Chapter 405: Unusual Living Corpse

Having listened to the village chief's narrative, realization dawned upon the two men. "No wonder these living corpses are so unyielding, far beyond what any ordinary person could refine. As it turns out, they are simply lost."

"Is it a common occurrence for living corpses to go astray?"

The village chief shook his head. "How could it be? In all my eighty years of life, this is the very first time I have ever beheld a masterless living corpse. Before this, I had only ever heard whispers of such things."

"May I ask what might cause a living corpse to become masterless?"

"I have heard others say there are but three reasons for a living corpse to be without a master. Either the master has perished, leaving the corpse to slip from control and wander aimlessly through the days, or the master has willingly severed the bond of control. Otherwise, it is a backlash from the corpse, having devoured its own master."

"Judging by the demeanor of the living corpses in our village, they bear no thirst for blood. It does not seem to resemble the third scenario."

"Is there any way to find the master of these living corpses?"

Hearing Lu Yang’s inquiry, a conflicted expression washed over the village chief's face, his brow furrowing into a tight knot before he finally let out a heavy sigh. "There is."

"Every corpse-driver leaves a unique mark upon their own living corpses to claim them. The corpses in our village all bear the exact same mark upon their right wrists, just like this."

Squatting upon the ground, the village chief traced three interlocking rings with his finger, and within the center of those rings, he inscribed the character for 'Ghost'. "If the master of these living corpses still draws breath, the very same pattern will be found upon his own right wrist."

"Though I am merely at the peak of the second layer of Qi Refining, with limited cultivation, I studied in my youth under a magnificent corpse-driver. My teacher was at the peak of the sixth layer of Qi Refining!"

"During the time I spent learning from my teacher, I came to recognize the marks of every corpse-driver in the surrounding counties, yet none possessed a style akin to this. As for the corpse-drivers of other regions, I have never chanced to see them."

This was precisely one of the reasons why the village chief had not reported the matter to the authorities; the living corpses were not left behind by any local corpse-driver, so even if the government took charge of the matter, the officials would never find the master.

"Old sir, have you ever heard of the Corpse-Driving Sect?"

The village chief broke into a helpless smile. "How could I not know the name of the Corpse-Driving Sect? Thirty years ago, I was fortunate enough to catch a distant glimpse of one of their disciples. He was truly a brilliant young talent, far beyond the reach of someone like me, who struggled even to grasp the basics of corpse-driving."

"Do you know where the Corpse-Driving Sect is located?" "That would be quite far indeed."

The village chief pointed toward the west. "The Corpse-Driving Sect lies at the very heart of our Barren Province. If one travels straight west from here, it is a journey of eighty million miles."

Meng Jingzhou nodded. "It seems we will have to travel for a few more days."

With the old horse, a journey of eighty million miles was not considered distant. When he had first run away from home, traveling from the Imperial Capital to the Dao Inquiry Sect, the distance had been far greater than eighty million miles, yet it had taken a mere matter of days.

Whether they traveled swiftly or slowly depended entirely upon the old horse's whim.

Initially, Meng Jingzhou had believed their rapid pace was due to a spatial array embedded within the carriage's chassis, allowing it to traverse space at will and shorten the distance. Only later did he learn that while the carriage was indeed a treasure, the true reason for their speed lay with the old horse itself.

"Since we are now aware of the living corpses' existence, could you find it in your heart to let us brothers stay the night, old sir?"

"Very well. In any case, my late wife has passed on, and my children have moved to the county seat to live. For you to stay the night is merely a matter of preparing two extra quilts."

The two rested and recuperated for the night in Jianshi Village, and the following day, they bade farewell to the village chief and embarked once more upon their journey.

"You two were quite fortunate last night." The Immortal Fairy stretched languidly, twisting her body to loosen her joints. Though a spiritual form possessed no concept of flesh and bone, habits from life were always inherited in part after death.

"Fortunate?"

