As the setting sun sank behind the western peaks, dusk fell at once.
The subsequent boats arrived one after another, and large numbers of soldiers came ashore on Old Dragon Island to establish a campsite on the high ground near the sandy riverbank.
It was mid-fifth month, and the weather had already turned quite hot.
The barracks were simply utilitarian tents made of wooden frames covered in lacquered hemp cloth. Before long, a vast stretch of tents stood erected.
The branch abbey occupied a section of its own, with two people sharing each tent, supplied with fresh water, dry rations, firewood, and other provisions.
Given the dire situation on Old Dragon Island, almost everyone from the branch abbey had been mobilized, and as a seventh-rank Daoist, Daoist Yiping naturally could not escape it.
Zhou Wuji shared a tent with Daoist Yiping. Yiping was his elder and naturally lazy, so Zhou Wuji took care of all the chores.
Fortunately, Zhou Wuji had the Five Yin Pouch and carried an abundance of supplies with him, most of which were everyday necessities he had packed when preparing for his trip to Lake Heart Island.
Teapots, teacups, bowls, plates, and chopsticks—he had everything.
Daoist Yiping leaned lazily against a low armrest and said to Zhou Wuji, "Stop fussing around. Have a cup of tea..."
Though Daoist Yiping was far removed from the centers of authority, as a seventh-rank Daoist, he still had attendants deliver hot water.
Zhou Wuji sat down across from him and took a sip of the freshly brewed tea. "Martial Uncle, you just guard the camp tonight. There are plenty of others to handle things outside."
"No need to tell me that. I might not be good at much else, but slacking off is my greatest specialty."
Daoist Yiping waved his hand dismissively, then added, "Who knows what dangers lurk inside Old Dragon Island. Don't rush ahead too far."
"Don't worry, Martial Uncle, I know what to do."
Zhou Wuji kept this clearly in mind. Zhang Shiheng was still on the island, and he would never give the man an opening.
With nothing else to do, Zhou Wuji noticed that many monks from Golden Leaf Temple had also gathered not far away.
In the gathering gloom, their shaved heads were quite conspicuous.
He asked casually, "Martial Uncle, I noticed that the monks of Golden Leaf Temple all train in the martial path alongside their teachings. That seems quite different from our way."
Back at Jilong Cliff, Yuan'an had spoken up to issue a challenge. Though they had not traded blows, Zhou Wuji had discerned Yuan'an's general condition.
The monk possessed an exceptionally robust physique, even stronger than ordinary seventh-rank martial artists.
"Monks follow the path of the Three Mantras and Seven Chakras, which is very different from our Daoist Sect, and distinct from martial artists as well."
Daoist Yiping was well-versed in such matters and patiently explained to Zhou Wuji, "In the Buddhist order, the lowest rank is the ninth-rank novice. At this stage, they temper the sinews and bones externally while holding verbal mantras to cultivate the mind internally.
"At the eighth rank, their sinews and bones are fully forged, and they can empower themselves with mantras.
"At the seventh rank, they ignite the spiritual light of the Zen mind and condense a light wheel. This step is also called lighting the mind lamp. The mind lamp tempers the spirit within and refines the internal organs, sinews, and bones without. It cultivates both the internal and the external, which is truly profound.
"Upon reaching the seventh rank, they take the major precepts of the lower altar and can practice various verbal mantras.
"At the sixth rank, they become Precept Masters and condense the Root Chakra. At the fifth rank, they become Vinaya Masters and condense the Qi Chakra."
Daoist Yiping added, "Our Daoist Sect cultivates Daoist arts, martial artists train in martial arts, and monks take the middle road, cultivating both the mystical and the martial."
Zhou Wuji's eyes lit up as he listened. Dual cultivation of mystical arts and martial prowess was precisely the path he favored.
He asked, "Our Daoist Sect must surely have methods for dual cultivation as well, right?"
"Naturally. Sword cultivators of our Yuheng lineage walk the path of dual cultivation in arts and martial arts. The Yaoguang lineage is even more formidable; their Army Breaking Divine Gang is domineering to the utmost. It can be said to be among the world's foremost martial arts methods, and it harmonizes perfectly with the orthodox Dao."
Zhou Wuji felt a pang of yearning. If he could learn the secret methods of Yuheng or Yaoguang, he could resolve his dilemma regarding dual cultivation.
Right now, his martial cultivation was stuck at the seventh rank. If he could advance to the sixth rank and combine his mystical arts with his martial skills, he could even clash with the fifth-rank Zhang Shiheng.
***
When night fell, Daoist Yizhen divided the branch abbey's members into five groups of seven, each capable of forming the Big Dipper Seven Stars Formation.
Even if they ran into a formidable enemy, they would not be overwhelmed right away.
Zhou Wuji did not join any group; he had specifically requested permission from Daoist Yizhen to venture deep into Old Dragon Island alone to scout the situation.
