Chapter 141 - 129: Walking with the Weird - Part 2

His father, a martial artist of Martial Marquis Level Five, had a presence that he could not have misread.

So, there really was an ambush, and it was a monster equivalent to Martial Marquis Level Five.

He was doomed.

But he didn’t want to die.

"Spare me, please spare my life. I’m a direct descendant of the Zhao Clan from Lingwang City. I can give you silver, martial food, martial arts knowledge, resources, whatever you want I can offer. I beg you to spare me."

Zhao Hao struggled to get up, pleading over and over.

Even though he knew, begging a monster for mercy was likely in vain, he was scared, helpless, and desperate to cling onto the smallest chance of survival.

Only when he truly faced death, did he realize how much he feared it.

"Heh heh, really? Anything?"

The monster old man sneered.

"Of course, anything."

Zhao Hao nodded repeatedly, trembling with fear. Seeing the monster old man getting closer, his heart was pounding.

All his fighting spirit, resolve, were completely shattered.

At this moment, all he wanted was to survive.

"I want your body."

The monster old man sneered again.

"My...my body?"

Zhao Hao was puzzled.

"Give up your resistance, let go of your bone strength, let me enter your body, and then, you’ll guide me to Lingwang City," said the monster old man.

"You want to possess... possess my body?"

Zhao Hao uttered in terror.

He understood then, the monster wanted to borrow his body to infiltrate Lingwang City and wreak havoc from within.

If once the monster managed to blend in Lingwang City, it would be a catastrophe.

But he couldn’t care less.

It’s always better to let others die than himself.

He didn’t want to die.

"Alright, I agree."

Zhao Hao clenched his teeth and nodded.

"Don’t resist. If I sense the slightest hint of rebellion, I’ll kill you instantly."

The monster old man’s eyes were icy cold.

"Yes, yes, yes, I dare not."

Zhao Hao repeatedly nodded, dispelling his bone strength throughout his body, knelt on the ground, bowed his head, without a shred of will to resist.

The monster old man turned into a gray shadow, rushed into Zhao Hao’s body, and disappeared.

After half a moment, Zhao Hao got up, his face complicated.

"Remember, don’t make any mistakes, act as if you’ve never seen me, understood? Your life and death now depend on my whims."

A voice rang in Zhao Hao’s mind.

Zhao Hao nodded, rearranged his disheveled clothes and hair, drew his sword, and began to walk back the way he came.

...

Lu Yan and Zhao Sirong chased him all the way, and after five or six miles, the monster escaped into a village.

From a stone at the entrance of the village they knew, this was Mangwu Village.

But the village was eerily quiet, not a single soul was in sight, a dead silence enveloped the place.

The two of them knew, this village was done for.

As soon as they chased into the village, they lost the trace of the monster. They slowed down to search, careful not to fall into an ambush.

"This monster is strange enough, similar to the evil spirits mentioned in folklore," Lu Yan said in a low voice.

He knew less about demons and monsters.

The aura was somewhat similar to that of the Martial Spirit.

"Monsters and evil spirits are essentially the same, just called by different names."

"Monsters are born out of martial artists who have died with immense resentment, and by chance, have absorbed the aura of filth. They are fewer in number, but particularly difficult to deal with."

"Among demons, fiends, and monsters, demons and fiends have limited intelligence, like wild beasts. But monsters are different. They possess the same level of intelligence as humans, can possess bodies, and are difficult to contend with. Fortunately, the Qi-blood and bone strength of martial artists can inflict substantial damage on them."

Zhao Sirong explained softly.

"Can they possess martial artists?"

Lu Yan asked.

"They can, but it’s very difficult."

"For ordinary people, monsters can easily possess them, like the old couple earlier. But martial artists have rich Qi-blood, which is like a furnace. Forcing a possession on a martial artist only leads to their own destruction."

"Only when a martial artist has absolutely no will to resist, gives up all thoughts of resistance, can they be successfully possessed. Those people are usually the ones who are extremely afraid of death."

Zhao Sirong said.

Lu Yan nodded, that was a relief.

Monsters are an absolute terror for ordinary people, but not so much for martial artists. They can be killed.

Compared with the Martial Spirit, they are much easier to handle.

Fear is born out of ignorance.

Previously, Lu Yan didn’t know much about the strange creatures, hence he remained cautious, but now his mind was set.

Soon, they reached the center of the village and spotted a deep pit.

The pit was full of corpses, around hundreds of them.

It seemed they had died just a few days ago, and were not yet decomposing.

