``` "Indeed!" Lu Chengyun nodded. Zhang Quan’s face was full of anger. Lu Chengyun glanced at Zhang Quan indifferently, "What do you want to do?" Zhang Quan suppressed his anger, his eyes brimming with ambition, as he said coldly: "What else can we do?" "With the Corpse King lying dormant, and the Walking Corpses mining, isn’t it just like letting a fierce sword gather dust?" "Once the Corpse King emerges, it should naturally command the horde, be invincible, and dominate the state boundary!" "With the Corpse King, with so many Iron Corpses, and with so many Walking Corpses." "The entire Minor Wilderness State Boundary, no, perhaps even several neighboring state boundaries, which power could be our opponent?" "Wherever the Zombie army goes, corpses will float everywhere." "Those who resist, annihilate them utterly!" "Without any effort, we’ll first occupy South Yue City, then step by step dominate the Minor Wilderness State Boundary, and gradually nibble away at the neighboring Second-Grade Prefecture Border..." "We refine corpses and kill, then kill and refine more corpses!" "Round and round it goes, we will endlessly expand our strength!" "We could use this to establish a powerful Demon Corpse Sect, glorifying our ancestors, unequaled in one realm." "By then, you and I will be the Ancestral Masters who established the sect, so what’s the position of a mere Family Head to us?" ... As if envisioning this scene, Zhang Quan’s face turned crimson, his eyes red with blood vessels, his expression excited. However, Lu Chengyun remained unmoved, instead letting out a cold laugh and scoffing: "Naive!" Zhang Quan’s face darkened as he looked at Lu Chengyun with hostility. Lu Chengyun didn’t care, instead he spoke indifferently: "Your Zhang Family, although it has inherited the Corpse Path for generations, with some renown, is in the end a small clan, passing down from one generation to the next, a few people at best, which is why your vision is limited, and your pattern is small..." "Dominate the state boundary, establish a sect, build a Demon Sect?" Lu Chengyun showed a mocking expression, "You think this is child’s play?" "A single Second-Grade Corpse King and a few dozen Iron Corpses, what dominance can they claim?" "Do you think the Taoist Court is a vegetarian?" "The Taoist Court unifies the Nine States, some Demon Path giants that have existed for ten thousand years still choose to hide and secretly plan, not daring to come forward. With our family’s humble base, and these first and second grade zombies, what state can we take, what dominance can we claim?" "Are we worthy?" Zhang Quan’s face turned blue, then red. Lu Chengyun shook his head and sighed: "You only know about corpse refinement, knowing so little about the Cultivation World, not understanding the strength of the Taoist Court." "If we act in secret, establish a Corpse Mine, raise some Walking Corpses, without showing off or leaking our presence, the Taoist Court might not bother with us." "Even if they want to intervene, they might not be willing to pay the price, to clash with us to the point where both fish and net are destroyed." "But if you make a big show of it, waving the banner of inheriting the Corpse Path, of establishing a Demon Sect, then you would have crossed the Taoist Court’s red line!" "The Taoist Court would stop at nothing to annihilate us!" "Once word gets out, not three days would pass before hundreds of Foundation Cultivation Taoist Soldiers would arrive, bearing silver spears, clad in golden armor, in vast formation, coming to our doorstep to kill." "They would utterly destroy you and me, along with all the Walking Corpses and Iron Corpses in this mine, reducing them to ashes!" "Forget one Corpse King; even ten would be useless!" "A Corpse King is just that, not a Big Demon, Great Ghost, or some Grand Calamity that comes once in a millennium. With what right and boldness could we provoke the Taoist Court and cross their taboo?" "Are you stupid, or do you think you have too long a life?" Lu Chengyun spoke without a hint of politeness. ``` Zhang Quan was unable to utter a word, feeling a surge of anger bottled up inside him, he indignantly said, "But we can’t just… only do mining..." Lu Chengyun’s gaze darkened. "That’s why I say your vision is too limited." Zhang Quan was taken aback. Lu Chengyun let out a cold laugh, "What’s wrong with mining?" "What do you exchange from mining?" "You exchange for Spirit Stones!" "In this world, who doesn’t need Spirit Stones? Who would think they have too many Spirit Stones? Without Spirit Stones, how can you cultivate immortality, how can you seek the Way?" Zhang Quan frowned, deep in thought. Lu Chengyun said indifferently, "The cultivators of South Yue City, alive, they mine for my Lu Family, and even in death, turned