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Chapter 377 Unfulfilled Wish (Part 3)

Gao Guanzi stood on a large, statue-like blue stone and looked back at Gaojia Village on the mountaintop.

Our departure is only temporary; it's definitely not a permanent move.

Gao Guanzi now has great confidence in Lord Xu.

He trusted adults even more than Bai Laoyan.

So Gao Guanzi decided to "add fuel to the fire" for the adults.

He called his son and asked him to lead the villagers ahead, while he quietly slipped into a nearby ravine overgrown with tall weeds.

A strange rustling sound immediately came from the bushes.

The long blades of grass looked like tentacles with hooked teeth, curling in from all directions.

In the shadows of the grass, countless tiny bloodshot eyes suddenly opened!

Gao Guanzi cursed, "Are you all blind?! You dare to come and eat me?"

These evil spirits lurking in the grass are the lowest level of the Ghost Witch Mountain.

Startled, they shuddered and quickly rolled back.

However, a few of them had gone completely mad and lost their reason, rushing up and swarming around Gao Guanzi. Gao Guanzi didn't hold back and swatted them all dead like mosquitoes landing on him.

At this moment, Gao Guanzi looked proud; he was the veteran mountain runner with quite a bit of prestige in Ghost Witch Mountain!
Gao Guanzi crept along the ravine, muttering to himself about the terrible days he'd been living. He'd been caught by Uncle Li, and then got scolded and beaten...

Twenty miles from Gaojia Village, there is a huge cave.

Thick smoke constantly billows from the cave entrance, making it extremely hot both inside and out.

This resulted in the area around the cave being completely barren.

The ravine is the closest place to the cave with vegetation.

However, Gao Guanzi did not approach the cave. He only swayed twice in the grass before turning around and leaving.

Thick smoke slowly drifted over from the cave.

Before long, it spread and engulfed the patch of grass.

The grass shook violently, as if it were coughing from being choked.

The smoke quickly revealed the traces left by Gao Guanzi.

Then they followed the grass in the gully back to where they started.

Gao Guanzi had long since returned to the villagers.

However, as smoke rose, it was soon discovered that Gaojia Village had become an empty village.

A violent sound erupted from inside the cave.

It was like he was laughing hysterically.

The sound traveled along the smoke, through the long mountain gully, and all the way to the sky above Gaojia Village.

The grass in the ravine and the evil spirits beneath it were shaken violently and suffered terribly.

The cave suddenly disappeared.

Several hours later, the pond in Gaojia Village turned into a bottomless pit.

Thick smoke rose from within.

From a distance, the mountain where Gaojia Village is located looks like... a volcano!

This cave is haunted by evil spirits; it's an old nemesis of Gaojia Village.

The root of the grudge is that it felt that the mountain in Gaojia Village was very suitable for it, and it had always wanted to drive Gaojia Village away.

The evil spirit in the cave always felt like a child.

It should grow into a volcano with billowing smoke and boiling lava.

……

The Crown Princess's entourage encountered several attacks from evil spirits along the way.

The Crown Princess, the Seventeenth Uncle, the maid Rui Rui, and Gao Wanli were all unharmed.

But he only had four low-level mediocre men left.

Without Lord Ruan Tian's ticket, the evil spirits in the mountains attacked them at will.

This was because a high-level cultivator was present, and his aura intimidated most of the evil spirits.

But there are always some crazy, irrational monsters that rush forward recklessly.

The seventh-ranked people originally didn't need to do any serving work, but now... in terms of both status and cultivation, they are the lowest.

They did it reluctantly, but the mean-spirited Crown Princess still complained that they were clumsy...

Having finally found the location of Qidou Village, the Crown Princess was about to step into the grove when her seventeenth uncle stopped her: "Your Highness, please stop. Please stay here and let this old man go. If there is anything Your Highness needs in that lake, this old man will risk his life to bring it back for Your Highness."

According to Rongrong's memory, the danger zone was near that lake.

But Uncle Seventeen, being an old and shrewd man, felt that this desolate twenty-mile radius was fraught with deadly danger.

The Crown Princess trusted him greatly and nodded in gratitude, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Seventeenth Uncle! If I give birth to a legitimate son in the future, I will definitely let him choose a woman from among Seventeenth Uncle's descendants as a concubine!"

Uncle Seventeen nodded and then beckoned to Gao Wanli: "Come with me."

Uncle Seventeen has two sons and one daughter.

She originally wanted the Crown Prince to take her daughter as a concubine—she and the Crown Prince were childhood sweethearts.

