Chapter Sixty-Six: Induction and Transformation

Having found a suitable corpse, Liu Chun set to work immediately, and Liu Zong, needing no further prompting, began clearing away the nearby bodies. Liu Zong understood that such a massive corpse was impossible to move far, so Liu Chun’s employment ritual would most likely take place right here. Thus, the surrounding corpses would become variables that might affect Liu Chun’s chances of success. While Liu Chun was busy with the main corpse, Liu Zong had to remove these other bodies, at the very least providing Liu Chun with a relatively safe environment.

Fortunately, the corpses in this area weren’t piled together as haphazardly as they were on the outskirts. Besides the two-headed giant, there were only five other large bodies nearby. Liu Zong, acting as a laborer, dragged them roughly a hundred meters away from the giant. When he finished, he ignored the chill of the ground and collapsed where he stood, utterly spent.

Seeing Liu Zong’s exhaustion as he worked on the two-headed giant, Liu Chun laughed. “Next time you go through your employment ritual, I’ll help you.”

Liu Zong, too tired to lift his head, replied, “Better not. It’s best if I can go through mine in one of the school’s rented spaces. Bringing out what I need is troublesome enough—moving these corpses would be much worse.”

As they spoke, Liu Chun had already begun a thorough, all-encompassing treatment of the giant’s body. To Liu Zong’s surprise, aside from the two heads, Liu Chun stripped away every bit of decayed flesh from the corpse, leaving the white skeleton exposed.

Looking at the towering skeleton, Liu Zong couldn’t help but ask, “Senior Liu, is this really going to work? Aren’t Soul-Imprisoning Demons supposed to be hulking muscle giants? Why—?”

Liu Chun laughed, “If I left all that rotten flesh, the Soul-Imprisoning Demon wouldn’t become a true muscle giant. Just watch.”

As he spoke, he produced an assortment of tools and materials. First, he reinforced the skeleton with a certain metal, then installed a triangular device on the giant’s chest. Though it was only palm-sized, Liu Zong sensed its function was similar to the energy distribution chambers found in temple complexes: it controlled the flow of power.

With that done, Liu Chun produced a variety of cages, some as large as birdcages, others as small as a human thumb. The shapes varied too—some resembled birdcages, some were square, some spherical, and a few looked like pens. Binding the cages tightly to various parts of the skeleton with mummy wrappings, Liu Chun then took out a piece of quivering, pulsating flesh.

Liu Zong recognized this as well: technically named “infinite living flesh,” it was a necromantic material that, given enough nourishment, could grow endlessly in prescribed ways—a staple in the creation of zombies. Into this living flesh, Liu Chun inserted segments of nerve fiber, each about the length of a finger. These were typically used in mecha engineering, controlled by electrical currents to animate machinery—not specifically for necromancy, and they were usually much longer. No matter; Liu Chun connected these nerve wires to the various cages, with the main line running to the triangular device on the chest.

Once this was done, he affixed the living flesh to the skeleton, carefully controlling its growth so it wouldn’t cover the cages’ openings. When the entire skeleton was packed with living flesh, Liu Chun began fitting armor onto the giant. All the armor was bone-based, apparently collected from various sources; some pieces were too small, and Liu Chun would recast them on the spot, adjusting only their size. After all, one of his areas of study was metallurgy, and such minor modifications were trivial for him.

After all this, Liu Chun finally took out two cages as large as the giant’s heads. Unlike the earlier ones, these were forged from high-grade metal and engraved with intricate sigils. Clearly, these were the core soul prisons essential to the Soul-Imprisoning Demon.

One cage resembled a massive birdcage, the other a large iron box. Producing these, Liu Chun began preparing the giant’s heads. Once finished, he fitted the birdcage over the head meant for spellcasting, while the physical-combat head had its jaw removed and replaced with the iron box, which served as a new jaw.

Only after all this did Liu Chun drape a cloak over the two-headed giant and turn to Liu Zong: “Junior Liu, step back a hundred meters. I’m about to begin.”

Liu Zong nodded and withdrew to a safe distance, watching Liu Chun’s every move. By the time Liu Zong had retreated, Liu Chun had already inscribed numerous magic circles over the giant’s body. When Liu Zong was in position, Liu Chun drew out a leather pouch and began his work.

From the pouch, he plucked a small cluster of green-glowing objects. Though Liu Zong couldn’t see clearly from afar, he sensed these were the souls of abducted humans. Liu Chun placed these souls, one by one, into the various cages on the giant’s body. With each soul, he recited an incantation, and a corresponding part of the giant’s body would twitch slightly. It was clear this was by design: the heads would serve as the primary centers for physical and magical attacks, while the finer movements of the body would be controlled by the souls ensnared in the various cages.

As for Liu Chun’s own soul, it would most likely reside in the triangular device in the chest.

While Liu Zong pondered the reasoning behind this setup, Liu Chun emptied the leather pouch of its souls. Setting it aside, he drew out a silk bag, from which shone blue-hued souls of clearly superior quality. There were fewer of these; Liu Chun retrieved only seven, sorting them carefully and injecting them into the two heads of the giant.

Once everything was in place, Liu Chun pressed his palm to the giant’s chest and began to chant. As the incantation rose, Liu Zong saw thick black vapors surge toward Liu Chun and the two-headed giant, enveloping them both. Countless arcane symbols flickered within the darkness, and within these sigils, faces twisted and writhed, one after another, until finally they all took on the likeness of Liu Chun.