These skeletons, in life, must have been the most elite warriors. They possessed an innate combat instinct that came from their very bones. Cold and emotionless, they carried only death within them.
They were messengers of death.
Among them were even cavalry—skeletal cavalry gathered behind a skeletal general, naturally exuding an unstoppable and invincible aura. In their hollow eye sockets, icy flames flickered.
In the forests, countless fierce birds fled in panic. One could even see skeletal birds soaring through the skies, diving to kill the fleeing beasts. As they devoured the flesh and blood of these creatures, the aura of death around them only grew thicker.
Boom boom boom!!
The ground trembled. A white tide surged forward.
The tremors spread through the entirety of Xuanhuang Village.
"A thunderous roar, like ten thousand galloping horses. A horde of monsters is charging our way—and their destination is clearly Xuanhuang Village." Standing atop the village walls, Yang Ye shifted his gaze from the golden qi carp in the sky and looked into the distance. Seeing the fleeing birds, his expression turned grim.
This was not a good sign. With such a commotion, the invading beasts or monsters clearly numbered far more than just a few.
"It seems we're about to face a brutal war," Huang Chengyan muttered, his gaze deep as he stared out beyond the village.
"This isn't just about the monsters," said Master Lu solemnly. "What's most important is the Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate. It must succeed. The transformation into a Dragon Seed—qi fortune is the foundation."
Crossing the Dragon Gate was the true victory.
"As expected, a calamity has come—not only for the Dragon Gate leap, but the village itself is about to face a severe trial. Still, I'd like to see what kind of monsters dare challenge our village."
Yi Tianxing also heard the rumbling. A sharp light flashed in his eyes as he strode quickly up to the village wall.
As he climbed the wall, every soldier and villager who saw him couldn't help but reveal a surge of excitement. It was as if their spiritual pillar had arrived. Their battle will and blood boiled.
The fear and confusion in their eyes disappeared completely.
Just seeing Yi Tianxing gave them boundless confidence.
As if nothing could ever defeat them again.
"Look over there! What is that?" a villager suddenly shouted, pointing at the distant forest.
"Skeletons! So many skeletons—they're rising from the dead!"
"Skeletal warriors, too many of them! It's terrifying! Are these the legendary undead? Monsters that rise even after death, crawling back out of their graves?"
"They say if one dies with enough hatred, they can turn into revenants or zombies to seek vengeance. I never thought I'd see living skeletons with my own eyes. These are the undying dead!"
"Screw that! Even if they crawl back from the grave, we're not afraid! If they revive, we'll just smash them back to pieces! I don't believe these bastards can't be killed!"
On the wall, villagers couldn't help but nervously swallow.
The sudden sight of an overwhelming army of skeletons struck like a tidal wave. These were monsters—beings of death. In the past, they would've been feared as evil spirits. Most commoners would have fled in terror.
But not the people of Xuanhuang Village.
Their fighting spirit didn't falter. In fact, it ignited.
If something threatened their home and their lives—even undead—they would destroy it. Smash it into powder. Reduce it to real bones.
"They won't be easy to deal with. There are so many of them," Yang Ye said, frowning. "Right now, there must be tens of thousands—probably more coming. It's likely they'll completely surround the village."
Even he hadn't expected that the threat wouldn't be ferocious beasts, but a massive skeleton army rising from who knows where. And they weren't unarmed—each carried a weapon and radiated a chilling deathly aura. It was obvious—they wouldn't feel fear. They wouldn't hesitate. They wouldn't retreat.
In battle, they would be absolutely relentless and unstoppable.
True monsters. Creatures with no emotions. Taking them down wouldn't be easy.
Boom boom boom!!
Crack!!
The rumbling intensified. Skeletons surged in from all directions, surrounding Xuanhuang Village completely. As they ran, the bones of their bodies emitted an eerie rattling that chilled the spine.
An invisible pressure came crashing down on the village like a tide.
