Knife splashing

Chapter 214 Pretending to be a ghost
The people on horseback were all men with fierce looks on their faces.

They carried bows and arrows on their backs and swords on their waists. They started shouting and cursing from a distance, being very arrogant and domineering.

When Sharifei heard this, he was not happy. He glared at him and cursed him: "Which little bastard did you come from? Don't you know how to keep your mouth shut?"

The way these people are dressed, you can tell they are not ordinary people.

Li Yan and others also watched coldly, with murderous aura all over their bodies.

"stop!"

As if he saw that they were not easy to mess with, the man waved his hand to stop his men, looked around coldly, and said in a deep voice: "Which sect are you from?"

Sha Lifei snorted coldly, "I am from the Qin Emperor's land (Guanzhong), I have a sharp eye and know the rules of the underworld, I am not a bad person (disliked by others)!"

The man narrowed his eyes slightly, "People living in the rivers and lakes eat the Five Lakes and Yangtze River rice, and they offer sacrifices to the drum and oar ancestor god."

"It's someone from the Pai Sect!"

Old man Zhang's pupils shrank and he reminded in a low voice.

Seeing his expression, the man showed a hint of sarcasm at the corner of his mouth. He was too lazy to say anything to Chun Dian and shouted, "Since we are fellow martial artists, then don't fight, so as not to hurt the harmony."

"Everyone, turn around!"

Li Yan had never had a good impression of this group of religious people, and he was even more upset when he heard this. He said in a deep voice: "We are just passing by. We don't care what you want to do. Get lost!"

"court death!"

A fierce light flashed in the man's eyes. Upon hearing what he said, his men drew their bows and drew their arrows, ready to shoot them directly.

Sharifei was happy and stopped talking.

Lu San, who was in the boat pavilion, was teasing the little white fox. Without even looking at it, he patted the magic gourd beside him.

hum!
A swarm of poisonous bees whizzed out.

The one who ate the most of the earth dragon meat a few days ago was not the little white fox, nor the falcon, but this magic gourd.

Originally, it was a demon with magical powers. The earth dragon meat, which was a great tonic for its blood and contained evil energy, was a great tonic for it.

Lu San cut more than ten pounds of fish, but it was all swallowed by the magic gourd.

At this moment, the place was densely packed with bee pupae, and the poisonous bees that had been lost before were not only replaced, but their toxicity was also more overbearing.

This kind of bee venom is a yang poison.

Once bitten, both humans and animals will experience unbearable stinging pain, as if a red-hot steel bar was inserted into the skin.

"what!"

Before those people could react, they were stung and fell to the ground, rolling around screaming, and even the horses were scared away.

Of course, they didn't die.

"Bah, they are all cowards!"

After the poisonous bee returned, Sharifei spat, jumped onto the river bank and came to the people.

These people's faces were stung so much that they were like steamed buns, and they were wailing in pain.

Sharifei grabbed a man's head and cursed, "You are shameless. Tell me why you are blocking our way."

The man was in great pain. He knew that these people were not easy to deal with, so he dared not talk nonsense anymore. He said with a thick tongue, "The higher-ups... told us to stop here. They said there are evil spirits in the mountains and that we are not allowed to pass."

Sha Lifei looked suspicious, "What kind of evil spirit is this? Could it be something you guys came up with?"

"No...no."

The man's face was filled with pain, and he pleaded, "Master, we are just following orders to guard here, and we didn't find any brothers in the sect."

"Also, two days ago, a convoy from Yuzhou forced its way through. As a result, the next day, many charred corpses and shipwrecks were found floating upstream."

Seeing the fierce light flashing in Sharifei's eyes, he was so scared that he quickly stood up and kowtowed: "My lords, we are just minions and we know nothing. Please show some mercy..."

Sharifei hesitated slightly and looked towards the deck.

Li Yan had no expression on his face and made a throat-cutting gesture.

Clang!
Shalifai immediately drew his sword, and with a flash of the sword, he killed several people one after another without mercy.

His Guanzhong sharp sword was a bit faster than before.

