Chapter 28: The True Master Arrives

From the moment Mo Lin saw the Taoist, countless thoughts surged through his mind.

But in the end, he eliminated all other possibilities and determined that Gong Yang had come looking for him because he had destroyed the Jiangshi and occupied the Dragon Cave.

From the Corpse Rabbit’s perspective, the Taoist’s path of travel could essentially be drawn as a straight line, extending directly from the other end toward the Dragon Cave where Mo Lin resided.

Mo Lin had once thought that anyone with some knowledge of Earth Veins and Jiangshi should know that using Hong Mountain to resurrect the dead was simply impossible.

Now that he reconsidered, he realized the instigator probably never intended to resurrect the dead at all—the purpose had been to use the Dragon Cave to transform the dead into Jiangshi!

And because he had ruined this ritual, the true master had now come knocking at his door!

Just as Mo Lin was pondering how to deal with the situation, he suddenly met the gaze of the Taoist strolling leisurely through the mountains.

Mo Lin instinctively felt a jolt of alarm, but then realized he was inside the Corpse Rabbit’s body.

Yet, almost immediately, his vision went dark as he lost control over the rabbit.

Mo Lin opened his serpent pupils, not surprised in the slightest that he had been discovered by the Taoist.

After all, corpse refinement was the man’s specialty; discovering a Corpse Rabbit was hardly difficult.

While he manipulated another one to approach the Taoist, Mo Lin slowly slithered out from the Dragon Cave.

He needed to think carefully about how to deal with an enemy who had come knocking on his door.

On the other side, Gong Yang dangled a rabbit in his hand.

Its body was already covered with corpse spots, but just moments ago, it had stared at him like nothing was wrong, before being discovered.

“Corpse poison, Jiangshi...”

Gong Yang was a bit surprised.

He had originally thought that the Dragon Cave only housed an ordinary Snake Demon, yet unexpectedly, he had encountered a Corpse Rabbit along the way.

There was no doubt that this was not caused by his original Jiangshi.

In other words, this Corpse Rabbit was the work of that Snake Demon?

Gong Yang lifted the rabbit and examined it repeatedly, his eyes full of strangeness.

How long had it been since he lost contact with his Jiangshi?

Could a Snake Demon really master corpse poison and cultivate a Jiangshi in such a short time?

Then what was the meaning of him painstakingly spending seventy-seven days and forty-nine nights to refine a human corpse into a Jiangshi?

Did it mean he had wasted his time?

Originally, Gong Yang only wanted to confirm whether the Dragon Cave was indeed occupied by a Snake Demon, and also to think about how to avoid the Bureau of Heaven Monitoring.

But now, he had truly become interested in this Snake Demon.

Soon after, on the path, Gong Yang discovered another Corpse Rabbit secretly observing him.

This made him understand that the uninvited guest within the Dragon Cave had already noticed his presence.

To prevent the Snake Demon from sneaking away, Gong Yang quickened his pace.

Since he had been quite close to the Dragon Cave when he discovered the Corpse Rabbit, he arrived at its edge within moments.

And right then, he saw Mo Lin slithering out from the Dragon Cave.

“Heh, who was it that called this a Snake Demon? This is clearly a Python Demon.”

Before him stood a massive python, entirely capable of swallowing a human whole.

“Hissss—”

Mo Lin fixed his gaze on the Taoist before him and was the first to speak:

“The Jiangshi inside—was it you who created it?”

Gong Yang looked Mo Lin up and down with great interest, not answering directly but instead countering:

“The Corpse Rabbits outside the Dragon Cave—were they your doing?”

Mo Lin narrowed his eyes.

“And if they were?”

Gong Yang shrugged.

“Then the Jiangshi inside the Dragon Cave was my doing.”

When Mo Lin said nothing for a while, Gong Yang grinned.

“This humble Taoist is Gong Yang, a wandering cultivator of heterodox ways. And you—how should I address you?”

Then, as if suddenly realizing something, Gong Yang added:

“Oh right, you’ve probably only just become a demon recently, so you likely don’t even have a name yet, do you?”

“......”

Mo Lin found this Taoist’s personality to be rather unpleasant.

“So, are you here to seek revenge?”

Gong Yang shrugged again.

“That was my original intention, but now I find myself curious about you, so I’ve decided not to seek revenge—at least for now.”

