The Path to Immortality Begins with the Life-Extending Lamp

Chapter 24 "A Series of Blessings"

The ten-day rest period was spent in the military headquarters for two days, which earned the governor's office over ten thousand merits.

More than 16,000 battle merits!

These third-line soldiers in the county had never seen so many battle achievements. They immediately exchanged their lofty iron armor for ten sets, received nearly sixty horses in total, replenished their crossbows, and even dared to purchase the fasting military rations that they usually couldn't afford. They also replaced their discarded scale armor with infantry armor one by one...

The entire Dragon Festival guards seemed to have undergone a complete transformation, as if they had gone from ragtag to modern warfare.

Only Li Qing singled out the proportion of the sacrificial wine itself and the extra 10% of his gains.

This governor's mansion is full of worldly products. At most, he would exchange the military achievements of the Southern Governor's Mansion for silver at a ratio of one to two. But what use would he have for silver?

Therefore, he might as well store his share on the way back to Linyuan Mountain and exchange it for double the Daoist cultivation in the Outer Things Hall!

Sixty or seventy riders, accompanied by the armored warriors in dragon robes, set off again, heading southeast...

Unexpectedly, half a day after the Dragon Banner soldiers set off, a group of fierce warriors from the Military Affairs Bureau rode tigers and bears, followed by dozens of ordinary armored soldiers, and slowly followed.

"Have you found out their background?"

"More than 10,000 battle merits, more than 5,000 heads captured, and hundreds of acres of mountains cleared and graves destroyed? All with just this small army?"

A valiant Buddhist monk removed his mask, leaped onto the bear's saddle, and spoke with considerable skepticism.

"Sir, that's a respectable young man from the Bai family, a prominent clan in Longjie County. A few months ago, a huge fire broke out on a branch of the Corpse Mountain, stretching for hundreds of acres. Perhaps it's in that direction!"

The county clerk bowed and stepped forward, stretching out his arms on tiptoe to reach the bear's drooping head, and presented a carefully annotated map to the warrior.

This caused the fierce Buddhist warrior's eyes to gleam. He stuffed the map into his robes, pulled on the reins, and rode the bear into motion.

"Oh? Or is it feasible?"

"Since there are no old corpses on the outskirts, we may be able to advance slowly by using fire."

"Brothers, let's go for a stroll and maybe earn some battle merits to show off."

Such a massive victory even tempted many brave warriors to follow and find out more...

Another half-week has passed.

Mass graves on the mountain.

On the southeast ridge.

The Dragon Ridge Army traveled light, without even setting up camp, and only took a lot of tung oil with them, rushing all the way up that mountain ridge.

In an instant, another line of fire stretched out on the other side of the mountain ridge, with smoke billowing up, and many soldiers slowly picking up the scorched earth.

This time, Li Qing and Long Jie Sima-Bai Du, one on the left and one on the right, avoided the fire and quickly traversed the old forest. The two really wanted to find out just how powerful the old corpse was that could use its corpse energy to extinguish the boundless fire.

Ding-dong...

Several metallic clanging sounds rang out simultaneously. It was a hairy corpse with black fur growing out of it. The ghost-headed spear and the black coffin nail pierced through its chest and abdomen from the left and right, respectively, but it was as if they had hit a steel plate. They only managed to create two narrow, finger-length piercing wounds, which showed how powerful this old corpse was.

"From here on, we enter the main vein of the Mass Grave Mountain!"

The woman with red silk sleeves arrived shortly after, rolled up the head of the hairy corpse, twisted it, and snapped the head off with a crack. Bai Du then thrust his spear down, taking out the three-inch-long corpse tooth, and exclaimed in amazement.

With a flick of his fingertip, Li Qing ignited phosphorescent flames, instantly setting off a continuous trail of fire from that spot.

From here on, it's all hairy corpses and wandering corpses. These black hairy corpses are much more troublesome than the white hairy corpses. If it were an ordinary armored warrior, even five or six people might not be able to take down a single black hairy corpse...