However, after the Crown Prince's wife enters the palace, the Crown Prince will never be allowed to have other women.

There was no hope for this generation, so the Crown Princess made a promise to the next.

Uncle Seventeen walked very slowly, observing carefully as he went.

Sometimes two black and yellow flames would emerge from his eyes, sometimes he would put on a monocle like a demon's, sometimes he would swallow a strange-smelling pill, and then it would seem as if his soul had left his body...

The most bizarre method was that he cut a small piece of flesh from his chest and kept it in a gray earthenware jar used for raising crickets. After only about ten breaths, when he opened the jar, a semi-transparent strange insect flew out!

The strange insect flew out and disappeared into nothingness!

Despite trying various methods, they still couldn't figure out what was so special about this place.

Uncle Seventeen frowned deeply. He had ventured into countless "foreign lands," but he had never seen such a strange place.

Having exhausted all means to no avail, Uncle Seventeen could only "urge" Gao Wanli to come to the lakeside and release a "skin man".

It is covered with human skin on the outside, but inside it is a mechanical artifact crafted by Gao Wanli using the methods of foreign demons.

The Crown Princess provided all sorts of fine materials.

This is a work of sixth-rate craftsmanship.

Gao Wanli was very proud of her new craftsmanship. After releasing the leather figure, she boasted, "Western craftsmanship is accurate and exquisite, with strict standards and a complete system."

I dare say that my creation surpasses all the works of the old craftsmen, even those of the sixth-rate cultivators!

Uncle Seventeen was also annoyed by her attitude.

Especially... the skin used by this leather man is that of a blue-eyed barbarian.

According to Gao Wanli, this is her favorite "collection".

She found him incredibly handsome, surpassing all the men in the Ming Dynasty.

Including her male lovers.

After being released, the leather man mechanically took a few steps, but due to the uneven terrain by the lake, he became unsteady, stumbled and fell, and then simply landed on all fours, running towards the lake like a gorilla.

Uncle Seventeen is old, so he can still endure it.

But the other four third-rate people all laughed.

The blue-eyed barbarian had thick body hair, and with that posture... all I can say is: it really does look like him!

Gao Wanli, her face grim, snapped, "What's so funny?"

The four of them continued to laugh.

They were from the Xiang Prince's Mansion, and even if their skill level was low, they were not afraid of Gao Wanli.

Uncle Seventeen stared at the gorilla... no, he stared at the skinned man. The thing made its way to the lakeside, then entered the lake, dove into the water, and its eyes shone with two beams of bright light.

Uncle Seventeen put on a pair of crystal glasses that Gao Wanli handed him.

What the leather man saw, Uncle Seventeen also saw.

The lake was murky and lifeless; there were no fish, shrimp, or even aquatic insects to be seen.

They searched repeatedly, but still couldn't find the "dragon" that Rongrong had seen before.

Gao Wanli, standing to the side, said smugly, "Among these Western techniques, there is a method you've never seen before that can immediately determine whether what you're looking for exists in this lake..."

Uncle Seventeen's expression suddenly changed drastically as he thought of something, saying, "Don't do anything rash..."

Gao Wanli had already activated the artifact, and the leather figure in the lake opened its mouth and suddenly spewed out a wave of energy.

Boom!
The vibration wave spreads in the water—

In an instant, dark emotions of hatred, disgust, and resentment filled the entire void.

It was as if a terrible, silent rebuke was coming from a distant place.

Although they couldn't hear it, everyone, including Gao Wanli, clearly sensed it.

The leather figure in the lake and the four low-level thugs were the first to be lifted up into the air by an irresistible and undetectable force, and then disappeared from this mortal world with a bang!

Uncle Seventeen turned and ran, but as soon as he took a step, the man also flew into the air—

Not far from him in mid-air was Gao Wanli!
"Ahhh-"

Gao Wanli was so frightened that her face turned pale, and her scream pierced the sky.

Uncle Seventeen's mind raced, and he quickly took out two dolls from his pocket, throwing one of them at Gao Wanli.

boom!boom!
The two crashed heavily to the ground, while in mid-air, two puppets replaced them, being snatched away from this mortal world by that irresistible force.

Uncle Seventeen grabbed Gao Wanli and rushed into the woods.

That doll wasn't a craftsman's work, but rather a "white duck" specially made by Uncle Seventeen, which was incredibly expensive.

If a wealthy family commits a capital crime, they will spend a lot of money to bribe officials and then pay someone to die in their place.

This trade is called "slaughtering white ducks".

It is said that in Zhengzhou, one can often buy a substitute to die for someone for five hundred taels of silver.

