Chapter 4: The Sword of a Chivalrous Lady, a Chilling Presence
“H-how could this be?!”
Hua Shuya’s face was pale with shock.
The man’s face was twisted and horrifying, his heartbeat and body temperature gone. There was no sign of life left in him!
Yet, despite being a cold corpse, he was stumbling towards them!
Her mind raced, and a memory surfaced.
There were rumors of a sinister voodoo technique practiced in foreign lands that could control a person’s body, even animating a corpse to move like a living person.
Could it be that they had been ambushed, and her companions had been killed as soon as she left?
While Hua Shuya was filled with fear and uncertainty, Lin Tianlu, after his initial surprise, quickly calmed down.
Looking at the man’s gruesome face, he didn’t feel any fear or terror.
It was as if… he was looking at nothing but air?
Lin Tianlu frowned, sensing a change within himself.
Not only the physical changes, but now, facing a grotesque zombie that would have sent most people screaming in terror, he felt completely indifferent, as if it were invisible.
Had his time alone on the mountain… changed his mental state?
As the zombie approached, he calmly asked in a low voice, “Young lady, have you had any conflicts with anyone recently?”
“I don’t know!”
Seeing the approaching corpse, Hua Shuya gritted her teeth and drew her sword.
“Don’t worry, Senior… These voodoo-controlled zombies are nothing to fear. I can handle them!”
As soon as she finished speaking, she charged forward.
Her wrist flicked, and a flash of sword light erupted. A bright blade pierced through the air, striking the zombie’s head with deadly precision.
Her robes billowed, her expression serious and resolute, giving her an ethereal, chivalrous aura. She showed no hesitation in facing the grotesque creature, her movements decisive and swift.
Thud!
As she withdrew her sword, blood splattered, and the zombie collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
Rustle, rustle, rustle…
The sound of leaves rustling echoed through the forest, making Hua Shuya’s face harden. Her sharp eyes, like honed blades, scanned the surroundings, and several more figures emerged from the bushes. It seemed that more than one of her companions had been killed.
It was highly likely… that all eight of them were dead!
Hua Shuya bit her lip, her heart filled with both anger and sorrow. She gripped her sword so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Although the eight companions were just farmers and mountain folk she had hired as guides, with no personal connection to her, seeing them killed still infuriated her.
“Despicable villains!”
She hissed, charging forward again.
“Roar—”
The leading zombie roared, reaching out with its hands, trying to grab her blade.
The moment the blade touched its fingers, a metallic clang rang out!
Hua Shuya’s eyes narrowed, and she spun gracefully, her exquisite swordsmanship unfolding. A flurry of clanging sounds filled the air as her blade danced, severing the zombie’s fingers.
In the next moment, she leaped into the air, her sword slashing horizontally, decapitating the zombie.
The girl moved through the forest like a graceful dancer, weaving through the encircling zombies, her azure sword flashing, effortlessly cutting them down one by one.
“Impressive!”
Lin Tianlu watched the scene unfold, impressed.
He hadn’t expected this girl seeking immortality to be such a skilled martial artist. Her swordsmanship… was truly beautiful!
This fight was far more spectacular than any special effects he had seen in movies and TV shows in his previous life.
He estimated that it would take her about half a minute to finish off all the zombies.
As a weak scholar, unable to fight, he decided to stay out of the way. He didn’t want to risk getting caught up in the fight and being infected by some unknown virus.
“—Hmm?”
Lin Tianlu suddenly let out a soft exclamation, turning to look behind him.
Why did he suddenly feel… a chill down his spine?
The forest was quiet, the trees dense, the light dim.
But there were no zombies in sight…
“Strange, I didn’t feel cold at all during my half month on the mountaintop.” Lin Tianlu was puzzled. “Why do I feel a chilling wind here?”
At the same time, Hua Shuya, who was fighting the zombies, also sensed something amiss.
“What… what’s going on?!”
She quickly dodged a zombie’s sharp claws and countered with a swift sword strike. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw the zombies she had decapitated earlier picking up their heads and reattaching them, staggering back to their feet!
“I clearly pierced their vital points! Why—”
Although the foreign voodoo technique was powerful and evil, it relied on the control of insects. Once the head was destroyed, the technique should be broken.
This was what her grandfather had taught her from his own battlefield experience.
But now, these zombies, even without heads, were still moving!
She gritted her teeth and continued to fight, but she was quickly forced back.
“This won’t work!”
With her current Pure Yang realm cultivation, defeating these zombies wouldn’t be difficult. But they could keep getting back up, endlessly!
—Boom!
Suddenly, a loud explosion rang out.
Hua Shuya’s spirits lifted, and she turned around in surprise. “Senior?!”
“…”
Lin Tianlu stood there, his hand outstretched, his face calm and composed.
But his mind was filled with astonishment.
“What just happened?”
He had just felt something buzzing around him, like a mosquito, and swatted at it in annoyance.
But when his hand made contact, it felt like he had touched something cold and soft.
Then, the explosion happened. His palm was still smoking.
Lin Tianlu stared at his hand in bewilderment, muttering to himself,
“Am I turning into Iron Man now? Shooting repulsor blasts from my palms?”
Hiss, hiss, hiss…
A chilling, raspy hiss suddenly echoed through the forest!
Hua Shuya trembled, her face turning pale. She felt her internal energy freezing, her blood flow stagnating. She looked around frantically.
“W-what’s happening?!”
What terrifying presence was lurking in this forest?
Just a single hiss had rendered her powerless?!
“Hey, Miss Hua!” Lin Tianlu’s voice called out. “Is that person behind you one of your companions?”
Behind her… person?
Hua Shuya was stunned for a moment, then her blood ran cold.
There was no one behind her.
Instinctively, she turned around.
A pale, ghastly face appeared before her, their eyes meeting. A chilling smile spread across the woman’s lips.
“This is bad!”
Hua Shuya’s face was filled with terror as she tried to retreat, but a gust of Yin wind swept over her, paralyzing her body. She could only watch helplessly as the strange woman thrust her fingers towards her chest!
She barely managed to raise her sword in defense, biting her lip and closing her eyes tightly, waiting for the inevitable.
—Slap!
The woman’s movements abruptly stopped, her attack halted.
Hua Shuya cautiously opened her eyes and was surprised to see the woman’s wrist caught in someone’s hand.
The woman’s dark eyes narrowed as she turned her head. Lin Tianlu was standing beside her, his hand gripping her wrist.
“It seems you’re not one of Miss Hua’s companions.”
Lin Tianlu’s gaze was cold, but a gentle smile still played on his lips. “They say a scholar should be virtuous and never harm a woman. I just slapped you, so I should apologize.”
“…”
The woman’s left cheek, bearing a bright red handprint, twitched.
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