Chapter 1149: Desert City

He thought of Big Hu and the others…

He recalled growing up with them, all the little things—strolling through markets, watching plays, chatting endlessly. He remembered the three brothers stealing an elder’s brocade fowl, roasting it, and giving it to him to eat. He thought of Big Hu and the others protecting him in fights against others. He recalled the scene of those three young boys, burdened by life, venturing into Great Black Mountain to hunt monsters for the first time, and then returning home, covered in blood…

A mix of warmth and a pang of sadness filled Mo Hua’s heart.

It had been many years since he last saw Big Hu and his two brothers.

Seeing Mo Hua’s expression, the boatman asked, "Are you wondering if you can join the Great Barren Sect?"

Mo Hua’s gaze flickered slightly as he asked, "Can I?"

The boatman shook his head. "Young man, while you possess 'natural divine strength' and some talent for body cultivation, you're already over twenty. That means you've passed the initial stage for Dao cultivation. Your age isn't suitable."

"Furthermore, what kind of sect is the Great Barren Sect? It's a dignified fourth-rank sect directly affiliated with the Dao Court, a powerful fourth-rank sect that suppresses the Great Barren royal family."

"Without a prominent family background, superior spiritual roots, or a bit of good fortune, how could you possibly gain entry?"

"As for you..." The boatman scrutinized Mo Hua, then shook his head. "Even if your body cultivation talent is decent, your spiritual roots aren't good enough. You definitely won't get in."

Mo Hua simply smiled, unfazed. Back when he tried to join sects in Ganxue Prefecture, he'd faced too many rejections. He knew that, given his family background and spiritual roots, he ordinarily wouldn't meet the entry requirements for major sects. Thinking this, the "favor" extended to him by the Vast Void Sect felt even more precious.

But suddenly, Mo Hua's expression shifted as he realized something.

No family background, no superior spiritual roots…

How were Big Hu and his two brothers chosen to join the Great Barren Sect?

Like him, Big Hu and his brothers were rogue cultivators. Their spiritual roots were slightly better than his, but not by much—they were still around mid-grade. Disciples with such aptitude were common in the cultivation world. Why would an elder from the Great Barren Sect accept them as disciples?

Mo Hua felt a chill in his heart, sensing something strange about the situation. However, he didn't understand the circumstances of the Great Barren Sect well enough to make further deductions at this moment.

Mo Hua turned to the boatman, who had been drinking cheap liquor, his face dark and ruddy, exuding an indescribable carefree spirit and resilience. A thought stirred in Mo Hua's heart, and he asked:

"Aren't you worried?"

"Worried about what?" the boatman replied.

Mo Hua said, "If the barbarian soldiers from the Great Barren Lands reach Great Desert City, this area will instantly be caught in the war, leading to countless casualties."

The boatman waved his hand. "That's too far off."

"Too far? Is the war too far?"

"No," the boatman said slowly, taking a sip of his wine. "For us poor cultivators, we live one day at a time. Out here in the sand sea, we might die suddenly any day. Sometimes, we're so tired, we just lie down on our beds and inexplicably die."

"We might be breathing today, but we might not see tomorrow's sun."

"So, whether the barbarian soldiers come or not, it doesn't change the fact that we'll die. That's why I say it's too far to worry about."

"Not to mention..." A strange sense of contentment appeared on the boatman's face: "If the barbarian soldiers come, they'll surely treat everyone equally, killing whoever they see. They'll kill us poor folks, and they'll kill those rich young masters and ladies too."

"We have nothing, so being killed would be a release."

"But for those nobles who live in luxury, enjoying wealth every day, if they were killed, that would be true despair."

"Thinking that way, I don't feel like I'm losing out. In fact, I feel like I'm gaining."

The boatman's weather-beaten face showed a smile that was either numb or philosophical. Mo Hua remained silent. Sand and wind blew from a distance, carrying coarse grit that stung his face, an unavoidable, helpless pain.

Just then, the sand vessel jolted.

The boatman immediately jumped up, cursing, "Damn it, what rotten luck! What did we hit now...?" He turned to Mo Hua and shook his head. "See? Life's like this, full of bumps and scrapes. We might not die at the hands of barbarian soldiers, but we'll die in the sand sea first..." The boatman hurried to the front of the vessel and checked. It seemed they had hit a reef in the sand sea, which had impacted the bottom of the boat. He breathed a sigh of relief, then busied himself finding people to inspect and repair it, creating a noisy commotion. Mo Hua stood on the deck, watching the vast expanse of yellow sand swirling in the air, and the people striving to survive within it, and softly sighed.

