Chapter 1302: Ancient Tomb Zombies

In the starry sky, a barrage of angry curses echoed, all directed at the figure ahead, Ye Chen. The donkey was furious, its eyes fixed on him.

It held a deep resentment towards Ye Chen. If it hadn't been for him, it wouldn't have been captured by Long Wu and the others, and all its treasures wouldn't have been taken. If it were released now, it would certainly cause chaos.

Ye Chen glanced back, his gaze passing over Dao Zhi and landing on the shouting donkey. "Bearing the bloodline of the Kirin Imperial Clan, that donkey is extraordinary. How did you end up clashing with it?"

"We clashed because it stole our family's ancestral treasures!" Long Wu replied casually.

"Ancestral treasures stolen? Your family's defenses must be lacking," Ye Chen said.

"You don't understand." Long Wu snorted. "That donkey is incredibly cunning. It has an innate divine ability that allows it to ignore barriers and restrictions. This talent comes from an extremely mysterious lineage."

"An innate ability to ignore barriers and restrictions? That's interesting," Ye Chen said with a sigh.

"Just call it Qi Wang," Long Wu said leisurely. "The name Qi Wang is known throughout this star domain. It has visited almost every ancient star and never failed."

"Qi Wang—that name sounds impressive and grand."

"It does have that dominant feel to it."

"I have something I've been meaning to ask..." Ye Chen began, but halfway through, he furrowed his brow and instinctively turned around, narrowing his eyes towards the depths of the starry sky behind them.

Long Wu also stopped, sensing something amiss, and looked back, his eyes narrowing to slits. His Taixu Dragon Soul's perception was sharp—they were being watched.

Their sudden halt puzzled the two purple-robed elders, who followed suit and looked behind them. Even Qi Wang and Dao Zhi turned around, especially Dao Zhi, whose face paled as he felt an eerie chill, his whole body turning cold.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

As they watched, the starry sky trembled with a slow, rhythmic vibration, as if from something incredibly heavy, like massive mountains moving with every step.

Soon, a vague figure came into view, emerging as if from a distant era.

It was a figure clad in armor, like a general, shrouded in chilling yin energy and a deathly aura. Its expression was dull, eyes vacant, movements stiff, as though it had just crawled out of a grave. Dust covered its body, and parts of it were rotten and decayed.

Ye Chen's eyes narrowed further. From that figure, he detected a familiar aura, similar to the one from the desolate ancient tomb on that dead star—exactly the same, in fact.

"Ancient Tomb Zombie," Long Wu muttered with a frown, drawing from fragments of the Taixu Dragon Emperor's memories to identify it.

"Ancient Tomb Zombie?"

"An ancient corpse that has gained a spirit—extremely powerful," Ye Chen said thoughtfully. The figure approaching from the distant starry sky gave off an aura somewhat like Jiang Chen's, but different; Jiang Chen had a fully intact intellect.

"It's locked onto us." Qi Wang instinctively stepped back, its expression fearful. "You bunch of scoundrels—which one of you took something of his?"

"Dao Zhi." Ye Chen snapped coldly, his sharp gaze fixed on Dao Zhi.

"I... I just took a copper mirror." Dao Zhi's face turned ashen as he pulled the copper mirror from his robes.

"Nonsense!" Ye Chen cursed, snatching the mirror and darting away like a streak of immortal light towards a distant part of the starry sky. His voice echoed back, "Find somewhere to hide!"

He fled, and the Ancient Tomb Zombie stiffly turned its neck, its vacant eyes locking onto Ye Chen.

In the next instant, the Ancient Tomb Zombie moved, its stiff body crossing thousands of zhang in a single step, shattering the starry sky with each tread. The immense pressure made the entire cosmos quake.

It was pursuing Ye Chen, solely because he held the copper mirror—its burial artifact. Dao Zhi's casual theft had violated its taboo, awakening its corpse spirit.

Bang! Boom!

Soon, thunderous roars erupted from the direction Ye Chen had fled, the commotion massive and shaking the stars.

"Go!" Long Wu shouted abruptly, spinning around. He knew Ye Chen's escape skills well—they'd only be a burden here. Better to leave now.

Behind him, the two purple-robed elders, along with Qi Wang and Dao Zhi, quickly followed. This place had become a hotbed of trouble; the Ancient Tomb Zombie was far too strong for any of them to handle.

Boom!

No sooner had they left than a section of the distant starry sky collapsed. Ye Chen was flung out, his Saint Body cracking open as holy blood sprayed forth, each drop dazzlingly bright.

The Ancient Tomb Zombie was overwhelmingly powerful—at least at the Saint King level in life, and after eons in the ancient tomb, it had developed a spirit. Such a high-level ancient corpse had transcended certain limits.

"Dammit!" Ye Chen cursed inwardly, using Shrinking Earth into Inches. He'd calculated everything, but Dao Zhi had still taken something he shouldn't have. The Ancient Tomb Zombie was tracking them via the copper mirror. Though not alive, it knew to guard its burial items—anyone who touched them faced relentless pursuit.

The Ancient Tomb Zombie closed in, each step covering thousands of zhang. Its withered hand swept down from the sky, enveloping thousands of zhang of space. Before it even landed, the starry sky began to crumble.

Ye Chen couldn't withstand it. He invoked the Heavenly Dao and vanished into a spatial black hole, vomiting fresh blood.

After a brief respite, he madly consumed various pills and burst out of the black hole again.

Hiding in the black hole wouldn't solve the root problem. Without a target, the Ancient Tomb Zombie might wreak havoc across the stars, costing countless innocent lives.

Ye Chen wasn't a savior, but among the beings in this star domain, there might be many reincarnated from Da Chu. He couldn't stand by and watch them get caught in the crossfire.

So, he took the risk, luring the Ancient Tomb Zombie away from populated areas with nearly all his strength.

Emerging from the black hole, the Ancient Tomb Zombie locked onto him again and charged forward, swinging another sky-covering palm. Every wisp of yin energy and deathly aura on it was bone-chilling and as heavy as mountains.

Shrinking Earth into Inches!

Ye Chen burned his Saint Body blood essence, barely dodging it.

Woo woo woo!

Behind him, eerie ghost wails rose, adding a sinister edge to the vast starry sky. Anyone passing by turned pale with fear, staring in shock at the Ancient Tomb Zombie. Some got too close and were instantly pulverized by its pressure.

"What... what is that?" Everyone who saw it fled in panic, their faces drained of color, expressions full of terror.

"There's no sign of life—it's a dead thing."

"Is that the legendary zombie? One that's gained a spirit through corpse transformation?" An elder cultivator said with a trembling voice, recalling ancient tales. Zombies were terrifying entities.

"Get away!" Ye Chen roared, his voice carrying a secret magical art that echoed across the stars. In that moment, among the fleeing crowd, he spotted a few reincarnated individuals.

With that, he dove back into the black hole, unable to evade the Ancient Tomb Zombie's devastating palm.

Just as before, he stayed in the black hole for less than a minute before emerging again.