<h4>Chapter 68: Reversal</h4>
Zhong Shan seeded with his sword strike and swiftly leaped off the flying sword. However, Miao Xianren''s reaction was astonishingly quick. Despite his severe injury, he managed to grab his severed left arm with his right hand and, with a fierce kick, sent Zhong Shan flying.
Like a cannonball, Zhong Shan shot downward into the valley below.
"Boom~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
A thunderous crash echoed as Zhong Shan''s body smashed into a boulder, shattering it and raising a cloud of dust.
The silver corpse had already caught up. Miao Xianren, struggling with his severed arm and face turning green, cast a venomous nce towards Zhong Shan and the ck-robed man before spitting out a mouthful of blood. Hastily, he retreated, disappearing from the ck-robed man''s sight in an instant.
The ck-robed man watched the deadly exchange between Zhong Shan and Miao Xianren, confusion evident in his eyes. The zombies moved towards where Zhong Shan had fallen, but it seemed Zhong Shan had already fled.
Miao Xianren had escaped, and Zhong Shan was nowhere to be found. The ck-robed man took a deep breath andmanded the zombies to return to him. With a wave of his hand, twenty-eight coffins suddenly appeared.
There were twenty-four copper coffins, three silver coffins, and one gold coffin. The ck-robed man uttered a string of obscure and indistinguishable words, causing the zombies to lie down in the coffins and close the lids, an incredibly eerie sight.
The ck-robed man then produced a handful of nails, tossing them precisely into the holes in the coffin lids, sealing them shut. He took out twenty-eight talismans and affixed one to each coffin. Finally, with another wave of his hand, the coffins disappeared as if stored in some magical container.
After tidying everything up, the ck-robed man looked at the ground. The runes that had been there had now faded and disappearedpletely.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."
After the ck-robed man had finished, a group of eight people suddenly flew over. None of them stood on magical artifacts; instead, they flew by manipting the air itself, indicating that they were at least at the Nascent Soul stage.
The leader, dressed in a luxurious purple robe, looked like a middle-aged man with an aura of nobility and an imposing demeanor that suggested he regarded all living beings with indifference. The seven people behind him followed respectfully, treating him as their superior.
"Mister Corpse," the man in the purple robe greeted the ck-robed man respectfully.
Despite the ck-robed man''s apparent Golden Core stage strength, the purple-robed man, at least at the Nascent Soul stage, showed him great respect.
"Your Majesty, I have investigated the mountain''syout. The ''Nine Dragons Heavenly Jade'' is not here," Mister Corpse reported.
"Not here? Then it must be at Eight Gates Mountain," the purple-robed man, referred to as His Majesty, frowned thoughtfully.
"Yes, we have already examined the other locations. Only Eight Gates Mountain remains, the source of the dragon''s roar," Mister Corpse nodded.
"Then we rely on you, Mister," the purple-robed man said solemnly.
"Rest assured, Your Majesty. As I promised, I will do my utmost to obtain the Nine Dragons Heavenly Jade for you," Mister Corpse nodded in agreement.
"Then let''s go," the purple-robed man ordered.
"Very well," Mister Corpse agreed.
Mister Corpse then produced a wooden sword with a flip of his hand. With a gentle toss, it transformed into a flying sword, carrying him into the sky. The other eight followed suit, rising into the air and heading east.
After the group left, from the pile of rubble where Zhong Shan had fallen, a shadow slowly emerged. The shadow solidified, gradually revealing Zhong Shan''s form. It was indeed Zhong Shan, though a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, and he clutched his chest, showing the severity of Miao Xianren''s kick.
Instead of tending to his injuries, Zhong Shan gazed in the direction Mister Corpse and his entourage had gone.
"The Nine Dragons Heavenly Jade? Eight Gates Mountain, it''s indeed at Eight Gates Mountain," Zhong Shan muttered to himself.
Chasing after them was clearly not an option now. The priority was to reunite with his true self and eliminate Miao Xianren.
With a flicker, Zhong Shan once again became a shadow, vanishing from the spot like a phantom, swiftly moving through the dark forest.
Miao Xianren, poisoned by the corpse toxin, had a face tinged green. He had been severely injured by the gold corpse, his right arm barely functional, and his left arm had been severed by Zhong Shan''s surprise attack. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, marking this as the most grievous injury he had ever sustained.
As he stared at the severed limb clutched in his left hand, anger welled up within him. If not for the urgency of the situation, he would have torn Zhong Shan to pieces. He had been careless, too careless. Now, he wondered if there was any chance of reattaching his arm.
Miao Xianren needed a secluded ce to quickly detoxify, heal, and reattach his arm. Otherwise, the dy would lead to his demise. Normally, he would never go to his own residence in such a situation, opting instead for a secret location. However, there was a precious item at Immortal''s Temple that he couldn''t leave behind. He had to retrieve it.
Despite his severe injuries slowing him down considerably, he reached Immortal''s Temple before long. Clutching his severed arm, his face contorted with pain, veins bulging on his forehead as he gritted his teeth to endure it. As he reached the entrance, he suddenly paused, recalling Tian Ling''er and Ying Lan.
