《Necropolis Immortal》Chapter 2: Enneawyrm Coffinbearers
Advertisement
The governor’s manor was so large it felt like an enormous park. Landscapes of hills reflected over pools of water, and pavilions played hide and seek with the scenery. The residence was the epitome of luxury both within and without.
But in Lu Yun’s eyes, this was the devil’s den!
“Enneawyrm Coffinbearers… [1] finding this kind of feng shui influence in the governor’s manor? If my guess is correct, Dusk Province must be one of the poorest in Nephrite Major,” Lu Yun murmured to himself.
The feng shui arrangement here hadn’t been set up recently; it had to have at least several hundred, or even a thousand years worth of history. The layout had melded perfectly with its environs, turning into a feng shui influence.
The manor was built on the central lifepoint of the province. It impacted the fortunes of all of Dusk. Placing the Enneawyrm Coffinbearers here was to sever the fortunes of the entire province. Over time, it would render Dusk into a sterile desert.
“Milord, you misspoke. This isn’t some Enneawyrm Coffinbearers, it’s the Enneawyrm Provenance Formation. Nine dragons soar to the sky when it activates. It once slaughtered an immortal bent on causing trouble,” corrected Wanfeng.
Lu Yun and Wanfeng were currently standing in one of the tallest Mooncatcher Towers in the manor. It overlooked the entire residence, and even all of Dusk City.
“But Dusk really is one of the poorest provinces in Nephrite Major. There are very few mines, and barely any immortals. Grand Steward Xue has to travel to a neighboring province to purchase his foundation stones.”
It looks like feng shui and formations are two sides of the same coin. Do immortals only understand formations, but not feng shui? But that doesn’t make sense. People on Earth who dabble in feng shui always say they’re the disciple of some god, or are a reincarnated god themselves.
Lu Yun was a bit lost as he listened to Wanfeng’s explanation. The one thing he could be certain of was that the immortals of this world, or its cultivators, wholly ignored feng shui when setting up formations.
This Enneawyrm Provenance Formation could execute immortals, but at the same time, it ruined the lifepoint of the entire province and washed away its fortunes.
Lu Yun didn’t feel that a formation master who was well-versed in feng shui would set up such an arrangement. Similarly, someone well-educated in feng shui would absolutely point out the current flaws when he saw such a layout.
Advertisement
“Eh? What’s that?” Lu Yun subconsciously raised his head because he saw a towering mountain far off in the distance, beyond the city gates.
Outside of the city’s eastern gate, within a hundred miles of the city proper, was an immense mountain named Mount Carmine Dusk. Lu Yun’s eyes glued themselves to it when he looked at it properly.
“That looks like… a large tomb?”
Though he couldn’t examine it in greater detail, its shape looked like the Black Tortoise crouched over a hill. That made it a fantastic location for a tomb.
If he wasn’t mistaken, that was precisely its purpose, and it wasn’t an ordinary tomb located there either.
“Immortals die too?” He was flabbergasted.
“Of course they do,” Wanfeng burst out laughing when she saw her master’s expression.
Legends spoke of an immortal’s tomb beneath the mountain. This was something that all Dusk citizens knew about.
“There was a great war a hundred thousand years ago. The sky shattered and the earth fragmented, and the entire immortal world disintegrated into the nine majors, ten lands, and four seas that we have today. It’s said that all of the immortals in the world died in that conflict, which spelled the end of the ancient immortal civilization.
“There are tombs for immortals like that everywhere in the world now. No one knows who built them.”
Lu Yun was of no mind to listen to the stories that Wanfeng was painstakingly telling him.
“There are tombs for immortals all over the world?” His eyes gleamed. He’d found the meaning of life!
As a tomb raider, he’d become an orphan when his old man passed away after raising him. The only goal he had left in life was raiding tombs, uncovering the truths buried by history, and displaying those hidden secrets to the world.
He’d pretty much covered all of the tombs on Earth. Now that he was in a world of immortals, it was time to get a taste of theirs!
Flames of enthusiasm licked at him. As for that Enneawyrm Coffinbearers feng shui? Whatever.
He wouldn't be the province governor after half a year, so what did that have to do with him?
A great war between immortals a hundred thousand years ago… did the practice of feng shui also die out during that time?
