**Chapter 105: The Prefecture Governor of Lizhou**
"A master of the Corpse Immortal Sect—one at least a full realm above that fellow He Yin!"
Qin Mu's heart pounded. These Corpse Beetles must belong to a far more powerful practitioner. To control so many beetles remotely, commanding countless skeletons through the graveyard and beasts of the wild simultaneously—the depth of cultivation required was staggering.
This was far more difficult than puppeteering flying corpses.
The beetles invaded the skeletons and beasts, triggering a grotesque transformation. The bones of the skeletons flushed red, while the beasts' fur turned crimson. All of them—red-furred corpses and skeletal revenants alike—charged madly after Qin Mu.
This method vastly surpassed He Yin's.
"He's using the beetles to drive the skeletons and beasts—not to kill me, but to slow me down!"
Qin Mu sent his qi into the Shao Bao Sword. The blade shot forth, executing the Cloud Sword form. It circled him in continuous arcs, slicing through ring after ring of space. He sprinted forward while the sword carved through skeletons and red-furred corpses that lunged from every direction, shattering them to splinters.
But with each skeleton that fell and each beast-corpse that was cleaved, a red Corpse Beetle burst free—some burrowing into the soil, others darting toward distant woods. From the earth, fresh skeletons crawled forth. From the woods, new red-furred beasts surged in.
Qin Mu's scalp went numb. These reanimated remains were still slowing him. The master tracking him would arrive before long!
Just then, Little Fox woke to the commotion. She quickly cast her spell, summoning a demon-wind that grew into a tornado, sweeping the skeletons and beast-corpse into its vortex.
Qin Mu's burden lightened. He surged forward at full speed.
At that moment, a red Corpse Beetle landed on his bundle and tried to burrow toward Little Fox's nose and mouth.
Little Fox shrieked, scrambling out of the pack and onto Qin Mu's shoulder. More beetles swarmed in—the Corpse Immortal master had detected her wind and was targeting her directly, attempting to turn her into a red-furred beast.
"Tempering the Yang Soul in the Sunlight!"
Qin Mu's qi transformed into blazing flame. He pressed one hand forward in a seal, and his Vermilion Bird qi coalesced into a blazing sun that radiates with blinding light. The beetles screamed, wisps of green smoke curling from their bodies as they dropped to the ground, motionless.
"The Eight Thunder Moves work—they destroy the soul within the beetles!"
Qin Mu pressed onward, casting the solar technique again and again. The skeletons and beast-corpse charging toward him dissolved under the sun's glare, their internal souls burning away in trails of smoke. Skeletons clattered to the ground; beast-corpse collapsed where they stood.
The reanimated dead stopped blocking his path. Instead, they ran alongside him. Mid-sprint, skeletons reached into their own ribcages, tore out ribs, and flung them like curved blades directly at Qin Mu!
Hundreds of ribs howled through the air in dense formation, spinning in arcs. Even those that missed curved back to their throwers' hands.
Qin Mu grimaced and fell back on the Cloud Sword form to parry the storm of bone-blades from every direction. His speed suffered once more.
The Corpse Immortal Sect's attacks were truly bizarre—flying corpses, yellow memorial papers, Corpse Beetles, skeletons, red-furred beast, and skeletons that ripped out their own ribs as projectiles. The variety was dizzying.
Ahead, Qin Mu spotted farmland. Farmers were working the fields—it was the spring harvest, and many had risen early to gather crops.
"Get back!" he shouted, waving his arms. "Everyone, move!"
The farmers looked up and recoiled in horror. A tide of skeletons and red-furred beasts was bearing down on them. They dropped their sickles and fled, but their legs were far too slow. At this pace, the horde would overtake them.
Qin Mu swerved to draw the pursuit away, but the rice paddies bordered a main road. Travelers walked along it—a horse-drawn carriage led the way, flanked by guards on tall steeds.
From inside the carriage, a woman's voice asked, "What's all that racket outside?"
A guard bowed from the saddle. "Your Honor, there's an infestation of skeletons chasing a richly dressed young man. The boy is diverting them off the road to avoid trampling the farmers. There are also red-furred beast—very likely controlled by Corpse Beetles. It's almost certainly the Corpse Immortal Sect from the west."
"With the realm just stabilizing, there are always demons and monsters stirring up trouble," the woman inside replied. "Guard Shi, eliminate those skeletons and beast. Don't let them harm the common people."
"Yes, Your Honor."
The guard did not dismount. He produced a silver sword-pellet, flicked it skyward, and it began to spin, flashing a brilliant sword-beam with every rotation.
