Chapter 158: Living apart in life, buried together in death

After Zu An carried Chu Chuyan through the stone gate, he was surprised to find that while it had appeared completely dark from the outside, it wasn't as utterly vision-obscuring inside as he had imagined.

The world behind the stone gate emitted a dim, grayish-white glow from an unknown source. The air was hazy and gray, as if filled with smog or rural cooking smoke, yet completely devoid of life.

A cold, eerie wind swept gently through, making Zu An's hairs stand on end. He felt a distinct discomfort and a wave of weakness, as if he had lost a great deal of blood.

Startled, he immediately realized that this environment was extremely hostile to living beings. There might even be a continuous "bleeding" effect, which, though not severe on its own, would be fatal for the heavily injured Zu An and Chu Chuyan in their current state.

He didn't dare to delay, grabbing another handful of medicine and shoving it into Chu Chuyan's mouth, while also taking a few pills himself. His spirits improved slightly afterward.

He had to be grateful that he had found a good supply of healing medicine on Jia Zhengjing's assassins, combined with the wound medicine and antidote pills from Ji Xiaoxi. Only with these could he barely withstand the negative effects of this place.

Chu Chuyan had never been treated so roughly by a man before. However, she knew he was trying to save her and wasn't angry, though she still felt unaccustomed to the sensation. To distract herself from her embarrassment, she asked, "What is this place?"

She had noticed Zu An desperately running towards this place earlier, so there must have been a reason for it.

Zu An replied, "This is the lair of a zombie army. I estimate it's a massive mausoleum..." He then briefly recounted what he had witnessed in the valley.

"The lair of a zombie army..." Chu Chuyan's expression subtly changed. "Aren't you just walking into your own death by coming here!"

She herself didn't care; death awaited her wherever she went anyway.

"Rather than falling into Shi's hands outside, it's better to take a gamble here. Maybe there's still some unexpected turn of events." Although Zu An's face was relaxed, his entire body was tense, prepared for any sudden danger.

Chu Chuyan sighed softly. "Why did you bother saving me? You could have clearly escaped on your own. Now, we'll probably just die together."

"Dying together isn't so bad. We could be a pair of mandarin ducks sharing the same fate," Zu An chuckled. "Doesn't this mean we couldn't share a bed in life, but we'll share a tomb in death?"

A faint blush appeared on Chu Chuyan's pale cheeks. "Pfft, at a time like this, you're still trying to take advantage of me."

"I can't help it. If I don't say many things now, I might not get another chance." Zu An noticed Chu Chuyan's eyes were half-closed, as if she might fall asleep at any moment. To keep her spirits up and preserve her life force, he naturally had to find ways to talk to her.

"By the way, if we miraculously escape this time, could we consider ending our separation and living together?" Zu An asked with a grin.

"At a time like this, you're still thinking about such things," Chu Chuyan scoffed.

"One needs something to look forward to for motivation. After all, this creepy place is making me a bit uneasy too." Zu An said, observing his surroundings. Due to the pervasive gray mist, visibility was limited, but after walking for some time, he could discern that they were in a long, narrow passageway.

The passageway sloped gently downwards, indicating they were clearly heading deeper underground. They had no idea if hell awaited them ahead.

The stone walls of the passageway were dry and smooth, etched with various lines. A quick glance suggested they were murals depicting a brutal war scene.

Chu Chuyan, however, wasn't looking at them. Instead, she was thinking about his words and said weakly, "Why are you so insistent on living with me? You clearly are..."

She stopped mid-sentence, evidently not wanting to hurt his feelings.

Zu An chuckled. "You're my wife. What newlywed couple doesn't live together? As for my physical condition, you don't need to worry. Physician Ji has already found a cure for me; all that's missing is one main ingredient, and then my hidden ailment will be completely healed. After that, we'll be a happy couple."

Chu Chuyan's face flushed slightly, automatically ignoring his last sentence. "Is it the traceless illusory lotus you mentioned last time?"

"That's right! Who knows, maybe I'll find it here in a bit," Zu An replied.

Chu Chuyan remained silent. This place was saturated with Yin energy; how could a supreme treasure like the traceless illusory lotus possibly grow here?

However, being in such a desperate situation, she didn't want to dampen his spirits. So she replied, "Alright, if we manage to get out of here, you can move in with me."

She knew her own condition; she likely wouldn't survive to leave this secret realm. Given that, she might as well make him happy before she died.

"Really?!" Zu An was overjoyed; truthfully, he hadn't expected her to agree at all.

Chu Chuyan was about to reply when her gaze suddenly fell upon the ceiling. "What... what is that?"

Zu An looked up and found the passageway was much higher than he had imagined, around twenty to thirty meters. The ceiling seemed to be embedded with countless rubies, emitting a faint red glow.

"This... this is..." At first, the dense mist made it hard to see clearly, but then a gentle breeze from an unknown source thinned the fog slightly. Zu An finally got a clear look at what was above: they weren't rubies at all, but countless bats' eyes!

These bats were larger than any he had ever seen, each the size of a bathtub. Their ferocious appearance and sharp fangs indicated they were not benign creatures.

