The Patriarch of the Qian Family spoke at length.
Mo Hua listened in shock. He found some sense in the words, but also felt that something was not quite right, and for a moment, he was somewhat confused.
Suddenly, he found something else strange.
Those with deep schemes speak little.
This Patriarch of the Qian Family should not be a talkative person, so why would he keep talking to himself for so long?
Moreover, until now, it had been only the Patriarch himself who incessantly spoke; that Qian Hong seemed not to have said a word, had he?
How odd...
Mo Hua peeked out his little head again, stealing a glance. This time he looked longer and saw more clearly, but involuntarily, his pupils shocked.
That Qian Hong, with his eyes closed, had a deathly pale face.
His chest was marked with blood-red Formation Patterns, and it seemed as if all his blood was converging toward his heart through those patterns.
But his blood was black, decayed.
All of his skin was as pale and papery as his face, devoid of any sign of vitality.
This Qian Hong was already a dead man!
Mo Hua was startled.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family had been talking to a dead man all along.
The dead do not speak; thus, it had been only the Patriarch who prattled on without pause.
It seemed the Patriarch was waiting for Qian Hong’s blood to coagulate, to form into an Evil Formation.
With time to spare while waiting, he had the leisure to talk so much.
Watching Qian Hong, the Patriarch said faintly,
"The Lifespan Transformation Elixir has a flaw. Using different people for alchemy results in a mixture of bloodlines too miscellaneous..."
"One needs the heart of a close blood relative to act as a catalyst to harmonize the various bloodlines within the pill. Only then can one consume the elixir without suffering from the rejection of its power."
"I originally chose Xinger for this, but he was disappointing, so now I must ask you, his father, to take his place."
"I had high hopes for you, made you the Family Head, but it’s a pity. You have it all, yet you lack a little in each aspect. You are not cruel enough, not selfish enough, nor can you endure enough... And you covet the position of Family Head, worrying about the survival of the Qian Family, even defying my orders because of it. That is both foolish and laughable."
"In this world, beside oneself, everyone else is an outsider, even if they are your flesh and blood. You just didn’t understand this principle..."
...
Mo Hua listened with a shocked heart. This Qian Hong must have had some disagreement, some dispute with the Patriarch of the Qian Family, which led to his current fate.
As Mo Hua was pondering, he suddenly saw a sinister, blood-red light emanating from Qian Hong’s chest.
The Evil Formation had solidified!
Before Mo Hua could react, the Patriarch showed no mercy. His palm pierced directly through Qian Hong’s chest, plucked out his heart, and tossed it into the mouth of the Pig Monster.
The Pig Monster, dull and foolish, swallowed the heart. Its aura surged powerfully, the blood traces on its body glowed, oozing more blood, and a bizarre demonic power began to circulate with the Evil Formation.
The Evil Formation was forcibly activated, and the Pig Monster’s blood flowed backward, emitting a more piercing, heart-wrenching shriek.
Mo Hua’s eardrums buzzed, his head throbbing, and he quickly crouched down, covering his ears.
But the screeching invaded every aperture, continuing to reach Mo Hua’s ears.
The sound was mournful, gradually turning uncanny, as though it entwined with human voices, almost as if countless cultivators were screaming and struggling in the endless agonies of hell.
Mo Hua endured the pain and discomfort forcibly, not knowing how much time had passed, before the Pig Monster’s shrieks finally ceased.
In their place came the Patriarch’s ferocious laughter.
Mo Hua calmed his emotions and looked over once more.
Qian Hong’s eyes were tightly shut, his chest wide open, his skin dry and pallid, he looked even more like a corpse than a dead man.
"Is it you?" The Patriarch of the Qian Family recognized Mo Hua, somewhat surprised, "How did you get in here without me noticing?"
Mo Hua snorted coldly.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family slightly furrowed his brow, pondering for a moment, then suddenly realized, "Did you learn a Concealment Technique?"
Mo Hua’s gaze tensed, and he suddenly became more alert, sensing something unusual.
Someone was probing him with Divine Sense.
It was the Patriarch of the Qian Family!
However, this Divine Sense came quickly and retreated just as fast, touching and withdrawing instantly, making it hard to detect.
At the same time, the Patriarch of the Qian Family, who retracted his Divine Sense, exclaimed in surprise,
"Such profound Divine Sense, I almost couldn’t see through it..."
Mo Hua frowned.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family had profound cultivation and many schemes; dragging this on, Mo Hua was sure he couldn’t outplay him.
Mo Hua wanted to anger him. Thinking of the words Elder Yu used when cursing, he began to insult,
"You old bastard, you’re utterly devoid of conscience, you even killed your own grandson."
The Patriarch of the Qian Family’s own grandson was Qian Hong.
If Qian Hong was used as a medicinal primer, then he must have been killed by the Patriarch of the Qian Family himself.
Still, the Patriarch of the Qian Family did not get angry. Instead, he looked at Mo Hua with interest,
"You’re cursing me to provoke me to attack you, then fall into the Formation you’ve laid out?"
Mo Hua, his thoughts exposed, panicked inwardly but still tried to maintain a calm exterior.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family then said curiously,
"What kind of Formation have you laid that could threaten a Foundation Building Cultivator?"
"Why not give it a try?" Mo Hua said.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family thought for a moment and shook his head, "Even when hunting a rabbit, a lion uses all its might. I will not underestimate you, even if you’re only at the Qi Refinement stage."
Mo Hua frowned, feeling somewhat disappointed.
This Patriarch of the Qian Family was too difficult to deal with.
You’re at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, could you die from underestimating me for once?
If he wouldn’t come over, the Formation he set would be in vain.
The Patriarch of the Qian Family saw through Mo Hua’s emotions and smiled slightly but then was suddenly stunned and slowly said,
"No, that’s wrong!"
His gaze upon Mo Hua grew more and more solemn, "It’s you!"
Mo Hua’s heart skipped a beat, feigning ignorance and denying, "No, it’s not!"
"No, it’s you!" The Patriarch of the Qian Family shook his head, "It was you, entering Black Mountain Stronghold, breaking the Formation, summoning the Taoist Soldiers to encircle the stronghold, discovering my identity, it was all you."
"Yes, yes, that’s right!"
The Patriarch of the Qian Family was gradually making sense of it all.
"You know Concealment Technique, Formation, have strong Divine Sense, and... you also knocked out Xinger; you definitely learned something from him, in order to keep me from discovering, that’s why you knocked him out..."
"Yes, that explains it."
The Patriarch of the Qian Family, with furrowed brows, muttered to himself, connecting all the dots.
Mo Hua felt a chill in his heart.
It was over, in the blink of an eye, everything he had done was guessed by the Patriarch of the Qian Family.