Chapter 434: Corpse Formation

“How is this possible?”

Zhang Quan’s pupils contracted slightly.

This little brat… how could he still be a Formation Master?

The earlier trap with the Earthfire Formation that blew up the mine to force him out, and the earth-based formations that countered his escape techniques—could all of that really have been this little brat’s doing?

Zhang Quan looked at Mo Hua again.

Mo Hua’s gaze was clear, yet deep—bright, yet hard to read.

At first, he had only felt it was sly and detestable.

Now, it seemed, it was indeed the sign of someone exceptionally clever, with a powerful Divine-Sense.

Zhang Quan thought of someone.

That person, once scheming, also had this kind of gaze.

And that person was a Formation Master.

This gaze… did indeed resemble that of a Formation Master.

A chill ran through Zhang Quan’s heart.

This isn’t good…

If this little brat is truly a Formation Master, he might have already seen through the formations on these corpses.

The question now: how much has he seen?

Does he even know what formation this is?

Cold light gradually appeared in Zhang Quan’s eyes.

The best course now was to kill and silence him.

Once someone dies, they will remain silent forever, and the knowledge they hold will be buried in the earth, never revealed.

But Zhang Quan knew in his heart…

In the current situation, he couldn’t just kill anyone.

The white-clad boy was highly cultivated and strong in combat; he couldn’t take him down.

The delicate young girl’s Dao techniques were dangerous and highly destructive; he dared not provoke her.

On the surface, this little brat appeared the weakest.

Yet he was exceptionally cunning, full of tricks, devious, slippery, and extremely troublesome.

Moreover, he remembered, this little brat could conceal himself.

Whether by magic or a spiritual artifact, his concealment was highly advanced, something Zhang Quan’s Foundation Establishment-level Divine-Sense couldn’t detect.

In this way, he couldn’t catch him at all.

Thinking of this, Zhang Quan was furious and humiliated.

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, to be repeatedly humiliated by him and unable to retaliate was maddening!

He couldn’t kill any of the three.

Since killing wasn’t an option, the only choice was to “destroy the corpses and erase the traces.”

He couldn’t leave any trace of the formations!

Zhang Quan’s plan was set, his expression serious.

Meanwhile, Bai Zisheng had already begun capturing the zombies with Mo Hua.

He dodged the iron corpse and attacked the ordinary zombies instead. With a flick of his spear, spiritual energy surged, crippling the zombies’ limbs and rendering them immobile.

In a short while, four or five zombies were subdued.

Mo Hua also joined in, coordinating with Bai Zisheng.

Mo Hua used the Water Prison Technique to immobilize the zombies, and Bai Zisheng severed their limbs with sword light.

The three moved quickly and precisely, and soon many zombies were subdued.

Zhang Quan’s eyelids twitched.

He couldn’t wait any longer!

His gaze turned cold as he shook the blood-stringed patterned bronze bell in his hand.

The bronze bell summoned the corpses; gusts of cold wind swept through.

The battlefield changed abruptly.

The zombies, their faces grotesque, stopped attacking Mo Hua and the others, instead turning on each other, gnawing at each other’s heart meridians, trying to destroy the formations nearby.

The iron corpse began hunting the lower-level zombies, punching and clawing, hollowing out their chests, leaving black holes oozing black blood.

The zombies destroyed themselves, erasing the traces.

Seeing this, Bai Zisheng was furious. “You bastard! Can’t you play fair?”

Zhang Quan sneered, ignoring him, continuing to shake the bronze bell.

Mo Hua studied the bell carefully, then suddenly pointed, shouting:

“There’s a formation inside the bell too, senior brother! Grab his bell!”

Zhang Quan was startled.

Bai Zisheng’s eyes lit up. Ignoring the zombies, he flashed forward, using his body technique to thrust his spear, aiming to snatch the bronze bell from Zhang Quan’s hand.

Zhang Quan quickly stepped back to avoid the spear and immediately hid the bell, cursing in his heart.

“This little brat’s eyes are deadly!”

Damn it!

At this rate, he’ll see everything!

He couldn’t afford to wait any longer.

Zhang Quan concealed the bell in his sleeve, secretly shaking it to trigger the zombies’ self-destruction formation and directing the iron corpse to protect his escape.

Bai Zisheng wanted to stop him, but the iron corpse blocked him; he couldn’t.

The scene became chaotic, allowing Zhang Quan to finally escape.

Before leaving, he glanced back at Mo Hua, storing both new and old grudges in his heart.

He said darkly:

“You brat, I’ll remember you!”

“One day I will kill you, turn you into a zombie, keep you by my side, serve me tea, work like a beast, and be my slave for life!”

Then he ran, giving Mo Hua no chance to respond.

He feared Mo Hua would curse him; he couldn’t handle it.

In matters of insults, he admitted he couldn’t compete with this little brat.

Mo Hua pursed his lips, muttering:

“Curses and then runs—what a coward.”

He had already thought of what to say, but Zhang Quan ran too fast to get the words out.

