The inner courtyard of the Zhou Mansion.

In the center of the spacious hall, a bronze tripod about seven feet tall stood silently.

Zhou Jianmi, dressed as a middle-aged scholar, sat cross-legged to one side of the tripod, forming spells with his hands and periodically sending out streams of True Qi.

The True Qi flowed into the tripod, and its mouth immediately began to billow thick white smoke. The smoke enveloped the dozens of people in the hall, connecting seamlessly with the dense fog that shrouded the entire Zhou Mansion.

"Despicable!"

"Shameless!"

Patriarch Zhou Yangyun of the Zhou Family fell to his knees, his face contorted as he roared in fury:

"My father and I trusted you so much, yet you have the audacity—you’re using dozens of my family members as a blood sacrifice for alchemy!"

Around him, nearly all thirty-plus members of the Zhou Family were present. They were forced to their knees, their auras linked to the great tripod as if bound together by invisible chains.

The Inner Qi they had painstakingly cultivated for months and the Yin Corpse Evil Qi they had accumulated by killing a thousand people were being devoured by the tripod at a visible rate.

"You’re quite impressive, resisting the erosion of the Great Dao for so long. You must have restrained your desire for cultivation." Unmoved by the curses, Zhou Jianmi spoke slowly:

"I told you beforehand that cultivating the Silent Extinction and Fierce Death would likely warp your minds. It was you who insisted on it."

"Heh..."

"Don’t say I tricked you with an inferior method. You should know that in ancient times, the Silent Extinction Path of Evil Death was a top-tier inheritance of the Netherworld Sect. Only Core True Inheritance disciples were allowed to cultivate it. An Outer Sect Disciple like me wouldn’t have even had the chance to glance at it. You are mere mortals. To be able to cultivate it is a blessing of three lifetimes."

’Those who cultivated the Silent Extinction Path of Evil Death would turn into man-eating monsters. He was just using those monsters for alchemy—a good deed, really. He felt no psychological burden whatsoever. As for the people killed by the monsters, that was just their bad luck.’

"CRACKLE..."

Zhou Yangyun’s body trembled as he desperately tried to stand, only to be pressed down firmly by an invisible power in the hall.

"Don’t bother with pointless struggles." Zhou Jianmi glanced at him sideways and said with a smile,

"I’ve been preparing for this alchemy for ten years. The entire Zhou Mansion is now enveloped by my Pill Furnace Array. As the ’medicinal ingredients,’ you’re not going anywhere."

"Absorb!"

With a flick of his spell, the suction from within the tripod suddenly intensified.

Several members of the Zhou Family trembled as streams of Primordial Energy were pulled from their bodies and into the great tripod.

Having lost their Primordial Energy, their skin and flesh melted away, leaving them as withered skeletons with only a single breath left.

As Zhou Jianmi continued to cast his spells, more and more members of the Zhou Family were refined into skeletons, and the aura within the tripod grew increasingly powerful.

"BOOM!"

A loud bang echoed from the distance.

Zhou Jianmi frowned, looking toward the outside of the mansion and shaking his head helplessly.

"What’s coming has finally come."

"My lord." A servant dressed as a coachman and wearing a bamboo hat ran in from outside, cupped his hands, and reported,

"The arrivals include Jiang Ke of San Fen Hall and Yu Yuanliang of the Celestial Yu Gang, but also the demoness Qi Yao of the Joyful Sect."

"Qi Yao?" Zhou Jianmi’s expression darkened slightly.

"It’s her. This is trouble!" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"My lord," the coachman said, his eyes filled with doubt,

"That demoness Qi Yao is very young. It seems she only recently reached the Innate realm and probably hasn’t even opened her first acupoint. Her strength shouldn’t be that great, right?"

"You don’t understand." Zhou Jianmi shook his head gently.

"In a person’s hundred-year lifespan, there are ten years of infancy, ten of youth, and ten of prime. Once you pass thirty, the body begins to decline. The acupoints within the body become blocked, making them difficult to open even for an Innate Qi Refiner."

