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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 158: Gathering Intelligence
Ji Zichen steadied himself and walked to the right, not wanting to delay any further. Before him lay a new path lined with large oak trees. He had to be somewhat cautious to avoid the roots protruding from the ground. Kiko walked carefully; if he tripped and twisted his ankle, there would be no one to help him.
As Kiko passed through the Oak Grove, he suddenly caught a whiff of a nauseating stench. Wrinkling his nose in disgust, he pressed on. Then he heard a strange sound and ducked behind a large tree to observe ahead. Not far in front of him, four figures clad in black robes were seated on the ground, seemingly engaged in some sort of ritual.
Kiko wondered if those monsters were connected to these four individuals. The black-robed figures sat cross-legged at the four cardinal points, and there was a faint glow emanating from the ground in their center. From his position, Kiko couldn't see clearly, so he nimbly climbed up a tree for a better view. He noticed that the glowing area on the ground resembled a Spider Emblem.
A chill ran down Kiko's spine as he thought, "So it really is that woman! But what is she doing here?"
He scrutinized the four figures; they were all tall and appeared to be male. Kiko pondered, "Could she not be present? But this emblem..."
He only remembered that she had a mole at the corner of her mouth, but now he couldn't approach for a closer look. Regardless of whether that woman was there or not, it was clear that these four posed a significant threat to him.
The glow of the Spider Emblem dimmed, and one of the figures stood up. He gestured to the other three with fingers that resembled razor blades—truly terrifying.
Kiko thought, "Who are they?"
At that moment, the four figures removed their hoods, and Kiko's expression turned grim as he realized they were not human at all; they were Leopard Spirits. Their large fangs hung menacingly from their mouths.
The Leopard Spirits possessed powerful lower limbs and sharp claws, along with those fearsome fangs. They could kill faster than Gu Diao.
Kiko was taken aback; Leopard Spirits were savage creatures. How could they employ such delicate methods to control the dead?
He recalled the mutilated bodies of soldiers and villagers—it was an utter desecration of life that filled him with uncontrollable rage.
Suddenly, Kiko thought of the fleeing soldiers; if they were lucky, they might have escaped. However, since this ritual had only just concluded, it was very likely they would encounter other corpses along the way and find themselves in dire battles. If they fell in combat, they would become one of those controllable corpses.
Ji Zichen could no longer hold back. He leaped down from the tree and launched a surprise attack on the four Leopard Spirits.
The four Leopard Spirits had never anticipated an ambush, and they were momentarily taken aback. Ji Zichen was quite pleased; he had gained the upper hand, and his enemies were thrown into disarray, exactly the situation he wanted to see.
With ease, Ji Zichen pierced one Leopard Spirit's chest. As the first Leopard Spirit fell, he raised his Demon-Slaying Sword and severed another Leopard Spirit's left arm.
One was dead and another injured. The remaining two Leopard Spirits turned their attention to Ji Zichen, the assailant. Having never fought a Leopard Spirit before, Ji Zichen decided to rely on stealth. This was not about honor; it was about survival. The element of surprise was an advantage for him since his enemies were completely unprepared. He charged at the nearest Leopard Spirit, which swiped at him with its strong, sharp claws, narrowly missing as Ji Zichen rolled aside to evade the attack.
Ji Zichen exchanged blows with the two remaining Leopard Spirits. He swiftly dodged one of their strikes, causing it to miss, then countered with a slash that cleaved the second Leopard Spirit in half at the waist. He followed up with another strike aimed at the already incapacitated Leopard Spirit, driving his sword into its skull and shattering its bone.
At this moment, the last remaining Leopard Spirit was furious. Seeing its rage only fueled Ji Zichen's resolve; whether human or Demon Beast, when angered, they often acted recklessly. Ji Zichen dashed toward the Leopard Spirit, which roared in response. One of its claws slammed into the ground, and Ji Zichen suddenly realized he was standing in the center of a spider web pattern.
Ji Zichen gasped, "This is bad!"
The spider web glowed ominously, and he felt something sinister invade his body. Pain surged through him as if something were crawling toward his head.
Ji Zichen charged forward but could only blame himself for what happened next. A blow struck his back, sending him crashing to the ground, leaving him dazed. The Leopard Spirit laughed wickedly as it looked down at him, its eyes gleaming with triumph.
"You won't die so easily," it taunted ominously. "I will turn you into a monster to kill your friends!"
A chill ran through Ji Zichen's body as he imagined himself like those controlled villagers—stumbling around with a broken body to harm others. The thought made him feel nauseous. He wasn't afraid of death, but this kind of demise was something he could never accept.
