..."

Mister Pi shook his head. "This is the Dao of Formations. You either know it or you don't—there's no such thing as luck. And even if someone were lucky, it'd still have to be backed by skill. Without strength, luck is useless."

"I'm not wrong. You're a formation genius," he said with certainty.

"Even if I am a genius," Mo Hua said anxiously, "there's no need to kill me! Senior, as a fellow formation master, shouldn't you value talent?"

Mister Pi chuckled. "Kid, are you dumb? We're strangers. Even if you're the next heavenly prodigy, what does that have to do with me?"

"Do you really think that just because you have talent, everyone you meet will treasure you? Teach you?"

"This is the cultivation world. People are selfish and greedy. No one does anything for free."

"You're far too green…"

Mo Hua looked even paler, his eyes filled with a hint of despair, like Mister Pi had just stabbed through his worldview.

His pitiful appearance stirred a faint sliver of pity in Mister Pi's heart.

Such a handsome young man… such a promising talent in formations… and he was about to die by his hand.

"Well, kid. Before you die, let me teach you something—so at least you'll die understanding."

Mister Pi stepped closer, poison-tipped dagger in hand, grinning darkly.

"As a formation master roaming the cultivation world, remember this—no matter the task, it's best if there's only one formation master in the group."

"And that formation master… should be you."

"If you're the only one, they won't dare silence you."

"And if you're the only one who knows formations, then whatever you say—right or wrong—only you will know."

"If you want to kill, to scam, to betray—it's all under your control."

"This is the lesson I've learned after centuries of crawling through the dirt of the cultivation world. Fighting side by side with all kinds of cultivators, licking blood from blades, snatching treasures from tigers."

"Your talent's too great. I can't let you live. That's why… you have to die."

"Remember this. If you get a next life—never forget."

As he spoke, Mister Pi infused his dagger with spiritual power. The blade gleamed with a deadly, sinister green light.

In Mo Hua's eyes, filled with terror and despair, Mister Pi sneered and skillfully drove the dagger straight into the young formation genius's chest.

The motion was practiced. He'd done this before.

And murdering a formation prodigy… gave this shadowy old array master a twisted thrill.

But—just moments later—Mister Pi's grin froze.

His dagger had pierced Mo Hua's chest.

But no blood flowed out.

Instead, there was only a cloud of mist.

Mo Hua's expression no longer held fear or despair. Instead, he looked straight at Mister Pi… and gave him an eerie smile.

That smile sent chills down Mister Pi's spine.

"Not good!"

His eyes widened. He spun around—only to see a glimmer of fire creeping into his peripheral vision.

But this flame wasn't ordinary.

It was deep, strange, brimming with brutal spiritual energy. Its sheer pressure alone made Mister Pi's scalp tingle.

What… the hell is that?!

He wanted to escape—but he had no chance to react.

The next second, searing pain exploded across his back.

Flames devoured his flesh.

And at the same time, a warm voice rang out:

"Thank you for the advice, Senior. Only one formation master in a group—I'll remember that."

Mister Pi's heart skipped a beat.

In that instant, he had only one final thought:

"Damn it… I've been played. The hunter got hunted…"

The flame erupted—furious and wild—like a dragon made of fire bursting from his back. It burned through his organs, vaporized his blood, and pierced straight through his chest, leaving behind a flaming streak of blood and fire across the air.

Meteorite Spell.

When the flame faded, Mister Pi slowly collapsed to his knees.

His organs turned to ash. His life had long since been extinguished.

Mister Pi… was dead.

And now, there was only one formation master left in this group.

That formation master—was Mo Hua.

After killing Mister Pi, Mo Hua turned his gaze to the side.

There—Shen Qingsheng had somehow woken up. No one knew how much he'd seen, but now he sat on the ground, staring wide-eyed in absolute shock and fear.

Mo Hua's expression was blank. He raised a finger to his lips and made a shushing gesture:

"You didn't see anything. Speak one word… and I'll kill you."

