I'm modifying myself into the ultimate demon.

Chapter 172 Ten Thousand Zombies, Jiang Hongyue Appears in a Dream!

"No, no... I am a living, breathing person. Xiao Mo... is my nephew!!" Li Yulan covered her head, screaming almost frantically.

"idiot!"

Zhao Gu snorted coldly, then stepped forward and grabbed Li Yulan by the neck, revealing his icy teeth. He smiled sinisterly and said, "I'll eat you first, then I'll remake you, and you'll be obedient then."

Click!

Zhao Gu swallowed Li Yulan whole in a few bites, no matter how much she struggled. It was as if she were naturally restrained by something.

After Zhao Gu swallowed Li Yulan, his belly visibly swelled up, and his skin began to undulate, making a "gurgling" sound.

next moment--

Zhao Gu suddenly opened his blood-red mouth and spat out a human figure.

It was Li Yulan.

From the outside, Li Yulan looked no different from before, but she looked around blankly, scrutinizing Chen Mo for a long time, but ultimately couldn't remember anything.

Finally, I looked away, gazing at the vast valley in the distance, feeling dazed and confused.

Zhao Gu was very satisfied with this, and said, "Go back to farming."

"Yes, village chief."

Li Yulan stumbled back along the same path, muttering to herself, "I feel like I've lost something..."

"I feel like I've lost something... but I can't remember what it is, damn it."

She kept muttering to herself as she hurried on her way, until her lonely figure finally disappeared completely into the vast hills.

Jiejiejie~
Zhao Gu turned to look at Chen Mo and the other man, letting out a chilling laugh. "I really have to thank Li Yulan. If she hadn't come to see me this morning, I wouldn't have known she had two evil spirits in her house. Now it's your turn, hehe~"

The moment the words left his mouth, Zhao Gu opened his blood-red maw and pounced on Chen Mo and his companion like a tiger charging down a mountain, shouting, "I'm going to eat you all, eat you all..."

"Xiao Ye, step back!" Chen Mo waved his hand, about to make a move. Suddenly, a purple figure leaped in front of him and gently tapped Zhao Gu.

hum!
A crisp sound rang out.

Without causing much of a commotion, Zhao Gu seemed to have had his bones broken by something, and he knelt limply on the ground, letting out a "whoosh" and foaming at the mouth.

Chen Mo: "..."

This night... is so fierce.

Nangong Ye then spoke up, "Take him with you, and let's find a safe place to hide so we won't be discovered by the people of Red Village. I need some time to read his memories."

Chen Mo nodded in agreement, then pulled Zhao Gu forward like a little chick.

"Woooo~"

Zhao Gu was weak and limp the whole way, still coughing up blood. He looked extremely pitiful.

Chen Mo couldn't help but think to himself: This Zhao Gu is quite skilled; his strength is probably at the seventh level. He was actually defeated by Xiao Ye with just that one blow…

Chen Mo had to reassess Xiao Ye's strength.

When Chen Mo saw Xiao Ye blocking the Red Lantern Goddess at the Huai River last time, he only thought that Xiao Ye was a master of the Transcendent Realm.

In retrospect, we greatly underestimated Xiaoye's strength.

The situation here was critical, so Chen Mo didn't ask too many questions. He continued on his way. He saw that the surrounding hills were crisscrossed, and in the distance there was a large canyon that seemed to stretch to the horizon. The air was thick with resentment, and even from a distance, one could hear countless ferocious vengeful spirits howling and screaming in the valley, which was extremely terrifying.

Even with Chen Mo's cultivation level of six incense sticks and six patterns, he felt a sense of fear and unease.

Chen Mo withdrew his gaze and looked at the dense forest to the west of the Ten Thousand Corpse Pit Valley. "That forest is the only place we can hide. Shall we go there to settle down first?"

Nangong Ye glanced at the dense forest in the distance, then looked at the barren hills around him, and nodded: "That is indeed the only place to stay. Let's hurry over there."

The two traversed mountains and valleys, rushing away at high speed.

The dense forest looked very far away, but it was actually much farther, a distance of several dozen miles.

Fortunately, the two of them learned quickly and soon reached the edge of the dense forest.

This dense forest is vast, with towering trees that block out the sky, their branches and leaves so thick and lush that the end is nowhere in sight.

Chen Mo was puzzled: "Since crossing the wooden bridge and arriving at this desolate mountain, everything around us is barren, except for this place, which is an oasis. This is very unusual..."

