“Past this border of our Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty lies the territory of the Thousand-Ox Dao Court.”

Lin Yunhen explained with a smile: “In fact, our Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty is also under the rule of the Thousand-Ox Dao Court.”

“Then why are they trying to kill you?” Xia Wanqing asked.

“Who knows? The people of the Ancient Order always take money and never ask questions,” Lin Yunhen replied. “But whatever the reason, since you saved me, if there’s ever a time I can be of service, just say the word.”

Xu Zimo shook his head with a faint smile as night fell.

The sky darkened, and drizzle began to fall, carried by gusts of wind and sand so thick it stung the eyes.

“Do you know if there’s anywhere nearby to rest?” Xu Zimo asked.

“There’s Green Serpent City up ahead, though it’s a bit far,” Lin Yunhen thought for a moment and answered.

“Then let’s ride the demonic dragon, our speed will be faster,” Xu Zimo suggested.

Both nodded, carefully climbing onto the back of the Seven-Winged Demonic Dragon.

With a thunderous roar, the beast lifted them skyward. In no time, the massive silhouette shrank into a black dot against the heavens.

Green Serpent City was not a human city. It was the domain of the Green Serpent Race.

They were half-human, half-serpent, human from the waist up, but serpent from the waist down.

The Green Serpent Race had long been on good terms with humans. They accepted Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty’s rule, and humans were allowed to visit their city.

From above, Green Serpent City was a medium-sized settlement, bustling even in the foul weather.

“You’d better wait outside,” Xu Zimo told the Seven-Winged Demonic Dragon. “Bringing you inside would cause panic.”

The dragon set the three of them down, then flapped its wings and vanished into the storm.

Before the colossal gates stood a statue of the Serpent Queen. Her features were strikingly beautiful, her hair braided into countless serpent-like strands behind her. Like her descendants, she was human above, serpent below.

“She was the first matriarch of the Green Serpent Race,” Lin Yunhen explained. “She led their weak tribe to its current strength and won recognition from humanity. So all generations after her built this statue to honor her memory.”

“Does the entire race live here in the city?” Xia Wanqing asked.

“Not all,” Lin Yunhen said. “Most live deep in the jungles, in narrow, damp places, far from the outside world. But the Serpent Queen refused to live like that. She led part of the race away, and later, after helping our empire’s ancestor with a great crisis, he granted them this city to dwell in.

Since then, our descendants have been forbidden to disturb them.”

As they entered the city, nine out of ten faces belonged to Green Serpents. Only a few were of other races.

A crack of thunder split the sky, followed by heavy raindrops the size of beans.

“Let’s find an inn first,” Lin Yunhen suggested.

Xu Zimo nodded, and they entered a roadside tavern.

Inside, the trio overheard several Green Serpents speaking in hushed tones:

“Have you heard? Lately, creatures around Green Serpent City have been turning up dead. Horribly mutilated, too. Nobody knows what kind of monster is behind it.”

“But it’s always outsiders, never our clan, right?”

“Exactly. If one of us were hurt, the elders would’ve sealed the city already.”

The three paid little mind. Strange happenings were common in this world, and they didn’t plan to stay long anyway.

But Lin Yunhen’s eyes lingered on a particular table. Three figures in large black robes sat there silently, eating without a word.

“What is it?” Xia Wanqing asked.

Lin Yunhen shook his head, waiting until the three stood up to leave.

They carried a coffin with them, stepping out into the rain.

“Let’s follow them,” Lin Yunhen said gravely.

“You know them?” Xia Wanqing asked, puzzled.

“Do you know of liches?” Lin Yunhen asked.

“Of course,” Xia Wanqing said quickly, her face paling. “You mean, they’re liches?”

“Not certain,” Lin Yunhen admitted, “but I sensed something.”

He opened his cloak and took out a golden jade pendant carved with a dragon. A thin black line crept across it.

“This was a gift from my father when I became crown prince,” he explained. “It reveals different types of energy. That black line appeared the moment I passed near the coffin.”

“What are liches?” Xu Zimo asked curiously.

