Rakshasa Evil Sect, Hundred Ghosts Roam the Night

The corpse king's enormous head smashed into the mud, its savage face smeared with filthy blood.

Chen Mu stood with his blade sheathed, gasping for breath as the muscles in both arms spasmed.

[Ding! Purple-Scaled Corpse King slain. Blood Essence seized: +200. Karmic Slaughter gained: +50]

[Karmic Slaughter: 80 → 130]

This single corpse king had actually yielded a full 50 points of Karmic Slaughter!

Once he returned to the city, he could fuse the Black Tiger Baleful Heart Art!

Though delighted, Chen Mu did not dare delay. He swiftly grabbed the unconscious Liu Meng, slung him over his shoulder, and ran toward the village entrance.

The medicinal power of the Bone-Strengthening Pill within him had yet to run out and was still rapidly repairing his injuries, though it only increased his Blood Essence slightly.

As Chen Mu ran, his mind raced through the situation.

He had clearly fallen into an ambush. He did not know whether Qin Tieya could handle it; perhaps tonight, all they could do was flee for their lives.

At that thought, Chen Mu paused briefly, hid beneath a wall, and pulled a secret manual from his robes.

It was the movement technique Grass-Top Flight that he had found while searching corpses earlier. He had never practiced it before because he had lacked Karmic Slaughter.

"Looks like I'll have to rely on you."

Chen Mu quickly opened it and skimmed through it.

This movement technique had not even entered the ranks of Yellow Grade Low-Tier. It contained only a few illustrations showing how to exert force while running and circulate Blood Essence.

Chen Mu took a moment to look through it, then closed his eyes in contemplation. When he opened them again, a sharp gleam flashed through his pupils.

Without another word, he hoisted Liu Meng up and continued sprinting, this time using the legwork of Grass-Top Flight.

After only a few steps, his eyes suddenly lit up.

[Ding! Detected inferior lightness skill "Grass-Top Flight." Proficiency: Beginner (1/100)]

[30 points of Karmic Slaughter may be consumed to cultivate it to perfection. Add points immediately?]

"Add them! Max it out!"

Chen Mu's thoughts spun rapidly. In an instant, a surging heat flowed through his legs, and he moved as swiftly as the wind.

[Points added successfully! Martial cultivation is being infused!]

[Martial Art: Grass-Top Flight (Beginner → Reaching the Pinnacle)]

[Karmic Slaughter: 130 → 100]

As the Karmic Slaughter was deducted, countless memories of leaping and racing flooded into Chen Mu's mind.

This inferior lightness skill skipped every stage at once and reached the pinnacle, comparable to decades of bitter cultivation by an ordinary person.

His legs became blurs like the wind. Even carrying someone, each burst forward carried him several yards away.

The speed made Chen Mu's breath hitch for half a beat. Excitement rose in his eyes, and he ran even faster.

In no more than a few breaths, he had returned beneath the archway at the village entrance.

Yet Qin Tieya was no longer there.

Chen Mu's gaze sharpened as he heard repeated rumbles coming from the northeast.

"Over there?"

He saw a towering old willow tree within the village. A massive cloud of dust erupted there; someone was clearly fighting.

Chen Mu did not hesitate. He employed his lightness footwork and once more sped away with Liu Meng over his shoulder.

Only Qin Tieya's side was safe now. Chen Mu knew that there was likely more than one corpse king in the village. If he was surrounded, even growing wings would not let him escape!

Fortunately, his body now moved like lightning. Before long, he reached the area near the great willow tree.

As he drew closer, the booming sounds ahead grew increasingly violent.

Chen Mu did not dare approach rashly. He hid behind a low wall and set Liu Meng down.

Looking into the distance, he saw what seemed to be the village ancestral hall about a hundred meters away.

More than a dozen people lay scattered beneath the great willow tree. All were dressed as martial arts hall disciples, black qi curling around their bodies. They had clearly been poisoned by Corpse Venom and fallen into deep unconsciousness.

They appeared to be the people who had followed Liu Qingcang out of the city to hunt demons.

But Chen Mu did not see Liu Qingcang anywhere.

Instead, Qin Tieya was fighting a corpse king ahead, his Astral Force fully unleashed.

True qi surged with every strike. Rocks shattered and flew wherever he passed, earthen walls collapsed, and he was like a human-shaped bulldozer.

The corpse king was beaten until the purple scales all over its body shattered, its cries of pain unending. Whenever it tried to counterattack, Qin Tieya's heavy fist sent it flying again.

Chen Mu was secretly stunned. So this was the strength of a Meridian Opening expert? What kind of physique was that?!

Qin Tieya was only the second-ranked true disciple of the martial arts hall, yet he was already this formidable. How strong, then, was Liu Qingcang?

He watched as Qin Tieya, within a few breaths, smashed the corpse king's skull apart with his fists!

Then, with one palm, he crushed it to death and casually tossed it to the ground with a thunderous crash.

