Chapter 858 – A Great Enemy
The gate slammed completely shut.
Gu Changhuai and Magistrate Xia were filled with grief. Hua Qianqian shed two silent tears. Ouyang Feng's face was pale, while Xiao Tianquan only frowned deeply.
Gu Changhuai's thoughts raced. He quickly said, "Hurry! We need to find a way to open the door!"
But the group circled the gate several times and found no method of opening it.
This was the inner sanctum's gate—the sacrificial gate. The way to open it was special. Based on Mr. Wu's previous actions, it required a sacrifice and some bizarre ritual.
They had no idea how to perform it.
And even if they did open the door, after such a long delay… Mo Hua might already…
Gu Changhuai felt a chill of dread, along with overwhelming guilt and regret.
If he'd known this would happen, he would never have let Mo Hua go in alone. At the very least, he should have gone with him.
But everything had happened too fast. After the brutal battle, he was mentally and physically exhausted, and failed to think things through—just one small lapse led to a terrible mistake.
Now it was far too late for regret.
Gu Changhuai's voice turned grim. "Use the fishbone token to leave. Gather every person we can find nearby. No matter the cost—we must break open this gate and rescue Mo Hua!"
Magistrate Xia nodded solemnly. Then she frowned and asked, "Should we inform the Great Void Sect?"
Gu Changhuai nodded—then suddenly froze and shook his head. "Not yet…"
Magistrate Xia was confused.
Gu Changhuai explained seriously, "We're in a secondary province. Even if we send word, help from the Great Void Sect would take too long to arrive. If we can save Mo Hua, we're enough. If we can't… by the time they get here, Mo Hua would already…"
The White Bone Labyrinth. Endless blood mist. The monstrous Mr. Wu. Countless blood corpses. And in the depths of the altar—that unfathomable, terrifying presence…
By the time anyone from the sect arrived, Mo Hua would almost certainly be beyond saving.
Everyone understood this—and the pain in their hearts deepened.
Gu Changhuai sighed. "Let's focus on saving him first. If we can bring him back, everything can be explained. If not… then we'll go to the Great Void Sect ourselves—and accept whatever punishment awaits."
Magistrate Xia nodded, feeling even more remorseful.
Mo Hua had taken the risk for their sake. Even at the very end, knowing he couldn't make it, he had thrown them the token—so they could escape safely.
But he himself...
Her heart ached like needles piercing it.
Finally, she looked at the sealed gate and let out a deep sigh:
"I hope that child Mo Hua is blessed with great fortune… and finds a way out of this alive."
But as for how he could survive the hellish danger of the White Bone Labyrinth—she couldn't even imagine…
White Bone Labyrinth.
A pale, bone-white tunnel.
Mr. Wu—now a massive, dragon-scaled monster resembling a Yaksha—was gripping Mo Hua in one bloody hand, step by step carrying him deeper into the maze.
The blood-red hue around them grew thicker and thicker.
A scent—nonexistent yet oddly potent—slowly permeated the air.
Mo Hua dangled in Mr. Wu's grip, craning his neck, looking left and right, sniffing the air. Then he raised his head and asked:
"Something happened in here? Smells kinda off."
Mr. Wu's eyelids twitched violently.
Did this little brat not understand his current situation?
He didn't respond.
Mo Hua asked again, "You're planning to use me as a 'sacrifice,' right?"
Mr. Wu sneered coldly, "What do you think?"
Mo Hua simply nodded.
Yep, just as he'd guessed.
He remembered Mr. Wu saying before that the god's "Great Enemy" would soon arrive, and they were all to be used as living sacrifices, a grand offering to that so-called god.
And living sacrifices meant… he wouldn't be killed yet.
Before offering him, Mr. Wu wouldn't dare kill him.
Not to mention, all those formations he had displayed earlier probably showed Mr. Wu that he possessed remarkable talent.
A strong talent in formations meant a strong divine sense.
With such rich divine essence, if he were a minion of that Great Wilderness god, he'd want to catch himself and present himself as an offering too.
No way Mr. Wu could resist.
As for the altar…
From what he could tell, the backflow of blood, the labyrinth's layout—it was likely that altar had been hidden somewhere by Mr. Wu.
He wouldn't be able to find it easily.
Even if he did, it'd probably be surrounded by blood-choked evil energy, deadly traps, and who knows what else—there's no way he could reach it alone.
So, if he couldn't do it himself—he needed help.
Mr. Wu, then, was perfect for the job.
Not only could he show the way, he'd even serve as Mo Hua's personal transport—all without Mo Hua needing to lift a finger.
Yep. Mr. Wu… was surprisingly useful.
Mo Hua secretly studied him and asked curiously, "So how did you turn from a person into a monster?"
