A Pawn's Passage

As if its ferocity had been fully awakened, the Taiyin Corpse rose and began throwing punches wildly. Each blow landed on Qi Xuansu like the relentless tolling of a giant bell. Relying on his indestructible body, Qi Xuansu remained unmoved and even countered with punches of his own. With each strike, the Taiyin Corpse’s scale armor shattered, exposing the flesh beneath.

Qi Xuansu was a Martial Arts Practitioner, so to surpass him, the Taiyin Corpse had to overpower him through sheer strength.

Yet the Taiyin Corpse was not strong enough to suppress Qi Xuansu. Though it had a tremendously durable body and immense strength, it was not a Martial Arts Practitioner, lacking the indestructibility and ever-changing qualities. Thus, it held no real chance of victory.

After another exchange of punches, the Taiyin Corpse finally faltered and staggered backward.

A regular Taiyin Corpse could never have reached such power. Elder Yao had refined this corpse into a Great Asura and granted it partial intelligence. The Taiyin Corpse possessed form but lacked spirit. When combined, the two complemented each other perfectly, compensating for each other’s deficiencies.

The Taiyin Corpse did not attempt to take more blows, so it chose to retreat again. But the temple was limited in size, so where could it flee? It evaded Qi Xuansu’s fists but could not escape Qi Jiaoyao’s Pure Yang Evil-Dispelling Talisman. As its name implied, the talisman embodied supreme yang, specifically designed to counter yin entities. Although the Taiyin Corpse no longer carried typical corpse qi, its fundamental nature remained that of a zombie, and thus, it was still restrained by the talisman.

When the talisman landed on the Taiyin Corpse, blazing crimson flames erupted like a radiant sun. As the fierce fire engulfed it, the corpse let out a piercing, agonized scream.

Every gain had its loss. Without intelligence, one would not fear pain or death. With intelligence, one would have countless distractions and vulnerabilities.

Burned by the Pure Yang Evil-Dispelling Talisman, the Taiyin Corpse howled in agony. Its ferocity surged, and with a flash of movement, it appeared before Qi Jiaoyao, extending its long nails to strike downward.

Although protected by the Ruyi Light Barrier, the attack still broke through. Fortunately, as a Banished Immortal, Qi Jiaoyao immediately invoked the Joyous Cloud Shield, deflecting the strike slightly. Seizing the moment, she crushed a jade talisman, which allowed her to widen the gap between her and the corpse.

Qi Xuansu rushed in again, using Green Cloud to intercept the Taiyin Corpse.

The Taiyin Corpse opened its mouth and exhaled a surge of dark, heavy black qi, filling every corner of the temple. Suspended within it was a blood-red stone about the size of a heart.

If not for Qi Xuansu’s Martial Arts Practitioner physique and Qi Jiaoyao reactivating her Ruyi Light Barrier, they would have been forcibly transformed into yin beings due to the overwhelming yin energy.

Qi Jiaoyao exclaimed, “That’s the prototype of the Longevity Stone!”

The Taiyin Corpse wielded the Longevity Stone prototype and struck at Qi Jiaoyao. Qi Xuansu, holding Green Cloud, rushed straight at the corpse and attacked the Longevity Stone prototype with full force. His sword contained Dragon-Tiger Sword Qi, capable of splitting mountains and shattering stone with ease. Yet when it struck the Stone, a metallic clang resounded before he was violently repelled. The blade of Green Cloud also trembled uncontrollably.

It was obvious that the Longevity Stone prototype was the Taiyin Corpse’s core. Yet the fact that it dared use it in combat meant that while it was its fatal weakness, it was also the strongest part of its body. This made sense, as Qi Xuansu’s own Longevity Stone Heart functioned in a similar way.

The opportunity vanished in an instant. Though the Longevity Stone prototype was unharmed, Green Cloud was still an immortal sword. The Taiyin Corpse sensed the danger, opening its mouth to inhale sharply, swallowing the Stone back into its body.

At that moment, Qi Jiaoyao drew a blood talisman with the blood from her fingertip. With a flick, it appeared on the Taiyin Corpse’s chest, as if branded into its flesh, causing its body to stiffen.

Seizing the opportunity, Qi Xuansu used his Taiyin Spiritual Body to unleash the Taixuan Sword Heart Series from the Taiyin 13 Swords.

He did not aim for conventional vital points, because unless the Longevity Stone prototype was destroyed, such weaknesses were meaningless. Instead, he targeted the corpse’s joints to restrict its movement, especially the spine. Ordinary Daoist priests subdued zombies by driving jujube-wood nails into their spinal cords to immobilize them temporarily. Thus, Qi Xuansu’s final strike was a swift dash behind the Taiyin Corpse, thrusting directly at its spine.

Yet once again, what came next exceeded Qi Xuansu’s expectations. The corpse’s spine could not be pierced. Even with Green Cloud’s sharpness and the killing power of the Dragon-Tiger Sword Technique, the blade barely entered less than a centimeter. Instead, the attack further enraged the Taiyin Corpse. It forcibly broke through Qi Jiaoyao’s restraints and swept its arm sideways, sending Qi Xuansu flying.

Qi Xuansu’s back slammed into the wall, cracking it as he slowly slid down.

Qi Jiaoyao was equally decisive. She bit her tongue and spat out a mouthful of True Yang essence, using her blood essence to draw another True Yang Suppression Talisman.

As the talisman formed, a blood-colored sigil appeared above the Taiyin Corpse’s head, forcefully suppressing it.

Advancing instead of retreating, Qi Jiaoyao thrust forward with her sword, piercing straight through the Taiyin Corpse’s chest.

