Chapter 69: The Great Qian Is Probably Going to Fall Under My Hands

Shush shush shush~

Crack crack~

The rustling and snapping of branches rose from the dim forest!

Xie Jinhuan gripped Zhenglun Sword like facing a great enemy, staring at a small mound thirty feet away.

The mound swayed unsteadily; when its figure rose, a head the size of a grinding stone turned toward him—he saw it was a giant wild boar.

The boar bristled with coarse hair, bore tusks two feet long, stood over one and a half meters at the shoulder, looked like a small elephant from afar, its eyes glowed red, its breaths came heavy, and upon seeing this unwelcome guest, it began pawing the ground.

Scrape, scrape…

Xie Jinhuan saw this and silently cursed his useless personal maid, a foreboding rising in his chest!

After all, “One boar, two bears, three tigers”—encountering this thing in the mountains was deadly; given his current state, defeating this boar was harder than killing Taishu Dan.

Am I, a third-rank martial cultivator, really going to be gored to death by a wild boar in these mountains…

Wait, this seems like a mount…

Xie Jinhuan recalled the ghost bride’s incident with the horse going mad, and a thought struck him:

“Night Beauty, can you possess this boar?”

?

Ye Hongshang sat on a tree branch, red umbrella on her shoulder, ready to watch the show; upon hearing this, she frowned:

“Do you want to ride the boar, or ride me?”

Xie Jinhuan wanted both, since the horse couldn’t move in this wilderness; he whispered:

“Hurry up, hurry up, don’t scare it off.”

Ye Hongshang’s gaze was resigned; she raised her long right hand and beckoned.

Instantly, the wild boar king’s gaze softened; it stepped forward in tiny paces, knelt down before him, and wagged its little tail.

Thump~

Xie Jinhuan’s eyes brightened; he tied the small horse he’d bought in town to a tree trunk, then leapt onto the boar’s back, lightly squeezing its belly with his legs:

“Giddy-up… Holy shit—!”

Boom boom boom…

The thousand-pound giant boar immediately went berserk, leaping forward violently; saplings and vines along the way were smashed aside, carving a trail of dust through the forest, roaring like thunder!

Xie Jinhuan clung to the boar’s bristles to avoid being thrown off, his cheeks stinging from branches whipping him, but the speed was indeed lightning-fast; in moments, he crested the ridge and plunged downward.

Ye Hongshang floated ahead, watching with amusement:

“You better not spread this story—otherwise, when you one day stand atop the peaks, this boar will go down in history with you.”

Xie Jinhuan was always easygoing; seeing his destination rapidly approach, he replied:

“As long as I survive this crisis, I’d gladly marry a ghost bride as the number one in the world.”

“Hmph~”

Seeing Xie Jinhuan enjoying himself, Ye Hongshang spun midair, transforming into a crimson phoenix, wings trailing golden flames as she flew beside his head—the scene resembled wings of death.

Xie Jinhuan chased below, initially feeling a touch of “Spring breeze delights, boar’s hooves swift; when life is good, enjoy it fully.”

But soon, he couldn’t enjoy it anymore…

…

The night of the sixteenth day of the eighth month.

Only seven days had passed since his awakening in the rain.

The moon hung high; the old tent still stood deep in the wilderness, now covered in a layer of dead leaves.

The bedding and belongings inside the tent had not been disturbed; even the tomb-raiding notes tossed carelessly aside remained visible.

But the vegetation near the collapsed tomb shaft had all turned yellow, darker than the surrounding plants.

Xie Jinhuan stood in the abandoned campsite, Tian Gang Club in hand, staring at the anomaly at the shaft’s mouth, his brow furrowed:

“What’s going on?”

Ye Hongshang stood beside him, shrugging slightly:

“The purpose of the Spirit-Sealing Tomb is to sever the connection between heaven and earth, forcing demons and monsters to starve to death by draining their own primordial energy. Now that the Spirit-Sealing Tomb is damaged and gaps have formed, even if I’m not inside, my body naturally recovers, siphoning the essence from nearby vegetation.”

Xie Jinhuan suddenly understood:

“Good thing it’s autumn—hard to notice much. But come spring, no grass will grow here?”

