https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-953-The-Flesh-and-Blood-Corpse-Statue/12984424/
Chapter 952: Opening the Casket
Chapter 952: Opening the Casket
After many twists and turns, the group finally reached the underground palace and saw the massive, golden-hued brass casket.
The Golden Brass Casket!
All the cultivators present had gleaming eyes, and even Uncle Ash and his companions were breathing heavily. Even Mo Hua's eyes lit up.
Apart from everything else, just this massive third-grade Golden Brass Casket is likely worth a fortune in spirit stones.
"It's indeed a grand burial!" Uncle Ash's eyes gleamed with excitement.
At the same time, a grayish tinge flashed in his eyes, as if some evil thoughts were slowly creeping in like maggots.
None of them noticed.
Except for Mo Hua.
Mo Hua furrowed his brow slightly.
Uncle Ash was bitten by a corpse fiend, but he showed no unusual behavior throughout the journey until he saw the Golden Brass Casket, at which point his evil thoughts began to grow.
This means that evil thoughts are triggered, grow, and strengthen by a person's "desires"?
When a person has desires and greed arises in their heart, evil thoughts take advantage and grow unchecked?
The Golden Brass Casket triggered Uncle Ash's desires, and correspondingly, his dao heart began to waver, creating cracks that allowed external evil to invade.
Mo Hua silently noted this point.
With the casket found, everyone no longer hesitated and followed the stone corridor towards the massive pit containing the Golden Brass Casket.
Generally, the deeper one goes into a tomb, the more dangers one encounters, and it becomes increasingly perilous.
Therefore, everyone became more cautious, not daring to make a sound.
To everyone's surprise, the deep part of the palace was unusually quiet, with no traps or corpse fiends lurking.
They proceeded smoothly and arrived at the edge of the pit.
The massive Golden Brass Casket was now right before their eyes.
Looking at this splendid and shiny coffin, even Uncle Ash, let alone Mo Hua, felt a surge of excitement.
He wondered what treasures and riches lay inside this magnificent brass casket...
Among the crowd, the black-robed elder spoke, "Uncle Ash, open the casket."
"No rush, I'll take a look first," Uncle Ash replied.
It's better to sharpen the blade before cutting the wood, especially towards the end when caution is most needed.
Uncle Ash walked around the pit, examining the casket from all angles, but the more he looked, the more serious and grim his expression became.
"The brass has aged, its surface shiny but inside it's dark red and damp, with distorted patterns... This is a sign of excessive Yin qi seeping out, the casket can't contain it, it has formed blood..."
"There must be something big inside this coffin..."
"Something big?" Mo Hua was taken aback.
"Corpse fiends or malevolent spirits..." Uncle Ash explained.
Shi Tou looked around and frowned, "No wonder there are no traps in the deep part of the palace, the most dangerous thing is the coffin itself."
"What do we do now?" Shi Tou asked.
"What else can we do? We can't turn back now," Shao Zi said, "We've already said it, fortune comes with danger. Uncle Ash, open the casket."
"Alright," Uncle Ash nodded.
He had been in this line of work for years, a seasoned tomb raider who had seen his fair share of storms.
Now that it had come to this, even if there was something extraordinary in the casket, he wouldn't rest until he saw it with his own eyes.
Besides, according to the guests, this casket had quite a history.
"The task of opening the casket will be left to Uncle Ash," the black-robed elder said hoarsely.
"Of course," Uncle Ash nodded, "We make our living off this, but this casket is too big, we need the help of the honorable guests."
The black-robed elder nodded.
Uncle Ash then prepared to open the casket.
Before opening it, he took out a two-foot tall black statue of Di Zang from his storage bag and placed it on the ground.
Di Zang's face was strange and dark.
On either side were the words "Life and death are fated, wealth is in the heavens."
Uncle Ash lit three incense sticks in front of the statue and held a cup of yellow wine, bowing and praying, "Blessed be Di Zang, may opening the casket bring wealth, free from all taboos."
Afterward, he poured the wine on the ground.
Mo Hua saw the Di Zang statue, and his pupils twitched, but before he could take a closer look, Uncle Ash finished his prayers and put the statue away.
After that, he formally began to open the casket.
But Mo Hua couldn't help with opening the casket.
This casket was a third-grade object, and the formations and mechanisms on it were also third-grade. This was beyond Mo Hua's capabilities as a Foundation Establishment cultivator and second-grade array master.
He might not know second-grade formations, but he could learn them on the spot.
But third-grade formations involve deeper principles, which he couldn't learn at his current stage.
