Stepping into the Great Wilderness King’s Court, an ancient aura immediately enveloped them.

Divine towers stood in dense arrays, sacred patterns covered everything, and magnificent ancient halls were ubiquitous. Grand avenues crisscrossed in all directions, creating an indescribably majestic and beautiful sight. This was nothing like the cultivation civilization of a low-dimensional wilderness. Even Mo Hua was deeply astonished. He couldn’t help but wonder, if it were in its prime, what kind of powerful dynastic presence the entire King’s Court would have presented…

No sooner had this thought arisen than Mo Hua’s vision suddenly blurred. He indistinctly saw a vast land where divine towers reached the sky and ancient halls stood majestically. Countless devotees knelt, three thousand Barbarian Gods prostrated themselves towards the heavens, the sun blazed intensely, and the divine lord’s Dao unified everything in a grand spectacle.

But in an instant, the divine towers collapsed, the ancient halls weathered, the devotees’ faith corrupted, the Barbarian Gods turned ferocious, and even the divine lord began to degenerate… Everything withered away.

Mo Hua focused his gaze again, and nothing remained. Amidst the broken pavilions and halls before him, only Dao soldiers were engaged in slaughter. The King’s Court’s barbarian soldiers, clad in barbarian armor, fought the Dao soldiers. The King’s Court’s citizens, dressed in animal hides, also began to resist the Dao soldiers’ massacre. The entire city of the King’s Court was a scene of bloody chaos. There were no words exchanged between the two sides, only blood feuds and relentless fighting.

From the Dao Court’s perspective, the Great Wilderness’s rebellion meant all its inhabitants were traitors who deserved death. However, from the perspective of the barbarian tribes, the Dao Court’s suppression of the Great Wilderness and its cruel slaughter of its people made the Dao Court equally deserving of death. Mo Hua found it difficult to discern who was right and who was wrong. Perhaps this war was “unjust” from the very beginning, a conflict purely instigated to seize benefits and create carnage. Mo Hua was also powerless to change anything. In such a monumental event involving Void Refinement schemers, Ascension realm participants, millions of Dao soldiers clashing, and the destruction of a nation and its people, Mo Hua, at this moment, could not influence the course of events. After all, he was merely “Mo Hua” now, not the revered “Shen Zhu” of the Great Wilderness. In fact, even if he were Shen Zhu, he couldn’t control a situation involving cultivators above the fourth rank. He could only watch many people die.

Fourth Rank… The images of cultivators ascending to the heavens, with their Great Circulatory Cycle Qi transforming into devastating Dao magic, came to mind again. Mo Hua couldn’t help but think: “If I reached the Ascension realm, capable of flying and probing the earth with my divine sense, would the situation be different now? Would the fates of those dying in this war also be changed?”

Mo Hua stood atop the city wall, watching the bloody slaughter below, lost in thought with a furrowed brow. Suddenly, someone patted his shoulder. Bai Zi-sheng said, “What are you thinking about? Hurry up and get inside the King’s Court to find the Dragon Pool and form your core first.”

Mo Hua was startled. “Yes, I need to form my core first…” Bai Zi-sheng flicked his long spear, knocking away several barbarian soldiers, and told Mo Hua, “The situation is too chaotic. Form your core early. If we delay, who knows what other variables might arise…” Mo Hua nodded. “Alright.”

The two then hesitated no longer, jumping onto the rooftops of the palaces along the way, activating their movement techniques, and fleeing together towards the depths of the King’s Court. The King’s Court was in complete disarray, with killings happening everywhere. As the Dao soldiers invaded, the slaughter spread like a “plague” from the outskirts of the royal city all the way to the interior of the King’s Court.

Mo Hua didn’t know the exact location of the Dragon Pool, but generally, such secret places would only be built within the inner parts of the King’s Court. He and Bai Zi-sheng could only follow the surging crowd towards the inner court of the royal city. However, the Great Wilderness King’s Court was vast, with numerous palaces, and the situation was far more chaotic than they had imagined.

