Corpse Mound Monster
The shockwave from the explosion that Zijin had just tested its blasting effect swept over Simina and Yise from a distance of several tens of meters.
The water flow tightened, as if something was crushing over my body, and my chest throbbed.
Simina and Yise both instinctively covered their chests.
It took them a while to readjust their breathing.
The two are now at the edge of the underground palace.
Since they couldn't figure out anything from the control array plate of the Fire-Burning Array, Chloe suggested that the two of them search the surrounding rock walls.
Sure enough, Yise and Simina discovered a set of relief murals in the style of Cang Xiao.
Upon closer inspection, it is indeed related to the Fire-Burning Array!
"I knew that such a large building would definitely have murals or something," Chloe said.
Simina quickly deciphered it.
"This section records the construction process of the underground palace."
The relief mural depicts the arduous century-long construction of the "Torchbearer Array," including how, just as it was nearing completion, the Great Sage of Memory discovered a new threat. However, Simina had no time to waste and quickly skipped over this section.
Yise, who was following behind, used a camera to record the entire mural.
Simina arrives at the second part of the mural, which is a functional description of the "Firework Array," which essentially suppresses the volcano while drawing power from the earth's veins.
She only glanced at the beginning, then decisively skipped to the subscription page.
Finally, in the third part, Simina saw what she needed.
"It mentions what to do if you lose your keys!" she exclaimed happily.
Yise immediately swam over and shone a light to illuminate the relevant content more brightly.
"The craft of key reconstruction," Simina read a subheading.
The Six Sacred Keys were originally crafted by the Cangxiao Dynasty; having the first one, it was natural that they could be replicated.
But what followed, where six different flower-shaped patterns should have been marking detailed manufacturing steps on the rock face, turned out to be large patches of random patterns.
"It's encrypted characters," Chloe said.
Yise took out the "Toad Key" and held it close to the mural, but there was no reaction. It wasn't until he reached the area with the toad pattern that the Magic Power flowing on the key's surface seemed to be drawn to the mural.
The tangled patterns lit up, and then a ripple spread out from the point of contact at the tip of the key.
The stone wall trembled as if on the surface of water, and the mural changed, with new characters emerging from the depths of the stone.
It is the manufacturing process of the "Toad Key" written in ancient Chinese by Cang Xiao!
Yise moved the key away, and the contents immediately vanished.
She then tried the "toad key" under the corn ridges, but there was no reaction.
Clearly, only the corresponding keys can unlock their respective crafting methods.
"What kind of brain-dead design is this..." The experts in the back were speechless.
You can only see it if you have the key.
Then what's the point of this remedy?
****
Yise continued trying, switching between several holy keys she had in her hand. She quickly noticed a change: after adding more keys, even some characters on non-corresponding murals would light up.
Only when all four keys were stacked, with different Magic Power patterns overlapping each other, did the permissions seem to be gathered, activating the corn-patterned mural.
The encrypted characters finally shed their disguise in large quantities.
The complete structural diagram of the "Corn Key," along with densely packed explanatory text, appeared before everyone.
Simina urged Yise to hurry up and take the picture.
"The process described here is so complicated."
Yise couldn't understand Cangxiao's ancient script, but judging from the amount of images and text, he could tell that it wasn't easy to do.
"They're afraid of losing their keys, but they have to take precautions against theft," Simina said. "The Cangxiao Dynasty's approach is understandable."
The text on the murals is clear, but several intricate carvings are covered by contaminants.
Simina touched the second stage of the rescue gas cylinder, pressed the vent button, and gas was released, clearing the area and revealing previously obscured details.
Yise approached and took high-resolution photos of the alchemical diagrams.
"Be careful not to create sparks," the expert at the rear quickly reminded them. "To suit your current depth and workload, the rescue gas cylinders are filled with a 6% hydrogen-oxygen mixture." "Understood."
****
On the other side of the underground palace, a whirlpool was formed as water flowed in.
Heavy objects settle on the ground, while lighter objects float upwards. Only body parts with a density close to that of water accumulate in greater and greater quantities.
Two of the mutilated corpses collided with each other.
A dim gray light flashed, and two marks lit up, then stretched out like tentacles and intertwined with each other.
It was clearly the "Dust Serpent Mark".
The tentacles, like countless tiny fleshy sprouts, burrowed between the broken bones and exposed internal organs, forcibly stitching together the tissues of two corpses that were not even of the same species.
But the antennae were not satisfied.
It then ensnared the surrounding corpses, dragging them along and devouring them.
The mass of flesh grew larger, with more and more tentacles, and more pieces of the corpse were swept in by the water, wriggling and merging in the darkness.