Nangong Ye, who was walking alongside him, also spoke up, "This dense forest is indeed quite abrupt. We don't need to rush into the depths of the forest. We can just find a place to cover ourselves on the side."

Chen Mo nodded and said, "Yes. It's all barren mountains outside, without any obstacles. It's very easy to be discovered by ghosts and monsters. I have a feeling that the ghosts in this place are extremely abnormal, so we should be careful."

The two found a large tree whose name they didn't know and settled down under it. Chen Mo casually tossed the still-bleeding baby onto the tree roots, then sat down to rest. Suddenly... Chen Mo stood up abruptly.

This sudden movement startled Nangong Ye, who was standing nearby: "What's wrong with you?"

Chen Mo stared at the dense forest ahead: "Look."

Following Chen Mo's gaze, Nangong Ye was startled to see... a two-foot-tall child, dressed in a white robe, carrying a bamboo basket on his back. He stood on the hillside in the woods, watching him from afar.

Although it was daytime outside, the dense, lush trees in the forest blocked out much of the light, making the forest gloomy. The sudden appearance of a child in white staring at him was somewhat frightening.

Perhaps because she had been discovered, the white-clad doll suddenly darted into the jungle and disappeared completely.

Nangong Ye said, "There's no time to lose. Let me read through Zhao Gu's memories first. I'll need some time during that period and can't be disturbed."

"Don't worry. I'll stay here."

"Ah."

Nangong Ye immediately raised his hand and placed it on Zhao Gu's forehead. It seemed as if a special power was being injected into Zhao Gu's head, and Nangong Ye's expression became extremely solemn. He had obviously begun to read the other party's memories.

Chen Mo took the opportunity to stare at Zhao Gu and opened the control panel.

[Something that can be deduced has been detected]

[Hint: You can deduce this by consuming 80000 original solution essences]

[Currently available original solution essence: 220000]

Seeing the information on the panel, Chen Mo was somewhat disappointed.

It cannot be deconstructed, only deduced.

With Nangong Yejiang reading the memories, there was no need for him to waste 80,000 units of original essence.

Moreover, the deduction would take a long time, and at this moment, Nangong Ye began to read memories, with the surrounding situation unknown. Neither of them could afford to be unprepared at the same time.

With this in mind, Chen Mo put away the panel, slung the burlap mirror over his shoulder, and cautiously looked around. He activated his keen senses, so he could detect any abnormality immediately.

They paid particular attention to the spot where the child had just appeared.

"What exactly is this child? Could it be like Jiang Xiaoti? Is it the fetus in Jiang Hongyue's womb?"

“No… According to Shen Yujun, Shen Yujun was here? She even dug up Jiang Hongyue’s body from the mass grave and removed the undeveloped fetus from her womb, enshrining it in a shrine.”

Thinking about this, Chen Mo was filled with doubts.

Shen Yujun's cultivation level isn't high; she's not even a Yellow Pages Ghost. How could she possibly come here and dig up Jiang Hongyue's corpse? That doesn't make sense.

But that was said by Shen Yujun herself, so it might not be false.

Regardless of how Shen Yujun got here, if Shen Yujun really did remove Jiang Hongyue's body, then... Jiang Hongyue's body shouldn't be here anymore.

But why do all the subsequent events point to this?

Chen Mo became increasingly puzzled as he thought about it, but he had too little information to draw any conclusions. In the end, he had no choice but to give up.

"Forget it, let's wait until Xiaoye reads Zhao Gu's memories first. Maybe she can learn quite a bit."

Composing myself, I noticed that Xiaoye was still diligently reading the information.

brush!
Chen Mo lightly pushed off the ground with his toes, and instantly darted up to the treetop like a snake, standing there gazing into the dense forest ahead. He was startled to see a red, ancient house standing before the throng of trees. A large red lantern hung above the house.

"Is this the old house that Emperor Tianbao built overnight when he fled in an emergency? Was it by hiding in the old house that Emperor Tianbao was able to wait for Jiang Hongyue's arrival? But why is such a large red lantern floating above this old house?"

Because of the distance, Chen Mo could not see the specific layout of the red ancient house, but he felt that the ancient house was exceptionally scarlet and quite terrifying.

Aside from the old house, shadowy figures occasionally flashed through the woods, accompanied by sounds of ghosts wailing and wolves howling, but the child was nowhere to be seen.

