Banshee Family Training Record

Page 153

Chapter 335 The People of Qin

However, some officials dressed in dark blue robes with wide belts and huge sleeves adorned with small white decorations stood around the locust tree, trying to stop the noisy cultivators: "Quiet, everyone, quiet!"

"After all, Marquis Qin Hai was a marquis personally conferred by the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. His tomb should be respected and protected by all of us, and absolutely must not be set foot in casually!"

"I understand everyone's desire to admire the demeanor of a Nascent Soul cultivator. However, this secret realm is still under exploration, and there are still many traps and dangers inside that have not been eliminated. Therefore, we must not approach it casually."

"The Zhao state government will absolutely not tolerate those tomb raiders who attempt to steal treasures from the tomb; they must be severely punished!"

……

Faced with the restless behavior of various cultivators, one of the bearded officials in blue robes loudly dissuaded them while making promises in a loud voice. Managing cultivators has always been an extremely troublesome matter, especially these cultivators who have come from all over the country, and whose identities are unknown, whether they are rogue cultivators or something else. The local officials are often hesitant to act for fear of causing serious harm and dare not actually do anything. They can only try to avoid conflict as much as possible and try to prevent problems before they arise.

Unfortunately, their efforts and attempts yielded little result.

In the sky, an old man with a long, white beard rode a sika deer slowly approaching. The brightly colored sika deer beneath him could also ride the clouds and hover high in the sky.

He stroked his beard, a smile on his face, and nodded slightly to those below, saying, "What this gentleman says makes sense. However, Qin Haihou owed my Zhengde Money Shop a loan before his death, which remains unpaid and is still a bad debt. Now that his tomb has been opened, we should at least get our principal back!"

He spoke with righteous indignation, but as soon as he mentioned the name of the money shop, the official secretly groaned inwardly.

Zhengde Money Shop was a money shop from Luoyang, the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It was powerful and wealthy, and they couldn't afford to offend it easily.

The official hesitated, then heard another person beside him speak up: "The Marquis of Qin was granted the title of Marquis while serving in our Great Qin. His breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage was also due to the strong support of our Great Qin. So, in principle, after his death, these riches should belong to our Great Qin. It is unreasonable for the Zhao Kingdom to want to monopolize them."

Upon hearing this, the official's expression immediately changed. He turned his head and saw a tall, thin man dressed in a dark black official robe standing among the locust trees, looking up with his head held high.

Those were cultivators from the Qin Kingdom in the west, representing Qin's interests. The Zhao official's face immediately darkened. As vassal states enfeoffed by the Great Zhou Emperor, Zhao and Qin were theoretically on equal footing, and their relationship was not good. He wouldn't give the Qin people any friendly treatment: "I'm talking to people from Zhengde Money Shop, it's not your place to interrupt!"

He said this, but the Qin man was not angry. He just sneered: "Fine, then you talk. I want to see if you Zhao can get back everything you couldn't get on the battlefield at the negotiating table!"

This was practically a blatant threat. Upon hearing this, the Zhao official's eyes widened in fury: "You—!"

The conflict between the two sides intensified, almost escalating into a major war. Yun Chu'an was completely bewildered. He turned to look at Zhu Yunqing beside him, who immediately understood his meaning and considerately began to explain: "The power of the Great Zhou royal family is getting weaker and weaker, and it is unable to control the various vassal kings below. As a result, the various vassal states have become uncontrollable and are attacking each other for their own interests."

"Currently, the Qin state in the west is the most powerful, having already annexed many smaller states. In recent years, it has been in constant friction with the Zhao state, and the relationship between the two countries is naturally full of tension."

As she spoke, she narrowed her eyes slightly, looking at the two officials facing off in front of her: "Although Marquis Qin Hai is richer than a country, the conflict between the two countries is probably the core factor in this dispute."

As she spoke, several more groups of people flew in on swords and stopped in front of several officials. They mentioned Qin Haihou's life and suspected that he had some connection with evil cultivators, so they requested to enter the tomb to search for him.

Each side has its own version of events, and similar disputes have occurred occasionally in the past few days. However, today's situation is particularly intense, with several groups coming together to launch an attack on him.

The Zhao officials struggled to maintain appearances, preventing the cultivators from entering the tomb, while secretly praying that Chen Shuling would come out soon, as he was about to succumb to the pressure!

He himself, along with the uninvited guests around him, were all only at the late Foundation Establishment stage. Only the words of a true Golden Core expert would carry enough weight to provide a satisfactory explanation to all parties and prevent them from causing further trouble.

