Chapter 640: Puppet
The stele was badly damaged and incomplete. The inscription carved on it had already turned fuzzy, but one could still reluctantly recognize the flamboyant ancient Chinese characters on it. After Yang Ling observed it for a while, he got an understanding of what happened.
It turned out that this was a Wizard Tomb, and accurately speaking, it was a grave for Wizard Guards and Wizard Servants. After an intense bitter battle, the Ancient Wizards’ followers suffered disastrous casualties, and many powerful Wizard Guards and Wizard Servants died. The Ancient Wizards who survived by chance set up Restriction Spells on this valley hurriedly and buried hastily the corpses of the dead. They planned to move the graves elsewhere at another appropriate time and they left hurriedly.
No one expected that the Ancient Wizards who set up the Restriction Spells didn’t come back even countless years since their departure.
“What happened in the past? Who is the Ancient Wizards’ enemy, and where did they go?” Yang Ling looked in confusion at the weeds on the graves and the damaged and fuzzy stele. He stroked the ancient Chinese characters on the stele as grief welled up in his heart.
Nothing was more painful in life than losing one’s wife at middle age or losing one’s son at an old age. As for the dead, nothing was more sorrowful to them than dying in a foreign land and having weeds grow atop their burial mounds.
“Could it be that organizing the tombs of the dead Wizards and Wizard Guards is my mission, and this is the reason why the Wizard Pagoda brought me into this world?” Yang Ling observed with his senses the pagoda mark between his eyes that throbbed strongly before he looked at the burial mounds covered in weeds and at the damaged stele. He quickly got an idea and took out a large number of Premium Crystals from his spatial ring before he waved his hand and summoned the Corpse Wizard King, Master Aaron, and other people.
“Aaron, craft a Crystal Coffin with those crystals along with your men. Rodriguez, dig the graves with your men and move the corpses in them into the Crystal Coffin. You should be careful and don’t damage the corpses.” Yang Ling passed down an order. He planned to move the corpses of Wizard Guards and Wizard Servants into the Wizard Pagoda’s dimension and bury them in it. He would finish the task which the Ancient Wizards didn’t finish yet.
“Okay, understood!”
Aaron looked in surprise at the mountain of excellent Premium Crystals next to Yang Ling. He didn’t expect that Yang Ling would spend a large sum and use the precious Premium Crystals to craft a Crystal Coffin. However, when he saw the gloom and grief on Yang Ling’s face, he quickly figured out everything and didn’t say anything else.
“Lord, could it be that those are your clansmen’s graves?” When the Corpse Wizard King saw the fuzzy ancient Chinese characters, he got an idea and recalled the characters he saw on the Wizard Pagoda.
Clansmen?
Upon hearing what the Corpse Wizard King had said, Yang Ling thought of Earth. He didn’t know when he would get to go back to it, and he suddenly had an impulse to dig out the grave and see whether the corpses there also had black eyes like his or whether they were blond Chinese people. The more he pondered over this, the more unwell he felt, and he ordered the crowd to carry out the operation quickly.
“Hurry up, let’s first dig this small grave.”
“Be careful and slow a bit. Don’t touch the corpse inside.”
…
The Corpse Wizard King was quite experienced, and he ordered the crowd to dig carefully a nameless little grave. After a short while, a large corpse appeared in front of the crowd. Innumerable years had passed yet it still seemed lifelike, and it was unknown whether the reason behind this was the soil or a treasure worn by this person. This person had dark blue eyes, straight nose and wasn’t any different than most people in Tailun Continent.
“It seems like those Wizard Guards are followers recruited by the Ancient Wizards in various planes.” When Yang Ling saw the corpse’s look, he was slightly disappointed. But he still heaved a sigh of relief and observed the corpse’s state.
The corpse was lifelike, and it retained its previous appearance during its life. There was a horrifying wound on its chest, which was so deep that bones could be seen. It seemed like he was heavily injured by a terrible, blunt weapon, and he lost his life due to a single strike. But, it was a pity that even though the body was still lifelike, its soul had already disappeared, and there was a wound on his head’s back. He couldn’t detect any Soul Ripples, and it seemed like the soul was extinguished long ago. It was impossible to revive him any longer.
“Lord, this should be an expert with a High-Level Deity’s power. So, why don’t we take out his Godhead?” When the Corpse Wizard King detected the Energy Ripples emitted by the Godhead in the dead person’s body, he looked at Yang Ling and hesitated for a moment. A High-Level Deity’s Godhead was very precious, but he didn’t know the relationship between this dead man and Yang Ling, and this was why he didn’t dare to rashly take actions.
“Rodriguez, could it be that we still lack Godheads even now?” Yang Ling looked at the opportunistic Corpse Wizard King, who didn’t want to let go of any precious object. Yang Ling paused for a moment before he said, “Even if the Godheads within the corpses were stronger than this, don’t damage them. If you need any Godheads, then there are a large number of them outside. We just have to kill a group of Abyssal Demons or God-Level Magical Beasts and you will get as many Godheads as you want.
