The Quest for Immortality - Chapter 1113 (Patreon)

Chapter 1113: Farewell

“Eerie Daoist…”

The Elder softly murmured that name—a name so dreadful that no ordinary cultivator dared to speak it aloud.

Almost at the same moment, within his Sea of Consciousness, the shadow of a pitch-black Daoist slowly emerged.

He was shrouded in dark mist. His eyes swept across the Elder, and then he slowly bowed in greeting.

The Elder’s brows furrowed deeply.

He could sense it clearly—this sinister shadow’s aura had grown even more chilling and formidable.

Within it, a trace of ancient Dao energy was incubating. It was nearly at the point of transforming the illusory into the real—just one step short of shattering the very laws themselves.

The two stared at each other across the void.

The next instant, the eerie shadow faded away—gone without a trace.

Inside the quiet loft, only a wisp of sandalwood incense lingered, a cup of tea cooled on the table, and a half-played game of chess remained untouched. Everything seemed calm and ordinary once more.

The Elder sat motionless before the chessboard for a long time, then finally let out a long sigh.

He turned to face the south. The sky was clear, the sun bright.

Yet within that daylight, faint traces of red light flickered—like blood, or like flame.

The Elder frowned again. After a moment, his expression slowly relaxed, showing both relief and helplessness.

“Forget it. I, this old Pavilion Elder, am about to retire. These messy affairs… you can deal with them yourselves.”

“All I want is to play some chess and enjoy my remaining years…”

He lowered his head to look at the chessboard. In his mind appeared the figure of a youth—bright as the wind, fair as the moon. A faint murmur escaped his lips.

“I wonder when that boy will come play another game of chess with me…”

…

At the same time the Elder gazed south, across the Dao Court and throughout the Nine Provinces, many secluded Void-Stage Ancestors of great sects also sensed something amiss. They lifted their eyes toward the southern horizon, faces solemn.

“This sky… seems wrong.”

“The balance of the Southern Wasteland is shifting…”

“Blood-light disaster… Could it be that some great demon is about to shed its shell and emerge into the world?”

“Or perhaps… an even greater war is about to erupt in the south?”

“Send someone to investigate…”

Like a storm gathering in silence, currents of power surged unseen. Countless gazes from across the Nine Provinces turned toward the desolate land of the Southern Wasteland.

On the great roads connecting the provinces, many cultivators wearing plain clothes and concealing their auras quietly made their way from Qianxue Province toward the great wilderness.

Among the travelers were two inconspicuous figures.

One was tall and thin, his gaze sharp and obsessive.

The other was shorter and plump, his face gleaming with oil.

Few would recognize them—but if Mo Hua were here, he would at a glance.

They were both his “old acquaintances.”

The once-elite disciples of the now-annihilated Qianxue Demon Sect—Li San.

And Elder You, who had once owed Mo Hua one million eight hundred thousand spirit stones.

The two wore worn gray robes, mingled in the crowd, and journeyed south in silence. By midday, they reached a barren ridge and stopped to rest by the roadside.

Seeing no one nearby, Elder You turned to Li San, frowned, and finally asked, “How did you escape from the Dao Prison?”

Li San’s face was gloomy, yet toward Elder You, his tone carried a strange, unwavering loyalty.

“When the blood-red grand array appeared in the heavens, chaos broke out across the lands. The Dao Court’s divisions were in turmoil. I took the chance to escape from their great prison.”

Elder You asked again, “After escaping, why didn’t you enter the array with the other demon cultivators?”

Li San replied, “Because… you never ordered me to, Elder You.”

Elder You froze slightly.

Li San said with devotion, “Every action I take follows your command. Since you did not tell me to enter the array, I naturally wouldn’t. And afterward, since you sent me no word, I guessed you meant for me to stay hidden and not act rashly.”

“Everything happened as you foresaw…”

“The grand array collapsed. Everything inside turned to ash and vanished into nothingness. And I… survived.”

“You truly foresaw it all, Elder You. You never abandoned me!”

Li San looked at him with a fervent gleam in his eyes.

That fanaticism made Elder You uneasy—almost afraid.

Yet beneath that madness was a loyalty so absolute it was frightening.

It stirred something long missing within Elder You.

All his life he had moved through shadows, chasing profit and manipulating men. Loyalty was the one thing he lacked most.

