What just happened?

Why did Shi Gu, the “immortal and indestructible” cannibal general, suddenly kneel?

What was that invisible, powerful fluctuation just now?

Who exactly is this Mister Wu?

These confused and perplexed thoughts echoed in the minds of everyone, especially the savage cultivators of the Shugu Tribe led by General Lu Gu.

The air was deathly still.

Mo Hua, who had separated his divine sense from his body and, in the blink of an eye, used a sword to sever the evil thoughts in Shi Gu’s eyes, slowly closed his eyes. The various sword intents flowing within his gaze receded, and his entire demeanor became peaceful, as if he had only done a trivial matter.

“Lock up Shi Gu’s corpse.”

Mo Hua said indifferently.

Only then did everyone come back to their senses.

Lu Gu still felt an incredible shock, but he also knew that the situation was special and allowed no delay, so he said in a deep voice, “Bring the heavy locks and instruments of torture from the Shugu Tribe.”

Several Core Formation cultivators from the Shugu Tribe each took a section of heavy black bone chain from their storage bags and securely locked Shi Gu’s corpse, which was still kneeling on the ground.

This was a set of third-rank mid-grade restraint tools.

It seemed to have been left by the ancestors of the Shugu Tribe. With his evil thoughts erased and his “momentum” gone, Shi Gu allowed the giant chains to bind his physical body without any sign of resistance.

Lu Gu’s eyelids twitched slightly. He turned to Mo Hua, pondered for a moment, and then slowly asked, “Mister Wu, what exactly is going on?”

In his words, there was an unconscious deference, even a hint of awe.

No one understood his brother Shi Gu’s power better than he did.

The battle just now, against the almost “immortal and indestructible” Shi Gu, had made him feel an almost desperate pressure.

And such a Shi Gu was actually stunned by a single command: “Kneel.”

Lu Gu was deeply shocked and confused.

He was even more puzzled as to why his brother, Shi Gu, had become like this.

Mo Hua glanced at Lu Gu, his gaze calm as he said, “This is the work of an異端 (yìduān – heretic/anomaly).”

Lu Gu frowned, “An 異端 (yìduān)?”

Mo Hua nodded, his gaze solemn. “There is an evil spirit here, spreading 異端 (yìduān) and confusing people’s hearts. General Shi Gu’s mind was controlled by it, which is why he ‘died and resurrected’ to bring disaster upon the world.”

“Now, I, upholding the will of the Divine Lord, have borrowed the supreme divine power from the Divine Lord, and only then was I able to obliterate the evil spirit’s念力 (niànlì – mental power) and stop General Lu Gu’s evil deeds.”

“Everything is the grace of the Divine Lord.”

Dan Zhu and Chi Feng believed this deeply.

The two elders, Ba Shan and Ba Chuan, looked at the “omniscient” and “omnipotent” Mo Hua, their eyes unconsciously showing a hint of fanaticism.

The numerous barbarian soldiers of the Danque Tribe shouted, “Great is the Divine Lord!” and “Magnificent is the Witch Priest!”

Amidst the thunderous shouts, Mo Hua’s face was sacred and solemn.

Lu Gu looked at Mo Hua, his mind somewhat chaotic.

Was this fair-faced, Foundation Establishment realm youth an evil demon or a sacred Witch Priest?

He truly couldn’t distinguish anymore.

“Then—Mister Wu,” Lu Gu’s expression was grave, “what about my brother, Shi Gu? Will he cause trouble again?”

Mo Hua was about to say, “No, the Divine Lord has already suppressed him,” but before he could speak, a ferocious growl suddenly sounded again.

The voice was bloody and suppressed.

Everyone’s faces changed, and they turned to look, seeing that Shi Gu, who was kneeling on the ground, bound by heavy armor, now had black blood seeping from his dark eye sockets.

Evil thoughts began to surge again.

A thumping heartbeat began to vibrate, emitting a desire for flesh and blood.

Shi Gu had “come back to life” again.

Lu Gu felt a chill in his heart and quickly looked at Mo Hua.

