Chapter 729: The Hunt
Cheng Mo and the others weren't beast hunters—they lacked experience.
So they had to start simple, progressing step by step.
Mo Hua sat among the disciples, lost in thought by candlelight.
The Beast-Taming Mountain map was already complete.
He had a good grasp of the early-stage second-grade beasts within the mountain.
Everything was ready—it was time to put it all into practice.
Mo Hua consulted the map, studied it for a long time, and drafted a route, picked a target beast, and devised a detailed plan.
The next day, he wrote a letter and handed it to Master Gu, asking him to custom-forge a batch of armor.
A few days later, the armor was ready.
Mo Hua then found Cheng Mo and got straight to the point:
"We're heading to Beast-Taming Mountain the day after tomorrow, during the rest period."
Cheng Mo's injuries had just healed. When he heard that, his heart trembled—
he could still feel phantom pain from the wounds.
Even if senior brother was just going there for a casual stroll, Cheng Mo figured he had no choice but to tag along.
Watching Mo Hua head into the mountain, Xun Ziyou sighed lightly.
"Can't show weakness now…"
Cheng Mo braced himself and declared confidently:
"Don't worry, Senior Brother. Once we're in Beast-Taming Mountain, I'll definitely protect you!"
Mo Hua raised an eyebrow. "You scared?"
Cheng Mo faltered slightly, "…You're not actually planning to hunt beasts, right?"
Mo Hua sighed when Cheng Mo clearly didn't believe him.
Cheng Mo chuckled nervously. "I just didn't want to drag you down. If you don't mind, I'll go wherever you go—no complaints."
Then he muttered under his breath:
"Maybe let it go for now? Revenge can wait ten years—maybe we can spare the beasts this time…"
Still, when Senior Brother Mo Hua said he was going into the mountains, everyone's discouraged spirits… quietly reignited.
After all, following Senior Brother never went wrong.
But after acting tough, Cheng Mo still cautiously asked,
"Uh… Senior Brother, what exactly are we doing in Beast-Taming Mountain?"
As they prepared to enter, Mo Hua didn't notice a calm, refined man with the bearing of an elder watching them from afar.
Beast-Taming Mountain was a tough place—
Fierce beasts, high danger, merit rewards were slim, and even the entry fee was 100 merit points.
At their cultivation level, entering was practically a loss.
Cheng Mo forced a laugh—but couldn't really smile.
"It's not that I'm scared—it's the beasts I'm worried about hurting you," he joked.
He glanced at himself—tall, strong, healthy—yet one slap from a bear had left him bedridden for half a month.
"What do you think?"
At the mountain gate, they each paid 100 merit points, received a Beast-Taming Token, and entered.
"Don't worry," Mo Hua said proudly,
"Didn't I tell you? I come from a beast hunter family—it's a family trade!"
"…Here we go again."
It was a truth hammered in through experience.
Cheng Mo immediately panicked again.
After all, different terrain meant different beasts, and every hunt required a different approach.
Mo Hua nodded, "See? You're clever."
Not that anyone fully believed him yet...
When the rest period began, Mo Hua stopped by the Gu Family's Trading Hall in Great Void City.
He picked up a few spiritual tools, inscribed some simple formations, and then met up with Cheng Mo and the others to head into the mountain together.
This was a true thigh to cling to!
"Good," Mo Hua nodded in satisfaction.
He glanced at his own scrawny limbs—he'd grown some, but compared to Cheng Mo, he still had noodle arms and chopstick legs.
Even the iron-faced Xun Elder would cover for Mo Hua.
Many disciples, like Situ Jian, had already given up the idea of beast hunting, thinking they'd return once their cultivation was higher.
But Cheng Mo still had nightmares of that bear paw…
Whether they hunted beasts or not didn't matter.
Clinging to Mo Hua mattered.
They'd known each other for a while now, and Cheng Mo was quite familiar with Mo Hua—
his sharp mind, incredible formation skills, and deep, mysterious background.
As for the elder from before, his name was Xun Ziyou—a direct descendant of Elder Xun, a late-stage Golden Core cultivator and elder in the inner sect of the Great Void Sect.
He had been tasked by Elder Xun to secretly watch over Mo Hua.
Naturally, Cheng Mo dragged Situ Jian and the others along too.
"You can't use your hometown sword style to cut down beasts in Qianzhou!"
"Fine, I'll find someone else then," Mo Hua teased.
Though no one knew what exactly Mo Hua's plan was—
how he expected to enter this perilous mountain and hunt bloodthirsty demon beasts…
Cheng Mo was full of complicated emotions.
