Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 526

As the distance closed step by step, the creature inside the corpse was also gathering its strength.

It should have reached the point where it could take action long ago, but it is still holding back in order to increase its chances of success.

What a cautious little cutie.

Unfortunately, everything about it is transparent to the boy.

It wasn't until Li Zhuiyuan stepped onto the stairs that it finally made its move.

"Crack!"

The corpse's brow split open, revealing a black Bodhi fruit.

Li Zhuiyuan looked surprised.

The Bodhi fruit emitted a black halo that entered the boy's brow.

It worked.

It entered the depths of the boy's soul and quickly took root and sprouted.

An even greater surprise followed: it discovered that the boy's soul was incredibly profound, meaning it would receive even more nourishment.

It sprouted, grew, and climbed upwards; everything was developing in an extremely beautiful direction.

Then it stopped.

Because in front of and behind it stood two identical boys, looking down at it from a superior position.

The original entity: "Do you want it?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "The valuable thing is that Bodhi fruit. If you feel bored, you can keep it and grow it as a potted plant."

The original: "The most boring thing is boredom."

The newly sprouted bud quickly receded; it wanted to escape.

Li Zhuiyuan raised his hand and sealed his soul, preventing it from burrowing back into the earth;

The main body grasped the sprout, ignoring its struggles and pleas for mercy, uprooted it, and watched it wither, disintegrate, and disappear rapidly.

No need for fancy tricks or complicated procedures, just the simplest and most brutal way to crush the opponent.

Last time, in the same place, True Lord Pudu attempted to invade the boy's soul with the Green Lotus, but ended up losing both the lotus seeds and the lotus platform. Not to mention this presumptuous little sprout, and Li Zhuiyuan is no longer the boy he once was.

"Clap."

In reality, the Bodhi fruit between the eyebrows of the corpse fell off, and the boy opened his right hand to catch it.

The evil dragon, which also resided in the boy's right hand, poked its head out slightly and curiously rubbed against the fruit.

It wants it, but it's too embarrassed to say so, like a child tugging at their parents' sleeve while shopping and asking, "What is this thing?"

Li Zhuiyuan's gaze narrowed slightly.

The evil dragon quickly retracted into its palm.

Runsheng walked over, picked up a Yellow River shovel, and "removed" the corpse nailed to the pillar.

Tan Wenbin squatted down and carefully searched the body, but couldn't find the thickly folded Buddhist paper. However, the smell couldn't be faked, so Tan Wenbin took off the monk's robe from the corpse.

"Brother Xiaoyuan, the Buddha's paper is hidden in his clothes."

"go back."

Once the objective is achieved, it's time to stop while you're ahead.

Li Zhuiyuan climbed back onto Runsheng's back again, and the three of them left the place as quickly as possible.

The return journey took twice as long as the journey there, because the gray fog had just completed a new round of contraction, which often catalyzes a fierce battle, and the sun above also expands rapidly during this phase.

Tan Wenbin used his five senses to their fullest extent, which allowed the three of them to avoid encountering any group of monks and successfully return to the Pudu Zhenjun Temple.

Yayoi sat outside the hall, Lin Shuyou sat on the steps, and A-Li sat inside the hall.

Those who went out went smoothly, and those who stayed behind are doing well.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Brother Binbin, let's set up the formation."

Tan Wenbin: "Understood."

Sitting inside the hall, Li Zhuiyuan carefully examined the black Bodhi fruit and tried to infuse it with his soul. Black thorns sprouted from the Bodhi fruit. With further infusion of his soul, the thorns continued to grow, soon forming a circle around the boy and girl.

It's very interesting and valuable, but also quite useless.

Because its function overlaps with the Chen family domain within his body, if the young man uses it for defense, he will have to worry that if someone punches or slashes him, the recoil will push the thorns and turn him into a hedgehog first.

However, if it is not used as a purely defensive tool, it can have surprising effects.

Li Zhuiyuan spread out his right hand, signaling the evil dragon to fly out.

The evil dragon, already sensing something was amiss, showed shyness and fawning towards the boy, its body trembling with excitement.

Li Zhuiyuan threw out the Bodhi fruit, and the evil dragon flew out with a "whoosh" and swallowed the fruit.

The evil dragon is a spirit; after it swallows the fruit, it can still see the black Bodhi seed through its translucent body.

