I Can Strengthen Infinitely

"Quick, search this forest thoroughly. Do not let a single inch slip past. If you find any evil creature, send out a signal immediately and destroy it on the spot." A centurion shouted to his men, brandishing a steel blade.

This squad numbered a total of one hundred and twenty men. They had come here on the order of the General, advancing north to eradicate all evil things coming from that direction.

Since leaving Chang’an, the army of Great Tang had battled those abominations and already lost many soldiers. Yet this was destined to be a war with no end—the Central Plains was the richest land under all heaven, and Sanhuang would never allow these things to invade the Central Plains and turn its people into wretches, neither man nor ghost.

Gazing at the forest ahead, the centurion Lin Ce gave a low shout and at once led his men in a charge straight into the woods.

In these forests, there lurked many wandering corpses as well, who were capable of devouring every living thing in the forest, turning every last animal into the walking dead—highly dangerous indeed.

Against these wandering corpses, the Great Tang army naturally had to slay them without hesitation.

Stepping into the forest, all was silent—no insects chirped, no birds sang. Lin Ce grew instantly alert.

Having swept through countless forests, he was all too familiar and experienced, and could tell at a glance—there were definitely wandering corpses lurking in this very wood.

Indeed, less than half a quarter of an hour later, cries suddenly rang out behind a few boulders in the distance, followed by the echo of clashing arms—sharp and piercing.

Lin Ce’s spirit jolted. Without hesitation, he turned and dashed towards the sound.

As he rounded the rocks, he saw a dozen paces ahead a wandering corpse, half its body covered in scales, its arms like mantis scythes, attacking three of his soldiers.

Lin Ce’s eyes changed instantly.

The Great Tang army had fought these wandering corpses for some time, and all forces had gathered much useful intelligence—especially concerning these wandering corpses, which differed from the common sort and were noted for greater strength.

Lin Ce was a Martial Artist trained in external hardening, far stronger than an ordinary soldier. Without delay he charged in, blade in hand, lest his men meet disaster.

Swish!

His blade cleaved out, a flash of cold light.

The wandering corpse’s attention snapped to Lin Ce instantly. All at once, spines burst forth from the seams in its scaled hide—monstrous to behold. It swatted aside the soldiers in its way and lunged fiercely at Lin Ce.

Lin Ce summoned all his focus, battling the corpse with full effort, but the creature’s speed and strength far surpassed his expectations. If he wasn’t extremely careful, he could easily lose his life right here.

Whoosh!

The corpse suddenly opened its jaws, its mouth splitting into several petal-like flaps. Two long tongues shot forth, aiming straight for Lin Ce’s face.

Lin Ce reacted quickly, reaching to his lower back and drawing a collapsible round shield. With a practiced flick, the shield snapped open, just in time to block the corpse’s strike.

Bang.

But the corpse’s tongues were no ordinary weapons—two long grooves instantly gouged the face of the shield, and the tips punched clean through it.

Even so, Lin Ce used the shield to seize his chance. With a swift slash, he severed both of the corpse’s tongues in a spray of blood.

Hiss—hiss—hiss!

The corpse’s blood splattered everywhere, eating away at earth and stone like acid.

While Lin Ce was locked in combat, his men were hardly idle. At once, they drew standard-issue mini-crossbows from their backs and fired a volley into the corpse’s back.

These mini-crossbow bolts had been specially outfitted by the Great Tang Gunpowder Bureau—on impact, the shock triggered a massive explosion powerful enough to kill an ox instantly.

Several arrows sank into the corpse; less than two heartbeats later, they exploded in a thunderous blast.

The Gunpowder Bureau’s munitions were indeed potent—over half of the corpse was blown apart, and what hit the ground was little more than severed limbs.

Lin Ce finally breathed easy. Dangerous as it was, they had survived unscathed.

But his face soon darkened once more—nobody knew just how many such powerful wandering corpses still lurked in this forest. If they happened upon the other soldiers, it would be a massacre for sure.

"Go notify the others. Stay sharp and form up in teams of five. No one goes off alone," Lin Ce barked at the soldiers.

But as he spoke, he noticed strange expressions etched across their faces.

That look—panic.

Lin Ce turned quickly, and saw atop the trunk of a large tree nearby, a gaunt, iron-skinned figure standing silently.

The figure’s hair hung long, demon aura wreathing the body—male or female, Lin Ce could not tell.

But the instant he saw the figure, Lin Ce’s heart skipped a beat. Every hair on his body stood on end.

The sense of mortal danger pressed down on him—like a naked sword tip poised at his chest, ready to strike at any moment.

Hiss—hiss—hiss!

The fiend gave a strange smile, then vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.

Lin Ce did not believe such a powerful being would flee. He immediately shifted into a defensive stance. Sure enough, in less than a blink, he sensed a whisper of wind behind him. He didn’t think—just spun and slashed with his blade.

Bang!

The long blade met the fiend’s palm. In an instant, the blade snapped in two under the force, unable to withstand the blow.

The severed edge spun up into the air, arcing back to earth and stabbing into the ground with a trembling hum.

"Ugh!" Lin Ce gave a muffled grunt, staring in disbelief at the face before him.

His eyes dropped; blood spurted—an arm had punched clean through his chest.

Had he been able to look back, Lin Ce would have seen the fiend’s hand erupting from his back, slick with blood.

So fast! Such deadly hands!

This person—I’m no match for them at all!

"Run! Flee, now!" As life ebbed from his body and the light faded from his eyes, Lin Ce turned to his men and, mustering the last of his strength, roared: "Run!"

Splurt!

The fiend wrenched its hand free, snuffing out Lin Ce’s final breath.

If even Centurion Lin Ce wasn’t their match, how could the common soldiers survive? Within a few heartbeats, not one soul remained alive—save for the fiend.

Shaking blood from its hand, the fiend cocked its head and, in an instant, vanished from sight.

...

Shi Lin and Yalan, the two immortals, had spent these days wandering the land. With their abilities, touring all of the Nine Provinces would take but a few hours’ journey, as fleeting as a drifting cloud.

But that would be merely traveling, with no chance to truly savor the mortal realm’s sights. So they tamed deer as their mounts, journeying leisurely—at times subduing spirit beasts, at others aiding the common folk. A pleasant life, indeed.

"Lately, I feel a growing heaviness of evil energy in the mortal world," Yalan said softly, stroking her deer’s head.

Perched on the other deer, Shi Lin looked up from refining a magic item out of bamboo. "I feel it as well. This evil isn’t of the mortal world—it feels oddly familiar."

Yalan replied, "Something isn’t right about this. Brother Shi, why don’t we follow this foul aura and see where it leads? If there’s any hidden trouble, we can smother it in the cradle together."

Shi Lin nodded. "Very well. As you wish."

He flicked his sleeves, and a long measuring stick flew out. After circling a few times in the air, it sped off in a certain direction.

Shi Lin and Yalan exchanged a glance, then urged their deer after it at once.

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