Narrowing his eyes, Miao Xianren turned to look in a specific direction.
"So, you all deceived me. But you are truly bold, still here? The tracking spell onlysts three days. Since you haven''t left, you''ll atone for Zhong Shan''s sins. As my cultivation furnaces, you''ll help me heal. Hmph, to repay Zhong Shan, I certainly won''t show you any mercy." With a cruel expression, Miao Xianren turned and sped towards Tian Ling''er''s location.
In his mind, while the Hongluan Celestial Scripture might be ineffective against zombies, it was more than sufficient to deal with the two women.
In the valley where Tian Ling''er and Ying Lan were, another figure had appeared: Zhong Shan, his true self. He looked at the two women with utmost seriousness.
"Have you remembered everything I told you?" Zhong Shan asked solemnly.
"Don''t worry," Tian Ling''er replied, nodding immediately.
"Ying Lan, you are crucial. The Eight Bull Crossbow must not miss," Zhong Shan said, looking at Ying Lan.
"Understood," Ying Lan nodded earnestly.
Zhong Shan nodded. He had just arrived and had only given brief instructions to the two women, but with the urgency of the situation, there was no room for rxation.
Sure enough, in that instant, Zhong Shan saw a streak of light shooting into the valley—Miao Xianren had returned.
"Prepare!"
Zhong Shan quickly hid behind a bush with Ying Lan, leaving Tian Ling''er standing alone in an open area.
With a loud "Boom," Miao Xianren shattered a distant boulder, suddenly appearing near Tian Ling''er. He had stowed away his severed arm and now only had one functioning arm, his face a sickly green from the corpse poison. As he spotted Tian Ling''er holding the red silk, a cold glint shed in his eyes. He also knew, thanks to his tracking spell, that Ying Lan was hiding nearby.
Miao Xianren nced towards Ying Lan''s hiding ce and narrowed his eyes. Suddenly, a thick red mist began to pour out from him, spreading towards both women.
At this moment, Tian Ling''er suddenly produced two jade talismans, crystalline and transparent. She crushed them, releasing two beams of light—one fiery red and scorching hot, the other pure white and icy cold. A fire phoenix and an ice phoenix emerged, both energy constructs, vividly lifelike. Upon Tian Ling''er''smand, they shot towards Miao Xianren.
"Phoenix Talismans?" Miao Xianren''s eyes widened in disbelief at the origin of the talismans.
The fire and ice phoenixes were not particrly powerful, only capable of threatening someone at the initial Golden Core stage. Although Miao Xianren was severely injured, his reaction seemed excessive for such a threat.
With only his right arm functional andckingbat strength due to his injuries from the gold corpse, Miao Xianren could only control his flying sword with his mind. The pink sword swiftly shot towards the ice phoenix.
Miao Xianren was fast, but not faster than thought. As long as Tian Ling''er could keep her eyes on him, the phoenixes would be faster.
The flying sword aimed at the ice phoenix, leaving Miao Xianren to face the fire phoenix head-on. Despite his severe injuries, he lifted his right leg and kicked at the fire phoenix with a burst of dissipating protective energy, turning into a dense killing aura. His kick collided with the seemingly all-consuming fire phoenix.
"Boom~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
Miao Xianren''s powerful kick, despite his severe injuries, managed to dissipate the fire phoenix. The fire phoenix, capable of threatening someone at the initial Golden Core stage, did not vanish without consequence. Under Tian Ling''er''s full control, it broke through Miao Xianren''s protective aura around his leg. The aura dissipated, his pant leg was destroyed, and his knee turned charred and ckened.
Meanwhile, the flying sword darted towards the ice phoenix. However, under Tian Ling''er''s control, the ice phoenix suddenly opened its mouth and mped down on the sword, preventing it from escaping and creating a stalemate.
Miao Xianren''s eyes widened, and the flying sword burst into a brilliant light, shattering the ice phoenix in an instant. But just as the sword was freed, Miao Xianren felt a sudden, overwhelming sense of danger, as if his very pores were standing on end.
"Boom~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
A massive arrow, like a spear, shot through Miao Xianren''s already injured right leg—the leg that had been severely burned by the fire phoenix. The immense force of the arrow drove Miao Xianren back, blood spraying everywhere. His leg was torn apart, the flesh shredded.
This was the most severe injury he had ever suffered: both arms and a leg were nowpletely useless.
Turning his head, he looked towards the direction from which the arrow hade—towards Ying Lan. Why? Why wasn''t she affected by the Hongluan mist?
Nearby, Tian Ling''er quickly retreated, pulling away from the red mist while holding the red silk, which extended and entangled Miao Xianren''s flying sword.
"Ah~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
Miao Xianren let out a crazed scream. These mere ythings—he had fallen into the hands of these mere ythings. Though he realized he was doomed, his eyes still burned with hatred.
But then, a figure appeared, turning Miao Xianren''s hatred into sheer terror, a fear as if he had fallen into an endless abyss.
He saw Zhong Shan. How was this possible? Zhong Shan?
Zhong Shan stood there, his presencemanding and unyielding. Miao Xianren''s heart sank as the reality of his situation fully dawned upon him.