After confirming that there was no more danger there, Chen Mu emerged from hiding with Liu Meng.

"Senior Brother Qin!"

He placed Liu Meng beneath the willow tree as well and asked Qin Tieya about the situation.

Qin Tieya was clearly surprised that Chen Mu had found his way here alone, but he immediately said seriously:

"Stay here and guard this place with me. Master has gone after the evil cultivators. He'll be back soon."

Chen Mu understood the moment he heard that.

It seemed Liu Qingcang had not encountered danger. Rather, he had been held back by these disciples on the ground and had previously been constrained by them.

Now that Qin Tieya had arrived with reinforcements, Liu Qingcang had freed up his hands and gone in pursuit.

Just as Chen Mu relaxed slightly, Qin Tieya suddenly frowned fiercely and said coldly to the surroundings:

"No need to hide. Come out."

Chen Mu's heart tightened. He had not sensed anyone nearby at all.

The next instant, several booming crashes rang out.

Dust exploded from the shadows of the houses, and several Purple-Scaled Corpse Kings stepped out one after another.

Then a black-robed man emerged. Door after door in the surrounding houses opened, and countless living corpses wandered out.

In the blink of an eye, nearly a hundred Refined Corpses had gathered around the willow tree where Chen Mu and the others stood. Eerie green ghostfire burned in every pair of eyes as they bared their fangs and claws.

"Boy Qin, your master may not even survive tonight. Are you sure you still want to oppose my Rakshasa Gate?"

"I see that you have entered Meridian Opening at such a young age. Why not switch to my Ghost Sect's secret arts? Why follow that sick tiger Liu Qingcang?"

The leading black-robed man spoke. He held a black banner in his hand, his tone sinister and hoarse.

He was actually inviting Qin Tieya to betray them and join some Ghost Sect Rakshasa Gate.

Though Chen Mu did not know this sect's origins, seeing the situation before him, he knew it was dire.

The other side had clearly prepared an ambush long ago. They had even calculated Qin Tieya's arrival as reinforcements!

Qin Tieya also revealed a grave expression and secretly told Chen Mu:

"Later, I'll draw his attention away. Take Little Junior Sister and leave first. Head toward Grass River. Master is over there."

"Go! Leave now!"

Chen Mu was startled. He knew Qin Tieya was preparing for the worst and arranging his final affairs.

Following the direction Qin Tieya indicated with his gaze, he saw an unconscious girl in blue leaning against the willow tree, about fifteen or sixteen years old.

She was the only girl present, so she must be the Little Junior Sister Qin Tieya had mentioned.

"I understand. Take care, Senior Brother."

Chen Mu quietly retreated, then suddenly crouched and sprang forward. He scooped up the girl and flashed toward the village entrance.

"Trying to run?! Tie San, go after them!"

A corpse king behind the black-robed man stomped the ground with a boom, soaring several yards through the air from level ground as it tried to pursue Chen Mu.

But Qin Tieya had been prepared. He shouted, "Stay!"

Blood Essence around his body surged explosively as he shot forward. He threw a sideways punch through the air, sending the corpse king flying and cutting off its pursuit.

"Damn it! Attack together!"

The black-robed man let out a strange shriek. All the surrounding Refined Corpses surged at once and pounced upon Qin Tieya.

The black-robed man himself took the chance to fly backward, chasing toward the village entrance.

Meanwhile, Chen Mu used his lightness skill, swiftly leaping and darting through the fields.

Within barely a dozen breaths, he had fled back to the village entrance. He was just about to pass beneath the archway and escape the village.

At that moment, a flock of red-eyed crows flew overhead with a rustling flap.

"Boy, where do you think you're running?!"

A hoarse, sinister cackle suddenly echoed through the night sky around him. It was the black-robed man's voice from before.

Chen Mu was greatly alarmed. He lifted his foot again and strode through the village archway with a boom.

But the moment that step fell, heaven and earth changed color. A buzzing filled Chen Mu's ears, and the light before his eyes twisted and distorted.

Dense white mist suddenly rose from the ground, swallowing the rooftops of the grass huts in the blink of an eye. The entire Clear River Village was completely shrouded in fog.

Chen Mu's brows instantly knitted tight. He knew he had likely stumbled into a trap resembling a maze formation.

"What skill is there in hiding and skulking?"

"If you have the guts, come out."

Chen Mu placed the unconscious girl beneath the archway, drew his blade, and warily looked around.

Visibility in the surrounding fog was less than three meters.

Farther away, indistinct shadows shifted while the ground rustled. It sounded as if countless living corpses were wandering about.

Other than the few eerie laughs at the beginning, the black-robed man did not speak again.

Chen Mu did not know what methods he possessed and felt uncertain.

Just as he hesitated over whether to flee the village according to the direction he remembered, he suddenly felt a chill down his back.

"Where did this foolish brat come from? Die for this old man!"

A ghostly claw flickering with phosphorescent green scale-fire suddenly pierced through the fog and clawed toward Chen Mu's heart from behind.