The Young Marquis

Two Green-Haired Zombies, two White-Haired Zombies, and four Walking Corpses.

Beautiful!

The book was first published online at .

A golden belt came from murder and arson. Sure enough, hunting was still the fastest way to rack up points!

Zhu Jiusi was certain he hadn't taken a wrong turn. Triggering an Earth Vein Node was the best way to earn points!

Setting off Thunderbolt Fire directly only made it a giant firecracker, but using it on an Earth Vein Node was an entirely different matter.

In a sense, an Earth Vein Node could even be thought of as a volcano on the verge of erupting.

Before it erupted, you never knew what to expect. It might be as cold as an ice cellar, or as dark as the deepest reaches of the underworld. But once triggered, it became an absolute sea of fire.

It was a shame there were so few zombies in this grave tunnel. Otherwise, that last blast would have earned him enough points.

Enduring the searing pain in his back, Zhu Jiusi unfurled the Scroll and opened the exchange page. He exchanged for two Life Stones first.

There was no need to rush getting a nest. He could summon one directly with points whenever he needed it.

He had only just exchanged for the Life Stones and put them in his inventory when a moon suddenly appeared on the Scroll.

"Well, well! Young Path Seekers, someone in the 66th Path Seeking Zone has obtained two Life Stones! The rest of you should work harder!"

"Here's a little secret: there are Mountain God Temples and Land God Temples in the Secret Realm. The first three people to exchange for Life Stones and Soul Jades and finish their modifications can grant their nests or vehicles special attributes!"

"Keep it up!"

"And here's another secret: kill another Path Seeker in the Secret Realm, and you're guaranteed to get all their items~"

The moon was clearly hoping to stir up trouble. After provoking everyone, it vanished. Two dots appeared on the Scroll: one marked his own location, and the other marked the Mountain God Temple and Land God Temple.

Zhu Jiusi estimated that the Mountain God Temple was more than three hundred li away as the crow flew. With the winding mountain roads, the trip would probably take seven or eight hundred li.

What a rip-off!

Even with Zhu Jiusi's current physique, it would take him seven or eight days to get there.

By then, it'd be too late.

He would hunt enough zombies, exchange for Life Stones, and leave the instance early.

Before the instance canyon had appeared, a Mountain God Temple had already spawned on the road ahead of him.

He could leave the instance early and complete his third modification inside his own Mountain God Temple.

He'd do it!

Zhu Jiusi moved beside the tomb and carefully examined it.

The tomb had already been blown apart, but by sensing the Earth Vein Node, he could still make out where the other nodes might be.

It was like an instinct, like standing in a river and sensing which way the current flowed.

After sensing for a while, he leapt out of the ruins and drew a rough map on the ground with his hoof. He tilted his head and pondered for a long time. Then he got up, walked out of the cave, and headed north beneath the moon.

This time he was careful, doing his best not to get surrounded by another horde of corpses.

But he soon realized he'd worried too much.

A Graveyard Riot, a corpse uprising—it all sounded terrifying. But Zhu Jiusi walked for more than ten li, and even when the moon was high overhead, he hadn't encountered a single zombie.

That made sense.

If there were really that many zombies, how could the ordinary people in those villages have survived?

A single band of zombies among ten villages was already enough to leave everyone in misery.

In truth, there weren't enough zombies in the instance for all the Path Seekers.

There were still more than six thousand people in the 66th Zone. Even if they all killed Green-Haired Zombies, they'd need thirty thousand of them. If they went after White-Haired Zombies, they'd need a hundred and fifty thousand. Ordinary Walking Corpses would take well over a million.

If there really were that many zombies, even the bugs would have been sucked dry!

That was why, in the first Secret Realm, only a tiny number of people could earn enough points to exchange for Life Stones and Soul Jades.

In his previous life, Zhu Jiusi had gotten lucky. He'd started with a good identity and just barely managed to make it.

He wondered how many people would succeed this time.

The first Secret Realm was the Path Seekers' first true watershed. Most of the famous experts who rose to prominence later had appeared on this round's leaderboard.

Three hundred li away, in a quiet official residence, a group of people had bound a Green-Haired Zombie in iron chains and pinned it down.

The zombie roared, but couldn't break free.

"The zombie's under control! Third Young Master, strike now!"