Mr. Wu frowned. "I'm not a monster."
"Oh, then a Yaksha?"
Mr. Wu looked surprised. "How do you know that?"
Mo Hua replied, "I saw you nesting in the Yaksha Hall. And you kinda look like the Yaksha statues there."
Mr. Wu snorted. "Hmph. So you've got a bit of a brain after all."
Mo Hua asked again, "And those scales? Are they dragon scales? Why dragon scales? Are there really dragons in the world? How did you get—"
"Shut up!" Mr. Wu snapped irritably.
"Oh." Mo Hua replied blandly.
They continued walking in silence. Mo Hua thought it was getting too quiet, so he muttered under his breath:
"Such a bad temper. Back when he got caught, he was all polite and groveling…"
Mr. Wu's forehead twitched.
"That was calculated restraint!" he roared. "To lure in you ignorant fools who dared profane the god, so I could capture you all—and offer your blood to the deity!"
"Oh, so," Mo Hua said, "you deliberately killed all the shrine guards, turned into a Yaksha, and ate them?"
Mr. Wu laughed coldly. "That's right."
Mo Hua thought back to when Mr. Wu had learned he'd eaten his own teammates—and nearly vomited out his guts in shock.
Inwardly, Mo Hua scoffed.
What a drama queen. He really sold that act.
Then Mo Hua self-reflected a bit—he had to admit, this Mr. Wu was a better actor than him.
That exaggerated expression of horror, like his organs were going to come flying out—that wasn't something Mo Hua could fake.
Guess he still had room to grow… in acting.
Mo Hua nodded to himself and then asked:
"Say… weren't those shrine guards your allies? You killed and ate them. Didn't your conscience hurt at all?"
"You know nothing," Mr. Wu sneered. "To offer their loyalty, flesh, and even lives to the god—that is their highest honor."
"To die for the god… is their greatest destiny."
Mo Hua quietly shook his head.
Yep. Brainwashed beyond repair.
"Oh, right," Mo Hua added with a hint of mischief, "you keep saying 'the god, the god'—but who exactly is this god you're talking about?"
"How dare you!" Mr. Wu thundered. "You dare speak the god's holy title so casually?!"
"Then… what should I call it?" Mo Hua asked sincerely.
Mr. Wu was about to answer—but suddenly paused.
He looked around, taking in the bone-white columns, the blood-drenched mist, and that suffocating, spine-chilling aura from deep within… and frowned.
Something wasn't right with this brat…
His gaze sharpened. Slowly, Mr. Wu asked:
"Do you even realize where we are? Do you know where I'm taking you? Aren't you even a little… afraid?"
Mo Hua quickly suppressed his excitement, put on a serious face, and replied:
"I'm terrified. So terrified, in fact, that I had to chat with you just to calm my nerves."
Mr. Wu: "..."
"Is this little brat... brain-damaged?"
"Does he really have no idea what's going on?"
Could he have been born with a flawed soul? A defect in the seven emotions and six desires—so he doesn't even know what fear is?
Mr. Wu's brow furrowed tighter and tighter.
Then, he suddenly gave a dark, sinister smile.
"The ignorant know no fear."
The more clueless a person is, the more foolish their courage becomes.
There are terrors in this world far beyond understanding—even if this brat didn't know before, he'd soon find out…
Without another word, Mr. Wu quickened his pace, dragging Mo Hua deeper into the labyrinth.
From then on, no matter what Mo Hua asked, Mr. Wu remained utterly silent.
Mo Hua couldn't get anything out of him. Left with no choice, he just looked around—but the more he looked, the more confused he became.
The blood in the depths of the White Bone Labyrinth was far thicker than before.
And it was still gradually intensifying.
It was as if something was being incubated.
Yet… Mo Hua sensed nothing particularly strange around him.
And then, step by step, Mr. Wu brought him to a blood pool.
The blood in it was unnaturally viscous.
Mo Hua took one glance and deduced: all the blood-tainted, evil-infused seawater from before had now been condensed and drawn into this single pool.
Mr. Wu was about to leap in, still gripping Mo Hua, when Mo Hua quickly shouted:
"Wait!"
Mr. Wu paused, frowning. "What now?"
Mo Hua said seriously, "This blood is filthy. It can corrode flesh. If you throw me in, I might die before you get the chance to sacrifice me."
Mr. Wu sneered, "Don't worry. You're a special offering. If you're not fresh enough, the god will blame me."
And with that, he leapt.
Splash!
The blood surged up—but it was so thick and sticky that barely any of it even splashed.
When they entered, Mo Hua shut his eyes. When he opened them again, everything around him was crimson—a thick, viscous blood slurry.
