Oh no! I've been reincarnated as a corpse!

Lu You lay on the ground for a while, staring blankly at the uneven rock patterns on the cave ceiling, feeling depressed for a short time.

Then he came to terms with it.

Let's talk about the future later.

Anyway, it's not time to break through yet.

He's only in the mid-stage of the zombie realm, and there's still a long way to go before reaching the late stage, let alone the perfect stage.

Worrying about breakthroughs in materials now is like starting to worry about finding a job after graduating from university when you're just starting elementary school—it's just making yourself miserable.

It's not too late to consider finding those rare and precious materials once his cultivation level reaches the late stage of the Living Corpse realm.

After all, there are some cultivators in this world who specialize in creating corpse puppets, like the group from Baiyun Temple.

It's far too dangerous for a pitiful, weak, and helpless zombie like him to go out now.

Once my cultivation level improves further and my Yin energy becomes more abundant, I will be able to maintain the concealment effect of the Taiyin Dark Veil for a longer period of time, which will increase my safety. At least I won't have to worry about running out of Yin energy halfway through my escape.

But there's good news.

While searching through Qin's storage bag, Lu You compared it with the descriptions of various materials in the "New Moon Qi Induction Chapter" and discovered that there were actually black iron ore and Yin Soul Stone inside.

Although the quantity is small, it's still something on the breakthrough material list, saving him the trouble of searching the world for it later.

Moreover, he had some other miscellaneous herbs and ores in his possession. Although he didn't recognize them, since that man surnamed Qin had put them into his storage bag, they must have some value.

Once we find a trading channel in the cultivation world, maybe we can exchange it for other materials?

Thinking of this, Lu You felt much more relaxed.

At least it's not starting from scratch.

After studying the "New Moon Qi-Inducing Chapter" for half a day, Lu You felt mentally exhausted.

Although my body wasn't tired, my brain was constantly working at a high capacity, deciphering those runes with an alarmingly high density of information, which was quite mentally taxing.

So he got up and left the cave to get some fresh air in the valley outside.

It's daytime now, the sun is high overhead, and the sunlight is so intense it feels like fire is being poured down on you.

The sunlight falling on his skin felt like countless red-hot golden needles pricking him, making him feel uncomfortable all over.

So it seems that the sun does have a restraining effect on the undead.

Come to think of it, the living corpses belong to the Yin path and are essentially Yin-attribute beings.

The sun is clearly the source of Yang energy, being extremely Yang and strong.

Given the balance of yin and yang, it's perfectly normal for him to feel uncomfortable from the sun.

It seems I'll have to become a night owl from now on.

If those night owls in their past lives had his constitution, they'd be ecstatic. Their mothers wouldn't have to worry about them dying from staying up all night anymore.

Lu You first went to the pool to wash her face. The cool pool water splashed on her face, which relieved the discomfort caused by the sun.

Then he took the carcass of the leopard beast out of his storage bag.

The storage bag was indeed a good thing; the leopard's carcass had been inside for so long, yet it was still very fresh when it was taken out.

The blood had not completely coagulated, and the flesh was firm and elastic, just like when it had just died.

As soon as Lu You took out the corpse, a rich aroma of blood and flesh wafted towards him.

The fresh flesh and blood exuded an indescribable allure, causing his throat to involuntarily bob.

He quickly took a deep breath and suppressed the bloodthirsty urge.

After all, he still has his bottom line.

Eating it raw is too barbaric.

He was, after all, a person who had received a modern education. Even though he was now a corpse, he shouldn't have regressed to the point of eating raw meat and drinking blood.

He took out his bone sword and began to dissect the monstrous leopard.

The longsword was incredibly sharp; with a light stroke, it sliced ​​through the leopard's tough fur, and with a forceful pull, it separated the muscles and bones.

The whole process was smooth and seamless.

In his previous life, Lu You didn't even dare to kill a chicken.

I always ask the vendor to clean and gut the fish when I buy it at the market, because I feel uncomfortable seeing blood.

But having dissected the carcass of such a large monster in his entire life, he felt no emotion whatsoever; he even thought the leopard's muscle texture was quite beautiful.

It must be said that the blood of the zombies is indeed cold; perhaps that's just a characteristic of zombies.

After the dissection, Lu You harvested a large amount of fresh leopard flesh and blood, a complete leopard skin with a metallic sheen in the sunlight, some thick bones, and a small, light blue demon core.

