Urban Martial Saint

Watching Nai Kun’s corpse being buried, Ye Qing and the others finally left this mountainous area. After a night of turmoil, the three of them did not feel tired, but they were still somewhat disappointed for not achieving the expected results.

This time, they primarily came over to inquire about the method to open the Devouring Demon Flower from these sorcerers. Although they found the method, it required sacrificing the lives of those children, which Ye Qing certainly wouldn’t choose. Besides, Ning Qianshu mentioned one more method to him, but it wasn’t easy either. The Sun Shooting Bow was not something easily borrowed and used!

Since Ye Qing and the others resolved the problem with Grand Master Nai Kun, they didn’t linger around and headed directly south with those sorcerers. Although these sorcerers agreed to retreat to Southeast Asia, to prevent any incidents, Ye Qing and the others decided to ensure they actually left. After all, these sorcerers knew how to resurrect the Corpse Ghost Dragon. If they allowed it to be unleashed, it would herald a true disaster!

On the hillside where Nai Kun was buried, for safety’s sake, Ye Qing had the Military Department bring some large rocks to weigh down the ground, thoroughly pacifying it. This way, even the villagers wouldn’t dare dig randomly here, and Grand Master Nai Kun’s corpse would be firmly compressed underground.

By deep into the night, several cranes finally finished their work, bringing many hefty rocks to densely cover the area. After a day of hustle, these workers were exhausted, not staying on the hill but driving down straight away.

The moonlit night was dark and quiet, with the occasional insect songs being quite scarce. This mountainous area was so remote that rarely anyone passed by during the day, and undoubtedly not at night.

Below ground, Nai Kun’s body was thoroughly buried. The pressure of the soil began deforming his skeleton. Ye Qing and the others exerted much effort to prevent the spread of the venom from the corpse. At such depths, not even worms from the underground would crawl here.

However, even under such circumstances, Nai Kun’s body began transforming. Nai Kun had been dead for over a day, yet his corpse was gradually swelling. Despite the heavy soil above, nothing could stop the inflation. Nai Kun’s body seemed inflated with air, swelling like a balloon, until it burst all the soil away with great force.

If Ye Qing and the others witnessed such happenings, they would surely be agitated beyond belief. How could a dead Nai Kun cause such events? How could his body swell like this? Or, perhaps, Nai Kun isn’t truly dead?

Yet, Nai Kun’s entire body possessed no intact part; his facial features were already nonexistent. His internal organs were devoured by the Bone-Attaching Maggots. Under these conditions, claiming he wasn’t dead was simply impossible. But what was happening to cause such sudden changes in his corpse?

Nai Kun’s body gradually swelled into a spherical form, pushing all surrounding soil aside, basically creating a small space beneath the ground. By this point, Nai Kun’s body had reached its swelling peak, threatening to explode at any further expansion.

At last, Nai Kun’s body ceased swelling. After a moment, something began to protrude from the once bulging flesh, looking as though something was trying to break free from inside.

This situation persisted for about five minutes until the protruding piece slowly pushed up, forcibly bursting Nai Kun’s swollen flesh sphere. With a dull bang, Nai Kun’s body shattered, spraying blood and flesh everywhere. When the blood and flesh finally settled, a short child emerged slowly from within.

Nai Kun’s body exploded, but a child crawled out?! What on earth is happening?

If Ye Qing and Shen Tianjun were present, they would surely be stunned, having never encountered such eerie circumstances.

Though the child looked about three or four years old, small and young, his face bore no signs of age matching his size, seeming almost elder-like. Consequently, his entire appearance was quite bizarre. Covered head to toe in the remnants from Nai Kun’s exploded body and without clothing, this image significantly enhanced his eerie charm.

Emerging from Nai Kun’s corpse, the child appeared small yet displayed no confusion on his countenance. Glancing around, he took a deep breath, then suddenly extended both his hands, digging into the overhead soil layer, easily pulling down a large chunk of earth.

If anyone saw his actions, they’d undoubtedly be bewildered. The child’s hands appeared as ordinary and fragile as any other child’s, but they dug into the soil layer as easily as shovels, swiftly extracting more earth than an adult using a spade.