Yet his body was wrapped in dragon scales, keeping the blood at bay.
Mr. Wu had completely transformed into a true Yaksha of blood, his body wrapped in scales as he swam with Mo Hua to the bottom of the blood pool.
All the way down… until they reached the very bottom.
Mo Hua looked up—and finally saw what he had been longing to find.
The altar.
It now rested quietly at the center of the blood pool.
The surrounding blood compressed itself, forming dozens of stream-like arteries that flowed directly into the altar's solemn ram-bone statue, channeling a steady stream of corrupt energy into it.
Outside the altar, the blood was thick like paste.
But immediately around the altar—it was a complete vacuum.
Mr. Wu brought Mo Hua over and pulled out—who knows from where—a bone chain, binding Mo Hua tightly and tossing him to the side for now.
Then, he respectfully began arranging some bizarre blood-flesh offerings on the altar, muttering to himself.
Mo Hua lay there, glancing at the grotesque bloodstreams, the ominous altar, and the grisly offerings—and for a moment, he really did seem to understand what "fear" felt like.
"You're not seriously going to sacrifice me… right?"
Mr. Wu sneered.
What an idiot.
It's only now that this obvious reality is starting to dawn on him?
But he didn't answer—he was busy preparing the ritual.
You couldn't speak loudly in front of the god, or risk showing disrespect and incurring divine wrath.
He lit the ceremonial candles, offered the incense, placed the flesh and blood tributes upon the altar table—then finally turned back to the "main course" of the ceremony: Mo Hua.
"Originally, I planned to capture all of you—and offer you all to the god. But you turned out to be... troublesome."
"Aside from that greedy idiot I tore apart and refined into a blood corpse, the other Jindan cultivators weren't easy to deal with."
"And you, brat… slippery as a ghost."
"I thought my Yaksha body—invulnerable to blades, immune to fire and water—would sweep through you all. But somehow, you lot saw through my weak point and wore me down…"
The more Mr. Wu spoke, the more frustrated he became. Finally, he sighed:
"It couldn't be helped. But Heaven rewards the persistent—and the god was watching over me. In the end, I still caught you."
His tone grew brighter. Staring at Mo Hua, he nodded with satisfaction:
"You really are a perfect live offering. Tender and fresh—and more importantly, your divine sense must be exceptionally dense."
"It was you who broke my blood array. And I saw you laying traps for that Xiao fellow earlier too."
"Your formation skills are extraordinary. Your divine sense must be too. That makes you especially... delicious."
"With you alone as a living sacrifice—maybe it's a bit light—but I doubt the god will blame me."
Mo Hua now looked "tense." He stared seriously at Mr. Wu and said:
"I'm warning you. If you sacrifice me, you'll regret it."
Mr. Wu laughed. "Ever since I devoted myself to the god—body, mind, and soul—I've never once known what the word regret means."
"Enough." He lost patience. "Everything is ready. Time for you to go. You will be the proof of my loyalty—my gift to the god."
Before Mo Hua could say another word, Mr. Wu lifted him and placed him on the altar.
Then, he lit candles, burned incense, and knelt to pray:
"O Lord of the Great Wilderness…
Sovereign of Three Thousand Dominions…
Resplendent and mighty, divine majesty above all."
"I, your humble believer—one who carries the blood of the Great Wilderness and worships your sacred name—offer unto you this sacrifice."
"A being of innate divine soul, overflowing with spiritual essence."
"May the god be eternal—may your arrival bring glory to this world."
Mr. Wu prayed with deep reverence.
And at that moment, an ancient and majestic presence began to stir above the altar.
Something was awakening.
Something that was ready to feast.
Mo Hua sat up straight, silent, not daring to interrupt the prayer.
He was afraid that if he spoke and threw off Mr. Wu's rhythm, the prayer would fail—and all his hard work would go to waste.
Mr. Wu finished the prayer smoothly. He looked up at Mo Hua and said coldly:
"You're oddly well-behaved."
Mo Hua nodded. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked:
"Mr. Wu… earlier you said the god's 'Great Enemy' was coming. How did you know?"
Mr. Wu sneered, his expression filled with reverence. "Naturally—it was a divine revelation from the god."
"And how… exactly… did the god reveal it?" Mo Hua asked again.
Mr. Wu was just about to answer—but suddenly frowned.
"Why are you asking that?"
Mo Hua replied honestly, "Oh, right—I forgot to mention…"
"That 'Great Enemy' your god is so afraid of… seems like it's me."
Mr. Wu froze.
Then slowly… began to chuckle.
And then burst into full-blown laughter, looking at Mo Hua—tied up in bone chains like a helpless lamb—and said coldly:
"Little brother… I didn't know you were such a comedian."
