Chapter 165: [Why Panic! I’m Here]

Snake Mountain, late at night.

Moonlight spilled down, rendering the entire mountain in a ghastly, deathly-pale color.

The rustling sounds from the woods were enough to send a chill down one’s spine.

On the stone steps leading to the summit, four Golden Boys and Jade Maidens dressed in red and green carried a sedan chair on their shoulders.

Their steps were erratic and floating, covering three to four meters in a single stride.

The sedan chair was exceedingly strange, looking as light and flimsy as if it were made of paper-maché.

It seemed as if a casual gust of wind could blow it away.

In the woods lining the mountain path, a black, head-sized object flashed past and vanished.

In a quiet room at the Divine Void Temple, a crowd of people was squeezed inside.

On the bed, eight or nine Daoists were huddled under the covers, trembling uncontrollably.

Daoxuan crouched in a corner, the picture of utter despair.

Beside him, a human-faced sunflower nestled in his arms, a blissful expression on its creepy face.

Meanwhile, He Xiaotian and the old Daoist were posted by the door, vigilantly watching for any potential danger.

“Are you sure the news from the black market was sold more than ten times?”

“Of course. They’re just an information channel. How would they dare deceive me, a member of the Daoist Alliance?”

Shouyangzi said with a proud look, all but preening like a peacock showing off its tail.

“Now we wait. I reckon the next few nights won’t be quiet.”

Just as he finished speaking, a knock suddenly sounded from outside the quiet room.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

“Is anyone there? I’m a college student who was visiting Snake Mountain, but I’ve injured my leg. I can’t get down the mountain, so I was hoping the temple master could help me out. I just need to rest for one night, and my friends will come get me tomorrow. Of course, I won’t stay for free; I can pay.”

A sweet, delicate voice rang out from the courtyard, so enchanting it could make one’s bones melt.

From the voice alone, you could tell it belonged to a beauty.

In the courtyard, the Credit Knifer and Feng Yu, who were buried in the ground with only their heads exposed, both shivered at the same time.

As for why they shivered, that was anyone’s guess.

The two of them didn’t dare speak and could only communicate with their eyes.

‘Bro, don’t say a word. A college student with an injured leg, stuck on the mountain in the middle of the night? Not even a total idiot would fall for that!’

‘I know, you don’t have to tell me.’

Feng Yu shot the Credit Knifer an indignant glare. ‘A story that full of holes? How could I possibly believe it!’

‘Who do you take me for, an idiot?!’

Inside the room, the old Daoist grabbed He Xiaotian’s arm, his face flushed as he said, “Scholar X, don’t go! It’s obviously a trap. Let’s just wait for her to show her true colors.”

He Xiaotian gave a light shove, and Shouyangzi promptly fell and landed on his butt.

He shook his head, leaving everyone confused, then pushed open the door and walked out.

CLACK! CLACK!

The Credit Knifer shot Feng Yu a helpless glance, thinking that He Xiaotian was truly his nemesis—the moment he tried to act cool, he was immediately shut down.

CREAK!

The courtyard gate opened to reveal a petite girl in a short skirt standing in the doorway.

He Xiaotian glanced around furtively, then asked in a low voice, “There’s no one else, right?”

“No, it’s just me. Can you help me inside? I won’t stay for free.”

“Okay!”

Before the college student could even smile, a large hand shot out, viciously clamped around her neck, and dragged her inside.

The two heads, who had witnessed everything by the moonlight, were utterly dumbfounded.

‘What kind of move was that?!’

He Xiaotian was like a flash of lightning, zipping back into the quiet room with a WHOOSH.

Everyone in the room: “…”

‘Bro, if you don’t let go, you’re going to strangle her to death!’

“Don’t be afraid.”

Those three words made the whole group roll their eyes. ‘How could we not be afraid?’

‘Murder is illegal!’

“Come on, come on. Tell me, what organization do you belong to?”

“…”

‘Let go, you bastard!!’

“Don’t play innocent with me. You think I can’t see through you just because you’re wearing a layer of human skin? The skins those women from the Source of Sèyú wore were probably from the same manufacturer as yours. Tell me, or you’ll have hell to pay.”

Back on the ancient ship, He Xiaotian’s Insight couldn’t even see through the skeletal monster hidden beneath the human skin.