Mo Hua’s pupils also contracted.

This Shi Gu—

He had clearly obliterated the evil spirit’s thoughts in Shi Gu’s sea of consciousness, but not long after, these evil thoughts had resurfaced.

This meant that what was now residing in Shi Gu’s mind was very likely the true—邪神 (xiéshén – evil god)’s 念力 (niànlì – mental power). “The true 邪神 (xiéshén)—”

Mo Hua turned his head to look at the Shi Gu Tribe, shrouded in miasma.

All signs indicated that a true 邪神 (xiéshén) might have been nurtured in the Shi Gu Tribe.

Mo Hua pondered for a moment, then slowly said, “The core of the 異端 (yìduān) is still there; the evil has not receded, so Shi Gu will ‘resurrect’ again—”

These words made everyone’s faces turn pale. A gloomy cloud hung over their hearts, and their mood was extremely heavy.

“But,” Mo Hua said solemnly again, “I am a Witch Priest. It is the mission of a Witch Priest to spread the Divine Lord’s prestige and sweep away all evil spirits.”

“Now, this 異端 (yìduān) is hidden deep within the miasma.”

“I will enter the miasma, and with the power of the Divine Lord, I will personally slay this 異端 (yìduān) and pacify the evil miasma of the Shigu Tribe.”

“And also let General Shi Gu, and the deceased tribesmen of the Shigu Tribe, no longer be controlled by evil thoughts, no longer cling to life with their bloodied, broken bodies, but instead find eternal peace—”

Mo Hua’s eyes held deep compassion.

Everyone looked at the dense miasma, knowing that a divine 異端 (yìduān) was hidden within this terrifying mist.

This 異端 (yìduān) had devoured the Shigu Tribe and even made General Shi Gu’s life worse than death.

And now, the Witch Priest was actually going to personally enter this miasma, into the depths of the fallen Shigu Tribe ruins—

Everyone felt both awe and worry.

Dan Zhu immediately said, “Mister, I will go with you.”

Mo Hua shook his head, “I will go alone.”

“Mister—”

Mo Hua said gently, “If you come with me, I won’t be able to protect you.”

A Foundation Establishment cultivator couldn’t protect a Core Formation cultivator.

This statement was somewhat strange, yet in this situation, no one felt the slightest incongruity.

It was as if it truly was so.

Even if these Core Formation cultivators went in, they would only hold back the Witch Priest, who was in the Foundation Establishment realm.

Dan Zhu’s eyes were filled with worry. “Mister, but if you go in alone, if—”

Mo Hua said calmly, “If I can return from this trip, then the 異端 (yìduān) will naturally be vanquished, and all will be well.”

“But if, by some chance, I cannot return, you need not worry—”

Mo Hua looked at Dan Zhu and smiled gently, “You are the one chosen by the Divine Lord. Even without me, the Divine Lord will choose another to guide you.”

Dan Zhu felt a pang in his heart. “Mister.”

Mo Hua looked deeply at Dan Zhu and comforted him, “Don’t worry, I told you, all my power comes from the Divine Lord. The Divine Lord will protect me.”

Afterward, Mo Hua instructed Lu Gu, “Keep your brother’s corpse suppressed. While I am in the evil mist, you must not let him break free and cause another rampage, or all of you will be in mortal danger.”

Lu Gu subconsciously said, “Yes.”

After saying it, even he himself was startled.

He was the general of the main Shugu Tribe, a mighty late-Core Formation cultivator, usually held in high esteem, yet now he was nodding and agreeing to a Foundation Establishment realm demon?

Lu Gu froze for a moment.

Mo Hua, however, no longer paid him any mind. He gave a few instructions to Chi Feng and the others, then stepped out alone, walked to the edge of the miasma, and stood there by himself.

After standing still, Mo Hua looked up slightly, gazing at the sky, his expression pious as he prayed, “To the esteemed Divine Lord above, this devotee prays to slay the 異端 (yìduān) today and spread the Divine Lord’s prestige.”

