Fantasy Library.

Chapter 489 "The Evil God"

"rustle--"

In the dark and silent mountains, the trees grew more lush and the grass became denser as they went deeper into the mountains.

Once we got here, even the moonlight didn't shine through much, making visibility even lower.

"This is a bit troublesome..."

Aize walked through a mountainous area that most people would not be able to venture into, his brows furrowed slightly.

He wasn't afraid of encountering any enemies here, but if he did encounter them and had to fight them, then the current environment would be too unfavorable.

"With limited visibility and lots of trees and bushes around, it's impossible to swing your sword freely in such a place. You might accidentally hit a tree instead of your enemy."

Aize tightened his grip on the Murasame, pondering what strategy to adopt in this environment to minimize the impact and maximize his strength, while continuing to walk into the mountains without any hesitation.

As he walked, before he could even encounter anything, Aize heard a familiar, anxious shout.

"Ah! Master! How did you suddenly get so deep into this kind of place?"

With such a shout, the girl's petite body, as if it were nothing, passed directly through the lush trees and bushes, descending from the sky and landing in front of Aize.

If it wasn't Cong Yu, then who could it be?

"You finally caught up!"

Aize was not surprised at all by Cong Yu's appearance.

This ghost can locate its own position, fly in the sky, and move freely through various obstacles, so catching up with it wouldn't be a difficult task.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that she only caught up with him now, which is already quite late.

Seeing Aize's calm demeanor, Cong Yu was both annoyed and worried.

"Do you know how worried we were? And yet you're still so calm!"

This immediately made Cong Yu feel resentful.

"I was mentally prepared before going up the mountain. If I can't act calmly now, it would just make me look like I'm recklessly courting death, wouldn't it?" Aize said calmly. "Alright, enough talk, let's keep going."

Aize traversed the rain and continued deeper into the increasingly steep and rugged mountains.

"Please don't go any further, Master!" Cong Yu knew she couldn't stop Aize from going any further, so she could only grab his shoulder and plead, "Let's go back before anything goes wrong."

"Yoshino must be worried sick right now. If something happens to you, Master, that child will feel so guilty."

But their indifferent attitude showed no sign of that.

Aize thought this, but didn't say it aloud.

Because he also knew that Asahi Yoshino was not a bad person.

On the contrary, this priestess is a very good person, which is why she disregarded her own needs and insisted on not dragging Aize into this mess.

Judging from the behavior of Asagi Yasuharu and others, it's clear that if they could get the help of Aizawa, who pulled out Murasame, it would be an invaluable opportunity for Asagi Yoshino, who is hiding something.

However, in order to avoid involving innocent people, she took the initiative to give up her own interests and treated Aize coldly in a thankless way, unilaterally rejecting him, intending to keep Aize away from danger in this way.

This undoubtedly proves that Yoshino Asagi is an absolute pushover.

Now, Aize has entered the mountains despite the danger, and it is because she unilaterally refused that he decided to explore the reasons for this action. This will definitely make Asatake Yoshino both worried and guilty.

If something happens to Aize, Asatake Yoshino will definitely feel guilty, and even more than that.

Unfortunately, Aize was also a stubborn person. Once he decided to do something, he would never back down.

"If you keep trying to persuade me, I might just find a way to dump you again, okay?"

Without looking back, Aize took a dangerous step.

"No!" Cong Yu was indeed frightened, and said with a bitter face, "Too cunning, Master, you actually use this method to threaten us!"

"Who told you not to cooperate with me?" Aize smiled and said, "Since you've already called me master, then no matter what special status or position you have in Suizhi, you should stand on my side and listen to what your master says."

"If you can't do it, I don't need you to follow me anymore. I can handle the rest by myself."

Cong Yu's little face immediately wrinkled up, looking like she had something to say but couldn't.

If anyone else dared to speak to her like that, her family elders would have already given them a good scolding before she even had to reprimand them.

She, the administrator of Congyu Maru, a human pillar carrying divine power, has protected Suizhi for hundreds of years. To those Suizhi people who know of her existence, she is no different from a god, and no one would dare to disrespect her.

Even those highly respected figures in Hozuki, including Asagi Yasuharu and Kurama Genjuro who couldn't see her, had to bow half their heads before her, Murasame, and respectfully address her as Lady Murasame. Even Asagi Yoshino, who was a high-ranking priestess, did so.

But only Aize could lecture her so confidently.

