Chapter 208: Corpse Centipede Pearl

【Task completed. You have received: Paradise Points ×1000, Attribute Points +1】

The massive corpse built from the corpse-centipede collapsed, smashing into a pile of putrid, stinking pus upon impact.

A Superior-grade treasure chest floated up from it, which Da Bao dragged back.

Chu Danqing placed it into his storage space, then toyed with the corpse-centipede pearl in his hand.

【Corpse-Centipede Pearl】

【Type: Material/Consumable】

【Quality: Superior】

【Effect 1: Can be used in the crafting of potions, food, and related items】

【Effect 2: When used, summons a corpse-centipede to fight for you for 10 minutes; the corpse-centipede pearl shatters upon use】

“Master Zhong, wouldn’t you mind letting me keep the corpse-centipede pearl for now?” Chu Danqing spoke first.

After all, the two were strangers, and Zhong Ting had consistently shown a passive attitude.

Chu Danqing feared that if he handed the corpse-centipede pearl to him, Zhong Ting would simply vanish—then he’d be in trouble.

He had no ill intent, but he still needed to guard against others’ intentions.

Especially when it came to his own destiny quest, caution could never hurt.

After all, Zhong Ting was currently the only one who might know where Yuanping Wang’s tomb lay.

“Not at all.” Zhong Ting’s expression didn’t change; he’d already anticipated this the moment the corpse-centipede pearl landed in Chu Danqing’s hand.

“When we reach the entrance to Yuanping Wang’s tomb, we’ll exchange the item for payment then.” Chu Danqing didn’t actually need the corpse-centipede pearl.

He had no intention of deliberately keeping the pearl for himself.

“Fine, then let’s set off,” Zhong Ting said immediately.

Chu Danqing naturally had no objection and casually handed him the mountain map.

“Don’t use it. Head west.”

“My late senior uncle once went there.”

“He found it, but was stopped at the entrance by the tomb guardian beast and dared not enter,” Zhong Ting explained. “Later, he mentioned it to us in passing.”

“I don’t know the exact situation, but I can help you locate the general area.”

He’d never been there himself, so he could only take it one step at a time.

In truth, the plan had already exceeded his expectations.

His original plan was to cooperate with Chu Danqing first, then find a way to take the corpse-centipede pearl.

As for the location of Yuanping Wang’s tomb, he’d only meant to point the way—he never intended to go along.

After all, he’d already gotten what he wanted; why risk further danger?

In his view, he’d already been quite conscientious—if anyone else had been in this remote wilderness, they’d have killed you and tossed your body aside without a second thought.

But he hadn’t expected Chu Danqing to be far stronger than him; his plan had not only collapsed, but the corpse-centipede pearl had ended up in Chu Danqing’s hands.

“How many days will it take?” Chu Danqing asked the crucial question.

“My senior uncle said he walked about three days, but he’d gotten lost before, so the actual distance should be shorter.”

“Generally, you find Jinlong Temple first, then follow Huanglong River—that’s where you’ll arrive,” Zhong Ting said, then paused. “It’s beneath the riverbed.”

“I don’t know the exact spot.”

“But my senior uncle said there was something wrong beneath the tomb.”

Hearing this, Chu Danqing was puzzled.

Zhong Ting had said “beneath the tomb,” not “the tomb itself.”

Problems were normal—after all, this was an S-rank destiny quest.

“What exactly?” Chu Danqing pressed for details.

“I’m not sure—he saw something odd and ran off,” Zhong Ting said, confirming his uncle had fled too.

“So your caution runs in the family,” Chu Danqing replied dryly.

Zhong Ting merely smiled, not taking offense at Chu Danqing’s remark.

“With our pace, we should reach Jinlong Temple before nightfall,” Zhong Ting changed the subject. “I just hope we don’t encounter any malevolent entities along the way.”

“Why do both names include ‘dragon’?” Chu Danqing noticed the commonality.

But Zhong Ting didn’t know either—he only shook his head. “Perhaps because Cangmang Guling holds too many imperial tombs.”

“Since ancient times, dragons have been entangled with emperors.”

Zhong Ting’s own career and influence lay outside Cangmang Guling; this trip was accidental, so he’d done little research.

“Actually,” Zhong Ting paused, choosing his words carefully, “that group of warlord soldiers might also be searching for dragons.”

“They may have even found something—but couldn’t bring it out, and lost their lives in the process.”

As they spoke, they descended the mountain.

Under Zhong Ting’s guidance, they climbed another mountain.

Cangmang Guling was a chain of mountains, peaks rising and falling like dragon scales.

“Yuanping’s tomb lies within Cangmang Guling—the compass is useless; you must rely on sun, moon, and stars for navigation.”

“Without real skill, entering is easy—but leaving is hard,” Zhong Ting said, which was precisely why he’d always resisted entering.

Chu Danqing pulled out a compass—it was indeed magnetically chaotic.

No wonder the warlords hadn’t gotten in; even planes flying overhead would likely malfunction.

