Even the Living Dead Is the Center of Attention!

Xinghong Ancient City. Su Yu wandered through the ancient city, taking note of the houses where living people still resided. He had to admit, he had taken far too good care of Foutuling, actually sending him into a house in the first ring. After such immense upheaval, that grandson was actually still alive; the house indicated someone was inside. Evidently, the fellow was doing fine, living quite comfortably. He probably had no idea what had happened outside. After all, Su Yu had set up numerous silence barriers around him, originally intending to prevent Foutuling from making a sound. Now, however, while the world outside had been turned upside down in battle, his house hadn't been attacked, so he was likely completely unscathed. Su Yu glanced into the distance and waved at a wandering Sun Moon dead spirit… Alright, the dead spirit completely ignored him. After a moment's thought, Su Yu threw a punch at the dead spirit from across the distance. … A speechless scene played out. The dead spirit glanced at him, turned around, and walked away. Fuck! Don't walk away! Hit me, dammit! Su Yu had wanted to lure it into breaching houses. Why the hell was it running? Su Yu nearly coughed up blood! He wanted to breach the houses and take out his adversaries one by one. What did they mean by ignoring him like this? Did he really have to kill them before they'd be satisfied? He had originally thought of them as his own guards now—the fewer killed, the better. He hadn't possessed the heart to slaughter them, but in the end… What gluttons for punishment! Did they really need to be killed to be happy? Gritting his teeth, Su Yu hurled a punch from a distance and blasted a Tengkong dead spirit to pieces. The next instant, a Lingyun dead spirit emerged. Seeing Su Yu… the dead spirit stared at him blankly, and a moment later, it simply drifted away. "…" An extremely bizarre look entered Su Yu's eyes. I didn't alter my aura! I didn't reverse my death qi. I just killed one of your dead spirits! Come kill me, hit me, come on, go breach a house! Why weren't they coming? "What the… fuck!" Su Yu cursed furiously inwardly. What did this mean? Did this mean that after he killed dead spirits, no more dead spirits would hunt him down? Then how was he supposed to breach any houses! Wait, that wasn't right… Killing a dead spirit still caused another dead spirit to emerge, which meant that slaying dead spirits still summoned stronger ones; it was just that they seemed to no longer pursue him. Su Yu frowned. Were other ancient city residents like this too? No way! He remembered back in Tianmie Ancient City, someone from the Xuan Armor race had converted into a guard and then killed a dead spirit, and the dead spirits had hunted them down all the same, hadn't they? "What's the situation?" "Does it have to do with that dead spirit monarch from just now?" Su Yu could only associate it with her. Perhaps because she had personally converted him, these weaker dead spirits simply wouldn't—or didn't dare to—lay a hand on him now. Maybe… it was because the aura of the dead spirit that converted him was different. Su Yu had formed a hypothesis. She was a monarch! Having converted Su Yu in person, she might have left behind some mark or trace of her aura, causing these weaker dead spirits to fear attacking him or subconsciously steer clear of him. To say it was a good thing was an understatement. Killing dead spirits without them hunting him was undeniably great. However… Su Yu didn't mind being pursued at all! Damn it! If they hunted him, he could lure hordes of dead spirits to besiege anyone he pleased. Now that they wouldn't chase him, it was a massive headache! With a slight stir of thought, Su Yu took out that third-ring ancient city token. He stimulated the death qi in his body toward the fleeing Lingyun dead spirit. Sure enough, controlling the ancient city token felt slightly peculiar now, distinctly different from before. Vaguely, Su Yu seemed to receive a glimmer of insight from the ancient city token. Before he could dwell on it, that dead spirit suddenly turned and walked toward him, stopping blankly right before his eyes. Su Yu stared at the dead spirit, and the dead spirit stared back at him woodenly. "It truly has no intelligence!" Su Yu shook his head helplessly. At this moment, he vaguely understood a few things. While he had no idea what use this ancient city token served in the Star Astral Mansion, inside the ancient city it was useful—tremendously so. It served as a token representing one's status within the ancient city. The ancient city distinguished status by thirty-six rings of tokens. Tokens of the first, second, and third rings were considered nobles and prominent figures of the ancient