Mo Hua felt a bit regretful; it would have to wait until next time.

Once Zhang Quan escaped, the battle ceased.

The mine was left in ruins after the fierce fight.

Rocks were shattered, tunnels destroyed.

Zombies’ remains littered the ground; some had hollowed heart meridians, twitching unconsciously.

The iron corpse was taken by Zhang Quan, the remaining zombies mostly killed each other, destroying their chests, leaving only a few intact.

Besides that were the coffins in the mine.

These coffins were likely for corpse refinement and storage, dozens in number.

The iron corpse hid in an iron coffin, while the others mostly used wooden coffins.

After the intense battle, Bai Zisheng was exhausted. Catching his breath and restoring his spiritual energy, he asked:

“Shall we continue the pursuit?”

Mo Hua thought for a moment, shaking his head:

“No rush. Let’s set a long line and catch a big fish.”

Bai Zisheng was slightly stunned. “A big fish? Isn’t Zhang Quan the big fish?”

“There is one,” Mo Hua nodded, pointing to the coffins and zombies in the mine. “This is too little.”

Bai Zisheng gaped. “Too little?”

Here were dozens of zombies, fearless, and with the iron corpse assisting, most early Foundation Establishment cultivators wouldn’t stand a chance.

Bai Zisheng was strong, but after this fight, he was tired and spiritually drained.

If there were more zombies, he’d be powerless besides running.

Otherwise, he’d eventually be worn out.

Mo Hua frowned.

“Zhang Quan has hired assassins for decades, killing countless miners. Their bodies were bought…”

“To refine zombies,” he continued.

“With so many bodies, it’s impossible he only refined these few zombies.”

“Elder Yu told me about the principle of a cunning rabbit having three burrows.”

“Zhang Quan, doing such unorthodox demonic acts, surely left multiple escape routes.”

“So I guess he has other hideouts with many coffins, and inside those coffins are many more zombies…”

Bai Zisheng’s mouth fell open, then he said angrily:

“That Zhang Quan really deserves to die!”

Mo Hua nodded in agreement.

He then added, “There’s another issue.”

“A formation?” Bai Zisheng asked.

“Mm,” Mo Hua nodded. “Zhang Quan himself likely doesn’t understand formations. But the bell he uses to control the corpses, the zombies he refined, and even these coffins… all bear formations.”

“This means someone is drawing the formations for him!”

“This person must be highly skilled in formations, and very likely has comprehended an Absolute Formation…”

“Such an Absolute Formation may not even be a conventional one, but an evil formation within the Absolute Formation…”

Mo Hua’s expression grew serious.

“Absolute Formation…”

Bai Zisheng’s heart sank. He glanced at the zombies and asked Mo Hua:

“Are the formations on these zombies Absolute Formations?”

Mo Hua rested his chin on his hand, thinking:

“Possibly…”

“Possibly?”

“Yes.” Mo Hua looked at the zombies and nodded.

“It’s hard to say for now. I need to study them first…”

…

In the wilderness near the mine,

The earth rose, stones rolled, and Zhang Quan appeared, gasping, relieved.

He finally escaped.

He never thought in his life he’d be chased by three little cultivators like a beaten dog.

The area was desolate, with no other cultivators or beasts.

Zhang Quan caught his breath, a hint of doubt arising.

Why was he found?

He had clearly discarded that needle…

He released his Divine-Sense, scanning the area, and suddenly stiffened. Grabbing his messy hair, he found a fine needle hidden in it.

There was still one?

Zhang Quan inhaled sharply, panicking.

He snapped the needle, discarded it, then used Earth Escape to flee to a creek in another part of the forest, placing the iron corpse as a guard. Only then did he feel slightly at ease.

He changed clothes, cleaned the blood, bandaged his wounds, and checked with Divine-Sense to ensure nothing suspicious remained.

Zhang Quan sighed in relief.

These few little brats… how could their minds be so deep, their methods so covert?

He had a headache.

Then he remembered something and grew worried.

Though he used the bell to control the corpses, destroying most formations, a few zombies still remained.

Remaining zombies meant traces of formations remained.

Zhang Quan frowned, recalling the instructions:

“This formation must not be discovered by anyone. If it is, either kill to silence, or destroy the corpses to erase traces!”

The speaker’s expression had been terrifyingly serious.

Zhang Quan pondered briefly, then chuckled lightly.

He had been worrying unnecessarily.

“A few zombies, a few incomplete formations, probably won’t reveal much…”

Formations were difficult to learn.

The corpse-refining formations were especially profound and obscure, beyond ordinary reasoning.

Even Formation Masters could barely master them.

For a young Nascent Soul cultivator, understanding them would be impossible.

Zhang Quan snorted, unconcerned.

Suddenly, the mountain wind blew, rippling the creek, sunlight glinting on the water.

Mo Hua’s bright and deep gaze flashed through Zhang Quan’s mind.

Zhang Quan shivered, furrowed his brow, muttering:

“Shouldn’t… understand it, right…”