As Mo Hua walked through a long street and ascended the steps of a palace, the ground suddenly bulged. Mo Hua’s divine sense alerted him; his gaze flickered, and with a movement of mist, his figure vanished. A rotten hand emerged from the spot where he had been, grabbing at empty air. This rotten hand, hidden underground, seemed to be ambushing passing cultivators. When Mo Hua passed, it shot out from the ground, trying to grab him, but failed. The putrid hand trembled with rage.

The next moment, Bai Zi-sheng stomped down, crushing the entire rotten hand out of shape. The hand, now completely enraged, crawled out from underground like a long worm, revealing its true form: a deformed zombie with an arm as thick as its body. Although Mo Hua was an orthodox cultivator, he had considerable knowledge of corpse refining and immediately recognized it as one of the demonic corpse species, called the “Long-Armed Worm Corpse.” This type of worm corpse could ambush underground like an insect. Once a living person passed by, it would extend its hand, drag them underground, and devour them completely. This kind of zombie was the most treacherous. Bai Zi-sheng sneered, throwing a punch like a thunderbolt that shattered the Long-Armed Worm Corpse into minced meat.

Mo Hua turned his head, his pupils displaying a faint golden hue, and saw that the ground was riddled with these Long-Armed Worm Corpses, like carrots in a patch. These worm corpses were inanimate and made no sound. Any Dao soldiers who passed by were inevitably dragged underground by these suddenly extended long arms, their flesh devoured, and their hearts consumed by corpse poison, leading to death.

“Corpse cultivators…” Mo Hua frowned slightly. Unwilling to create complications, he said, “Little Senior Brother, follow me.” Bai Zi-sheng nodded and followed behind Mo Hua. Mo Hua moved like flowing water, his toes barely touching the ground, avoiding all the corpse pits along the way.

As the two walked further into another palace, they saw a long corridor lined with rooms on both sides. Red beams, mandarin duck doors, and pink gauze curtains filled the air with the scent of cosmetics, interspersed with sounds of intimacy between men and women. Mo Hua walked to a door, and as the sounds of pleasure reached his ears, he couldn’t help but glance inside. He saw a room filled with ambiguous charm. On the bed, a seductive woman, completely naked, clung to a strong Dao soldier like an octopus, entangled in passionate embrace.

The scene was alluring, but Mo Hua’s eyes were like torches, and he immediately discerned that the woman was a demonic cultivator, sucking the man’s yang energy through their kissing. As Mo Hua saw the alluring woman, she too turned her lustful eyes towards Mo Hua. Seeing Mo Hua’s handsome face, the woman was momentarily stunned, then her eyes became even more迷離 with desire. She abandoned the man in her arms as if he were a discarded shoe, twisting her body like a beautiful snake, and rushed towards Mo Hua, her red lips seductively saying: “Such a handsome young master, you make me burn with desire. Why not stay and cultivate with me, sharing the ultimate bliss of this mortal world…” Her voice was as soft and dripping as water. As she spoke, she twisted her graceful waist and lunged at Mo Hua.

In Mo Hua’s eyes, the woman’s alluring face came closer and closer, and then, in the next instant, a long spear pierced through her forehead. Her beautiful face instantly became bloody and somewhat eerie. Mo Hua turned to look at Bai Zi-sheng. Bai Zi-sheng shook his long spear, flinging the “beautiful snake” away, and said coldly, “What kind of trash… dares to get close.” Mo Hua said, “Let’s go.” Bai Zi-sheng nodded.

The two continued through the pink corridor, which seemed to be entirely filled with the “boudoirs” of female demonic cultivators. Various silk sleeves, pink gauze, and spring poisons were constantly spread in the air, enticing men into the rooms to absorb their yang energy and capture their souls. Mo Hua mostly avoided them. Those he couldn’t avoid, or any women who dared to approach, were stabbed to death by Bai Zi-sheng’s spear. However, other passing Dao soldiers, if they had slightly weak wills, would be dragged into the boudoirs to enjoy their last moments of ecstasy before dying beneath the peony flowers.

After passing through these “pink boudoirs,” Mo Hua and Bai Zi-sheng arrived at another palace. The atmosphere suddenly changed; the ambiguous pink instantly turned into cruel red. The floor was covered in blood, and human oil lamps burned. A group of cultivators with human bodies and wolf heads were gnawing on human limbs. On the ground lay the mangled corpses of Dao soldiers, cut down by large sabers. Mo Hua and Bai Zi-sheng’s pupils contracted slightly.