Lu Yun’s expression shifted. The best way to understand history is to get into those ancient tombs and excavate forgotten civilizations. Bring it back out into the light of day again!
Advertisement
He eagerly rubbed his hands. But now’s not the right time. My body’s still a bit weak. Anything I do would be a death sentence, so I need to nurse some more health into this frame, first.
When his thoughts traveled here, Lu Yun turned and said to Wanfeng, “Ah, yes, cook some more of the soup you served to me just now. Also, bring me some meat.”
“Alright!” Wanfeng’s eyes lit up upon hearing his orders and she rushed down the tower at a quick jog, heading for the kitchens.
There weren’t many people left in the governor’s mansion now. Of the few that remained, none of them bothered with Lu Yun. They merely drew their salaries and did nothing, lazily awaiting the arrival of the next governor.
“What a pity that this body is some sort of dormant bloodline. Otherwise, I could’ve cultivated my way into being an immortal and had some fun as well.” Despondency gripped Lu Yun.
Night crept up on them unawares. He remained in the Mooncatcher Tower, looking out over Dusk City. After eating and drinking his fill, worries began nagging at him again.
“The previous owner of this body was a serious bastard! A class-A bastard! Though I’m a tomb raider, a job that goes against the grain of heaven, I profit only off of dead people. I’m still pretty good to the living. But this fellow was thoroughly evil.”
Beating around the bush to gather information from Wanfeng about his predecessor, Lu Yun felt that he’d be beaten to death as soon as he lost the protection of being province governor. As a vassal of Nephrite Major, he currently enjoyed the major’s protection.
“Why don’t I run away with Wanfeng? I’ll hide out in the mountains with that pretty little fairy and sire a few children. When I get bored, I can raid some tombs. That seems like a solid plan. I’ll make my getaway after finishing this job!” Plots for the future arose in Lu Yun’s mind as he looked outside the city at the now dark Mount Carmine Dusk.
“Hmm?” Panic flashed across Lu Yun’s face as his brows furrowed.
Shadows of nine black dragons slowly arose from the gardens of the manor. Grimacing and brandishing their claws, they pounced at Lu Yun. There was an inky black coffin upon their backs.
Enneawyrm Coffinbearers.
“The feng shui’s materialized as something tangible?” Lu Yun jumped in shock.
This was a very vicious feng shui layout. The nine wyrms were dragons of extreme yin, and the coffin they carried was also of extreme yin that had collected all of the evil spirits beneath the heavens. It wrecked human fortunes and robbed lifespans.
Prolonged residence in such a place would destroy families, at best, or end a family line at worst. Compared to that, the Nine Yin Repudiation wasn't even worth mentioning. On Earth, this feng shui layout could only indistinctly affect someone's luck, but the one here was a solid, tangible thing! Whoever lived here would see the end of their family line!
In all honesty, House Lu was in the final throes of dying out. Just look at how Governor Lu Yun had already died!
The most important thing was that they were standing on Dusk Province's lifepoint. An Enneawyrm Coffinbearers layout nurtured by the energies of a land's lifepoint? This exceeded the limits of Lu Yun's comprehension.
“I’m dead without a doubt if this thing pounces on me! No, I won’t die, I’ll turn into a zombie!”
Lu Yun wanted to run, but he couldn’t move. He could only watch as nine shapes—each roughly a dozen meters long—charged at his body along with the coffin on their backs.
His eyes rolled up in the back of his head and he fainted dead away.
Hum.
Suddenly, an ancient tome of bronze blinked briefly into existence above Lu Yun’s head and devoured the images whole.
1. This is the ancient Greek suffix for nine, and is something with a historical basis. Legend has it that Warlord Wannu of the Eastern Xia kingdom in the 13th century had nine dragons carved on his coffin. These weren’t stereotypical dragons, but a new kind of dragon created by local minorities. Their bodies resembled that of a snake and they were multi-footed like centipedes. Other venomous bugs also decorated the coffin, which was a perfect octagon. Each point was held up by a dragon, and a final one encircled them all to provide stability. A wyrm is a poetic name for a snake or dragon, particularly without wings. The imagery is a rather nice fit for what’s being described here, and the Chinese dragon in general.
