Chapter 100

The vanished master of the Talmah.

Muxiang's journey was, in a sense, a period of rest. Whenever there was a decent spot, he would try fishing, and if there were beautiful mountains or unusual sights, he would leisurely tour them like a countryside scholar. If there was a unique dish, he would deliberately order it and enjoy it.

Subduing the formidable enemy, Jiang Rengel, who possessed a power far superior to his own, was not a simple martial arts duel; it made Muxiang quite exhausted. He had to deceive, plot, and even pretend to fall for the enemy's tricks, all while preparing traps for the enemy from behind.

Muxiang was able to achieve this relatively easy victory—though it was a struggle that lasted nearly three hours—thanks to the absence of the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Corps. If the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Corps had remained at the headquarters, he would have had to pay a much higher price. The Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Corps was the only force among Jiang Rengel's that could effectively contain Muxiang.

In any case, since the work he had done so far was more mental than physical, Muxiang provided himself with a refreshing rest by leisurely wandering around. For Muxiang, a pure martial artist who knew nothing of plots and tricks, the past year had been very tiring.

While leisurely wandering, Muxiang sat in a restaurant and was drinking a bowl of soup made from yellow snakes, a local specialty, when he encountered five fierce-looking martial artists. They seemed very hungry, ordering five roasted ducks and five duck soups, which they devoured hastily before quickly leaving the restaurant. Muxiang followed them.

Muxiang showed interest in them because he found their conversation quite intriguing. In fact, the only things they said in the restaurant were to order food and ask about the bill, but Muxiang could hear another voice. Of course, this was a private conversation, so no one else in the restaurant could hear it.

"Boss, is that really true?"

"Of course, have you ever seen me lie?"

"But the tomb of Master Gou Hui..."

"That's why it's a trap set by the Blood Sect. The real one is elsewhere. Master Gou Hui wasn't known for accumulating wealth. Why would he build a grand tomb filled with treasures?"

"But..."

"The tomb only contains the Black Ink Sword and the Northern Ming Skill, the greatest of the Ten Lost Treasures of the martial world, which disappeared with his death."

Upon hearing this, Muxiang gave a wry smile. The Northern Ming Skill was already in his possession, having been passed from the sect leader Han Zhongji to Jiang Rengel, and now to himself as the new master of the headquarters. However, after hearing the next words of the fierce man, he could no longer smile wryly.

"The Northern Ming Skill?"

"Yes, the Northern Ming Skill consists of two volumes. One was given to his son, Master Gou Tian, before Master Gou Hui disappeared, but the other was always kept on his person. It's probably with the Black Ink Sword."

'There's another copy?'

As Muxiang's eyebrows twitched, they paid the bill and left, mounting their horses and starting to ride. The horses were large, with long, powerful legs, making them far superior in speed and endurance to the horse Muxiang had bought for fun at the market.

Muxiang felt the difference in less than half an hour, quickly took out the necessary items from his saddlebag, and began to chase them using his lightness skill. He had plenty of time, and even if the sword was not necessary, he wanted to read the second copy of the Northern Ming Skill.

The Northern Ming Skill, which he had read after forcibly obtaining it from the sect leader, greatly helped his martial arts achievement. Therefore, even if he was very busy, Muxiang would have put everything aside to follow them, but now, fortunately, he had plenty of time, so there was no need to hesitate.

Muxiang planned to quietly follow them until they found the other Northern Ming Skill and then try to resolve the matter peacefully. If words didn't work, he intended to use physical force. Muxiang was only interested in whether they would find it, not in how he would obtain it from them.

* * *

"They're following us?"

"Hehehe, from the looks of his weak physique, the information from the Wu Ying Sect wasn't very reliable, but it turns out to be true. Now that he's started to chase us, be more careful. Pay attention to your words and actions, and especially, only communicate with each other in secret. Got it?"

"Yes, Black Horse Chief."

They seemed unaware that Muxiang was following them as they stopped at San Kuang to investigate various things. Then, they moved to Tai Xing Mountain, as if they had found some clue. They relied on a thick book and an old, worn piece of parchment, both of which were carefully crafted baits to catch a big fish.

Muxiang followed them persistently for ten days until they reached Tie Yu Mountain. Indeed, Tie Yu Mountain was a beautiful place, suitable for someone like Gou Hui to cultivate his martial arts and end his life. The terrain was neither too steep nor too gentle, and there were beautiful rock formations scattered throughout.

However, as he slowly followed them, Muxiang felt something strange. He could sense faint traces of demonic and evil energy in various places. But Muxiang did not turn back. He did not think there was a master capable of subduing him, and even if there were someone as formidable as Xue Ma, he could easily escape without a direct confrontation.

After hiding and following the figures in front of him for so long, Muxiang now approached them openly. The hidden group realized that Muxiang had noticed their presence.

"Whistle!"

A long whistle, carrying deep inner strength, echoed, and soon, ambushers sprang out from the ground on both sides of Muxiang. Muxiang immediately struck the one who appeared next to him with a palm. However, the resistance he felt through his hand was quite strong. Although he had thought the attacker was just a skilled ambusher, the opponent, who should have been killed instantly, staggered and got up again.

