Rotting Corpse

Bang!

The main gate facing the courtyard immediately swung open and a figure rushed out from within at lightning speed.

“Big Brother Zheng, don’t hurt my mother!”

Zhao Lao’er’s expression was frantic. Striding toward Old Madam Zhao, he shouted at Zheng Que.

Zheng Que’s face changed and he hurriedly yelled at Zhao Lao’er, “Don’t come closer! They’re not human!”

However, in that moment of distraction, Sun Cui’er suddenly threw back her head and let out a sharp, piercing shriek.

Ahhhhhh!!!

The shriek was sharp and ear-piercing, like an invisible force striking directly at the Divine Soul.

Before the cry had even faded, Sun Cui’er’s appearance underwent a dramatic transformation. Her fair and delicate face rapidly lost all vitality, covered in large and small cadaveric spots. Her once-moist eyes shriveled, sinking into dark, hollow sockets. Her hands spasmed like chicken claws, curling unnaturally, and the vegetables she had been holding quickly rotted, turning into a clump of withered grass. Her nails grew wildly, turning bluish-black, like sharp blades.

The wooden hairpin in her bun decayed into dust and fell away in an instant. Her tied-up hair cascaded down, covering her face. Stains and bloodstains appeared on her neat dress, emitting a thick, earthy stench as if she had been buried in the ground for a long time.

In the blink of an eye, the beautiful and modest young woman had transformed into a long-rotted corpse, with murky yellow corpse fluid dripping from her collar and sleeves.

Zheng Que stood in place, momentarily stunned, his eardrums aching and his head spinning. But his Divine Soul was far more stable than that of an ordinary cultivator. After only a brief moment of discomfort he regained control of the chaotic spiritual blood mist, keeping it in an encircling formation and preventing Sun Cui’er from escaping.

“Let… let go…”

“Let go of my daughter-in-law!”

Suspended in mid-air, Old Madam Zhao flailed her limbs, howling miserably.

Seemingly extremely worried about her daughter-in-law’s predicament, Old Madam Zhao shouted as her two arms suddenly elongated like serpents striking from their burrows. One hand grabbed toward Zheng Que, the other toward the trapped Sun Cui’er.

Her arms extended with astonishing speed, reaching both of them in an instant.

At that moment Qing Li’s figure suddenly appeared beside Zheng Que, both hands extended.

Snap!

Qing Li’s slender, pale palms firmly grasped Old Madam Zhao’s arms.

Crack, crack, crack.

Without the slightest hesitation Qing Li immediately exerted force. A series of crisp cracking sounds rang out from Old Madam Zhao’s arms, instantly deforming them into bizarre angles. Shattered bones pierced through the skin and were exposed to the air: a horrifying sight.

Seeing Qing Li clearly gaining the upper hand, Zheng Que felt reassured and began to fully unleash the 【Ghost Taming Art】.

As long as he could turn Sun Cui’er into his ghost servant, the ensuing battle would be three against one.

Then the fight would soon be over.

Zheng Que’s hand seals grew faster and faster. The mist-like spiritual blood began to transform into runes, imprinting themselves into Sun Cui’er’s body in sequence.

Sun Cui’er struggled desperately, her withered body contorting constantly. Her bluish-black skin cracked open, revealing the pale bones within. As the bones ground against each other, corpse fluid dripped continuously, emitting a foul odor.

Watching this, Zheng Que faintly sensed something was wrong. Sun Cui’er’s reaction to the 【Ghost Taming Art】 was completely different from Qing Li’s.

Zheng Que accelerated the operation of the 【Ghost Taming Art】, driving more and more runes into Sun Cui’er’s body.

At the same time, seeing her daughter-in-law on the brink of death, Old Madam Zhao’s face twisted into a ferocious snarl as she shrieked hoarsely, “Die! Die! You will all die!!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, the dense Yin Qi surrounding her erupted violently.

Hum!

A deafening roar seemed to echo from the void. Pitch-black smoke, centered on Old Madam Zhao, surged outward in all directions. An intense chill swept through the surroundings and a layer of frost rapidly formed on the ground. The light dimmed in the blink of an eye, as if the entire Zhao residence had been sealed under a lid, forming an isolated space.

Though the sun had not yet fully set, not a single ray of light penetrated the Zhao household anymore, as if it had been locked inside a box.

Boom!

In the next moment Qing Li, who had just gained the upper hand, was sent flying by a single blow from Old Madam Zhao.

Almost simultaneously, Zheng Que finally completed the 【Ghost Taming Art】.

As the final rune branded into Sun Cui’er’s body, Zheng Que immediately spread his fingers, aiming the 令 character in his palm at Sun Cui’er. “Ha!”

However, the anticipated three-against-one scenario did not unfold. Sun Cui’er stood motionless, showing no reaction to his command.

Boom!!

Old Madam Zhao’s arm smashed down, instantly creating a smoking crater where Zheng Que had just been standing.

At that moment Zheng Que’s figure appeared in mid-air, saved at the critical moment by a coarse rope tightening around his neck, hoisting him up and allowing him to evade Old Madam Zhao’s fatal strike.

“You foolish little human race brat!”

“That’s just a useless corpse!”

Qing Li materialized beside Zheng Que, her icy voice reaching his ears.

Hearing this, Zheng Que snapped back to his senses and looked at Sun Cui’er again. She toppled over stiffly, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

Murky corpse fluid seeped from the hem of Sun Cui’er’s skirt into the ground, while the Yin Qi that had once enveloped her body transformed into billowing black smoke, converging toward Old Madam Zhao like a river flowing into the sea.

In an instant Old Madam Zhao’s Yin Qi surged dramatically, the rolling black smoke thickening around her, its intensity instantly surpassing Qing Li’s.

Old Madam Zhao slowly raised her head, her graying hair whipping wildly in the yin wind. Her face was contorted like a demon’s, her crimson eyes fixed intently on Zheng Que and Qing Li. “My daughter-in-law is dead!”

“You killed my daughter-in-law!”

“I will kill you!!”

With that, Old Madam Zhao immediately charged toward Zheng Que and Qing Li in mid-air.

Zheng Que hurriedly grabbed the rope loop and shouted, “Quick, let me go!”

Before the words fully left his mouth the pressure around his neck loosened and his body immediately plummeted downward.

At the same time Qing Li drifted forward like a ghost, engaging Old Madam Zhao in a fierce struggle.

Boom, boom, boom.

The two clashed rapidly, black Qi dispersing and churning, soon engulfing their figures.

Without hesitation Zheng Que landed and immediately performed a series of hand seals, intending to cast the 【Yin Gathering Art】 to bolster Qing Li’s power.

But then.

Thud!!

Qing Li’s figure was flung backward out of the black Qi, crashing heavily to the ground. The compacted earth erupted in a great spray of soil, scattering like rain.

From within the black Qi, Old Madam Zhao’s blood-red gaze immediately locked onto Zheng Que.

Zheng Que’s pupils dilated slightly as a bone-chilling cold poured over him, instantly enveloping his body and mind. The familiar scent of death rushed toward him.