“Grass will grow. But you won’t live to see it.”

“?”

Xie Jinhuan frowned, looking at his breathtakingly beautiful ghost bride:

“What do you mean?”

Ye Hongshang spun her shoulder red umbrella, explaining seriously:

“The vegetation was merely collateral damage—I’m truly drawing in the omnipresent spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

“If you don’t quickly find a way to repair the Spirit-Sealing Tomb, once I regain just half my strength, this broken tomb can no longer contain me.

“Then boundless spiritual energy will converge from all four seas; my spiritual soul returns to its place, I reclaim my peak—and you can fulfill your promise and make me cry.”

Xie Jinhuan couldn’t believe it: “I didn’t dig, yet you can get out yourself?”

Ye Hongshang nodded: “The Spirit-Sealing Tomb is already breached. I have countless ways to escape—never mind hiring someone else; even possessing Lin Wanyi, I could dig my own grave open.

“I just didn’t know what to do upon emerging, and didn’t want to harm you, so I waited for your decision. If you seal me, I’ll help you. If you dig me out, I’ll be your shield.”

Xie Jinhuan thought his ghost bride was kind—but the Great Qian was probably in dire straits.

He still didn’t know her background, but a ghost who’d been buried for over a hundred years and still bounced around? Her cultivation was certainly more than just Supergrade.

If she were a righteous sect ancestor, fully lucid, then all would be well.

If she emerged, he’d have a stunningly powerful wife at his side; worst case, he’d just be the concubine of a female elder, no fear of being crushed.

But which proper girl would be buried in a Spirit-Sealing Tomb?

If she were a demonic cultivator or still possessed malevolence, her escape would cause massive disturbances; Dan Yang would detect it first, then the entire Great Qian would unite to exterminate her—and him along with her!

As a demon-chosen one seeking self-preservation, he could only cling to his ghost bride’s leg, ride the wave, first obliterate both righteous and demonic paths, then “replace Zhao with Xie,” ascend the throne, fill his harem with immortal maidens and swordswomen, and forge a glorious, eternal empire…

Would he become “Poison Strategist Xie Wenhe”…

Better I betray the world than let the world betray me…

Is this… really why I dug the grave…

Xie Jinhuan felt that, pushed to the brink, he’d actually do this terrible thing.

But since a righteous path still offered a chance, better to walk it safely; he asked:

“Can you find a way to restrain yourself? Don’t restore your strength—give me time to improve and investigate your background?”

Ye Hongshang could only shrug: “This isn’t cultivation—it’s my body naturally recovering primordial energy. Can you stop your own wounds from healing?”

Xie Jinhuan clearly couldn’t; he asked again:

“So come spring, you’ll regain half your strength and explode out of the tomb, triggering heavenly phenomena?”

“No need to wait that long.”

“Huh?!”

Xie Jinhuan’s heart sank halfway: “Then how long?”

Ye Hongshang shrugged slightly: “When we first met, I told you—I gave you one month to decide.

“Normally, I’d regain enough strength to overturn the Spirit-Sealing Tomb in ten days; but this place has sparse spiritual energy, and the gap is too small—it’ll take nearly a month.

“You’ve already used seven days. You have twenty-two days and four hours left.”

Plop~

Tian Gang Club fell to the ground!

Xie Jinhuan had assumed the ghost bride gave him one month to decide—meaning if he didn’t decide in time, she’d find another master.

He never imagined: if he didn’t decide within a month, she’d just burst out herself—no need for his decision at all!

He’d barely crossed the third-rank threshold thanks to the Dao Strength Surge Pill, but his body was severely depleted; by the time he finished the Dragon Blood Pill, a month would have passed, and he’d be at best mid-third rank.

With only that much time, even reaching second rank would require a once-in-a-century stroke of fortune, let alone jumping to first rank.

Without entering first rank, he couldn’t seal the Spirit-Sealing Tomb—if his ghost bride truly was a transcendent demon or still possessed malevolence…

Xie Jinhuan took a deep breath, feeling the Great Qian’s Zhao dynasty truly was about to fall under his hands…

Ye Hongshang sensed the confusion in Xie Jinhuan’s eyes; she raised her arm and draped it over his shoulder:

“When the mountain blocks the way, a path will appear. If you truly fear her escape and want to first gain strength to seal the Spirit-Sealing Tomb, there’s still a way.”

