Lu Fei and Jing Jian cautiously surveyed their surroundings.
He Yunsong and the bodyguard stood between the two, the bodyguard was full of tension, but He Yunsong remained relatively calm.
Clumps of furry objects emerged from the pond, taking advantage of the cover of darkness, gradually closing in on the four of them.
A chilling coldness was gradually approaching.
"Here they come!"
In the dim light of the flashlight, several dark shadows flashed by.
Lu Fei and Jing Jian exchanged glances, pretending not to see anything.
Those furry shadows nimbly crawled through the darkness, their feet hanging onto the cliff face, their black claws reaching for the back of the two men's necks.
Whoosh!
Jing Jian's hand moved like lightning.
The Seven Stars Magic Sword flashed a cold light in the dimness, directly severing the creature's claw.
As the claws touched the ground, they instantly turned into a pool of black water.
The shadow let out a shrill cry and leaped back into the pond.
At the same time.
Lu Fei's lightning-struck jujube wood stick smashed open a pitch-black head.
The entire furry black shadow turned into black water, mixed with animal fur in it.
"These filthy things must be the water monkeys that Uncle Qin talked about!" Lu Fei narrowed his eyes, seeing those furry heads in the dark.
"These water monkeys are much easier to deal with than those things before. If there's one, I'll chop it down!" Jing Jian waved the Seven-Star Magic Sword in his hand.
Lu Fei then took out cinnabar-laced incense ash and sprinkled it around the perimeter.
With these things present, the water monkeys didn't dare to come close, surrounding them in a dense, ominous circle.
The scene was extremely eerie.
The bodyguard was trembling with fear.
"Don't be reckless! Uncle Qin said that at night, we should try not to make any noise to avoid disturbing the Dragon God," Lu Fei reminded in a low voice.
"Troublesome!" Jing Jian frowned in annoyance.
They stood guard within the incense ash circle, confronting those water monkeys.
Several of the water monkeys, unable to hold back, ventured forward to probe, only to have their limbs cut off by Jing Jian, who sent them screaming and jumping back into the pond.
The remaining water monkeys glared at them with vengeful eyes before suddenly one after another, leapt back into the pond.
Ripples spread across the water, and the water level began to slowly rise.
"Not good!" A chill ran through Lu Fei's heart.
If the water level rose high enough to flood their position and wash away the incense ash, they would inevitably have to engage in a fight with these malevolent spirits.
If they made too much noise, there would be no telling what consequences it might bring.
At this moment, Jing Jian poked Lu Fei's arm and whispered, "Lu Fei, look at the sky. It looks like it's been torn open, doesn't it?"
"How can you still be in the mood for jokes?"
Lu Fei could hardly believe his ears and looked up at the sky.
To his surprise, there was a fine crack on the dark sky, emitting a faint light.
Has the sky really torn?
"No!" Lu Fei quickly reacted, picked up a ghost-repelling talisman, infused it with his magical power, and threw it upwards with all his might.
With a loud boom, a hole was smashed through the dark sky.
Piercing shrieks filled the air as furry black shadows fell from above.
It turned out that it wasn't actually nighttime.
Instead, these water monkeys were hanging from the cliff face, blocking the sunlight and creating the illusion of darkness to trap them here.
"Since it's not dark, there's nothing to worry about!"
Lu Fei felt relieved and exchanged a knowing smile with Jing Jian.
The two of them each took action.
Lu Fei threw out several ghost-repelling characters, completely dispersing the water monkeys above.
Jing Jian wielded his magical sword, chopping down the falling water monkeys as easily as if he were cutting firewood or slicing melons.
However, the water level continued to rise.
Dark shadows darted about in the water, impatiently seeking an opportunity to get close to He Yunsong and the bodyguard.
"Take this. If any filthy thing rushes at you, hit it hard!"
Lu Fei tossed the ghost-whipping whip to the bodyguard.
The water had already reached their feet, with whirlpools bubbling up from the surface. Splash! A water monkey leaped out, reaching for him with its claws.
The bodyguard stepped back in fright, instinctively lashing out with the whip in his hand.
Crack.
The water monkey was directly whipped back into the water.
Seeing that the whip was so effective, the bodyguard felt more at ease and dutifully shielded He Yunsong behind him.
Together, the three of them fended off one by one and groups of water monkeys.
However, instead of receding, the water level continued to rise, soon about to reach their ankles.
"Young Lu, there is a higher rock over there," He Yunsong pointed to the side.
"Alright."
Jing Jian forged a path ahead, the bodyguard protected He Yunsong, and Lu Fei brought up the rear. One after another, the four of them climbed onto that rock.
Lu Fei scattered a handful of incense ashes around, then looked at the water, his eyes narrowing involuntarily.
The mountain crevices were submerged by the icy pool water, and the rock they stood on seemed like a solitary boat in the water, surrounded by dark water monkeys.
A head the size of a car's front slowly emerged from the water, revealing a pair of dark, cold eyes.
"There is actually such a big water monkey!" Jing Jian exclaimed in surprise.
"Catch the leader first!" Lu Fei quickly reacted, "Take down the big one, and the others will be nothing to fear!"
The water rippled as the huge head moved towards the four of them.
Lu Fei and Jing Jian gripped their magical instruments tightly.
The power of thunder and lightning erupted from the jujube wood staff.
The starlight runes flowed on the Seven Star Magic Sword.
Rustle—
However, at that moment, a strange noise sounded in the mountain crevice.
But those water monkeys, as if hearing some terrifying sound, jumped back into the water in a panic one by one.
The giant head also stopped, its eyes revealing a light of fear and unwillingness. After giving the four people a cold look, it submerged into the water.
The water level dropped rapidly, and after a few seconds, it returned to a deathly silence.
"What's going on?" Jing Jian was completely bewildered.
He had been prepared for a fight, so why did these malevolent spirits suddenly retreat?
Could it be that after refining his innate magic weapon, he had become so powerful that just his presence could scare away these malevolent spirits?
"There is one possibility!"
Lu Fei couldn't feel happy, his gaze grave as he looked in the direction from which the strange sound came.
"Something more terrifying has appeared!"
"Even more terrifying?"
The expressions of the other three changed, and they all looked over at the same time.
Over there, it seemed that a white figure flashed by.
It moved very quickly, and everyone didn't see it clearly, but it seemed to be a tail.
Rustling—
Strange noises circulated around, sometimes close, sometimes far, sounding like scales rubbing against stone.
It made their scalp tingle.
"What is that, a snake?"
Jing Jian, filled with suspicion, looked around, and suddenly felt a chill on his back. Turning his head, he instantly froze.
In the damp crevice of the mountain wall, a deathly gray woman's head was wedged in.
The woman's pale gray pupils curiously stared at them.
Then, the neck slowly lengthened.
It grew longer and longer.
The long neck wriggled like a snake, and the deathly face drooped above the four people, grinning at them with a sinister smile.
"Run!"
Lu Fei shouted loudly, pulling everyone off the rock, quickly distancing themselves from that long-necked woman.
"As long as we reach the Dragon God Cave, these evil spirits won't dare to come near!"
The long-necked woman stared blankly at them, twisted her neck, and followed after them.