Chapter 35: Ye Qiu Yue

Enduring the discomfort in her head, Yun Qing kept her gaze fixed on the battlefield. As the village gates swung open, soul corpses surged into the village. Dozens of postnatal martial artists clashed with more than ten soul corpses in a chaotic melee.

The humans, with their organized teams and discipline, quickly split into groups; three to five men fought each soul corpse, while a ten-man squad patrolled the perimeter for animal soul corpses.

In the rush of the moment, opponents were chosen hastily, not always perfectly. The soul corpse wielding an axe ended up facing a hunting squad of modest skill—a team led by Ye Mao, which was Yun Qing’s own squad.

Yun Qing’s eyes were locked on her five teammates: Ye Mao and the other three engaged in melee, while Ye Wenjing provided support with her bow from a distance.

The melee fighters faced constant peril. Ye Mao slashed at the soul corpse’s arm, but the creature twisted its axe to parry, and black energy gathered on the blade as it countered with a vicious strike, forcing Ye Mao to retreat.

Ye Xiaolang thrust his spear at the creature’s head, but it caught the spear in its other hand, its sharp claws sinking into the wood.

Ye Wenjing’s arrows struck the soul corpse’s chest but had no effect.

After the soul corpse knocked Ye Mao’s broadsword aside, it swung at Ye Hai, who, along with Ye Tao, hurried to block the attack.

The soul corpse felt neither pain nor fear; its axe gave it a wide range of attack. Even though the opponents had reached the postnatal stage, they were still mortal—vulnerable to injury and poison.

The soul corpse’s howls impacted the surrounding martial artists, making their movements sluggish and their attacks less precise.

Yun Qing felt tense, but someone beside her was even more so—she could tell by how her arm was being squeezed painfully.

She wished Ye Qiu Yue would let go; if she kept clutching her like this, her arm would soon be bruised.

But for a young girl, it was understandable to be frightened by such a life-and-death battle. Yun Qing, in contrast, had been an apprentice in a slaughterhouse, a hunter’s helper; she had seen her share of bloodshed.

And more than that—she had once been an immortal and had slain soul corpses before.

As her squad’s attacks proved futile, Yun Qing clenched her fists and wondered silently, “Liu Liu, could their weakness be the head?”

“If you burn them to ashes, they’ll certainly die.”

Yun Qing was speechless—of course she knew that. In the dungeon, she had killed many soul corpses with fireballs.

Just as Liu Liu finished speaking, Yun Qing saw another squad decapitate a soul corpse, only for its health bar to drop by half—and yet, it was not dead. The severed head could still bite, could still unleash silent sonic attacks, and its limbs still fought on.

“It seems their health must be depleted completely before they die.”

The tide of battle shifted with every breath. Mere moments after the village gates opened, there were already casualties among the villagers.

A piercing scream rang out just as Yun Qing looked away from the headless soul corpse. At the same moment, the hand gripping her arm shoved her with sudden force.

The unexpected push made Yun Qing, who stood atop the wall, stagger and nearly fall. Fortunately, her strength, training in physical conditioning, and unyielding will helped her twist her body and regain her balance.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that it was Ye Qiu Yue who had pushed her.

Below the wall was the battlefield, where martial artists and soul corpses fought fiercely. For someone not even at the postnatal stage, falling down would be extremely dangerous.

She managed to steady herself, but the one who pushed her, Ye Qiu Yue, lost control from the force and, with a misstep, tumbled over the five-meter-high wall.

Beneath the wall was a thick layer of grass and soft earth. Ye Qiu Yue landed unharmed, scrambled to her feet, and rushed toward the battlefield—the very spot where Ye Xiaolang and the others were fighting.

At first, Yun Qing's squad had been flustered against the axe-wielding soul corpse, but after several exchanges, they began to anticipate its attacks. The four melee fighters surrounded it, while Ye Wenjing fired arrows infused with inner force from the rear.

Ye Qiu Yue’s push came just as Ye Wenjing loosed a second arrow after hitting the soul corpse’s neck.

The first thing Ye Qiu Yue did upon reaching her squad was to tightly hug Ye Wenjing, crying, “Sister Wenjing, don’t kill Father!”

Though the battlefield was chaotic, Yun Qing clearly heard her words. So, the axe-wielding soul corpse beset by Ye Xiaolang and the others had been Ye Qiu Yue’s father in life.

Yun Qing recalled hearing during the herb-gathering mission that Ye Qiu Yue’s father was a carpenter, and her family had been relatively well-off. She hadn’t expected that he would not return from the Dark Night.

She could understand the pain of losing a father, but not why Ye Qiu Yue would first push her, and then, in the midst of deadly combat, cling to Ye Wenjing. Either action could easily have gotten someone killed.

Yun Qing felt genuine apprehension for Ye Wenjing.

At the moment Ye Qiu Yue hugged Ye Wenjing, a soul corpse, grievously wounded and nearly depleted of health, entered its final throes. Its jaws gaped wide as it threw back its head to unleash a silent howl.

Humans could not hear the howl, but the other soul corpses could. Instantly, those that had been suppressed went into a frenzy.

The axe-wielding soul corpse erupted with several times its previous strength, breaking free from the four fighters restraining it—unfortunately, right in the direction of Ye Qiu Yue and Ye Wenjing.

Ye Wenjing was startled and tried to break free from Ye Qiu Yue’s grip, but Ye Qiu Yue clung to her as if holding onto her last hope of survival, refusing to let go.

Her eyes were fixed in a daze on the onrushing soul corpse, fear and desperate hope mingled within them as she murmured, “Father is coming. He must have recognized me.”

Ye Wenjing, trapped in her grasp, was filled with terror. Unable to break free, she saw the soul corpse’s axe about to fall upon her. In that moment, she longed to draw the dagger from her waist and hack through Ye Qiu Yue’s arms to escape.

But she hesitated. How could she harm a fellow village girl, one so young and beautiful, who had just lost her father?

That hesitation cost her—the soul corpse was already upon them.

It raised its axe, aiming for Ye Wenjing. At the critical moment, Ye Hai hurled his long blade, striking the soul corpse’s axe and causing it to pause just long enough.

That instant allowed Ye Tao to rush between Ye Wenjing and the soul corpse, his broadsword locking with the creature’s axe.

Ye Wenjing, pulling Ye Qiu Yue with her, rolled to the left, escaping the deadliest danger.

The soul corpse, now blocked by Ye Tao, began to swell ominously as if inhaling deeply. In the next moment, its maw opened wide, spewing a basketball-sized cloud of blue-black poison toward Ye Tao.

Ye Tao could have dodged, but doing so would have left Ye Wenjing—already on the ground—exposed to the soul corpse’s claws and venom. As for Ye Qiu Yue, she was beyond his reach.

Gritting his teeth against the soul corpse’s strength and enduring the stench, Ye Tao took the brunt of the blue poison to his head and face.