Chapter 482: Corpse King

Raising corpses involves so many details…

Clearly, outsiders only see the spectacle; insiders know the subtleties.

Mo Hua's thoughts shifted slightly, and he spoke again in a low voice:

"Let me test you again—if I were to raise a corpse capable of commanding legions of corpses, what should such a 'corpse' be called?"

"Commanding legions of corpses…"

Lu Ming frowned, thought for a while, then hesitantly said: "I don't quite remember…"

Mo Hua said: "Open-book exam—you may consult the texts."

Lu Ming looked bewildered. "Open-book?"

"Mm." Mo Hua nodded, his expression one of great leniency—as if to say, I won't punish you even if you can't answer, I'll let you flip through the books.

Lu Ming felt a small pang of emotion.

He immediately rummaged through his storage pouch, pulling out several books on corpse-raising, flipping through them repeatedly, then stammered:

"There are… several kinds…"

"One is called 'Bell Corpse'—it involves embedding a corpse bell inside a zombie to control other zombies…"

"Another is called 'Lantern Corpse'—using the corpse as a lantern to burn oil and light the way…"

"And there's another kind, called 'Corpse King'…"

"Corpse King?"

Mo Hua's expression flickered with surprise.

Lu Ming, uncertain, asked: "Is something wrong?"

"No, it's correct," Mo Hua nodded. "It's Corpse King. You're right."

A corpse capable of commanding tens of thousands of zombies—Lu Chengyun's creation must indeed be a Corpse King…

Corpse King…

Mo Hua fell silent for a moment, then asked:

"Let me test you further—how is a Corpse King raised, and what effects does it have once completed?"

Lu Ming flipped through the books again and said:

"It seems the process is more complicated than normal corpse-raising…"

"The corpse used to raise a Corpse King must be special—ordinary corpses won't do."

"The zombies it commands should have been loyal to it in life, under its control…"

"Only then, after death and transformation into zombies, will their lingering instinct of obedience make them easier to control by the 'Corpse King'…"

"The probability of controlled zombies going rogue or turning on their master will be greatly reduced."

Lu Ming thought for a moment, then gave an example:

"In the past, a powerful corpse cultivator destroyed an entire sect, turning its sect master into a Corpse King, then transforming the sect's disciples into zombies."

"Thus, these 'disciple' zombies naturally came under the control of the 'sect master' Corpse King…"

"There are also records of small southern barbarian kingdoms being slaughtered by demonic cultivators…"

"The kingdom's ruler was killed and turned into a 'Corpse King,' while the entire population was massacred and subsequently transformed into zombies—thus turning an entire kingdom into a corpse kingdom…"

Mo Hua's face remained expressionless, but inside he couldn't help sighing.

An entire sect—or even an entire kingdom's cultivators…

They all had parents and kin, yet suffered such misfortune, denied peace even in death.

Demonic cultivators truly amass countless sins.

Selfish, self-serving cultivation, employing every possible means…

Lu Ming continued:

"Only a ruler like this qualifies as a suitable Corpse King—excellent raw material for raising a Corpse King."

"But such methods belong to great demonic cultivators; ordinary corpse cultivators, with their crude techniques, cannot accomplish this…"

…

Mo Hua asked several more details, and Lu Ming answered each one.

Mo Hua nodded in satisfaction and praised:

"You've studied diligently—I'm reassured. Tomorrow, I'll speak a few good words for you before the Lord of the Lu Clan, recommend you for promotion, help you achieve mastery in corpse cultivation and rise above others…"

"Don't disappoint my expectations…"

Mo Hua imagined the demeanor of Master Yan, and put on a face of earnest, paternal instruction.

But Lu Ming looked troubled, opening his mouth as if to speak—then hesitating.

Mo Hua frowned. "What? Are you dissatisfied?"

"I… I…" Lu Ming stammered, too afraid to speak.

After struggling within himself, he finally pleaded: "Young Master, could you… please speak to the Lord of the Lu Clan and let me go?"

"What do you mean?" Mo Hua said sternly.

"I…" Lu Ming gave a bitter smile. "I don't want to be a corpse cultivator…"

Mo Hua deliberately scowled. "So you don't appreciate the favor?"

Lu Ming panicked and quickly waved his hands:

"I dare not…"

Mo Hua snorted. "The Lord of the Lu Clan treats you so well, grants you this opportunity, lets you become a corpse cultivator and learn corpse-raising—this is your blessing, your duty as a Lu Clan disciple to serve the clan. How can you fail to cherish it?"

Lu Ming felt like crying but had no tears:

"If I truly become a corpse cultivator, fall into the demonic path, my entire life is ruined…"

If you can't find a Dao partner, you cannot fulfill your filial duty.

No matter how high your cultivation, you can only hide in the shadows, spend your days dealing with corpses, be hunted by the Dao Ting Si, never see the light of day, and one day, your identity might be exposed—and then someone will "uphold Heaven's justice" on you.

Just thinking of this, Lu Ming regretted it until his intestines turned green.

Mo Hua nodded slightly.

This Lu Ming, though a bit foolish, still had some sense in him.

Mo Hua feigned hesitation, pondered for a while, then sighed slowly:

"Alright, we've known each other this long—it's fate. If you don't want to become a Corpse Cultivator, I won't force you."