Li Zhuiyuan formed hand seals, channeling karmic fire and concentrating it on the evil dragon.

The evil dragon convulsed violently, experiencing both pain and pleasure.

The Bodhi fruit took root and sprouted inside the evil dragon's body, and black thorns continued to extend outward. First, black thorny skin formed on the surface of the evil dragon's body, and then sharp thorns stood up, making it look even more ferocious.

Li Zhuiyuan's fingertips first pointed downwards, then rose upwards.

The evil dragon lunged at that spot and then lifted its body.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

From where Li Zhuiyuan was sitting all the way to the steps of the palace gate, a long strip of floor tiles collapsed, and dust filled the air.

"Roar!"

The evil dragon let out an excited growl. At this moment, it was no longer a simple spirit, but had been given a physical form in another way.

Li Zhuiyuan bent the five fingers of his right hand and activated the recall.

The evil dragon turned around, its sharp spikes retracted, and its black thorn skin shed, returning it to its spiritual form. However, this time, the integration was a bit slow, and it was still somewhat unaccustomed to it.

With another flick of his hand, the evil dragon flew out again, its long body swirling around him like a black chain covered in barbs.

After absorbing the black Bodhi fruit, the evil dragon not only gained the means of physical attack, but could also circle around the boy at crucial moments to help him resist attacks.

Li Zhuiyuan bent his five fingers, and having learned from his previous experience, the evil dragon quickly retracted everything and returned to his palm with great ease.

Ah Li pulled out all the Buddhist paper from inside the kasaya and arranged them neatly.

Its thickness is equivalent to that of a book.

The creation of Buddha paper originated with Emperor Wu of Liang. However, due to the Hou Jing Rebellion, its production method was lost long ago. It can be said that every piece that survives is a treasure. Unfortunately, it encountered a guy like Wei Zhengdao who liked to write and draw on treasures, which turned the treasures into unique items.

If nothing unexpected happens, what Sun Baishen has here should be the last piece of Buddhist paper in the world.

Li Zhuiyuan couldn't bear to use it to write in his diary.

The boy divided the stack of Buddha paper into two-thirds for himself and left one-third for the girl.

Ah Li pursed her lips.

The boy had no choice but to take some out from in front of him and put it back, and everyone waited to share.

The girl smiled.

Li Zhuiyuan took out the "Evil Book," which had only one sheet left, and placed it in the middle.

The woman looked left in the first frame, then right in the next, and in the third frame, she excitedly knelt down before Li Zhuiyuan and A Li.

She knew what was about to happen; for her, it was nothing short of a rebirth.

Moreover, two contemporary feng shui masters will be working together to serve him.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Do it your way."

The woman understood, and soon, black and white ink splashes appeared in her painting, creating a unique artistic effect.

Li Zhuiyuan invoked the power of feng shui and infused it into the first piece of Buddha paper in front of him.

The woman changed to another ink painting. Ah Li glanced at it and began to activate the power of feng shui, channeling it into the Buddha paper in front of her.

After Li Zhuiyuan finishes "carving" a piece, the Buddha's paper will be lifted by an invisible wind and fall below the white paper where the woman is, and the woman will then give the next splash of ink and brush.

This is the woman's new home, and she should design it herself for the best effect. Her home is also Li Zhuiyuan's prison, torture chamber, slaughterhouse, and disguise device... Li Zhuiyuan believes in the evil nature of the "Evil Book" and believes that she will prepare for any use he can think of, and she can also prepare for any use he has not yet thought of.

And so, one drawing after another, one stack after another, time continued to pass.

With the sun high in the sky, it's not easy to perceive the passage of time.

Finally, all the Buddha images were carved and piled up under the white paper.

Ah Li got up and took out Jianlibao from her bag.

The white paper containing the "evil book" spontaneously combusted, turning into blue smoke that seeped into the Buddha-patterned paper below. Without needing to be bound, the Buddha-patterned paper stuck together on its own.

The first piece of Buddhist paper was used as the cover of "The Evil Book." In the distance was the entrance of a temple, and nearby, a stream babbled. On a rock sat a voluptuous and charming nun, her bare feet wading in the water.

When Ah Li returned with the drink, the cover had changed rapidly. She even aged it herself, turning it into an ordinary old-fashioned book with the title "Li, the Corpse Retriever of Nantong".

