Chapter 235: Old Acquaintance
That Fireball Technique was cast with great proficiency and considerable power, it must have come from the hand of a true cultivator.
Among Demon Hunters, spiritual cultivators were rare. And if a cultivator entered the mountains, they would normally accompany a Demon Hunting team, never act alone.
Such a team would usually have at least five or six people, sometimes eight or nine, even a dozen, all armed with fine blades and armor.
That was a force these people could never hope to contend with.
Once surrounded by Demon Hunters, escape would be impossible.
Those who did their kind of business already lived with their heads tied to their belts; they couldn't afford to lose their lives for a moment's greed.
The leading cultivator felt a chill of fear, and decided instantly: "Retreat!"
The seven rogue cultivators fled in panic.
Those who had been desperately holding on—Ji Qingbai and his few companions—finally breathed sighs of relief.
They dropped their weapons and slumped against the storage chests, panting heavily.
Ji Qingbai felt especially fortunate to have survived.
The ordeal had been far too dangerous, his Ji family had only him and his son left.
If either of them died here, their family line would end, and that would truly be a tragedy.
With that thought, gratitude welled up in Ji Qingbai's heart. He clasped his hands toward the mountain slope and called out:
"Many thanks! May I ask which brother from the Demon Hunting team helped us?"
The others followed his gaze toward the mountain ridge.
Among the jagged stones and swaying shrubs appeared a small figure: Mo Hua.
Mo Hua scratched his head, a little embarrassed.
"I'm a generation younger, Uncle Ji."
Ji Qingbai was taken aback... a child?
He looked carefully, and recognition slowly dawned.
Those delicate, refined features, wasn't this the boy from the Mo family?
Ji Qingbai had met Mo Hua before and remembered him well.
"You are... Mo Hua?" Ji Qingbai said in disbelief.
"Mm." Mo Hua nodded.
"You... what are you doing here? Are you alone? Where's your father?" Ji Qingbai asked, glancing around nervously.
The three others looked at one another, equally confused.
Mo Hua said, "We can talk later, this isn't the time."
Ji Qingbai blinked. "Then now...?"
Mo Hua replied calmly, "We should run."
The Inner Mountain was vast; there might not be any other Demon Hunters nearby.
Even though he'd sent up a signal flare, it wasn't guaranteed that anyone would come.
And even if they did, it might take too long.
If those seven cultivators came to their senses and turned back, things would get very troublesome.
Ji Qingbai instantly understood and stopped asking questions.
He began gathering their belongings to leave at once.
The large storage chests—their only possessions—he hesitated to abandon, though his expression showed deep reluctance.
Mo Hua noticed and said, "Take them."
Ji Qingbai was surprised. "But if they catch up—"
"If they do, I'll know ahead of time. We can throw them away then," Mo Hua said calmly.
Ji Qingbai froze, know ahead of time?
Mo Hua's expression was composed and confident.
Even if those cultivators came back, with his Divine-Sense, he could detect them from afar and have plenty of time to prepare.
Given time to set up formations, even a few more opponents wouldn't be able to get the better of him.
"Besides," Mo Hua added, "if we bring the chests, they might hesitate to chase us.
If we leave them behind, it'll look like we're scared, they'll definitely come after us."
Ji Qingbai nodded at once. "Alright!"
They loaded the chests onto a one-wheeled cart. Ji Qingbai and the big man took turns pulling it, while Ji Li supported the injured female cultivator. Mo Hua led the way in front.
As they followed the mountain paths, Mo Hua occasionally pulled out his South Pointing Mother Compass, checked it, and then changed direction.
Ji Qingbai and the others didn't understand how he navigated, but seeing the steady confidence in Mo Hua's bearing, they followed without question.
Inwardly, they couldn't help but marvel, Mo Hua was that familiar with the Inner Mountain's terrain…
Eventually, Mo Hua guided them to a secluded campsite.
"Rest here," he said. "You can tend to your wounds."
The group nodded. After fighting for so long, all were injured and had been forcing themselves onward. Now, exhaustion and pain hit them all at once.
They settled down in the camp.
Mo Hua distributed Hemostatic Pills and other healing elixirs.
Ji Qingbai accepted them, sniffed the medicine, and said in surprise, "These are high-quality pills!"
Mo Hua nodded. "Grandpa Feng made them."
These were concocted by Elder Feng himself, the master alchemist of Apricot Medicinal Hall.
His pill furnace was a top-grade First-Grade cauldron, engraved with a First-Grade Composite formation that refined fire essence to extraordinary purity—naturally, his pills were of superb quality.
Mo Hua had carried these for emergencies since entering the Inner Mountain, but until now had never needed them.
"Elder Feng from Apricot Medicinal Hall?" Ji Qingbai asked, momentarily stunned, then nodded in realization. "No wonder."
Elder Feng was a renowned First-Grade alchemist, respected throughout Tongxian and even the Qingxuan City for saving countless lives.
Ji Qingbai swallowed two pills and handed the rest to Ji Li and the young female cultivator.
The girl was the most gravely wounded, having lost a great deal of blood.
After taking the medicine, she relaxed and soon fell unconscious.
Ji Li sat beside her, face full of worry, and tenderness.
Mo Hua glanced between them and asked curiously,
"Big Brother Ji, are you two Dao-companions?"
Ji Li's face instantly turned bright red.
"N-no... not yet."
"Not yet? So that means soon, right?" Mo Hua pressed, eyes sparkling.
"When you get married, can I come to drink wedding wine?"
He'd never been to anyone's wedding before.
Ji Li's blush deepened.
Ji Qingbai chuckled. "If you don't mind, we'll be sure to invite you."
"It's a promise," Mo Hua grinned.
The tension in the camp eased, laughter softening the atmosphere.
Then Ji Qingbai asked, "By the way, why are you alone in the mountains? It's dangerous here. Where's your father?"
Mo Hua replied, "I'll be fine on my own. My father has other matters to attend to."
Ji Qingbai studied the boy, both shocked and somewhat saddened.
So young, yet already at Qi-Refining Stage Seven, moving through the Inner Mountain alone, familiar with every path, calm in crisis...
Truly, like father, like son. Mo Hua had inherited all of Mo Shan's natural talent for hunting demons.
But it was a pity, he had become a Demon Hunter.
Ji Qingbai's gaze fell upon the Demon Hunter Token hanging around Mo Hua's neck, and he sighed inwardly.
Once you became a Demon Hunter, it was difficult to dedicate time to formation study.
He had hoped that Mo Hua would walk the path of a Formation Master, not merely that of an exceptional hunter.
Among wandering rogue cultivators, Demon Hunters were common, but Formation Masters were vanishingly rare.
With Mo Hua's talent, not studying formations would be a terrible waste.
Ji Qingbai's heart ached at the thought.
Sensing his mood, Mo Hua asked,
"Uncle Ji, what brought you to Tōngxiān City?"
Ji Qingbai froze for a moment, then smiled bitterly.
"Couldn't make a living in Qingxuan City anymore... so we came here, hoping to find a way to survive."
(End of Chapter)