At the thought of the riots spreading, igniting the gunpowder-like Great Spiritual Field Realm, and the fury of billions of spiritual farmers spreading across the entire Kun Prefecture...
The atmosphere inside the secret chamber froze to an extreme.
Mo Hua looked grave and asked, "Why did the riots break out?"
Gu Changhuai said in a low voice, "It is said to be due to a small-scale famine."
Mo Hua was extremely sensitive to the words "famine" and immediately changed expression. "Famine?"
Gu Changhuai felt that Mo Hua's reaction was slightly excessive, but although he was surprised, he still nodded.
The great disasters of the Great Wilderness replayed in Mo Hua's mind.
That long, drawn-out great famine—the land scorched for a thousand li, living people eating each other, tribes slaughtering one another—surfaced in his heart once more.
Scene after scene of misery, impossible to forget even if he wanted to.
And that... terrifying figure of the Ghostly Path.
Mo Hua's voice was slightly fearful. "What... kind of famine?"
Gu Changhuai was puzzled. "What kind?"
Mo Hua asked in a deep voice, "Was there an invisible evil mist? Did the grass and trees wither? Did the cultivators in the famine... show any abnormalities? Were there signs of people 'eating' people?"
Mo Hua fired off a flurry of questions.
Gu Changhuai was taken aback, unsure what Mo Hua was describing.
What you describe is less like a famine and more like the end of the cultivation world.
Gu Changhuai simply shook his head.
"What you describe is a bit too exaggerated. It won't come to that."
"The famines in places like Qingchou and Guitian are a soil problem. The land loses its nutrients, the crops wither, and many local spiritual farmers lose their harvest. Without disaster relief, they become refugees."
"Refugees live on the edge of starvation. When their numbers grow and they gather together, all sorts of trouble are easily born, eventually escalating into small riots."
Mo Hua slightly relaxed upon hearing this, but he still did not dare to let his guard down. He cautiously asked, "Is that all?"
Gu Changhuai said, "That is what the Dao Court Department's intelligence says, but..."
"No one can say what the truth actually is, or whether there are other factors."
Gu Changhuai also knitted his brows.
All things in this world seem simple, summarized in a word or two.
What happened in the prefectural borders of Qingchou and Guitian boils down to a small-scale "riot."
But if one really investigated, the human entanglements and causal relations were extremely complex.
Mo Hua then asked, "How does the Dao Court Department plan to handle it?"
Gu Changhuai said, "Following the usual practice, we provide disaster relief while pacifying the people. If anyone takes advantage of the chaos to stir up trouble, we suppress them by force. These are the Dao Court's established procedures. Kun Prefecture is no different; there are precedents for many things."
"Only..." Gu Changhuai's gaze sank. "The Great Spiritual Field Realm is a special case. Some of the Dao Court's usual practices may not apply."
Mo Hua asked, "What situation?"
Gu Changhuai said, "Folk worship."
Mo Hua was startled, his thoughts stirring, then said, "The people's sacrificial rites?"
Gu Changhuai nodded, and after thinking for a moment, slowly said, "From my personal visits to the local countryside, in the vast Great Spiritual Field Realm, almost every spiritual farmer household has incense burners and spirit tablets. At the village heads, there are ancestral halls and shrine niches. The objects of worship are also endlessly varied."
"There are those who worship ancestors, those who worship the Earth God, the City God, Dizang, and those who worship things of unknown origin—things none can say whether they are ghosts or gods, or even whether they truly exist."
"The spiritual farmers are poor and bitter, but they do not slack in their worship in the slightest. They would rather go a meal short than miss a stick of incense."
"The Great Spiritual Field Realm is too vast, and there are too many people. The scale of this folk worship is unimaginable, and its sacrificial system is intertwined and chaotic."
"And the vast majority of spiritual farmers are ignorant yet shrewd, cowardly yet overbearing. Bully them or scold them, they sometimes do not care. But if you dare to blaspheme their folk worship and faith, then it is a fight to the death."
"Once mishandled, once folk taboos are violated, it will only add fuel to the fire and trigger even greater riots."
The more Gu Changhuai spoke, the heavier his tone became.
Mo Hua's eyes narrowed, and his expression turned serious.
He then recalled some words from Lin Youfang, an earth master he had met when robbing tombs earlier.
The flourishing of the Left Path in Kun Prefecture was very likely related to these folk worships.
Any existence on the Divine Path, whether ghost or god, had to eat incense.
Incense is the transformation of people's faith and divine thoughts.
The more people, the more incense, the more fertile the soil for the arts of ghosts and spirits.
Mo Hua had been to the Great Spiritual Field Realm before, to the Zhu family's villa.
He had merely glimpsed it in passing, yet he inadvertently encountered an underworld emissary capturing a soul.
Mo Hua at first thought it was a coincidence.
Now hearing Gu Changhuai say this, he increasingly suspected that the underworld Divine Path forces in Kun Prefecture were far larger than he had imagined.
Because the incense was too abundant.
The underworld Divine Path world, nourished by the incense of folk worship, had existed for unknown ages and accumulated unknown amounts of faith.