By their clothes, they were clearly the villagers.

One by one, their eyes were wide open, as if they had witnessed something extremely horrific.

"These creatures murdered these people in order to absorb the impure Qi."

Zhao Sirong gritted her teeth, her pretty face full of rage and intent to kill.

Regarding the term ’impure Qi’, Lu Yan had read about it in a book.

It is said that between heaven and earth in this world, there is dense impure Qi filling the air.

Impure Qi is invisible, odorless, and difficult for ordinary people to detect.

Some ferocious birds and beasts, or martial artists after death, might absorb the impure Qi by chance, going through a transformation and becoming vile monsters.

And these vile monsters can actively absorb the impure Qi from the world to enhance themselves.

The gas produced from a corpse after death, the resentment formed from unwillingness, also belong to impure Qi.

Lu Yan speculated that the creatures slaughtered the villagers just to let them generate resentment and absorb it for cultivation.

Their methods were extremely brutal, even more than the Martial Spirits.

"Be careful."

Suddenly, Lu Yan warned her, pulling Zhao Sirong back by a dozen feet.

A dark shadow whipped out from a nearby thatched house, its dark claws radiating cold air, like a creepy ghost blade swiping past the ground where they had just stood.

It was the same creature that had run away earlier.

"Monsters, must be killed."

Zhao Sirong reacted, activated her Bone Strength, thrust her spear, and began to battle with the creature.

But at this moment, one of the corpses in the pit suddenly stood up, leapt up, and pounced on Zhao Sirong.

Zhao Sirong was taken aback, recoiling three steps, and swept with her spear.

A bang was heard as the corpse was shattered, but from within another dark shadow darted towards Zhao Sirong.

Another creature.

And its aura was overwhelming; it was clearly stronger than the previous one.

Obviously, it was at Martial Marquis Level Two.

Zhao Sirong’s complexion turned white, she inwardly cursed, sensing there was indeed an ambush.

"Leave it to me."

At this moment, Lu Yan appeared next to Zhao Sirong, throwing a punch and dealing with the Martial Spirit Level Two creature, sending it flying away.

A Level Two Martial Marquis, he can kill in one move.

But Lu Yan wasn’t sure if there were more creatures hiding, afraid that showing too much strength would scare away the creatures lurking about, so he only displayed the power of a Martial Marquis Level Two in that punch.

The creature, after being repelled, pounced on Lu Yan again. Its movements were unpredictable and extremely sneaky.

Lu Yan just threw out punches, suppressing the creature purely with his dominant Bone Strength.

After more than ten punches, the creature was on the losing side, yet no new creature appeared.

"It seems, there are only these two. Let’s finish them off."

Having resolved this, Lu Yan didn’t want to waste any more time. He burst out with his overwhelming Bone Strength and punched out.

This punch, defying all odds, exploded the creature’s arm, entering its body. The creature immediately let out a shrill scream, its body constantly contorting in agony. But at the same time, its body also started to ’burn’.

Bone Strength is like flames, and the creature’s body is like ice, rapidly melting.

In just a few breaths, the creature’s body erupted into a bang, turning into nothingness, thoroughly dispersing into the world.

Then another punch, making the creature battling with Zhao Sirong also explode and then vanish.

"The creatures don’t seem to be that formidable after all."

Lu Yan thought to himself.

Zhao Sirong looked at Lu Yan in disbelief; they had underestimated him.

To effortlessly kill a creature equivalent to a Martial Marquis Level Two, Lu Yan’s own strength would at least be at the peak of Martial Marquis Level Three.

It could even be Martial Marquis Level Four.

Although Bone Strength could produce great damage to the creatures, after all, the creatures were peculiar and were formed from the spirit of a martial artist condensed with impure Qi, existing between reality and fantasy, they were not easy to kill.

Only with vastly superior Bone Strength could they be quickly eliminated.

If the difference in strength is minimal, one can only slowly wear them out.

"Thank you for your help, brother. I never thought you would be an expert who hides his abilities well."

Zhao Sirong bowed her fist and thanked him.

If Lu Yan hadn’t been there, she would have been in danger.

Facing a Martial Marquis Level One and a Martial Marquis Level Two creature, she was in a life or death situation.

"Everyone should condemn these vile monsters, there’s no need for gratitude."

Lu Yan nodded.

"What’s your name, my friend?" asked Zhao Sirong.

"Lu Ren."

Lu Yan replied, since he was in disguise, he certainly couldn’t use the name he used before.