The Return of the Condor Heroes: Starting with a Suicide Note and Conquering All Realms

The woods behind the mountain. Thick white fog.

Yang Guo's lungs heaved violently, his breathing coming out in a rough, bellows-like sound. Blood seeped continuously from the deep, bone-revealing sword wound on his left arm. Crimson drops of blood fell onto the thick layer of withered pine needles, instantly seeping into the soil.

My strength was rapidly waning. The sounds of the pursuers behind me were muffled by the thick fog.

From the depths of the thick fog ahead, a sudden burst of rapid, high-pitched flapping wings echoed. It wasn't the sound of wind. The sounds merged into one, carrying a chilling, oppressive force.

A white cloud of mist drifted rapidly along the ground. As it drew closer, it became clear that it wasn't mist at all. It was thousands upon thousands of pure white, venomous bees.

Jade bee.

Yang Guo gritted his teeth and ripped off his tattered Taoist robe. He channeled his black Toad Style internal energy into it, instantly tautning the robe. He swung the robe and smashed it fiercely against the swarm of bees.

Bang! A dozen jade bees were shattered by the true energy. But the swarm was too large. One jade bee bypassed the blind spot of the Taoist robe's defense and landed precisely on the carotid artery on the right side of Yang Guo's neck.

Insert the tail needle.

A piercing pain shot straight to his head. Immediately afterwards, an extreme numbness spread wildly through his veins. Yang Guo's right hand, which was gripping the Taoist robe, instantly lost all feeling. The robe fell to the ground.

Yang Guo's legs went weak, and he collapsed forward, his face slamming into the cold, wet earth. He tried to get up, but his limbs wouldn't obey him. His vision rapidly darkened. His consciousness sank into the abyss.

Thirty feet away. Zhao Zhijing, carrying a blood-dripping longsword, broke through the thin mist. He abruptly stopped, his foot carving two white tracks into the bluestone slab.

The fifteen Quanzhen disciples stopped. Their formation crumbled. Several disciples gasped for breath, staring into the thick fog ahead.

"We haven't avenged Senior Brother Qingfeng yet. Master, let's rush in and kill that little beast!" a disciple shouted, his eyes red.

Zhao Zhijing didn't move. He stared intently at the swirling white swarm of bees ahead. The veins on the back of his hand, gripping the sword, bulged.

"Shut up!" Zhao Zhijing shouted sharply. "Are you all blind?! Look what's in front of you!"

The disciples followed Zhao Zhijing's gaze and saw the white, poisonous bees. A collective gasp filled the air.

"The Jade Bee Formation." Zhao Zhijing's voice tightened, filled with barely concealed apprehension. "The boundary marker for the Tomb of the Living Dead is just ahead. Once you cross it, even a god can't save you."

The Quanzhen Sect has long had a strict order that no one is allowed to set foot in the Tomb of the Living Dead. Violators will be severely punished. Moreover, even the Seven Masters of Quanzhen dared not directly confront the venom of these jade bees.

"He's been poisoned by jade bees; there's absolutely no chance of survival," Zhao Zhijing sneered. He turned to his disciples. "Spread out. Guard this line. In half an hour, go in and drag the body out. Qingfeng's death needs an explanation."

His death in the forbidden area meant there was no way to prove anything. Qingfeng's death became Yang Guo's sole charge.

Deep within the forbidden area, footsteps echoed. The sound of snapping branches underfoot was exceptionally clear in the deathly silent forest.

An old woman walked through the swarm of bees. Her body was hunched over, her face etched with wrinkles, and her features were ugly. But her eyes held a peaceful light.

Grandma Sun.

She pulled a white porcelain bottle from her sleeve. She uncorked it, and with a flick of her fingertip, a few specks of pale yellow powder appeared. A strange, sweet fragrance instantly dispelled the surrounding stench of blood.

Upon smelling the fragrance, the jade bees immediately stopped circling and fluttered their wings back into the depths of the forest.

Granny Sun walked to Yang Guo's side. She looked down. A boy in his teens. His Taoist robe lay to the side. Three sword wounds on his body were shocking. A fist-sized purple swelling had appeared on his neck. The poison had already spread to his face.

Granny Sun squatted down and placed two withered fingers on Yang Guo's wrist. His pulse was extremely weak. But in the boy's dantian, an exceptionally powerful true energy was fiercely protecting his heart meridian and resisting the bee venom.

A hint of surprise flashed in Granny Sun's eyes. Then her face darkened.

"What kind of Tao do these Quanzhen Sect Taoists cultivate? To use such a heavy hand on a child."

She slipped her hands under Yang Guo's armpits and knees, lifting the boy into her arms. The boy's body was incredibly light; his bones felt rough to the touch. Granny Sun sighed and turned to walk into the thick fog.

The heavy stone door of the Tomb of the Living Dead opened and closed silently behind us.

