Chapter 129: Returning in Vain

Taking advantage of the giant beast's slow reaction, the remaining five of us in the room swung our weapons and hacked at it.

After taking several consecutive slashes, the massive creature finally moved, its dull, lifeless eyes locking onto me.

Suddenly, its massive palm swiped toward me. I instantly formed a hand seal, and a Bagua barrier materialized before me.

When the giant hand struck the Bagua barrier, I actually saw cracks beginning to form. Clearly, this thing possessed immense strength.

However, its weakness was its slow movement, making its attacks easy to dodge.

Yet, any weapon hitting its body was like scratching an itch; we couldn't inflict even a sliver of damage. Even when stabbed, it would heal instantly.

It was practically a tank with infinite health regeneration!

While it couldn't hit us, our attacks did nothing to it. For a time, we were locked in a stalemate.

The ground trembled with every step the monster took, and it seemed completely tireless.

I signaled Chen Chen and the others with my eyes to back away, then unleashed a Thunder Strike Spell.

The Thunder Strike Spell actually had some effect. The creature stumbled back several paces, its chest scorched black. It seemed magic spells were the only way to deal with such an evil entity.

I fired off several more Thunder Strike Spells in quick succession, hitting its chest and thighs, but the damage was still far too light.

How could several Spirit Flower Realm masters fail to defeat a zombie that didn't even possess spiritual energy?

In a fit of frustration, I lunged forward and drove my blade straight into its abdomen.

The giant froze for a moment, then slammed a heavy palm down onto my shoulder.

But I didn't let go; instead, I wrenched the blade out.

Feeling my fractured shoulder, I decided to take a gamble.

I reached into my storage ring and searched around, actually finding a handful of copper coins.

I remembered a lesson from the instructors at Mount Tianyang: if you encounter a reanimated corpse, its eyes are usually the one part that hasn't fully mutated, so you have to cover them with copper coins.

Pulling out the copper coins, I shouted to Chen Chen and the others,

"Distract it for me!"

The remaining classmates were unhurt. Treating the monster like a walking target, their fear had vanished.

Following my shout, everyone swung their weapons with even greater fervor.

As I slipped behind the creature, Chen Chen drove his spear deep into its calf.

The giant buckled and fell to one knee. This was my only chance.

Channeling my spiritual energy into my legs, I timed my move and leaped into the air, landing squarely on its shoulders.

I pulled out two copper coins and pressed them hard over its eyes.

Instantly, thick black smoke billowed from its eyes. It let out a low, muffled roar—not in surrender, but in sheer fury.

I pressed down with all my might as its massive hands repeatedly battered my arms.

Only when the smoke finally began to subside did I let go and slide off its shoulders.

Li Zijian caught me immediately and quickly dragged me to the side.

Both of my arms felt completely crippled, barely able to move.

Yet the giant was not dead. Though blinded, its sense of smell remained sharp.

With trembling fingers, I struggled to form the hand seals for the Five Thunders Spell.

Fortunately, my fingers could still move, and I successfully completed the seal.

Several arcs of blue lightning materialized in the cramped room. With a shout, I directed the bolts to strike the zombie simultaneously.

With a deafening boom, thick smoke filled the tomb.

I was instantly blinded by the smog until Chen Chen spun his spear nearby, clearing the air slightly.

When the smoke finally cleared, the giant zombie came into view.

It was slumped against the wall, a gaping hole blasted through its chest. It remained completely motionless; it was finally dead.

"Drag it outside and burn it," I said, waving my hand. Chen Chen and two others stepped forward to drag the corpse out.

"Wait."

I pulled a fire starter from my ring and tossed it to Li Zijian.

Once they finished hauling the giant out, the five who had been waiting outside returned to the room.

With the massive coffin in the center now gone, the atmosphere in the room felt much lighter.

The fire outside was already raging. The fire starter was truly remarkable; it could ignite a blaze even in the heaviest downpour.

I collapsed onto the floor and drifted into a deep sleep.

......

When I woke up the next morning, the heavy rain was still falling, and the air smelled damp and musty.

Most of my classmates were still asleep, but Chen Chen, who always slept lightly, was already awake.

I touched my aching arms; they still hurt, but at least I could move them now.

The tomb now resembled an empty basement, stripped of everything.

But we had already searched all the small burial mounds outside. Aside from the ten tokens used to open the tomb, we had found nothing.

The Ghost King wanted us to find a sword. Did we really have to desecrate these graves?

Or could the clue be hidden right here in the tomb?

But the chamber truly looked empty. It seemed we would have to search the outside area again today.

Once everyone woke up, I quickly began assigning tasks.

"The Ghost King wants us to find the sword, but there's nothing in this chamber for now. We'll have to search outside again. Same as before: pairs of two, five groups in total. Gather back here before noon."

Having witnessed me slay the giant zombie the night before, everyone looked at me with newfound respect and readily complied.

With that, everyone headed out. Chen Chen and I made our way toward the west.

"Where do you think the Ghost King hid the sword?" Chen Chen suddenly asked.

I thought about it for a moment before replying, "The Ghost King wouldn't just hide it in some obscure corner. That wouldn't be its style. It's bound to put some obstacles in our way or set up a trial for us."

Chen Chen agreed with my reasoning and nodded repeatedly.

The small burial mounds seemed even smaller than yesterday, likely eroded by the relentless rain.

Yet even after a thorough search, Chen Chen and I found nothing of use.

The rain had been pouring for a day and a night now. There was no telling when it would stop, and the gloomy weather was beginning to feel incredibly oppressive.

"Let's head back first. There really is nothing here," I told Chen Chen, and he agreed.

Back in the tomb chamber, I lit a cigarette and waited for the others to return.

I rummaged through my ring again. There was no food left, though I did find a raincoat.

It was completely useless to us now. I didn't need it, and the others couldn't be bothered to use it.

Our clues had dried up, leaving us stuck in place.

Before long, several pairs of classmates returned, all reporting that they had found nothing.

This was entirely expected. Li Zijian returned soon after.

It wasn't even noon yet, and everyone had returned empty-handed. From the looks of it, finding that sword was our only ticket out of here.

With no progress to show for their efforts, the others couldn't help but complain.

"We can't just starve to death here..."

"We've searched everywhere and still found nothing..."

"The Ghost King is deliberately toying with us..."

It seemed I had to find a way to stabilize morale.