The Immortal Tomb

Feeding the Kun on his shoulder some stinky tofu, Li Fan arrived at the market just as Dao Tong and Xuan Bao were packing up.

Seeing him arrive, Chen Daotong let out a sigh of relief and put away his golden bell. "Junior Brother Qingyue, are you alright? We were just about to come look for you."

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother," Li Fan handed them each two skewers of stinky tofu. "Leaving already? How was business today?"

Xuan Bao scowled, taking a tofu skewer and biting into it. "Don't even mention it. Just as we were about to open, some rogue cultivator from who-knows-where attacked, releasing a huge swarm of sword dragons that scared everyone away and ruined our business."

Li Fan ate his stinky tofu in silence. It made sense. The sword wind earlier had blown off the roof of the Dragon Gate Inn, creating quite a commotion. People in the market definitely wouldn't dare to linger outside and would have scattered.

Chen Daotong glanced at the street on the other side, where cavalry galloped back and forth, kicking up dust. He also bit into his tofu. "It's a border town, always full of fighting. Just consider it bad luck. Now that everyone's here, let's go find Senior Brother."

Seeing that no one objected, Chen Daotong summoned his light boat, and the three of them took off towards the outskirts of town.

Li Fan peered down from the boat's railing. He could still see teams of heavily armed border soldiers rushing towards the overturned ruins of the Dragon Gate Inn below.

Archers, crossbowmen, and spearmen, hundreds of them, searched along the streets and alleys. The area outside the inn was even more heavily surrounded, sealed off tight. In the front, a phalanx formation with spears and shields advanced cautiously. It was likely that the eunuch had dispatched guards to the nearby garrisons for reinforcements as soon as he and his men left the inn.

A cold sweat broke out on Li Fan's brow. He cursed the dead eunuch for being so cunning. Fortunately, he had been quick-witted and escaped through the secret passage in time. Fine, he'd remember this. He'd settle the score with that twisted individual sooner or later.

Dao Tong and Xuan Bao, having seen such things many times, weren't particularly concerned about the troop movements. They piloted their flying boat up above the clouds, lit a yellow talisman, and threw it into the brazier on the bow. It burned with a bright blue and white smoke, like a signal flare.

Li Fan observed with his divine sense and found the light even more conspicuous, like a small sun.

As expected, Senior Brother Lu received the signal. Soon, a wooden kite glided down from the sky, speaking human words.

"Junior Brothers, follow me. I've found something interesting."

The three naturally wouldn't refuse. They piloted their boat and followed the wooden kite, flying further northwest. After about a hundred miles, the wooden kite descended towards the clouds, leading them down into a deep mountain range.

This area was full of barren mountains and strange rocks, desolate and cliff-ridden. Two mountain ranges ran northwest and southwest, intersecting at a right angle, with valleys connecting them. The northern section had very gentle sunny slopes and extremely steep shady slopes. The southern section had isolated peaks with caves and dilapidated mountainsides. Even Li Fan, who knew nothing about feng shui, could tell at a glance that this place was not auspicious. His divine sense swept over it, finding almost no spiritual energy, and it felt exceptionally malevolent.

The wooden kite flew into the valley where the two mountain ranges met, landing on the shoulder of Lu Yu, who was standing with his eyes closed, investigating a pit entrance.

The three piloted their boat over and paid their respects. "Senior Brother Lu."

Lu Yu opened his eyes, nodded at them, and pointed to what appeared to be a half-collapsed pit entrance in front of him. "Below here is an immortal's tomb."

"An immortal's tomb?" This time, it wasn't Li Fan who asked, but Yuan Xuanbao. "In a place like this?"

Senior Brother Lu nodded. "I sensed Sha Qi just now and came to investigate, only to find that the tomb had been dug open."

"There are ten things to avoid when burying a body in a mountain, and this place violates so many of them. I find it quite strange. I probed it with my divine sense and speculated that it was a rogue cultivator who practiced the divine path. They were likely killed by an enemy, and the enemy, fearing this cultivator who had achieved the divine path through Liberation by Violence, specifically chose this feng shui-cursed location, a natural Sha-tomb, to suppress them."

Then he turned his head and smiled at the three young disciples. "That's why I called you here. This tomb was only recently opened. Do you want to go down and get some?"

Li Fan: "..."

