"Pallbearers?"
Lin Zhao's brow furrowed. "Over a hundred years ago, the Ghost Domain dispatched a large number of ghost race puppets to participate in the war, even using five hundred and thirty thousand Yunzhou iron cavalry to build ten Jingguan. At that time, it should have been the Ghost Domain's elite forces all out, but as far as I know, the Pallbearer lineage didn't appear at all. Why?"
"That's unknown."
Shu Zhi's red lips parted slightly. "But from some information I've gathered, the ancestor of the Pallbearer lineage actually came from the Daoist sect. Driving away ghosts and avoiding evil is their specialty. Some Daoists even began refining corpses and raising ghosts, and later gradually went astray, thus giving rise to the Pallbearer lineage. The Pallbearer lineage was not tolerated by the human world's cultivators, and after being expelled by many mountain sects, they went to the Ghost Domain. They didn't appear in the great war a hundred years ago, most likely because they were still in seclusion. As for why they are appearing now, that is also unknown."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath. "Pallbearers, zombies, vengeful spirits – their combined combat power is not to be underestimated. Order the entire Snow Domain Heavenly Pond to strengthen its defenses and be ready to repel the Pallbearers' attack on the mountain at any time."
"Yes, my lord!"
...
Under the starry sky, along the ridge of Jiuzhangyuan, figures kept flashing out. There were men and women, as well as some elderly individuals. Each person carried a coffin on their back. The coffins were adorned with yellow talismans, bound with chicken blood ink lines. Their realms varied, but the highest was that of the young girl in the qipao, who was in the Star River realm. The rest were mostly between the sixth and ninth realms, all of them Flowing Gold level, Earth level Bosses!
North Mountain, midway up the slope.
After resurrecting, Yi Shi Cang Liang and a group of Cang Long guild players took a short rest in the camp. Many of them had lost equipment in Jiuzhangyuan, with their chests, arms, or legs showing empty slots. They could only take out spare Golden or Silver grade equipment from their bags to temporarily fill the gaps. Overall, these 100+ Cang Long players were in a rather sorry state.
Lin Zhao rode his horse over.
"Did you see it just now?" Yi Shi Cang Liang asked.
"I did."
Lin Zhao dismounted and nodded, then sat down on a rock beside Yi Shi Cang Liang, casting his gaze into the distance. "It was too tragic. They were almost wiped out by a Star River realm Pallbearer."
A look of shame appeared on Yi Shi Cang Liang's face. "Heavenly grade Bosses, two hits and they kill you. Who can withstand that? Even if you brought the Crimson Moon Knights here, the outcome would likely be the same."
"Mm."
Lin Zhao nodded. "Heavenly grade Bosses are currently impossible for players to conquer unless they are meticulously prepared. This Star River realm Pallbearer Boss was never meant for you Cang Long to tackle."
"Indeed."
Yi Shi Cang Liang said dejectedly, "After arriving at the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond, I already had this realization. The protagonist of this 'World' is clearly not me or Cang Long."
Fu You Du Hai also looked dejected.
At this moment, a Cang Long sharpshooter squinted his eyes and looked into the distance. "There are so many Pallbearers on Jiuzhangyuan... they're all Flowing Gold level, Earth level Bosses. In White Emperor City, major guilds would tear each other apart to snatch an Earth level Boss. Here, there are seventy to eighty Earth level Bosses crowded together, and no one dares to engage them. Sigh..."
"How can we fight them?"
Yi Shi Cang Liang frowned. "A Nascent Soul realm Pallbearer also leads a Nascent Soul realm zombie and a Nascent Soul realm vengeful spirit. Three in one. To fight them is like fighting three Earth level Bosses. With our team's strength, let's forget it. No need to bring humiliation upon ourselves."
"You're right."
The Cang Long members hung their heads in dejection.
Just then, the sound of horse hooves echoed from the mountainside, and then seventy to eighty players from the Cang Knight Order appeared in their sight. Their alliance leader, Li Cang Hai, clad in armor glowing with orange light, rode a spirited horse past the Vermillion Bird camp. His brows were tightly furrowed. Seeing Yi Shi Cang Liang and Bai Yi, his heart chilled, and he forced a smile. "The leaders of Cang Long and the Crimson Moon Knights are all gathered here?"
"Hmph!"
Yi Shi Cang Liang chuckled. "Li Cang Hai, here for the soup?"
"What kind of talk is that?"
Beside Li Cang Hai, Xi He Da Guo Kui chuckled. "The Snow Domain Heavenly Pond is a public map, after all. We can't just allow Cang Long and the Crimson Moon Knights to eat meat while prohibiting our Cang Knight Order from having a sip of soup, can we?"
Saying this, he glanced north and was immediately alarmed. He spoke in a low voice on the team channel. "Leader, do you see it? The red dots in the direction of Jiuzhangyuan are so dense. Each red dot is a Flowing Gold level, Earth level Boss. Our long journey to the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond was indeed worth it."
"Mm."
Li Cang Hai narrowed his eyes and smiled. "It's just... why is Yi Shi Cang Liang standing here with over a hundred elites from the Cang Long guild, not making a move?"
"They probably failed their previous attempt and are resting." Da Feng Novel Network.
Xi He Da Guo Kui said in a deep voice, "There's no time to delay. Let's set off quickly and start from the Flowing Gold level Bosses at the edge of Jiuzhangyuan, pushing forward little by little. With our team's strength, it would be a disgrace if we don't take down more than 20 Bosses today. We might even get an Earth grade item each."
Li Cang Hai couldn't help but smile. "Alright, enough talk. Let's go, let's start the assault. Be careful later, the Bosses in the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond are different from those in Heavenly Mechanism City and White Emperor City. They won't be so obedient."
