Chapter 192 : Chapter 192
Chapter 192: The Strange Female Corpse
The black-robed man looked utterly incredulous.
If he had only been puzzled before, then now he was completely certain.
The water curtain had opened on its own after the two of them approached.
Strange!
Even when his esteemed master, Old Shui, entered, he still had to wave his hand and cast an incantation to open this water curtain seal.
After the black-robed man cast the Unsealing Incantation, he could only open a narrow crack in the water curtain.
How could it automatically open such a large hole just because someone approached it?
He pointed at An Xing and gestured for him to come forward.
An Xing took a puzzled step forward.
Then the man told Li Mu to move forward.
Sure enough.
Li Mu had only taken a single step forward when the water curtain seemed like cotton fluff touching flame. In an instant, it bloomed open into a huge hole two meters wide.
The black-robed man stepped through the large hole in extreme confusion.
Only then did he allow Li Mu and An Xing to follow.
Even after Li Mu walked over and stood at the edge of the small island, the water curtain still remained open with a large hole.
It was only after Li Mu walked several meters farther away that the hole shrank and disappeared as the distance between them increased.
The black-robed man asked in surprise:
“Do you cultivate a water-type cultivation art?”
“No.” Li Mu shook his head.
The man was full of doubts, but he had no way to ask further.
“Please.” Afterward, he led the two of them into the island.
Li Mu had already bought the Water-Avoidance Art.
He did not know whether it was a coincidence.
The buy-one-get-one-free bonus for the Water-Avoidance Art happened to give him the Fire-Avoidance Art.
【Water-Avoidance Art: Can be used at will without consuming True Qi. When used, water parts upon contact. The user can breathe and move freely underwater and use any Divine Ability.】
【Fire-Avoidance Art: Can be used at will without consuming True Qi. When used, fire will not burn the body. The user can freely come and go through flames and use any Divine Ability.】
What excited Li Mu the most was not even this.
These two things could actually be upgraded.
They could respectively control water and fire!
Li Mu could only see the current layer and the next layer of the skill tree. He did not know whether the fire-control branch had Samadhi True Fire or not...Very soon, the black-robed man brought the two of them before a wooden hut.
It was rather uncanny.
Although they had come through the water curtain, once they were far enough away, the water curtain could no longer be seen.
There was also the sky, the blazing sun, and trees swaying in the wind.
It was just like a small island on the sea.
Even the distant sea surface was surging with waves.
However, when Li Mu looked around with his Fiery Eyes and Golden Gaze, he could still see those water curtains in the distance.
Their small island seemed like a small, independent space that had sunk into the water.
It was somewhat similar to the Blessed Field Art...In front of the little hut, Old Shui was observing something with his hands behind his back.
Before Old Shui, a “Water Cube” floated quietly in midair about half a meter above the ground.
The Water Cube was two meters tall. Its length and width made it look like a coffin.
But blue currents flowed continuously across its surface.
“Master, Li Mu is here.”
After the black-robed man finished speaking, he quickly stepped forward to his master’s side and whispered a few words.
Shui Tianxing nodded with a smile, indicating that he knew.
Then he turned around.
Observing this Earth Rank expert from such a close distance, even An Xing’s breathing became somewhat hurried.
As for Li Mu, he was astonished by the sheer power of Old Shui’s aura.
It could be said that among all the people Li Mu had met so far, Old Shui was the most formidable.
He was even stronger than the Green-Armored Giant!
Li Mu dared to conclude that if Old Shui had made a move, the Green-Armored Giant would not have lasted even three minutes.
His presence was like a vast ocean, making others feel tiny and suffocated.
“Junior Li Mu greets Old Shui.”
Li Mu spoke with sincere respect.
Shui Tianxing was barefoot. He slowly took a few steps across the soft soil and came before Li Mu.
“Child, how old are you?”
Li Mu had not expected Old Shui to ask this.
“Eighteen.”
“Eighteen... What a blessing for humanity.”
Old Shui’s eyes were full of affection, just like an ordinary grandfather next door looking at a younger member of the family.
His fondness could not be concealed.
“Old Shui, I have a question I would like to ask you out of curiosity.”
Li Mu had also come here today with a purpose.