into zombies, they still have to mine for my Lu Family!" "In life or in death, they are all slaves to my Lu Family!" "By day the living mine, by night the dead mine." "This mine will keep producing, and my Lu Family will have an endless supply of Spirit Stones!" "Spirit Stones are the foundation!" "With these Spirit Stones, bribe the Taoist Court Officials, bribe all sides of power, raise them like ’pigs,’ make them greedy, make them foolish, make them insatiable, make them only able to rely on us, the Lu Family, to survive. Only then can we truly have unbridled power within this Minor Wilderness State Boundary!" "What’s the use of being dominant?" "Becoming a demon? What good will that do?" "Under the unification of the Taoist Court, demon cultivators who dare to stand out have long since died without a place to be buried!" "The true Demon Path is learning how to cling to the Taoist Court, monopolize industries, earn Spirit Stones, suck the blood of the cultivators in the state, enslave them with power and status, oppress them with identity, and extort them with Spirit Stones..." "Without relying on murder, without relying on Corpse Poison, without relying on Demon Skills..." "Openly and honorably eat their flesh, drink their blood, and strengthen oneself!" "Even if the Taoist Court were to investigate, they wouldn’t be able to find a thing." "The local Taoist Court Officials are our people; the local sects are of the same alliance as us; the local clans look up to our breath;" "Those miners below us, insignificant and weak, are trampled under our feet. They dare not speak, and even if they did, no one would believe them..." "This is the way to use Spirit Stones!" "This is the real hand that covers the sky!" Lu Chengyun spoke resolutely, his gaze profound. Continue reading stories on empire Zhang Quan’s expression flickered uncertainly. Mo Hua, hidden behind the altar, listened with his heart pounding. Within the Ten Thousand Corpses Sacrificial Altar, there was silence. After a moment, Lu Chengyun said indifferently: "Brother Zhang, do you understand now?" Zhang Quan came back to his senses, his eyelids twitching, he nodded, seeming to understand but not quite understanding. Lu Chengyun nodded slightly, then said with a deep meaning: "With these zombies, if you command them to kill, the Taoist Court will kill us." "But if you command them to mine, earn Spirit Stones, give them to the Taoist Court, even to the Taoist Court..." "Not only will they not kill us, but they will also wish for us to kill more people, refine more corpses, mine more, and deliver more Spirit Stones..." "Times have changed, even cultivating in the Demon Path isn’t all about fighting and killing..." "Brother Zhang, think about it well..." After Lu Chengyun finished speaking, he patted Zhang Quan on the shoulder and turned to leave. In the center of the sacrificial altar, only Zhang Quan remained. Of course, there was also Mo Hua. Mo Hua hid behind the altar, profoundly shocked, his back soaked with cold sweat. This Lu Chengyun was even more sinister than he had thought. And his schemes were even more terrifying. If he truly succeeded, he would play both sides of good and evil, bribing everyone. Then this corpse mine could truly become like an ancient tree that has spread its roots far and wide, deeply entrenched in this mine, with interests as its roots, connecting top to bottom, firmly rooted and difficult to eradicate... Mo Hua inhaled a cold breath, but just then, he heard a voice. "Nonsense!" Mo Hua started. It was Zhang Quan’s voice. After Lu Chengyun had walked off into the distance, Zhang Quan then angrily said: "Utter nonsense!" "To abandon the role of a great Demon Sect ancestor and instead submit to the Taoist Court, fawning over the Court Official, flattering all sorts of powers, becoming their dog, it’s really nonsensical!" "Letting zombies mine continuously?" "Can they even be called zombies if they don’t eat people or drink blood?" "It’s simply a disgrace to our Corpse Path ancestral masters!" "What’s even more infuriating is that the spirit stones earned from mining are to be sent out?" "Really, once a dog, always a dog!" "And to think he said I had a small vision? I see that you, as the Family Head for too long, have been blinded by wealth and luxury, narrow-sighted, timid and skittish!" "To scurry like a rat and live like a dog for hundreds of years, how can that compare to the grandeur of the Demon Path?" "To establish the Demon Gate, to promote the Corpse Path, to honor our ancestors, to leave a legacy of infamy in the annals of the state boundary, to be renowned among fellow corpse cultivators, even if it is but a transient splendor, and in the end to be suppressed by the Taoist Court so that not even my bones remain, would still suffice!" Zhang