Chapter 93: Iron Corpse

Chen Luo acted decisively.

The moment he grabbed Junior Brother Du, he fled without wasting any words. Leading them swiftly out of the combat zone, they noticed neither the activation of the ground formation nor the scattered spiders and bats regrouping; everything seemed to let them escape unimpeded. The terrifying aura Chu Hongye had unleashed on Junior Brother Du deterred these creatures from approaching.

“Something’s not right. After such a major incident, there’s been no reaction from the sect whatsoever.” As they ran, the unconscious Junior Brother Du regained his senses.

Having consumed two medicinal pills earlier, his condition slightly improved. Now, with several poison jars in hand, he poured their contents into his mouth as if they were limitless.

‘Maybe it’s not that there’s no reaction, but rather, they can’t reach us.’

Chen Luo glanced at the dark clouds above.

They had grown even denser, and faintly, figures seemed to emerge amidst the thunderous clouds. This sight reminded him of a certain legend:

A Transcendence Tribulation!

Considering the current cultivation system, the weakest level involving heavenly tribulations is the Pill Formation stage. At this power level, one could easily turn the tide of battle. If indeed there were Pill Formation cultivators present, the situation for the Divine Lake Immortal Sect would truly spiral out of control.

“There are people ahead.”

A message suddenly came from Chen Luo’s Foundation Establishment brain.

Chen Luo halted and gazed at the ruins ahead.

Several figures emerged, fleeing from within. Upon closer inspection, one of them was Lian Qiang, the Divine Fire Peak disciple who had initially chased after the rogue cultivator. Accompanying him were a few other Divine Lake Immortal Sect disciples. Chen Luo recognized them as those assigned to his Wu Dao Peak senior brother’s group.

Led by a captain at Qi Refinement Sixth Layer, their situation seemed even more dire than his own team’s. The current Wu Dao Peak cohort lacked any formidable experts; even if their leading senior brother had some trump cards, his maximum burst would likely only reach Qi Refinement Seventh Layer. In this chaotic scenario, reaching that level probably meant certain doom.

Lian Qiang appeared severely wounded, with blood covering half of his head and a deep gash on his left chest, nearly exposing bone. Although he managed to temporarily suppress it, his combat effectiveness was significantly impaired.

“Junior Brother Du, Junior Brother Chen!” A look of surprise and relief washed over Lian Qiang’s face upon seeing Chen Luo and Junior Brother Du.

“What happened to you?” Junior Brother Du asked, concerned.

Judging by their condition, they must have encountered something unexpected. Rogue cultivators alone couldn’t inflict such injuries, especially on Lian Qiang, a robust body cultivator. Without intervention from a stronger adversary, it would be difficult to wound him so grievously.

“It’s the Corpse-Raising Sect! They ambushed Elder Brother Jiang,” said a pale-faced disciple from Tianjian Peak, who had accompanied their Wu Dao Peak team. The “Elder Brother Jiang” he referred to was the quiet and reserved Sixth Layer Qi Refinement disciple.

“What about Elder Sister Chu?” Lian Qiang swiftly asked, glancing at Chen Luo and Junior Brother Du.

“Elder Sister Chu is being held off by Demoness Precious Moon from Nine Poisons Valley,” Junior Brother Du briefly explained.

Upon hearing the name of Nine Poisons Valley, Lian Qiang and his companions’ expressions visibly changed.

Dealing with the Corpse-Raising Sect alone was troublesome enough; now, with the emergence of Nine Poisons Valley, their situation became even more perilous.

“What should we do? Maybe we should rescue Elder Brother Jiang first! If we don’t hurry, he might not make it.” The pale-faced Tianjian Peak disciple seemed overwhelmed, as they initially intended to seek help from Chu Hongye, only to find that she herself was in grave danger, uncertain if any of them would survive.

“I think we ought to save Elder Sister Chu first; her strength is superior,” suggested another disciple from Wanwu Peak, clearly unwilling to face the Corpse-Raising Sect’s corpse puppets again.

Lian Qiang also appeared hesitant.

His concerns differed from those of his junior brothers; he was solely focused on how to survive this ordeal.

“I’ve already sent a distress signal to our senior sect members,” Chen Luo suddenly spoke up.

“What?”

“Sending for help means failing the mission.”

“Our survival is at stake; who cares about the mission now?! Junior Brother Chen, when did you send the distress signal?” Lian Qiang’s spirits lifted as he promptly asked.

He had been contemplating whether to send a distress signal himself but didn’t expect someone else had already taken action. This revelation brought him some relief.

“While you were chasing that rogue cultivator,” replied Chen Luo.

In truth, Chen Luo had sent the distress signal much earlier than he indicated. However, there was no need to reveal the exact timing, considering potential enemies might still be lurking nearby.

What was initially a straightforward task to apprehend a rogue cultivator had drastically escalated.

“In that case, we’ll wait here and not venture anywhere!” Lian Qiang swiftly made the decision.

Among the group present, he possessed the strongest cultivation, so naturally, his words carried weight without any opposition.

The group found an empty room, quickly set up some basic defensive traps, and settled inside.

The atmosphere was exceptionally heavy, with no one speaking a word.

Chen Luo took the opportunity to reflect on his recent experiences.

This was his first encounter with battles at the level of cultivators, where the danger far exceeded martial combat, leaving almost no margin for error.

A single bite from a bat or spider could cost him his life.

Time passed swiftly, and before they knew it, half an hour had gone by.

As the anxious disciples paced back and forth, a sudden burst of light appeared outside. Flames soared into the sky, reaching a certain height before exploding with a loud ‘boom.’ A shimmering symbol resembling a lake unfolded in the heavens, its brilliance so intense that neither the formation nor the fog could obscure it.

