Chu Mu retreated slightly. The sensation under the tip of his boot made his eyes narrow, and his gaze fixed on the roof tile beneath his feet.

Raising an eyebrow, Chu Mu looked back at the mummified corpse falling from the sky. Just as it was about to reach him, he abruptly retreated several more steps.

BOOM!

A loud crash followed as tiles shattered and wood chips flew. The recently repaired roof was smashed to pieces once again by the mummified corpse’s ferocious impact.

And the mummified corpse that had fallen from the sky was nowhere to be seen.

Before Chu Mu could feel any relief, another crash echoed out. The mummified corpse that had just vanished smashed another large hole in the roof and leaped up again.

Chu Mu used the same trick again, retreating a few steps just as the mummified corpse was about to land. But a roof made of wooden slats and tiles was no match for the creature’s ferocious impacts.

Another crash. The roof broke open with another large hole, and the mummified corpse once again vanished from sight.

"Is it really that stupid..."

When the mummified corpse leaped out yet again and, having learned nothing, stomped another hole in the roof and disappeared, the tension in Chu Mu’s heart finally eased.

’No matter how strong it is, it’s just a dead thing without any Spiritual Wisdom. Even a pig would learn its lesson after falling for the same trick a few times, but this mummified corpse hasn’t.’

’Apparently, even though it has been brought back from the dead, it’s just an empty shell with brute strength. Without Spiritual Wisdom, it’s not much of a threat!’

The mummified corpse leaped out once more. This time, Chu Mu timed it perfectly and kicked out. The corpse, only halfway out of the hole, lost its balance and crashed back into the room below.

Chu Mu took a few steps, then leaped forcefully, landing steadily on the neighboring roof.

Looking back, he saw the roof of his small home had been completely wrecked, and several walls had collapsed. That incredibly stupid mummified corpse was still rampaging inside, turning his already damaged house into a pile of ruins.

Chu Mu was suddenly speechless. ’What is this nonsense?’

’I didn’t do anything, but this mummified corpse targeted me, demolished my house, and I couldn’t even stop it.’

"Mu, catch!"

Just as Chu Mu was feeling exasperated, a shout came from among the cowering crowd on the street. It was Wu Shuo. A long saber, glinting with cold light, came flying toward him.

"Everyone, get to the upper floors! Draw this damned thing’s attention! Lord Thousand Households will be here soon!"

"Mu, don’t retreat just yet! This thing has its eyes on you, so..."

As Wu Shuo was shouting, the rampaging mummified corpse leaped up once again. But this time, against all expectations, it didn’t go after Chu Mu. Instead, it shrieked and lunged toward Wu Shuo, who was yelling from the street.

At this sudden turn of events, the crowd that had been cowering on the street instantly scattered in chaos.

Wu Shuo’s shouting came to an abrupt halt. His movements were swift; without the slightest hesitation, he turned and ran!

After a few steps, he copied Chu Mu, leaping up and scrambling onto the roof across the street.

The familiar scene played out once more, only this time the mummified corpse that had been relentlessly pursuing Chu Mu had switched its target to Wu Shuo...

Chu Mu gripped the sword Wu Shuo had thrown, watching the familiar, bizarrely comical scene unfold. He also felt a growing sense of confusion.

’Why did it target me, and why did it switch targets to Wu Shuo now?’

He scanned the surrounding scene of people scattering in every direction, and a faint guess began to form in his mind.

Chu Mu looked toward the Inspection Office. The white-robed man from yesterday, who had used Sword Control to traverse the sky and arrive in an instant, was still nowhere to be seen.

Instead, he could see Li Jinghong leading several black-armored Patrol Officers, all of them sprinting in his direction.

’Is he really injured... or does he just not care?’

Chu Mu mused to himself. After witnessing that comical scene, he wasn’t too concerned about this mummified corpse—or rather, this zombie.

’It’s a dead thing without Spiritual Wisdom, possessing only brute force. Even an ordinary person with no strength to speak of would have a decent chance of survival, as long as they weren’t scared stiff.’

The comical scene playing out before him again was undeniable proof of this.

Wu Shuo was like someone teasing a dog, leaping and dodging along the continuous line of rooftops.

In just a few breaths’ time, several houses across the street were on the verge of becoming ruins from the mummified corpse’s incessant jumping.

"You beast! You’re looking for death!"

Following the explosive shout, Li Jinghong landed on the roof ridge and lashed out with a kick. The mummified corpse, which had just leaped up, was sent flying, even crashing through a wall.

The terrifying power of Li Jinghong’s kick was clear to see, yet the mummified corpse’s chest only caved in slightly. The devastating blow seemed to have had little effect on it.

The mummified corpse leaped up again. This time, it switched targets once more, ignoring Wu Shuo completely and locking its sights on Li Jinghong!

As Chu Mu watched, what he had suspected was all but confirmed. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Qi Blood..."

Chu Mu muttered to himself. He was now almost certain why the mummified corpse had targeted him first, and then changed targets again and again.

The reason, he suspected, was Qi Blood.

There were originally quite a few people at the Nanshan Inspection Office who were successful in their Qi and Blood Cultivation.

But in the recent, successive waves of turmoil, quite a few of them had also died.

When the mummified corpse first appeared, almost everyone present was an ordinary person. He was the only one with some small achievement in Qi and Blood Cultivation.

Judging by how the mummified corpse had appeared and sucked that overweight woman dry, it was perfectly normal for it to have targeted him.

Then Wu Shuo arrived. Although he was old, he had practiced Martial Arts for most of his life. His Qi Blood was clearly much stronger than Chu Mu’s.

And then it locked on to Li Jinghong...

Chu Mu didn’t know the exact level of Li Jinghong’s Martial Arts, but he was undoubtedly stronger than both him and Wu Shuo.

Unlike Chu Mu, who had been chased all over the place, the moment Li Jinghong appeared, he started absolutely pummeling the mummified corpse.

The mummified corpse charged at Li Jinghong again and again, only to be sent flying backward each time.

The mummified corpse’s shrieks grew more piercing, and the power behind Li Jinghong’s punches grew more terrifying.

Terrifying booms echoed through the night sky as houses and walls collapsed one after another amidst the battle.

If the appearance of the Resentful Soul and the white-robed man’s flight with Sword Control had felt illusory and unattainable...

...then this explosive display of Qi Blood, this fist-to-flesh reality, was undoubtedly something Chu Mu could see, and perhaps even touch.

A body like iron and stone, capable of splitting mountains and shattering rocks...

Watching this scene, which resembled an artillery barrage, these words from the Body Refining Technique’s description surfaced in Chu Mu’s mind once again.

A single punch could demolish a wall. A single stomp could leave a huge crater in the ground.

’Splitting mountains’ might be an exaggeration, but not by much.

Such Power, and a body of flesh and blood that could withstand it, was beyond just ’terrifying’.

And yet, a man like this had been like a dog before that white-robed man—bowing and scraping, wagging his tail and begging...

...