Safety Comes From Ugliness
Yang Haoran had never seen, nor even heard of, the Corpse-Slaying Array Ma Ling was currently employing. However, interpreting it literally, this formation was clearly designed to counter zombies and possessed immense destructive power against them.
In Yang Haoran’s estimation, the power fluctuations Ma Ling currently unleashed were merely ordinary. Yet, the power emanating from the formation that had coalesced above the Corpse Ghoul’s head was not to be underestimated.
Such was the nature of formations; once successfully set up, they could unleash terrifying power. Ma Ling was an exorcist, but she truly possessed considerable knowledge in the art of formations, and the array she deployed was far more formidable than the strength within her own body.
The Corpse Ghoul, bound by Yang Haoran’s chains, seemed to sense the threat posed by the formation above its head, and so it struggled with increasing ferocity. The roars emanating from its maw were not only angrier than before but also laced with a hint of fear.
Like Corpse Puppets, Corpse Ghouls lacked their own consciousness. If controlled, they would execute the commands of their master; otherwise, they would act solely on instinct.
The fear currently blossoming within this Corpse Ghoul’s heart was precisely its instinctive reaction to sensing a threat.
Indeed, the Corpse Ghoul’s instinctive perception of danger proved correct. Its roars had yet to subside when the formation suddenly shimmered faintly. Then, golden light coalesced into an astonishing number of golden swords. These swords, densely packed like a torrential downpour, carried an aura of destruction as they sliced through the void, rapidly cleaving down towards the Corpse Ghoul below.
The golden swords bore a strong resemblance to the one Ma Ling had previously taken out, but these current ones lacked any physical form, being entirely coalesced from power. However, the vast majority of this power originated from the formation itself, not from Ma Ling. Ma Ling merely needed to expend a substantial amount of her own internal power to activate the array.
In the blink of an eye, the first wave of golden swords struck the Corpse Ghoul’s body. Their sharpness breached the Corpse Ghoul’s physical defense and pierced into its form. However, due to the Corpse Ghoul’s exceedingly sturdy body, these golden swords were unable to fully penetrate, lodging halfway into its flesh.
After the first wave of golden swords struck the Corpse Ghoul, they instantly dissolved into golden light and vanished. Immediately, the second wave of golden swords took their place, followed swiftly by the third. . .
Though the Corpse Ghoul’s physical body was robust, it couldn't withstand such dense and high-frequency attacks. In just a few breaths, its body was riddled with holes, and large amounts of grayish-white Corpse Poison flowed from its wounds, emitting a foul, nauseating stench.
The power of the Corpse-Slaying Array was indeed immense. In just a few short breaths, the Corpse Ghoul beneath the formation was completely incapacitated.
Seeing that the Corpse Ghoul posed almost no threat, Ma Ling dispersed the Corpse-Slaying Array, preventing it from continuing its assault on the Corpse Ghoul.
Although the Corpse-Slaying Array was incredibly powerful, activating it consumed a considerable amount of her internal energy. Therefore, she didn't want to waste any more of her strength unnecessarily.
Ma Ling was already panting heavily after only activating the Corpse-Slaying Array for a few breaths. This clearly showed just how much energy it drained from her.
Of course, with the power she still had, she was confident she could blast the Corpse Ghoul to smithereens. However, she didn't do so, as the Corpse Ghoul still held some value for her.
The Corpse-Slaying Array above the Corpse Ghoul shattered, then transformed into a ball of golden light. This golden light re-coalesced into a golden sword, flying back into Ma Ling’s hand.
This Corpse-Slaying Array likely belonged to the category of "dead" formations, and the golden sword was the key to setting it up. Although Yang Haoran wasn't proficient in formations, he could still discern this much.
“Heh heh, much smoother than I imagined,” Ma Ling said with a chuckle, panting a few heavy breaths as she walked towards the Corpse Ghoul.
Yang Haoran wore a smile, saying nothing, as he followed Ma Ling towards the Corpse Ghoul.
The area where the Corpse Ghoul lay had now become a massive pit. All this was, of course, caused by the Corpse-Slaying Array Ma Ling had deployed. Under the array’s dense and powerful attacks, even the Corpse Ghoul had been crippled, let alone the ground itself.
At the center of the large pit, grayish-white Corpse Poison flowed from the Corpse Ghoul’s entire body. It struggled on the ground like a wounded beast, its mouth emitting continuous low and weak roars.
“Huh? The chains are completely unharmed? Uncle, your current strength is quite something! ” Ma Ling’s gaze fell upon the chains wrapped around the Corpse Ghoul, and a surprised expression appeared on her face.
Ma Ling knew better than anyone how powerful the Corpse-Slaying Array she had deployed was. In her estimation, since the mighty Corpse Ghoul had been reduced to this pathetic state by her array, the chains binding it should certainly have shattered. But the reality was completely different from what she had imagined; the chains remained tightly wrapped around the Corpse Ghoul, their other ends still dissolving into the void just as they had at first.
It felt as if her Corpse-Slaying Array hadn't affected the chains, which were coalesced from Yang Haoran’s Spirit Power, in the slightest.
“It’s not that my strength is so great,” Yang Haoran explained with a smile, “but rather that my Spirit Power is somewhat unique; the chains automatically repair themselves when damaged. ”
This explanation was merely an excuse Yang Haoran had casually concocted. The real reason the chains remained intact was his formidable strength; they were not something Ma Ling’s Corpse-Slaying Array could destroy.
