Chapter 253: Chapter 252: Pursuit_1

The next day, they entered the mountain to capture Bald Tuo and, incidentally, to rescue Kong Sheng, whose fate was unknown.

Ten enforcement leaders from the Taoist Court of Tongxian City set out, led by Court Leader Zhang Lan. Lu Hui was in charge of the Qingxuan City side, while there were only three from the Monster Hunters: Ji Qingbai, Mo Shan, and Mo Hua.

Mo Shan was acquainted with Ji Qingbai and concerned about Mo Hua, so he joined them in entering Big Black Mountain.

Lu Hui didn’t pay much attention to these personnel arrangements, but upon seeing Mo Hua, he still frowned.

“Court Leader Zhang, what is this little cultivator for?”

Lu Hui’s gaze sharpened as he asked Zhang Lan.

“We need him to lead the way into the mountain,” Zhang Lan said plainly.

“Lead the way? By him?”

Lu Hui’s expression was somewhat astonished, tinged with a hint of disdain.

Zhang Lan glanced at him, “Does Court Leader Lu have any objections?”

Lu Hui offered a faint smile, “I wouldn’t dare.”

He said nothing more, but sneered to himself:

“I don’t know if it’s the Monster Hunters who lack people, or the Taoist Court that lacks competence, to actually let such a runt lead the way?”

The group left the city and entered Big Black Mountain, crossing the outer mountain to enter the Inner Mountain.

The terrain became suddenly treacherous, the woods shadowy, and the miasma much more intense.

Everyone took out Miasma Repelling Pills and swallowed them, then found a campsite to settle down temporarily.

“I wonder what arrangements Court Leader Zhang has made?” Lu Hui inquired.

Zhang Lan didn’t really want to bother with him, but since they were acting together, he had to make things clear.

“There are formations set up in the Inner Mountain, and once there is a fight, we will detect it.”

“Elder Yu also made it clear that for the next few days, the Monster Hunters should avoid hunting Monster Beasts in the mountain, so if there is any combat, aside from the Monster Beasts fighting to the death, it’s very likely Bald Tuo committing murder and robbery…”

Lu Hui’s heart chilled, “There’s such a formation? I wonder which master’s work it is?”

Mo Hua remained expressionless by his side.

Zhang Lan glanced at him, thinking to himself, “It’s the work of the ‘master’ right beside you.”

However, he did not say it outright, only stating, “You’ll know eventually.”

Lu Hui looked puzzled.

Zhang Lan, not wanting to continue the conversation, then said:

“We will split into two teams, each equipped with a Compass Formation. If a fight happens, we will go to inspect. Even if we really encounter Bald Tuo, do not act rashly; wait for everyone to gather before taking action.”

Mo Shan and Mo Hua both had Compass Disks; they split into two teams, and for the next few days, they patrolled the mountains looking for clues about the Sin Cultivator and met up at the campsite at night.

Several days passed without a sight of Bald Tuo, not even a single Sin Cultivator, which led to subtle doubts among the group.

However, this, like Monster Hunters searching for prey in the mountains, ultimately required patience.

Several days later, after a fruitless search, Mo Hua, who was resting by a dense forest, spoke to Zhang Lan, “Strange, how come we can’t find them?”

Zhang Lan furrowed his brow and thought for a moment, “It is indeed peculiar.”

“Could it be that Bald Tuo is no longer in Big Black Mountain?”

Zhang Lan pondered, “It’s not impossible.”

“If that’s the case, then Young Master Kong is probably dead as a doornail,” Mo Hua said with a touch of schadenfreude.

Lu Hui gave Mo Hua a cold glance, “Young man, please be more careful with your words.”

“All right then,” Mo Hua changed his phrasing and sighed, “It’s likely that Young Master Kong’s luck has run out.”

Lu Hui felt his eyelids twitch at the comment.

Zhang Lan sighed. At a time like this, Mo Hua still had the mindset to quibble with words.

But on second thought, this matter really had nothing to do with Mo Hua; he would rather have Bald Tuo kill Kong Sheng.

Zhang Lan actually thought the same, but he couldn’t shirk his duties with the task at hand.

After resting for a while, everyone continued to search for people based on the light dots on the Compass Disk.

However, most of the light dots indicated monster beasts fighting to the death; only a small part was other Monster Hunters from outside the area hunting, and there was no sign of Sin Cultivators.

It wasn’t until the afternoon that they encountered a group of Monster Hunters, four or five in total.

