Chapter 1170: Suzaku Mountain Realm

Over two years, Mo Hua consumed more than a hundred barbarian gods, large and small, from the seven conquered mountain realms and the list secretly compiled by Elder Zhamu. The surrounding barbarian gods were almost driven to an endangered status by Mo Hua, this "natural disaster." Only a few barbarian gods, those who diligently fulfilled their divine duties, treated their believers kindly, and worked conscientiously, managed to survive. Additionally, some barbarian gods skilled in concealment, who, sensing trouble, immediately hid like rats in the mountains, avoided Mo Hua's "great calamity."

After consuming over a hundred gods, Mo Hua's spiritual sense had significantly strengthened. It had now reached the middle stage of the 22nd pattern. This progress was not bad, but it fell far short of Mo Hua's expectations. Mo Hua had anticipated that hunting and devouring so many barbarian gods would make his spiritual sense much stronger, at least close to the 23rd pattern. However, things did not turn out as he expected.

One reason might be that he had eaten too many barbarian gods and developed a resistance, so the enhancement of his spiritual sense was diminishing marginally. Second, the quality of the barbarian gods he consumed might have been too low. Supplementing a 22-pattern Golden Core spiritual sense with second-grade barbarian gods was simply too inadequate. Frankly, reaching this level was already a pleasant surprise. If he had consumed ordinary second-grade evil spirits, the increase would have been negligible.

Cultivating and enhancing spiritual sense was inherently extremely difficult. Even ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators struggled immensely to improve their spiritual sense at that level. Not to mention Mo Hua, who was attempting to refine a Golden Core spiritual sense while still in the Foundation Establishment realm, and further elevate it – that was an almost impossible feat.

"No matter how I look at it, I must go to a third-grade mountain realm," Mo Hua sighed softly, looking up at the vast, dim sky of the Great Wilderness, where faint crimson fire seemed to flow. A heavy feeling settled in his heart.

For over two years, he had been trapped in this desolate wilderness, surrounded by rugged, treacherous mountains. It was a secluded area, with vast gobi outside, making it impossible to determine his location. He couldn't leave even if he wanted to. He had no way of knowing anything about the outside world. How was the war between the Dao Court and the Great Wilderness progressing? How far had the Dao Court's army advanced? How fierce was the fighting with the Great Wilderness? Had Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong survived the deadly calamity, or had they died in the mutiny at the Great Wilderness Sect that night? And what was the fate of the Great Wilderness Sect? What was the Dao Court's reaction after its betrayal? Would the Great Wilderness Sect be labeled as "treasonous" and subjected to suppression, or even a massacre by the Dao Court? What about Dahu? Wouldn't he also be implicated if he was at the Great Wilderness Sect? Also, why had Dahu become so silent and fierce? What exactly had he experienced at the Great Wilderness Sect? And what about Shuanghu and Sanhu? Where had they gone? Mo Hua knew none of this, and a cloud of doubt gradually enveloped his heart.

He focused his gaze again on the deep crimson sky, where fire seemed to flow like blood, and his brows gradually furrowed. The celestial phenomena indicated a surge in heavenly mechanisms. With his current cultivation and attainments, he naturally couldn't fully comprehend the heavenly secrets embedded in these phenomena. Yet, seeing these phenomena always brought a vague sense of urgency that lingered in his mind, making him feel a chill he couldn't shake. It seemed that beneath the surface of war in the Barbarian Wilderness, other conspiracies were hidden.

"Has someone already extended their reach into the Great Wilderness?" Mo Hua's pupils deepened. Since he had made up his mind, he should act as soon as possible and plan ahead. The current situation was unclear; no one knew when a great disaster or upheaval might suddenly strike. Before that, he had to study the heavenly mechanisms, strive to form his Golden Core, eliminate calamities through karma, and protect himself with the Golden Core. Mo Hua felt a heavy weight in his heart and dared not delay any longer, fearing that hesitation would lead to unforeseen changes.

The next day, he summoned the barbarian military commanders like Wucha and Jiaoli, internal affairs elders like Zhamu and Jiaohu, and the chiefs and elders of the various tribes under his influence. He then said, "Last night, while observing the celestial phenomena, I suddenly received a revelation from the Divine Lord, clarifying my path. Therefore, I need to go out for a period, spreading the Divine Lord's blessings. This will take at least a month, possibly up to half a year. During this time, all affairs of the allied tribes will be entrusted to your care. You must dedicate yourselves wholeheartedly and be loyal to the Divine Lord. Training troops, forging armor, hunting demons, cultivating spiritual plants, and propagating the teachings—none of these must be neglected. Should anyone harbor ill intentions, they will surely face the Divine Lord's wrath."

