The clock kept booming, its sound echoing throughout the house.
Sam "Second Brother" Su's face went ghostly pale, his legs buckling so hard he nearly collapsed on the spot.
This kind of ghostly phenomenon was already way beyond his understanding.
The Daoist instantly glanced down at the floor, only to see the concrete under the Taiji diagram bulging upward, accompanied by a series of deep, muffled thuds.
Just listening, it sounded like someone was relentlessly pounding the concrete, trying to claw their way up from underground. The noise mixed with the relentless clock chimes, making it impossible to hear clearly.
"Daoist Master?"
Sam Su, terrified, looked over at the Daoist beside him.
The Daoist's face grew grave as he stepped forward, muttering incantations under his breath. Suddenly, he jabbed a finger hard onto the hilt of his peach-wood sword.
"Primal Yin-Yang Array, let me seal the Yin Gate! By the order of the law, may Lao Jun grant me divine power!" the Daoist shouted. Instantly, the essence blood in the Taiji diagram began to boil.
Countless drops of blood sizzled and crackled, rising up in clouds of steam toward the ceiling.
The air was thick with the stench of blood. Seeing that the blood on the floor was almost completely boiled away, the Daoist grew anxious and shouted at the more than a hundred toughs still sitting nearby: "Hurry up and get over here! Everyone, add more essence blood!"
He yelled at the top of his lungs.
As soon as he finished, the Taiji diagram on the floor faded a little more.
Most of those tough guys, after just having a mouthful of essence blood slapped out of them, were already limp and weak. Now, hearing the Daoist demand more, they all shrank back, none willing to step forward.
People come to the underworld for money and status. If you die on the battlefield with your boss, at least it's a glorious story. But if you get slapped to death in some rundown house by a Daoist draining your essence blood, that's just humiliating.
Seeing no one willing to move, the Daoist panicked: "The essence blood can't hold back the Yin Gate much longer! Once it opens, everyone here will be sucked dry like a mummy!"
"What are you all waiting for? Get over here, now!"
The Daoist shouted again, his voice frantic.
Sam Su finally realized how dire things were and barked in a deep voice, "All of you, get over here! I'll give each of you ten thousand in 'nutritional fees' afterward!"
Hearing Sam Su say that, the men finally shuffled over again.
This time, the Daoist slapped people even faster than before.
Grizzly was first in line; the Daoist slapped a mouthful of blood out of him, which dripped into the porcelain bowl and quickly merged with the Taiji diagram on the floor.
But the blood didn't even have time to suppress the Yin Gate below—it was instantly boiled away.
The Daoist moved frantically, slapping one guy after another, sweat pouring down his anxious face. Each thug spat out a mouthful of essence blood, which was poured into the bowl and flowed into the Taiji diagram—only to vanish instantly, as if it had never existed.
The ticking on the wall clock grew even faster, and the pounding from beneath the concrete became clearer. The entire floor was bulging upward, like a small hill rising in the middle of the room.
"Not enough, it's still not enough!"
The Daoist was drenched in sweat, and the temperature in the room kept dropping, as if a giant block of ice was radiating cold from somewhere nearby.
"It's not enough—so what now, Daoist Master? Maybe we should bail!" Sam Su, seeing the Daoist panic, was equally desperate.
He definitely didn't want to die here. He'd thought that spending a million to hire a Mount Wutai Daoist would be enough to handle this mess, but now, seeing the Daoist flailing like an ant on a hot pan, he was losing it too.
"There's no escape now. Midnight has struck, and the Yin Gate is right under the floor. Even if you run outside, you'll die! No choice—I'll have to borrow your essence blood!" The Daoist turned his gaze to Sam Su.
Sam Su's face went pale. "No way—use his essence blood instead!"
Sam Su glanced over at Evan Lin, who was standing off to the side.
But the Daoist didn't even bother looking at Evan, lecturing, "Only the essence blood of someone with a strong body and spirit is useful! That kid looks malnourished—skinny as a stick. If I used his blood, it might even ruin my array!"
"But you're different. You were born into the Su family, protected by great fortune, pampered since childhood—your essence blood must be especially powerful! It's worth ten ordinary men's!"
The Daoist laid it on thick, and Sam Su couldn't help puffing up with pride. "That's true—in all of Southcape, hardly anyone dares disrespect me, Sam Su! Daoist Master, you're absolutely right!"
Seeing Sam Su fall for it, the Daoist wasted no time. He stepped up and slapped Sam Su right on the chest.
But after the slap, Sam Su just coughed a few times, groaning in pain—he couldn't spit out any essence blood at all.
"What the hell?"
The Daoist was stunned.
"It's because he's too fat—the layer of fat is so thick, your slap can't reach his heart to squeeze out any blood."
Evan Lin spoke up, his tone flat.
As soon as he said it, Stella Huang couldn't help but laugh.
Too fat, huh?
The Daoist was stunned, glancing at Sam Su's chest—sure enough, it was buried under layers of fat, just like Evan said.
"You're the fat one! Kid, why do you have to run your mouth like that?" Sam Su snapped, face darkening.
Bang!
Just as he finished talking, a heavier thud sounded from the floor.
Everyone's face turned pale. The Daoist slapped Sam Su several more times, but all it did was make Sam Su howl in pain—he couldn't spit out a drop of essence blood, and the Daoist was getting exhausted.
"If this keeps up, are we all gonna get sucked dry like mummies?" Stella Huang stood beside Evan, feeling a strange sense of safety. But seeing the thing under the floor trying to break out, her nerves were shot. She grabbed Evan's arm, face full of worry.
"It's fine," Evan replied.
Evan Lin shook his head, then strode forward.
"What are you doing?!"
The Daoist froze when he saw Evan walk up to the Taiji diagram.
"That kid's probably just looking to get himself killed! Forget him, Daoist Master—hit me a few more times, I don't want to die here!"
Sam Su howled and flailed.
Evan now stood before the Taiji diagram. The floor was already cracking open, and through the gaps, only endless black energy could be seen below.
Bang!
The next second, shards of concrete flew everywhere. The essence blood in the Taiji diagram vanished completely, and something shrieked as it burst out from beneath the floor.
All anyone saw was a blur of black. But before they could make out what it was, the young man standing there had already lifted his foot and stomped down!