Chapter Nine: The Slave Corpse Technique Succeeds! (First Update)

Inside the three-story administrative building of the factory, Liang Jing, whose body had been thoroughly cleansed of blood, stood in the center of the lobby on the ground floor. He could feel the life essence of the mutated black-backed hound within him slipping away. Determined not to let it go to waste, he decided to use his Corpse Enslavement Technique on the corpse of the mutated black-backed hound, which had been dragged into the lobby.

Yes, the Corpse Enslavement Technique—this was the skill book he’d obtained after slaying the green elite Steel-Spined Beast.

[Corpse Enslavement Technique]: Revive a corpse to fight for oneself, enhancing its vitality and defense, with a certain aggro effect.

Liang Jing silently recited the activation incantation for the strange, cold rune in his sea of consciousness. As soon as he did, the rune began to draw in energy, absorbing the slow-flowing power that had emerged after his awakening. It didn’t take long for the absorption to complete, and he felt as though nearly half his internal energy had been drained, leaving him somewhat hollow inside.

Still, Liang Jing was in good spirits. He had experimented with the Corpse Enslavement Technique before and found it typically consumed about half of his total energy. This time, however, it had only taken a small portion, indicating that his internal energy was steadily increasing, which had been a source of concern for him. He likened his power to the inner force described in martial arts novels and had hoped for a way to quickly enhance it, like the Nine Yang Divine Skill or the Purple Mist Divine Skill. But now it seemed that, even without such skills, his energy would grow on its own—not as slowly as he had feared.

The rune, now brimming with Liang Jing’s absorbed energy, flashed with mysterious light, and he knew the skill was about to take effect. Just like in a game, powerful skills required a buffer period. He was familiar with the process, having attempted to enslave the corpse of the Golden Baroque multiple times, though without success—a regret that still lingered.

Suddenly, the rune stopped flashing, and, with Liang Jing’s gesture, transformed into a ball of energy shimmering with strange patterns, flying toward the mutated black-backed hound. The people in the lobby watched in bewilderment as Liang Jing muttered incantations and moved his limbs in odd ways, reminiscent of a rural shaman’s ritual dance. Having witnessed his fierce hand-to-hand struggle against the hound, suppressing it utterly, they dared not interrupt or question him. They had seen firsthand the terror of the mutated black-backed hound, its bloody rampage etched deeply in their minds, and now realized that Liang Jing was an even more frightening presence.

A chill wind seemed to sweep through the lobby as the energy orb emerged, lowering the temperature and making everyone shudder. Liang Jing continued his strange ritual, his murmurs echoing through the hall, instilling an increasing sense of dread in the onlookers. It was as if they had fallen into a haunted realm; this man was far too dangerous, far too uncanny, and not someone to provoke.

They silently resolved that Liang Jing was not what they had imagined.

A series of eerie sounds echoed through the hall—ghostly wails, shrieks like banshees, and the mournful cries of souls. These hollow, chilling noises reverberated, intensifying the unease among Zhang Huke and his companions, as well as the three who had previously fled, only to return when Liang Jing began slaying the hound, fearful that outside held even greater peril and more monsters.

The strange energy orb seeped into the corpse, which was as large as a calf and already as tall as a person’s chest. The orb spread across the body, its patterns flickering and crawling over the skin, both expanding across the surface and penetrating deep within. In no time, the entire corpse was covered, inside and out, with the glowing patterns, as if electrified, sparks dancing over its form.

Liang Jing, now finished with his actions, felt nervous—this was the most progress he’d ever made with the technique. Previously, the orb could barely penetrate the Golden Baroque’s body, never mind successfully enslave it.

In the midst of the chilling sounds, the patterns on the hound began to converge and intertwine, forming gray-black lines and nodes, weaving together into a grotesque ghostly face. It seemed to leer at everyone with a sinister grin, resembling both an image and an array diagram he’d once seen, the energy flowing within, drawing in visible gray streams from the air.

As time passed, the gray mist merged into the corpse, which began to swell, growing by a third. Then, with a flash of dark light, the ghostly face shrank and contracted, and the hound’s body began to compress as well. Its muscles, skin, and bones grew firmer and tougher, the bulging mass hardening visibly, and the previously yellow-tinged fur darkened to jet black.

The entire body was now larger than before death, its fur coarse and long like bristles, resembling a porcupine, but lacking the sheen it once had. It looked more like a metal construct than flesh, exuding an icy aura that made it seem forged from iron rather than born of blood.

The eerie sounds faded, growing distant, and finally, in Liang Jing’s anxious anticipation, the Corpse Enslavement Technique succeeded for the first time. The ghostly face flashed and shrank, condensing into a much smaller and more intricate mask, which sank into the hound’s skull. The corpse then flashed with a gray-black light, and Liang Jing felt a faint connection to the monstrous figure before him.

He willed the hound to stand, and it immediately complied. Commanding it to attack a nearby desk, it sprang forward—its movements a little stiff, but its powerful muscles drove it with nearly the same speed as in life, though it was much less agile.

Crash!

The large desk and the untouched computer monitor atop it were smashed to pieces, fragments flying three meters across the room.

The hound stood before Liang Jing, its head unscathed despite the violent collision. Its limbs and claws were now thicker and more savage, and Liang Jing was satisfied—this was a formidable meat shield and enforcer. Its bristling, jet-black fur made it resemble a porcupine; its height matched the elite Steel-Spined Beast’s, and the cold, lifeless aura it emitted made it seem like a solid chunk of metal, devoid of any breath or warmth.

Liang Jing was thoroughly pleased with the Corpse Enslavement Technique.

He named the creature Mutated Black-Backed Hound Zombie and experimented with controlling it, comparing its strength to its former self. If other abilities were ignored and only raw power considered, the technique greatly increased the corpse’s defense and strength, though its agility suffered. Its charge speed, bolstered by immense force, remained nearly as fast as before. Overall, it was a much more formidable opponent than the living hound.

――――――――――
Newcomer rolling on the ground, begging for red votes and favorites—anyone?