Afraid You'll Catch a Cold, I'll Add Some Fire!

"A big catch?"

Watching the commotion in the blood pool, Lin Chen's face lit up with joy. Whatever was in that pool was definitely stronger than the Corpse Bee King, and its origin essence would surely be greater too!

He had just tried to strengthen himself, but the system still said he lacked origin essence. With nine thousand five hundred points already, if he killed whatever was in the blood pool, he'd definitely gather ten thousand points and be able to strengthen again.

"Don't you dare disappoint me!"

Lin Chen stared fixedly at the blood pool, waiting for the thing inside. In his eyes, it was already the key to his next enhancement.

"Not good, the corpse puppet is about to emerge ahead of schedule!"

The big monk's face changed drastically. A corpse puppet was at least a Third Order existence, possibly even Fourth Order. Though Lin Chen was strong, whether he could block a corpse puppet of that level was still unknown.

The blood in the pool churned as if boiling, visibly decreasing by the moment. In just a short while, a massive coffin came into Lin Chen's view.

Strange runes were carved on the coffin, seeming to possess a magical allure that made one want to stare at them endlessly.

"More and more interesting."

Lin Chen activated his Blood Qi True Flame, and the so-called magic vanished without a trace in an instant.

Suddenly, the coffin at the bottom of the blood pool slowly rose. When it reached ground level, a clattering sound came as the chains around it moved. Under their control, the entire coffin stood upright before Lin Chen.

The big monk stared at the upright bronze coffin, his face turning pale as he muttered, "It's the Corpse Puppet Sect. Damn it, how dare they... No, it's that traitor from the Corpse Puppet Sect back then!"

The Corpse Puppet Sect was a cultivation sect of Great Xia, under the jurisdiction of the Demon Suppression Division. How could they dare to refine a corpse puppet near the city?

But the runes on the coffin were unmistakably from the Corpse Puppet Sect. Since it couldn't be their people, the only explanation was the traitor from years ago!

"Leave, and I'll spare your lives!"

Just then, a hoarse, low voice came from inside the coffin.

"Eh~"

Hearing the voice from the bronze coffin, Lin Chen was momentarily stunned. "This thing can talk? It can communicate?"

Lin Chen had killed plenty of beasts, even Second Order ones, but this was the first time he'd encountered a monster he could converse with. Was this the work of an Evil Cultivator?

"Third Order beasts and above can already speak human language and hold simple conversations," the big monk's voice chimed in at the right moment.

"I'll need to browse the forums more when I get back!"

Lin Chen realized this was yet another common sense of the Cultivation World. Too focused on hunting beasts, he'd completely overlooked this kind of information.

Clang~ Clang~

Sensing that Lin Chen and the monk weren't retreating, the coffin lid suddenly rattled slightly, as if it might fly off at any moment.

"Hey, don't get mad. I mean no harm!"

"That bronze coffin's too cold—I'm afraid you'll catch a chill, so let me add some fire for you!"

Before his words faded, Lin Chen lunged forward, grabbed the coffin lid, and flung it away.

Inside the coffin, a gaunt, malnourished-looking mummy appeared before Lin Chen's eyes.

"You're asking for death!"

The mummy's eyes snapped open, and a roar erupted from its mouth as a withered hand shot toward Lin Chen's chest.

Boom~

With a loud crash, Lin Chen's body was sent flying, several bloody gashes appearing on his chest.

"Damn, did you take some steroids? Skinny as a rake and still this fierce!"

The sharp pain in his chest made Lin Chen wince. He hadn't expected the mummy to have such strength.

"Little brother..."

Before the big monk could finish, Lin Chen's gaze locked onto him. "You're the little one. Your whole family's little!"

The big monk was taken aback. Was now the time to argue about size?

But under Lin Chen's death glare, the monk had no choice but to correct himself. "Big brother, corpse puppets are born with immense strength and are impervious to blades. You've completely ruined its growth—it won't let you go!"

Lin Chen looked at his chest, where the wound had already healed without a trace, his face brimming with excitement. The Phoenix Undying Body wasn't just for condensing Blood Qi True Flame—it also had terrifying regenerative power.

"Come on, kill me, or I'll kill you!" Lin Chen activated his Blood Qi True Flame and charged at the mummy.

Boom~

Their attacks collided, and the mummy's body was blasted away, smashing a large crater into the concrete ground.

Bang~

Before the mummy could get up, a figure descended from above, straddling it. Fists wrapped in Blood Qi True Flame rained down furiously on its head.

"Immense strength, huh?"

"Impervious to blades, huh?"

"Scream! Why aren't you screaming now?"

Watching the mummy being pummeled under Lin Chen, the big monk couldn't help but swallow hard. He'd thought his own Vajra Temple was tough enough, but compared to this guy, Vajra Temple was practically a bunch of good little boys.

"Ow~ ow~ ow~"

"Still trying to sneak attack me? You're asking for it!"

The struggling mummy left several bloody scratches on Lin Chen's body. Stimulated by the pain, Lin Chen only grew more frenzied, and a large dent was clearly smashed into the mummy's head.

"Enough!"

The dazed mummy suddenly roared, erupting with a surge of formidable force that sent Lin Chen flying backward.

In the large pit, the mummy stood up, its entire head charred and disfigured beyond recognition.

"Oh, you dare fight back, huh?"

"Blood Qi True Flame, full power!"

Driving the Blood Qi True Flame with all his might, Lin Chen turned into a human torch and lunged straight at the mummy. The mummy, who had just gotten to his feet, was tackled to the ground again.

Bam! Bam!

Fists the size of sandbags came crashing down, and the entire unfinished building shook with each blow.

"Get lost!"

The mummy tried to throw Lin Chen off again, but the moment he moved, Lin Chen pinned him back down. Unable to rise, he could only attack Lin Chen with his hands and feet.

"Ah—you bastard, go easy, that hurts!"

Wounded and in pain, Lin Chen kept cursing under his breath, his fists swinging faster and faster, while the mummy's struggles beneath him grew weaker and weaker.

Not far away, the big monk watched the two grappling at close quarters and listened to Lin Chen's shouts. He was at a loss for words.

Clearly stronger, yet he chose to fight the corpse puppet hand-to-hand. The key point was that Lin Chen's physical resilience wasn't low either, but he'd yell and scream over a minor injury—such a stark contrast to his actual strength.

Lin Chen didn't know how long he'd been pounding away. The Blood Qi True Flame on his body had begun to dim, and his wounds had long since healed. Only when he sensed that the mummy beneath him had gone completely still did he stop.

"Hey—where's the head?"

Lin Chen lifted the headless mummy, rummaged around in the pit on the ground, then looked at the big monk. "Did you see where this guy's head went?"

The big monk swallowed hard and spoke cautiously, "Big brother, is there a chance... that his head was already smashed to bits by you and burned away by the Blood Qi True Flame?"

Just where the hell did this murderous fiend come from?

"Is that so?"

Lin Chen was momentarily stunned, then glanced at his panel. Sure enough, there was a notification of two thousand Origin Points gained and a kill confirmation for a Third Order corpse puppet.

Lin Chen looked down at his tattered pants and the shirt full of holes. "This time I took a huge loss—hundreds of Great Xia coins!"

"Damn you!"

Lin Chen cursed angrily and kicked the mummy's body on the ground. The mummy instantly turned into a streak of light and returned to the Bronze Coffin.

Bang—

Under the immense force, the upright Bronze Coffin toppled over.