I, a cultivator, have ended up in the world of tomb raiding.

Suddenly, a splash appeared beside the raft, and a grayish-brown shadow darted past, its pointed snout and thin tail making it look like a ghost in the dim light.

When everyone looked closely, they realized it was a raccoon the size of a palm!

That taciturn old foreigner was a quick-witted and nimble character.

At this moment, he stepped forward and stretched out his iron-like hand, grabbed the raccoon by the scruff of its neck in the water, lifted it up, and handed it to his senior brother, Partridge Whistle, to await his judgment.

Partridge Whistle's gaze sharpened as he stared at the raccoon dog and said:

"The area around Ping Mountain is shady and the water is cold, so raccoons are already rare. I didn't expect to run into another one at the foot of the mountain. Judging from its fur and demeanor, it is cunning and evil. It is probably a descendant of the 'Old White Lady' from the Ancient Raccoon Stele."

As soon as he said it, he frowned, finding it rather strange:

"Civets are naturally afraid of people; they'll run away as soon as they hear human voices or movements from afar. Why would they actively approach a bamboo raft to catch someone?"

Only then did everyone notice that the little raccoon had a ring of black blood around its mouth, which smelled foul and nauseating.

"Quick, check if you've been bitten!" Several members of the Unloading Ridge bandits hurriedly shouted to the man who had just been captured.

Without anyone reminding him, the man whose foot was being grabbed had already hurriedly rolled up his trouser leg.

Seeing that his legs and feet were completely bare, without even a trace of blood, he finally breathed a long sigh of relief, patting his chest as he remained shaken.

Partridge Whistle frowned and said, "This place is too eerie. It's not advisable to stay on the water for long. Let's row to the shore quickly and then figure this out."

No one wanted to linger on the precarious bamboo raft, so they immediately increased the speed of their oarsing.

Three bamboo rafts broke through the water and moved forward.

Before long, they finally reached the end of the pool.

The base of Ping Mountain plunges into the earth here, with crisscrossing rocks and a narrow space that is suffocating. If you look up carelessly, you will bump into the cold rocks.

Li Yue untied the long sword from his back and hung it diagonally at his waist, his gaze almost imperceptibly sweeping across the mental panel.

[The absorption is complete. Please refine it as soon as possible.]

That pure Yin energy had already been absorbed into the body and flowed into the Qi Sea through the meridians.

He remained expressionless, simply gazing silently into the shadows ahead.

The group abandoned the raft and went ashore. After walking a few steps, a large, dark area suddenly appeared in front of them.

When a few lanterns shone forward, everyone was taken aback.

Under the dim light, a dozen or so earthen graves were scattered at the foot of the mountain, most of them soaked in mud and water, with the coffins half-rotted and exposed, a scene of utter disarray.

In the very center, a raw, unpainted coffin stood out prominently, with a large pool of foul-smelling, blackened blood seeping from its top, smelling remarkably similar to the bloodstains around the raccoon's mouth.

Or rather, they are essentially the same thing.

Upon seeing this, Partridge Whistle suddenly looked enlightened:

"This raccoon must have licked the black blood seeping from the coffin and become tainted with evil, which is why it is not afraid of living people."

He continued, "If left unchecked, it will eventually become powerful and, like its ancestors, bewitch people and harm their lives."

Upon hearing this, the entire band of bandits turned their gazes toward the gray-furred fox, their eyes practically fixed on it.

The little fox was already intelligent and sensed the murderous intent of the crowd. It was so frightened that it trembled all over and even soiled the ground with its excrement.

Li Yue glanced at the raccoon, but seeing that it was just a creature that had just developed a sliver of intelligence, he paid it no further attention.

At this moment, his mind was completely focused on the coffin in front of him.

He probed into it with his divine sense and saw several kinds of yin, evil, and corrupt energy intertwined and entangled inside.

The things inside are worth far more than this little raccoon.

On a whim, he immediately took the lead and went over.

Seeing this, the others followed suit.

The crevice was low, and everyone had to crouch down to move forward, step by step getting closer to the coffin.

The stench around the coffin was so strong it made one's eyes sting.

The bandits had no choice but to pull off their black veils, guessing that what was inside must be some kind of rotting corpse or ferocious beast.

