Chapter 318: Chapter 189: The First Tripod Cauldron Acquired

POP! POP! POP!

A dense flurry of crisp pops rang out one after another, merging into a single chorus that echoed through the underground space.

The puppets in the front row collapsed, and the ones in the back immediately followed.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +1]

[Demon Points +5]

[Demon Points +1]

...

As Gu Zheng directed the three hundred sixty blades to fly and slice through the Corpse Puppets, he simultaneously used Spirit Capturing from a distance to harvest Demon Points.

He was so fast that by the time people from the other two tunnels heard the commotion and ran out to see what was happening, the thousand-plus Corpse Puppets in the underground space had already been completely slaughtered.

The Demon Points he harvested exceeded one thousand one hundred!

"What’s going on?"

"Who’s there—"

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

The moment the shocked cries and low shouts rang out, Gu Zheng redirected the three hundred sixty blades, sending them hurtling through the air to slice through the dozen or so people emerging from the two tunnels.

"Damn it, it’s an ambush!"

"Run—"

SQUELCH! SQUELCH! SQUELCH!

Over a hundred blades on each side tore through the air and carved into the crowd.

In a single pass, they slaughtered everyone, dismembering them into pieces.

The thick stench of blood, mixed with Yin Fiend Qi and Death Qi, permeated the spacious underground chamber and began to spread outward through the three tunnels.

In his own tunnel, Gu Zheng used Wind Manipulation to gather all the scents, compressing them into a single ball.

After carefully sensing the other two tunnels, Gu Zheng darted into the one where he felt several powerful auras.

SWOOSH!

WHOOSH~

The sound of rushing wind lingered in the air.

Gu Zheng rushed into the tunnel, and before he had taken more than a few steps, five people came running toward him.

The young man in the lead had a distinguished air, both noble and arrogant, and his clothes were rather exquisite.

When he "saw" Gu Zheng, his pupils contracted. ’A Heroic Body Realm expert?’

Hm?

Gu Zheng, who was still wearing his Invisibility Cloak, heard this, yanked off the cloak, and stored it away. At the same time, his three hundred sixty blades shot forward in a uniform swarm.

"Damn it! Retreat!"

The young man cried out in alarm as his Divine Wondrous power surged. He thrust out two sinister, chilling claw imprints, desperately trying to intercept the blades.

Unfortunately for him, three hundred of the blades vanished into thin air, while the remaining dozens shattered his claw imprints as if they were cutting through tofu.

"SQUELCH! SQUELCH! SQUELCH!"

The three hundred vanished blades shot out from the void, shredding everyone, including the young man, into countless pieces.

SWOOSH~

From a distance, Gu Zheng used Absorption to snatch the Storage Pouch from the young man’s waist.

Then, directing the blades to fly ahead, he continued deeper into the tunnel.

"Chuanye, what’s the situation?"

A calm, deep voice called out from the depths of the corridor.

WHOOSH~

Gu Zheng accelerated, flying straight into the depths of the corridor.

After a few bursts of speed, he arrived before a sealed stone chamber.

"Hm? You’re not Chuanye?"

Inside the stone chamber, a figure sitting motionlessly in meditation sensed the anomaly and exclaimed in surprise, "Who are you? This is a stronghold of the Yong Family. To barge in uninvited is quite presumptuous, and improper..."

SHIINNNG~

A cold glint of light flashed and was gone.

BOOM!

A single strike from the Heaven-piercing Halberd forcibly split the stone door of the chamber in two.

His Divine Wondrous power surged as he slammed his palm forward.

CRASH~

Driven by immense force, the two halves of the stone door flew into the chamber.

Gu Zheng followed close behind, his three hundred sixty blades flying in perfect formation toward the figure who had just spoken.

"You’re looking for... It’s you?!"

Yong Xingdian cried out in alarm. The aura around him exploded, transforming into a ball of Yin Fiend Qi that coalesced into a Palm Seal. As he swiftly struck out, he finally saw Gu Zheng.

SWISH! SWISH~

SHIING!

Gu Zheng’s figure flickered, and the Heaven-piercing Halberd flashed like cold light as he swung it down once more.

There was no technique, only pure power and speed.

The strike tore through space, descending upon Yong Xingdian’s head.

BZZZZ~

A grayish-white shield materialized around Yong Xingdian’s body. Two spheres appeared in his palms, his Divine Wondrous power surging frantically as he activated a Spiritual Attack in a desperate attempt to block and counter.

But he was half a step too late, and his efforts were futile.

SQUELCH! SQUELCH! SQUELCH!

First, the three hundred sixty blades pierced his shield, ignored the spatial distortions, and passed right through Yong Xingdian’s body.

SHIIING!

SHUNK!

Then, the Heaven-piercing Halberd came down, completely shattering the shield and cleaving Yong Xingdian in two.

"You..."

His eyes wide, Yong Xingdian stared deathly at Gu Zheng. His mouth opened as if to say something, but in the end, nothing came out. His body split into two halves, and blood and organs spilled across the floor.

