Chapter 120: The Mummified Corpse
The stone door collapsed with a crash, creating a considerable commotion that startled Yang Haoran awake. He had been staring blankly at the grey liquid before him.
He regained his senses and instinctively looked towards the location of the stone door.
This was merely a subconscious reaction, not because he was particularly curious about the scene beyond the stone door. Yet, this unconscious glance caused a change in his expression.
There was more than one stone door here, but the others had already been opened, revealing pitch-black darkness beyond. Even with his Ghost Eye activated, he couldn't see clearly from such a distance. However, this particular stone door was different.
Behind the stone door was a stone chamber. The space was not large; aside from its height and width matching the door, its depth was minimal. And precisely because it lacked depth, it gave the impression of being very small.
It was hard to imagine that behind such a massive stone door, there would only be this much space. If one were to judge solely by the size of the stone door, the space behind it would surely be considerable, but the reality was quite different.
Eerie green light cast a ghastly green glow over the stone chamber, constantly exuding an unsettling aura. This eerie green light emanated from the stone walls and floor within the chamber.
“This is interesting,” Xu Meijing’s voice reached Yang Haoran’s ears. “If you don’t come over to broaden your horizons, you might not get this chance again in the future. ”
Xu Meijing’s voice reached Yang Haoran’s ears. Only the two of them remained in this place, so her words were clearly directed at him.
Feeling Yang Haoran approach her, Xu Meijing couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking, “If I hadn't called this guy over, he probably would have stood there gaping like an idiot all day. Sigh, when my parents left, I wasn't any stronger than he is now. ”
Thinking this, Xu Meijing’s expression became somewhat complex. It wasn't until she felt Yang Haoran stop beside her that she smoothed away the complex look on her face and looked back into the stone chamber.
She did not step into the stone chamber, but remained standing outside, carefully observing everything within.
As he arrived beside Xu Meijing, Yang Haoran’s gaze also turned to the stone chamber. Now that he was closer, he finally understood why the stone walls and floor within the chamber emitted such an eerie green light.
Normal stone walls and floors would naturally not emit such eerie green light, but these walls and floor were different.
Firstly, the material was different. Both the walls and the floor were not made of ordinary rock, but rather forged from some unknown material.
Furthermore, upon both the walls and the floor, countless dense runes were carved.
The runes were not large, only the size of tadpoles, twisted, strange, and grotesque, covering the entire walls and floor. From each individual rune emanated tiny specks of eerie green light.
If there were only a single rune, then this faint green light would naturally not be very noticeable. However, with thousands upon thousands of runes simultaneously emitting this faint green light, the result was entirely different. Not only was it conspicuous, but it even illuminated the entire stone chamber.
However, what truly caught the eye in this stone chamber was not these eerily glowing runes, but a mummified corpse.
This mummified corpse was located at the very center of the stone chamber. It did not sit cross-legged with a serene expression, like the masters often depicted in movies. Instead, its body was grotesquely twisted into a bizarre posture, its face contorted into a ferocious grimace, as if in pain, unwilling, or filled with resentment.
It was a very complex expression; it was hard to imagine what he had experienced before his death to display such a complicated look.
The eerie green light shone upon the mummified corpse, making it appear extraordinarily grim and terrifying. Fortunately, neither Yang Haoran nor Xu Meijing were ordinary people, so they were largely unfazed by the sight before them. If an ordinary person were to suddenly witness this scene, they might not be scared out of their minds, but they would certainly be startled.
“Do you know what these runes are? ” Xu Meijing glanced at Yang Haoran beside her and asked.
Yang Haoran shook his head. He truly had no idea what these eerie green runes were; even in the few books Jiang Dashi had lent him, he had never seen similar runes.
They weren't like the talismans on charms, nor like some kind of incantation, and certainly not their own script. He couldn't understand them at all.
“These are Demonic Curses of the Demon Race,” Xu Meijing stated.
Yang Haoran was startled. The Demon Race, or rather, this group, had indeed been mentioned in Jiang Dashi’s books, but what Demonic Curses were, he had neither seen nor had they been mentioned in those books.
“Demonic script imbued with special power is called a Demonic Curse by the Demon Race,” Xu Meijing continued. “The runes you saw on the stone door earlier were also Demonic Curses. It’s just that those weren't pure Demonic Curses, because several types of power were integrated into that particular Demonic Curse, and those powers did not belong to the Demon Race. ”
Earlier, Xu Meijing hadn't been entirely sure that the runes on the stone door were Demonic Curses, but the scene before her now confirmed that her conjecture was correct.
Upon hearing Xu Meijing say this, Yang Haoran immediately noticed that the eerily green-glowing runes before him were indeed extremely similar to the runes on the stone door earlier. The only difference was a significant discrepancy in size between the two.
“How can there be Demonic Curses here? ” Yang Haoran asked, his face full of doubt. “Are there still members of the Demon Race in this mountain? ”
“Whether there are members of the Demon Race in this mountain, I don’t know,” Xu Meijing replied. “But as for why there are Demonic Curses here, I do have some conjectures. ”
As Xu Meijing spoke, without waiting for Yang Haoran to ask, she continued, “I sensed a considerable sealing power and destructive force on these Demonic Curses. If my guess is correct, these Demonic Curses were used to deal with him. ”
As she spoke, Xu Meijing pointed to the mummified corpse in the center of the stone chamber, whose body was already twisted and distorted.
