Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 51

Volume 6 Chapter 51: Alone in Battle (Part 1)

Although the zombie in front of him was once a master at the Mahayana Stage, a fallen phoenix is not as good as a chicken, and a dragon trapped in shallow waters is played with by fish. However, Xu Qingfan did not pay much attention to it.

He could clearly feel that the zombie, which the master had taken over, was not very powerful. Its strength was much weaker than before, about equal to a late-stage Golden Core cultivator. Additionally, its soul and body were not compatible at this moment, so the master’s insights and skills from the Mahayana Stage were also greatly limited. With the Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic in Xu Qingfan’s hands and Little Black, the bane of zombies in the world, dealing with this zombie would not be easy, but it certainly wouldn’t be extremely difficult either.

In fact, after realizing this zombie was the mysterious black-clad master who had attacked him before, Xu Qingfan only thought about how to capture this fallen master to ask about Jin Qinghan’s whereabouts. After all, he had come to the Southern Wasteland to find Jin Qinghan and Dongfang Qingling, yet he had only found Dongfang Qingling so far.

But before Xu Qingfan could act grandly, he suddenly sensed three extremely powerful presences rapidly approaching his location. Looking around, he saw three black-clad cultivators radiating cold death energy getting closer, clearly allies of the fallen master.

Xu Qingfan was startled but did not hesitate, quickly retreating in another direction.

These three black-clad cultivators each had the strength of late-stage Golden Core cultivators, and with that zombie, normally, Xu Qingfan could rely on his own powers and treasures to fight them. Even if he couldn’t win, he could escape. But right now, for some reason, Dongfang Qingling was completely weak. Xu Qingfan, while protecting her, couldn’t manage to fend off four opponents, leaving him no chance of victory.

However, escaping did not mean avoiding battle. He was unwilling to leave without news of Jin Qinghan. He was confident in his strength; he just needed to wait until Dongfang Qingling could move again to protect herself.

Time was urgent, and with Dongfang Qingling currently weak, Xu Qingfan could not think too much. He simply took her in his arms and quickly flew toward the distance.

Little Black, who was trembling in the underground cave with the zombie master, let out a few unwilling cries after receiving Xu Qingfan’s command. Then, it left the battle and closely followed Xu Qingfan as they flew off into the distance.

Zhong Ling, having lost his original body and with his soul residing in a zombie, found his spiritual sense greatly weakened. He did not notice the three black-clothed cultivators approaching. Seeing Xu Qingfan fleeing, he thought it was out of fear of him. For a moment, he only recalled the misfortunes Xu Qingfan had brought him over the years and did not consider that his own strength was far less than before. With a roar, he rushed after Xu Qingfan in the direction he had fled.

…

The three black-clothed cultivators rushing over were the experts sent by the Zhong family’s ancestor to recall Zhong Ling. Each member of the Zhong family had their unique way to communicate, so even though Zhong Ling was far away in the Southern Wasteland, they could easily find him.

These three did not seem to notice the battle between Xu Qingfan and the Zhong family master in the distance, as they teased each other about their target—Zhong family master Zhong Ling.

The disciples of the Zhong family, having had too much contact with zombies, all had gloomy and indifferent expressions, even when they were joking or mocking.

"According to the reaction of the corpse bead, the family master should be nearby. Let’s search carefully around here," said one of the cultivators.

The black-clothed cultivator in the center had a handsome face and a calm demeanor, which was rare among the Zhong family disciples. He was looking at a black bead in his hand and slowly spoke.

The black-clothed cultivator on the left had a slightly stubborn and arrogant look. He glanced at the empty surroundings but saw no sign of Zhong Ling. Suddenly, he smiled coldly and said chillingly, "Nearby? Why can’t we see him? Is he hiding because he can’t face us?"

As he spoke, the cultivator turned to look at the black-clothed cultivator in the center, showing a hint of respect, clearly admiring this cultivator. He then said, "Fourth Brother, why do you still call that guy the family master? He has been out for so many years just to deal with a mere Condensed Core Stage cultivator, yet he still couldn’t succeed, even with the family’s sacred artifact in hand. You’ve seen how angry our ancestor was, calling him useless, not just once but many times. Because of this, he has lost favor with the ancestor and credibility among the clan members. Do you think he still has the right to be family master? If I’m not mistaken, when that guy returns to the family, the first thing the ancestor will do is remove his title of family master and send him back to ‘Spirit Island’ for reflection. We probably won’t see him for the next two or three hundred years."