“I ask the Divine Lord to bestow upon me divine power, to allow me to pass through the evil mist, find the 異端 (yìduān), slay the evil spirit with divine power, quell the disaster, and remove this calamity from the Great Wilderness.”

After reciting his prayer, Mo Hua made a show of bowing three times to the sky.

Then Mo Hua slowly stood still, closed his eyes, seemingly awaiting the Divine Lord’s reply.

All the Core Formation cultivators and six thousand barbarian soldiers watched silently and reverently, not daring to breathe.

No one knew what answer the lofty Divine Lord had given Mo Hua.

Nor what blessings the Divine Lord had bestowed upon Mo Hua.

However, when Mo Hua slowly opened his eyes and began to move, everyone witnessed an unbelievable scene:

Sacred runes!

Pale green, profound, obscure, and full of vital power, sacred runes actually formed spontaneously beneath the Witch Priest’s feet.

And they spread forward, paving a path, as if guided by a god.

As the path extended and the sacred runes spread, the miasma of evil thoughts churned, parting on its own to both sides.

It was as if the evil 異端 (yìduān) feared the might of the divine.

And the Witch Priest, with a calm gaze, slowly stepped into the surging miasma of evil thoughts along this path of sacred runes.

His gaze was calm, devoid of any emotion.

But as everyone watched his retreating figure, they could feel the unwavering conviction of his faith and his fearless courage in battling evil spirits.

At that moment, everyone was deeply moved by a sense of nobility.

The Danque Tribe, the Wutu Tribe, and even many barbarian soldiers of the Shugu Tribe, couldn’t help but kneel, silently chanting, “May the Divine Lord protect the Witch Priest.”

“May the Witch Priest protect the Great Wilderness—”

Dan Zhu and the other Core Formation cultivators, though not kneeling, silently placed their fists across their chests, praying for Mo Hua.

Tie Shugu’s face showed the pain of internal conflict.

Lu Gu’s gaze was also extremely complex.

They just watched Mo Hua.

And Mo Hua, under the gaze of everyone, walked alone, treading the path of sacred runes, into the dense miasma, going further and further—

Finally, his figure disappeared into the depths of the evil mist—

Like a lone traveler bearing a sacred mission, facing the great evil of the world alone, time passed little by little.

Mo Hua walked alone in the miasma.

As he walked further and further, entering the depths of the Shigu Tribe ruins, where he could no longer feel the gazes of the people behind him nor the lingering divine sense, Mo Hua finally sighed softly. The solemn expression on his face became lively.

Acting was quite tiring.

Especially when pretending to be the “Witch Priest” in front of a group of people.

He wondered if he had done a good job pretending just now…

Mo Hua mumbled to himself.

With no one watching him, and no longer burdened by the role of the Witch Priest, Mo Hua became much more relaxed.

His fair fingers moved frequently, manipulating spiritual ink through the air, forming the “Thick Earth Reconstitution Array” (厚土复构绝阵) under his feet, an array he had painstakingly researched. With this, he resisted the devouring power within the famine miasma and carved out a path.

At the same time, Mo Hua constantly looked left and right, examining this Shigu Tribe, which had been buried by the famine.

His eyes met with nothing but desolation. Blackish-brown bloodstains clung to broken walls and ruined structures.

From the remaining ruins, it was evident that the Shigu Tribe had indeed once been a powerful and prosperous tribe.

Yet, even such a formidable Shigu Tribe was powerless in the face of the famine.

“General” was a title.

Shi Gu was both a general and the chief of the main tribe, controlling the tribe’s military and power.

Given that Shi Gu had fallen to his current state, neither human nor ghost, it was clear that the Shigu Tribe had likely completely fallen, with all its members wiped out.

But this point was actually very strange.

A tribe as large as Shigu’s couldn’t have had no sense of crisis at all.

Even if Shi Gu himself was a cruel, autocratic, and reckless general, there couldn’t have been no wise elders or leaders within the tribe who offered prophetic advice.

The life and death of the tribe was no small matter.

Moreover, the famine had already spread—

Even if they couldn’t see the famine’s aura, they could certainly see the withered land and dead demonic beasts.