“This unfortunate fellow was likely trapped and left to die in this stone chamber,” Xu Meijing said. “However, it seems this guy had quite a significant background, and his strength should have been formidable. ”
Yang Haoran's brows furrowed slightly, and he asked, somewhat puzzled, “How do you know? ”
Xu Meijing gave a proud smile and said, “Firstly, as I just said, these Demonic Curses possess considerable sealing power and destructive force. If his strength wasn’t formidable, there would be no need for such trouble to kill him. ”
“Secondly, you’ve also seen the Demonic Curse on the stone door. Although it wasn't a pure Demonic Curse, it had several powers integrated into it. These several powers didn't come from just one person, but rather multiple individuals collaborated to infuse sealing power into the Demonic Curse. Their purpose was very simple: to suppress the one inside this stone chamber, of course. Just imagine, if their opponent wasn't a powerful figure, with a stone chamber already covered in Demonic Curses, would they still need to create such a special Demonic Curse on the stone door? ”
“Thirdly, I don’t know what lies beyond the other stone doors here, but I do know that the presence of these few stone doors forms a suppression formation. And the target of this suppression is still the one before us. Just think, creating such a huge commotion with both suppression and sealing—if he wasn't a major figure, would it require such trouble? ”
Having finished speaking, Xu Meijing looked at Yang Haoran. Seeing him looking at her with a somewhat strange expression, she immediately thought he was questioning her conjectures, and her expression immediately soured.
“Hmph, you don’t believe me? ” Xu Meijing sneered.
Yang Haoran shook his head and said mildly, “It’s not that I don’t believe you, I’m just a little surprised by how much you know. ”
Upon hearing this, Xu Meijing’s expression improved slightly, and she responded with a haughty look, “I know more than you can imagine. It’s not that the longer one lives, the more one necessarily understands. One still needs more experience to broaden one's knowledge and understand more. ”
Xu Meijing’s words had a deeper meaning, and Yang Haoran naturally understood the implication. In the past, he would have immediately retorted without a second thought, but at this moment, he was simply not in the mood.
Seeing that Yang Haoran had no reaction, Xu Meijing looked bored but did not press the matter. Instead, she directed her gaze back to the mummified corpse in the center of the stone chamber.
She did not remain rooted to the spot, but took a step and walked into the stone chamber.
But Yang Haoran remained where he was, not stepping into the stone chamber with Xu Meijing.
The dense Demonic Curses within the stone chamber gave him an eerie feeling. Coupled with Xu Meijing’s recent explanation, he paid even more attention to the Demonic Curses inside the stone chamber; rashly entering could very likely lead to severe consequences for himself.
As for why he didn't stop Xu Meijing, the reason was simple: Xu Meijing’s strength was terrifying. Since she had some understanding of Demonic Curses and could provide such a detailed analysis of the situation before them, then her daring to step into the stone chamber meant she was undoubtedly full of confidence.
However, believing was one thing, but Yang Haoran still didn't let down his guard. If Xu Meijing truly encountered any danger, he would certainly do everything he could to save her.
He would do so, not for any other reason, but simply because Xu Meijing had saved his life today. Although Xu Meijing hadn't said anything, Yang Haoran knew it in his heart.
At this moment, Xu Meijing naturally had no idea what Yang Haoran was thinking. She had placed all her attention on the Demonic Curses within the stone chamber. The moment she stepped into the chamber, the Demonic Curses within sensed the outsider, as if a sleeping beast had suddenly awakened.
All the Demonic Curses began to tremble, emitting a series of buzzing hums. The eerie green light intensified, and powerful sealing force and destructive power surged towards Xu Meijing like two ancient savage beasts.
Xu Meijing was indeed well-prepared. Facing this situation, she showed no hesitation, single-handedly brandishing Killing Blade.
This time, as she wielded Killing Blade, Xu Meijing was clearly no longer as casual as before. Her speed was incredibly fast, leaving streaks of afterimages in her wake.
The sounds of cutting through air continuously rang out. Under Yang Haoran’s astonished gaze, streaks of blade marks appeared on the walls within the stone chamber. With each blade mark that appeared, the nearby Demonic Curses would shatter, turning into specks of spiritual light and dissipating.
A few breaths later, Xu Meijing stopped swinging Killing Blade. In these mere few breaths, Yang Haoran couldn't clearly see how many strikes Xu Meijing had delivered.
However, the entire walls of the stone chamber, including the floor, were densely covered with deep blade marks. Even more terrifyingly, all the Demonic Curses inside the stone chamber had vanished, not a single one remained.
“Good thing I controlled my strength,” Xu Meijing said, “Otherwise, I was genuinely worried this stone chamber would collapse. ”
As Xu Meijing observed her handiwork within the stone chamber, she spoke nonchalantly. Her words fell into Yang Haoran’s ears. He said nothing, but his mouth twitched violently a few times. When he looked at Xu Meijing’s back, his gaze was like staring at a monster.
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