Chapter 2472: Slaughter Lust (3) |
"I noticed just now that this youth’s pupils are like ink and his face like a painting—could it be that he... is that Immortal child?"
The middle-aged man said, "But... wasn’t it said he was an ’Immortal child’? Why does he look like a youth?"
The old man said, "Immortal children don’t stay small forever."
The middle-aged man nodded. "True enough. But... isn’t the Immortal child at Big Black Mountain? Why would he come to our poor place?"
"This..." The old man pondered for a moment, then suddenly shuddered, his heart shaken as he thought:
"This time, the Immortal child must have attained success in Tao Cultivation, so he left Big Black Mountain to travel the world and bestow blessings upon all living beings..."
The more the old man thought about it, the more excited he became. His voice trembled as he said:
"I heard that Tongxian City used to be poor too, their lives were bitter, but once they had the Formation drawn by the Immortal child, the city grew more prosperous with each passing year."
"Now the Immortal child has passed through our place and drawn a Formation for us."
At this thought, the old man said, "Quick, kneel down and pray to the Immortal child, ask for his protection."
Some in the village believed, some still didn’t understand what was going on, but since the Elder had spoken, they all knelt in a dark mass, sincerely saying:
"May the Immortal child live long..."
"We beg the Immortal child’s protection..."
...
In the desolate mountain forest.
As Mo Hua was walking alone, he suddenly felt a pure yet faint power of wishes merge into his Life Chart, and to a certain extent, dissolve the Evil Qi born from his killings.
Mo Hua paused slightly, looked back toward the mountain village he had come from, and felt somewhat moved.
"Could this be... the wish-power of Merit?"
It was just a pity that the area around here was far too poor; as for Tao Cultivation resources, they had none of what they needed...
As the saying goes, live off the mountain if you’re by the mountain, live off the water if you’re by the water.
But these Loose Cultivators had settled in these mountains for generations; the land was desolate beyond belief and simply could not support them.
Even a clever housewife like Mo Hua couldn’t cook without rice; he truly had no solution.
If they tried to migrate, Monster Beasts lurked all around; most of them would likely die on the road.
"Then the only way is... to cut straight from Tongxian City through Big Black Mountain and forcibly open up another great road to here?"
Mo Hua’s eyes showed a pensive look.
For the rest of the way, Mo Hua kept turning this over in his mind.
Like this, he walked on for an hour more; the sides suddenly narrowed and the mountains closed in.
Two miles ahead, the terrain changed; cliffs towered on both sides, and before him there was only a narrow mountain path.
Mo Hua stopped at the mountain path, advancing neither forward nor back.
The surroundings were silent. Only after 30 minutes did a group of Cultivators emerge from the shrubs on both sides of the path, a band of a dozen or so.
"Big Brother, did this little brat notice us?" .
Someone whispered; his voice was very soft, yet it still fell into Mo Hua’s ears.
A moment later, the yellow-robed burly man who had been addressed as "Big Brother" strode out, carefully sized up Mo Hua, frowned tightly, and finally sighed:
"Little brother, I don’t want to make things hard for you, but life in the mountains is poor—we can’t even fill the pot. Leave some toll money, and we’ll let you pass. We’ll mind our own business, and you yours."
What he said sounded quite reasonable.
Mo Hua thought for a moment, then nodded and tossed over twenty Spirit Stones.
The yellow-robed burly man looked stunned and couldn’t help exchanging glances with the others.
Mo Hua said, "I’ve paid the toll money. Let me pass."
The yellow-robed burly man hesitated a little.
A bandit beside him covered his mouth with his hand and quietly said to the yellow-robed man:
"Big Brother, according to the rules, when we guard this pass, if the person who comes is some soft persimmon, we kill and rob him;
If the person looks like someone of no ordinary status, we put on a pitiful act, say some nice words, and just ask for a few Spirit Stones, that’s all."
"But this kid just casually tossed out twenty Spirit Stones; his wealth must be extraordinary. He’s a ’big fat sheep.’ Should we... take a gamble?"
The yellow-robed burly man frowned, his gaze flickering, clearly weighing things in his mind. After a moment, he gave a slight nod.
Among the bandits, another burly man with an honest-looking face sighed and said to Mo Hua:
"Little brother, these Spirit Stones aren’t enough. To be honest with you, I’ve got old folks above and young ones below. After these Spirit Stones are split up, they’re not even enough to feed and support my boy’s Cultivation."
"Why don’t you... give a little more?"
Mo Hua pondered. "That’s true..." He casually tossed over another twenty Spirit Stones.
This time, all the bandits’ eyes lit up.
The yellow-robed burly man’s eyes also showed a greedy, ferocious gleam.
"Is that enough?" Mo Hua asked.
The yellow-robed burly man shook his head and sighed. "Still not enough... I’ve also got an old mother above and a wife and children below. The burden of supporting a family is too heavy. Little brother, why don’t you give a bit more?"
Mo Hua fell silent.
The yellow-robed burly man sneered.
After a moment, Mo Hua shook his head. "You’re lying."
The yellow-robed burly man’s lips curled. "What am I lying about?"
Mo Hua said, "I’m proficient in a bit of Causality Skill and can calculate a bit of one’s Life Chart. Your face is rather mean; you’ve no elder above and no children below, so you’re lying."
The yellow-robed burly man was taken aback, then gave a ferocious grin. "If you give me more Spirit Stones, I can then go marry a wife and have children."
Mo Hua still shook his head. "Your face is that of ’cutting off sons and grandsons.’ In this life, you’ll neither marry a wife nor have children."
The yellow-robed burly man’s face darkened. "You little bastard, such a slick tongue."
Mo Hua’s pupils darkened slightly.
The yellow-robed burly man, still unaware, kept cursing:
"All together now—take his Storage Bag, peel off his skin, strip his tendons..."
The dozen or so bandits lunged at Mo Hua in excitement.
"It’s been so long since we had such a fat sheep..."
"Just his bad luck..."
"I’ve got to earn more Spirit Stones to bring back for my son so he can cultivate well and take over my work in the future..."
"What can we do? In this godforsaken place where not even birds crap, all we can do is rob on the road and kill people to live..."
In just a few breaths, the dozen-odd bandits had Mo Hua completely surrounded.