Chapter Thirty-Four: Something Has Happened

Mingming and Liu Ping had escaped together, but now he was nowhere to be found, his fate uncertain. Fear and pain mingled within Wang Hong, forcing a cry from his lips: "Brother Liu! Where are you? Hurry, come here!" But his voice was so small, so alone, swallowed by the raging storm.

Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and torrential rain poured as if the heavens had been breached. The wild wind lashed the earth with sheets of rain, like countless whips wielded by wrathful immortals. The lightning wriggled like dragons and serpents through the clouds, followed by deafening thunder, drowning out every other sound.

In one brief flash, Wang Hong glimpsed a figure not far ahead—but it was not Liu Ping. It was the reanimated corpse of the woman.

Her mouth gaped open, body crouched in apparent agony. Suddenly, she jerked her head up and let out a silent scream toward the sky. From a perspective Wang Hong could not see, countless sinister energies surged into her mouth. Her shriveled body regained vitality and luster, wrinkles vanishing until she became a young and beautiful woman.

Yet this woman was eerily strange. Her eyes were entirely crimson, glowing with an unsettling light, devoid of any white or black. Though her skin had regained its life, beneath it dark veins like spider webs were clearly visible, bulging beneath the surface.

She fixed her gaze on the bewildered Wang Hong and charged straight at him.

Terror seized him. Wang Hong fled, but the chilling wind at his back meant the corpse was already upon him.

"Don't chase me!" Wang Hong nearly wept, wailing, "I'm doomed! I despair of this world where the corpse only hunts virgins!"

Even as he spoke, the corpse's hand gripped his shoulder. A force slammed into him, sending him tumbling to the ground.

Face down in the muddy water, thrashing in panic, Wang Hong screamed, "No... no!"

The corpse bared a cruel grin, the red glow in her eyes intensifying as she bent low to bite.

Just then, a sharp sound split the air—a flash of rainbow light, an arrow streaking through the storm. It struck the corpse's head.

With a thud, the corpse fell backward, collapsing into the rain.

Wang Hong stared, stunned, then turned to see Liu Ping not far away, holding a longbow, gasping for breath, utterly disheveled.

"Brother Liu!" Saved from despair, Wang Hong burst into tears, shouting, "You scared me to death! That was so close! You're not dead? Where did you go?"

"I sensed something strange about this village some time ago, but I never imagined it would be so sinister... impossible to see through, it's a complete illusion," Liu Ping said, walking over. "I went to fetch the bow and arrows, so we got separated."

"You should've told me! That was so close—I nearly died!" Wang Hong wiped his tears, forcing a bitter smile. "That was really dangerous."

Liu Ping offered his hand, nodding, "Yes, luckily I was quick with the talisman, or you would have met the King of Hell by now."

Wang Hong took Liu Ping's hand, pulled himself up, and looked nervously at the corpse, asking, "Is she dead?"

"I don't know..." Liu Ping began, but the arrow in the corpse's head snapped with a sharp crack.

"What!" Wang Hong jumped in fright.

"That's ominous... Strange, why is there so much blood from this corpse?" Liu Ping muttered, his face grim, quickly pulling out another arrow and biting his finger to inscribe a talisman on the arrowhead.

"So much blood? But when she was hit in the head, no blood came out!" Wang Hong asked, bewildered.

"This blood isn't ordinary. I mean her blood is thick and defenses high—she's impossible to kill."

"I still don't understand! And now's not the time for this! Can you deal with it or not? Maybe we should retreat?"

Liu Ping shook his head, "No, if we don't kill her, we can't leave this village."

"What?" Wang Hong's face turned pale, fear etched anew.

The corpse suddenly stood upright, red eyes shining in the night.

"She's coming!" Wang Hong shrieked as the corpse advanced.

Liu Ping nocked an arrow and aimed, narrowing his eyes, his lips moving rapidly:

"O vast Fengdu, layers of Vajra Mountain,
Divine Treasure’s boundless light, shining through the fiery pool,
Nine Netherworlds’ guilty souls, bodies follow incense banners,
Wisdom lotus blooms, eternal peace in the divine realm!"

"The Hell-Breaking Mantra!" In a blink, he recited the eight verses and shouted, letting the arrow fly.

