Chapter 996: Wanting the Corpse, Not the Life of Fang Mu

“Mei’er, your master and the Carefree Sword Master are at odds; that’s our concern, not something that should involve your generation. Don’t think I don’t know your little schemes. Aren’t you just trying to make him fall at your feet to embarrass the Carefree Sword Master?”

A mother knows her daughter best, and Lin Siruo could easily see through Liu Meier’s subtle intentions.

“Master, the Carefree Sword Master wronged you. You might be able to tolerate this slight, but I cannot. I will definitely make Wang Qingshan fall at my feet.”

Liu Meier was brimming with confidence. The affair between the Carefree Sword Master and Lin Siruo had caused a huge stir years ago. Having grown up by Lin Siruo’s side, Liu Meier had always felt the need to right the wrongs done to her.

The Carefree Sword Master had two male disciples: Han Tianxuan and Wang Qingshan.

Han Tianxuan already had a cultivation partner, so Liu Meier could only focus on Wang Qingshan.

Initially, Liu Meier had teased Wang Qingshan with a specific intention, but now, she had developed a deep interest in him.

Many cultivators, including numerous young talents, had fallen for Liu Meier’s charms. However, Wang Qingshan completely ignored her, which caused Liu Meier considerable frustration. Despite her disappointment, she grew even more interested in him.

Liu Meier’s personality was identical to Lin Siruo’s; once she made up her mind, no one could change it.

Lin Siruo, naturally aware of Liu Meier’s stubbornness, said with a stern face, reprimanding her: “You can do this, but you must be careful how you go about it. Don’t let people make a joke of you. If your Uncle-Master Tang finds out about this, he’ll surely throw dirt on your name. As the senior disciple, you must act like one, understand?”

“Understood, Master. By the way, have Senior Fang and the others returned?”

Lin Siruo nodded and said, “Fellow Daoist Song and Fellow Daoist Lu have returned. Fang Mu is a madman. To obtain the corpse of a lightning-element demon, he didn’t hesitate to use himself as bait, hurting the enemy a thousand but harming himself eight hundred. He ignored others’ advice and pursued that lightning-element eagle demon. Even if he succeeds, he won’t gain much. Enough about him. You should rest well. Tomorrow, you will join a supply escort team and be transferred to the rear to guard an important stronghold.”

“Yes, Master.”

Inside a secluded bamboo building, Wang Qingshan was reporting on his recent mission to the Carefree Sword Master.

“Qingshan, you did very well. Liu Meier is Madam Lin’s favorite disciple. If you don’t like her, don’t get too close to her, lest Madam Lin misunderstand. She dotes on Liu Meier immensely. If you dare to wrong her precious disciple, she won’t let you off lightly.”

The Carefree Sword Master admonished him, as he had wronged Lin Siruo and didn't want Wang Qingshan to provoke Liu Meier. If Wang Qingshan and Liu Meier were to quarrel, it would be even harder for the Carefree Sword Master to see Lin Siruo.

Matters of the heart are hard to predict; Wang Mingren was a living example of this.

“This disciple understands.”

Wang Qingshan honestly agreed. Even if the Carefree Sword Master hadn’t said anything, he would have kept his distance from Liu Meier.

No matter how strong his resolve, he couldn’t withstand Liu Meier’s repeated provocations.

“Since joining the battle, you have slain many half-demons and made significant contributions. You are still injured, so tomorrow you should leave with the supply escort team. Go guard an important stronghold and recover for a period. First, go to the Deacon Hall to exchange your contribution points.”

Wang Qingshan had earned a substantial amount of contribution points from his participation in the attack on the demon stronghold, which had now been destroyed. He could use these points.

“Yes, Master.”

Wang Qingshan agreed, bowed, and withdrew.

The Carefree Sword Master took down the gourd from his waist and took a large gulp of spirit wine, muttering to himself, “Forget-Worry Wine, can it really make one forget worries? Siruo, why don’t you believe me!”

In a verdant mountain range stretching for hundreds of thousands of miles, there was a patch of green bamboo forest.

Green bamboo stalks lay felled in swathes, and hundreds of steaming black craters dotted the ground.

Fang Mu’s clothes were tattered and torn, and he was bleeding profusely. A gruesome scratch on his right hand vaguely revealed bone. His aura was weak. The eagle demon was pinned to the stone wall by three black arrows, its eyes filled with horror.

A menacing black ghostly figure stood nearby, flickering in and out of sight.

A small zombie lay beside the eagle demon, its clothes ragged and its chest pierced by a sharp weapon. It was not yet dead, emitting piercing screams. Five Core Formation stage refined corpses were scattered nearby, their auras weak and bodies charred black, clearly having suffered heavy injuries.

“Hehe, I told you! Your corpse is mine. I succeeded.”

Fang Mu chuckled, his gaze fixed on the eagle demon’s corpse with fervent intensity.

He, along with a Nascent Soul stage ghost and six Core Formation stage refined corpses, had finally managed to kill the Nascent Soul stage eagle demon.

To kill this demon, not only had Fang Mu suffered severe injuries, but all six refined corpses were also heavily damaged.

Having killed the Nascent Soul stage eagle demon, Fang Mu felt it was all worth it.

He suddenly sensed something and quickly put away his refined corpses and the ghost. The eagle demon’s corpse was stored in a spatial pearl.

“You killed our people and still want to leave? Stay here for this old man.” A voice full of anger came from the horizon.

No sooner had the voice fallen than a tremendous roar echoed from high above. The sky abruptly turned dark red, and a scarlet fire cloud, several acres in size, suddenly appeared high overhead, radiating immense heat waves.

The scarlet fire cloud churned violently and slammed down towards Fang Mu.

Simultaneously, dull thuds rose from the ground as over a dozen earthen mounds swelled up and rapidly advanced towards Fang Mu.

Countless black spirit patterns lit up on Fang Mu’s body. He instantly transformed into hundreds of black mist clusters, rapidly flying in different directions.

A rumbling sound!

The scarlet fire cloud accurately struck dozens of black mist clusters, shattering them. However, a small portion of the black mist still managed to escape.

Three streaks of light flew in from the distant horizon and stopped above the bamboo forest, revealing three Nascent Soul stage demon cultivators: two males and one female.

“Damn it, this is the Yin Corpse Sect’s unique secret technique, Heavenly Corpse Spirit Evasion Art. This secret technique has many flaws; he surely can’t have gone far. Quickly send people to seal off this area. I refuse to believe we can’t find him. We must skin him alive, extract his soul, and refine his essence to honor my deceased kinsman.”

A young woman in a green skirt with green feathered wings said with a cold face, a cold gleam in her eyes.

“This person has a Nascent Soul stage ghost skilled in stealth. He will definitely become a great threat. He cannot be allowed to return alive; he must be eliminated. Send a message to the Black Tiger clan and ask them for assistance.”

To obtain the lightning-element eagle demon’s corpse, Fang Mu had ventured deep into demon territory and killed a Nascent Soul stage eagle demon. This infuriated the demon race, who mobilized heavy troops to encircle and capture Fang Mu.

This incident quickly spread to the human race. More and more cultivators learned of Fang Mu’s obsession with corpses. To boost morale, the human high command extensively publicized the matter. For a time, human morale soared, and they reclaimed many lost territories. The demon race, naturally unwilling to concede, organized their forces for a counterattack, leading to a stalemate between the two sides.