Therefore, while everyone was busy, Mo Hua sat on a step of the corridor by the pit's edge, watching Uncle Ash and the others open the casket from a distance.
Uncle Ash took out a third-grade array disk and placed it at the four corners of the casket.
The array disk looked like it was passed down from ancestors, and although Mo Hua couldn't see through the formation, he guessed it was for suppressing Yin qi and binding corpses.
In addition, there were yellow talismans.
This yellow talisman wasn't a paper talisman but a jade talisman made of yellow jade, which Uncle Ash placed on the casket.
There was chicken blood wine, which was poured around the casket.
This chicken blood, from an unknown spirit beast, was yang and was poured around the casket to dispel Yin qi and transform evil qi.
There were also ink lines and spirit rice water...
There were various items and complicated procedures.
Mo Hua felt dizzy watching, but he also marveled at the various professions in cultivation and how Uncle Ash and the others made a living off this.
No wonder those four black-robed cultivators had asked Uncle Ash and the others to loot the tomb and open the casket.
Mo Hua memorized Uncle Ash's techniques.
Although he couldn't understand them now, it wouldn't hurt to remember them.
More skills never hurt.
If he could get related tomb-raiding inheritance in the future, it might be good to study and practice.
After about half an hour, Uncle Ash finished setting up.
Subsequent tasks were handled by Shi Tou and Shao Zi.
Uncle Ash then came to Mo Hua and warned, "Little brother, opening the casket is dangerous, don't go down."
"Alright, alright," Mo Hua nodded repeatedly.
He knew the danger without being told.
Dangerous tasks were always done by others first.
Seeing that Mo Hua understood the risks, Uncle Ash nodded and turned to leave, but then paused, remembering something, and asked Mo Hua, "Little brother, did Shao Zi trouble you in the forked path?"
Mo Hua's mind flickered, and he suddenly understood.
Uncle Ash had actually seen everything in the forked path.
He knew Shao Zi was chasing him but hadn't said anything before.
These people were indeed sharp.
Since that was the case...
Mo Hua's thoughts shifted, and his expression turned forced.
"No..."
Uncle Ash's expression softened, "It's okay, you don't need to be afraid. If there's anything, you can tell me."
Mo Hua still looked hesitant.
Uncle Ash guessed something and said, "Don't worry, with me here, Shao Zi won't dare to trouble you."
Mo Hua finally felt more confident and stammered, "He... wanted something from me."
"Wanted something?" Uncle Ash was slightly taken aback. "What did he want?"
Mo Hua looked into the distance, seeing that Shao Zi was quite far away, and then whispered, "The Gold-Snatching Talisman..."
Uncle Ash frowned and fell silent.
Mo Hua's eyes flickered, and from Uncle Ash's expression, he could deduce that Uncle Ash also knew that Mr. Pi had such a talisman.
But Uncle Ash might not know what the talisman truly meant, or his expression wouldn't be so calm.
Even if he appeared calm, there would be some disturbance in his divine sense.
Usually, a cultivator's divine sense disturbances couldn't escape Mo Hua's perception.
After a moment of thought, Uncle Ash glanced at Mo Hua and asked, "Is this talisman in your possession?"
Mo Hua shook his head.
"Tell me the truth, I won't blame you," Uncle Ash assured him.
Mo Hua still shook his head, "I really don't know about any Gold-Snatching Talisman."
Uncle Ash frowned, "If it's not with you, why would Shao Zi chase you?"
Mo Hua also looked puzzled, "I don't know... I don't even know what the Gold-Snatching Talisman looks like..."
"Uncle Ash," Mo Hua asked curiously, "Do you know what this talisman looks like?"
Uncle Ash paused for a moment and then nodded, "This talisman is made from the claws of a tunneling beast. The tip is transparent like jade, and the back end is inlaid with gold and silver, looking ancient..."
Before Uncle Ash could finish, Mo Hua's expression changed, as if he was startled, but he quickly composed himself, his eyes flickering.
His reaction couldn't escape Uncle Ash's notice.
"What's wrong?" Uncle Ash asked.
"Nothing," Mo Hua shook his head.
"Tell me," Uncle Ash said gently, but his expression became solemn.
"I..." Mo Hua hesitated for a long time before stammering, "I think I've seen this talisman before..."
Uncle Ash's expression changed slightly, "You really saw it?"
"Yes," Mo Hua nodded.
"Where?"
"It was..." Mo Hua lowered his voice, "on him..."
"On him?" Uncle Ash frowned, "On Shao Zi?"
"Yes," Mo Hua whispered, "That day, when he took Mr. Pi's storage bag from me, I saw him secretly pocketing something that looked like a tooth."