“No wonder! I was wondering why my Corpse-Slaying Array didn’t harm these chains in the slightest. Still, Uncle’s strength is impressive. To restrain such a powerful Corpse Ghoul with just two chains formed from Spirit Power, without even using a Soul Armament, takes considerable power. ” Ma Ling chuckled.
“Not at all,” Yang Haoran responded with a smile. “Truth be told, your formation is the truly formidable one. Without your Corpse-Slaying Array, my chains controlling the Corpse Ghoul likely wouldn’t have lasted long before shattering. ”
This particular Corpse Ghoul was much stronger than the one Zhou Daoshi had controlled back then. Zhou Daoshi’s Corpse Ghoul was probably at the very bottom tier within the Corpse Ghoul realm, whereas this one, despite appearing thin, possessed considerable strength.
Of course, this ‘strong’ was relative, not absolute. In Yang Haoran’s eyes, the strength of this Corpse Ghoul was merely average. Against truly formidable Corpse Ghouls, even his current self would be no match. A peak Corpse Ghoul’s power could rival that of a top-tier Emissary of Death who had opened their Heaven Soul.
“Heh heh, if it weren’t for your help this time, Uncle, dealing with this Corpse Ghoul alone would have been quite troublesome for me. Without someone buying me enough time, I wouldn’t have been able to successfully set up the Corpse-Slaying Array at all. ” Ma Ling glanced at the struggling Corpse Ghoul on the ground, then smiled sweetly at Yang Haoran.
“Without me, the Spirit Police here could have also bought you time,” Yang Haoran chuckled.
“You saw their condition. If I really relied on them to buy me time, putting aside whether they could even succeed, even if they did, they’d probably all end up tragically dying at the Corpse Ghoul’s hands. Furthermore, without your chain control, if the Corpse Ghoul’s body were free, it might very well be capable of breaking through my Corpse-Slaying Array and charging out. If that happened, I’d definitely be gnawed clean from head to toe. ”
As she spoke, a bloody and disgusting image seemed to flash through Ma Ling’s mind. She couldn’t help but shiver, a look of profound disgust on her face.
“Ugh, I’m so fair and tender; I really don’t want to be gnawed on by a zombie. ”
Yang Haoran offered a faint, somewhat complex smile. “Heh heh, being gnawed by it isn’t the issue,” he said. “The truly hurtful part is that after being gnawed, you could still turn into a Corpse Puppet and stand back up. ”
At Yang Haoran’s words, Ma Ling couldn’t help but imagine herself as a Corpse Puppet, and a shiver of goosebumps ran down her neck.
“Alright, alright, Uncle, can you please say something nicer for a change? Is this how you usually scare little girls? ” Ma Ling asked.
Yang Haoran merely smiled, not saying anything more.
“Oh, right, I really have to thank you for earlier. If you hadn’t intervened, I might have been injured by my own people. ”
What Ma Ling was referring to was the moment the Spirit Police officer, who had been infected with Corpse Poison, suddenly attacked both of them, an assault that Yang Haoran had blocked.
“Heh heh, there’s nothing to thank me for,” Yang Haoran asked with a smile. “You chose to trust me, so of course, I couldn’t let you down, could I? ”
“Heh heh, you have a point. At that moment, I essentially entrusted my back to you. If I didn’t trust you in my heart, I wouldn’t have dared to do that,” Ma Ling said with a chuckle.
Yang Haoran’s smile remained unchanged as he asked, “You chose to trust me. Weren’t you afraid of trusting the wrong person? ”
Hearing this, Ma Ling’s smile deepened slightly, and she chuckled, “Probably not. Everyone says ugly people give a sense of security, and it seems there really is something to it. ”
Yang Haoran’s smile stiffened. Ma Ling’s words felt a bit like a punch to the gut. Although he wasn’t handsome, he certainly wasn’t ugly, and being told this by Ma Ling, he felt his looks had been greatly provoked.
When he came to his senses, a bitter smile appeared on his face. He didn’t try to argue with Ma Ling about his looks, because he knew very well that if the “hardware” wasn’t up to par, no matter how much one “rained flowers from the sky” with words, it couldn’t solve the fundamental problem.
“Forget it, I shouldn’t have asked that question. Now, how do you plan to deal with this Corpse Ghoul? ”
Looking at the Corpse Ghoul still struggling beneath them, Ma Ling chuckled. “Of course, I’m taking this Corpse Ghoul back with me. He’s my spoils of this mission, and if I bring him home, I’m sure to receive a reward. My elders at home are very interested in zombies and love to study them. I’m sure you saw the Corpse-Slaying Array I just used; that’s the painstaking crystallization of my elders’ research into countless zombies. The effect is undeniable. ”
“If you take the Corpse Ghoul away, what will you tell the Spirit Police? ” Yang Haoran asked.
“My dad will handle communications with the Spirit Police. Although the Spirit Police also like to study these things, we were the ones who subdued this Corpse Ghoul in the end. If it weren’t for us, they would all be dead. So, this Corpse Ghoul will serve as our compensation for intervening this time, and as for those Corpse Puppets, we’ll just give them to the Spirit Police. ”
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