They couldn’t possibly have not considered migrating.

Nor could it be possible that everyone in the entire tribe remained motionless, waiting for the famine to “devour” them and plunge them into the tragedy of “man eats man.”

This was absolutely impossible.

Unless—

Mo Hua’s gaze sharpened slightly.

“Before the famine struck, the Shigu Tribe had already completely ‘fallen’ for other reasons—”

That’s why, when the miasma arrived, they didn’t flee.

And from the current situation, that reason was highly likely to be an 邪神 (xiéshén).

Mo Hua was lost in thought, then gathered his focus, no longer overthinking, concentrating on controlling the ink with his divine sense to construct the “Thick Earth Reconstitution Array” (厚土复构绝阵), paving his own way, and thus moving little by little towards the depths of the Shigu Tribe.

The deeper he went, the more dilapidated and bloody the surrounding scenery became.

Flesh and blood were sticky, some already dried up.

Limbs were scattered everywhere, half-eaten.

Not a single corpse was intact.

Along the way, there were also some remnants of the Shigu tribesmen who still possessed a hint of life, but these individuals were all half-human, half-ghost, their rationality completely gone.

They greedily stared at Mo Hua, but almost instinctively feared the array power surrounding Mo Hua, not daring to pounce and eat him.

Mo Hua ignored them.

Apart from the late Core Formation realm Shi Gu, no one in the current Shigu Tribe could threaten him anymore.

He wasn’t distracted by other matters, only continuously drawing arrays and paving the way.

Passing through the thick miasma, walking along the long stone path, and navigating past various bloody and brutal scenes, after an unknown amount of time, Mo Hua finally reached the deepest great hall.

From within the great hall, a heartbeat sounded.

This was a sign of surging evil thoughts.

In the air, the scent of the 邪神 (xiéshén) was so potent that it made Mo Hua feel nauseous.

But this nauseating scent also made Mo Hua inexplicably excited.

Mo Hua extended his array to the entrance of the great hall, then eagerly pushed open the large doors.

On this trip, he had not brought anyone with him, not even Tie Shugu.

Because in the face of an 邪神 (xiéshén), bringing anyone along was meaningless; anyone would be a burden.

Moreover, once an 邪神 (xiéshén) “descended,” the great hall it inhabited was already at the boundary between “illusory” and “real.”

There was no need for Tie Shugu to dance; the nightmare had already begun.

And Mo Hua’s prediction was correct. The moment he opened the great hall, a sense of distortion washed over him. The surrounding scenery began to warp, the illusory and the real began to swap places, and his divine sense experienced intense dizziness.

Mo Hua instinctively closed his eyes.

After everything settled, Mo Hua opened his eyes again and found himself already in the nightmare of the 邪神 (xiéshén).

Within the great hall, there was a sea of blood and severed limbs, and in the center of the blood sea, there was indeed an 邪神 (xiéshén).

This was a monstrous creature made of white bones. Its body was enormous, with decaying flesh clinging to the bones, making its original appearance unclear.

It seemed to have once been a barbarian god worshipped by the Shigu Tribe, but now it was a corrupted barbarian god.

And it was precisely Mo Hua’s “target” for this trip.

However, this 邪神 (xiéshén) was somewhat different from all the previous 邪神 (xiéshén) or semi-corrupted “barbarian gods” Mo Hua had encountered.

This 邪神 (xiéshén) was in a state of extreme resentment and fury.

Moreover, the 邪神 (xiéshén) itself seemed to have lost its sanity, fallen into a certain madness, and was completely incapable of communication or interaction.

Of course, there was nothing to communicate about anyway.

The struggle between divine paths was a matter of life and death.

Mo Hua, in his divine sense state, clenched his fair little hand, condensing the “Metal-Severing Divine Sense Sword” (断金神念之剑).

The moment his divine sense sword manifested, the Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén) had already lunged at him, wanting to devour him.

A “divine” level battle officially began in the nightmare.