"That Jiang Ke has ways to maintain his youthful appearance, but he’s over eighty. After decades of cultivation, he’s only opened two acupoints."

"Yu Yuanliang joined an Immortal Sect over ten years ago and has only opened one acupoint."

"Although people like them have reached the Innate realm, they can only hover around the early stage. That’s why they are just Outer Sect Disciples of Immortal Sects. They cultivate in the sect for ten or twenty years, and once their potential is exhausted, they’re sent back down the mountain to the mortal world to serve as an Elder or Steward."

"Qi Yao is different. She is still very young and has a great chance of becoming an Inner Sect Disciple of the Joyful Sect."

The older an Inner Qi Martial Artist, the higher their cultivation and the stronger they become. This rule of thumb does not apply to Innate Qi Refiners.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

The older an Innate, the lower their potential. A younger Innate, on the other hand, has a much brighter future.

If it were only Jiang Ke and Yu Yuanliang, Zhou Jianmi would be annoyed but not overly worried.

But now...

"I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it."

Zhou Jianmi took a deep breath, sensing the changes within the great tripod. He turned to two people not far away and said,

"Gao Yan, Tu San, the two of you will team up with this servant of mine. Do your best to stall for time so I can complete the alchemy."

"After this is over, I will naturally give you the opportunity to reach the Innate realm."

"Yes." The two replied in solemn tones.

"Rest assured, Immortal Master Zhou. We will give it our all."

"Good!" Zhou Jianmi formed a seal technique with his hands and pointed at the members of the Zhou Family, who had now been reduced to dried corpses.

"While they still have a breath left, let’s put them to good use. We’ll see if the fodder I spent half a year preparing can get me through today."

"Netherworld Curse!"

"Arise!"

In an instant, a sinister wind swept through the room, like the wails of ten thousand ghosts, and dozens of pairs of eyes suddenly flashed with a ghastly green light.

And outside in the courtyard, more than a hundred figures stood silently. Their skin was shriveled, their eyes vacant, like mindless dried corpses or puppets.

The methods of an Immortal Family,

were truly beyond the mortal realm!

*

*

*

The fog was so thick you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. Even sharp spiritual senses were greatly hindered.

There was clearly something wrong with this fog.

"Be careful!"

Xiao Gongdu said in a low voice,

"Everyone, stay together. Watch out for ambushes."

Of course, this expedition didn’t just include the young elites of San Fen Hall like Wan Shuai and Song Meng; there were also several ordinary Inner Qi Martial Artists.

The group of more than ten people stuck together, cautiously advancing deeper into the Zhou Mansion.

"No one here?"

Wuu Xuan scanned his surroundings.

"Where did all the servants of the Zhou Mansion go?"

A mansion this large should have at least a hundred servants, and that’s a conservative estimate.

"Heh..." Fang Yanrong sneered.

"The Zhou Family have all turned into man-eating monsters. How could the servants have escaped? They were probably all killed long ago."

"Huh?"

"There’s someone ahead!"

From within the dense fog, a swaying figure slowly approached, its form gradually becoming clearer.

The person’s skin was shriveled and their face sallow and gaunt, like a famine victim who had starved for ages. Upon seeing the group, their eyes suddenly lit up.

But it was an eerie light.

"Hmph!"

Elder Luo snorted, stepped forward, and struck out with his palm.

Profound Ice Palm!

Inner Qi surged from his palm, merging with the aura of heaven and earth and instantly transforming into a frigid qi that could freeze anything.

"CRACKLE..."

The figure, leaning forward, was frozen into an ice sculpture by the palm force before it could even get close.

"BANG!"

The ice sculpture shattered.

The corpse within broke into countless pieces along with it.

Elder Luo flicked a finger, and the Yin Sha Pearl floated down above the corpse, rapidly devouring the residual Yin Corpse Evil Qi.

’So strong!’

Zhu Ju’s gaze lingered on Elder Luo for a moment.

