The torrential rain continued to pour.
A ceaseless barrage of English profanity echoed through the woods known as Gaoshulin. Aside from the four soldiers who had acted as lightning rods and died when lightning struck the bronze-cornered golden coffin, everyone else was completely dumbfounded!
Of course, not everyone was entirely lost. Shi Shaojian, for instance, had his eyes wide open, marveling in his heart at the sheer depth of Liu Xiu's vocabulary.
He hastily memorized these foul-sounding curses, fully intending to use them against the imperial-clan jiangshi himself in a moment.
Moreover, to be completely fair, this was the very first time he had ever learned that English profanity could actually be used to deal with an imperial-clan jiangshi!
Why is this jiangshi afraid of English?
As Shi Shaojian pondered this, his expression shifted from amazed clarity to mild confusion as he watched the imperial-clan jiangshi actually fall to its knees.
He saw the terror-stricken imperial-clan jiangshi not only bow to the foreign-dressed Black Jiangshi, but bizarrely drop to its knees!
It really dropped down on both knees!!
Holy hell—
No, holy jiangshi!
How on earth can you, a jiangshi, bend your knees and kneel?!
After all, the very word jiangshi referred to a stiffened corpse; generally speaking, it was virtually impossible for a jiangshi to kneel.
Granted, this creature's arms could bend, but a kneeling jiangshi was something far beyond Shi Shaojian's experience.
This was the first time in his life he had ever witnessed such a spectacle!
Moreover, he still couldn't fathom why this royal jiangshi was so terrified of English curses. Could it be that the creature had been beaten by foreigners back when it was alive?
Just as Shi Shaojian was thinking that the imperial-clan jiangshi must have been thrashed and cursed out by foreigners during its mortal life—otherwise, there was no way it would drop to its knees in such utter terror—Liu Xiu was beginning to feel he couldn't keep this up much longer. Foreign curse words were simply too limited, circling through the same few phrases over and over. If he went on any longer, he would have to resort to Chinglish insults.
I wonder if Chinglish curses will still fool him, Liu Xiu mused, maintaining his Advent of Defense stance—pinching the back of the Black Jiangshi's neck and hiding behind its frame.
While cursing the imperial-clan jiangshi, Liu Xiu glanced toward Daoist Qianhe and the others. Seeing Qianhe still standing there in a daze, he grew so irritated that he kicked back at Qianhe behind him.
The kick sent Daoist Qianhe stumbling. A curse nearly burst from his lips, but realizing the urgency of the situation and that he shouldn't have spaced out, he offered Liu Xiu an apologetic smile.
Liu Xiu didn't stop spewing English curses. Gauging the distance and seeing he couldn't reach Qianhe with another kick, he simply raised his fingers.
He pointed first at Daoist Qianhe, then at Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei, and finally toward the imperial-clan jiangshi.
The whole scene looked roughly like this:
(Smiling) 凸 (■.■) ($ . $) ... orz
The smiling Daoist stopped smiling. Daoist Qianhe's eyelids twitched as he stared at Liu Xiu's spurious Spirit Official Mudra.
His smile wiped away, Qianhe wasted no words and shot a sharp glance at Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei, who had just snapped back to their senses.
As for Shi Shaojian, Qianhe didn't bother giving him a signal, because Shi Shaojian had already stealthily drawn his Xuandun Sword—a magic treasure capable of flight—and was creeping toward the imperial-clan jiangshi.
As he crept forward, he looked back at Liu Xiu!
He had no other intention than to demonstrate that he was reliable!
Right, you're the reliable one, Senior Martial Brother!
Liu Xiu sighed in admiration, giving him an approving thumbs-up before doing his best to maintain his Advent of Defense and continuing his output of English profanity.
Just as Daoist Qianhe enchanted his peach-wood sword with the Spirit Sword Incantation, cloaking the blade in golden light, and crept toward the imperial-clan jiangshi, he suddenly froze!
Qianhe's eyes widened as he stared at the faint silvery-white sheen on the Black Jiangshi's head and arms. A thought instinctively crossed his mind:
Did Ah Xiu really manage to cultivate a Silver-Armored Corpse?
No, this... this was a Partial Silver-Armored Corpse!
Wait, can there really be a Partial Silver-Armored Corpse?
Looking at the strangely weak corpse qi surrounding the Black Jiangshi, Daoist Qianhe began to ponder, and the moment he started pondering, he lost his focus.
With his mind wandering, his already slow pace slowed even further. Nor was he the only one; Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei had also slipped into a daze over the sight of the Silver-Armored Corpse.