Mo Hua, for the first time in a long while, used all his techniques: divine sense arrays, divine sense spells, the Dao-transformed divine body, and the “Tai Xu Divine Sense Sword True Art” (太虚神念化剑真诀).

Powerful divine sense fluctuations emanated from the depths of the great hall, spreading out towards the entire valley.

Outside the valley, ordinary barbarian soldiers saw nothing, only feeling a somewhat oppressive atmosphere.

However, cultivators in the Core Formation realm could perceive an inexplicable bloody and frenzied pressure from the divine sense.

And from the depths of the miasma, they felt a “frightening” fluctuation.

It seemed a terrible battle was raging deep within the miasma.

This was a battle beyond their comprehension.

They only felt a tremor in their hearts, but had no idea why.

And Shi Gu, kneeling on the ground, bound by bone chains, suddenly went mad, roaring and struggling desperately, as if he was experiencing a fierce battle with a powerful enemy.

The Core Formation cultivators could only work together to suppress Shi Gu.

At the same time, their hearts were filled with gloom.

Dan Zhu’s face was also pale, filled with worry.

However, in the nightmare of the 邪神 (xiéshén), the battle was going smoothly.

Mo Hua, with one person, one sword, and one thought forming an array, kept the Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén) suppressed.

Mo Hua’s previous speculation was correct.

This Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén) was only a third-rank initial stage, with a lower divine sense realm than his.

That was why the 邪神 (xiéshén)’s thoughts, which had previously parasitized Shi Gu’s mind, were instantly obliterated by his divine sense transforming into a sword.

And because Shi Gu was already “dead,” and the 邪神 (xiéshén)’s 念力 (niànlì) was not “human,” there were no concerns about a backlash from the life-karma after killing it.

However, using divine sense to project one’s consciousness into reality, the power of the divine sense sword would be greatly diminished.

This was the “barrier of reality and illusion” (虚实之障).

The true power of the divine sense sword in reality was less than a tenth of Mo Hua’s divine sense strength.

Because the power of the divine sense sword was greatly reduced when the divine sense left the body, Mo Hua could only sever the parasitic evil thoughts of Shi Gu but could not completely destroy them. But within the nightmare, without the obstruction of the “barrier of reality and illusion” (虚实之障), Mo Hua’s Dao-transformed divine sense power could be fully unleashed.

Only in the divine sense world could the divine sense sword unleash its full power.

The third-rank Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén), being at a disadvantage in terms of realm and in a state of “lost sanity,” was simply no match for Mo Hua.

Moreover, it was still a “newly ascended” 邪神 (xiéshén), having only recently fallen into corruption.

It naturally couldn’t compare to an ancient 邪神 (xiéshén) like the Master of the Great Wilderness, who possessed the will of ancient 邪神 (xiéshén).

Nor could it compare to Mo Hua, a uniquely gifted “divine path anomaly.”

Perhaps given time, it would become a notorious and terrifying great evil deity in the Great Wilderness, stirring up bloody storms.

But now, in front of the battle-hardened Mo Hua, it was truly “green.”

Finally, after an intense battle, with his divine sword cleaving, the divine body of the Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén) was completely shattered by Mo Hua.

During the process of the divine body re-coalescing, Mo Hua instantly used the Golden Lock Array to bind it, then raised both hands towards the sky, gathering the “Severing God Sword” (斩神剑), the final form of the “Tai Xu Divine Sense Sword” (太虚神念化剑), and amidst powerful divine sense fluctuations, he used a giant divine sense sword flowing with various laws to obliterate this 邪神 (xiéshén) of the Shigu Tribe.

This 邪神 (xiéshén) took one last look at Mo Hua, its eyes filled with anger and unwillingness.

Anger at the corruption of its believers.

Unwillingness at the fall of its own divine path.

Then, this anger and unwillingness transformed into relief, and seemingly a hint of inexplicable gratitude.

It seemed to be grateful that Mo Hua had killed it.

Grateful that Mo Hua had the ability to kill it.

Amidst these complex emotions in its eyes, the Shi Gu 邪神 (xiéshén) was “hunted” by Mo Hua, turning into a dense cloud of evil smoke—