"Shh!"

Li Qing looked at the black mountain that looked like an overturned shell on the ground, raised an eyebrow, and immediately stopped the white poison's rant. He gave a signal, and the paper figure lifted the Yin sedan chair and flew ahead, with the fourteen-foot black wolf following closely behind. They chased each other through the old forest until they finally reached the top of that towering peak.

really!

After crossing another mountain, the two finally saw the source of the continuous gloom.

At the bottom of that mountain valley, a pale, almost naked figure lay hunched over on a boulder, constantly exhaling dark, bluish haze from its mouth and nose. However, if one were to focus their true energy around their eyes and look closely, they would surely see that it was a terrifying old corpse covered in silver scales.

Its body was covered in tightly connected silver scales, like armor. The entire corpse was nearly ten feet tall, with thin and long limbs that swayed and hunched over, perfectly matching the dark blue haze of the old forest, moving with an eerie rhythm.

“That’s… a silver-armored corpse?” Li Qing’s pupils suddenly dilated.

Seeing the usually composed and unperturbed Chief Priest so alarmed, and knowing that Bai Du's eyesight couldn't see what was happening in the deep valley below, he reflexively asked:

"Master, what is a Silver-Armored Corpse?"

In his army, the mass grave was called the Corpse Calamity. There were newly formed vengeful corpses, slowly wandering walking corpses, then hairy corpses that could leap like the wind, and wandering corpses that could travel a hundred miles a day, climbing and escaping along the rocks and vegetation...

But I've never heard of any silver-armored corpse!

"A mid-grade achievement of the Armored Corpse category, its flesh and skin are as solid as bone, impervious to swords and spears, and immune to water and fire. Those who have not yet completed their Qi cultivation and have not yet condensed their Qi... In other words, even ordinary warriors would find it difficult to break through its scales!"

"Are all the corpses deep inside this morgue these old corpses?"

Such an old corpse, its belly exhaling a corpse aura like a haze, made Li Qing look up and around. He saw that in the chaotic burial mountain, clusters of dark clouds surrounded the dark green old forest, as the saying goes: "Above the grave, a canopy gathers." But such a canopy of corpse haze, it is probably not something any descendant could bear.

Moreover, how many such large graves are there in the entire mass grave?
Shocked, Li Qing glanced at the valley again, but there was nothing left on the giant rock in the valley.
"Huh? Not good!"

Li Qing felt a chill run down his spine. In a panic, he grabbed the huge wolf's head with his right hand and stomped his foot. Two paper figures rushed towards the two of them from the left and right.

Sure enough, with a [ripping] sound, half of the paper figure's body was instantly torn apart. Li Qing met the pair of murky, deathly eyes, and a chill ran from the soles of her feet to the top of her head.

"The palanquin for the deceased!"

The tall, thin old corpse, as thin as a silver bamboo pole, lunged again, only to find that the paper bridge hanging on the treetop had already crashed into it before it. When the old corpse's foot-long fingers reached up, only dozens of pieces of white paper were scattered everywhere, torn into pieces, and the original structure disappeared without a trace.

With its limited intelligence, it couldn't understand why the two strange creatures radiating red light had suddenly disappeared. After circling around the spot several times without finding anything, it had no choice but to return to its favorite black rock.

This area is its territory...

Just a few hundred feet away, the paper sedan chair appeared from the shadows, and the two men and the wolf suddenly emerged from the cliff on one side, suspended in mid-air with nothing to lean on. The group of people also fell from the cliff into the forest. Although the lush branches slightly cushioned their fall, they still suffered a severe, piercing blow.

"What kind of monster is that?!"

Curiosity killed the cat; this is certainly true.

Li Qing suddenly raised her head and looked towards the direction of the mass grave. Sure enough, as the continuous fire approached the haze of corpses on the large graves, the fire visibly diminished until it slowly went out.

