Demon, come and cultivate for me.

"Don't get down!"

Just as Zhou Chu was about to jump down to help, Xie Qi shouted to stop him.

With limited space on the platform and the martial artist's ghost being immortal, Zhou Chu would not only lack room to maneuver, but would also negatively impact Xie Qi and Chen Xiangzi.

Xie Qi unleashed a series of sword strikes, cleaving the warrior demon blocking the cave entrance into several pieces, temporarily rendering it unable to attack.

Then, with a swift movement, he entered the cave, letting out a strange cry to attract the attention of the ghost.

Chen Xiangzi seized the opportunity, quickly affixed the talisman to the ghost, and shouted:

"Certainly!"

The menacing demons, which had been baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, immediately stood motionless in place, like mannequins.

Chen Xiangzi waved to Zhou Chu and entered the cave.

Zhou Chu understood, suppressed the tension brought on by his fear of heights, gritted his teeth, jumped off the platform, and quickly walked into the cave.

The cave was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The stench of blood and decay filled the three people's nostrils with each breath.

Xie Qi pinched his nose and said, "Give me a light."

"We don't have many Light Talismans left." Chen Xiangzi took out paper talismans from his satchel, burned them, and threw them into the air.

The light instantly illuminated an area of ​​several dozen steps around the three of them.

Inside is a natural cave with irregular, sharp protrusions on the ceiling and walls; if you accidentally bump into one, you'll definitely get a head injury.

Fortunately, the space was not cramped, and the three of them could move forward while keeping a safe distance from the spikes.

The road ahead was straight, without any twists or turns, just a downward path, with no idea where it led.

In less than a quarter of an hour, the light from the paper talisman disappeared, and darkness once again enveloped the surroundings.

The cave was eerily quiet; apart from the sound of their footsteps, even their breathing could be heard clearly.

The atmosphere was so tense that Zhou Chu couldn't help but ask:

"Young Master Xie, are you sure the Mountain Lord is inside the cave?"

"It's right down there." Xie Qi was very confident in his tracking skills.

"How do we deal with the mountain lord?" Zhou Chu asked again.

Chen Xiangzi said, "I will first use a talisman to immobilize it, then you can set up an array to trap it, and finally Young Master Xie can rush into the array and kill it."

"Easier said than done. Have you ever seen a tiger?" Xie Qi was dismissive of Chen Xiangzi's plan.

Chen Xiangzi answered truthfully, "I've never seen it."

Xie Qi said, "I once accompanied my father on the king's hunt. On the way, we encountered the Three Realms Mountain Lord, who wanted to take the tiger's bones and skin alive."

It took the combined efforts of three peak-level martial artists and six mid-level martial artists to subdue him, and all of them were injured in the end.

The mountain tiger's roar alone is enough to make anyone lose three-tenths of their courage. It reacts swiftly; before you can even stick a talisman on it, you'll be bitten to death.

The tiger's tail is as hard as an iron rod; if a person gets hit by it, their bones will break and their tendons will be fractured.

The tiger's paw is even more powerful; a single strike from it can leave a martial artist at the third realm half-dead.

Not to mention the even more deadly tiger claws that rip out the heart, and the elusive, unpredictable pounce of a hungry tiger.

The warriors who participated in the hunt back then later said that encountering the Mountain Lord was like being besieged by ten peak warriors at the same time, making victory extremely difficult.

Chen Xiangzi exclaimed in surprise, "You mean the three of us are dealing with a Mountain Lord of the Third Realm as if we were dealing with ten peak martial artists?"

Xie Qi said, "That's right, that's one way to understand it."

Xie Qi's words plunged the three of them into silence once again, and they continued walking without saying a word.

The further down you go, the more unpleasant the smell becomes.

The surrounding space became more open, and the three no longer needed to carefully avoid the sharp rocks on the cave walls.

As far as the eye could see, many will-o'-the-wisps appeared, emitting a faint green glow. As soon as a person approached, the will-o'-the-wisps would automatically move away.

Xie Qi, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped and drew his sword:

"Be careful, the mountain god is nearby."