Li Yue stepped forward and examined it carefully, his gaze not just lingering on the surface, but penetrating the coffin to see inside.

"The yin energy inside this coffin is far too mixed..."

This coffin is neither made of precious wood nor is it a plain, unpainted coffin. Yet it has remained intact for a thousand years in the damp, shady place at the foot of the mountain, which must be related to what is inside.

He lightly tapped the coffin with his finger, producing a resounding clang, instantly giving him the anticipation of opening a blind box.

Partridge Whistle, who was standing nearby, was also very curious about the coffin. He jumped onto the mound of earth, held up his lamp, and peered into the coffin seam to examine it closely.

The crevices were filled with black, sticky blood, which had seeped out from inside the coffin.

Moreover, the smell is like rotten fish being dried in the sun, even more foul and pungent than when viewed from a distance.

Partridge Whistle has always been keen to get to the bottom of things, and no matter what strange things he encounters, he has to find out the truth.

Seeing that the coffin was extremely strange and its mystery could not be understood, he turned to Li Yue and asked:

"Brother Li, have you ever seen anything like this before?"

Li Yue shook his head. He used to cultivate the righteous path, and he wouldn't even look at such evil things.

Partridge Whistle waved to the bandits beside him: "Open the coffin and take a look."

Several bandits responded by picking up long axes and preparing to smash the coffin.

"Wait a minute."

Li Yue suddenly raised his hand to stop him and said in a deep voice:

"The coffin is seeping with foul blood; there must be something unusual about it. We can't just smash it open. Let's remove the nails first, then gently lift the lid to take a look before making any further plans."

Everyone agreed that it made sense.

This place is eerie and cramped. If you recklessly break open the coffin, you might startle some ferocious creature, leaving you nowhere to hide.

Partridge Whistle pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Many ancient coffins are filled with corpse poison and fumes. This place is sealed off and the poison is hard to dissipate, so we should indeed be careful when opening them."

Seeing that both of them said so, the bandits of the Unloading Ridge had no choice but to put away their axes and use other tools to remove the nails.

These people were used to chopping and hacking when opening coffins, so when they tried to carefully remove the nails, they appeared clumsy and awkward.

In addition, being squeezed at the foot of a narrow mountain makes it difficult to raise one's arms or lower one's feet.

After much effort, they finally managed to remove the coffin nails one by one.

Fortunately, the coffin had been exposed to the elements for so long that its texture had become slightly loose.

Otherwise, it would be really difficult to open it easily in this cramped place.

Several people held their breath, lit lanterns, and slowly pushed open the coffin lid.

Just as they pushed open a hand's width of the coffin, before they could even see what was inside, a dark figure suddenly leaped out and slapped the face of the person opening the coffin.

Everyone was shocked and instinctively pulled out their weapons.

The one whose face was grabbed was the one with the messy hair. He was terrified and scratched his face wildly while screaming.

He ripped the thing off and threw it away.

But the thing let out a strange "gurgle" and pounced again.

Red Girl reacted extremely quickly, her fingertips already gripping the throwing knife.

With a graceful flick of his wrist, a cold light shot out and struck the dark figure squarely.

The thing had barely flown into the air when it hit the ground with a thud, emitting several mournful cries.

Everyone quickly took lanterns and went forward to check, at which point the people next to the coffin suddenly became agitated again.

A man clutched his face and screamed, "There's something inside... inside the coffin!"

Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

The crevice was low and dark, making it difficult for everyone to maneuver, and no one could see clearly what was happening.

Li Yue's eyes sharpened, and he stepped onto the grave mound, forcefully slamming the coffin lid shut with a single palm strike.

The others then realized what was happening and rushed to check on the wounded.

His messy hair wasn't a big problem, but his face was covered in blood and filth, making him roll his eyes from the stench. Someone nearby quickly grabbed a damp cloth to wipe it off for him.

But the brother from the Unloading Ridge faction next to the coffin wasn't so lucky.

One side of his face was covered with dense red blisters, and his skin quickly became red, swollen and hot. Several places had already ulcerated and turned black, and the burning sensation of the venom penetrated deep into his flesh.

He was in so much pain that his face twitched, and he instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

Li Yue and Partridge Whistle exchanged a glance, both slightly surprised, and then walked to the object pinned by the throwing knife.