The "Dust Serpent Mark" shone brighter and brighter, its gray light creeping along the cracks between the corpse's flesh.
The dead muscles began to twitch again, and thin, black lines, like blood vessels, grew from the cuts, connecting the flesh and blood into a whole.
Arms, ribs, and skulls were constantly swallowed into the interior and then squeezed out from other locations.
****
Su Ming, who was controlling the giant salamander, suddenly looked up.
He didn't see anything unusual on the interface, but he sensed it—it was the fluctuation of necromancy!
It's very pale.
After all, Su Ming was quite far away, and there was a thick stone wall between them.
But he resolutely sounded the alarm.
"There are enemies, they are the undead!"
Inside the underground palace, everyone immediately stopped working and turned off their lights.
Yise put away the camera, and with a flash of her raven key, a longbow appeared in her hand. She pulled down her smart eyepiece, and a light green image covered her eyes.
In addition to the low-light system, the eyepiece integrates a fan-shaped sonar to overlay the scanned images in real time.
In Yise's field of vision, even beyond the visible range, all objects were covered by acoustic outlines.
Simina also took out her water harp and cast several support spells on Yise.
Zijin instinctively tried to use her senses, but realized once again that this little bone dragon's body did not possess the power of its original form, and could only watch helplessly.
****
Su Ming controlled the giant salamander, turned its sonar around, and scanned the direction from which the undead fluctuations were coming.
He quickly noticed the unusual pile of corpses.
Just as Su Ming was about to issue a warning, four murky white eyes suddenly opened on the mass of flesh in the deep water.
A white, serrated tentacle suddenly extended, traversing more than thirty meters, and pierced the giant salamander!
Due to time and resource constraints, this amphibious robot was not equipped with a magic-based defense system.
Its metal casing was dented, and tentacles emerged from the other side of the machine, carrying a string of broken parts. Signal interruption.
"It's the 'Corpse Tomb Demon'," Zijin recognized it.
She immediately turned to Jinxiu.
"Freeze it!"
Jinxiu followed her instructions and cast the spell. Blue and white Magic Power surged from her body, and a chill immediately spread along the water.
The water temperature around the Corpse Grave Demon plummeted, and tiny ice crystals crystallized on the surface of the writhing corpses, connecting with each other.
Click, click--
The ice layer thickened rapidly.
The enormous mass of flesh was engulfed, and even the few tentacles that had been extended were frozen in the water.
However, Jinxiu did not relax in the slightest.
"No!"
Underwater spellcasting is completely different from casting on land. As soon as the ice Magic Power was released, most of its power dissipated along with the surrounding water.
It appears to be frozen solid, but the freezing strength is far less than expected!
****
really.
With a loud bang, a bulge appeared in the center of the ice layer, followed by numerous dense cracks. The Corpse Tomb Demon suddenly struggled, and more than a dozen deformed arms simultaneously stretched outwards.
Large chunks of ice shattered and scattered, tumbling and flying through the water.
The Corpse Tomb Demon also revealed its true form.
The twenty-odd corpses looked as if they had been crumpled up and stuffed back into a bag, haphazardly piled into a mountain of flesh several meters wide.
The most conspicuous one was the engraving needle.
Most of his chest was sunken into the monster's front, with only his shoulders and above still exposed. His bloodless face was slightly distorted, and his eyes had turned into a cloudy, uncolored mass, devoid of pupils.
Above his head, he could see the mutilated half of the bell-ringer priest's body, head to head with his own.
Seven or eight arms were inserted among them, surrounded by various other body structures and organs, constantly writhing. The art style was so abstract that one didn't want to look at it a second time.
Yise drew his bowstring and shot an arrow.
The miniature magic circle on the alchemical arrow was activated, and a layer of air magic enveloped the arrow, creating a narrow cavity in the water and tearing open a passage.
Large strings of bubbles surged out along the tail of the arrow.
Puff!
The arrow pierced one of the Corpse Tomb Demon's eyes, causing the turbid eye to explode and a cloud of black liquid to disperse in the water.
The Corpse Tomb Demon twitched slightly.
Yise did not stop.
Second arrow, third arrow!
Two muffled thuds followed, and two more eyeballs popped open.
"One left!"
Yise nocked another arrow, but his fingers on the bowstring suddenly froze. The flesh on the surface of the Corpse Grave Demon rippled, and small lumps bulged from its sides.
Clap clap clap clap
Dozens of eyeballs of varying sizes squeezed out from its chest, back, arms, and even the gaps between its exposed ribs.
They all turned to look.
"..."
Yise sighed.
"Isn't this a bit like cheating?"