The rest of the journey was surprisingly smooth. The only incident they encountered was a large group of desert bandits, numbering about twenty to thirty people. The scattered bandits they'd encountered earlier were merely scouts. As they reached a narrow passage of sand, more bandits naturally surrounded them. The two sides exchanged a few words, but an agreement was impossible, and battle was imminent.

For the boatman, this was an extremely difficult and dangerous fight. It concerned the survival of the sand vessel and the lives of everyone on board, so he didn't dare be careless, his hands and feet trembling slightly. Mo Hua, however, remained calm. This was because the highest-cultivated bandit among the raiders was only at the Mid-Foundation Establishment stage. In the past, he could have eliminated them all by himself. But not now; he needed to cultivate himself and exercise restraint. So Mo Hua, the bronze-skinned body cultivator, just like the other Qi Cultivation stage boatmen, picked up a staff and engaged in close combat with the bandits. His fists landed with force, his kicks whistled through the air, and the staff in his hand whirled so swiftly it seemed impenetrable, leaving the bandits with bruised and swollen faces. Mo Hua finally experienced what it felt like to be a "body cultivator." Although this battle was relatively low-level, Mo Hua found it very satisfying.

Of course, Mo Hua only went "up to a point," infiltrating his power into the bandits' joints to cripple their meridians. Finally, the other guards and boatmen on board jointly killed the bandits. After a fierce struggle, the bandits were completely annihilated. The Mid-Foundation Establishment bandit leader was secretly immobilized by Mo Hua using Water Prison Art, and during the chaos, Mo Hua used Golden Blade Art to sever his calf. He was then surrounded and killed by the boatman and several Foundation Establishment guards. Thus, the chaos subsided.

The boatman was overjoyed. When they encountered the bandits, he had already prepared himself for a brutal outcome. But to his surprise, the tide turned, and they won, almost completely victorious, with not a single casualty on their side. It truly felt like a blessing from heaven. The boatman ordered his men to confiscate the bandits' storage bags, dismantle all their boats, and then threw the remaining captured bandits into the sand sea. These ferry cultivators didn't want to shed blood. But keeping the bandits alive would be a menace, so they could only cast them into the sand sea, letting the sand sea claim their lives.

Afterwards, the boatman began the celebration. Of course, it wasn't a grand affair; the boatmen simply gathered, each receiving a few spirit stones, some dried meat, and a pot of throat-burning strong liquor. These were considered spoils of war. The boatmen were extremely happy, their faces flushed and glowing in the firelight. During the feast, the boatman put his arm around Mo Hua's neck, highly praising Mo Hua's "divine bravery" during the earlier fight with the bandits:

"So young, yet so daring and courageous, showing no fear or cowardice—truly remarkable."

"There's just one thing: your attacks aren't ruthless enough."

"Several times, your staff could have directly killed someone, but you didn't strike the fatal blow."

"In a life-or-death situation, such hesitation is a major taboo. Next time, remember not to be soft-handed; if someone needs to be killed, kill them!"

"You're just too young and haven't killed enough, that's why..."

"Come, drink up!"

Mo Hua raised his cup, a wry smile on his face. After the fierce battle and the celebratory feast of survival, the atmosphere was very joyful. Despite the poor quality of the food and drink, everyone looked content. However, the feast didn't last long. After all, they were on the sand sea, full of hidden dangers, and they were all boatmen with ferry duties.

Afterwards, the sand vessel continued its journey towards Great Desert City. With the largest group of bandits eliminated, and only needing to be careful of the occasional sand monsters along the way, they thought there would be no more major hitches. Although yellow sand filled the air and the environment was harsh, everyone's mood gradually lightened. In the distant wind and sand, the magnificent outline of Great Desert City was already vaguely visible.

But just then, the sand vessel stopped moving. The boatman went to check and was startled to discover that a section of the sand vessel's bottom had broken at some unknown point. It was unclear if it had struck a reef somewhere along the way, been pierced by a monster's beak, or damaged by the bandits during the recent battle. The damage was minor, so no one had noticed it until now. But after a long journey, it had finally broken down, right on the eve of reaching their destination. Now, the boat wouldn't move and seemed to be slowly sinking. There were no other sand vessels nearby to help them. Even if a sand vessel passed by, its limited capacity wouldn't allow it to rescue all the cultivators on their boat. The cultivators on board all looked somewhat panicked.

Even the boatman couldn't help but feel anxious, a wry smile appearing on his face. "Indeed, if luck is even slightly good, then great misfortune will surely follow."

Mo Hua thought for a moment, then said, "Boss, why don't I go check the bottom of the boat?"

The boatman glanced at Mo Hua. "You..."