On the periphery, Yun Chu'an watched the commotion ahead and the many rogue cultivators around him. He felt that things here wouldn't be resolved easily, so he turned around and walked back, saying, "Let's go. There doesn't seem to be any chance here. Let's go look somewhere else."

Zhu Yunqing and Hua Caiyan shared the same assessment: with so many forces guarding the entrance to the tomb unable to enter, it was highly unlikely that they could simply sneak in.

Diao De'er glanced longingly at the canyon, then began to fantasize again that he was a chosen one blessed with good fortune. He turned his head slightly and discovered a hidden passage that no one else had found. He would use his newly bought protective jade pendant to overcome numerous trials and tribulations, finally obtaining Qin Haihou's treasure, becoming incredibly wealthy, and revered by thousands...

As he pondered these thoughts, his steps faltered slightly, but at that very moment, a sudden change occurred!

A sudden gust of wind swept up the cliff edge, and icy, malevolent spirits abruptly surged up, occupying the mountain peaks on both sides of the cliff, making even the blazing sunlight overhead feel chilling.

The official cultivators on the cliff edge, as well as the few cultivators riding deer and wielding swords, all changed color. The painful feeling of their life force being eroded made them turn around and leave immediately. However, the rogue cultivators who were still watching the show on the cliff were not so lucky.

Immediately, this evil spirit invaded their bodies, draining their life force. Many rogue cultivators with only the Qi Refining stage immediately showed obvious signs of pain, feeling as if their hearts and lungs were being gripped by a pair of invisible hands, making it impossible for them to breathe.

Diao De'er was in a similar situation. Although he was in the Foundation Establishment stage, he was too close to the cliff edge and became the first target of the Yin spiritual power. He instantly felt his whole body was ice cold and had difficulty breathing, as if he had been seriously ill.

"Beware!"

Yun Chu'an had already walked a distance, so when the evil spirit attacked, he had ample opportunity to react.

He suddenly stepped forward, activated his cultivation technique, and golden lightning appeared on his body, forming a series of golden ribs that enveloped his body, like a huge human wall, blocking Zhu Yunqing and Hua Caiyan from the erosion of this yin energy.

His brows furrowed instantly as he looked ahead. He saw several cultivators dressed in blue-green Taoist robes, wielding peach wood swords, suddenly fly into the air below the cliff. Their movements were disheveled, and their voices were filled with panic: "Evacuate! Set up the formation! Deal with the zombies!"

One of the Taoist priests, with a square face and a beard, shouted this sternly. Several cultivators in the crowd reacted immediately, also taking to the air, swords in hand, as if facing a formidable enemy.

Then, a crack suddenly opened at the foot of the cliff, and zombies jumped out and landed on the mountaintop.

They were all disheveled, dressed in black bodysuits, and with huge prayer beads around their necks. They jumped onto the mountaintop, opened their eyes, and stared at the group of rogue cultivators on the mountaintop with cold eyes as if they had seen food.

Chapter 336 Ten Thousand Soul Flags

Upon seeing the dozen or so zombies leaping up in a row, the group of rogue cultivators were immediately horrified: "Zombies?! How could this be?!"

"Weren't the Corpse-Driving Sect supposed to be wiped out? Why are there still so many zombies here? Is the rumor that Qin Haihou colluded with the Corpse-Driving Sect true?"

"That goes without saying, Qin Haihou really is colluding with evil forces! And it's definitely true that he's also colluding with the Ghost King Sect!"

……

The rogue cultivators retreated one after another. Some of them, seeing that their guesses had been confirmed, immediately shouted excitedly.

But the zombies in front of them didn't hesitate. They immediately opened their mouths, revealing sharp teeth, and leaped forward, roaring as they charged towards the living creatures.

As ghosts, without a Taoist priest to place a talisman on their foreheads or issue an order, these creatures will only rely on instinct to attack living beings with yang energy, draining their life force to fill their own void.

Immediately, the dozen or so zombies and the rogue cultivators present engaged in a chaotic battle. As soon as they touched each other, several cultivators with only the Qi Refining stage cultivation were instantly severely injured, their bodies poisoned by the zombies, and their lives hanging by a thread!

High in the sky, one of the officials looked reluctant and took out a magic whisk from his sleeve, intending to make a rescue.

However, at the forefront, a middle-aged cultivator dressed as a Taoist priest and holding a peach wood sword suddenly spoke up to stop them: "Don't move! There are even bigger things behind us. We need to work together to deal with them!"

The official immediately stopped what he was doing and looked at the Taoist priest: "Senior Chen, what else is there? What exactly happened in the tomb?"

