Chapter 1 Li Yuanhu had been sitting on the ground, arms crossed, not saying a word, not opening his eyes, just waiting quietly.

The Zhenbei Hou (Marquis of the North) estate had always passed down the seven grand garrison general positions. He held one of them, known throughout the desert for his pair of giant hammers and brute strength.

To put it crudely, if the Marquis of the North was the local emperor of Beifeng Commandery, then he, Li Yuanhu, was one of the vassal lords beneath him.

However, the day before, when facing the death-seeking Shatuo Queshi, he had taken a step back. Although he had immediately realized his mistake and rushed to save the crown prince, his act of retreating in battle had violated military discipline.

The Marquis wasn't here, but the Old Madam was.

If the Old Madam wanted to punish him, he could only lower his head and admit his mistake.

Not to mention that the Old Madam was the Marquis's wife and had a first-rank imperial title bestowed by the Yan Dynasty emperor, just the fact that he had once worn clothes personally woven by the Old Madam when he was young meant he had to accept this punishment!

The Marquis estate had strict rules. Since the first Marquis of the North crushed the Qian Kingdom's 500,000-strong army with 30,000 iron cavalry, the estate had always adhered to the iron rule of never retreating.

Li Yuanhu accepted this punishment!

But that didn't mean that Li Yuanhu wasn't feeling resentful.

He was waiting now,

Waiting for that corpse up there to "come alive" again, and then he would smash that barbarian thief who had caused him to be punished all over again!

Why not smash him to pieces?

Because…

"Your Highness, are they setting up an array?"

"Oh, you understand formations?"

"I haven't seen pigs run, but I've seen them mate."

"............" Sixth Prince.

In front of Zheng Fan and the Sixth Prince, on the north side of the memorial arch, a group of men and women wearing long blue robes arrived. Some held compasses, others held formation flags, and they were busily working under the command of an old man with white hair.

"These are warlocks," the Sixth Prince introduced.

"Warlocks?"

"The barbarians have barbarian shamans, with endless tricks, but we have warlocks and Qi refiners. So, whether in terms of military force or in terms of these mystical arts, we can suppress them."

As he spoke, the Sixth Prince seemed to become interested, pointing to the old man with white hair, and said:

"I know that old man. His nickname is Drunken Immortal. He once traveled to the capital and was summoned by my imperial father. His magic is extremely profound. In my Yan Kingdom, it's hard to find someone who surpasses him in magic.

"My imperial father even had him read the bones of us seven princes."

As he spoke,

The Sixth Prince deliberately played coy,

Pointed to his face,

And continued:

"His prophecy for my eldest brother was, 'A fierce tiger guarding the frontier';

"His prophecy for my second brother was, 'A crouching dragon in the wild';

"Guess what his prophecy for me was?"

"Wealth and leisure, probably."

The Sixth Prince frowned slightly, a little curious, and said:

"It was wealth and health, but you guessed pretty accurately. How did you guess it?"

"This humble one doesn't understand magic, but this humble one has a friend who set up a fortune-telling stall in Tiger Head City for half a year. In his early years, he was an even bigger charlatan, even creating his own sect with many followers.

"He once told this humble one that whether it's bone reading or fortune-telling, whether it's predicting good or bad luck or assessing marriage prospects, the key is just ten words."

"I ask Mr. Zheng to enlighten me."

"Nothing more than, speak human language to humans, and ghost language to ghosts."

The Sixth Prince slowly pondered these ten words, finding them more and more interesting.

Zheng Fan continued: "Actually, this humble one hasn't known Your Highness for long, but I've learned from Your Highness about His Majesty's plans.

"The First Prince controls the Tiancheng Commandery army. This is His Majesty preparing to groom the First Prince to become the second Marquis of the North, guarding the territory for the Great Yan in the future;

"And the Second Prince is the candidate for crown prince. I guess this isn't a secret in the court.

"So, rather than saying that this Drunken Immortal is telling fortunes, it's better to say that he's just repeating His Majesty's intentions, otherwise…"

"Otherwise what?"