Although Sha Lifei lacked in talent, Li Yan had already stepped half a foot into the realm of Hua Jin and had a unique understanding of martial arts, so he would often seek him for practice.

Sharifei has been at the peak of Ming Jin for many years and is standing at the door.

Li Yan kicked him hard and pushed him in.

Although this is probably where I will end my life, I have learned how to use hidden power and my combat capability has improved.

On the deck, seeing the puzzled look of "Clipper Zhang", Li Yan pointed to the right bank of the river and said, "There are more than a dozen bodies buried over there, and they died not long ago."

Old man Zhang understood instantly, "These people are still killing merchants, well done!"

After that, he said thoughtfully: "Although the Pai Sect has been mixed with good and bad in recent years, and has been brutal and overbearing, it is not to the point of snatching the work of river bandits..."

He suddenly realized and looked towards the distant mountain peaks, "Those evil spirits are the Pai Cult's people playing tricks!"

"possible."

Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard and shook his head, saying, "I felt something was a little strange when I heard what Senior Zhang said before. Phosphorus fire rises from the water surface and burns when it encounters people. It doesn't sound like magic, but more like a mechanical trick."

"A trick?"

After hearing this, Old Man Zhang also realized something was wrong and angrily cursed: "No wonder all my divinations were auspicious. Something went wrong, and even the dog-blood cinnabar was useless. It turns out that someone was playing tricks on me."

"It must be the Pai Cult causing trouble in the mountains!"

"What the hell are they doing?"

Li Yan looked into the distance and shook his head, saying, "No matter what happens, we must cross this river. We should rest early tonight and set off early tomorrow morning."

"If there's an obstacle in the way, just kill it!"

They had been sailing on the ship for two full days, and they had not slept well at night and were already exhausted.

After burying all the bodies, everyone set up camp on the shore, lit a bonfire, cooked fish soup, roasted rice cakes, and after eating, they all went into their tents.

After Li Yan simply concentrated his mind, he fell asleep peacefully.

With Lu San around, all the animals within a few miles are sentinels, so there is no need to worry about sneak attacks, and Li Yan can also save the job of keeping watch at night.

The only thing they were worried about was a surprise attack by the Pai sect at night.

After all, Paijiao is both a martial arts gang and a branch of legalism. Apart from those strange arts that are popular all over the world, its own talisman and water magic is also quite powerful.

Fortunately, no one disturbed me that night...

…………

The next morning, the sky was slightly bright.

laugh!
The boatmen used buckets to fetch water to put out the bonfire.

Li Yan and others also rested enough, packed up the tents and luggage, put them into the cabin, and took out their weapons for maintenance.

If it is true as speculated, there will be a fierce battle after entering the mountain.

Soon, the ship set off again in the morning mist.

Soon, they entered the mountains, and Li Yan finally understood why this river channel was so remote and so sparsely populated.

The fog was thick by the river, and even more so once we entered the mountains.

The fog was so thick that everything was blurry a hundred meters away. The river became narrow and turbulent, with towering cliffs and rocks on both sides.

Occasionally, the sound of monkeys crying could be heard on the cliff, and through the thick fog, it sounded like the howling of mountain ghosts.

Wow!
In the mountain fog, the falcon swooped down from the sky and circled along the sides of the mountain. After several circles, it flew into the boat pavilion and chirped at Lu San.

Lu San frowned, walked to the deck, and whispered: "There are indeed problems on the mountain. There are some potholes and there are mountain roads outside. No one has come out yet."

"Also, the monkeys on the mountain are cursing, saying that someone killed their king and stole their wine!"

Sharifei understood immediately, "The Pai Cult is secretly mining in the mountains. It's strange, when did they start this business?"

As he spoke, his eyes lit up, "Could it be that they found a gold mine?"

When everyone heard this, they also thought it was possible.

After all, with the wealth of the Pai Cult, only the gold mine could make them take risks, and they would even kill people to cover up their whereabouts.

Sharifei smacked his lips and whispered, "Since we've already fallen out, we might as well give him a try!"

