Chapter 382: The Death of the Corpse Emperor

Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed. He strongly resisted looking into the depths of the Corpse Forbidden Zone, keeping his master’s warning firmly in mind. Then, his gaze shifted, sweeping across the other edges of the zone.

He saw more than a dozen disciples from the Eight Sect Alliance. They were scattered and fleeing.

Each of their faces clearly showed terror, and numerous dead hands emerged around them, entangling them.

This scene reminded Xu Qing of news he had heard over a month ago, just before he was about to set off for the Sea Corpse Clan.

Some disciples had gone missing at the edge of the Corpse Forbidden Zone, so the sect, following regulations, had dispatched a group to investigate. These people were precisely those investigating disciples.

Xu Qing immediately reported his findings to the sect via his forbidden artifact. As soon as he finished, a dramatic change occurred with Zhao Zhongheng and Ding Xiaohai.

The hair that had appeared behind them suddenly dwindled, and its speed surged, rushing straight towards them.

Just as it was about to ensnare them in their rapid escape, Ding Xiaohai’s expression turned fierce. He suddenly struck out, a palm blow directed at Zhao Zhongheng.

Though both were Foundation Establishment cultivators, Ding Xiaohai had long since reached the Two Flames stage. Zhao Zhongheng, on the other hand, still had several dharma apertures incomplete before reaching Two Flames. Even with some inner caution, he had no chance to counterattack or dodge at that moment.

In an instant, under Ding Xiaohai’s sudden attack, Zhao Zhongheng’s figure spluttered blood. His dharma boat beneath him also trembled, cracks appearing, making it unstable. In that moment of pause, the pursuing hair immediately wrapped around the dharma boat.

“Ding Xiaohai!” Zhao Zhongheng shrieked, his face contorted with fury as he stared intently at Ding Xiaohai, who was now speeding away without a backward glance, using him as bait.

Meanwhile, after his dharma boat was entangled by the hair, Zhao Zhongheng could only abandon the vessel and try to escape on his own. However, his speed was far too slow, and he gradually became ensnared by even more hair and dead hands emerging from the sea.

A strong sense of life-and-death crisis emerged, accompanied by despair. As Zhao Zhongheng roared, he activated the protective artifact his grandfather had given him, but its effect here was limited.

Even if he managed to break free for a moment, he was quickly re-entangled.

Ding Xiaohai’s figure in the distance was already blurry. Zhao Zhongheng’s presence had drawn most of the strange entities, allowing Ding Xiaohai to successfully escape the danger. As for Zhao Zhongheng’s desperate screams, he heard them but paid them no mind.

This was not the first sect disciple he had betrayed and left to die. As long as it benefited him, he didn't care about others.

“People who grow up in a greenhouse are foolish, always acting high and mighty in front of me. What do they take me for, Ding Xiaohai?!”

“Worthless except for having a good grandfather. Such fools wouldn’t last long in this world anyway; they’re destined to be killed by someone. Since that’s the case, they might as well die with some value.”

“My survival is all that matters.” Ding Xiaohai’s face was devoid of expression, and he accelerated, vanishing into the mist.

However, Ding Xiaohai’s limited understanding meant he was completely unaware of the true power of the Seven Blood Eyes’ forbidden artifact. He also didn't know that Xu Qing, currently merged with the artifact, was observing everything happening in that location. Xu Qing offered no judgment on the matter.

From Ding Xiaohai’s perspective, his actions for survival couldn’t be called wrong, and the same applied from Zhao Zhongheng’s perspective.

However, from Xu Qing’s perspective, he disliked Ding Xiaohai more than Zhao Zhongheng. As for Zhao Zhongheng, Xu Qing watched his desperate expression amidst the life-and-death crisis. After a moment’s thought, he sent a spiritual message to the Bronze Ancient Mirror’s artifact spirit: “Manifest a projected body and descend here.”

Almost instantly after Xu Qing’s spiritual message was sent, the Bronze Ancient Mirror hummed, its surface immediately glowing. An eye suddenly opened on it.

The next moment, a blindingly bright light shot from the Bronze Ancient Mirror to the edge of the Corpse Forbidden Zone, piercing through the mist and landing directly in front of Zhao Zhongheng.

As disbelief registered on Zhao Zhongheng’s face, the light that had suddenly appeared before him dispersed into countless motes of dust, forming specks of light that coalesced into Xu Qing’s figure.

“Xu Qing!” Zhao Zhongheng’s eyes widened, followed by immense joy.

“Save me, Xu Qing, save me!” Zhao Zhongheng’s body was clutched by numerous dead hands, black hair entangled around him. Half of his body was in the sea, constantly struggling but slowly sinking.

Xu Qing assessed his body’s state. This was his first time using a projected clone from the Bronze Ancient Mirror. In his perception, this body was illusory, and its strength was considerably weaker than his true form.