Uncle Seventeen specializes in "litigation law," and is fully aware of the shady dealings within government offices.

There is a whole category in litigation law that involves paying money to change a judgment!
There are no unsolvable lawsuits, only cases where the right amount of money wasn't spent.

In this respect, it is somewhat similar to "commercial law".

Uncle Seventeen carried Gao Wanli and ran wildly through the woods.

The intense malice in the void relentlessly pursued it.

Behind Uncle Seventeen, silver notes kept falling.

The silver notes fluttered like snowflakes, forming "paper figures" in the air, before being grabbed by an irresistible force and dragged away from this mortal world!
Uncle Seventeen was extremely fast, and the silver notes behind him were being consumed at an equally rapid pace!
Finally, they escaped the woods. Uncle Seventeen was heartbroken, having spent all his money!

"Your Highness, please give us more money."

When the Crown Princess needs money, she simply gives a signal and two maids will give her the silver.

But Uncle Seventeen wanted more.

Even the Crown Prince's wife felt the pinch.

The Crown Princess estimated that the frantic escape just now must have cost at least 100,000 taels of silver!

The Prince of Xiang's mansion is indeed very large and powerful, but even it can't afford to spend money like this.

In addition, the Crown Princess was also secretly dissatisfied that her seventeenth uncle had used a "white duck" to save Gao Wanli.

It's such a waste to give such expensive things to this woman.

The only purpose of bringing this woman here is to have her inspect the lake.

She's useless now, so her death is no big deal.

Does the Gao family dare to demand an explanation from me?
Even though Seventeenth Uncle was worldly-wise, he never imagined that this very matter would displease the Crown Princess...

Gao Wanli is your woman, and I, an old man, saved her!

“Since that person is no longer here…” The Crown Princess pondered, recalling the scenes Rongrong had sent back, and naturally thought of another important clue: “That mountain runner, he’s from Gaojia Village, go to Gaojia Village!”

This time, only five people remained on the journey.

The Crown Princess, Seventeenth Uncle, Gao Wanli, Rui Rui, and the young guide. Rui Rui felt her life was miserable, so she had to serve them all herself.

The young guide was just a mountain dweller and didn't know any of the rules.

Having him serve His Highness would only offend him.

Fortunately, the boy was still somewhat useful. Although he took the wrong turn a few times, he eventually led everyone to the foot of the mountain in Gaojia Village.

The boy looked at the thick smoke rising from the hilltop, his face full of confusion: "This is the place, but has Gaojia Village been burned down?"

The Crown Princess snorted coldly. Could it be that the mountain runner knew he would be punished, so he led the villagers away and set a fire before leaving?

"Go up and have a look."

The young guide shrank back in fear: "I'll wait for you down there. The mountain runners in that village are extremely vicious..."

The Crown Princess sneered, "Do you think you can have your way?"

Rui Rui then picked up the boy and they climbed up the mountain together.

The moment these people stepped onto the mountaintop, the evil spirits in the cave were enraged!
……

Mr. Drifting floated down from the Copper Coffin Cliff.

Her tongue was curled up, obscuring most of her face.

This is its way of showing that it feels embarrassed and ashamed to face others.

Upon seeing Lord Xu again, Mr. Piaodang sighed softly, realizing that his "old friend" Old Man Bai had betrayed him.

Lord Xu said with a smile, "I have business to discuss with the owner of this place. Please introduce me, sir."

Mr. Drifter: "Please wait a moment."

As scholars, they were somewhat embarrassed, but still very courteous.

Unfortunately... now that there's a shrew in the house, all those beautiful female ghosts who served as tutors have been dismissed.

Otherwise, they would be released to boil water and brew tea here, to entertain old friends.

Mr. Drifter went up again, and soon came down, bowing deeply and saying, "My lord, please—"

He added, "They... are about to rinse their mouths, so there's not much time left for the adults. If there's anything you need, please just say it."

"Rinse your mouth?" Xu Yuan reacted for a moment before remembering that Old Man Bai had said that every seven days, dozens of ancient zombies would open their coffins and exhale, shrouding the area within a ten-mile radius in a thick, dark blue fog.

Anything that accidentally wanders into this place will turn into a zombie within five steps!
Lord Xu thought to himself: Are these ancient zombies rinsing their mouths?

Your breath is indeed quite strong; no wonder you need to rinse your mouth frequently.

This black cliff is seven hundred feet high.

There are a total of forty-one bronze coffins.

Most of them are at an altitude of 500 zhang.

At a height of seven hundred feet, there was only one ancient bronze coffin.

A stone chamber resembling a palace has been carved out here.