Advertisement
Delve
Summary – Level 1: Delve is an isekai litrpg that follows an average guy who just happened to wake up in a forest one day. He wasn’t summoned to defeat the demon lord or to save the world or anything like that, at least as far as he can tell. The only creature there to greet him was a regular old squirrel. Soon enough, he meets other people, only to discover that he can’t speak the language, and that not everybody immediately trusts random pajama-wearing strangers they met in the middle of the wilderness. Things generally go downhill from there, at least until the blue boxes start appearing. Delve is a story about finding your way in a new, strange, and dangerous world. It’s about avoiding death, figuring out what the heck is going on, and trying to make some friends along the way. It’s not about getting home, so much as finding a new one. Did I mention that there will be math? Summary – Level 2: Okay, but what are you in for, really? Well, this story is supposed to be realistic, or at least, as realistic as a fantasy litrpg can be. The main character doesn’t instantly become an all-powerful god and murder-hobo his way across the universe. Delve is, at its heart, a progression fantasy, but that progression is meant to feel earned. The numbers in this story actually mean something. Everything is calculated, and if you find a rounding error, I expect you to tell me about it. That said, if math isn’t your cup of tea, there is plenty more that the story has to offer. Characters are meant to feel real, and progression isn’t only about personal power; it’s also about allies, connections, and above all, knowledge. Figuring out how the system works is a significant theme. ... What, you want more details? Okay, fine, but this is going to get a bit spoiler-y. Are you sure? Yes! Really sure? I mean, this summary is practically half as long as the first chap– Now! Okay, okay! The main character becomes a magic user, but he takes a route that is not very popular in adventurer culture, namely that of a support. There is a full magic system with various spells, skills, and abilities, but our MC decides that aura magic is the way to go, and that the only stat worth investing in is mana regeneration. Most people at the Adventurer’s Guild think that this makes him a bit of a dumbass, but he’s playing the long game. We’ll see how that works out for him, won’t we? Because of his build, the MC levels up fast, at least compared to normal people. There are no cheats, though, and he is limited in other ways. There are some clear and pretty obvious downsides to his build. That’s what makes it fun, no? Morals? Our MC has them. Again, we’ll see how that works out for him. Realism, remember? Would you be okay with killing someone and looting their body? I sure hope not. POV? The focus is on the main character, but there will be occasional varying perspectives from people around him, or involved in the events related to the main plot. It isn’t going to jump all over the place. Tech is standard medieval stasis. No smartphones, but the MC does have a technical background. Computers and their programming might be involved. There might even be a bit of uplifting down the road, who knows? Anyway, it isn’t the focus. He isn’t going to invent the gun in chapter 1 and change the face of warfare. Romance is not a major focus. Friendships are more the name of the game, though there will be some characters in romantic relationships. There is exploration, though not as much of the geographical nature as you might expect. It is more about exploration of the system and the culture. The pace is slow and detailed, sometimes verging on slice-of-life. The action is meant to be realistic and grounded in the numbers, and it is intended to have meaning beyond simply punching things until they stop moving. The general tone of the story is grey, and some parts can get quite dark. People die. Sometimes, people with names, but not anywhere near GoT level. There is plenty of light, too, though, to balance the darkness. The world is dangerous, but overcoming that danger is why we’re all here, isn’t it? Anyway, if you’ve made it this far through the summary, you clearly like words. I hope you enjoy the story! Cover by Miha Brumec Summary Updated: 2020-06-14
8 822Humanity's End
Given a year to prepare by the mysterious ‘system’ for contact with the wider galaxy, humanity must work to ensure the Earth’s defense is ready to meet any challenge. Sadly, most of the world seems dedicated to tearing itself apart as the year-end deadline gets closer. The west is in barely contained Chaos, while the east descends into internal conflict and war. The Pillar Forts, one of the few successful projects of the United Nations headed by the United States, stand ready to defend humanity against any invasion that may come through the strange Connection Pillars that appeared on each continent. Massive steel and stone walls that surround the Connection Pillars. They are filled with deadly men and women trained in all manner of warfare, each trained in the newly acquired System with skills and magical abilities that they put to deadly purpose. Beside these brave warriors, tanks, helicopters, artillery and more stand ready to defend humanity at each of these powerful installations. But, can they overcome the disparity