The child was incredibly quick, tossing the extracted earth beneath his feet to elevate himself, promptly continuing upward. It was clear he intended to dig himself free. Judging by his speed, it seemed a matter of merely an hour until his exit was carved!

Meanwhile, in the Twelve Green Halls headquarters on Tai Island, Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue still sat before the Heaven Earth Man Tri-Map. However, he wasn’t looking at the map now, having closed his eyes for a brief rest. Lately, he’s spent considerable time examining the Tri-Map matters in the basement, truly wearing him out.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue’s eyes burst open, his gaze flaring with visible intensity, testifying to his formidable inner strength. His face then showed signs of surprise and shock, eventually leading him to softly sigh, ”Man’s schemes fall short of heaven’s plans! Man’s schemes fall short of heaven’s plans indeed!”

No sooner had he spoken than a hurried figure rushed into the basement doorway—it was the disciple of Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue. Seeing Lin Xuan Yue with open eyes, joy bloomed on his face, quickly approaching to say, ”Master, fantastic news! We’ve just received word from Ning Qianshu that Grand Master Nai Kun is dead, everything has been resolved, and the remaining sorcerers have been sent back to Southeast Asia. It seems the Corpse Ghost Dragon won’t reappear!”

But Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue didn’t show a joyful expression. He looked at his disciple before shaking his head slowly, saying, ”Though Grand Master Nai Kun is dead, the Corpse Ghost Dragon may yet resurface!”

”Huh?” His disciple paused, confused, ”Master, didn’t you say that Grand Master Nai Kun and the Corpse Ghost Dragon’s fates were linked, and that once Nai Kun was dead, the Corpse Ghost Dragon couldn’t reappear? Nai Kun has died now, so, is it possible for the Corpse Ghost Dragon to reemerge?”

Lin Xuan Yue shook his head, ”Though Grand Master Nai Kun died, his body’s inhabitant, still connected to the Corpse Ghost Dragon’s fate, hasn’t!”

”What do you mean?” The disciple was utterly bewildered.

”Initially, I underestimated the Corpse Ghost Dragon, presuming it merely connected its fate to Grand Master Nai Kun superficially. Now, I finally comprehend its actual scheme!” Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue sighed, saying, ”The Corpse Ghost Dragon is extremely cunning and learned the Zhouyi Bagua from our Taoist Sect in early years, mastering some techniques to disrupt heavenly fate. It didn’t just connect its fate to Grand Master Nai Kun himself but tied it to Nai Kun’s body’s inhabitant.”

”Someone inside Grand Master Nai Kun’s body?” The disciple’s eyes widened, ”Master, Grand Master Nai Kun was male, what… what person could reside inside him?”

”Among Southeast Asian sorcery techniques, many evil arts exist; the Corpse Ghost Dragon merely used one—the Mother-Child Spell!” Lin Xuan Yue spoke gravely, ”The Mother-Child Spell plants an embryo inside a human body, akin to nurturing a living corpse. However, Mother-Child Spell and Living Corpse cultivation methods differ; children nurtured by Mother-Child Spell grow within, only emerging if the mother dies, unbeknownst even to the host herself.”

His disciple inhaled sharply, speaking with a shaking voice, ”There… there’s such a sorcery technique?”

”Southeast Asian sorcery is full of oddities and numerous branches, defying understanding. Fundamentally, however, it fuses Miao Borderlands Gu Techniques with Huaxia’s ancient evil arts, essentially controlling the human body.” Lin Xuan Yue elaborated, ”However, the Corpse Ghost Dragon is unique, being the strongest sorcerer of Southeast Asia. Not only unparalleled in sorcery but also learned from both Buddhist and Taoist sects, making him highly dangerous. I suspect Nai Kun’s body housed the planned Mother-Child Spell, with the child merely a fragment of the Corpse Ghost Dragon himself!”

”A fragment?” The disciple was caught, asking, ”Master, what do you mean by a fragment?”

”It’s a method in Southeast Asian sorcery, creating a living being from one’s own flesh. It uses the Five Poisons as inner organs and flesh as external organs, forming a living person.” Lin Xuan Yue explained, ”However, this fragment lacks the main body’s abilities. Simply put, the fragment lacks thought capability, birthed solely for a specific purpose. Once fulfilled, the fragment loses all use, and even if the main body wishes to assign new tasks, it’s futile.”