With all five of them slowing down, only Shi Shaojian had quietly reached the back of the imperial-clan jiangshi.
Wait, where is everyone?
Why am I the only one here?
Shi Shaojian glanced sideways and frowned at the five guys moving at zero kilometers an hour. Wasting no time, he raised the Xuandun Sword—which was fashioned in the style of a peach-wood sword—and thrust it straight at the kowtowing head of the imperial-clan jiangshi.
Only after thrusting the Xuandun Sword did Shi Shaojian belatedly realize that he had forgotten to channel his spiritual power and spells.
At that moment, Vice Minister Wu's entourage finally caught on. Enraged, Vice Minister Wu shrieked at the top of his lungs, "He's playing you for a fool, Your Highness!"
"!!!"
Motherfucker!
Furious curses rang out in the hearts of the soldiers and Liu Xiu's group alike. Even the Seventy-First Prince glared furiously at Vice Minister Wu.
The three pale-faced imperial palace experts were already scheming how to kill this dog of a man once they got through this.
Clang!
The tip struck home. A crisp ring of metal against metal erupted behind the imperial-clan jiangshi's head, accompanied by a shower of sparks. Shi Shaojian's eyes widened. Sensing disaster, he hurriedly tried to activate his Hegemon Body and Hegemon Body Three-Light Primordial Magnetism Art.
Yet before he could do so, a terrifying surge of force rebounded from the jiangshi's skull. Shi Shaojian gripped the hilt with all his might, straining to drive the blade through the monster's head.
Instead of piercing the skull, he couldn't even keep the creature from raising its head.
Roar!
A furious, humiliated roar tore from the imperial-clan jiangshi's throat. Clearly, it now understood that it had been deceived by a fake foreigner.
Immediately afterward, Shi Shaojian felt an even more colossal force surge back along the tip of the Xuandun Sword.
Whoosh!
The imperial-clan jiangshi shot to its feet!
Bang!
In a blur, Shi Shaojian was sent flying more than a meter back. Clutching his Xuandun Sword, he grunted as he slammed hard into the bronze-cornered golden coffin behind him.
"Cough... fuck you..."
Blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, Shi Shaojian coughed out a curse, unable to get up immediately. Yet this curse wasn't directed at the imperial-clan jiangshi, but at Daoist Qianhe and his four disciples, who were only just now springing into action.
Knowing they were in the wrong, the five looked abashed. Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei hastily hurled their dharma ropes at the imperial-clan jiangshi.
Four dharma ropes shot forth, tightly coiling around the imperial-clan jiangshi's waist and abdomen. Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei swiftly took up their positions according to the cardinal directions of their names.
Silently chanting the incantation of the Four Directions Spirit Cable Evil-Restraining Array, they pulled hard in unison. The dharma ropes flared with golden light, forcibly pinning down the imperial-clan jiangshi just as it attempted to leap away.
Liu Xiu wasn't just standing idly by either. He frowned at Daoist Qianhe and his disciples, irritated that they would make such an egregious blunder at a time like this.
He shook the Three Purities bell in his hand, using the Seven Yuan Corpse-Summoning Return-to-Mountain Secret Manual to command the Black Jiangshi to pounce upon the imperial-clan jiangshi.
Roar...
The Black Jiangshi let out a corpse cry that sounded rather feeble compared to the royal monster's, hopped two steps behind the imperial-clan jiangshi, and clamped its faintly silver-white hands around its throat in a chokehold.
A golden opportunity!
Daoist Qianhe's eyes lit up. As if wind carried his feet, he leaped forward before the imperial-clan jiangshi, thrusting his peach-wood sword—now blazing with golden light—straight forward.
Swoosh!
The tip sliced through the air. Infused with the power of the Spirit Sword Incantation, the peach-wood sword lunged directly for the jiangshi's heart. But the royal jiangshi was no fool content to wait for death.
Thrashing and roaring with all its might, it managed to jerk its torso aside even under the restraint of the four dharma ropes. That slight shift caused the peach-wood sword to miss its heart, punching through just beside it.
A sizzling hiss accompanied by a foul stench rose where the peach-wood sword pierced the imperial-clan jiangshi's chest—barely missing the Black Jiangshi behind it.
Setting aside the jiangshi's agonized roar and contorted grimace, Daoist Qianhe now found himself standing face-to-face with the monster because the sword had driven deep into its chest!
One look into his eyes confirmed it: this was a prime tonic of a human. The imperial-clan jiangshi roared, its hands tipped with long, pitch-black nails clawing toward Qianhe's arms.