Shen Qingsheng felt a wave of ice rush down his spine. He shivered, whispering in disbelief: "This Mo Hua… what is he…?"

Mo Hua ignored him, focused instead on cleaning up the aftermath.

After thinking for a moment, he took everything from Mister Pi's storage pouch and person that might be useful and stashed it away on himself.

He then searched the nearby area and finally found a mechanism hidden in one of the tunnels—a deadly trap: a giant rolling millstone designed to crush intruders to death.

When they had come in earlier, Mister Pi had noticed this trap and deliberately avoided it.

But now that he was dead—well, no avoiding it now.

Mo Hua dragged Mister Pi's corpse over and placed it into the groove of the mechanism.

In an instant, the trap activated. The groove violently shook and launched Mister Pi's body into the air.

From afar came the sound of whistling wind—three flaming bolt-arrows shot through the air, slamming into the corpse with massive force, pinning it before launching it toward the end of the tunnel.

At the tunnel's end was a giant stone mill.

CLANG.

The mill slammed shut, crushing Mister Pi's body into minced meat. Blood exploded out, painting the mill in crimson.

Mo Hua immediately covered his eyes, muttering darkly in his heart:

"Whoever designed this tomb must've been a sadist… way too brutal…"

So brutal that even he could barely stand to look.

Still, considering Mister Pi was a tomb raider in life, disturbing the dead and robbing countless graves, dying to a trap inside a tomb… felt like poetic justice.

Mo Hua nodded with satisfaction, then retraced his steps back to the tomb gate.

Shen Qingsheng stared at Mo Hua's figure like he was watching a literal demon.

Mo Hua glanced at him—and Shen Qingsheng instantly went pale, curled up on the ground, clutching his head, too terrified to even meet his gaze.

Only then did Mo Hua feel satisfied. He calmly re-fastened the Grade-2 shackles he'd undone earlier, even carefully restoring the formation runes on them.

Then he sat cross-legged and began examining Mister Pi's storage pouch.

He'd been eyeing this pouch for a while—he just hadn't expected to get it so soon.

That's what Mister Pi got for being petty… and too impatient.

Mo Hua shook his head and resumed rummaging through the pouch.

Inside were, aside from spirit stones, Barrier-Clearing Pills, Evil-Dispelling Pills, Filth-Purging Pills, and other common tomb-robbing supplies, mostly items related to formation inheritance.

Compasses, jade slips, formation scrolls, formation diagrams… the whole array master toolkit.

Mo Hua skimmed through them—and suddenly froze.

Mister Pi… seemed to be a disciple of the Earth Sect.

His entire formation inheritance had come from one of the great sects of Kun Prefecture—the Earth Sect (地宗).

"Earth Sect…" Mo Hua muttered to himself.

That name wasn't unfamiliar to him. In fact, he himself possessed a secret Earth Sect formation:

—The Grade-One, Eleven-Rune Thick Earth Absolute Array.

Back when he first studied it, his master had vaguely mentioned a few things about the Earth Sect.

The Earth Sect was one of the greatest sects in all of Kun Prefecture.

Just how powerful? His master hadn't said, but if even someone like him had described it as "very large," it was likely at least a Fifth-Rank Sect or higher.

Kun Prefecture, like Qian Prefecture, was one of the major provinces.

But Kun Prefecture was even more fertile—its noble families even more extravagantly wealthy.

Being one of the top sects there, the Earth Sect's resources and heritage were likely far stronger than even the Four Great Sects of the Qian-Xue Province border.

But there was one thing about the Earth Sect that Mo Hua remembered very clearly.

Their most treasured item, said to be a sacred artifact passed down for ten thousand years—imbued with profound Dao principles and immeasurable value—so coveted by the Dao Court that it had to be split in half to prevent being stolen.

That ancient meditative visualization scroll—

The Celestial Heaven and Sacred Earth Diagram (皇天後土圖)!

(End of this Chapter)