Chen Mo turned around and gazed at the huge barren mountain outside the forest, and the great valley at the end of the mountain. Even from dozens of miles away, one could still see the resentment rising from the valley and smell the stench of blood.

"Such powerful resentment! My heart is racing even from this far away. Such a place of resentment must breed extremely powerful ghosts. I can't stay here for too long. I must find the altar as soon as possible and end this sleepwalking dragon thing."

Having made up his mind, Chen Mo returned to the tree roots. After waiting a moment, Nangong Ye stopped and let out a long sigh of relief.

Chen Mo asked, "Is the loading finished?"

Nangong Ye nodded: "Yes. Zhao Gu was originally a native of Hongcun, but an accident happened. He worshipped at a temple called Rakshasa Shrine and worshipped Rakshasa Mother as a deity. He received Rakshasa Mother's blessing, which turned him into a monster with abilities similar to the Water Serpent."

Later, Zhao Gu killed all the native villagers and recreated them as his puppets. He then guarded Red Village to prevent the dragon-walking people and other evil spirits from entering.

Chen Mo was taken aback: "Rakshasa Shrine? I do remember Li Huabai mentioning it to me. Rakshasa Shrine is the largest hidden force in the underground of Nanzhou. When I killed Hua Yunfeng, Hua Yunfeng's wife, Xiulan, summoned Hua Yunfeng's soul back by worshipping Rakshasa Mother. Through soul-searching, she learned the cause of Hua Yunfeng's death. The reason Xiulan later came to my Green Wolf Gang was because of this."

Nangong Ye said, "This is the first time I've heard the name Rakshasa Shrine. However, according to Zhao Gu's memories, Rakshasa Shrine has a very important background. There's an old red house in the woods that seems to be related to Rakshasa Shrine..."

That old house... is it related to the Rakshasa Temple?
Chen Mo said, "Tell me all your memories."

Although Nangong Ye disliked being ordered around, he seemed to have gotten used to it after spending so much time with Chen Mo. He didn't think much of it and recounted Zhao Gu's memories in detail.

After listening, Chen Mo finally learned about what had happened to Zhao Gu in the past:

Originally, Zhao Gu was a native villager and even the village chief. Later, when Emperor Tianbao came to excavate the mountains, the villagers opposed it. However, Zhao Gu, greedy for wealth and power, actively flattered Emperor Tianbao. He then helped Emperor Tianbao reclaim land in Hongcun and forced the villagers to plant crops.

After all, digging through mountains is not a task that can be accomplished overnight; it will take several years to complete. Relying solely on external supplies of food and provisions is rather inconvenient. Therefore, local cultivation becomes very important.

Because of his success in planting, Zhao Gu was received by Zhao Yunlong, the general of the army that dug the mountain.

Later, General Zhao Yunlong unearthed an ancient tomb while digging in the mountains. He then asked Zhao Gu to come and determine the origin of the tomb. Zhao Gu didn't know, but he did say that the Yinshan Mountains were haunted and that the tomb should not be disturbed, suggesting that Zhao Yunlong take a detour.

Zhao Yunlong had personally seen the ancient tomb and found it eerie. He wanted to take a detour, but Emperor Tianbao, eager to make a name for himself, didn't take it seriously. So he ordered Zhao Yunlong to excavate the tomb directly.

Then... Zhao Yunlong went to dig up the ancient tomb.

Then… tens of thousands of soldiers, including Zhao Yunlong, and hundreds of thousands of laborers, all perished overnight. Emperor Tianbao, with only a few trusted confidants, fled the camp where the mountain was being excavated and fled to this mass grave. He hastily set up a red ancient house overnight, thus escaping the calamity.

Even so, Emperor Tianbao was still cursed by the ghosts. Every night, large numbers of ghosts would come to the forest, frightening the emperor so much that he dared not go out.

Later, Jiang Hongyue came to this place.

They took Emperor Tianbao away.

Later, Jiang Hongyue returned to this place. Not long after, a group of old Taoist priests arrived, claiming to be from the Rakshasa Shrine, intending to sacrifice Jiang Hongyue. In the end, all those who participated in the sacrifice died. Only a few of the priests in charge survived.

The old Taoist priests, terrified, dared not linger and departed. Before leaving, they made Zhao Gu pay homage to the Rakshasa Shrine and bestowed upon him special abilities. From then on, Zhao Gu guarded Red Village, resisting external evils and the dragon-walking people. He became the Rakshasa Shrine's dog…

Chen Mo sorted through the information and found that it basically matched the information he had obtained before.

