Chapter 728: Trapped by the Bell

No matter how the three zombie kings attacked, the Divine Emperor countered them time after time. If this situation were to continue, they would surely perish at her hands.

In the end, the three zombie kings eyed each other intently and made up their minds.

Before long, another figure emerged from afar.

"I managed to lure it over, after all." Xiao Nanfeng's eyes lit up.

Another zombie king was flying over, one with a golden crown atop his head and an immense aura emanating from its body. Black smoke surged forth.

"A golden-crowned zombie king? As expected, it's another ancestral zombie." Xiao Nanfeng smiled.

"How did you know?" a zombie king exclaimed.

"Emperor Feng, just how many avatars did you make?" Xiao Nanfeng asked curiously.

"And why should I tell you?" that zombie king scoffed.

"It's likely a way to nurture the soul," the Divine Emperor said.

"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng replied curiously.

"It's not a common technique. He splits up his soul and implants it into many living beings so as to nurture each fragment separately. Once they recombine into one, the resulting soul becomes exceptionally strong. From the looks of it, though, we destroyed the soul fragments before they could recombine anew." The Divine Emperor smiled.

The three zombie kings' eyes widened. One of them exclaimed, "How do you know?!"

"It's not a particularly valuable technique. It's true that it can enhance your spiritual cultivation, but there are numerous significant drawbacks. Why wouldn't I know about it?" the Divine Emperor replied disdainfully.

"Just you wait and see," another zombie king spat out.

The golden-crowned zombie king shouted as it charged toward the Divine Emperor, who defended with a fist of her own. The two fists met in a flaming explosion, one which caused both the Divine Emperor and the golden-crowned zombie king to retreat.

"This zombie king's a peak Golden Immortal! How can you have comparable strength? That can't be! The ancestral zombie's body should be stronger!" the golden-crowned zombie king thundered.

"Is this all you've got?" The Divine Emperor scoffed.

The four zombie kings all snorted in annoyance as they shot over.

The golden-crowned zombie king leapt toward the Divine Emperor, while the three subordinate zombie kings shot toward Xiao Nanfeng.

"As I said, I'm your opponent! Why are you running off?" the Divine Emperor demanded.

She was like a specter. Moving at an incredible pace, she flashed before the three zombie kings and sent them all flying one after another. The golden-crowned zombie king tried to attack her from behind with a punch, only to be readily countered. A huge explosion erupted around her.

"Impossible. How can you take on my four bodies simultaneously?!" a zombie king cried out.

The Divine Emperor scoffed. If Xiao Nanfeng hadn't asked her not to reveal her true strength, she would long since have destroyed all these zombies.

The Divine Emperor stepped forward once more and forced the zombie kings to retreat with punch after punch.

Xiao Nanfeng watched on from close by. He had a plan in mind, and was waiting for an opportunity to strike.

"Just who are you?" a zombie king howled.

As the fighting continued, even the golden-crowned zombie king slowly began to lose out against the Divine Emperor. She easily trumped all four of them.

"Don't hold back anymore," Xiao Nanfeng said, flying close to her side. "Take down that golden-crowned zombie king first."

The Divine Emperor was just about to make a move when Xiao Nanfeng held her back by the arm.

The zombie kings, having heard Xiao Nanfeng's shout, blanched. They rushed toward the golden-crowned zombie king as it suddenly opened its mouth and absorbed all three subordinate zombie kings. Then, black smoke gushed out of its body as its aura increased in potency.

"You've been having me stall them for this very moment, haven't you? What are you planning?" asked the Divine Emperor curiously.

"These zombies are cursed effigies, which aren't easy to possess. Even so, Emperor Feng chose to divide his soul among a large number of these zombies. Isn't that strange? Perhaps it wouldn't be a problem if the coffin had remained sealed, but you unsealed it some time ago. Emperor Feng must have noticed, but he didn't attempt to leave or anything of the sort. There must be something he's seeking in here, and our arrival may have disrupted his plans."

"You mean he's trying to secure this golden-crowned zombie king?"

"That's right. This one might be weaker than that in the other black coffin, but it's an ancestral zombie through and through. I suspect Emperor Feng's ultimate goal with regards to soul-splitting is to exist in perfect symbiosis with this ancestral zombie."

"But hasn't it succeeded?" the Divine Emperor asked.

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Not quite. If it were flawless, Emperor Feng would have used it from the very start."

"Oh?"

"Stall for time while you fight it, please. I have a feeling that we might have caught something big."

"Very well!" The Divine Emperor nodded.

Meanwhile, the golden-crowned zombie king's strength had risen to an extreme. A frightening wave of energy emanated from it.

"A Boundless Immortal!" the Divine Emperor exclaimed.

"Haha, Xiao Nanfeng and you wench over there, it's too late for you now! Die!" roared the golden-crowned zombie king as it shot over.

