Translator: CinderTL
Song Wen focused intently on the zombie, preparing to face its next ferocious attack.
However, the zombie suddenly turned around. With a powerful push from its feet, its figure transformed into a blur as it dashed toward the Withered Corpse Bamboo.
Upon reaching the vicinity of the Withered Corpse Bamboo, it directly burrowed into the rubble and disappeared without a trace.
Once the zombie entered the ground beneath the Withered Corpse Bamboo, its aura would be masked by the aura emitted by the bamboo, making it undetectable. Song Wen immediately lost all sense of its presence.
Song Wen was slightly stunned, his tone carrying a hint of disbelief.
"How could this happen?"
Did the zombie just run away?
This was the least ferocious zombie he had ever encountered.
Not only was Song Wen surprised, but Xue Mei and the other two, who were hundreds of feet away, also revealed a look of astonishment in their eyes.
"It seems this zombie has an extremely deep attachment to the Withered Corpse Bamboo and won't easily stray far from it," Xue Mei said.
Song Wen nodded slightly. Xue Mei's words made some sense.
He stirred the Corpse Qi within his body and slowly approached the Withered Corpse Bamboo, intending to lure the zombie out again.
However, even when he reached directly above the Withered Corpse Bamboo, the zombie did not reappear.
The same trick no longer worked on the zombie.
Song Wen raised his hand, and a Blood Tentacle extended from his palm, coiling toward the Withered Corpse Bamboo as if trying to uproot the entire bamboo grove.
"Roar!"
The zombie leaped out from the ground once more, its sharp claws fiercely grabbing at the tentacle.
With a "pfft," the tentacle was cleanly severed by the claws.
The severed tentacle suddenly extended and grew longer, wrapping around the zombie's head and dragging it away.
Just as it flew a dozen feet, the zombie slapped the tentacle with its palm.
For this strike, it mobilized all the Corpse Qi in its body, unleashing a wave of overwhelming Corpse Qi.
The entire tentacle instantly disintegrated, and even Song Wen, at the end of the tentacle, was struck by this surge of Corpse Qi.
Fortunately, he had been prepared. A dark shield suddenly materialized in front of him.
The Corpse Qi slammed into the shield, and Song Wen, along with the shield, was sent flying dozens of feet.
The zombie did not pursue. Its figure slowly descended back toward the Withered Corpse Bamboo, seemingly determined to defend it at all costs, as if protecting its home.
At that moment, a Soul Breaking Awl shot from afar, aiming directly for the zombie's rotting, decayed head.
A hurricane of Corpse Qi erupted from the zombie's body, sweeping the Soul Breaking Awl away.
Taking advantage of the zombie's distraction with the Soul Breaking Awl, Song Wen unleashed dozens of blood-red tentacles from his body, spreading out like a net as they surged toward the zombie.
The zombie's ferocious nature was fully revealed. Its sharp claws danced incessantly, stirring up boundless Corpse Qi.
The Corpse Qi was as sharp as blades, continuously shredding the incoming tentacles into thick clouds of blood mist.
"Crack!"
A thunderclap suddenly rang out.
Seeing that Song Wen was unable to lure the zombie away and fearing that delays might lead to complications, Xue Mei couldn't help but act again.
The fact that she could wield Thunder Magic was already known to Gui Ni, and she didn't care if Lan Chen and Mo Yexue also found out.
Xue Mei unleashed the Purple Mansion Divine Thunder.
Purple lightning rolled across the sky, its divine might vast and overwhelming.
Like a giant purple sword, it pierced toward the zombie.
The purple lightning broke through the thick Corpse Qi, and wherever it passed, the Corpse Qi dissipated into nothingness.
Zombies had a natural fear of thunder.
The zombie spared no effort, mobilizing all the Corpse Qi in its body to form a massive Corpse Qi dragon, which charged toward the thunder.
However, the power of the thunder was far weaker than the zombie had anticipated.
