The Terror of the Heavens Begins with Gu

Chapter 168 Meeting Xie Yali and the Weight of Fate

With quick reflexes, Li Zhen grabbed Huang Huotu's clothes.

The incident happened suddenly, and Huang Huotu's head still hit the wall.

Li Zhen absorbed most of the force, but the impact still caused blood to flow from Huang Huotu's forehead.

Huang Huotu tilted his head back and continued to slam his head against the wall.

Li Zhen twisted Huang Huotu's hands behind his back and slammed him to the ground.

Huang Huotu struggled desperately, feeling as if the icy hand gripping his hands was an iron clamp, making it impossible for him to break free at all.

"Even if you kill yourself, I can still get your blood and hair. Besides, you can't kill yourself directly. If you cripple yourself, you'll be completely powerless to resist."

Huang Huotu was breathing heavily.

Li Zhen slightly relaxed his pressure on Huang Huotu: "If you really die, how do you know if Kevin, your friends, and your daughter are alright? Aren't you worried that they might hurt your daughter out of spite?"

Huang Huotu shouted weakly, "What exactly do you want me to do?"

“Your life is the ultimate deterrent; you can’t die so easily.” Li Zhen released Huang Huotu, who had calmed down. “Kevin didn’t die, and your friends, wife, and daughters are all safe; that’s already the best outcome.”

"But you're still killing people." Huang Huotu groaned in pain, curling himself into a ball.

Li Zhen said, "I can't stop her, I can only try to end this as soon as possible."

"What you need to do is take good care of your family and make sure nothing happens to them."

He tore off a piece of his sleeve and wiped Huang Huotu's blood off the wall, then plucked out a few strands of Huang Huotu's hair.

The matter of removing the fingernails was causing Li Zhen some worry.

Looking at Huang Huotu, I found a keychain with a small pair of scissors on it in the small bag hanging from his waist.

Li Zhen picked up the small pair of scissors and took some fingernails from Huang Huotu's hand.

After putting these things away, Li Zhen went to the entrance on the third floor and frowned as he looked down.

Without that woman's influence, he gradually suppressed his own problems, which made the pain in his mind lessen.

Li Zhen felt that his connection with the red-eyed bat was gradually being restored.

This is probably the sincerity that woman showed...

With his eyes closed, Li Zhen sensed the state of the red-eyed bat.

The sound of wings flapping rang out.

A somewhat dazed red-eyed bat flew up to the third floor with a rope in its mouth.

Li Zhen let the red-eyed bat land on his right arm and patted its head.

The red-eyed bat was trembling, as if it were terrified of something.

The reason Li Zhen didn't let the Red-Eyed Bat and the little devil go upstairs was because he was concerned about how terrifying the woman was.

If that woman can influence him from a distance, even if he brings the Red-Eyed Bat, it will be useless. She might even turn against him like a demon.

Especially for the most ferocious vampires, if they retaliate when the vampires are weakened, the consequences will be severe.

Therefore, Li Zhen not only left the vampires and the like in the dark downstairs, but also sealed the little ghosts and mahjong ghosts that might harm him in the vampires' baskets beforehand, leaving only the red-eyed bats as a mobile force that could come to his aid at any time.

In hindsight, this caution was not unwarranted...

After tying one end of the rope, Li Zhen glanced at Huang Huotu, who had gotten up.

"Don't you want to meet the murderer? Don't you want to see how things develop?"

Leaving the red-eyed bats upstairs, Li Zhen slid down the rope to the ground floor.

Only when he stepped onto solid ground did Li Zhen finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After going around several walls, he arrived at the innermost, dilapidated room.

Vampires and banshees are all here.

Upon arriving in front of the vampire, Li Zhen discovered that the vampire was in a special dormant state.

Even at such close range, his connection with the vampire remained faint.

Li Zhen looked at the female demon again and found that she was also in this state.

Detective Li used various methods to awaken both of them.

Banshees wake up faster than vampires.

