Chapter One Hundred and Sixteen: Bloody Plan
Yang Haoran completely ignored Zhou Daoshi. Seeing the chain formed by his Spirit Power seized by the Corpse Ghoul, his face darkened. With a sharp flick of his wrist, the chain instantly dissolved into streams of Yin Qi, then bypassed the Corpse Ghoul, heading directly for Zhou Daoshi behind it.
Zhou Daoshi's expression remained unchanged. Unhurriedly, he waved a hand. A grayish-white light flashed past, scattering the incoming Yin Qi.
At this moment, under Yang Haoran's Ghost Eye, not only was the Corpse Ghoul enveloped in a layer of grayish-white Corpse Qi, but Zhou Daoshi's body was also shrouded in a layer of grayish-white special power.
Compared to the Corpse Ghoul, the grayish-white power fluctuations on Zhou Daoshi were much stronger. The two were simply not on the same level. In other words, in terms of strength, Zhou Daoshi was certainly far more formidable than the Corpse Ghoul.
Recalling how he had only sensed faint power fluctuations on Zhou Daoshi yesterday—Yang Haoran had thought then that Zhou Daoshi might have some power, but it was simply too weak—now, it seemed his earlier thought was nothing short of ironic.
It was precisely because the power fluctuations he sensed from Zhou Daoshi then were so faint that Yang Haoran hadn't paid much attention. If he had paid attention then, and used his Ghost Eye to carefully observe the power fluctuations emanating from Zhou Daoshi, he would have definitely discovered that the power fluctuations on Zhou Daoshi were related to Corpse Qi.
If he had realized something was off with Zhou Daoshi back then, would the tragedy of Yangjiawan have been averted?
At this moment, Yang Haoran's heart was filled not only with rage but also with self-reproach.
In truth, it boiled down to his strength and perception simply not being up to par. If it had been Xu Meijing, the outcome would surely have been different.
At this point, Zhou Daoshi saw that not only did Yang Haoran have no intention of listening further, but was instead fiercely attacking him with manipulated Yin Qi. He chuckled, then spoke to himself.
"My actions against Yangjiawan were out of necessity. You've all seen these massive stone gates before us. I've already opened the others; now only this last one remains. Tell me, can I possibly give up?"
Zhou Daoshi stood with his hands clasped behind his back, exuding the demeanor of a true master. As he spoke, he occasionally batted away the Yin Qi approaching him.
Most of Yang Haoran's attacks were blocked by the Corpse Ghoul. Only a very few, more cunning attacks managed to bypass the Corpse Ghoul's obstruction, but they still couldn't inflict any harm on Zhou Daoshi.
"I must open this stone gate. However, there's an incredibly powerful curse inscription on it. Even I had no way to deal with this inscription at first. It was only after extensive research that I found a feasible method. This method is somewhat cruel, but at least it won't harm me. The method I devised is to use potent Corpse Qi to defile this inscription, gradually wearing away its power."
Casually batting away an incoming stream of Yin Qi, Zhou Daoshi chuckled and continued, "Heh heh, to obtain potent Corpse Qi, zombies are naturally the first choice. But I wouldn't waste the Corpse Ghouls I painstakingly refined. So, I thought of Corpse Puppets, a grade lower than Corpse Ghouls."
"Corpse Puppets, being the lowest-grade zombies, don't require complicated refinement processes at all. As long as one has a single Corpse Ghoul, it's incredibly simple to acquire an army of Corpse Puppets in a short time. With enough targets, I can have an army of Corpse Puppets in a very short period."
"Since your Yangjiawan and Liu Family Village are relatively close to here, I initially set my sights on both villages. After careful consideration, I ultimately decided that Yangjiawan would contribute to my plan. The reason is simple: Yangjiawan has nearly double the population of Liu Family Village. I need a large number of Corpse Puppets, the more the better. Therefore, Yangjiawan was more suitable for my plan."
"After setting Yangjiawan as my target, I didn't act immediately. Instead, I chose to wait. I was waiting for the New Year, because many people return home then. If I struck then, I would be able to obtain even more Corpse Puppets."
"According to my plan, I was prepared to make my move on the eve of the Lunar New Year. By then, everyone who was coming back would have arrived, and few who hadn't returned yet would rush back. However, just yesterday, I saw Yangjiawan becoming increasingly lively. And I was also desperate to open this last stone gate as soon as possible. So, I decided to act earlier."
At this point, Zhou Daoshi paused. He chuckled as he looked at Yang Haoran. Yang Haoran's face was contorted in a ferocious grimace, his eyes bloodshot. He looked as if he wanted to flay Zhou Daoshi alive.
"So, so you attacked my second uncle? " Yang Haoran gritted his teeth, speaking as he furiously attacked with manipulated Yin Qi.