Zhou Chu tensed up, his hands clenching into fists.

Chen Xiangzi moved silently to Zhou Chu's side, her breathing becoming somewhat rapid.

Hu~hu~hu~

The heavy breathing sounds coming from the darkness ahead grew clearer, as if they were slowly approaching the three of them.

"Did you hear that?" Chen Xiangzi asked in a very low voice.

Zhou Chu nodded.

It's not a giant animal; its breathing wouldn't be that loud.

Zhou Chu couldn't imagine how big the tiger must be.

Chen Xiangzi simply hid behind Zhou Chu, carefully took out two Swiftness Talismans, squatted down and stuck them on her ankles.

He only practiced guiding exercises and talisman techniques, and had not learned any martial arts techniques. His speed was not as fast as Zhou Chu's, let alone Xie Qi's.

They could only attach the speed-enhancing talismans beforehand, so that if the three of them were no match for the mountain lord, they wouldn't fall behind when escaping.

Xie Qi had never been so nervous in her life.

Xie Qi wasn't sure if the Xie family's swordsmanship, known for its speed, could outrun the Mountain Lord.

The three hid in the shadows, waiting intently for the mountain lord to appear, preparing to strike first.

After waiting for a long time, all that could be heard was heavy breathing, but the mountain lord did not approach.

The will-o'-the-wisps around them drifted toward the direction from which the breathing sound came, gathering into several fireballs that, like lanterns, illuminated a large area.

A strange smell entered Xie Qi's nostrils.

Along with this, the faint sounds of gongs, drums, and suonas could be heard, indicating a joyous wedding procession.

How could such a sound appear in such a gloomy scene?

Xie Qi thought she had misheard and turned to ask, "Did you hear that?"

"I heard you," Zhou Chu replied in a low voice.

"What did you hear?" Chen Xiangzi asked.

Neither of them answered. In the distance, a wedding procession was slowly moving forward.

Whether it was the band or the sedan chair bearers, they were all dressed in red and colorful decorations, but the smiles on their faces were as stiff as wooden sculptures, showing no joy whatsoever.

The addition of a glowing green light made it appear extremely eerie.

"The mountain king is getting married, and his entourage is parading!" Xie Qi exclaimed in surprise.

Humans are born with a fear of the unknown, and Zhou Chu is no exception. He had only ever seen such a scene in horror movies in his previous life.

Now that he was there in person, it made his hair stand on end.

The sedan chair bounced up and down to the rhythm of the wedding procession.

The sedan curtain was slowly lifted by a pale hand, and a head covered with a red cloth peeked out.

Then, two arms were stretched out, each holding one end of the red cloth, and slowly lifted it.

Zhou Chu first noticed the "bride's" chin and lips, and immediately felt a strong sense of familiarity.

Then the nose, eyes, and eyebrows are revealed.

When Zhou Chu saw this face, he felt a buzzing sensation and his scalp tingled.

That's Xie Ning! The person in the sedan chair is Xie Ning!

Wasn't she at the Black Wind Valley camp? How did she get here? Has the Nine Palaces Formation been breached by the Changgui?

A series of questions arose in Zhou Chu's mind.

"Little sister!" Xie Qi shouted, raising his sword and charging forward.

Chen Xiangzi sprang out from behind Zhou Chu, grabbed Xie Qi around the waist, and turned to Zhou Chu, saying:

"Come help me quickly."

At Xie Qi's shout, the wedding procession turned their heads in unison, looking in the direction where the three were.

The smiles on everyone's faces grew wider and wider, the corners of their mouths gradually turned up until their mouths split open all the way to their ears, and half of their heads were severed off, like the lid of an open box, revealing the back of their necks.

Zhou Chu was filled with fear and rage. A murderous intent surged through him like oil being poured on a raging fire, rushing straight to his head.

"You're all charlatans! Go to hell!"

He roared and charged towards the wedding procession.

"Don't go over there!" Chen Xiangzi released Xie Qi and then stopped Zhou Chu.

Xie Qi was even more impulsive than Zhou Chu at this moment, and rushed forward as soon as he was released.