Chapter 0640: Fishing for Corpses

"So many corpses… How can there be so many bodies in this river? Is this the Yellow Springs… the real Yellow Springs?"Song Yuting stared blankly, visibly shaken. Whether she had become a cultivator or not, at heart she was still a woman. The sight of so many corpses floating in the water filled her with a wave of nausea.

"It's said that the River of Yellow Springs can connect to countless ancient battlefields and pull in the corpses of those who perished in battle—even those from the netherworld. The Sacred River of Yellow Springs leads to places unknown, unpredictable, and unfathomable. As for where these bodies come from, I'm not sure—but I suspect that this ferryman here might know."Jiang Ni took a deep breath and slowly spoke, his eyes sweeping across the river's expanse.

Even if this was just a branch of the true Sacred River, it was still vast beyond imagination—its width exceeding even the largest lakes from the previous world. And the river itself had a terrifying quality: no living thing could float on its surface. The moment one fell off the bone raft, they would sink instantly. Climbing back up would be near impossible.

"Such heavy yin energy. All of these are yin corpses," Yi Tianxing remarked.He could clearly sense that these corpses no longer had souls—just cold, lifeless remains suffused with yin qi. Immersed in the power of the Yellow Springs, they had completely transformed into yin corpses.

If these yin corpses ever developed intelligence, they would become terrifying undead warriors.However, the Yellow Springs water itself had the terrifying effect of erasing souls and freezing spiritual awareness. The chances of them gaining sentience were almost zero. But if even one did, that would mean its lingering will had withstood the soul-erasing waters—a monstrous, heaven-defying entity indeed.

In short, these corpses were powerful energy sources.

"They have no consciousness but do retain instinct. Anyone who falls into the river will be dragged down by these yin corpses and perish. If even one of them gains intelligence, it could cause the entire Yellow Springs to erupt. The netherworld would tremble."The soul ferryman glanced calmly at Yi Tianxing and Jiang Ni as he spoke.

Just then, a flash of light appeared in Yi Tianxing's hand, and a pitch-black fishing rod materialized. With a flick of his wrist, a transparent line extended from it, the black hook gleaming with cold light. The rod arced, and the hook embedded itself into the body of a nearby yin corpse.

This particular corpse was that of a massive tiger beast—its body already mutilated, with a huge hole blasted through its back. Its flesh was inert, but a cold Tiger Fiend Qi still lingered.

Splash!

Yi Tianxing's wrist snapped again, and with a powerful jerk, he reeled the tiger corpse out of the Yellow Springs. The sheer size of the corpse—it spanned dozens of meters—shocked Li Tianming and the others. Just its presence made them want to retreat instinctively.

"You actually fished out a yin corpse from the Yellow Springs?"The soul ferryman's eyes glinted with surprise. Clearly, even he hadn't expected that.

Whoosh!

A silver-white ancient gate suddenly opened midair, like a hungry maw waiting to be fed. Without resistance, the tiger corpse was tossed inside and disappeared in a flash of light.

It was a spatial gate, and its destination: the Hongmeng Heavenly Emperor Pagoda.

Almost immediately, the corpse was sent into the Chaos Realm, where an astonishing transformation began. The massive yin corpse was rapidly decomposed, its energy broken down and absorbed into the chaotic world.

The yin qi and remnant fleshly power within the corpse were immense. Once refined, they produced a massive amount of chaotic energy, which Yi Tianxing could feel swelling within his internal world. Although the expansion was just a few dozen meters, it required an enormous energy input—highlighting just how potent the yin corpse had become after soaking in the Yellow Springs.

To the Hongmeng Tower, these corpses were a banquet of unmatched nourishment.

"Good stuff," Yi Tianxing muttered, eyes gleaming.

"I want to try too," said Zhou Qian.Seeing how easily Yi Tianxing fished up a yin corpse, he couldn't help but get tempted. Such a body was a perfect refinement material—perfect for crafting elite corpse puppets. Selling even one would fetch a fortune, especially to sects that specialized in corpse refining.

He pulled out a rope and lassoed a nearby corpse. It caught easily—but the moment he pulled, his expression changed drastically.

His strength disappeared like a stone thrown into an abyss. The corpse wouldn't budge. It was as if it had fused entirely with the river.

Then—snap!

The previously motionless corpse lifted its arm, grabbed the rope, and gave a sharp tug.

Zhou Qian was yanked clean off the bone raft and flung into the river. He had no time to react—none of them did. Even Yi Tianxing was caught off guard by the sudden change. Before a second had passed, Zhou Qian had already plunged into the water.

"Help me!"He only had time to cry out once before his body was pulled beneath the surface. Something was clearly dragging him down. Within moments, all sound vanished.

"Soul, return!"The soul ferryman spoke calmly.

A ghostly figure emerged from the water—Zhou Qian's soul, now floating on the raft. Just like Qin Tian earlier, he was dead. Only his soul remained. His body had sunk into the river's depths.

Unless his corpse absorbed enough yin energy, it would never float back up. Retrieving it was impossible.

The others watched in horror.

Of the original eight, three had already died. Now only five remained: Yi Tianxing, Wushuang Ghost, Jiang Ni, Song Yuting, and Li Tianming.

Indeed—on the Yellow Springs, the living board the ferry, and the dead fill the river.

"Brother Yi, why were you able to fish the corpse out?"Song Yuting looked at him, still shaken, her voice full of curiosity.

Same action—wildly different outcomes. She couldn't help but wonder.

"That's no ordinary rod in your hand. That's the Death God's Fishing Rod! How did you manage to obtain it?"The soul ferryman's tone changed as he gazed at Yi Tianxing's fishing rod. "So, you've claimed it… That means you are now mortal enemies with the Death God Clan. They won't let this go."

The Death God's Fishing Rod was a sacred artifact of the Death God race. Only those who possessed it could be called true Death Gods. They reaped souls in the void. The rod itself was extremely sinister, with the ability to sever the link between a yin corpse and the Yellow Springs—allowing the corpse to be pulled up easily.

Without it, fishing a corpse out meant fighting against the entire river. A near-suicidal endeavor.

"Why don't you sell it to me?" the soul ferryman suddenly said, eyes gleaming. "I'll offer you anything—techniques, divine abilities, rare treasures. Even the enmity with the Death God Clan—I'll take that on for you."

Yi Tianxing's eyes flashed.

This rod was clearly more powerful than he had realized—even the soul ferryman wanted it.

"No deal," Yi Tianxing replied flatly. "It's already my life-bound treasure. It can't be traded."

This wasn't just about value. The rod was far too useful—being able to fish yin corpses from the Yellow Springs was a rare and powerful benefit.

With a thought, the rod vanished, only to reappear moments later. Its aura was visibly different—deeper, more terrifying.

In that brief instant, the Death God's Fishing Rod had become a true life-bound treasure, and with that, the Hongmeng Heavenly Emperor Pagoda had grown a new floor—now a twenty-story pagoda. The internal space shrank slightly, but because the load was distributed among all nineteen other layers, the reduction was minor.

The rod had now become a Heaven-Opening Divine Artifact, upgraded to a Profound-Grade Magic Treasure.

Its power was vastly enhanced.

Yi Tianxing cast it again. This time, he pulled up two yin corpses at once, and they were quickly devoured by the spatial gate, fed to the pagoda to become nourishment.

He now noticed: the fishing rod's hook had split into two, clearly a result of its recent evolution.

This was "Dual Hook"—one cast, two catches.