Kyushu · Endless Nagato

Chapter 24 The King (3)
These words seemed to touch Xue Huaiqing's mind.She stared blankly at the direction where the eldest son was going away, with various complex emotions in her eyes, which was the first time An Xingmian had seen since she knew her.At that moment, he realized that the beautiful and elegant girl in front of him was not just a fearsome corpse dancer—she was just an ordinary person after all.

He turned his attention to the fat woman He Qi again.He Qi, like Xue Huaiqing, seemed to be aroused by the Changshengzi's flying away, and stood still in place, like a stone statue.After a long time, she let out a long sigh, and then suddenly said sharply: "Have you seen enough?"

As soon as the words fell, the corpse servant who was used for the competition suddenly relied on the strength of the pile under his feet, lifted his whole body into the air, and rushed towards the hiding place of An Xingmian and Xue Huaiqing.The corpse servant's lightness kung fu was really good, after a few vertical leaps, he was already in front of the two of them, kicking Xue Huaiqing head-on with a flying kick.

It seems that women are the first to have trouble with women, An Xingmian thought, and was about to make a move for her, but Xue Huaiqing's corpse servant had already rushed forward, blocking the kick with his chest.With a muffled bang, He Qi's corpse servant bounced back like a paper kite with a broken string and fell to the ground.Xue Huaiqing's corpse servant stood on the spot, not even taking a step back.The two corpse servants acted as if nothing had happened and were not harmed.

At the same time, the thirteen human piles rose from the swamp, rushed over together, and surrounded the two of them.He Qi walked over slowly, looked Xue Huaiqing up and down: "Who are you? What are you here for?"

"I am also a corpse dancer. I came to participate in the seminar." Xue Huaiqing bowed and saluted according to the rules that the juniors refer to the seniors. Yes, please forgive me."

"Well, you're still a polite little doll." He Qi's face softened a little, "You should be a novice at your age, who is your master?"

"The first teacher's name is Jiang Qinyin." Xue Huaiqing replied.

"Jiang Qinyin? It turns out that she is dead..." He Qi's tone was very flat, without any sadness, as if death was a common occurrence for corpse dancers. "More than ten years ago, I still had sex with her. Passed, but I'm not as good as her. But now you dare to come to the seminar with just two corpse servants, are you desperate?"

In fact, I only brought one. Xue Huaiqing was about to answer this, when she suddenly felt a slight movement in her heart. She turned her head and saw that An Xingmian was standing side by side with her corpse servant, with a blank expression, standing with her hands down, holding her breath—that It is the breath-holding stunt of Nagato Monk-it looks like a corpse servant.She suddenly understood that An Xingmian wanted to sneak into the seminar with her by acting as her corpse servant, which was at least less suspicious than bringing an apprentice at a young age.Although corpse dancers are capable of judging whether a walking corpse is really dead or not by sensing corpse dance, for such an unknown little person like Xue Huaiqing, no one would be willing to spend energy to investigate her. He Qi is the proof.

"I'm just here to see and visit some old acquaintances of my predecessors. I never dare to challenge my seniors." Xue Huaiqing said very humbly, acquiescing that An Xingmian is her corpse servant.

He Qi nodded with satisfaction: "You little baby is very self-aware, not bad, not bad. Jiang Qinyin has taken in a smart apprentice."

She looked at An Xingmian who was standing behind Xue Huaiqing again: "The eye for selecting corpse servants is also quite good. This handsome young man looks a little thin, but in fact, his bones are very good, and he will be very useful after being cultivated."

"Thank you for your compliment." Xue Huaiqing thanked her, but cold sweat broke out behind her back.In fact, He Qi only needed to investigate a little bit, and he could tell that there was no corpse dance connection between her and An Xingmian. This guy was a living person at all.But most of the corpse dancers are arrogant and conceited, and they don't even bother to investigate a junior like Xue Huaiqing, and finally let her pass the first level.

"I don't like to walk with people. You can catch up later. Walk out of the swamp from the southwest, and then walk northwest for half a day, and you will reach Ten Thousand Snake Lake." He Qi said in the tone of an elder's order, and then led her The fourteen corpse servants left quickly.

After He Qi walked away, Xue Huaiqing turned her head and looked at An Xingmian: "It's pretty similar, but the time just now was too short, and you have been standing still. You must not show any flaws at all. Especially when it comes to action, you still need a lot of practice."

"With your guidance, there will be no problem," An Xingmian said, "Our head monk knows how to control breathing, so we shouldn't reveal anything."

"However, movement is not the most important thing. In fact, there may not be a famous corpse dancer who pays attention to the movement of an unknown corpse servant like me." Xue Huaiqing seemed a little worried, "There are two big problems that are most likely Let you show your flaws, the first problem can be solved with a little bit of hardship, but the second..."

She groaned and did not continue, An Xingmian smiled: "Don't forget, I am a long-door monk, and the life of a long-door monk is to endure hardship."