He had assumed Mo Hua would lay low for a while after two ten-day excursions into the wild.
But nope—he was already planning the next one.
And this time, he had four little newbies tagging along behind him.
"He's not seriously planning to start hunting beasts now… right?"
Xun Ziyou silently evaluated the disciples' strength and frowned slightly.
"Bit risky…"
They could fight an early second-grade beast—
but the danger was high.
Some early second-grade beasts were weak enough to flee from.
But if they encountered a strong one?
They could lose their lives here.
Xun Ziyou took a final sip of tea and sighed.
"So much for my peaceful days…"
Watching over one kid had already been enough of a headache.
Now he had to monitor five?
He clicked his tongue, found the tea bitter, and told the gatekeeper disciples:
"Watch the mountain gate. I'm heading in."
The disciples all bowed:
"Yes, Elder!"
With a flash of his figure, Xun Ziyou vanished into the Beast-Taming Mountain.
—
Meanwhile, at the mountain's base, on a large boulder, Mo Hua and his four disciples were seated cross-legged in a circle.
Mo Hua began:
"This time, we're hunting a second-grade early-stage beast called the Verdantwood Wolf…"
Everyone nodded nervously.
Mo Hua continued:
"Verdantwood Wolf—Wood-element wolf beast, about two meters tall, covered in green fur, claws and fangs laced with poison, thick demonic qi.
Its eyes are brown by default, but the more it kills, the darker they get—sometimes even blood-red…"
"Its attacks are standard for a wolf-type—biting, pouncing, mauling, tail swipes."
"Its saliva is venomous. Since it licks its own fur constantly, its fur is also highly toxic."
Mo Hua took out a storage pouch.
"Here are four pieces of Grade-B Wood Armor, designed to defend against wood-elemental demonic qi. They're also inscribed with anti-poison formations.
Put them on, and you'll be able to withstand most of the Verdantwood Wolf's attacks."
Situ Jian couldn't help asking:
"What about you, Senior Brother?"
"I'm fine," Mo Hua said. "With my movement techniques and concealment skills, that thing can't touch me."
Wearing bulky armor would only slow him down.
And he didn't need to fight it head-on anyway.
He'd be supporting from the shadows.
A mere Verdantwood Wolf posed no threat to him.
Then Mo Hua briefly explained the beast's habits and laid out the full hunting plan.
He emphasized:
"Stick to the plan. Do not mess up."
Cheng Mo and the others nodded solemnly, inwardly awed.
They had always trusted Senior Brother—
but they hadn't expected this hunt to be so meticulously planned, so professionally organized.
They had never considered this many details before.
From afar, even Xun Ziyou nodded slightly.
"Well-prepared. Act only after full planning."
"Not like those rich young masters who just charge in recklessly for glory."
This truly was a cut above the rest.
With all preparations complete, Mo Hua declared:
"Let's move!"
And so, the five of them officially set out—
beginning their first hunt in Beast-Taming Mountain: targeting the Verdantwood Wolf.
The Verdantwood Wolf was a wood-element beast that favored toxic forests and dense underbrush.
Based on its habits, Mo Hua moved softly through the mountain, extending his spiritual sense to track its presence.
Occasionally, they'd encounter other early second-grade beasts.
Cheng Mo asked,
"Senior Brother, aren't we going to kill these beasts too?"
Mo Hua shook his head.
"Only the Verdantwood Wolf."
Seeing the confusion on their faces, he explained:
"Have a clear target. A thorough plan. Execute decisively. Don't get greedy—and don't create side complications…"
"Side complications bring unnecessary trouble—and unpredictable karma."
Karma?
Cheng Mo and the others didn't quite get that part, but still nodded obediently.
After searching for half an hour, Mo Hua found signs of the Verdantwood Wolf beneath a massive tree:
Greenish-black fur and poisonous sap.
He followed the trail for another half hour and eventually located the beast:
A two-meter-tall, early second-grade wolf demon, eyes fierce and hostile.
"Watch for poison. Don't get cocky. And be careful—it might fake its death…"
Mo Hua gave them one last warning, and the hunt officially began.
He observed the wolf's path of movement, then set a trap along its route—
carefully embedding a Ground-Slaughter Formation.
He camouflaged the setup using the natural terrain, masked all traces, and sprinkled herb powder to erase any lingering scent.
He executed all this with practiced ease, the formations seamlessly integrated.
Then, they all hid in a nearby thicket.
One incense stick's time later, the Verdantwood Wolf wandered into the trap.
Boom!
Dust exploded into the air.
The second-grade Ground-Slaughter Formation erupted, earthen spiritual force like serpentine dragons twisted and lashed out, tearing apart nearby stones and vegetation.
