Jade Corpse Zhu Xian'er

Jade Corpse Zhu Xian'er

I pointed at the Great Gu Master again and said, "He can testify for me. I never even thought of coming in here. He was the one who brought me in."

The Great Gu Master stared at the peerless female corpse that had appeared inside the stone wall, already dumbstruck. I slapped him hard, and only then did he let out a soft, whimpering sob.

Doubts began muttering in my heart too. Ordinary zombies slept in caves, hid inside coffins, and their skin was all shriveled and dried out, without a human look to them.

But the female corpse before me was just like a normal woman, and her body even gave off an air of standing alone, untouched by the world. It left me somewhat unable to make heads or tails of it, not knowing whether the one before me was a person or a zombie.

There was one thing I could be certain of, though: this peerless female corpse was not on the same side as Wu Daochao. Wu Daochao reeked all over and was ugly beyond bearing. The female corpse before me moved lightly, with no foul stench drifting over at all. The two of them were simply people from two different worlds.

The peerless female corpse took two steps forward, her pitch-black eyes fixed on me, and asked, "Do you know what use the Earth Egg in your hands has?"

I shook my head like a rattle-drum and said, "I only stumbled in here by accident. I really—"

The peerless female corpse said, "For now, I'll believe you! This Earth Egg is called the Fengshui Spiritual Energy Earth Egg. It is something born from the gathering of nature's spiritual energy. It only grows in treasured fengshui grounds. However, it grows very slowly. From embryo to ripened fruit falling from the vine, some require several decades, while others require over a hundred years."

I glanced at the Great Gu Master. He nodded slightly, so it seemed the peerless female corpse was not lying. It was nurtured by fengshui spiritual energy; Chiyou Valley had poisonous insects, flourishing flowers, and a fairly good geographical position, so it should count as treasured fengshui ground, I thought.

"Then... is there something inside that Earth Egg, or is it just an egg made of earth?" I asked curiously again.

The peerless female corpse laughed, and her expression was no longer so icy. She said, "A chick hatches from a chicken egg. From this Earth Egg, an insect will burrow out. It is a Spiritual Insect, nurtured by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth."

"What?" I cried out in alarm. "How is that possible? An insect can come out of an earth egg? That's way too impossible."

The peerless female corpse said, "Toss a seed into the soil, and with the right rainwater, it will naturally take root and sprout. Mushrooms can even grow from rotten wood. In a place of fengshui spiritual energy, what is so strange about nurturing a Spiritual Insect? You really make a fuss over what little you've seen. I truly don't know why the Earth Egg chose you."

The peerless female corpse's expression turned cold again.

I could not quite grasp her temperament and said, "Senior, when you say the Earth Egg chose me, what exactly do you mean?"

The peerless female corpse looked at me with disdain again and said, "From its appearance to its maturity, the Fengshui Spiritual Energy Earth Egg takes an uncertain amount of time. Only one fated with it can obtain it. You placed your hand on it, and it fell off and matured. That proves the Earth Egg chose you. Some people could guard it their whole lives and still never see the Earth Egg mature."

I thought to myself, Wu Daochao hid in here for over ten years and failed to obtain the Earth Egg, while I stumbled in by accident right when the Earth Egg matured. Could this be what it meant that the Earth Egg had chosen me?

On second thought, Wu Daochao had been waiting here for the Fengshui Spiritual Energy Earth Egg, and the female corpse before me might also have been waiting for the Earth Egg. However, she had been sleeping inside the stone wall, and Wu Daochao had not discovered her.

I cupped my fists in both hands and said, "Senior, were you also waiting for the Earth Egg? I don't know what use the Earth Egg has. In my hands, it would only be a reckless waste of heaven's gifts. If you like it, I'll hand this Earth Egg over to you."

"You bastard thing!" The peerless female corpse flicked her sleeve, her elegant brows knitting in anger. "Since the Earth Egg has chosen you, how could you give it away at will? The reason I slept here was because I am the guardian of the Earth Egg."

I sighed and said, "Since the Earth Egg chose me, then I'll accept it calmly. May I ask whether Senior has any further instruction? If not, I need to go out and take care of my friends."

The peerless female corpse said, "Listen carefully. Once an Innate Insect harms the human world, an Earth Egg will emerge. Since you have obtained the Earth Egg, you must hatch the Spiritual Insect inside it as soon as possible. Use the Spiritual Insect to deal with the Innate Insect."

My heart shook. The Spiritual Insect inside the Earth Egg could deal with the Innate Insect? Impossible. The Innate Insect was the most yin and evil poisonous insect under heaven. Could an insect from an earth egg really deal with the Innate Insect?

I could not believe it and said, "That can't be possible!"

The peerless female corpse said, "There is nothing impossible. In short, just remember it. What did you say your name was just now?"

"This junior is Xiao Kunlun!" I said.

The peerless female corpse said, "Xiao Kunlun, the Earth Egg is a supreme treasure. Don't tell anyone about it. You can't even tell your friends. Right, which emperor is sitting on the dragon throne now?"

I blinked, stunned for a moment, and said, "Senior, there hasn't been an emperor for over a hundred years!"

Could it be that there were still emperors in the era when this female corpse had lived? Calculating it that way, the female corpse had slept inside this stone wall for at least over a hundred years.

This time, it was the peerless female corpse's turn to be endlessly astonished. She said, "In that case, the Great Ming dynasty has already fallen? But if there is not even an emperor, then who rules and manages this country?"

