Translator: CinderTL
As the night deepened, a series of hopping sounds interrupted Xu Sanyan's thoughts.
"They're here..."
Xu Sanyan stood up and peered through the crack in the window, spotting a group of pitch-black figures wandering through the village.
These figures were likely buried underground with the Princess back in the day. Now that the Princess had awakened, they too had risen, their clothes long since weathered by time.
Xu Sanyan squinted, carefully observing them. There were about forty or fifty of them, walking on tiptoe with light, bouncy steps, their movements incredibly agile.
Their bodies were coated in a black, oily substance that appeared slippery, perhaps the key to preserving their corpses from decay.
Two of the zombies hopped into the courtyard, and Xu Sanyan observed them closely through the window crack, his brows slowly furrowing.
What are these things up to?
Just wandering around for no reason?
To Xu Sanyan, these zombies didn't seem particularly strong, at most equivalent to a Peak Stage Qi Refinement martial artist, not even reaching the Celestial Being Realm.
After a moment of thought, Xu Sanyan decided to go out and investigate. With his Peak Stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, he could easily protect himself.
Seizing the moment when the zombies outside moved away, he quickly pushed open the door and dashed out, hiding in the shadows to observe silently.
As time passed, Xu Sanyan began to notice something unusual. They didn't seem to be wandering aimlessly but rather searching for something.
But according to the old man, these zombies had awakened two years ago. What could they still be searching for after all this time?
In such a long period, they could have dug up the entire village.
The night passed quickly, and as a faint light appeared on the horizon, the zombies hopped toward the forest.
Xu Sanyan followed closely, wanting to see where they were hiding.
The zombies passed through a dense forest and arrived at a hidden cave entrance, disappearing one by one into it.
The cave sloped downward, as if carved out from the earth. Xu Sanyan guessed that this must be the tomb where the Princess was buried.
He didn't venture in recklessly, as the Princess's strength was still unknown.
Suddenly, a voice, neither male nor female, echoed from the dark cave,
"Since our guest has arrived, why linger at the entrance? Please, come in and let us talk."
Xu Sanyan was startled. They had noticed him?
After a moment of thought, he still didn't want to put himself in unnecessary danger, so he replied, "I'm afraid of the dark. Perhaps the Princess could come out to meet me?"
"Haha..."
A laugh came from the cave, "Very well..."
As the voice faded, a figure gracefully emerged from the cave. Xu Sanyan cautiously stepped back a few paces, observing her closely.
The figure was a young woman, beautiful and tall, wearing a simple, patched dress that looked like it had been stolen from a peasant woman.
Yet, even in such ordinary attire, her noble aura was unmistakable.
The woman smiled softly, her eyes fixed on Xu Sanyan.
Xu Sanyan frowned slightly. He couldn't hear her breathing...
"Why has our guest come here?" the woman asked, her voice slightly hoarse.
"Just passing by, curious to take a look," Xu Sanyan replied.
The woman nodded slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, "Then I suggest our guest leave as soon as possible."
Xu Sanyan asked curiously, "Will the Princess let me go?"
The woman smiled and said, "Naturally, with your profound cultivation, even if I wished to keep you here, I doubt I could."
She had no confidence in retaining Xu Sanyan, which was why she had revealed herself.
Xu Sanyan was inwardly surprised. Could she discern his cultivation level?
But the Princess had died at the tender age of twenty. Even if she had some cultivation, it couldn't have been very high. How, then, had her cultivation become so profound after hundreds of years of death?
Xu Sanyan recalled what the old man had said: after the Princess was buried, the Imperial Advisor had vanished without a trace. Connecting the dots, he couldn't help but form a conjecture...
The "Life Borrowing Soul Return Technique" might have hidden depths.
"Could you be the Imperial Advisor from back then?" Xu Sanyan asked slowly.
The "Life Borrowing Soul Return Technique" could have another interpretation.
That is... borrowing someone else's life to return one's own soul!
The woman sighed, her bare feet touching the ground as she lifted her skirt and sat on a nearby rock. "You are indeed clever, my friend. Yes, I am the Imperial Advisor from back then."
She did not deny it; instead, she openly admitted it.
Xu Sanyan's expression remained calm, but his heart was already in turmoil. Could someone truly live a second life?
The woman glanced at him with a smile. "Back then, my lifespan was nearing its end, and with no hope of a breakthrough, I had to seek another method. By chance, I came across this technique and decided to give it a try, treating it as a last resort. Who would have thought... it actually worked."
Xu Sanyan pursed his lips. "You're just telling me this outright?"
"Hehe... it's fine. Succeeding once was already a stroke of heavenly luck. Even if I told you the method, it would be hard to replicate."
The woman continued on her own, "First, one's cultivation must reach the Soul Refining Realm, with a solidified soul capable of leaving the body. Second, you need someone whose fate and birth characters align with yours. Third, you must remain undisturbed for nearly a thousand years. And finally, you must gather a large amount of rare Spirit Herbs."
Xu Sanyan suddenly looked up, surprised to learn that she had been a Soul Refining Realm cultivator eight hundred years ago!
Though he wondered how much of her strength remained now.
The woman pointed to the village at the foot of the mountain. "Most crucially, the formation's core must not be disturbed. If the village were to be abandoned, the technique would surely fail."
Xu Sanyan exclaimed in surprise, "So the Coffin Guarding Village is actually a grand formation?"
The woman's eyes remained calm. "Where do you think life comes from? I borrowed their lives and the body of the Xiangtan Princess."
The Xiangtan Princess was the original owner of this body.
Xu Sanyan understood now. No wonder the old man, only in his forties, looked as if he were in his seventies or eighties. So that was the reason.
The world is full of wondrous techniques, and Xu Sanyan had certainly broadened his horizons today.
The woman gazed at the rising sun on the horizon and murmured, "I wonder if any of my old acquaintances are still alive..."
Xu Sanyan said, "Aren't you afraid that I might harbor ill intentions after hearing all this?"
The woman laughed heartily, "Hahaha... I've just awakened and possess nothing of value. The only Magical Artifact I had has turned into a mundane object due to long neglect. What is there for others to covet?"
"Are you perhaps seeking to avenge the villagers? Or the Xiangtan Princess?" the woman retorted.
No one would risk their life to rob a penniless person of unknown strength.
Xu Sanyan had only spoken casually; naturally, he wouldn't do something so thankless.
Xu Sanyan hesitated, "It seems the Imperial Advisor hasn't fully revived yet?"
The woman nodded, "It won't be long now..."
He didn't say much more.
Xu Sanyan had already learned what he wanted to know, so he cupped his hands and said, "Then I won't disturb you any further. Farewell."
The woman smiled and returned the gesture, "We'll meet again if fate allows."
Suddenly, Xu Sanyan turned back and asked, "Before becoming the Imperial Advisor, were you a man or a woman?"
The woman curled her lips, her gaze alluring, "A man."
Xu Sanyan nodded and walked away.
The woman watched Xu Sanyan's retreating figure, the smile in her eyes gradually fading.
If her strength had allowed it, she would have killed him without wasting words.
...
Xu Sanyan knew she must be hiding something.
Because the most genuine lie is to tell the truth, using unimportant truths to conceal the important ones.
Xu Sanyan asked himself, if it were him, he would have kept it to himself.
But she was even willing to reveal this, so what she was hiding must be even more significant!
She was only wary of Xu Sanyan's strength, hence she tried to deceive him into leaving.
Xu Sanyan paused, perhaps... there was profit to be gained here!
(End of the Chapter)
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