A dog-headed demonic cultivator looked at Mo Hua, dropped the half-eaten arm in his mouth, and grinned, “Fresh meat has arrived, very tender.” The next moment, his dog head was blown apart by Bai Zi-sheng’s long spear. Mo Hua shook his head slightly.

The dog-headed demonic cultivator’s head being blown apart, splattering blood everywhere, ignited the ferocity of the other demonic cultivators. All of them looked savage: “How dare you!” “Mere humans and beasts, you dare resist!” These demonic cultivators transformed into their demonic forms—pigs, dogs, wolves, leopards—and attacked Mo Hua and Bai Zi-sheng. Mo Hua pointed his fingers repeatedly, and Water Prison spells descended one after another, immobilizing these demonic cultivators. Bai Zi-sheng swept his long spear, slaying all these demon and demonic cultivators, splattering blood across the floor.

The scent of blood attracted more demon cultivators from within the main hall. There was even a powerful demon cultivator, half-human and half-tiger, whose cultivation was clearly at the late Golden Core stage, exuding a sea of foul blood-qi and surging demonic energy. Mo Hua’s gaze sharpened, and he said, “Go.” Bai Zi-sheng also nodded.

Seeing the two attempting to leave, the late Golden Core stage fierce tiger demon cultivator’s pupils narrowed vertically, and he ferociously declared, “Wretched brats, you kill my comrades and still think you can leave?” With a casual wave of his hand, a sharp blood claw attacked Mo Hua and Bai Zi-sheng. Bai Zi-sheng held his spear horizontally, shielding Mo Hua, and took the blood claw head-on. However, the blood claw was incredibly powerful; Bai Zi-sheng retreated more than ten steps, spitting a mouthful of fresh blood from his mouth. Although his innate bloodline was strong, he was only at the Foundation Establishment stage, and the disparity in cultivation was too great. Coupled with his previous severe injuries, taking this claw head-on was not easy.

The fierce tiger demon cultivator on the opposite side was equally startled. Although it was just a casual strike, not at full power, his cultivation was at the late Golden Core stage, and he practiced a fierce tiger demon cultivation technique. A casual grab like that, let alone killing a Foundation Establishment cultivator, could have ripped open the chest and killed an ordinary early Golden Core cultivator. But this young Foundation Establishment cultivator actually withstood it? What kind of monster was this kid?

“Kill him!” The fierce tiger demon cultivator’s eyes were savage. Just as he was about to press his advantage and kill Bai Zi-sheng, the corner of his eye caught a pair of eyes. They were noble and indifferent eyes, faint golden, alternating black and white. They seemed like those of a high and mighty deity looking down upon the mortal world. They also exuded a chilling, sea-like malevolent aura. The late Golden Core stage fierce tiger demon cultivator was stunned, feeling as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and made no movement. When he came back to his senses, he found that there were no figures in front of him; both youths had vanished.

The fierce tiger demon cultivator’s pupils trembled deeply. “What… what kind of monsters were those…” A dog-headed demon cultivator nearby came over and whispered, “Hall Master, are we still pursuing them?” The fierce tiger demon cultivator’s face was grim. After pondering for a moment, he said, “First, attend to the main business, fill our bellies, and then we’ll chase them…” Both those brats must be killed. If they weren’t, they would likely become major threats. “Yes…” The group of demon cultivators resumed slaughtering the Dao soldiers, and even some barbarian cultivators of the Great Wilderness began to feast on meat and blood.

On the other side, on the beams of the main hall, Mo Hua and Bai Zi-sheng caught their breath slightly. Bai Zi-sheng frowned, “Corpse Dao, Joyful Union Sect, demon cultivators… these are all demonic creatures. How are they in the Great Wilderness King’s Court?” Mo Hua’s eyes darkened, and he shook his head, “Demonic cultivators are maggots. Wherever there is corruption, they are pervasive. This war between the Great Wilderness King’s Court and the Dao Court might have fallen into the schemes of the demonic path from the very beginning. They’ve been waiting for this…” Bai Zi-sheng nodded slightly.

