“Whoosh—”
The wind howled like a ghost.
It had been sunny in the morning, but by midday, the sky suddenly turned gloomy without any warning.
Li Andy, carrying a rucksack made from a curtain, and Youxi carefully made their way through the forest, following the mountain range.
They planned to head towards what might be the new 【Dui Trigram】 location.
“Brother! Up there!”
Youxi suddenly grabbed him and ran towards the shade of a nearby tree.
Li Andy looked into the distance but saw nothing, yet he still followed the girl into the shadows.
Following Youxi’s gaze, after about three seconds, he saw a gray crane with two cat heads dangling from it, flying out from the horizon and circling above the forest.
The mournful cat screeches echoed continuously.
Youxi nervously clutched Li Andy’s sleeve and said with a trembling voice:
“That’s Martial Uncle A-He… He originally only had one head. But now… none of the heads are his.”
Li Andy was infected by her emotion, and he couldn't help but slow his breathing, swallowing a mouthful of saliva, as he squeezed behind the tree with the girl.
After about three minutes, the gray crane flew towards another mountain peak.
Li Andy keenly noticed that the crane seemed to disappear instantly the moment it reached the edge.
Spatial teleportation?
How could they fight against such a cheat-like ability?
“Xi, how did you know it was coming?” Li Andy couldn’t help but ask.
Youxi paused for a moment, then replied:
“I saw him flying.”
“Saw him, are you sure?” Li Andy frowned and asked again.
Youxi’s expression clearly hesitated, as if she wasn’t quite sure:
“It… it seems so.”
Li Andy frowned in thought… This girl, does she have some kind of precognitive ability?
“Roar—!”
Suddenly, a tiger’s roar came from behind them.
Youxi was terrified:
“It’s Lord Laozhou!”
Li Andy quickly turned around, only to see a large, blood-striped tiger with a blind left eye and a cluster of black thorns on its face, staring at them from a distance.
When did it appear?!
Li Andy was horrified.
He had clearly let those furniture items help with vigilance and distraction! Why could it still approach silently?!
Li Andy pulled Youxi and fled quickly, his heart filled with extreme unease.
It was like playing a game where you chose a squishy ranged character with extended vision, only to find that all your opponents were stealthy assassins.
Is it a formation? Is it a daoist spell?
Li Andy had no time to continue thinking, the sound of the tiger’s pursuit grew closer.
He gritted his teeth, scooped Youxi up, and activated the strange blood qi power within him, dramatically increasing his speed as he darted through the forest.
However, no matter how much he accelerated, the distance between him and the tiger continued to steadily shrink.
“Brother, there’s a vine! Let’s swing to the opposite cliff!”
Youxi found a way out, pointing her finger towards a large tree at the edge of the cliff.
Li Andy immediately turned by stepping on the tree and rushed over without hesitation.
With his blood pumping, he didn't consider the safety of the vine, but grabbed it with one hand and, holding Youxi, swung to the cliff edge over ten meters away.
“Roar—!”
The mountain lord stood on the opposite side, pacing, his crimson right eye fixed on the two of them.
On the tiger’s face, the black spikes constantly swayed with the facial muscles, which was physiologically unsettling to behold.
Li Andy still dared not rest for long; after a few gasps, he continued to flee with Youxi in his arms, and guided by her, he found a hidden small mountain cave and hid inside.
As the adrenaline gradually cooled, Li Andy’s rationality slowly returned.
Recalling the previous scenes, he felt a sense of dread, but also a vague feeling that something was wrong.
If these monsters had such elusive abilities, why couldn’t they get closer and then suddenly appear for an instant kill?
Are they toying with us?
“Brother, do you think we can escape?”
Youxi’s body was still trembling, still shaken.
She had been carried by Li Andy, so if she just looked back, she could clearly see the foul-smelling tiger’s maw.
And in order to warn him in time, she had endured fear and disgust almost the entire time, meeting the eerie tiger’s gaze under pressure.
