A Flashy Path

"Hurry up and help!"

Mi Ke said to K anxiously.

Master Xuanzang looked like he was struggling to hold on.

"How am I supposed to help?"

K felt very annoyed and thought to himself, I can't even beat them!

The reason for his annoyance was that he realized he had no way to participate in the battle between the monk and the Bronze Armored Zombie.

He had to admit that if he went up there, he would be nothing more than cannon fodder.

This made K, who held himself in high regard, quite displeased.

He almost wanted to sigh, "Why must heaven create a Zhou Yu if it also creates a Zhuge Liang?"

For a perfectly good mission, why arrange for two veterans?

Clearly, having just him would be...

Alright, that wouldn't be enough.

"That side isn't important; we need to deal with the Corpse Controller first!" K found a reasonable excuse for himself.

Capture the ringleader to capture the bandits—it made perfect sense.

"..."

The problem was, where was the ringleader?

As if in response to K's words, the previously rapid and "distant" ringing of bells suddenly became much closer.

There was now a clear source for the sound.

K turned his head and saw a man who had appeared near the small room at some point.

He wore a rather loose black garment that looked exactly like a burial shroud.

His head hung low, and long hair covered half of his face.

Only the lower half of his face was visible, his mouth slightly agape, exhaling eerie white mist.

Unlike the driver who had two small bells hanging from his wrist, this Corpse Controller held a handbell in his right hand.

His palm shook as if he were having a seizure.

He was controlling the Bronze Armored Zombie with the rapid ringing of the bell.

But he wasn't looking at the battle between Tang Luo and the Bronze Armored Zombie; instead, he was staring straight at the three of them.

"Who are you!"

K asked a meaningless question.

"And who... are you?"

The Corpse Controller countered, his voice sounding somewhat mechanical, each word popping out of his mouth one by one. "To kill people of the Feng Family and still dare to come to the Feng Family's territory... you don't know what death is."

"Feng Family? What Feng Family?"

K felt very aggrieved.

They didn't want things to turn out this way either!

They were under the thumb of a terrifying, powerful, and unknown existence.

They were told to spend the night at the terminal station; did they have any choice?

Besides, it wasn't them who started it.

It was clearly that driver and conductor who had malicious intentions.

You Feng Family members wanted to "kill and seize the corpse," but lacked the strength to do so.

And then you got counter-killed.

How could this be our fault?

All the above emotions condensed into one question.

That was—what Feng Family?

In the mission worlds of the God and Demon Game, some felt like they were purely for completing tasks, equivalent to game dungeons.

For example, the Jack the Ripper mission that Tang Luo experienced the first time.

While others felt more like complete, living worlds.

The God and Demon Walkers were merely dropped into these worlds to do certain things.

"To not even... know... the Feng Family." The Corpse Controller said, "It seems, you are just..."

Before he could finish his sentence.

K suddenly raised his hand toward him, and a blue light flashed from his palm.

Gale Slash!

A sneak attack, it really is that simple!

The arc-shaped wind blade arrived in an instant, reaching the Corpse Controller.

Faced with this sudden ambush, the Corpse Controller seemed to want to dodge, but his speed was a fraction too slow, allowing him to avoid only half of it.

One arm was severed by the wind blade.

His black clothing tore, revealing a line across half of his chest.

Then, it gradually spread into a hideous scar.

What a pity.

K thought to himself, having originally intended to slice this Corpse Controller in two.

Yet he had managed to evade it.

Not only that, the hand holding the bell was uninjured, and the ringing had not ceased.

For the moment, there should be no danger.

K watched the Corpse Controller.

With an injury like that, the sheer volume of blood loss alone should be enough to—

Wait!

Where is the blood?

Why is there not a single drop of blood flowing from the severed arm or the wound?

"A bit, interesting."

The Corpse Controller raised his severed arm; what poured out was not blood, but black aura.

A stench of rotting corpses that made one want to retch.

K and the others retreated repeatedly.

"I am starting to want to turn you all into corpses, to add to my collection."

This sentence was spoken with perfect coherence, demonstrating his passion for corpses.

He possessed the professional dedication of loving the work he did.

As soon as the words fell, the Corpse Controller lunged forward violently.

Beside K, a series of explosive sounds rang out.

It was as if something invisible had detonated, whipping up a gale.

His second skill—Air Burst, allowed him to utilize the "power of the air" to perform a dash.

K's body swept to the left in an instant, putting ten meters of distance between them in a single breath.

The Corpse Controller, who had brushed past K, glanced at him but did not change direction.

K could dodge the Corpse Controller.

But Auntie Shufen and Mi Ke clearly could not.

Seeing the terrifying Corpse Controller right before her eyes, a sudden ruthlessness flashed in Mi Ke's eyes.

She reached out and shoved Auntie Shufen hard in the back.

Then, without looking back, she ran toward the rear.

"Heh."

The Corpse Controller let out a mocking chuckle and casually kicked Auntie Shufen, who had fallen toward him, sending her flying.

Auntie Shufen's body flew through the air like a ball, landed on the ground, and remained motionless.

Meanwhile, the Corpse Controller caught up to Mi Ke the moment Auntie Shufen hit the ground.

He raised his severed arm, and the black aura emanating from within it surged like a living thing, enveloping Mi Ke's head.

It rushed frantically into her mouth and nose.

