The Flying Zombie evolves from the Hopping Zombie, often a Jiangshi over a hundred—or even several hundred—years old. It moves with startling agility, leaping from roof to tree as if flying. It sucks the life essence from its victims without leaving a trace of trauma, making it exceptionally ferocious.
"A Jiangshi over a hundred years old—or even several hundred! That's no ordinary creature!" I exclaimed, then turned to Philip and asked, "Can you tell which era this Jiangshi is from?"
Philip replied, "Judging by the official uniform, it should be from the Song Dynasty—and a military general at that!"
The Song Dynasty? Damn… if it's from the Northern Song, it could be a thousand years old! That's way more than enough! No wonder those two turned so fierce after being bitten—it was a millennium-old Jiangshi!
"Hurry up and go! Right now, we're on the cliff face. If it attacks us, we're as good as dead!" Philip urgently pushed me upward. Then, almost as if he knew qinggong—lightness kung fu—he began stomping wildly against the stone wall and, with a whoosh, leaped right over my head.
"What the hell, bro? You're choosing now to show off? Wait for me!" I scrambled after him.
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't catch up. The guy was just too good—a true Six-Coin Celestial Master, after all. Still, there was no need to panic; we were close to the mountainside.
With another whoosh, Philip jumped up ahead of me, leaving me last. I kept looking back as I climbed, and to my horror, the Jiangshi was gone.
This is a Flying Zombie—it can fly and walk on walls. And it was a martial general in its lifetime. How am I not supposed to be scared shitless?
I didn't bother figuring out where it went. I just clawed my way upward.
"Give me your hand!" Philip yelled.
Just as I was almost within reach, I suddenly felt a weight on my back. Philip, who had stretched out his hand, froze instantly. The others covered their mouths, their eyes wide with shock.
"Hoo… wooo…" A strangely cold breath sounded beside my ear. I felt something clinging to my back—a pair of icy hands resting heavily on my shoulders. The weight was so immense that if I hadn't been holding on for dear life, I would have fallen right off.
I stiffly craned my neck and looked behind me. There it was—a hideous, long-toothed face staring coldly right back at me.
"Hey there… Uncle Jiangshi… How are you? What a coincidence—climbing the mountain too? I'm not in a hurry—why don't you go up first?" I forced a bitter smile, pretending to be calm.
"Rooooar…"
The Jiangshi tilted its head toward the sky and let out a long roar. Then it sprayed a thick, foul-smelling corpse breath right at me. Its long fangs, sharp as swords, drove straight toward my throat, aiming to bite into the left side.
Just when I thought I was done for, Philip's mahogany sword thrust down between us—right in time to block the Jiangshi's teeth, stopping it from biting down.
"Can you come up?" Philip asked.
I shook my head. There was really no way out of this. The Jiangshi was clinging to my back—forget climbing, it was hard for me to even move.
Philip's expression grew increasingly grim, his brows furrowed into a deep "八" shape, signaling just how tricky this situation was. This Flying Zombie would be difficult to deal with.
"Why don't you all just go? Anyway, since I dared to come up here, I've already accepted the risks," I said. Since we couldn't handle it, they should leave quickly. I didn't want to drag them down with me.
"Don't talk nonsense. I'm not sure why, but this Jiangshi doesn't dare go past the mountainside—otherwise it would have jumped up here already. If you can make it up, you'll be safe," Philip said.
Philip might have had a point, but how was I supposed to shake off this thousand-year Jiangshi at this rate?
The Peach Wood Sword couldn't hold it for long. The Flying Zombie was extremely fierce. With a loud crack, the sword was bitten in two!
"Snow God, Ice Lady, lend me your power—now!" Philip shouted, immediately throwing a yellow talisman.
The yellow Taoist talisman, charged with the spell, landed on the Jiangshi's body. A silvery-white light flashed, and instantly, the creature was frozen solid—completely sealed in ice.
I shook my body desperately, trying to throw the Jiangshi off my back. Thankfully, because it was frozen and slippery, it finally fell off on its own.
But the moment it slipped away, I heard a sharp cracking sound. The ice was breaking! Then, with a loud burst, the ice shattered completely—and the Jiangshi was free again!
