Chapter 653: Divine Position - The Quest for Immortality

**Chapter 653: Divine Position (Extra Chapter for Leader Rain Tomb)** The altar was ancient and magnificent, exuding an eerie aura. A jade stone path led straight to the altar. On both sides of the path knelt two rows of demon statues, grotesque in appearance, yet with a pious expression. Yet, the altar was empty... There were no candlesticks, no lanterns, no offerings, and no sacrificial items. Only a sumptuous offering table. On the offering table was a platform, equally empty. It was unclear if the altar was incomplete, and the offerings had yet to be placed. Or perhaps the Fire Buddha, realizing things had gone awry, had preemptively removed the offerings, destroying all traces. "This Fire Buddha... he’s overly cautious," Mo Hua muttered softly. "And too stingy," he continued, searching around. All he found were immovable rockeries and demon statues; everything else was gone. Spotlessly clean, as if licked by dogs... Mo Hua felt disheartened. This Fire Buddha was truly tight-fisted, leaving not a trace behind... No spiritual stones, no treasures, not even a trace of his fallen fire techniques. Not even food... He had come to plunder a desolate site. Mo Hua sighed in resignation. Such a large altar, yet nothing to steal... "What should I do next?" Returning was not an option, as he was unwilling to leave empty-handed. He frowned and once more glanced back at the altar. This altar seemed familiar to him somehow. Mo Hua circled the altar a couple of times, then impulsively leaped onto it and brazenly took a seat on the offering platform. In that moment of uncertainty, an ancient and sacred aura descended upon him. A subtle golden light flickered in his eyes, unnoticed by anyone. The altar was splendid and solemn. Mo Hua, small in stature, sat upright on it. Before him lay a jade stone avenue, flanked by terrifying demons in reverent prostration. A bronze labyrinth, a wild mountain array. Mysteries within mysteries, arrays within arrays, endless divine mysteries converging in the center of the altar, "offering" Mo Hua a place of honor. Mo Hua blinked in bewilderment. His own consciousness felt different somehow. But how it was different, he couldn't quite articulate... He glanced down at the altar. It was clearly someone else's altar, yet he vaguely felt it was built just for him. Sitting upon the platform felt utterly natural. His consciousness was at ease, and he felt an urge to consume offerings... "Offerings..." Mo Hua glanced around. There were none... Not a single offering to be found. The altar was empty, barren. Mo Hua sighed again. Hungry, with nothing to eat. He suddenly empathized with his "good friend" Huang Shan Jun, in the ruined temple on the desolate mountain, enduring solitude and lack of incense, drinking rainwater that dripped through the roof and surviving on stale buns found who knows where. "I should bring some wine and meat to the old temple to visit Huang Shan Jun sometime..." As a fallen mountain god, unattended, he was truly pitiful. Mo Hua thoughtfully considered Huang Shan Jun’s situation, not caring whether Huang Shan Jun actually wanted to see him. "Since there are no offerings on the altar, I suppose that’s that..." Recognizing he couldn’t linger, Mo Hua sprang down from the altar. Yet, as he did so, he paused. "Offerings..." Why was he thinking about offerings? And... What would my offerings be? He glanced at the two rows of kneeling demon statues before him and turned back to look at the vacant platform, caught in a brief moment of introspection before his own thoughts startled him. Mo Hua quickly shook his head, pushing those impolite notions aside. The most pressing issue now was the Fire Buddha’s fallen fire technique! If he couldn’t acquire it soon, the powerful forbidden technique would forever elude him. And his goal to refine the forbidden technique would be ruined. "Where is the fallen fire technique manual..." Mo Hua attempted to deduce using the mysterious celestial calculations, blending them with his own to analyze the altar. But the altar seemed to harbor some ancient aura that obscured the celestial mechanisms, leaving Mo Hua with nothing. "It’s not the celestial calculations that are lacking..." Mo Hua realized, disappointed, but quickly corrected himself, acknowledging it was his own inadequate skills. Unable to ascertain the causality of the fallen fire technique. Yet his instincts told him it must be hidden within the altar. "But where could it be?" Mo Hua frowned. He leaped back on the altar, meticulously inspecting every inch, from the table’s corners, edges, to the platform on top. Mo Hua found no trace of any formation. Just then, there was a loud "boom" outside. It seemed some startling change had occurred in the hall. Mo Hua hesitated for a moment. "Have they determined a victor?" "Or has Fire Buddha set another trap?" As Mo Hua speculated, the altar's entrance opened, followed by the influx of a powerful, scorching spiritual energy. This energy was brimming with malice. Mo Hua's expression