Immortality Through Array Formations (The Quest for Immortality)

Chapter 987: The Might of God-Slaying

In the Beast-Refining Mountain, smoke and dust surged skyward.

A young figure raced ahead like a streak of dazzling waterlight across heaven and earth—graceful, swift, and ethereal.

Behind him, however, loomed a black sandstorm.

A hulking, mountain-sized Third-Grade Golden Core Black Boar Demon charged in pursuit, blood qi roaring like waves, black demonic mist sweeping across the forest. Trees and boulders were torn apart as the beast followed the sweet scent of human flesh, relentlessly chasing after Mo Hua.

In an instant, the monstrous momentum was immense—an awe-inspiring scene.

Wild beasts scattered. Birds fled in fright.

Xun Ziyou followed closely behind, gripping the Taixu Sword. More than once, he had the urge to strike down the demon pig.

But after some thought, he restrained himself.

If he took action, he would be exposed.

The ancestor's instructions were to ensure Mo Hua's safety—but also to let him face trial and hardship as much as possible.

A treasured sword sharpens through grinding; the fragrance of plum blossoms arises from bitter cold.

If Mo Hua were shielded from all risk, he'd never truly grow.

It was still too soon to interfere.

Besides, the situation hadn't reached a desperate point yet.

Though the Third-Grade Black Boar Demon was terrifying, with immense demonic power and deadly charges...

Mo Hua, relying on his exquisite movement techniques, darted and weaved like flowing water, fluttering like a startled swan, dancing on a tightrope. Each time it seemed he'd be caught, he escaped, turning danger into safety.

Even as Xun Ziyou was stunned, he couldn't help but admire:

"Mo Hua's movement technique… truly brilliant. I wonder where he learned it all…"

Still, he knew this couldn't last.

After all, Mo Hua was only at the Foundation Establishment stage. His spiritual power was limited. Facing this Third-Grade demon with bottomless strength, exhaustion was inevitable.

In such a brutal, high-pressure chase, the moment fatigue set in—or worse, a momentary lapse in concentration—any slip-up could be fatal.

Worse yet, each time Mo Hua escaped, the boar demon's bloodlust only intensified.

Its fury was growing. Its demonic power surged. Its speed increased.

Xun Ziyou tightened his grip on the sword, nerves taut.

Meanwhile, Mo Hua truly began to feel the strain.

The black boar's oppressive aura was overwhelming. Its boiling demonic power and dense black mist were like raging waves.

Mo Hua was like a fragile boat amidst the storm.

And this damn pig was hellbent on hunting him.

He had been running for ages but still couldn't shake it. Frustration boiled in his chest.

Out of the corner of his eye, Mo Hua glanced back—just in time to see the demon's lantern-sized eyes, glaring like bronze bells.

Those eyes locked onto him, unblinking.

A flash of impulse surged in Mo Hua's heart… but he forced it down.

The boar was too strong. This wasn't the time for recklessness.

The priority was to escape. He couldn't afford to be entangled for too long.

Mo Hua continued to flee.

But the more he ran, the angrier the boar got.

This kind of ferocious demon was used to overpowering prey through sheer force—it never had to work this hard.

Mo Hua's prolonged resistance had thoroughly provoked its killing intent.

Now, the demon wouldn't stop. Its form grew faster, its black mist thicker, its eyes wilder—it wouldn't rest until it devoured him.

Cold sweat soaked Mo Hua's back. Every step was harder than the last.

And yet, deep within, a flame of anger slowly grew stronger.

Moments later, Mo Hua suddenly stilled.

He turned and looked back at the demon. His expression was calm—icy even. But deep in his eyes, there was a flicker of killing intent.

They continued the chase until reaching a mountainous marsh.

In a flash, Mo Hua's figure split like light on water—his body blurred into vapor.

Three Water Shadows formed.

The boar demon, confused for a moment, lunged at one of the water shadows, only to smash it into mist—

—behind it was a cliff wall.

With a loud crash, the black boar slammed headfirst into the rock, embedding half its body into the mountainside.

The ground quaked as if heaven itself trembled.

The boar struggled frantically.

But with its enormous body, it couldn't easily turn. After much thrashing, it finally pulled itself free—filthy, disheveled, and its eyes blood-red.

It was now clearly on the verge of rage overload.

Its snout flared, snorting demonic wind and foul breath, eyes streaked with blood vessels.

Then it sniffed—quickly catching Mo Hua's scent again.

