This Taoist priest is so unprofessional!

into the night.

The noisy search and rescue team from the daytime has temporarily withdrawn, and the surface of Moon Bay gleams with an eerie silver light under the moonlight, as tranquil as a piece of black silk.

The wind blowing across the water did not bring any coolness, but instead carried a faint, sweet and fishy smell.

Wang Xiaoer, Zhang Chen, and A Yue appeared silently by the water's edge like three ghostly figures.

The cries of the families from earlier in the day still seemed to echo in my ears, but now, the entire body of water was deathly silent, with only the chirping of a few unknown insects in the distant woods, which made the place seem even more eerie.

"This is it." Zhang Chen's usual lazy expression was gone. He looked around, his eyes serious.

A-Yue squatted down, dipped her finger in the water on the bank, brought it to her nose and smelled it, her pretty brows furrowing slightly.

Wang Xiaoer didn't speak. He just quietly looked at the calm, waveless water, but his heart was not as calm as it appeared.

Zhang Chen took out a small paper figure, about the size of a palm, made of yellow paper, from the cloth bag he carried with him.

The paper figure has all four limbs, and even blurry facial features are drawn on its face, making it look somewhat eerie and comical.

He held the paper figure in his palm, then with his fingers together like a sword, he lightly drew a line on the tip of his left index finger.

A drop of bright red blood seeped out.

Zhang Chen flicked his finger, and a bead of blood landed precisely on the paper figure's brow.

"Seeking the way, blood will pave the way, let's go!"

He gave a low shout.

The drop of blood seemed to possess a life of its own, instantly permeating the entire paper figure.

The originally limp paper figure seemed to have been infused with a soul, suddenly standing up in Zhang Chen's palm and even moving its stiff limbs in a serious manner.

Immediately afterwards, it leaped into the icy river.

The paper figure neither sank nor decayed upon entering the water; instead, it moved like a swimming champion, its arms paddling as it swiftly swam towards the center of the water.

This is the Taoist "Blood Guiding Path Technique," which uses the practitioner's yang blood as a guide to accurately trace the source of yin energy.

As Zhang Chen cast his spell, A Yue also began to act.

She untied an inconspicuous black leather pouch from her waist and poured out several small black beetles.

These tiny insects are smaller than a fingernail, with several pairs of slender segments, and they become unusually active as soon as they land.

"Go on, my little darlings."

Ah Yue murmured softly.

As if they understood the command, the insects immediately dispersed and silently burrowed into the water from different directions without causing a ripple.

This is a "water-repelling bug" she raised. It is naturally adept at moving in water and its perception of yin energy is even more acute than some magical artifacts.

Zhang Chen was responsible for attacking the middle lane, while A Yue was responsible for flanking and scouting from the flanks.

The two worked together seamlessly and professionally.

Wang Xiaoer stood on the shore, motionless.

He slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the whole world had changed in his field of vision.

In his eyes, the mountains, rocks, and trees of the real world have lost their color, turning into a faint gray silhouette.

The vast expanse of Moon Bay presents a completely different scene.

A thick, viscous black mist, like ink dripping into clear water, enveloped the entire bottom of the water.

The black aura was so deep and ominous that just looking at it sent chills down one's spine.

At the very center of the entire body of water, the black mist was no longer pervasive.

They converged, rotated, and compressed wildly, almost solidifying into a physical form, eventually forming a huge, slowly rotating black vortex.

Just by "looking" at that vortex, Wang Xiaoer felt a tremor in his soul and a sense of danger.

There's definitely a big problem here!

At that moment, Zhang Chen's expression suddenly changed.

"Not good!" he hissed.

His fingers, which were forming a hand seal, trembled slightly, and his brow furrowed.

The little paper figure that had already swum to the middle of the water was about to reach the edge of the black vortex when it seemed to be suddenly pulled downwards by an invisible hand!

With no chance to resist, the paper figure sank to the bottom of the water in an instant.

Zhang Chen let out a muffled groan, and the last faint connection between him and the paper figure was severed.

It's like someone cut the string controlling the kite.

"My scout paper doll was instantly destroyed!" Zhang Chen's voice was tinged with astonishment.

Almost at the same moment, A-Yue, who had been staring at the water, also frowned.

"All my water bugs are dead too."

Her tone was calm, but Wang Xiaoer could sense that beneath that calm lay suppressed anger.

Those little insects were more than just tools to her.

Zhang Chen's Taoist paper dolls, and A Yue's Gu worms.

One attacked from the center, the other from all sides, and both were wiped out in an instant at the same time!

This underwater creature is not only ferocious, but also extremely domineering, not allowing anything to intrude into its territory.

Just then, Wang Xiaoer's pupils suddenly contracted.

He suddenly raised his hand, pointed to a calm body of water not far away, and said in a deep voice, "Look there!"

Zhang Chen and A Yue immediately looked in the direction he pointed.

On the silvery surface of the water, illuminated by the moonlight, a blurry, almost human-shaped black shadow flashed by without warning!

The speed was astonishing; it didn't seem like swimming in water at all, but more like a ghostly teleportation!

The shadow appeared for only a moment before disappearing again into the dark water.

The water remained calm, as if everything that had just happened was merely an illusion.

But the three people on the shore all knew that it was not an illusion.

"Good heavens!" Zhang Chen couldn't help but gasp. He stared intently at the body of water, his face no longer showing any contempt. "This thing moved so decisively; it looks like a tough opponent!"

He asserted with absolute certainty, "This is at least a 'water affliction' that's been around for a century!"

Water ghosts are merely the manifestation of the resentment of those who drowned. Most of them are in a daze and rely solely on instinct to pull people into their place.

"Sha" refers to a malevolent entity that is formed when yin energy, resentment, and violence are condensed to the extreme and actively cause evil.

A single word makes all the difference.

A-Yue licked her lips, her beautiful eyes flashing with a dangerous yet excited light.

"The yin energy in its body must be very 'nourishing' to kill six of my water bugs in one go."

Wang Xiaoer wasn't as professional as the other two, but the huge black vortex he saw explained everything.

Just as the three of them were on edge and fully alert.

The vanished dark figure reappeared.

This time, it wasn't just a fleeting moment.

It seemed to be toying with the three people on the shore, and began to cruise around the entire Moon Bay at high speed.

A black afterimage left a long trail on the vast water surface, stirring up ripples, yet it made no sound.

This silent protest is more unsettling than any roar.

Zhang Chen's hand had already reached for the peach wood sword in the cloth bag, while A Yue's fingers held several silver needles that gleamed with a faint light.

Sudden.

The rapidly moving dark figure suddenly stopped just a dozen meters from the shore.

The ripples on the water spread outwards in concentric circles.

Then, under the gazes of the three people.

A wet, swollen head, as if it had been soaked in water, slowly, slowly, rose from the surface of the water.

The head had no hair, its skin was a deathly pale white, and its features were indistinct, as if it had been molded from mud.

The most terrifying thing is its eyes.

Those were eyes without pupils or whites, just two pale white holes.

At that moment, those pale eyes were staring intently at the three people on the shore.