"But getting the Patriarch to let you out? That's probably impossible…"

"Once you leave, you'll inevitably reveal the secrets of this Corpse Mine."

"So just stay here, peacefully…"

Lu Ming's face turned ashen.

If he didn't leave, sooner or later, he would have to become a Corpse Cultivator.

If he succeeded, he'd be inseparable from the zombies.

If he failed, if the zombie went out of control, he might get eaten by it.

It's over…

A chill filled Lu Ming's heart.

Suddenly, he glanced at Mo Hua and saw the boy's calm expression—despite his young age, even within the Corpse Mine, he remained composed, effortless. A glimmer of hope stirred in his deadened heart.

He quickly rose, kowtowed to Mo Hua, and said:

"Please, Young Master, save me!"

Mo Hua blinked in surprise, then asked in confusion:

"Why should I save you?"

Mo Hua sipped his tea leisurely, then continued:

"Promoting you? That's just a word from me—I could say it offhand, do you a favor, no problem."

"But saving you? That's far more troublesome—and I might offend the Lu Patriarch."

"What benefit can you offer me?"

Mo Hua's words left Lu Ming speechless.

Lu Ming stared blankly.

Indeed, they weren't kin, not even close acquaintances—why should this Young Master save him?

What did he have?

Not much Spirit Stone, not a beautiful young girl of sixteen, low cultivation, poor talent—even if he were killed and turned into a corpse, he wouldn't make a good Corpse Embryo…

Lu Ming's heart sank—he hadn't even realized it.

He'd occasionally bullied others, feeling self-important, but now that real trouble came, he turned out to be this useless…

No skills. No abilities.

Mo Hua added: "If you can offer me something valuable, I'll consider whether to save you."

Lu Ming's heart turned bitter.

What could he offer?

This Young Master's status was extraordinary, his methods unfathomable.

What kind of benefit could possibly impress this Young Master?

But his life was at stake—he couldn't give up, so he clung to a sliver of hope and said:

"I'm willing to die for Young Master! I'll climb mountains of blades, walk through seas of fire—without hesitation!"

Mo Hua's eyes lit up.

He'd been waiting for those words.

Mo Hua first said with disdain: "You? A low-cultivation, low-status, insignificant Lu Clan disciple—neither skilled in Dao arts nor Corpse Cultivation—how could you possibly help me by dying for me?"

These words crushed Lu Ming with shame; he couldn't raise his head.

Mo Hua feigned thought, then sighed:

"But who am I to be so young and kind? I'll test you—do a small task for me, and if you succeed, I'll save you once."

Lu Ming, rescued from despair, beamed with joy and hurriedly said:

"Please, Young Master, give your order!"

Mo Hua's big eyes turned, and he whispered:

"Find out for me… about the Lu Ancestor and the Lu Patriarch…"

Lu Ming froze. "What about them?"

"Anything," Mo Hua said. "Gossip, anecdotes, rumors—whether backed by evidence or just hearsay, you sneak around, find out everything, and tell me."

Lu Ming was doubtful, and a little afraid; he whispered:

"You… you're asking about these things… why?"

Mo Hua's small face hardened, his expression stern:

"I need to confirm whether the Lu Patriarch is a bad man…"

Lu Ming opened his mouth. "A… a bad man?"

"Yes!" Mo Hua said. "The worse a person is, the more successful they become."

"I'm serving him now—he'd better be as bad as possible."

"The worse he is, the more he'll disregard family, shameless, shameless, ruthless—his chances of success will naturally rise…"

Lu Ming was bewildered.

For a moment, he didn't know whether this young master was praising the clan lord—or insulting him…

"Do you understand?" Mo Hua asked Lu Ming.

Lu Ming nodded as if he understood.

"Good, go do it," Mo Hua nodded. "But be discreet, don't expose yourself. And remember—this matter has nothing to do with me. I'm just a kind, innocent, good-hearted man trying to save you from suffering."

Lu Ming nodded. "Yes, Young Master!"

After that, he went to inquire.

Mo Hua would occasionally release his spiritual sense to keep an eye on what Lu Ming was doing.

Lu Ming wasn't very clever; Mo Hua feared he might uncover something problematic.

Fortunately, though he was inquiring, he wasn't overly deliberate.

Sometimes he'd just start a topic, letting other corpse cultivators talk, while he listened secretly.

He himself was lowly—a Lu family disciple, well-known and thoroughly familiar to everyone. No one suspected him, and in fact, no one even cared about him.

Several days later, Lu Ming reported the information he'd gathered to Mo Hua.

There was information about the Lu family, about the Lu family's ancestral elder, and about Lu Chengyun…

The details about the Lu family's ancestral elder matched what Mo Hua had heard from Qing Lan.

Stingy, greedy, extravagant, moody.

He not only oppressed and exploited the miner cultivators, but even his own disciples suffered harsh treatment—frequent beatings and scolding, while he lived in luxury and treated others with miserliness.

Exactly as the nickname "Lu the Skin-Stripper" suggested.

Indeed, there are only wrong names—never wrong nicknames.

From Lu Ming's words, Mo Hua also learned some rumors about the relationship between Lu Chengyun and the Lu family's ancestral elder.

(End of Chapter)