Chapter 274: Chapter 273 Inside the Stockade_1 Mo Hua had stealthily dug through the wall and, like a ghost, unnoticed, slipped into Black Mountain Stronghold. Upon entering the stronghold, she was immediately assaulted by a pungent, blood-soaked odor. It was a blend of stale decay and the fresh sharpness of blood. A bone-chilling cold permeated the surroundings. Mo Hua couldn’t help but shiver before she looked around, her mouth agape in surprise. Such a vast stronghold! Flanked by embracing mountains on both sides, Black Mountain Stronghold lay nestled in the midst. The piece of the wall that Mo Hua had broken through was just a tiny part of the entire tall structure that stretched before her eyes, with more towering walls constructed all around. Beyond the high walls, the surrounding mountains acted as natural barriers for Black Mountain Stronghold. The entire stronghold lay under the cover of night, resembling an impenetrable bastion, almost like a monstrous creature that devoured people. Mo Hua was profoundly shocked, followed by a wave of relief. This must be, perhaps, the largest Sin Cultivator power in Tongxian City, no, maybe even in the entire Black Mountain State Boundary. If they hadn’t reconnoitered in advance and had rashly called people over, a confrontation could have resulted in terrible death and injury. Afterward, Mo Hua began to observe the layout of Black Mountain Stronghold with extreme caution. The stronghold was enormous, filled with countless buildings. At a cursory glance, there seemed to be hundreds, densely packed within the embraced valley. The atmosphere was gloomy and eerily sinister. Under the dim light of fires, bloodstains could be seen almost everywhere – on the roads, on the walls, on the pillars. In some corners lay the severed limbs and remains of unknown cultivators. Some buildings housed Sin Cultivators, while others imprisoned other cultivators, likely captured and abducted. These innocent cultivators were caged like animals, emaciated to the bone, more skeletal than human. Mo Hua frowned. “Why would these Sin Cultivators imprison cultivators here? Aren’t they usually killed?” Even a Sin Cultivator like Bald Tuo killed relentlessly, and Black Mountain Stronghold seemed even more wicked. Why then were these cultivators’ lives spared? Perplexed, Mo Hua decided to watch nearby for a while. Soon enough, a fierce-looking Sin Cultivator came over, selected a cultivator whose complexion looked slightly better, and, with a slash, cut his wrist to collect blood. The cultivator’s face twisted in agony, unable to struggle as his blood dripped into a bowl, filling it completely. The Sin Cultivator picked up the bowl and drank deeply from it, his vitality surging right after. He licked his lips, seemingly unsatisfied. After a while, another Sin Cultivator arrived. He placed his large hand on the forehead of a young cultivator. The young man immediately let out a heart-wrenching scream. Using Divine Sense, Mo Hua could see the young cultivator’s Spiritual Power actually flowing in reverse from his dantian, through his meridians, converging at the crown of his head, and finally transferring into the Sin Cultivator’s body through his palm. Spiritual Power flowing in reverse brought with it tremendous pain. Which is why the young cultivator’s screams were so sharp, they scarcely sounded human. Annoyed by the noise, the Sin Cultivator continued draining the Spiritual Power with his right hand while his left hand choked the young man’s throat to silence him. Once he had finished extracting the Spiritual Power, the young cultivator collapsed weakly to the ground, silent, his fate between life and death unknown. Similarly, more Sin Cultivators came one after another, doing things much the same – either drawing blood or draining Spiritual Power, and some even practised more terrifying methods. Mo Hua felt as though she had fallen into an ice cellar. It dawned on her that Black Mountain Stronghold was not a den for Sin Cultivators but a lair for Evil Cultivators! Such a vast stronghold, and it was full of Evil Cultivators, hundreds of them! Mo Hua couldn’t help but take in a sharp breath. Sin Cultivators murder for wealth, desiring fortune. Evil Cultivators practice their arts on humans, never treating them as human beings at all. Those locked in iron cells were not treated as people but more like … livestock raised for slaughter! Mo Hua was both shocked and furious, but after thinking it over, could only sigh helplessly. She was incapable of saving these cultivators. It would be good enough if she could even ensure her own safety, let alone rescue others. If Black Mountain Stronghold was indeed a nest of Evil Cultivators, the danger was far greater than she had anticipated. “` “Should I take the chance to slip away before they notice me?” Mo Hua thought about it