On this mass grave mountain, there are clearly rows of large tombs stained with corpses. The corpse energy turns into dark blue canopies that gather at the top, showing the territory of each old corpse. How is this any different from a netherworld corpse kingdom?
"Master, what should we do?"

Bai Du was truly panicked at this moment. The moment the monster appeared, he didn't even have a chance to react. If it weren't for the paper figure blocking the attack, he would have been torn to pieces!
Deep within the morgue, at the main mass grave, was a place beyond their reach.

A cesspool is a cesspool!

"Never mind that, let's just destroy that big tomb on the outer edge first, and don't cross that mountain. Let's grab some Taoist cultivation points and leave!"

Li Qing looked at the completely destroyed paper figure with lingering fear and quickly made a decision. At this moment, he honestly withdrew his idea of ​​capturing a large, armored corpse. A great ghost was still a ghost, and he could handle it; but as for the old corpse in the grave, that was a different story…

So the twelve-foot-tall wolf darted through the dense forest, running wildly towards the barren southeastern ridge.

The Dragon Banner soldiers circled the outer high ridge, pushing mountains and overturning graves. The two gray-blue burial wolves were now also under their control, saddled and harnessed. The two still somewhat green wolf riders had already begun to howl across the scorched earth!

As soon as he retreated back to the ridge, Li Qing immediately dismounted, holding the life-extending lamp in his hand. The paper spirit in front of him rolled up a piece of broken wood with its sleeves and began violently opening the grave with a loud bang.

He wanted to excavate this large tomb as soon as possible and then return to the mountain!

Many armored soldiers slowly gathered around upon seeing this, but the Dragon Banner Commander raised his hand to stop them, signaling them to be quiet and vigilant.

As soon as the tomb was opened, the paper spirit maid rushed in, with Li Qing carrying the spirit lamp and slowly following behind.

The two or three walking corpses were shredded by the paper spirit in an instant. The paper spirit left behind by the old Taoist who had cultivated for two hundred years was only now beginning to show its true terror. It was definitely something that could rival a high-grade magic weapon.

Such a treasured item from a highly skilled Taoist disciple is naturally extremely valuable.

The lower and middle-ranking disciples of the Outer Affairs Hall dismantled these paper spirit treasures one by one and sold them at low prices, which was truly a waste of resources!
"This must be the tomb of a local tyrant, right? Although it is quite large, it is rather empty."

If it weren't for the fact that Ximang Mountain was covered in corpses, there would be many ancient tombs that could be used to study the style of tombs from previous dynasties. Perhaps this place was once prosperous in the previous dynasty? Bai Du suddenly felt a scholarly and meticulous spirit.

"Fizz!"

you're right.

As Bai Du was commenting on the large tomb, he suddenly heard two voices echoing above him, and his expression changed drastically.

The fear instilled by the silver-armored corpse from before hadn't faded yet. This time, he couldn't hold back any longer. He turned and fled, leaping across the tomb chamber in two quick movements and jumping out...

"call!"

Li Qing exhaled a long breath, and the billowing dust immediately dispersed. He slightly raised the life-extending lamp in his hand, and the cold candlelight instantly rose, illuminating the long python's body coiled on the stone pillar.

"Hi~!"

Another gasp rang out, this time from several armored soldiers at the back.

The creature coiled around the stone pillar in the tomb is somewhere between a python and a dragon, with six horns on its head that resemble a flower crown, but compared to the legendary dragon, it looks more like a snake.

A python in a tomb?
Li Qing raised an eyebrow and met the gaze of the giant snake.

If a python appears in a large tomb, it is considered auspicious, as it is a place of "living dragon." In southern regions, pythons in tombs are often referred to as the incarnation of the tomb owner or the embodiment of their soul. While this is considered superstition, it does contain some truth.

At least these creatures are much less aggressive than the pythons and dragons encountered in the wild.

Li Qing slightly raised her left hand and lowered her voice, saying:
"Go out quietly, without disturbing it!"