Mo Hua said, "I know a bit about formations; maybe I can make a temporary repair."

The boatman was still somewhat disbelieving. "You... know formations? You're a body cultivator, and you've learned formations too? Do body cultivators even have the brains for that?"

Mo Hua nodded. "I need to make a living, so I try to learn a bit of everything."

The boatman didn't know what to say. Formations aren't something you can just pick up casually to make a living... But at this point, he had no other options. Besides, he had a good impression of Mo Hua throughout the journey and knew he wasn't someone who spoke carelessly.

"Alright then, go take a look," the boatman sighed.

Mo Hua nodded and went to the hidden compartment at the bottom of the hull, where the formation was drawn. The boatman followed him. Others also wanted to go, but the boatman stopped them. Ordinarily, this hidden compartment was off-limits to outsiders to prevent the core formation of the sand vessel from being leaked. Upon reaching the hidden compartment, the boatman used a jade key to unlock the compartment's secret door. The sand vessel's core formation was now exposed before Mo Hua.

Mo Hua saw the formation with his own eyes and nodded slightly. There was one thing he didn't mention: the hole at the bottom of the sand vessel was actually his doing. His purpose was to make the boat stop so he could descend and repair the formation. And incidentally, to verify if the formation he had deduced using Heavenly Secrets Divination had any flaws.

Of course, he didn't intentionally damage it either. This sand vessel had been used for too long and had gone through many hardships. Even if he hadn't interfered, it would likely break down within two or three more voyages. By breaking it now, he could help them repair it. Otherwise, if he weren't present during those next two or three voyages and the boat broke down, the boatman and everyone else on board would likely sink and die in the sand. For rogue cultivators, life was hard, but dying was far too easy.

Mo Hua sighed softly and focused his gaze. The internal formation of the sand vessel was now completely revealed to him. Mo Hua, with his keen eye, found a small line of annotated text in a wind-eroded, worn-out corner of the formation diagram. The text contained the name of the formation used by the sand vessel to cross the sand sea: "Flat Sand Formation."

Mo Hua silently committed the name to memory. After briefly examining the formation, he said, "Boss, don't worry, I know a bit about this formation..."

The boatman was a bit skeptical, but at this point, he had no other option but to trust Mo Hua, so he said, "Then I..."

Mo Hua said, "I'll need some time."

The boatman nodded, leaving Mo Hua alone in the hidden compartment, and went to guard the door. This was the rule. In Great Wind Ferry, when formation masters from various families drew formations, no one else was allowed to watch, precisely to prevent the formation patterns from being leaked. The boatman knew this rule. Even though Mo Hua was a hired handyman, anyone who could draw formations commanded respect. He wasn't afraid of Mo Hua tampering with anything. They were all on the same boat; if they were going to die, they'd die together.

After that, Mo Hua spent the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, drawing the formation in the compartment. He then closed the hidden compartment and said to the boatman:

"It's done."

The boatman was stunned. "It's done already?"

Mo Hua nodded. "Try setting sail."

The boatman was half-believing, half-doubting, but he did as Mo Hua said. He raised the sail and activated the spirit stones. The sand vessel, which had been stuck in the sand sea, suddenly vibrated with a flash of light, leaped out of the sand like a fish, and sped forward, its speed noticeably faster than before.

The boatman was both surprised and delighted. All the boatmen and passengers on board also beamed with smiles. Taking advantage of the favorable wind, the boatman concentrated on steering, and in less than an hour, the sand vessel rode the wind into Great Desert City. Great Desert City's walls were towering, magnificent, and grand. Near the ferry, many sand vessels of various sizes were docked. The boatman's vessel was almost the most unremarkable among them. But for him, this boat was a matter of life and death, practically his entire livelihood.

It wasn't until the boat truly docked, away from the vast wind and sand, that the burden in the boatman's heart finally lifted. At this point, he suddenly remembered something. He searched among the crowd for a long time but couldn't find Mo Hua anywhere. He asked around, but everyone said they hadn't seen him. The thin, delicate, handsome young man with bright eyes seemed to have "vanished" into thin air, leaving no trace.

The boatman looked bewildered. The other boatmen also exchanged bewildered glances.

"Now that you mention it, that's true. We haven't seen the young brother since he finished drawing the formation."

"He couldn't have slipped and fallen into the sand sea, could he...?"

"Nonsense..."

"Then where is he? How did he just disappear?"

"Could it be that..."

The boatman's expression turned serious as he instructed, "Don't anyone mention this matter, or you won't be eating this bowl of rice with me anymore." The boatmen immediately fell silent, not daring to speak of it again.

