Zanxing (Retranslated)

Chapter 55 - The Grave of the Dead (1)

In the map of the Xumi Mustard Seed Diagram, Zanxing carried a stick and walked slowly.

In the examination arena, one couldn’t feel the passage of time. The sky neither brightened nor darkened, like a painting that once drawn, remained unchanged, forever shrouded in twilight.

Without any reminders of the examination time, Zanxing walked and rested intermittently. With the Torch Eye Talisman, she wasn’t likely to encounter any high-level demon cultivators she couldn’t handle. She estimated that she was currently ranked somewhere in the upper-middle tier, and advancing further seemed somewhat challenging.

Dealing with high-level demon cultivators would be a struggle even with her middle Foundation Establishment cultivation. Instead of immediately trying to solve difficult questions and handing in her paper prematurely, it would be better to tackle more basic questions.

Just as she was thinking, she heard a sound ahead. Zanxing’s heart stirred, guessing that she had encountered a fellow disciple, so she took a few steps forward.

Apart from the junior disciple she met near the Two-Headed Asura, she hadn’t seen any other disciples here. It seemed that even the senior martial uncles feared that disciples would team up to defeat demon cultivators, causing difficulties in distributing resources, so they decided to keep each disciple far apart. This arrangement lived up to the name “Xumi Mustard Seed,” appearing miniscule at first glance but seemingly endless, as if one couldn’t reach the edge.

Just as she took a couple of steps, the dense forest in front of her opened up, revealing a grassland. Above the grassland, a giant bird swooped down. It appeared as big as a falcon, with red feathers all over its body and an extremely long and sharp beak. It dove towards the person in front of Zanxing. The person sidestepped, and the bird’s beak pierced into a piece of bluestone, instantly shattering it.

Zanxing was amazed by what she saw. If that bird’s beak poked someone’s head, it would probably leave a hole.

But in the next moment, the person in front, clad in a golden silk robe, waved a sword. A sharp bird cry echoed in the air as the bird’s body was cut in half by the sword, then quickly dissipated into a green smoke, disappearing into the air.

It was taken down with just one sword strike.

The man in the golden silk robe turned around, revealing a familiar face. He seemed surprised for a moment upon seeing Zanxing, then his expression turned ecstatic. He said, “Yang Zanxing, it’s really you? This is truly a blessing!”

Zanxing: “…”

In the vast sea of people, within such a large examination arena, she unexpectedly encountered Hua Yue again. She knew that the original bastard would never let her off so easily.

“Hua Yue,” Zanxing stared at him, her voice cold. “Every move we make in the Xumi Mustard Seed Diagram can be observed from the outside. Do you think that if you act against fellow disciples, the senior martial uncles will just stand idly?”

Hua Yue chuckled a few times, as if he had heard a funny joke. Arrogantly, he said, “Indeed, but I have no intention of acting against you.”

He gazed at Zanxing, a glint in his eyes, and Zanxing suddenly felt a surge of heat in her chest. She lowered her head and saw the Departure Talisman she had hidden there burning into ashes.

Frowning, she asked, “What are you doing?”

“Yang Zanxing, now, unless you are on the brink of death from a demon cultivator’s attack, you cannot voluntarily leave the field.” He lightly brushed his sword tip against the ground, and Zanxing watched as a dazzling ball of light, as large as a cart cover, slowly emerged from the ground and began to expand.

Her heart tightened. This was not the kind of qi a mid-level demon cultivator could manifest.

In the next moment, Hua Yue’s sword thrust towards Zanxing.

The sword tip, enveloped in immense qi, came at Zanxing, but stopped abruptly as it approached, unexpectedly entangling with Zanxing’s iron staff. The qi of a mid-level Foundation Establishment stage cultivator was nothing compared to that of someone at the Nascent Soul stage. Not to mention Hua Yue’s sword, which was even more formidable.

In an instant, the iron staff was swung, accompanied by a surge of force, striking the ground violently, causing the earth to tremble intensely.

This isn’t good, Zanxing’s heart sank.

Due to the Torch Eye Talisman, she could clearly see the radiant qi rising from the ground, brighter than any previous instances. This was definitely a high-level demon cultivator, and moreover, a very powerful one.

Hua Yue couldn’t see the ball of qi, but he sensed the presence of a high-level demon cultivator. While one couldn’t attack fellow disciples in the examination arena, demon cultivators could. Zanxing was undoubtedly not a match for a high-level demon cultivator. Though the demon cultivators in the Xumi Mustard Seed Diagram were only manifestations of qi, in a real fight, the injuries were genuine.

Zanxing would be mercilessly tormented by this high-level demon cultivator and all Hua Yue needed to do was watch the show. When Zanxing was on the verge of collapse, he would interrogate her or directly seize the hidden treasures from her. Everything was within Hua Yue’s plan, and the only variable was that he might not encounter Zanxing in the vast examination arena. But sometimes, even the heavens sided with him, presenting opportunities like this on a silver platter, with Yang Zanxing willingly walking into his trap.

All of Zanxing’s thoughts at this moment were focused on the rapidly expanding sphere of qi in front of her. The ground beneath her feet shook violently, almost causing her to lose her balance. Then, the tremors gradually subsided, and the crimson earth beneath her feet began to wriggle slowly, as if it had come to life.

Zanxing fixed her gaze and saw a gigantic human face rising from the ground beneath her feet, complete with all facial features, its eyes wide open like a well-hidden giant beneath the earth, staring expressionlessly.

It sent shivers down her spine.

“The Grave of the Dead…” Zanxing murmured.

The Grave of the Dead was a type of high-level demon cultivation, or rather, it couldn’t be considered cultivation but a cursed land imbued with life. Many years ago, there was a village that suffered from drought during famine years, and later an epidemic broke out. To prevent the spread of the epidemic, the lord ordered the village to be sealed off and all villagers to be buried on the spot. During the burial, many villagers were still alive.

Most likely due to the intense resentment, this plot of land had unexpectedly produced demonic energy, gained consciousness, and became a demonic grave. As the name suggested, the Grave of the Dead usually remained dormant, but when someone passed by, a gigantic human face would appear on the ground, devouring all passersby to become the ‘nourishment’ for the land.

“How could you release such a terrifying thing?” Zanxing took a deep breath. The human face looked no different from an ordinary one, which made it even more weird and disgusting.

While Hua Yue sensed the presence of a high-level demon cultivator, he didn’t anticipate that this cultivator would take such a grotesque form. Nevertheless, he maintained a posture of indifference and laughed, “Now that your Departure Talisman is broken, Yang Zanxing, you might as well enjoy it!”

Outside the Clear Heart Mirror, Li Danshu, who had been dozing off, suddenly jolted awake and sat up. “Oh no, this girl actually encountered the Grave of the Dead!”

“Fourth Senior Uncle, what is that?” Ziluo, who was also witnessing the Grave of the Dead for the first time, asked, “Is it a demon?”

“The danger of the Grave of the Dead lies in the fact that the land itself was once afflicted by an epidemic. Once injured by the demonic grave, one will also be plagued by the epidemic. While it may not cost one’s life, it will certainly damage one’s cultivation. Ordinary disciples encountering this demonic grave would immediately crush their Departure Talisman and leave to avoid injury. But now that the talisman has been destroyed by Hua Yue, this girl can only confront the Grave of the Dead.”

“What if she manages to overcome the Grave of the Dead?” Meng Ying interjected, her expression as cold as ever.

“That’s unlikely,” Li Danshu shook his head. “She is a new disciple and doesn’t know the weaknesses of this demonic grave, so it’s impossible for her to defeat it.”