Chapter 299

Chapter 298

Though they had some doubts about Pei Qiyu's identity, they were only traveling companions for the time being, and might part ways soon. It wasn't necessary to be too concerned about who he was.

However, Sang Yufei and the others couldn't help but be held back by a lagging junior brother.

Baili Chi asked them, "Young Master Ning, where will you go after passing Corpse Lake?"

"We don't have any specific destination for now; we might visit the Tianyu Prison Heaven," Ning Yuzhou replied.

Hearing this, Sang Yufei and her group realized that these people also had their own purposes for coming to the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones. Indeed, if they didn't have a purpose, why would they go through so much trouble to enter and deal with a bunch of skeletons?

If it weren't for Baili Chi's ability to communicate with the skeletons, their situation might not be as relaxed as it was now.

Although the skeletons didn't consider them outsiders due to the Bone Restoration Order, the lack of normal communication could lead to disaster if they accidentally offended the skeletons, just as when Sang Yufei unknowingly killed the young leader of the Giant Bone Clan.

Many cultivators who entered the Thirteen Palaces of Dry Bones in the past didn't make it out. They had been extremely cautious when choosing to come here, even bringing along Baili Chi to ensure a smooth journey.

They hoped their goals weren't the same; otherwise, if a fight broke out, it would be hard to predict the outcome.

Sang Yufei and Ge Rusong felt somewhat heavy-hearted, while Liu Qingyun closed her eyes to rest, seemingly indifferent to the external affairs. Only Baili Chi, oblivious to the tension, chatted happily with them.

As they were chatting, the bone boat suddenly jolted.

The skeletons on the boat started making a clamor, their clacking sounds incessant.

Then the boat jolted again, more violently this time. Some skeletons lost their balance and fell off the boat with a splash into the water.

Clack, clack, clack!

A sharp clacking sound echoed, and Wen Qiao and the others looked over to see some lucky skeletons tightly gripping the boat, hanging in mid-air, emitting panicked cries.

The skeletons' voices were different from humans', and hearing the clacking sounds, Wen Qiao and the others didn't feel much empathy.

The skeletons on the third level leaned out to look, appearing panicked, waving their limbs frantically.

Hearing their voices, Baili Chi hurriedly said, "They say there are corpses attacking the boat. Hold on tight."

Corpses attacking the boat?

Wen Qiao and Pei Qiyu exchanged a glance and stood up in unison, saying, "We'll go down to check the situation."

Then the two of them ran down to the lower deck, followed by a large, fluffy ball, leaving Sang Yufei and the others looking bewildered, wondering why they always ran towards danger.

Baili Chi stood up, "I'll—"

"Stay here!" Liu Qingyun said coldly, staring straight at him.

Baili Chi wanted to say something but, meeting her gaze, reluctantly agreed.

At this moment, Ning Yuzhou stood up, with a small, unobtrusive iron-eating beast perched on his shoulder.

Smiling at Baili Chi, Ning Yuzhou said, "I'll go down to check as well."

Seeing Ning Yuzhou leave, Su Molan naturally wouldn't stay behind and quickly followed him, both leaving the third level.

Wen Qiao and Pei Qiyu were both very interested in the corpses in the lake.

One was a demon cultivator, naturally drawn to ominous places, and found the corpses intriguing. The other, because Wen Qiuqiu mentioned that immortal bones might be in the lake, naturally wanted to investigate, hoping to obtain them.

When the two of them and the beast reached the deck, they saw the surrounding skeletons panicking, clinging to anything nearby to avoid falling into the lake. Some skeletons were trying to rescue those hanging off the side of the boat, while those already in the water were gone, no longer visible.

The bone boat continued to shake, sometimes violently, sometimes gently, giving the impression that something was attacking from below.

Standing by the edge of the boat, they looked into the dark blue, calm lake.

The boat's shaking caused ripples on the water, and the moonlight reflected on the surface rippled slightly.

Some skeletons on the boat held various weapons, vigilantly watching the lake, ready to fight at any moment.

Suddenly, another violent jolt occurred, almost throwing Wen Qiao and Pei Qiyu off the boat. Both grabbed a bone pillar to steady themselves, while the unprepared skeletons suffered, with dozens of splashes indicating many had fallen off.

Wen Qiuqiu clung tightly to Wen Qiao, unmoving despite the boat's shaking.

Now, Wen Qiao and Pei Qiyu could clearly see that the skeletons that fell into the water sank immediately without struggling, as if their bones were too heavy to float.

A shadow flashed in the water.

Wen Qiao and Pei Qiyu stared intently at the shadow that disappeared into the darkness, then asked each other, "Did you see that?"

"I saw it!"

Ning Yuzhou and Su Molan arrived just in time to hear this and asked, "What did you see?"

"A zombie," Pei Qiyu said quietly.

Su Molan looked speechless at him, wondering if he really had a thing for corpses.

