Chapter 38: Foundation Establishment Stage Undead
"Are you threatening me?"
Facing the oppressive pressure of the massive figure, Chen Xuanlin didn't retreat a single step.
The giant didn't sense any fear in Chen Xuanlin's words, and his face suddenly became furious. "Your clan of sinners is now a small tribe that can be destroyed with a snap of a finger. What qualifications do you have to refuse?"
As the giant's anger became apparent, red clouds rolled in the sky, and the stench grew stronger.
The might of a Foundation Establishment cultivator crashed down like a torrential rain.
Even with his Soul Summoning constantly activated, Chen Xuanlin's body was shaky under the force, and he could only barely stand upright, avoiding collapse.
The sea breeze rustled Chen Xuanlin's white robe, and despite the stench, Chen Xuanlin's expression remained calm.
Chen Xuanlin said firmly,
"I reject your Wang family's request."
"Though the Chen family is poor, we still have backbone. Although I deeply desire to revive the Chen family, seeking glory through worshipping a master goes against the beliefs of our clan for generations. The Chen family members can only worship the Chen family's beliefs."
The giant shuddered, instantly shaking off the dust from his body. The dust cleared, revealing his dark red armor.
The armor was simple in design, its surface painted with various black ghostly faces, appearing incredibly ferocious against the dark red background.
The red-armored giant spoke again,
"I'll give you one more chance."
"If you refuse again, I will kill you and your people today."
Before the red-armored giant, both men were mere ants, stronger than themselves.
Chen Gan'er, trapped in the pit, tried several times to rise, but was forced back into the pit by the giant's might, leaving only a few bloody scratches on the edge.
It seemed as if the red-armored giant was doing this on purpose, deliberately leaving Chen Xuanlin to endure this suffocating pressure alone, as if
to encourage him to compromise.
On this desolate, fetid island, facing the full force of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he was oppressed.
Chen Xuanlin sighed.
His face grew increasingly aged. After struggling to stand straight, he murmured with a sigh,
"I violated our ancestral teachings and named my son Xingye. It was in my hope that he could renounce the sins of the Chen family's past, shed the word 'sinner,' and not be haunted by the 'Chen' and 'Xuan' in his name like I am."
"I hope he can lead the Chen family to a life of ease and comfort, free from the fear of death. But right now, that seems difficult."
"Even if we wish to forget the past, the Chen family of the past will still find us."
At this point, Chen Xuanlin's voice suddenly rose.
"Well, well, let's find another way."
A swirling red cloud hovered above the red-armored giant. He had no idea what Chen Xuanlin was saying. He only knew that the Lord of Sinners before him had rejected his request.
He had solemnly vowed to someone that he would subjugate the sinner Chen clan, but the Chen clan leader simply refused to yield to his might.
From beginning to end, the two men didn't even show a hint of fear, instead adopting an air of unwavering readiness.
He believed the sinner Chen clan could be annihilated with a snap of his fingers, yet neither the weak black-robed cultivator lying on the ground nor the Chen clan leader before him treated him as a deity, their words devoid of respect.
Even as a supreme Foundation Establishment cultivator, this infuriated the red-armored giant.
The towering figure, clad in red armor with a ghostly face, roared,
"You're courting death."
As his words uttered, a swirling red cloud roared in the sky, hurtling towards Chen Xuanlin.
...
The moment Chen Gan'er and Chen Xuanlin set foot on Carrion Island, on the other side, on the ethereal Resource Island, shrouded in a celestial aura.
Here, birdsong and flowers bloom, and a pervasive spiritual energy fills the air, making it seem like a completely different world from Carrion Island.
Nestled in the woods of this resource island lies a charming courtyard. Inside, a handsome young man with a stern gaze sipped wine and chatted with a nearby maid.
The maid filled the young man's glass and said,
"Young Master, can we subdue the Chen Clan of Sinners today?"
The young man downed his glass of wine, a smile playing on his lips.