When the dust cleared, the Verdantwood Wolf was covered in wounds, its green-black blood oozing from its fur, eyes filled with fear and fury.
Before it could recover, Mo Hua shouted:
"Kill!"
The others, stunned by the formation's power, snapped to action.
Remembering Mo Hua's instructions, they charged without hesitation.
The air filled with the clash of beastly roars and shouted battle cries.
Demonic and spiritual energy clashed.
Cheng Mo charged in front, spiritual power surging, swinging his mountain-splitting axes in a head-on assault.
Yang Qianjun's spear darted like a dragon, attacking from close range.
Situ Jian's sword strikes flared like fire, slashing from a distance.
Hao Xuan—unable to use his staff for now—resorted to his childhood spiritual sword techniques, sending sword energy to support the assault.
Mo Hua fired off several spells of his own—
Some to disrupt the beast's attacks, some to deepen its injuries, and others to restrict its movement.
The group was armored in Grade-B Wood Armor, designed to resist wood-element attacks and poison.
The wolf's strikes, even with venom, were mostly neutralized.
But the wolf couldn't say the same. Their counterattacks began wearing it down quickly.
The tide turned.
Heavily wounded, the Verdantwood Wolf tried to flee.
But Mo Hua immediately spotted it and called out:
"It's trying to run! Don't let it escape!"
Cheng Mo roared,
"Beast! Taste my axe!"
With a burst of force, he struck toward the wolf's waist with his twin axes.
Yang Qianjun focused, golden light condensing at his spear tip, driving straight for the beast's throat.
Situ Jian and Hao Xuan launched sword strikes to block its path.
Mo Hua cast Water Prison, locking the beast in place for a moment.
The wolf couldn't escape—
It took blow after blow before finally collapsing with a defiant, unwilling howl.
The group's faces lit up—but they immediately remembered Mo Hua's warning:
"Beasts are cunning—many will fake death. Be even more cautious once they fall."
Their joy faded, replaced by sharp focus.
As planned, Cheng Mo and Yang Qianjun remained nearby to guard,
while Situ Jian and Hao Xuan continued launching ranged sword energy.
Sure enough—
The Verdantwood Wolf twitched, trying to get up again.
The group attacked in unison.
This time, it couldn't stir up any more trouble and was swiftly slain.
Everyone was drenched in sweat, arms numb, staring in disbelief at the wolf's motionless body.
Dead.
They'd actually… killed an early-stage second-grade Verdantwood Wolf?
Sure, most of the credit went to Senior Brother Mo Hua.
But still—they had played an active part!
Not far away, Xun Ziyou was stunned as well.
"That fast…?"
From pre-planning to tracking, ambushing with formations, coordinating the kill, and even preparing for the beast to fake its death—
Everything had been methodically laid out.
The Verdantwood Wolf had died without a single surprise.
"Are demon beasts… really that easy to kill?"
He stared at Mo Hua, calmly coordinating everything, and couldn't hide his amazement.
"Mediocre spiritual roots, weak bloodline… talent-wise, just average."
"But his mind and strategy are truly extraordinary."
"A plain exterior hides a golden core within."
If this child weren't limited by his spiritual roots…
His future potential would be boundless.
"The old ancestor's judgment… really is terrifying."
The wolf's blood hadn't even dried.
Mo Hua immediately pulled out a clean jade porcelain vial and began draining the blood using a Blood Extraction Spell he'd learned from his senior sister.
This blood was for making spiritual ink.
He collected ten whole bottles.
Mo Hua glanced at the bottles and casually asked:
"Anyone want some?"
Cheng Mo and the others all wisely shook their heads:
"Nope."
They weren't formation masters—what would they do with demon blood?
Besides, if Senior Brother Mo Hua had his eye on something, who would dare take it?
They weren't stupid.
Mo Hua nodded in satisfaction and calmly stuffed all ten bottles of demon blood into his storage ring.
He planned to stockpile more demon blood to refine more spiritual ink.
That way, he wouldn't need to spend contribution points—or even spirit stones—to buy it.
He needed to save up on ink, spirit stones, and especially contribution points.
The more, the better!
After storing the spiritual ink, Mo Hua dusted off his hands, glanced at the Verdantwood Wolf, and said:
"Let's dissect it."
The Verdantwood Wolf was far too large to carry back whole.
As per standard beast hunter practice, they'd dissect it on the spot and only bring back the valuable parts.
Of course, Mo Hua wasn't going to do that part himself.
So Cheng Mo, wielding his two massive axes, got to work on the dissection.