"Ill-gotten gains must be obtained in a proper way!"

After hearing this, Li Yan was also moved.

They needed too much money to practice, and without the support of any sect, they had to do everything by themselves. "Clipper Zhang" was terrified when he heard this.

When traveling in the underworld, peace is the most important thing most of the time. Sometimes, even killing someone when pushed to the limit is not a big deal.

But there was something obviously wrong with these people.

That night at Qinglong Mountain, he vaguely heard thunder on the mountain, and then saw the blood-soaked warlock and the bloody packages...

Before, on the river bank, he had acted directly and without mercy.

Here, they want to rob each other again...

They are all cruel and ruthless, they don't look like the masters of Taoism at all.

And the taciturn Lu San could actually understand the language of birds and animals, which was unheard of...

Of course, he is an old hand and won't say much.

At this moment, a boatman suddenly stared at the river water under his feet and shouted in a low voice: "Master Zhang, there is something wrong with the water flow!"

"Speedboat Zhang" looked up and his expression changed immediately. "There are reefs under the river. Stop the boat!"

At the command, the boatmen immediately took action.

Some people dropped anchors, while others threw out hemp ropes and hooks, shooting them at the huge rocks on both sides.

The anchor crashed into the water, stirring up waves of dirty water, and the thick hemp ropes on both sides were also wrapped around the rocks, stretched straight.

The wooden boat soon stopped in the river.

Li Yan secretly praised after seeing it.

Anchors have naturally existed for a long time. The forging method was mentioned in "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature", but ordinary merchant ships cannot be equipped with such a good one. Add to that those flying claws, it's no wonder that they dare to come to this dangerous river.

Of course, there was no time for nonsense at this moment. Li Yan turned around and looked at Lu San, "Quick, check what's at the bottom of the river!"

Lu San immediately came to the side of the boat, made a gesture with his left hand, and slapped the water with his right hand. Under the surprised gaze of the boatmen, a large school of fish soon gathered.

The fish circled the wooden boat twice, then quickly dived into the river, soon floated to the surface again, and circled left and right.

Lu San said in a deep voice: "There are huge rocks under the water ahead, and there are quite a lot of them."

"Someone placed it there on purpose!"

Old man Zhang said gloomily, "I have walked this river for seventy or eighty times. I can't say about other places, but this place is definitely flat."

Li Yan seemed to be thinking, "Where did you get into trouble?"

Old man Zhang replied: "It's not far ahead!"

Li Yan immediately understood, "Brother Lu San, check if there are any mechanisms near those hidden stones."

Lu San nodded, and immediately made hand gestures and slapped the water surface.

The fish in the river suddenly jumped up and down and rushed towards the hidden rocks.

Gulu!
Bubbles suddenly appeared on the water surface ahead, and then blue flames rose from the water surface, and even oil flowed out and burned.

"This is dragon fire!"

Sha Lifei's eyes lit up and he quickly said, "I've read about this in those books. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the whole country was in chaos and wars were going on everywhere. A Taoist priest from Jiangzuo invented the 'Dragon Fire' mechanism."

"This mechanism can spray fire into the water and kill passing ships. It is mysterious and unpredictable, but the method of making it has long been lost. I didn't expect that someone still knows how to do it."

Just then, an eagle cried in the sky.

Lu San quickly pointed to the hillside on the right, "There are a few people coming over there, carrying something big in their hands."

The mountains were covered in thick fog, and none of them had clairvoyance, but eagles and falcons had extraordinary eyesight and could see farther.

Li Yan had a bad feeling in his heart and said in a deep voice: "Don't hold back, get rid of them first!"

After saying that, he pinched his fingers and raised his little finger.

Suddenly, cold winds began to howl all around.

Swish!
A paper figure of Chu Ling suddenly flew out from the leather bag around its waist, rose up with the wind, and flew towards the mountain.

The one who moved faster was Lu San.

He slapped the magic gourd, and the poisonous bees flew out first and rushed into the thick fog.