changed. Fire Buddha! He’s back! Mo Hua quickly deployed his five-element stealth technique and adroitly slithered to the back of the altar, scaling to the top of a massive demon statue to conceal himself. Moments later, the robe-tattered, pale-faced Fire Buddha returned. His arm was covered in slashed bloodstains from wind blades. His aura was notably weakened, the two flaming hearts in his chest showing signs of being overdrawn. "To hell with Gu Changhuai!" "One day, I will flay you, burn your blood dry, and incinerate your flesh to ashes to quell my heart’s wrath!" "Damn it..." Fire Buddha cursed continuously as he approached the altar. With no one around, his fury disregarded decorum; he discarded any pretense of virtuous Buddhist demeanor, unleashing crude language. But soon, the malice within him intensified. Fire Buddha trembled violently, as if unable to contain the oppressive malice within, his lips turning white, breathing erratically, eyes bloodshot. He had to halt and sit, clasping his hands together and chanting "Amitabha." "May Buddha have mercy, deliver me from suffering..." "All worldly possessions are empty, life and death of all beings are cyclic..." "Even the mass murderer, upon laying down the butcher's knife, finds redemption..." Fire Buddha repeated this self-purifying mantra until his emotions settled and the malice retracted into his body, his expression returning to one of neutrality. He slowly rose and continued toward the altar. Upon reaching the altar, Fire Buddha respectfully knelt. "The great endeavor is unfulfilled, a failure due to my incompetence, I beg the Lord's forgiveness..." "Those ignorants defile the truth of the world, disrupting the great work of the sacred hall..." "They will pay the price..." "But before that, this place will be sealed. One day, when it sees the light again, offerings will be made to the Lord..." "I seek your forgiveness..." Fire Buddha bowed once more. Mo Hua listened silently from his concealed position, frowning deeply. Lord? Who is this Lord? He had assumed it was the altar of the "Great Wilderness Lord." For he only knew of the Great Wilderness Lord as the singular evil deity. Could this 'Lord' be another name for the Great Wilderness Lord? Or perhaps another of the heavenly demons? As Mo Hua wondered, he noticed Fire Buddha crouching, feeling the ground with his hands. After a while, Fire Buddha’s fingers tapped a brick on the ground. The brick flashed faintly, and a thick, ancient book appeared in Fire Buddha’s hand. Mo Hua was stunned. The Manual of the Fallen Fire Technique! That seemingly unremarkable brick is a storage space? Mo Hua felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He'd made a mistake! He hadn't considered it. He had thought Fire Buddha would seal his treasures within a formation. But against all expectations, he disregarded formations, using a simple storage brick to conceal his manual. Mo Hua felt helpless. Ironically, he was punished for having too advanced a level of formation expertise. Always thinking to solve problems through formations. Mo Hua failed to empathize with the challenges faced by practitioners not versed in formations. As the saying goes, even adept swimmers may drown, and those skilled in formations can still slip up. Mo Hua took this to heart. Right in front of Mo Hua, the Fire Buddha opened the manual of the fallen fire technique, which was packed with intricacies and detailed illustrations. Mo Hua watched enviously. But he only managed a quick glance and couldn’t clearly discern what the manual contained. Impatience surged through Mo Hua. This slight shift in emotion was immediately sensed by the Fire Buddha. Being naturally suspicious and steeped in ominous energy, he was incredibly sensitive to other people's fluctuations in emotions. "Who's there?!" the Fire Buddha exclaimed in surprise. Mo Hua quickly ducked his head and held his breath. The Fire Buddha stood up, extending his spiritual sense to search the area around the altar. Initially, Mo Hua was concerned, but after a while, noticing that the Fire Buddha wasn’t picking up any signs—his spiritual sense hadn’t even scanned near Mo Hua—Mo Hua wondered. Peeking up, he saw the Fire Buddha’s face contorted with malevolence as he searched. However, the Fire Buddha only dared to look outside the altar, not venturing within a yard of its perimeter. This altar seemed to him an absolute forbidden zone. Not only could he not step over it, but even looking at it or letting his spiritual sense touch it was off-limits... Mo Hua mused internally, “Why is this Fire Buddha so fearful?” “It’s just an altar. I sat on it and nothing happened...” Mo Hua pondered a bit further and rationalized it for the Fire Buddha's sake. The Fire Buddha was entrenched in the system of this dark arts sect and had to mind the 'Lord’s' authority. He, Mo Hua, not being of the dark arts, was free from such hierarchies... After searching ineffectively for a while, the Fire Buddha found nothing. Mo Hua was deft by nature. Moreover, significant elements around the altar had been