Chapter Forty-One: Huron's Resurrection

The days in the valley gradually settled into a quiet routine.

Wu Jue and his companions began to cultivate here, dividing their time between cleaning up the carcasses of monsters—turning their hides into leather and their meat into jerky—and collecting the beast cores. Wu Jue refined these cores into pills for everyone to consume. With the addition of the occasional wild fruit they foraged, it was enough to last them for more than ten days without trouble.

Wu Jue and Xiao Yang began to discuss their next steps. Xiao Yang had received word from the fortress system: their enemies had attacked and overtaken the small town. The witch and the surviving townspeople had become separated and their whereabouts were unknown.

Everyone sighed. In the end, they had failed to avoid such a fate. Yet the more formidable their foe, the more determined they were to resist.

Wu Jue tried to buoy their spirits, saying, “It doesn’t matter. Everything is just beginning. I believe if we persevere, the day will come when we prevail.”

“Prevail? And what will you use to achieve victory, have you ever thought about that?” Mirror Hero Tel interjected with his customary pessimism. “You don’t have the strength yet to oppose the Heavenly Execution Clan. You couldn’t even conquer a mere fortress, so what makes you think you can do anything more?”

Xiao Yang laughed and replied, “May I ask, Hero Tel, weren’t you also stuck in the fortress? Isn’t your situation much the same, unless you’d call that an accident?”

Tel answered without embarrassment, “It was because I was betrayed by humans that I fell into their trap. That’s why I couldn’t trust you at first. But now I realize that perhaps Earthlings can be trusted, depending on the individual.”

Wu Jue sighed. “It’s best if we can bury the hatchet. But what matters now is how to break out of this situation. I believe there are still other survivors on Earth. We must gather more companions, unite our strength to oppose the Heavenly Execution Clan. They may be powerful, but they cannot cover the entire battlefield. We must fight flexibly, strike where they don’t expect, and win by surprise.”

“You mean, gather others and attack the enemy’s weakest points.” Xiao Yang nodded. “I tried to look up information on the Heavenly Execution Clan. They seem to have several regions not fully under their control. There are also hundreds on the global most wanted list.”

“That means there are many like us, hiding underground, fighting in secret,” Wu Jue agreed. “Let’s contact them one by one, starting with those nearest to us, and try to gather them together.”

Xiao Yang agreed, and before his tablet ran out of power, he kept searching for more contacts.

Meanwhile, Wu Jue and the others began to settle other affairs. Xiao Han sat quietly in the cave, hardly saying a word for days, but now, watching the others busy themselves, he suddenly spoke up: “Have you ever wondered what the true nature of the Heavenly Execution Clan is? How can they control so many worlds? I suspect they have a hidden agenda.”

“Oh? When did Xiao Han get so clever?” Xiao Yang teased as he tinkered with his computer.

Xiao Han got up, puzzled. “I don’t know. Ever since I lay in that coffin last time and came out the same as before, I’ve felt odd, like there’s something I can’t explain.”

He grew agitated and paced to the two stone coffins, circling them restlessly. Suddenly, he placed his hand on one of the lids. “I remember now—when I lay inside, I saw inscriptions carved here.”

Wu Jue was intrigued and came over to look. For the first time, he noticed that on the inner side of the stone coffin’s lid, there were indeed some characters, perhaps a prophecy, or a secret manual.

Because the script was archaic, only Wu Jue could decipher it. As he read it carefully, he was astonished. “So this is a prophecy left by Yi Xingchen before his death. He foresaw this catastrophe and wrote down a possible way to resolve it. It says that when the seven stars align, seven saviors must be gathered to save humanity.”

“These seven are: a high monk, a goddess, a sage, a flying bird, a divine mirror, a witch, and a chameleon. United, they recreate the world and rescue humankind. How can that be?”

The others were shocked. The five present didn’t need much explanation to grasp the meaning.

The high monk was clearly Wu Jue, the goddess was Princess An Yi, the sage none other than Xiao Yang, the divine mirror was Mirror Hero Tel, while the flying bird and witch were likely Xiao Han and Xun’er.

