The main city of Huangzhou was named Hanshui City. It was the most important and prosperous city in the province. The Corpse Driving Sect was situated in the Yin Corpse Mountain Range outside Hanshui City, where yin energy was at its peak—the most ideal place for raising corpses.
All corpse drivers revered the Yin Corpse Mountain Range, home to the Corpse Driving Sect, as a sacred ground.
Stepping into the domain of the Corpse Driving Sect, despite the bright and sunny day, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou felt not the slightest trace of warmth. Instead, a pervasive, chilling cold washed over them.
Zhao Po wore a comfortable expression, seemingly thoroughly enjoying the environment.
The Immortal Fairy was not surprised by this. "It's not just corpse drivers; anyone who practices yin-attribute cultivation techniques will feel very comfortable here. What's more, when it rains here, there is never any thunder, making it very safe."
So-called yin-attribute techniques referred to arts related to ghosts, souls, corpses, and the like; the methods cultivated by the Nine Nether Cult fell into this category.
Cultivators of yin-attribute arts were terrified of thunder above all else. Thunder and lightning represented ultimate yang and unyielding vigor, serving as the greatest bane of yin-attribute cultivators.
Among the twenty-four solar terms, one was called the "Awakening of Insects," which originally described the deterring and rousing power of thunder over dark, dormant creatures.
"Senior Brother Zhao Po, you're back!"
Upon seeing Zhao Po return, the two gatekeeping disciples promptly bowed in greeting.
Each of them also had a living corpse standing guard alongside them.
As the second-ranked figure among the new generation of disciples, Zhao Po was an idolized presence among these juniors.
Unlike the number one disciple, Huang Ming, Zhao Po was always willing to lend a helping hand. Many had received his aid, earning him tremendous popularity throughout the Corpse Driving Sect.
"Senior Brother Zhao, these two are...?"
"They are fellow Daoists from the Dao Seeking Sect, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, here to visit our Corpse Driving Sect."
The two gatekeepers were taken aback. "Dao Seeking Sect again?!"
"Again?"
"Senior Brother Zhao might not know, but while you were away, a fellow Daoist from the Dao Seeking Sect arrived at our sect—a Barbarian, no less—who came to learn our corpse-driving arts."
"Is his name Man Gu?" Lu Yang could not help asking.
"Yes, that's the name."
"Why would Man Gu learn corpse-driving arts? Isn't he a Confucian cultivator?" Meng Jingzhou was baffled.
"Who knows?"
The two gatekeeping disciples sent word into the sect, and upon hearing the news, a sect deacon personally came out to welcome the guests.
"Could Deacon please inform your Sect Master? The two of us have come to pay a visit."
The deacon wore a troubled look. "The Sect Master has reached a crucial juncture in his cultivation. Ever since accepting Huang Ming as his disciple, he has been in secluded cultivation and cannot receive guests."
"I see. No matter, visiting one of your sect's elders would do just as well."
After all, they were only here to find a solution for Meng Jingzhou; asking anyone knowledgeable would suffice.
"In that case, I can lead the way. My master is the Grand Elder," Zhao Po said with a smile.
After the sect tournament concluded, Huang Ming had been taken in as an apprentice by the Sect Master, while Zhao Po had been accepted by the Grand Elder. In terms of actual standing, he was even higher than a deacon.
"Then I shall leave it to Martial Nephew Zhao Po."
"You are too polite, Martial Uncle Mo."
The three youths, one corpse, and one horse entered the Corpse Driving Sect smoothly. After settling the old horse first, they set off to find the Grand Elder.
"What a fragrant aroma." Zhao Po's nose twitched as he caught scent of an aroma he had never smelled before.
"It really does smell amazing, and remarkably familiar." Meng Jingzhou twitched his nose, recognizing the familiar scent of barbecue.
"It must be Man Gu," Lu Yang said with a chuckle.
The only ones who could roast meat to this exact aroma were the three of them, the higher-ups of the Immortal Cult, and members of the Nine Nether Cult.
In other words, aside from demonic cults, only the three of them knew how to do it.
"Come on, let's go check it out." Meng Jingzhou cast his curse to the back of his mind.
The three followed the fragrance to find Man Gu—or rather, they didn't even need to follow their noses; merely looking for the largest crowd was enough.
