185: Chapter 185 The Ghostly Zombie Army

This Ancient City had outsiders of all kinds, but not a single human could be seen... which made Mu Cheng feel strange and ask.

"Xiao Yao, what's the situation? It seems like there aren't many humans."

"Master, this is normal, no need to be surprised," Xiao Yao said very calmly.

Mu Cheng didn't ask further about the reason.

Ten days ago, Qingqiu Imperial Palace.

"Big sister, it seems they vanished into thin air," Ah Lan suddenly burst in to report the situation.

At the same time, she wasn't the only one; there were three other little fox demons beside her, one of whom was A Hong.

The other two were A Lv and A Cheng, each looking quite exquisite. That's right, they were the Four Great Guardians.

"Empress, for them to disappear in the assessment area, I'm afraid this matter isn't as simple as imagined," A Lv spoke slowly.

A Hong: "The specific location should be near the Ice Sand Divine Vein! And one of them has already obtained a spot in the Elite Class."

"A Cheng, what do you think of this matter?" the Little Demon Fox Emperor, dressed in a red robe, asked.

This A Cheng was quite extraordinary; just wearing a pair of glasses made one feel she knew everything from astronomy to geography.

She pushed up her glasses and began to analyze. "I've thought of countless possibilities, and the most likely one is the Legendary Underground Palace."

"But regardless, finding them should still be quite easy. Didn't one of them already get a spot?"

"A Cheng is still the most thoughtful. Speaking of which... is he really the possessor of the Devouring Bloodline the Empress mentioned? Then wouldn't that mean..." A Hong suddenly became nervous as she spoke.

Ah Lan also became a bit nervous. "Yeah, wouldn't that mean he has to be with Lady Empress... hehehe."

"I've seen him... he doesn't show his true face at all. But no matter what, if he wants Lady Empress, he has to take all four of us too," A Hong also started acting like a fangirl.

"You guys... all of you, get lost! Go stay wherever it's cool."

The Little Demon Fox Emperor instantly grew furious and acted feminine... she went up and left large bumps on the heads of the four.

"If there's nothing else, I'll go get busy," A Cheng was a real trickster, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Lady Empress, I'm heading back too. I'll keep a constant eye on things over at Qingqiu Camp," A Hong also ran off.

Only Ah Lan and A Lv remained; they couldn't find a suitable excuse... so they didn't dare to leave.

"Um... Lady Empress, are there any other orders?" Ah Lan finally plucked up the courage to speak.

Little Demon Fox Emperor: "Am I that scary?"

"No... no, Lady Empress isn't scary at all," A Lv said stutteringly.

The Little Demon Fox Emperor was speechless. "Fine, fine, you guys go help A Hong for a while! I feel like something big is about to happen."

As soon as those words were out, Ah Lan and A Lv vanished instantly.

"Am I really that scary?" The Little Demon Fox Emperor momentarily doubted her life.

On the other side, Mu Cheng finally arrived at the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group, a dilapidated courtyard on this prosperous ancient street.

It seemed very out of place.

"Is this the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group? Why does it feel a bit different from what I imagined?" Mu Cheng said, staring blankly at the scene before him.

At that moment, a fat man suddenly patted Mu Cheng's shoulder from behind.

"Hey, brother, you're also here for the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group, right?"

"You guy... do you walk without making a sound?" Mu Cheng was clearly startled.

"That's just how Fatty is, don't take it to heart. Since we're all humans, let's get to know each other! I'm Yan Jing, that fat guy is Xiong Chumo, and that's Liu Siyuan, you can call him Madman Liu."

Another voice came; it was a man wearing glasses who came up and put his arm around Mu Cheng's shoulder.

The remaining man in a white suit looked a bit cold and aloof, standing at 1.8 meters tall.

He was definitely a tall, rich, and handsome guy.

"Enough, don't you want to join the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group? Then hurry up and get to business," Liu Siyuan said coldly...

Without looking back, he walked toward the dilapidated courtyard.

"Just let him be... speaking of which, brother, you look really familiar," Xiong Chumo said, thinking seriously.

Yan Jing: "Yeah, you do seem quite familiar."

Currently, Mu Cheng was wearing a black robe and wasn't showing his true face, so it wasn't strange that they looked at him differently.

"Xiao Yao, you go back first! Try to increase your strength as much as possible during this time." Mu Cheng didn't feel like explaining.

After Xiao Yao returned to the consciousness space, he didn't hesitate any longer and followed closely behind Liu Siyuan.

"It's right that I look familiar. Why don't you guys guess who I am?"

"Is this guy Zero? Impossible, it absolutely can't be him," Liu Siyuan thought secretly.