We are getting closer to the truth.

"Does Zhao Gu have any information in his memory about the dragon-walkers and priests?"

Nangong Ye shook his head: "Very few. Zhao Gu only knows that these dragon-walking people were created by Jiang Hongyue. Jiang Hongyue has a dream-giver who often causes trouble in the village and even crosses the village to pick up the dragon-walking people from the foot of the mountain. As for more information... Zhao Gu doesn't know anything else."

Chen Mo nodded, then sat on the tree root, rested his chin on his hands, and sorted through the information from beginning to end.

Nangong Ye said, "Now that Zhao Gu is dead, the other villagers in Hong Village will probably die as well. Hong Village is no longer a threat. What are your plans next?"

Chen Mo glanced at Zhao Gu, who was lying dead on the ground, and then said, "There are two places here. One is the woods behind us and the red old house. The other is the valley in front, which is the mass grave of 100,000 people and the location of that ancient tomb."

Nangong Ye: "Which place should we go to first?"

Chen Mo's mind became very calm at this moment: "It doesn't matter where we go, the most important thing is to find Jiang Hongyue's body. You need to break the curse of the ghost story, and I need to break the confusion of the shamanic dance and the dragon-walking. And the answer to all of this lies in Jiang Hongyue."

Nangong Ye nodded: "That's right. Since we're already in this forest, why not take a look at the old red house there first? After all, it's a place left behind by Emperor Tianbao. Maybe there will be some clues about the ancient tomb."

"it is good."

Neither of them were coy, and once they made up their minds, they immediately entered the forest and slowly walked towards the core area of ​​the forest.

Da da da.

As they walked slowly forward, a damp, cold wind blew through the forest. The leaves rustled and whispered, and the occasional howls of ghosts and wolves echoed in their ears.

To be honest, even though Chen Mo was quite skilled, he felt a little uneasy at this moment. Nangong Ye, on the other hand, walked on very calmly.

Chen Mo observed this and thought to himself: This Xiao Ye seems to have seen a lot of the world.

Chen Mo quickly followed, staying close behind Nangong Ye.

Nangong Ye said, "Are you scared because you're so close?"

Chen Mo: "What nonsense are you talking about? I'm doing this to better protect you."

Phew.

Nangong Ye couldn't help but laugh, but didn't say anything. But to be fair, having another man around always made things a little more peaceful.

Suddenly, the two of them stopped in their tracks, their eyes widening in surprise.

Ahead lay a mass grave.

Rows of abandoned graves were piled up densely together. Many of the tombstones had collapsed, revealing the coffins. Some coffins were rotten, exposing the remains inside, with skulls scattered everywhere.

The forest was dimly lit, and every now and then, clusters of green will-o'-the-wisps flickered and swirled around the desolate graves.

Extremely frightening.

Chen Mo walked to a desolate grave, squatted down, and picked up the tombstone that had fallen to the ground. The writing was already decayed and illegible, but the writing... was not the script that Da Qian was familiar with.

It is at least not the script of this dynasty.

As for whether the script of the previous dynasty differed from that of the current dynasty, Chen Mo had no idea. But generally speaking, the evolution of script is a gradual process, not a sudden break in continuity or an unpredictable pattern. Only if a country is suddenly and completely destroyed by a foreign power, and the foreigner aggressively promotes their own script, would a country's script suddenly cease to exist.

"Xiaoye, come here. Do you recognize the inscription on this tombstone?"

Nangong Ye leaned closer, examined it for a while, and then shook his head: "I don't recognize it. The script of the previous dynasty and the script of this dynasty are largely the same. This script... must be from many years ago, or it may be a foreign script."

Chen Mo nodded and then checked the inscriptions on the tombstones of several other abandoned graves in the vicinity, and found that they were all the same.

"It seems that the people buried in this mass grave are not the people who dug the mountain for Emperor Tianbao. Rather..." Chen Mo suddenly turned around and looked out of the woods, "...could they be the people buried with the ancient tomb?"

Logically, with Emperor Tianbao leading tens of thousands of troops and hundreds of thousands of laborers to excavate this mountain, there must have been deaths. Those who died were most likely buried on the spot. But the inscriptions don't match; the only possibility is that ancient tomb.

After all, the script used in Hongcun is the script of the Great Qian Dynasty. It's not the villagers' graves.

Nangong Ye also realized this and nodded emphatically: "No wonder Zhao Gu had this sentence in his memory: Never cross that cliff after dark. It seems that the people buried here are the funerary objects of the ancient tomb."

