Yu Nian and Feng Chengyuan were walking under a group of hanging cat corpses, holding umbrellas. The blood - rain fell in front of them and then suddenly splashed on the ground, looking like the deviant and eerie Equinox Flowers swaying in the wind.
Feng Chengyuan silently blocked the splashing blood beads for Yu Nian. He whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Why did Jiang Li hang all the cat corpses on the trees? Is it a kind of formation, or... just his sick pleasure to scare people?"
While searching for any suspicious signs, Yu Nian explained, "There's a folk saying: 'Hang a dead cat on the treetop, let a dead dog drift with the current.' In many folk tales, cats are mysterious creatures with nine lives. When they come across a corpse, the corpse can borrow a life from the cat and then rise from the dead. So in the old days, people thought that if a cat wasn't hung on a tree after death, it would turn into a cat - demon and bring harm to the world. But actually, among all animals, cats are the most spiritual. They have a high tolerance for spirits, and many ghosts and demons choose to possess cats to wander the world."
After hearing this, Feng Chengyuan thought for a moment and suddenly asked, "So, is it possible that someone uses the cat's tolerance for spirits to do bad things?"
Yu Nian was slightly taken aback and then understood what Feng Chengyuan meant. "It's not impossible."
Yu Nian's gaze fell on a big tree in the middle of the forest. She raised her eyebrows in surprise.
This big tree, without counting its branches, had a trunk that was more than ten stories tall. It would take at least five or six people to encircle it.
There were no cat corpses hanging on this tree. Instead, winding vines were twined around the trunk like power lines, looking extremely spectacular.
She stepped forward and tapped the tree trunk tentatively. Immediately, a creaking sound came from inside - the trunk was hollow!
Moreover, there seemed to be something inside that was crying out in pain. In the silent environment, the cries were extremely shrill.
Yuan Ao immediately shivered and cried to Yu Nian with a long face, "Master, do we really have to court such bad luck? Please, let's go quickly!"
Yu Nian was annoyed by his noise. She turned her head and glanced at him indifferently. "If you want to attract Jiang Li quickly, just keep shouting."
Hearing this, Yuan Ao suddenly shut up. But he still felt scared in this empty place, so he quickly moved behind Yu Nian.
Yu Nian and Feng Chengyuan exchanged a look and then together lifted the half - open trunk. At the same time, a faint fragrance wafted out from the tree hole.
Feng Chengyuan was stunned. He felt that this fragrance was extremely familiar. It was the same as the fragrance he had smelled when he fell into the basement just now. Thinking of this, drowsiness involuntarily came over him again.
The next second, Yu Nian's cold hand covered his lips. "Hold your breath. This is the spice used to prevent corpses from rotting. If you smell too much, it will cause hallucinations."
Yuan Ao immediately jumped about a meter away in fear. "There really is a coffin here?"
Inside the tree hole stood a blood - red coffin. The coffin was not only tied up with several thick iron chains as thick as an adult's arm but also covered with dense yellow talismans.
Yu Nian frowned and examined it carefully for a moment. She found that the coffin wasn't completely sealed. There was a gap between the coffin body and the coffin lid.
Yu Nian looked through the gap and suddenly met a pair of green eyes!
Yu Nian's eyes sharpened. The red thread on her wrist instantly flew out and hit the coffin lid hard.
The iron chains were already loose. The coffin lid was hit hard and instantly slid off.
The scene inside the coffin was completely exposed in front of everyone.
Yuan Ao was shocked when he saw it. After his face twitched for a while, he turned around and vomited.
What was lying in the coffin was neither a human nor a demon but a huge black cat.
The black cat was extremely thin. Lying on its back, one could clearly see its bones as its abdomen rose and fell slightly.
Many parts of the black cat were festering, with tiny maggots wriggling constantly. Its front limbs were stretched upwards in a strange posture, as if it was scratching the coffin lid.
Even more terrifying was that this black cat was still alive. The moment it saw the light, its pair of green eyes slowly turned and looked at Yu Nian.
Yu Nian was stunned and whispered, "Do you think the look in this cat's eyes is strange? It doesn't seem like an animal's but like someone we know."
Hearing this, Yuan Ao shivered all over. "Don't scare me."
He summoned up his courage and looked at the black cat. He saw that the black cat's eyes were rolling, exactly like a human's.
He suddenly felt a bit sad. "Jiang Li is really cruel. He even won't spare a little cat."
Yu Nian shook her head. "It's not that simple."
Just as Yu Nian was about to pull the black cat out of the coffin, the surrounding scenery suddenly changed.
The vines that had been hanging limply beside the tree trunk suddenly wriggled like snakes. They all raised their branches high, broke away from the trunk, and rushed towards Yu Nian.
Yu Nian's eyes flashed. She quickly pulled Feng Chengyuan and Yuan Ao to a safe place.
She quickly drew a talisman in the air with her finger and then formed hand seals so fast that it was dazzling.
The next moment, a dazzling fire instantly burst out from the strange symbol. The tongues of fire burned all the attacking vines to ashes.
Yu Nian flipped her wrist, and the spiritual umbrella that had been used to block the blood - rain instantly turned into a long knife.
The long knife was slender, shaped like a willow leaf, about four feet long and two fingers wide. It had a sandalwood handle, and there was a deep blood groove carved on the back of the blade.
Without even blinking an eye, Yu Nian stepped into the sea of crazy - flying vines with the knife in her hand.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Her movements were clean and decisive. In an instant, the remaining vines were all cut off.
Looking at the extremely cool long knife in Yu Nian's hand, Yuan Ao's inner otaku soul was gradually awakening. His eyes looking at Yu Nian instantly became star - filled.
A beautiful young girl and a cold weapon... This strong contrast brought a spectacular visual effect. What a cool combination!
When Yu Nian put away the knife, the sharp wind of the blade passed by a nearby tree trunk. With a loud "boom", a big tree fell down.
Yu Nian's deep eyes looked into the darkness. Her voice without any warmth said faintly, "Is it fun to hide? Come out."
Yuan Ao was startled and coughed violently. "Who are you talking to?"
The moment his voice fell, a dark figure slowly walked out from behind the tree. The figure swayed for a moment and then started to clap.
"Seems like you've known I was here for a long time. No wonder you're the outstanding one in the Xuanmen. You're really amazing."
Jiang Li let out a low laugh and walked out of the darkness.
The moment Yuan Ao saw Jiang Li, he was like a mouse seeing a cat. He let out a shrill scream and then hid behind Yu Nian.
Yu Nian looked at Jiang Li as if he were trash. "The basement is so small. Where else could you hide?"
"You're very smart, but sometimes you're too smart. Some things are not your business. Don't interfere."
Yu Nian sneered. "What do you mean by 'not your business'? Do you mean killing innocent demons and imprisoning living people for your own self - interest? Or do you mean you've been acting all along just to save Jiang Sheng's life?"