As the words fell, Xu Yuan instinctively looked toward Luo Xiran.
He was somewhat curious about what method she would use to check for any contingency plans Chi Feng might have left behind.
Although Luo Xiran had been a Saint ten thousand years ago, now, aside from the memories and experience belonging to a Saint, she did not even possess a true physical body.
Moreover, compared to Yuchu, the Meishen tree spirit back then, Luo Xiran could only be considered an artifact spirit, manipulating the fungal carpet merely through the properties of the Blood God Stone.
One was the spirit of a living being, while the other was the spirit of an inanimate object—fundamentally different from Yuchu, who had been capable of wielding a Dao domain.
As for her current body?
Its mechanics were essentially identical to when Qi had taken on Li Qingyan's appearance back then.
The only difference was that one body had been constructed from the flesh and blood of a primordial aberrant ghost, while the other was made of the fungal carpet that grew alongside aberrant ghosts.
And as a former Transcendent aberrant ghost, Xu Yuan knew the black death creep all too well.
It was purely an associated byproduct of aberrant ghosts, leftover scraps used to reinforce an aberrant ghost's flesh, and a "power bank" to replenish their life origin.
No intent-soul, no Source Qi, no Inter-Abyss communion—only life origin, and life origin was something that could only be utilized through the vessel of an aberrant ghost.
With a body constructed from such a fungal carpet, how could Luo Xiran inspect a Saint's corpse?
While Xu Yuan was pondering, Luo Xiran moved.
Without any flashy display, Luo Xiran bounded across, landing directly beside Chi Feng's headless corpse, and promptly pressed her hand against his chest.
Under the distant gaze of Xu Yuan and Li Qingyan, the fungal carpet, fine as silk, gradually enveloped Chi Feng's burly, headless body.
The most sophisticated detection method often required only the simplest bodily mine-sweep.
A few breaths later, the "silk" wrapped around Chi Feng's corpse withered rapidly without warning, as though its vitality had been drawn away directly.
Seeing this, Luo Xiran showed no surprise in her eyes.
Even in death, the lingering residual aura of a Saint's corpse was lethal to something like a fungal carpet, let alone directly invading it.
Glancing at the two at the edge of the crater, Luo Xiran's voice drifted over from afar:
"Your Highness, no traces remain within this Barbarian King's Saint physique. There is no danger."
"My thanks to Senior," Li Qingyan replied courteously in a clear voice. She then glanced at Xu Yuan beside her and asked, "Do you want to come over with me?"
"Me? Go over?"
Xu Yuan parted his lips, a look of surprise in his eyes.
Even standing at the edge of the crater nearly a li away from the Barbarian King's corpse, he already felt a heavy, suffocating discomfort.
In layman's terms, this was a Saint's pressure.
At its core, it was the saint origin contained within Chi Feng's Saint body spreading rampantly and unchecked after his death.
A man had to know his own limits.
No matter how extraordinary his Soul Condensation was, it was still just Soul Condensation; approaching closely would most likely crush him to death.
Li Qingyan gave a light chuckle.
"Rest assured, this princess will protect you."
As she spoke, her red robes fluttered, and that suffocating heaviness vanished instantly.
Feeling the layer of qi swirling around him, Xu Yuan asked, "Why must you bring me over?"
Li Qingyan looked toward Chi Feng's corpse, her voice very soft:
"You and I slew the Barbarian King together. The spoils taken during the battle should naturally be split evenly with you."
Xu Yuan's eyes flickered, and then he chuckled helplessly, his tone carrying a hint of tease:
"Are you worried I'll hold a grudge?"
"This princess simply dislikes owing you anything."
"Debts don't crush the burdened; you owe me plenty anyway..."
"The Reversed Origin Six Elements Art is very expensive. Now it is you who owes this princess."
"..." Xu Yuan was speechless.
"Tsk, petty."
"Hmph."
The corners of Li Qingyan's red lips curved up as she gave him a sidelong glance with a smile. "If you don't want to go, then forget it. Just don't suspect this princess of secretly hoarding your share when the time comes."
Xu Yuan cleared his throat.
"Ahem, let's make this clear first: it's not that I don't trust you."
"Look at you."
Li Qingyan rolled her eyes at him, then leaped forward with Xu Yuan, landing beside Chi Feng's corpse.
The moment he arrived up close, Xu Yuan's brow furrowed immediately.
Hampered by his cultivation, he had not been able to see clearly from afar earlier. Only now, inspecting it from close range, did he discover that Chi Feng's Saint corpse had already begun to rot...
Ancient texts recorded that a Saint's corpse could remain incorruptible for a thousand years, yet how many days had it been?
Xu Yuan instinctively looked toward Luo Xiran beside him.
"Xiran, what is this?"
Luo Xiran stood beside the corpse, gazing down at the rotting remains, her voice very soft:
"His contingency."
Xu Yuan pondered for a moment, suddenly recalling those wicked arts and secret techniques capable of refining corpses into flesh puppets. He lowered his voice:
"True. The Barbarian King's Martial Dao Saint body was extraordinarily powerful. If we were to refine it into a corpse puppet using special methods..."
"No."
"Huh?"
"I said no."
Luo Xiran turned to look at Xu Yuan and shook her head gently.
"When a whale falls, myriad creatures flourish. Before dying, this Barbarian King left behind no lethal contingencies; instead, he dissipated all of his saint origin into this earth."
Li Qingyan's willow-leaf brows knitted slightly, and she murmured:
"This princess once saw such a method in an ancient record. Back during the era of sect dominance, when many Saints exhausted their lifespan and passed away, they would disperse their entire cultivation into their sect's secret realm to nourish all things, repaying the sect they had served their whole life."
Speaking up to here, she looked at Luo Xiran.
"Senior, is that what you mean?"
"Yes."
Luo Xiran nodded and looked toward the dilapidated Sacred City of the Barbarians.
"The power of a single Saint cannot completely change this Land of Utter Darkness, but at least... it can bring a glimmer of hope to this place."
"..."
Li Qingyan slowly turned her gaze back to the darkened corpse on the ground, which had already decayed beyond recognition.
The horny plates were gone, the spikes no longer present. The once-burly, sinewy body was now pitted and hollowed, with only the golden blood belonging to a Saint radiating faint, lingering divine charm within.
After watching in silence for a few breaths, Li Qingyan let out a soft sigh, her raspy voice almost a murmur:
"Even in death, you still wished to pave a path for your people. Heh... I suppose this counts as carrying out your life's ideal to the very end."
Listening to the two women's conversation, Xu Yuan roughly understood the situation and said:
"A pity. Chi Feng was quite a good king—at least for his people."
A trace of a smile flitted across Li Qingyan's eyes, and she whispered, "Indeed, a pity."
Standing in Chi Feng's shoes, Li Qingyan could hardly say she would have done any better.
Because the Barbarians and Great Yan simply did not stand on the same tier of strength.
At this gambling table where the winner took all, Chi Feng had staked a lifetime of chips, yet still could not bridge the chasm in strength.
As they spoke, a blaze surged within Li Qingyan's dark pupils, and a wisp of flame began to coil between her slender fingers.
The fire of Dao Charm, seemingly capable of incinerating all things, illuminated everything around them.
Feeling the searing heat, Xu Yuan paused for a moment.
"What are you doing?"
Li Qingyan looked back, her eyes calm.
"Consider this this princess's final respect to him."
Her words fell silently as the fire of Dao Charm drifted downward.
Chapter 327