Chapter 378: Reclaiming Mr. Corpse

"Master uncle!" Yinglan's projection appeared and called out.

"Hmm," Zhongshan nodded.

Mr. Corpse stared fixedly at Zhongshan from afar, a hint of malice curling his lips as he made a gesture, producing a strange little bell in his hand.

"Dang dang, dang dang..."

Mr. Corpse continuously shook the bell. Suddenly, the zombies that were battling the skeletons stopped abruptly and turned to attack other zombies.

"No, these are the zombies controlled by the Eight Gates Golden Lock Array. He... he has taken control of some of the zombies within the array!" Yinglan exclaimed in surprise.

Turning the tables?

Mr. Corpse could actually control the zombies within the array.

Moreover, as the bell in his hand continued to ring, Mr. Corpse's control over the zombies grew. More and more zombies 'defected' to Mr. Corpse within the array, and in an instant, he shifted from being passive to taking the initiative.

"Zombies? This is my domain; you shouldn't let me into the Dead Gate!" Mr. Corpse spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Yinglan, withdraw all the zombies!" Zhongshan commanded.

"Yes," Yinglan immediately nodded.

Following Yinglan's gesture, nearly half of the zombies disappeared suddenly, but there were still close to a thousand zombies that couldn't be dismissed so easily.

"Master uncle, I can't control them anymore," Yinglan said anxiously.

"It's alright," Zhongshan said calmly.

"Zhongshan!" Mr. Corpse squinted his eyes from a distance.

"Mr. Corpse," Zhongshan smiled lightly.

"Is this your grand array? It's interesting, but it can't trap me!" Mr. Corpse shook his head.

Suddenly, the ground trembled, and masses of zombies, even copper zombies, surged up from the earth. These zombies weren't skilled enough to use earth travel freely, but they could emerge from the soil.

"Master uncle, these zombies didn't come from my array; he summoned them!" Yinglan exclaimed immediately.

Watching more and more zombies crawl out of the ground, Zhongshan's brow furrowed, his eyes locked firmly on Mr. Corpse.

"Mr. Corpse, do you remember your promise from the past? Can it still be fulfilled?" Zhongshan stared at Mr. Corpse.

"That promise? Hehe, I've never failed to fulfill my words, but you can't defeat me. Of course, if the strong ones from your floating island join forces, maybe there's a chance. However, this isn't my domain. If you want to make me submit to the Great Ru Mountain Dynasty, you must defeat me in my domain! Can you?" Mr. Corpse chuckled strangely.

Zhongshan looked steadily at Mr. Corpse and said confidently, "I can."

Mr. Corpse narrowed his eyes.

"Then set up your formation! I'll make you acknowledge me wholeheartedly this time!" Zhongshan smiled faintly.

Mr. Corpse furrowed his brows slightly but didn't stop his actions. With a wave of his hand, nearly five thousand zombies appeared on the ground, each with red eyes, advancing directly toward Zhongshan.

"My domain, do you understand it? Hehe, then let's begin!" Mr. Corpse sneered.

"Yinglan, seal off this space. Send out your projection," Zhongshan ordered.

"Yes!" Yinglan responded immediately. Soon, the surroundings fell silent.

Mr. Corpse continued to watch coldly, allowing numerous zombies in front of him to march towards Zhongshan.

Zhongshan smiled faintly and said, "Watch closely."

Seeing Zhongshan's serious demeanor, Mr. Corpse felt something amiss, but he couldn't believe that Zhongshan could surpass him in his own domain. In the current world, who could possibly surpass him in this domain?

Mr. Corpse remained supremely confident, staring coldly at Zhongshan.

Suddenly, Zhongshan rolled up his sleeves and performed a strange hand seal.

"Seal~~~~~~~~~~~" Zhongshan's eyes widened.

In an instant, in Mr. Corpse's eyes, Zhongshan transformed into a giant talisman.

This talisman suddenly emitted billions of purple-black lights, radiating in all directions like the endless brilliance of the heavens.

No, it wasn't just light; it was countless shadowy talismans. A vast number of talismans, centered around Zhongshan, shot out in all directions towards the sky, the earth, the zombies, and Mr. Corpse.

"Crackle crackle crackle...."

With a faint sound, every zombie's head suddenly had a talisman affixed to it, and every skeleton's head also bore a shadowy talisman.

The sky and the earth were covered with talismans. The moment the talismans adhered to the zombies' foreheads, they instantly froze in place. Even Mr. Corpse's strongest zombies were immobilized, while the skeletons couldn't move at all, as if sealed in an instant.

Sealed! Even the earth was sealed; how could the zombies underground climb up again?

Where Mr. Corpse stood, hundreds of talismans surged towards him.

Mr. Corpse stared wide-eyed at this eerie sight. If it were anyone else, they would have been sealed before they could react. But Mr. Corpse was extraordinary; he possessed a 'Blood-dripping Heart,' his magical treasure.

In the instant before Mr. Corpse was about to be sealed, the Blood-dripping Heart suddenly floated in front of him, forming a red heart-shaped shield that protected him.

"Plop plop plop plop....."