city, capable of commanding dead spirits below the Sun Moon Realm. Tokens of the fourth, fifth, and sixth rings could command dead spirits below the Shanhai Realm. Tokens of the seventh, eighth, and ninth rings could command dead spirits below the Lingyun Realm. Tokens beyond the ninth ring could only slightly ward off dead spirits, possessing no commanding authority. At the same time, another condition had to be met: one had to be an ancient city resident. Su Yu had previously held a sixteenth-ring token, which couldn't command dead spirits at all. Even if he had held a third-ring token back then, he still couldn't have commanded them, though carrying it would have kept dead spirits below the Sun Moon Realm from bothering him. "So that's how it is!" Su Yu muttered to himself. An ancient city resident carrying a token could actually command dead spirits. The relationship between these dead spirits and the ancient city seemed exceedingly complex. Apart from these, there were also special ancient city tokens, such as the castellan token, city gate token, guard general token, guard token, warehouse keeper token, and so on… Different tokens granted different positions within the ancient city. Of course, the prerequisite was sufficient strength to refine the token. For instance, if Su Yu obtained the castellan token and refined it, he would become the castellan. As for what specific benefits or functions a castellan enjoyed, Su Yu wasn't clear. However, if Su Yu refined this third-ring token right now, according to the insights he had received, the token possessed certain abilities: it could accelerate his cultivation and make resisting the erosion of death qi slightly easier. Tokens within the first three rings were considered ancient city nobility. Carrying such a token into an ancient house even granted additional benefits, drastically increasing the chances of encountering fortunate opportunities. "I see…" Su Yu felt a stir in his heart. No wonder castellans and guards rarely went outside yet could still cultivate; they probably obtained opportunities within the ancient city. Otherwise, the ancient city lacked yuan qi and overflowed with death qi. Unable to cultivate, if they didn't leave, they would perish in a matter of days. "Castellan token…" Su Yu looked toward the Castellan Manor, his gaze turning dangerous. Hmph, Dark Demonic Dragon! He wasn't done with that fellow yet. "A third-ring token can only control peak Shanhai dead spirits at most… The problem is, peak Shanhai dead spirits can only breach certain outer ancient houses. With the token, I can already breach those myself. Right now, most of my targets are in the inner rings and are high-stage Sun Moons… It's virtually useless against them." At this thought, Su Yu's mind stirred. Damn it all, I won't let these bastards leave. I'll suffocate them in here alive! On the third day, when the city gates are about to open, I'll just slaughter a few more Shanhai dead spirits, summon Sun Moon dead spirits, and continue sealing the city to suffocate them to death! One day is fine, two or three days… what about a month or two? You dare not come out, but I do! With death qi this dense, no matter how powerful you are, let's see who can outlast whom! After a month or two, every single one of you will die. As for converting into residents… then I'll just reverse my yuan qi, transform into a dead spirit, and lend you a 'helping hand.' Su Yu suddenly grew excited! Having become an ancient city resident, he realized his luck seemed remarkably good. In an instant, he could turn the tables and trap these bastards to death! I'll suffocate every last one of you! If you have the guts, have your Invincibles come down here again! "I'll cultivate for two days first. Two days from now, I'll slaughter dead spirits and seal the city again!" "Keep this going continuously… I won't even need to fight them myself to finish every one of them off!" In reality, even if Su Yu breached the house doors now, he was no match for late-stage Sun Moons, so it would be utterly futile. But he could suffocate those fellows to death. Of course, that bunch wouldn't be able to endure it indefinitely in the end and would eventually step outside. And once they came out? Could they manage to kill Su Yu? They couldn't do it before, so could they do it now? With his tracks concealed, Su Yu mingled among the ancient city's dead spirits. Unless those fellows chose mutual destruction by embarking on a massive slaughter of dead spirits… True, he had to guard against that. Never mind, if they came out, he would just duck inside a house. They couldn't break into the ancient houses in the inner rings either. … No sooner said than done. Su Yu had no desire to leave; the ancient city was currently the safest place, while