When it comes to manipulating people's hearts, "The Evil Book" has always been a master, and it can always make you very satisfied. But the paradox here is that if Li Zhuiyuan really treats it as one of his own, or just as a person, then "The Evil Book's" loyalty to the boy will actually decrease.

The owner of this Zhenjun Temple once made this mistake.

Ah Li sat down again and began to peruse the "Evil Book," making final checks and filling in any gaps.

The boy carried a drink out of the hall and inspected the formation.

Tan Wenbin: "Brother Xiaoyuan, the basic part of the formation is almost set up. Next, we need to start connecting it. We've basically used all the mechanical formation materials we brought in our backpacks this time."

Once the connecting part is completed, it means that the inside and outside are officially isolated. Even if Li Zhuiyuan and others want to go out, they will have to destroy the formation and waste these precious formation materials.

Because when Li Zhuiyuan designed this formation, in pursuit of higher defense, he didn't design any "doors and windows" at all.

"Brother Binbin, let's continue with the setup."

Once everything is set up, we can relax and wait for the final battle.

However, these words can only be thought in one's heart and cannot be spoken. The "Code of Conduct for Walking Along the River" clearly states that one should never say "unlucky" words at any time.

It's not that there's anything taboo about these words, but rather that saying such things proves that you've already become complacent.

However, things in this world are ultimately unpredictable, and some unexpected events seem destined to happen, regardless of whether you have done everything perfectly.

A thick golden beam of light rose into the sky. This kind of upside-down golden meteor is very common in this Zhenjun Temple. The thicker the golden beam, the stronger the Buddha-nature of the deceased monk during his lifetime.

This should have been a good thing, as it meant that a powerful opponent had passed away first, reducing one of the variables in the future decisive battle.

However, this golden light was different; as it ascended, it transformed into a figure sitting cross-legged.

Yayoi sensed it and said, "It's Grandmaster Sora."

Lin Shuyou: "Master, the monks of your Qinglong Temple are indeed different. They can still be handsome even after death."

Yayoi: "But my great-uncle, Master Kūhō, passed away right before my eyes. I did not witness this."

Li Zhuiyuan: "He must have taken the initiative to pass away, voluntarily giving up his Buddha-nature, so that he could still retain some consciousness during the process of merging into the Buddha-nature."

Yayoi: "Amitabha, something is amiss."

Li Zhuiyuan: "It's not strange, it's an unexpected turn of events."

Just then, the golden figure in the sky opened its eyes a moment before it was about to merge into the sun.

Its gaze looked down upon all living beings below.

At that moment, many monks were looking up at him, but none of them could meet his gaze.

Because Master Kongmu wasn't looking at people, his gaze pierced through the last illusion his senior brother was in before becoming a Buddha, and saw the Pudu Zhenjun Hall, which at this time "did not exist."

In a corner below, six senior monks of the Kong generation from Qinglong Temple are meditating.

Master Kongxin had the best appearance and maintained the best condition. Masters Kongming and Konghui, who were on his left and right, had dirty and torn robes, but their demeanor was steady.

Kongcheng and Kongsheng's bodies were cracked, like porcelain that had long been broken, barely held together and about to collapse at any moment. Kongmu, the monk between the two, was bleeding from his seven orifices.

In the battle against the monks of Faping Temple, the situation, which should have been going smoothly, took a dramatic turn due to Xuanzhen's outburst. In order to break the siege of the six monks of Qinglong Temple, Xuanzhen went mad and caused the lava on the sun to fall.

Kongcheng and Master Kongsheng used themselves as a shield to protect their three fellow disciples from all the scorching lava.

In fact, the six monks could have shared the damage. Even if Kongcheng and Kongsheng had shared more, it would have only resulted in physical collapse. They could have exchanged their cultivation for a peaceful retirement.

But in the current environment, rather than becoming a crippled cripple, it's better to die completely and preserve the status of my fellow disciples as much as possible.

So at that time, the two monks did not hesitate at all and chose to sacrifice themselves for their fellow disciples.

Master Kongmu forced his way out as the lava fell, his soul leaving his body to unleash a powerful attack on Xuanzhen, which resulted in his soul being severely eroded by the lava.

If it were at Qinglong Temple, one could use the various resources within the temple to make amends, but here, there is nothing that can be done; one can only watch helplessly as one's soul dissolves and dissipates.

Although it's not far off when the gray fog shrinks to its limit and the final battle begins, it will still take some time. This time will be enough for Kongmu to degenerate into a severely injured person who can't help at all.

