Chapter 552 - 549: Mountain of Corpses, Sea of Bones

Chapter 552: Chapter 549: Mountain of Corpses, Sea of Bones

"That’s Spiralvine Disease. It’s caused by a parasitic plant and makes the patient’s entire body twist into vine-like spirals," Xi said, pointing at the twisted body. "Patients with this disease develop certain plant-like traits. They can even photosynthesize, which extends their lifespan."

"And that one is Iron Blue Algae, a parasitic alga that converts its host’s skin into a respiratory surface, much like certain amphibians. It allows them to absorb oxygen even underwater. This alga is incredibly resilient and can even parasitize the skin of land creatures, granting them the ability to breathe underwater..."

"Flashing Scale Disease, caused by an infection from the Flashing Scale Fungus. The body grows scales that glitter like diamonds. Those scales are incredibly hard; ordinary weapons can’t shatter them. Some races even intentionally cultivate the fungus on their bodies to contract the disease, because it makes them stronger."

...

Xi’s eyes swept over the strange bodies as he described the diseases afflicting them. They all seemed to be rare illnesses documented in the records of healers.

But all these bizarre diseases were appearing in the same place, and all infecting the same "patient."

This eerie lakebed was like a library of diseases, a catalog of countless afflictions. There were even some that Xi didn’t recognize; he could only warn Mo Ling to avoid them carefully.

The closer they got to the center of the lake, the more diseased bodies appeared, and they were increasingly intact. Moreover, the creatures roaming here also displayed numerous symptoms of disease. They seemed to have fully integrated into this eerie lake, becoming part of its strange ecosystem. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Accumulated bones formed crowded coral forests. Limbs that had yet to rot, resembling swaying invertebrates, were wedged into the crevices of the coral. They displayed a variety of shapes and colors due to their strange afflictions, while diseased creatures wandered, foraged, and hid within this "coral forest"...

Within the forest, severed limbs twitched, crawling toward the center.

"Senior, that’s..."

Xi pointed with a trembling hand toward the center of the lake. In the murky depths, a massive mountain was vaguely visible. Countless bodies, some whole and others incomplete, were ceaselessly climbing it.

Murky sediment swirled around the mountain like clouds and mist.

Mo Ling stared in disbelief. Only now could he see clearly that the mountain was also built from white bones and headless torsos. Its base rested in the deep center of the lake, while its peak nearly breached the surface of the water.

The bodies on the mountain also displayed symptoms of various diseases. Furthermore, influenced by some strange, attractive force, the entire mountain would suddenly shudder and contract inward, like a beating heart.

The mountain’s shudder caused the climbing bodies to lose their balance, sending them tumbling down the slope like falling rocks. Yet these numbed forms would soon begin again, driven by that same force to crawl back toward the peak.

’What... are they searching for?’

A profound sense of shock filled Mo Ling as he watched the bodies endlessly climb only to fall again.

Gazing at the mountain, the two found they had unknowingly arrived at its base. A powerful undercurrent rushed down from the peak, as if trying to prevent them from climbing, but by now, their curiosity had peaked.

Without hesitation, they began to climb, just like the headless bodies.

Fortunately, the slope of this Corpse Mountain wasn’t steep, and they were far more agile than the stiff bodies around them. Aside from paying attention to the occasional tremors, the climb wasn’t difficult.

Eventually, Mo Ling and Xi reached the mountainside. There were no longer any climbing bodies here, but there were many trapped ones, stuck in the crevices between bones. They twitched constantly, unable to break free.

They stretched out their hands, struggling to pull free, only to tear their own bodies apart in the process. The bodies of healers were inherently fragile. Once they were reduced to fragments, their ability to move was further diminished. Soon, the currents and tremors sent them tumbling back down to the foot of the mountain.

At times, the pair had to dodge limbs tumbling down from above. These limbs would flail wildly, grasping at anything nearby. While it was easy to break free from their grip, Mo Ling and Xi worried about the diseases they carried, so they couldn’t allow themselves to be touched.

In this way, Mo Ling and Xi drew ever closer to the summit...

"Senior, we’re almost at the summit."

"Mm."

They could already see the shimmering surface of the lake, but the surging undercurrent still tried to rip them from the mountain.

Near the summit, the slope grew much steeper. Mo Ling no longer cared about touching the diseased corpses. He planted his feet on the white bones, shoved aside twitching limbs, and pushed his way upward, step by step.

"Senior, I can’t climb anymore..." Xi clung desperately to the bones beneath him. His fragile body could no longer withstand the current. A massive whirlpool seemed to have formed near the summit, relentlessly tearing at them.

Moreover, the higher they climbed, the more violent the tremors became. Xi could no longer even stand; he was sprawled on the bones as the surrounding severed limbs grabbed at him, latching onto his body.

Xi’s foot slipped, and he nearly fell from a smooth bone. Fortunately, he managed to plant his foot in a crevice just in time, narrowly averting disaster.

"Senior..." Xi looked at Mo Ling’s back, feeling a pang of guilt.

Mo Ling seemed completely unaffected by the whirlpool and the tremors, his steps steady, while Xi was gradually falling behind.

’I’m holding him back again. I’m always holding him back. It was the same on Hundred Flowers Island, and it’s the same now...’

The murky sediment obscured Mo Ling’s figure, and the guilt in Xi’s heart deepened.

Severed limbs reached through the gaps in the bones and clamped down on his ankle.

Xi struggled, stretching out a hand to grab the bones ahead and break free from the limbs’ grasp, but it was just out of reach.

Just as he was despairing, a strong hand shot through the murky sediment and grasped his wrist.

A powerful force followed, pulling Xi directly out from the tangle of severed limbs and onto a less steep section of bone.

The one who had grabbed him was, of course, Mo Ling.

"What’s wrong?" Mo Ling asked earnestly, still holding Xi’s wrist.

"I... I can’t climb anymore, Senior," Xi said quietly, his voice full of guilt.

"Oh, you should’ve said so sooner."

Mo Ling, still holding Xi, glanced at the summit, which was now within reach.

"Hop on. I’ll carry you."

"Senior, that’ll put you in danger too."

"Hurry, hurry..." Mo Ling urged, pulling Xi toward him. He then squatted down and hooked his arms under Xi’s legs.

Before Xi could even react, Mo Ling had hoisted him onto his back.

"You’re so light," Mo Ling remarked in a low voice.

Guilt washed over Xi again. He was about to struggle and ask Mo Ling to put him down when he heard Mo Ling start muttering something odd.

"When I was a kid playing piggyback fights, I was always the ’horse,’ and I never lost. My partner never even had to do anything. I could just crash into the other team and send them flying. I thought the game was no challenge at all back then."

"Until one time..."

"My fifty-kilogram groundhog of a deskmate in elementary school rode on my back..."