“You don’t know about the Lich Calamity?” Lin Yunhen stared at him in disbelief.

“He lost his memory,” Xia Wanqing quickly explained. “He doesn’t know many things.”

Turning to Xu Zimo, she added: “Long ago, our Mortal Ascension Heaven suffered a disaster known as the Lich Calamity. It was only suppressed under the leadership of the Saint Sovereign Brahma. Since then, the Mortal Ascension Heaven has had a rule, capture any surviving liches at all costs.”

“We should investigate,” Lin Yunhen said. “If Green Serpent City is tied to liches, it’ll be serious. This is Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty’s territory, so we’ll bear the consequences first.”

Xia Wanqing nodded gravely.

Xu Zimo hadn’t intended to meddle, but followed them out anyway.

Outside, the storm poured relentlessly. Streets turned into rivers, but the serpentine townsfolk walked calmly, indifferent to the rain.

“There,” Lin Yunhen pointed. The black-robed men vanished around a corner.

“Don’t get too close, we don’t want to alert them,” Xia Wanqing warned.

The three trailed them for ten minutes until the robed men stopped at a courtyard.

They knocked in a rhythm, as if a code.

The gates opened, and another robed man appeared. He scanned the area, then ushered them inside, coffin and all.

“They went in,” Lin Yunhen said. “What do we do?”

“You’re the crown prince of Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty,” Xia Wanqing said. “Just go to the city lord and order him to search this place.”

“If the city lord is colluding with them, we’ll only spook them,” Lin Yunhen replied.

“You two stay here,” Xu Zimo said. “I’ll check inside.”

With his strength, he could approach unnoticed. But his companions might not be so lucky.

“Then we’ll leave it to you,” Lin Yunhen said.

Xu Zimo stepped out. His figure blurred into the downpour, vanishing into the void.

His figure walked through the void. The void was utterly silent, without the faintest ripple.

Xu Zimo passed through the courtyard, glancing downward.

The courtyard was vast, yet completely empty. After searching carefully, he discovered a hidden mechanism beneath it.

There was a secret chamber.

He saw with his own eyes as the man in black removed his cloak, revealing his true face.

How to describe it? It looked like some grotesque fusion of human and beast.

A monster of neither one kind nor the other.

His face was covered in blue fur, his mouth shaped like an eagle’s, triangular in form.

But his nose and eyes were no different from a human’s.

His hands, however, were like talons, claws half a meter long, able to extend and retract at will.

“So this is a Lich,” Xu Zimo murmured.

He could sense the power within the creature.

Wild and chaotic, so much so that even the lich himself could barely control it.

Otherwise, Lin Yunhen would never have noticed the anomaly earlier.

They couldn’t control their own strength.

Xu Zimo followed silently behind the creature into the secret chamber.

Hidden in the void, he could not be discovered unless the other broke the void itself.

And the liches he had encountered so far, the strongest among them was only of the Saint Vein realm. Even if he stood right behind them, they probably wouldn’t sense him.

Down the pitch-black staircase they went.

At last, Xu Zimo saw the inside of the secret chamber.

Hundreds of cages filled the space, each one holding a human being.

But what shocked him was not the number of captives,

It was who they were.

Not a single one was ordinary. Every one of them carried some special constitution.

Somewhat like the Hundred Battle Physiques, though Xu Zimo was not well-versed in the unique physiques of the Nine Heavens.

He couldn’t tell exactly what they were.

Only that some were strong, some weak.

He watched as the liches dragged out a human, then peeled skin and stripped bone, forcefully extracting the special constitution.

It was clear, they were collecting physiques.

Before Xu Zimo could observe further, a presence deep within the chamber seemed to notice him.

He felt a gaze pierce through layers of void and land upon him.

In that instant, a suppressed force pressed down upon him.

Though he broke free at once.

His figure vanished into the void.

From the darkness of the chamber, a voice suddenly rang out.

“Someone has snuck in.”

The black-robed figures sitting in meditation opened their eyes instantly, vast pressure bursting from their bodies.

They searched the darkness for signs.

“You are no match for him,” the voice in the dark said again.