Daoist Yizhen trusted Zhou Wuji's capabilities and allowed him to roam freely.
Old Dragon Island spanned tens of li with complex terrain. The western side consisted of vast mountain ridges, while the Five Dragons Gang's settlement lay across the plains on the eastern side of the island.
According to Zhiyuan, the subterranean aperture harboring the earthly fiend qi was in the western mountains, while most of the zombies were gathered in the settlements on the eastern plains.
Zhou Wuji walked with his sword for a while and soon spotted a large cluster of buildings in the distance.
With his Six Yang Dharma Eyes active, the darkness was as clear to him as broad daylight, allowing him to perceive the auras of living creatures hidden behind obstacles.
A single glance revealed specks of green light scattered across the buildings—plainly coalesced demonic, fiendish qi.
The closest aura was merely dozens of paces away, lurking behind a thicket of bushes.
Zhou Wuji took a few paces forward. Sensing the aura of a living being, the zombie hidden in the bushes charged out at a swift stride.
The zombie appeared to be an old man, nearly bald and hunched over, his garments mostly in tatters. His skin was inky black and split with cracks everywhere, exposing desiccated, rotting flesh as dry as wood.
The zombie's movements were stiff, yet its speed was far from slow.
As it darted through the underbrush, thorny branches shredded its ragged clothing and tore away flakes of blackened flesh.
Yet the old man's blackened face showed no expression at all, save for a pair of blood-red eyes gleaming with an eerie glow.
Any sane person could tell at a glance that this old man was no longer living.
Silently chanting an incantation, Zhou Wuji pointed a finger to trigger the Golden Light Incantation. A cluster of golden light descended instantly onto the old man.
The zombie old man halted abruptly as wisps of black smoke sizzled from his frame, the eerie red light in his eyes rapidly fading.
In the blink of an eye, the zombie old man wobbled and collapsed into the bushes, his body decomposing and liquefying at a visible pace.
Zhou Wuji was not surprised by this outcome. Though his Golden Light Incantation fell far short of Abbot Zhiyuan's, it was already among the finest in the branch abbey.
The old man before him was merely an ordinary person who had undergone a corpse transformation, sustained by earthly fiend qi and clinging to a shred of past vitality through a Gu-worm.
The Golden Light Incantation had broken the earthly fiend qi and extinguished the Gu-worm's spirit, leaving the transformed old man truly and utterly dead.
To ordinary mortals, such a transformed corpse was exceedingly dangerous.
Fortunately, Daoist arts were specifically tailored to counter foul yin energy; any eighth-rank Qi Ingestion cultivator could easily handle a pack of zombies.
Martial artists, however, would have a harder time dealing with them and would at least need to sever their heads.
In close-quarters combat, a single slip could result in infection from corpse poison.
Old Dragon Island held several thousand zombies, including mutated zombies harboring the remnants of the yin dragon's soul, which made them even more perilous.
Zhou Wuji opened the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment. Slaying the zombie with the Golden Light Incantation had yielded nine qian of primordial profound qi.
He currently possessed a full two thousand points of true qi, so nine qian of primordial profound qi was utterly useless to him.
Zhou Wuji felt no disappointment. As his cultivation level continued to rise, accumulating ordinary monsters and fiends would no longer do him any good, no matter how many he slew.
Fortunately, there were zombies mutated by the dragon soul here; those ought to be of some use.
***
Scores of wooden cabins stood in neat rows, with crude hemp tunics still hanging from the drying lines in front of them.
Sensing fresh vitality, the zombies lurking inside rushed out of the buildings—young and old, men and women.
All of them possessed pitch-black skin and blood-red eyes. Their bodies were stiff, yet their speed was remarkably fast.
The zombies retained almost no intellect, driven only by an instinctual hunger for living vitality.
Facing the swarming horde of zombies, Zhou Wuji cast the Golden Light Incantation once more.
This time, he channeled far more magic power, casting a curtain of golden light that spread out and engulfed the entire crowd.
Within the radiance, the zombies slowed to a halt, wisps of black qi billowing from their frames.
A few that possessed slightly more wit instinctively tried to flee the light.
Yet before they could take more than a few steps, the earthly fiend qi and Gu-worm malice within them completely dissipated, and their bodies collapsed limp onto the ground.
When the golden light faded, all the zombies lay still, their skin and flesh split open, the red glow in their eyes gone...
Zhou Wuji caught a heavy stench of rot and promptly cast the Body Cleansing Divine Incantation on himself.
A spiritual radiance flickered, cleansing away both the foul stench and the earthly fiend qi clinging to him. He felt cool and refreshed inside and out, and his spent true qi recovered slightly.
The previous burst of the Golden Light Incantation had been immensely powerful, but it had also drained nearly a tenth of his true qi.
Other seventh-rank cultivators would have found it difficult to unleash a Golden Light Incantation of such magnitude.