Mo Hua’s heart stirred, and he couldn’t help but think of the events in Li Zhou. At that time, when the Great Wilderness rebelled and Li Zhou was in chaos, corpse cultivators had massacred cities. Later, when he brought Elder Ji south, the lecherous Elder Ji also died by the cultivation methods of the Joyful Union Sect. These demonic sects might have had arrangements long ago. He just didn’t know whether their presence in the King’s Court was to kill people, to cultivate their demonic paths, or if it was also for the Great Wilderness’s “Dragon Pool”… Mo Hua frowned slightly.

Bai Zi-sheng suddenly coughed, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Mo Hua looked at Bai Zi-sheng with concern, “Little Senior Brother, are you alright?” “Hmm,” Bai Zi-sheng wiped the blood from his mouth, “Just a minor injury.” Mo Hua’s gaze turned cold, committing the image of the fierce tiger demon cultivator to memory, and handed Bai Zi-sheng a pill. Bai Zi-sheng never took pills from others, but his little junior brother was an exception. He took the pill, and after consuming it, his injuries improved slightly.

Mo Hua also realized that this couldn’t go on. This was the Great Wilderness King’s Court, a fourth-rank domain. Although the Ascension realm cultivators from both sides were temporarily unable to act, Golden Core realm cultivators could. At this moment, the combined number of Golden Core cultivators from the Dao Court, aristocratic families, the King’s Court, and demonic sects in the Great Wilderness King’s Court was probably countless. Without the suppression of the Heavenly Dao, no matter how strong Little Senior Brother was, he couldn’t possibly be a match for a multitude of Golden Core cultivators. Opponents at the early Golden Core stage might not scare him, but against mid-Golden Core cultivators, Little Senior Brother would probably struggle a bit. As for late Golden Core cultivators, Little Senior Brother definitely wouldn’t be a match.

And his own divine sense was twenty-four patterns. This meant that cultivators below the mid-Golden Core stage with twenty-four patterns of divine sense could be killed instantly with his Tai Xu Zhan Shen Jian (Grand Void Divine Severing Sword). The cost was a dog. But against late Golden Core cultivators, he was equally powerless and could only flee. At this moment, there were probably many late Golden Core cultivators, and even peak Golden Core cultivators, in the Great Wilderness King’s Court. Without the protection of Zhuge Zhen-ren in the Ascension realm, these powerful Golden Core cultivators in the King’s Court could potentially threaten his and Little Senior Brother’s safety. Especially Little Senior Brother. If he couldn’t win, he could always escape with his movement techniques, stealth, and powerful divine sense. But Little Senior Brother was a target, and if he fell into an encirclement, escaping would likely be very difficult.

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then took out a long robe and handed it to Bai Zi-sheng. “It’s for invisibility. Wear it. Let’s keep a low profile.” Bai Zi-sheng took the robe, and a thought stirred in his heart, making him feel a bit nostalgic. He remembered when they were traveling, he, Zi Xi, and Little Junior Brother, wearing these invisible robes, would track down and investigate cases. Now, after so many years, he had grown accustomed to fighting alone and battling in blood. He had almost forgotten these sneaky and insidious methods that were so characteristic of his little junior brother.

Bai Zi-sheng put on the invisible robe, feeling a warmth in his heart, and then asked Mo Hua, “What do we do next?” Mo Hua thought for a moment and said, “We’re going to find someone.” “Who?” Bai Zi-sheng asked. “Dan Ling,” Mo Hua said. Bai Zi-sheng was startled. “Who?” Mo Hua was speechless. “Didn’t I tell you? The most beautiful woman in the Great Wilderness, the goddess of the King’s Court—Dan Ling. Since she’s from the King’s Court, she must know the secret of the Dragon Pool. If we find her, we might get some clues.” Mo Hua glanced at Bai Zi-sheng and whispered, “Didn’t they all say you had a thing with this demoness of the King’s Court?” Bai Zi-sheng’s face darkened. “What nonsense are you talking about? You’re the one who has a thing with that demoness…”

(End of this chapter)