Fūma Tarō felt relief seeing Grandmaster Buxiu unmoving. He turned to deal with the Corpse King—
But suddenly, a tremendous force surged toward him!
"Those who offend Huaxia… SHALL BE PUNISHED!"
A colossal Wheel Vajra Golden Body erupted across the battlefield. Grandmaster Buxiu sat within the golden body of the Vajra, a lotus oil lamp burning above his head, the flame crimson and solemn.
Back then, he'd risked his life for his country. Now that he was old, how could he cling to this withered body?
Death? So what!
"Retreat!" someone screamed.
The closest enemies, including Ninja Mole and Stone Ninja, immediately used Earth-Style techniques to burrow underground—
But the Vajra's punch shattered even space. God-tier power!
Even underground, it still killed them instantly.
"Run! That old undead just burned his life force—he doesn't care anymore!!"
Fūma Tarō's face twisted in horror at the giant Buddha's form. He turned to flee—
But even before he could move, an invisible punch struck him!
"Die!"
The flame in the lotus lamp dimmed further. This strike was much weaker than the first…
Even so, it gravely injured Fūma Tarō. If not for his enchanted armor, his organs would've been pulped!
"Cough, cough…"
Blood rose in Buxiu's throat, but he swallowed it down.
Seeing his enemies flee, he sighed.
"If I were even a year or two younger… none of them would have gotten away."
He looked at the Vajra he summoned—its hands were empty. His blood and qi were too depleted to manifest weapons.
"I guess… I won't make it back with you, my disciple…"
He gathered his last trace of strength and punched toward the fleeing Corpse King.
That punch condensed into a Vajra Rod, which struck the Corpse King—
Breaking his bones, shattering his meridians, and leaving behind internal energy that disrupted his regeneration.
"Cough… what a monster."
The Corpse King still didn't die. Buxiu's golden form vanished as he collapsed to the ground, drenched in blood.
A moment later, Nima rushed over.
She froze when she saw her master slumped forward, motionless.
"Master! You can't die! It's your 200th birthday today—remember? You said you wanted to eat a big bowl of longevity noodles…"
"Why push yourself so hard… you should've just stayed in Tibet with me, resting peacefully…"
"…Stop crying, child."
That familiar voice made Nima look up in disbelief.
There he was—bloody but smiling.
"A martial artist must stand up in times of crisis. For us, to die on the battlefield is the best ending."
He patted her head, remembering when he first met her—she had just been a baby.
Now she was all grown up.
"They say one gains enlightenment before death… why haven't I gained anything yet?"
He thought of Daozu, the Living Bodhidharma, and Master Fuzi. They had all broken through before death.
Why not him?
"Master! You're glowing!"
"Huh?"
"Your chest—it's glowing!"
Buxiu looked down and saw a golden light from his heart.
A sword scar.
Memory surged back. Decades ago, Kei had struck him with a single sword slash and said:
"Maybe a few decades from now this will awaken. It should be enough time."
"So… this scar wasn't meant to kill me… but to save me?"
"No wonder… Daozu, Bodhidharma, Master Fuzi… they all revered him—the youngest Grandmaster!"
Buxiu laughed. Warm currents rushed from his heart, rapidly restoring his lost life force.
He wasn't going to die after all.
A sword doesn't always kill. It can also heal.
"Come, disciple—let's go home and eat longevity noodles!"
Nima helped him up and took him back to base.
Doctors immediately began treatment.
Afterwards, Buxiu prepared to return to Tibet.
"Grandmaster, thank you! Without you, we'd have been finished!"
"No need to thank me. I regret not killing them. Be wary of Fūma. And that monster… he's not one ordinary Heaven-tier fighters can face."
"Can you no longer fight?"
"No," Nima said. "My master barely survived this fight. He's burnt too much life force."
"Ten years ago, he fought the Blood Lotus Leader and suffered a brain injury—he's been hazy ever since."
"This time, he wounded the monster severely. But going forward… you'll have to handle it yourselves."
She paused.
"Don't ask him to fight again. We've done all we can."
With that, she wheeled him away.
"…We understand."
Commander Lin bowed.
"Try to find Kei. If we can reach him, everything might be resolved."
Buxiu nodded.
"Is he really that strong?"
"He beat three peak god-tiers when he was only in his twenties. Now, so many years have passed…"
"I'm afraid his power has far surpassed our imagination."
Buxiu departed.
"Find Kei!"
"Yes, sir!"
"But… we've lost track of him."
"Where was he last seen?"
"The edge of H City's inner perimeter. He rescued a group."
"Contact that group—find out which direction he went!"
Soon, they located Xiaohui.
"Miss Xiaohui, are you sure he went into the inner zone?"
"Yes. He said he'd take Xiaolu home. She mentioned a big statue near her house—it's in the central residential area."
"Thank you!"
Soldiers boarded a helicopter to head toward Xiaolu's home.
At that moment, Kei arrived at the Zijin Bridge, preparing to enter the infected zone.
The main road was blocked by abandoned vehicles. Only narrow side paths remained.
"Die!"