Yuan Xuanbao was overjoyed. "Thank you for the opportunity, Senior Brother."

Chen Daotong also bowed with a smile. "Thank you, Senior Brother."

'Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, Yo, your senior brother is quite a decent guy.'

What--??

"Ah? This... Senior Brother, this doesn't seem right, does it?" Li Fan was momentarily speechless with shock. You guys are all Daoists, and you don't even spare the dead buried for years underground? And you're all excited like it's a spring outing. It's really quite unethical to talk about...

Senior Brother Lu saw his shocked expression and burst into laughter. "Qingyue, don't misunderstand. I'm not asking you to rob a tomb, but to collect Sha."

"Collect Sha?"

Senior Brother Lu explained, "You should know that spiritual energy is the source of Taiji, and the five elements of spiritual energy are born from Taiji, forming the foundation of the immortal path.

But there isn't only acquired spiritual energy in the world. Innate Qi began from the primordial beginning, and what is needed to cultivate the Innate Tai Su Dao Body is not Taiji spiritual energy, but the so-called Tai Su Sha Qi.

This Sha Qi is not within the five elements of Taiji, so even if seen with the Five-Colored Divine Light, it still appears as pitch-black ink, its true essence unclear. Moreover, it is incompatible with the immortal path of the five elements. If the Dao Body and magic treasures of the immortal path are contaminated by Sha Qi, they may become corrupted, difficult to repair, or even turn into ashes. If mortals or beasts are contaminated, they may even be corrupted by Sha Qi and turn into Sha corpses or ferocious beasts. Even immortals will suffer a great loss of strength if contaminated, only able to expend immense true qi to forcefully dispel it. Therefore, in the past, when practicing the acquired immortal path, Sha Qi was treated as a flood and a ferocious beast by all sects, avoided at all costs.

But times have changed. Now, with the virtual moon in the sky and the great changes in the Heavenly Dao, our sect has a proper method to condense the Tai Su Dao Body using Sha Qi upon reaching the Nascent Soul Realm. Even at the Golden Core stage, there are some unorthodox methods of refining magic treasures using Sha Qi.

However, Sha Qi is not within the Taiji cycle, and it is quite dangerous to obtain it through ordinary moon worship cultivation. Alternatively, one can only search for such feng shui-cursed locations and capture some evil beings contaminated with malevolent Sha to collect some. Look at this tomb, in such a desolate and wicked place, it will eventually give rise to demons that will plague the region. If we encounter it, we can take its Sha Qi, preventing future calamities. Isn't it a good deed?"

Chen Daotong also chimed in, "Which True Person doesn't need Sha Qi to shape their body? This item is priceless, with demand far exceeding supply. Even if you don't need it yourself, collecting some can be exchanged for many rare treasures and elixirs. It's a guaranteed profit. Even Sha corpse ferocious beasts infected with Sha Qi can be refined into Dharma body corpse soldiers, often bought by the court to guard homes."

"So that's how it is..."

So Sha corpses were that valuable. No wonder that eunuch didn't hesitate to kill for treasure. So by completely obliterating that zombie earlier, he had missed out on a fortune?

Yuan Xuanbao took out a yellow talisman folded into a triangle and a white-glazed jade bottle, handing them to Li Fan. "Hold this talisman under your tongue to prevent Sha Qi from invading your body. Activate the bottle, and it can absorb the surrounding Sha Qi."

Li Fan looked at the talisman and jade bottle in his hand, feeling speechless. If those martial artists in the inn hadn't been so hasty to act and had talked things through, they could have all escaped through the secret passage, right?

And if they didn't always resort to drawing swords and fighting, and just calmly reasoned things out, then even though Li Fan wouldn't have had many options at the time, he was still a cultivator from Ink Bamboo Mountain, wasn't he? He could have even walked a couple of steps out and run into Chen Daotong and Yuan Xuanbao's stall in the market, right? Why did so many people have to die in a fight to the death in the blink of an eye?

Alas, one could only say that in these times, when human lives were as cheap as grass, those who still ventured out into the jianghu, served in the army, or became bandits were bound to die by a thousand cuts sooner or later. To put it bluntly, what fate was there? It was all their own doing...

"Alright, you three go down and collect Sha Qi. I'll be up here watching the dragons. Oh, right, it seems a Sha corpse has formed down there, but it's sealed in the coffin, so it's nothing major. Just be careful." Senior Brother Lu waved his hand and flew off to tend to his dragons.