The cultivator on the right, with a cold expression, added, "That old man Zhong Ling usually uses his status as a Mahayana Stage master and position as family master to disrespect our lineage, often telling us what to do. Any good materials for corpses all go to him and his descendants. This day is indeed a form of retribution."

"Eleventh Brother is right," said the cultivator on the left. "The ‘Dead Clam Pearl’ our ancestor refined should have belonged to Fourth Brother, but that person snatched it through dishonorable means. Otherwise, how could he have broken through so quickly to become a master? Let alone being family master. This is all retribution."

"Yes, everything should have belonged to Fourth Brother. Hmph, Zhong Ling has lost so much face this time. I can’t wait to see his expression when we find him."

"Fifth Brother, Eleventh Brother, stop talking," said Zhong family’s Fourth Brother, remaining calm as he slowly said, "No matter what, he is still the family master of the Zhong family. As members of the Zhong family, we must show respect. You can talk about this privately, but when we find the family master, you must not speak like this, understood?"

Although Zhong family’s Fourth Brother spoke calmly, Fifth Brother and Eleventh Brother did not dare to disagree, both lowering their heads in agreement, though their expressions showed their dissatisfaction.

Seeing their discontent, Zhong family’s Fourth Brother sighed helplessly and said softly, "I understand what you both mean. Our branch has been suppressed by Zhong Ling’s branch for hundreds of years. How can I be willing? This is indeed an opportunity to change the status of our branches, but to be honest, it’s just an opportunity. It won’t be easy to completely suppress Zhong Ling’s branch."

"Why?"

Fifth Brother asked, feeling unconvinced.

"Because Zhong Ling is the only Mahayana cultivator in my Zhong family besides our ancestors. The situation is different now; my Zhong family is no longer trapped on ‘Dead Spirit Island’, but has officially entered the conflicts of the Shenzhou Continent. Both the ‘Underworld’ organization and the Righteous Alliance have many experts. Compared to them, my Zhong family has already fallen behind. This is the time to use talents, so how could our ancestor give up on Zhong Ling, a Mahayana cultivator? To show punishment, Zhong Ling’s position as family master will surely be taken away, but so what? He is the only master besides our ancestor, and our ancestor will still use him. Even if his title is removed, he will still be second only to our ancestor in the Zhong family. Even if I become the new family master, I will still be overshadowed by him."

After hearing Fourth Brother’s words, Fifth Brother and Eleventh Brother had nothing to say and reluctantly asked, "So there is truly nothing we can do? Will we always be oppressed by Zhong Ling’s branch of the family?"

Fourth Brother sighed and said, "Unless Zhong Ling is severely injured and his strength declines, or I suddenly gain enlightenment and become a new Mahayana master, the situation cannot fundamentally change."

While speaking, Fourth Brother suddenly froze and looked up sharply ahead, only to see a cultivator unexpectedly flying out of a cave not far away, holding someone in his arms. After seeing the three of them, he seemed slightly startled and then quickly fled into the distance.

Next, a tall zombie suddenly appeared, roaring and chasing after the cultivator.

When this zombie appeared, the "corpse pearl" in Fourth Brother’s hand suddenly emitted black mist.

Fourth Brother’s body shook as he said in disbelief, "That’s Zhong Ling! He has used the ‘Borrowing Corpse to Return to Soul’ technique to inhabit the zombie. What happened to his real body? The zombie he occupied seems very weak?"

In the first two sentences, Fourth Brother exclaimed in shock, but in the last sentence, his voice became very soft, as if he was deep in thought.

At the same time, Fifth Brother and Eleventh Brother also had mysterious glints in their eyes.

…

During his escape, Xu Qingfan focused on the three black-clad cultivators and the zombie master, while Dongfang Qingling, since Xu Qingfan appeared, had her attention solely on him.

Speaking of it, she had known Xu Qingfan for nearly two hundred years, fighting side by side for many years, but this was the first time they had such close contact.

Held tightly in Xu Qingfan’s embrace, feeling the warmth on his chest, breathing in his scent, her heart, which had been anxious for half a year, felt incredibly at ease at that moment.

The usually rational her seemed to have forgotten about the zombie master chasing closely behind.

"Junior Martial Sister Dongfang, have you seen Junior Brother Jin?"

Just then, Xu Qingfan suddenly spoke.