Mi Ke's face turned a sickly pale green, and she collapsed to her knees.

She clawed at the air with her hands in a futile struggle, grasping nothing but empty space.

As the black aura entered her brain, Mi Ke's eyes began to roll back, showing only the whites.

Combined with her original makeup, it created an indescribably eerie sensation.

Her vibrant red lips began to darken, shifting bit by bit toward black.

The struggling movements of her body, curled up on the ground, slowly weakened.

Then, as if experiencing a final burst of life, she twitched violently twice and went still.

The Corpse Controller walked over to Mi Ke, the black aura connecting the two of them like several strands of thread.

Mi Ke had become his marionette.

As the black aura twisted, Mi Ke slowly stood up.

Her lips were already pitch black, though her skin remained fair; like other zombies, her pupils were nowhere to be seen.

All that remained was a ghastly, pale void.

"Hmm?"

The Corpse Controller looked up and down at the living corpse he had created, his brow furrowing beneath his hair.

He was somewhat dissatisfied.

This corpse was no different from any ordinary one.

Could it be...

The Corpse Controller looked toward K. Among this group, only this man and that monk currently fighting the Bronze Armored Zombie seemed somewhat special.

"One can be refined into a new Bronze Armored Zombie."

The Corpse Controller glanced at Tang Luo, then looked back at K. "I wonder what this one can be refined into."

That monk possessed extraordinary skills, capable of fighting the Bronze Armored Zombie to a standstill.

He could definitely be refined into a brand-new Bronze Armored Zombie, superior to the existing one.

As for the one before him...

The Corpse Controller himself was unsure what kind of special zombie he would produce.

"Go."

He whispered, raising his severed arm.

Mi Ke, having been refined into a zombie while still alive, began to move, charging toward K.

Under the Corpse Controller's deliberate manipulation, Mi Ke's combat prowess far exceeded that of the cannon-fodder zombies.

Deprived of his skills, K was momentarily forced into a sorry state.

Several scratch marks appeared on his face.

They were injuries caused by Mi Ke's manicured nails.

As the Corpse Controller divided his focus to manipulate Mi Ke, the situation on the other side of the battlefield shifted slightly.

The sound of palms striking the Bronze Armored Zombie began to ring out frequently.

The sound changed from a crisp slap to a dull thud.

The Corpse Controller's expression remained unchanged as he shifted the majority of his control back to the Bronze Armored Zombie.

K immediately seized the opportunity, kicking Mi Ke away.

He threw a rock he had grabbed at some point, smashing Mi Ke's head open.

This still could not stop the zombie's movements.

But at least it reduced the opponent's "weapon."

Just moments ago, K had nearly been bitten several times.

With her head smashed, Mi Ke stood motionless in place.

Compared to when she was alive, her body was now noticeably shriveled.

It was enough to make anyone lose any desire to "take advantage while it's warm."

K panted slightly, reaching up to wipe the blood seeping from his face.

After wiping twice, K's movements stopped.

"You..." He looked at the Corpse Controller.

The Corpse Controller began to laugh, a continuous and chilling sound. "Do you feel it? The corpse poison."

It was not corpse poison that K felt.

He only felt his cheek beginning to go numb.

When he reached up to wipe it just now, there had been no pain, not even a sense of touch.

So, he had been struck by corpse poison?

A feeling of dizziness began to wash over him.

K's world swayed and spun.

"Actually, refining a living corpse is a very painful process." Speaking of his professional craft, the Corpse Controller's words flowed smoothly. "It's much like being sliced by a thousand knives. Don't mind that she isn't screaming; it's because I destroyed certain parts."

"My corpse poison has corroded and numbed your brain, so during the upcoming refinement, you won't feel too much pain."

"Do try not to bite off your tongue or anything; as a collector, I prefer things to be more perfect."

Following the Corpse Controller's words, K could no longer stand straight.

He sat on the ground, barely supporting his body with his hands, his head shaking violently.

He attempted to vibrate at the same frequency as the world before his eyes.

That way, the world in his vision would stop shaking.

Rustle, rustle. Footsteps sounded.

The Corpse Controller walked up to K, his severed arm slowly aiming at K's head.

The black aura that had been surging since a moment ago began to reach slowly toward K.

As a collection piece, not cannon fodder, he had to be careful during the crafting process.

It wouldn't do to ruin it.

"Hm?"

The Corpse Controller, who had just licked his lips, suddenly changed expression and whipped around to look at the battle between Tang Luo and the Bronze Armored Zombie.

The ringing of the bell, which had been continuous since a moment ago, paused for about half a second.

Then, it started up again.

It was much more intense than before.

If the previous ringing could only be described as urgent, the current sound was chaotic, as if demonic music were flooding the ears.

However, no matter how the ringing changed.

The Bronze Armored Zombie remained with its back to the Corpse Controller, motionless.

Tang Luo stood beside the Bronze Armored Zombie, one hand held upright before his chest, watching the Corpse Controller.

His face wore an expression of profound compassion.

"To think I... have fallen to this."

The person Tang Luo was feeling compassionate for was none other than himself.

Who would have thought that I, the dignified Tang Xuanzang, would finally walk down the path of "flashy tricks."

It seemed the One-Punch Tang Monk, who once lived by the mantra "Master Xuanzang thinks you are being flashy, so he punches your head into a pulp," was drifting far away.