Only after Li Zhen led the banshee out of the dilapidated building did the vampire stiffen and follow them out.

Footsteps sounded, and Huang Huotu, his face covered in blood, staggered out of the dilapidated building.

Li Zhen turned his head and looked at Huang Huotu with some surprise.

"Are you going to see the murderer?" Huang Huotu asked.

“I’m going to put an end to this,” Li Zhen replied.

Huang Huotu wiped the blood from his face: "I have a car, take my car."

He showed no curiosity about the vampires and banshees that appeared beside Li Zhen, and walked straight past Li Zhen, continuing forward.

The two returned to the front of Sheng Zuchang's house along the same route.

Huang Huotu opened his car door and sat in the driver's seat.

Li Zhen stuffed the vampire and the banshee into the back seat, while he sat in the passenger seat.

Huang Huotu wiped the blood from his forehead and stared blankly ahead.

Do you really believe that anyone can become an immortal?

"You've seen it."

"An immortal..." Huang Huotu took a deep breath and angrily punched the steering wheel. "Killed so many people, and became an immortal? I've never heard of such an evil immortal!"

Li Zhen leaned back wearily in his chair: "Have you ever seen a real immortal? The immortals you know are just things you've heard about from legends and stories. Maybe that's what immortals are like."

After a long silence, Huang Huotu finally asked, "Where to now?"

“Go to the nearest hospital,” Li Zhen said. “First, we need to prepare some things for you.”

Huang Huotu started the car and drove forward.

A few minutes later, the car stopped at a red light.

Huang Huotu rubbed his eyes and suddenly said, "Why do so many people want to become immortals?"

Li Zhen said wearily, "I can't stop them from doing what they want, and neither can you. I just want to hitch a ride for a while."

“I don’t want innocent Kevin Wright to be killed, nor do I want your innocent colleagues to be killed. You should be able to see my sincerity.”

Huang Huotu whispered, "If I die, can I stop her plan?"

Li Zhen said ruthlessly, "Even if you only have one breath left, they can control you and make you follow their plan."

"Moreover, even without you, as long as I bring your hair, blood, and your corpse with me, I might be able to help them complete their plan."

"Even if you stop me now, there will be other people who will do these things for them."

He said meaningfully, "Huang Huotu, neither you nor I can stop this from happening now; it was destined to happen."

"Even if you notify the criminal investigation team now and call for backup, it won't help. It's better if they don't believe you. If they do believe you, it will cause even greater casualties. You saw what just happened."

Huang Huotu remained silent.

Li Zhen closed his eyes.

He himself didn't know whether Xie Yali could actually help him become an immortal; what he was doing now was just an experiment.

If things can be accomplished, Xie Yali will directly help him bridge the gap between his current state and that of a Ghost Immortal, which would be an absolutely wonderful thing.

If Xie Yali had that ability, he could first achieve the status of a ghost immortal with his primordial spirit, abandon his physical body, and then find a way to return from yin to yang, regenerate his physical body, and become a true "immortal".

However, Li Zhen was not actually very optimistic.

From the perspective of the "Five Elements Evil Spirit Sublimation Method", there are still two tribulations between now and the ultimate leap to becoming a god after five tribulations.

These two tribulations are definitely life-or-death ordeals.

Xie Yali himself didn't know how much effort he had put into planning his ascension to immortality and the actual completion of the ceremony.

It seems unreal that Xie Yali helped him overcome the two intermediate tribulations and make the final leap.

With this in mind, even now, Li Zhen still hasn't let go of his worries about Xie Yali.

If the other party is unable to help him achieve immortality, then what they said before was just an excuse to keep him calm...

Li Zhen rubbed his temples.

Is the talisman really pointing to the world of "Double Vision"?
If it is a world of dual pupils, then besides becoming an immortal, what else can help him?

Li Zhen couldn't figure it out.

His current actions are a way to maximize his own interests while considering the mission.

