Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

Cao Xiong followed the entrance into the ancient tomb. The tomb was pitch black, and the rotten wood mixed with an indescribable stench filled the air.

After descending two meters, Cao Xiong could no longer see his feet and had to stop. He braced his feet against the sides and gripped the cave wall with his right hand to prevent himself from slipping down.

He took out a tinderbox from his pocket with his left hand and blew on it for lighting.

Gusts of cold wind rose from the depths of the tomb, causing the lit tinder to flicker.

This Yin energy was extremely dense. As a Bone Forging Realm martial artist, Cao Xiong was not afraid of severe cold or scorching heat, but he could still feel the bone-chilling Yin energy, as if he could ignore the obstruction of his skin.

Cao Xiong moved very lightly, descending about five meters before finally reaching the bottom.

At this point, Cao Xiong was faced with two paths. He randomly chose one and continued deeper into the area.

After advancing another ten meters or so, they saw a light ahead and Cao Xiong extinguished the tinder in his hand.

Before long, we reached the end of the passage.

The narrow passageway disappeared, replaced by an open space the size of a football field.

The source of the light was the dome of the site, which was inlaid with countless luminous pearls.

Cao Xiong bent down and looked inside. Countless corpses were neatly arranged and lying on the ground.

At the center of the ghoul is a giant coffin.

Cao Xiong exhaled a deep breath of stale air; there must be at least a hundred corpse monsters inside.

Especially the corpse monsters near the coffin area, wearing tattered armor and with a burly physique, were quite different from others.

At this moment, Cao Xiong had only one thought in his mind: he had no chance of winning.

Fearing he would awaken the horde of corpses, Cao Xiong dared not linger and quickly returned the way he came.

After leaving the ancient tomb, Cao Xiong explained the scene he saw inside the tomb cave to Wang Er and the others, and instructed the three to return to Guobei County to report and wait for the centurion Wei Qiang to send troops.

Cao Xiong stayed behind. Although he couldn't fight the horde of corpses in the ancient tomb alone, he could still hunt lone corpse monsters at night.

He must obtain the second entry as soon as possible.

After parting ways with Wang Er and the others, Cao Xiong returned alone to Xiahe Village and went back to Zhuhe's home to recuperate.

We didn't leave Xiahe Village until evening.

This time, Cao Xiong did not choose to wait for the corpse monster outside the village, but instead chose a high ground only about three miles away from the ancient tomb.

This location offers both a view of the ancient tomb's corpse monsters and proximity to a large forest, making it suitable for both offense and retreat.

As midnight approached, one after another, corpse monsters emerged from the ancient tomb. Cao Xiong observed carefully and found a total of forty-eight corpse monsters.

Most of the corpse monsters were still in the ancient tomb, so Cao Xiong abandoned the idea of ​​rashly entering the ancient tomb and decided to proceed according to the original plan.

Cao Xiong's ten-times-forged willow-leaf blade was already unsheathed and tightly gripped in his hand, its silvery-white blade reflecting a faint light in the night.

Soon after, three corpse monsters appeared directly below Cao Xiong. Cao Xiong looked into the distance, but there were no other corpse monsters in his sight.

Therefore, even if there are sounds during the battle, it will take other corpse monsters quite a while to arrive, enough time for Cao Xiong to escape unscathed.

Having figured out the key point, Cao Xiong no longer hesitated. With a leap, he flew down and, using the momentum, struck a corpse monster.

"Roar~"

This attack failed to kill the corpse monster, but only severed one of its arms.

Cao Xiong's sudden attack thoroughly enraged the three-headed corpse monster.

They stared intently at Cao Xiong, their expressions ferocious and terrifying, wishing they could tear him to pieces, yet they were also somewhat wary.

The one-armed corpse monster couldn't hold back any longer and pounced straight at Cao Xiong.

The other two corpse monsters attacked from both sides.

"These zombie monsters are even faster than the ones we encountered yesterday. Have they evolved?"