Its cruel gaze locked to the right.

There stood Mo Hua—calm, unmoving—among the forest's edge.

The lush trees, humid air, and babbling brooks surrounded him.

He didn't flee. He simply stood there, gazing silently at the towering beast before him.

A slender, weak Foundation Establishment cultivator… confronting a raging Third-Grade Golden Core demon.

This was open defiance.

The black boar roared with rage.

Its howl was like the wails of the damned, like ghosts in torment—piercing ears and shaking mountains.

Then came the shockwave—blood qi roared, demonic wind surged.

It charged!

Just halfway into its charge, the ground beneath it surged with flowing water. The earth dissolved into a swampy mire.

The boar's footing collapsed—its giant body sank into the marsh.

And the more it struggled, the deeper it fell.

Mud and stone flew as it flailed violently, demonic power shaking the land.

But the swamp was deep—and the formation woven into it was sophisticated.

It was clear this pig wouldn't escape for at least twenty or thirty breaths.

And in a life-or-death chase like this, that was enough time to survive. Enough time for Mo Hua to escape.

Xun Ziyou finally exhaled, nodding to himself.

"Mo Hua's formations… they're getting more and more refined."

He wasn't relying purely on array power, but using the formation to derive the power of the Eight Trigrams, manipulating terrain, leveraging nature itself to trap the demon and find an opening.

To devise all this in such a short time—and execute flawlessly?

"This kid's talent for formations… it's downright monstrous. No wonder outsiders call him 'The Little Monster of the Great Void Sect.'"

"With this, I won't even need to intervene. He can escape the demon on his own…"

Xun Ziyou was pleased.

But moments later, he noticed something odd.

Mo Hua had trapped the demon—yet he hadn't run. He stood there, fingers pointed at his brow.

Xun Ziyou blinked, brows furrowed.

"What's he doing?"

"Run! You fool! The boar will break free soon!"

This was the perfect opportunity. Why wasn't Mo Hua fleeing? What was he thinking?

Xun Ziyou narrowed his eyes and stared hard—suddenly, a terrifying thought struck him:

"This brat… don't tell me… he's going to kill the boar?"

No way.

He's just Foundation Establishment—trying to kill a Third-Grade Golden Core demon?

He's lost his mind!

Where did he get the nerve?!

Even if all the ancestors of the Great Void Sect were praying day and night—even if the heavens blessed him directly—this was madness!

Xun Ziyou's heart clenched. Cold sweat poured down his back.

At that moment, the black boar's forelegs broke free from the swamp, gripping the bank.

Its massive, ferocious head emerged, eyes gleaming red.

Xun Ziyou panicked. He couldn't wait any longer. He began to channel his sword technique, drawing his weapon.

But just then —a completely unfamiliar sword intent surged forth.

Xun Ziyou's heart trembled. He turned in disbelief.

In the mountain forest— The mighty boar demon rose from the mire.

The fragile Mo Hua… stood across from it.

Fingers pressed to the center of his brow.

It looked unremarkable—but in the blink of an eye, a surge of sword intent far beyond the Foundation Establishment stage burst forth from his thin frame, so sharp and powerful it was almost unbelievable.

His divine sense howled like a tempest of sword energy.

As the sword intent surged, Mo Hua's eyes grew ever more radiant.

Pure golden light condensed to an extreme, sword light flowing—blindingly sharp.

At his fingertips, spiritual energy coiled, pressing at the spot between his brows, connecting the veil between illusion and reality. The mighty Taixu Sword Intent was being slowly drawn out.

An astonishing edge began to reveal itself to the world...

Sensing this ancient and profound sword intent, Xun Ziyou's mouth dropped open. For a moment, he felt like he couldn't breathe—his heart skipped a beat.

Sensing danger, the demon boar's shrieks became even more shrill and frenzied.

Its blood qi boiled over. Its demonic energy turned black as ink. With a surge of force, it leapt from the swamp.

It charged at Mo Hua without hesitation, as if determined to crush this threat in its cradle and devour him whole.

At that moment, Mo Hua's eyes sharpened. He pointed with two fingers—drawing forth a faintly shimmering streak of sword light from his fingertip.

The sword light was utterly brilliant.

It was forged from divine sense.

Moreover, it was infused with Divine Marrow, refined into golden Dao essence—transcending the typical scope of spiritual perception.

Even Xun Ziyou, in the late Golden Core stage, could only barely perceive a hazy shadow of the sword, and from it, strands of radiant, golden-glass-like sword intent would occasionally shimmer and drift.