Mo Hua stood to the side directing him, telling him where to split with the axe, which bones to extract, and which organs were more valuable…
Cheng Mo was a bit clumsy, and after struggling for over half an hour, he finally got the job barely done.
The Verdantwood Wolf was skinned and gutted, completely unrecognizable, with blood all over the ground.
The sight was a little gruesome, and the others were visibly unsettled.
Mo Hua, however, was completely used to it. He even reminded Cheng Mo:
"You need to practice dissecting beasts more often—your hands need to be quick and efficient.
Otherwise, after all the effort of killing one, if another beast shows up or some rogue cultivator spots you, things could turn ugly fast."
Cheng Mo nodded repeatedly.
With the Verdantwood Wolf dissected, the materials were stashed into their storage bags.
As the sky darkened, the group decided to head back.
At the mountain gate, they sold off the wolf's materials.
Verdantwood Wolf parts weren't extremely valuable, and since they didn't specialize in artifact refining, there wasn't much point in keeping them.
They could've sold them outside the mountain, but that would've earned them spirit stones.
Selling within Beast-Taming Mountain earned them contribution points instead.
The wolf's head, damaged pelt, spine, claws, tail, liver, gallbladder—all had a price.
After tallying it up, they earned 2,500 contribution points.
Split evenly, that was 500 per person.
Minus the 100 points each had spent on the Beast-Taming Token, each netted 400 contribution points.
Of course, this didn't include the cost of spirit tools, armor, pills, and formations—
But those were paid in spirit stones, not contribution points, so the others didn't mind.
With contribution points in hand, everyone was thrilled.
Cheng Mo and the others even wanted to give Mo Hua an extra 200 contribution points.
After all, the whole hunt had been thanks to his efforts—
He prepared the gear, laid out the plan, and guided them throughout.
Without Mo Hua, that Verdantwood Wolf would've definitely been beyond them.
They now firmly believed that Mo Hua must've come from a beast-hunting background—
No one else could be this experienced.
Hao Xuan looked at him with admiration and asked:
"Senior Brother, have you hunted a lot of demon beasts before?"
Mo Hua modestly replied:
"I've done okay…"
Most of the beasts he'd slain were with the help of formations, so technically, the number wasn't high—but the results were impressive.
His most glorious moment as a beast hunter was defeating…
A Great Dao-Sin Demon Beast called "Sealed Swine".
But he didn't bring that up.
Because if he said it out loud, everyone would think he was full of crap.
The next day, Mo Hua took Cheng Mo and the others and repeated the same procedure—successfully hunting another Verdantwood Wolf.
Once again, it went very smoothly.
After a bit of review, Mo Hua combined the wolf's habits with the geography of Beast-Taming Mountain and developed a standard tactical procedure for hunting Verdantwood Wolves.
This included everything:
What tools to prepare before entering the mountain,
How to scout,
How to track,
How to set up ambushes,
How to coordinate the kill,
How to clean up, and
How to wrap up the hunt afterward...
This whole system was exclusively for Verdantwood Wolves.
One bite at a time, one beast at a time.
Most of their fellow disciples were newbies.
In the beginning, it was impossible to expect them to hunt just any kind of beast.
By starting them with Verdantwood Wolves, they could gradually adjust to the rhythm of beast hunting—
Build confidence, gain experience, and eventually become competent beast hunters.
Mo Hua nodded to himself, feeling a little emotional.
"This senior brother of yours is really putting in the effort…"
"Who else would go this far for others?"
Later, Mo Hua found Cheng Mo and said:
"See if anyone else wants to come into the mountain. Have them find me."
He intended to spread this beast-hunting procedure among the disciples of the Great Void Sect.
That evening, Cheng Mo brought a few more disciples over.
They stood neatly in front of Mo Hua and greeted in unison:
"Greetings, Senior Brother!"
Mo Hua nodded and asked:
"You want to enter Beast-Taming Mountain?"
"Yes!"
Mo Hua didn't waste time. He directly handed them a jade slip.
"Start by hunting second-grade Verdantwood Wolves.
Don't aim too high. And don't be careless."
"This slip contains the full process—just follow it step by step…"
He then clearly explained all the key points—from scouting, to hunting, to skinning and dissecting—down to the smallest detail.
He even thoughtfully told them where to buy the necessary formation media and spiritual tools.
The disciples were moved and repeatedly said:
"Thank you, Senior Brother!"
And so, from then on— at the gates of Beast-Taming Mountain— Elder Xun began to notice something strange:
More and more disciples of the Great Void Sect were entering the mountain wearing identical armor, carrying identical formations, walking in identical formations, and targeting the same exact demon beast…
(End of Chapter)