the outside world was perilous. He would stay right here in the ancient city! First, cultivate and cast his body, then head out to slaughter some dead spirits. Just when those fellows thought they could leave, the city would be sealed again—they would surely go insane. This was called subduing the enemy without fighting! Su Yu had no interest in life-or-death brawls against seventh- or eighth-stage Sun Moons; it was pointless. From this day forth, Xinghong Ancient City was his territory. Su Yu was delighted! Finding an ancient house, he began absorbing Heaven and Earth Profound Light to cultivate. Previously, he had reached forty-four castings, making his physical body unimaginably powerful. Now, continuing to absorb Heaven and Earth Profound Light to cultivate took considerably longer. During the forty-fourth casting, even with abundant resources, Su Yu had needed twelve hours. This time, the process was even slower, and the consumption was far greater. Eighteen hours later, Su Yu completed his forty-fifth physical body casting. Having absorbed a massive amount of Heaven and Earth Profound Light, his formidable physical body caused the death qi within him to recede significantly. However, very quickly, the rate at which that death qi spread accelerated as well. Su Yu was surprised. The spreading speed of this death qi could actually increase? … At the same time. In the rear hall of the Castellan Manor. The Stone Statue suddenly opened its eyes and said coldly, "Do you seek death?" Beneath its feet, in a passage, Monarch Xingyue chuckled. "Not at all, I haven't left. I was merely astonished by how fast his strength grows… Truly a surprise to this monarch. I was just resting when suddenly the consumption of death qi intensified!" "You dare to accelerate the speed of death qi erosion without authorization!" The Stone Statue gave a cold snort. The next moment, divine light erupted from its eyes, piercing toward Su Yu… Down below, Monarch Xingyue said faintly, "It wasn't me who accelerated it. Rather, he grew stronger. According to the rules, this is how it should be. As his converter, I must correspondingly accelerate according to his strength…" The Stone Statue ignored her. This was indeed the normal rule. Otherwise, if a Tengkong dead spirit converted you and you happened upon a tremendous opportunity to swiftly step into the Lingyun Realm, what would happen if that Tengkong dead spirit couldn't suppress you? Of course, such circumstances were exceptionally rare! Under normal conditions, when a Tengkong cultivator was converted, a Tengkong dead spirit oversaw the conversion and handled the erosion. Even for exceptionally powerful geniuses—such as Su Yu, where a Lingyun was destroyed at first, followed shortly by a Shanhai, and then a Sun Moon… under normal conditions, no one could break free from the dead spirits' suppression. In the end, one could only transform into a dead spirit. And now, Su Yu was being suppressed and converted by a dead spirit monarch. There was virtually no hope of breaking free. Yet Su Yu was not only managing to suppress it somewhat, but he was also able to rapidly enhance his strength. That was anything but simple. "The Iron Eater 72 Castings is formidable indeed…" Below, Xingyue smiled, though she soon hesitated slightly. "Besides the Iron Eater 72 Castings, he can also delay the speed of death qi erosion. What kind of cultivation method is that? It feels… somewhat familiar." Familiar indeed—the Acupoint Reversal Method! Yet regarding the Acupoint Reversal Method, the dead spirit race actually knew what it was without understanding why it worked. They inherently knew how to use it from the moment they came into being, but they couldn't articulate the principles behind it; it was very similar to an innate racial ability, yet not quite. Moreover, no one had ever heard of a living person mastering it. Xingyue didn't think along those lines. When Su Yu circulated it, Monarch Xingyue had indeed seen his acupoints undergo certain changes… but the acupoints of dead spirits were inherently different, lacking the reversal process Su Yu underwent. "This method… greatly delays the duration of death qi erosion…" Xingyue watched for a while, rendered speechless. In other words, in the short term, she might not be able to guide this fellow into the Dead Spirit Realm. The Stone Statue also observed this. After pondering for a moment, it said indifferently, "You may only correspondingly increase the speed of death qi erosion based on his strength. Secretly accelerating it is forbidden; otherwise, I will sever your death qi passage. This, too, is the rule! The ancient era gave you dead spirits a chance, and it also gave these guardians a chance. If he possesses the opportunity, fortune, and strength to suppress