Kyoto

"The Heavenly Corpse Sect is known in the Daoist path for its corpse-refining arts."

"Their zombies are divided into the lowest Walking Corpses, followed by Yin Corpses, Iron Armored Corpses, Bronze Armored Corpses, and Gold Armored Corpses."

Nanshanzi spoke cautiously: "Since you, Sword Saint, are the only one confirmed to have broken through to Innate Grandmaster in the last hundred years, the Heavenly Corpse Sect took it very seriously and sent four Bronze Armored Corpses for me to command."

"Originally, an elder from the Heavenly Corpse Sect was supposed to accompany me, but a few days ago, he rushed off to the capital in a hurry."

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

A Bronze Armored Corpse's strength lay entirely in its indestructible, immensely powerful body. In terms of agility or adaptability, it couldn't even match an Internal Refining martial artist.

If a Jianghu martial artist couldn't break through the bronze armor, the zombie would slaughter them.

But if they wielded a divine weapon and cracked the armor, they could turn the tables and destroy the Bronze Armored Corpse.

As for Innate True Essence, killing a Bronze Armored Corpse was child's play.

Zhou Yi asked, "What is the Heavenly Corpse Sect doing in the capital?"

"Naturally, attending the Teacher Selection Assembly. The Emperor is choosing a tutor for the Crown Prince—not some pedantic Confucian scholar who only spouts classics, but a master of Buddha Dao."

Nanshanzi said enviously, "Though I hold a Daoist license, my strength is too weak. Otherwise, I'd surely vie for the position of Crown Prince's Tutor."

"The Heavenly Corpse Sect is going too? Such heretics—aren't they afraid of becoming a laughingstock under heaven?"

"They went. I heard from that elder that everyone from the sect's leader down to the True Disciples has gathered in the capital."

Nanshanzi added carefully, "Before leaving, he ordered me to deliver you to the capital without fail before the second day of the second month."

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

The day Great Jing's Crown Prince would choose his teacher.

Zhou Yi snorted coldly, leaped into the coffin, and said, "Keep moving. Hurry to the capital!"

Nanshanzi dared not refuse. He obediently picked up the Corpse Summoning Bell, chanted a Hand Seal, and shook it with a clatter.

The four Bronze Armored Corpses suddenly opened their eyes. Their pupils were a vivid green, as if they had come alive in an instant.

They leaped in unison, covering several zhang in a single bound.

They landed lightly and silently; Zhou Yi felt little vibration inside the coffin.

Nanshanzi had been timid and servile moments before, but his lightness skill was quite impressive, clearly surpassing the zombies.

Nanshanzi said, "Sword Saint Grandfather, this is already the Directly Administered Prefecture. At most three more days to the capital. Bronze Armored Corpses are inconvenient to show in daylight. What do you think..."

"Then travel by night. Also, you don't need to call me 'grandfather.' You look older than me."

Since Zhou Yi had advanced to Innate Grandmaster, unless his Lifespan ran out, his appearance would stay at twenty.

"Sword Saint Grandfather, you made your name sixty years ago. You must be over eighty now. I'm only in my thirties—calling you grandfather is just right!"

Nanshanzi had a dark, gaunt face, weathered and wrinkled. He could easily pass for ninety.

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "Yin energy invading the body?"

Nanshanzi made a living by grave robbing. In this world teeming with Demonic Monsters and Ghosts, digging up tombs inevitably meant encountering ghosts.

Ordinary ghostly remains might not kill directly, but they emitted Yin energy that eroded the living body.

With the body's Yin and Yang out of balance, premature aging was normal. With so much Yin energy piled up inside, just being alive was a feat.

"Sword Saint Grandfather is right. Ten years ago, I opened a heavenly coffin in Cloud Prefecture and ran into a Blood Corpse. Everyone else was drained into dried husks by it."

Recalling the event, Nanshanzi still trembled with fear: "I relied on my exquisite lightness skill to escape with my life, but I also caught a curse."