I shrugged and said, "I don't know how the country is ruled and managed. But there really are no emperors in the world anymore. The Great Ming dynasty was something from over three hundred years ago... the Great Ming dynasty... What? You're from the Ming dynasty?"

I was so shocked I could barely speak. After the Ming dynasty came the Qing dynasty, and the Qing dynasty had fallen over a hundred years ago. Calculating it this way, the peerless female corpse had existed for three or four hundred years.

This dealt a serious blow to my worldview. I could not believe my own ears and stared fixedly at the peerless female corpse. The clothes on her body were indeed very strange, like clothing that would only appear in books.

Her bearing and her words and actions truly did resemble those of an ancient person.

The peerless female corpse waved her hand and said, "It seems I slept for many years in one stretch. Fine, fine. The Great Ming dynasty is finished. The emperor is gone too. Then I, Zhu Xian'er, can roam the mortal world freely and at ease."

Her expression relaxed all at once, the frost on her face thawing away, and she even revealed a smile. With that smile, the whole cave seemed filled with spring light, leaving one utterly intoxicated.

"Senior still hasn't told me how to hatch the insect from the Earth Egg, or how to use it against the Innate Insect," I said. After seeing her smile, I felt she was not quite so frightening anymore.

"I am only responsible for guarding the Earth Egg. As for how to use it, that will depend on you yourself," the peerless female corpse Zhu Xian'er said with a smile. "Xiao Kunlun, take care of yourself. I, Zhu Xian'er, am going to venture into the world of mortals."

The female corpse Zhu Xian'er strode out.

I hurriedly followed her out and called, "Senior, will we have another chance to meet in the future?"

Zhu Xian'er's red sash fluttered as she smiled and said, "Xiao Kunlun, why ask this question? I'm not an immortal. I can't answer something like that."

I scratched my head and said, "Senior, to tell you the truth, I feel you are someone with great abilities, and I want to follow you and learn some skills. You've only just awakened, so you'll definitely want to go out and walk around. That's why I wanted to ask whether there might be a chance in the future to follow you and learn some skills, so that it would also save me from having the Earth Egg snatched away by others."

The female corpse Zhu Xian'er burst into loud laughter and said, "Xiao Kunlun, don't tell me you've fallen for me! Since you put it that way, I really should teach you a few skills. Three years from now, I'll come back to find you."

My face reddened, as if it had caught fire.

Zhu Xian'er passed through the cave and glanced at the unconscious Ma Erlei and Xiao Yudao. Her gaze finally landed on Xiao Yudao. She strode forward, helped Xiao Yudao up, placed her right hand on Xiao Yudao's back, secretly exerted force, and then suddenly struck with a fierce palm.

Xiao Yudao gave a cry and spat out a mouthful of black blood.

"Xiao Kunlun, the little girl's life is not in danger. You should leave Chiyou Valley as soon as possible," the female corpse Zhu Xian'er said. "Find a place to rest quietly for a while, and take some detoxifying medicine. The little girl is a beauty in the making. She should make a very fine wife for you."

"Senior, what are you saying? I'm only thirteen this year..." I lowered my head, my face turning even redder.

"What's wrong with thirteen? Back in the Great Ming dynasty, thirteen-year-old youths already had two concubine maids," the female corpse Zhu Xian'er said, laughing when she saw my face redden. "I won't tease you anymore. Remember, don't tell anyone the news that I've awakened, and keep the Earth Egg safe too."

As soon as the female corpse Zhu Xian'er finished speaking, her body sprang lightly away. In no time, she had vanished. A faint sense of loss stirred in my heart, and it was quite a while before I came back to myself.

With the Earth Egg on me, I felt much more comfortable all over. I sat and rested for more than half an hour, then picked up the scattered bamboo basket and retrieved the jar containing the Three-Corpse Snake Gu.

In the end, I found Green Nest-Head, collapsed on the ground in a soft, fleshy heap. In a corner of the stone cave, I found a bamboo tube and carefully packed Green Nest-Head inside.

The Gu King Insect had failed to be raised and had turned into this Green Nest-Head, but I could bring it back and study it properly.

There was also the Black Snake Staff Wu Daochao had left behind, and the Yin Gong Xiao Yudao had dropped. Anything I could take with me, I packed into the bamboo basket.

To my surprise, I found a rice ball and some clear water in the bamboo basket. I ate half the rice ball with the water. After resting for another two hours or so, the flames in the fire basin inside the cave grew smaller and smaller, and the light dimmed a great deal.

Ma Erlei woke up.

"Brother Kunlun, are we in the underworld? I'm a descendant of Great Emperor Chiyou. I shouldn't have gone into the netherworld." Ma Erlei looked around.

"We're still alive. Wu Daochao was driven off by the soul of the Great Gu Master. The black scales on your body protected you. You were only poisoned and passed out. Hurry and eat something. We're leaving right away," I said. "I don't have the strength to carry Xiao Yudao. You carry her."

I concealed the fact that the Black and White Worms and the Innate Insect had erupted in fury and driven Wu Daochao away, putting the credit on the Great Gu Master instead. When Ma Erlei heard that he was still alive, he was overjoyed. After eating the rice ball and drinking the clear water, he stretched his limbs, carried Xiao Yudao on his back, and headed out.

The road out of the cave was startling at every turn, but we made it without danger.

Just as we reached the cave entrance, we turned out from among the rocks.

That wooden hut had burned until almost nothing was left.

Outside, the sky was already bright. We had lingered inside the cave for an entire night.

"Kunlun, look! Black Flower Herb." Ma Erlei pointed more than ten meters away.

The Black Flower Herb was hanging from a tree by a red cord.