"Ughhh."

"Rumble."

Seeing the strange sounds and hazy eyes, Muxiang finally realized who the opponent was.

"Ah, they're zombies. But why are these zombies so fast? It's different from what I've heard."

The zombies, now roaring and attacking, were not the usual zombies Muxiang was familiar with. They were the Thousand Ling Zombies, a masterpiece created by the Blood Sect after the zombie-making technique was passed to Jiang Rengel's gang and further developed. Unlike regular zombies, these had some intelligence and could think and act on their own, so they didn't need to be controlled by a flute.

In the past, the Blood Sect leader Han Zhongji had created 3,000 Thousand Ling Zombies, which were faster and stronger than regular zombies, to eliminate Muxiang. Many of them were used and consumed in the process of eliminating the Blood Sect leader, but Jiang Rengel had replenished them, so there were 3,200 Thousand Ling Zombies here.

Seeing the Thousand Ling Zombie that had staggered and got up after the first blow, Muxiang immediately drew his sword. He didn't know how much strength the zombies were hiding, but he thought using his sword, his forte, would reduce the consumption of his inner strength.

Swish!

Muxiang used only the Dark Sword Technique, which consumed less inner strength than any high-level sword technique, to deal with the army of Thousand Ling Zombies. The dark blue light of the Muhun Sword cut through the Thousand Ling Zombies, which were said to be harder than iron, and dark red medicinal fluid and dead blood gushed out. Since 80% of the materials used to create the Thousand Ling Zombies were poisons, Muxiang's clothes soon had holes, but his body, which was immune to all poisons, was unaffected.

Using only the Dark Sword Technique, which maximized the sword's power and consumed less inner strength than any high-level sword technique, Muxiang could not cut down a large number of Thousand Ling Zombies at once, but he steadily disassembled them, one or two at a time, and sometimes three.

The Thousand Ling Zombies, which had even pushed the Blood Sect leader Han Zhongji and the Wu Ji Sword Emperor Yu Qingxue to the brink, seemed to have no effect on Muxiang, a master of the Talmah. When 400 Thousand Ling Zombies were disassembled, a panicked voice echoed.

"Unfold the Great Thousand Evil Demon Array!"

The Great Thousand Evil Demon Array, a legendary formation used only twice in the 1,000-year history of the Blood Sect, slowly activated. The demonic energy spread thickly in all directions, and the Thousand Ling Zombies seemed to go wild with even more power.

Originally, the Great Thousand Evil Demon Array gave more power to those with demonic or evil energy and made those without it struggle to use even half their strength. This formation was so deadly that it was restricted by the high-ranking masters of the Blood Sect after the destruction of the First Sect in the World, who were shocked by its power.

As the Thousand Ling Zombies went wild in the powerful formation of the Great Thousand Evil Demon Array, a similar phenomenon was occurring inside Muxiang's body.

The movement of the force that agitated his blood vessels made Muxiang feel as if his blood was boiling and his strength was surging throughout his body. Although he had transcended the limits of evil and could no longer feel like an evil person, Muxiang was still an evil person and was gaining power from the Great Thousand Evil Demon Array. This allowed one to infer that the source of Muxiang's inner strength was naturally evil.

After the Great Thousand Evil Demon Array was activated, Muxiang used even more powerful Dark Sword Techniques to cut down the Thousand Ling Zombies, and their numbers had been reduced to a few hundred. Jiang Rengel's lips were drying up.

Should he retreat? Or should he deploy the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Corps?

The trap he had trusted had failed to harm Muxiang. In the past, when he faced Han Zhongji and Yu Qingxue, who had reached the peak of evil and the peak of martial arts, he had finished them off. The Thousand Ling Zombies had drained their strength, so he had expected the same this time, but it was not helping at all. Muxiang had cut down more than 3,000 Thousand Ling Zombies and showed no signs of fatigue, unlike Han Zhongji and Yu Qingxue, who were panting and unable to perform at their best.

"Do you have confidence?"

The opponent seemed to understand Jiang Rengel's need for confirmation and looked at him. However, he was also shocked by the powerless defeat of the Thousand Ling Zombies, the best zombies created by their ancestors.

"Of course. But I need half an hour."

"Then prepare quickly. Before that guy disassembles all the Thousand Ling Zombies."

Jiang Rengel decided to observe a bit more and instructed Elder Ouyang Yun to send a message to the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Corps to maintain their position. He didn't want to lose more subordinates by getting caught in the chaos, which would reduce the possibility of his dream coming true.

The Blood Sect leader, dressed in a blood-red robe, finally began to move, and his subordinates started to move toward Muxiang as if they had been waiting. However, instead of rushing at Muxiang like the Thousand Ling Zombies, they stopped at a considerable distance and formed a formation.

They all held long staffs with skull shapes and chanted incantations, but upon closer inspection, they were not all chanting the same incantation. Among the 300 Blood Sect masters lined up behind the Blood Sect leader, 100 chanted incantations similar to the leader's, while the remaining 200 chanted incantations to bind the target and prevent it from escaping.

Muxiang, fighting the remaining Thousand Ling Zombies, felt a similar sensation to what had