"It really is the undead. A skeleton army."
Yi Tianxing's eyes gleamed. He was no stranger to ghosts and the undead. Compared to beasts, he was even more skilled at dealing with ghostly and deathly entities. His Innate Yin-Yang Eyes were a natural bane to these undying beings.
Still, they weren't to be underestimated. Especially in such massive numbers—the destructive power they could unleash was terrifying.
"No matter what they are—even if they're immortal—if they block the path of Xuanhuang Village, then they must be utterly destroyed." Yi Tianxing sneered coldly. Even deathless beings would not breach their walls.
"Look! The golden carp of fortune is almost at the Dragon Gate!"
"So fast! That black river doesn't seem able to stop it at all—it's swimming upstream at an astonishing speed! What kind of power does it carry?"
"There's hope! A real chance to leap through the Dragon Gate!"
Gasps of excitement rang out.
Yi Tianxing's gaze returned to the Dragon Gate.
The golden carp had been bursting with strength from the start, surging forward with incredible momentum. Each flick of its tail split the black mist apart. In the swamp-like black river, it advanced rapidly—unstoppable.
Whenever the black mist rushed to engulf it, its golden light would flare, warding off the corruption.
Each movement propelled it forward significantly. Even as it swam against the current, its speed remained incredibly high—as if the river posed no resistance at all.
But that was impossible.
Only the overwhelming power within the carp could explain how it maintained such speed despite the force trying to drag it down.
Everyone knew—the higher one swam upstream, the stronger the resistance.
As the golden carp drew closer to the Dragon Gate, its speed began to slow. But its momentum remained fierce.
It charged forward with unyielding will.
Its eyes never left the majestic gate.
One hundred meters. Eighty. Fifty—
Before anyone realized it, the golden carp had closed the gap to just twenty meters.
Nineteen… eighteen—
At the eighteen-meter mark, the carp erupted in blinding golden light. Its scales trembled, and its power surged madly.
Splash!!
A sharp burst of water exploded.
In that moment, bathed in golden light, the fortune carp leapt toward the Dragon Gate.
In its leap, one could sense an aura of absolute resolve and supreme might. Its eyes locked on the gate. In that instant, nothing else existed in its world.
It had become a true carp—nothing more, nothing less.
The Dragon Gate stood nine meters above the black river.
The carp began its leap from eighteen meters out.
In midair, it formed a brilliant golden arc.
So powerful was its burst that the black river beneath it exploded as if a boulder had fallen in, sending waves in every direction.
The height it reached—unbelievable.
It shot straight toward the gate.
"Yes!!" Huang Chengyan slapped his hand in excitement.
"A carp leaping the Dragon Gate is the perfect fusion of strength and skill. One without the other is useless. But this carp has both. At this height, with that arc—it's already a success," Master Lu said, stroking his beard with a smile.
Swoosh!!
Sure enough, the fortune carp's momentum was overwhelming. It tore through all resistance and dived straight into the Dragon Gate.
The moment it passed through, blinding golden light burst forth from the gate—so radiant it illuminated the entire sky, replacing all vision with dazzling brilliance.
Within that light was a mysterious power.
It surged endlessly into the golden carp.
On the other side of the gate, bathed in that light, the carp's head emerged—but it had begun to transform.
Its gills vanished, replaced by two long golden whiskers. Its body lengthened and rounded. Its golden scales shone even more brightly. Its form had become more serpentine—resembling a catfish, yet covered in brilliant gold.
From it radiated a new kind of pressure—
A pressure from within its very bloodline.
"This is… a Fish-Dragon!!" Yi Tianxing exclaimed, feeling a deep resonance.
The leap through the Dragon Gate awakened the dragon bloodline within the carp. Of course, a mere carp couldn't instantly transform into a true dragon—perhaps not with this Dragon Gate, anyway.
But this leap had allowed its latent bloodline to awaken.