The Corpse Horde Attacks
Lin Xu entered Thought Overclocking once more and quickly completed a new compression of the Lamp Kindling Spirit Transformation Chapter. A spark of spiritual light flashed, like a firefly.
"From now on, Dharma Seeds will be divided into civil and martial types: one to enlighten Dao soldiers and warriors, and the other to enlighten cultivation seedlings."
Though he said that, Lin Xu had already made up his mind. Unless necessary, he would pass Dharma Seeds on only to cultivation seedlings with at least 12 Intelligence.
He passed on Dharma Seeds to support his own cultivation, not for some grand dream of everyone becoming a dragon. A cultivator who received a Dharma Seed had to be worth nurturing, preferably capable of cultivating to a sufficient level and obediently refining himself into Lin Xu's avatar.
Following the same procedure, Lin Xu opened a Divine Aperture for Liu Jiayao.
Compared with Chen A'niu, a human from the Spirit Realm, Liu Jiayao no longer possessed self-awareness, yet his sea of consciousness was one or two times larger than Chen A'niu's. This was clearly a legacy from his past.
Seeing his two guardians enter a state of cultivation, Lin Xu took out a Spirit Stone to replenish what the two Dharma Seeds had consumed.
When the sky began to grow light, he opened his eyes once more.
The previous night's expenditure had been replenished. He rose and walked outside.
In Peach Tree Village, he was the one and only person with the wisdom to direct the outer disciples and villagers in carrying out a series of complex plans.
The houses had been built yesterday, and today construction would begin on the walls. The appearance of the dungeon had put even Xuanwei Monastery under pressure. The urgent task was to fortify Peach Tree Village as quickly as possible.
He directed the villagers to fell trees, erect fences and barricades, build watchtowers, and lay traps.
After two busy days, they finally finished the village's initial fortifications.
Lin Xu stood on high ground at the village entrance, looking out at the newly built wooden walls and scattered watchtowers around the village. Pitfalls and tripwires crisscrossed the ground outside, giving off a faintly grim, murderous air.
The morning mist had yet to disperse, and the militia were already keeping watch in shifts from the towers. Holding sharpened bamboo spears, they scanned the forest's edge for movement.
Lin Xu stood on the high ground with his hands behind his back, mentally counting up the gaps in the defenses. Feeling somewhat reassured, he thought, Although the defenses are crude for now, thankfully Peach Tree Village isn't on the front line of the battlefield...
As he thought this, he saw a militia patrol hurrying back from the distance, and his heart tightened.
He had long since ordered that patrols return and report immediately upon discovering anything unusual. They were never to engage the enemy on their own.
"Daoist Lin, traces of a group of evil creatures have been found three li outside the village. They're approaching the village, more than forty of them. They aren't moving quickly and seem to be wandering in search of prey," the militia captain reported, cupping his fists.
Lin Xu's gaze sharpened. He immediately blew his bone whistle: three long blasts and two short ones, the highest-level warning signal.
The urgent clang of a gong rang out through the village. The militia quickly took their positions, women and children hid in the cellars, and the wooden gates were shut tight.
This was an emergency plan they had drilled beforehand. Everyone knew where they belonged.
"Quick! Keep sounding the gong and call the patrols outside back at once!" Lin Xu shouted in a low voice. Even as he spoke, he leaped onto a watchtower and focused on the haze over the distant fields.
He activated the Spirit Eye Technique, and his field of vision stretched farther and farther until he finally caught sight of the evil creatures wandering at its edge.
They had yet to discover Peach Tree Village. They wandered aimlessly through the wilderness, groping their way forward blindly but persistently.
Incursions by evil creatures were common in the Spirit Realm, occurring almost every day.
But over the past few days, there had been very few evil creatures. A militia squad and an outer disciple had been enough to handle them.
This was the first time more than forty evil creatures had appeared together as they had today.
What a pity. The Evil Eye's injuries still haven't healed. Otherwise, I could see the true forms of these strange creatures now... Lin Xu thought regretfully. An idea for nurturing that special monster was gradually taking shape in his mind.
But with battle at hand and Peach Tree Village short of resources, he could only set the idea aside for now.
The gong continued to echo over the village, startling birds from the woods into flight, yet the evil creatures wandering in the distance remained oblivious. It was not that the monsters lacked hearing, but that the Soul-Devouring Mist operated by faction, and factions that did not belong together did not share their senses.
To these evil creatures, the area around Peach Tree Village was no different from any other part of the Spirit Realm. Impenetrable mist was everywhere, and any sound from a little farther away would be swallowed by the omnipresent fog.
Hearing the gong in the village, the militia patrols scattered around it quickly returned. Within the time it took an incense stick to burn, everyone had assembled and taken their positions.
Lin Xu looked around and saw that no one had fallen behind. His heart settled somewhat.
He gave an order in a low voice, instructing a hunter from the village to take five newly trained militia archers and lie in wait with their bows behind the wall. The bamboo spearmen took positions on either side of the watchtowers, ready for battle.
Lin Xu looked at the true main force of this battle: Chen Yuanfu, the village's inner disciple, and five outer disciples.
Before Lin Xu arrived, Chen Yuanfu had been in charge of Peach Tree Village. He was about forty years old and skilled in talismans.
After Lin Xu took over Peach Tree Village, Chen Yuanfu became his deputy and helped him put the defenses in order without a word of complaint.
Name: Chen Yuanfu Race: Human Identity: Inner disciple of Xuanwei Monastery Class: Daoist Level: 3 Strength: 10 Agility: 9 Constitution: 10 Intelligence: 10 Charisma: 8 Health: 107/107 Mana: 188/188 Skills: Lampwick Spirit Refinement Method (advanced chapter) · blue (advanced), Basic Talisman Arts Drawing · green (advanced), Talisman Mastery · blue (advanced)... Equipment: Dao Rhyme Bright Light Lamp, Profound Light Eight Trigrams Robe, peachwood sword, talisman pouch Evaluation: An inner disciple of Xuanwei Monastery, skilled in talismans
Chen Yuanfu's status panel fully revealed the image of a cultivator with neither talent nor luck, who had reached this point through nothing but arduous cultivation and perseverance.
The two different cultivation methods in his skill list showed what detour this unlucky Daoist had once taken. The Lampwick Spirit Refinement Method placed at the entrance to the scripture repository had become almost standard practice for outer disciples.
With all preparations complete, Lin Xu turned his gaze toward the group of evil creatures gradually approaching in the distance.
Distorted humanoid silhouettes dragged their stiff limbs along the ridges between the fields, their heads lolling at an angle and eerie green corpse-fire glowing in their eye sockets.
They looked like some kind of zombie, yet not quite. Their movements had a strange coordination, as though invisible threads were pulling them.
This was another peculiarity of the strange creatures of the Spirit Realm. They were manifestations of human fear, their forms ever-changing, born from the most deeply buried terrors of the human heart.
Name: Strange Poison Corpse · green Race: Strange creature Level: 3 Strength: 11 Agility: 6 Constitution: 14 Spirit: 7 Intelligence: 5 Health: 154/154 Skills: Paralyzing Touch · white (beginner): Stiffens the limbs and slows the reactions of those it touches Rotting Poison Breath · green (intermediate): Spews corpse Qi containing a deadly poison, corroding flesh and contaminating spiritual sense Evaluation: Formed from the fusion of resentment and rotting corpses. Though slow-moving, wherever its poisonous mist spreads, not a blade of grass grows. Those who approach it are often numbed and then reduced to puppets. Best countered from a distance.