If Old Shui had nothing else to ask of him, then he could not make this trip for nothing.
Li Mu had no concept at all of high-level cultivation or the broader world structure at the upper levels.
Now was a good opportunity to seek confirmation.
“Ask.”
Old Shui smiled and nodded.
“Old Shui, what is the Earth Rank?”
Li Mu directly asked the most crucial question.
An Xing, standing at the side, broke into a cold sweat for him.
Little Rascal Li, you really are bold.
Earth Rank experts, no matter the country or region, were highly classified in every aspect, whether in terms of their numbers or abilities.
Li Mu only knew that on a certain level, Earth Rank experts were equivalent to the nuclear weapons of his previous life.
Some people bluffed and insisted they had them even when they did not.
Some had one but dared to claim they had three!
Others clearly had two but only admitted to having one.
Everything was confusing and impossible to see through, making people afraid to casually touch this red line. This was what led to the delicate balance between nations.
Once all hidden cards were revealed and this balance was broken, it would carry the flavor of a High-Martial World War.
As for Heaven Rank experts, Li Mu had never even heard of their existence.
That sort of thing was probably a weapon of civilization, a dimensional strike.
Old Shui first introduced it with eight words:
“Drawing the ground as a prison. Drawing the ground as a kingdom.”
As Old Shui explained in detail, Li Mu also came to understand.
After a Martial Artist entered the Earth Rank, they could select a region.
It could also be understood as staking out territory.
Within that territory, the expert could cover it with divine sense and seize the power of the region for their own use.
As an Earth Rank expert’s cultivation grew stronger, this territory would also continuously expand.
Of course.
“Drawing the ground as a prison” did not mean that an Earth Rank Martial Artist would be trapped there from then on and unable to leave.
Rather, for Earth Rank experts, whether they were within their own territory or not was extremely important.
Even if someone was an Earth Rank Third Grade expert, if they went to another Earth Rank’s territory, they might not even be able to defeat that person’s Earth Rank First Grade.
That difference was extremely vast.
And the region Old Shui protected was precisely Linyuan City and the surrounding area of several dozen li.
Two Earth Rank experts could also exist in the same region at the same time. Generally speaking, what they seized was not the same earth-spirit power.
Situations where one mountain could not tolerate two tigers were extremely rare.
What shocked Li Mu the most, however, was this:
Old Shui said that Linyuan City had only him as its sole Earth Rank.
Yet Ironhand City actually had one too!
As for who that person was, even Old Shui did not know.
“I called you here today to teach you a method to cure those graduates from Thousand Victories Military Academy.”
“It can remove the Blood Poison from their bodies and stop them from being controlled by the Heaven Society.”
After finishing the matter regarding the Earth Rank, Old Shui handed Li Mu a piece of paper.
Li Mu was somewhat puzzled.
If Old Shui had a method, why did he not cure them himself?
Was it because he did not want to show himself too often?
Then why not let the Commander-in-Chief or the Deputy Commander-in-Chief gather this favor instead? Why give it to him...
Hiss!
Li Mu understood somewhat.
“Thank you, Old Shui. I will handle it as soon as possible.”
Old Shui nodded in gratification.
At that moment, Li Mu casually cast a curious glance at the “Water Cube” floating in midair.
An Xing also happened to turn his head toward it.
After all, it was the only thing nearby that was constantly flowing. It was difficult for it not to attract curious gazes.
However, the instant the water flow became clear, An Xing was so frightened that he abruptly shuddered.
He even let out a faint cry of “Ah!”
Li Mu’s pupils also constricted.
That Water Cube was clearly a water coffin.
And inside that water coffin was actually a female corpse covered in blood!
Horrifying!
Even people like Li Mu and An Xing, who had killed countless people and countless monsters, felt their scalps go numb.
The female corpse looked as though she had been burned by raging flames. Her limbs were charred black.
Her clothes were ragged and torn.
Starting from her neck, large and small pustules covered her body. Her features were twisted, her cheeks were ruined, and a pair of eyes that made one’s hair stand on end were wide open.
Even a single glance made one’s whole body go numb.
It would easily give someone nightmares at night.
Li Mu and An Xing were shocked. How could there be such a female corpse in this place?