“It’s the sect’s mark! An uncle-master at Foundation Establishment has arrived!”

Their spirits lifted instantly, seeing a glimmer of hope for survival.

“Hurry, let’s find the uncle-master for assistance.”

With a Foundation Establishment cultivator present, the situation would stabilize. So far, only disciples from the Qi Refinement Realm of the Corpse-Raising Sect and Nine Poisons Valley had emerged; not a single Foundation Establishment cultivator among them. The arrival of a senior from Divine Lake Immortal Sect at the Foundation Establishment stage could swiftly bring order amidst the chaos.

The group swiftly rose and headed towards the designated signal location. In this dire situation, their only hope for survival lay with following a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Chen Luo didn’t want to take any risks; Chu Hongye and Elder Brother Jiang might not last much longer. Once they succumbed, allowing Nine Poisons Valley and Corpse-Raising Sect members to focus on them, none of these mid-Qi Refinement disciples would stand a chance. Evil cultivators wouldn’t listen to pleas; more likely, they’d kill first and then use the corpses for refining without wasting a single opportunity.

They quickly traversed the streets, reaching the specified meeting point.

It was a central square, once bustling with rogue cultivators selling goods from makeshift stalls, now completely deserted, devoid of any human presence.

The sky grew even darker.

Despite being daytime, it felt as gloomy as midnight. Everyone noticed this eerie phenomenon, but with their minds focused solely on escaping, they had no time to dwell on it.

“Where’s the uncle-master?”

“Why is nobody here?!”

Abandoned streets, collapsed storefronts.

After searching thoroughly, they found no trace of the Foundation Establishment uncle-master who should have sent the signal.

“Only an uncle-master at the Foundation Establishment stage can emit such a sect signal,” Lian Qiang began, his words trailing off ominously.

This speculation chilled everyone further. If the situation matched their fears, it seemed unlikely that any of them would witness the sunrise tomorrow.

Clang!

In the pitch-black street, the sound of a wooden board hitting the ground echoed.

Following the noise, they noticed that inside a coffin shop at the corner, a black coffin had been opened.

A jet-black zombie stood within, unmoving as cold wind tousled its brittle, straw-like hair.

This zombie was even more terrifying than the previous black-haired one. Its entire body gleamed with a dark iron-like sheen, and an aged yellow talisman was affixed to its forehead. Behind the talisman, bloodthirsty eyes conveyed a bone-chilling sensation.

“Iron Corpse! It’s the Corpse-Raising Sect’s Iron Corpse!” Junior Brother Du’s face paled, recognizing the level of the corpse puppet opposite them, his voice trembling slightly.

Within the Corpse-Raising Sect:

Zombies were divided into several tiers. Ordinary corpse puppets, which absorbed spiritual energy to grow black hair, corresponded to the Qi Refinement Realm; the more black hair, the greater their strength. The black-haired zombie that killed the Wu Dao Peak disciple earlier was at Late Stage Qi Refinement.

The current zombie differed significantly; it surpassed the ordinary black-haired tier, with a body hardened like iron and internalized baleful qi.

Such high-tier corpse puppets in the Corpse-Raising Sect were specifically termed ‘Iron Corpses.’ An Iron Corpse corresponds to the Foundation Establishment stage! In other words, the zombie before them possessed power equivalent to a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

“Let’s test if it truly is an iron corpse!”

At this point, there was no turning back for the group. Perhaps the zombie before them was merely bluffing its strength.

The signal they received earlier had come from their Divine Lake Immortal Sect’s Foundation Establishment uncle-master. It was possible that he had already dispatched the iron corpse and left to assist others nearby.

This scenario seemed plausible.

With this thought, the sword cultivator disciple swiftly formed a hand seal, causing his longsword to leap out of its sheath.

A streak of sword light swept across, striking fiercely at the iron corpse’s neck.

Clang!!

The formidable sword qi collided with the iron corpse’s neck, producing a metallic ringing sound. In just a moment, the sword qi dissipated, leaving not even a scratch on the iron corpse’s neck.

“Run!”

Regardless of what befell the supporting uncle-master, preserving their own lives took precedence over everything else.

“Roar!”

That strike appeared to enrage the iron corpse, as the yellow talisman atop its head suddenly floated upwards.

Black malevolent energy erupted from the iron corpse’s body, unleashing a wave of despairingly vicious aura. At such close proximity, everyone could sense the stench of impending death.

A Foundation Establishment Iron Corpse!

In the face of Foundation Establishment power, these Qi Refinement cultivators were like helpless chicks awaiting slaughter, devoid of any means to defend themselves.

Shhhk!

Blood splattered as the iron corpse ripped out a crimson heart.

The sword cultivator who had attempted to test it didn’t even have time to scream before being torn in half. True to their high offense and low defense nature, death came swiftly for sword cultivators. If it were a body cultivator from Divine Fire Peak, they might have at least put up some resistance, making it harder to tear them apart.

Chen Luo was the quickest to react.

As soon as the iron corpse appeared, both the Foundation Establishment and mummified brains in his mind signaled imminent danger. However, the group moved too hastily; before he could warn them, the sword cultivator shixiong had already charged forward with his blade.

Realizing there was no time to stop him, Chen Luo turned and fled without wasting a single word.

Close behind him was Junior Brother Du.

This Junior Brother Du, well-versed and experienced, possessed mysterious abilities. He was also the first to recognize the iron corpse, and after witnessing the sword cultivator’s move, he reacted similarly to Chen Luo.