"And you're as unpleasant as ever," the Divine Emperor replied. She threw a punch at the golden-crowned zombie king.

As their fists met, the void itself rippled. The mountains in the vicinity burst apart from the incredible impact.

"You're a Boundless Immortal? You were tricking me all this time?!" the golden-crowned zombie king roared.

"Don't you think you should be blaming yourself for not seeing through my trick?" the Divine Emperor replied, smiling coldly.

She began to fight with the golden-crowned zombie king anew. A raging storm formed around the two cultivators, who seemed to be fighting on equal footing with one another.

"What's the point of playing around with me if you're a Boundless Immortal? You've ruined my plans!" the golden-crowned zombie king cried out.

It turned and fled.

"Do you think you can escape?" the Divine Emperor demanded.

She caught up to the zombie king in an instant, then forced it to retreat with a powerful blow.

"Scram!" the zombie king roared.

However, the Divine Emperor continued to pursue it relentlessly.

The two combatants fought in that manner for some time. With the Divine Emperor withholding part of her strength, neither combatant was able to obtain a decisive victory. As the fight drew on, however, the golden-crowned zombie king's actions visibly started to slow.

"Damn it. Xiao Nanfeng, you've ruined my plans again!" the golden-crowned zombie king howled.

It suddenly stopped moving. Black smoke gushed out of its body as it began to convulse violently, especially around its head.

The Divine Emperor stopped attacking. She flew in front of Xiao Nanfeng to protect him. "There's another will within this ancestral zombie's body, one that's trying to wrest control of the body from Emperor Feng."

"As I expected. Emperor Feng's will can't suppress the ancestral zombie's. That's why he's trying to cultivate his soul by dividing it up into fragments and implanting them among the zombies. He's hoping that he'll be able to strengthen his soul to the point where he can gain complete control. We really have ruined his plan." Xiao Nanfeng smiled.

The golden-crowned zombie king continued to convulse for some time before it roared loudly. A black figure was sent flying from the body—none other than Emperor Feng's spiritual avatar.

Emperor Feng spat out a mouthful of blood and glared balefully at Xiao Nanfeng and the Divine Emperor. Then, he turned to run.

"Do you think you can escape, Emperor Feng?" Xiao Nanfeng demanded.

The Divine Emperor struck Emperor Feng at once, causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood. His spiritual avatar almost dissipated entirely. In his weakened state, the Divine Emperor managed to grab him with a palm technique.

"Release me! It's about to awaken. If we don't leave now, we're all going to die!" Emperor Feng exclaimed.

"Emperor Feng, you haven't explained to us what's going on yet. Why should we leave?" Xiao Nanfeng demanded.

"You don't understand just how strong it is. I only managed to split its strength into multiple subordinate zombies using the last of the black coffin's power. That's how it became as weak as a Golden Immortal. I was only able to suppress it that way, but it's since merged together again! It's incredibly strong even for a Boundless Immortal. Hurry up and get away!"

The golden-crowned zombie king's eyes flashed in anger, especially when it caught sight of Emperor Feng.

"Die!" it shouted.

It shot toward the gathered cultivators in a beam of light.

The Divine Emperor blanched and met its charge with a fist as the golden-crowned zombie king likewise threw a punch.

The two fists met in an explosive impact that forced both combatants back.

"It really is strong," the Divine Emperor murmured. "You should leave now. It's no weaker than I am."

Xiao Nanfeng flew into the distance. "It doesn't seem to be particularly intelligent. Hand Emperor Feng over to distract it."

"Understood!" the Divine Emperor replied.

The golden-crowned zombie king struck the Divine Emperor, who retaliated in kind. The zombie king boasted incredible strength, and the Divine Emperor was unable to seize a decisive advantage even with her full power.

Just then, she threw Emperor Feng forward.

The golden-crowned zombie king was aware of what Emperor Feng had done to it. With brimming hatred, it immediately shrugged off the Divine Emperor and punched Emperor Feng instead.

"No!" Emperor Feng shouted.

Emperor Feng's body dissipated in a spray of fresh blood. He seemed to have lost any ability to flee.

Even so, the golden-crowned zombie king wasn't satisfied. He bit down on Emperor Feng's soul, impaling it with two blood-red fangs as it absorbed Emperor Feng's essence.

"No!" Emperor Feng screamed again.

Within moments, he had vanished entirely.

Suddenly, the golden-crowned zombie king sensed that something was amiss. It looked high overhead, where a giant bell had appeared in sight.

As the Divine Emperor's bell tolled, a frightening wave of sound surged toward it and immobilized it.

It roared and tried to continue struggling—but the Divine Emperor waved an arm and caused her bell to descend, trapping it within. It attacked the bell furiously, causing it to toll again and again.

"I've trapped it. It won't be able to free itself from the bell for the time being," the Divine Emperor stated.