As if someone like this—a frail, powerless brat—could be called the 'Great Enemy' of the exalted god?
Mr. Wu sneered.
But as he kept laughing… suddenly… his laughter stopped.
Something felt… off.
All along this journey…
He'd had the persistent, creeping feeling…
That he was being led into a trap.
But...
Why?
Why… at the entrance to the labyrinth…
was it this little brat who entered and shut the door?
Why, when he clearly had excellent movement techniques, did he not dodge?
Why, when he was obviously clever, did he just freeze up like some frightened fool?
Why…?
The altar's aura was growing stronger and stronger.
The blood mist around them slowly began to rise.
An ancient, oppressive force echoed through the space, as if it sought to drag every soul present into an unfathomable abyss.
And then, at the final moment, that faint sense of wrongness—
Finally crystallized into a terrifying omen.
Just as the ritual was about to complete, Mr. Wu suddenly reached out to pull Mo Hua down from the altar.
But—he grasped at air.
The Mo Hua who had been bound in bone chains, the same Mo Hua who couldn't escape a single step along the way…
Now easily dodged his grasp—and then calmly sat down atop the altar, refusing to move.
Mr. Wu's face turned deathly pale.
The next instant, murmurs echoed in the air.
The blood mist surged, fully enveloping the altar.
It pulled at their souls, sucking them into another realm—a realm of divine consciousness.
When the two opened their eyes again, they were still in the same blood pool, still by the same altar—but everything around them… had changed.
Within the blood pool, countless ghostly faces screamed and twisted in torment.
Atop the altar stood a massive ram-horned statue, emanating overwhelming divine authority—as if it truly were a god, holding dominion over all.
Now, Mo Hua sat upon that altar.
And Mr. Wu stood below it.
Normally, upon entering the domain of the God, Mr. Wu would immediately kneel and slaughter the sacrificial soul—ripping it apart and offering it to the deity.
But now, he trembled from head to toe.
Seated above him… was a strange child.
His appearance did resemble Mo Hua somewhat, but his body was younger and smaller, his presence faint and difficult to read.
But Mr. Wu was a shaman, a lifelong worshiper of the divine.
He could feel it—faintly exuding from the child's body…
A presence that made his very soul shudder.
It was a presence that was almost—
Godlike.
Mr. Wu's heart trembled. He nearly lost his balance. Gritting his teeth, he pointed at Mo Hua:
"Who… what are you?!"
He shook his head, pupils shrinking.
"No… what the hell are you?!"
Mo Hua gave him a faint smile and cheerfully replied:
"You led the way well this time. No need to lead me again."
Mr. Wu's expression twisted in horror.
At last… he understood.
It was all a setup. Every bit of it.
This inconspicuous brat who hid himself in the crowd…
Was the real mastermind.
From beginning to end, everything he'd done…
Was to gain access to the altar.
His target—was the god.
He hadn't lied.
This brat really was… the God's Great Enemy.
"The Great Enemy…"
After the shock came terror—
But then Mr. Wu straightened up, eyes burning with unshakable resolve.
A surge of courage filled his chest—drawn from fanatical faith and absolute loyalty to the god.
"If you're the god's Great Enemy…
Then I'll cut off your head, sever your limbs, gouge out your eyes, rip out your heart…"
"I'll dismember you entirely—
And offer you to the god, as proof of my devotion!"
Mr. Wu's body began to expand.
The evil god of the Great Wilderness had given him courage—and the divine authority to inflate his soul.
His Yaksha form grew even more massive.
Dragon scales hardened, claws and fangs grew sharper, blood surged through him like mighty rivers.
And without waiting for Mo Hua's reply—
Mr. Wu vanished in a blur, his massive fist crashing down toward Mo Hua.
It was a punch of immense power, unstoppable momentum.
Yet Mo Hua merely raised one tiny hand—
And all the force, all the might, came to an abrupt halt.
The punch… could not advance even an inch.
Mr. Wu's pupils widened in disbelief.
Then—Mo Hua punched back.
A golden light radiated from his tiny fist.
It looked slow—yet struck with impossible speed.
Before Mr. Wu could react, it slammed into his chest.
The "indestructible" dragon scales—
Shattered.
Cracks spread from his chest to all four limbs.
And at the center of his chest—
A black void appeared.
One punch.
His vitality—erased.
Mr. Wu understood.
Face pale, he slowly dropped to his knees, his voice full of horror—and endless regret.
"God above… I… have sinned…"
"I have committed a great sin…"
"I have brought disaster upon heaven…
I… have brought forth… the Great Enemy…"
In the next instant— His head fell to the floor.
Mo Hua had twisted it clean off.
With that, Mr. Wu's soul was annihilated.
(End of this Chapter)