The demon core was only the size of a thumb, and its entire body was a translucent light blue, like a carefully polished sapphire.

When held in the palm of your hand, you can feel a faint but pure water-attribute spiritual energy slowly flowing within it.

Lu You tried to start a fire by rubbing sticks together.

His strength now far surpasses that of ordinary people. He can rub the wooden stick as fast as an electric drill. Before long, a wisp of green smoke appears, followed by an orange-red flame.

He skewered a small piece of monster meat on a tree branch and roasted it over the fire. The meat sizzled under the licking flames, and its surface gradually turned golden brown. The oil dripped into the fire, creating a series of crackling sounds.

However, after grilling, he had no appetite at all.

For a zombie's body, fresh flesh and blood are infinitely more delicious than cooked meat.

That warm, living flesh and blood is the real delicacy.

To him, the roasted meat was similar to the technologically synthesized food from his previous life.

Lu You pinched her nose and took a bite.

It has no taste.

It's like chewing on a piece of burnt charcoal.

He expressionlessly spat out the roasted meat in his mouth and put all the remaining monster meat back into his storage bag.

Maybe we can sell this thing for money in the future.

After all, it's monster meat, so it should have some market value.

Let's keep it for now; it won't spoil in the storage bag anyway.

After finishing this task, Lu You felt a little tired.

Although the work wasn't much, it was still work done under the blazing sun.

Yeah, the main problem is that the sun is shining so brightly, it's really uncomfortable.

It's definitely not because I'm too lazy.

Lu You returned to her cave dwelling with a clear conscience, lay down peacefully, folded her hands over her chest, and closed her eyes.

rest.

…………

Mass grave.

A sharp whistling sound came from afar.

A middle-aged man, riding a flying sword, carried two young people and flew to the sky above the mass grave.

The flying sword traced a pale blue trail under the gloomy sky, hovering steadily in mid-air.

Those two young men were none other than Junior Brother Li and Senior Brother Wang from before.

They stood behind the middle-aged man, behaving very obediently, with their hands hanging at their sides, not daring to utter a sound, just like two elementary school students who had been called to the teacher's office.

The middle-aged man had an ordinary appearance; he was the kind of person you wouldn't notice in a crowd.

But his eyes were gloomy and sharp, like a knife on a cloudy day.

He had a deep scar on his face, which stretched diagonally from his left eyebrow to his right jaw, as if he had been cut by a sharp weapon. Although the wound had long since healed, the scar remained grotesque.

The scar added a touch of fierceness to his otherwise ordinary face.

Without saying a word, just standing there is enough to make people feel intimidated.

He stood with his hands behind his back, motionless on the flying sword, his gaze sweeping across the mass grave below like that of a hawk.

A chilling wind swept through the mass grave, stirring up dust and decaying leaves, carrying with it an aura of death that lingered.

He spoke slowly, his voice low and calm: "This is it? You encountered that living corpse here, and also found the ruins of the grotto-heaven?"

Senior Brother Wang nodded repeatedly: "Yes, Master! It's this area. When the cave appeared, the yin energy was extremely dense, and white mist filled the air, obscuring our view. I'm not entirely sure of the exact location, but it should be in this area, without a doubt."

The middle-aged man nodded slightly, without saying anything more.

After a moment, he spoke, "Hmm. A living corpse, yet possessing an invisibility ability similar to a vengeful spirit, quite interesting. He didn't display this ability when you were chasing him before. It only manifested after he came out of the cave. He must have obtained this opportunity within the cave."

Senior Brother Wang and Junior Brother Li nodded in unison, saying, "Master is wise!"

Senior Brother Wang added, "That's what we thought too. It should be some kind of Yin-attribute treasure, probably of quite high quality. We thought that perhaps Master would need it, so..."

A satisfied smile curved the middle-aged man's lips, and the scars on his face contorted slightly. "You're all quite filial. Don't worry, if I obtain that treasure, I won't treat you unfairly."

Upon hearing this, Senior Brother Wang and Junior Brother Li exchanged a glance, and excited smiles immediately appeared on their faces.

They had already discussed it after they went back.

In any case, given their strength, they have no way to deal with that invisible zombie.

Instead of doing this, it would be better to report this news to Master.

Firstly, it would show that they were filial, and secondly, since their master ate meat, they could always get a sip of soup along with him.

In hindsight, this move was the right one.

As for Junior Sister Qin, she can only blame her own bad luck.

Who told her to be targeted by that zombie?