your death qi erosion, then he will not be forced to transform into a dead spirit. Moving toward life through death, he… might revive!" Revive! At this moment, Su Yu was already considered among the living dead, because becoming a resident meant almost no escape from this calamity. However, 'almost no escape' did not mean absolutely zero hope! The ancient era had given dead spirits a chance, and it had also granted these residents a chance. Escaping this doom was not entirely hopeless! However, the hope was terrifyingly slim. Yet right now, the Stone Statue suddenly felt that it might truly have a chance to witness such an event. Monarch Xingyue's voice turned faintly eerie. "A chance? His current progress is rapid only because his strength is weak. Once he reaches the Sun Moon Realm, could he possibly advance at such speed? I am a dead spirit monarch. Once he stagnates in the Sun Moon Realm for a period and fails to advance, I will naturally corrode him completely!" With that, she chuckled. "Still, it's fine. The stronger he is while alive, the stronger he will be after conversion. If he truly reaches the Sun Moon Realm before transforming into a dead spirit, perhaps… a powerful dead spirit general will be added to my command!" Fine, let him grow strong! Could he possibly become strong enough to break free from her corrosion? She was an Eternal! He could suppress it now, but could he suppress it indefinitely? According to the rules, the rate of Su Yu's death qi corrosion would always remain a step ahead of his cultivation speed… Of course, right now, this fellow's speed was shockingly swift, and combined with that special reversal method, the death qi had failed to suppress him. The Stone Statue spoke no further. It merely upheld the rules and had no wish to interfere with anything else. Perhaps Su Yu truly could break free from the suppression of death qi. If the one converting him hadn't been a dead spirit monarch but rather a Sun Moon Realm dead spirit, the Stone Statue believed that Su Yu would have broken free of the suppression with absolute certainty—such was the monstrous genius of this human. It was merely a pity that the one converting him was a dead spirit monarch. As a result, Su Yu's chances of revival were significantly diminished. It was a misfortune, yet also a blessing. If Su Yu truly perished and was directly guided by an Invincible into the Dead Spirit Realm, he would still be a prominent figure there. … Su Yu was oblivious to the conversation between the Stone Statue and Xingyue. Nor did he care. He didn't perceive anything amiss either. Although the rate at which the death qi spread had increased, it didn't matter; his strength had grown, and reversing his acupoints allowed him to neutralize even more death qi. Broadly speaking, the erosion remained at its previous pace. Having completed forty-five castings, Su Yu walked out the door. Without wasting words, he used the third-ring token to capture a peak Shanhai dead spirit. Blank and mindless, it followed Su Yu into a secluded alley, and then… out stepped Su Yu, alongside an early-stage Sun Moon dead spirit. Inside the city, the death qi that had begun dissipating surged back once more. The city gates, which had shown signs of loosening, slammed shut yet again. Open in three days? Su Yu wouldn't let them open even in three years! Returning to the ancient house, he resumed casting his body and cultivating. All to resist the death qi. It seemed he was consuming Heaven and Earth Profound Light slightly faster now. Never mind, who cared! In any case, he had plenty of Heaven and Earth Profound Light! Right now, Su Yu still had 250 strands left—half his reserve. … Just as Su Yu killed that peak Shanhai dead spirit and the dispersing death qi in the city brimmed anew… Inside several ancient houses, various experts who had been preparing to step out and look around suddenly experienced drastic changes in expression. Someone cracked their door to peek outside and couldn't help but curse under their breath, "What's going on? The death qi has thickened again!" At this moment. Inside the ancient house occupied by the Immortal race, Dao Cheng, Xuan Wuji, and several others were gathered. Neither the Dao King nor the Xuan King had ultimately managed to take them away; there had been no way to extract them. The only one who had truly succeeded was King Daming, who was stronger than both of them. He had forcefully held off two dead spirit monarchs, endured numerous attacks from the stone statues, and extracted Qin Hao and the others. Everyone else remained trapped. At this moment, Xuan Wuji furrowed his brows slightly and opened the door to peer outside. Seeing the death qi roiling once more, radiance shimmered over his body to resist the erosion of death qi inside