Many would have died if it was Liu Erquan who had led the way.
Luckily, with Liu Liuhai in the front, everyone came out safe and well. At the end of the journey, some people had lowered their guard and started to glance around casually.
Liu Erquan chided, "Don't drop your guard! We are in enemy territories! Hold on to your weapons and watch around you carefully!"
Liu Liuhai unlocked another door once Liu Erquan had finished speaking.
The giant stone door boomed open, bringing down a thick layer of dust. It seemed that this door had remained shut for ages.
"Look! There are special martial arts techniques on the wall!" Black-Handed Zhang exclaimed.
The rest gathered around him and saw paintings of men and women cultivating together.
It didn't look like any common cultivation techniques. Instead, it appeared extremely obscure and sophisticated.
Liu Erquan studied the paintings carefully.
Certain that it was not the dual cultivation method founded by the Liu ancestor, he let out a sigh of relief. Hence, he didn't stop the curious men from learning the technique.
After all, they had chanced upon it by pure luck and it was indeed something useful to know!
"We'll get going after two minutes!" Liu Erquan said.
Then, he sat down with his legs crossed and began learning the dual cultivation technique.
The crowd was fully engrossed in the paintings and tried to remember every detail by heart.
They moved on once the time was up. Liu Liuhai was still the one leading the team.
All of them were in high spirits, hoping to learn more of such cultivation techniques in the journey ahead.
However, to their disappointment, there were no more cultivation paintings on the wall.
"Rumble—"
Liu Liuhai unlocked another stone door, which was more than ten meters tall. It was the biggest one they had seen so far. As the door lifted up, it raised clouds of choking dust.
In the next second, an enormous underground palace unfolded behind the stone door.
The palace was well lit. Thousands of Living Dead disciples were gathered inside. A few elders were arguing on the elevated platform. It looked like they were having a serious meeting.
When the stone door rumbled open, everyone drew their weapons and turned to look in the direction of the door. The guards on the second floor of the palace pulled their bows immediately, locking their arrows at the intruders.
Liu Liuhai looked shocked, and the rest was too scared to move at all.
Liu Erquan glared at Liu Liuhai. "Didn't you say the Ancestor is watching over us? Why are we in the enemies' base?!"
"Drop your weapons!"
"Put your arms around your heads!"
"Squat down and jump forward!"
A woman flew towards them from the elevated platform. It was obvious from her aura that she was at least a martial arts master, and few could compare with her extraordinary Qinggong skills. Under her command, thousands of Living Dead disciples immediately pointed their swords at the intruders in an intimidating manner.
The Liu members looked at Liu Erquan. Their faces turned pale.
Liu Erquan was a grand martial arts master with exceptional sensitivity. He instantly noticed that the palace was full of powerful fighters.
There were eight martial arts masters, hundreds of martial arts experts, and over 2000 fighters of the Body Tempering Realm.
Moreover, there was also an unfathomable aura of a grand martial arts master from the elevated platform in the far distance.
Liu Erquan was taken aback. He hadn't expected that the Grand Elder of the Living Dead Clan had come out of seclusion!
Thinking about it, it was understandable. With the hydra wreaking havoc in the region, the Living Dead Clan had lost many of their members. This certainly had concerned the Grand Elder.
When Liu Erquan sensed her presence, the Grand Elder had also noticed Liu Erquan's powerful aura. Surprised, she stood up and said, "I didn't know you were coming. Treat our guests with courtesy, everyone! Don't be rude!"
"Ye Qing, bring them to me!"
At the stone door, the Qinggong warrior and martial arts master, Ye Qing, waved her hand. The disciples obediently stepped aside to clear a way for them.
Liu Erquan stepped forward first, followed by Liu Erhai and the rest.
Most of the Living Dead disciples were women. All of them were valiant fighters dressed in white gowns. Their swords were half pushed out of the sheaths as they watched the group pass with clear enmity in their eyes.
Liu Erquan went to the platform and saw the Grand Elder face to face.
It turned out that she was an old lady in her 90s!
Gray-headed and supporting herself with a stick, she looked kind yet dignified. Her deep eyes stayed close to Liu Erquan and his men.
"One grand martial arts master, four martial arts masters, and none below a martial arts expert! It seems to me that you are not here to have a cup of afternoon tea with me. You are here to stir trouble!" The Grand Elder's eyes suddenly turned cold. She glanced at Ye Qing.
Ye Qing was the Grand Elder's apprentice and the clan master of the Living Dead Clan.
With the clap of her hands, two men were escorted to the platform.
To their astonishment, they were Liu Dongdong and Yang Shou'an!
Both of them were severely wounded. Their shirts were covered in blood. Apparently, they had been through tough interrogations and tortures.
They raised their heads and were surprised to see Liu Erquan and the rest. But they hid their emotions swiftly and asked, "Who are they? I didn't know you Living Dead girls had a taste for wild men!"
"Slap!"
The disciple escorting Liu Dongdong glared at him and threw a hard slap on his face. Blood dripped down his mouth at once.
"One more word and I'll make you a eunuch!"
Yang Shou'an grinned but kept silent.
He was wondering how Liu Erquan had messed up even though he had already drawn a map for them.
At this moment, the Grand Elder smiled. She said, "Your clever tricks won't work on me!"
As she stood up, Ye Qing stepped forward to support her at once.
"You are from the Liu clan of the City of Scorpio!" the Grand Elder said firmly with contempt in her eyes.
Having assessed the situation, Liu Erquan knew that there was no point in acting anymore. He answered loudly, "You are right. We are from the Liu clan. But none of this matters now!"
"Your clan is suffering from the hydra attack. It's uncertain whether you can survive this crisis!"
"However, you may have a better chance if we worked together!"
The Grand Elder laughed. The seven Elders on the platform and the other Living Dead disciples laughed too.
Ye Qing pointed at the underground palace.
"This Living Dead Mausoleum was built by our founding ancestor. She and her disciples had spent decades designing and constructing it and they had set numerous traps and killing gears everywhere. The hydra can never reach here no matter how strong it is!"
Liu Liuhai mumbled, "But here we are. We made it through."
"…"
Ye Qing's eyes suddenly turned cold. She shot daggers at Yang Shou'an.
"I doubt you'd have if it weren't for this traitor!"
Liu Erquan and the rest were shocked. They didn't know that this martial arts master they were talking to was actually Yang Shou'an's master.
Yang Shou'an had been emphasizing that his master was over 50 years old and that she had only become more attractive as she aged.
But Ye Qing looked like a fine young woman. Her skin was smooth and her voice was melodious. Combined with her voluptuous curves, she definitely didn't look like a 50-year-old woman!
"You liar, Yang Shou'an!!!" Liu Liuhai roared.
He was fuming with anger as he recalled the Ma Fangfang he had chosen from the book.
He pointed at Ye Qing and shouted, "So she's the old woman you were talking about? Tell me, how is she old? How is she 50 years old? She's clearly 18!"
Ye Qing was stunned. After a few seconds of silence, she giggled, but her laughter was extremely terrifying.
"Take this old man and castrate him!"
"How dare you tease the head of the Living Dead Clan in public? You shameless old bird!"