’As expected of an expert from the generation before his own old man. His Inner Qi Cultivation is masterful, and the method he cultivates is even more impressive. He himself needed to channel his Martial Arts Realm to draw upon the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, but Elder Luo could do it casually. Before his own cultivation breakthrough, he would have had to go all-out to block that palm strike. But now... although he was wary, there was no need to be overly fearful.’

"CLICK!"

Having absorbed the Yin Corpse Evil Qi, the Yin Sha Pearl landed back in Elder Luo’s hand, its weight seemingly having changed.

"Look," someone whispered.

"The fog seems to have thinned."

"That’s right." Wan Shuai nodded.

"It seems the fog here is connected to the people. When a ’person’ dies, the fog thins."

"The Immortal Masters must have sent us to scout the path in order to disperse this thick fog, making it easier for them to act later."

"Let’s go." Xiao Gongdu gestured lightly, and the group continued forward.

"Wait!"

They had not gone far when Fang Yanrong suddenly spoke, her expression turning extremely grim.

"My Flying Falcon is dead!"

"Look out!"

A cry of alarm followed immediately. Countless figures had appeared in the fog at some unknown point, surrounding them from all directions. The sheer number of them was horrifying.

"Wooo..."

With a low roar, the horde of figures lunged at the group.

"CLANG!"

Wan Shuai drew his sword, and Sword Qi shot toward the sky.

Inner Qi Release!

He had been hiding his true strength all along! His cultivation had already reached the Inner Qi External Release Realm, which he only revealed now that he was in danger.

"TCHHH..."

The Sword Qi struck one of the figures, making a sound like tearing tough leather. Wan Shuai’s expression changed drastically.

"Careful!"

"The skin and flesh of these things are tough."

He had seen Elder Luo deal with one so easily and thought nothing of it. Who knew he would be in for such a shock the moment he engaged one himself?

These things seemed to be the legendary ’Walking Corpses,’ but they didn’t fear sunlight. They possessed the tough skin and flesh of Walking Corpses, yet also had astonishing speed.

"They’re Walking Corpses under the effect of the Netherworld Curse," Elder Luo, being far more knowledgeable, shouted.

"Under the influence of the curse technique, these things won’t live for more than two hours. But within those two hours, they are extremely difficult to deal with. Don’t get bitten, or not even an Immortal could save you."

Before his words had even faded, the horde of Walking Corpses had already broken through the group’s formation.

"BANG!"

Wan Shuai was fine; after all, he had the cultivation of Inner Qi Release. Though inwardly alarmed, he could still defend himself. But those weaker than him were instantly overwhelmed.

Two members of San Fen Hall were tackled to the ground by the ’Walking Corpses.’ A series of bloodcurdling screams followed as their throats were torn out, splattering blood everywhere.

Even Song Meng and Wuu Xuan were thrown into a frantic scramble.

"THUD!"

The ground trembled under Zhu Ju’s feet. Encumbered by several hundred pounds of armor, he was like a fast-moving stone wall as he charged toward a figure in front of him.

Thirteen Body Refinement!

Inner Refining Third Realm!

A terrifying force erupted in an instant. The ’Walking Corpse’ directly in his path had its chest caved in, its skin, flesh, tendons, and bones torn asunder as it was sent flying back even faster than it had come.

Meanwhile, the others had also been surrounded by ’Walking Corpses.’ Everywhere they looked, there was nothing but Walking Corpses; they couldn’t even see their companions anymore.

"How are there so many?"

"Careful! Besides the Walking Corpses, there are also the demon-possessed members of the Zhou Family! They’re even stronger."

A chill went down Zhu Ju’s spine.

’It’s true. Aside from their tough hides, these Walking Corpses are only about as strong as a Martial Artist in Entering Strength. For a group composed entirely of Inner Qi Experts, they’re just troublesome, not a real threat. But the demon-possessed members of the Zhou Family are, at their weakest, at the Inner Qi level, with some being experts capable of Inner Qi Release. Even if their combat prowess is diminished after losing their minds, they are still not easy to deal with. Damn it! Those three Innate Qi Refiners really had no good intentions. They’re making us use our lives to scout the path and clear the fog.’