As for Yan Jing and Xiong Chumo, they didn't think much more and followed into the dilapidated courtyard.

The reality of this courtyard... was actually a hotel, but there wasn't a single person in sight.

"Are you here to join the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group?" an old man's voice called out.

The original hotel instantly transformed into a digital space, empty of everything except for a digital pillar in the very center.

"Let's begin! I'll go first." Xiong Chumo stepped up and threw a punch at the pillar.

The number 1206 quickly appeared on it.

"Qualified. From now on, you are part of the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group," the old man's voice came again.

"So it's a strength assessment. All the mystery almost had me confused," Mu Cheng finally understood.

Next was Yan Jing, who went up and threw a punch. "My turn next."

The number 1212 quickly appeared, a little bit higher than Xiong Chumo's.

Before the voice could speak, Liu Siyuan also made his move.

The number displayed was: 1888.

"You two are also qualified," the old man's voice came again.

Mu Cheng looked confused and asked, "This pillar... isn't it just for measuring pure strength? Could it be there's also Bloodline Power?"

"Mhm, nine hundred and ninety-nine is considered passing," Liu Siyuan answered instinctively.

"Nine hundred and ninety-nine? Whatever... I'll just throw a random punch then." Mu Cheng didn't know how to control his strength at all.

Clenching his fist, he struck it, and the number on it was indeed exactly nine hundred and ninety-nine.

"What's going on? Something seems off," Mu Cheng was instantly bewildered.

A random punch of his could hit nine hundred and ninety-nine? Anyone would find that hard to believe.

"Try hitting it with a full-strength punch," the old man's voice came again.

Mu Cheng didn't hesitate; without using battle qi, he struck the pillar with a full-strength punch. The number was still nine hundred and ninety-nine.

"That's a bit strange," Liu Siyuan also couldn't figure it out.

"You've passed. The assessment ends here," the old man's voice came again.

The four of them returned to the hotel just like that.

However, this hotel was different from before; it was now slowly filling with people drinking.

"No need to be surprised. Our Wolf Fang Mercenary Group is the only mercenary group that consists solely of humans," the old man's voice came again.

At this moment, he was attending to customers at the bar counter.

"Um... what exactly is the situation? Why did I hit nine hundred and ninety-nine both times?" Mu Cheng couldn't help but ask.

Old man: "Simple. Your strength has already reached the One Shackle Realm. If it exceeds the testing range, it will display nine hundred and ninety-nine."

"I see," Mu Cheng appeared very calm.

However, Liu Siyuan beside him was not calm at all. "You... have already broken through one Shackle? How is that possible?"

"Is it hard? But it seems I haven't yet! My strength is just a tiny bit stronger and happened to reach it," Mu Cheng said truthfully.

Xiong Chumo: "Good heavens... are you sure you're serious? The first Shackle Realm is harder than climbing to heaven."

"Yeah, I've been at the Ninth Order Peak for nearly five years. I only came here to break through," Yan Jing also remarked.

Old man: "Strictly speaking, he is at the Half-Step Shackle Realm."

"I really didn't expect you to be a hidden expert, even if your identity is mysterious," Yan Jing said, patting Mu Cheng's shoulder.

Xiong Chumo suddenly remembered. "Speaking of mysterious identities... I feel like this guy is a bit like Zero."

"He does look a bit like him, but that guy is in the Four Shackles Realm. How could it be him? You're overthinking it," Yan Jing also agreed.

Mu Cheng was instantly shocked. "What? You're saying that guy's strength... has already reached such a terrifying level?"

"This reaction... there's something fishy going on," Liu Siyuan had been keeping an eye on Mu Cheng and noticed the oddity.

Old man: "Alright, alright, the opportunity is here. You guys should go out and show what you've got."

Just as he finished speaking, a hidden hint appeared before Mu Cheng.

[Warning! Warning! Warning! A Ghost Zombie army has been detected ten kilometers ahead. Quantity unknown, level unknown.]

"Let's go take a look." Mu Cheng took the lead. After leaving the hotel, he found himself on top of a city wall.

"It's a Ghost Zombie army. Let's kill as many as we can!" Liu Siyuan also followed out.

Xiong Chumo jumped down directly. "Then what are we waiting for? Just fight them and be done with it."

Yan Jing intended to follow closely, but was called out to by Mu Cheng.

"Since I see you two get along, I'll give each of you a set of qianji!"

After saying that, he threw a set to Liu Siyuan and Yan Jing respectively.

"What kind of ghostly thing is this?" Yan Jing asked, looking bewildered.

