The Quest for Immortality

”This goes against my Sword Dao and will make me lose the courage to face formidable enemies...”

Mo Hua froze briefly, then sighed and said:”One day, you’re going to die from stupidity.”

Ling Huxiao was stunned, then showed a hint of anger and said coldly:”You’re the stupid one! What do you even know? You don’t even cultivate sword techniques, nor possess the talent for Sword Heart Clarity. How could you understand the pursuit of Sword Dao?!”

”What is Sword Heart Clarity?” Mo Hua asked curiously.

Ling Huxiao’s face darkened, tilting his head upward:”Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand.”

”Oh.” Mo Hua glanced at Ling Huxiao, thought for a moment, and then asked,”Are you planning to stay in the Sect for your entire life?”

Ling Huxiao didn’t quite understand why Mo Hua asked this, but still shook his head and replied:

”How could that be...”

Mo Hua said solemnly:”Then, do you know how cultivators behave outside the Sect? Do you know what methods Sin Cultivators, Evil Cultivators, and Demon Cultivators use to kill others for Replenishment, absorbing spirit or blood, or cultivating Evil Skills?”

Ling Huxiao was silent for a moment after Mo Hua’s question.

Although he had taken on a few reward missions, the times he had ventured out weren’t many. He had barely encountered truly heinous Evil Demon Cultivators.

Mo Hua sneered and said,”Those Evil Demon Cultivators, if they want to kill you, they’ll use whatever means they have at their disposal—be it despicable or shameless. Do you think they’d care?”

”If you get killed by them, your body dismembered, your blood turned into formation drawings, your flesh fed to demon monsters, your so-called ’Sword Heart’ extracted as a medicinal catalyst and refined into an Evil Pill...”

”Even your Divine Soul might be devoured...”

”At that point, are you going to reason with them? Are you going to accuse them of being dishonorable in victory?”

”Who would care about that?”

Mo Hua’s words were cold and sobering.

Ling Huxiao’s face turned visibly pale.

A moment later, he looked at Mo Hua, who appeared younger than him, with an innocent boyish demeanor but unusually deep eyes, and frowned as he asked:

”These things... How do you know about them?”

Demon Cultivators dismembering bodies, blood as formation ink, flesh feeding demon monsters, heart and veins refining into pills, Divine Souls eaten alive...

Such bloody matters—how does Mo Hua, a sincere Sect disciple, know them so clearly?

”Because I saw them with my own eyes...” Mo Hua silently thought to himself.

But such things were not suitable to be spoken out loud.

If word spread, it would destroy his image of being naive and innocent among fellow sect disciples.

”This was told to me by an uncle named Gu, who works as a Court Official in the Taoist Court, specializing for years in capturing Sin Cultivators and dealing with Evil Demons.”

Mo Hua once again brandished the name of ”Uncle Gu” to bluff his way through.

Ling Huxiao, seeing that he spoke so convincingly and with such detail, naturally believed him.

”So,” Mo Hua said, now looking serious, ”people often say Tao Cultivation is treacherous, but we Sect Disciples don’t actually realize what true ’treachery’ is.”

”These true dangers could be far more shameless, vile, malicious, insidious... and utterly preventable.”

”If you hold onto such naive thoughts as confessing ’dishonorable victory,’ you’d suffer significant losses when you truly step into the cultivation world.”

”You might end up with your Spirit Sword broken, your Sword Heart polluted, your foundation in Sword Dao destroyed entirely, and even your own life lost...”

Sword Dao foundation, destroyed entirely...

When it came to matters regarding Sword Dao, Ling Huxiao showed a grave expression.

Mo Hua continued:”Thus, if you want to live long, seek the Great Dao of longevity, and reach the true peak of Sword Dao, you must abandon the meaningless persistence of your ideals.”

”You must resort to any means necessary to improve your sword techniques, even if it means relying on external aids without hesitation.”

”Only by surviving and continuously growing stronger can you ultimately reach the end of Sword Dao!”

Mo Hua, who knew nothing about Sword Dao, was simply spouting nonsense based on his understanding of formations.

But all Great Daos converge ultimately, so it shouldn’t be too far off the mark.

Indeed, Ling Huxiao’s expression shifted, showing he was contemplating deeply.

Seeing Ling Huxiao hesitating, Mo Hua finally urged with a mild tone:

”You should start by simply killing these lower-level monster beasts, earning some merit points, and upgrading your strength.”

”Later, when we have the time, we’ll find more people to form a team and hunt Second Grade Middle Stage, or even High-Rank monster beasts together.”

”It’s by battling strong monsters at the edge of life and death, enduring immense pressure, that you can truly temper your Sword Heart and hone your swordsmanship.”

Ling Huxiao shivered in excitement.

Hunting Second Grade Middle Stage, or even High-Rank monster beasts?!

Ling Huxiao’s eyes lit up immediately, his body bursting with intense battle intent, and he promptly nodded in agreement, saying:”Okay! I’ll join you for monster hunting!”

Mo Hua secretly sighed in his heart.

A single-minded Sword Cultivator like Ling Huxiao is so easy to deceive.

As soon as he hears about hunting middle and high-rank monsters, he becomes as energetic as a chicken on steroids.

However, Second Grade Middle Stage monster beasts are a whole level stronger than Primary Rank ones—their Blood Qi and demonic power are more potent, and killing them will be quite troublesome.

High-Rank ones are even worse—not just troublesome but outright dangerous.

Still, when ”painting a picture,” you always make it look a little grander.

Besides, when Cheng Mo and the others achieve higher cultivation levels, trying to slay stronger monster beasts will indeed be required.

So, it’s not entirely a pipe dream.

As for when it’ll happen, that’s open to interpretation.

Could be one or two months later, or perhaps one or two years, even two or three years—it’s hard to say...

Ling Huxiao certainly did not have as many cunning ideas as Mo Hua.

He thought Mo Hua’s words indeed made sense.

Efficiently hunting low-level monster beasts, quickly earning merit points and improving swordsmanship.

Then, challenging fiercer and stronger monster beasts to temper his Sword Heart and refine his sword techniques!

Previously, he misunderstood him.

Mo Hua, it turns out, isn’t without a desire for victory, but rather, is meticulous and steady, seeking a more enduring path toward the Great Dao.