This celestial master cultivates both physical and magical arts; why did you provoke him?

Xia En took a step forward.

The thing instinctively shrank back.

"You're scared?" Xia En laughed. "An ancient evil creature that crawled out of the earth, actually afraid of a human?"

The thing let out a low growl, as if to bolster its courage.

Then it suddenly sprang up, its entire body like a giant whip, sweeping towards Xia En.

Extremely fast and extremely powerful.

This blow was enough to turn a building into ruins.

Xia En didn't dodge.

He stretched out his left hand, fingers spread wide!

He caught the body that was sweeping towards him.

"Bang--!!!"

The enormous impact created a gust of wind, and the ground was cracked in a spiderweb pattern.

But Xia En stood still, completely motionless.

His left hand gripped the creature's body like an iron clamp, his fingers digging deep into the scales.

The thing froze.

Its full-force attack was caught by a human with one hand?

"He's quite strong."

"But that's not enough," Shane said.

He clenched his right fist and punched the thing's body.

"Bang!"

Scales shattered, and black liquid splattered.

The thing's body was blasted open, its entire body bent into a V-shape, and it flew backward, crashing into a small earthen mound a hundred meters away.

The earthen slope was completely flattened by the impact.

The thing lay paralyzed in the ruins, its body convulsing, black liquid gushing from its wounds.

It struggled to get up, but the damage to its body was too severe, and the regeneration rate simply couldn't keep up with the rate of destruction.

Xia En walked over and stood in front of it.

The thing's mutilated head turned towards him, its mouth opening and closing, emitting faint sounds.

"What...are you...?"

"I already said it, Celestial Master."

"No... Celestial Master... there's no one like you..."

Xia En crouched down and looked at it.

"Then let me ask you, where did you come from?"

The thing was silent for a few seconds, then let out a hoarse laugh.

"Underground...very, very deep underground...you humans...think the Earth belongs to you...but underground...it belongs to us..."

How many do you have?

"Many... many..." the thing laughed. "I... am just the first... there are countless more behind me..."

Xia En remained silent for two seconds.

"What is your relationship with that evil cult?"

The thing stopped laughing.

It was silent for a long time, then said, "They...opened the door...we...just walked in..."

"Where's the door?"

The thing did not answer.

Its body began to melt, just like those evil creatures before it, turning into black water inch by inch, starting from the wound.

"You...can't kill me..." came its last words from the black water, "I...will return..."

Xia En stood up, looked at the pool of black water, and remained silent for a long time.

Then he took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hey, Master."

On the other end of the phone, Zhang Jingxuan's voice was deep: "I can feel it. How are things on your end?"

"One was killed. But it said there are countless more behind it."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

"Come back," Zhang Jingxuan finally said. "We need to have a serious talk."

"it is good."

Xia En hung up the phone and turned to walk back.

After walking a few steps, he suddenly stopped and looked back at the crack.

The cracks are still there, and black smoke is still gushing out.

But where is the door that thing mentioned?

He put the question aside for the time being and strode back.

As they approached the cordon, Chen Guodong and his men came to greet them.

"Master Xia! That thing!!"

"He's dead."

"But I'll come again," Shane said.

Chen Guodong's expression changed: "What do you mean?"

Xia En didn't answer, but simply said:

"Seal off this area completely; no one is allowed to approach within a three-kilometer radius."

"I'm going back to Longhu Mountain soon."

Chen Guodong opened his mouth, but ultimately nodded.

When Xia En returned to Qingheju, it was already dawn.

Fang Zijian was sitting on the steps by the door. When he saw him come back, he stood up abruptly.

"Are you alright?!"

"fine."

"Where is that thing?"

"He's dead."

Fang Zijian breathed a sigh of relief, but seeing Xia En's expression, his breath caught in his throat again.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

Xia En didn't answer, but went into the house and started packing her things.

"Where are you going?" Fang Zijian followed him in.

"Longhu Mountain".

Fang Zijian was taken aback: "You went back to the mountain? Then what about me?... "

"You wait here."

Xia En interrupted him, "Don't go anywhere."

Fang Zijian opened his mouth as if to say something, but seeing Xia En's expression, he swallowed his words.

Xia En packed his bags, walked to the door, and suddenly stopped.

He turned to look at Fang Zijian.

“If I don’t return in three days,” he said, “go to my master and tell him the door is underground.”

Fang Zijian was stunned.

"What door?"

Xia En didn't answer, turned around and strode away.

Fang Zijian stood at the door, watching the figure disappear into the alley, and a strong sense of unease suddenly welled up in his heart.

What does it mean if the door is underground?

He took out his phone, intending to call Chen Guodong, but hesitated for a moment and then put it away.

Xia En told him to wait.

Then we'll just wait.

Three days later, Longhu Mountain.

