The bright moon hung high in the sky, casting a veil of soft light over the vast expanse of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
A zombie stood alone at the mountain peak, its grotesque face tilted toward the sky, mouth wide open in a howl.
Around it, the essence of moonlight gathered like glowing fireflies, flitting toward the zombie's mouth, visibly swirling in the air.
This process had begun as the moon first rose above the treetops, and had continued for roughly two hours now.
Naturally, this zombie was none other than Zhang Yang.
As the moonlight essence entered his body, it transformed into a cool gas that spread through him. Zhang Yang, following the instructions in the Taiyin Lianxing (Moon Shadow Refining Form – Body Refining Chapter), slowly absorbed it. The excess essence flowed into his dantian, the sea of energy in his abdomen.
"Ugh!"
Zhang Yang let out a breath, feeling his power increase once again.
It had been three days since his transmigration, and every night, this zombie, Zhang Yang, diligently practiced here.
"Taiyin Lianxing says that the Taiyin star does not enter the Southern and Northern Dipper, and in the sky, it manifests as the essence of the moon. This moonlight essence really does wonders for zombies. It's a pity that most common 'jumping zombies' only have a primal thirst for blood and don't know how to absorb this purer moonlight essence."
"At this rate, it won't be long before I open my minor circulation and advance to a 'wandering corpse'."
Zhang Yang couldn't help but feel excited. Compared to three days ago, his body had undergone significant changes.
His once dry, yellowish skin had become more waxy in appearance; his fingernails, which had been over an inch long, had now grown to more than three inches, sharp as daggers; his fangs were even more grotesque; and his jumping distance, which had once been two or three meters, was now four meters.
More importantly, Zhang Yang was certain that his strength had more than doubled compared to a few days ago, which greatly reassured him.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Suddenly, a faint rustling sound came from the nearby bushes.
Zhang Yang froze, twisting his stiff neck.
Under the cold moonlight, the dense tree thicket swayed slightly, but there was no other disturbance.
Of course, Zhang Yang did not lower his guard.
Being in a primeval forest, danger lurked everywhere, and one wrong move could lead to death.
Furthermore, vision had always been a zombie's weakness. Aside from being able to see in the dark better than humans, their visual range was far worse, especially when compared to wild animals or even magical beasts.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
The sound came again, this time from behind.
"Hm?" Zhang Yang let out a quiet sound.
Zombies had stiff joints and poor mobility, and they typically turned by leaping lightly into the air. This was a common method for turning.
However, just as Zhang Yang's body left the ground to turn around, a gust of wind, accompanied by a strong smell of blood, hit him.
"Not good!" Zhang Yang instantly realized the seriousness of the situation. Without any ground to push off from, he had no way to dodge.
Being attacked while airborne was essentially a sitting duck.
Bang!
A shadow lashed out like a whip, and Zhang Yang's body was sent flying, crashing into a tree about ten meters away.
Snap!
The tree broke with a loud crack.
Fortunately, zombies didn't feel pain. If it had been a human, even if they didn't die, they would have been knocked unconscious from the impact.
But Zhang Yang still felt the damage to his lower body, and he found it hard to move as he struggled to get up.
Before he could stand, a strong sense of danger surged again.
Whoosh—
A sharp wind howled, and Zhang Yang barely managed to raise his arm. His body tightened, and he was immediately constricted.
In a flurry of attacks, Zhang Yang could hardly react in time before being struck multiple times. It wasn't until now that he could clearly see his assailant—a giant snake.
The snake, with a girth the size of a bowl, had coiled around Zhang Yang's body. Its cold, triangular eyes gleamed with a sinister light, its tongue flicking in and out, and its expression seemed almost human in its smugness, as if it were ready to enjoy its dinner.
"Kreeeek!"
A series of bone-cracking sounds sent a chill through Zhang Yang's spine.
The giant snake's feeding method was to first coil around its prey, crushing its bones, then swallow it whole.
Zhang Yang knew that once his bones were crushed, it would be the end of him.
But Zhang Yang wasn't going to sit back and wait for death.
With his entire body coiled up, the only part of him he could move was his head and right arm.
The threat of death sharpened his mind to a razor's edge.
They say when striking a snake, you should aim for its vital points—its "three inches" or "seven inches."
The "three inches" refer to the most vulnerable part of a snake's spine, which, if broken, disrupts its nervous system and paralyzes it. A snake with its spine broken can no longer pose a threat.
The "seven inches" is where the snake's heart is located. A fatal strike to this spot will kill the snake instantly.
But damn it!
Where exactly are the snake's "three inches" and "seven inches"?
This giant python, as thick as a bowl and nearly ten meters long, strictly speaking, it's no more than three or seven inches thick, and its head wouldn't even fit through. Isn't this ridiculous?
There was no time to think too much. Estimating the right spot, Zhang Yang swung his palm down with all his might.
Bang!
It sounded like hitting brittle leather.
Zhang Yang's full-force strike hit the giant python's smooth skin and immediately slid off without any effect.
