Chapter 65: Emergence

Unlike pure wandering spirits, yin corpses, though long dead, still possessed intact bodies. Other than exorcism talismans, most offensive spells had little effect on them. So even after a fierce battle in which the yin corpses were steadily pushed back, they suffered surprisingly little real damage.

Bai Yu suddenly remembered something and shouted, “Use thunder-calling techniques—they fear heavenly lightning!”

The elders paused for a beat, then immediately switched from charms to summoning thunder directly. In an instant, deafening thunderclaps tore through the sky. Bolts of divine lightning rained down, and the supposedly undying yin corpses fell in droves. Progress sped up at once.

The young man leading the enemy forces turned pale. Even the intact half of his face twisted grotesquely. He glared at the group with venom and shouted, “You blasphemous mortals! The god will surely punish you!”

“Too much talk!” the old man snapped. He quickly formed a heavenly spell, and a massive thunderbolt crashed down.

The young man flinched and tried to dodge, but the lightning still struck him. One arm instantly blackened to a crisp. His face became even more feral, eyes brimming with hatred. But instead of retaliating, he swung his hand to signal retreat, then turned and sprinted toward the heart of the village.

“Retreat!”

The other yin corpses howled in response and scattered, fleeing in the direction they had come.

“Don’t let them escape—after them!” Hall Master Xu Qingfeng frowned, about to lead the elders in pursuit.

“Master Xu!” Yun Jiao suddenly called out to stop him. “Head to the village ancestral shrine first. If I’m right, the thing that turned them into yin corpses is hidden there. It will awaken after nightfall—now is the time to strike!”

Xu Qingfeng froze for half a breath, then understood instantly. His heart clenched. To forcibly bind souls inside bodies to create yin corpses—whatever was behind this was far from ordinary. They absolutely could not let it awaken.

He turned and commanded sharply, “Elder Jiao, Elder Li—watch over the disciples and keep them together. We’re going to the ancestral shrine!” This place was too dangerous to leave the younger ones behind, so they would bring everyone.

The group nodded and moved out together. Despite their numbers, finding the shrine was easy. It stood out clearly the moment they entered the village—unlike the other crumbling houses, the ancestral shrine was lavishly built and clearly tended, with thick incense smoke curling skyward. But the scent was wrong. Instead of the calm fragrance of a temple, it carried an overpowering rank stench. Around the building, a dense miasma of dark energy wrapped the entire structure.

“Such heavy evil qi…” Xu Qingfeng muttered, brows furrowing deeper as he exchanged a glance with the other elders before charging in. But before they could search, more than ten yin corpses suddenly rushed out from within.

They hadn’t escaped after all—the ones who’d fled earlier had gathered here. The young leader was among them, looking slightly panicked but still shouting defiantly, “How dare you invade the forbidden ground and disturb the god!”

“Enough nonsense!” Jiao Hengyi snapped impatiently. “We’re here to destroy the false god that twists life and death.” With that, he flung a bolt of heavenly lightning forward. But strangely, this time the strike vanished midair—the thick evil qi surrounding the shrine swallowed it whole.

“Hahahahaha…” The young man’s face lit with triumph. He sneered coldly. “With the god’s protection, you worms can’t harm us!”

Expressions darkened all around. Jiao Hengyi frowned, then pulled several formation flags from his sleeve. “Hall Master, Daoist Yun and I will set up a purification array. Please hold them off for now.”

“Understood.” Xu Qingfeng nodded. Without the evil qi, these yin corpses would be far less threatening. He turned to Yun Jiao. “Daoist Yun, we rely on you.”

Yun Jiao didn’t protest. She simply nodded and followed Jiao Hengyi to set the array, pulling the old man along—after all, she herself lacked spiritual energy.

Perhaps fueled by the dense miasma, the yin corpses grew more savage. Even exorcism talismans were failing to restrain them, and their evil energy doubled in strength. Worse, the elders had to protect the younger disciples while fighting, slowing their offensive. Still, Jiao Hengyi and Yun Jiao worked fast.

In less than half an incense stick’s time, a purification array flared to life beneath the shrine. The choking black miasma began to thin. With its protection fading, the yin corpses slowed and weakened.

Xu Qingfeng signaled the others. They seized the opening, calling down wave after wave of thunder. Bolts crashed and boomed, and the once-crowded shrine yard filled with smoking, charred corpses.

“You dare—!” the young leader’s eyes now held real fear. He scanned the group, then roared at the yin corpses, “Stop them! Don’t let them disturb the god!”

At his command, the creatures—though shaken—threw themselves forward recklessly. Meanwhile, the young man turned and dropped to his knees before a shadowy statue deep inside the shrine. He cried out fervently, “Great god, protect our clan! Show your might and punish these insolent mortals! Grant us your blessing…” He kowtowed with heavy thuds, over and over.

But the Celestial Masters pressed harder. Xu Qingfeng flung out a violet talisman; brilliant thunder light flared like a vast net, sweeping toward the horde. Yin corpses fell like dumplings dropped into boiling water, collapsing one after another.

Just as the lightning net drew tighter, ready to strike the shrine itself, a surge of dense black energy exploded outward from within. It shattered Xu Qingfeng’s thunder net in a crackling flash. The white lightning sputtered and went dark.

The black energy only thickened, blasting through the purification array. With a loud crack, the formation shattered; flags snapped like twigs, and even the core sealing artifact in Jiao Hengyi’s hand splintered.

What… was that?

“Careful!” Before anyone could react, Yun Jiao yanked Jiao Hengyi out of the array’s center. A deadly force whooshed past where he had stood, leaving behind a massive crater laced with black vapors.

Jiao Hengyi’s face went pale. If not for that pull, he’d have been obliterated. But moving him broke the formation entirely.

“What is this?” Shock filled every elder’s face. This was no ordinary evil qi—nothing else could tear apart a purification array so easily.

Before anyone could think further, the ground began to quake violently, as if something below was forcing its way up. Xu Qingfeng’s face hardened. “Fall back!” he ordered sharply.

This time everyone moved quickly, retreating dozens of meters.

The earth around the shrine split open with cracking roars. More and more blackness gushed forth.

The kneeling leader’s eyes went wide with ecstasy. He shouted madly, “The god has awoken! You’re all doomed! Great god, bless our clan, punish—”

He never finished. A surge of pitch-black energy lashed out, piercing his chest in a blink. The young man didn’t even scream—his body shriveled and twisted, soul and flesh alike devoured in less than two heartbeats, until nothing but drifting ash remained.

“…”

What… just happened? Did their own god just turn on him?

(End of Chapter)