Chapter 81

In the silent, wind-swept valley, the nearby birds and beasts were frozen by the chilling gusts. The night enveloped the vast valley, with a bright moon hanging in the sky. Li She, having used six-tenths of his yin energy to transform the Twelve Heavenly Pools, now had a deathly pale face. He sat cross-legged, beginning to absorb the yin energy emitted by the moon to replenish himself.

With his eyes closed, Li She sensed the surrounding plants and trees. The Twelve Heavenly Pools, thirteen in total, feasted like wild beasts on the fallen corpses, sucking the remaining blood from their bodies. After a hearty meal, their dull eyes gradually regained their luster, and their originally black pupils slowly turned red.

In an instant, power and inherited memories filled their bodies. "Aaaaaa..." The Twelve Heavenly Pools howled to the sky, the overwhelming yin energy sweeping across a ten-mile radius. The birth of thirteen red-eyed zombie kings altered the plot that the world's will had arranged, like a fatal virus.

Li She, with his eyes closed, smiled in satisfaction. The 'Divine Thief Token' on his chest burst into a brilliant light. The pattern of the sun, moon, mountains, and rivers, and the symbol of controlling the universe, slowly came to life. An invisible giant hand reached towards the sky, stirring the originally clear and bright sky. The spectacular phenomenon of a dragon drawing water appeared again, and the invisible giant hand scooped up the qi of heaven and earth before retreating into the 'Divine Thief Token.'

After being nourished by this qi, the 'Divine Thief Token' regained its dark and chaotic luster.

Rules create the world, and the world generates will to manage the changing seasons, the rising sun, and the setting moon. One could say that every person's fate follows the script of the world's will. Whether one is an emperor or a beggar, they follow their destiny throughout their life.

In the 'Feng Yun' world, Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun, these two favored by fate, are the main characters of the entire world. Everything seems to revolve around them, and the Twelve Heavenly Pools are merely one of many supporting roles. Their existence contributed to the fame of the Sword Saint and also honed Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun.

Now that the Twelve Heavenly Pools have been transformed by Li She into 'zombies,' they are immortal and as strong as steel. Even Di Shi Tian would not be able to withstand the combined power of the thirteen. Could the Sword Saint still achieve fame through them? Could Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun still survive their pursuit?

The world's will, like a mindless computer program, would not arrange for the Sword Saint to slaughter them or for the Twelve Heavenly Pools to confront Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun. Otherwise, the carefully arranged main characters of the world might be eliminated.

Therefore, the Twelve Heavenly Pools are filtered out by the world's will, excluded from the growth path arranged for Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun. This is also why 'zombies' are excluded from the three realms and six paths. The powerful 'zombies' are an unstable factor, capable of altering the fate of the main characters, so the world's will naturally would not arrange for them to meet.

But would Li She, as a 'Drought Demon,' let the world's will have its way?

As the Twelve Heavenly Pools gradually awoke, their minds were filled with inherited information. The 'zombies' created by Li She differ from those created by Jiang Chen in this aspect.

If Jiang Chen were not overwhelmed by excessive yin energy, he would not bite anyone. In his eyes, the blood of mortals is filthy.

Li She, however, transformed the Twelve Heavenly Pools into 'zombies' while fully conscious. Therefore, during the transformation, he not only infused yin energy to turn them into 'zombies' but also imparted some of his memories to them.

Zombies are a strictly hierarchical race, with red eyes, green eyes, yellow eyes, blue eyes, white eyes, and black eyes symbolizing the ruling relationship within the race. Red-eyed zombie kings have absolute authority.

To the 'zombies,' Li She, as a 'Drought Demon,' is a god-like existence.

Zombies feed on resentment and blood, existing outside the three realms and six paths, and are immortal. This information is highly attractive to the newly transformed Twelve Heavenly Pools.

Even the great Emperor Qin Shi Huang spent the entire nation's resources to pursue immortality. Immortality is a fatal temptation for mortals.

At this moment, in the eyes of the Twelve Heavenly Pools, Li She, the 'Drought Demon,' is a god. His noble bloodline, inherited from the Yellow Emperor, can make them immortal. What else could be a god?

Li She slightly opened his eyes and saw the fervent gazes of the Twelve Heavenly Pools. He smiled, and the Twelve Heavenly Pools, seeing Li She open his eyes, all knelt down, worshiping him.

"Do you still have your original internal energy?" Li She asked.

Tong Huang, hearing Li She's words, quickly replied, "Master, although our internal energy has been partially eroded by yin energy, the remaining part has become more refined. There are signs of breaking through to the innate realm."

