Underworld Soldiers Borrowing the Road

Bang!

Cao Ya pushed aside the coffin lid, and a huge black male corpse stood up, wearing faded, rotting Jurchen armor.

At the sight of him, everyone else immediately sucked in a breath of cold air.

The male corpse actually had twelve arms, arranged in a circle behind his back, and all twelve were writhing, just like the Thousand-Hand Guanyin in a temple.

Was this male corpse the Wannu King of Eastern Xia? When Wang Zanghai said he wasn't human, did he mean he was deformed?

The black male corpse... no, he couldn't be called a corpse. This fellow was still alive. He waved his twelve arms, showing not the slightest interest in the people on the coffin platform, even though the person who had killed the house centipedes and disturbed his slumber stood right beside him.

The Thousand-Hand Guanyin Corpse quickly jumped down from the stone platform and headed straight toward the enormous Bronze Gate.

Cao Ya raised an eyebrow. Trying to get inside and keep living?

He curled his lip and pointed a finger. Golden light instantly pierced the Thousand-Hand Guanyin Corpse, blasting a hole through his chest. Seemingly unwilling to accept his fate, the Thousand-Hand Guanyin Corpse let out a low, grating howl and took another two steps toward the enormous Bronze Gate before finally collapsing.

When Cao Ya turned around, he found everyone staring fixedly at him. Once they realized he had noticed, they all looked a little embarrassed and hurriedly averted their eyes with painfully stiff movements.

Most importantly, they were a little afraid.

Cao Ya's power was far too great, beyond anything they could imagine. They weren't even entirely sure whether the present Cao Ya was really still human.

Fatty gave an awkward laugh.

"Cao Ya, which tomb did you find an immortal cultivation manual in?"

"Want to know?" Cao Ya asked casually.

Fatty's eyes lit up.

"You can tell us?"

Everyone's eyes shone, and excitement stirred in them despite themselves.

Cao Ya seemed to think for a moment before saying slowly:

"It's a martial arts manual. The art I practice is called Golden Bell Shield."

"???" Everyone was baffled.

Was he kidding? This was Golden Bell Shield??

Try telling us it's the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art and see whether we believe you. Does he think we don't read novels or watch TV dramas?

It seemed he didn't want to tell them. Well, that was perfectly normal. As the ancients said, when one person attained the Dao, even his chickens and dogs ascended to heaven. Who would willingly share such an immense stroke of fortune for no reason?

Everyone adjusted their expectations, though their expressions still dimmed a little. After all, an opportunity like this was far too rare.

They certainly didn't dare pressure Cao Ya. If they angered him, a single slap could kill them seventeen or eighteen times over.

Cao Ya said calmly:

"All right, Golden Bell Shield was a joke. What I practice is the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art."

"..."

Everyone was speechless. Can you read minds or something?

Cao Ya couldn't be bothered to explain further. He only said they would find out once they got out.

He wasn't sure whether a supreme Dharmakaya art from The Masters of This World would even work in the world of The Grave Robbers' Chronicles.

He could indeed wield Outer Scenery power, but that was thanks to System Space.

Whether people could cultivate in this world, and whether they could achieve anything through it, would depend entirely on their individual fortune.

These people were all characters in the story, especially the iron triangle of Wu Xie, Fatty, and Poker-Face. In the terminology of certain worlds, they were favored by heaven's mandate and possessed extraordinary providence. Perhaps they could succeed.

Of course, he wouldn't hand over a first-rate supreme Dharmakaya art like the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art right away. Golden Bell Shield likewise led straight to Dharmakaya and allowed a seamless transition to the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art. Having them try cultivating Golden Bell Shield first might be a good idea.

Who knew? He might even be able to bring about a revival of spiritual energy in this world of The Grave Robbers' Chronicles.

All right, he was getting a little ahead of himself. Raising a world's level was no simple matter.

The Cao Ya from the world of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer had been working on it all along. He had entered System Space very early, met the Cao Ya from The Masters of This World, and gained martial power far beyond the limits of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer,

sweeping across the land without a single worthy opponent. With his invincible might, he had opened the path toward raising the world's level, but that road was far too long. Twenty years had already passed in the world of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, and there was still little sign of progress.

According to their estimates, it would take at least another fifty to a hundred years of accumulation before the world of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer could undergo its first rise in level.

Leading a revival of spiritual energy and raising a world's level involved far too much worry and far too much trouble.

When receiving memories, Cao Ya had flatly refused everything related to those matters.

"Want to go inside the Bronze Gate and take a look?" Cao Ya asked with a smile.

The moment he finished speaking, Wu Xie's and Fatty's eyes lit up. Pan Zi and Shunzi were curious too.

Poker-Face, on the other hand, seemed to have recalled more of his memories. At those words, an expression of profound shock appeared on his face.

Cao Ya jumped down from the stone platform and walked up to the enormous Bronze Gate.

The others followed.

Only up close did they truly appreciate the immense size of the Bronze Gate. It was like a high-rise building.

Wu Xie was a little worried, however, and raised a concern. In the message Wang Zanghai had left inside the snake-browed bronze fish, he had said that opening the Bronze Gate without permission would summon endless karmic fire that would burn everything to ashes. What they were doing clearly wasn't the proper method. What would they do if something went wrong?

Cao Ya smiled and told him to relax, then said that all this talk of karmic fire was nonsense. Even if it really existed, what was there to fear?

Wu Xie smiled bitterly. Of course you're not afraid, but we are!

Still, Cao Ya wasn't the sort of person who disregarded whether others lived or died. If that really happened, he would probably lend them a hand.

Cao Ya motioned for them to step back. It wouldn't be good if they were accidentally injured when he smashed the Bronze Gate.

"Hm?"

Cao Ya frowned and darted aside as well.

The others froze for a moment. What was going on? Wasn't he about to smash open the Bronze Gate? Why had he suddenly stepped aside?

Cao Ya held his index finger to his lips, and everyone immediately understood. Something unusual must have appeared in the darkness.

Their hearts raced, and they were both nervous and excited.

Suddenly, several flames lit up in the darkness within the gap in the enormous Bronze Gate, as though something was coming out.

At the same time, a pale blue mist had begun seeping from the cracks between the rocks on the rift floor, though no one knew when it had started. It rose swiftly like rolling waves of cloud.

Everyone's mouths fell open. They were stunned by the sight before them.

Cao Ya looked around and saw pale blue mist pouring from every crack in the surrounding rocks at an astonishing speed. Almost instantly, mist swirled around their legs below the knees, and their vision seemed veiled by another layer of haze. It kept rising, and soon their flashlights were almost useless.

Golden light surged in Cao Ya's eyes. Through the blue mist, he saw the column of underworld soldiers approaching from afar.

A series of Deer-Horn Trumpet calls sounded from one end of the rift, hauntingly melodious, echoing through it again and again.

Countless shadowy black figures appeared in the mist at the far end of the rift, forming a long column to the sound of the Deer-Horn Trumpet.

Wu Xie and Shunzi hadn't grasped what was happening and looked bewildered. Had all the people outside come in?

But that didn't seem right. There were far too many of them!

Beside them, Fatty's and Pan Zi's faces instantly turned deathly pale. They seemed to have realized what was happening. Their teeth chattered, and it took them a long time to force out a complete sentence:

"Underworld Soldiers Borrowing the Road!"