From what Lu Yin had seen thus far, Mr. Guo was the second strongest expert among the Star Alliance Envoys, and he only stood beneath Zhou Tang. The older man’s ability to suppress star energy indicated that he was someone who had survived through three stellular tribulations, which meant that his power level was higher than 700,000. On the other hand, the corpse king that had attacked only had a power level of around 500,000. Even though the creature was immune to pain and fearless of death, it was still no match for Mr. Guo.
In just a moment, both of the corpse king’s arms had been severed by Mr. Guo’s wooden ruler.
Even Lu Yin felt shocked when he saw the wooden ruler take action. As expected of a teacher, even his weapon was something special.
The corpse king was clearly losing, so another corpse king immediately dashed forward to join the fight. Both of the corpse kings worked together to fight against Mr. Guo. The second corpse king was even stronger than the first, but more importantly, it was able to undergo a corpse king Transformation.
As the creature’s eyes turned gray, its fist struck out, and the impact not only cracked the metal remnants that had fallen to the New World, but it also shattered Mr. Guo’s wooden ruler.
Zhou Tang clenched his fists. “Mr. Guo’s forte isn’t battle. Have him use a power vessel.”
“Mr. Guo, use the power vessel!” Che Zhan yelled.
Mr. Guo’s face was flushed red all over, and his blood was racing through his veins. He had clearly been injured, and the loss of his wooden ruler meant that he no longer had a suitable weapon to use. Even condensing a weapon from stellular energy would not be effective against two corpse kings at once. The Envoy was at a disadvantage, and he was being cornered by two corpse kings.
Brother Hong and Che Zhan both stood up at the same time, ready to help.
Mr. Guo bellowed, “Since I’m going to die anyway, I’ll take one of them with me! Leave me my pride intact. I will not bring shame to the Thousand Paths family, and especially not to the Lu family!”
Brother Hong and Che Zhan both froze midstep. They gritted their teeth, but there was nothing that they could do aside from watch the fight.
Mr. Guo was forced back by a slap from the gray-eyed corpse king. Not only was this gray-eyed corpse king physically powerful, but it also possessed an odd innate gift that made it extremely difficult for Mr. Guo to defend himself. With a sudden wave of a hand, Mr. Guo threw out a splash of a black liquid.
Poison? Lu Yin was caught off guard, as poison did not seem to match Mr. Guo’s refined bearing.
“Flaming Ink Secret Technique.” Mr. Guo’s face turned grim.
Lu Yin carefully observed the black liquid. Black ink? Was the liquid actually ink? He suddenly thought of Wen Diyi. Lu Yin had found a massive amount of ink in the young man’s cosmic ring in the Dominion Realm; did it have something to do with this secret technique?
Mr. Guo’s ink clung to the bodies of the two corpse kings and seeped into their flesh. The man became incredibly solemn, and he appeared to age as his appearance grew ordinary. Lu Yin vaguely saw the ink being guided by something, and it seemed to form words. Someone was writing within the void by using the two corpse kings as brushes.
“Life resembles ink, as both vanish when burned,” Mr. Guo said as blood dripped from his lips. In front of him, the gray-eyed corpse king struck the Envoy’s chest, sending the man falling back multiple steps. He spat out a mouthful of blood as he looked at the two corpse kings before him. The ink was burning their bodies, as though he had just finished a calligraphy session.
After the flames burned through the ink, the corpse kings’ bodies began to burn as well. Their physical bodies that were supposedly invincible began disintegrating into nothingness along with the ink that was burning away.
Lu Yin was taken aback, the Flaming Ink… Secret Technique? Was this secret technique from the Wen family? Or did it come from Virtue Archives?
Mr. Guo’s face had gone pale, and he knelt down on the ground with one knee. He panted heavily, and there was a vivid palm print on his chest where he had been hit by the corpse king. The imprint was bone-deep, and it was obvious that the man had sustained serious injuries.
Brother Hong rushed forward, eager to trade places, only to be stopped by Mr. Guo’s raised hand. “I still have the power vessel.”
“It’s enough! Stop pushing yourself! Its clear that these monsters don’t want to suffer any unnecessary losses. The next one that they’ll send is guaranteed to be even more powerful, and it definitely won’t give you an opportunity to use a power vessel!” Brother Hong tried to convince his comrade.
Mr. Guo coughed up even more blood.
Che Zhan walked over. “Brother Hong, let me handle this.”
Matriarch of the Eastern Mountains also stood up. “I can join this fight too.”
At that moment, another corpse king suddenly raced towards the humans. It stared at them with scarlet eyes, and its gaze drove a spike of fear into everyone’s hearts. It was another corpse king with the strength of an Envoy, but this one’s strength could kick up the winds and scatter the clouds. It was noticeably stronger than the previous two corpse kings.
Zhou Tang stood. “Let me deal with this one.”
“Half of your foot is already in the grave. Save your efforts,” Mr. Guo coughed even as he refused help.