The pellet spun at tremendous speed. Sword-beams rained down like threads of light. While Qin Mu was still running, he heard a cascade of cracking sounds. Every sprinting skeleton shattered into powder. The red-furred beast were decapitated in the same breath. Within a single exhalation, the hundreds of skeletons and beast-corpse that had pursued him were swept clean.
Red Corpse Beetles burst from the fallen, but before they could take flight, the sword-beams annihilated them all.
"Orthodox swordsmanship!"
Qin Mu halted and regarded the carriage. The guard's technique was pure and proper—he had seen similar sword arts with the Li River Sect. Regal and upright.
This form involved refining many swords into a single sword-pellet, devastating in combat and capable of forming a sword formation. Only truly powerful practitioners could wield a sword-pellet, for its weight was immense. To keep one aloft with qi alone demanded formidable cultivation.
If the guard was this powerful, the person inside the carriage must be remarkable.
In the distance, Martial Uncle Qiao came racing through the treetops when he suddenly sensed his entire swarm of Corpse Beetles die in an instant. Shocked, he did not advance. Instead he perched on a tree's crown to observe.
"The Lesser Governor of Lizhou Prefecture's carriage!"
His face drained of color. He turned and fled. "The Lesser Governor of Lizhou is a formidable one. I'm no match—retreat first!"
He vanished without a trace.
The guard named Shi spoke to the carriage interior. "Your Honor, the Corpse Immortal Sect has withdrawn."
The woman inside said, "Call the boy over."
"Yes."
Guard Shi dismounted and bowed. "Young sir, my lady requests your presence."
Qin Mu approached the carriage. The curtain lifted, revealing the profile of a beautiful woman with rouge and crimson lips. She turned her face and looked him over, noting his fine clothes. She concluded he came from a wealthy household.
"Where are you from, young sir?"
Qin Mu answered without arrogance or servility. "I've come from Dijiang County."
"Has Dijiang fallen to the Corpse Immortal Sect?"
Qin Mu nodded. "You're very perceptive, miss."
"Miss? I've served as the Lesser Governor of Lizhou for years, and this is the first time anyone has called me 'miss.'" The woman laughed despite herself, then summoned Guard Shi. "Pass word to the garrisons of Huyang, Yukang, and the other counties. Prepare to march on Dijiang."
Guard Shi acknowledged and departed at once.
The woman studied Qin Mu. "The Corpse Immortal Sect's occupation of Dijiang means the people there are likely beyond saving. Your escape is something of a miracle. Your clothes are fine—you seem to come from a notable family. What are your plans?"
Her gaze carried a note of pity. She clearly assumed that with Dijiang fallen, no one inside had survived. If Qin Mu hailed from Dijiang, his family was almost certainly dead. That was why she asked his plans.
Qin Mu hesitated. "I intend to travel to the capital."
The woman nodded. "The capital is a sound choice. Lizhou Prefecture will soon send troops to Dijiang. War brings bandits—it's no place to settle. Do you have travel papers for the journey?"
Qin Mu looked blank and shook his head.
She considered for a moment. "I am Yuanyuan Chuyu, Lesser Governor of Lizhou Prefecture. The rebellion in Dijiang is my responsibility. You fled without papers—entirely understandable. I expect the Dijiang magistrate perished in the uprising as well. Guard Qu, prepare pen, ink, and official documents."
A nearby guard complied, presenting the materials inside the carriage. The woman wrote several lines in elegant hand, then asked, "What is your name?"
Qin Mu supplied it. Yuanyuan Chuyu inscribed the words "Qin Mu, civilian of Lizhou Prefecture," affixed her official seal, and once the ink dried, passed the document outside to be handed to him.
"Here are your travel papers. With this, you'll pass through any major city along the way without difficulty."
She lowered the curtain. Her voice drifted from within: "Don't cling to home. Dijiang has nothing left for you. Make for the capital without delay. My elder brother, Yuanyuan Chuyun, holds office there. When you arrive, tell him I sent you. I hope we may meet again."
"Thank you, miss!" Qin Mu bowed and hurried off along the road.
Yuanyuan Chuyu sighed. "How tragic—to lose one's family at such a tender age. He may be the only soul who escaped Dijiang alive. . . ."
---
"Miss Chuyu was truly kind."
Qin Mu tucked the travel papers safely away. With these in hand, he could pass for a citizen of Lizhou Prefecture rather than someone from the Great Ruins—if he was ever questioned on the road. After a sleepless night, he decided to rest in Huyang County.
"This Chuyu sister was really nice," Little Fox remarked from inside the bundle.