Xie Jinhuan felt the heavy, soft warmth leaning against him, thinking the ghost bride had truly emerged—he quickly reached out, then realized she’d phased through again, and reluctantly withdrew his hand:

“What way? Don’t say you’ll go the demonic path, slaughtering towns and clans—demonic cultivation boosts power fast, but requires killing many; to leap two ranks in twenty days, you’d need to absorb ten thousand souls. Even if I had that cruelty, I lack the space to do it.”

Ye Hongshang helped analyze: “Zi Su’s ‘Vitality-Boosting Pill’ was described as incredibly potent—if it truly works, it might push you to first rank.

“In twenty-plus days, you’ll finish the Dragon Blood Pill, reaching mid-third rank; with the Vitality-Boosting Pill, entering second rank won’t be hard.

“For the final stretch, you can even take another Dao Strength Surge Pill at the cost of damaging your foundation.

“There’s no threshold in the Divine Qi realm’s middle to late stages; if you can just briefly touch first rank and maintain it for half an hour, you’ll have a chance to seal the Spirit-Sealing Tomb.”

Xie Jinhuan thought this plan had some merit—but…

“If I take this much medicine, am I sure I won’t overdose?”

Ye Hongshang raised an eyebrow:

“If you eat medicine until you feel full, how could you not have problems?”

“Huh?”

“But he shouldn’t die—later, you can find heavenly treasures to make up for it. Besides, you don’t necessarily have to eat it; you can prepare the elixir first, then look for clues about your sister. What if she’s a good person?”

Xie Jin considered carefully, then nodded:

“I’ll give it a try. If I haven’t made the elixir in a month, and I find out you’re not a good girl, we’ll part ways amicably—you’ll walk away and pretend you never knew me.”

“Oh my~”

Ye Hongshang gazed at him with unmistakable reluctance:

“I’m not a heartless woman. If I do get out, I’ll find you first. Then I’ll be the boss, Wanyi the junior, and MoMo the baby.”

“...”

Xie Jin found the idea of such a life appealing, but dreaming of it now was inappropriate. He turned, fetched the grave robber’s shovel from the tent, and found a secluded spot to dig.

Scrape, scrape—

The Wild Boar King, who had been crouching at the camp’s edge wagging his tail, trotted over at Ye Hongshang’s signal, snorting and rooting the earth with far greater efficiency than Meiqiu, who hovered overhead as a supervisor.

Once the large pit was dug, Xie Jin tossed in the grave robber’s corpse, the tent, the baggage, and everything else, burying them all, then cleared away the dead vegetation.

After erasing every trace and confirming that even someone walking nearby would notice nothing amiss, Xie Jin felt slightly at ease.

As long as Zhenyao Ling wasn’t found, no more trouble would arise within twenty days.

The Elixir of Surge in Cultivation was already in stock, the Dragon Blood Elixir was being consumed, and a skilled alchemist stood right before him—the only thing missing now was the “Jiazi Lotus Rhizome” needed to brew the Vitality-Rejuvenating Pill.

Twenty-two days wasn’t long, but it wasn’t short either. If he tried hard enough, finding one shouldn’t be difficult.

And what if, just maybe, he discovered the ghost bride was a good one?

In less than half a month, he could sleep wrapped around a female Immortal Emperor, in a sixteen-foot supreme luxury carriage…

Thinking of this, Xie Jin’s fighting spirit surged again. He flipped onto the Wild Boar King’s back, glanced back at the place where his nightmare had begun, then lightly squeezed the beast’s flanks:

“Giddy-up… I fucking—!”

Boom—boom—boom…

Dust erupted across the wilds as they shot away like an arrow loosed from a bow.

Meiqiu flew alongside overhead. In moments, the man, the bird, and the ghost vanished into the mountains, leaving only the silver moon and the starry river to illuminate the ancient, buried tomb deep in the wilderness…

(End of this volume)

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