The Cultivator at the Refining Qi Stage Does Not Count as a True Cultivator
With a flick of his fingers, Bai Qiuran activated a glowing orb of light and stepped deeper into the darkness. "That's not its true form, merely one of its components."
"Thunder Seal." Bai Qiuran frowned in annoyance.
Tang Wei gritted his teeth, clenching his fists tightly, his body trembling with a mixture of fear and rage. "Is this enough?" he asked as he watched the monster twist its grotesque limbs in the flames, producing nauseating sounds. Yet, in moments, the fire swallowed it up mercilessly, turning it and the mountain of corpses into ash.
"Generally speaking, for self-preservation, the Corpse Mother can transform all corpses within its range into ghastly creatures, as long as only the bones are left, those don't count." Bai Qiuran's serious expression made Tang Wei pause and then suddenly burst out laughing. "You're lying. No matter how you put it, you’re just a Refining Qi cultivator. I can tell you have no true essence of a cultivator. To those real cultivators, people like you and me, who rely on true qi, don't count as true cultivators at all. How could you possibly be from the Qinming Sword Sect?"
"Thank you very much, Bai Qiuran," Tang Wei asked nervously. Although Bai Qiuran hadn’t discovered his true identity due to this unexpected situation, Tang Wei felt an intense anger bubbling inside him.
Bai Qiuran nodded, "It’s a monster that arises from a female corpse absorbing heavy yin energy and resentment; we generally call it a Corpse Mother, ranking it as a higher-level undead creature."
"I see, the true body is below." As the second corpse monster lunged again, Bai Qiuran raised his hand, but this time, instead of pushing with his palm, he held up two fingers.
Bai Qiuran smiled, though he clearly had not noticed Tang Wei's emotional state. This man slowly stood up, dusted himself off, and then pointed his finger upwards, throwing the small glowing orb into the air. The orb ascended slowly, releasing dazzling light, much like a little sun, illuminating the pitch-black, bottomless cave.
"What do we do now?" Tang Wei hurriedly ran to catch up with him, asking, "What do you mean? Aren't those few corpse monsters considered monsters?"
"Go eliminate this monster's true body," Bai Qiuran replied. A sudden loud crack rang out, and his fingertip glowed brightly, shedding light into the surrounding darkness, revealing piles of bones that formed small hills on the ground.
Tang Wei watched as the monster twisted its distorted body in the fire, emitting unsettling cries, but moments later, the fire devoured it, burning it and the mountain of corpses into ash again.
After walking for two minutes, Bai Qiuran stopped and nodded. "Indeed, the true body is below." Tang Wei breathed a sigh of relief. "I don't want to get involved in this either."
As Tang Wei observed the corpse monsters’ agonizing movements amidst the flames, he felt an overwhelming sense of nausea. Moments later, the fire mercilessly engulfed them, leaving nothing but ashes.
Bai Qiuran scanned the area, and as he looked at the heaps of bones, he said, "Let’s go, Brother Tang."
Bai Qiuran, smiling, explained as they walked, "In just a few more steps, you'll see; the core of it lies underground."
"How could this be sufficient?" Tang Wei felt his stomach churn. The air was thick with a pungent smell,
"A kind of female corpse that gives rise to monsters after absorbing heavy yin energy and resentment," Bai Qiuran said. He looked into the darkness using his spiritual sense, staying cautious.
"Let’s move," he added, bringing Tang Wei along, heading toward the monster’s overwhelming aura.
The spooky atmosphere hung heavily in the air, tainted with an unshakeable stench, yet they encountered no further monster attacks along their way.
"What exactly is that?!" Bai Qiuran asked, noticing the expansive cave, which was much larger than the previous one they had escaped. Tang Wei estimated it to stretch over thousands of square meters, filled with numerous white bones, beneath which lay countless lifeless bodies.
"It's nothing, really," Bai Qiuran said lightly. "This is simply a matter of elimination to clear the path."
His fingertip glowed again, casting light around them, guiding their journey deeper, revealing the terrifying surroundings.
Tang Wei trembled slightly, asking nervously, "But how many are there? Aren't the few corpse monsters we faced already the extent of their power?"
"Don’t worry. As long as we destroy both the Corpse Mother and the monsters, we'll be fine," Bai Qiuran replied without a hint of concern.
Tang Wei’s heart raced with apprehension, yet Bai Qiuran's calm demeanor gave him little solace. Before long, they emerged before the Corpse Mother, an abominable figure slumped on a mountain of corpses. Its grotesque form seemed to meld with its gory surroundings as it absorbed the never-ending flow of resentment and lifeforce.
Bai Qiuran glanced at Tang Wei, readying for what lay ahead, while the mysterious menace reverberated throughout the cave.
Indeed, whatever magical essence allowed Bai Qiuran to speak so confidently intrigued Tang Wei, even as dread washed over him in waves.
"This really is a strange occurrence," he muttered. "Corpse Mothers usually don’t emerge in living realms unless great death occurs—what could have spawned such a thing in this desolate place?"
As they prepared for confrontation, Bai Qiuran's illuminating orb cast light upon the lurking fear, fueling their determination to bring an end to these abhorrent creatures and escape this cursed cave.
"Let’s take care of this, and we can consider it done," Bai Qiuran said, as a flicker of thunder crackled at his fingertips.
With their combined efforts, these monstrous figures no longer reveled in fear, slowly falling to the remnant embers of their dark existence. Each movement they made to defend themselves was met with counterattacks, forcing them into a furious retreat, where soon only silence reigned in the desolate chasm.