Baleful Corpse

Qin Sang closely inspected the wounds on the zombie's body, thinking to himself that it was indeed as he suspected: this zombie had not formed naturally, but was clearly a refined corpse painstakingly crafted by a cultivator. After completing his examination, Qin Sang rose and darted behind the stone door, turning his gaze toward the ground. A complete skeleton lay sprawled face-down on the floor. Judging from the posture, the person seemed to have died suddenly while running at top speed, collapsing onto the ground. The bones were decayed and covered with dust. Qin Sang swept over it with his spiritual sense and discovered not a single injury on the bones. The person had either had their heart meridians shattered or died from having their origin soul directly wiped out. He had wanted to see if the person left behind any relics that could prove their identity, but unfortunately, there was nothing on the skeleton. Beside it, however, lay a fractured black coffin, its lid bearing a gaping hole torn open by sharp claws. This coffin was likely a magic tool used to inter refined corpses. Whether due to the dissipation of its spirituality or destruction by external force, only a few pieces of rotten wood remained, and the refined corpse sealed within had broken free from its bindings and escaped. In that case, the zombie from earlier was this person's refined corpse, and this person was very likely a demonic cultivator adept in the corpse refining art. Qin Sang knew very little about demonic cultivators, mostly from hearsay. He had never heard of disciples from any demonic sect in the Lesser Cold Domain being skilled in corpse refining and using such coffins to seal their refined corpses. "I wonder whether this person was an intruder or the master of this karst cave?" Qin Sang frowned slightly, staring down the incomparably deep stone tunnel. Judging by the refined corpse, this person's strength in life could not have been very high; it was impossible for them to possess such a grand cave abode. Where there was one zombie, there would be more. As Qin Sang ventured deeper, he slaughtered several zombies in succession, their strengths varying. He also spotted several more skeletons; some were completely unscathed like the first, while others had shattered vital bones, looking as though they had died of grievous wounds. Could this be an old lair of a demonic sect? Yet if they were skilled in the corpse refining art, why wouldn't they choose a place rich in yin qi, instead settling in a desolate cavern flooded with earth fiend qi? Qin Sang pondered silently. With the earth fiend qi hot on his heels from behind, he did not dare pause for long and darted toward the depths of the karst cave as fast as he could. At the same time, he remained secretly vigilant—where there were zombies, baleful corpses might also exist. If this truly was a demonic sect's lair, outer Qi Refinement stage disciples would only be able to refine ordinary zombies, whereas Foundation Establishment disciples would possess the ability to refine baleful corpses. If he ran into a powerful baleful corpse, he would truly be caught between wolves ahead and tigers behind. Even more terrifying was a Flying Yaksha; if such a monstrosity existed in the depths of the karst cave, not a single one of them would survive. Passing through several stone tunnels in succession, Qin Sang did not encounter a single soul, nor did he find any traces or markings left behind by anyone. In the blink of an eye, he reached the end of another tunnel. Just as he was about to step through, his figure suddenly froze. Ahead, at the end of the stone passageway, lay a stone hall. In all his traveling so far, this was the first time Qin Sang had encountered such a hall. Several tunnels connected to its entrance, while at the back stood two imposing, heavy black darksteel doors. The heavy darksteel doors were tightly shut, carved with the depiction of an ancient corpse—another sight Qin Sang had never seen before. In the carving, the ancient corpse was extraordinarily tall and large, possessing the power of flight, riding the clouds and mist with rolling baleful qi billowing behind it, yet distinctly different from a Flying Yaksha. The corpse had a shriveled face and a pair of fangs several inches long; its pitch-black pupils seemed almost sentient, exceptionally ferocious and radiating towering demonic flames. When his gaze met those eerie eyes, Qin Sang's mind shuddered. He hurriedly lowered his eyes to look away, secretly astonished: what kind of origin did the ancient corpse in the carving have, to project such a ferocious aura from a mere portrait? The stone hall was in utter