In the rear hall of the Celestial Master's Mansion, Zhang Jingxuan sat on a grand chair with a cup of tea that had gone cold in front of him.

Xia En sat opposite him and recounted his experiences over the past three days from beginning to end.

From the underground altar to the lake monster of Qingshan Lake, from the crack in the eastern suburbs to the huge evil creature that crawled out from the ground.

After listening, Zhang Jingxuan remained silent for a long time.

Then he stood up, walked to the wall, and opened a hidden compartment.

Inside the hidden compartment was a yellowed silk scroll with a map drawn on it.

"This has been passed down through generations of the Celestial Master's Mansion."

The old Celestial Master Zhang Jingxuan spread the silk scroll on the table. "Legend has it that it was left behind by a Celestial Master during the Ming Dynasty. It marks seven locations, which are said to be the places of sealing."

Xia En leaned closer to take a look.

The map on the silk scroll is drawn very roughly, but it is clear that it is the terrain of the Jiangzhou area.

The seven red dots are marked in different locations, one of which...

In the eastern suburbs.

It's right where that crack was just now.

"This is……"

Xia En looked up.

"seal."

Zhang Jingxuan said, "That Taoist master sealed seven evil beings in the Jiangzhou area using a very ancient magic. But these seven seals seem to be being broken."

"By whom?"

Zhang Jingxuan looked at him without saying a word.

But Shane already knew the answer.

Evil cult.

That organization should have been wiped out twenty years ago.

"Master,"

Shane stood up. "I have to go back."

Zhang Jingxuan looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

Are you sure?

"Sure."

Zhang Jingxuan nodded, took a wooden box from the drawer, and handed it to Xia En.

"What is this?"

"It was passed down from your grandmaster," Zhang Jingxuan said. "Don't open it unless absolutely necessary."

Xia En took the wooden box, weighed it in his hand, and found it to be very light.

He tucked it into his pocket.

"Master, there's one more thing."

"What?"

"The thing that crawled out of the crack said there are many more underground. These are just the first."

Zhang Jingxuan's expression changed.

"What else did it say?"

It said, "They opened the door."

Zhang Jingxuan remained silent for a long time.

"The door..." he murmured to himself, "So the legends were true..."

"What legend?"

Zhang Jingxuan did not answer, but simply waved her hand.

Go ahead. Be careful.

Xia En nodded, turned around and walked out of the back hall.

He suddenly stopped when he reached the mountain gate.

A person was standing on the stone steps outside the mountain gate.

Liu Ruyan.

She was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, her hair was tied in a ponytail, and she was carrying a backpack, looking like a tourist who had come to climb the mountain.

But her expression didn't resemble that of a tourist.

She looked at Xia En, her eyes a little red.

"You're back."

Xia En was taken aback: "What are you doing here?"

"Fang Zijian told me," Liu Ruyan said. "He said you went back to the mountain, so I came to see you."

Xia En was silent for two seconds: "That big mouth of Fang Zijian."

Liu Ruyan did not smile.

She stepped forward, stood in front of Xia En, and looked up at him.

Are you hurt?

"no."

"That's a lie."

Liu Ruyan reached out and gently touched a small wound on his face.

It was a shallow cut from flying pebbles, which he didn't even notice.

Xia En subconsciously tilted her head.

"This injury is nothing."

Liu Ruyan didn't say anything, but took out a band-aid from her bag, tore it open, and stuck it on his face.

The movements were very light and careful.

Xia En stood still, motionless.

After she finished pasting it, Liu Ruyan took a step back and looked at him.

"Be more careful next time."

Xia En looked at her and suddenly smiled.

"it is good."

Liu Ruyan smiled too, and her smile looked beautiful in the sunlight.

"Let's go," she said. "I'll treat you to dinner."

"Again?"

"This is a victory celebration banquet."

Liu Ruyan said, "Didn't you kill a big monster? We should celebrate."

Xia En thought for a moment and nodded.

"OK."

The two walked side by side down the mountain.

The sun was shining brightly, and the mountain breeze was gentle.

Liu Ruyan walked beside Xia En and suddenly asked, "Are you going back to Jiangzhou again?"

"Um."

"Then I'll go back with you."

"Don't you have classes?"

"I've taken leave."

Xia En glanced at her: "How many days did you take the leave of absence for?"

"I don't know."

Xia En: "..."

He was silent for two seconds, then suddenly said, "You're quite bold."

Liu Ruyan smiled: "I learned it from you."

Xia En didn't speak, but the corners of his mouth slightly turned up. .

The two walked down the stone steps, their shadows stretched long by the sunlight.

In the distance, the peaks of Longhu Mountain appear and disappear in the clouds and mist, like a traditional Chinese ink painting.

And deep within this painting, beneath those seven seals, something is awakening.

But at this moment, the sun is shining brightly.

There are people around.

This is enough.

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