Chapter 237: Yu Chengwu
Yu Chengwu was momentarily stunned, a faint trace of irritation crossing his face.
But after a brief thought, he realized that what Mo Hua said made sense. No matter how much discord there was between him and Mo Shan, he wasn't so petty as to quarrel with Mo Hua as well.
And to bicker with Mo Shan's son—if nothing else—would only make him appear smaller in heart and stature than Mo Shan himself.
"Fine," Yu Chengwu finally said with a snort. "You're right. I won't hold it against you."
Mo Hua immediately followed up, his eyes glinting with curiosity. "You have a wolf-tooth spiked mace, don't you?"
Yu Chengwu nodded. "That's right."
Mo Hua's eyes lit up. "Can I see it?"
Yu Chengwu hesitated. He wasn't exactly keen on showing his weapon to others, but when he saw the boy's eager, sparkling eyes—filled with pure curiosity—he couldn't bring himself to refuse. After a moment's thought, he pulled the mace from his Storage Pouch and placed it on the ground.
The mace was five to six feet long, forged from refined iron, its head covered with sharp, fang-like spikes, its surface still stained with dull, dark blood.
Those stains were clearly from both beasts and cultivators alike.
Mo Hua tried to lift it, and realized he couldn't even budge it.
He pushed with both hands, straining, but the mace didn't move an inch.
"So heavy…" Mo Hua couldn't help exclaiming.
Yu Chengwu's eyes flashed with pride. "Naturally."
"Did you forge it to be this heavy on purpose?" Mo Hua asked humbly.
"Of course." Yu Chengwu nodded. "The heavier the spiritual weapon, the greater its force. The harder it hits, the deadlier it becomes."
"Oh…" Mo Hua nodded thoughtfully.
Then Yu Chengwu asked curiously, "Why do you ask?"
"I want one too."
Yu Chengwu blinked. "Want what?"
Mo Hua pointed at the mace. "That mace."
Yu Chengwu gave him a strange look. The boy had fair skin, slender limbs, and almost no blood vigor, a clear sign he wasn't a body cultivator.
"You're not a body cultivator. What do you need this for?" Yu Chengwu asked, puzzled.
Mo Hua blinked playfully. "I have my ways."
Yu Chengwu frowned slightly.
Mo Shan was shrewd, but his son, this Mo Hua, was even sharper. His head was full of ideas, though who knew what kind of schemes he was brewing now.
"I'll buy you a drink," Mo Hua suddenly said.
Having seen the mace, Mo Hua had already formed a plan in mind. Out of courtesy, he wanted to reciprocate and treat Yu Chengwu to a drink.
"Your injuries aren't serious. You can drink a little," Mo Hua added.
Yu Chengwu hesitated but eventually accepted the jug Mo Hua offered. He took a sip, and frowned immediately.
It was sour and sweet, with only a faint taste of alcohol. Clearly something for children.
Still, given the current situation, having any drink at all was already a luxury. He couldn't complain.
With a sigh, Yu Chengwu took a few more swigs. The fatigue in his body eased slightly. Then, suddenly, a strange feeling crept up his chest.
He and Mo Shan had never gotten along, and in all these years, they hadn't even shared a single drink together.
Yet here he was, drinking fruit wine offered by Mo Shan's son.
A drink only children would enjoy.
Yu Chengwu's feelings grew… complicated.
...
After the group had rested and stabilized their injuries, they resumed their journey.
After covering some distance, Mo Hua extended his Divine-Sense to scan the surroundings. When he confirmed what he saw, he let out a small sigh of relief.
"You can slow down now. No need to hurry," he said.
Within his Divine-Sense range, there were already many demon hunters nearby.
To Mo Hua, the presence of demon hunters meant home ground. If any foreign cultivators dared to attack here, they were walking to their own deaths.
Ji Qingbai didn't know why Mo Hua was so confident, but for some reason, he instinctively trusted the boy's words. He and Ji Li both breathed a little easier.
As they traveled further, more and more demon hunters appeared along the way.
Every group they passed—whether familiar or not—would greet Yu Chengwu's party.
