The Quest for Immortality

The annihilated small tribe’s blood turned to ash, a scene of desolation.

The towering Elder Ba Shan spoke with anger:

”Young Master, we must hurry to chase them down, strip the skin and tendons of those Shugu thieves, to comfort these tribesmen’s souls in the heavens.”

Beside him, the composed Elder Ba Chuan nodded solemnly, ”If we don’t pursue swiftly, these Shugu thieves might vanish without a trace.”

Dan Zhu’s gaze was sharp as he nodded, ”Alright.”

But the ensuing problem was that they didn’t know where these Shugu partisans had fled to, or where to pursue them.

After all, a day had already passed. The Shugu thieves would surely have escaped far.

If they chased in the wrong direction, they’d be going in circles, wasting a trip.

Not only would they fail to avenge, but they might also become the laughingstock of other tribes.

Elders Ba Shan and Ba Chuan decided to search the surroundings first, then determine which direction the Shugu had fled.

Mo Hua gently pointed westward, ”They fled that way.”

Ba Shan was taken aback and asked, ”How do you know?”

Mo Hua pointed upward to the sky, ”The Divine Lord told me.”

Ba Shan was at a loss for words, his face looked displeased.

Dan Zhu glanced at Mo Hua, thought for a moment, then decisively said, ”Alright, let’s chase westward.”

”Young Master...” Ba Shan wanted to advise caution.

After all, if they pursued incorrectly, it would cost precious time and a lot of unnecessary effort.

But Dan Zhu wouldn’t allow any refusal:

”There’s no time to lose, to the west!”

He finished speaking and was the first to walk in the direction Mo Hua pointed.

Ba Shan and the others had no choice but to follow.

A hundred barbarian soldiers, seeing Young Master Dan Zhu leave, also set off to follow.

The tall and sturdy Barbarian General Chi Feng, with red hair like fire, looked at Mo Hua’s elusive figure and slightly frowned but didn’t say a word, silently following the group.

The group pursued westward, climbing mountains and crossing cliffs, chasing for half a day.

Yet along the way, not a single human figure was seen, nor were there any traces of the Shugu.

Ba Shan grew increasingly regretful in his heart and said to Dan Zhu:

”Young Master, we’ve gone the wrong way, there’s not a soul on this mountain path, the Shugu never took this route.”

Dan Zhu clearly realized the problem as well, but he trusted Mo Hua and never questioned him along the way.

But when Elder Ba Shan spoke, Dan Zhu couldn’t help but furrow his brows and look at Mo Hua.

Unexpectedly, Mo Hua also nodded and admitted:

”That’s right, the Shugu indeed didn’t take this road.”

Dan Zhu was stunned.

Elders Ba Shan and Ba Chuan looked bewildered, then slightly angry:

”You...”

Their Young Master, along with these elders and a hundred barbarian soldiers, had all been played by Mo Hua, this treacherous person.

Mo Hua looked at them indifferently and said calmly:

”The Shugu were already a day’s journey ahead of us; following the same road, how could we catch up in a short time?”

”I led you on a shortcut.”

Elders Ba Shan and Ba Chuan were also stunned.

Barbarian General Chi Feng narrowed his eyes slightly.

Elder Ba Shan frowned, questioning again:

”You claim it’s a shortcut? How could you know where the Shugu are without clairvoyance?”

Mo Hua pointed to the sky again, ”Didn’t I say it? It’s a revelation from the Divine Lord. Ignorant people will never understand.”

For every indecision, there’s the prophecy of the Divine Lord.

When explanations fail, there’s the revelation from the Divine Lord.

Elder Ba Shan was choked, having no temper at all.

”Alright, let’s hurry on our way...” Mo Hua calculated with his fingers, ”In about half a day, before dawn, we should catch up.”

Dan Zhu nodded.

Golden Core Elders Ba Shan and Ba Chuan, with no way to deal with Mo Hua, this unorthodox ”Mr. Witch,” could only let him ”act recklessly.”

Ba Shan only sneered in his heart:

”Acting so full of confidence and mystery, when the time comes and we don’t catch up, I want to see how you’ll explain it to the Young Master.”

After that, he said nothing more.

The group, following Mo Hua’s direction, crossed barren ridges and continued westward.

About half a day later, at the foot of a mountain, they suddenly found some chaotic tracks and dense footprints.

The wheel tracks were deep, the footprints tangled.

There were also traces of people having been dragged on all fours.

Elder Ba Shan knelt on the ground, pinched the soil within the footprints with his fingertips, and found brown bloodstains mixed within, raising his head to look at Mo Hua in astonishment:

”You... guessed correctly?”

Mo Hua paid him no mind and instructed:

”Be careful, tread lightly, make no sound.”

Dan Zhu nodded and passed the instruction down.

The group then followed Mo Hua’s lead, entering a small forest on the side of the mountain, winding their way up.

Upon reaching the mountainside, Mo Hua ordered the barbarian soldiers to hold their position.

He then took Dan Zhu, Barbarian General Chi Feng, Elders Ba Shan and Ba Chuan, and a small squad of trusted aides to circle around to a small cliff.

At a glance, faint firelight could be seen amid the trees on the mountainside opposite.

The firelight was not obvious, but if one looked closely, they would find that surrounding the firelight were a group of strangely behaving tribal barbarian cultivators, dancing odd dances around the campfire at night, and their numbers were not small.

”It’s the Shugu...”

Elder Ba Chuan whispered.

”However...” He frowned, ”What are they dancing? The Shugu shouldn’t have this ritual...”

Mo Hua’s gaze was profound as he slowly spoke:

”Prepare to encircle and kill.”

The current Shugu is a ”Wandering Tribe” within the Shugu.

Unlike the Danque Tribe, the Shugu is a ”confederation” type of tribe, lacking unified inheritance and bloodlines.

Therefore, within the tribe, the members are very complex, and often their actions are not unified or constrained.