"Otherwise, the evaluation for Your Highness should at least be 'harboring malicious intentions'."

"You're asking for a beating!"

"Oh, two young friends, chatting so lively."

At this moment, an old voice came from behind them.

Zheng Fan immediately turned around and discovered that the Drunken Immortal, who had been in the distance earlier, had somehow appeared behind him.

"This old one greets the Sixth Prince!"

The Drunken Immortal held a horsetail whisk and performed a warlock's salute to the Sixth Prince.

The Sixth Prince returned the salute with cupped hands, stepping aside slightly, not daring to accept the full bow.

The Drunken Immortal then looked at Zheng Fan with a playful gaze, and smiled:

"This old one is very interested in that friend you mentioned earlier. To be able to say those ten words shows that he has deeply understood the true essence of our craft."

"This one was speaking rashly and begs forgiveness from the Immortal."

Zheng Fan felt that Blind Man Bei should also be very willing to meet this Immortal, but in Blind Man Bei's opinion, it would be even better if he had the chance to knock this Immortal unconscious. It was estimated that he couldn't help but scan him with his mental power while slicing him up for research.

"It's fine, it's fine. What your friend said, every word is like a pearl, every word is like a pearl, haha."

The Immortal showed a sense of open-minded self-deprecation.

"Immortal, may I ask what this is?"

The Sixth Prince pointed to the things being set up north of the memorial arch.

"This is the Crouching Tiger Formation that this old one and my disciples have been setting up, waiting to capture a fierce tiger alive."

When he spoke of a fierce tiger, the Immortal deliberately glanced at the corpse hanging on the memorial arch.

The Sixth Prince was an astute person and immediately understood, a little incredulous:

"Does the Immortal mean that this corpse can still come back to life?"

"Life and death are predestined, but there is a cycle of cause and effect. Both the barbarian shamans and our warlocks are walking the path of deceiving the heavens.

"The revival of the dead and the forced control of corpses are things that barbarian shamans are most skilled at;

"Moreover, this corpse had the physique of a third-rank martial artist before death, and before death, it even killed hundreds of iron cavalry in battle, surrounded by baleful aura, and it had even studied barbarian incantations;

"No wonder the priests over at the royal court can't sit still. Even I am very envious of this corpse."

Was Shatuo Queshi going to undergo corpse transformation?

Zheng Fan was stunned for a moment.

To be honest, he really didn't expect the development of events to have this twist.

Although he had seen the methods of barbarian shamans before. When he, Xue San, and Liang Cheng were returning, they had encountered a female barbarian shaman who could instantly transform two living people into walking corpses that were impervious to swords and spears.

It was just that the female barbarian shaman was unlucky. After escaping, she ran into Fan Li, and after saying, "Can you tell that I'm wearing powder on my face?"

She was chopped down by Fan Li with an axe.

However,

In Zheng Fan's heart,

He still felt that since Shatuo Queshi was already dead, he should just die peacefully. It would be too miserable for him if he couldn't even have peace after death.

"So, Grand Garrison General Li Yuanhu is sitting there waiting for a chance to take revenge?" the Sixth Prince asked.

The Drunken Immortal shook his head:

"The Old Madam simply ordered him to come and assist this old one. This old one had already foreseen the actions of the royal court priests and had made preparations in advance. At this moment, we are simply following their path, letting them help us complete ninety-nine steps, and this old one will complete the last step.

"They spent so much effort, drawing baleful aura into the corpse, and issued an order long ago that after this corpse undergoes corpse transformation, it will head straight north into the royal court.

"All of this has already been grasped by this old one, so I specially set up the Crouching Tiger Formation behind the memorial arch, first controlling this newly transformed zombie, using the formation to dissipate the baleful aura around it, then with Grand Garrison General Li Yuanhu sitting in town beside it, and finally, I will personally seal it.

"From then on, the Marquis estate will have another terrifying war weapon made from a barbarian Left Guli King!

"In the future, when the Marquis estate faces the barbarians again, the appearance of this war weapon, whether in terms of lethality or deterrence, will be enough to make the barbarians tremble with fear!"