And so, the three descended into the tomb together.

Xuan Bao and Dao Tong walked ahead, drawing their weapons for defense. Li Fan followed behind them, holding the jade bottle and absorbing Sha Qi.

He could clearly see wisps of black smoke being drawn into the bottle's opening. Li Fan had indeed seen similar sights many times before, like when he was worshipping the moon, the black mist and black wind had been vast and overwhelming. This tomb was truly a drop in the ocean compared to that. It was like a vacuum cleaner sweeping up dust, sucking up every bit of Sha Qi from the corners into the bottle.

"Look, there's blood here. And it's fresh." Yuan Xuanbao pointed around the tomb passage with his iron finger. "Someone entered the tomb recently and triggered the traps ahead, getting injured by hidden weapons. Ordinary Sha Qi infections can be cured by drinking talisman water or taking some pills. But once blood is involved, the speed of Sha Qi infection becomes hard to control. I suspect that the commotion in town earlier was most likely someone turning into a Sha corpse."

Li Fan nodded silently. You guessed right.

Chen Daotong lit a fire starter and examined the tomb's regulations and accompanying burial artifacts and armor. "It looks like a princely tomb... that makes sense. Ordinary rogue cultivators wouldn't build their own cave dwellings in such a desolate place. And if he was killed by enemies, why would they dismember him, only to meticulously preserve his body for burial after brewing medicine and refining pills?"

"So, I suspect the tomb's owner was a prince who cultivated the divine path. He likely lost in a court struggle. Being a royal relative, he was at least granted a complete burial, and then suppressed here to prevent him from causing further trouble."

Yuan Xuanbao walked ahead alone, waving his iron claws. He pointed things out, effortlessly disarming occasional traps. He pointed to footprints on the ground. "Two groups of people entered. The first group's tracks are neat, clearly indicating they knew the tomb's layout and didn't trigger any mechanisms. It seems they took something. Looking at this trace, they took a box that was originally in the corner and left directly. They were probably from the court. The second group's steps are scattered, likely tomb robbers trying to get rich quick. They triggered a mechanism at the entrance, got injured, and retreated in haste."

Li Fan was speechless. Maybe, perhaps, probably, everything you say is right...

Chen Daotong stopped before the palace gate in the inner chamber. "Further ahead is the tomb owner's sleeping quarters. It seems the item suppressing it has been taken, and it's starting to mutate. He was a prince, after all. We shouldn't disturb it. We'll just collect the malevolent energy here. Without the support of malevolent energy, it won't be able to reanimate and cause harm."

The three of them then took out their Jade Pure Bottles and activated them outside the palace gate, collecting the malevolent energy. Thick black smoke billowed out from the door cracks, as if the other side was a fire scene. The dense fog coalesced into streams, writhing like venomous dragons and black pythons as they drilled into the bottle mouths.

As more and more malevolent energy was collected, Li Fan could faintly hear footsteps, hoarse groans, and the sound of hands and claws banging against iron doors from within the sleeping quarters. Perhaps the tomb owner was unhappy about his malevolent energy being siphoned away?

Unfortunately, no matter how unhappy it was, it could only rage impotently at the tomb door. It hadn't even cultivated to the point of breaking free before its lifeblood was cut off and its malevolent energy stolen. At best, it was just a dried corpse, destined to lie in its coffin. What waves could it possibly stir up?

Honestly, collecting malevolent energy in a tomb, with a zombie banging on the door and roaring next door, was quite eerie and terrifying.

However, Yuan Xuanbao and Chen Daotong chatted as if it were commonplace, discussing what other miscellaneous goods they could bring back to Ink Bamboo Mountain to sell for more profit. It was as if the entity banging on the door and roaring not far away wasn't some malevolent zombie capable of flying and burrowing, with a bronze head and iron arms, but merely a vicious dog chained up and barking pointlessly.

What was this? The malevolent zombie that had massacred a group of people in the inn moments ago was so insignificant in the eyes of these Daoists?

Profound Heaven Sword Intent says the host doesn't need to overthink it. A runaway wild dog is naturally more threatening than a caged tiger. Rather, be careful not to get bitten by the wild dog. A disciple I favored back then, who was in the Foundation Establishment Realm, was bitten while playing with a dog and later died of poisoning. I suspect spies from other sects poisoned the dog's teeth. Host, you must take this as a warning.