The group rested for several days at Great Desert City's ferry, but they didn't enter the city. Poor rogue cultivators like them weren't allowed into Great Desert City, and besides, they barely had any spirit stones to spend in the city anyway. Their only duty was to transport others to Great Desert City. But a grand immortal city like this was no place for them to settle. A few days later, they took on a few scattered passengers and returned to Great Wind Ferry by the same route. Perhaps because the sand vessel was now steadier and faster, the journey back was inexplicably much smoother.

Back at Great Wind Ferry, the boatman pondered over it, still feeling uneasy. He found an old master craftsman who worked on repairs for the boat line and asked him to inspect the sand vessel. The old master had served at the boat line for 150 years. He was stubborn but trustworthy and highly respected. He disassembled the boatman's sand vessel, a look of disdain on his face, complaining first about parts being old, then about parts being weathered. But when he saw the formation on the boat, he was suddenly stunned, his eyes widening:

"You... where did you get this formation...?"

The boatman's expression shifted, and he whispered, "How is this formation...?" He had never drawn a single formation pattern in his life and was completely ignorant about formations.

The old master took a deep breath, then said with a trembling voice: "This is... a high-grade second-rank formation! Many large sand vessels in the boat line don't even have a formation as good as yours. Take good care of it, and barring any accidents, it'll ensure your livelihood for fifty or sixty years, no problem."

The boatman's scalp tingled, and he was instantly dumbfounded. He tried to recall Mo Hua's appearance in his mind, but for some reason, Mo Hua's face had become somewhat blurry. He even seemed to be unable to remember exactly what the young man had said or what they had discussed...

"This is... I've encountered a master..." the boatman murmured, his face filled with shock.

"What?" the old master asked.

The boatman shook his head. "Nothing."

The old master said nothing more, only cautioning him: "I'll keep this secret to myself, and you absolutely must not speak of it carelessly outside. You understand the principle of 'a man's treasure is his bane,' don't you...?"

The boatman quickly replied, "Yes, thank you, Old Master."

The old master nodded, gave a few more instructions, then left. The boatman remained in place, staring at the profound and distinct formation patterns on the boat, lost in thought for a long time.

In the evening, the boatman specifically went to a tavern. This time, he made an exception, bought half a bottle of good liquor, walked to the edge of the sand sea, gazed at the vast desert, and poured the good liquor—which he usually couldn't bear to drink—into the sand sea, murmuring with a sigh: "Young brother, your great kindness and virtue are impossible to repay."

"With this humble wine, I wish the young brother from now on... plain sailing..."

The boatman, who had never met him before, offered his distant wishes.

Meanwhile, the "young brother" blessed by the boatman was diligently working odd jobs in Great Desert City. As soon as the sand vessel docked, Mo Hua concealed himself and directly disembarked. He then found an opportunity to sneak into Great Desert City. But Great Desert City indeed lived up to its name as a fourth-rank immortal city; it was simply too vast. And because it was located on the edge of the Great Barren Lands, it was the only major immortal city for thousands of miles around. Its walls were even taller, its area larger, and a glance revealed layers upon layers of palaces and pavilions with a Great Barren style, stretching endlessly. This was completely different from Ganxue Prefecture. Although Ganxue Prefecture was a fifth-rank prefecture, it housed too many large aristocratic families and major sects, making land extremely scarce. Therefore, the immortal cities within the prefecture were exquisitely built but not large in scale, far from the "spaciousness" and "extravagance" of Great Desert City. Precisely for this reason, Great Desert City truly felt like a "great desert"—endless and boundless. Trying to find a "Big Tiger" in Great Desert City was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

At the same time, Mo Hua was also very puzzled. Great Desert City was a large immortal city where cultivators resided. Would such a city truly allow monsters to enter, especially powerful tiger monsters? Besides the matter of Big Tiger, Mo Hua had also considered going to the Great Barren Sect to ask if he could find Big Hu and his two brothers. But after thinking about it, he decided against it. His current identity was special, and his fate was rather ominous. If he truly got involved with Big Hu and his brothers, he would likely implicate them. Moreover, Big Hu and his brothers came from humble backgrounds, so their life in the Great Barren Sect probably wasn't easy.

Mo Hua could only continue to disguise himself and lay low, gathering information in Great Desert City. He was looking for clues about "Big Tiger" while also secretly inquiring about the situation between the Dao Court and the Great Barren Lands, as well as the battle conditions between the Dao Court's soldiers and the Great Barren's barbarian troops.

Thus, a few days later, Mo Hua gained some understanding of the current war situation in the Great Barren Lands. And he also gathered a small clue about "Big Tiger": the "Monster Fighting Arena." It seemed there was a massive underground monster fighting arena in Great Desert City.