(Authors note: Shout out to the new Ri fan fic made by the author of blood venerable "True Yin-Yang")
Inside a blessed land, a lone zombie sat atop an old chair, a dark casket lying close by.
Her twisted figure leaned forward as she performed killer move after killer move upon her own open stomach.
She was extremely ugly, her entire body covered in deep wrinkles from head to toe, her hair so rough that even the thought of touching it with a stick would send a shiver down one's spine.
After a time, she opened the casket and lifted out what looked like Meng Yan's body.
The casket was the rank 5 New Body Gu, a rare Gu that she got from a Blood Ancestors inheritance that she found in her younger days.
This Gu could, with just a drop of blood, produce a whole new body. This body would match the original one, but it would lack a soul, aperture, or any additional Dao marks, and it would age naturally.
Carefully, the zombie performed a killer move on Meng Yan's body, then activated multiple rank 5 Third Watch Gu.
This Gu is capable of accelerating time by three times and could be stacked, in the mortal world , it could be considered a rare Gu, but it was nothing special to an immortal like her.
As the power took effect, Meng Yan's body did not simply age forward; instead, it began to age backwards.
The killer move the zombie had cast worked flawlessly, rewinding Meng Yan's age down to that of a newborn.
The effect of the killer move would allow the body to age backwards, and could be stopped to age normally again, but it could not be used a second time. Furthermore, the move nullified the effects of any other lifespan extension.
The body continued to regress until Meng Yan was no more than a fetus. At that moment, the zombie applied several rank 5 Fixed Time Gu, stopping the effect of the Third Watch Gu precisely at the stage she desired.
The zombie held the fetus carefully in her hand, then, with careful precision, placed it inside her stomach and sealed the wound. Once her task was complete, she healed herself and sat back in her chair, deep in thought.
With a sigh, she murmured, speaking aloud as though reasoning with herself, "I didn't want her to die, but she had to, since she was someone who threatened my position as the one and only supreme elder of the Meng Clan." Her hands rested over her now-swollen stomach, and her voice softened. "It was worth it."
The zombie, Meng Hua, began caressing her stomach, where her plans had taken root. "If this works, I will create the Yin-Yang Immortal Fetus Gu," she said with a faint smile, "then I'll have a second chance at life with an entirely new body."
There were a bunch of circumstances that made Meng Hua like this.
When she first ascended, she had been severely injured, unprepared for the tribulation that awaited her as the only immortal in her clan. The ordeal left her at death's door, but her ink-man offspring, Meng Mo Shu, found a fragment of Blue Heaven before the next tribulation struck.
The fragment allowed her to survive the danger at the cost of her freedom, as she now was incapable of leaving her Blessed Land.
Yet even after surviving, Meng Hua's injuries were too severe for mortal methods to heal.
She had no choice but to become a zombie, giving up her humanity for survival. Now, her thoughts drifted toward the possibilities of her new creation.
"With this Gu," Meng Hua whispered, her gaze hardening, "I'll get a new body with even greater potential, it will be perfect for my Yin-Yang path."
Just then, Meng Hua heard a thunderous explosion from above, echoing through the valley like a sudden clap of doom. Her head snapped up, and for the first time in ages, her hollow eyes widened in horror.
High above, in the sky of her blessed land, a spot that was damaged from her last tribulation began to smolder and distort.
This place had been reinforced and guarded by her loyal clan members stationed outside in the real world, tasked to keep intruders at bay.
But now, that very spot was melting, collapsing inward under an intense heat. And with a final, resounding blast, a figure broke through the scorched opening, plunging downward until he crashed onto the ground below.
It was Ming You, covered in blood, none of it was his own though.
Meng Hua's gaze darted back to the hole in her blessed land. Her most loyal clan's men lay strewn across the ground, their bodies amputated.
Fury surged through her, and she let out a furious yell, "How dare a mortal like you do this?!"
Ming You stood calmly, eyes glinting with mocking disdain. "And how dare you make
children into Gu masters," he replied coldly. "Not very righteous of you, is it now?" His voice was laced with contempt, though the words clearly meant nothing to him, after all, he had just slaughtered them without a shred of remorse.
Rage consumed her. She wanted to tear him limb from limb, to crush him beneath her wrath. But a pulse from her abdomen reminded her of the fetus within, and she hesitated, steadying herself.
She decided to hold back for the sake of the fetus.
Then, suppressing her fury just enough, she bolted forward, preparing to obliterate the insolent mortal who dared set foot in her Blessed land.
That's what would have happened, if this were any ordinary mortal. But, unfortunately for Meng Hua, Ming You was anything but that.
As she closed the distance between them, Ming You tilted his head and smirked. "Do you know the most useful thing you gain from killing a Gu master?" he asked, his voice casual. "After all, the Gu will self destruct, and their bodies... well, they're rarely worth much."
Just as she reached him, he yelled, "Their soul!"
In an instant, he activated the move he'd been preparing.
Mortal Killer Move Soul Torment.
A massive, grotesque figure that looked like a big mutated baby face manifested.
It was as big as a house, with an enormous mouth and bulging eyes, unhinged and sinister. With a bone chilling wail, it lunged forward and swallowed her whole.
Then, as swiftly as it had appeared, the figure vanished, leaving Meng Hua collapsed on the ground.
Her face twisted in agony, her spirit shredded and torn in the space of mere seconds. Inside her, her soul had endured years of torment in a single, unendurable moment.
The damage was brutal. Her Thousand Man Soul had been reduced to a mere Hundred Man Soul. She lay there, paralyzed, unable to lift even a finger.
Ming You walked toward her, summoning molten steel with a wave of his hand. It hovered in the air before him as he heated it with black flames, molding it into a tall spear.
Meng Hua's eyes darted to the weapon, dread pooling in her chest. In her weakened state, there was no way to defend herself with just her body, as she thought that the spear was surely intended to strike at her vulnerable soul.
But Meng Hua wouldn't surrender so easily.
With a surge of will, she activated one of her most powerful moves. The air around them thickened as the temperature plummeted, and the entire space froze over.
Sharp icicles grew up from the ground, encasing Ming You in their deadly embrace, stopping him dead in his tracks. He struggled, but the ice held firm, pinning him in place.
Meng Hua rose slowly, her fury reawakening as she prepared to pound his head into the ground into past.
Her fist swung forward with deadly intent, only to strike empty air. Ming You had vanished, yanked backward by a thick, coiling water rope that was freezing because of the cold as it dragged him to safety.
She turned, her eyes blazing, to see who had interfered.
Standing there was a towering man with white hair and piercing red eyes, Ning Zu.
Without missing a beat, he crouched beside Ming You, who lay on the ground, and activated his Heal Injury Gu, mending his ally's wounds. "Are you alright?" he asked, his voice calm but wary.
Ming You gave a quick nod, brushing off Ning Zu's help. "I'm fine," he muttered. "Didn't need the he"
Ning Zu sighed, then activated his own Gu, encasing himself in a formidable bone armor that grew from him.
Ming You, not to be outdone, spit a stream of molten steel that coated his body, cooling into a gleaming suit of armor.
Meng Hua glared at them, fury and frustration twisting her face. She snarled, "When I get my hands on you both, I'll pull your tendons and grind your bones to dust!"
Her enemies exchanged a look, then turned their gazes back to her, eyes blazing with resolve.
At that moment, Ning Zu shouted "We're here to avenge what you did to Meng Yan! I will make sure that you won't even meet her at the Door of Life and death!"
The zombie's expression darkened as she spat a curse under her breath. Even in death, her twin sister was causing her endless trouble.