in levels and experience between themselves and the forces that threaten them and the rest of humanity? Main Characters Jessica Brown- A young African American girl. Her 18th birthday in Detroit was the same day the systems message appeared. She discovered she was Level 7, much higher than most of the rest of the world. Why she is blessed, or cursed, with the power she doesn’t know. But what she does know is that she rather likes the feeling that comes with manipulating magic. The week after her birthday, government workers started testing every person in the US in a massive census effort of skills and abilities. Jessica Brown found herself conscripted into the US Magical Corp, a new branch of the US Military, and shipped off to a Pillar Fort. Somewhere hot and muggy in her ancestors’ home of Africa. As she grows stronger, she finds she has some connection to the pillars. While everyone else sees beauty or danger when they look at the pillars, after connection is made all Jessica can see is a Tree. A tree the size of the entire universe. Isaka Smith - is a third generation American and farmer who just wants to be left alone. But she is dragged into the situation by events beyond her control. When people in her small town had to deal with rioters and looters after the system announcement, she rallied them to defend themselves, earning her a trait that the government found extraordinarily useful. After a visit to a local reservation, she finds herself conscripted to lead one of the many small support towns erected around the great pillar forts. Not near her old home, but in far-flung Africa. John McIntire, the “Fighting Bull” -The commander of the African Fort, but because of circumstances beyond his ability to contend with shortly after taking command after being re-activated from retirement, he finds communication with his chain of command increasingly difficult. The US government, hell, even the United Nations, seems to have fallen into complete and utter chaos. The African Union is embroiled in a bitter civil war just outside his door, and supposedly, most of the world governments are in similar situations. Meanwhile, John must do his best to be ready to facilitate diplomacy, or to match the hostile argument of whatever force might come through the pillar of light when the year timer finishes counting down. Can our heros defend Earth from outside threats, while it tares itself apart? Or will they need to rebuild from the ground up? DEDICATION: This story is dedicated to my father who passed away recently. Jim Holloway, you’ll be missed you old silverback gorilla. Love you dad. Always have, always will.
8 301Rise of Toki
From a common worm to human to a dragon, they have a gem embedded in their bodies since birth. These gems contained the skills of that specimen for it to grow and mature. The more skills one obtains, the stronger they become, the more evolutionary options they open. Then their powers would be passed down to their children to unlock. This is a story about a little tortoise rising up against ... the world! Maybe not. It all started out when this little tortoise sought out to find her little sister in a big world. My attempt to draw the main characters.
8 202Sky Dungeon
In a world filled with magic, where gods roam the earth and fearsome beasts of legend fill the land, mysterious monsters known as dungeons have existed in perpetuity since the dawn of time. This is the story of one particular dungeon that ruled the skies. A lone dungeon that hovered over the earth and traversed even the world’s most lone and desolate places! A dungeon of dreams, of hopes, and of many desires that inspired great fear in some and great destiny on others. The one and only flying dungeon of its time, the sky dungeon! Inspired by Ancient Strengthening Technique by I Am Superfluous and RoyalRoadLegend’s Dungeon Heart by MinningDragon. The Cover is temporary and is not my own work, nor have I been given permission to use it. I found it on a blog belonging to the artist Aiste Surutkoviciute.
8 133I, Paladin (an urban fantasy novel)
I was born and raised in Guthrie, Oklahoma—a town with 10,000 people. Mama runs a vintage diner inherited from family and the farthest I’ve been from home is a thirty-minute car ride to Oklahoma City. It's been a traditional middle-America upbringing. Until I have to defend myself from a vampire at sixteen. Suddenly, life is fight training, classes about monsters, and possessing a power I don’t understand or know the origin of—all made more complicated by a crush on my instructor, Agent Thirteen. I don’t want any of this, but The Agency promises to pay Mama’s medical bills and making sure she’s taken care of always comes first. It’s only been the two of us for years. Becoming a paladin means sacrifice.
8 168Cross Roads: The Monsters Among Us (Book One)
In a series of bizarre murders around the Sycamore University, now more than ever people are getting restless and scared. With no end in sight, a gift from heaven (so to speak) comes knocking on their doorstep. A group of magical young ladies with immense strength and unfathomable intelligence, arrives as a godsend. As they delve deeper into the investigation, a story between what is righteous and what isn't stands firmly in the presence of what is really happening around campus.
8 157