A crowd of Corpse Driving Sect disciples was gathered in a circle doing who knew what, and the fragrance was wafting right from the center.
"Pardon me, excuse us, make way." The three squeezed into the front row of the crowd and saw Man Gu.
Man Gu was sitting cross-legged on the ground, chanting incantations under his breath.
Two sheep corpses were dancing over a bonfire, rubbing seasonings over each other. The aroma of mutton and spices blended seamlessly together, stimulated by the flames into an intoxicating fragrance.
The two sheep corpses were roasted to an enticing golden-brown hue that made one's mouth water.
"Divide!" Man Gu barked loudly. The two sheep corpses voluntarily dismembered themselves, breaking into small bite-sized pieces so that everyone in the crowd received a portion.
The disciples of the Corpse Driving Sect had long been waiting for this moment. They feasted heartily, showering him with endless praise.
"I've never tasted such delicious whole roasted lamb in my life! Look at this skin—crispy and fragrant! And this meat—bursting with juice at every bite!"
"That's not all! The whole roasted lambs I ate before were always unevenly cooked—burnt in some spots and half-raw in others. Look at what Fellow Daoist Man Gu roasted. It's so flavorful that even the bones are steeped in seasoning!"
"The Dao Seeking Sect really has brilliant minds! Why didn't we ever think of using corpse-driving arts for barbecue? The results are incredible!"
"That's why they got into the Dao Seeking Sect while we couldn't. Their realm of thought is on an entirely different level!"
"It's not just his realm of thought—Fellow Daoist Man Gu's talent is terrifying too! Think about it: ordinary people like us have to study for three to five years just to learn corpse-driving arts, but Fellow Daoist Man Gu mastered the basics in barely half a month!"
"Even his drive to learn puts us to shame."
Man Gu displayed immense modesty. "Fellow Daoists flatter me too much. Compared to my two senior brothers, my meager skills pale in comparison. Especially Senior Brother Lu Yang—if he were to learn corpse-driving arts and combine them with the Three-Flavor True Fire, the flavor of this whole roasted lamb could be elevated to an entirely new height!"
The crowd could hardly imagine just how heavenly that would taste.
Lu Yang: "..."
Meng Jingzhou: "..."
No wonder this brat Man Gu came to learn corpse-driving arts; turns out he hadn't forgotten what he'd said back in the dense forest!
When the four of them—Lu Yang, Meng Jingzhou, Tao Yaoye, and Man Gu—were training in the dense forest, they had slaughtered quite a few demon beasts. Back then, Man Gu realized that roasting an entire demon beast often led to uneven heat distribution, so he proposed using corpse-driving arts to barbecue.
This method had even received high praise from the supreme backer of the Ancient Barbarian race—the Immortal Fairy.
"Man Gu's studies have progressed quite smoothly. Not only can he make the sheep corpses roast themselves over the fire, but he can even make them voluntarily dismember themselves."
The two had learned from Zhao Po that dismembering a living corpse was a combat technique and exceptionally difficult to master.
"Man Gu, long time no see!"
The two greeted him, the corners of their mouths twitching upward into smiles.
Hearing the familiar voices, Man Gu jerked his head up. Seeing Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, his eyes lit up instantly.
"Brother Lu, Brother Meng! What are you doing here?"
"Old Meng committed too many misdeeds and brought retribution upon himself," Lu Yang said with a mischievous grin.
"Misdeeds?" Man Gu was puzzled. In his impression, Brother Lu and Brother Meng were role models for him to emulate—thoroughly good men. How could they possibly do bad things?
"Old Meng got cursed. Now he has terrible luck with women."
Man Gu came to a sudden realization. Brother Meng must have purposely accepted the curse to maximize the potential of his Bachelor Spiritual Root for the sake of cultivation, demonstrating his unyielding resolve!
While he had been idling away learning corpse-driving arts, Brother Lu and Brother Meng must have been racing against time, training with utmost diligence and rigor.
Looking at himself in comparison, he had become complacent after learning just a bit of corpse-driving art, which didn't even boost his cultivation base in the slightest. Compared to Brother Meng, he was simply squandering his youth.
He felt profoundly ashamed.
Chapter 421