The black boar demon glared savagely, surrounded by black wind, as it lunged toward Mo Hua.

Mo Hua's gaze turned icy. He pointed his fingers forward.

Taixu God-Slaying Sword — Astral Projection!

A massive sword shadow tore through the air, arriving in an instant—piercing directly into the demon's bell-sized, bloodthirsty eye.

The eyes were the windows to the spiritual soul.

The powerful sword intent pierced this fleshy window and struck directly into the boar demon's spiritual sea.

Like a blade of divine iron cleaving a clay idol.

A shriek of unimaginable pain and terror rang out—piercing the heavens, shaking the mountain.

And then—

Silence.

No one knew what had happened in the boar's spiritual sea.

It was like the Judge of the Underworld calling names, like death had reached out its pale hand.

The demon boar's life—was suddenly extinguished.

Those once-brutal, glaring eyes went dim in just a few breaths.

Its massive body, with no will left to support it, became nothing more than a heap of meat, its limbs limp, still sliding forward from momentum.

The ground's formations lit up—stone spikes erupted like spears, rising to block the boar's body.

One by one, the spikes shattered. The boar's advance slowed, and finally—halted before Mo Hua.

Its eyes were still staring at him.

But its soul was gone. Its vitality had vanished.

Mo Hua stood there quietly. His thin figure—suddenly as steady and immovable as a mountain.

While the massive boar, head and limbs on the ground, blood and meat scattered, now seemed as though it were bowing in humble submission.

The surroundings fell into dead silence.

In the forest far away—

Xun Ziyou still held his drawn sword, frozen like a statue, but within—a storm of disbelief raged.

...Dead?

A Third-Grade Golden Core demon beast—killed by Mo Hua?!

Foundation Establishment stage Mo Hua—killed a Third-Grade Golden Core demon beast alone?!

Xun Ziyou was utterly shaken. His hands began to tremble. For a moment, he could barely believe what he was seeing.

Even though he saw it with his own eyes—it felt absurd.

For a split second, he even wondered:

"Am I still trapped in some illusion—some nightmare from the Lone Mountain's Evil Womb?"

Surely all of this… was just a dream.

Otherwise, this kind of completely nonsensical, heaven-defying thing couldn't have happened.

Killing a Golden Core while still at Foundation Establishment—it was already near-impossible.

And not just any Golden Core opponent, but a demon beast, more ferocious and powerful than any cultivator of the same realm.

And the one who killed it—wasn't even a body-refining or power-focused cultivator.

It was Mo Hua—a youth with weak blood qi, low spiritual power, never known for combat prowess.

And he didn't even rely on formations to kill it.

Those formations? They were merely for distraction and control.

He had truly, with his own strength, with the unfathomable sword arts he cultivated, in a direct head-on confrontation, slain a Third-Grade demon beast!

Xun Ziyou's heart was in turmoil.

"Just what kind of terrifying Dao art… is this?"

"And what kind of force… did he just unleash?"

On the other side, the boar was dead.

Mo Hua finally returned to his senses. He stared at the enormous corpse before him—still a little stunned.

"It's… dead?"

"I used divine sense to form a sword... and killed a Third-Grade Golden Core boar demon?"

He looked at his fair, slender hand, disbelief flooding his heart.

That was only one-tenth of his divine sense's full power.

Due to the veil between illusion and reality, the God-Slaying Sword's Astral Projection had only unleashed ten percent of its true strength.

Even so, this mighty Third-Grade demon was undeniably killed by a single strike.

Mo Hua inhaled sharply.

"If… one day… I could fully merge with the wall between illusion and reality… unleash the full, one hundred percent of the God-Slaying Sword…"

"Then just how terrifying… would that sword strike be?"

"What realm of cultivators or demon beasts… could it slay?"

He didn't even dare imagine it.

After a moment of stunned awe, he remembered: with all that noise, someone was bound to notice.

The priority now—was clean-up.

Or else there would be way too many questions.

But… how should he clean this up?

And more importantly —Who to call for cleanup?

Mo Hua stared at the mountain-sized, dead Third-Grade Golden Core boar demon, its eyes still glaring like dead pig lanterns, and fell into deep thought.

After a moment, he took out his Taixu Command Token and messaged Xun Ziyou:

"Elder Xun, quick, come here! I picked up a dead pig!"

Far off, Xun Ziyou glanced at the token—and his expression instantly became... indescribably complicated.