Mr. Piaodang was the first to climb up, followed by Xu Yuan.

Deep within the dimly lit stone chamber, oil lamps were lit one by one. Their eerie green light flickered, as if the wronged souls were being burned, emitting screams that could not be heard in the mortal world.

In the largest stone chamber in the very center, a huge bronze coffin, which was originally lying flat, suddenly stood up.

The coffin lid opened, instantly accommodating Xu Yuan and Tian Jing together!

Xu Yuan immediately understood that the ancient coffin was the cliff, and the cliff was the ancient coffin!
Once you climb this cliff, it's as if you've fallen into this coffin.

An incredibly cold and sticky sensation, like a live snake, quickly crawled up Xu Yuan's body from his heels.

Ahead, dim lights illuminated a deep, dark tomb passage.

A terrifying ancient zombie, hundreds of feet tall, with a dark blue-black body, blood-red eyes, and fangs, sat on a golden throne.

Wearing a crown and a dragon robe.

Her hair writhed like maggots.

Its left hand pressed against a bloodstain carved from an elephant skull.

He held a bronze straight sword with the distinctive features of the Jiaozhi region in his right hand.

She was an ancient female emperor.

It stared coldly at Xu Yuan and Tian Jing.

But that gaze alone was imbued with an exceptionally strong influence.

This place is its realm of the dead, where it possesses supreme power over life and death!
Unable to control himself, Tian Jing's lower body suddenly sprouted countless roots, thick and thin, long and short, which drilled out in all directions!

Mr. Drifting hurriedly dissuaded him: "No..."

But it was too late. A vortex of blood-red light appeared in one of the eye holes of the elephant-head seal under the left hand of the ancient corpse empress.

An incredibly terrifying force descended from nowhere, stomping Tian Jing and all his roots heavily onto the ground.

It felt like being trampled on the ground by a gigantic elephant.

The Ancient Corpse Empress seemed to be enraged, raising the bronze straight sword in her right hand, about to point it at Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan said coldly, "Soon, a group of cultivators will arrive at Copper Coffin Cliff. Among them are a fourth-rate, a fifth-rate, and a sixth-rate craftsman."

I would like to ask Your Majesty to kill them for me. Your Majesty, name your price.

Mr. Drifter was taken aback, his long tongue twitching and trembling incessantly.

Lord Xu, you're being far too bold!

Are you trying to use someone else to do your dirty work, and you're just saying it so openly?
Xu Yuan indeed had no intention of hiding it.

If he wanted to use the Copper Coffin Cliff to kill the Crown Princess and her entourage, he could indeed instigate both sides and make various arrangements to make them misunderstand each other and fight each other.

However, Uncle Seventeen is a fourth-rate person.

If the one at Copper Coffin Cliff is unwilling to exert all his strength, no matter how he plans, the end result will likely be a battle between the two sides, followed by communication that reveals it was all a misunderstanding.

The two sides then ceased hostilities.

The skill level of both sides is too high.

It is difficult to kill the opponent in the first few rounds of the fight.

Uncle Seventeen is a wise and shrewd old man.

Since this ancient corpse empress has always wanted to take Mr. Wandering as her concubine, it shows that she also possesses great wisdom.

No one would allow themselves to be used by others or fight to the death with a powerful enemy.

Now that Lord Xu has enough leverage, he can directly negotiate with the Ancient Corpse Empress.

Xu Yuan was only wary of his seventeenth uncle.

If the Ancient Corpse Empress's demands are too high, Xu Yuan will settle for second best, as long as the Ancient Corpse Empress keeps Seventeenth Uncle occupied.

Xu Yuan will kill the Crown Princess himself, and then obtain the rest of the "Dragon Transformation Technique".

Xu Yuan was covered in mud, and Uncle Seventeen had no direct evidence to prove that he was the murderer.

As for the Fu family and the Xiang Prince's Mansion, they will definitely suspect him—the Fu family has always suspected him, and now it's just the Xiang Prince's Mansion that's added to the suspicion.

Xu Yuanzhi was determined to obtain the "Dragon Transformation Technique" no matter what!
Xu Yuan's leverage in negotiating with the Ancient Corpse Empress was Jiao and Tian Jing's business on Guanghuo Street.

The great evil spirit seeks nothing more than two things: blood and food, and items to enhance its own strength.

Xu Yuan would never accept the former.

But for the latter, whatever the Ancient Corpse Empress needs, Xu Yuan can buy it for her on Guanghuo Street.

However, the Ancient Corpse Empress seemed not to hear Xu Yuan's words. She still raised the bronze straight sword in her hand and pointed it at Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan glanced at Mr. Drifting.