Although somewhat surprised, everyone respectfully bowed and said, "We humbly obey the Witch Priest's command. May the Divine Lord be immortal." Mo Hua also said, "May the Divine Lord be immortal."

Afterward, Mo Hua arranged all the specific matters. Elder Jiaohu was made fully responsible for armor forging, and Jiaoli and Wucha were instructed to keep each other in check to prevent barbarian cultivators from rebelling. Mo Hua temporarily entrusted Elder Zhamu with the task of spreading the teachings. At the same time, Xiao Zatu, who had studied with Mo Hua for a long time and possessed high comprehension, could also substitute teach temporarily. After making these arrangements, Mo Hua quietly departed alone that very night, heading towards the nearby third-grade mountain realm.

This time, Mo Hua planned to stay in the third-grade mountain realm for a while. Only by personally investigating and observing, and gaining a deeper understanding of the situation, could he know himself and his enemy, ensuring victory in every battle. Mo Hua, in disguise, walked for several days, leaving the Black Horn Mountain Realm. He then traversed treacherous mountain ranges alone, taking some more time, before finally arriving at the third-grade mountain realm to the southwest. Mo Hua had visited this mountain realm before, but only for a quick reconnaissance to get a general idea of the situation, without an in-depth investigation, as he hadn't truly intended to attack this third-grade mountain realm at that time.

But now it was different; the surrounding second-grade mountain realms had been conquered, and he had essentially done everything he needed to do there. The rest would rely on time: slowly consolidating his territory, gradually establishing his influence, ensuring the foundation was firm step by step, and allowing promising talents to mature slowly. All this time was necessary. Mo Hua also had to find a way to keep advancing and expanding outward. The third-grade mountain realm was a hurdle he had to overcome. Therefore, Mo Hua conducted his current on-site investigation much more thoroughly.

For the next month or so, he remained in disguise, observing, recording, analyzing, contemplating, and constantly comparing throughout the third-grade mountain realm. He gained a relatively deep understanding of its general situation. The more he learned, the colder Mo Hua's heart grew. This mountain realm was the only third-grade one nearby, and its strength was immense. Mo Hua had known this already. But now, after Mo Hua's in-depth investigation, he found that this mountain realm, in terms of the number of Golden Core cultivators (including those in the late stage), the power of the tribes, and the strength of the barbarian cultivators, surpassed his previous estimates. It was stronger and more populous than his initial rough observations had suggested.

The tribal system was rigid, their barbarian armor was excellent, their barbarian soldiers were formidable, and they even raised demonic beasts. Because they were barbarians, shrouded in an "uncivilized" veneer, Mo Hua had unconsciously underestimated them before, thinking they were nothing special. However, after two years, during which he successively conquered five mountain realms and over a hundred small tribes, and studied their inheritances, texts, and scripts, he gained a deeper understanding of the barbarian tribes' true foundation, shedding his "filter" of perceiving them as merely wild. Now, looking again, Mo Hua suddenly realized he had indeed "underestimated" this sole third-grade mountain realm surrounding Wutu and Black Horn. This was not just a powerful third-grade mountain realm; it was almost a peak third-grade province realm, with complete inheritances and immense prosperity. The number of late-stage Golden Core barbarian cultivators within the mountain realm was almost exaggerated. Its mid-to-high-level foundation was extremely profound; it almost had the makings of a fourth-grade mountain realm. In a sense, if a few Feathered Ascendants were present, it could already be called a "fourth-grade" mountain realm.

A supremely prosperous third-grade mountain realm, compared to the surrounding smaller mountain realms like Wutu and Black Horn, displayed an overwhelming, cliff-like power disparity; they were simply not on the same dimension. This was highly illogical. It was vastly different from the distribution of province realms in the Nine Provinces. Mo Hua had not expected such a territorial layout to exist in the Great Wilderness. This was almost impossible in the Nine Provinces. The bordering and transitions between province realms in the Nine Provinces were largely balanced and smooth. For example, the Qianxue Province Realm had fourth-grade and third-grade realms nearby, transitioning to smaller second-grade realms only in more remote areas, and the power disparity wouldn't be too vast. There wouldn't be such an abrupt appearance of a colossus amidst a group of small fry.