"..."

"Picked up a dead pig…"

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he might've almost believed that.

Suppressing the mess of emotions in his heart, Xun Ziyou thought for a moment, then sent back: "Where are you?"

Mo Hua looked around and reported his location.

Xun Ziyou replied: "Alright. I'll be right there."

"Mhm." Mo Hua acknowledged.

So, Xun Ziyou stealthily made his way to the foot of the mountain, circled a few times to kill time, then pretended to rush in, hurried and out of breath.

As soon as he arrived and laid eyes on the scene, he put on a "shocked" expression:

"A Third-Grade demon boar?!"

Mo Hua nodded.

"How did it die?" Xun Ziyou asked.

Mo Hua shook his head seriously.

"I'm not sure either. I just got here and found the pig lying here dead. It's huge."

"Either someone killed it… or maybe it had a sudden stroke and ran headfirst into a tree."

"Ran into a tree and died…"

"Boars are dumb. Can't turn corners. Just run themselves into things and die."

"..."

Xun Ziyou was utterly speechless.

This kid could spout complete nonsense without batting an eye now. No logic, no hesitation.

Xun Ziyou glanced around and saw all traces of the surrounding formations had been erased. He nodded slightly.

"At least he cleaned up the array remnants... saves me the trouble."

"Alright, I understand," Xun Ziyou nodded. "This place is dangerous. You head back first. I'll take care of this boar."

Mo Hua, seeing Elder Xun not pressing further, finally breathed a sigh of relief. But after thinking for a moment, he asked:

"Elder, does a Third-Grade demon boar count toward contribution points?"

Even though he already had quite a few merits and wasn't hurting for them, more was always better.

Especially something like this—leaving it unrewarded felt like a sin against heavenly principles.

Xun Ziyou looked at him quietly and sighed:

"Luck is also a form of strength. Since you 'picked it up,' of course it counts as yours."

Mo Hua felt reassured and grinned: "Thanks, Elder Xun!"

"Go on back."

"Mm!"

Mo Hua gave a bow and left, leaving the rest in Elder Xun's hands.

After Mo Hua departed, Xun Ziyou stood there silently for a while before finally walking up to the demon boar's corpse.

He looked at the mostly intact body, the extinguished consciousness behind those empty eyes, and couldn't help but draw in a cold breath.

His gaze trembled, and in a voice filled with disbelief, he softly uttered the nearly-forgotten name of that forbidden technique:

"Taixu… Divine Sense Sword Manifestation True Art…"

The words seemed to carry an eerie power, filling Xun Ziyou with both longing and fear.

He sighed, drew his sword, and in a flash of sword light, began to make quick work of the boar's corpse—slashing its skin, tearing its flesh, and piercing its heart meridian.

A moment ago, it was a pristine corpse.

Now, sword scars riddled the entire body.

Only then did Xun Ziyou use his transmission talisman to summon help to deal with the remains of this massive Third-Grade demon boar.

Meanwhile…

Mo Hua returned to the Taixu Sect, sitting in the disciple quarters, his emotions still surging.

The scene of him slaying the demon boar remained vivid in his mind.

The power of the God-Slaying Astral Projection Sword still left him a bit shaken.

He couldn't help but look down at his own hands—staring in a daze.

"These hands… just unleashed a technique that slayed a Golden Core…"

This was the foundation of the Divine Path, the true power behind the Divine Sense Sword Manifestation Art.

A sensation of control over life and death began to flow through every part of Mo Hua's body.

Eight years in Qianxue Prefecture—day and night, relentless cultivation—polishing his array skills, devouring evil spirits, fusing with divine marrow, building the foundation of his spiritual path.

Then cultivating the Sword Dao, mastering the Divine Sense Sword Manifestation step by step.

Grain by grain, a sand tower is formed.

Drop by drop, water wears stone.

Now, his path of divine sense was finally beginning to reveal its true edge.

Mo Hua curled his fingers as if holding an invisible sword, gaze razor-sharp.

"Divine Sense Crystalized, Sword Manifestation achieved."

"From this moment forth—my divine sense threads are the threads of death."

Whether human, demon, or devil— If he released the God-Slaying Sword, and it pierced their spiritual sea—

Then regardless of flesh, qi, or power—he could directly annihilate their consciousness, erase their existence.

And with this— He had finally taken his first true step toward becoming a powerful Divine Path Cultivator.

Wielding mighty divine sense— To command life and death with a single thought!

(End of this Chapter)