the house. Frowning, he said, "Was this Su Yu's doing? Or someone else's? Another dead spirit has likely been slain!" It wasn't difficult to guess what had happened! Another dead spirit had definitely been killed, causing a Sun Moon dead spirit to emerge and sealing the city once again. Geniuses weren't stupid! It was very likely Su Yu. Su Yu might have converted into an ancient city resident; they knew this much, as they still had sources of intelligence and carried sub-rankings of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. Dao Cheng nodded slightly and said, "We must stop this. Su Yu likely intends to trap and kill us here, just as he has done before! Having become a resident, he won't be corroded by death qi, but we will… Unless we follow his example, but that is a dead end!" Xuan Wuji nodded, turning to the two late-stage Sun Moons of the Immortal race. "We trouble the two seniors to communicate with the late-stage Sun Moon experts of the other races. Have one late-stage Sun Moon patrol the city each day, leaving Su Yu no opportunity. Otherwise… he intends to drag us all to our deaths! Or having two or three patrol together works as well. Under no circumstances can we allow Su Yu to kill another dead spirit!" The expressions of the two Immortal experts changed slightly as well. If this continued, even as late-stage Sun Moons, they would eventually be trapped and killed inside the city. The next moment, a seventh-stage Sun Moon stepped out the door and shouted aloud, "It must be Su Yu slaying dead spirits, causing another Sun Moon dead spirit to emerge and prolonging the city's lockdown! Everyone, for our own survival, my Immortal race will take the first patrol today, rotating daily. God, Demon, Immortal, Dragon… at least two late-stage Sun Moons must patrol the city every day, giving Su Yu no opportunity whatsoever. Three days from now, we will leave the ancient city!" As soon as these words rang out, inside his ancient house, the cultivating Su Yu felt a stir in his heart. He cursed under his breath! Not bad, the Immortals actually have some brains. Damn it, that really is a decent solution. The next instant, a response bellowed from within the city: "Tomorrow, my Demon race shall patrol!" "The day after, my God race shall patrol!" "The Dragon race will assist!" "…" One late-stage Sun Moon expert after another responded. It was all for their own survival. As for killing Su Yu… forget it. Without a doubt, that fellow was currently hiding inside a house in the first or second ring; they couldn't force their way in. Searching for Su Yu was a pointless waste of time. He was already an ancient city resident, so finding his location was impossible. It was better to be direct: assign people to patrol every day, denying Su Yu any chance to kill dead spirits. Three days later, everyone would be able to leave, abandoning Su Yu to rot here by himself! Very quickly, two late-stage Sun Moon Immortals appeared in the city, patrolling in all directions. The number of Sun Moon dead spirits in the city had decreased considerably. Working together and refraining from slaying dead spirits, the two late-stage Sun Moons merely conducted their patrols. Though corroded by death qi, their lives weren't in immediate danger. Three days later, they would naturally be able to depart smoothly. At worst, they would delay another three days; once Su Yu appeared once or twice, they would naturally be able to pinpoint his location. With so few living people left in the city, if that fellow caused any major commotion, they would definitely sense it. … Inside the ancient house. Su Yu cursed under his breath, then snorted. Idiots! You think patrolling is enough? I have an ancient city token, you know that? I can summon a peak Shanhai dead spirit right to my doorstep for the slaughter, and it won't even put up a fight. What the hell do you know? Did you think killing a peak Shanhai dead spirit requires me to engage in an earth-shattering battle? What are you dreaming of! Once it's dead, you won't even know where it died. It literally delivered itself to my doorstep to die—aren't you terrified? I'll let you rejoice for a while. When the three days are almost up, I'll summon another dead spirit to slaughter! All told, these fellows had already lingered here for quite a few days. Su Yu calculated that it must have been five or six days already. Stay another three days, and it would be nearly ten. Then another three days… Over ten days, I refuse to believe you can truly hold out that long! "Back to cultivating. No time to waste on fools!" Paying them no heed, Su Yu resumed his own cultivation. Having completed forty-five castings, he proceeded to cast his body further. … Meanwhile, the outside world quickly received the news as well. At the