Because this person is indeed her master, and has the right to do so.

Given the current situation, Cong Yu is genuinely worried that Aize will abandon her and act alone again.

With her there, even if Aize encountered that thing, he wouldn't be completely helpless. But without her, if Aize encountered that thing alone, he would definitely face a near-death experience.

Left with no other choice, Cong Yu had to compromise.

"Alright, I will follow my master."

Cong Yu looked like she had a bitter pill to swallow. "That's right..."

Just as Aize was about to offer a compliment, his steps suddenly faltered.

This caused Cong Yu, who was able to reach Aize, to accidentally bump into Aize's back.

"W-What's wrong, Master!"

Cong Yu became somewhat panicked.

"Shh..." Aize immediately gestured for Cong Yu to be quiet, and said, "It sounds like something is coming..."

Aize's gaze sharpened.

"What?" Cong Yu panicked even more, stammering, "Is it a malevolent spirit? Could it be a ghost?"

...A ghost like you, are you afraid of other ghosts?
What kind of ridiculous thing is this?

Aize really wanted to say that, and even wanted to ask Cong Yu what the "evil god" he mentioned was.

However, as time went on, Aize clearly heard an unusual noise coming from the nearby bushes.

"Pat-a-pat... pat-a-pat..."

It sounded like some wild beast slowly moving through the bushes, scurrying about in the grass.

Aize heard the source of the sound and immediately turned his sharp gaze in that direction.

"Pat-a-pat... pat-a-pat..."

Finally, as the sound grew louder and clearer, the thing parted the bushes and emerged from the darkness.

It was a mass even deeper than the darkness of the deep mountains, giving off an overall feeling of filth. At first glance, it looked like a wild beast that walked on four limbs, but upon closer inspection, one would find that its limbs and body were like mud-like creatures, ugly and dirty.

Its appearance was as if it were a wild beast made of filthy mud, with even the bottoms of its four limbs dripping mud, making it look extremely horrifying.

There wasn't even a clear outline around the other's eyes, but when it turned its head to look at him, Aize still felt like he was being stared at.

"...Could this be a mutated wild boar?"

Aize twitched the corners of his mouth, as if he were trying to find joy in hardship, and said those words.

Cong Yu, on the other hand, is completely different from Aize.

"A malevolent spirit!"

Cong Yu was no longer as panicked as before, but she still exclaimed and spoke loudly.

"The evil spirit has indeed appeared! Be careful, Master!"

It's unclear whether the black, muddy lump heard Cong Yu's voice. As soon as Cong Yu finished speaking, it pounced on Aize with a whoosh.

The speed of the attack was as fast as a bullet.

"Snapped!"

Aize reacted immediately, stomping his foot hard on the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand, and dodging to the side with a speed no less than that of the black mud lump.

"Oh!"

The black mud lump suddenly crashed onto the tree behind Aize, making it teeter on the verge of collapse.

Just as Aize dodged the opponent's pounce, he was suddenly attacked without warning before he could even regain his footing.

"Shh!"

Suddenly, a dark shadow sliced ​​through the air, long and thin, lashing out at Aize like a whip.

"Oh!"

Aize's pupils contracted, and he hurriedly squatted down. The long, thin black shadow grazed his scalp and struck a tree, causing it to shed leaves and tear several layers of bark.

"Shh!"

The shadowy figure, having failed in its first attack, immediately changed direction and struck at Aize again, but Aize dodged it with a roll on the spot, leaving only a whistling sound of wind cutting through the air.

Once Aize regained his balance, he realized that the long, thin black shadow actually extended from the body of the black mud lump.

The thing that looked like tentacles or whips, controlled by the black mud clumps, was cutting through the air and blowing away the mud as it swung wildly toward him.

"Good heavens, it can even attack from a distance?"

Aize dodged the opponent's attacks several times, looking somewhat disheveled.

There was no way around it; the terrain here was bad, the footholds were unstable, and it was a slope. The surrounding area was filled with trees and bushes, making it absolutely impossible to nimbly dodge enemy attacks in this environment.

If it weren't for Aize's exceptional skills, let alone dodging the attacks of that black mud lump, it would have been difficult to even move quickly in such a place.

"Shh!"

The black mud blob, however, was relentless, mercilessly slashing off its tentacles and continuing its attack on Azer.

Seeing this, Aize's eyes turned cold, and he reached out and gripped the knife.

(End of this chapter)