Kyoto

"The Heavenly Corpse Sect was renowned in the Daoist world for its corpse-refining arts."

"Among its zombies, the lowest rank was the Walking Corpse, followed by the Yin Corpse, Iron Armored Corpse, Bronze Armored Corpse, and Gold Armored Corpse."

Nanshanzi said cautiously, "Since you, Sword Saint, are the only person confirmed to have broken through to Innate Grandmaster in nearly a century, the Heavenly Corpse Sect attached great importance to this matter and sent four Bronze Armored Corpses for me to command."

"Originally, one of the Heavenly Corpse Sect's elders was to accompany me, but he hurried off to Kyoto some days ago."

Zhou Yi studied the Bronze Armored Corpses for a moment, then lost all interest.

The Bronze Armored Corpses' strength lay entirely in their indestructible, immensely powerful bodies. Whether in agility or adaptability, they could not even compare to Internal Refining martial artists.

If jianghu martial artists could not break through the bronze armor, they would be slaughtered by the zombies.

But once equipped with divine weapons or sharp blades capable of piercing that armor, they could kill the Bronze Armored Corpses in turn.

As for Innate True Essence, killing Bronze Armored Corpses was as easy as turning one's hand over.

Zhou Yi asked, "What was the Heavenly Corpse Sect doing in Kyoto?"

"Of course, they were attending the Teacher Selection Assembly. The Emperor wished to choose a teacher for the Crown Prince—not some pedantic scholar who only spouted classical phrases, but an expert of Buddha Dao."

Nanshanzi said enviously, "This poor Daoist has a Daoist registration, but my strength is lacking. Otherwise, I would certainly have gone to contend for the position of Crown Prince's Tutor."

"The Heavenly Corpse Sect went too? Wouldn't a crooked, heretical sect like that fear becoming a laughingstock?"

"They went. I heard that from the sect master down to the True Disciples, the entire Heavenly Corpse Sect had gathered in Kyoto."

Nanshanzi said cautiously, "Before leaving, they also ordered me to ensure that I delivered you to Kyoto before the Dragon Heads Festival."

The second day of the second month—Dragon Raises Head.

The day the Crown Prince of the Great Jing Dynasty would choose his teacher.

Zhou Yi snorted and leaped into the coffin. "Continue onward. Hurry to Kyoto!"

How could Nanshanzi dare refuse? Obediently, he picked up the corpse-controlling bell and muttered a Hand Seal, shaking it with a jingling sound.

The four Bronze Armored Corpses abruptly opened their eyes beneath their armor. Their pupils were jade green, as though they had come alive in an instant.

They hopped forward in perfect unison, each leap spanning several zhang.

They landed lightly and silently. Inside the coffin, Zhou Yi barely felt any shaking.

Nanshanzi had just seemed humble and timid, yet his lightness skill was quite exceptional, steadily surpassing the zombies.

Nanshanzi said, "Sword Saint Grandfather, we have already entered the Directly Administered Prefecture. Kyoto is no more than three days away. The Bronze Armored Corpses are inconvenient to show in daylight, so perhaps..."

"Then travel at night. Also, there is no need to call me grandfather. You look far older than I do."

After advancing to Innate Grandmaster, Zhou Yi's appearance would remain that of a twenty-year-old unless he reached the end of his lifespan.

"Sword Saint Grandfather, you became famous throughout the realm more than sixty years ago. You must be at least eighty now. I am only in my thirties. Isn't it fitting for me to call you grandfather?"

Nanshanzi's face was dark, his body thin and frail, and his features covered in weathered wrinkles. People would have believed he was ninety.

Zhou Yi pondered briefly before suddenly asking, "Yin energy entering the body?"

Nanshanzi made his living robbing tombs. In this world where Demonic Monsters and Ghosts ran rampant, he could hardly avoid encountering ghosts while digging up graves.

Ordinary ghosts and corpses might not directly kill people, but they emitted yin energy that eroded the flesh of the living.

When the yin and yang within a human body fell out of balance, premature aging was only natural. With a large amount of yin energy accumulated inside, it was already fortunate to remain alive.

"Sword Saint Grandfather is correct. Ten years ago, I opened a heavenly coffin in Cloud Prefecture and encountered a Blood Corpse. Apart from this poor Daoist, everyone else was sucked dry by the Blood Corpse."

Even recalling the incident, Nanshanzi was still terrified. "Relying on my marvelous lightness skill, I escaped with my life, but I was still afflicted by a curse."

"The Heavenly Corpse Sect promised to lift your curse?"

Zhou Yi suddenly asked.