Cao Xiong launched a brainstorming session, while simultaneously wielding his scalpel with impenetrable speed.

The one-armed corpse monster was not strong to begin with, and after losing an arm, its body swayed unsteadily as if it were drunk.

He fell to the ground after only two blows and died completely.

[Slay one early-stage Spirit Awakening Realm Corpse Monster, Shard +0.1]

Cao Xiong had just dealt with the one-armed corpse monster when he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and quickly looked up.

Suddenly, a monstrous corpse appeared from mid-air.

Cao Xiong broke out in a cold sweat, turned his back, drew his knife, and thrust it diagonally upwards.

"Swish~"

Sparks flew as the blade rubbed against the monster's claws.

It's so hard.

This corpse monster is clearly different from ordinary corpse monsters. Not only is it fast and has a strong jumping ability, but its body is also hard enough to withstand blades.

The last corpse monster also took advantage of this opportunity to attack Cao Xiong from behind.

"Bang!"

He didn't have time to parry with his knife, so he simply threw a punch with his left hand, knocking back the zombie monster that was attacking from behind.

"die!"

Cao Xiong flung the willow-leaf knife in his hand, plunging it into the mountain along with the body of the repelled corpse monster.

[Slay one early-stage Spirit Awakening Realm Corpse Monster, Shard +0.1]

"Roar~"

The roars and howls grew louder as they approached, clearly indicating that other zombie monsters had come to their aid after hearing the commotion.

After killing two of the zombie monsters, Cao Xiong did not choose to fight the last one, but instead turned and ran. He was not confident that he could finish the battle before the other zombie monsters arrived.

If he gets caught up in the horde of corpses, he is likely to attract the remaining monsters in the ancient tomb, which would be extremely disadvantageous to him.

The last corpse monster followed closely behind Cao Xiong, its speed matching his.

Cao Xiong was not alarmed but delighted. His goal was to lure the corpse monster to follow him. This corpse monster was powerful and was likely a higher-level or mutated corpse monster.

As Cao Xiong ran to a corner, he suddenly stopped and threw out a handful of lime.

With the help of the corner wind, the lime powder scattered.

The corpse monster's eyes were temporarily unable to open, and it roared and raged in place.

"Hey! It works."

The sound of a knife rang in the corpse monster's ears even before Cao Xiong's voice.

The scalpel plunged straight into the corpse monster's chest.

Cao Xiong drew his knife and swiftly severed the corpse monster's neck.

[Slay one early-stage Spirit Awakening Realm mutated corpse monster, fragments +0.5]

After killing the corpse monster, Cao Xiong disappeared into the mountains and forests in the blink of an eye.

The belated horde of zombies once again lost its target.

Cao Xiong hadn't actually gone far; instead, he hid at a pre-surveyed retreat point to observe the movements of the horde of corpses.

He glanced at the panel in front of him when he had a moment to spare.

Name: Cao Xiong

【Age】：60/80

[Cultivation Level]: Bone Forging Realm (Early Stage)

【Entry 1】Old but vigorous (white): Having accumulated knowledge and experience, one can achieve great things with a strong physique. When focusing on martial arts training, one reaps twice the rewards for every bit of effort put in.

[Technique]: Fierce Tiger Stance - Bone Forging Chapter (Beginner) 5/100

Eighteen Forms of Wind Slash (Perfect) 326/400

[Fragments]: 1.5~2

The fragments on the panel are only 0.5 away from awakening the second attribute.

Cao Xiong's goal tonight is to collect all the fragments.

When he turned his attention back to the location of the horde of zombies, he found that the horde, which had been circling in the same spot for a long time, had dispersed.

Cao Xiong's eyes were fixed on the road leading to Xiahe Village.

Two corpse monsters were slowly moving forward there.

Cao Xiong remained motionless until the corpse monster had completely disappeared from his sight, at which point he emerged from his hiding place.

Lock onto the direction of Xiahe Village and run as fast as you can.