The Quest for Immortality

However, the evil spirits that can truly satisfy him are certainly not common goods, and finding them would likely be quite a hassle.

Mo Hua suddenly felt a bit nostalgic for the Qianxue State Boundary.

At that time, Mr. Tu was still around, the Great Wilderness Evil God hadn’t awakened, the Blood Sacrifice Array hadn’t been activated yet, and altars were everywhere.

Each altar was enough to feast upon once, back then, even consuming up to twenty-four patterns would probably be more than enough.

Now, the true fetus has been captured, Mr. Tu is dead, the large formation has collapsed, although the crisis has been resolved, all the altars are gone as well.

No wonder the ancients often said that things should be done steadily over time, and killing the chicken to get the eggs is not a viable approach.

Now, even this ”egg” from killing the chicken has been withheld by a miserly Pixiu, and I can’t even get a few bites.

Mo Hua sighed slightly.

Having left the Qianxue State Boundary, where else can one find such a good place for the divine sense to indulge and massively replenish?

After all, that was the hard-earned business of Mr. Tu, painstakingly managed for hundreds or thousands of years.

Mo Hua sighed for a moment, then collected himself and continued on his journey.

”The road is still long, and who knows what lies ahead, let’s take it step by step...”

Mo Hua continued south by the predetermined direction.

His silhouette was like water, his steps extremely swift, so he traveled for nearly half a month before leaving the Big Black Mountain State Boundary.

The surrounding peaks became lower, the monster qi thinned, and it appeared more desolate, lacking the profound and eerie aura of Big Black Mountain.

This was another second-grade small state boundary neighboring Big Black Mountain, known as the State Boundary of Jiejie.

The words ”Jiejie” were not really a standalone name but referred to the gathering of cultivators at the edges of the state boundaries.

It meant that there wasn’t a specifically formed state boundary here, not many Immortal Cities, just cultivators gathering at the edges of the state boundaries, hence collectively named ”Jiejie” for reference.

However, just as Mo Hua set foot out of the Big Black Mountain land into the State Boundary of Jiejie, a malicious aura appeared in his gaze.

The killing intent within his heart surged again.

Mo Hua frowned, feeling somewhat irritated.

”Is the evil qi backlashing again?”

Is it because leaving the Big Black Mountain State Boundary, without the shelter of merit, has caused the life chart to imbalance again?

Or is it because being far from ”home” has lost the human nature’s anchor, thus increasing the killing nature?

Mo Hua could only suppress the killing intent and stabilize his mind.

At the same time, following the cultivation method of the Seven Souls Pupil Skill, he envisioned his home and his parents as the human nature’s anchor, engraving them in his divine soul, to resist the backlash of evil qi on his mind.

But at the same time, he felt a heavy heart.

The influence of fateful evilness was more severe than he anticipated.

If he does not find a way to curb or resolve it early, who knows what he might become in the future...

Mo Hua shook his head, and after the evil qi settled, he continued on his journey, crossing the State Boundary of Jiejie.

After traveling dozens of miles, everywhere he passed was desolate mountains and wild ridges, dilapidated village households.

The State Boundary of Jiejie was very poor, with few Immortal Cities within the state boundary.

Most of the loose cultivators were gathered in mountain villages or flat land settlements.

Along the way, what Mo Hua saw were impoverished loose cultivators.

Very poor, even poorer than Mo Hua anticipated.

Faces were sallow and thin, gazes were timid, clothes were tattered, food was insufficient, even the few children he met were so thin they looked like skin and bones.

Mo Hua, accustomed to the Qianxue State Boundary’s aristocratic families standing tall, and the bustling prosperity of Tongxian City.

Seeing personally these impoverished loose cultivators with skin and bones, he felt a strong sense of unreality.

But unfortunately, there were neither villages nor shops ahead, nor behind.

The surroundings were desolate, lacking cultivated spirit fields, alchemical herbs, artifact refining ores, and even few monster beasts...

Truly impoverished, even Mo Hua didn’t know how to help them.

Feeling low, Mo Hua continued on, passing through five or six mountain villages in half a day, all much the same, not much different.

He finally arrived at a fork in the road.

Before him, shrouded by forest, sparse shrubs, the rugged hilltop split into three narrow mountain paths, stretching far into the distance.

Mo Hua couldn’t discern which mountain path to take.

Though his divine sense was strong, even the divine sense of the Golden Core Realm had its limits, unable to truly encompass the entire mountain range.

He had no choice but to ask for directions.

To the left of the fork, there was a small mountain village.

Mo Hua entered the village, though clad in a dusty gray robe, his clear eyes and jade-like appearance still left the loose cultivators in shock, lost for a long time.

Mo Hua bowed, ”Pardon my intrusion, I’ve come to ask for a cup of water and some directions.”

No one dared to respond.

Two children ran to the back of the village.

After a while, an emaciated old man leaning on a cane came trembling out from the back of the village and bowed to Mo Hua:

”Young lad, forgive us for not welcoming you from afar, please come this way.”

Mo Hua nodded, following the old man into a simple thatched cottage nearby.

The old man pointed to an old porcelain teacup on the table, his voice hoarse, ”It’s coarse mountain tea, hope you won’t mind it, young lad.”

Mo Hua glanced at it, it was wild tea from the mountains, he took a sip, it was very bitter, the astringency spread to the root of his tongue.

”Young lad, where are you coming from and where are you heading?” the old man asked.

Mo Hua said, ”I’m coming from Tongxian City, heading to the Great Wilderness south of Li State.”

The old man was startled upon hearing this, ”Tongxian City is across Big Black Mountain, monsters are terrifying. And the Great Wilderness to the south is tens of thousands of miles away, fraught with dangers... Young lad, you’re traveling alone?”

Mo Hua nodded, ”I’m on a journey to seek the Dao.”

The old man respectfully said, ”Is there anything this old man can assist the young lad with?”