"I didn't know what it was, so I didn't dare to say anything."
"Later, he kept saying that I stole the 'Gold-Snatching Talisman'..."
"It's just..."
Mo Hua's frown deepened, looking perplexed, "The 'Gold-Snatching Talisman' was clearly in his possession, why did he insist that I took it?"
Uncle Ash's face darkened.
With his years of experience, he understood the situation.
Rat was playing the thief, framing Mo Hua to divert suspicion and keep the Gold-Snatching Talisman for himself.
He even tried to kill Mo Hua to silence him.
That way, no one would ever know the talisman was in his possession.
But when Rat tried to silence Mo Hua in the forked path, he was caught in the act. Rat had no choice but to back off and threaten Mo Hua to keep quiet.
Based on Mo Hua's words and his own experience in the cultivation world, Uncle Ash quickly pieced together the cause and effect of the situation in his mind.
The Gold-Snatching Talisman...
"Is this talisman really that important? Is it worth Rat going to such lengths to hide it from me and keep it for himself?"
Uncle Ash's gaze grew colder.
"Uncle Ash..." Mo Hua whispered.
Uncle Ash collected his thoughts, glanced at Mo Hua, and softly reassured him, "Don't worry, I'm here. He won't dare do anything to you."
Mo Hua heaved a sigh of relief and expressed his gratitude, "Thank you, Uncle Ash."
Uncle Ash smiled kindly at Mo Hua and turned to leave.
But after only a few steps, the smile on his face vanished, his expression turned grim, and his eyes gradually became greedy.
Mo Hua saw the slowly growing grayish evil thoughts on Uncle Ash's head and smiled faintly.
...
Everyone continued preparing to open the casket.
After an incense stick's worth of time, everything was ready.
In the deep pit, before the Golden Brass Casket.
Uncle Ash drank a mouthful of bright red chicken blood wine, summoning his courage and dispelling evil spirits. With a deep voice, he said, "Open the casket."
As soon as he spoke, the surrounding Yin qi grew heavier.
Uncle Ash activated the formation, prepared the ink lines, and used spirit rice water on his forehead to activate the yellow jade blood pattern talisman on the casket.
A hazy light shield rose, covering everyone and the casket.
On the light shield, Daoist-like characters lit up one by one, resembling a mantra with mysterious power, suppressing the casket.
"Remove the nails!" Uncle Ash ordered.
Shi Tou, the other two black-robed men, and the black-robed elder, a total of four people, immediately jumped onto the casket, occupying the four corners. They used jade tools to unlock it, poured royal water, and then activated their Golden Core power to forcefully remove the four casket nails.
Without the nails, the Golden Brass Casket was unsealed.
Yin qi and death qi began to seep out.
Everyone present felt uneasy, and even Mo Hua, who was far away, felt a chill and his hair stood on end.
Cold sweat dripped from Uncle Ash's palms, but he remained vigilant and said sternly, "Open it!"
The four men hesitated no longer and slowly opened the casket.
A strong stench of decay instantly filled the air, and the Yin qi spread like frost, turning the entire pit into an icy tomb on the coldest day of winter.
Uncle Ash's heart pounded as he glanced into the casket, his pupils quivered, and he was speechless.
The others also looked inside and fell silent.
Far away, Mo Hua felt the Yin qi seep in, and then an unusual quietness ensued, piquing his curiosity. He leaned over to take a look.
From a distance, he couldn't see clearly.
So he climbed to the top of a nearby corridor for a better view. As he looked into the casket, Mo Hua's expression changed, and he felt nauseous.
The magnificent brass casket contained a pile of corpses.
These corpses were dirty, rotten, and piled with dismembered limbs, like abandoned mud, stacked inside the luxurious Golden Brass Casket.
It was a shocking sight.
For a moment, everyone was at a loss for words.
Uncle Ash's face turned extremely ugly. He turned to the black-robed cultivators and said coldly,
"This is the burial site of the ancient royal family you mentioned?"
As far as the eye could see, there were no treasures in the burial site, only a pile of deformed and rotten corpses.
The black-robed cultivators remained calm but didn't speak.
The atmosphere became eerie.
Just then, Mo Hua's pupils quivered, and he sensed a trace of...sinful aura.
"Be careful!" Mo Hua shouted.
As he spoke, the Golden Brass Casket trembled.
The rotten corpses, deformed limbs, and muddy flesh began to twitch, then slowly writhed and twisted, converging towards the center. The flesh wove together, eventually forming a massive "Flesh Corpse Statue."
With a terrifying roar, a powerful, twisted aura rippled outwards.
Everyone's faces changed.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