The reason why Yang Ling summoned the crowd to dig the tombs was that he wanted to move those Wizard Guards and Wizard Servants, who died in a battle, to the Wizard Pagoda’s dimension and bury them inside it. He wouldn’t allow the crowd to damage those brave warriors’ corpses.
Besides, the Corpse Wizard King had picked a large number of Godheads in the Wanderer Camp, and they had enough to give every person a Godhead. Even if they didn’t have enough, they could still hunt the Abyssal Demons or God-Level Magical Beasts for their Godheads. They didn’t have to damage those Wizard Guards’ corpses for a trifling Godhead.
“Understood! Lord, you can set your mind at ease.” The Corpse Wizard King quickly understood Yang Ling’s intentions, and he ordered the crowd to move the corpse carefully before digging another tomb. Meanwhile, Aaron started crafting a Crystal Coffin with his men, and he carved exquisite Magical Formation Spells on the Crystals. He formed a small Ice-Sealing Domain within the Crystal Coffin that would preserve the corpses well.
One, two…
The Corpse Wizard King was quite swift, and he commanded the crowd to dig the nameless tombs one after the others. Soon after, they moved the corpses into the ice-cold Crystal Coffin. They were all piled up together and there were all kinds of corpses. There were sturdy men, malevolent-looking orcs, and pretty female elves. There were also berserk Magical Beasts.
Some of them lost a hand or leg, some bodies sustained terrible injuries, and some didn’t have an intact corpse left. Some only had half of their bodies left, and some only had a single head left. There were only a few intact corpses, and it could be easily imagined that the battle that occurred in the past was tragic.
“This valley is more hidden than the valley where Gibra Temple is situated. Why don’t I use it as a lodging spot in the Graveyard of Gods and Devils? I can later teleport inside it at any time.” After Yang Ling instructed the crowd to handle this affair, he started wandering around alone in the valley. He observed the terrain and environment. He looked at the cliff and observed the powerful Restriction Spells at the valley’s entrance. He quickly came up with an idea.
“Lord, hurry up. I dug out a stele over here.” When Yang Ling was about to further examine the surrounding terrain, the Corpse Wizard King spoke excitedly and rushed over.
Yang Ling, who was led by the Corpse Wizard King, went over to take a look. He discovered a black obelisk at the largest grave. There were many complex symbols and flamboyant ancient Chinese characters carved on it. It seemed like a strong Wizard Spell was recorded on it, and there was a small puppet near the obelisk. The puppet was covered by fine vein-like red lines.
“Stealing the world’s essence and refining myriad beings’ souls. Life Graft!” When Yang Ling saw the symbols on the obelisk, he got overjoyed and excited. He held the puppet in his hand tightly.
It turned out that a High-Level Soul Wizard Spell called Life Graft was recorded on the obelisk and it could shift the enemy’s deadly attack to a puppet. It could be said in a sense that the puppet was tantamount to a single life, and it was an extremely rare Protective Magical Treasure.
The puppet was just as tall as an index finger and it had a head, as well as four limbs. It was quite proportional, and it was like a dwarf, which reduced its size by many folds. Its main material was quite similar to sandalwood or camphor wood, and it emitted a faint fragrance. There was some clay on its back, and it was polished and painted. It also had well-made clothes, and it seemed quite pretty and lifelike.
The puppet’s surface was covered with fine red lines, and at first glance, Yang Ling had even assumed that they portrayed veins. But after he observed it carefully, he discovered that this wasn’t as simple as it seemed. Those fine red lines were complex and orderly. There were thin and thick ones, and they formed a large and mysterious Restriction Spell.
He guessed that the reason why the puppet could protect its owner at a crucial juncture and block a deadly strike for him was the Restriction Spell formed by the numerous red lines.
The Life Graft Wizard Spell’s practice mantra was recorded on the obelisk’s front. It was complex and abstruse. The puppet’s crafting way and its materials were recorded in detail on the obelisk’s back. Every phase was complex and delicate and every little disparity would change the outcome greatly. Just drawing on its surface was more difficult than making Magic-Hunt Cards.
“If I can craft a bulk of puppets, which can take injuries for me, won’t I become unkillable? Won’t I become an invincible expert? If I can give every powerful Magical Beast a bulk of puppets, who can still rival my Magical Beast Army?” The more Yang Ling pondered over this, the more excited he became. He instructed the crowd to seize the time to dig the graves before he sat cross-legged. He carefully observed the black obelisk and started studying the complex and abstruse Life Graft Wizard Spell.
After the Corpse Wizard King, Ophelia, and others advanced into the God-Level and comprehend the Demon God Battle Formation, their power rose drastically, and if they joined hands, their power would be strengthened greatly. As the Dark Dragon King and the Burning Fire Elf King joined them, those four people were able to face several Abyssal Demons by joining hands. If they were protected by a large number of puppets that could block the enemies’ deadly strikes, then those four could attack jointly as much as they liked, and it was unimaginable what level their fighting prowess would reach.