On the other hand, besides this approach, what other way could he take the initiative when facing that mysterious and unpredictable woman?
Xie Yali's matter needs to be concluded tomorrow...

Kevin Wright and the others can't die...

Things haven't turned out too badly so far.

The car stopped in front of the hospital.

Li Zhen asked Huang Huotu to buy a professional gas mask. Since he needed to be in contact with Xie Yali, he naturally had to be careful about the mold Xie Yali possessed.

Li Zhen, who wasn't breathing, didn't need a gas mask, but Huang Huotu did.

Back in the car with the gas mask, Huang Huotu said, "Is this mask for protection against that kind of mold?"

"Yes."

"Is this mask useful?"

"It should work."

"You do not need?"

"I am different from you."

"Where to now?"

"Central World Building".

Where is the murderer hiding?

Huang Huotu stepped on the gas and drove the car toward the Central World Building that Li Zhen had mentioned.

The Central World Building is a famous landmark, and Huang Huotu is no stranger to it.

About half an hour later, the car stopped in front of the building.

Detective Li got out of the car first.

After dragging the vampire and the banshee out of the car, Li Zhen looked at the Central World building.

The building was lit up, but Li Zhen didn't see a single person.

A faint smell of blood wafted from the direction of the building.

Li Zhen, sensing the danger, knew that many people must have died inside this building.

Huang Huotu, holding a gas mask, got out of the car.

He looked at the building and said to Li Zhen, "Aren't you worried that they'll change their minds if you come directly to their stronghold? It seems like there's nothing you can do if they don't do what you say."

Li Zhen said, "The person who deserved to die is dead. The most important thing now is to get that person out of here as soon as possible."

"As long as you share my views, then we are on the same side, and if you can cooperate with me, things will go smoothly."

"I don't have a gun or any self-defense equipment." Huang Huotu put on a gas mask. "If something unexpected happens, there's nothing I can do."

Li Zhen said, "If things don't go well, we can just leave the building."

That being said, Detective Li did do some things, though.

On the way, he left a trap on the vampire, banshee, and red-eyed bat. As long as he activated the trap, even if these three completely lost consciousness, they would quickly retreat to the place he left the mark, and bring Li Zhen out with them as well.

Although that woman could influence vampires and the like, she couldn't affect this kind of magic that wasn't based on a connection with Li Zhen.

This was the conclusion Li Zhen reached after carefully examining the condition of the vampire and the banshee.

Without much thought, Li Zhen led the vampire and the banshee into the building.

The red-eyed bat hid behind the banshee.

Wearing a gas mask, Huang Huotu followed behind Li Zhen.

On the way, Li Zhen told him the identity of the mastermind and the whole story.

As a police officer, Huang Huotu has a very sharp mind when it comes to cases, so he was able to tell that Detective Li was not lying to him.

The real culprit, Xie Yali, is inside...

This matter should be resolved today...

The building's electric doors opened by themselves.

An even stronger stench of blood assaulted his senses, making Li Zhen's mind and body even more active.

He took a deep breath, somewhat ecstatic.

The vampires also became somewhat restless.

Despite the gas mask filtering out the smell, Huang Huotu couldn't detect the bloody odor.

Having already guessed what Xie Yali had done, Li Zhen walked through the hall.

An open door appeared before him.

Behind the entrance was not a modernly decorated hall, but an ancient Taoist temple that looked as if it had just been unearthed from a deep mountain forest.

A huge incense burner was placed in front of the Taoist temple.

What's even more eye-catching are the two menacing stone sculptures placed on either side of the Taoist temple.

The Taoist temple is built of wood and stone, and is classical and gloomy, which is out of place with the modern buildings. It is like a special cave world hidden in the buildings.

This arrangement bears a striking resemblance to the layout used by the Wu Nu (a female immortal) who ascended to heaven, as seen by Li Zhen.

However, compared to that, the layout of the Wunu area is much more magnificent.

Therefore, Li Zhen was not greatly shocked when he saw the Taoist temple.