“You’re not doing much better yourself,” Zhou Tang retorted in a mild tone. Unlike his dispirited state when Lu Yin had first seen the man, he seemed rather encouraged now. “Since we’re going to die anyways, I might as well die on a battlefield. Not for the four ruling powers, but for the Perennial World itself!”
The third corpse king had already arrived, and Brother Hong and the others were ready to take action. However, the silhouette of another person suddenly flashed in front of them. The figure raised a hand to attack the corpse king while the corpse king raised its own arm to retaliate.
Bang!
Violent shockwaves rippled out in all directions, forcing Mr. Guo and the others back into the underground crevice. However, the shockwaves exploded right at the entrance and shot upwards before tearing through the void. At the same time, the ground vibrated from the impact.
Everyone snapped their heads around to stare at the entrance in shock. Lu Yin was holding the corpse king back.
Even though Lu Yin had managed to block the corpse king, the corpse king’s powerful counter had also forced him a few steps back. Even though he had the strength to face an Envoy, anyone who had survived a few tribulations would be beyond his current means to confront. Each step in cultivation taken after the Envoy realm was an obstacle that was practically impossible for a normal person to overcome. It was clear to Lu Yin that this corpse king would be a very difficult opponent to defeat at his current level. As for the three meter tall corpse king from before, that one had been an even more impossible task.
“Since we’ll all be dying anyway, you old farts should take a break,” Lu Yin said while playing it cool. He acted like he was having an easy time with the corpse king, and he stood at the entrance to the crevice, blocking off all of the corpse kings.
Mr. Guo and the rest were moved by the youth’s bravery. None of them feared death, but that still did not mean that they were willing to charge towards it. They had been forced into joining the Star Alliance whereas this Long Qi was someone from the White Dragon Clan with a high position within Humility’s Gate. Despite his lofty status, he was still courageous enough to stand in front of them and face death without considering his bright future and lofty background. Even Zhou Tang was impressed by the youth’s level of determination and bravery.
Needless to say, the others were even more awed.
At that moment, Lu Yin resembled an impassable mountain in their eyes. With such a person standing in front of them and protecting them, they would be safe as long as the mountain stood tall.
Zhou Tang stared at Lu Yin’s back. This young man was starting to resemble his young master more and more, especially his demeanor.
Lu Yin stood at the opening to the underground space, and he felt a sharp pain from his hand. Clashing with the corpse king a moment ago had certainly left him injured. Even with the Cloudguard Robes’ protection, the force from striking the corpse king’s hand had extraordinarily been painful. The corpse king was not just physically tough, as it had also used an innate gift or some strange battle technique that was definitely not a corpse king transformation.
Across from Lu Yin, the corpse king did not seem to be in no hurry to make a move. Instead, it stood in place, as though considering something.
All corpse kings had some degree of intelligence, but humans tended to forget that fact because they would be distracted by the corpse kings’ fearlessness and their disregard for death. The word “intelligence” could be seen in every corner of the battlefield behind the Mother Tree. It was not only left behind to remind humans to fight smartly, but also as a reminder that their enemies were intelligent creatures as well and that it would never do to underestimate such creatures.
Lu Yin himself had certainly never underestimated corpse kings, as he found their means of raising Redbacks something truly mysterious.
After a while, the corpse king’s hand suddenly rose, which caused Lu Yin to instantly grow wary.
The corpse king spread its hand open, and a dark gold light flashed out right under Lu Yin’s eyes. Somehow, the corpse king’s palm attacks were being transformed into a metallic material of some kind, and everyone was able to clearly see the lines in the creature’s palms that it threw at Lu Yin.
Lu Yin’s face twitched a bit. It was no wonder why that corpse king’s first attack had been able to injure him; the creature had an innate gift. However, why had the corpse king openly demonstrated its innate gift for Lu Yin to see?
There was a whoosh as the corpse king made a move. It once again attacked with both hands at the same time. The full force of its metallic palms stirred up a wave of panic in everyone watching Lu Yin from behind. Aside from Zhou Tang, no one else present could face such a powerful attack head on.
Golden battle force wrapped around Lu Yin’s body as he also lifted his hand to release a full 350 Stacks Vacuum Palm.
Bang!
Bang!!
Bang!!!
The two opponents’ hands clashed multiple times, creating a deafening noise and powerful sound waves each time that caused many of the people underground to spit out blood. Lu Yin, who was the one physically clashing against the corpse king, felt a terrible amount of pressure as well. He felt like he was trying to hold up the collapsing sky for everyone else. Fortunately, he had already opened his upper meridian point, so even if the vibrations injured him, he was able to quickly heal up.
However, he was still coming out on the losing end of each exchange.