"The first problem is easy to solve," Xue Huaiqing said, "I'll give you a drug that can make your body temporarily emit a smell of corpse that only corpse dancers can detect. This drug probably It will make you sick for a while, but it's okay, and it will go away after a while, so it won't stop you from going out to find girls."

"I don't have any girls to find..." An Xingmian shook her head, "No problem, but what's the other problem?"

"Another problem is that you don't have the spiritual connection of the corpse dance technique. If someone wants to probe you, they can immediately see that you are a living person." Xue Huaiqing frowned slightly, "Even if they don't deliberately probe you , when the corpse dancers use the corpse dance technique for a competition, it is entirely possible for the spiritual power to sweep over your body unintentionally, and it is easy to find that you are a living person. But I cannot add the corpse dance technique to you."

"Because the corpse dance can only be used on dead people?" An Xingmian asked.

"No, Corpse Dance is essentially a complete mind control technique," Xue Huaiqing said, "Because the spirit of a person will dissipate into a spiritual gossamer after death, there is no spirit in the dead person, and Corpse Dance can control the spirit of the dead. Sharing a small part of the deceased's own spiritual power to the dead is equivalent to making the walking dead a part of you."

"That's why you are so flexible in manipulating dead bodies." An Xingmian recalled the battle he just witnessed, "because what you are manipulating is your own spirit."

"That's why I can't use the corpse dance technique on you," Xue Huaiqing said, "You are a living person, and your spirit will naturally resist."

"Our head monk also has a very strict practice in mind control," An Xingmian said, "Maybe I can suppress that resistance."

"It's not just a question of whether you can suppress it." Xue Huaiqing pointed to the corpse servant beside him, "Once you are invaded by my spirit, you will be influenced by my spiritual power just like my corpse servant. Although I won’t receive full orders like the Corpse Servant, but if I use Corpse Dance maliciously, it can greatly disturb your spirit, and even kill you directly. The effect is much stronger than the mental attack technique of ordinary mystics Times. Aren't you afraid?"

An Xingmian was speechless for a while.For him, simply enduring pain or even humiliation is not too difficult, but it is too risky to entrust his spirit to the control of a person he has just met for a few days.After all, he didn't know Xue Huaiqing very well, he just saw her surface.Maybe she just has a gentle appearance, but hides a vicious heart, and even everything on her appearance is disguised, these are hard to determine.

"Actually, you don't need the corpse dance technique, but it's a little risky," Xue Huaiqing said. "After all, in the world of corpse dancers, I'm just an unknown person, and they may not care about me. Find Xu Mizi and ask me After you ask the question, you run away, that's all."

An Xingmian did not answer immediately.He turned around and looked to the northwest, where there was Nanhuai City, where his mentor Zhang Haoge once lived.But now, Zhang Haoge has chosen a path of no return, and if he falls into a tiger's mouth for a little hope, he is very likely to have been killed.He could have fled the Eastern Land with himself, and lived a relaxed and comfortable life on the vast grasslands of Hanzhou in the Northern Land, or he could have persisted in penance, and maybe he could develop Nagato disciples among the barbarians who rode horses and shot arrows. Become the founder of a new sect.But he didn't do that in the end, but like a real Nagato monk, he faced the endless Nagato at the end of his life.

"It can be seen that in life, you have to do some stupid things more or less." An Xingmian said to himself.He turned to Xue Huaiqing again, with no hesitation in his eyes anymore, "Just do that, use your corpse dance technique to control me. I've decided."

It's just that there is still a small voice in his heart that he can't stop: why did you agree so happily?In fact, it's just because this girl is very beautiful, right?Is that so?Is that so?
three

This so-called "study meeting" among corpse dancers is actually a martial arts competition. It is difficult to verify the time of its origin and the initiator.People only know that almost every corpse dancer is eager to participate in such a grand event, and even more eager to win in the competition.Although Xue Huaiqing's guess is only based on her personal feelings, it pointed out the common psychology of all corpse dancers: they are really afraid of loneliness.

A corpse dancer spends his life working more with corpses than with the living.Even if they live among the crowd, they must hide their true identity, otherwise they will be driven away as monsters.Under such a vicious circle, corpse dancers are becoming less and less willing to contact outsiders, but at the same time they are quite suspicious of their peers, and it is impossible for a group of practitioners to build a monastery together and get along day and night like Nagato. .

On the other hand, it is also very difficult for corpse dancers to recruit apprentices. Although corpse dance is a very powerful skill, the premise of staying with corpses all year round is enough to make most people stay away from it.Many corpse dancers spend their entire lives hanging around each other, not even having a body collector, so the seminar becomes the best opportunity for them to communicate with many people without barriers once every few years, or the only opportunity.

Therefore, the closer they got to Ten Thousand Snake Lake, the more they could keep meeting the corpse dancers who came to attend the meeting.Among them, Xue Huaiqing had met a small number of people when she served Master, but most of them were unfamiliar faces.