destroyed, leaving no loose ends to tie him to the scene. The Fire Buddha frowned. “Has my disturbed energy worsened my paranoia?” “Yes, that must be it...” he mumbled, “This is the Lord’s altar, impervious to outsiders or desecration...” “Yes...” Gradually, the Fire Buddha’s mind calmed. He closed the manual of the fallen fire technique, initially intending to tuck it away but reconsidered, returning it to the concealed storage beneath a floor tile. With imminent battles, the safest spot was beneath the Lord's altar. The Fire Buddha then sat down, took a blood-red flesh pill from his robe, swallowed it, and began absorbing its energies. His flesh slowly began to regenerate. His aura, intensifying bit by bit. Mo Hua was slightly taken aback. What kind of pill is this to offer such potent recovery? A wicked pill perhaps? What if he quickly recovers his strength and Gu Changhuai can't defeat him? Could Gu Changhuai actually be killed? Most importantly, he’s lingering here, making it impossible for me to pilfer from him! “I need a way to lure him away...” Mo Hua thought. Without hesitation, he messaged Gu Changhuai: "Uncle Gu." Gu Changhuai responded, "Where are you? The Fire Buddha disappeared, and you..." Mo Hua replied, "I know where the Fire Buddha is." Gu Changhuai’s expression changed, and he immediately asked: "Where?" Mo Hua directed, "There’s a mural at the back of the great hall, bottom right corner, ten steps left, there's a mountain path you can push open to enter..." "Once inside, follow the mountain path through many branches, the sequence is right, right second intersection, right, then left..." "Keep going until you reach the altar." "The Fire Buddha is inside, healing himself..." Gu Changhuai opened his mouth to speak but then remembered something and almost incredulously asked: "Are you... also inside the altar?" Mo Hua answered, "I am, watching him take medicine right now..." Gu Changhuai felt a tinge of dread. This child was far too daring! More importantly, how did he manage to find such a secretive path? But given the urgency of the situation, Gu Changhuai had no time for questions. He instructed quickly, "Stay hidden, don’t get caught. I’m coming in to capture the Fire Buddha." "Use the opportunity to find your way out..." Mo Hua assured, "Alright." Then Gu Changhuai ceased replies, presumably rushing over. Mo Hua waited patiently. After an incense stick’s time, a familiar, whirlwind-like presence approached from the entrance of the altar. Mo Hua’s eyes lit up. Meanwhile, the meditating Fire Buddha noticed the disturbance. He was momentarily stunned. Gu Changhuai?! How could it be possible? How could he possibly find his way to this altar? In the entire sanctuary, among all practitioners of dark arts, only he knew the altar’s exact location. No, the dark arts sorcerers who built the altar knew too. However, every last one of them had been "silenced", with their bodies not even reused as corpses, but discarded into the Poison River, dissolved into foul waters. This altar was the sanctuary’s core secret. Absolutely classified, absolutely secure! Gu Changhuai, a mere magistrate from the Taoist court, how did he locate this place? Fire Buddha’s pupils shook, mind awash with turmoil. Moments later, his face turned emotionless, gradually standing up. “Regardless, those aware of this altar... must die.” "Even if I can’t kill him, I can’t allow him to approach, to desecrate the altar..." Fire Buddha’s eyes burned crimson, cassock blood red, using his speed to transform into a striking flame as he charged towards Gu Changhuai. Gu Changhuai caught sight of the Fire Buddha as well. Though unaware of Mo Hua’s exact location, as long as he could engage the Fire Buddha, Mo Hua’s cunning would surely find a way out. Moreover, he aimed to use this opportunity to eliminate the Fire Buddha here, for good! As they clashed, there was no need for words, immediately launching into a fierce exchange of powers. Arrows of fire clashed brutally against blades of wind, both forces fiercely colliding and dismantling each other, spiritual energy and flashing lights dancing wildly. Surrounding rocks were shattered into fragments. In the instant the Fire Buddha left to confront Gu Changhuai... An eagerly awaiting Mo Hua leaped down from the demon statue’s head, lightly touching down upon the Fire Buddha’s revered altar. Elsewhere, Gu Changhuai and the Fire Buddha battled intensely. Guided by memory, Mo Hua navigated to the brick hiding the Fire Buddha's stash. With three taps and a focused spiritual lure, he retrieved two books. No time to review them, Mo Hua swiftly slipped them into his personal storage ring. Once in the ring, they became his possession—irretrievable by anyone! Mo Hua's heart soared with joy. The fallen fire technique manual was in his hands! The mission was more than halfway complete. All that remained was to scheme the Fire Buddha’s downfall... Sneaking a glance at the ongoing battle between Gu Changhuai and the Fire Buddha, a crafty gleam flickered in Mo Hua’s eyes. His mind teemed with mischievous plans...