Yet, trapped in such desperate straits, how could they believe a prophecy like this?

“Perhaps it’s just coincidence,” Xiao Yang sighed. “Xun’er has already gone her own way, and who knows where to find the chameleon.”

“That’s why we need to join forces with others. Perhaps the saviors of the prophecy are waiting for us somewhere on the road ahead,” Wu Jue said, his confidence renewed and his purpose clarified.

He carefully read all the words on the coffin, discovering passages about observing the stars and fathoming the hearts of others. Wu Jue had never learned these arts from Yi Xingchen before, but now, by chance, he had the opportunity to put them to use.

He memorized the techniques by heart, and then examined the script on the second coffin. This one, however, was a confession by Pu Tianyang about his life, along with the martial arts he had mastered.

Wu Jue had once received his guidance, but not in depth. Though Pu Tianyang had never studied orthodox martial arts, his life of killing had honed a most practical fighting style.

Wu Jue passed these simple yet effective techniques on to Xiao Yang and Xiao Han for their self-defense.

Most unexpectedly, Mingde, though he had not been interred in the coffin after his death, had carved some of his own techniques onto the stone beside it. These included insights into enlightenment and methods for ascending in cultivation—just what Wu Jue needed for his current level.

He committed these to memory, planning to comprehend them slowly in the future. Suddenly, Huron spoke to him: “Wu Jue, there’s a special technique here, a method for soul transference. I didn’t expect your people to have such magic. It might be useful to me.”

Wu Jue was startled. “What are you planning—do you mean you could revive yourself?”

Though Huron had been in his mind for some time, Wu Jue had grown accustomed to it, but the idea of releasing such a powerful martial saint was still risky.

Huron replied, “You have three sets of remains. Place them in the stone coffin, along with the pills and some beast flesh and bones. Lie in the other coffin, and if the method is performed correctly, I can regain a body and assist you from the outside—I won’t have to share yours.”

Wu Jue laughed, “Huron, we haven’t known each other long enough for me to trust your intentions. If I let you out, what will you do?”

Huron said, “Wu Jue, you no longer have time to bargain. Work with me.”

Left with no choice, Wu Jue prepared as instructed, telling the others, “I have something I must do. Xiao Han, An Yi, I need you to protect me. Tel, I’ll need your help as well.”

He gathered the necessary items, placed the three elders’ bones back into the coffin, and added some beast bones and flesh.

When all was ready, Wu Jue lay down in the other coffin, preparing in silence for Huron’s resurrection. “Everyone leave. There may be danger. If I lose control, don’t hesitate.”

As the others left the cave, Wu Jue began the ceremony. When he closed the lid himself, he felt a surge of energy rising within.

It was Huron’s consciousness, seizing its chance to leave Wu Jue’s body and search for a new host.

The energy quickly flowed out of Wu Jue and gathered on the coffin, merging with the remains inside. Wu Jue followed the ritual learned from the coffin inscription, directing his energy. Suddenly, a strange light flashed across the stone coffin, and the entire cave filled with an extraordinary mirror-like radiance.

The remnants of Tel’s mirror light were absorbed by the coffin, triggering an incredible transformation.

The three sets of bones began to fuse, melding with the beast flesh, gradually taking shape. The two coffins drew closer, as if merging into one.

Huron’s voice sounded in Wu Jue’s mind: “It’s almost done—get out now!”

Wu Jue immediately sat up and leapt from the cave, escaping just as a violent rumbling shook the mountain, signaling some great change within.

The others waited anxiously outside and, seeing Wu Jue emerge, rushed to ask, “What happened? What’s going on with the coffins?”

Wu Jue’s face was solemn as he sighed, “All is yet unknown. Let us wait.”

A short while later, as the dust settled, a shining figure appeared from within, its strange features unmistakably those of Huron as they had seen him in the crystal coffin.

The figure spoke, “Wu Jue, thanks to you, I have finally returned to life.”

End of Chapter 41: Huron Revived