This ghostly python already has the appearance of a dragon, suggesting that the tomb owner might be of noble status. But how exactly does this ghostly python coexist with these walking corpses and hairy corpses? Walking corpses are aroused by blood, so how could they possibly coexist?
Although Li Qing couldn't figure it out, he had just hit the jackpot and wouldn't have any more curiosity in the short term!

After the armored soldiers had all left, his steps began to falter.

"Fizz!"

Its two vertical pupils, each the size of a carved ball, flickered. Its massive, coiled body began to move around, its scales rubbing together and making a very pleasant, crisp sound. Its movements were quite slow and gentle, as if it were afraid of crushing the earthenware pots and jars in the tomb. This action left Li Qing speechless for a moment.

The crown-like dragon head drooped down, and suddenly picked up a jade disc that emitted a faint light! The dragon head shook gently, and the jade disc fell from its mouth.

Fortunately, a fair hand immediately caught the jade disc, otherwise it would have been broken.

As if this action pleased it greatly, the ghostly dragon lowered its head to the ground, making a constant gurgling sound.

Damn, is it trying to be friendly and affectionate?

Li Qing's eyebrows involuntarily rose as an idea that even he found amusing popped into his head...

In an awkward moment, he raised the jade disc in his hand again.

"Bestowed by the Emperor...to forever guard the southwest...the Dragon-Raising Clan..."

"Hmm? The tomb of the Dragon-Hunting Clan? Or did the tomb's occupant obtain the jade disc from the ancient Dragon-Hunting Clan?"

"You wouldn't happen to be the so-called offspring of the Dragon-Raising Clan, would you? But no, the previous dynasty collapsed eight hundred years ago."

Li Qing lifted the jade disc and shook it gently, but the ghost dragon seemed to be still immersed in its own world, purring and rolling its head on the ground, completely ignoring Li Qing.

This scene made Li Qing want to slap himself. How could he possibly communicate with this thing?

"Okay, thank you, but I have to go now!"

Seeing the ghostly dragon still tumbling in the same spot, Li Qing put the jade disc into her sleeve and watched it slowly retreat until it was completely out of the tomb chamber...

Once they left the tomb, Long Jie and his men dared not linger for even a moment. They ran and chased each other down the mountain.

Between the two questions and answers, spanning the distance of a mountain, lay a silver-armored old corpse and a six-crowned ghost dragon over ten zhang long. No wonder there was no corpse haze in the sky at this branch of the burial mountain; it turned out that a half-dragon was entrenched inside.

Damn! That joke is so lame.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the group had already made their way down the mountain and could see the ruins of the old camp. The horses were running and stumbling, foaming at the mouth.

Since Li Qing had lost one of his paper figures before, the white paper sedan chair was naturally no longer usable, and it followed the armored soldiers as they climbed mountains and crossed valleys.

However, before everyone could catch their breath, exclamations erupted again.

"Master of Ceremonies, Master of Ceremonies!"

"look!"

Between the mountains, a crimson ribbon snaked down the scorched earth. The candlelight in the tomb chamber was dim, making it impossible to see clearly. The ghostly dragon was originally crimson in color. As it moved, its body remained untouched by dust, as if it were being carried by an invisible wall of wind.

Riding the wind!

Is that the sorcery that marks a superior spirit or monster?

Li Qing stood rooted to the spot, his face extremely grim. The black coffin nails in his hands were clenched together, and under the life-extending lamp, the phosphorescent seeds could erupt at any moment.

They had absolutely no chance of defeating a top-grade silver-armored corpse, but with a ghost dragon, it was a different story...

"Hiss."

"Hiss."

The crimson dragon swam over, but it seemed to be seeing sunlight for the first time, appearing somewhat... panicked?
It chased after Li Qing, but its speed slowed down more and more until it stopped beside Li Qing, curled up, covered its head with its body, and secretly looked at the colorful world through the gaps.

Is this still the Tou Zhai Qiu?

(End of this chapter)