“It’s okay, we can escape.” Li Andy hugged her to comfort her.
“But Brother…”
Youxi sniffled, sobbing softly:
“I feel… I can’t escape… Waaah… Why don’t you escape by yourself, Brother, go to Wenling City, find my aunt, she can find my mother in Luoying.”
Li Andy gently stroked the back of the girl’s head:
“Now is not the time to give up, it’s not the last moment yet.”
Youxi raised her hand to wipe away her tears, her heart still uneasy.
Li Andy couldn't help but sigh. To be honest, he felt that he might not be able to get out of these eerie mountains on his own. Therefore, Youxi, as a local, could not be casually abandoned, not to mention that she seemed to have some inexplicable connection with this mountain.
Just then, a voice that made Youxi’s hair stand on end came from behind them:
“Xier, so you’re here…”
Li Andy’s eyes widened. In the crevice of the rock ahead, a Daoist priest in a blood-stained yellow robe stood there, he didn't know when he appeared.
The person’s eyes were hazy, his hair disheveled, and he held a blood-stained ritual bell in one hand and a peach wood sword, soaked black with blood, in the other.
Damn it!
Why is this like a third-rate horror movie?
No buildup, just jump scares!
‘Wait, third-rate horror movie… inexplicable plot…’
Li Andy froze, looking at the despairing Youxi in his arms, seemingly understanding something, his brows slightly relaxing.
“Xier…”
The Daoist priest staggered into the cave,
“There are many evil spirits on this mountain, you shouldn’t run around… Oh? Fellow Daoist, where do you come from?”
Li Andy pursed his lips, pulling the dazed Youxi, and retreated towards the other exit.
“Oh? Unwilling to speak?”
The Daoist priest shook his head regretfully,
“That’s fine. Fellow Daoist has come a long way and must be extremely tired. This humble Daoist is willing to bestow a great fortune upon Fellow Daoist!
“Hahahaha… Fellow Daoist, please come to the Blood Soul Pond to converse with my martial brothers, and help me ascend, how about it? Hahahaha!”
Saying that, his body swayed and actually transformed into a bizarre paper figure, drifting over with a cold wind!
Li Andy dared not delay and immediately unfurled the curtain package.
With a rustle, various sundries in mid-air came to life, pouncing on the paper figure like animals.
However, the paper figure was as hard as steel; no matter how they tore at it, they couldn’t leave a single mark, only slightly slowing down its speed.
“Brother, you escape by yourself!”
Youxi cried and struggled in Li Andy’s arms,
“Put me down, I’ll go the other way to buy you time!”
Unexpectedly, Li Andy held her even tighter:
“What’s the rush! What if he chases me first?”
Youxi froze, unsure how to respond for a moment.
“Hey, do you know what’s under the cliff?” Li Andy asked as he ran.
“Under the cliff?”
“You don’t know? Then I’ll tell you, there’s a lake down there! And a hidden cave!”
Youxi was stunned, and images of a lake and a cave subconsciously flashed through her mind.
At this moment, Li Andy just reached the edge of the cliff, and then, without hesitation, he jumped down with her.
“Ahhh!” Youxi screamed, hugging him tightly, her legs wrapped tightly around Li Andy.
Li Andy, on the other hand, focused all his attention on the curtain.
The next second, with a “whoosh,” the curtain twisted and came to life, transforming into a headless goose, flapping its wings vigorously, trying its best to slow its descent.
On the cliff, the Daoist priest frowned tightly, watching the two disappear into the sea of clouds.
The wind here was very strong, making his Daoist robe flap loudly.
If he transformed into a paper figure to pursue, he could easily be blown away or off course.
Below the cliff, Youxi noticed the change in the situation and carefully opened her eyes.
When she looked down, she actually saw a lake, and a small cave not far from the lake.
“Rip—!”
The curtain-goose could no longer bear it and tore apart on the spot.
The two, losing balance in the air, accelerated their descent and plunged into the lake with a “splash.”