The Third Householder was reluctant to speak.
Mo Hua huffed again, "Don’t push your luck!"
After saying this, he lifted the Thousand Jun Stick again, preparing to hit the Third Householder’s face, not to hurt him but simply to humiliate him further.
Grinding his teeth, the Third Householder said, "I’ll talk!"
He didn’t want to be humiliated by a young cultivator in his teens.
Mo Hua put away the Thousand Jun Stick, "Speak."
The Third Householder hesitated a bit before saying, "I’ve discovered that the formations of Black Mountain Stronghold have been tampered with, and I suspect it was you who did it, but I’m not sure. After all, solving formations is not something that a regular Formation Master could learn."
"You’re too young to have such a level of mastery in formations."
"However, later on, I thought about how strong your Divine Sense is, and I felt that it was very likely you."
"Then why didn’t you tell your Camp Leader?" Mo Hua asked.
The Third Householder sneered, "If I had told him, and you fell into the Camp Leader’s hands, then all your secrets would belong to the Camp Leader..."
"But if I don’t tell him, and I catch you instead, I can probe the secrets of your Divine Sense and force you to divulge the spell point for solving formations. By doing so, I can enhance my own Divine Sense, and my formation level could soar significantly."
"If it were you, how would you choose?" the Third Householder asked in return.
Mo Hua stroked his chin.
What he said seemed to make sense...
Every man for himself, heaven takes the hindmost, let alone an Evil Cultivator like the Third Householder.
"Additionally, there’s one more thing..." the Third Householder looked at Mo Hua, his gaze slightly intensifying as he said: "I’m afraid you’ll side with the Camp Leader."
Mo Hua was startled, "Side with the Camp Leader?"
The Third Householder coldly said, "I’ve seen the way you solve formations. To tell you the truth, it makes me feel inferior and afraid."
"Someone as young as you with such a powerful Divine Sense and deep formation mastery."
"If the Camp Leader finds out, no matter what, he will invite you to join Black Mountain Stronghold. If you’re unwilling, he’ll use all sorts of methods, coercion, and inducements to make you one of the Stronghold’s Evil Cultivators."
"And once you join Black Mountain Stronghold, with two Formation Masters, there won’t be room for both of us—as the saying goes, ’A mountain cannot accommodate two tigers.’ I think you understand this."
"Moreover, you’re so young. Your future in formations is boundless. Even if you wanted to kill me, the Camp Leader would probably do it himself."
"It’s not that exaggerated..."
Mo Hua was somewhat surprised—he didn’t know he had such clout...
The Third Householder sneered, "I’ve followed the Camp Leader for many years; I know him very well. As long as you are talented, you can pretty much have anything you want, but once you’re useless, he’ll discard you like a worn-out shoe."
Mo Hua nodded slightly.
This also matched his impression of the Patriarch of the Qian Family.
As the Third Householder was talking, he suddenly came to his senses, his expression abruptly shifted and he asked,
"Wait, how do you know Black Mountain Stronghold has a Camp Leader?"
Mo Hua was momentarily speechless.
This Third Householder was so slow to react...
But judging by his reaction, he probably didn’t know that the Patriarch of the Qian Family’s identity had been revealed, nor that the Patriarch had been besieged by the Taoist soldiers, seriously injured, and had escaped.
In other words, he had been hiding here without any contact with the Patriarch of the Qian Family.
"Your Camp Leader has already been slaughtered!" Mo Hua bluffed him.
The Third Householder looked as if he had been struck by lightning, but then he regained his composure and scoffed, "Impossible."
"Why not?" Mo Hua asked curiously.
The Third Householder sneered but did not wish to answer.
"What’s the purpose of these Evil Formations you’ve drawn?" Mo Hua asked again.
The Third Householder closed his eyes and remained silent, even as Leader Yang thrust his spear deeper and activated his Spiritual Power to twist the wound, the Third Householder just endured the pain without a word.
It seemed that these issues were top-secret, and the Third Householder would not disclose them easily.
Leader Yang said, "Take him back and lock him up in the Taoist Prison for a severe interrogation."
Mo Hua nodded, it seemed that was the only option for now.
Leader Yang withdrew his long spear and prepared to escort the Third Householder back to Tongxian City. Just before leaving, the Third Householder suddenly asked,
"What exactly happened to the Camp Leader?"
Mo Hua thought about it and decided not to hide the truth, saying plainly,
"His identity was exposed, he was besieged, and he fled with severe injuries. It’s unlikely he’ll stir up any trouble again."
The Third Householder showed a disappointed look.
He probably still hoped that the Patriarch of the Qian Family would find him again, so that they could regroup and rise from the ashes, rebuilding another Black Mountain Stronghold.
As if such good fortune were common.
Mo Hua sneered in his heart.
As the Third Householder was being escorted away by Leader Yang, his face was defeated, but just as he turned around, the corners of his mouth slightly curled up, revealing a subtle, sinister smile.
This smile was very subtle, and Mo Hua wouldn’t have noticed it if not for his sharp Divine Sense.
What was this crafty fellow, the Third Householder, smiling about?
Mo Hua furrowed his brow.
He went through the items in the cave again, from start to finish, but found nothing special.
The Third Householder’s Storage Bag, which he and Leader Yang had already searched through before, contained only some Spirit Stones, some Blood Ink, some Human Life Pills, and a damaged Contemplation Map.
The Contemplation Map was missing the Little Green-faced Ghost that transformed into a Taoist Child—because that ghost had been eaten by Mo Hua.
Out of all the items, the only thing that caught Mo Hua’s attention and seemed a bit special was the Evil Formation that the Third Householder had drawn.
This Evil Formation... what was it used for?