Da Xuan Martial Saint

Chapter 287 Underground

Step, step, step.

Among the ruins, Chen Mu walked step by step. Everywhere he passed, the corpses of Martial Artists and disciples from the Heavenly Corpse Sect, refined or not, were all shattered to pieces, with occasional trinkets and such falling from their bodies. However, the quality of these objects was too inferior. Chen Mu glanced over them and had no interest in picking them up.

It wasn't until he passed by the body of a protector of the Heavenly Corpse Sect that, after the Yuan Gang True Essence shattered the corpse, a jet-black bottle fell out. That's when Chen Mu finally extended his hand and called out. A trace of invisible Qi Force grasped it and brought it into his hand.

He removed the lid.

A rich Evil Qi emanated from within the bottle.

"Earth Fiend Essence."

With just one glance, Chen Mu recognized what was inside and promptly put the lid back on.

This was not a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Item but something refined from the Earth's Veins. Its uses were not limited to corpse refinement; it could also be utilized in refining Spirit Weapons or even in Body Refining, including some unique formations that consumed such substances.

This was considered a 'hard currency' item that could easily be traded, even outside the Seven Profound Sect, through various black-market channels. Refining a single bottle required a great deal of effort, and its value was about half of that of a warm-nurturing Spiritual Object.

Without even delving deep into the sect's stores, Chen Mu already found valuables on the bodies. His mood momentarily improved. Currently, he still lacked warm-nurturing Spiritual Objects. Primarily, such items were hard to come by. The Seven Profound Sect's stock wasn't plentiful and had already been exhausted by his trades. Now that he had come to Ice State, it was possible to negotiate with the Ice Extreme Palace. Discover stories at My Virtual Library Empire

If it were usual times, seeking trades with Ice Extreme Palace certainly wouldn't be as cost-effective as exchanging with the Seven Profound Sect. Although Ice Extreme Palace conducted some trade externally, when it came to Spiritual Objects, their prices would definitely be higher. But now, with Ice State in turmoil and Ice Extreme Palace forced to cooperate with the Seven Profound Sect, even though the terms of their agreement remained unknown, they would mutually benefit from each other for the time being.

"Brother Chen."

While Chen Mu was inspecting the remains of the ruins, Shen Lin also returned from another direction. She, too, had gone to pursue and kill some of the Heavenly Corpse Sect disciples. After all, she was once a remarkable presence among the Inner Sect Disciples and had now stepped into the Five Viscera Realm, capable of overcoming Evil Corpses and confident in retreating from a Mysterious Corpse. In the chaos when the Heavenly Corpse Sect scattered, she pursued and killed some of the weaker ones.

Chen Mu looked toward Shen Lin approaching and nodded slightly, saying, "Sister Shen, you've done well."

Upon receiving Chen Mu's praise, Shen Lin couldn't help but smile and said, "It's all thanks to Brother Chen's strength. If you hadn't arrived so promptly, I wouldn't have dared to chase this far."

At this point,

She paused and added, "There are still a few Heavenly Corpse Sect disciples that escaped from my side."

"It's of no consequence,"

Chen Mu said indifferently, "Those who escaped are insignificant characters who can't stir any trouble. We can slowly exterminate them later on. Besides, even if they've escaped, with the corpse refinement destroyed abruptly and their secret refining ground lost, they lack means to pose any threat... Sister Shen, you've arrived at a good time. Help me clean up a bit."

"Yes."

Shen Lin obediently nodded, then began to help Chen Mu clean up the corpses.

Before long, Meng Danyun also made her way back. Her eyes fell on the Heavenly Corpse Sect stronghold, and after carefully examining the outskirts, she said, "The Heavenly Corpse Sect must have been entrenched here for at least a decade or two; otherwise, they wouldn't have accumulated such dense Evil Corpse Qi. However, they collapsed the underground formation earlier, and now everything below is covered with Corpse Fiend, which makes it difficult to go down."

