Corpse Daoist

He was an old man in a gray robe, his face covered in livor spots, his eyes murky and dull.

"Friends from the Demon Suppression Division, we meet again."

The old man's voice was hoarse and dry.

Qian Jing's expression turned exceedingly grim.

"You are... the Corpse Daoist?"

"Oh? I never expected that after so many years, someone would still remember this old man's name."

The Corpse Daoist grinned, exposing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

"You little brat have some knowledge at least, unlike those beside you. I reckon they do not even know who I am."

"Back when this old man roamed the martial world, if not ten Earth Ranking experts died by my hand, then at least eight did."

"As for the Gold Medal Demon Suppressors of your Demon Suppression Division, I killed more than I could count."

He stretched out a withered finger and pointed at the coffins in the hall.

"Do you see them? These are all this old man's masterpieces—corpse puppets refined from living people. Blades and spears cannot pierce them; water and fire cannot harm them."

Yuan Le shouted sycophantically from the side, "Master, refine them all into corpse puppets! Avenge my severed arm!"

The Corpse Daoist merely glanced at him without speaking. He took out an ancient bronze bell from his robes and gently shook it.

Ding-ling-ling...

A strange peal of bells echoed through the hall.

Qian Jing, Liu Tianqi, and Jin Wen felt dizzy, and even the true qi within their bodies became somewhat sluggish.

Thud! Thud thud!

The dozen or so nanmu coffins in the hall began to tremble violently, as though something inside was about to burst through the lids.

The lid of the coffin nearest them was flung away by a tremendous force.

A burly figure slowly rose from within the coffin.

Its skin was pallid, fangs protruded from its mouth, and it wore a suit of silver heavy armor two or three inches thick, wrapped tightly around its entire body.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Explosions rang out one after another.

Ten identical Silver Armored Corpse Puppets rose from their respective coffins. With heavy steps, they closed in on the four of them.

"Move!"

Qian Jing shouted low and struck first.

His longsword traced a flourish, his perfected Sword Intent driven to its utmost limit.

"Shadow Splitting Light Sword!"

A brilliant sword light tore through the air with a piercing shriek, slashing toward the neck of the nearest Silver Armored Corpse Puppet.

A harsh clang of metal striking metal rang out.

Qian Jing's full-force strike left only a shallow white mark on the heavy armor.

Jin Wen attacked at the same time. With a low roar, astral qi gathered over both his palms.

"Gold Crushing Palm!"

His palm struck another corpse puppet squarely in the chest.

The silver armor only sank slightly beneath the imprint of his fist, but the terrifying rebounding force numbed his entire arm.

Liu Tianqi sucked in a cold breath.

"This thing's defense is way too monstrous!"

One corpse puppet alone had suppressed a Gold Medal Demon Suppressor, and there were ten of them here.

How were they supposed to fight this?

"Hahaha!"

The Corpse Daoist behind the window burst into triumphant laughter.

"Each of my Silver Armored Corpse Puppets weighs over a thousand jin. Their skin is bronze and their bones are iron; their strength is boundless."

"Below the Innate realm, no one can break this heavy armor of mine!"

Qian Jing's face grew solemn to the extreme. He spoke rapidly to Shen Che, "Brother Shen, the three of us will hold these corpse puppets off. You are the strongest—find a way to blast open that iron gate!"

Shen Che merely shook his head and calmly looked at the Corpse Daoist behind the window.

"There is no need to make it so troublesome."

"The Corpse Daoist will meet his end here today."

It was as though the Corpse Daoist had heard the greatest joke in the world. He laughed so hard he rocked back and forth.

"You ignorant brat who knows neither the height of heaven nor the depth of earth!"

"Kill him! Tear him into pieces for me!"

At his command, a Silver Armored Corpse Puppet let out an inhuman roar and charged at Shen Che in great strides, like a war chariot rampaging headlong.

Faced with the impact of that thousand-jin force, Shen Che neither dodged nor evaded.

He merely extended his right hand.

Under the horrified gazes of Qian Jing and the others,

Shen Che casually caught the Silver Armored Corpse Puppet by the neck with one hand.

Its violent charging momentum came to an abrupt halt.

The corpse puppet, weighing over a thousand jin, was lifted into the air in one hand, its limbs struggling futilely.

What kind of strength was this?

With a shake of his arm, Shen Che hurled the Silver Armored Corpse Puppet viciously toward the steel gate as though tossing out trash.

Boom!!

A deafening crash rang out.

The thick steel gate was smashed inward and warped, spiderweb cracks spreading across its surface.

The Silver Armored Corpse Puppet's bones were shattered to pieces. It slid to the floor like a lump of rotten mud and did not move again.

Behind the gate, the Corpse Daoist was knocked onto the ground by the tremendous force, the smile on his face frozen stiff.

He stared blankly at the warped iron gate, then at Shen Che.

"Trash!"

In a fit of shame and rage, he slapped Yuan Le on the crown of his head, driving his skull straight into his chest cavity.

"All of you, attack! Kill him!!"

The Corpse Daoist shook the bronze bell in his hand frantically.

The ringing became rapid and shrill, imbued with astral qi that made Qian Jing and the others' heads feel as though they were splitting apart.

The remaining nine Silver Armored Corpse Puppets' eyes turned blood-red. Their auras surged, their speed and strength rising by an entire level as they charged at Shen Che from all directions like madmen.

Shen Che stood where he was, slowly drawing his right fist back to his waist.

Vajra Zen Fist · Zen Spear!

He threw a punch. In that instant, his entire arm seemed to transform into an indestructible golden spear, stabbing forth with an unstoppable momentum.

Pfft! Pfft!

The thick silver armor over the chests of the two Silver Armored Corpse Puppets in front was pierced as easily as paper.

The force of his fist passed through their bodies, blasting their heads apart as well.

[Absorbed Time Value +1000]

[Absorbed Time Value +1000]

Sure enough, these dead things provided far less Time Value than living demons and monsters.

At a thought from Shen Che, the true qi throughout his body suddenly shook.

Zen Thunder!

A violent force exploded outward from him, blasting the corpse puppets closing in on him back again and again.

Clang.

The Meteor Thunder Blade left its sheath.

Shen Che gripped the blade in reverse, and an incomparably domineering saber momentum surged skyward.

Behind him, the phantom of a fierce tiger condensed from black Killing Intent raised its head and roared at the heavens.

Black Tiger Saber Technique · Tiger's Roar!

He swept his blade out in a horizontal slash.

The black saber light was like a crescent moon of death.

Pshht!

Three Silver Armored Corpse Puppets, along with their supposedly indestructible heavy armor, were cleaved in half at the waist.

The expression on the Corpse Daoist's face froze completely.

The bronze skin and iron bones he had spent ten years painstakingly refining with countless secret arts were being carved up like melons and vegetables?