The only exception was a siphon-style province realm layout. Some province realms weren't originally that strong; they simply forcefully siphoned resources from weaker surrounding realms, turning them into small fry. In this way, they became colossi, and the surrounding realms became small fry. This was the only way to create such an extremely disparate situation. But this was definitely not the case here in the Barbarian Wilderness. This peak third-grade mountain realm had almost no interaction with the surrounding Wutu and Black Horn Mountain Realms, nor was there any siphoning phenomenon. Wutu and Black Horn, these mountain realms, also didn't have any resources for this peak third-grade mountain realm to siphon. This point was very strange.

Mo Hua's expression grew serious. The situation was deviating somewhat from his initial assumptions. This mountain realm was far more complex than he had imagined. Mo Hua became even more discreet, using his concealment techniques more diligently, afraid of being caught by some high-level Golden Core cultivators. After investigating for some more time, which included secretly observing the totems and conspicuous writings of some tribes, and eavesdropping on some barbarian cultivators' conversations, Mo Hua finally learned that this mountain realm was indeed not an ordinary third-grade mountain realm. Most of the tribes within the mountain realm originated from the same ancestor, sharing similar lineage, inheritance, and totems of similar style. All these totems were related to fire and birds. When these totems were superimposed, deduplicated, and pieced together, the rough outline was that of a fiery red divine bird. This couldn't help but remind Mo Hua of one of the Four Divine Beasts of the Great Wilderness: the Vermilion Bird. In fact, many tribal names within the mountain realm were also related to the Vermilion Bird.

"Vermilion Bird Mountain Realm?" Mo Hua was quite shocked. But upon careful thought, he felt there was a big problem. The Vermilion Bird was one of the Four Divine Beasts and should hold a very high status. Why would it be the totem of a third-grade mountain realm? Or perhaps, this was merely a lineage among the Great Wilderness tribes that worshipped the Vermilion Bird Divine Beast? The Azure Dragon was the symbol of the Great Wilderness imperial family. What about the Vermilion Bird? What status did it hold among the Great Wilderness tribes? Was the Vermilion Bird merely a symbol, or was there truly a divine beast Vermilion Bird present in this mountain realm? The origin of the Great Wilderness's Vermilion Bird Divine Beast was too mysterious, and Mo Hua couldn't make sense of it for a while.

Instead, another problem was even more troublesome: this mountain realm was simply unassailable. It worshipped the divine beast Vermilion Bird, was a peak third-grade, "pseudo-fourth-grade" realm, with over a dozen tribes, dozens of late-stage Golden Core cultivators, and numerous Golden Core elders. Mo Hua's scalp tingled. How could he possibly fight this? There was a difference between third-grade and third-grade. A threshold-level third-grade mountain realm was almost worlds apart from this peak-level "Vermilion Bird" mountain realm.

"I can't fight it—so what do I do?" Mo Hua frowned, contemplating for a long time. The hard power gap was too large; if he couldn't win, he couldn't win. But if he didn't fight, the situation would be deadlocked again. The Barbarian Wilderness was secluded, surrounded by gobi on all sides; he couldn't get out. As for Wutu and Black Horn, he had already fought everyone he could. He couldn't just guard those second-grade mountain realms, leisurely wasting away fifteen or twenty years, could he? By then, everything would be too late.

Mo Hua pondered the overall situation of the Great Wilderness, performed a divination for himself, and reviewed his actions in the Great Wilderness, suddenly realizing: No, why did it have to be about "fighting"? His identity in the Great Wilderness was not that of a conqueror or destroyer, but a Witch Priest. Or rather, he should actually be a teacher—a teacher who propagates teachings and dispels confusion. Since he was a teacher, why engage in fighting and killing? What a teacher should do is cultivate talents. Talent was the most valuable asset. Students with sufficient talent could achieve things he wanted to do but couldn't, thereby changing the situation in the Great Wilderness.

"Talent—" Mo Hua mused inwardly. Xiao Zatu and others were his students, and he estimated they would become capable talents in the future. However, they were still too young; their cultivation realms, dispositions, conduct, and status were all still lacking. Currently, they were still studying cultivation and couldn't play much of a role. Their future was promising, but they weren't ready yet. In other words, to develop in the Vermilion Bird Mountain Realm, what he needed now was a useful and influential talent. This talent couldn't be too young, and their status couldn't be low. They needed a sincere heart and grand ambitions. But such individuals were rare, even in the Nine Provinces. Not to mention, he was currently in the Great Wilderness.