"Why didn't you say that sooner? There's such a thing."

"I didn't think of it just now."

"In that case, we need to search this place thoroughly before dark and then return to Red Village."

The two passed over a series of desolate graves and soon arrived at the gate of the old red house.

This red ancient house isn't very large. It's about the size of an enlarged version of a traditional courtyard house. The red tiles, red walls, and red lanterns are strikingly unusual.

Above the entrance is a plaque that reads "Rakshasa Shrine".

Two red lanterns hang on either side of the plaque.

The ground in front of the door was overgrown with weeds, indicating that no one had been here for many years.

Chen Mo said, "No one has been here for many years, so why are these red lanterns lit?"

Nangong Ye pointed to the sky above: "Blood Moon."

Chen Mo nodded: "Go in?"

"Ah."

Squeak.

Nangong Ye pushed open the heavy red door and went in first, with Chen Mo following closely behind.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and there was an old well in the southeast corner.

After entering through the hanging flower gate, we arrived at the central courtyard.

Upon entering the living room in the atrium, Chen Mo discovered that all the doors and windows were nailed shut with wooden strips, so densely packed that it was difficult to find even a single gap.

There are traces of life there, but because of the long passage of time, the traces are mostly blurred.

In the main seat of the living room, however, stood a decaying shrine, with an incense burner in front of it, though the burner itself was rotten. The air was thick with the smell of decay.

Nangong Ye pointed to the wooden strips nailed to the wall, "It seems that when Emperor Tianbao fled here with his people, he was terrified and deliberately nailed the doors and windows shut. Could nailing the doors and windows shut really prevent the evil spirits inside the ancient tomb from invading?"

Chen Mo was also curious, gently stroking the wooden strips nailed to the doors and windows: "It is indeed strange. Logically speaking, the evil things in that ancient tomb should be extremely malevolent, causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people overnight. Even the Tianbao Emperor was cursed, and even Jiang Hongyue, who was the top leader in the world at the time, was bewitched. What is the significance of these wooden strips?"

Nangong Ye asked, "Do you still remember those coffins from the mass grave?"

Chen Mo pondered for a moment and said, "You mean... these wooden strips are made from those coffin boards?"

Nangong Ye said, "The textures match, so it should be. Those burial companions should be subordinates of the evil spirits in the ancient tomb, from the same sect. When those evil spirits saw these coffin boards and wooden strips, they thought the people inside were their own? Or is there some other related reason? That's why Emperor Tianbao escaped this calamity?"

Chen Mo: "That makes sense. But this old house looks very sturdy. How could the Tianbao Emperor have built such a large red old house overnight?"

Nangong Ye said, "Do you still remember my boat puppet?"

Chen Mo suddenly realized, "So that's how it is. The Ancient Temple and the Red Mansion also have similar abilities. That makes sense. It's getting dark, so in order to find relevant information before nightfall, let's split up and see if we can find any information about Jiang Hongyue. If we encounter any trouble, let us call out."

Nangong Ye nodded in agreement, and the two split up to search.

Nangong Ye went to the front yard, and Chen Mo went to the back yard.

The doors and windows of all the rooms in the backyard were nailed shut with wooden strips.

Over a century has passed, and virtually no trace has been left behind, let alone any useful information.

Chen Mo found a room, unwrapped the burlap sack on his back to reveal a mirror. He then lit three incense sticks, and after the incense smoke was absorbed by the mirror, he woke up Su Yuqing.

Wow.

In the mirror, a new bridal chamber appeared. Su Yuqing, with a red veil covering her face, sat in front of the dressing table doing her makeup. She slowly spoke, "Why did you think of me, young master?"

Chen Mo didn't waste any words and said directly, "Open your eyes and look. This is the Red Mansion, a mass grave on the top of Dayin Mountain. When you came here with Jiang Hongyue to visit relatives, you must have come here to visit your father, Emperor Tianbao, right?"

brush!
Su Yuqing immediately stood up, slowly walked to the mirror, and looked at the scene outside.

The next moment, Su Yuqing began to sob.

"Yes. This is it. I remember it. Father was frightened here and fell under a curse. He was in a state worse than death. It was Second Mother who led us away from here."

As expected… Chen Mo asked directly, “What happened next?”

Su Yuqing remained silent.

Chen Mo said, "Now that things have come to this, there's nothing left to hide. Speak quickly."

