Chapter 88: Inquiry
After all the commotion that day, Mo Hua wanted to sleep early, but no matter how he tried, he couldn't.
So he entered his Sea of Consciousness, practicing formation drawing on the Dao Stele throughout the night.
When he was drawing formations, his mind was clear, his focus absolute, and his heart at peace.
The next morning, Zhang Lan came looking for him.
He was sitting at a corner table in a small tavern, an Eight Immortals table with a few dishes and a pot of wine laid out.
Pouring himself a cup, Zhang Lan looked at Mo Hua and said,
"Talk. What happened yesterday?"
"What do you mean, what happened?"
Zhang Lan curled his lip. "Don't play dumb. I'm talking about Qian Xing."
"He was bullying me. Then Dazhu and the others helped, and a fight broke out… then you guys showed up." Mo Hua glossed over the important parts.
Zhang Lan frowned. "Cut the act. That formation, was it you who used it?"
Mo Hua's eyes widened. "Uncle Zhang, you watched us fight?"
"No," Zhang Lan took a sip of wine, "if I had, you think I'd have let them carry on like that?"
Mo Hua blinked. "Then how did you know it was a formation, not a spell?"
After the Earthfire Array exploded, the spirit-paper had burned to ash, unless someone had seen it with their own eyes, no one should've known it was a formation.
"Where rain passes, it leaves traces; where geese fly, they leave echoes. Anything a cultivator does leaves a mark. You can't see it, but that doesn't mean others can't."
"What kind of traces?" Mo Hua asked, genuinely curious.
"The paper you used burns differently, it leaves ember residue. After an array explodes, the lingering spiritual aura is distinct; anyone experienced can tell. Some can even identify the specific array you used."
"And since a Qi-Refining cultivator's spells are limited, with such destructive power, it could only be a talisman or a formation. Talismans are costly and easy to recognize, so that only leaves formations."
Zhang Lan spoke with the smug confidence of a professional investigator.
"I see…" Mo Hua nodded thoughtfully. "Then… how do I erase those traces?"
"When the paper's ash meets wind, it scatters; when it meets water, it dissolves. Or use a different medium for drawing, no ember residue that way. As for the residual aura, you can deliberately mix it up. But that's not really necessary; most cultivators wouldn't tell the difference anyway. And then there's—"
Zhang Lan suddenly stopped, realizing he was basically teaching Mo Hua how to cover up evidence.
"What else?" Mo Hua asked eagerly, eyes bright.
Zhang Lan coughed. "That part's not important. Just tell me, did you blow up Qian Xing or not?"
"No." Mo Hua wasn't stupid. Why admit it and cause trouble for himself?
Zhang Lan gave him a disbelieving look.
"Uncle Zhang, think about it. I'm only at the fourth level of Qi-Refining, how could I possibly create such a powerful array?"
"Hm. Not a bad excuse." Zhang Lan nodded absently.
"See? Wait, no! It's not an excuse, it's the truth!" Mo Hua corrected hastily.
Zhang Lan chuckled. "Alright, alright, I get it. Relax, I'm just trying to understand what happened. I won't send you off to be interrogated by the Dao Court Division."
"Doesn't the Dao Court Division handle things like this?"
"It does, but we don't just arrest people blindly. What, do you think we're all in bed with the noble clans?"
"Yes." Mo Hua nodded sincerely.
Zhang Lan nearly choked on his wine. He tried to argue but couldn't think of a single good counterexample.
"…Fine," he admitted. "Some are, sure. But I'm not! That's something, right?"
Mo Hua gave him a sympathetic look and whispered, "Uncle Zhang… are you being excluded? Is that why they don't invite you to hang out?"
Zhang Lan felt a headache coming on. His heart hurt a little too. He'd just realized this brat had steered the whole conversation off-course, he hadn't even finished his questioning!
He glared at Mo Hua. "Stop dodging. I was asking about Qian Xing."
"Oh." Mo Hua sat obediently, pretending to be innocent. He wasn't going to say a thing.
But both of them knew the truth, they just didn't say it out loud.
Zhang Lan sighed. "With your cultivation, there's no way you could've drawn that formation. So the one who hurt Qian Xing definitely wasn't you."
"Then… who could it be?" Mo Hua probed.
Zhang Lan raised a brow. "Qian Xing's been throwing his weight around for years. He's made plenty of enemies.
Yesterday, when he caused trouble in the street, someone might've seized the chance to strike from the shadows.
Who exactly, we'll need time to find out…"
Mo Hua looked genuinely impressed. As expected of a Dao Court Division officer, his ability to lie with a straight face was top-tier.
He'd have to learn that skill someday.
"Thank you for your hard work, Officer Zhang! This meal's on me!" Mo Hua patted his chest proudly.
"Oh?" Zhang Lan grinned. "In that case, another two plates of beef—and two more pots of wine!"
Mo Hua's face froze. "…Small business, Uncle Zhang. Let's not overdo it."
Zhang Lan couldn't help but laugh.
"By the way," he asked suddenly, "you and Qian Xing—did you have some grudge? Why was he targeting you?"
Mo Hua thought for a moment. "Not really. He wanted me to do something for him, I refused, and he got mad."
"That's it?"
"Yeah." Mo Hua nodded. "He said he'd kill me, then feed me to a beast in the mountains, one bite at a time—so that even the Dao Court Division wouldn't find me."
"Son of a—!" Zhang Lan slammed the table in fury.
The entire tavern turned to look. He coughed to cover it up. "Good wine."
"You cracked our table," Mo Hua pointed out.
Indeed, there were several new splits along the wood. Zhang Lan had accidentally used a bit of force when his anger flared.
"I'll pay for it. Take it out of my spirit stones," Zhang Lan muttered sheepishly.
Mo Hua waved it off, then asked curiously,
"Uncle Zhang… you don't think Qian Xing actually killed someone before, do you?"
Growing up, Mo Hua had only seen cultivators fighting beasts, never each other.
So when Qian Xing had so casually threatened to kill him—to feed him to monsters—it had left Mo Hua deeply unsettled.
The calm cruelty of it had felt too real, too practiced.
It was his first time realizing how much darkness could hide beneath ordinary days.
Zhang Lan's face grew serious. "…It's not impossible."
"The Dao Court Division won't do anything?"
"Someone has to report it before we can act.
We need clues to investigate.
And even if we find the truth, we still need proof to convict.
Without that—either we can't intervene, or it all gets buried in the end."
Which meant anything Qian Xing had done before… would likely just be "buried."
...
Author's Notes:
So many people are flaming me…
This part of the story isn't that bad, right?
It's basically like when you're heading home from school and the local thug blocks your path—you know talking won't help, so you don't waste your breath.
Mo Hua's formation skills are already far above his peers.
He doesn't look for trouble, but he doesn't fear it either.
He solved the problem his own way, won the fight—and the adults cleaned up afterward.
Monster Hunters are united and fiercely protective of their own.
They battle beasts daily; they've got blood and pride.
They'd never stand by while one of their children is bullied.
Besides, Mo Hua's already well-connected: he knows alchemists, artificers, Dao Court officers, his father has status among Monster Hunters, and he's even acquainted with experts like Aunt Xue and Mister Zhuang.
With all that backing, why should he swallow humiliation?
Enduring when you must is prudence; enduring when you don't have to is cowardice.
And yeah, some people are angry—but the subscriptions and first-day stats are actually decent for a new author.
Anyway, that's all for now. I'll focus on writing.
Might read fewer comments for a while—too many flames and I can't write a word.
Thanks for the support!
Ten chapters today!
(End of Chapter)