disarray. Shattered stone chairs, stone tables, coffin planks, and skeletons were strewn everywhere. Most conspicuous of all were a dozen or so refined corpses wandering aimlessly within the hall. Sweeping his gaze across these refined corpses, Qin Sang's eyes suddenly narrowed, his expression turning solemn as he fixed his stare on the one in the very center. Like the others, this refined corpse was hideous, with a ghastly face and protruding fangs, but it was far taller and sturdier. Furthermore, black qi constantly swirled around it, and its physical body was noticeably stronger than that of the other corpses. "A baleful corpse?" Qin Sang's heart sank. His suspicion had come true; baleful corpses indeed existed in the depths of the karst cave. Those skeletons scattered about might very well include the bones of Foundation Establishment cultivators, but they were already shattered and intermingled, making them impossible to distinguish. "Wait, that's not right!" Immediately following that, Qin Sang realized this baleful corpse differed from the legends: the black qi swirling around it was not yin qi, but earth fiend qi! Qin Sang sized up the baleful corpse in surprise. Refining corpses with earth fiend qi was something he had truly never heard of before. He wondered how it differed from ordinary baleful corpses. After a moment's contemplation, Qin Sang revealed himself at the entrance of the stone hall. The heavy darksteel doors were tightly shut and clearly would not open as easily as the previous stone doors. Trying to open them would inevitably alert the refined corpses, so he had no choice but to clear out the hall first. The moment Qin Sang appeared, every refined corpse in the hall was alerted. A dozen hideous, fanged corpses spun around in unison, their black eyes fixing on Qin Sang all at once—an exceptionally eerie sight. "Go!" Qin Sang had already summoned his Five Elements Dharma-Breaking Sword. Before the corpses could move, the sword struck out with lightning speed. Dealing with these corpses did not require his full strength. The five spirit swords split apart in a flash, each channeling their respective elemental spiritual power into five streaks of sword light. They wove with exceptional agility through the horde of corpses. One head after another tumbled to the floor. In the blink of an eye, every zombie was decapitated by Qin Sang and collapsed limply to the ground, leaving only the baleful corpse standing. *Bang!* The baleful corpse lashed out with its ghostly claws, striking the spirit sword thrusting toward it like lightning. The spirit sword trembled slightly, its momentum arrested. The clash between sword light and ghostly claws ended in a virtual draw. The baleful qi on the claws dissipated significantly under the impact of the sword light, and while the sword tip struck the claw, it only left a gash, failing to pierce through. Moreover, after the spirit sword recoiled, fresh baleful qi immediately surged from the claw's wound. The cut closed at a speed visible to the naked eye, fully restored to pristine condition in the blink of an eye. *It can actually regenerate with the aid of earth fiend qi. I wonder if there is a limit to it?* Just as Qin Sang was about to direct two spirit swords to further test the baleful corpse's abilities, his eyes flashed. Without batting an eye, he quietly activated the Heavenly Star Tear, forming a protective barrier that enveloped his whole body. Then, holding nothing back, he set all five blades of the Five Elements Dharma-Breaking Sword into motion. The five streams of spiritual power converged into an overwhelmingly mighty beam of sword light that thrust savagely at the baleful corpse. The baleful corpse reacted with extreme speed, crossing its arms to block the Five Elements Dharma-Breaking Sword. Countless plumes of earth fiend qi poured from its body, swarming toward the Five Elements Dharma-Breaking Sword, while chilling, eerie screeches tore from its throat. At the same time, Qin Sang retrieved his blood saber. In a flash, he appeared behind the baleful corpse, the saber light flashing like lightning as he slashed savagely at its back. Striking with full force, he immediately carved a deep wound across its spine. As expected, earth fiend qi instantly welled up within the cut. Qin Sang's expression remained unchanged. Dividing his focus, he commanded the Five Elements Dharma-Breaking Sword to attack relentlessly, keeping the baleful corpse completely occupied. Then, strike after strike, he hacked continuously at the exact same spot on the wound. Before long, the earth fiend qi grew increasingly thin, and the speed of the wound's regeneration slowed drastically.