"Be careful, these are pig-faced vampire bats! They can drain an ox or a sheep of all its blood in just a few breaths," Chu Chuyan warned urgently. Although she no longer feared death, as a woman, she had a natural aversion to such disgusting monsters.

Staring at the dense mass above, numbering at least hundreds, if not thousands, Zu An swallowed hard. If these creatures swarmed them, they could likely be drained into mummified corpses in an instant.

Didn't a zombie army reside here? How could such creatures also exist?

At that moment, the giant bats sleeping overhead suddenly stirred, evidently having caught the scent of blood in the air.

As more and more giant bats began to awaken, Zu An knew trouble was brewing. He and Chu Chuyan were covered in fresh blood, making them as conspicuous as torches in the dark to the bats.

Just then, a long laugh echoed from behind them: "Hahaha, I've finally caught up to you!"

Shi Kun and his companions appeared a dozen meters behind them, Shi Kun observing the two with a cold sneer. Dozens of wind blades had already manifested around him, clearly poised for a lightning strike in the next second.

Knowing he was in no condition to fight Shi Kun, Zu An made a swift decision, shot an arrow directly at the ceiling, and then, holding Chu Chuyan, dropped to the ground.

The bats overhead were already awakening, but the arrow hitting the ceiling caused a massive vibration that sent all of them into a frenzy. They flapped their fleshy wings and swooped down.

"What's that?!" Seeing a huge, dark mass flying down, Shi Kun was startled and instinctively unleashed the wind blades in his hand.

Immediately, bursts of blood splattered in the air as more than a dozen large bats were shredded by his wind blades. This action was like poking a hornet's nest; all the bats seemed to find a new target and swarmed towards him.

Shi Kun's face drastically changed. His elemental energy surged as more wind blades condensed around him. Qiao Xueying also turned pale, countless green leaves swirling around her to envelop her body.

The other two fourth-rank cultivators also used all their might, slashing at the giant bats pouring down from above.

However, there were simply too many bats, and each was formidable. One fourth-rank cultivator, momentarily distracted, had his defenses breached by a single bat, which bit directly into his neck.

With a horrific scream, he frantically reached to tear the bat from his neck. This instantly caused his surrounding defenses to collapse, and more bats swarmed onto him.

His screams abruptly ceased as his tall, muscular body visibly shriveled. In a few blinks of an eye, nothing but a dried corpse remained.

Shi Kun was both shocked and enraged. Holding nothing back, he conjured up tornadoes, each filled with wind blades. Wherever they passed, the giant bats in their path were shredded to pieces.

Qiao Xueying's face was also icy. She shot out countless green leaves, each like a blade, impaling bats. Simultaneously, the small braids on her head grew rapidly, transforming into numerous sprawling vines. Each vine was covered in green thorns, and every one of them lashed like the sharpest whip, disemboweling countless bats.

The remaining bats finally realized they had encountered formidable opponents and fled in disarray. Soon, only a pile of mangled flesh and corpses remained in the passageway.

This time, Qiao Xueying did not retract her hair. Seeing numerous bloody bat corpses still hanging from the vines, she swung her sword with a look of disgust and cut off a large portion of her beautiful hair. However, almost as soon as it was cut, her short hair automatically grew back.

Shi Kun looked around but could no longer see Zu An or Chu Chuyan. He realized he had been used as a pawn and flew into a rage. "Zu, I'll tear you to a million pieces even if I have to chase you to the underworld today!"

Rage from Shi Kun +999!

"My lord, this place is too strange. I have an ominous premonition. Perhaps we should retreat first and then reconsider our plan," Qiao Xueying urged quickly.

Shi Kun scoffed, "What, are you worried about your young mistress now? Don't think I didn't see you secretly holding back just now. Otherwise, how could they have possibly escaped to this point?"

"I..." Qiao Xueying looked aggrieved. She was indeed worried about their safety on this trip. As a practitioner of wood-element cultivation, which symbolized life force, she felt a strange oppressive pressure upon entering this place. It hindered the smooth flow of her elemental energy, as if some terrifying entity was hidden within.

Shi Kun suddenly realized that his subordinates had suffered heavy casualties. It would be unwise to alienate Qiao Xueying, a fifth-rank cultivator, at this moment. So, his tone softened. "Alright, Xue'er, I was too anxious just now and spoke too harshly. Don't take it to heart. Although this place is somewhat bizarre, it's just pig-faced bats and the like. If we're careful, we'll be more than capable of handling them. You can't just stand by and watch Miss Chu fall into Zu's hands and await death, can you? How about this: once we find Miss Chu, we'll immediately withdraw from this place?"

Qiao Xueying's heart softened. "Yes, my lord. It was indeed my fault earlier; I became a bit soft-hearted for a moment."

Shi Kun chuckled. "It's fine. This only proves your loyalty and righteousness even more. If you were cold-blooded and ruthless towards Miss Chu, I would be disheartened."

Hearing him say this, a hint of a smile finally appeared on Qiao Xueying's face, which had been burdened with worries throughout their journey. "Thank you for your understanding, my lord."

Shi Kun nodded, then motioned for her to follow him deeper into the passageway.