The Quest for Immortality

The best practice subjects are, of course, still Zhang Quan’s Ancestral Master Picture, which represents the legion of zombie ancestors of the Zhang Family.

Mo Hua has now greatly mastered the art of Divine Thought Slaughter.

Apart from that hypocritical ancestor of the Zhang Family, the other ”people” in the picture, whether they are the disciples underneath or the Elders above, are no match for him.

Zhang Quan’s ancestor should not be a rival either.

But according to the Iron Corpse Elder who was ”eaten” by Mo Hua, the Zhang Family’s ancestor has lived a long time, is cunning, and has many tricks up his sleeve, so Mo Hua dares not to be too arrogant. Therefore, he must find a method to deal with him gradually and can’t rush matters.

The problem now is, where is the picture?

Mo Hua rested his chin on his hand and pondered.

At that time, he had returned the picture to Zhang Quan.

So, it should be on Zhang Quan?

Where would Zhang Quan keep it? Carry it with him always? Or set it up on a new altar for worship?

Or perhaps... he gave it to Lu Chengyun?

Mo Hua remembered that when he took out the Ancestral Master Picture, Zhang Quan looked excited, and in Lu Chengyun’s eyes, there was also a hint of covetousness.

The Ancestral Master Picture is a Contemplation Map.

A Formation Master’s lifeblood is his Divine Sense, and a Contemplation Map can enhance that Divine Sense.

Every Contemplation Map, no matter what is inside, whether it is righteous or evil, good or bad, poses a great temptation to a Formation Master.

Lu Chengyun couldn’t possibly resist the temptation.

Moreover, having colluded with Zhang Quan for so long, it’s possible he has seen this Contemplation Map before.

It’s just that the map is still considered Zhang Quan’s Ancestral Master Picture, so Lu Chengyun wouldn’t forcibly take it away.

After thinking it over, Mo Hua felt that the only solution now was to track Zhang Quan.

See if the picture is still with him.

If it is, where has he hidden it?

If not, to whom has he given it?

Mo Hua has learned the Spirit Pivot Formation with its twelve Formation Patterns, and his Divine Sense has reached the peak of twelve patterns, just one step away from the Thirteen Stripes.

But this step is the threshold before the door.

Crossing it would still take some time, or perhaps some kind of opportunity.

The peak of the twelve patterns means his Divine Sense is already very strong.

And it’s even less likely to be detected when hiding.

If he were tracking Lu Chengyun, he’d have to be a bit more cautious.

Tracking Zhang Quan should be almost effortless.

However, he needs to pick the right time, avoid Lu Chengyun’s Divine Sense, and be a little careful to avoid the Expose Dust Formation and Expose Shadow Formation inside the Stone Palace.

The Expose Dust Formation and Expose Shadow Formation are manageable, but the problem is Lu Chengyun.

Lu Chengyun has a strong Divine Sense, understands formations, and is highly suspicious.

However, since Mo Hua built the Formation eye for the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses, Lu Chengyun has grown a bit more trusting of Mo Hua.

And since Mo Hua saw the Spirit Pivot Formation Chart, showed an expression of ”shock,” said ”how difficult,” ”I can’t understand,” ”I can’t learn” and so on, Lu Chengyun’s guard against Mo Hua has greatly reduced.

Nor does he probe with his Divine Sense to guard against Mo Hua from time to time.

Thus, Mo Hua’s time to ”move freely” has increased.

In the following four or five days, whenever Mo Hua had the chance, he would invisibly monitor Zhang Quan, gradually figuring out his routine.

Zhang Quan’s routine was very regular, and his actions were very transparent.

Most of his days were spent building the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses.

The Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses requires a large number of Corpse Refining Coffins, all of which are refined by Zhang Quan himself. He then lets some Evil Formation Masters or Lu Chengyun inscribe them with Evil Formations before placing them in the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses.

Low-end formations are inscribed by other Evil Formation Masters.

For higher-end ones, like the Iron Corpse for the iron coffins, Lu Chengyun personally handles the inscribing.

And Zhang Quan is solely responsible for all the coffins.

Having come from a coffin shop background, the tasks of making coffins, refining corpses, and nurturing coffins are considered his traditional trade.

Zhang Quan also inspected the Stone Palace regularly.

He checked whether there were any issues with the wood and iron coffins used for Corpse Refinement in the palace, whether the zombies were showing signs of corpse transformation, whether there was any loss of control, any deficiency in Corpse Qi, or any other abnormalities, and so on.

Basically, he spent his days dealing with corpses, and his work revolved entirely around zombies.

Zhang Quan also had a stone chamber.

This chamber was roomier, but it was furnished and decorated much less extravagantly than Mo Hua’s chamber.

Surrounding the chamber were all kinds of objects for Corpse Refinement.

The smell inside even carried a hint of the rotten stench of dead bodies.

Zhang Quan, who dealt with refining corpses all day, no longer noticed the stench and thus did not care.

Inside his own stone chamber, Zhang Quan either slept, meditated or occasionally behaved as if he were in a craze, showing worrying signs of mental instability, it was completely unclear what was going through his mind.

Sometimes he murmured to himself, showed sudden fits of temper, and then shouted uncontrollably.

He seemed to display symptoms of mental derangement.

Mo Hua found this very puzzling.

”Could it be that dealing with zombies all day has made his brain be eaten by zombies...” Mo Hua silently criticized in his heart.

But thinking about it, he felt it wasn’t that simple.

This seemed more like signs of gradual loss of humanity after demonic possession...

Unaware of one’s own humanity, not knowing what one is doing, with only evil thoughts flourishing within, a mind full of filth.