"Indeed. The horde of living corpses you encountered last night had been meticulously refined by a great cultivator. It was only because they lacked a commander, coupled with a deficiency of yang energy, that they lacked the strength to move properly, relying solely on that pile of large steamed buns to maintain basic activity. Otherwise, the two of you could never have bested that horde."

"If my deductions are correct, that horde of living corpses acting in unison would be sufficient to contend with a cultivator of the Body Integration Stage."

"The Body Integration Stage!" Lu Yang was struck with profound shock. He had only known that the living corpses from the previous night were incredibly sturdy, but he had never imagined it to be so exaggerated that they could match the Body Integration Stage.

Even if Lu Yang possessed no deep understanding of the art of corpse-refining, he knew that to refine living corpses of such caliber, the creator must inevitably be a cultivator of the Body Integration Stage.

Such a horde of living corpses was a combat asset of a Body Integration Stage cultivator; how could they be abandoned so carelessly? Had a corpse-driver of the Body Integration Stage perished?

At the mere thought of this, a shiver ran down Lu Yang's spine.

In this day and age, people rarely engaged in lethal feuds, and it was exceptionally rare for those of the Body Integration Stage to strike to kill. Moreover, cultivators of that level were immensely powerful, possessing multiple life-saving methods. Unless the gap in strength was immense—such as the chasm between his master, Daoist Buyu, the Great Elder, or Qiu Jin'an and an ordinary Body Integration Stage cultivator—it was exceedingly difficult for one to slay another.

Seeing the subtle shift in Lu Yang’s countenance, Meng Jingzhou could not help but inquire out of curiosity, "What is the matter with you?" "You should still remember that the Immortal Fairy resides within my body."

When the Immortal Fairy had been resurrected back then, Meng Jingzhou had been watching right beside him.

Meng Jingzhou blinked a few times, clapping his fist into his palm as a look of sudden realization washed over his features. "Ah—now I remember. There is still an ancient immortal inside you. What did the immortal say?"

"....Hold on a moment. Putting aside what she said, why do you look as though you have only just remembered?" "You cannot entirely blame me for that."

Meng Jingzhou scratched his head in embarrassment, counting upon his fingers. "Mainly because, in my imagination, someone with an ancient immortal inside them should possess boundless extraordinary luck, wield fragmented ancient treasures as weapons, hold all manner of heaven-shaking secrets, be well-versed in multiple paths of cultivation, be invincible among peers, frequently utter astounding words, possess insights far beyond their level, have beautiful women throwing themselves into their arms, and enter secret realms as easily as returning home."

"Looking at your usual performance, you do not really seem like that at all. The only matching trait is being invincible among your peers, but that is not a particularly conspicuous trait within our Dao Inquiry Sect."

"Oh, that is right. You also know all sorts of ancient secrets that are only useful for bluffing the Nine Nether Cult." Lu Yang:

Indeed, I would like to know the reason for that as well.

"What did the immortal say?"

"She said that the combat power of the horde of living corpses we encountered last night could rival the Body Integration Stage." Meng Jingzhou’s pupils contracted slightly, evidently arriving at the exact same conclusion as Lu Yang.

How could living corpses of such a level be allowed to wander outside at will? Something entirely unknown to the world must have occurred!

"Let us find a major city to ask around and see if any battles have taken place, or if some cultivator of the Body Integration Stage has fallen. It is impossible for an event of this magnitude to leave absolutely no trace."

Lu Yang nodded; he shared the exact same thought.

"By the way, since an ancient immortal resides within you, could you perchance ask her on my behalf if her venerable self possesses any method to resolve the backlash of my karmic retribution?" Meng Jingzhou looked at Lu Yang with fervent anticipation. Right, if the Eldest Senior Sister could not help, there was still the ancient immortal.

An ancient immortal possessed methods that could reach the heavens; surely resolving a mere karmic backlash would be as easy as turning over a hand? "I have already asked."

"What did her venerable self say?" "She told you to go die." ""