True to their style, the real stronghold of the Heavenly Corpse Sect wasn't in the valley but rather underground.

It's just that during Chen Mu's fierce attack, the protectors within the Heavenly Corpse Sect stronghold, seeing no way to cope and unable to hold back, had no choice but to collapse the Earth Fiend Formation, releasing all the Corpse Fiends. Although Chen Mu had eradicated a section of them, once out of control, they again dispersed into the underground, mingling with the Power of the Earth, causing the area within several miles to be enveloped in a dense and gloomy atmosphere.

Martial Artists below the Five Viscera Realm might not even need to go underground; just staying in this type of environment for an extended period would damage their bodies.

However, all three individuals present, even Shen Lin, had stepped into the Five Viscera Realm and could afford to linger at the edges with no harm.

"No problem, we'll clean up as we go in."

Chen Mu glanced down at the ground, his expression unchanged.

Even the gathered Corpse Fiends, when manipulated by the protector of the Heavenly Corpse Sect, didn't frighten him at all. Now, dispersed into the Earth's Veins, they counted for even less. Although the ground below appeared to have collapsed extensively in his perception, it did not affect his intention to explore further.

With Shen Lin and Meng Danyun clearing up the debris, Chen Mu didn't bother with the ordinary corpses. He only cleaned up the bodies of the protectors and stewards of the Heavenly Corpse Sect he remembered slaying. He found a small amount of materials for refining Corpse Fiends, which each had their value, but they weren't as versatile as the Earth Fiend Essence, resulting in a relatively limited use and consequently impacted the value.

After a brief cleanup of the bodies of several protectors and stewards, Chen Mu walked toward the interior of the Heavenly Corpse Sect stronghold, no longer looking for an entrance to the underground. His entire being stepped forward. Despite it being firm, snow-covered ground, it was as if a downward staircase had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, allowing him to step down progressively.

It wasn't until Chen Mu's figure disappeared underground, leaving no holes or pits where he entered, the ground remained covered in frost and snow as if what descended was merely a phantom and not a tangible body of flesh and blood.

This scene left Shen Lin astonished for a moment, causing her to actually run over to the spot where Chen Mu had gone underground to step around a bit, only to find no secret passages leading down, her footsteps still on solid ground.

It was Meng Danyun who noticed something more profound.

"Junior Brother Chen's Qiankun Artistic Conception has reached such a level, no wonder Situ Shu is no match for him,"

She too went over to the spot where Chen Mu had disappeared and, after carefully investigating, was somewhat awestruck. Although she also knew of the Qiankun Eight Phases, the law that utilizes all things, Chen Mu's current display of Artistic Conception far surpassed her own mastery.

Even though she had only comprehended the Artistic Conceptions of Xun Wind and Kan Water and had stepped into the Six Viscera Realm earlier than Chen Mu, focusing more of her energy on these two Artistic Conceptions, the gap between them had not narrowed but rather, it only grew wider.

To think that Chen Mu was practicing the complete Qiankun Artistic Conception, each advancement was far more difficult compared to her Wind and Water.

With Chen Mu's terrifying aptitude, perhaps in not even a decade or two, he might be able to comprehend the Qiankun Domain. By then, he would surely top the Wind Cloud List, and even if he doesn't become a Grandmaster, he could potentially rival the likes of Feng Hongsheng and Shi Zhenyong.

...

Underground.

Multi-colored lights flowed around Chen Mu, with the Qiankun Eight Phases circulating and covering every inch of his body, turning the mud and rock layers he passed through seemingly into 'void', unable to impede his steps.

He continued downwards for more than ten yards until he finally entered a cavern.

The cavern was filled with traces of collapse, and grey mists weaved through the air. The thick presence of Corpse Fiend enveloped the surroundings. As soon as Chen Mu stepped in, it sensed the breath of the living and swarmed towards him as if in attack.