After all, their own Left Guli King was actually refined into this thing and sent to kill them, the morale of the barbarians would probably be greatly affected.

The Sixth Prince immediately flattered:

"Immortal, you have everything under control, you are as wise as a god. This little prince admires you."

The Drunken Immortal smiled and stroked his goatee, saying:

"What tricks can beasts play? They only increase laughter!

"In the early years, when the Marquis invited me, I disdained the barbarian shamans, thinking they were just minor tricks and side doors;

"However, when I came into contact with the barbarian shamans, I was also amazed that there were such profound methods in this world. However, in recent years, they have been declining.

"No matter how profound things are, once you understand them and master them, that's all there is to it. In all the laws of the world, the most important thing is two words… pondering."

"This little prince has been taught."

"This humble one has been taught."

Flattery will get you everywhere.

This Drunken Immortal seemed to be extremely bored. He had finally found someone to talk to and relieve his boredom, and after being flattered a few times by the current prince, he became a little elated.

Immediately,

The Drunken Immortal took out a piece of Xuan paper from his bosom and unfolded it.

In the center of the Xuan paper, there was a spot of black ink, and the black ink was constantly expanding, becoming more and more concentrated.

In the center of this black ink, there was a blue line, running horizontally to the end of the paper.

Roughly guessing the direction, it should be north.

"Hehe, fortunately, the Marquis estate reacted swiftly. It is estimated that those priests can only hastily complete the summoning work before being chased away in a panic by the Zhenbei Army, leaving a silly zombie to be delivered to this old one."

Seeing this scene, Zheng Fan felt a little melancholy, but he was helpless.

Li Yuanhu was sitting there,

Although the Drunken Immortal was a warlock, the fact that he could quietly appear behind them earlier proved that he was not someone to be trifled with.

With these two people here, even if he risked everything, he would not be able to stop anything.

Unless…

Zheng Fan looked at the silly, somewhat cute Sixth Prince standing beside him,

If he held a knife to his neck, could he force the Marquis estate to release Shatuo Queshi's corpse?

Hiss…

The Sixth Prince is so kind, he should understand, right?

However, this idea was just a thought. Unless he was really out of his mind, he wouldn't do it.

"Your Highness, young friend, it's almost time. This old one must go and prepare."

"Immortal, please do as you wish."

The Drunken Immortal left here and returned to the north side of the memorial arch, where his disciples had already set up the formation.

"Although the Immortal is from Yan, he likes freedom and often travels to the four eastern countries. It is said that three years ago, the Marquis sent someone to write a letter, inviting him to the desert to see the barbarian shamans, which led the Immortal to bring his disciples to the Marquis estate."

The Sixth Prince pursed his lips and continued to sigh: "This is the real superior, knowing what the people below really want."

After he finished speaking for a while, seeing that he did not receive a response from Zheng Fan, the Sixth Prince couldn't help but ask:

"Colonel Zheng, what are you thinking about? Are you still thinking about the importance of cremating corpses?"

"Yes, that way they won't have the chance to rise from their coffins."

"............" Sixth Prince.

"Your Highness, look, it's rising!" Zheng Fan said, pointing to the memorial arch.

At this moment,

Clusters of black and purple luster began to flow on Shatuo Queshi's mutilated corpse, and a change was clearly about to happen!

Previously, Zheng Fan thought that the Marquis estate was displaying the corpse of the barbarian Left Guli King to publicize their martial prowess and deter the barbarians;

Later, he discovered that it was not just that. This was to lure the snake out of its hole, because this corpse was actually a treasure that could move the royal court priests;

In the end, Zheng Fan realized that even the Marquis estate was eyeing this treasure and planned to intercept it.

It was like a delicious dish, and someone was both delivering the ingredients and sending the chef to cook, only to have it end up in your hands.

This barbarian royal court,

Was even more considerate than Principal [Chiang Kai-shek], the great transportation captain.