This vast sea of incense and faith was enough to evolve a strictly ordered underworld world where gods and ghosts coexisted.
And this underworld world was closely connected with the "human world."
Disasters in the human world would affect the underworld. Once one disturbed the causes in the human world, it would also touch the effects in the underworld.
On the surface, this might be merely a riot caused by a small famine.
But that was only the "appearance" of the human world. No one knew whether there were other man-made disasters.
Still less did they know whether there were karmic connections in the underworld.
Even for Mo Hua, deducing this complicated situation made his sea of consciousness ache faintly.
Mo Hua was silent for a moment, then asked, "What about the Four Great Families? Do they have any moves? What about the Earth Sect?"
"That's where the strangeness lies." Gu Changhuai frowned. "The Four Great Families are very calm, and the Earth Sect has made no extra moves."
Logically, with the Great Spiritual Field Realm in revolt, the families and the Earth Sect should be panicked.
After all, once a riot occurs and the Dao Court pursues responsibility, local powers like the Earth Sect cannot escape blame.
But the present situation was abnormal, with an eerie subtlety throughout.
Mo Hua looked at Gu Changhuai and asked, "Uncle Gu, are you going to the Great Spiritual Field Realm?"
Gu Changhuai nodded. "I will leave tomorrow, going first to Qingchou prefecture to survey the riot situation."
As an Inspector appointed by the Dao Court, he had to look into any stirring of wind or grass in the territory of Kun Prefecture.
Let alone a major matter like riots.
However, this was obviously a red-hot iron as well.
If not handled well, the Dao Court would be enraged, and Gu Changhuai, as the Inspector, would be implicated and punished.
That was always the way with eating the realm's "yamen" rice: despite temporary glory, one slip and the fall would be miserable.
Mo Hua intended to accompany Gu Changhuai to Qingchou prefecture to investigate the details of the riot.
But with departure tomorrow, the time was too tight; there was simply no time. A round trip would take who knows how long.
Mo Hua still had many things to finish.
Gu Changhuai also did not want to involve Mo Hua, so he said, "Focus on your cultivation and stop worrying about things that are none of your concern."
"Also..." Gu Changhuai thought for a moment, took out several pouches of spirit stones, and handed them to Mo Hua. "This is one million spirit stones. Take them and use them."
Mo Hua was surprised. "Has the bounty for Liu San come down? Only one million?"
Gu Changhuai shook his head. "It's not that easy. The Dao Court Department's spirit stones are not so easily taken out. This one million is from me."
Mo Hua was taken aback. "Uncle Gu, you're giving this to me?"
Gu Changhuai nodded. "You must be short on spirit stones."
Mo Hua asked, "What about you?"
Gu Changhuai said, "I cultivate and live simply, spending little. If you are in urgent need, use them first."
Mo Hua was moved inside.
Uncle Gu, though his face was cold and his words stiff, had a very kind heart.
However, Mo Hua was embarrassed to take advantage of Uncle Gu. A clean Inspector could not get much oil.
What's more, this clean Inspector was away from home, with no family to rely on, and in Houtu City all he saw were enemies.
And Mo Hua's spirit stone shortage was not something one million could solve.
So Mo Hua said, "It's fine, Uncle Gu. You use it yourself. I'm not that urgent."
What he urgently needed was four billion, not one million.
Gu Changhuai was a little surprised. "You're really not in a hurry?"
"Mm," Mo Hua nodded, and lied, "I've calculated. Soon, I'm going to get a large sum of spirit stones."
Gu Changhuai did not know whether Mo Hua was telling the truth or not.
After all, with Mo Hua's words, it was sometimes hard to tell whether they were human words or ghost words.
But Gu Changhuai was not a lingering man. He simply nodded. "All right. Let me know if you have a need."
"Okay," Mo Hua said.
Gu Changhuai then put the spirit stones away.
Seeing this, Mo Hua's mind stirred and he asked again, "Uncle Gu, that Liu San... how is he now?"
Gu Changhuai's gaze darkened at the question. He shook his head. "Liu San is in very bad shape. He was drained too heavily. His sea of consciousness is still clouded, and he can't say anything meaningful. No one knows what he experienced or what secrets he knows..."
Mo Hua looked thoughtful and asked, "Do you want me to take a look?"
"You..." Gu Changhuai glanced at Mo Hua, then shook his head with a sigh. "Liu San has a special identity. Outsiders of the Dao Court Department cannot get in contact with him."
Mo Hua said, "I can actually be counted as a member of the Dao Court Department."
Gu Changhuai shook his head. "You are extraneous, not counted."
Mo Hua was speechless.
The discrimination against temporary staff was truly annoying.
"Then if the rules are loosened, or if there is a need, let me know. You know, Uncle Gu..." Mo Hua said, "I have always been very good at interrogation."
This time it was Gu Changhuai who was speechless.
He naturally knew that Mo Hua was very good at interrogation; he had known it for a long time, and the memory was deep.
But Liu San was different after all.
Gu Changhuai sighed. "All right. If I need you to act, I will come to you."
Mo Hua said, "Mm."
Afterward, Mo Hua still wanted to ask a few more questions when someone knocked on the door.