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

Zhou Yi asked abruptly.

"Ah... nothing escapes you. The Heavenly Corpse Sect has Corpse Removal Pills, specifically for curing corpse poison curses."

Nanshanzi answered nervously, having deliberately hidden this before to survive.

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

Hearing this, Nanshanzi's face lit up with excitement, and his lightness skill quickened.

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

Jianghu legend had it that sixty years ago, the Guo Bei Sword Saint swept through Jiangnan, defeating all heroes under heaven. At barely twenty, he attained Innate Grandmaster, hailed as a peerless figure born once in five centuries.

Afterward, he fought the Black Mountain Old Demon, was gravely wounded, and went into seclusion on Black Mountain to heal.

Sixty years passed. Even the Chen Family stationed on Black Mountain believed the Sword Saint had died of his injuries.

Nanshanzi felt that the luck he had accumulated over thirty years was about to burst forth today. The Sword Saint had risen from the dead—lifting his curse was 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 wasn't that the Bronze Armored Corpses feared sunlight. Rather, traveling by night avoided many troubles, and human strength had its limits—daytime was for sleeping and resting.

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

"Compared to sixty years ago... the spiritual energy of this world... seems much weaker!"

Zhou Yi frowned. Unlike other cultivators who meditated daily, he did not.

Other cultivators sat in meditation every day, inhaling and exhaling the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth. Even if the spiritual energy in the world weakened by the slightest trace, it was extremely difficult to detect.

The last time Zhou Yi had meditated to refine qi was sixty-two years ago. He could clearly discern that the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth was diminishing.

Weakening by a trace each year, over sixty-two years, the gap was no longer small.

"According to what my senior brother said, the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth is far inferior to ancient times. In truth, it has been steadily declining. Perhaps in a few hundred years... this world will become one without spiritual energy!"

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

A world without spiritual energy—it was hard to say whether that was good or bad. Perhaps for ninety-nine percent of people, a world without spiritual energy would actually be happier.

No Immortals, Demons, Gods, or Buddhas. No spirits or ghosts. All people would be completely equal in terms of lifespan.

Three days passed in a row.

Active by night, hidden by day.

A magnificent giant city rose abruptly from the plains.

The Great Jing Dynasty was in its twilight, but its ancestors had once been prosperous. This great city was built across three generations: the Jing Great Ancestor, Jing Taizong, and Jing Shengzu.

They commanded the people of the empire's Thirty-Six Prefectures, carrying earth to form mountains and digging canals to create rivers, all to raise the city walls to a height of twelve zhang.

Unfortunately, this city—a veritable sheer cliff—was never breached by external enemies. It was destroyed from within.

According to regulations, four burly men, their heads and faces covered, clad head to toe in black robes, carrying a coffin, should at least have been inspected.

Nanshanzi brazenly handed over a silver ingot. The gate guards waved their hands and let them through directly.

Whether the coffin contained contraband, or whether the four black-robed men were dangerous individuals, was none of their concern. As long as it didn't interfere with their profit.

Nanshanzi followed the markers all the way to the northern city, stopping outside a courtyard.

The courtyard gate was tightly shut, without even a plaque, and the surroundings were extremely desolate.

Ding ding ding!

The corpse-summoning bell rang.

From within the courtyard, another corpse-summoning bell answered.

The gate slowly opened, revealing a young man with a blank expression, his face pale and gloomy.

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

"Everything went smoothly. Just as I expected, the Sword Saint's secluded cultivation site was right where the mountain range shifted."

Nanshanzi was skilled in observing mountains and tracing veins. Black Mountain had suddenly gained an extra ridge, jarringly mismatched with the surrounding peaks.

A figure like the Sword Saint—his secluded cultivation site was bound to be extraordinary. Matching the two together, Nanshanzi had stumbled upon luck.

Whether it was luck for the Heavenly Corpse Sect, however, remained to be seen...