Chapter 103 — The Corpse-Piercing Silver Needle

He Yin was in a fury and about to give chase when a searing agony tore through his shoulder. Shen Mu had used the scabbard to recall the Chubao Sword; the blow had not carried much force, but the blade was too keen for him, and it had run him through the shoulder blade, leaving a great hole in his shoulder! He Yin gritted his teeth against the pain and brought out jade bottles large and small. First he applied a medicine to staunch the bleeding, then a salve to knit the broken bone and grow it whole again, and then a balm to restore the flesh; but the agony came on in waves, past all bearing.

And behind him, one of the flying zombies was fishing salve from a jar, smearing it on the neck of a flying zombie that Shen Mu had beheaded, then taking up the severed head and setting it back on the salved neck. The head wobbled and crackled, click and clack; but it had been set on backwards, so that the face looked out behind. The flying zombie that was "treating" him seemed not to notice, and went to the one that had been cut in two, fitted the halves together, and smeared them with a rank, stinking paste.

Even beheaded, even cloven in two, these flying zombies would not "die"; so long as the Corpse Immortal Cult's ointment was applied and the severed limb rejoined, they could leap and caper as lively as ever. A wonder indeed. The Corpse Immortal Cult had long made its trade in the dead, and truly it had arts all its own.

Suddenly a whistling of air came, and one after another the disciples of the Corpse Immortal Cult hurried to He Yin's side. One of the women disciples said in astonishment, "Senior Brother He Yin, you're wounded?

Is that boy so strong? " "Not strong.

" He Yin's face was livid, and he ground the words out between his teeth: "He is at most of the Five Luminaries realm, but his cultivation is none too poor, and his body arts are most uncanny; he is well versed in sword control and in spellcraft. He has a precious sword, and its scabbard can call the flying blade back of itself, and the sword is exceedingly sharp; my flying zombies could not block it at all! His wounds are none too light either.

He cannot have fled far by now!

" The disciples of the Corpse Immortal Cult were taken aback. The woman disciple said, "Well versed in both sword control and spellcraft? Then he can have little attainment in combat technique.

Let us give chase, take him alive, and deliver him to the patriarch for judgment!

" A dozen or more disciples of the Corpse Immortal Cult flew off at speed. He Yin rose and was about to hurry after them as well when suddenly another figure came flying through the air. He Yin saw the man's face and was startled; in great haste he bowed and said, "Uncle Qiao! " That Uncle Qiao frowned and said, "The boy who killed the patriarch's son has still not been caught, and instead you have been wounded by him. He Yin, you grow more capable by the day.

" He Yin was ashamed, and said, "Uncle Qiao, the patriarch. . .

" "The patriarch already knows of this, and is in a towering rage, but for now he is still steadying the situation and quelling the turmoil in the city.

" Uncle Qiao said, "The Imperial Preceptor of Jingping has suffered a grievous blow, and every hero under heaven seizes the hour to rise, to slay the traitorous faction and set the court to rights. This time our Corpse Immortal Cult marches under a righteous name: first we cut away the Imperial Preceptor of Jingping's wings, and take the county seat of Dijiang. Dijiang County is our Corpse Immortal Cult's domain; its foundations must be firmly planted, and the remnant faction of the Imperial Preceptor of Jingping wiped out to the last man.

Though the patriarch grieves, he still puts the greater cause first. " He Yin assented, and said, "Then I beg Uncle Qiao to overtake those junior brothers and sisters.

Though the man is young, in his hand is a sharp sword that can turn into a fish-dragon.

. .

" Uncle Qiao was astonished: "A sharp sword that turns into a fish-dragon? What exactly is its shape? Tell me in detail! " He Yin described the Chubao Sword and that strange scabbard, and Uncle Qiao was profoundly shaken. He blurted out, "That is the sword worn by a first-rank minister of the court, a treasure without peer under heaven! Even our Corpse Immortal Cult has no such treasure!

How could a weighty treasure of this kind come into the hands of a young boy? Can he be the son of some first-rank minister of the court? " His eyes flickered, and he laughed.

"This sword is extraordinary.

Heaven indeed means our cult to flourish, to send us a first-rank minister's blade! I will go and take that sword back! " And with that he flashed away. He Yin frowned, thinking, "A first-rank minister's sword? That is a treasure that stands for a man's rank and station in the court.

How would a first-rank minister give his court sword into his own son's keeping? Uncle Qiao has not thought this through. .

. This matter must be reported to the patriarch at once! " He hurried in all haste toward the county seat of Dijiang. Uncle Qiao followed the tracks left by Shen Mu and the disciples of the Corpse Immortal Cult.

Suddenly he frowned slightly: he had come upon the first corpse, the corpse of a Corpse Immortal Cult disciple.

There was a thin line of blood at the disciple's throat, and no other wound; nor was there blood beside him. Judging by the wound, the tip of a sword had been drawn across his throat, cutting the two great vessels. And judging by the angle of the stroke, this disciple had been treading yellow joss paper through the air when someone struck from behind; before he could react, the sword had passed across his throat.

Yet the strange thing was that there was no blood nearby. Uncle Qiao frowned. That could only mean the disciple had not died here; he had flown on through the air a while before being dropped.

His blood had already run out in the air. What did that mean? It meant the youth who had killed him had been standing behind him!

This disciple had been treading yellow joss paper, pressing forward in search of Shen Mu's tracks, while the youth silently appeared at his back, opened his throat with a single stroke, and then pressed himself against the corpse's back, working the sword case; from the case yellow joss paper kept flying out, spreading forward across the sky.

At the same time the youth kept the disciple's corpse walking forward, so that it seemed still alive, and kept pace with the other Corpse Immortal Cult disciples. "This is corpse-control art!

" Uncle Qiao's expression shifted.

"This youth also knows corpse control!

My cult's disciples are in peril!

But then again, among the Jingping court I know of no first-rank minister skilled in corpse control. Where does this youth come from? Where did he learn the methods of corpse control? " It was deep night now, nearing the third watch. Though the moon still shone, one could not see clearly, nor see far.

Uncle Qiao could well imagine it: Shen Mu must have used the dark, controlling the corpse of the Corpse Immortal Cult disciple; when he drew near other disciples of the cult, they would surely be unprepared, and by the time they could see clearly it would be too late to dodge his sword! Corpse-control arts under heaven were not the Corpse Immortal Cult's alone; other heterodox cults and demon cults had them too, only each school's arts differed.

In the way of controlling and nurturing corpses, the Corpse Immortal Cult could be called the foremost among them, though its name was not a pleasant one.

And judging by Shen Mu's corpse-control methods, they were likely formidable indeed. To kill a Corpse Immortal Cult disciple and then control his corpse so that he seemed still alive, leaving no flaw for the other disciples to detect, was exceedingly rare corpse-control art. "Somewhat like the Nether Demon Cult's Great Corpse-Control Art. .

. " Uncle Qiao pressed on in pursuit.