Zhou Daoshi smiled and nodded at his words. He said, "That's right. I had just left this mountain cave and happened to run into your second uncle. Since I had already decided to act, I naturally wouldn't let this opportunity pass. I let the Corpse Ghoul I refined bite him."
Seeing Yang Haoran's emotions grow even more agitated upon hearing these words, and the incoming Yin Qi intensify, Zhou Daoshi quickly spoke, smiling as he tried to persuade him: "Don't get agitated. I merely let my darling take a gentle bite out of him. Aside from being a little startled, his body wasn't gnawed on at all. Compared to the gruesome state of the others in Yangjiawan, your second uncle was quite fortunate, don't you think?"
Zhou Daoshi's tone and attitude made Yang Haoran tremble with rage. If looks could kill, Zhou Daoshi would have been sliced into a thousand pieces by now.
But Zhou Daoshi didn't care. On the contrary, Yang Haoran's reaction seemed to bring him enjoyment.
"Originally, I had planned to act last night, to turn everyone in Yangjiawan into a part of my Corpse Puppet army overnight. However, your appearance forced me to temporarily change my plans."
"I sensed strong Yin Qi on you. At first, I found it odd. But when I got closer and detected the Spirit Power within you, I knew you must be a Night Watcher of the Underworld Office."
"Although the Spirit Power within you isn't particularly strong, your Underworld Office is not easy to deal with. I didn't want any unnecessary complications. So, in my great benevolence, I allowed the people of Yangjiawan to live one more night. Speaking of which, I should thank your mother. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have known you were going on a blind date today. Knowing about your blind date, I decided to act after you had left."
"However, I didn't expect you to return to Yangjiawan so quickly, and even follow me all the way here. This works out well, too. The flesh and blood of you Night Watchers are a great tonic for my darling. Once it devours you completely, without a trace, my darling's strength will certainly make a breakthrough."
"Moreover, judging from the current situation, I still somewhat underestimated the power of the curse inscription on the stone gate. The Corpse Puppets I prepared don't seem to be enough. Perhaps I'll even need the fresh blood of both of you to achieve my goal and complete my ultimate plan."
Zhou Daoshi glanced at Yang Haoran, then at Xu Meijing, who remained silent and motionless. He smiled very happily. It seemed that the appearance of Yang Haoran and Xu Meijing not only didn't trouble him, but rather struck him as a good thing.
The ceaseless booming sounds, which had not stopped, finally ceased after Zhou Daoshi finished speaking. All three of them turned their gazes towards the tightly shut stone gate.
On the massive stone gate, the complex curse inscription still remained. However, the golden light it emitted was no longer as dazzling as before. The golden light was still there, but it had faded considerably.
In front of the stone gate lay a large expanse of foul-smelling, grayish-white liquid. And not a single one of those terrifying, grotesque Corpse Puppets was visible now.
With no Corpse Puppets impacting the stone gate, the incessant booming sounds of impact naturally vanished from the entire mountain cave.
"Heh heh, the inscription is still there. It seems it's time to make use of both your fresh blood. " Zhou Daoshi withdrew his gaze from the stone gate, turning instead to Yang Haoran and Xu Meijing, and said with a smile.
Xu Meijing, who had remained silent and inactive this entire time, also smiled after hearing Zhou Daoshi's words. Her hands were tucked into her pockets, and her gaze towards Zhou Daoshi was filled with mockery.
"Heh, you seem quite confident. " Xu Meijing asked with a cool expression, a hint of a smile.
Zhou Daoshi's expression remained unchanged as he smiled and nodded. He said, "Of course. If I didn't even have this much confidence, I wouldn't have reached this point today. Although you are much stronger than Haoran, and a bit troublesome to deal with, I didn't come unprepared in the slightest. Just yesterday, I already considered this possibility and made some preparations in advance."
At this, Zhou Daoshi's gaze fell upon the grim-faced Yang Haoran. He asked with a smile, "Haoran, do you remember the protective talisman I lent you?"
The moment Zhou Daoshi uttered these words, Yang Haoran's expression instantly shifted drastically. He inwardly cried out, "Oh no!"
Only then did he recall the protective talisman Zhou Daoshi had lent him yesterday. The very talisman Zhou Daoshi had repeatedly urged him to return in the future.
He had initially believed this protective talisman was Zhou Daoshi's cherished life-saving treasure. The fact that he'd been an Yin-Yang Master for so many years without incident very likely had something to do with this talisman. But now, it seemed things were not at all what they appeared.
Just as a bad premonition arose in his heart, before Yang Haoran could make any reaction, a powerful wave of energy suddenly erupted from his body. However, this powerful energy fluctuation did not belong to him.
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