The middle-aged man led the two people down from the flying sword, stepping onto the black mud.

He formed hand seals, and spiritual energy surged within his body. His eyes instantly became incredibly deep, with glints of light flashing in his pupils, as if he could see through all the illusions of the world.

This is the "Seeking Evil Technique," a unique technique used by Baiyun Temple to track down corpse evil spirits and yin energy.

However, the next moment, he frowned, the glint in his eyes slowly faded, and the spell dissipated.

"The Fiend-Seeking Technique is no longer effective. Too much time has passed, and the residual aura of the living corpse has long since dissipated. Oh well."

A look of pain flashed in the middle-aged man's eyes.

He hesitated for a moment, but finally took out a piece of long black hair from his storage bag, and then took out a talisman that glowed with a faint golden light.

That black hair belongs to his disciple, Qin Yue.

As Qin Yue's master, it wasn't difficult for him to obtain a few strands of her hair within the sect on ordinary days.

This is where it comes in handy now.

As for the talisman, it was a Heaven-Asking Talisman crafted by a cultivator who practiced divination.

The surface of the talisman was covered with densely packed tiny runes, and amidst the flowing golden light, there was a mysterious aura that seemed to glimpse the secrets of heaven.

The living corpse killed Qin Yue, thus forging a very deep karmic bond between them.

Even if this Heaven-Asking Talisman is only a second-tier item and not of very high quality, it should be enough to deduce the whereabouts of the living corpse based on such a deep causal connection.

The middle-aged man infused spiritual power into the talisman.

The talisman shone brightly with golden light, then transformed into wisps of grayish-white flames that burned quietly.

The flames danced in his palm, yet they were not hot to the touch.

He then threw the piece of black hair into the flames.

The black hair quickly curled and burned in the flames, turning into a wisp of blue smoke.

As Qin Yue's black hair was completely burned away in the flames, mysterious runes rose from the flames and arranged themselves in the air.

These runes are connected to each other and will soon coalesce into the shape of a mirror.

The mirror will reflect the location of the living corpse.

Just then, the mirror suddenly became violently blurry, as if some force was interfering.

Immediately afterwards, there was a crisp "snap" sound.

The mirror is shattered.

It turned into countless points of light and dissipated into the air.

"Huh? What happened? How could it fail?"

The middle-aged man's expression suddenly turned extremely ugly, and the scars on his face looked even more ferocious due to the contortion of his muscles, as if he had swallowed a fly.

You should know that the Heavenly Inquiry Talisman is not an ordinary second-tier talisman; it is extremely expensive!

He only had this one, which he obtained by chance and hadn't been willing to use.

He was so interested in the opportunity that the living corpse obtained in the cave that he decided to use this precious Heaven-Asking Talisman.

The Heavenly Talisman had no effect whatsoever?

Even with the deep-seated cause and effect of Qin Yue's murder, they couldn't predict the whereabouts of the living corpse.

How is that possible?

Something's not right, is it?

How could a mere undead being from a lowly realm possess such abilities?

Can it sever cause and effect and shield the secrets of heaven?

Even he himself, with his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation, could not possibly interfere with this level of causal deduction.

How exactly did those zombies manage to do that?

Could the opportunities within that grotto be far greater than he imagined?

The middle-aged man's expression shifted rapidly, his mood constantly changing.

He then turned around abruptly, his gaze turning coldly to Senior Brother Wang and Junior Brother Li behind him.

Senior Brother Wang and Junior Brother Li were still somewhat dazed, not yet recovered from the shock of the failed Heavenly Inquiry Talisman.

They were merely weak Qi Refining stage cultivators, so naturally they couldn't possibly possess a treasure like the Heaven-Asking Talisman.

However, they had heard of the treasure's reputation from their master and knew that the Heavenly Inquiry Talisman was extremely precious and magical.

It is said that as long as there is even the slightest connection between cause and effect, the source can be traced back to the origin, and nothing can escape its trace.

They originally thought that once their master took out the Heavenly Inquiry Talisman, finding the living corpse would be a sure thing.

The Heavenly Talisman actually failed?

Their heads were buzzing a little.

This is completely different from the script they originally envisioned.

The middle-aged man's icy gaze was like two knives piercing them, and the two men immediately snapped back to their senses and stood up straight.

The middle-aged man asked in a low voice, but with a chilling pressure: "You two, you're not hiding anything from your master, are you? How could a mere living corpse be unable to divine even with a Heavenly Inquiry Talisman?"