"Yes!"
Then, Li Cang Hai nodded at Lin Zhao and Yi Shi Cang Liang and smiled. "Our Cang Knight Order will make the first move."
"Go ahead."
Yi Shi Cang Liang replied, "Indeed, you'll make the first move."
"???"
Li Cang Hai didn't understand the deeper meaning behind his words, but he still led his men down the mountain. Without hiding their intentions, they descended the mountain, passed through a snow forest, and headed straight for Jiuzhangyuan.
...
The cold wind howled around them like the wails of vengeful spirits. Li Cang Hai rode at the very front of the group, and the further he went, the more uneasy he felt. He always felt a chilling atmosphere around them. Even some of the female players in the team frowned, looking a bit scared. The male players nearby immediately gathered around them, showing concern.
"Everyone be careful!"
Li Cang Hai drew his sword with a clang, entering a state of alert.
But at that moment, a "rustling" sound came from the snow forest beside them. It sounded like someone was hopping through the snow, their footsteps rhythmic. The next moment, a dark figure appeared in the night sky, clad in the official uniform of the Great Shang Dynasty, exuding a dense corpse aura. It let out a beast-like roar at Li Cang Hai's group.
"Careful, it's a zombie!"
Li Cang Hai directly charged forward with a sword qi collision, shouting, "Formation masters, immediately set up restrictions to enhance attack and defense! Healers, apply buffs! Melee fighters, don't rush in. Release control skills in sequence. Heavy armor in front, leather armor in the middle, cloth armor in the back, forming a tiered defensive structure. Let's take down this zombie Boss first!"
In terms of command, Li Cang Hai's words were impeccable.
But the next moment, a figure descended from the sky. It was an old man carrying a coffin, a Nascent Soul realm Earth level Boss. He stomped his feet, hitting more than half of the health of a group of Cang Knight Order heavy armored players. Then, he grabbed a corner of the coffin behind him and swept it out like a blunt weapon. There was a deafening noise, and the Cang Knight Order members were sent flying, countless white lights rising.
"Come out, kill the enemy!"
The old Pallbearer patted the lid of the coffin, and a blood-red vengeful spirit lunged forth, instantly killing two Star River realm mages. Their health bars were almost instantly evaporated. The zombie he had refined was a Nascent Soul realm green zombie with skin as hard as iron. Under the fierce onslaught of Li Cang Hai and Xi He Da Guo Kui, it barely lost any health. Facing the combined assault of two level 115 Earth level Bosses, the Cang Knight Order clearly could not withstand it.
"Don't panic!"
Li Cang Hai suddenly turned around, marking the team's attack icon on the old Pallbearer. "He's a corpse refiner. Once he's killed, the zombie and vengeful spirit will be useless. Focus fire on him and take him down!"
His strategy was sound, but their strength was insufficient.
Just as Li Cang Hai was leading his men towards the old Pallbearer, a middle-aged Pallbearer descended from the sky. He was a Golden Core realm cultivator. With a stomp of his feet, he crushed Xi He Da Guo Kui, who was at half health, to death. He then controlled a green zombie to attack the Cang Knight Order's ranged attackers. The female mages and ranger players were so terrified that their faces turned pale, and they were killed one by one by the green zombie, with almost no chance to resist.
"It's over!"
Li Cang Hai cried out, "We were careless! Everyone use invincibility and return to the city, quickly!"
With that, he was the first to activate his invincibility skill, crushed a White Emperor City return scroll, and teleported back to the city. Three other people returned to the city with invincibility along with Li Cang Hai. But the remaining people did not have invincibility skills. They could only cry out about their misfortune, and were then annihilated one by one by the two Pallbearers. In an instant, the seventy to eighty people from the Cang Knight Order who had descended the mountain were all dead, with only a handful managing to return to the city with invincibility.
...
North Mountain, the camp.
...
Lin Zhao and Yi Shi Cang Liang watched from afar, both silent. Li Cang Hai truly lived up to the saying "set out with ambition but die before even achieving success."
"What now?"
After a long while, Yi Shi Cang Liang said, "These Pallbearers seem determined to establish themselves on Jiuzhangyuan and not leave, and they also won't let us descend the mountain. If we descend, we'll likely be hunted."
"Mm."
Lin Zhao stood up. "Then let's not be in a hurry to descend. Let's lie low, and I'll find a way to resolve this."
"Alright."
...
Lin Zhao returned to the Snow Domain Army camp on North Mountain and stood at the edge of North Mountain. Beside him were Shu Zhi, Mu Gua, Chu Yu, Xiang Ji, and others. Under everyone's gaze, those Pallbearers, accompanied by their hopping zombies, marched south and ascended a small hillside only five li away from the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. The group of Pallbearers, with their backs hunched, used their sharp palms to dig into the ground. As soon as they discovered any remains buried deep in the earth, whether human or demon, they threw them into the coffins behind them.
"What are they doing?" Lin Zhao asked.
"Nurturing death qi and feeding their zombies and vengeful spirits."
Shu Zhi frowned. "This is simply too much!"
Mu Gua said, "My lord, the remains in the earth below are mostly those of human soldiers who executed the Heavenly Furnace strategy..."
"I understand."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath and said, "Chu Yu, select a thousand elite Snow Domain cavalry and descend the mountain with me. We'll go and meet these Pallbearers. Mu Gua, you stay and guard the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. Shu Zhi, be ready to provide support with the Ten Demon Soul Swords at any time. Five li is a short distance for you."
Shu Zhi nodded with a smile. "My lord, please descend the mountain and kill the enemy with peace of mind!"