It turns out that this middle-aged man with a square face, a beard, and dressed as a Taoist priest was Chen Shuling.

He narrowed his eyes, completely disregarding the lives of the rogue cultivators on the mountaintop, focusing only on the sudden appearance of the secret realm rift below the cliff, which seemed to have torn space in two: "This is a long story, I will report and explain it to my superiors in detail later."

"As for now, I can confirm that Qin Haihou did indeed have dealings with the Corpse-Driving Sect before his death. They harbored a powerful zombie comparable to a Golden Core cultivator. The Yin energy that was just now eroding life force was exhaled by that zombie!"

Before he finished speaking, another zombie suddenly leaped out of the crack, exhaling an extremely cold and eerie breath that sent chills down one's spine!

However, the zombie did not land, but instead rose steadily in an illogical manner, heading straight for the many cultivators in the sky.

Its hair had all fallen out, leaving only a huge bald head. Its face was deathly pale and bluish, and its eyes were pitch black. It looked completely dead.

It was wearing a dark blue bodysuit, with its arms outstretched and its hands exposed. Apart from its long, black fingernails, several experienced cultivators immediately noticed that the back of the zombie's hands had a bronze-like luster!

"A bronze-armored zombie!" an official cultivator exclaimed immediately. "Once this kind of zombie is refined, it is indestructible by swords and spears and impervious to water and fire. Even Golden Core cultivators would find it difficult to deal with!"

"Qin Haihou was deeply entangled with the Corpse-Driving Sect back then, so many powerful zombies were buried in his tomb!"

Several officials who knew about that period of history discussed it animatedly, while Chen Shuling stared at the zombie with burning eyes: "Further words are useless, everyone, let's move out!"

"I'll lead the attack, you guys cover me!"

He shouted this, but a hint of reluctance rose in his heart. Originally a cultivator from a family skilled in vocal arts, his primary duty was to support others. But unfortunately, he was now the only Golden Core cultivator on the battlefield; if he didn't step in, no one else could stop this bronze-armored corpse!

So even though he wasn't good at close-quarters combat, he had to grit his teeth and go himself!

In the sky, Chen Shuling and a group of Foundation Establishment cultivators launched a siege against the bronze-armored corpse. At the same time, on the ground, the rogue cultivators were not idle either. They took out their weapons and magical treasures and joined in the melee with these zombies.

Then, they were relentlessly beaten by these zombies.

After all, the incident happened suddenly. The Golden Core stage zombie suddenly spewed out a large mouthful of Yin energy, which weakened the combat power of many rogue cultivators present by more than half. Now, they were caught off guard and naturally could not defeat the enemy.

Not to mention, although these zombies that rushed up were mindless and unable to cast complex spells, each and every one of them was a monster with incredible stats!

With their sturdy bodies, they can withstand the spells of rogue cultivators. Whether it's flying swords slashing or flames burning, they endure it all and then charge straight at them, grabbing their necks and injecting the corpse poison from their fingernails into their bodies, thus taking the life of a rogue cultivator!

"let me--!"

Diao De'er was also fighting. Although he had a bad start, he got excited when he saw the strong enemy and thought it was his time to shine.

Seeing a zombie attack, he immediately shouted, stepped forward, and threw a punch at it.

Their fists collided, creating a powerful gust of wind that uprooted the surrounding grass. However, this time, Diao De'er was at a disadvantage. This snake demon, who specialized in body tempering, was forced to retreat repeatedly, unable to even stand firm!

"Varied--!"

He was incredulous, but then felt a deep sense of frustration. After all, he was a snake demon, and to unleash his full power, he had to reveal his true form and transform into a nearly 100-meter-long yellow-scaled giant python.

However, how could he possibly reveal his true form in this place? The consequences would be far more dire!

Therefore, he could only endure it. But as soon as he did, the zombie in front of him, without needing to recover, suddenly leaped up again and pounced on him face to face!

"Well--!"

Diao De'er was outmatched and was knocked down. Its ten fingers, filled with deadly corpse poison, suddenly grabbed his neck!

hum-

A gentle spiritual light appeared, protecting the man's body and preventing him from being strangled to death by the zombie. But at this moment, Diao De'er was terrified and dared not face the enemy alone again. He turned and cried out, "Mickey, save me—"

In this critical moment, he had lost count of how many times he had completely forgotten the alias Yun Chu'an had used to disguise himself.

While a fierce battle raged on the cliff, three black-robed cultivators stood completely detached in the dense forest on the opposite side, coldly observing the scene, utterly indifferent to the lives of the attacked cultivators.

Hearing the screams and wails from the other side, the burly man among the three couldn't help but sneer: "Serves them right! Greed deserves the price for their desires!"