He stepped closer, scrutinizing Mo Lin:

“Can you tell me how you came to possess corpse poison, and how you’re able to control Corpse Rabbits? How did you do it?”

Mo Lin bared his fangs in a grin, his sharp teeth gleaming coldly.

“Why don’t you experience it yourself and find out?”

“......”

Gong Yang felt that this Snake Demon’s temperament was rather unpleasant.

After a brief standoff, he was the first to speak again:

“My purpose here is to persuade you to leave this Dragon Cave. This isn’t a place a mere little Snake Demon can occupy. Wait until you become a Flood Dragon, then perhaps we can speak again.”

Mo Lin sneered.

Since he had already tasted a life of food brought to his mouth, how could he willingly return to his old existence?

“Sorry, but living here, I feel I’ll soon transform into a Flood Dragon.”

Gong Yang shook his head.

“A small demon will always be a small demon. Don’t you know that after becoming a demon, every step of progress requires a different fortuitous opportunity?”

“Even if I handed this Dragon Cave over to you, even if you lived here for five hundred years, a thousand years, draining all the Earth Veins of Yongzhou, at most you would become a Mountain Python or a Forest Anaconda. You would never be able to become a Flood Dragon.”

Mo Lin was stunned.

What did Gong Yang mean by that?

However, as they were natural enemies, even if Mo Lin asked, Gong Yang would not say more.

In his eyes, if not for his curiosity about how Mo Lin controlled Corpse Rabbits, he wouldn’t bother exchanging another word.

“Forget it. Since you won’t reveal the secret of manipulating Corpse Rabbits, I’ll investigate for myself. Don’t worry, I’ll spare your life.”

With that, Gong Yang raised his hand and lunged at Mo Lin.

Naturally, Mo Lin would never believe such ridiculous words as “spare your life.” In a clash with an enemy, one fought to the death.

He swung his massive tail, lashing it toward Gong Yang.

“Swish! Swish!”

The giant python tail split the air with a terrifying whistle.

Gong Yang, who had not paid much attention to Mo Lin’s strength, was shocked—he sensed immense power from the sound alone.

He instinctively dodged and instead struck the tail with both hands.

“Creak—”

Mo Lin’s tail was driven into a tree, making its trunk tremble violently, groaning as though unable to bear the strain.

“Well, well, well... Who would have thought that such a little Snake Demon could possess such astounding strength? That strike must have carried at least two thousand kilograms of force.”

A cold sweat broke out on Gong Yang’s back.

As a Taoist who had defected from the Bureau of Heaven Monitoring, Gong Yang had devoted himself to corpse refinement.

His true strength lay in spells and Taoist arts.

In comparison, his physical body was far inferior.

At the very least, he knew he couldn’t withstand Mo Lin’s massive, powerful tail.

“If I had underestimated your strength and let that tail land on me, I truly would have been gravely injured.”

Mo Lin felt a trace of regret—he hadn’t expected Gong Yang to be so cautious.

But now that Gong Yang had seen Mo Lin’s physical body far outstripped his own, he would no longer give Mo Lin any chances.

Though his body was weaker, he had something far more formidable to deal with Mo Lin.

“Clap, clap.”

He clapped his hands.

Under the influence of his Taoist power, the sound echoed throughout the mountain forest.

“Hmph, if you hadn’t ruined my plans, once my Great Yin Indestructible Bone was complete, my physical body would have risen to the peak of its level.”

“But if you think that means I’m weak, you’re gravely mistaken. My body may be lacking, but I have something capable of contending with you.”

Hearing this, Mo Lin felt an ominous premonition.

“Rustle, rustle, rustle!”

From the once silent forest around them came the sound of rustling leaves, as though people were walking through.

No—not “as though.”

With his keen sense of vibrations through the ground, Mo Lin instantly realized that strange creatures with irregular steps were closing in on him from all directions.

He immediately guessed what they were:

“Four Jiangshi?”

Gong Yang was surprised that Mo Lin could so accurately identify the number of his Jiangshi, but he had no reason to hide it.

“Correct. Originally, my goal was to refine eight Jiangshi to complete my Great Yin Indestructible Bone body.Unfortunately, one of them was destroyed by you.”

“Though a few remain unfinished, I have already completed four Jiangshi. Since I came to Hong Mountain for a visit, I brought them along to broaden their horizons.”

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