"Hmm, it seems as I thought. In the real world, there are no 'zombies,' so when transforming Carlo Gambino, a zombie with mental abilities appeared. In the 'Feng Yun' world, there are also no 'zombies.' Therefore, the Twelve Heavenly Pools retained their internal energy after being transformed into 'zombies.'" Li She mused to himself.

When he was transformed by Jiang Chen into a 'Drought Demon,' his 'Drought Demon' bloodline was more powerful than that of a 'zombie.' Therefore, his internal energy, compared to the 'Drought Demon' bloodline, was inferior and was completely eroded by yin energy.

"Good! From now on, you Twelve Heavenly Pools will each guard the territories of the Five Gates and Seven Sects. You will be the new managers of the business in Mandala Manor. At the same time, form a killer organization that covers all of Central China. Call it 'Heavenly Pool Killers.' Remember, you can turn those who reach the innate realm into your descendants, but you must not harm others. Here are 600,000 taels of silver. Divide it among yourselves to develop your power." Li She said with authority.

Hearing Li She's words, the Twelve Heavenly Pools quickly replied, "We will follow Master's instructions and dedicate our lives to completing Master's great cause."

To 'zombies,' a 'Drought Demon' is the supreme existence, and they would never betray. After arranging everything, Li She returned to Mandala Manor, waiting for the 'Feng Yun' world to open.

Time, for a being with infinite life, is just a number. In ten years, the business of 'Mandala Manor' had taken over half of the entire Chinese mainland, even drawing the attention of the supreme martial artists.

Time flows like water, and as the saying goes, "Thirty years on this side of the river, thirty years on the other." In ten years, a child can become a youth, and many heroes can grow old. The martial arts world is a place of constant change. Many martial arts masters have fallen to the ravages of time, while many young masters have emerged. Five years ago, the Five Gates and Seven Sects reached their peak and, with no room for further expansion, began to attack each other, leading to a period of bloodshed. The once powerful Five Gates and Seven Sects declined, and new sects began to rise.

The Unrivaled City, named after the Sword Saint, began to control the area south of the Yellow River. Although the Sword Saint retired after failing to defeat Wu Ming, his fame remained, and no one dared to challenge the Unrivaled City.

In the area south of the Yangtze River, due to the continuous wars between the Five Gates and Seven Sects, a power vacuum was formed. Without the control of strong sects, the ambitious Xiong Ba began to rise. With his Three Supreme Skills—Heavenly Frost Fist, Cloud-Dispelling Palm, and Wind God Leg—unmatched, the reputation of the Heavenly Society grew.

At the same time, the 'Heavenly Pool Killers' organization emerged, showing a trend of becoming a major force. The 'Heavenly Pool Killers' are strictly hierarchical, and it is said that there is no target they cannot kill. As long as the price is right, even the supreme martial artists can be eliminated.

The entire Chinese mainland, originally controlled by the Heavenly Slaughter Sect, Ghost Blade Sect, Divine Spear Sect, Five Poison Sect, Giant Spirit Sect, Huashan Sect, Kongtong Sect, Emei Sect, Wudang Sect, Shaolin Sect, Qingcheng Sect, and Kunlun Sect, was completely divided.

The entire Chinese mainland is dominated by four major forces. However, in the martial arts world, 'Mandala Manor' and 'Heavenly Pool Killers' are generally excluded, and the Heavenly Society and Unrivaled City are called the Northern and Southern Heroes.

Because 'Mandala Manor' is primarily a commercial entity and never involves itself in martial arts disputes, although it has many skilled practitioners, the manor's owner is rarely seen, and no one knows who the owner of this immensely wealthy estate is.

The 'Twelve Heavenly Pool Towers,' each with extraordinary strength, are said to have highly skilled leaders, but no one knows the location of the headquarters of the 'Twelve Heavenly Pool Towers' or has ever seen the twelve leaders. Therefore, the 'Heavenly Pool Killers' are not considered a martial arts sect.

The Heavenly Society and Unrivaled City, on the other hand, are real martial arts sects. The Heavenly Society controls the entire Yangtze River basin, with tens of thousands of disciples. Xiong Ba presents a dominant posture. The Unrivaled City controls the area south of the Yellow River, with the fame of the Sword Saint and nearly ten thousand disciples, making it a dominant force.

At this point, 'Mandala Manor' is comparable to a city, with various merchants coming and going every day. The 'Immortal Drunken' and silk produced by 'Mandala Manor' are sold throughout the Chinese mainland.

After ten years of a leisurely life, Li She, Wang Yuyan, and Li Yunluo spent their days together. Amidst the beautiful green mountains and clear waters, in pavilions and corridors, Li She lay on a reclining chair, enjoying the service of the beauties.

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