“Good. Then follow me—to the great wilderness.” Elder You nodded.

Li San clasped his hands. “Yes, Elder.”

After a pause, Elder You glanced at him. “Aren’t you curious why I’m going there?”

Li San said calmly, “Your reasons are your own. If you tell me, it means I should know. If you don’t, it means I shouldn’t.”

Elder You smiled with satisfaction.

In all his decades in the cultivation world, he had never met someone so utterly loyal. A rare fondness rose in his heart.

“There are things I can’t say much about,” Elder You said. “But what we’re doing is business—spirit stone business.”

“We secretly funded the rise of demon sects, backed the Shen Clan’s fortune, and aided Mister Tu’s grand designs…”

“Unfortunately, every one of those investments failed.”

“But that’s the way business works. Most ventures lose. Only a few bring enormous profit.”

“As long as we succeed once—just once—the gains will outweigh all losses. We’ll earn mountains of spirit stones.”

His eyes gleamed with excitement.

Li San blinked in confusion. “So you’re not truly an Elder of the Demon Sect?”

Elder You chuckled. “I can be. Or I can not be. I can belong to any sect or faction—but in truth, I belong to none. You only need to know one thing: I am ‘Elder You.’ What we worship is only spirit stones.”

Li San nodded slowly.

Elder You asked, “Do you know why I’m telling you this?”

Li San thought for a moment. “Because you trust me.”

Elder You nodded. “In business, trust is everything. Remember that well.”

Li San nodded earnestly.

Elder You studied him, still puzzled. Why was this man—once an abandoned pawn of the Demon Sect—so fanatically loyal to him?

Yet this devotion was no act.

Having read countless people in his lifetime, Elder You could tell: Li San’s loyalty was absolute, born from the depths of his heart.

Fanatical even.

For a man of business, loyalty was the most precious commodity—and the rarest trait of all.

He valued it greatly.

“From today onward, you are my personal aide. Follow my orders in all things, and I will ensure your Core Formation and your rise to greatness.”

Core Formation! A glorious future!

The promise once written in the Demon Sect’s command token had finally come true.

Li San’s heart leapt with joy. “I will follow Elder You through fire and death, without hesitation!”

Elder You nodded in satisfaction. “Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

The two continued south, one leading, one following.

Li San’s eyes burned with faith toward the Elder’s back.

Yet neither of them knew—the Elder You he was truly loyal to… might not be the one walking ahead of him.

…

In Lizhou’s Immortal-Passage City.

In a small courtyard, Mo Hua sat at an Eight-Immortal table, gazing toward the southern sky, a hint of worry and confusion in his eyes.

The higher the sun climbed, the stronger the fiery aura grew.

That meant the situation in the Southern Wilderness was deteriorating rapidly.

Mo Hua sighed softly. It was time again—for him to leave.

He turned to look at the great locust tree, at the courtyard where he had grown up, at the bustling city of Immortal-Passage, and at the distant Black Mountain. A faint melancholy welled in his heart.

These familiar sights would once again exist only in memory.

Who knew when he might see them again?

After deciding, Mo Hua calculated the auspicious timing and found that three days later would be the best day to depart.

During those three days, he planned to visit several elders and friends—to bid them farewell.

His first stop was Instructor Yan.

Instructor Yan was now the head of the Little Spirit Sect, his cultivation already having broken through to the Foundation Building stage.

His wife, Shen Ru, was only a step away from Foundation Building herself.

The couple received Mo Hua warmly in their newly rebuilt sect grounds.

In the past, Instructor Yan had lived for revenge, his heart full of bitterness. Now that his vengeance was fulfilled and he had a family, his temperament had grown calm and gentle. Standing beside his elegant wife, the two looked like a truly harmonious pair.

Mo Hua felt happy for them.

They chatted over tea, discussing arrays and cultivation.

Shen Ru couldn’t help her amazement—Mo Hua, so young, was already a second-grade high-rank Array Master.

Before long, Steward Mo arrived as well.

By fate, Mo Hua owed much to him. Had he not drawn arrays for Steward Mo in exchange for spirit stones, he would never have become Immortal-Passage City’s “Little Array Master,” nor taken his first step down this path.

But now, Steward Mo had become Elder Mo.