****
On the Corpse Tomb Demon's body, numerous arms began to paddle, propelling flesh and blood forward. At the same time, long tentacles pieced together from multiple vertebrae suddenly shot out.
Yise immediately activated the cavitation rune on his diving suit, greatly reducing the water resistance around his body.
A water spell erupted beneath her feet, sending her sliding several meters to the side.
Boom! The tentacle grazed past her side and slammed into the rock wall behind her, which she had just been recording.
Large shards of rock were blasted into the water.
Yise's eyes twitched as he looked at the torn rock face.
This is deep water.
Even with the water itself absorbing a significant portion of the impact, it still managed to generate this kind of power.
This Corpse Grave Demon is far more dangerous than anticipated.
"Simina, step back!" Yise shouted immediately.
Upon hearing this, Simina activated the bubble rune without hesitation and began playing the water harp.
The water swirls up from behind her.
Simina used the thrust to quickly swim towards the breach in the underground palace.
The Corpse Tomb Demon indeed locked onto Simina, its dozens of deformed limbs paddling like oars, propelling it in pursuit.
The second round of freezing magic from Jinxiu arrived. A chill swept past from the side, and large patches of ice crystals climbed up the Corpse Tomb Demon's body once more.
This time, however, the opponent wasn't even completely frozen; multiple arms simultaneously exerted force, tearing the ice apart.
The speed at which it broke free was much faster than the first time, clearly indicating that the other party was also adapting.
The Corpse Tomb Demon closed in on Simina, and suddenly a tentacle shot out.
But an arrow struck the tentacle from the side, severing it completely.
Yise moved over and stood between the two.
She steadied herself and fired a series of shots.
Puff!
Another eyeball of the Corpse Tomb Demon exploded, causing the surrounding organization to collapse.
Explosive Rune Arrow!
The Corpse Tomb Demon's body trembled slightly, and the two orc corpses were drawn closer.
Dozens of thin, fleshy filaments emerged, writhing and pulsating, and the corpse immediately sank into them. The wound blasted open by Yise was instantly covered by the newly swallowed tissue.
Two new eyeballs emerged from beside the wound.
****
As Yise tensely pondered his tactics, the Corpse Tomb Demon's abdomen swelled up, and eight spinal tentacles simultaneously burst forth from its flesh!
Yise fired her bow, blasting away the three foremost lines in succession.
But the remaining five are already close.
Yise immediately activated the water spell.
Slide your body to the right to avoid the first one.
Then sink down, letting the second one sweep over your head.
However, underwater is not land, and there is a brief delay with each change of direction.
As she dodged the third tentacle, the remaining two had already closed in from the left and right.
It was too late! A long, thin, black shadow suddenly appeared from the water behind Yise.
The shadowy figure was also surrounded by an extremely narrow layer of bubbles, which cut through the water.
Snap!
A dark shadow wrapped around Yise's waist.
Thorns and whips!
Su Ming pulled hard, dragging Yise backward, the two tentacles crossing in front of her.
Boom!
The tentacle missed its target and slammed hard into the ground.
The spine bone and rock crumbled together, and several runes of the Cloud Fang magic array on the ground were torn open.
Yise steadied himself.
Thanks.
"You're welcome," Su Ming said.
All of the Corpse Tomb Demon's eyes rolled, turning to look at Su Ming.
The two stared at each other briefly, then the Corpse Tomb Demon suddenly turned around.
"Um?"
Su Ming looked in the direction the Corpse Tomb Demon was moving and saw that it was heading towards a large group of orc corpses.
It's clear they intend to continue devouring.
"Dream on!"
Su Ming felt a burst of water beneath his feet and gave chase, his thorny whip lashing out fiercely.
An extremely thin layer of air membrane wraps around the surface of each section of the whip.
This is the result of Su Ming's training some time ago, meticulously imbuing the weapon with cavitation magic.
This gave the soft whip in deep water a speed that was barely close to that of a terrestrial environment.
Snap! The long whip wrapped around one of the Corpse Tomb Demon's tentacles.
A series of spells lit up in Su Ming's hand.
"Dissociation of the Dead!"
The magical energy traveled along the thorny whip, almost without any dissipation, and poured directly into the Corpse Tomb Demon's body.
The gray light spread rapidly along the tentacles, and large sections of the body instantly lost their luster and resilience.
Boom!
The Corpse Tomb Demon forcibly blasted open that part of its body, and blood mist spread across the water.
The tentacle, along with the part of the corpse connected to the main body, was discarded by it.
The long whip in Su Ming's hand suddenly felt lighter.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Corpse Demon arrived at the pile of corpses and began to devour them. A new tentacle then squeezed out of the wound.