They were dressed like Monster Hunters from Tongxian City, but Mo Hua had never seen them before.

Mo Hua asked, “Where are you Monster Hunters from?”

One of the Monster Hunters laughed and said, “Little brother, we’re from Tongxian City.”

Mo Hua then asked for directions and if they had seen any strange Cultivators.

The group of Monster Hunters replied, “We haven’t seen any other Cultivators.”

Mo Hua nodded, then parted ways with them. After walking a few steps, Mo Hua gave Zhang Lan a meaningful glance.

Zhang Lan’s gaze sharpened, and he nodded slightly, signaling the other Taoist Court Cultivators with a gesture. Then, they stealthily turned back, quietly following the group of Monster Hunters until they arrived at a valley.

The group of Monster Hunters entered the valley and then vanished from sight.

Mo Hua said, “Their den must be here.”

Lu Hui asked in surprise, “How do you know they’re not Monster Hunters?”

“Because they claimed to be Monster Hunters from Tongxian City, but I’ve never seen them before.”

Lu Hui frowned and said, “There are nearly a thousand Monster Hunters in Tongxian City, can you recognize them all?”

Mo Hua ignored him and turned to Zhang Lan, saying, “Let’s prepare to make our move.”

Zhang Lan nodded, “I’ll have everyone gather right away.”

The Cultivators of the Taoist Court swiftly acted on Zhang Lan’s orders, each carrying out their assigned roles.

Only Lu Hui, whose eyes occasionally flashed with a hint of darkness as he looked at Mo Hua, stayed silent, seemingly plotting something.

As night fell, there was a faint glow of firelight within the valley and the sound of Cultivators conversing.

On Zhang Lan’s side, everyone had assembled outside the valley, using a large boulder and the tall surrounding grass to conceal their figures.

Zhang Lan spoke in a hushed tone, “I’ve been watching this afternoon. They have more than twenty people, including Bald Tuo and the one-eyed Cultivator—all inside.”

This was more than what they had anticipated. Either these were Bald Tuo’s previously hidden forces or Sin Cultivators who had recently gathered.

Currently, they did not have a numerical advantage. If they were to strike, they would need to catch the enemy off guard and by surprise.

Ji Qingbai said, “They seem to be drinking. It’s a good time to act, but it’s too dark now, and some might escape. It would be better to strike at dawn when it just starts getting light.”

Mo Shan nodded and added, “Striking at dawn would be best, as they will be drunk and sleepy, most vulnerable at that moment.”

Zhang Lan agreed, “Then let’s follow Mo’s suggestion.”

After that, Zhang Lan discussed details with Mo Shan and Ji Qingbai, while Lu Hui remained silent on the side, his eyes occasionally resting on Ji Qingbai without revealing his thoughts.

Once the discussion was finished, Zhang Lan added, “We need to find a way to seal off the valley mouth.”

This valley was rather hidden, with only one entrance that was easy to defend but hard to attack. However, because there was only one entrance, once it was sealed, the group of Sin Cultivators would be trapped like turtles in a jar, unable to escape.

But the mouth of the valley was neither too large nor too small. It would not be easy to guard with manpower alone.

Zhang Lan looked towards Mo Hua.

Mo Hua nodded, “I will seal the valley mouth.”

Mo Hua used his Divine Sense to scan the valley, confirming that the group of Sin Cultivators was deep in their drink, an opportune moment of negligence when they wouldn’t notice him, and then he cautiously approached the valley.

Amid the cloak of night and blurred vision, Mo Hua hid in the bushes. Though the Sin Cultivators couldn’t see him, even if they did suspect something, the indistinct light of night would help Mo Hua’s rudimentary Concealment Technique, preventing him from being discovered.

His Concealment Technique wouldn’t completely make him invisible; it wouldn’t work during the day, but at night it was far more effective.

Moreover, with Mo Hua’s strong Divine Sense and intentional effort to hide his own aura, even if the Sin Cultivators swept the area with Divine Sense, they wouldn’t notice him.

With little time to spare, Mo Hua hadn’t been able to prepare the Earth Fire Formation in advance, so he had to draw it on the spot.

Crouched at the valley mouth, Mo Hua took out his Formation Pen and, dipping it in ink, sketched the Earth Fire Formation onto the rocks on the ground at the valley’s entrance with fast-moving strokes.

Zhang Lan and the others were already used to it.

Only Lu Hui was profoundly shocked at this moment—he had never expected that this young man was a Formation Master!