headquarters of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. A group of Faceless Elders exchanged glances. Soon, an elder spoke up: "Bai Yi is about to die. He says he cannot hold out much longer. Xinghong Sacred City has been sealed once again for at least three days. He was already injured before, and now he is corroded by death qi. Three days from now, he might not even survive!" "Su Yu's doing?" "Most likely him!" "…" The elders deliberated over what to do. Bai Yi was the Heaven Hunting Pavilion's strongest operative in Xinghong Ancient City, at the peak of the sixth stage of the Sun Moon Realm, just shy of the seventh stage. Those at the seventh stage and above were elders; Bai Yi was merely a single step away from elder status. If this continued, this quasi-elder was going to perish. This time, they had reaped immense profits. Yet losing a sixth-stage Sun Moon… was also profoundly painful. They had already lost a Sun Moon earlier—no, two. One had been slain by Shadow, and the other had been caught in the crossfire during the battle of Invincibles, nearly costing the life of an elder as well. Truth be told, making a massive windfall felt fantastic, but losing two Sun Moons in succession… was enough to break their hearts! Now, another sixth-stage Sun Moon was trapped. If the city remained sealed and Bai Yi died, that would make three Sun Moons lost. Profiting off intelligence was great, but losing three Sun Moons made even the Heaven Hunting Pavilion want to weep. Sun Moons truly did not grow on trees. Even with the Heaven Hunting Pavilion's exceptionally ancient heritage, they couldn't afford such losses. "Can we contact Su Yu?" "Tell him to cease the slaughter…" "Are you joking?" "No… we can offer some terms. He has already become one of the living dead; must he drag everyone down with him into the grave?" "Nonsense! Put yourself in his shoes—would you still care about benefits? Wouldn't you want people buried alongside you? And they're all enemies! If there were human experts or his relatives trapped inside, he might still have reservations. As it stands, he has already thrown caution to the winds. Do you truly think you can persuade him?" "Calm down, everyone. The experts inside the city are already taking measures to save themselves. There are still over a dozen late-stage Sun Moons in the city; they might not necessarily come to harm… Three days from now, they might be able to emerge smoothly!" "…" The Heaven Hunting Pavilion was utterly helpless as well. Seemingly omnipotent, they could do nothing about the ancient city at this juncture. With Bai Yi trapped inside, he could only fend for himself. As for rescue from the outside world… Over a dozen Invincibles had launched a rescue attempt earlier, and everyone had seen the result: several Invincibles had had their three-life bodies shattered. Right now, no Invincible was crazy enough to go asking for trouble! "First, have Bai Yi try to contact Su Yu. It would be best to have Su Yu carry a ranking list…" "Su Yu has always been extraordinarily vigilant against our Heaven Hunting Pavilion. Aside from briefly holding one for a short period earlier, ever since his location was sold to Dao Cheng, he has never held a ranking list again. Do you really think he'll carry one now?" An elder sighed helplessly. That fellow would rather remain uninformed than communicate with them again. He seemed daring, yet at times his caution was terrifyingly paranoid; he hardly ever touched the Heaven Hunting Pavilion's ranking lists! "Let's try. Wait three more days and see. We aren't the only ones anxious. Bai Yi is merely a sixth-stage Sun Moon, while the major powerful races in the city almost all have seventh-stage Sun Moons present. If this continues, those geniuses and experts will all die. Modona, Zhan Wushuang, Ming Yue, Xuan Wuji, Foutuling… all of them are among them. No race can afford such a loss!" "Earlier, the God and Demon races already suffered the fall of late-stage Sun Moons. If more late-stage Sun Moons perish, it will be a catastrophic loss for the major races!" Because of a single Su Yu, how many Sun Moons had fallen in just one month? Over twenty had died earlier, and another nine had perished this time—already exceeding thirty! Even Invincible three-life bodies had fallen. The slaughter this fellow Su Yu had caused was hardly less than Xia Longwu's. And he was merely a Lingyun! This fellow… It had to be said, the myriad races' determination to slay him, even deploying so many Invincibles, was not without justification. Anyone in their position would want him dead; he was simply too terrifying. … At this moment, the heavens and myriad realms once again focused their gaze upon Xinghong Ancient City. Outside the ancient city, some experts gathered once