but shook his head. Being able to sneak in this time was already a stroke of luck; there might not be such good fortune next time. Moreover, although evil cultivators are dangerous, as long as they are still in the Qi Refinement Realm and their Divine Sense is not as strong as Mo Hua’s, they cannot see through Mo Hua’s Concealment Technique. As long as the Concealment Technique is not seen through, he would be safe. Evil cultivators’ methods are cruel. But Mo Hua had no plans to confront them head-on, so no matter how strange and ruthless their methods were, they would be meaningless. Mo Hua let out a sigh of relief. From what he could see, the power of evil cultivators in Black Mountain Stronghold was so vast that it had already severely threatened all Monster Hunters, even the safety of the entire Tongxian City. If they were left to develop for another two or three hundred years and grow stronger, there might be more than a thousand evil cultivators. By then, all the Loose Cultivators in the whole Tongxian City might become their domesticated livestock. A chill crept into the bottom of Mo Hua’s heart. While they were still unaware of his ability to conceal himself, and he had already snuck in secretly, it would be best to figure out the true capabilities of these evil cultivators. Then he could go out, call for help, carefully plan, and wipe them out in one fell swoop to avoid leaving behind endless troubles. Mo Hua made up his mind and started thinking about how to proceed. “First and foremost, it’s crucial to determine whether there are any Foundation Establishment Stage evil cultivators inside!” Only a Foundation Establishment Stage evil cultivator could possibly see through his Concealment Technique. In other words, as long as he doesn’t encounter Foundation Establishment evil cultivators, even if he’s in this land full of evil cultivators, the Black Mountain Stronghold, the risk won’t be too great. But where would a Foundation Establishment evil cultivator be? Mo Hua thought about it and then, using his understanding of formations, started to deduce the layout of Black Mountain Stronghold. The Formation layout of the An Family had been seen through by Mo Hua before. Both the City South Refining Artifact Store and the Alchemist’s Business had their formations designed by Mo Hua himself, built relying on those formations. So, this was something Mo Hua was quite good at. After some calculation, Mo Hua had a rough idea. Black Mountain Stronghold was divided into the front stronghold and the rear stronghold. The front stronghold was at the front. Mo Hua, cloaked in invisibility, had roughly wandered around. It was mainly evil cultivators in the Qi Refinement Realm, though most were at the eighth or ninth layer, none had reached Foundation Establishment. The formations used in the front stronghold were relatively simple, mainly Single Formations of the first rank, and many formations were not even up to the first rank. Basic structures such as Food Buildings, prisons, and living quarters were all located in the front stronghold. The formations in the rear stronghold, on the other hand, were much more complex. They mainly consisted of first-rank Earth-Wood Compound Formations, mixed with other formations that were also Single Formations of the first rank, and there was even a separate wall, clearly much more important than the front stronghold. Mo Hua had solved a small part of a formation and secretly entered the rear stronghold. Moving through the concealment and Water Passing Step, Mo Hua shuttled between rooftops and beams, all the while looking around. Compared to the front stronghold, the rear was relatively quieter and more solemn. The scent of blood was not as strong, but it felt more oppressive. The houses were larger and more exquisite. But this exquisiteness carried a hint of gloominess. Mo Hua walked on and suddenly heard voices, immediately finding a beam to lie flat on. Two people in the room seemed to be conversing but didn’t appear to be close; their speech was rather cold. Mo Hua peered down secretly. He saw only the table below, and the meats and drinks on top of it. Mo Hua guessed that the two people must have quite a status, for their accompanying dishes were the best. They were better than what all other evil cultivators outside were eating. Seeing that they had not noticed him, Mo Hua thought they were Qi Refinement Cultivators and tilted his head to take another glance at the two men. One of them was a middle-aged cultivator with a stern expression. The other was a burly man, with slightly red eyes and bloodshot within. Mo Hua only glanced for a moment, his gaze tapping on that burly man like a dragonfly skimming the water. The burly man suddenly opened his eyes wide, the blood in his eyes darkening, his body emanating a fierce aura as he bellowed, “Who’s there?”