At the same time, it opened its gaping, fang-filled maw and snapped directly toward Qianhe's neck.
Daoist Qianhe's face drained of color. He instinctively tried to pull back his sword and retreat, only to find the blade firmly stuck!
"Martial Uncle, move!"
No sooner had the shout sounded than a sharp ache shot through his lower back. His vision blurred, and Qianhe was sent flying by a kick, narrowly dodging the jiangshi's fangs. He crashed to the ground with a cry of pain, clutching his aching waist.
Feeling as if his aging back had been shattered by the heavy kick, he glared at Liu Xiu, who had kicked him, before grimacing at the bloody, bone-deep gouges carved into his forearms by the jiangshi's claws.
Watching the wounds swell rapidly and turn pitch-black, Qianhe shuddered at the dreadfulness of the corpse poison. He glanced at the snapped half of his peach-wood sword, then hastily fished out the glutinous rice he had scrounged from Four-Eyed Daoist's cabin and pressed it onto the gashes.
Sizzle, sizzle!
Two plumes of white smoke hissed into the air—one from Daoist Qianhe's arms, and the other from Liu Xiu, who had seized the moment Qianhe hit the ground to plunge his Crimson Firmament Sword into the jiangshi's chest.
Roar!
A howl thick with rage and agony erupted from the monster's hideous maw. Maintaining the Four Directions Spirit Cable Evil-Restraining Array with their incantations, Dong, Nan, Xi, and Bei felt an overwhelming surge of brute force tear through the ropes!
Four cries of pain rose in unison as the dharma ropes were ripped from their hands, sending all four disciples hurtling through the air!
Thud! Thud! Crash! Thud! Crash! Bang!
"I... motherfucker..."
Shi Shaojian, who had barely managed to climb back to his feet, was slammed right into the bronze-cornered golden coffin once more. Gritting his teeth in agony, he glared at Bei, who had crashed directly on top of him, as fresh blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
Combat strength: minus two, then minus one, minus one!
The reason it only counted as minus four was that Daoist Qianhe had also been caught in the collateral damage. Just as he picked himself up to charge with sword drawn, Dong had crashed into him from the side, knocking him flat on his back again.
Seeing the Black Jiangshi still desperately maintaining its chokehold, Liu Xiu—who had long sensed trouble and backed away in time to avoid the crash—gripped the Crimson Firmament Sword tightly, silently cheering on the corpse's effort.
Just then, the imperial-clan jiangshi leaped violently backward!
Crash!
A massive tree shuddered. With a loud crack, the trunk split open. Slammed brutally against the wood, the Black Jiangshi lacked the iron grip of a park-bench elder after all, and its hands finally slipped free.
Freed from restraint, the imperial-clan jiangshi leaped violently forward, lunging right toward Liu Xiu... or rather, past him, toward the Seventy-First Prince and his retinue!
Its target was aimed straight at Vice Minister Wu!
???
Wait, isn't he on your side?
Completely ignored by the jiangshi, Liu Xiu froze for a second, but on second thought, it made total sense. After all, Vice Minister Wu was a bondservant.
A servant witnessing his master's humiliation and expecting to live?
Keep dreaming! Just wait to die!
Your Highness, I just helped you!
Seeing the imperial-clan jiangshi barreling toward him, Vice Minister Wu's eyes bulged in terror. Cursing how impossible this master was to please, he shrieked, "Protect the prince! Protect the prince!" and spun around, desperate to scoop up the Seventy-First Prince and run for his life.
The three imperial palace experts showed real grit. Enduring the agony of their cleansed wounds, they brandished their weapons and charged at the imperial-clan jiangshi.
As for the remaining six soldiers?
They had long since bolted!
What a joke—how much pay did they get a month to throw their lives away? The fleeing soldiers resolved right then and there that if they survived this disaster, they would turn over a new leaf and be good men.
Suddenly feeling a "cramp" in his leg, Liu Xiu couldn't be bothered to interrupt the imperial-clan jiangshi's family reunion. He simply called out to Shi Shaojian, "Senior Martial Brother, take them to Daoist Simu!"
Yet Shi Shaojian ignored Liu Xiu completely. Shoving aside Bei, who was blocking his path, he brandished his Xuandun Sword and roared a string of English curses as he charged straight at the imperial-clan jiangshi, who had already finished "reuniting" with its kin.
Hegemon Body, activate!
Hegemon Body Three-Light Primordial Magnetism Art, engage!
Chapter 50