Chapter 105: Run Quickly

At the sound, all of our faces changed instantly. We hadn’t even had time to react when another agonized scream echoed from the other side, then fell eerily silent.

“Zhang Chao! Wang Peng!”

Peng Li grew frantic, shouting repeatedly into the walkie-talkie, but no response came.

Something terrible had happened.

My heart jolted, and Peng Li immediately gave the order to charge.

Over twenty fully armed armed police swarmed into Ye Family Village, guns drawn. Qin Yu’s group and I followed closely behind them without hesitation.

Soon, we burst into Ye Family Manor. Using the tracking signals from Zhang Chao and Wang Peng, we quickly located the mortuary they had mentioned earlier.

This mortuary—a place used to store corpses—was an odd sight in Ye Family Village. I didn’t understand why it existed here, but without hesitation, we rushed inside.

“Don’t move!”

The twenty or so armed police aimed their weapons in every direction, yet to our surprise, the mortuary was empty of any living presence.

It was then we realized we were standing in the courtyard. White candles burned all around, their flickering flames illuminating the entire yard. In the center stood a dozen or so pitch-black coffins, neatly arranged.

Looking at those coffins, a cold dread gripped my heart. A terrible premonition surged through me.

“Everyone, be cautious. Peng Ge, have your men aim directly at those coffins!” I ordered immediately.

Peng Li looked tense. Though the armed police were seasoned and mentally strong, even they were visibly unnerved by the sinister atmosphere. Then suddenly, something fell from the roof of the mortuary.

With a thud, all our gazes snapped toward the spot where the heavy object landed.

Two bodies, dismembered into pieces—Zhang Chao and Wang Peng.

Some of the armed police panicked, firing blindly at the roof. At the sound of gunfire, I suddenly saw the lids of the nearby coffins begin to tremble violently.

“Don’t shoot!” I shouted before finishing the sentence.

Suddenly, the lids of the dozen coffins flew open. Almost simultaneously, twelve bodies clad in armor resembling ancient warriors sat up.

Twelve corpses in total: nine wearing iron armor, three in bronze. I instantly recognized them as the Twelve Elemental Corpses—nine Iron Armored and three Bronze Armored.

“Welcome, my guests! I shall greet you with the warmest of welcomes!”

As the twelve rose, a hoarse, malevolent voice echoed from the roof. Three figures appeared there.

The figure in the center was a middle-aged man clad in black leather, his head shaved close, a terrifying scar slashing across his forehead. He radiated pure malice.

To his left stood a white-haired elder in his fifties; to his right loomed a cloaked monster.

“Sheng Jun, Li Fuan, and another Elemental Corpse,” I thought, fixing my gaze on the trio.

“小警察, long time no see!” Sheng Jun’s sudden words startled me. Instinctively, I glanced at Peng Li beside me, whose face had drained of color—he looked as if he had seen the worst nightmare imaginable.

“What’s wrong, Peng Ge?” I asked.

Peng Li didn’t answer but stared at Sheng Jun on the roof with palpable terror. “You… it’s you?”

“Yes, it’s me. Two years have passed. Did you miss me?”

Suddenly, it clicked. Sheng Jun must be the very person who had haunted Peng Li’s mind after that mission two years ago.

“Retreat! Fall back!” Peng Li’s sudden command shocked me. He drew his gun, firing erratically at the roof, then turned and bolted toward the exit.

From what I knew, Peng Li was a courageous supernatural officer. I couldn’t imagine what ordeal Sheng Jun had put him through to reduce him to such fear.

Sheng Jun’s chilling laughter rang from the rooftop. “Little cop, I didn’t finish playing with you two years ago; tonight, the game continues.”

He then locked eyes on me, then on Qin Yu nearby, his excitement palpable. “A Nine Yin fate and a Three Flower fate—ha! Heaven truly favors me!”

Amid Sheng Jun’s eerie laughter, the Elemental Corpses unleashed a bone-chilling roar and leapt out of their coffins with terrifying speed.

The armed police opened fire immediately. The dense gunfire inflicted some damage on the corpses. But as we confronted these creatures, we realized bullets only destroyed the Iron Armored corpses if they shattered their skulls. Otherwise, they retained mobility and moved with astonishing speed.

The police had no time to aim for headshots before the corpses pounced. I watched in horror as one Iron Armored corpse tore off a policeman's arm.

In the blink of an eye, at least five of the twenty armed police had fallen, while out of the twelve Elemental Corpses, only two were felled. The three Bronze Armored corpses remained unscathed.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, I invoked the Three Purity Exorcism Spell, striking the nearest Iron Armored corpse with a palm.

The corpse roared and staggered back several steps. Seizing the moment, Wang Feiyang dashed forward and with a single stroke severed its head.

Elsewhere, four Taoist priests wielded golden coin swords, weaving swiftly among the Iron Armored corpses, engaging in fierce combat with at least five of them. Qin Yu fought a Bronze Armored corpse with her Jade Maiden Sword.

Her Jade Maiden Sword was far superior to her previous peachwood sword. Even a single strike pierced through the Bronze Armored corpse’s body.

Thanks to our efforts in the Yin-Yang realm, the Elemental Corpses had limited energy to attack Peng Li and the armed police. Gradually, Peng Li regained composure. He ordered the police to retreat to a corner of the courtyard, pressing their backs against the wall.

They trained their guns on the courtyard’s center, firing immediately at any Elemental Corpse charging toward them, stopping only when the corpse was reduced to bloody pulp.

Of all of us, only Bai Rushuang refrained from fighting. I had no idea what she was thinking. She stood in a corner of the mortuary, clutching a bucket of popcorn, excitedly stuffing kernels into her mouth while loudly directing us:

“That Taoist, there’s a Wu Dao to your right. Handsome guy, that cold-looking one—you’ve got a Bronze Armored corpse charging at you! Use your serrated blade to cut it down!”

Bai Rushuang was clearly playing the role of commander. Her behavior was baffling, but perhaps she understood she was no match for the Elemental Corpses and had hidden away from the start.

What puzzled me most was that, although these corpses attacked anyone in sight, whenever they lunged toward Bai Rushuang, they all retreated consciously within less than a meter of her, as if deeply afraid.

(Continued)