The red light shield immediately blocked the approaching endless shadowy talismans. The talisman shadows collided with the red shield, emitting a series of impacts.

The Ink Jade Talisman seemed challenged and dignified, as a large number of talisman shadows surged towards Mr. Corpse, relentlessly pounding against the red shield.

"Great Myriad Talisman Radiance~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Finally, Mr. Corpse was astonished, shouting out a spell name that even Zhongshan hadn't heard of.

Great Myriad Talisman Radiance? Zhongshan wasn't conducting any Great Myriad Talisman Radiance. But would Zhongshan bother to explain?

The terrifying power of the Ink Jade Talisman became clear during this time. Once every hundred days, it could seal off everything within a closed environment for one hour. Having waited painstakingly for another hundred days, today was the day it could finally be unleashed. Zhongshan spared no expense against Mr. Corpse.

The red light shield around Mr. Corpse trembled violently. Mr. Corpse's eyes showed astonishment beyond words. Great Myriad Talisman Radiance? How could this be possible? I haven't even reached that realm, and yet he... he did it?

"Alright, stop the sealing. I'll join the Great Ru Mountain Dynasty!" Mr. Corpse shouted.

"Hum~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Zhongshan halted the Ink Jade Talisman from continuing its assault, but it remained in place.

Seeing the shadowy talisman no longer advancing towards him, Mr. Corpse, with a hint of panic in his eyes, retrieved the Blood-dripping Heart. He looked at Zhongshan, his eyes flashing with astonishment, fear, and a hint of admiration.

"Welcome, Mr. Corpse, to Great Ru!" Zhongshan exclaimed with a smile.

Taking a deep breath, Mr. Corpse replied, "I pay my respects, Your Majesty."

"Hahaha, good! May I know your name?" Zhongshan asked.

"I ask Your Majesty's forgiveness; my name remains taboo for now. Besides myself, no one else can utter it, not even my master. Once I am able to lift this taboo, I will inform Your Majesty," Mr. Corpse explained.

"Very well, then I shall continue to address you as Mr. Corpse!" Zhongshan chuckled.

"Thank you! As for these zombies..." Mr. Corpse gestured towards the sealed zombies.

"Can Mr. Corpse release them?" Zhongshan inquired.

"I'll try," Mr. Corpse replied.

He then retrieved the Blood-dripping Heart once more, gently activated it, and a burst of red light erupted onto the zombies' faces, causing the shadowy talismanic marks to instantly dissipate. However, he could only emit a small amount of red light each time. Faced with the countless talismans covering the sky and ground, Mr. Corpse could only sigh helplessly.

"Your Majesty, these Limbo Talismans are too formidable!" Mr. Corpse remarked.

"Hmm! They'll dissipate on their own shortly," Zhongshan replied with a smile.

"Oh?" Mr. Corpse looked surprised.

"What, have you seen someone else use a similar technique before?" Zhongshan stared at Mr. Corpse.

Mr. Corpse hesitated for a moment before responding, "Yes, but he has already passed away."

"Oh?" Zhongshan frowned. Could there be someone else capable of such a feat?

"He sought to exterminate my sect and perished alongside my master," Mr. Corpse said solemnly.

"Hmm!" Zhongshan nodded.

"Your Majesty, I have an uneasy request," Mr. Corpse suddenly spoke up.

"Please, go ahead," Zhongshan replied with curiosity.

"When I came out, as a way to repay the last of six favors owed, I promised to delay the armies of Great Ru for a month..." Mr. Corpse hesitated.

"Then I will wait for a month before advancing on the City of Jinling," Zhongshan immediately agreed.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Mr. Corpse said, furrowing his brow and taking a deep breath.

.......

The two conversed further, with Zhongshan continuing to woo Mr. Corpse. Though Zhongshan had succeeded in enlisting him, he knew there was still a long way to go. Zhongshan understood that Mr. Corpse's willingness to stay was largely due to the Ink Jade Talisman. The future held many challenges ahead.

As an hour passed, the countless zombies and skeletons were able to move freely once again.

Mr. Corpse waved his hand, causing many zombies to sink back into the ground, while skeletons quickly disintegrated, becoming useless.

Witnessing this scene, Zhongshan grew increasingly astonished.

"Eng Lan, let's go out," Zhongshan said.

"Yes!" Eng Lan's voice echoed from all around.

"Boom~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

Suddenly, a huge gate emerged from the earth.

The two stepped out. They were back in the outside world, amidst the endless desert.

Slowly ascending into the sky, they headed towards the Bronze War Island.

Everyone was astonished to see Mr. Corpse standing beside Zhongshan. Below, the endless sandstorm abruptly dissipated, and the vast desert retreated madly, leaving only a few remnants of sand and stones that had yet to recover.

With the grand formation withdrawn, Eng Lan's eighty thousand troops were revealed. Alongside Zhongshan, Eng Lan swiftly ascended to the Bronze War Island.

Upon the Bronze War Island, all eyes were fixed on Mr. Corpse.

"I hereby appoint Mr. Corpse as the Commander of the Fourth Legion of the Great Ru Dynasty, effective immediately," Zhongshan declared.

(To be continued...)