"No way, there is too little communication among corpse dancers," Xue Huaiqing said, "If it weren't for this seminar, we would probably never communicate with each other. But because of the seminar, fellow There were also more fights between them."

"Such seminars are usually held every few years? Who organizes and receives them?" An Xingmian asked with great interest.

"Actually, it's uncertain. Sometimes it's three to five years, six or seven years, sometimes more than ten years," Xue Huaiqing said, "Usually the most prestigious corpse dancers of that era discuss together to determine the time and place." , and then send out a notice. Although most of the corpse dancers live in seclusion and often change places, we have some places where information is passed on regularly, where various information will be written in cipher text, and the corpse dancers who have joined the industry will find time to go there by themselves every year Take a look, or send someone to inquire. As for the organization and reception, it has never been done. In the original words of my master back then: "If a corpse dancer does not have the ability to serve himself comfortably anywhere, What are you doing?'"

"The most prestigious corpse dancer...then it should be Xu Mizi?" An Xingmian asked hurriedly.

"It can't be Xumizi, this person's eyes are on the top of his head, so it is impossible to arrange this kind of thing." Xue Huaiqing shook his head, "In the past four seminars, Xumizi only came once, and he was still taken by my master. He dragged him, and that time he made all the participants except him lose face, because he was undefeated and defeated all strong opponents, and he didn't save any face when he attacked, always The defeat was terrible, and many corpse servants carefully cultivated by others were destroyed. Therefore, although the corpse dancers knew that he was the strongest in their hearts, it was difficult to give him any respect in their mouths. It would be good not to scold him .”

An Xingmian burst out laughing: "I thought you corpse dancers could really cultivate to the point where you won't be surprised, so you care so much about the outcome outside of your body."

Xue Huaiqing said seriously: "If you don't value these victories, what else should corpse dancers care about?"

An Xingmian shrugged, remembering the vivid example of the Changshengzi destroying the corpse servant he had cultivated for many years in order to win, so he will not say more.What's more, there were other corpse dancers in front of him. He had to shut up and continue to pretend to be a walking corpse without his own life who would never talk nonsense.

Sumeru only appeared once in the past four seminars, An Xingmian thought in his heart, that is to say, he might not come this time either.Alas, take your luck.

There are no snakes in Ten Thousand Snakes Pond, at least not visible on the surface; Ten Thousand Snakes Pond is not a small pool, but more like a lake.In fact, this is a dry land including lakes. There is no longer muddy muddy water, poisonous miasma, and all kinds of damp, cold, and sticky. It is comparable to an oasis in the desert.Even Xue Huaiqing, who has always been moody and angry, smiled slightly when he saw the waterfowl flying low over the mirror-like lake.

When he finally arrived at Ten Thousand Snake Lake, An Xingmian didn't feel any excitement, nor did he feel any sense of relief.Finding Ten Thousand Snake Lake is only the first step. The most important thing is to find Xu Mizi, the corpse dancer who most likely disdains to come to the meeting.He can only hope that other corpse dancers will know the whereabouts of Xu Mizi.

What really interested him was the corpse dancers themselves. He never dreamed that one day he would be among hundreds of corpse dancers and the thousands of walking corpses they brought. See you.He noticed that the race of the corpse dancers was very mixed. Although most of them were humans, there were also some Yuren and Heluo, and even a few huge Kuafu. Probably to avoid being too ostentatious on the road, they did not bring Let's talk about the walking corpses of the Kuafu clan, but they are scary enough in person.As for Meizu, it cannot be distinguished from the appearance.

The surrounding area is vast, and people try to separate them as much as possible when looking for camping sites. If there is a mountain nearby, someone standing on the mountain and looking at it from a distance will definitely think that this is a group of ordinary people who come to have a picnic, and they will worry that there is not enough food around. Fill these people up.But in fact, there are not many living people here, most of them are just dead bodies that don't need to eat.

And the way these corpse dancers get along with each other is also very subtle.Corpse dancers don't like to make friends, and they are not good at making friends. Even if they meet old acquaintances, they usually say hello lightly.If the corpse dancers who have fought against each other before meet, they will not put on an extremely jealous face when they meet each other.

"It doesn't make much sense for corpse dancers to put hatred on their mouths and faces," Xue Huaiqing said. "Is there anything uglier than dead people in this world? I've seen a lot of dead people. You don’t care about what’s on the surface. We just like to see the truth in our hands.”

"As expected, if you offend anyone, you can't offend the corpse dancer." An Xingmian continued to pretend to be a walking corpse with a sullen face, and could only move his lips slightly and speak in a low voice.

At this time, it was already the morning of the seminar, and under the twilight morning light, almost all the corpse dancers who were supposed to come had arrived, gathering in a vast open space on the south bank of the lake.Xue Huaiqing took his pitiful two corpse servants, one real and one fake, to look around the neighborhood, but he didn't find Xu Mizi.In fact, she didn't even need to look for it herself, because if Xu Mizi really appeared, it would definitely cause a sensation.

(End of this chapter)