“Even I cannot suppress him now. Leave yourselves a retreat.”

The black-robed ones bowed reverently toward the darkness.

……………

Xu Zimo walked out from the courtyard.

He glanced back deeply.

“A Saint Sovereign… or a Grand Emperor?” he murmured. That sensation had been fleeting, gone in an instant, even he could not grasp it.

But he was not alarmed. Whoever it was, he had no need to fear.

He had Seven-Face at his side, along with Paimon, both Saint Sovereigns. And if he activated his War God’s Power, he himself could reach the Fifth Stage of the Grand Emperor.

Even if he couldn’t win, escape was no problem.

He strode slowly toward Xia Wanqing and the others.

“How is it?” Lin Yunhen asked quickly.

“There’s a vast prison beneath,” Xu Zimo replied. “Countless humans are imprisoned there, and every one of them possesses a special constitution. It seems the liches are hunting for physiques. It must be them.”

“This is troublesome,” Lin Yunhen said gravely. “Not only are they not hiding, but they dare to appear openly. Clearly, someone in Green Serpent City is colluding with them. We must uncover the mastermind,” he added, turning to Xu Zimo.

“That is your problem, not ours,” Xu Zimo shook his head. “We still must go to Thousand-Ox Dao Court.”

Lin Yunhen’s expression froze, his gaze drifting to Xia Wanqing.

She looked torn.

The three returned to the inn. After dinner, they retired early.

Outside, the rain still poured.

Xu Zimo heard a knock. He opened the door and saw Xia Wanqing standing there.

“Come in,” he said calmly.

“We can’t leave Green Serpent City so soon,” Xia Wanqing said. “The matter of the liches must be resolved. And there are so many people waiting for rescue.”

“I know,” Xu Zimo countered. “But what does that have to do with us?”

“The disaster of the liches concerns everyone,” Xia Wanqing answered firmly. “We cannot allow such tragedy to happen again.”

“Do you know the kind of people I despise most?” Xu Zimo asked.

“What kind?”

“Saintly do-gooders,” he replied flatly. “Whether you choose to be a good person or a villain, that’s fine. But first, you must have the right to choose. Do you think you do?”

“I… I don’t quite understand,” Xia Wanqing said hesitantly.

“Do you know what kind of beings dwell in that courtyard? A Saint Sovereign? A Grand Emperor? And you? Just an insect of the Paragon Meridian realm. One slap from them and you’d die a thousand deaths. What meaning is there in you staying behind? What grounds do you have to speak such words?”

Xu Zimo’s tone was calm, almost detached.

“If you want to be a heinous villain, or a sage who worries for the world, that’s fine. But only if you have the strength to ignore everything else. Do you? Life requires self-awareness. Do what your ability allows. The sky hasn’t fallen yet. The tall ones haven’t all died. This is the Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty’s problem. Above them still stand the Dao Court and the Celestial Citadel. When was it ever your, a Paragon Meridian insect’s turn to meddle? If it were only some bandits making a little trouble, and you sought justice, I’d call you kind. But liches? You said it yourself, they once plunged the Outer Heavens into chaos. And you still want to play hero? That’s not kindness. That’s stupidity. The Martial Heaven Sacred Ground has yet to be rebuilt. Our future journey to Thousand-Ox Dao Court is uncertain. You haven’t even solved your own problems. If one cannot sweep one’s own house, how can one sweep the world? If you think I’m too harsh, you’re free to march into that courtyard. Even if you’re killed, I won’t bat an eye.”

Xia Wanqing grew quieter the more she listened.

“Don’t be angry. I was being childish,” she said softly, watching him with worry.

“I’m not angry. I’m teaching you the rules of living,” Xu Zimo waved a hand. “Go rest. Think it over tonight. Tomorrow morning, I leave for Thousand-Ox Dao Court.”

……………

The night passed in silence.

At dawn, the rain eased. Mist and fog blanketed the land.

When Xu Zimo came downstairs, Xia Wanqing and Lin Yunhen were already waiting.

“Brother Xu, let’s go,” Lin Yunhen said with a smile.

“You’re not staying?” Xu Zimo asked.