Su Yuqing then spoke, "An accident happened when we left here."

"What accident?"

"It seemed that something was preventing Second Mother from leaving, so she told Father to go first, and then she stayed behind with me to cover our retreat. We went to the ancient tomb with the mass grave. That's where the accident happened."

Explain in detail.

"Second Aunt realized she was being haunted by something, so she took me to an ancient tomb. There was something terrifying inside. As soon as I entered, I was taken to a bridal chamber. Second Aunt used her great supernatural powers, employing the ability of the Twin Cities Mirror, to cut me and the bridal chamber into the mirror. That's how I avoided a ghost marriage. But I'm still under a ghost curse and can't leave the mirror world. If Second Aunt were still alive, she could use the mirror's power to release me. But Second Aunt is dead. I can only try to find someone who can hear the story of that ghost curse myself."

Chen Mo felt a chill run down his spine upon hearing this: "You mean, you just entered the ancient tomb and were taken to the bridal chamber by the evil spirits inside. They want to have a ghost marriage with you?"

"Yes. That ghost curse story is actually about Second Aunt and that evil spirit."

"I understand. That ancient tomb is quite eerie, isn't it?"

“It was very strange. I had just entered the ancient tomb and hadn’t seen anything when a mysterious force brought me to the bridal chamber. I was also inexplicably dressed in a Xiuhe dress.”

"So, you know absolutely nothing about the ancient tomb?"

"do not know."

"Is there anything else you'd like to add about this place?"

"I've said everything I need to say. No one has ever been inside the ancient tomb. Except for Second Aunt... only Second Aunt knows what's inside the ancient tomb."

"I understand, you may leave now. I have other matters to attend to." Chen Mo dismissed Su Yuqing, then wrapped the mirror up again, thinking to himself: Does Jiang Hongyue know how to use the power of the mirror?

mirror……

Chen Mo didn't think much of it, slung the mirror over his shoulder, and went out. He found Nangong Ye in the courtyard: "Did you find any useful information?"

Nangong Ye shook his head: "It's been too long, hundreds of years. All traces will be washed away."

"Have you found any patterns or designs of altars or similar objects?"

"No."

Chen Mo felt a pang of regret. "Since the altar isn't here, it must be inside the ancient tomb. And that ancient tomb is precisely the most dangerous place."

Chen Mo wasn't really that concerned about what Jiang Hongyue had gone through.

He only wanted to find that altar. He wanted to figure out how to deduce its location and see if he could break free from the shamanistic constraints binding him. If that were the case, his journey to the Great Yin Mountain would be a complete success.

Unexpectedly, the altar was not located here, but in the most dangerous ancient tomb.

It's really creepy.

Nangong Ye noticed Chen Mo's worry and comforted him, "It's getting dark. Let's leave here and go back to Hong Village. We'll think of something tomorrow."

"it is good."

The two hurriedly left the red mansion and ran wildly through the woods.

The sun was setting very quickly.

It descended the mountain at a speed almost visible to the naked eye.

Finally, just as the sun was setting, the two rushed out of the woods.

It was dusk, the sky was ablaze with fiery clouds, and a blood moon slowly appeared.

The resentment in the huge valley ahead had become noticeably stronger, as if something was reviving.

Even with Nangong Ye's cultivation, he felt somewhat uneasy. "It seems that Zhao Gu's words were not without reason. Let's hurry on our way."

"Ah."

The two crossed two hills and ran wildly along the barren mountain.

Suddenly, Nangong Ye stopped. Chen Mo, who was following behind, also stopped and stared incredulously in the direction of the valley.

The blood moon's light shone into the valley, and resentment soared into the sky, almost turning into visible smoke that slowly rose. Then, one by one, corpses rose from the pit of corpses, walked out of the valley, and spread towards Chen Mo.

"Woooo~"

"Hooho~"

At first, the corpses moved very slowly, but later they came running like crazed zombies.

It was densely packed, stretching as far as the eye could see.

Hey!
Zombies!
Click!

Chen Mo grabbed Nangong Ye's hand: "We can't go back to Red Village. Let's go back to the Red Mansion in the woods."

"Ah."

The two of them ran frantically towards the mountains and forests.

Boom!

More and more zombies rushed in from behind, shaking the ground with the force of a thousand galloping horses, closing in from all directions. Some of the faster zombies had already reached him, opening their blood-red mouths to tear at him.

Phew!