Quan’s expression was passionate, his gaze resolute. ... Mo Hua fell silent. This Zhang Quan had his own ideas... And also... a belief and pursuit for the Corpse Path? Mo Hua found it hard to judge at that moment. After Zhang Quan cursed Lu Chengyun for a while and calmed his emotions, a moment later, he smirked coldly and whispered low: "Lu Chengyun..." "Corpse refinement is not for you alone to dictate... " "...Once the Corpse King has been refined, you will no longer have a say..." "I am not as timid and hesitant as you are." "I will certainly bring forth the Corpse King, let Iron Corpses massacre the city, turn South Yue City into a field of walking corpses, plunge the Minor Wilderness State Boundary into purgatory, make all cultivators of this world lose their courage at the mere mention, let them know what true corpse cultivation is!" Zhang Quan’s voice was icy, and after he finished, he snorted coldly and then left. A glint flashed in Mo Hua’s eyes, chilly and sharp. Zhang Quan, Lu Chengyun... Though their methods differed drastically, neither was a good sort. Whichever of them took control of the Corpse King, the outcome would not be good. One would create a land strewn with floating corpses; the other’s poison would reach far and wide. Mo Hua then thought of Zhang Quan’s angered expression and his recent words, spawning a thought. Did Zhang Quan not get along with Lu Chengyun, and, judging by his intentions, did he also aspire to control the Corpse King? To control the Corpse King would surely require opening the bronze coffin. In that case, would this not present an opportunity for him? Mo Hua’s eyes flickered. He spent all his free time thereafter tracking Zhang Quan. When Zhang Quan was alone, he was indeed sneaky, even setting up a Formation to watch with Divine Sense, clearly preparing for something. Mo Hua, cautious not to startle the snake, did not dare to spy too closely. But he knew that Zhang Quan was sure to be up to something. He was acting just like Mo Hua himself did when planning mischief. Indeed, a few days later, one night, while Lu Chengyun was busy with clan affairs and had left the corpse mine, Zhang Quan snuck out as well. Mo Hua quickly made himself invisible, left his own room, and went straight to the Ten Thousand Corpses Sacrificial Altar to wait for him. In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Zhang Quan entered the altar. Mo Hua still hid behind the altar, secretly watching him. Seeing no one around, Zhang Quan, sneaky and a little on edge, removed a bronze coffin nail from his Storage Bag. Mo Hua’s eyes lit up, and he immediately understood. "So it’s the coffin nail!" This coffin nail was both a key and contained a Pattern. Normal coffin nails are for sealing coffins, but this one was for opening them. Zhang Quan took out the nail, measured along the coffin lid, found a spot three inches from the edge, and nailed it into the bronze coffin. Then, a flicker of aura appeared on the bronze coffin. It seemed that something had been unlocked. Zhang Quan was overjoyed and instantly lifted the lid, revealing the inside of the coffin, which was adorned with a Blood Formation. Zhang Quan then took out a dagger, sliced open his palm, and allowed his blood to flow into the grooves of the coffin. Once the grooves were filled with blood, Zhang Quan took out a Corpse Controlling Bell. This Corpse Bell, neither stone nor wood, nor bronze nor iron, was pitch-black, with Pattern lines as sinister as those on the bronze coffin inside. Zhang Quan rang the Corpse Bell. The sound was muffled and strange, like a zombie whispering. After ringing the bell for a while, Zhang Quan continued with the blood feeding ritual, then rang the Corpse Bell again, taking bizarre steps around the bronze coffin in reverse. Feeding blood, ringing the bell, walking in reverse. He chanted under his breath. Though Mo Hua didn’t quite understand, based on his prior research and what he had learned from Lu Ming about corpse refining, he guessed this to be a special Corpse control method within the Corpse Refinement arts. Indeed, after seven rounds of blood feeding, seven rings of the bell, and seven reverse circuits, the sound of a heartbeat emerged from the bronze coffin. This was the heartbeat of the dead. Distinguishable from the heartbeat of the living, it was sinister and eerie. Just listening to it made Mo Hua feel uncomfortable, his own heart feeling slightly suffocated. Fortunately, this heart only throbbed faintly for a moment and then stopped. Zhang Quan, however, was thrilled. He resealed the coffin, retrieved the coffin nail, looked around to be sure no one was there and that he hadn’t left any other traces, then snorted coldly and left the vast, empty altar. Behind the altar, however, Mo Hua peeked out his head.