But Chen Mu showed no change in expression, flicking his hand casually. The Power of Qiankun flowed and interwove, streaking through the void in a flash, causing the surging Corpse Fiend to emit a hissing noise as it dissolved and dissipated into nothing.

Chen Mu paid it no mind and took a few steps forward. After crossing through a collapsed ruin, he saw a figure wearing the black cloak of the Heavenly Corpse Sect lying sideways ahead within the dense grey Corpse Fiend. Underneath the cloak was nothing but a pitch-black skeleton, flesh and blood already dissolved by the Corpse Fiend. It seemed to be a disciple of the Heavenly Corpse Sect who had not managed to escape from below when their Earth Fiend Formation had been destroyed.

Although the Heavenly Corpse Sect dealt with Corpse Refinement and Evil Qi, they were still made of flesh and blood. Ordinary disciples exposed to high concentrations of Corpse Fiend would be eroded and dissolve just the same—unless they reached the fifth realm of their Corpse Method, which corresponds to the level of the Body Refining Five Viscera Realm, where they could crudely manipulate some Corpse Fiend.

After all, only the Evil Corpse could initially Solidify Refinement of the Evil Qi, and only the Mysterious Corpse could truly control it at will.

Chen Mu paused briefly in front of the skeleton, then after a glance, he continued on his way, passing through several more collapsed areas to arrive at a somewhat more open cavern. The presence of Corpse Fiend was even stronger here, and the ground itself was in a swampy state of decay. Within the mire, there were several partially refined corpses, glowing with a gold and silver luster.

"The Corpse Refinement methods of the Heavenly Corpse Sect, despite flouting morality and ethics, could have their uses if practiced rightly... However, years of association with Corpse Fiend inevitably affect their minds, with worldly concepts fading," Chen Mu mused, shaking his head slightly.

Just like on the border of Da Xuan, where soldiers fought against the Foreign Race, if some were willing to become refined corpses after death to continue fighting at the Border Pass, that too could be a righteous path. But living in such places of Corpse Fiend for years, just like the Sky Demon Sect's cultivation of a Demon Body, would gradually lose the essence of humanity, explaining why neither path had produced truly supreme powerhouses.

Even the reputed Ninth Rank Heavenly Demons and the highest-level Heavenly Corpses of the Heavenly Corpse Sect, who almost reached the level of Blood Exchange Realm, were recorded in some historical accounts as the weakest among those in the Blood Exchange Realm.

He moved past the ruins and continued forward.

After passing through another collapsed area, Chen Mu had barely emerged when a resplendent Golden Corpse immediately lashed out at him with a punch, bringing with it a fierce gust.

Chen Mu remained unfazed. There was a time in Yu County when he first encountered Corpse Refinement, and he was already able to slay Golden Corpses. Now, such a Mysterious Golden Body was no different from an ant in his eyes. He casually slapped it away, and with the Power of Heaven and Earth invoked in his palm, he crushed the entire Golden Corpse into pulp.

Simultaneously.

Not far away, a Heavenly Corpse Sect Disciple clad in a black cloak looked at Chen Mu in horror.

He was one who hadn't managed to escape in the chaos and was trapped underground by the collapsed stronghold. Fortunately, where he was trapped, the Corpse Fiend was fainter, and he managed to survive by using some methods, but with his strength, he had no means of escape. The way up was blocked, and burrowing through was impossible. His last hope rested on remaining undiscovered until an opportunity to slowly dig his way up presented itself, though he knew the likelihood was almost nil.

"You... You..."

Witnessing Chen Mu effortlessly crush the Golden Corpse he controlled, even though it was his first time seeing Chen Mu, he realized that Chen Mu was far beyond what he could contend with, especially seeing him tread with ease through this Corpse Fiend-infested underground.

Chen Mu's gaze turned to the Heavenly Corpse Sect Disciple. His tone indifferent, he said, "Where is the Heavenly Corpse Sect's treasury? Lead the way honestly, and you can keep your life."