"However, this mountain realm is a peak third-grade great mountain realm, worshipping the 'Vermilion Bird' divine beast, with a long history—" "With such a large area, so many barbarian cultivators, and such a long history, it shouldn't be too much to expect a few talents to emerge—" Mo Hua then began to travel alone in disguise, or infiltrate in disguise, conducting overt and covert investigations, hoping to find a disciple in the Vermilion Bird Mountain Realm who suited his taste. But after searching for a long time, he failed. As he expected, such talents were as rare as phoenix feathers, extremely scarce. Geniuses here in the Great Wilderness either had talent but lacked character, or they had some character but weren't diligent enough. Those of noble birth were often disdainful of their subordinates and arrogant. After much searching, none were quite suitable.

Left with no alternative, Mo Hua resorted to the demon bone divination art of the Great Wilderness: lighting and burning bones, earnestly asking and inferring karma: "Where exactly is the disciple I'm looking for—" The demon bone was covered in cracks, and within the cracks, there was a fiery red glow. These cracks formed two ancient barbarian characters: "Dan Que." Then all the divination signs vanished. Mo Hua destroyed the traces of the divination, then his gaze shifted, and he mused: "Dan Que—does it refer to the Dan Que Tribe?"

The Dan Que Tribe was one of the strongest major tribes in the entire third-grade mountain realm. Its name was also very similar to "Vermilion Bird," indicating a deep origin. "Does this bone divination mean my disciple is in the Dan Que Tribe?" Mo Hua pondered for a moment, then set off for the Dan Que Tribe.

The Dan Que Tribe was a large tribe, with several late-stage Golden Core cultivators and many early to mid-stage Golden Core elders within its ranks. The Dan Que Tribe also occupied a large section of the mountains. The basin in the mountains served as the tribe's main encampment. Outside the basin, in numerous forests and at the foot of the mountains, there were also many smaller tribes branched off from Dan Que, distant bloodline outsider tribes, and people from allied tribes settled there. There were even many barbarian slaves. This was a characteristic of large tribes: the bigger the tribe, the more barbarian slaves they acquired through conquest. And the more barbarian slaves they raised, the more abundant the tribe's provisions became, and the stronger its overall power. Here in the Great Wilderness, the class system was quite distinct, even rigid.

Mo Hua subtly "disguised" himself, applying bronze-colored ink to his body, drawing some Four Symbols demonic patterns that were purely decorative, donning barbarian animal skins, and speaking with a full barbarian accent. He quickly blended into the Dan Que Tribe. Mo Hua couldn't blend into the core of the Dan Que Tribe. However, in the outer areas, among the smaller tribes, outer tribes, and allied tribes, Mo Hua moved freely, even thriving like a fish in water. Apart from anything else, the display of intricate and profound "barbarian patterns" on his body alone was enough to inspire awe in a group of barbarian cultivators. Moreover, his demeanor and aura were exceptionally outstanding. When some barbarian cultivators inquired about his origins, a mere casual glance from Mo Hua made them feel inferior and too ashamed to speak further. Mo Hua also displayed a bit of formation array techniques at just the right moment, which led people to regard him as an expert. Some even said, "This noble person, so young and extraordinary, will surely enter the Royal Court and become a Witch Priest adult in the future." Thus, before long, Mo Hua became a distinguished guest among the smaller tribes of the Dan Que Tribe.

Mo Hua then searched among these smaller tribes for the disciple he desired. But after more than a month of searching, he still hadn't found anyone. Such a needle-in-a-haystack endeavor, even with karmic hints, wouldn't be easy. "Did I search incorrectly, or is my disciple not among these smaller and outer tribes?" Mo Hua felt perplexed. "Who could be the disciple I'm looking for?"

A few days later, while Mo Hua was chatting and teaching some Dan Que barbarian cultivators how to draw simple demonic patterns on their barbarian armor, he also kept his ears open and extended his spiritual sense, gathering various information. It was at this moment that Mo Hua suddenly heard a name that greatly caught his attention: Danzhu, the young master of the Dan Que Tribe. He was extremely talented, born with a Dao heart, reached Foundation Establishment at ten, and formed his Golden Core at twenty.