Dragon Snake Cave

"Senior, my Mo Clan is deeply grateful for your life-saving grace. May I ask your esteemed name?"

Only after everyone had traveled several hundred li from Jingxiu Mountain and stopped to rest did Mo Changge have the presence of mind to ask about Mo Wen's background.

Mo Wen chuckled. "Thirteenth Brother, it's been years!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he restored his true appearance.

"You're... Sixth Brother?" Mo Changge was overjoyed, yet scarcely able to believe it.

There were twenty-seven cultivators of the Mo Household's "Chang" generation. Mo Wen ranked sixth among them, while Mo Changge ranked thirteenth. Within the Lineage, the brothers all addressed one another by rank.

The original owner of Mo Wen's body had four Spirit Roots and was not valued in the Mo Household. Few of his brothers of the same generation were willing to get close to him. He paid it no mind, always presenting himself as a diligent cultivator.

As for brotherly affection, Mo Wen and Mo Changge got along relatively well because they both came from side branches. When they met, they could usually chat for a while.

Mo Changge truly had not expected the powerhouse who saved them to be his Sixth Brother, who had been so utterly unremarkable in the Lineage!

Mo Changge hurriedly introduced Mo Wen to Mo Changying and the others, and had them change how they addressed him.

Only then did Mo Wen learn the names of the two young cultivators: one was Mo Qingxiao, and the other was Mo Qingquan. Both were rising talents of the "Qing" generation. Their Spirit Roots were a cut above even Mo Qingyun's, and both had reached the Peak of the Sixth Layer of Qi Refining.

"Are you really Sixth Brother?" Mo Changying looked at Mo Wen, trying to find traces of Sixth Brother in her memories.

When Mo Wen left the Mo Household, Mo Changying had been only thirteen or fourteen. She had little contact with this Sixth Brother and had only seen him from a distance a few times.

"Of course, genuine and guaranteed!" Mo Wen said with confidence.

"Sixth Brother, don't you have four Spirit Roots? How did you become a Foundation Establishment High Person?" Mo Changying could not help asking.

By the common understanding of the cultivation world, a cultivator with four Spirit Roots had already achieved something remarkable if they managed to break through to Late Qi Refinement before their Qi and Blood reached their limit! Yet her Sixth Brother had accomplished the unprecedented feat of reaching Foundation Establishment. It was simply inconceivable!

"It was just a fortuitous coincidence. Besides, I used a Divergent Method to reach Foundation Establishment. It's nothing worth mentioning." Mo Wen had no way to explain the strength he had displayed, so he could only brush it aside with "Divergent Method Foundation Establishment."

"Divergent Method Foundation Establishment" referred to building one's Dao foundation through some special method or means. This was not the orthodox path to Foundation Establishment: not only was the road ahead cut off, but one's strength was also far weaker than that of a cultivator who had reached Foundation Establishment normally. The only benefit was that cultivators who used a Divergent Method also had a lifespan of two hundred and forty years, far longer than that of Qi Refining cultivators.

"That's still amazing!" Mo Changying said enviously. Although she was said to have "the potential for Foundation Establishment," she was not fully confident she could achieve it. Besides, now that the Mo Household had been reduced to just a handful of them, there was probably little hope of obtaining a genuine Foundation Establishment Pill!

After chatting with Mo Changying for a few more moments, Mo Wen walked aside with Mo Changge to discuss serious matters.

"Thirteenth Brother, what are your plans from here?"

"More than ten years ago, Fourth Brother (Mo Changkong) arranged a retreat for us, establishing a small spiritual land in the Hundred Beasts Mountain Range. It's called Dragon Snake Cave, and it has a First-Tier Superior-Grade Spirit Vein, enough for us to cultivate. Oh, right, an elder who is skilled in the Technique of controlling snakes also guards Dragon Snake Cave year-round."

"Oh? Is it Uncle Daolin?"

