Chapter 156: Earth-Fire Reforging Array
"How many spirit stones can this spirit mine produce…?"
Mo Hua looked around at the sprawling, interlinked tunnels of the mine and asked curiously.
Elder Yu Chengyi replied, "This spirit mine isn't a large one. Once fully excavated, it should be enough to sustain all the demon hunters in Tōngxiān City for about ten years."
"Is that considered much or little?"
Yu Chengyi smiled. "Quite a lot. Everyone can enjoy ten years of good days without worrying about food or resources."
Ten years…
That sounded like a long time, after all, he himself was only around ten years old now.
Yet for cultivators, ten years was nothing at all.
Time passed like flowing water and galloping horses; for some cultivators, even a century could feel no longer than the blink of an eye.
"How can we make these good days last longer…"
Mo Hua's brows slowly furrowed.
The spirit stones in this mine could grant the demon hunters a decade of prosperity, but they could also elevate the Qian family to even greater heights.
If the Qian family seized the mine and mined the spirit stones, they could easily strengthen their monopoly.
Once their influence expanded into alchemy, artifact forging, and trade, they could dominate the entire city. Every cultivator in Tōngxiān City would have to bow to their will.
So there was no way they would give up this spirit mine.
It was not long before the Qian family launched their second wave of assaults.
This time, however, they avoided direct confrontation. Instead, they relied on ambushes and harassment.
When night fell, under the faint moonlight, the Qian family cultivators would suddenly attack.
The demon hunters, ambushed and wounded, would attempt to counterattack, only for the Qian family to retreat just as swiftly.
Again and again, these assaults came without end.
The number of injured demon hunters grew, and constant vigilance frayed their nerves. Their faces were drawn and weary.
Elder Yu grew increasingly furious, but there was little he could do.
They were defending while the Qian family attacked.
It left them passive, forced to endure endless harassment. If they pursued, the enemy melted away like mist. It was like striking air... frustrating and fruitless.
Yet the spirit mine could not be abandoned. They were trapped, forced to endure this slow suffocation.
The Qian family seemed intent on boiling the frog alive, draining them through attrition.
The demon hunters' expressions grew grim and sullen.
Mo Hua also felt frustrated. Whenever he had free time, he would wander to the mouth of the mine, watching the rugged mountain slopes and thinking deeply.
After several days of such contemplation, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him. He hurried to Elder Yu and said,
"Elder, I have an idea."
He explained it in detail.
Elder Yu's eyes brightened, but hesitation flickered in them. "Will it work?"
Mo Hua wasn't entirely certain. "Why don't we try it?"
After thinking for a moment, Elder Yu realized there was no better plan. "Then we'll try."
For the next several days, Mo Hua was once again painting formations.
This time, however, they were not Golden Armor Formations, but Earth-Fire Reforging Arrays consisting of seven rune sequences.
This particular array came from The Introductory Compendium of Composite Formations given to him by Mister Zhuang. It connected two Earthfire Formations into one, amplifying their power through resonance.
Because the formation's core nodes enhanced each other's spiritual flow, the resulting explosions were considerably stronger than those of two separate Earthfire Formations.
Once Mo Hua finished, he handed the formation diagrams to Elder Yu.
Elder Yu spread out his Divine-Sense. Detecting that Qian family cultivators were still lurking around the mine like flies, he ordered the demon hunters to stage a feint.
The demon hunters suddenly charged down the slopes.
The Qian family cultivators, startled but wary, quickly retreated. Their orders were to harass, not to engage.
Once the enemy withdrew, Elder Yu swept his Divine-Sense again. When no Qian cultivators remained nearby, he waved his hand.
A few demon hunters carried the formation plates Mo Hua had made and buried them around the mountains.
Deep within thickets, beneath gnarled tree roots, between jagged boulders, and even hidden in the damp soil beneath fallen leaves and grass.
When the placement was complete, all returned quietly to the mine.
Mo Hua crouched at a concealed tunnel entrance, waiting excitedly for the show to begin.
Unfortunately, the Qian cultivators were too cautious. After being driven off, they did not return for quite some time.
Bored, Mo Hua opened one of his formation manuals and continued studying, pondering what other arrays might counter the Qian family's tactics.
It was not until dusk that the Qian family regrouped and gathered at the base of Nameless Peak.
Though they were too far to see, Mo Hua sensed faint movement with his Divine-Sense—something was happening.
A grin spread across his face.
He stowed away his book, spread a blanket on the ground, and took out dried beef, pine nuts, wild fruits, and a bottle of sweet osmanthus wine from his Storage Ring.
That wine was light, fragrant, and smooth, he rarely allowed himself a sip.
Cracking pine nuts and chewing beef, Mo Hua gazed down toward the mountain's foot with eager eyes.
Sure enough, before long, the Qian cultivators began to move.
At the base of Nameless Peak, they gathered under the command of a towering, broad-shouldered man six feet tall.
Several late-stage Qi-Refining cultivators huddled around him, murmuring about their night assault.
"Tonight, we'll show those damned demon hunters some real pain!"
"Same plan as before. Sneak up quietly, strike fast, kill without hesitation. If they die, it's their bad luck."
"If they chase, we'll pretend to retreat."
"Except this time, we won't really retreat. When they withdraw, we'll circle back and strike again."
"After these days of harassment, they'll never expect a countercharge! Even if we don't destroy them outright, we'll cripple their morale and grind them down until they collapse!"
"When the Qian family takes the mine, our contributions will earn great favor. With the family rising in power, even Foundation Establishment will be within reach!"
The man's speech stirred their blood.
One cultivator hesitated. "But earlier today, those demon hunters suddenly charged down at us... why?"
The big man waved a hand dismissively. "Irrelevant. As long as we work together, their tricks are meaningless. They're nothing but clowns jumping on strings."
The others nodded fervently, full of fighting spirit.
Under his orders, they split into several squads, concealed their spiritual auras, and began climbing toward the mountainside, just as they had done many times before.
Everything seemed the same as always.
Until one Qian cultivator's foot stepped onto something strange.
A faint sense of wrongness prickled at his nerves, but before he could even realize what it was, flames erupted all around him.
A thunderous boom shook the mountain.
The Earth-Fire Reforging Array exploded, its blaze lighting the night like a blooming lotus of fire.
The surrounding Qian cultivators were blasted away, most survived, but half of them were charred, coughing blood.
"Ambush?!"
"Where are they?!"
Panic filled the Qian ranks as they scanned wildly around, seeing no enemy in sight.
"Don't panic!"
The tall man barked, "Just a desperate counterattack! Stick to the plan!"
They steadied themselves and pressed on.
But only for a moment.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Explosions erupted one after another.
The mountains blazed with interlinked flames, each burst of the Earth-Fire Reforging Array blooming like fiery lotus petals across the night.
The Qian cultivators were thrown into chaos, running in terror, only to trigger even more blasts.
The great man stood frozen, eyes wide in disbelief.
What in the heavens was this?!
Where had all these explosions come from?
As he watched his subordinates screaming and scattering amid the sea of fire, realization struck him like a blade.
He was finished.
He had fancied himself the clever hunter... but the real clown, it turned out, was him.
(End of Chapter)