Chen Mo raised his hand and unleashed countless golden silkworm threads, slicing up more than a dozen zombies, and then dragged Xiao Ye along as they ran wildly.

But the next moment, the dozen or so shredded zombies continued to pile up and resurrect, charging forward in a frenzy once more.

Can't be killed!

"Ow!"

Another large horde of zombies charged in, tearing and biting.

Nangong Ye raised his sword, and a blazing sword aura surged forth, sweeping over ten meters away. It sliced ​​through hundreds of zombies, barely clearing a path. Even so, the dead zombies immediately revived, joining forces with other hordes of zombies to surge forward like a tidal wave.

There are just too many.

This place is about seven or eight miles away from the mountain forest.

"Young master, you go first!"

Nangong Ye shouted and pushed Chen Mo forward. At the same time, he put his hands together, took out a silver talisman, bit his finger to form a magic seal.

"Corpse-suppressing talisman, manifest three thousand forms!"

With a swift movement of his hands, Nangong Ye unleashed a silver talisman that split into three thousand individual talismans, which were then affixed to the foreheads of the three thousand zombies. Suddenly, with a "crack," the three thousand zombies were frozen in place, unable to move an inch.

Seeing this, Nangong Ye finally breathed a sigh of relief, then took off to catch up with Chen Mo, grabbed Chen Mo's hand, and ran towards the mountains.

Chen Mo watched Nangong Ye's actions with great admiration: "Little Ye, you have excellent magic skills."

Nangong Ye said, "There are too many of them, probably over a hundred thousand. Once we're surrounded, we're doomed..."

Before he could finish speaking, the silver talismans on the foreheads of those zombies spontaneously burst into flames, and they continued their frantic charge.

Ok?
Nangong Ye frowned deeply.

What an evil force!

Even the corpse-suppressing talisman isn't working anymore?

Unheard of.

"Come on!"

……

puff!

After a tremendous struggle, the two finally returned to the main house of the Red Mansion and closed the door. Even with Nangong Ye's cultivation level, he couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood.

"Xiaoye, are you okay?"

Chen Mo went over and helped him up.

He vaguely remembered that Xiaoye had killed no less than 10,000 zombies just now.

But it didn't work.

Zombies are unkillable.

They will be resurrected immediately.

If it weren't for Xiaoye's extraordinary bravery, the two of them probably wouldn't have made it back here.

Xiao Ye's unparalleled skill deeply shocked Chen Mo.

Nangong Ye shook his head: "It's nothing, just overexertion. I need to recuperate and recover my mana."

Chen Mo glanced at Nangong Ye, whose robes were stained with blood, and didn't think much of it. "You should rest and recover. I'll hold the door shut."

Chen Mo braced himself against the door and peered out through a tiny crack. He was horrified to see countless zombies appear in the courtyard, a swarm of them emitting low, hoarse cries. Some zombies had half their heads severed, their brains spilling out, yet they still moved with surprising agility.

However, the zombies, smelling the scent of the wooden planks, did not push open the door, but instead began searching the surrounding area.

Sure enough, the coffin lid worked.

Chen Mo breathed a sigh of relief.

Disturbingly, the zombies never left and continued to search the surrounding area.

"No wonder even the Tianbao Emperor couldn't leave this place. With so many zombies appearing at the same time, how could anyone possibly escape... I'm doomed."

After a brief moment of thought, Chen Mo felt a chill run down his spine, and his heart was filled with despair.

and many more……

Didn't Jiang Hongyue come here and take Emperor Tianbao away back then?

It's clear that Jiang Hongyue still has a way to leave.

I just don't know how Jiang Hongyue did it.

This woman is remarkable.

Sadly, Jiang Hongyue is dead...

Bang!
Just then, a zombie came and rammed the door.

The force was so great that the ground shook. Chen Mo had no choice but to brace himself against the door with both hands.

Bang bang!

The zombie rammed into the ground a few more times before finally leaving.

Whoohoo!
Chen Mo gasped for breath, thinking to himself: There are countless zombies outside, and the entire dense forest is probably full of them. If a zombie discovers that I am here, I will have no chance of survival.

Next, a few zombies occasionally tried to ram the door, but Chen Mo held them back firmly.

One night passed.

Outside, it was dawn.

However, the zombies did not leave. They remained gathered in the old red house.

It made Chen Mo feel extremely insecure.

Fortunately, Nangong Ye had finished recuperating by this time. He slowly stood up, moved closer to Chen Mo, and saw the scene outside through a tiny gap.