"That's right, it's Uncle Daolin. He's seventy-six this year, and his health is still fairly good."

"I heard long ago that Uncle Daolin was skilled at controlling snakes and had raised a First-Tier Superior-Grade Black Jade Snake King. Is that true?"

"It is. That Black Jade Snake King is not only quite powerful, but has also produced more than a hundred demonic snake offspring. They're very effective at guarding Dragon Snake Cave!"

"I see. That puts my mind even more at ease!"

"Sixth Brother, what do you mean by that?"

"Given my current identity, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to stay at Dragon Snake Cave for long. Once you're settled, I'll go to Azure Luan Immortal City and make my home there."

"Sixth Brother, you left the Lineage back then only for the sake of your own Dao Path! Now that we're all that's left of the Mo Household, why not return to the Lineage and restore the Mo Clan's prestige?"

"You know my nature. I don't like doing those things. Besides, just because you think that way doesn't mean everyone else does!"

When Mo Wen finished speaking, he turned and glanced at Mo Qingyun and the others.

Mo Changge seemed to recall something and fell silent for a time.

The divide between the Mo Clan's main branch and side branches ran deep. Even now, with only a handful of them left, no one could say for certain that they would unite as one. Mo Changge had rushed to reach Foundation Establishment partly because circumstances forced his hand, but it also had something to do with the main branch's schemes.

By the time the two returned to the group, everyone had finished resting. They continued on toward the Hundred Beasts Mountain Range.

Three days later, the Mo Clan party arrived in a secluded, deep valley.

The valley was lush with vegetation and rich in water, and the air carried traces of dampness. It was precisely the kind of environment snakes and insects favored.

Mo Changge led the way, taking the others deep into the valley until they stopped before a dark, deep cave.

Mo Changge took a green bamboo whistle from his Storage Bag and blew hard on it several times, producing a series of shrill cries.

After a long while, an old man with a snow-white beard and hair, but a vigorous bearing, walked out. Behind him followed a huge python, black as ink, its entire body shimmering with a soft sheen.

"Uncle Daolin, Jingxiu Mountain has fallen!" Mo Changge said heavily, his face filled with grief.

Mo Daolin's body shuddered. He looked as though his soul had left him, and for a time he could not speak.

Mo Changge coughed lightly, rousing Mo Daolin, and continued, "If Sixth Brother hadn't intervened this time, we would all have perished on Jingxiu Mountain!"

"Sixth Brother? Which Sixth Brother?" Mo Daolin asked in bewilderment.

"The sixth of the 'Chang' generation, Mo Changwen! Sixth Brother left the Lineage years ago and has now reached Foundation Establishment. He happened to be there when disaster struck the Lineage and stepped in to save us."

"He actually reached Foundation Establishment? How is it I've never heard of such a talent?" Mo Daolin looked at Mo Wen, his eyes practically overflowing with bewilderment!

"Greetings, Uncle Daolin." Mo Wen cupped his fists and bowed.

Though Mo Daolin was an elder, he was only a sixth-layer Qi Refining cultivator. In everyone's eyes, Mo Wen was already a Foundation Establishment High Person, so naturally he would not be overly humble. If the two had not been related through the Mo Clan, Mo Changlin would instead have had to pay his respects to Mo Wen as a junior.

"I have merely lived a few years longer. How could I dare put on airs before a High Person?" Mo Changlin stepped aside to show that he did not dare accept the bow.

Mo Wen did not insist. He walked to one side and let the others speak with Mo Daolin.

A quarter of an hour later, Mo Daolin had learned the details of the battle at Jingxiu Mountain and knew that Mo Wen had reached Foundation Establishment through a "Divergent Method."

Only after clearing up all his doubts did Mo Daolin lead everyone into the cave.

The cave was roughly oval, about one zhang high and nearly two zhang wide. Countless points of glowing green light seemed to be embedded in the stone walls on either side, making the deep tunnel clearly visible.