Since it will ultimately be useless, we might as well maximize its usefulness while it's still in good condition.

Master Kongmu activated a secret technique by voluntarily passing away, allowing his senior brother Kongxin to "see" the path ahead.

The Hollow Master lowered his eyes, still unable to understand why Xuanzhen would do something so crazy.

If Xuanzhen had the confidence to withstand the magma unscathed and kill all six of them in one fell swoop, then the hollow-hearted one would be understandable.

Unfortunately, Xuanzhen himself was severely injured in the magma at that time, and the attack from his junior brother Kongmu at the critical moment caused Xuanzhen's bones, which were the source of his existence, to crack even more severely.

So, that guy, like he'd lost his mind, made such a huge commotion just to fight us to the death?

"Ugh……"

Master Kongxin sighed. Originally, with all seven monks present, even if they were subject to Sun Baishen's rules, they could handle any situation with caution. However, the two unexpected events caused them to lose their right to sit back and relax.

However, Sun Baishen's targeting of them did not stop despite the loss of his own people. After leaving the lava, he clearly felt that Sun Baishen was still consciously guiding the other monks toward them.

In other words, they will continue to fight until the end, but even a large number of ants can kill an elephant.

At this moment, we cannot allow the situation to continue to deteriorate; we must make a drastic decision.

Kongmu: "I saw a place that doesn't exist yet. That should be the final destination of the gray fog. Senior brothers, you can go there first to set up an array to block outsiders and wait for the final battle."

Hollow: "Junior brother, take care."

Kongmu: "I am fortunate to be able to join my senior brother on the path to Buddhahood."

Kong Cheng Kong Sheng: "We are very fortunate."

The essence blood within Kongmu's body flew out and seeped into the robe on Kongxin's body, making it even more crimson. His body remained intact, providing a source of essence blood.

Kong Cheng and Kong Sheng extracted their souls and merged them into the hollow wrist prayer beads. The prayer beads became more restrained and steady, faintly exuding an ancient charm. Their bodies shattered, but their souls remained intact.

After doing all this, Kongmu's body withered into a dried corpse, completely losing its vitality; Kongcheng and Kongsheng's bodies shattered and slid to the ground, their Buddha-nature withdrawn.

The remaining three monks put their hands together in prayer and said in unison, "Amitabha."

Hollow: "Junior brother sacrificed himself to see the way forward for us. I never expected that there would be such a hidden 'Shangri-La' in this True Lord Temple. Let's go there now, avoid all the troubles ahead, and wait for Xuanzhen."

Kongming: "Xuanzhen has been fighting his way here, and he will definitely be further weakened."

Kong Hui: "We are well-rested and ready to fight. In the next battle, we will surely slay this fiend and present it as a tribute to our senior brother's attainment of Buddhahood!"

Hollow Heart: "Becoming a Buddha is not my intention, but I absolutely cannot give up this opportunity to become a Buddha to that wicked monk with evil intentions."

……

Li Zhuiyuan: "He saw this."

Tan Wenbin: "Brother Xiaoyuan, let's hurry up and finish setting up the formation. Maybe we can still make it in time."

Li Zhuiyuan: "There's no need to set it up. I've said before that this formation can stop others, but it can't stop them. At most, it can stop them for a while, but that's meaningless."

If we keep them outside, the noise they make while breaking through the formation will surely attract the attention of others; furthermore, this place is a safe house as long as we are the only ones who know about it, but once it is made public, it will become a target of everyone's ire.

I was naive, thinking I could conserve my strength until the very end before going all out, and I underestimated the abilities of these seasoned veterans.

Let's stop setting up the formation for now and save some materials. We can close this place up later.

"Binbin, do you remember what we did back in Lijiang?"

Tan Wenbin: "I remember."

In the Lijiang wave, they first risked their lives to kill Xu Yijin, who was capable of traversing the river alone. Then, everyone was unconscious and recuperating in the guesthouse where Brother Xiaoyuan had set up an array. After their injuries had mostly healed, they entered the next stage of that wave and headed to the Snow Mountain Underground Palace.

Tan Wenbin: "Brother Xiaoyuan, you mean if we don't stop them, they'll just sneak in quietly, and then..."

Li Zhuiyuan:
"Let's fight this battle to the death right here!"

(End of this chapter)