The skeletons on the bone boat remained on high alert.

After a while, the boat slowly calmed down, as if whatever was attacking from below had left. The skeletons made a series of clacking sounds before finally leaving the deck.

The boat resumed its journey.

The previously crowded boat, filled with skeletons, became noticeably less crowded due to the incident. Seeing there were now empty spots, Wen Qiao and the others decided not to return to the third level and sat down in one of the available spots.

Casting a silence spell around them, the four began discussing what had just happened.

"From what we saw, the corpses in Corpse Lake attack the boat. We don't know if they can come out of the lake," Pei Qiyu said. "The skeletons that fell into the lake might have been dragged to the bottom."

Wen Qiao followed up, "I feel something's off with these corpses. Next time we encounter one, we could pull it out and take a look."

This suggestion was quite brutal, and Su Molan was instantly stunned.

She actually wants to pull out a corpse?

To her surprise, Ning Yuzhou pondered and said, "That’s not a bad idea. If we see one next time, we’ll pull it up."

Wen Qiao happily responded; she always felt delighted whenever Ning Yuzhou praised and unconditionally supported her suggestions.

"Chirp chirp~" Wen Qiuqiu chimed in from the side.

Wen Qiao reached out and stroked its fur, rejecting Wen Qiuqiu’s proposal to dive into the water. The situation in the lake was still unknown, and even if there were immortal bones in the lake, they couldn’t risk it for that.

Since she wanted to pull up a corpse, Wen Qiao began to keep watch on the deck, waiting like a rabbit for a tree to fall.

Ning Yuzhou and Wen Qiuqiu stayed by her side.

Pei Qiyu and Su Molan also wanted to see how she would operate, so they naturally joined as well. The four people and one creature all squatted on the deck, drawing curious glances from the skeletons inside the cabin. Their eyes flickered with red light, and even without understanding the language of the skeletons, everyone could tell what they meant.

Why stay outside when there’s a safe place? Do you want to be thrown into the lake too?

In the skeletons’ minds, falling into the lake meant certain death, which was the most dangerous aspect of Corpse Lake.

After another hour, the bone boat suddenly started shaking, and a thudding sound came from the bottom, as if someone was hammering the hull.

Fortunately, the boat was sturdy enough to withstand the pounding and continued moving forward.

The skeletons looked somewhat tense but hadn’t lost their composure, indicating that this attack wasn’t significant.

"The Bone Tribe’s craftsmanship is indeed remarkable," Wen Qiao remarked, tossing a crimson seed back and forth in her hand.

Su Molan nodded; with such an attack from the corpses, an ordinary boat would likely not survive. No wonder only the Bone Tribe’s boats could navigate Corpse Lake.

As they were talking, a corpse suddenly appeared beneath the boat.

Wen Qiao, with sharp eyes and the support of Ning Yuzhou and Pei Qiyu, immediately summoned a thousand silk vines. The fine, hair-like vines shot into the lake, binding the corpse.

The thousand silk vines seemed to have caught something heavy, making it difficult even for Wen Qiao to pull it up.

Remember, when fishing in the Endless Sea, an eighth-stage dolphin, though large, was easily reeled in. But now, just a human cultivator’s corpse was so heavy, as if there were strong restraints in the water, forcing her to drag it bit by bit.

"The resistance in the water is so strong," Wen Qiao frowned, pulling the thousand silk vines with both hands, her white, tender hands straining visibly.

Su Molan rolled up her sleeves to help, but when she grabbed the thousand silk vines, she found that her strength was ineffective.

How much strength would it take to pull this up... Wait, how strong is Wen Qiao to be able to pull this thing up?

For a moment, Su Molan felt immense admiration for Wen Qiao’s strength.

Wen Qiao slowly pulled the thousand silk vines up, and fortunately, after countless improvements, the vines had become incredibly resilient, allowing them to withstand the resistance without breaking.

With a splash, the corpse finally emerged from the water, being dragged onto the deck.

Once the corpse was out of the water, it was as light as a piece of paper, and Wen Qiao easily threw it onto the deck with a thud.

The four people and one creature gathered around the corpse.

When they saw the corpse clearly, they were all taken aback.

The corpse was a young man in a green robe. Although dead, it showed no signs of decay, with only slightly pale skin, giving the impression that he might come back to life at any moment.

His features were exquisite, a rare beauty, and what surprised them was that this corpse was of the Yuan Sheng Realm.

This corpse must have been a Yuan Sheng Realm cultivator in life, but for some reason, it fell here. Though his cultivation had dissipated, his body remained intact, preventing decay.

Of course, it could also be that some force in the lake kept the corpses from decaying, preserving them as they were in life.

All four were cautious, expecting the corpse to attack when they dragged it up, but it remained motionless like a true corpse.

