The sweet female voice hesitated for a moment before sighing and saying, “A few years ago, while the Great King was in slumber, the Young Prince moved his secondary resting place above ground, intending to refine this treasure under the moonlight for the ownership ritual. But unexpectedly, a group of outside cultivators barged in from who knows where. At the time, the Young Prince was absorbing lunar essence and had most of the restrictions deactivated, allowing these intruders to enter his main chamber. Forced to interrupt his cultivation, he had the mindless minions deal with them. However, one among them was sharp enough to recognize the Young Prince as a Corpse King and immediately knelt, begging for mercy and offering to submit to a restriction in exchange for his life. Seeing his cleverness, the Young Prince placed a restriction on him and spared him.”
“What does this have to do with the Vajra Relic?” the middle-aged man interrupted impatiently, still not hearing what he wanted.
“Great King, please calm your anger. The key is that this man proposed a method to effortlessly harvest the souls of outside cultivators, sparing us the trouble of sending minions to hunt them down,” the woman explained calmly.
“Oh? What method? Speak!” The man seemed intrigued.
“It’s quite simple. He suggested that the Young Prince give him a rare and peculiar treasure, concealing within it a strand of the Young Prince’s divine sense. He would then sell this item to lone rogue cultivators, luring them to the Young Prince’s ancient tomb. If they came, they’d meet their doom. If not, the hidden restriction in the treasure would activate at the right moment, killing them and bringing their souls back to the tomb. However, the treasure had to be exceptionally rare, and the Young Prince’s divine sense and corpse flame had to be concealed without a trace of corpse energy leaking, lest it backfire,” the woman said unhurriedly.
“No need to continue. The Young Prince must have given that unrefined Vajra Shield to this man, as only its relic’s Buddhist nature could mask his corpse energy,” the man cut in coldly.
“Exactly as the Great King surmised. Once the ownership ritual was complete, even the Vajra Shield couldn’t hide the corpse energy. At the time, the Young Prince urgently needed many cultivator souls, so he took the risk. I specifically warned the man not to target cultivators above Core Formation, lest he expose the scheme. For years, many willingly walked into the trap without issue, but this time, it seems he disobeyed, leading to the treasure’s theft and damage to the Young Prince’s divine sense. We’ll retrieve his soul and interrogate him thoroughly,” the woman’s voice turned icy.
“Hmph! How many souls could such petty tricks yield? I’ve already tasked General Ge with a plan that will provide us with a steady stream of cultivator souls without drawing the attention of those righteous sects,” the man said disdainfully.
“So that’s why the Great King left the tomb with General Ge years ago and returned alone?” the woman sounded surprised.
“Indeed. General Ge has long since taken on another identity, controlling a cultivator family to serve us. To cover his tracks, he even orchestrated the extermination of another family with Buddhist ties when their patriarch grew suspicious and sought to alert nearby sects. I personally eliminated their Core Formation and above cultivators before General Ge led the purge,” the man chuckled darkly, pleased with himself.
“What exactly is the Great King’s plan?” the woman asked, shocked.
“Heh, it’s nothing complicated. You’ll see in time. The idea came from the Heavenly Wind True Monarch of Fangjian Mountain during his last visit. He’s been doing the same without issue. With caution, we won’t lack souls for the next two or three centuries. Even if trouble arises, we can simply relocate. Few in the Great Jin can stop me, save for those old monsters,” the man boasted.
“Heavenly Wind True Monarch? He’s no simple character. Why would he share his secret so generously? Could he have ulterior motives?” the woman voiced her concern.
“Of course he does! He extorted three Blood Heart Pills from me for mere words,” the man growled.
“Still, I’m uneasy. The Twin Demons of Fangjian Mountain have a foul reputation. What if he lures the Great King out? Our souls are bound to this tomb—as long as we stay, few in this world can harm us,” the woman fretted.
“A fair point. I’ll keep all tomb restrictions active and exercise caution when leaving, ensuring the Twin Demons remain unaware of my movements,” the man conceded gravely.
“As long as the Great King is cautious. Why not leave such tasks to me and the avatars? With the Great King safe, no enemy would dare disrespect you,” the woman’s tone turned seductive.
“Ah, but this plan requires control over all major families in Jiangning Prefecture. Last time, I sustained minor injuries subduing that old monster Kong without damaging his corpse, delaying further action. The other two families lack Nascent Soul cultivators but possess artifacts that counter our kind. Their sects likely stationed them here to monitor me. After a millennium of inactivity, they’ve forgotten. Now’s the time to strike. By the time their sects react, it’ll be too late. I should’ve long used human souls to break through to the Heavenly Corpse form,” the man explained patiently, clearly fond of the woman.
“Then I congratulate the Great King in advance. With the Heavenly Corpse form, you’ll be free from this tomb,” the woman rejoiced.
“Haha! Not just me—I’ll use Soul Severing to free you and the Young Prince as well,” the man chuckled.
“But Great King, we must recover the Vajra Shield. Once refined, it grants an indestructible body. Remember how that old monk’s relic, not even fully formed into a shield, withstood your corpse flames for three days? A fully formed shield would be even stronger,” the woman reminded.
“You overthink. Only a ten-thousand-year Corpse King like me or the deputy valley master of Ten Thousand Demons Valley—that ancient Corpse Bear—can refine such a shield under moonlight. Would human cultivators dare enter that valley? With the Ten Thousand Demons Banner there, not even the top ten righteous or demonic sects would approach,” the man mocked.
“True. But such a treasure suits us well. Once we locate it, let’s reclaim it,” the woman insisted.
“Of course. But whoever subdued the Young Prince’s divine sense in the shield must be formidable. Once found, I’ll send two avatars. Unless they’re mid-Nascent Soul or above, they’re no threat,” the man said confidently.
“I… I… go too!” The towering shadow shrouded in black mist, silent until now, suddenly spoke.
“How? You can’t suppress your corpse energy—any cultivator would spot you instantly. Enough nonsense, return to your coffin,” the man snapped.
The shadow wilted, extending a green-furred arm to beckon something distant before lying back down, its crimson eyes flashing with savagery.
The stone coffin lid flew back with a whoosh, sealing it shut.
…
Thousands of miles away, Han Li had no idea that destroying a mere wisp of divine sense would stir such trouble. He stared at the Tihun Beast in the golden bubble, his expression dark and unreadable.
Meanwhile, Jin Yuan, who had just returned to his quarters after leaving the square, suddenly burst into gray flames with a soft poof, his body vanishing into smoke. His panicked soul, unharmed, was wrapped in flame into an inconspicuous fist-sized orb that shot through the half-open window and vanished into the sky. No one noticed the old man’s disappearance.
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