Liu Siyuan recognized it at a glance. "It really is a qianji. I heard they were being sold over in Guangshen City. Now it seems they truly are extraordinary."

After speaking, he quickly used the qianji, transforming it into a flight backpack... and soared into the sky.

"Keep up!" Mu Cheng didn't explain much, but for him, whether he used a qianji or not didn't matter.

He directly released his Purple Cloud Wings and soared into the sky...

"You guys... forget it, I'll check it myself!" Yan Jing hurriedly operated his high-tech bracelet and soon found information on the qianji.

Then he also soared into the sky. That wasn't even the best part... he even started teasing Xiong Chumo.

"Fatty, hurry up and follow!"

"You guys... what's going on? Can someone tell me what the hell is going on right now?" The fat man stopped in his tracks, looking completely bewildered.

The old man in the shadows: "As expected of the Devouring Bloodline possessor. With Eighth Order strength... he's actually not affected by the restrictions at all."

"This is a qianji. Check the usage instructions!" After Mu Cheng flew up, he threw a set to the fat man.

"This really is a qianji. I was originally planning to get a set before coming here. Oh well... it's not too late to have one now." The fat man recognized it at a glance.

Without hesitation, he immediately soared into the sky and followed closely.

The four of them gradually approached the front, but by now... the battle was already in full swing.

The Ghost Zombies looked like piles of white bones, each holding a skeleton blade, acting as if they were robots.

They charged forward brainlessly...

There were all sorts of outsiders—snake-men, horse-faces, cow-faces, and so on... many, many of them, but humans were rarely seen.

"Let's split up! Kill as many as we can." Mu Cheng got excited looking at the scene and soon disappeared without a trace.

"Let's go too!" Xiong Chumo had long since lost his patience. The qianji transformed into a large hammer, and he went up to strike directly.

Don't look at Yan Jing being a bit thin; with the black gold spear in his hand, he was basically taking down one 'little friend' per strike.

As for Liu Siyuan, he didn't descend to the ground. Countless Talisman Arrays were thrown out by him... thunder, fire, earth, water, and other attacks.

Wherever he passed was almost a massacre.

"These three guys are quite interesting. A Talisman Master, a power-type, and a speed-type. Add in a monk, and they'd be pretty good teammates," Mu Cheng took it all in.

Not only him, but the old man couldn't help but praise, "Truly the younger generation is to be feared, truly to be feared."

Mu Cheng also began to take action. Black Vines instantly rose from the ground, tightly binding hundreds of Ghost Zombies in an instant.

"It's also strange... why don't I see anyone above the Nine-Star World King God level?" Mu Cheng quickly noticed something was wrong.

Xiao Yao: "That's not the case. The mercenary group is only responsible for the inside of the defensive line. The truly powerful ones have already been intercepted."

"I see. No wonder there are so many mercenary groups." Mu Cheng finally understood.

This was the same as the defense of Guangshen City. The Ancient City was the first line of defense, which was the responsibility of Menglou Pavilion.

The ones left behind whose strength wasn't very high... were left for the various groups to handle.

"Wait... something doesn't seem right!" Mu Cheng suddenly had a feeling that something was off.

Xiao Yao: "Mhm, Xiao Yao has discovered that the strength of the mercenary groups here isn't that great. The reason should be to train newcomers."

"I think so too... it seems there might be an assessment this time as well," Mu Cheng also felt the same way.

As time passed, Yan Jing, Liu Siyuan, and Xiong Chumo fought with increasing courage, soon becoming the most eye-catching ones there.

"Not bad, not bad. Barely acceptable. Let them go see the real world," the old man was very satisfied.

Operating his high-tech bracelet, he sent out the information.

On the other side, even though Mu Cheng kept devouring, he still couldn't improve even a little bit.

Until everything ended, there was still no improvement in his Bloodline Power.

"This... is just too hard!" Having lost all his temper, he began to complain.

Xiao Yao: "Master, the Black Hole Seed needs to become a black hole source. I estimate that's the only way to improve Bloodline Power."

"Besides, didn't Master notice? Although your Bloodline Power hasn't improved, your strength has increased quite a bit."

"True, I did find it strange. Since I can clearly sense the Shackles, why do I still need to improve my bloodline like you guys?" Mu Cheng had indeed noticed it long ago, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what was happening.

Xiao Yao: "Master's situation is indeed very special. It seems that while Bloodline Power can break through the Ninth Order Peak, the Shackles can also be broken through at the same time."

"Forget it... why think so much? This assessment shouldn't be a problem. I'm quite looking forward to seeing if the path ahead can let me break through." Mu Cheng didn't think about it anymore.