Unlike the others who all wore joyful expressions, Xu Xian frowned deeply, not letting his guard down despite the temporary gains and losses.
Li Gongfu understood the implication in his words and asked incredulously, "What? Hanwen, you mean... there's someone else manipulating this behind the scenes?"
Xu Xian nodded and said, "That's right. Although the tiger demon can control the cougars, it can't create walking corpses. This matter is clearly the work of evil cultivators, perhaps even in league with the tiger demon!"
Looking at the four pieces of corpse on the ground, Li Gongfu said angrily, "If that's the case, the disappearance of children in this county is probably not simple. It actually involves evil cultivators."
Xu Xian nodded and said, "I'm afraid there's some audacious person who wants to practice some evil magic."
Upon hearing this, Li Gongfu gritted his teeth and said hatefully, "This person is so audacious and reckless. He must be dragged out and brought to justice. Otherwise, how can I face the hundreds of thousands of people in this county?"
"Excellent! Track them down and bring them to justice!"
Xu Xian nodded in agreement, and then said, "Brother-in-law, you should take these corpses back to the yamen first. I need to track down that evil cultivator to prevent future troubles!"
"Hanwen, you... be careful!"
Li Gongfu opened his mouth and gave a word of advice.
Before we knew it, the little kid who used to follow us around begging for candy had grown up and was now capable of standing on his own.
Li Gongfu was filled with satisfaction!
…………
Outside Qiantang County, a hundred miles west of the city, there is an inconspicuous temple, dilapidated and covered with cobwebs. There isn't even a plaque at the entrance.
Inside the temple, a monk sat on the ground. He looked to be a young man in his thirties or forties. His bald head gleamed, his face was full of flesh, and he had a fierce expression. He was wearing a gray monk's robe, which looked extremely out of place.
A red gourd, about a foot tall, stood upright on the ground, occasionally flashing a strange red light, which was quite bewitching.
Suddenly, the monk groaned, opened his eyes, which were larger than copper bells, and his face turned ashen as he cried out in surprise.
"You scoundrel, how dare you ruin the Buddha's important plans?"
Suddenly, the monk sensed that the walking corpse and the tiger demon he was controlling had both died and their souls had vanished in an instant.
If this happens, then it can only mean that an accident occurred, and an outsider intervened and killed both the zombie and the tiger demon.
"Hehe, that's alright. Once I, Buddha, have mastered the Yin-Yang Soul-Slaying Heavenly Demon Technique, where in the world can't I go?"
The monk picked up the red gourd beside him and stroked it carefully, as if it were a priceless treasure.
"Success is imminent! With the souls of 999 boys born in yin years, yin months, and yin days, and 999 girls born in yang years, yang months, and yang days devouring each other, the Buddha's Yin-Yang Soul-Slaying Demon is about to be born!"
"At that time, I will traverse the void, killing without a trace, unbreakable and undefendable. In this vast world, who can withstand the Buddha's trump card? Hahaha!"
Sensing the movement inside the gourd, the monk was filled with excitement. He was originally an ordinary monk in a temple, but he accidentally obtained a vicious ancient demonic cultivation method. Unable to resist the greed in his heart, he eventually fell into the demonic path.
In order to master this vicious technique, the monk traveled the world, collecting 999 boys born in yin years, yin months, and yin days, and 999 girls born in yang years, yang months, and yang days. He killed them, took their souls, placed them in a magical gourd, used secret methods, and fed them with his own blood essence to refine them, causing them to devour each other.
Like raising a poisonous insect, the one that survived in the end became an incomparably powerful Yin-Yang Soul-Slaying Demon.
This demon is born with the cultivation level of the Golden Core Realm, and is also proficient in the principles of Yin and Yang and space. It can traverse the void as easily as eating and drinking, and can kill people invisibly. It is truly an unparalleled weapon of mass destruction that is impossible to defend against.
This monk was not from a prestigious temple and had limited lineage. After more than two hundred years of cultivation, he had only reached the Profound Realm of Magic Power. His cultivation had not progressed for many years, so he took this risky move.
Picking up the gourd and carefully holding it in his arms, the monk turned and left the dilapidated temple, heading into the deep mountains behind it.
The rugged mountain path was like flat ground under the monk's feet. Each step covered dozens of feet, and soon the monk arrived at the edge of a cliff. He made a hand seal, and the rock wall slowly moved, revealing a cave entrance that was as tall as an ordinary person.
The monk went into the cave, the stone walls moved, and the cave entrance closed.
After walking about ten zhang, the monk found himself in a spacious underground space, almost the size of a basketball court.
What was originally a dark and gloomy cave in the mountains was illuminated by the luminous pearls placed on the walls, making the cave bright and blazing.
By the light, a horrifying scene could be seen: the underground space was filled with the corpses of children, their blood long since dried, leaving behind expressions of pain. Clearly, they had all suffered inhuman torture before their deaths, and their resentment soared into the sky like dark clouds overhead.
However, the monk was already used to it. He dragged his red gourd in his hand, his face beaming with joy, and a ferocious and cruel smile appeared on his lips. He stepped on the corpses and went inside.
"Haha, the Buddha's Yin-Yang Soul-Slaying Demon is born today! Who in the world can stop it?"
The monk laughed loudly, sat cross-legged in an empty space, hugged the red gourd, kissed it, and his eyes revealed a strong desire.
This scene, set against the eerie and terrifying environment of the underground space, appeared exceptionally horrifying.
"Ancient demons... slaughtering all living beings... manifesting in the world..."
The monk formed a mudra with his hands and chanted incantations. The red gourd floated in mid-air, absorbing the endless resentment in the underground space. The resentment emanating from the corpses of children scattered all over the ground was absorbed by the gourd.
The stench of blood in the entire underground space was almost tangible, and the surging resentment was almost transforming into a ghost realm. The gourd seemed to have transformed into a boundless black hole, devouring the resentment in the entire underground space.
After a while, as if it had eaten its fill, a faint crimson glow appeared on the red gourd.
"Wow……"
A chilling wind blew, and the underground space seemed to have turned into a ghostly hell. From inside the red gourd, the faint, soul-stirring cries of a child could be heard.
The child's cries were extremely faint, intermittent, sometimes loud and sometimes soft, making one's heart tremble with unease.
Suddenly, a chubby, blood-red hand landed on the monk's shoulder. The monk felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, the bone-chilling cold almost freezing all the magic power in his body.
"scold!"
Almost instantly, the monk reacted. He bit his tongue hard, let out a sharp shout, and the fat hand that had been on his shoulder withdrew.
Just then, the monk saw clearly that a chubby, blood-red child had appeared behind him.