Gu Changhuai opened the door. It was a steward of the Gu family, who quietly said something to Gu Changhuai at the entrance.
Gu Changhuai's face sank a few more points, and he nodded. "I understand. Go prepare for now."
The steward bowed to Gu Changhuai, then cupped his hands toward Mo Hua, and left.
Mo Hua asked, "Is there something else?"
Gu Changhuai sighed. "The situation in the Great Spiritual Field Realm is not optimistic. I have to set out this afternoon."
Mo Hua also knew the matter was serious, so he said, "Then I won't disturb you, Uncle Gu."
"Mm." Gu Changhuai nodded.
Mo Hua thought for a moment and then brought up one last matter. "That child Tusheng... Keep an eye on him, Uncle Gu. He is somewhat special... very important."
Gu Changhuai's expression changed slightly at the words.
He knew that Mo Hua was not small in ability, had well-informed sources, and sometimes could even "foresee the future" like a shaman.
The word "important" from his mouth was never simple.
But...
Gu Changhuai was busy with official business and unable to take care of himself. He thought for a moment and sighed.
"I have left him with Administrator Yu. Administrator Yu's cultivation is high. The child should be safe by his side."
Administrator Yu, at the peak of Golden Core and half-step Feather Transformation, was already a rare and powerful cultivator below Feather Transformation.
Mo Hua nodded. "That's good."
After that, the situation was tense, and the two no longer chatted idly; they each went their own way.
Gu Changhuai headed to the Great Spiritual Field Realm, while Mo Hua left the Dao Court Department, preparing to return to Little Luan Mountain.
But before returning to Little Luan Mountain, Mo Hua deliberately took a detour to the Fortune Pavilion to see Manager Zhao.
It had been quite some days since he had seen Manager Zhao, although in the long years of cultivation, such days were not long.
Manager Zhao was still very warm when he saw Mo Hua.
Mo Hua asked Manager Zhao whether there was any business recently; he wanted to gather enough spirit stones as soon as possible to raise his cultivation to the middle Golden Core.
But Manager Zhao seemed hesitant, as if troubled.
Mo Hua noticed something was off and asked, "What is it?"
Manager Zhao dismissed the stewards around him, led Mo Hua to a secluded spot, and asked in a low voice, "Young Master Mo, did you... do something before?"
Mo Hua asked, "What thing?"
Manager Zhao did not know whether Mo Hua really did not know or was feigning ignorance, and sighed. "Young Master Mo, did you visit a brothel?"
Mo Hua froze. "You know that too?"
Manager Zhao said, "Not only do I know, I also know that the brothel you visited was not an ordinary one."
"It is the largest brothel in Houtu City."
"Not only the largest brothel, it is the brothel where the Flower Queen resides."
"Not only that, you also shared a room with the Flower Queen... and talked of love?"
Mo Hua was displeased and corrected him, "Played the qin and discussed the Dao."
Manager Zhao waved his hand. "It's all the same..."
A lone man and a lone woman sharing a room—what difference was there between playing the qin and talking of love?
Then he shot Mo Hua a look of complex, reverent admiration.
"Even the Flower Queen can be hooked up with—this Young Master Mo is truly a divine man..."
"He can snatch a woman from the top scions of Kun Prefecture, and win at that—he is truly fierce."
"Clearly he is 'kept' by his senior sister as a pretty boy, and yet he still goes and seduces the Flower Queen."
"Eating soft rice so brazenly is indeed worthy of admiration."
"This Young Master Mo's skill in seducing women is truly supernatural; one has no choice but to admire it."
Manager Zhao marveled inwardly.
Mo Hua frowned. "What are you muttering about inside?"
Manager Zhao started, came back to his senses, cast another look of "admiration" at Mo Hua, and then sighed.
"Young Master Mo, women are all poisonous."
Mo Hua asked, "What do you mean?"
Manager Zhao said helplessly, "It means women bring trouble; the more beautiful the woman, the more trouble."
"You did something that countless men dream of but cannot obtain..."
Mo Hua was speechless. "It's not that dreamy; it was only playing the qin and discussing the Dao."
Even talking of love would have been extraordinary...
Manager Zhao thought to himself, and then with a slightly grave expression said worriedly, "But you have also earned the resentment of too many; you have offended too many people."
Mo Hua understood a little. "So..."
"So," Manager Zhao sighed, "Our Fortune Pavilion does not dare to do business with you anymore."
Mo Hua frowned and asked, "Does the Fortune Pavilion have shares from the families?"
Manager Zhao nodded, looking helpless. "What you say is right. In a place like Houtu City, who can avoid depending on the Earth Sect and the families when making a living?"
"The Fortune Pavilion is no exception. Wealth and honor—without the families, where would wealth and honor come from?"
"And it's not just our Fortune Pavilion..."
Manager Zhao gave Mo Hua a silent look, hesitated for a long time, and at last sighed, lowering his voice.
"I have also heard that the Earth Sect, the Four Great Families, and various other clans have jointly issued a financial ban against you, Young Master Mo..."
"From now on, anywhere in Houtu City, you will not be able to earn a single spirit stone!"