Beside him, a slender female cultivator was also completely hidden in a black robe, but she made sure the robe wrapped tightly around her body, thus vaguely revealing her beautiful figure.

Hearing the big man say that, she couldn't help but smile: "Isn't this a good thing? When they are exhausted after their battle with the zombies, we can then step in and harvest their souls to refine our 'Ten Thousand Souls Banner'."

Her voice trembled, filled with longing: "I hope its power will not disappoint us."

Hearing her say this, the last person, a gaunt old man whose body was hidden in a black robe, said in a deep voice, "Don't get too cocky. Our main target today is still Chen Shuling."

He looked up, his eyes burning with fervor, yet he still tried to keep his voice calm and steady: "The souls of these rogue cultivators are just fuel. If we can capture Chen Shuling, put his soul into the Myriad Soul Banner, and turn his body into a new zombie, then our sect will have hope of revival!"

"When the time comes, everything that needs to be settled will be settled!"

The other two nodded, said no more, and prepared themselves, gazing at the battlefield on the cliff ahead, anticipating the moment when the many rogue cultivators would be exhausted.

However, at that very moment, something completely unexpected happened!

Chapter 337 Divine Thunder Subdues Demons

On the cliff, Yun Chu'an had already summoned his Guan Dao. However, he was not in a hurry to join the battle. Instead, he stood still and used the "Qi Observation Method" to scan the entire battlefield, to determine the strength of the enemy and whether or not to fight.

At this moment, he had determined that most of these zombies were at the mid-Foundation Establishment level, with only two at the early Foundation Establishment level and one at the late Foundation Establishment level.

As for those at the higher Golden Core stage, there's only the one flying in the sky, fighting against the Zhao Kingdom's official cultivators; there probably aren't many more.

Therefore, the conclusion is that this battle can be fought!

With this thought in mind, he turned to look at Zhu Yunqing behind him, activated his lightning magic, and gave her a wink.

The latter understood his thoughts, did not object, nodded, and then his spiritual power surged, and he also began to enter a state of combat.

Only Hua Caiyan, looking at these zombies whose bodies were as hard as iron, glanced down at her throwing knife, and her eyes immediately became quite dejected.

Her attack methods focused more on exploiting the enemy's weaknesses, and she posed little threat to these incredibly tough corpses.

Therefore, she was inevitably a little frustrated at this moment. She had finally broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage, but in her first battle, she didn't have much room to perform.

She was dejected, but Yun Chu'an, who was ahead of her, had no time to care about her feelings. Golden lightning surged and crackled around his body, divine thunder gathered at the blade, and he rushed to Diao De'er's side first, slashing down at the zombie clinging to him!

"Ah--"

The zombie hissed, sensing the threat, and abruptly dodged the lightning. But no matter how fast it was, it was still a zombie without consciousness, without magic, and with an extremely stiff body. How fast could it possibly be?

Yun Chu'an, however, is a cultivator who is proficient in thunder magic!

Driven by lightning magic, his body moved forward. With a twist of his arm, the blade in his hand slashed at the zombie. Although it failed to create a deep wound that exposed bone, it caused thousands of lightning bolts to surge into its body all at once!

"Uh—oh—uh—"

Golden lightning flashed across the zombie's body, and wisps of charred odor emanated from it. The demon opened its gaping maw, letting out several unintelligible screams before its entire body stiffened completely, and it fell limply to the side, utterly incapacitated.

The resentful remnant soul that had been forcibly sealed within its body by the corpse-driving sect cultivators with their magic power to drive its movements had just been completely shattered by Yun Chu'an's lightning. Thus, it truly became a corpse, with no ability to resist anymore.

"call……"

Yun Chuan breathed a sigh of relief, looking at the zombie on the ground, feeling that the process was unexpectedly easy.

This is the restraining relationship between the evil spirits of the Divine Thunder Team. The golden lightning is the might of heaven, the wrath of the heavens descending upon the world. When it strikes, the body and soul of the one struck will be struck together and reduced to ashes.

Ordinary cultivators often have equally strong bodies and souls, so as long as their bodies don't perish, their souls won't die. But zombies are different. Their seemingly powerful bodies contain only a tiny, broken, and weak soul. So, they can be destroyed by striking them with lightning without having to deal with their hard bodies.

Among the many cultivators present, only Yun Chu'an was their greatest nemesis!

"Ah...ha...cough cough..."

Diao De'er got up and coughed violently for a while. Even though the zombie's fingernails couldn't pierce his skin in the end, they still pinched him so hard that he was in great pain.