Mad Doctor No. 9

A dozen black tentacles suddenly emerged from the swamp and wrapped around the two of them with lightning speed!

"What is that?!" Wang Tian's expression changed, and with a swift movement of his longsword, he severed the tentacles. Black liquid gushed from the cuts, emitting a foul stench. More tentacles emerged from the swamp, several wrapping around the girl's waist. The girl screamed as she was dragged deeper into the swamp.

Without a second thought, Wang Tian rushed forward, scooped the girl into his arms, and began hacking away wildly with his long sword. The tentacles seemed endless, being severed wave after wave. Even more terrifying, the black liquid that touched her skin began to corrode!

"Ah!" A sharp pain shot through Wang Tian's arm. He looked down and saw that his skin had begun to rot.

"Use fire!" the girl suddenly shouted. "They're afraid of fire!"

Wang Tian took a signal gun from the side pocket on his back with one hand and fired a shot at the center of the swamp.

Whoosh-!

A burst of fire shot into the sky. The tentacles, as expected, feared the flames and scurried back into the swamp. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Wang Tian carried the little girl and ran towards the shore.

The two collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

"Th-thank you." The girl coughed twice and said, "I'm Lin Wan, a graduate student at the China University of Geosciences. I got lost while exploring the mountains with my professor."

Wang Tian remained silent, focusing on healing his injuries. The black liquid was extremely corrosive; within seconds, the white bones were visible. He gritted his teeth, took out several silver needles, and pressed a few acupoints.

"Your injuries..." Lin Wan glanced at them and said urgently, "We need to get to the hospital right away!"

"Too late." Wang Tian tore off a piece of cloth and wrapped it around his arm. "Didn't you say those things were afraid of fire?"

Lin Wan nodded. "I've researched it. There's a mutated leech that lives in the swamps of Death Valley. Its tentacles are highly venomous, and if you accidentally touch it, you could get poisoned. But because it never sees sunlight, it's extremely sensitive to strong light and flames."

Wang Tian thought for a moment and said, "You know a lot?"

"I've been studying the ecology of Changbai Mountain for the past three years," Lin Wan said with a helpless smile. "We came here this time just to collect some black moss samples from Death Valley, but who knew..."

She paused, her gaze falling on Wang Tian. "You also came to Death Valley alone for the snow ginseng?"

Wang Tian did not deny it, but instead asked, "Do you know the whereabouts of the snow ginseng?"

Lin Wan whispered, "I've heard from the locals that deep within Death Valley, there's an altar ruin, supposedly guarded by the Ginseng King. However, the danger there is much greater, not just from the mutated beasts, but also... miasma."

As she spoke, she took out a map and handed it to Wang Tian: "This is a map drawn by my mentor based on ancient books. It might be of some help."

Wang Tian took the map, which detailed the terrain and dangerous areas of Death Valley. The location of the altar ruins was exactly the same as what Su Mu had seen on the map.

Wang Tian suddenly asked, "Who is your mentor?"

Lin Wan's eyes flashed, and she said, "A very ordinary professor."

Wang Tian sneered, "How could an ordinary professor possibly research the remains of shamanic altars?"

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Lin Wan remained silent for a long time before finally sighing, "Alright, I'll tell you the truth. I graduated from the China University of Geosciences, but my advisor... is a specially appointed professor at the National Academy of Archaeology. We came here today to investigate what exactly happened in Death Valley."

As she spoke, she pulled out an ID card from her pocket, which read: "Lin Wan, Detective of the Seventh Division of the National Security Bureau."

Wang Tian glanced at the certificate and confirmed it was true. This was a department that Old Xu had mentioned to him, one that specialized in handling paranormal events.

"You've also heard about the commotion at the Dark Palace?"

"You've heard of the Dark Palace?" A glint of light flashed in Lin Wan's eyes. "It seems your identity is extraordinary. May I ask who you are?"

Wang Tian hesitated for a moment, then said, "I am Wang Tian, ​​the successor of the Medical Sage."

Lin Wan's eyes widened. "Wang Tian, ​​you're the one who destroyed the Yamamoto family and sealed the Kunlun Mirror? Elder Xu has been looking for you for so long!"

"Old Xu knew about my trip to Changbai Mountain."

Lin Wan said urgently, "But he doesn't know you've already entered Death Valley. This place is too dangerous; we must evacuate immediately! The Dark Palace's people are already in the valley; there are at least twenty of them!"

Wang Tian shook his head and said, "I must find the snow ginseng."

"Why?" Lin Wan was taken aback.

"My body..." Wang Tian unbuttoned his collar, revealing a patch of dry skin on his chest covered with black lines, like dried tree bark.

Lin Wan gasped, "What happened?"

Wang Tian finished dressing and said, "Life force is exhausted, meridians are withered; only the thousand-year-old snow ginseng offers hope. Also, the shamanic drum is the Dark Temple's target; I must stop them!"

Lin Wan gritted her teeth and said, "I'll go with you."

"no."

"It's always good to have another person," Lin Wan said. "Besides, I'm familiar with the terrain of the valley, which can help us avoid a lot of danger. And..."

As she spoke, she took out a metal device from her backpack: "This is a device that can detect snow ginseng. Snow ginseng is a spiritual treasure of heaven and earth, and it emits special energy fluctuations."

Wang Tian glanced at the equipment and finally nodded. "However, if there's any danger, you must be the first to leave."

The two rested for a while before continuing their journey. The deeper they went, the stranger the surroundings became. The trees twisted in a bizarre way, and stone paths appeared on the ground. Although dilapidated, they still revealed the scale of what this place had once been.

"We've arrived at the ancient shamanic ritual area." Lin Wan pointed ahead. "According to historical records, during the Liao and Jin dynasties, shamanism built altars here to communicate with heaven and earth. The largest of these is the Temple of Heaven, which we are going to visit today."

She paused, then pointed to the ground: "There's blood."

Wang Tian squatted down to take a look. The bloodstains were still wet, indicating they were left about half an hour ago. The bloodstains were splattered, suggesting a fight had taken place.

Lin Wan whispered, "There might be a problem with the Dark Palace."

Sure enough, after walking several hundred meters, a corpse appeared ahead. It was a middle-aged man wearing a windbreaker, with a sharp claw mark on his chest; his death was gruesome.

Wang Tian examined the injuries and frowned. "Was it a bear?"

"No." Wang Tian shook his head. "The claw mark only has three toes, and it looks a bit like... a bird's claw, only a bit larger than a human hand."

He looked around and saw huge claw marks everywhere in the snow, each as big as a washbasin.

Lin Wan's voice trembled: "Is there a giant bird in Death Valley?"