Chapter 87: Inquiry

Mo Hua, having experienced a day of rights and wrongs, wanted to go to bed early but couldn't sleep. After thinking for a bit, he still entered his sea of consciousness and practiced array formations on the stone tablet all night.

When drawing array formations, his heart was without any distractions, and his mood also calmed down more easily.

The next day, Zhang Lan came to find Mo Hua.

He sat at an Eight Immortals table in the corner of the food shop. On the table were several dishes of vegetables for drinking wine and a pot of wine.

Zhang Lan poured himself a cup of wine, looked at Mo Hua and said, "Tell me, what happened yesterday."

"What what happened."

Zhang Lan curled his mouth. "Don't play dumb with me, it's about Qian Xing."

"He bullied me, then Da Zhu brother and they helped, so we fought, and then you all came," Mo Hua said lightly, avoiding the main points.

The events had all passed, and there was no key content. Zhang Lan couldn't help but say,

"Don't beat around the bush with me, that array formation, you used it, right."

Mo Hua was startled. "Zhang Uncle, you all saw it."

"Didn't see," Zhang Lan took a mouthful of wine. "If we saw, how could we possibly let them mess around like that."

Mo Hua doubtfully said, "Then how do you know it was an array formation, not a spell technique."

After the ground fire array exploded, the spirit paper turned to flying ashes. Unless someone saw it in person, otherwise no one should know that Mo Hua used an array formation to injure Qian Xing.

"Rain over leaves traces, geese over leaves sounds. Cultivators doing anything will leave traces. You can't see it, doesn't mean others can't either."

"What traces are there," Mo Hua humbly asked for advice.

"The paper used for array formations, after burning, leaves embers different from the ashes of other things burned. After the array formation explodes, the remaining spiritual energy aura is also very easy to distinguish. If you understand, you can even tell what kind of array formation you used. Adding on that there aren't many spells that the Qi Refining stage can use, besides spells, only talismans and array formations have this kind of power. Talismans are expensive and easier to identify, so thinking like this, it can only be an array formation." Zhang Lan spoke about this kind of thing with a confident air.

"So that's how it is," Mo Hua suddenly realized. "Then how to wipe off these traces."

"Spirit paper ashes scatter with wind and melt with water, or you can directly use other array mediums to draw the array formation, then it won't leave embers. After the array formation explodes, the remaining spiritual energy aura can be manually mixed up, but it's not important. Normal cultivators basically can't distinguish the difference between an array formation and a cultivator's spiritual power, and also..."

As Zhang Lan was speaking, he felt something was wrong. He seemed to be teaching Mo Hua how to "destroy the corpse and erase traces" after doing something bad.

"And what," Mo Hua was listening with great interest.

Zhang Lan coughed. "These aren't the key. Just tell me, was it you who exploded and injured Qian Xing."

"No," Mo Hua wasn't stupid. How could he admit it and invite trouble for nothing.

Zhang Lan had a look of disbelief.

"Zhang Uncle, think about it, I'm only at Qi Refining fourth layer, how could I possibly draw an array formation with that much power."

"Um, this excuse isn't bad," Zhang Lan nodded perfunctorily.

"It's true," Mo Hua just finished speaking, then reacted and corrected, "This is a fact, not an excuse."

Zhang Lan smiled and said, "Alright, alright, I understand. Don't worry, I just want to know what happened, I won't really send you to the Dao Court Office for interrogation."

"You Dao Court Office don't care?"

"The Dao Court Office cares, and it's impossible not to distinguish right from wrong. Could it be that in your eyes, the Dao Court Office is all colluding with the families and sects?"

"Yes," Mo Hua nodded honestly.

The Dao Court Office and the families, it would be strange if they weren't colluding.

Zhang Lan choked on a mouthful of wine. After thinking for a bit, he couldn't come up with any examples to deny it, only defending himself, "Okay, there is indeed collusion, but at least I'm not, is that okay?"

Mo Hua looked at him with a bit of sympathy and quietly said, "Zhang Big Uncle, are you being excluded? That's why they don't bring you along to play?"

Zhang Lan's head ached a bit, and his heart was also a bit tired. He was just about to argue when he suddenly realized that the topic had been led by this kid to who knows where, and the things he wanted to ask were still not finished.

Zhang Lan glared at Mo Hua, "Don't beat around the bush, I'm talking to you about Qian Xing's matter."

"Oh," Mo Hua sat obediently. Anyway, he wouldn't say anything.

But this matter, both of them knew it clearly in their hearts, they just didn't say it explicitly.

Zhang Lan also didn't want to pursue it, so he said, "Your cultivation is only at Qi Refining fourth layer, you indeed can't draw this kind of array formation, so the person who injured Qian Xing is definitely not you."

"Then who could it be," Mo Hua tentatively asked.

Zhang Lan raised his eyebrows and said, "Qian Xing acts tyrannically, he must have offended many people. This time he caused trouble on the street, there were cultivators who took the opportunity to secretly attack him. As for who exactly made the move, we just have to spend time to investigate."

Mo Hua admired him endlessly. Those who can enter the Dao Court Office are indeed all talented. This kind of skill of telling lies with open eyes, he had to learn more.

"Officer Zhang, you've worked hard. This meal, I'll treat," Mo Hua patted his chest and said generously.

"Oh," Zhang Lan said teasingly. "Since that's the case, then bring two more plates of beef and two pots of good wine."

Mo Hua was a bit troubled. "Small business, just enough."

Zhang Lan couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Right, you and Qian Xing have a grudge, why did he specifically make things difficult for you?" Zhang Lan suddenly remembered and asked.

Mo Hua thought for a bit and said, "No grudge, he asked me to help him with something, I didn't agree, then he got angry out of embarrassment."

"Just like that."

"Um," Mo Hua nodded. "He said he wanted to kill me, and throw me to the mountains, let demon beasts eat me one mouthful at a time. That way the Dao Court Office wouldn't be able to track him."

"Damn it," Zhang Lan got angry and slapped the table. Other diners all looked over. Zhang Lan had to cough to cover it up, "Good wine."

Mo Hua couldn't help but say, "You slapped our table broken."

The table was slapped by Zhang Lan, adding several cracks.

Zhang Lan usually restrained his blood energy and spiritual power, but at that moment he was momentarily angry, so he used a bit of force.

"Put it on account, deduct from my spirit stones," Zhang Lan said awkwardly.

Mo Hua had just casually said it, then asked a question that greatly puzzled him.

"Zhang Uncle, Qian Xing, he hasn't really killed people before, right?"

Mo Hua had grown up this big and seen cultivators, most of whom were busy for their livelihood. Even if there were fights, they were with demon beasts. Among cultivators, mutual killing situations were very rare.

So at that time, when Qian Xing immediately wanted to make a deadly move, Mo Hua was still very shocked. And Qian Xing said killing people as if it was nothing, and hanging people in the mountains, letting demon beasts eat them one mouthful at a time, this kind of thing, if he hadn't really done it, he probably wouldn't say it so confidently.

This was also the first time Mo Hua personally experienced the hidden dangers and unpredictability beneath ordinary daily life.

Zhang Lan's expression also gradually became serious, "Not impossible."

"Dao Court Office doesn't care?"

"If someone reports a case, the Dao Court Office will care. If there are clues, the Dao Court Office will investigate. If the evidence is conclusive, the Dao Court Office will convict. Otherwise, it's either completely unable to intervene, or even if it intervenes, there's no result, and in the end it's still nothing."