Jizilin.
As night fell, the entire narrow forest valley appeared exceptionally tranquil. Within Jizilin, numerous graves were densely packed. These were the fallen subordinates of Yu Feng, tens of thousands of elite demon cavalry who had marched south on a distant expedition, only to encounter Lin Zhao's Snow Region Army Corps and ultimately rest here. Now, these graves seemed to hold new value.
"Swish~~~"
A radiant figure landed on a giant rock within the forest. Her palm exuded a ghostly aura. She wore a qipao, her jade-like legs were long and fair, her face as beautiful as peach blossoms, and her chest was full and prominent, drawing significant attention. However, the group of coffin bearers surrounding her dared not look directly at her. After all, despite her youth and beauty, this Ancestor of the Coffin Bearers was ruthless. Anyone who dared to gaze at her legs too long might have their eyeballs gouged out.
"Ding Chunqiu."
Tan Xin let her long jade legs dangle from the rock, swaying in the wind. She narrowed her beautiful eyes, looking at a group of players in the distance, and said with a smile, "It has been difficult for you, finding this Jizilin. The death aura here is indeed strong, and these are the buried bodies of demon cavalry who were exceptionally vigorous in physique and spiritual power during their lives. Hmph, many of these demon cavalry soldiers who were in the middle five realms are top-grade embryos for refining corpses. You have rendered great service this time!"
Ding Chunqiu immediately knelt on one knee, clasped his fists, and said in a deep voice, "It is my honor to serve you, Master. Your strength is my strength. I understand this simple principle."
Tan Xin nodded and smiled, "Since that is the case, I shall bestow upon you a fortuitous encounter!"
"Ah?!"
Ding Chunqiu was overjoyed, "Many thanks, Ancestor!"
Tan Xin took out a pale golden manual from her embrace and threw it directly before Ding Chunqiu, saying, "This is the art of carrying coffins and refining corpses. If you are capable of fully comprehending this book, you too can become a legendary coffin bearer. You were a sword cultivator before. Now, by joining the lineage of coffin bearers and becoming a coffin-bearing sword cultivator, your combat power will undoubtedly be much stronger than before."
Ding Chunqiu was so moved that he was on the verge of tears, "Many thanks, Master! Many thanks, Master!"
As he spoke, he hastily put away the skill book, his heart filled with immense joy. Indeed, blending into background storylines required a sharp mind, otherwise, how could one get by? If he hadn't been diligent enough to read the game's official website more thoroughly, he wouldn't have discovered that Lin Zhao had intercepted the demon cavalry in Jizilin previously, and naturally, he wouldn't have known that the corpses of twenty to thirty thousand demon cavalry were buried here.
"The rest of you."
Tan Xin looked at the crowd behind Ding Chunqiu and said lightly, "I will bestow upon you copies of the coffin-bearing technique. Although your combat power might not be as strong as originally after mastering it, it's alright, it won't be too much weaker. Cultivate diligently. If you join our lineage of coffin bearers, I will certainly not treat you poorly!"
"Many thanks, Ancestor!"
Hundreds of players from 'All Villains' prostrated themselves in unison. Immediately, Tan Xin raised her hand, and countless dark golden skill books fell before them, making them feel as if they had found a treasure.
...
Not long after, on the outskirts of Jizilin.
"Hoo..."
Ding Chunqiu took a deep breath, finally completing the cultivation of the manual. The next moment, with a "snap," a red lacquered wooden coffin appeared behind him. He immediately felt his body slightly sink. The price of carrying a coffin was a 30% reduction in agility, but attributes such as strength, spiritual power, and stamina were each increased by 15%. It could be said that apart from lacking flexibility, his entire body had been strengthened. Furthermore, a 'Corpse Refining' option appeared in his personal panel, allowing him to refine a zombie to assist in battle.
"Damn, awesome!"
Ding Chunqiu patted it lightly and said with a smile, "Brothers, I can refine corpses now. This corpse refining system does not conflict with the illusion armor system. From now on, we'll be even more formidable!"
"Comfortable!"
Vice-leader Ji Mogui narrowed his eyes and said with a smile, "We must intensify our efforts to improve our strength. Everyone, carry your coffins, refine a zombie first, and then it's time to cause trouble for other guilds."
"That's right, damn it!"
A level 109 sharpshooter frowned and said, "Especially that dog Su Xinghe. Relying on his strong dueling ability, he often charges deep alone to kill our people. Sometimes, he can even fight our entire team of twenty by himself. Once we all carry coffins, we'll settle the score with Su Xinghe and make sure he never returns."
"Yes, that's it!"
Ding Chunqiu sneered, "Su Xinghe thinks he's eliminating evil for the good of the people by killing players from 'All Villains,' seeing it as the righteous path. If that's the case, then don't blame us for being impolite. We'll start with him, Su Xinghe, first, and let the human players know our power. From now on, they'll have to fear our lineage of coffin bearers when they venture into the martial world."