There was another loud bang, as the corpse king had exerted even more force in its attack, and Lu Yin had not been able to keep up with the strength of his Vacuum Palm. This gave the corpse king an opportunity to hit Lu Yin in the chest before he could mount any sort of a defense. His chest trembled under the Cloudguard Robes, and he coughed up blood, giving him the appearance of a fallen warrior as he gritted his teeth. Clearly, directly countering the corpse king’s attacks was not going to work in Lu Yin’s favor. Corpse kings already had innately robust bodies, and they were also unable to feel any pain.
While Lu Yin was considering his situation, he quickly set up a Channeling Diagram, which diverted the power of the corpse king’s strikes away in all directions, blasting the nearby region. Each channel of force tore the void open, as each bit of diverted force could compare to a normal Envoy’s attack. One of the channels diverting the power of the corpse king’s attacks shot straight into the underground crevice, and Che Zhan had to quickly take action and use his sword to mitigate the channeled force. The channel was cut apart, but the sword also cracked. Che Zhan was forced back multiple steps from the force of the impact, and he turned pale.
Che Zhan was an Envoy himself, and yet he had been forced so far back. The others were not able to even imagine what sort of insane damage Lu Yin was facing aboveground.
The Channeling Diagram was unable to endure forever, and a palm strike eventually shattered the sourcebox array. Lu Yin then stepped forward and used the Teleportation Formation to appear behind the corpse king, where the youth slammed a palm into the back of the creature’s head.
The corpse king’s body disappeared, as it had entered the true universe. At the same time, Lu Yin quickly stepped into the true universe himself, and all the colors around him shifted. Only Mr. Guo and the other Envoys were able to observe Lu Yin and his opponent, and none of the others could see anything.
Within the true universe, the star energy within Lu Yin’s body was completely suppressed. There was no longer any way for him to use the Teleportation Formation, the Channeling Diagram, or even the Cosmic Art. Any attacks that used star energy were also completely useless here. However, for the corpse king, the advantage that its innate gift provided became even more pronounced.
Lu Yin was helpless. He formed a scythe with his star energy and slashed at the corpse king from an odd angle.
He had received an inheritance from the Sword Monument that allowed him to defeat tens of thousands of opponents. With a scythe in hand, Lu Yin was naturally shrouded with an aura of invincibility.
From where he was standing underground, Mr. Guo was taken aback. A scythe? It was rare to encounter someone who used such a weapon, but he felt like he had heard of such a thing before.
As he held the scythe, Lu Yin’s golden battle force surged, and he slashed at the corpse king’s chest, tearing open a long wound. Unbothered, the creature retaliated with a palm strike at Lu Yin’s head. Lu Yin calmly spun the scythe around and used it to defend himself from the attack. He then used the scythe to push the corpse king’s hand away as he spun the blade back towards the corpse king, slashing at it in a circular motion. The corpse king’s neck was sliced open by the constantly spinning blade.
The corpse king stepped forward, fearless of the scythe. This time, it attacked with both hands, aiming straight at Lu Yin.
Lu Yin stepped back and left the true universe. An astral chessboard appeared beneath his feet, but the corpse king suddenly appeared before him as well. Lu Yin’s expression froze, and he used the Ce Secret Art’s astral chessboard to move away.
Lu Yin appeared right behind the corpse king once again, which caused the corpse king’s two-handed strike to miss. The void parted like a curtain before the corpse king’s fists, and Lu Yin seized the opportunity to slice his scythe across the corpse king’s neck once again. However, this time, Lu Yin heard a crisp metallic clang as his blade landed. A bronze sheen shone from the back of the corpse king’s neck, and Lu Yin’s pupils shrank as he tried to think of some means to counter the corpse king’s innate gift, but he failed to come up with anything.
The corpse king spun around and kicked out, sending Lu Yin flying. He also lost his grip on his scythe as he smashed into the ground with tremendous force.
The wound that Lu Yin had left on the corpse king’s chest earlier was gradually recovering, which was due to the incredible physiques enjoyed by the corpse kings.
Lu Yin propped himself up from the ground with an arm and struggled to pick himself up as he wiped away some blood that leaked out from a corner of his mouth. If not for the protection of the Cloudguard Robes, he would have already been terribly injured by this corpse king.
The sprout of a tree that nestled in Lu Yin’s upper meridian point constantly released endless vitality from its leaves, accelerating Lu Yin’s recovery.
His mind raced as he mentally went over all of the abilities that he possessed. Domain? Useless. Runes? They did not even exist in the Perennial World. The Nightking’s Sky Breaker? Trying to attack a corpse king with spiritual force attack was a joke. The Ninesuns Cauldron Transformation? This things had the power of an Envoy, so Lu Yin wasn’t even sure if this technique was capable of unleashing a threatening attack. The Champions’ Stage? Neither the summonable Giant Emperor nor Bai Shaohong were a match for this corpse king. In that case, Lu Yin’s only option was the God of Death Transformation.
But would the God of Death Transformation be enough to defeat this corpse king? It was possible, but Lu Yin did not have much death energy remaining.
He would need help from his items in order to unleash that technique.