…………

"Grand Garrison General Li, a little closer to this side. The formation's core requires you to preside over it. Otherwise, if this zombie heads north and the formation can't support his physique, all our efforts will be in vain."

The old Immortal said to Li Yuanhu.

"Why bother with these troublesome things? With this general here, he won't even think about leaving this time!"

"That won't do, that won't do. This zombie has just risen and hasn't been refined yet. Its body is also broken, and it can't withstand the Grand Garrison General's hammer.

"Grand Garrison General, this is a task assigned by the Old Madam."

"You dare to use the Madam to suppress me?"

The old Immortal smiled without saying a word.

Li Yuanhu helplessly stood up, glanced at the double hammers he had thrown on the ground earlier, didn't pick them up, and walked barehanded into the formation's core.

The Immortal clapped his hands,

Put on the air of a detached master,

And softly muttered to himself:

"Everything is ready, all that's missing is… a north wind."

"Crack, crack, crack…"

"Crack, crack, crack…"

Harsh friction sounds began to come,

The surrounding wind,

Was also getting stronger and stronger,

It was yin wind,

As if hundreds of people were wailing miserably in the wind.

Suddenly,

The body of Shatuo Queshi, bound to the memorial arch, trembled continuously.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

The chains binding him instantly shattered!

"Activate the formation!"

The Immortal retreated a few steps and also entered the formation.

Around him, his disciples began to move together holding formation flags. The formation was activated, and layers of earth-yellow luster began to flow on the north side of the memorial arch.

Previously, the Drunken Immortal did not dare to make any changes to the corpse, fearing that his changes and advance preparations would prevent the corpse from being successfully awakened.

"Come on, this old one has been waiting for you for a long time!"

A look of anticipation appeared on the Drunken Immortal's face.

"Roar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

A roar came from Shatuo Queshi's mouth, bringing with it an aura of extreme desolation.

"Good, this fullness of vital energy proves that the baleful aura has been cultivated steadily, and the potential is great!"

"Boom!"

The memorial arch trembled,

Shatuo Queshi completely lost his restraints!

"Good, even though this physique is broken, it is still strong. The barbarian martial artists' bodies are stronger to begin with. The physique of a third-rank martial artist plus the body of a zombie, this is the true supreme body! Good, good, good!"

"Bang!"

Shatuo Queshi landed on the ground.

However,

The next moment,

Shatuo Queshi's actions,

Made the Drunken Immortal and the people around the formation, including Li Yuanhu, who was bearing the formation's operation alone,

Collectively stunned!

"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

After landing,

Shatuo Queshi did not head north,

But instead, without hesitation, he began to sprint south, his speed as fast as thunder!

"Ah!"

Li Yuanhu let out an angry roar, wanting to chase after him, but he was in the formation's core. The formation had not been closed, and if he forced his way out, the power of the Crouching Tiger Formation would directly fall on him. For a time, Li Yuanhu's figure was restricted.

The Drunken Immortal suspiciously took out that piece of paper again,

On this paper, there really was only a blue line pointing north.

Immediately, the Drunken Immortal bit the tip of his tongue and spat a mouthful of essence blood onto it.

The tip of the tongue's blood began to gather on the paper,

Forming a red line,

Pointing… south!

"It shouldn't be, it shouldn't be. This Left Guli King was never married and never left any descendants. How could there be any blood relatives in this world!"

…………

"Why are you kowtowing?"

"It's a custom in our place. When we see a prayer mat or an altar, no matter what god or Buddha it is, whether we recognize them or not, we kowtow to show our respect. It's just a matter of moving our heads anyway, it's not a loss."

"It's not a loss."

Someone once set up an incense table and lit three candles to mourn for himself;

Someone once took it upon himself to prostrate and kowtow;

The offerings were taken from your tent;

The candles were taken from your tent;

This kowtow was also personally performed by you;

I, Shatuo Queshi, am alone in this desert and yellow sand;

But from that moment on,

Someone offered me a blood sacrifice.

Receiving his blood sacrifice,

Protecting his well-being;

Yes,

It's really not a loss!