more, but not a single one was willing to attack the city now; that would be utter madness! The ancient city's deterrent power had been proven once again. Attacking the city now was pure suicide! They were only there to gather intelligence as swiftly as possible. Everyone knew that a group of experts and geniuses were currently trapped in the ancient city. Originally, the city could have opened today, but very quickly, they received word from the Heaven Hunting Pavilion that another dead spirit had been slain inside, a Sun Moon dead spirit had emerged, and the city was sealed for another three days! At this, the hearts of countless experts leapt into their throats! The powerful God and Demon races turned their attention to this sorrowful ground. Invincibles had just returned in defeat, and now those people still hadn't been rescued. What on earth were they to do! … Under such circumstances, two and a half days slipped by. Meanwhile, the experts of the various races had gathered inside the same ancient house—a large residence within the first ring. There were experts from ancient races, experts from the top hundred races, and experts from the great God and Demon races. There were a full sixteen late-stage Sun Moons. Some Sun Moons had already fled earlier, while others hadn't managed to escape; most were present here. As for figures of Gu Shan's caliber… he had vanished without a trace long ago! The moment the Invincibles had stormed in, that fellow had scampered away like greased lightning. Sixteen late-stage Sun Moons, along with a few early- and mid-stage Sun Moons—their numbers were few, as most had perished among those nine Sun Moons earlier; right now, only six remained. Twenty-two Sun Moon Realm experts! And over a dozen geniuses. All of them were top geniuses of their respective races! They had originally come to broaden their horizons and view the corpse of an ancient Invincible. Now, however… every single one was trapped! At this moment, someone sighed. "I wonder if there will be any unexpected turns. Also, Foutuling's location has been roughly confirmed. In the entire city, only one other house still contains a living person; it's almost certainly him!" Beside them, a Sun Moon expert of the Five Elements race said helplessly, "That house isn't far from here, but Foutuling should still be bound. If he doesn't open the door, we have no way to force it open… Who knows how long we'll remain trapped? If this drags on and the death qi remains this dense, I worry he won't be able to endure it…" Fortunately, Foutuling was likely sealed by the restrictions of the two Five Elements Invincibles, which could resist the death qi. Otherwise, with Foutuling's strength, having stayed in an ancient house for several days previously, he might have perished already. Right now, in the entire city, only that house—no, counting this one, only two houses still held living beings. As for the ancient city residents, quite a few were still alive, but every single one kept their doors tightly shut; no one came out, and no one opened their doors. In any case, no matter how powerful the death qi outside was, it couldn't corrode them. Better to stay in seclusion! Going outside risked being killed! At this stage, they had no need for food or drink; once one cultivated to the Tengkong Realm or above, going several months without food wouldn't starve them to death. "Better worry about ourselves!" Someone said coldly, "Foutuling is safer than we are! We don't possess formidable defensive restrictions. If this continues and the gates fail to open again, we are finished!" "Actually, even if complications arise, there is another way: have Black Demon force the gates open. He is the castellan; he holds that authority…" No one paid him any mind. Would Black Demon open the gates? Wishful thinking! He had nearly died himself. Forcing the gates open now would violate the rules and subject him to backlash, potentially speeding his own demise. Would the Dark Demonic Dragon seek his own death? He wasn't even showing his face now, likely suppressing his death qi. Go look for him? He'd be damned if he gave you the time of day! "The three days are almost up…" An expert said in a deep voice, "Everyone, stay alert. Send more people out on patrol. Give Su Yu no opportunity whatsoever. Otherwise, if we are trapped for another three days, I fear we will have to convert into ancient city residents just like Su Yu, or some among us won't survive the next three days!" Converting into residents was still an option now since Su Yu didn't dare come out. Otherwise… they wouldn't even dare to convert. Just yesterday, someone had died: a fellow who had attempted an early conversion was suddenly corroded to death by death qi, failing to convert successfully. Modona and