"The Sinner Clan possesses a proud character, so it shouldn't be easy to subjugate, but I must try."
The maid chuckled softly, covering her mouth.
"The Scale Guard, even wearing his ghost-faced rotten armor, couldn't subdue this small clan?"
The young man sneered,
"If the Sinner Clan were so easy to subjugate, how could they have ended up on the soulless Sanyin Island?"
"After all these years, I'm surprised they haven't been annihilated in the Sea of Death, and that they still have cultivators."
The maidservant asked with some doubt,
"Young Master is resourceful and his cultivation talent is among the best among the Hundred Islands of the Dead Sea. Why would you go to such great lengths to come here and subdue the Sinner Clan?"
The young man laughed heartily and said,
"Since Cheng'er is so well-behaved, I'll tell you a thing or two. I accidentally learned about the Sinner Clan's special qualities from my old master, so I wanted to subdue them. They will be of great use in the future."
"Even if I didn't come, people from other immortal islands would have tried to subdue the Sinner Clan."
"But there are only a few immortal islands that can exploit the land connection rules. I have to act before other forces can, and do my best to prevent the Chen clan from falling into the hands of other immortal islands."
The maidservant giggled and fed a piece of fruit into the young man's mouth, saying,
"But if we just come here without permission by using the power of taboos and land on the Sinner Clan's island without the old master's permission, will he be angry?"
The young man laughed heartily, his eyes gleaming with arrogance. He said,
"Now I am the only direct descendant of the younger generation of the Wang family. If the old master doesn't love me, who else could he love? Otherwise, why would he have bestowed the Ghost-Faced Rot Armor upon me? Even if the old master knew, he wouldn't blame me."
The young man's tone shifted, and he sighed,
"It's a pity that there are still too few natives on this island. Even if we fed everyone the Ghost-Faced Rot Armor, that useless creature would only reach the early stages of Foundation Establishment..."
A nearby maid chuckled,
"Once we've subdued the Sinner Clan, we can use the people of the next island near the shore as food for the Ghost-Faced Rot Armor."
The two spoke indifferently, completely disregarding the current Chen clan, as if the shore crossing was a mere spring outing for them.
As they chatted and laughed, a wave of Foundation Establishment energy emanated from the shore of Sanyin Island.
The young man's smile froze.
...
A water sword composed of seawater came roaring from the seashore somewhere on Sanyin Island.
Before the red cloud vortex could reach Chen Xuanlin, it instantly shattered it.
The seawater in the sky mixed with the remaining traces of the red cloud vortex, and a foul-smelling rain composed of seawater suddenly fell in front of the few people.
Chen Xuanlin's crisis was resolved in an instant, and even the momentum of the red-armored giant was paused.
Taking this opportunity, Chen Ganer, who finally climbed out of the pit and endured the pain, could not help but look at Chen Xuanlin beside him.
"Brother...what's this?"
Chen Xuanlin breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Chen Ganer could still climb out of the ground by himself. He turned his head and smiled:
"Why do you think I pace the seashore every day?"
"Dead Sea, Dead Sea. How many sages and predecessors have died in the Dead Sea over the years. Their bodies have long been scattered all over the bottom of the Dead Sea. I pace every day just to communicate with them more."
Communicating with the dead, dead for who knows how many years—if this were any other day, Chen Gan'er would have been curious how this was done.
But now, Chen Gan'er was a little stunned, because Chen Xuanlin's face had aged like a man in his seventies. Chen Gan'er murmured,
"Brother, you..."
A ghost, draped in rags and a skeleton, rose from the seabed somewhere on Sanyin Island.
It was flying towards Chen Xuanlin at an astonishing speed.
As the ghost flew, the sea water around it stirred up a large cloud of mist. This mist followed it, deflecting the stinking red cloud that was about to invade Sanyin Island back to Carrion Island.
The tall figure in the red armor with a ghostly face also sensed the rapidly approaching aura, and his expressionless face finally changed.
"A ghost in the Foundation Establishment stage."