If you, my beloved concubine, don't listen to my slander, when will you?
Mr. Drifter, steeling himself, stuck out his tongue and floated in front of Xu Yuan, saying, "Your Majesty..."

The bronze straight sword, however, did not pause in the slightest.

Mr. Drifter closed his eyes tightly.

This life was saved by Lord Xu, so consider this repayment to him.

But after waiting for a long time, I didn't get that feeling of my soul being scattered.

He quietly opened one eye.

The ancient corpse empress held her bronze straight sword steadily, seemingly unwilling to give up easily.

But he didn't actually make a move.

That sinister and terrifying face became even more sinister.

Mr. Piaodang then revealed a charming smile and praised, "I didn't notice it just now, but Your Majesty is wearing the necklace I gave you a few days ago. Hmm, it suits Your Majesty very well, making you even more radiant than usual."

Tian Jing immediately understood why Mr. Piaodang could live off a woman while he couldn't.

This grotesque appearance, covered in maggots, is somehow considered "beautiful"?!

The Ancient Corpse Empress finally spoke, and although her voice was somewhat hoarse, it was still quite pleasant to the ear.

But the words were rather unpleasant to hear: "What kind of shady friends have you been associating with outside!"

Mr. Drifter, however, smiled and floated up, brushing past the side of the straight sword, and sat down on the dragon throne with the Empress.

"Your Majesty, why not listen to his conditions? I know that Your Majesty also has some unfulfilled wishes."

Mr. Piaodang pointed at Xu Yuan with his tongue: "This person is the head of the Imperial Ming Bureau of Purification and Law in Champa, and he has quite a bit of power in the world."

The moment Mr. Piaodang sat on the dragon throne, the enormous visual effect of the Ancient Corpse Empress, who was "hundreds of feet" tall, vanished in the eyes of Xu Yuan and Tian Jing.

The Ancient Corpse Empress was indeed extremely tall, a head taller than Mr. Drifting.

But it's still within the normal range.

Xu Yuan tilted his head, finding it strange himself: these two sitting together actually seemed like a good match!
"Kill the lowest of the low, and feed five thousand living people with their blood..."

As soon as the Ancient Corpse Empress opened her mouth, Xu Yuan waved his hand and said, "I would never give a living person to evil spirits to eat."

The ancient corpse empress flew into a rage, and with a loud boom, a patch of ghastly green flames ignited on her bronze straight sword.

Xu Yuan immediately felt a strange force coming towards him from all directions.

It was as if dozens of giant pythons were tightly coiling around him.

"Lord Xu!" Mr. Piaodang began to "rebuke" Xu Yuan: "You lack sufficient respect for His Majesty! If you continue with this attitude, I will sever all ties with you!"

This attitude pleased the Ancient Corpse Empress greatly.

Xu Yuan soon felt that the "invisible giant pythons" on his body loosened a bit.

“It is my fault.” Xu Yuan immediately followed up on what Mr. Piaodang had said.

She couldn't help but think to herself: Mr. Drifting, what a cunning concubine!
“Your Majesty,” Xu Yuan said again, “I do not deal in blood offerings. If Your Majesty has other conditions, we can discuss them. If you insist on blood offerings, I can only take my leave.”

After a pause, Xu Yuan continued, "In my opinion, His Majesty doesn't seem to need any offerings. Why don't we be frank and have a serious talk? I am truly sincere."

The ancient corpse empress turned her stiff neck and looked at the treacherous concubine beside her.

His eyes flashed with a bloodshot light, as if he were asking a question.

Mr. Piaodang said, "Your Majesty, please give him a chance."

The Ancient Corpse Empress nodded.

The bronze straight sword fell.

Its terrifying appearance gradually faded, and in no time at all, it actually turned into a beautiful female corpse!
However, his complexion still appeared somewhat bluish-black, and the chill emanating from his body remained undiminished.

"The Ruan family has stolen our throne!"

"This hatred is irreconcilable and will never be extinguished!"

“There is also a descendant of the false king surnamed Ruan in these mountains.”

"You help me get rid of it, and I'll kill those people for you!"

Tian Jing and Mr. Piaodang were both astonished.

Who would have thought that the ancient corpse empress's "unfulfilled wish" was this?

Ruan Tianye is the greatest evil spirit in this mountain, a being even the Dragon King of the Grand Canal fears.

How can we even negotiate like this?
Unexpectedly, Xu Yuan thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Your Majesty's condition is not unnecessarily negotiable."

(End of this chapter)