"Hrrrr..."

"ROAR!!"

The moment Yong Xingdian died, a beast’s roar—filled with suppressed fury and shock—erupted from another direction.

’A beast’s roar?’

Gu Zheng recalled his blades, a thought crossing his mind.

’The Yong Family’s Immortal Corpse Dragon?’

’Is there one standing guard here, too?’

SWOOSH~

Snatching the Storage Pouch from Yong Xingdian’s waist with Absorption, Gu Zheng turned and hurried back down the corridor toward the main underground chamber.

Just as he emerged, THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! An Evil Flood Dragon burst out of the other tunnel. It was wreathed in a foul stench, its skin was rotting, and it had sharp horns and two claws growing from its abdomen. It was a vicious creature, but it lacked a true dragon’s whiskers, scales, or aura!

It wasn’t an Immortal Corpse Dragon—or rather, it hadn’t fully matured into one yet.

For now, it was only a Corpse Flood Dragon!

Its body was nearly ten meters long and as thick as a water vat, wrapped in a putrid, nauseating stench. The moment it appeared, it released an oppressive force comparable to the peak of the Heroic Body Realm and charged at Gu Zheng.

SWOOSH!

Ignoring the oppressive force, Gu Zheng’s figure flickered as he charged forward at top speed.

"ROAR~!"

The Corpse Flood Dragon roared in shock and fury, opening its massive, fang-filled maw and swiping at Gu Zheng with its front claws.

SWOOSH~

"SCHLICK!"

The Heaven-piercing Halberd swung, its light flashing for an instant. A vicious dragon claw was sent flying through the air, splattering putrid blood everywhere.

"ROAR~!"

The Corpse Flood Dragon’s body writhed as it shrieked in terror and tried to retreat.

’Trying to retreat now?’

’Too late!’

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

Gu Zheng’s figure teleported, flickering as he circled the Corpse Flood Dragon once.

SLICE! SLICE! SLICE!

A few flashes of light later, the Corpse Flood Dragon had been hacked into segments, which lay scattered on the ground amid pools of stinking blood.

Spirit Capturing!

’...No reaction?’

’No! It’s not dead yet!’

Heaven-piercing Halberd in hand, Gu Zheng stood beside the Corpse Flood Dragon. Through his Shadow ability, he saw an invisible power within the creature’s dismembered body, controlling the dissipating energy and forcing it to reconverge.

Driven by this invisible power, the pieces of the corpse slowly began to knit themselves back together, attempting to heal and reform!

’Immortal Corpse Dragon? Immortal? Does that mean it can’t die?’

Gu Zheng didn’t believe it.

He swung the Heaven-piercing Halberd, using the Divine Weapon’s sharpness to hack the segments into even smaller chunks.

In less than the time it took to take three breaths, the dozen or so segments of the corpse were now smashed into dozens of pieces.

No, hundreds of pieces!

After he finished, Gu Zheng stopped and used his Shadow ability to sense it again.

The invisible force within the Corpse Flood Dragon was still there, but it was much weaker now.

’It can still reform?’

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH~

Gu Zheng brandished his Heaven-piercing Halberd and continued to hack and slice.

He turned the hundreds of pieces into three hundred, then four hundred tiny chunks!

After he was done, he used a surge of Divine Wondrous power to scatter the fragments.

This time, when he used his Shadow ability to sense the remains, the invisible force had finally dissipated.

Spirit Capturing!

[Demon Points +33]

’That’s all?’

Gu Zheng’s brows rose. He scanned the four hundred pieces of the Corpse Flood Dragon and confirmed that it possessed no Demon Essence or Demon Pill.

This Corpse Flood Dragon was clearly a Tier-3 creature.

And yet it had no Demon Essence or Demon Pill...

’Something’s wrong!’

Gu Zheng turned and walked toward the tunnel the Corpse Flood Dragon had emerged from.

"What... what happened..."

To the sound of hurried footsteps, several guards who had been posted at the main entrance ran into the underground chamber.

They saw Gu Zheng and were just about to shout.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH~!

A few blades danced through the air, shooting forward.

THWIP! THWIP! THWIP!

With a few dull thuds, the guards who rushed in were either decapitated or had their hearts pierced. They fell to the ground, stiff as boards and deader than dead.

Gu Zheng continued walking, entering the depths of the corridor where the Corpse Flood Dragon had been lurking.

And then, he saw the Celestial South Tripod!

The three-legged Black Tripod, taller than a man, was positioned in the core of an Array.

Around the Black Tripod was a groove, clearly worn into the ground by something sliding around it. This groove connected the base of the tripod cauldron to the other patterns in the Array.

’The Corpse Flood Dragon!’

’The Corpse Flood Dragon must have frequently coiled itself around the Celestial South Tripod.’

Gu Zheng’s brows twitched as his gaze fell into the open tripod cauldron.

Inside the Celestial South Tripod, a large mass of an unknown, viscous liquid swirled—a mixture of dark red and grayish-white.

’Spirit Capturing?’

[Demon Points +3559]