This was a Flying Zombie—it could fly and was extremely agile. Before I could even reach for Philip's hand, it flew back up again. This time, it seemed enraged. It slammed both hands straight toward me.
Luckily, I dodged quickly. With a loud bang, the rock I had been clinging to shattered into pieces, then clattered down the cliffside.
So powerful! If this Jiangshi so much as grazed me, I'd be bruised and bloody—and certainly falling from this height.
The Jiangshi missed its attack and roared furiously once more, then lunged to bite me. Those two fangs, capable of crushing stone—if they bit into my throat, my larynx would probably burst on the spot.
I couldn't dodge anymore. How could I, with my body still pressed against the rocky cliff?
All I could do was pull out my Copper Coin Sword and fight like hell. This damn thing—already dead and still causing trouble.
Following Philip's example, I thrust the sword right toward the Jiangshi's mouth. Incredibly, the Jiangshi went for it just like before—the same way it had bitten the Peach Wood Sword.
But this time, I heard a crunch. Not only did the Jiangshi fail to bite through the Copper Coin Sword—it even broke one of its own fangs! Still, despite that, I couldn't really hurt it. A thousand-year Jiangshi was no joke.
Seizing the opportunity, Philip actually leaped into action. With one hand gripping the rock, he performed a sealing gesture with the other.
"The Five Elements defy the Yang. The Azure Nether descends into the Yin realm. Unfathomable to gods and ghosts alike. I borrow the power of the universe."
"The Five-Yin Incantation of the Azure Nether!"
I watched as Philip's hand once again emanated the power of yin and yang. Then he slammed his palm hard against the Jiangshi's chest.
"Roooaar—!"
It was unclear whether it was a furious roar or a scream of agony, but the moment that palm struck its chest, the Jiangshi convulsed violently. Countless streams of black energy rose from its body, its features twisting grotesquely.
Then, it plummeted downward. Thick smoke billowed from its chest as though it had been set ablaze, occasional sparks flashing within.
But after falling a certain distance, the Jiangshi's long fingernails dug deep into the stone, anchoring itself firmly once again.
"So strong—I actually couldn't finish it off!" Philip exclaimed in shock.
The Jiangshi didn't give us a chance to catch our breath. It flew upward again immediately. Although that blow hadn't killed it, its movements were noticeably slower—it must have been injured. Though it's hard to say if a Jiangshi can truly feel pain, being among the walking dead with no sensation at all.
"Hurry, climb up!" Philip suddenly pushed me upward with force. My body lifted lightly—but terrifyingly, the Jiangshi completely ignored Philip and lunged straight for me in mid-air.
It could fly. In the blink of an eye, it was right under me, mouth gaping open—aiming straight for my backside. This Jiangshi… I'm starting to think it must have had a thing for men when it was alive!
I wasn't going down without a fight. In one fluid motion, I twisted around and thrust the Copper Coin Sword downward, stabbing the Jiangshi right in the eye.
This time, I had bitten my fingertip and smeared my blood on the blade. The Copper Coin Sword glowed with a piercing white light that drove straight into the Jiangshi's eye.
Squelch—
The sword penetrated directly through its eye, blinding the right one. When I pulled the sword back out, an eyeball was dangling from the tip.
But because I'd struck out, I missed the ledge. After stabbing the Jiangshi, I began to fall, unable to reach the mountainside.
My heart sank. This is it—from this height, I'm going to end up as a pile of mush.
Just then, two fluffy tails swept down and hooked me.
Saved!
Back on the mountainside, I let out a long breath. Nothing feels better than cheating death—one second feeling completely doomed, the next still in one piece! I survived, thanks to the little fox.
So, adopting that baby fox was definitely the least regrettable decision I've ever made!
But there was no time to celebrate—Philip was still down below. He'd helped me up, but now he was the one in trouble.
Once the Flying Zombie saw I had escaped, it shifted its attention to Philip. He was right—it didn't dare come up past the mountainside. Maybe there was some kind of restriction or taboo here.
But even Philip, clinging halfway up the cliff, was struggling against such a powerful Jiangshi. Beads of cold sweat covered his forehead—he couldn't climb up without dealing with this thing first. What could he do?