Chapter 388

Just as Ye Liuyun and his companions were deep in cultivation, the Clan Chief of the Hasan tribe came directly to Ye Liuyun.

"Thank you, Friend Ye, for helping us integrate the Human Race within the Secret Realm. Having moved here, we are safer now," the Clan Chief of the Hasan tribe said earnestly to Ye Liuyun.

Ye Liuyun's cultivation was interrupted, but he felt embarrassed to coldly ignore the Clan Chief, so he politely gave him a perfunctory response.

The Clan Chief, aware that he had disturbed Ye Liuyun's cultivation, apologetically said, "Sorry for interrupting Friend Ye's cultivation. To express our gratitude, there is something we wish to tell you; it might be of some help to you."

Hearing this, Ye Liuyun grew curious and said, "Chief, please speak plainly."

Then the Clan Chief slowly explained, "We have an ancestral tomb here. Within the tomb lies a treasure tower that can enter and exit this Secret Realm. However, about a hundred years ago, a strange worm that devours humans appeared in the tomb; since then no one has entered, and even for burials we have to build a separate cemetery, apart from our ancestors."

"Chief, you want me to retrieve that treasure tower for you?" Ye Liuyun asked.

"There's no need for that. Anyone who has used that tower never returned. I have no interest in it myself. I merely want to ask: if you are interested, you may take the tower and, in the process, clear out the worms, so that we can be buried together with our ancestors again."

"What other functions does that treasure tower have?" Ye Liuyun wanted a more comprehensive understanding.

However, the Clan Chief had no other information. Ye Liuyun went out to ask others; even members of the Jamuni tribe knew the legend but not the specifics.

Ye Liuyun hesitated, unsure whether it was worth risking an adventure for a tower. Then he thought, since he's already here, he might as well take a look; perhaps there will be other discoveries.

Thus, Ye Liuyun resolutely stopped his cultivation and hurried toward the tomb direction given by the Clan Chief.

The tomb lay in the northwest corner of the entire Secret Realm, its towering tombstone visible from afar. The whole cemetery was underground, built from massive stones. Yet no ferocious beasts appeared nearby; the cemetery was completely silent, without a trace of sound. Clearly, something dangerous existed here.

Ye Liuyun activated his Golden Pupil, searched carefully, found no external danger, and then directly followed the method the Clan Chief taught him to trigger the underground tomb chamber mechanism.

The ground cracked open, revealing a stone door. As the stone door opened, a foul, rotting odor wafted out.

"Huh? How can there be such a strong rotting smell?" Ye Liuyun first used his Divine Sense to scan the tomb, but detected nothing unusual. All around were tombs sealed by massive stones, usually well preserved, not producing such a strong odor.

Ye Liuyun had never encountered such a strong smell before, even at Wan Zanggang.

"It seems there's something strange inside!"

He followed the stone steps, walking slowly into the tomb. Though the interior was pitch black, his Golden Pupil saw everything clearly.

Because the local natives were tall, the passageways inside the tomb were also very spacious. Each stone slab forming the tomb was about half a human's height.

Not far in, Ye Liuyun suddenly saw a skeleton, its body reduced to bones and clothing. Judging by the wear of the garments, the person seemed to have died only recently. Moreover, the skeleton's size matched that of an ordinary human, unlike the locals.

"Could it be someone from the Alliance?" Ye Liuyun immediately examined the person's Storage Ring and discovered an Alliance identity Token.

"Indeed, it seems an Alliance member was here not long ago. But what was the cause of death?"

From the skeleton's exterior, no signs of injury were visible. Yet the flesh on the skeleton was completely gone.

While Ye Liuyun was pondering, he suddenly sensed the distant ground trembling. Upon closer look, he realized it wasn't the ground moving, but a layer of tiny worms clinging to the floor, wriggling toward him.

"Corpse-Eating Worm!" Ye Liuyun's Golden Pupil widened in shock. He hadn't expected such creatures in this Secret Realm. These worms were black‑gray, blending closely with the rock's color.

One worm was smaller than a fingernail, its two protruding front teeth used to cut the skin of a corpse, and it bore a swollen belly. Such worms normally do not attack the living; they bite open a corpse, then burrow in to gnaw the flesh.

Yet now these swarms of Corpse-Eating Worms were attacking the living, apparently ruling here. Their sheer numbers made one's scalp tingle; even a native-sized being could be instantly devoured clean by these worms.

Ye Liuyun dared not be careless; he immediately activated True Essence Body Shield, enveloping his entire body with Golden Crow Holy Fire.

"It seems this thing is the culprit. Alliance members cannot use True Essence, so they cannot defend against these worms."

Thinking of this, Ye Liuyun felt considerably reassured.

These Corpse-Eating Worms lacked any intelligence. The ones that rushed forward were incinerated by Ye Liuyun's Golden Crow Holy Fire, yet more worms kept crawling toward him.

Gradually, the walls on all sides became covered with Corpse-Eating Worms, surging toward Ye Liuyun from every direction.

Ye Liuyun was unfazed; instead, he quickened his pace. His True Essence was abundant, and using it solely to defend against these worms would last for one or two months without depletion.

These worms could not impede his advance at all. Even before they could approach the Golden Crow Holy Fire, they were scorched by its heat. Above Ye Liuyun's head, Corpse-Eating Worms continuously fell from above.

Ye Liuyun's Divine Sense discovered that these Corpse-Eating Worms were crawling out from the various coffins within the tomb.

"How can there be so many? What do they normally eat?" Ye Liuyun wondered as he kept moving, eventually arriving at a row of coffins. The lids were already opened, revealing aged skeletons, each swarmed by Corpse-Eating Worms.

At this moment, the Corpse-Eating Worms around Ye Liuyun increased in number. They gradually converged, four of them linking head to tail and twisting together, forming a single worm larger than Ye Liuyun, which lunged at him.

"Huh? Is this thing being controlled?" Ye Liuyun instantly realized the Corpse-Eating Worms here were not simple. Not only did they actively attack the living, they also possessed some intelligence, otherwise they wouldn't conceive forming a larger shape to confront a person. Yet he did not know what creature was controlling them.

For Ye Liuyun, even when these Corpse-Eating Worms gathered, they could not threaten him. This entity had no cultivation realm; merely by sheer number and size, it could not breach his Protective True Origin.

Moreover, Ye Liuyun's Golden Crow Holy Fire was so powerful that even when these Corpse-Eating Worms combined into a larger form, they could not get close to him.

Ye Liuyun was about to continue deeper when, suddenly, a skeleton from a coffin abruptly stood up.

Ye Liuyun jumped in fright; upon closer inspection he realized it wasn't a zombie or similar. It was the Corpse-Eating Worms causing mischief. By sheer numbers they propped up the massive skeleton, filling its flesh, bone, and joints with worms. Though this skeleton still lacked any cultivation realm, its strength and durability, bolstered by the worms, were somewhat greater than a worm formed solely from Corpse-Eating Worms.