This relieved them; even if the corpse’s cultivation had diminished, it was still a Yuan Sheng Realm corpse, which they couldn’t handle.

"Does it only attack when it’s in the lake?" Pei Qiyu asked, stroking his chin.

Just as they were puzzled, they sensed skeletons approaching. Wen Qiao quickly put the corpse into her storage bag.

As the skeletons passed by, they glanced at them, seemingly wondering why the four were squatting there.

The four looked innocent as the skeletons walked past, recognizing from the bone weapons they held that these skeletons were likely guards patrolling the ship.

Once the skeletons left, the four continued discussing the matter.

"There’s something strange about this lake," Wen Qiao said. "Do you think all the corpses in the lake are of the Yuan Sheng Realm?"

"We can find out by pulling up another one," Pei Qiyu bluntly suggested, supporting Wen Qiao’s plan to continue.

Wen Qiao narrowed her eyes at him, "Do you want a corpse too?"

"Of course," Pei Qiyu answered straightforwardly. "A Yuan Sheng Realm corpse, even if not used for necromancy, can serve as a meat shield in times of danger."

That’s a solid reason, and Wen Qiao was speechless.

It seemed that most demon cultivators acted directly, doing only what benefited them.

Wen Qiao ignored him and turned to Ning Yuzhou, "Husband, I’ll pull up a Yuan Sheng Realm meat shield for you to protect against danger."

Ning Yuzhou: "..."

Wen Qiao ambitiously went to pull up another corpse, and Pei Qiyu, seeing Ning Yuzhou’s rare expression of speechlessness, suddenly understood something about their relationship.

As long as she thinks it benefits Ning Yuzhou, Wen Qiao would do anything, no matter how absurd or bizarre. Similarly, as long as Wen Qiao is interested, Ning Yuzhou can meet her demands no matter how difficult the situation.

These two are truly a perfect match; neither can be missing.

Unfortunately, after several hours passed, no corpses appeared.

Just as Wen Qiao was feeling dejected, she noticed that the skeletons on the ship suddenly became alert, taking defensive positions around the bone ship, ready for battle.

Another attack from the zombie corpses?

As she thought this, she suddenly saw countless bodies floating toward them on the lake's surface.

Pei Qiyu and Su Molan couldn't hide their surprise when they heard Wen Qiao say, "So many corpses, let's reel them in quickly."

The two of them: "..."

Then they saw Wen Qiao already crouching there, waiting for the corpses to float over so she could start fishing them out, her excitement making her seem even more like a demon cultivator than Pei Qiyu himself.

What left them speechless was that Ning Yuzhou stood beside her, providing cover, while Wen Qiuqiu and Wen Guangun, the two fluffy creatures, chirped and cooed nearby, as if cheering on their sister Wen.

Compared to Wen Qiao's excitement, the skeletons were extremely tense, not just the skeleton guards but also the passengers crossing the lake, creating an atmosphere of suppressed anxiety on the ship.

The corpses were about to drift past.

Along with the corpses, a lot of miscellaneous items floated by, including many fragments of spirit weapons. From these traces, it was evident that a life-and-death battle had taken place here, and after these cultivators died, their bodies sank into the lake, along with their weapons, which now lay scattered together.

Suddenly, Wen Qiao cast out her Thousand Silk Vine, which darted into the pile of spirit weapon fragments and grabbed a sword.

When the sword was pulled out of the water and held by Wen Qiao, everyone felt the aura of a King-level spirit weapon.

Pei Qiyu and Su Molan both widened their eyes.

But after a glance, Wen Qiao casually tossed it to Su Molan, "It's still usable, take it."

Su Molan took it in a daze, looking at the well-preserved spirit sword in his hand. Despite being submerged in the lake for who knows how long, it showed no signs of damage. Most importantly, it was a King-level spirit weapon.

"Why are you giving it to me?" Su Molan asked hesitantly.

"Your Explosive Spirit Sword Technique consumes too much spirit energy, and lower-level spirit swords can't withstand it. My husband and I don't use swords, so I'm giving it to you."

She said it so casually, yet it made Su Molan feel deeply moved, almost to the point of tears.

Even if Wen Qiao and her companions didn't need the sword, it was still a King-level spirit weapon, useful for self-defense, and not something to be given away lightly.

Even Pei Qiyu was at a loss for words.

Wen Qiao, however, paid no attention to them and continued to crouch there, waiting to scoop up more good things.

She had already discovered that there were many valuable items in the lake, not just immortal bones but also the bodies of Yuan Sheng Realm cultivators, and even various weapons. She couldn't afford to miss out on any of them.

Seeing another object floating toward them, which looked like a gourd-shaped spirit weapon, Wen Qiao quickly summoned her Thousand Silk Vine.

Just as the vine wrapped around the gourd, a pale hand emerged from the lake, grabbing the vine.

Wen Qiao found herself face-to-face with a pale, ghastly face from the lake.