Zhang Quan would alternate between these episodes of madness and lucidity, and after several cycles, he would calm down again, only his eyes appeared more vicious.

Occasionally, Zhang Quan would also take out a chart to look at.

At first, Mo Hua was excited.

He thought that Zhang Quan had brought out the Ancestral Master Picture.

But he quickly realized that it was not the case.

It wasn’t just one chart; it was an album.

On the album, there were pictures of men and women, naked, wrestling in various positions.

The key issue was not just looking at it once, but that Zhang Quan would look at it whenever he had free time.

Mo Hua felt a profound disappointment, and even a sense of exasperation.

Where is your Contemplation Map?

```

Where is your ancestor now?

Spend all day looking at such things; you have no regard for your ancestors.

If I were Zhang Quan’s ancestor, I would definitely curse him as an unfilial son and hang him up to beat him.

After finishing these not-suitable-for-children albums, Zhang Quan would occasionally become furious, tear up the albums, and curse as if possessed:

”This damned place doesn’t have a single woman.”

”Can’t even get out...”

”Damn it...”

His eyes were bloodshot and red, his expression as ferocious as a zombie’s.

Mo Hua frowned slightly but soon understood.

Those who cultivate demons, their humanity gradually fades away.

Zhang Quan cultivates the Corpse Path, constantly dealing with corpse cultivators, the dead, and zombies, which twisted his nature and bred evil thoughts; he longed for human warmth, for an outlet for his vile desires.

On regular days, it was still manageable, but once he was alone, the evil desires would spread.

That’s why he often lingered at brothels.

It was not only because he was a lecher.

It was more so because his demon-possessed nature made him act this way.

And naturally, the female cultivators of the Hundred Flower Tower fell victim to his cruel hands.

According to Qinglan, many female cultivators had been tortured to death by Zhang Quan.

The Hundred Flower Tower was owned by the Lu Family, and Zhang Quan worked for Lu Chengyun, so the tragic deaths of these female cultivators naturally led nowhere.

Born into poverty, fallen into a life of debauchery, dying humiliated without even a place to be buried...

Mo Hua glanced at Zhang Quan indifferently and sneered inwardly:

”I’ll slaughter you sooner or later!”

Zhang Quan in the stone chamber suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

He immediately stood up and looked around.

”Who?”

”Who is it?”

Zhang Quan released his Divine Sense, but the surroundings were empty with no sign of anyone.

However, he was all too familiar with that feeling of coldness and the sensation of being watched.

”Is it that brat?”

Zhang Quan, at the Foundation Establishment Stage, looked a bit panicked.

He had been ”haunted” by Mo Hua.

Once targeted by that brat, he was like an inescapable maggot at his feet.

He looked around again, checked the formations, and found that neither the Expose Shadow Formation nor the Expose Dust Formation had been triggered, which allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief.

”I must be overthinking...”

”This is the Corpse Mine, with Lu Chengyun here, even that brat shouldn’t be able to stir up trouble.”

”No matter how capable he is, he can’t treat this Corpse Mine as his own backyard, going wherever he pleases.”

”The formations of the Corpse Mine were personally laid by Lu Chengyun, not like the Corpse Walking Stronghold...”

Every time he thought of the Corpse Walking Stronghold, Zhang Quan experienced heart-wrenching pain.

That was his foundation, built over decades with considerable influence, only to be inexplicably wiped out in one fell swoop.

Later, Zhang Quan faked his death, was rescued by Lu Chengyun, and even sneaked back once.

He saw that in the Corpse Walking Stronghold, all the secret chambers, mechanisms, hidden doors, and secret paths had been discovered, and the insides had been thoroughly looted.

Picked clean!

Not even leaving him a single coffin board, as if locusts had ravaged it through.

The person who could do this, he knew without thinking, was who.

The smiling face of Mo Hua emerged again in his mind.

Zhang Quan suddenly felt his blood rush to his head and quickly reminded himself:

”Can’t think about it, can’t think...”

Thinking too much will eventually lead to his death from rage.

Zhang Quan calmed his emotions and regained a bit of reason.

But with concerns in mind, he did not dare do anything else and just sat on the bed to meditate and regulate his breath.

Mo Hua watched a while longer, then shook his head.

Discover stories at empire

Although Zhang Quan had a ”Chart,” it was not the ”Formation Chart” he was looking for.

And most likely, the Ancestral Master Picture wasn’t in Zhang Quan’s hands.

If it really were, he would at least find a place to enshrine it, offering incense in his spare time, to show some filial piety.

Not like now, watching the undressed fighting pictures whenever he pleased.

Where exactly is the Ancestral Master Picture then?

In Lu Chengyun’s hands?

Or is it still in Zhang Quan’s possession, just that he enshrined it somewhere unknown to himself?

Suddenly, Mo Hua thought of the altar above the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses.

Something unknown was enshrined on it.

Covered with yellow cloth, its details obscured.

Could it be that Zhang Quan had placed the chart on that dazzlingly luxurious and extravagantly wasteful altar?

”I need to take a look...”

Mo Hua pondered.

Whether the Ancestral Master Picture was on that altar or not, he had to find a way to enter the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses when no one was around and take a closer look.

During the daytime, with Lu Chengyun watching, it was not convenient to make any small moves.

When there were no people around, it was easier to explore the truth and falsity.

Examine the formations, deduce the complete Formation Patterns of the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses, check the corners for any hidden objects, and see what exactly was enshrined on the altar...

”But how to get in?”

Mo Hua frowned slightly, and after pondering for a while, his eyes lit up.

The Spiritual Pivot Formation...