It was cold and damp. This was Yang Guo's first feeling after regaining consciousness.

He suddenly opened his eyes.

As far as the eye could see, there was a massive blue stone ceiling. A pine torch was stuck in the wall, its flickering light illuminating the stone chamber. The air was thick with the strong smell of herbs and the earthy odor of soil.

Yang Guo sat up. The stone bed beneath him was icy cold. But he noticed that the sword wound on his left arm had been treated with cooling herbs and properly bandaged with white cloth. The lump on his neck had completely disappeared. The numbness in his limbs was gone.

A series of very light footsteps approached. Granny Sun entered the stone chamber carrying a large, rough porcelain bowl.

Yang Guo immediately rolled out of bed. His feet touched the ground, aggravating his wounds and causing him to gasp in pain. But he didn't stop. His back pressed firmly against the cold stone wall. His right hand reached for his waist. It was empty.

"Don't move around now that you're awake." Granny Sun placed the porcelain bowl on the stone table. "The wound was just treated with medicine. If it reopens, it'll have to be treated again."

"Who are you? Where is this?" Yang Guo stared at Granny Sun.

"The Tomb of the Living Dead. I am Granny Sun." Granny Sun picked up the bowl and walked towards Yang Guo. "Drink this. Jade Bee Jelly. It will cleanse the remaining poison."

Yang Guo didn't take it. He stared at the pale yellow, viscous liquid in the bowl.

"If I wanted to harm you, you would have died in the forest long ago," Granny Sun said calmly.

Yang Guo snatched the porcelain bowl, tilted his head back, and gulped it down in one go. The sweet aroma filled his throat. A warm current instantly spread down his esophagus, sweeping away all the fatigue in his body.

Yang Guo put down the bowl. He looked up at Granny Sun. Her ugly face now appeared incredibly kind. The humiliation, beatings, and pursuit he had suffered at Chongyang Palace over the past half month had completely melted away in the face of this bowl of jade bee nectar.

Yang Guo gritted his teeth, desperately trying to hold back the stinging tears in his eyes. But the tears still involuntarily fell onto the stone slab.

"Who bullied you? Tell Grandma." Grandma Sun reached out to touch Yang Guo's head.

Yang Guo did not dodge. He clenched his fists, his voice trembling.

"They're from a reputable sect. They're even more ruthless than the villains of Jiaxing. They killed to cover it up, framed others. Zhao Zhijing killed his own apprentice, but he's pinning the blame on me!"

Yang Guo's chest heaved violently. He confessed everything about discovering their affair and Zhao Zhijing's plot against Qingfeng.

"If it weren't for Brother Lin protecting me, I would have been beaten to death by them long ago." Yang Guo wiped away his tears. "Brother Lin's meridians are broken, so he doesn't know martial arts. He's sweeping the floor in the Scripture Pavilion. If I run away, Zhao Zhijing will definitely come after him. He can't handle it."

Yang Guo pushed Granny Sun's hand away and strode towards the stone gate.

"I have to go back. I can't leave him behind."

Granny Sun grabbed Yang Guo's wrist with tremendous force. Yang Guo couldn't break free.

"Going back now is suicide," Granny Sun said in a low voice.

"So be it!" Yang Guo abruptly turned his head, his eyes bloodshot. "Brother Lin risked his life for me. If I, Yang Guo, were afraid of death, I wouldn't deserve to call him 'brother'!"

Granny Sun looked at Yang Guo. The young man's fierceness and deep loyalty ignited her long-suppressed anger. She released her grip, turned, and walked to a corner, picking up her dark wooden cane.

boom!

The cane slammed heavily onto the bluestone slab.

"Good child," Granny Sun said coldly.

"I'll escort you out! I want to see how those old bastards, Qiu Chuji and his cronies, will explain themselves to you!"

Granny Sun grabbed Yang Guo's hand. The two strode out of the stone chamber. The heavy stone door slowly opened. The wrath of the Tomb of the Living Dead was about to engulf the Quanzhen Sect.

At the same time. Chongyang Palace, Sutra Repository.

On the rooftop of the third floor, Lin Yuan stood with his hands behind his back. The night wind was extremely cold. He looked down at the forbidden area shrouded in thick fog behind the mountain. His golden eyes were hidden in his gaze.

Yang Guo safely entered the ancient tomb.

Grandma Sun's personality meant she would never swallow this insult.

Lin Yuan descended the roof ridge and returned to the secret room on the second floor. He sat cross-legged. Within his dantian, dark golden internal energy flowed continuously.

The completion of Quanzhen internal energy gave him the resources for a protracted battle.

But the complete Nine Yin Manual and the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra in the ancient tomb were his real targets.

The chaos within the Quanzhen Sect served as his best cover.

Lin Yuan closed his eyes. His breathing became long and even.

He awaited the start of this grand spectacle.