Just as Taoist Qingyun was about to show a mysterious smile, his expression froze on his face.
Something's wrong!
If the people in this small town truly belonged to the Holy Cult, they should have known what his Taoist robe represented.
Hiding underground would easily expose them.
Even if they were taking a chance, they couldn't be that stupid, could they?
"Master, should we go down and take a look?"
Niannian blinked her big, watery eyes, unable to hide her curiosity.
"Let's go and check it out then."
There were indeed quite a few living creatures underground, and they were of a considerable size. There was no doubt about that.
The compass's readings couldn't be wrong. So, what exactly were those things underground? They'd find out as soon as they went down.
Taoist Qingyun picked up Xiaotuanzi and walked downstairs without hesitation. But the problem now was how to get underground.
He looked around the empty street and finally fixed his eyes on the manhole cover.
According to the compass, the creatures underground weren't very far from the surface. It would be about the same distance as going down into the sewer.
It was just that climbing into the sewer wasn't exactly a graceful thing to do.
But at this point, they couldn't care about their image. Taoist Qingyun gently put Xiaotuanzi on the ground, reached out his hand, and lifted the manhole cover effortlessly.
He leaned forward and looked down. Seeing no danger, he took the lead and climbed in.
When he landed, it was an open space. Sewage flowed in the middle, and the platforms on both sides were wide enough for Xiaotuanzi and Taoist Qingyun to walk on.
The sewers were a maze of passages, and it was hard to tell where they led.
Niannian and Taoist Qingyun each held a compass and started calculating the location of the living creatures.
They followed the compass's guidance, turning this way and that.
The closer they got, the more noise they could hear. When they were less than a hundred meters away, they could clearly hear the sound of footsteps on the ground.
But it wasn't the sound of human footsteps.
It sounded more like the crawling of animals.
"Niannian, step back a bit."
Taoist Qingyun frowned. Something felt off.
The most common creatures in the sewers were rats and the like. And according to the compass readings before and now, the living creatures in the sewer were quite large.
Much larger than the normal sewer creatures.
They couldn't be sure what was waiting for them ahead.
It definitely wasn't human.
"Huh?"
Niannian, who was about to step forward, stopped and looked at Taoist Qingyun with a confused expression.
Just as she turned around, a huge white creature suddenly emerged from the water and charged straight at her.
Niannian quickly sensed the danger behind her and flipped to the side to dodge.
Then, there was a thud behind her.
She turned around and saw something that looked like a pig but had the face of a rat.
"Is it a rat? No, no. How could there be such a big rat in the world?"
Xiaotuanzi was stunned by the creature in front of her. Even if an animal had become a spirit, it couldn't be this big.
Moreover, the dullness and turbidity in the eyes of this thing, which was neither a pig nor a rat, were not what a spiritual animal should have.
This thing had no intelligence.
"What kind of monster is this? Niannian, step back. Let me deal with it!"
Taoist Qingyun drew a soft sword from his waist and rushed forward without hesitation.
The giant rat stretched out its sharp claws and blocked the sword. There was a crisp sound of cold weapons colliding, and even sparks flew.
Its claws were incredibly hard. Taoist Qingyun had put all his strength into this strike.
Even a century - old tree would have been cut in half by his sword at this moment.
After blocking the sword, the giant rat let out a squeaking sound. Then, like a crazy bear, it stood up on its hind legs and pounced on Taoist Qingyun.
Fortunately, it was slow, large, and clumsy, so it couldn't hurt Taoist Qingyun.
Seeing that even her master couldn't break through the giant rat's defense, Xiaotuanzi, not believing it, took out her own sword.
Taking advantage of her small size and agility, she jumped a few times and crawled under the giant rat's belly. Then, she raised her hand and stabbed at the rat's belly.
Blood spurted out from the giant rat immediately. The wound was very deep, and it let out a howl of pain and rolled on the ground.
Xiaotuanzi quickly retreated. Only a little bit of blood splashed on her.
But even this little bit of blood made her Taoist robe sizzle.
The giant rat's blood was actually corrosive.
Seeing the hole getting bigger and bigger, Niannian quickly took off her clothes and threw them on the ground.
It took a while before the small hole expanded into a hole as wide as a bucket and finally stopped.
If this blood dripped on a person, it would be a disaster!
But fortunately, Niannian's strike was a fatal one.
The giant rat rolled on the ground for a while and then died.
"Master, what exactly is this thing?"
Niannian walked forward carefully, trying not to touch the splashed blood. She walked around it and asked in confusion.
"It doesn't seem to be a demon or any kind of spirit. Its blood is corrosive... I'm not quite sure what it is. Maybe it's a unique species among Western spirits?"
Taoist Qingyun stroked his chin and examined the rat carefully for a long time. He searched his mind but couldn't find any creature that matched this thing.
"Could the things we sensed just now all be such rats?"
Taoist Qingyun: !!!
Xiaotuanzi had hit the nail on the head.
Dealing with one such rat wasn't too difficult, but its corrosive blood was a real headache.
If all the underground creatures they had detected were such rats, it would be a disaster.
They might be able to kill them, but the problem was that they couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't be splashed by their blood during the fight.
Just as Taoist Qingyun was hesitating whether to leave now, suddenly, there was a chorus of running and jumping sounds not far away.
The sound echoed in the sewer, deafening.
"Run quickly!"
Taoist Qingyun didn't need to hesitate anymore. This sound clearly wasn't human footsteps. Even if it wasn't these giant rats, it was probably something strange.
It wasn't safe to stay here. It was better to run first.
Taoist Qingyun picked up Xiaotuanzi and ran back as fast as he could.
However, they hadn't run far when they ran head - on into the giant rats running towards them.
And there was more than one.
With danger in front and behind, they couldn't go back the way they came. So, they had to find a side passage and drill in.
The sewers were a network of passages. No matter where they went, as long as they could find a way up, they could get out. They didn't need to worry about getting lost and being trapped here forever.