That’s why they could only send men in on foot to search physically.

Zhong Ting suddenly stopped, studied his surroundings carefully, then said: “As expected—after we cross this mountain, we’ll reach Jinlong Temple.”

“But Jinlong Temple has long been abandoned. Given the current situation, it’s likely been taken over by malevolent entities.”

“We’ll need you, Young Master Chu, to clear them out.”

Chu Danqing naturally had no objection—he nodded. “Don’t worry, leave it to me.”

He was only too glad if Zhong Ting didn’t lift a finger—otherwise, he’d be losing out on the treasure chest.

His storage space already held two Superior-grade treasure chests: one from the blind boy, the other from the corpse-centipede.

Superior-grade chests were barely worth the effort—he’d wait until he had a batch before opening them.

If it were an Excellent-grade chest, he’d open it immediately—equipment or Paradise Points both served as useful incentives.

“Why stop?” Chu Danqing asked after speaking.

He’d already observed everything—why not just climb now?

“Those tomb robbers,” Zhong Ting said, pulling a Mojin Talisman from a hidden patch of grass beside him.

It was stained with obvious blood.

“The blood is fresh—likely from dawn to early morning,” Zhong Ting sniffed it and added: “They didn’t even die at the corpse-centipede’s hands.”

“They managed to escape down the mountain—looks like they’re heading toward Jinlong Temple.”

“And something else is hunting them.”

“Young Master Chu, what do you think?” Zhong Ting handed the Mojin Talisman to Chu Danqing.

Zhong Ting was a descendant of Kuixing Tidou—he wasn’t a tomb raider, but like a fengshui master, he made his living through his own skills.

Besides performing rituals, Zhong Ting’s main profession was as a private tutor.

“What’s there to think? Let’s go see,” Chu Danqing said—he was new here and knew little.

His own trial quest also involved tomb raiding—he couldn’t condemn others.

“You people in this line of work—your circle must be small,” Chu Danqing asked. “You might even know who they are.”

Zhong Ting replied, exasperated: “Young Master Chu, I’m an honest man—I don’t raid tombs.”

“I’m not in that line.”

“Besides, tomb raiders are either short-lived or childless, and even the better ones have sons born blind.”

“Digging up ancestors’ graves for profit brings nothing but misfortune—you’ll never have a good end.”

As an honest man, Zhong Ting looked down on the Four Great Schools of tomb raiders.

Ordinary people despising criminals was normal.

Chu Danqing felt slightly embarrassed—he’d have agreed with Zhong Ting before.

Now he couldn’t—he was about to steal from Yuanping Wang’s tomb for his own gain.

“Ahem, let’s not talk about that,” Chu Danqing changed the subject. “Let’s get moving.”

Zhong Ting realized his slip and stuffed the Mojin Talisman into his robe, then led the way ahead.

This talisman could suppress malevolent entities to some extent, though its power was limited.

But for ordinary people, obtaining such an authentic Mojin Talisman was still difficult.

Since he’d found it, he might as well keep it for protection.

Chu Danqing also had a Mojin Talisman, but its deterrent power was weaker than Da Bao’s.

Without any attributes, it was useless—just gathering dust.

Just as they reached halfway up the mountain, they heard an eagle’s cry.

Chu Danqing and Zhong Ting paid it little mind, but Da Bao stopped and stared intently at the eagle above.

“Little Chu, bird, watching you,” Da Bao spoke immediately, activating his Tearing Claws.

Chu Danqing looked up at the eagle.

Because it flew too high, he could only see a tiny black dot circling.

“Alive? What’s going on?” Chu Danqing didn’t understand—his first thought was another Apostle.

The black dot rapidly expanded, indicating the opponent was diving straight down.

As it drew closer, Chu Danqing finally saw the shape of the giant eagle.

A giant eagle with a wingspan of five meters swooped down, its sharp talons aimed at his head.

Da Bao reacted faster, lunging forward before the eagle could reach Chu Danqing.

The talons pierced the eagle’s feathers and sank into flesh, pinning it to one side.

It slammed into a nearby tree and came to a stop.

Though pinned, the eagle flipped over and shrank, transforming into a cheetah.

“Shape-shifting?” Chu Danqing didn’t hesitate—he cast a Spirit Eye Technique immediately.

【First-Dimension Adept】

【Attributes】

【HP: 87%】

【????】

Stronger than him—he could only see the HP stat.

He didn’t know if this was due to the transformation’s altered stats or if the creature was inherently stronger.

Now a cheetah, it dodged past Da Bao in an instant and charged toward Chu Danqing; as it moved, its dappled markings spread and its body grew larger.

As it approached, the cheetah transformed into a tiger.

Then Yue Lan Wu Ying lifted the totem and swept it horizontally.

The tiger was instantly knocked aside.

He drove the totem into the ground, then summoned four elemental spirits to circle his fists, raising them to smash down on the tiger’s forehead.

One punch sent the totem-transformed adept reeling, stars exploding before his eyes.

(End of Chapter)