But after leveling up once, his Insight had gained a rank, along with the attribute of ‘Illusion-Shattering’.

He had seen through the female college student’s true nature almost at a glance.

‘Never mind the pretty exterior; this bastard was a dude!’

The female student still looked innocent, her big, limpid eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

It was as if she were silently pleading, ‘What on earth are you talking about? I don’t understand at all.’

“Scholar X, you’ve gone too far!”

Daoning, having crawled out from under the covers at some point, stood by the bed with his hands on his hips, scolding with an air of righteous indignation.

He Xiaotian paid him no mind. He looked at the female student and said, “You probably don’t realize how timid Daoning is. Under these circumstances, it’s a show of great courage that he hasn’t wet his pants. Stepping out to rebuke a powerful person is definitely not something he’d do on his own.”

As he spoke, a flicker of cyan flame ignited on the hand that was gripping the female student’s neck.

But soon, that flicker erupted into a roaring blaze.

The female student’s face contorted in pain. Her skin and clothes began to melt like a burning candle, dripping a yellow, viscous fluid.

Unfortunately, with her neck in a vice grip, she couldn’t even scream to vent the agony of being burned alive.

In just a few moments, a coarse-featured man appeared before them.

‘Holy shit! A cross-dressing Boss!’

‘All those cross-dressers on the internet are total amateurs, okay?’

‘They just use some props, nice clothes, and a bit of makeup.’

‘This guy here used an actual human skin!’

Daoning felt his entire world collapse. The “female student” with the sweet, enchanting voice that could melt your bones…

…turned out to be a coarse-featured man?

‘I…’

“BLEGH…”

“Tsk, tsk, how tragic. If you had just cooperated honestly, would you have had to suffer so much? Well, now look. I guess from now on, you’ll have to become a real woman,” He Xiaotian said, looking at the unconscious man with a gloating expression.

It was a good thing he was unconscious; otherwise, even coughing up three liters of blood might not have been enough to quell the rage in his heart.

Before anyone could roast him for his comment, he casually tossed the body.

BOOM!

The Credit Knifer and Feng Yu stared at the new head planted opposite them: “…”

‘Great.’

‘Another brother in misfortune.’

‘And from the looks of it, has he just created a new team for us?’

“WAACK…”

The charred head spat out a mouthful of blood, the spray shooting at least three meters high.

He Xiaotian’s cyan flame was already super effective against evil spirits, and on top of that, the man had been slammed into the ground with immense force.

The man’s injuries were simply uncontrollable.

The Credit Knifer and Feng Yu were the unlucky ones, getting a faceful of the bloody shower.

‘What the hell!’

[Ding! You have defeated the Jealous One, Pang Long. Gained 800 Experience Points.]

‘What a trash mob. Didn’t even give me a thousand.’

“Daoning, what was that you said just now? I didn’t hear you clearly,” He Xiaotian asked, turning to the dry-heaving Fat Daoist with a smile after dealing with the man in the skin suit.

“…” Daoning himself was baffled. He was clearly terrified of Scholar X, so why had he suddenly stepped up to play the hero saving the damsel in distress?

Then, his eyes rolled back in his head, and he flopped onto the bed, playing dead.

He Xiaotian chuckled. ‘Your acting sucks, dude.’

He didn’t actually blame Daoning. Everything Daoning had done earlier was merely the result of the man’s spiritual induction.

The old Daoist gave He Xiaotian a helpless look. ‘Considering your status, making these kinds of jokes with the younger generation will scare them to death.’

FWOOSH! FWOOSH! FWOOSH!

Golden flames suddenly erupted on everyone in the room as the Ultimate Protective Talismans on their chests burned to ash in moments.

Shouyangzi’s eyes went wide.

‘For the Protective Talismans to react like this, it can only mean one thing.’

‘An extremely powerful evil spirit has descended upon the Divine Void Temple.’

‘Otherwise, an Ultimate Protective Talisman should have lasted at least ten minutes or so.’

‘It didn’t even last three seconds! Holy shit!’

‘It seems my brilliant idea to stir the pot really did draw out a “demonic dragon.”‘

SLAP!

He Xiaotian slapped the old Daoist on the shoulder and grinned. “Yang, what are you panicking for? Aren’t I still here?”