The thunder gradually dissipated under the relentless assault of the boundless Corpse Qi.
However, the Blood Tentacles seized the opportunity to close in, tightly entangling the zombie and dragging it away into the distance.
The zombie struggled fiercely, its Corpse Qi surging, shattering one Blood Tentacle after another.
Just as the zombie was about to break free, another bolt of thunder descended.
The thunder bypassed the blockade of the tentacles and struck the zombie with precision.
The zombie's movements halted, and Song Wen took the chance to pull it further away.
Xue Mei's figure suddenly appeared above the Withered Corpse Bamboo. She did not rashly uproot the bamboo but instead waved her hand, summoning six Soul Breaking Awls.
The six Soul Breaking Awls formed a circle with a diameter of a hundred zhang, enclosing the Withered Corpse Bamboo Grove, and then shot down, piercing deep into the ground.
Only after penetrating dozens of zhang into the earth did the six Soul Breaking Awls come to a halt.
Spiritual Power surged on the Soul Breaking Awls.
This Spiritual Power interconnected, forming a cylindrical net of dense energy that cut through the underground rock.
"Rise!"
Xue Mei bellowed.
In an instant, the ground trembled.
A stone pillar with a diameter of a hundred zhang slowly ascended into the air.
At the center of the stone pillar was the swaying Withered Corpse Bamboo Grove.
The roots of the Withered Corpse Bamboo were highly developed, and Xue Mei's actions were aimed at uprooting the entire root system.
The commotion naturally caught the zombie's attention.
It immediately became extremely panicked and enraged, its eyes glowing red like burning flames, revealing endless killing intent.
"Roar!" The zombie let out an ear-splitting roar.
The Corpse Qi around its body boiled like scalding water, churning violently and emitting a suffocating aura of slaughter.
The tentacles wrapped around it shattered one after another.
Just as the zombie was about to break free, a dark sword light suddenly appeared, slashing at the zombie's back.
This was Mo Yexue's flying sword.
True to her reputation as the top sword cultivator in the Immortal Cultivation World, her flying sword effortlessly tore through the zombie's tough bones, despite it being of equal cultivation level and renowned for its physical strength.
The zombie's entire left arm was nearly severed by the flying sword.
Several ribs in its back were broken, leaving only the bones in its chest connecting to the left arm.
The zombie was also struck down to the ground by this sword.
Before the zombie could rise, the flying sword struck again.
The zombie was cut in half at the waist.
A large amount of black internal organs spilled out.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Mo. I'll take care of the rest," Song Wen quickly said.
This was a late-stage fourth-tier Golden Corpse. Although its flesh was severely decayed, making its body somewhat fragile, if it could be subdued, it would undoubtedly become a valuable asset.
Moreover, with the use of some Corpse Dao spiritual materials, the zombie's body could be restored.
The zombie seemed oblivious to its injuries.
In its eyes, there was only the Withered Corpse Bamboo Grove that was about to be taken by Xue Mei.
It pushed off the ground with its arms, exerting great force, and its mutilated body leaped high, charging straight toward the Withered Corpse Bamboo.
A massive blood pillar descended from the sky, crashing down onto the zombie.
"Boom!"
A deafening sound echoed.
Half of the cavern trembled violently.
The blood pillar, along with the zombie, was driven deep into the ground.
Immediately after, the blood pillar quickly rose and then crashed down again.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The impacts continued relentlessly.
After dozens of consecutive strikes, the blood pillar dispersed.
A deep hole several zhang in diameter was left behind.
At the bottom of the deep hole, the zombie lay prostrate.
Its already injured left arm was completely severed.
The other bones in its body also showed varying degrees of damage, and even the hardest part, the skull, had several cracks.
Yet, it still refused to give up. With its right hand, now reduced to only three fingers, it pushed up its broken torso.
Then, with a sudden burst of strength, it leaped into the air and soared out of the deep pit.
(End of the Chapter)
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