the others had speculated for a while, and recalling the death of the Xuan Armor expert back then, they quickly arrived at the answer. Su Yu's doing! That fellow had definitely disguised himself as a dead spirit and snatched the other party's jade talisman, causing the conversion to fail. Thus, a peak Shanhai had died a miserable death, full of grievance even in his final moments. … Just as they were conferring, several late-stage Sun Moon experts were patrolling the city in all directions. Meanwhile, Su Yu woke up once again. Forty-six castings! Excellent! Furthermore, the city gates were about to open. He couldn't allow these fellows to leave. He cracked his door slightly and waved the ancient city token. Before long, a Shanhai dead spirit drifted over. Su Yu took a glance, sensed its aura, and mentally told it to get lost! An early-stage Shanhai—what use was that? Slaying it would only summon a mid-stage one, requiring multiple kills and easily drawing attention. He brandished the ancient city token again, and a moment later, a peak Shanhai dead spirit arrived. It halted before his door. "Lower your head…" Su Yu commanded. The dead spirit lowered its head. Su Yu glanced around through the crack in the door and probed with his perception jade. He needed to ensure no Sun Moons were within a thousand meters before striking, so they wouldn't even know where the kill had occurred. Soon, the perception jade showed no movement. Su Yu wasted no time. He slammed a fist into the dead spirit's head. How immense was his current strength! Moreover, the dead spirit mounted zero defense; its head was pulverized by his punch. In an instant, an early-stage Sun Moon dead spirit manifested. Su Yu swiftly shut the door! A moment later, furious roars erupted. "Damn it!" "Bastard!" "Su Yu, you are vicious!" "Su Yu, let us out, or your father, your teachers—all of them will die!" "…" Some were driven completely mad. Su Yu was demanding their lives. With multiple late-stage Sun Moons on patrol, Su Yu had still managed to slay a dead spirit and summon a Sun Moon, sealing the city once more! Three days—another three days! Some truly couldn't hold out any longer! Despair! At this moment, people continuously transmitted pleas for help to the outside world through the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. Help! They were going to die! As for converting into residents… heavily wounded and corroded to such an extent, even if they succeeded, they would likely perish soon afterward! And once dead, they would still turn into dead spirits! That was not the outcome they desired! Roars of despair echoed throughout the ancient city. … Yet Su Yu remained completely impassive. Threaten all you want! Once you're all dead, there won't be anyone left to make threats. At this moment, someone shrieked shrilly, "Su Yu, stop killing! Let us out! My race is not an enemy of the human race! If you kill me, the Invincible of my race will definitely take out their wrath on the humans!" "Su Yu, must you provoke more enemies for the human race?" "…" Su Yu wore an indifferent expression. Relying on this nonsense when you can't beat me? I don't give a damn! Who do you think you are? If I said that killing me would make dozens of human Invincibles retaliate against you, would you believe it? Would you stay your hands because of such a threat? Laughable! A bunch of morons! If the human race truly got implicated and couldn't even deter races with merely a solitary Invincible… then they deserved to be wiped out! If every random nobody could step on their heads, wouldn't being wiped out be well deserved? Dozens of Invincibles, yet intimidated by these minor races? In Su Yu's eyes, any race with just one or two Invincibles was a small race. What was there to fear? Dispatching a single Invincible would carry the hope of obliterating their entire realm. In any case, he couldn't care less! … At this very moment, furious curses resounded unceasingly throughout the outside world! Su Yu, even after becoming one of the living dead, remained the focal point of the myriad realms. This fellow was dead set on having over a dozen geniuses and more than twenty Sun Moons buried alongside him! He was truly ruthless! A mere Lingyun had brought about the deaths of over fifty Sun Moons before and after. Even if Su Yu died, he had already broken even and then some! Converting into an ancient city resident was virtually no different from death: one couldn't leave the ancient city, leaving for even a few days invited disaster, and strength could no longer advance. How was that any different from being dead? It merely looked like being alive! As long as the people inside failed to emerge this time, in the eyes of the outside world, they were as good as dead. Su Yu was truly merciless!