"Not good!" Zhang Yang thought to himself.
The zombie's joints were stiff, and his wrist couldn't bend. The massive snake's body was coiling around him, and his sharp claws were utterly useless.
Click, click, click!
Having lived in the spiritually rich cultivation world for so long, the python possessed an enormous amount of strength; however, the zombie's body was far from invulnerable, and a few of its bones had already shattered.
Zhang Yang couldn't keep calm any longer.
Whoo—
Without thinking, he opened his mouth, and his sharp teeth sank into the snake's body.
The zombie's most powerful weapons were its teeth and claws, and its jaw was incredibly strong.
Crack!
With a sharp sound, his teeth pierced through the snake's skin, embedding deeply into its flesh.
Roar—
The giant python let out a long, anguished cry as its mouth opened wide, and it lunged toward Zhang Yang with lightning speed, intending to swallow him whole.
Zhang Yang swung his right arm.
Bang!
The zombie's tremendous strength came into play, smashing the python's head aside.
At the same time, the wound where Zhang Yang's teeth had sunk into the snake's body began to spurt blood into his throat, which triggered the zombie's bloodthirsty nature.
Though Zhang Yang didn't believe such a small wound could deal any real damage to the massive snake, the blood pouring into him spurred his thirst for more.
The blood entered his body, and Zhang Yang felt a warm sensation spreading through his abdomen.
For the past three days, Zhang Yang had been cultivating the Taiyin Refining Form technique, his mind constantly occupied with the cultivation method. Even just before being attacked, he had just finished a round of training.
Now, as this warm current flowed into his body, Zhang Yang instinctively began to guide it into his dantian.
These actions were completely unconscious, the result of countless repetitions during his training.
Under the guidance of the "Body Refining" technique, the immense blood essence was siphoned up from the snake's body through the wound, transforming into a warm current that merged into his dantian.
Having already stored some energy in his dantian over the past few days of practice, Zhang Yang felt it gradually filling up, nearing its limit.
He had no other thoughts at this moment, only a single focus: to absorb more, more...
Roar—
The giant python felt its internal energy rapidly depleting, as though it were being drained by a flood. The overwhelming fear made it abandon all thoughts of feeding.
This was no delicacy—it was a terrifying demon!
Now, the giant python only wanted to escape.
But as it tried to flee, the zombie refused to let go.
Zhang Yang's sharp teeth were now deeply embedded in the snake's body.
The python whipped its massive head toward Zhang Yang, crashing into him.
Bang!
Zhang Yang swung his arm and smashed the python's head aside.
The giant python struggled desperately, its massive body twisting and thrashing, sweeping violently around it like a flesh-and-bone whip.
Crack! Crack!
Several trees, over a dozen in total, were swept aside and snapped to the ground.
Bang! Bang!
Large rocks, about a meter in diameter, were sent flying through the air, crashing down far from the scene with tremendous force.
But all these struggles were in vain.
The python's strength was rapidly diminishing, while Zhang Yang's own power was only growing.
A flood-like warm current poured into his dantian under the guidance of the Body Refining technique, and any excess energy was converted into fine strands of power that repaired his injured body.
An incense stick's worth of time passed, and the giant python finally stopped struggling, lying limply on the ground like a soft whip.
Zhang Yang, the zombie, still clung to the snake's body, his sharp teeth still gnawing and refusing to release it.
The moon hung high in the sky, casting a cold, silvery glow across the land.
A giant python and a zombie lay on the ground. The zombie's arms were tightly wrapped around the massive snake, its ferocious teeth still sunk deep into the python's body...
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound of heavy objects falling echoed as a group of about a dozen zombies slowly hopped up from the mountain below.
As they passed by the two bodies, they didn't even glance at them, completely ignoring them.
Zombies were only interested in fresh blood.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The dozen or so zombies hopped back toward the cave, leaving only the zombie Zhang Yang and the giant python's corpse on the ground.
At this point, Zhang Yang's dantian felt like it was about to burst.
If this continued, all of the python's vast blood essence, the blood of a ten-meter-long, bowl-thick giant, would flow into Zhang Yang's body. This would completely exceed the limits of what a regular zombie could bear.
If not for the zombie's relatively strong constitution, this massive flood of warm energy would have already torn his body apart.
Zhang Yang knew he should let go. More blood, at this point, would be like poison for him.
But Zhang Yang couldn't move a finger, his teeth were locked in place, and he couldn't open his mouth.
Still, his mind remained clear, and he could distinctly see his zombie comrades hopping back to the cave; he could feel the violent warm current in his dantian, crashing around like a tidal wave, ready to explode at any moment.
In the face of this crisis, Zhang Yang's mind gradually began to cool.
Cultivators absorb external spiritual energy into their bodies for their own use, and zombies do the same, but instead of spiritual energy, they absorb yin energy and blood essence.
Ultimately, this blood essence was beneficial to Zhang Yang. Usually, he would eagerly seek out such things.
But the sheer volume of blood flooding in all at once was too much for a low-level zombie to handle, and now it had turned into a disaster.