However, the Taiyin Corpse was far from an ordinary zombie. Even after being pierced through the chest, countless streams of black qi and foul black fluid poured from the wound. Under the erosion of this black vapor and liquid, the True Yang Suppression Talisman dissolved immediately, restoring the corpse’s mobility.

Qi Jiaoyao had no choice but to retreat, pulling out eight pre-prepared True Yang Suppression Talismans from her magical receptacle, arranged in the configuration of the Eight Gates to trap the Taiyin Corpse.

Unable to move, the Taiyin Corpse opened its mouth again and expelled the Longevity Stone prototype. Yin energy surged violently, instantly shattering all eight talismans.

Fortunately, Qi Xuansu arrived again, appearing behind the Taiyin Corpse. Channeling all his power into Green Cloud, he drove the sword fiercely into the back of its neck.

The Taiyin Corpse’s movements stalled briefly.

In the next instant, it flew into a frenzy, inhaling the Longevity Stone prototype and forcefully twisting its body around, ignoring the immortal sword lodged within it and lunging straight at Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu pulled out his sword and retreated over 10 meters before slashing again.

A thin crack appeared on the Taiyin Corpse’s forehead, from which dark fluid slowly seeped out.

Like a shadow clinging to its form, Qi Xuansu continued attacking without pause, fully activating Taixuan Sword Heart Series. His swordsmanship had already reached the pinnacle.

Countless fine wounds appeared across the Taiyin Corpse’s body, strands of black qi constantly leaking from them.

The Taiyin Corpse soon lost patience and forced its way into close range, engaging Qi Xuansu in an extremely rapid close-quarters battle. Green Cloud carved deeper and deeper wounds into the corpse, but at the same time, it drew closer to Qi Xuansu.

When it finally breached the one-meter gap, it seized Qi Xuansu by the throat, intending to snap his neck. Yet Qi Xuansu instantly manifested his Manly Immortal True Form, making it impossible for the corpse to twist his neck. Six additional arms emerged, one of them thrusting Pure Bodhi into the Taiyin Corpse’s lower abdomen, twisting within and causing its entire aura to fluctuate violently.

For an ordinary person, such wounds would mean certain death. But for an undead creature like the Taiyin Corpse, none of this was fatal. As long as the Longevity Stone prototype remained intact, it could continuously regenerate. Though it appeared miserable, it still retained the strength to fight.

At this moment, Qi Jiaoyao repeated her earlier tactic, striking while it was weakened. The sword qi shot forth like flowing mercury. The Taiyin Corpse seemed to be carved apart by a thousand blades, its flesh stripped away until only a skeletal frame remained, streaked with lingering blood threads that looked especially horrifying.

With the flesh gone, a dense mass of black qi was clearly visible within its chest and abdomen, and at its center was the Longevity Stone prototype, pulsing like a beating heart. With each pump, flesh regenerated over the Taiyin Corpse at a visible rate. However, each regeneration consumed enormous energy and could not continue indefinitely.

Suddenly, it seemed that some entity had seized control of the Taiyin Corpse. Its eyes regained clear black-and-white distinction, and a hoarse voice came from its mouth. “How dare you two trespass into the Lingshan Paradise and disturb the Great Witches’ slumber.”

Qi Xuansu was not particularly surprised. Previously, the Earthly Preceptor had granted him Class-A access to control the Sakka, allowing him to speak through it. This was likely a similar method.

However, referring to the Eleven Witches as Great Witches was standard Daoist terminology. This suggested that the one controlling the Taiyin Corpse was a Daoist. At this thought, Qi Xuansu felt slightly uneasy. Could this be the Earthly Preceptor?

But upon further reflection, as one of the Three Deputy Grand Masters, the Earthly Preceptor likely would not speak in such a tone. Immortals tended to speak in riddles rather than plainly expressing the issue.

Qi Jiaoyao seemed to recognize this person’s identity. She shrank back slightly and stayed mum.

This made sense. Qi Jiaoyao had probably anticipated this situation long ago, which was why she deliberately wore a bronze mask, not daring to show her true face.

Qi Xuansu had no choice but to speak first. “Are you from the Yao family?”

The Taiyin Corpse did not attack immediately. After a brief silence, it asked in return, “Who are you? How is it that I’ve never seen you before?”

Qi Xuansu was momentarily stunned.

It was understandable that Qi Jiaoyao might not recognize him. After all, she had been trapped in the Lingshan Paradise for many years. But this person, who was capable of controlling the Taiyin Corpse, was clearly not trapped here and likely had the freedom to come and go. How could they not recognize Qi Xuansu, the youngest Sage of the Daoist Order? The only explanation was that they had been stationed in the Lingshan Paradise long-term and was cut off from outside contact.

That was indeed possible. After all, the first-rank Spirit Guard stationed at the Ghost Pass rarely left his post and had little contact with the outside world. Many such positions existed, though they were usually filled by Spirit Guards. Daoist priests typically avoided such duties.

Since the person did not recognize him, Qi Xuansu had no desire to introduce himself and invite future trouble. Instead, he said, “Must we have met before to cross paths?”

The Taiyin Corpse snorted coldly. “By order of the Earthly Preceptor, I am tasked with guarding the Lingshan Paradise. Anyone who enters without the Earthly Preceptor’s permission may be executed without trial.”

At that moment, an unrelated thought crossed Qi Xuansu’s mind. The Daoist Order’s legal framework had indeed made progress, even declaring execution without judicial procedure. In the past, the guard would have simply said, “Kill without mercy.”