Chapter 78: The Jade Corpse

Sister Yāo? Did a real yāo actually appear?

I don’t believe it.

The woman in green stood motionless, her face wooden. After killing the Bronze-Armored Corpse, she seemed unsure of what to do next. She just stood there blankly, occasionally glancing at me as if she recognized me.

My mind was in a daze—could it be that we had some past-life connection?

Lin Danan cautiously stepped forward and asked, “Who did you come back to save?”

The woman in green didn’t even acknowledge him, leaving Lin Danan visibly upset.

Only after the Bronze-Armored Corpse died did Dao Jiuniang finally stand up, clutching her chest. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and her face was as pale as paper, devoid of life.

A crowd emerged from the village, holding torches that illuminated the woods in front of the settlement.

Most of Hu Sanmei’s group had perished. Those who survived, having inhaled corpse qi, lay swollen on the ground, convulsing as their lives hung by a thread.

The other corpses had stopped moving, except for one that kept bashing its head against a tree, seemingly regretting ever coming here.

As for Hu Sanmei herself, she had been bitten by a venomous snake. An ordinary person would have died instantly, but Hu Sanmei, having dealt with snakes before, had some resistance to poison. Barely clinging to life, she had already been battered beyond recognition by Dao Jiuniang.

With the light, I finally got a clear look at the green-clad girl—she looked almost identical to Xie Lingyu.

I froze on the spot.

There are always people who resemble each other in the world, but encountering it firsthand was still shocking.

No wonder Lin Danan had said he’d seen Xie Lingyu before when he first met her. I’d thought it was just a line, but it turned out he wasn’t lying.

From her expression and the aura around her, I concluded that she must be the legendary Jade Corpse. Despite her delicate, graceful appearance, she had effortlessly dealt with a Bronze-Armored Corpse that dozens couldn’t handle.

Yet now, she stood motionless, like a beauty from the Jiangnan region.

I couldn’t tell if she was a friend or an enemy, so I asked her directly, “Who are you?”

The Jade Corpse shook her head, offering no answer. Her eyes simply rolled slightly, like those of a one- or two-year-old child without awareness.

Little Rascal and He Xiaomao circled around her, their barks now much gentler. It seemed she posed little danger.

Dao Jiuniang and the villagers huddled together, not daring to speak, their eyes fixed on me. Ruan Yue had been killed by poisoned needles, but his brother Ruan Nan was nowhere to be seen. I’d seen him fiddling with a satellite phone earlier, and his absence made me uneasy.

Dao Jiuniang whispered to me, saying, “You’ve summoned the Snake King. The Snake King has been our object of worship for years. You must be his messenger. Please, give us your orders.”

I straightened up and told her to first take care of the Vietnamese men injured by corpse qi. She immediately instructed some villagers to do so.

Then I asked Dao Jiuniang, “How many years did you spend raising that Bronze-Armored Corpse? Do you have any others?”

She glanced at Hu Sanmei and replied, “It took over a decade just to raise one, and it wasn’t even fully mature. Raising a second one is out of the question.”

I believed her and pressed further, “Did Ruan Sanjia raise any other insects?”

She shook her head. “We didn’t overlap much in that regard. He specialized in insects; I only occasionally dabbled in corpse-raising.”

I had no more questions for the moment, so I turned to Jianguo Shu to see if he had anything to ask. His hands were still trembling from shooting the Bronze-Armored Corpse.

“Did you collect any other corpses?” he asked. “How many did you retrieve from the war back then?”

Dao Jiuniang shook her head. “I only brought back Hu Yin’s remains.” After a pause, she added, “At the time, I just wanted to keep Sanjia with me. I hid Hu Yin’s bones and told him we needed to search the mountains, just to hold onto him.”

I noticed her complexion darkening, her breathing growing weaker. Black blood gushed from her mouth, and worst of all, the sound of insects gnawing came from her chest.

I realized with dread that she was suffering the backlash from the Bronze-Armored Corpse’s death, compounded by the effects of the “Shared Heart and Virtue” gu poison she and Ruan Sanjia had planted in each other. She was doomed.

This truly was a game with no survivors.

Dao Jiuniang collapsed like a withered leaf. I couldn’t bear it and stepped forward to support her. “Why put yourself through this?” I said. “Even if you kept Ruan Sanjia’s body, you could never keep his heart. If he wanted to leave, you should’ve let him.”

She sneered at me. “Young man, you still don’t understand what love is.”

Hu Sanmei, struggling on the ground, shouted, “Dao Jiuniang, what do you know about love? If you really loved him, you’d have let him go. I was his true love!”

Dao Jiuniang, now devoid of strength, and Hu Sanmei, succumbing to snake venom, lunged at each other. They grabbed each other’s hair, hurling curses back and forth.

“You shameless wretch!”

“You worthless hag!”

Their voices tangled in a chaotic mess, and I had no idea how to separate them.

Then, in the midst of their shouting, they both went limp—dead on the spot.

Hu Sanmei’s face was ghastly, swollen from the venom, barely recognizable as human. Dao Jiuniang, meanwhile, looked exactly like Ruan Sanjia in death.