Ah, that was probably just rabies... But I received the intended meaning... Speaking of which, he truly was a disciple favored by a sword intent, possessing at least superior-grade aptitude, right? To actually court death like that...

Wait a minute! You guys are rambling so much, I can't even experience the tension of exploring a tomb and fighting a dungeon boss!

In the end, Li Fan still didn't get to experience the plot of a dungeon raid against a zombie king. They stood at the tomb entrance and waited for the time it took three incense sticks to burn. The malevolent energy in the tomb's sleeping quarters was completely collected, not a trace left. The roars and banging from behind the door had long since stopped. Perhaps that so-called malevolent zombie immortal was also absorbed by the three bottles, completely drained.

Yuan Xuanbao sealed the bottles with talismans and weighed them. "Not bad, at least a pound. We've made a profit."

Li Fan sighed. Even the Zombie King Jiangshi in this world was useless. He was completely drained without even a single surge of power. "Senior Brother, how much is this bottle worth?"

"Who would exchange it for money? If you insisted, it would be at least a hundred thousand strings of Divine Essence coins! This bottle of malevolent energy is enough to infect hundreds of people into corpse soldiers!" Yuan Xuanbao sneered. "Qingyue, be careful not to let this bottle leak into the Human Dao. Don't think we collected this malevolent energy so easily and safely. It's only because the thing inside couldn't break the barrier. Once infected and turned into a malevolent zombie, their physical strength can increase fiftyfold. Even an early-stage corpse soldier is incredibly powerful. If a zombie plague were to break out, many people would die."

Yes, the danger of malevolent zombies, the slaughter they could cause in a moment, the disaster they could unleash upon the Human Dao if released – he had witnessed it firsthand. The memory was still vivid and shocking.

Li Fan nodded solemnly. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother. Qingyue remembers."

Chen Daotong smiled. "It's good that you understand the importance. The choice of this tomb site is so strange, accumulating so much malevolent energy for the corpse king within. I suspect there's another motive. It's fortunate we stumbled upon it and prevented a calamity in advance, but this is only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. When we return to the mountain sect, we'll report to the Abbot and ask a great cultivator to investigate this malevolent tomb further and eliminate it as soon as possible."

Li Fan and Yuan Xuanbao naturally agreed. The three of them then put away their Jade Pure Bottles and returned the way they came.

As soon as they emerged from the tomb, Chen Daotong was about to launch their flying ship to leave. Suddenly, he stopped, and he and Yuan Xuanbao bowed their heads towards the sky. "Senior Brother."

Li Fan looked up and saw a golden-haired, blue-eyed Suanni flying from the sky. It had a gaping mouth, bulging eyes, upright fangs, and ears that stood erect. Three bells hung around its neck, and its reddish-green mane was curled on its back. It ran through the air, trailing smoke and clouds, radiant and exceptionally handsome.

The Suanni shook its golden mane and descended from the clouds, placing its furry paws on the ground and crouching. A Daoist sat on its back, with phoenix eyes, slender willow eyebrows, a pale, beardless face, wearing a purple sash immortal robe. Behind his head, golden and crimson flames blazed, and his brow was marked with a fiery cinnabar dot that flickered up and down within his forehead. Judging by his appearance, he was a true cultivator of Lou Guan Dao, at least in the Golden Core stage.

"Junior Brothers," the Daoist squinted, his smile not reaching his eyes. He clasped his hands within his wide sleeves and cupped them. "I heard there was a malevolent zombie causing trouble here. Have you Junior Brothers already eliminated it?"

Chen Daotong and Yuan Xuanbao fell silent, exchanging glances. They clearly sensed that the newcomer was not friendly. If they could sense it, how much more so could the paranoid Profound Heaven Sword Intent?

Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, Host, quickly sacrifice your sword and attack him!

Unfortunately, they were still a step too late. The Daoist nodded with a smile. "I presume so." Then, he opened his mouth and exhaled. The red mark on his forehead descended, rolled on his tongue, and revealed a red pill. The red pill flicked, leaped, and drew a rainbow arc in mid-air, circling Chen Daotong's neck. With a single turn, the boy's head fell off.