Soon, screams were heard from the mountain.

The Chu Ling paper man flew on the wind and arrived soon after.

Li Yan closed his eyes and saw what was happening on the mountain through Chu Ling.

They were a group of men in white robes, their robes covered with white ash, their faces covered with masks. They were attacked by poisonous bees and were rolling on the ground screaming and flapping their hands.

Next to them, there was a bamboo tube as thick as a bowl lying horizontally, with a hemp rope behind it, and no one knew what the object was.

The poison of venomous bees is extremely strong and their sting is insane.

One person was stung and lost his mind. He immediately picked up the bamboo tube and pulled the hemp rope behind it.

Call ~
In an instant, blue flames mixed with grease spurted out.

It was like the breath of a fire dragon, and many poisonous bees were burned to charcoal immediately, but his companions were even more unfortunate.

The man held the fire bucket and sprayed it everywhere. Many people around him were hit, their bodies covered in flames, and they rolled down the mountain screaming.

Pfft!
Looking at the fire man falling from the cliff, Old Man Zhang immediately became alert, "Quick, the other party has firearms, retreat!"

Li Yan's expression also changed suddenly and he put away Chu Ling.

"It's the Hellfire Gun!"

"I will go to guard the mountain, and you will assist me!"

After that, he took out the armor horse from his arms, tied it on his legs, stepped on the steps, and chanted the magic formula, "Nuo Gao! Six Jia and nine chapters, the sky is round and the earth is square. Four seasons and five elements, the sun and the moon are the light. Yu Bu opens the way, the blue dragon supports the carriage, and the white tiger supports the talisman..."

As the spell was cast, I suddenly felt a chill all over my body.

Li Yan's legs unleashed hidden power, and he leaped up with a whoosh. With the help of hidden power and armor horse, he actually jumped ten meters away.

He landed on a huge rock on the cliff, and using the momentum twice, he flew into the air and disappeared into the thick fog.

"Fly, fly..."

Some boatmen were stunned.

The scene before him was beyond his comprehension.

On the other side, Li Yan was running very fast, with the wind whistling in his ears, as he went up the hillside and soon found the group of people.

The flame from the bamboo tube had already been sprayed out, and the man who had harmed his companion was also stung by the remaining poisonous bees and was dying. He fell to the ground motionless.

Li Yan hurried forward and split the bamboo tube with one knife.

Sure enough, the mechanism inside was very familiar.

These people knew how to make the Hellfire Gun, but their craftsmanship level was not high enough, so they simply enlarged it and used bamboo tubes instead.

Although it is simple, it saves materials and energy.

And the "dragon fire" just now, these are things that only appeared during the chaotic times at the end of the Tang Dynasty.

Could it be that this group of people are from the Paijiao sect?

Boom boom boom!
Just as he was lost in thought, the sound of drums suddenly rang out in the distance.

The drum beats were so dense that they made people feel irritated and uneasy. The poisonous bees around were also flying up and down, almost attacking Li Yan.

Lu San realized something was wrong and immediately took it back with the magic gourd.

Li Yan looked into the distance with a gloomy expression.

I saw another group of people in white robes coming up the steep mountain road, also carrying bamboo tube Hellfire Guns.

In front of them, a foreign monk in red was beating a hand drum.

The hand drum is very old, with copper bells inlaid around it and patterns carved with Tibetan silver. It is decorated with agate, turquoise and other ornaments, making it look colorful.

This monk had a full face of red beard, slightly blue eyes, and a bald head. He walked barefoot in the mountains, chanting mantras in his mouth: "Om, Benza, Samaya, Zaza".

The sound was strange, like a devil's voice filling my head.

Then Li Yan's eyes widened.

He saw red smoke rising behind him, and a statue of a god floated up. It was blurry, but the outline was clear:
She was a black-skinned woman with blood and grease flowing from her mouth. She was wielding a spear made of human heads and had a wreath of skulls and a beating heart as decoration around her neck.

There are poisonous snakes entwined around its body...

　Just two updates today
　　
　
(End of this chapter)