At first, Yu Chengwu didn't think much of it.
But after a few encounters, he began to notice something strange.
Each time, the hunters greeted Mo Hua first, and only afterward exchanged a few polite words with him.
One or two cases might have been coincidence.
But after four or five groups all did the same…
Yu Chengwu couldn't ignore it anymore.
In fact, he even began to suspect that these hunters had come specifically to greet Mo Hua, and were only acknowledging him out of politeness.
He frowned deeply. "Something's off."
Mo Hua was merely a seventh-level Qi-Refining cultivator. Talented, yes, but not nearly influential enough to be known by this many people.
Surely, they were being courteous because of Mo Shan's reputation.
But even so... Mo Shan's influence shouldn't reach this far.
Could it be… Mo Shan has broken through to Foundation Establishment?
If Mo Shan had indeed reached that realm, then as the son of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Mo Hua naturally commanded respect.
Yet even as Yu Chengwu thought this, something didn't add up.
After all, his own father, Elder Yu Changlin, was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and he himself had never received such deference!
Yu Chengwu was thoroughly puzzled. But something else bothered him even more... those iron armors.
Many of the passing demon hunters—if not all, at least most—were clad in solid iron armor.
Iron armor!
Where in the heavens did they all get that from?
Yu Chengwu's brows furrowed deeper.
He had been out on a mission assigned by Elder Yu Changlin. Because of an unexpected accident, he'd been delayed for over a year before finally returning.
Passing through Qingxuan City, he had encountered Ji Qingbai. The two had some friendship, and given Yu Chengwu's dislike for arrogant family clans, he'd helped Ji Qingbai when he ran into trouble, and they'd traveled to Tōngxiān City together.
But now that he was back—after just a bit more than a year—everything seemed… different.
Inexplicably different.
Ji Qingbai and Ji Li were equally stunned.
Iron armor everywhere!
In Qingxuan City, demon hunters with iron armor could be counted on one hand. Yet here in Tōngxiān City, it seemed like everyone had one!
Neither father nor son could make sense of it.
The group continued on safely, finally exiting the Great Black Mountain and entering Tōngxiān City from the southern gate.
The moment they stepped in, they were greeted by a vast sight, two enormous workshops, one for weapon-forging and one for pill-refining, dominating the southern district.
They spanned an immense area, built to grand standards. Towering outer walls reinforced with dense formation patterns rose into the sky, majestic and imposing.
From within came the clear ringing of hammers striking metal and the rich, fragrant aroma of pills being refined.
Yu Chengwu and the others were utterly dumbfounded.
Even combining several nearby immortal cities, none possessed cultivation industries of such scale.
Yu Chengwu stared wide-eyed. "Don't tell me… this all belongs to the Qian family?"
Could the Qian clan's power have expanded this much in just a year?
Would that mean none of the other families had any hope of ever lifting their heads again?
Mo Hua shook his head. "No. You could say… it belongs to everyone."
"Everyone?" Yu Chengwu looked confused.
Mo Hua raised his small hand and pointed at the entire southern district. "Everyone."
Yu Chengwu froze for a moment, then comprehension dawned, followed swiftly by disbelief.
Everyone? Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
He felt dazed, as though all of this were some vivid dream, one conjured after too many nights sleeping under the open sky.
In that dream, he journeyed endlessly and finally returned to Tōngxiān City:
Where demon hunters all wore iron armor.
Where rogue cultivators had built grand artifact refining and alchemy workshops.
Where everyone had spare spirit stones, and smiles on their faces.
These were things he had dreamed about before.
But to see them… fulfilled before his eyes?
It felt like stepping into his own dream.
Mo Hua noticed his dazed look and called softly, "Second Uncle Yu?"
Yu Chengwu snapped back to reality, but even then, staring at the sight before him, disbelief still clouded his eyes.
If this isn't a dream… could it be an illusion? he wondered.
Mo Hua, seeing the older man's shifting expression, assumed he was simply overcome with homesickness after so long away.
He decided not to bother him further.
(End of Chapter)