Generally, only those who had reached the sixth rank—possessing abundant, pure true qi alongside profound mastery of the incantation—could accomplish such a feat.
Zhou Wuji checked the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment again. The primordial profound qi yielded by these ordinary zombies remained exceedingly low, at most twenty-odd points...
The zombies posed no threat, yet they were equally useless to him.
Zhou Wuji was deeply intrigued by the earthly fiend qi, but he did not dare venture too deep on an impulse.
Setting aside the threat posed by Zhang Shiheng, no one knew where Chen Dalu was hiding either, and Chen Dalu had accomplices.
Even if those two had fled, they might return.
Zhou Wuji circled the perimeter, casting various arts whenever he encountered zombies to test their efficacy and observe the creatures' reactions.
By daybreak, Zhou Wuji had slain over two hundred zombies.
***
Returning to the camp, Zhou Wuji found Martial Uncle Yiping already fast asleep.
Judging by the bloodstains on Yiping's Daoist robe, he must have had a busy night as well, perhaps even having fought directly.
Though the old man was well-accomplished in nurturing his qi, he lay there snoring loudly.
Zhou Wuji went to check on Wuming. She shared a tent with Wuye and was also sound asleep from exhaustion. Wuye, however, remained vigilant; upon hearing footsteps, her eyes snapped open.
Seeing that it was Zhou Wuji, Wuye sat up slowly, an inquiring look in her eyes.
Zhou Wuji gave a slight shake of his head. Without speaking to her, he went to find Daoist Yizhen.
Daoist Yizhen had also gone without sleep the entire night, yet his eyes shone brightly and his spirit was full, showing not the slightest hint of fatigue.
For a sixth-rank cultivator in the prime of his life, staying up one night was truly nothing.
"What did you discover?" Daoist Yizhen was well-acquainted with Zhou Wuji and bypassed pleasantries to ask directly.
"The dense earthly fiend qi weakens the power of our arts. The longer this drags on, the more the zombies will be nourished by it, making them far harder to deal with,"
Zhou Wuji explained. "I noticed one thing: the zombies possess no intelligence and only react to living vitality.
"Yet they retain traces of their former senses, such as sight, hearing, and smell.
"We could tether a few pigs and sheep at designated spots as bait to lure large clusters of zombies. That would avert many hazards and allow us to eliminate them much faster.
"There is no need for us to fight alone either. If we coordinate with the Pacification Office—clearing the fiend qi and corpse poison for them while they take the front lines to butcher the zombies—we can wipe them out much more swiftly..."
Daoist Yizhen nodded. "That is a sound plan. Let us speak with the abbot..."
A few disciples had suffered injuries the previous night when zombies ambushed them from the dark, catching them off guard and inflicting minor wounds.
Fortunately, spells could purge the corpse poison, and minor bite wounds were negligible. However, running into more formidable zombies would be troublesome and could easily lead to heavy casualties.
If Zhou Wuji's method proved effective, it would save an immense amount of trouble.
Abbot Zhiyuan stayed in a tent of his own. Daoist Yizhen called out his greetings from a distance, and Zhiyuan's voice drifted from within: "Enter."
Daoist Yizhen led Zhou Wuji inside, where both made a bow before taking their seats.
After Yizhen presented Zhou Wuji's idea, Zhiyuan pondered for a moment and said, "It sounds feasible. Give it a try tonight. Zhang Shiheng has returned to the prefectural city; go seek out Li Fei. He is a clever man and will certainly be willing to cooperate."
Daoist Yizhen had many duties to attend to, so having received Zhiyuan's approval, he departed promptly.
Zhou Wuji, however, lingered behind. Once Yizhen had left, he offered a conciliatory smile. "Abbot, what would count as a great service?"
Zhiyuan glanced at Zhou Wuji and instantly saw through the young man's thoughts; he was still coveting the Big Dipper Seven Stars Sword of the Yuheng lineage.
He said, "You broke through the mutinous soldiers and saved many lives, which was already a service. You discovered evidence of the Five Dragons Gang's blood sacrifice and provided the scheme to capture Chen Dalu; I remember all these contributions.
"However, earning the rating of a 'great service' in the main abbey is exceedingly difficult. Given your cultivation and standing, no matter what feat you accomplish, it would be hard to classify it as a great service."
Zhou Wuji felt a touch of disappointment. "Is learning the Big Dipper Seven Stars Sword truly that difficult?"
Zhiyuan chuckled. "The advanced secret methods of our Tianshu lineage are far superior to those of the other lineages as well."
He thought for a moment and added, "I know your capabilities, but I cannot resolve the matter of the Big Dipper Seven Stars Sword for you.
"However, if you can eliminate Chen Dalu, I could sell you a precious sword..."
"Sell it to me?" Zhou Wuji was taken aback. He knew the old man was fond of money, but to set such a steep requirement and still demand payment—the old man was truly unscrupulous...
Chapter 109