I Really Am A Villain
Ch. 325 - Baleful Miasma Awakens

Xu Zimo frowned slightly as he watched the scene.

A God Meridian Realm aura radiated from the withered corpse.

“What’s going on?” he asked the three people next to him.

“We don’t know either,” one of the yellow-robed disciples explained.

“We came as a team. As soon as we entered the desert, we ran into these corpses. In the end, only the three of us survived.”

“There are a lot of these corpses in the desert. They seem to patrol the area,” another disciple added.

“We can’t get in or out. We’re completely trapped.”

Xu Zimo frowned in thought.

These three were probably disciples of some second-rate sect.

They likely recognized him from the earlier conflict with the Cloud Emperor Sect.

But what troubled him most was the sheer number of these corpses.

If each one was at the God Meridian Realm, he’d have to rely on Paimon and Chaos.

With his current strength, he could deal with one God Meridian Realm corpse, but many at once was out of the question.

Xu Zimo looked up. The desert stretched endlessly, empty and bare.

There was nowhere to hide. This lone boulder was already a lucky find.

If he kept going forward, there might be nowhere left to take cover if more corpses appeared.

“Holy Son Xu, is there any way you can contact the Sacred Ground and have them get us out of here?” one of the youths asked hopefully.

“No. Even if the lineage sends someone, they’d only be at the Empyrean Meridian Realm. It wouldn’t help,” Xu Zimo shook his head.

“Then we’re doomed,” the youth said in despair.

“This is one of the ten forbidden grounds,” Xu Zimo said, glancing at them. “You should’ve thought about that before coming in. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Stay hidden. I’m moving on.”

With that, he stood up and walked forward.

That corpse from earlier had already disappeared, likely off patrolling.

“Is he crazy?” one of the youths said, watching Xu Zimo’s back in shock.

“If he runs into a corpse, he’s dead for sure.”

...

As he walked through the desert, light rain fell from the sky.

Xu Zimo took a deep breath and quickened his pace.

The atmosphere here weighed heavily on the heart.

After a while, thick fog appeared ahead.

It was impossible to see the road, everything was hidden by mist.

From within the fog, Xu Zimo faintly heard painful roars.

Then, several figures slowly emerged.

It was three withered corpses.

Three God Meridian Realm corpses.

Their appearances were impossible to distinguish, flesh and bone fused into a hardened shell.

Their skin was covered in cracks.

They opened their mouths and roared at Xu Zimo.

Sticky fluid dripped from their mouths, thick like some kind of molasses.

As the three corpses charged at Xu Zimo,

They moved extremely fast, claws sharp and deadly.

Xu Zimo didn’t dare underestimate them. He immediately summoned Chaos.

The massive beast descended from the sky.

It slapped the three corpses away with one paw.

But the corpses had incredible defense, they were completely unharmed.

They roared in anger and charged again.

“Pointless fight,” Xu Zimo said calmly as he jumped onto Chaos’s head.

“Run toward the central area as fast as possible. Ignore the corpses.”

Chaos roared and spread two thin, blood-red wings that blocked out the sky.

Even though flight was restricted here, Chaos’s speed, combined with its wings, easily left the corpses behind.

They entered the fog.

Every now and then, Xu Zimo could hear more howls as they ran.

The mist blocked his vision, but he could sense it,

There were a lot of corpses around.

So many God Meridian Realm corpses, if he tried to force his way through, he’d be torn apart.

Chaos kept running forward.

Xu Zimo didn’t bother to engage, killing the corpses served no purpose.

As the fog thinned, they neared its end.

Just then, a black beam of light shot through the air.

It hit Chaos in the back.

With a loud boom, strange spiritforce rippled out.

A bloody hole opened in Chaos’s back, and its massive body collapsed.

Xu Zimo looked up and saw three more corpses guarding the exit of the mist.

These three were different from the others. They were surrounded by black gas.

Black mist rose from their eye sockets.

Even more terrifying, they exuded an Immortal Entry Realm aura.

“What the...” Xu Zimo narrowed his eyes.

Creatures in the Immortal Path were unexpected.

In the era of those fighting for the Heaven's Will, the highest cultivation was only peak God Meridian Realm.

They were preparing to enter the Path of Dao, none of them would’ve chosen the Immortal path.

Even if they died and became corpses, they shouldn’t have Immortal Path strength.

The Path to Immortality may not match the Path of Dao, but it was still not easily reached.

Many spent their whole lives stuck in the God Meridian Realm, never progressing.

...

“Forget it. No point wasting time,” Xu Zimo muttered.

He immediately summoned Paimon.

Vast demonic energy surged around them.

Paimon looked at the three corpses and said slowly, “My lord, I sense a wicked energy from them.”

“I should’ve guessed,” Xu Zimo narrowed his eyes.

“It seems the Baleful Miasma has awakened.”

Paimon said nothing more. He waved his hand.

Massive demonic faces formed in the air, flying toward the corpses to devour them.

The corpses resisted with all their strength.

The demonic energy clashed and tangled with the wicked energy.

Paimon frowned slightly. “What is this? It can suppress my demonic energy, even briefly. Good thing they’re weak. If they were at my level, this would be difficult.”

With another wave of his hand, flames of demonic fire erupted from the devouring faces.

The fire burned everything, leaving not a trace of the corpses.

...

“The first strand of mutated foul energy in the world, it was never going to be simple,” Xu Zimo said with a light laugh.

“What’s ahead will be troublesome. A hard battle is coming.”

After killing the three corpses, Xu Zimo withdrew Chaos and let it recover in his True Fate World.

Thanks to the Tree of Life, injuries healed almost instantly.

Of course, while the Tree of Life was powerful, able to create plant systems, help heal living beings, and even grant longevity.

But it couldn’t grant true immortality or resurrect the dead.