In the middle of the bridge, he stumbled upon a soldier battling a man wielding a blood-red blade.
The fight ended with the soldier pulling a grenade—both men were injured. The cultist lost an arm.
"…Blood Lotus Cult," Kei muttered after recognizing the fighting style.
With a wave, he decapitated the cultist with sword energy.
"You scum always show up in times of disaster to profit. You even cause more chaos on purpose."
"I wasn't here during the Blood Lotus purge… or none of you would've survived."
He recalled that Buxiu had been mentally impaired after that war. Maybe I'll visit Tibet someday…
He checked the soldier's wounds—still breathing. He tapped pressure points and stabilized the man's condition.
"Thank you…"
The soldier looked at his healed body in disbelief. Just minutes ago, he was half-dead from the explosion.
Just what kind of man is this?
"Mn." Kei nodded and walked away, stepping into the inner city. From here on, the Corpse Brothers would be much more dangerous.
"…Such a humble powerhouse."
The soldier sighed in admiration. Once his comms were fixed, he radioed the others.
"Yeah, a man passed through—carrying a yellow-haired girl."
"That was him! Why didn't you stop him?!"
"Stop him? He's too powerful. I'd just get in his way."
After hearing the importance of the situation, the soldier deeply regretted the missed chance.
It had to happen during comm failure too. What rotten luck!
Kei moved fast through the infected zone.
There were barely any survivors here—no one to rescue, just enemies to eliminate.
Soon, he would reach the core.
At the same time, the soldiers arrived at Xiaolu's home.
They secured the building and rescued the survivors, including Xiaolu's mother—just in time to stop a parasitic infection.
Elsewhere, word spread that the Corpse King had returned to his nest and summoned all infected.
The Corpse Nest was born.
The remaining Dark Council members emerged from the sewers to make their move.
Fūma Tarō, though severely wounded, used a secret potion to recover and led his men to the nest.
The Huaxia military, finally able to spare elite fighters, launched their own operations.
Uncle Tu blasted the foreign invaders to kingdom come—then personally charged into enemy territory and caused a ruckus.
The borders were finally stabilized.
He immediately applied to deal with the Corpse King.
Four great forces converged upon the Corpse Nest.
And Kei… had arrived.
"You want my help with the Corpse King? Sure."
"Let's discuss terms—wait, you agreed?"
"Yup. I was going to kill him anyway. Take the girl. I'm off."
He handed Xiaolu to her mom and turned to leave.
"Uncle, thank you for helping me find Mama! Here, this is for you!"
Xiaolu ran after him, offering a little red flower.
"It's a little red flower! For being good!"
Kei smiled, ruffled her hair, and pocketed the flower.
"Stay safe with your mom, okay?"
He turned and walked away.
At the same time, the final battle began in the Corpse Nest.
"Commander, Kei agreed!"
"Did he make any demands? Money? Martial arts manuals? A special rank?"
"…None."
"What do you mean 'none'? What does he want?"
"He wants nothing. He's just helping because he felt like it."
The command room fell into silence.
Why?
Someone speculated, "Maybe he wants fame? Should we have the media report his heroic deeds?"
"No. He left immediately. Didn't even pause."
"So it's not for fame either. Then why…?"
Everyone fell into deep thought.
"…Sigh."
The old general shook his head at the younger generation.
"You all were born here. Raised here. This is our home.
When there are rats in the house, we catch them.
Do we need a reason?"
"Money and power might matter to you. But for us old folks, already halfway buried… they mean nothing."
"You think Grandmaster Buxiu came for money? For fame?
They did it because it had to be done."
He grew angry, slammed his hat on the table, and left.
"Where are you going?" Commander Lin asked.
"To lead the charge against the Corpse Nest. The troops need someone to follow."
"But it's too dangerous!"
"So what? If I die in H City, just find a spot and bury me."
The general would rather die fighting monsters than sit idly with fools.
Inside the Corpse Nest—
Uncle Tu clashed with the ninjas and Dark Council. No one could overwhelm the other.
They formed a temporary truce: defeat the Corpse King first, then settle their own scores.
The three forces reached the top of the Corpse Nest.
At its heart—a massive blood pool, formed by thousands of victims.
In the center, the Corpse King stood, fully regenerated… stronger than ever.
"Monster—DIE!"
Uncle Tu felt the pressure. He took off the pink sweater his daughter gave him, revealing rock-hard abs.
He transformed from a chubby middle-aged man… into a muscle-bound monster.
"Extreme Five-Beast Form!"
He moved faster than sound. In an instant, he unleashed all five forms in rapid succession—
Each move powered by full strength.
"…That's all you've got? So this is the best Huaxia can offer?"
The Corpse King didn't even dodge. The hits barely hurt him.
"That old man nearly killed me. But he failed.
His attack only helped me absorb the essence of thousands faster!"
Behind him appeared nine radiant halos—Heavenly Qi: Ninth Layer.
The ninth is the sum of the previous eight. A god-tier threshold.
Heavenly Qi – Ninth Layer: God!
The final battle with the Corpse King… was about to begin.
(End of Chapter)
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