The corpse howled, leaping to dodge the arrow.

The arrow shot like a rainbow, but the corpse evaded it in a flash.

"Useless!" Liu Ping snorted, nocking another arrow and firing.

The arrow that had flown afar vanished and reappeared in Liu Ping's hand!

He fired again.

The corpse, terrified, could not dodge mid-air and was forced to defend. Instantly, a massive sinister energy appeared, forming a strange sphere over a meter in diameter in her palm.

Within the sphere, countless faces—elderly, children, youths, maidens—flashed by. It was the souls of villagers, compressed into a ball, used as a shield.

"No, I don't want to disappear!"

"What a wrongful death! This is hatred that will never end!"

"The hatred of annihilation cannot be forgiven! Never!"

"I must have vengeance, I must!"

"No matter how many years it takes, I'll wait for my chance for revenge!"

"Mother, save me! Sob, sob!"

The sphere echoed with many voices, but when the arrow pierced it, the wails turned into a single piercing scream.

"Ahhhhh——!!!"

These villagers' souls, twisted by hatred and resentment, had become lowly ghosts lingering in the world.

Now, they were utterly destroyed.

But because of this, the arrow vanished.

"It's not over...!" Seeing the corpse's triumphant smile, Liu Ping gritted his teeth, drained the last of his spiritual power, and nocked another arrow. The vanished arrow reappeared.

He let go.

A rainbow light pierced the air—the corpse's smile froze as her head was struck.

Boom!

Her skull exploded, the body collapsed, and the once-white skin quickly decayed.

At the same time, the sinister energy enveloping the village dissipated rapidly.

The rain that had poured endlessly now eased to a gentle drizzle.

Liu Ping collapsed, supporting himself with his hands, breathing heavily, glancing at the corpse with lingering fear.

If he hadn't been accumulating spiritual power recently, he might have died from exhaustion in that fight.

Such danger! The corpse's cultivation was so profound.

"Brother Liu... Is it over?" Wang Hong came over and pulled Liu Ping up.

Liu Ping nodded, "It's dealt with. Let's leave quickly. This is a place of extreme yin; who knows what accidents might happen if we stay too long..."

Wang Hong shuddered, hastily agreeing. "Let's go."

Liu Ping looked back at the village, feeling uneasy. Even a place of extreme yin could change so unpredictably—what endless transformations the world holds.

Normally, a place of extreme yin should reek of sinister energy, so much so that even ordinary people would sense the gloom. But sometimes, extreme yin reverses to yang, returning to its original state. The place seems normal, with no sign of sinister energy.

Such was this village. When they first arrived, Liu Ping barely sensed anything amiss, and soon dismissed it as a mistake.

Without their horse, they had to walk, a stark contrast to their confident arrival—now, utterly bedraggled.

Stopping and starting, they finally reached signs of habitation at dawn, caught a ride on a cart, and after several stops, arrived at the Tianqi Academy by afternoon. Along the way, they bathed and changed clothes, so their battered appearance drew no attention.

But Wang Hong's face was pale and tired, blinking and sighing, "I just want to rest..."

Liu Ping, his spiritual power depleted, had replenished some essence, but remained weak. The fierce battle had left him with internal injuries, so he didn't notice Wang Hong's odd state.

He replied, "Didn't you sleep on the cart for so long? Still tired? Anyway, we're at the academy now, so rest well..."

Wang Hong nodded, "Let's hurry—I feel like I could fall asleep standing..."

Soon, the two returned to their dormitory. Both Wang Hong and Liu Ping collapsed onto their beds and immediately fell asleep.

Not long after, classes ended. Zhu Yingtai, returning from the classroom, saw Liu Ping lying on his bed and exclaimed joyfully, "Fengchang, you're back?"

"Mmm..." Liu Ping replied weakly.

Zhu Yingtai saw Liu Ping's exhaustion and said little, just sat nearby, quietly watching his face. She felt unsettled last night when he was absent.

Liu Ping drifted into sleep, not knowing how long until someone shook him awake.

He struggled to open his eyes, irritated, "What's the matter?"

It was Zhu Yingtai who woke him, speaking urgently, "Fengchang, something's wrong! Brother Wang Hong is in trouble!"

Liu Ping jolted awake, instantly alert.

"What happened?"