"You won't get away with this!" Ji Zichen struggled to rise but felt as if a thousand-pound weight pressed down on him. Kneeling on the ground, he heard the Leopard Spirit laugh mockingly. "Don't resist; whatever you try will be futile. No one can—"
Before it could finish its sentence, Ji Zichen suddenly heard a cry of anguish from the Leopard Spirit.
Surprised, Ji Zichen looked up to see a blade piercing through the chest of the Leopard Spirit.
The body of the Leopard Spirit suddenly seemed to lose all strength, and it knelt before Ji Zichen. The sword that pierced the Leopard Spirit retracted, and then the sharp blade severed its head, causing the Leopard Spirit to collapse.
With the death of the Leopard Spirit, the Spider Emblem pattern beneath Ji Zichen's feet instantly faded away. Kiko felt her body returning to normal as she gasped for breath, looking at the person before her. "You didn't leave...?"
Man Chengwen smiled slightly. "People from Zhang City don't abandon anyone to escape alone."
Ji Zichen smiled in relief. "Thank you."
Man Chengwen replied, "No need to thank me; you saved me too. Let's call it even."
Man Chengwen carefully examined the corpse of the Leopard Spirit on the ground. "What kind of Demon Beasts are these?"
Ji Zichen scoffed at the Leopard Spirit's body and answered, "These are Leopard Spirits. Those soldiers and villagers who were neither dead nor alive were caused by them."
Man Chengwen was taken aback. "I've never heard of any Leopard Spirits in the Hall of Malevolence."
Ji Zichen thought about the staggering corpses and said, "They aren't from the Hall of Malevolence, that's for sure. If the Arbitrator could use such magic, he wouldn't have sent the Cult to attack; he could just send corpses instead."
Ji Zichen had a point. Man Chengwen asked, "But what does this mean?"
Ji Zichen pondered for a moment before comforting him. "I don't know, but I do know that with these Leopard Spirits dead, we can put an end to controlling the corpses for now. The deceased can finally rest."
Though Kiko spoke calmly, she was secretly thinking, "Could these Leopard Spirits have been cultivated by that woman?"
Noticing Ji Zichen's pale complexion, Man Chengwen asked, "Are you hurt?"
Ji Zichen cleared his mind and forced a bitter smile at Man Chengwen. "I'm not injured, just a bit shaken. I'm fine."
Man Chengwen glanced around and said, "We should hurry. The others are waiting for us in that village we saw when we arrived. If you can't make it back, we'll definitely face consequences."
This was Ji Zichen's first time leading a reconnaissance mission, and he lacked experience. Gritting his teeth, he asked, "How many are still alive? We haven't gathered any intel. If our entire team is wiped out, I won't be able to report back to Commander Wei."
Man Chengwen replied, "We have some information. The five brothers from Gaoqiu didn't let us down; they've observed the layout around Mountain Valley. I don't know how many are still alive, though. I communicated with them through scouts and only asked about their locations, not the casualties. But it's clear that our team is no longer intact."
Ji Zichen's expression darkened, and he refrained from asking any more questions as he left with Man Chengwen.
The two of them headed back toward the village they had come from. Ji Zichen thought to himself, "Those Leopard Spirits must have been sent by that woman. Perhaps the Western King has heard about the battles here and is starting to attempt raising an army from the dead. This place likely isn't the only location where they use such dark magic."
They returned to the site where they had previously set fire. The ground was covered in ashes, forcing them to slow their pace. Ji Zichen looked around and noticed some corpses that had not yet been completely burned to ashes; judging by their clothing, they appeared to be villagers from nearby. He gazed at the half-burned bodies lying quietly there, feeling a conflicting mix of relief and disgust.
"It seems like the Cult of the Hall of Malevolence hasn't come," Ji Zichen remarked.
Man Chengwen nodded. "That's right; they didn't show up. I didn't go far ahead; I stayed nearby waiting for those bodies to be burned away. This fire was significant, and I'm sure they saw it. The Cult must have received orders not to leave their posts under any circumstances."
Ji Zichen had no comments on that. Most of the fire was nearly extinguished now, leaving only a few lingering flames on the ground. He looked at Man Chengwen and realized this was likely his first time witnessing soldiers' bodies rise again; such a horrifying memory would haunt him for life—if he survived this battle.
The terror of war swept across the Desolate Central Plain. Ji Zichen had never imagined it would come to this; however, no matter how much he lamented, it wouldn't change the outcome. Qingyang City was almost entirely destroyed, and he believed most places were similarly affected.
And the brutality wouldn't end in the Desolate Central Plain; this was just the beginning. Both knew that while they might escape tonight, what about tomorrow? Would they still have such good fortune then?
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