Running the Array Pavilion was hard work, and he had a family to support. In the end, he followed his senior brother, Instructor Yan, and joined the Little Spirit Sect as an Elder—though he mostly still did the same odd jobs and manual labor as before.

Despite the title, much of his life remained the same. Still, rebuilding a sect was far more meaningful than managing a small shop.

He was content.

When he entered, Mo Hua greeted him with a smile. “Steward Mo, it’s been a while.”

“Good, good…” Steward Mo returned the greeting cheerfully, eyes full of nostalgia.

Who could have guessed that the little boy once shorter than his counter—who came clutching crude formation scrolls just to trade for a few spirit stones—would grow into such a terrifying genius, shaking the heavens themselves?

For over a decade, he had proudly told this story whenever he drank with others, basking in the envy and awe it brought. It had earned him no small amount of face.

Even Foundation cultivators now toasted him with respect.

After reminiscing for a while, Mo Hua rose to leave.

Instructor Yan, as though sensing his departure, showed a trace of regret—but also pride.

“The world is vast, and the Dao of Formations endless. You’re still young. You should explore it. See more.”

“A dragon cannot remain trapped in shallow waters.”

Mo Hua smiled. “I understand.”

“And…” Instructor Yan took his wife’s hand and added, “What I told you before—if you meet a good girl, hold on to her. Don’t let go.”

Mo Hua froze for a moment, slightly embarrassed. “Mm…”

Steward Mo laughed and cupped his hands. “I’ve no great wisdom to offer you, only the hope that your path be smooth, your will fulfilled, your future boundless—and that you one day ascend to immortality.”

Mo Hua smiled. “And I hope Steward Mo’s family prospers, his children succeed, and wealth comes early.”

That struck right to his heart. Steward Mo grinned ear to ear. “May Immortal Mo—ah, Brother Mo’s—blessings come true!”

…

After parting with Instructor Yan, Mo Hua visited An Xiaofu.

An Xiaofu had grown taller, still chubby and simple-minded, pure of heart.

When he heard Mo Hua was leaving again, he was visibly downcast. After some thought, he handed Mo Hua a white jade token carved with two characters—“Fortune Banquet.”

“What’s this?”

“A Free-Meal Token.”

Mo Hua blinked. “Free… meal?”

An Xiaofu nodded solemnly. “Officially, it’s called the ‘Fortune Banquet White Jade Token.’ But really, it means you can eat for free. With this, you can dine and drink at any Fortune Banquet Restaurant without paying a single spirit stone.”

“I plan to open Fortune Banquet branches across all Nine Provinces. Wherever you go, you can use this token to eat for free. From now on, I’ll take care of your meals!”

He patted his chest with great pride.

Mo Hua felt moved and smiled. “Alright!”

An Xiaofu grinned happily in return.

…

After parting with him, Mo Hua made several more visits before finally meeting Elder Yu.

Elder Yu was busy expanding Immortal-Passage City, but still found time to see him. He handed Mo Hua a jade slip.

“I thought long and hard about what I could give you to help. After ten days, I realized—I couldn’t think of a single thing.”

“In cultivation, you’re already in late Foundation. I’m only early Foundation. In status, you’re a disciple of a fifth-grade major sect; I’m just a scattered Elder of a small city. In knowledge and experience… I can’t compare.”

“The only thing that might be of use,” Elder Yu sighed, pointing at the jade slip, “is this.”

Mo Hua scanned it with his divine sense—and froze.

It was filled with curses, insults, and the most creative profanities he had ever seen—so biting and inventive that it left him speechless.

“This is…”

Elder Yu spoke gravely: “I’ve recorded every insult and scolding phrase I could think of. Study it when you have time. If it helps you, good. If not… pretend I never gave it to you.”

Mo Hua held the jade slip solemnly, feeling as though he had received a supreme legacy—one that even the great sects of Qianxue Province could not compare to.

He bowed seriously. “Elder Yu, rest assured. One day, I will make sure this legacy shines across the cultivation world!”

Elder Yu winced. “No, no… please don’t let it spread…”

But Mo Hua wasn’t listening anymore.

He carefully placed the jade slip—the “Legacy of Curses”—into his storage ring, resolved to study and master it thoroughly in the future.

Elder Yu felt a chill run down his spine, uncertain whether he had done something right… or terribly wrong.

Thank you for reading!

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