Everyone was alarmed. Such a powerful Corpse King! Yang Jishan’s heart also trembled, and immediately he exclaimed, "Quick, take this chance to kill Lu Chengyun!" The Corpse King was injured and temporarily immobile; this was the time to hurry and kill Lu Chengyun! Otherwise, once the Corpse King recovered, they would be stuck in a deadlock again. All the cultivators also came back to their senses, throwing caution to the wind, with swords and spells all launching towards Lu Chengyun. Lu Chengyun was greatly startled. What kind of spear was this? Could it really suppress the Corpse King? As he saw people coming to kill him, Lu Chengyun tried to run, but without the Corpse King, his power greatly diminished, and he hadn’t gone far when he was immobilized by the copper coins of a gaunt old man and entangled by several nearby Foundation Establishment cultivators. Yang Jishan wanted to pull out the Sunset Spear, but its tip was firmly stuck in the Corpse King’s arm and couldn’t be pulled out right away. He gritted his teeth, painfully abandoning the Sunset Spear, and took out an ordinary long spear to go after Lu Chengyun. Lu Chengyun’s Opening The Mountain Sword Method, although powerful, seemed somewhat inferior in front of so many Taoist Court cultivators. Even with the help of the Iron Corpse, he could barely hold on. It was then that Yang Jishan made his move. Using the Sunset Spear was extremely draining. Yang Jishan’s face was pale, his breath somewhat weaker, but still he clenched his teeth and waved the long spear, seizing Lu Chengyun’s lapse and breaking his swordsmanship, kicking him to the ground with one foot. Then, raising the long spear high, he aimed it at Lu Chengyun’s heart and stabbed down fiercely. Yang Jishan wanted to end Lu Chengyun with a single thrust of his spear! But that thrust did not land. Midway, it was deflected by a few copper coins, the spear’s direction slightly altered, only grazing Lu Chengyun’s ribs and scratching through a layer of skin. Lu Chengyun took the opportunity to break free and was once again protected by the Iron Corpse. Yang Jishan was furious, his gaze sharp as a sword, as he turned to question the gaunt old man, "Old Wen, what do you mean by this?" Without those copper coins, he would have stabbed Lu Chengyun to death just now! The gaunt old man, however, looked terrified, "We can’t kill him!" Yang Jishan frowned and asked coldly, "Why not?" The gaunt old man pointed towards the big pit with the Corpse King, pierced through the arm by the Sunset Spear, unmoving, and said with a trembling voice, "Its blood, it has already turned pale gold..." Yang Jishan was shocked and looked hurriedly. Only then did he notice that from the Corpse King’s arm pierced by the spear, blood was flowing, seeping along the spear and dropping onto the ground. The blood was originally a dark green color. Now, however, it was tinged with a faint and eerie gold. Yang Jishan felt a sudden chill in his heart. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎 "A demonic mutation?" "How can it be so rapid?" The gaunt old man’s voice was filled with terror, "It has already developed its own consciousness, killing Lu Chengyun would be like removing its shackles, and that would be the most terrifying thing..." The preceding scene of total annihilation, with the Corpse King’s bloodcurdling scream, once again flashed in his mind. Yang Jishan’s face turned ghostly pale, his teeth clenched, a cold sensation repeatedly rising in his heart: "It’s all been calculated!" "If the affair of the Corpse Mine isn’t leaked, Lu Chengyun will continue his corpse refinement, the sins piling up, and after decades, or even a century, the Corpse King will transform into a Taoist Demon..." "If the affair of the Corpse Mine is leaked, Lu Chengyun will be besieged by the Taoist Court." "A large-scale battle between cultivators and zombies, cultivators dying, zombies consuming humans, amidst life and death, Blood Qi and Corpse Qi converging, will similarly expedite the Corpse King’s transformation..." "The death of Lu Chengyun is the final key!" "It’s the key to unlocking the shackles, transforming the Corpse King into a Taoist Demon!" "Once Lu Chengyun is killed, the Corpse King will break free from its shackles, instantly becoming the true ’king’ of corpses, commanding thousands of zombies and transforming into a real Taoist Demon!" "What a venomous scheme, what profound plotting!" "The key is, there are no traces of these events, everything is happening naturally..." And Lu Chengyun, including those present, were all pawns... This was a checkmate! The gaunt old man had also realized this, which is why he looked so terrified. Among the other cultivators, some had also understood, and in their eyes, there was an involuntary flash of despair. Yang Jishan felt both nervous and afraid, his mind in turmoil. However, he was the leader of the Taoist Soldiers, battle-hardened, and more importantly, he had to take responsibility for the lives and deaths of his brothers fighting alongside him. The more dangerous the situation, the calmer one must be. Yang Jishan forced himself to calm down, and after a moment of contemplation, gritted his teeth and said: "At this point, we can only capture Lu Chengyun alive." "Capture Lu Chengyun and use him to control the Corpse King, then we can make long-term plans!" That was the only way left. The gaunt old man knew it too. But killing Lu Chengyun was one thing, capturing him alive was another entirely... Just then, suddenly, a vicious low growl was heard. All eyes followed the sound, only to see the Corpse King’s aura reviving, as it slowly stood up again. The air of the tomb hill was filled with Blood Qi, Corpse Qi, Filthy Qi, and the Qi of death. Its injuries were healing remarkably quickly. The Corpse King’s gaze was ice-cold as it pulled out the Sunset Spear from its arm, tossed it aside, and with a few flashes, stood behind Lu Chengyun once more. For a moment, the cultivators felt bitter, the look of despair on their faces deepening. Feeling the devoted Corpse King silently standing behind him again, Lu Chengyun was much relieved. And having witnessed what had just unfolded, Lu Chengyun had also come to understand. He looked at Yang Jishan, and with a smug smile he said: "You don’t dare to kill me!" "That’s right, you don’t dare to kill me!!" "If you kill me, the Corpse King will be out of control." "If the Corpse King is out of control, it means that all the Walking Corpses and Iron Corpses in South Yue City will also lose control." "The Corpse King will become a Copper Corpse, commanding the Iron Corpses and Walking Corpses, forming a terrifying Corpse Tide that will slaughter the city, kill people, eat people, and turn the dead into zombies!" "This Corpse Tide will gradually grow stronger, sweeping across the entire Minor Wilderness State Boundary and spreading to the surrounding Second Grade state boundaries..." "This is a catastrophe!" "The reason this hasn’t happened is because of what?" Lu Chengyun pointed to his chest,"Because I’m still alive!" "Because I’m alive, the Corpse King obeys my command, and that’s why it hasn’t committed so many killings!" "The cultivators of South Yue City have been able to cling to life!" "The entire Minor Wilderness State Boundary has been spared from a living hell!" Lu Chengyun’s eyes gleamed with madness, his tone impassioned as he said: "All of this is because, I am still alive!" "I am still alive!" "But once I am dead..." Lu Chengyun’s words came to a sudden halt, and the smile on his face gradually faded as he looked down to see sharp fingertips piercing through his chest. On the fingertips, there was fresh blood and dark green Corpse Poison. Yang Jishan, the gaunt old man, and all the other cultivators stared in shock. They saw a zombie take advantage of Lu Chengyun’s carelessness and claw right through his chest. And the silent assassin, who had just launched the surprise attack from behind, was none other than the "loyal" Corpse King himself! Had the Corpse King actually "betrayed"?!