On the contrary, Huang Huotu was greatly shocked when he first saw such a bizarre and magnificent sight.

If you hadn't walked into this building, who would have thought that there was a Taoist temple hidden inside the Central World Building?
Li Zhen walked through the gate and headed straight into the Taoist temple.

The stronger smell of blood made his body tremble uncontrollably.

More people died inside the Taoist temple than he had imagined...

Upon entering the Taoist temple, Li Zhen saw corpses lying on the ground and crimson blood everywhere.

Various kinds of cold weapons were scattered among the corpses.

Judging from the manner of their deaths, these people were not suicides, but were murdered.

Huang Huotu, upon entering the Taoist temple, was stunned to see so many corpses.

He then ran through the blood to a corpse, placed his hand on the corpse's neck to examine it, and found that the person was indeed dead.

After examining several corpses, he finally found a middle-aged man who was barely breathing but not quite dead.

"Wake up!" Huang Huotu hurriedly picked the person up. "Hang in there! I'll call a doctor right away!"

He had seen dead people, but he had never seen so many dead people.

Even in his state of mind, he was somewhat at a loss at this moment.

Li Zhen walked to the very center of the Taoist temple.

He glanced around but didn't see Xie Yali.

"I've arrived, why aren't you coming out yet?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a series of light footsteps sounded.

Li Zhen turned around and looked.

A young woman with short hair, a face as pale as his, and an aura of coldness walked out from behind the statue.

The woman was wearing loose white clothes, and there was a bright red patch on her abdomen, like blood, with a huge wound vaguely visible beneath her clothes.

She was barefoot, her feet treading on the blood, as she slowly walked toward Li Zhen.

What's most bizarre is her eyes.

When he looked at Li Zhen, his four pupils kept moving, which was very eerie and oppressive.

She walked silently to Li Zhen's side, circled around him, and sniffed him.

Li Zhen said calmly, "I thought you would try some tricks to stop me from coming here."

Xie Yali said softly, "If you want me to help you become an immortal, you won't stop me from becoming an immortal. On the contrary, you will help me become an immortal. Why would I use tricks to stop you? Now it's just that the original plan is being brought forward a little. Nothing has changed, nothing will change. This is destined."

Walking up to Li Zhen, Xie Yali sniffed Li Zhen's neck: "This is the smell of terminal illness. This feeling... you are a bit like us."

"Great enlightenment can only come after a serious illness, and your enlightenment is already very high."

"Unfortunately, the path you are on is different from ours. If you want to become an immortal, the road ahead is much longer than ours."

Li Zhen frowned: "Can't you take me with you to become an immortal?"

Xie Yali took a few steps back and chuckled softly, "You seem to know me very well. I seem to have no secrets from you. You appeared suddenly and were able to find my weakness with ease."

Li Zhen said, "Unless one transcends to become an immortal, as long as one is human, one will definitely have weaknesses and it is impossible to be carefree."

Xie Yali smiled but didn't say anything.

After carefully examining Li Zhen's face for a while, she murmured, "Who are you? This world shouldn't have a place for you. It's strange... It's as if you don't exist in this world at all."

Li Zhen steered the conversation back on track: "That's not important. What's important now is how to become an immortal."

"Do you know why they were able to become immortals with me?" Xie Yali glanced at the corpses on the ground. "Because they helped me and accumulated merit in my ascension to immortality, so if I become an immortal, I can take them with me."

"The one who was originally destined to help me disintegrate was Huang Huotu. He had done me a great service and would definitely be able to go with me."

"You definitely know this, but you may not know that Huang Huotu and I have a karmic entanglement spanning several lifetimes. It was destined many years ago that he would help the person who sacrificed himself for me."

Li Zhen said expressionlessly, "It's a win-win situation for me to replace Huang Huotu."

Xie Yali did not answer, but asked, "Do you know that there is a distinction between the importance and unimportance of one's destiny?"

(End of this chapter)