Chen Mo asked softly, "Have you recovered?"

Nangong Ye nodded: "It's alright now. It's already daytime, so why haven't the zombies dispersed? That doesn't make sense. Zhao Gu's explanation doesn't match this situation either."

Chen Mo said, "Could it be that we triggered something hidden, causing the zombies to persist even during the day?"

Nangong Ye: "It's possible. Let's wait another day."

A day has passed.

It's night.

The zombies are still outside.

Nangong Ye and Chen Mo both felt a chill at the same time, and their faces turned pale.

After a long period of intense mental strain, both of them felt extremely tired, especially Chen Mo, who hadn't rested at all last night.

Nangong Ye said, "Young Master, please rest for a moment. I'll guard the door."

Chen Mo nodded, gave his seat to Nangong Ye, and then dragged his tired body to sit on the ground next to him, lying on the ground in a starfish shape, but his mind was working at a rapid pace.

Logically, this shouldn't happen during the day.

After all, the zombies went berserk because of the blood moon.

There is no blood moon during the day.

The words left behind by the caregiver: Never cross the cliff after dark.

This shows that for many years, nothing bad happened here during the day.

It must have been Chen Mo and Nangong Ye's arrival that triggered something.

What could it be?

An old house!

The problem probably still lies with this old house.

An old house that suddenly appeared.

But the old house had never had any problems before. The coffin-board door strips were indeed useful...

Suddenly, Chen Mo thought of something: "Xiao Ye. There are more than just the two of us who went up the mountain this time. Zhao Gu didn't kill all the dragon walkers either. Besides the dragon walkers, there are also external evil spirits. Could there be other people in this old house?"

Nangong Ye pondered for a moment and said, "No, I checked the place carefully, inside and out. Do you think someone is hiding in this old house and wants to kill us?"

Chen Mo nodded, then suddenly sat up straight: "There's a place you haven't checked."

"Where?"

“There is an old well in the front yard.”

hiss.

Even Nangong Ye couldn't help but gasp: "I've never actually been to see it. You rest first, and once you're back to your best condition, we'll think of a way together to go and take a look at that ancient well."

"it is good."

Chen Mo was indeed too tired, and he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

In a daze, Chen Mo found himself standing alone at the beginning of the forest.

Nangong Ye was reading Zhao Gu's memories, while Chen Mo stood on the tree roots, staring intently at the white-clad child carrying a bamboo basket.

The child slowly walked up to Chen Mo, reached out, and took Chen Mo's small hand.

Chen Mo abruptly pulled his hand back. "What are you doing?"

The child said, "I know you."

Eh?
The voice sounds familiar.

It was the same person who had sent the message in the dream before.

However, in my previous dream, I only heard voices and did not see any people.

"So it's you. What brings you here?"

"You've been targeted by that thing. You can't escape."

"Which thing?"

"That dirty thing in the ancient tomb."

"who are you?"

“My master is Jiang Hongyue.”

OK OK.

They've finally started to confess.

Previously, the person who sent Chen Mo a dream message was merely relaying a message, and Chen Mo was unable to communicate with them. This time, however, he was able to communicate.

Chen Mo naturally wouldn't let the opportunity slip by. "Your master made me perform shamanistic rituals and has been making things difficult for me at every turn. What exactly is she trying to do?"

The child said, "My master is waiting for a high priest to perform the final sacrificial ceremony for him. He is going to return to life."

"Am I the high priest?"

"Ah."

"why me?"

"Because you can use the Red Spider Lily Spell. This is the spell that brought the master back to life."

The Red Lantern Goddess did mention this before: Jiang Hongyue planted the Other Shore Flower Spell on pieces of ghost bones to cultivate ghost babies, all in order to find someone who could use the Other Shore Flower Spell to lead her back to the human world.

Later, Chen Mo modified the function to make himself compatible with the Other Shore Flower Curse.

It must be because of some kind of cheat code that I inexplicably became the high priest.

What would happen if I didn't go and complete that sacrificial ceremony?

"you will die."

"I'm currently surrounded by 100,000 zombies and have no way to escape. If the situation isn't resolved, I'll soon be eaten by them. If you want me to preside over some kind of sacrificial ceremony, you have to find a way to help me get away."

"I have a plan."

"Say it."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: With this volume nearing its end, there's just so much information to process. I spent a whole day searching through the previous chapters, and I think there's nothing missing. If there are any omissions, please leave a comment, and I'll correct them!
(End of this chapter)