It had no shadow, no storage bag, and the three Heavenly Palaces within it were also illusory. The Poison Restriction Pill, Ghost Emperor Mountain, and Purple Moon were all absent. Its overall strength was merely that of an ordinary Three Heavenly Palaces Golden Core.

“It seems even a projected clone has flaws,” Xu Qing mused, raising his right hand and waving it forward.

Immediately, the surrounding black seawater surged, forming layers of massive waves that swept directly towards the pleading Zhao Zhongheng. Wherever the waves passed, the dead hands crumbled, and the entangled hair instantly shattered. Although its combat power was inferior to his true form, a Three Heavenly Palaces cultivation was still sufficient to deal with highly anomalous situations, as long as it didn't venture too deep into the Corpse Forbidden Zone.

As the effect of his action spread, streams of light appeared from the depths, radiating in all directions.

These streams of light contained a profound Dao rhythm, feeling to Xu Qing like the traces of Dao visible to a Return to Void cultivator.

“Return to Void!”

Xu Qing’s heart sank, but he didn't lose his composure. After all, what was here was only a projected clone.

What made him even more solemn was the tragic laughter echoing from within the mist, amidst the roars.

“Dead, all dead, all eaten...”

“Haha, all eaten, all bitten to pieces.”

The voice was filled with madness and delirium, as if its owner had suffered immense trauma, causing their mind to reach an extreme state of agitation and break down. The moment this tragic laughter rang out, the mist exploded outwards with a rumble. A figure abruptly rushed out, running away while laughing maniacally.

This figure was not human; it was an alien race, covered in decaying scales. Half of its head was gone, and multiple parts of its body were disintegrating, a truly horrific sight. An astonishing alien quality permeated its entire being. Wherever it passed, the sea churned into massive waves. As a deafening roar rose, it crashed headfirst into one of these waves.

After passing through, it continued its tragic laughter, blood seemingly uncontrollably gushing from its internal wounds. It howled towards the sky, tears mingling with its cries. Its distant flying boat, with a wave of Xu Qing’s hand, was suddenly pulled violently towards them.

The hair entangled around it snapped directly. Witnessing this, Zhao Zhongheng was both relieved to have survived and utterly horrified.

He naturally knew Xu Qing was powerful, but on one hand, the way Xu Qing appeared today had subverted his understanding, and on the other, he had just experienced such a life-and-death ordeal. Consequently, his emotions were in turmoil.

“Xu...”

“I’ll leave this place first. I’ll also go check on the other Alliance disciples,” Xu Qing interrupted Zhao Zhongheng, pulling the dharma boat towards him.

Zhao Zhongheng nodded quickly, his eyes filled with profound gratitude. Just as he was about to speak after boarding the dharma boat, Xu Qing flicked his sleeve. Instantly, a powerful force impacted Zhao Zhongheng’s rather ostentatious Phoenix Bird dharma boat.

Immediately, the dharma boat roared, its speed boosted, and it sped towards the outer reaches of the Corpse Forbidden Zone.

Xu Qing’s body swayed. He was just about to go check other areas when, suddenly, his expression changed. He abruptly turned his head, looking solemnly into the depths of the mist.

He swiftly retreated, intending to leave.

In the direction he had just looked, earth-shattering fluctuations were now erupting, accompanied by terrifying aura and desperate roars!

The surrounding seawater was churning. This scene, reflected in Xu Qing’s eyes, caused his pupils to contract. Under the oppressive aura of that alien cultivator, his clone could not bear it and was disintegrating.

But at that very moment, the crying and wailing alien cultivator suddenly turned its head, looked at Xu Qing, and raised its right hand to grab him.

In an instant, Xu Qing’s disintegrating clone involuntarily flew out, caught firmly in the hand of the powerful alien cultivator.

“A clone.”

“They’re all dead, completely dead...” The powerful alien cultivator gave a tragic laugh. Xu Qing maintained a calm expression. Half of his body had already dissipated, and soon it would completely vanish.

He looked at the alien before him, whose entire body exuded an extremely potent alien quality, and remained silent.

The deranged alien cultivator suddenly brought Xu Qing close to its face, almost touching, and then spoke.

“Did you see?”

Xu Qing shook his head.

“Then I’ll show you. And you go out and tell everyone outside that It has awakened... The Emperor of the Corpse Forbidden Zone, is dead!”

As these words reached Xu Qing’s ears, his expression instantly changed. Before he could say anything, the deranged alien used its half-head to violently smash into Xu Qing’s face.

The moment of impact, a scene formed from memory forcefully flooded into Xu Qing’s mind.

In the vision, he saw the core of the Corpse Forbidden Zone, the endless seabed.

It was originally shrouded in black, but apparently, through the eyes of that powerful alien long ago, the seabed was clearly visible.

At its deepest point, a colossal bronze gate could be seen.