Time flowed like water, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.
The princess's residence, in a secluded cultivation chamber.
Within the pitch-black space.
The mummified figure that had sat cross-legged on the ground all this time began shaking like chaff in a sieve.
After a long while, a slit suddenly opened beneath the mummy's shriveled eyelid.
And this was only the beginning. Though the movement was exceedingly slow, the tightly shut eyelid continued lifting.
Until his eyes opened fully, revealing a pair of dark brown irises.
There was a trace of bewilderment in his eyes when they opened, but they soon grew calm.
Crack, crack, crack...
As his eyes opened, the mummy's withered body did not stop trembling. Instead, it shook even more violently.
His head slowly turned, actually moving through a tiny angle. Amid the incessant grinding and cracking of bones, it finally turned fully to one side.
Then it turned toward the other side, little by little. Next, his shriveled hands began to rise. The movement was agonizingly slow, but they continued rising.
He was like a patient who had suddenly awakened after years bedridden, gradually regaining control of his body.
An unknown amount of time passed-perhaps the time it took an incense stick to burn, perhaps an hour-before the mummy finally managed to lift both arms.
The corners of his ugly mouth spread, revealing somewhat blackened teeth.
Apparently still dissatisfied with these movements, the mummy slowly pressed his hands against the ground, actually attempting to stand.
But he had barely pushed himself up when, with a thud, his body fell back to the ground.
After several failed attempts, the mummy finally stopped wasting his effort.
Instead, he sat cross-legged again and closed his eyes. The next moment, the spore-like, grayish-green Demon Resonance floating within