What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

Rouge Lane was pitch black, with only a few dilapidated lanterns casting a red glow in the distance.

The bluestone path underfoot was slippery and difficult to walk on, and the air was filled with a strange smell that was a mixture of rouge, perfume and rotten mold. The further you went in, the stronger the smell became.

"This tastes wrong."

Zhao Tie wrinkled his nose and said in a low voice, "It smells like... a dead rat."

"It's corpse energy." Zhou Ming held a yellow talisman in his hand, the paper trembling slightly.

"The concentration of yin energy here is even higher than in a funeral home."

I didn't speak, but silently circulated the evil energy within my body.

Soon, we arrived at the end of the alley.

Jinxiufang.

It was a two-story building with two large red lanterns hanging above the entrance.

At this moment, the lanterns swayed in the wind and rain, making a creaking sound.

The small building's main door was tightly shut, but a strange, warm light shone through the crack in the door.

Faint sounds of traditional opera drifted out from inside, melodious and indistinct.

Listening closely, it seems to be the song "A Dream in the Garden" from the opera "The Peony Pavilion".

"Playing tricks."

Zhao Tie snorted coldly, reached behind him to take down the huge metal box, and activated the mechanism.

With a "click," a thick alloy shield, about half a person's height, sprang out and blocked in front of him.

"Should I just ram through it?" Zhao Tie glanced back at us.

Just as Zhou Ming was about to nod, I suddenly reached out and stopped Zhao Tie.

"Don't move."

Zhao Tie immediately stopped and looked at me with a puzzled expression: "Mr. Chen, what's wrong?"

I took two steps forward, squinted, and looked at the seemingly ordinary wooden door.

To ordinary people, and even to Zhou Ming and Zhao Tie, it was just an old-fashioned wooden door painted red.

But with the cool sensation between my brows, the scene before me was completely different.

That's not a wooden door at all.

It was a net.

A giant net, woven from countless extremely fine, translucent threads, densely sealed off the entire entrance.

A few withered moths were still hanging on those silk threads, twitching slightly.

Even more disgusting, the threads "grew" out of the walls on both sides of the door frame, with their roots connected to pieces of dark red flesh.

"That's not a door, it's a trap someone set carefully," I said softly.

"If we crash directly into it, this 'door' will tighten instantly, cutting us into pieces and sticking us to the net as food reserves."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Tie's expression changed, and he subconsciously raised his shield higher.

Zhou Ming gasped and quickly pulled a compass from his pocket.

The pointer spun wildly, finally pointing fixedly at the door.

"What a vicious setup! I didn't even notice it before." Zhou Ming's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

"Thanks to Mr. Chen for reminding me."

"Use fire."

I pointed to the door and said, "These kinds of evil things are most afraid of yang fire."

Zhou Ming immediately realized what was happening.

He opened the sword box, took out a peach wood sword, pinched three red talismans in his left hand, and muttered incantations.

"Samadhi Fire, burn away evil and extinguish essence! So be it!"

As the incantation was finished, the talisman in his hand suddenly burst into flames, transforming into three crimson fireballs that roared towards the door.

"boom!"

The fireball struck the door, but instead of making a sound like wood hitting wood, it made a sizzling sound similar to burning grease.

The once peaceful wooden door suddenly twisted and contorted.

The silk threads, disguised as wood grain, struggled and contracted frantically in the raging fire.

A strong, burnt smell wafted over.

A few seconds later, a large hole was burned through the disguised "door," revealing the true interior.

It was a spacious hall.

The hall was filled with all kinds of cheongsams, red, green, and floral, hanging densely in mid-air, like a bunch of hanged people.

In the very center of the hall sat a woman.

She sat with her back to us in front of an old dressing table, drawing her eyebrows in front of the mirror.

The face reflected in the mirror was half as beautiful as a flower, and half as withered as tree bark.

"Oh dear, what brings you here so late at night, sir? And why are you so angry?"

The woman put down her eyebrow pencil and slowly turned around.

Her voice was strange, like two people talking at the same time.

One voice was charming and alluring, while the other was old and hoarse; their overlapping voices sent chills down one's spine.

"You'll have to pay with your life for ruining my carefully woven curtain."

Hong Gu chuckled, but her eyes were as cold as a venomous snake.

With her laughter, the cheongsams hanging in mid-air suddenly moved without any wind.

I could see it clearly; inside each cheongsam, a blurry human figure could be faintly seen.

It's estimated that those were the wronged souls she killed, imprisoned in her clothes, and turned into her puppets.

"The Bureau of Folklore is handling this; surrender without resistance!"

Zhao Tie roared, his voice booming like a bell.

He stomped his foot and charged in, shield in hand.

"Zhou Ming, cover! Mr. Chen, wait for your chance!"

Although Zhao Tie appears reckless, he possesses extremely high combat skills.

He knew that talking nonsense was useless against this kind of evil cultivator; only close-range suppression was the key.

"act recklessly."

Hong Gu snorted coldly and flicked her finger lightly.

"Whoosh whoosh-"

Countless red silk threads shot out from those cheongsams, like a rain of pear blossoms, overwhelming and piercing towards Zhao Tie.

"Ding ding ding ding!"

A series of impacts rang out, and sparks flew from Zhao Tie's alloy shield.

Although the threads were thin, they were as hard as steel needles, leaving the shield's surface pitted and uneven.

The immense impact abruptly halted Zhao Tie's charge, his feet carving two deep furrows into the ground.

Zhou Ming followed closely behind, pointing his peach wood sword and unleashing a palm strike of lightning at the red lines.

The lightning crackled, slightly hindering the red line's attack.

I stood at the door, not in a hurry to make a move.

My gaze swept across the battlefield and locked onto Hong Gu.

She was smiling.

That kind of laughter, like a cat playing with a mouse.

Clearly, this level of attack was just an appetizer for her.

Her hands were hidden in her sleeves, as if she were brewing some even more insidious trick.

Moreover, I noticed that the record player that was playing opera seemed to be spinning at an odd speed.

That's not an ordinary record player.

It exuded a strong aura of yin energy, and with each line of opera sung, the surrounding yin energy grew heavier.

That must be the key point of the formation!

"Zhao Tie, hold on for three seconds."

I suddenly spoke, my voice not loud, but it clearly pierced through the noisy battlefield.

"no problem!"

Zhao Tie roared, his muscles bulged, and his skin shone with a bronze luster.

He stopped passively defending himself and, with the red lines stretching across the sky, took a step forward.

"Open it!"

The shield in his hand suddenly trembled, and a wave of air burst out, momentarily shattering the red line in front of him.

In that very instant.

I moved.

Instead of rushing towards Hong Gu, I suddenly swung my right sword finger.

"Buzz!"