As he spoke, his eyes were filled with longing, and he smiled, "With the nourishment of the death aura from Jizilin, my master should be able to break through to the eleventh realm within a few days. At that time, an eleventh-realm coffin bearer will be simply invincible. We won't need to fear players from Fusu Great Wall or Snow Region Heavenly Pool anymore. We'll face whatever comes our way, who's afraid of whom?!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Ding Chunqiu then turned to look at a grave. With the skill enhancement, his eyes could see through the bones within the grave. It was an eighth-realm demon martial artist, already quite strong. He smiled and said, "That grave is mine. Refining an eighth-realm martial artist zombie will probably take a long time. You all keep up the good work. Once you've finished refining, we can retaliate in kind!"
"Yes, Guild Leader!"
A group of players were full of ambition.
...
Early morning.
Gu Lingyu went to Snow Region Heavenly Pool and spoke about Wang Yue's situation before returning to the academy. Lin Zhao, however, frowned. That foolish girl Wang Yue was still in the dark. So, he came to Wang Yue's residence late at night. It was a small house on the mountainside, not large, but neatly kept. Small flowers were planted in front of the house, and a cage of chickens was raised. In fact, Wang Yue was originally a cheerful girl. If it weren't for that drastic event, she would have lived a good life.
"Wang Yue, are you asleep?"
Lin Zhao stood outside the door and said softly, "If you're not asleep, I'd like to have a chat with you."
"Mountain Lord."
Wang Yue came out wearing a coat, her beautiful eyes filled with surprise, "What's wrong?"
"Accompany me for a walk?"
"Okay, Mountain Lord!"
She smiled, put on her clothes, then cupped her fists towards Lin Zhao, and together they walked up the stone steps towards the summit. Above them, moonlight cascaded down, enveloping the two of them. After Lin Zhao relayed what Gu Lingyu had said, Wang Yue's expression became horrified, "How could this be... I didn't notice anything at all."
"Of course, you wouldn't notice."
Lin Zhao smiled, "After all, you are only a warrior in the lower five realms. It would be truly bizarre if you could easily sense the aura of an eleventh-realm great demon. Moreover, it was a Mist Demon skilled at concealing its presence. It's normal that you didn't notice anything."
"This..."
Wang Yue frowned and said, "Mountain Lord, should I prepare some gifts to thank Mr. Gu?"
"No need."
Lin Zhao shook his head and smiled, "Although Lingyu lives in the Hefeng Academy at the foot of the mountain, he is actually from the same lineage as our Mountaintop Villa. For him to call me Little Uncle-Master means he's one of us. Since he's one of us, there's no need for politeness or to thank him excessively. Besides, he doesn't lack your gifts. Lingyu is worried that the demon race might make further moves."
"Ah?"
Wang Yue's delicate eyebrows furrowed.
"After all, you have a Pure Jade Body." Lin Zhao said, "According to Lingyu, for demons, ghost cultivators, and other unorthodox paths, the Pure Jade Body is an excellent vessel. Once they possess your body, their cultivation can become twice as effective with half the effort. Therefore, we on Mountaintop Villa must be more vigilant."
Wang Yue nodded, "Mountain Lord, please tell me, I will listen to you."
"En."
In the blink of an eye, the two of them had reached the summit. From here, they could overlook the peaks and gaze towards the direction of the demon race. Lin Zhao frowned and said, "From today onwards, you are not to leave Mountaintop Villa, especially do not go to Beishan to practice martial arts. Stay within Mountaintop Villa. Mountaintop Villa has a sword formation restriction set by Wu Zhi, so demons below the twelfth realm cannot harm you. And if a great demon of the twelfth realm or above were to ascend the mountain, Wu Zhi, Mu Ya, and Tang Guangjun would handle it."
"Okay."
Wang Yue nodded, but then bit her lip. Her beautiful eyes looked at Lin Zhao, "Mountain Lord... Brother Lin Zhao, do I still have a chance for revenge? Can I... still have a chance to reach the upper five realms in this lifetime?"
"Keep hope in your heart."
Lin Zhao looked at her, his smile gentle, "Whether you can reach the upper five realms or not, this revenge must be taken. It's just that now is not the time, as you are too weak."
"I know."
Wang Yue nodded heavily, "I also want to become stronger as soon as possible, so I practice martial arts relentlessly, even to the point of not sleeping. It's just... the path of martial arts is too profound. The more I rush, the less I seem to grasp it."
"You cannot rush, take it slow."
Lin Zhao said, "You've only been on the mountain for a short time, and you've already reached your current realm. In fact, it's quite good. Your progress is even faster than in my previous life."
"Really?"
"Really."
Looking at her beautiful face in the moonlight, Lin Zhao felt a sense of daze. What a wonderful girl she was. She shouldn't have had to endure all of that.
"Brother Lin Zhao..."
Wang Yue pursed her red lips and said, "Sometimes, I wake up in the middle of the night and miss my father and mother. I recall when they were alive, and sometimes in my dreams, it seems like they are still alive, as if I can return to them. But when I wake up and know it's impossible, I feel particularly sad..."
"It's the same for everyone."
Lin Zhao looked up at the moonlight, his eyes slightly red, "Don't I miss my father and mother too? It's just... I can barely remember what they looked like."
Thinking of this, Lin Zhao turned to look at Wang Yue and smiled, "Wang Yue, I make you a promise. Once you become a fifth-realm warrior, I will accompany you south. We will go to your hometown, Furong Prefecture, and pay respects to your parents, okay?"
"Mhm!"
Wang Yue nodded repeatedly, tears welling up in her beautiful eyes.