“Mother! Brother! I’m back!”

Ruan Nan rushed in excitedly, carrying a black bag as if he’d just returned from catching insects. Sure enough, the bag fell open, releasing a swarm of venomous creatures—several deadly spiders among them.

I quickly explained, “I didn’t kill your mother or brother! Your brother was killed by Hu Sanmei, and your mother died from her own gu poison.”

Ruan Nan clenched his fists, glaring at me before picking up the bag and turning to speak with the village elders. Some villagers had witnessed the events and confirmed my words. Still, Ruan Nan’s gaze was filled with hatred, as if he wanted to tear me apart.

A few villagers insisted I was the Snake King’s messenger, but Ruan Nan spat, “Bullshit!” He stormed back into the village, changed into mourning clothes, and prepared his family’s bodies for burial.

With the danger gone, Jianguo Shu and Lin Danan returned to the village to rest. The Jade Corpse remained by my side, unmoving.

I asked Xie Lingyu, “Is she some distant cousin of yours?”

Xie Lingyu shook her head. “I don’t have any cousins. I don’t remember much from before. Maybe she is.”

This puzzled me. Xie Lingyu had mentioned missing Beijing’s erguotou liquor—how could she have a cousin all the way in Yunnan? It didn’t make sense, and thinking about it gave me a headache, so I let it go.

Lin Danan, having finally met his so-called “Sister Yāo,” was heartbroken to see her following me. “Master Xiao,” he whined, “what kind of sorcery did you use to make her stick to you like this?”

I chuckled. “Weren’t you the one she ‘rescued’? How’d you end up back here?”

He sighed. “She did rescue me, but after a while, she just kicked me aside. Guess she realized she got the wrong person, so she came back.”

I wondered—had she returned to save *me*?

Soon, dawn broke, and birds began chirping.

The Vietnamese men who’d inhaled corpse qi had died overnight. I’d meant to help them earlier, but exhaustion had forced me to rest for a few hours first. By the time I reached the hut where they were kept, they were already dead—and Ruan Nan stood there, eerie and silent.

He held a sharp knife, licking the blade. “You all deserve to die for disrupting our village.”

A chill ran down my spine. Ruan Nan was becoming another Ruan Sanjia.

We set a great fire to burn the bodies, tossing the remaining corpses into the flames.

I’d considered exploring the village’s cave but decided against it—who knew if another Bronze-Armored Corpse might leap out?

Jianguo Shu packed his things, and with Lin Danan in tow, resumed searching the jungle for remains. As for what Ruan Sanjia’s “four” had meant—whether a clue or a dying joke—no one could say.

The village elders watched us with reverence, escorting us to the outskirts. Suddenly, Ruan Nan rushed out, pointing at me.

“What’s your name?” he demanded.

I blinked. “Xiao Qi. Why?”

He nodded stiffly. “I’ll remember that.”

Once we crossed the iron chain bridge, I asked Jianguo Shu, “What was that about?”

He thought for a moment. “Probably means he’s memorizing your name for revenge.”

I shuddered. Ruan Nan had just slaughtered over a dozen Vietnamese men without hesitation—his temperament was terrifying. If he inherited Dao Jiuniang and Ruan Sanjia’s corpse-raising and insect arts, and came after me…

I turned back toward the village and shouted, “I lied earlier! I’m Lin Danan! My name is Lin Danan!”

My voice echoed through the valley.

Lin Danan cursed, “Dammit, don’t drag me into this!”

Jianguo Shu coughed. “Lin Danan, Hu Sanmei fed you a bowl of insects. Only Master Xiao can cure you.”

Lin Danan’s face instantly brightened like a blooming chrysanthemum. He grabbed my hand. “Master, please help me! I’ll reward you handsomely!”

I laughed. “I’ll think about it when I’m in a better mood.”

Jianguo Shu unfolded the map again, and we studied it together. Where exactly were the remains of Fugui and the other four?

“Based on our earlier deductions,” I said, “there are still a few areas we haven’t searched. Let’s check them again.”

Suddenly, the Jade Corpse gestured as if she knew what we were looking for. I asked her, “Do you know where they are?”

I clarified, “Five men, about my height.”

Jianguo Shu added, “One of them was built like an ox.”

The Jade Corpse nodded and motioned for us to follow her west.

I realized then that while she couldn’t speak, she understood us perfectly.

Before a limestone cave stood four stone statues of varying sizes, all dressed in ancient attire. Jianguo Shu counted them. “Exactly four. Could this be the ‘four’ Ruan Sanjia mentioned?”

The cave was naturally formed, its interior cool and breezy—a perfect place for meditation.

Water dripped from the walls, landing on my face with a refreshing chill. Even Little Rascal and He Xiaomao seemed excited.

Jianguo Shu trembled, as if standing on the brink of fulfilling a lifelong wish.

“Don’t get too worked up, Half-Immortal,” I said. “After all these years, don’t rush at the finish line.”

We walked deeper into the cave until we saw five figures sitting side by side on stone benches.

Or rather, five skeletons…