"Ah... nothing can be hidden from you. The Heavenly Corpse Sect possesses Corpse Removal Pills, which specifically dispel corpse poison and curses."

Nanshanzi answered in panic. To preserve his life earlier, he had deliberately concealed this matter.

Zhou Yi said indifferently, "Hurry onward. Once we destroy the Heavenly Corpse Sect, take the Corpse Removal Pills for yourself."

Nanshanzi's face lit up with excitement, and his lightness skill became several degrees faster.

Compared to the fickle Heavenly Corpse Sect, the legendary Guo Bei Sword Saint, famed for Demon Slaying and Exorcism, was far more trustworthy.

According to jianghu legends, sixty years ago, the Guo Bei Sword Saint swept across Jiangnan and defeated every hero under heaven. Before reaching twenty, he had attained Innate Grandmaster, hailed as an unparalleled genius who appeared only once every five hundred years.

Later, he fought the Black Mountain Old Demon in a great battle and was severely wounded, entering seclusion atop Black Mountain to heal.

Sixty years had passed. Even the Chen Family stationed on Black Mountain believed the Sword Saint had succumbed to his wounds.

Nanshanzi felt that the fortune he had accumulated over thirty-odd years had erupted today. The Sword Saint had returned from the dead, and lifting his curse was now within reach!

The night passed without incident.

Just before the morning sun rose, Nanshanzi drove the Bronze Armored Corpses into the forest to hide.

It was not that the Bronze Armored Corpses feared sunlight. First, traveling at night spared them much trouble; second, human strength had its limits, and they needed to sleep and rest during the day.

Zhou Yi sat cross-legged on a tree branch, drawing in the Morning Sun Purple Qi.

"Compared to sixty years ago... this world's spiritual energy... seems much weaker!"

Zhou Yi frowned. Unlike other cultivators, he did not meditate every day.

Other cultivators meditated daily, absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. Even if the world's spiritual energy weakened by the slightest trace, it would be extremely difficult for them to notice.

The last time Zhou Yi had meditated and refined qi was sixty-two years ago. He could clearly discern that Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy was weakening.

It weakened by a trace each year. After sixty-two years, the difference had become considerable.

"According to Senior Brother, Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy is far weaker than it was in ancient times. In truth, it has been declining all along. Perhaps in a few hundred years... this world will become a world without spiritual energy!"

Zhou Yi sighed, calmed his mind, and continued meditating to refine spiritual energy and increase his True Essence.

Whether a world without spiritual energy was good or bad was hard to say. Perhaps for ninety-nine percent of people, a world without spiritual energy would be happier instead.

There would be no Immortals, Demons, Gods, and Buddhas, no spirits or ghosts. In terms of lifespan, everyone would be extremely equal.

Three days passed in succession.

They hid by day and traveled by night.

A majestic giant city rose from the plains.

The Great Jing Dynasty was nearing its twilight, but its ancestors had once been mighty. This giant city had been built over three generations by the Jing Great Ancestor, Jing Taizong, and Jing Shengzu.

They commanded the people of the Thirty-Six Prefectures, piling earth into mountains and digging canals into rivers, to build city walls twelve zhang high.

Unfortunately, this city, comparable to an impregnable cliff, had not been breached by foreign enemies. It had been ruined from within.

By the rules, four burly men with their faces covered and black robes draped over their bodies, carrying a coffin, should at least have been inspected.

Nanshanzi openly handed over a silver ingot, and the gate guards waved them through without further question.

As for whether the coffin contained contraband or whether the four black-robed men were dangerous, they did not care in the slightest. As long as it did not hinder them from making money, that was enough.

Following the markers, Nanshanzi made his way to North City and stopped outside a courtyard.

The courtyard gates were tightly shut, without even a plaque. The surrounding area was also exceptionally deserted.

Jingle, jingle, jingle!

The corpse-controlling bell rang out.

A corpse-controlling bell rang in response from within the courtyard.

The gates slowly opened, and a young man emerged, expressionless, with a pale, gloomy face.

"You finally arrived. Did you steal the Sword Saint's corpse?"

"Everything went smoothly. Just as I expected, the Sword Saint's place of seclusion was where the mountain range had changed."

Nanshanzi was skilled in observing mountains and tracing veins. Black Mountain had suddenly gained an extra ridge, utterly out of place amid the surrounding mountains.

A figure like the Sword Saint would certainly have an extraordinary place of seclusion. Connecting the two clues, Nanshanzi had stumbled upon a stroke of luck.

As for whether it was the Heavenly Corpse Sect's luck, that remained to be seen...