A young man who'd been watching from a distance came over with a saber. He swung his great blade, and the zombie's head rolled away.

Everyone's faces twitched. If the Old Marquis knew from beyond the grave that the Third Young Master had used the treasured saber he'd valued more than his own life to chop down such a foul thing, wouldn't he rise from the dead in fury?

No—the Old Marquis wouldn't get the chance. The Green-Haired Zombie whose head had just been chopped off was the Old Marquis himself!

After severing the zombie's head with one stroke, the young man stood still.

A Scroll that no one else could see unfurled before him.

Points +30

Excellent!

Daoist Number 323 smiled with satisfaction, then immediately put on a mournful face and wailed, "Father! Your son is unfilial. I can't let you rest in peace! This zombie tide has disturbed your quiet, Father. I'll slaughter every last zombie and bring peace back to Xiangnan Prefecture!"

He turned to the soldiers beside him. "My father won Xiangnan Prefecture with his own blood and steel. The authorities may choose to ignore this zombie plague, but I can't! Assemble the Marquis Mansion's soldiers and hunt down the zombies. I'll kill them all with my own hands!"

"Yes!" Several soldiers beat their chests and accepted the order in unison.

Daoist Number 323 watched the soldiers march off, his expression impossible to read.

There was the excitement of being on the verge of avenging his great enemy, and the unease of not quite believing it.

He'd been lucky. He'd woken up as the Young Marquis, with hundreds of private soldiers at his command.

He also had an uncle by marriage who oversaw Yin-Yang Studies in Xiangnan Prefecture. It was a local branch of the Imperial Observatory, responsible for monitoring all sorts of things that defied the laws of nature.

For instance, he could keep track of Zhu Jiusi's movements in real time.

The moment he'd opened his eyes and resolved the threat of his stepmother seizing power, Daoist Number 323 had known he was set.

And yet someone had snatched the first chance to exchange for a Life Stone!

It had to be that pig!

Daoist Number 323 instinctively knew it. That pig had to be behind this.

Had a pig killed a Green-Haired Zombie all by itself? Or had it killed one with its lackey, only for all the points to go to the pig?

Daoist Number 323 felt the pressure closing in. He opened the Scroll and sent Zhu Jiusi's location to everyone else in a private message.

I've given you the chance! Whether you can pull it off is up to you.

It was a shame he was so far from that pig. If he could've brought his private soldiers over, he'd have killed it first!

Daoist Number 323 forcibly suppressed the murderous intent in his heart.

It was fine. It was fine... Even if those fools couldn't get anything done, the Mountain God Temple in the Secret Realm was within his territory. As long as that pig got five Life Stones, it would have to come and modify its nest.

Once it was on his turf, that pig wouldn't have any say in what happened!

For some reason, Daoist Number 323 couldn't shake the feeling that this might be his only chance to kill that pig in all of Journey Survival.

"Got it!"

Three hundred li away, in another village not far from the beginner village where Zhu Jiusi had appeared, a skinny man sprang to his feet.

"Number just sent us the location. That pig is forty li away!"

He looked at the Scroll, a hint of confusion flashing in his eyes.

"What's that pig doing there? Trying to get itself killed?"

With Daoist Number 323's help, they'd spent the whole day figuring out the zombies' patterns.

They could be found in former villages, graveyards, and battlefields.

Ordinary Walking Corpses were mostly around graveyards. That was where the largest numbers could be found, but they were also the least useful. Killing one earned only one point, and they appeared in hordes.

Only White-Haired Zombies wandered farther afield.

The place where the pig was now lay at the intersection of a cross-shaped canyon, and it was right at the junction.

The area connected to the surrounding barren mountains in every direction. It was exactly where zombies were most likely to appear.

It really was asking to be killed!

Turning into a pig had messed with its brain. It was way too confident!

"We can change the plan. There's no need to take any risks. We'll grab a few living people, bring them here, stab each of them a few times, then throw them down from the canyon. The stench of blood will draw in a horde of zombies!"

They studied the hand-drawn map, stroking their chins as they worked it out.

Bright Moon Illuminating People's face was deathly pale as he shook his head. "That won't be enough! We have to lure the zombies from the other areas to the mouth of Four Directions Mountain first. Then we can throw the bait down at the junction. That way, we'll make absolutely sure it works!"

"Brilliant!" They exchanged glances, then laughed together.