------------
That night, it was the sixteenth day of the lunar calendar. A bright full moon hung high in the sky, even rounder than yesterday. But the golden moon’s halo was fringed with a hazy blur—on a full moon night, the dead rise!
Under the moonlight, Bamboo Dragon Hill looked even colder and more sinister. Even the owls and the endless chorus of insects that usually filled the night had vanished. Only the ghostly flames drifting silently around the graves in the woods remained, shrouding the entire hill in a chilling, eerie silence.
Outside the valley, at the windward edge of the mountain, a yellow ox was tethered. Sam Choi had tied it there following Shawn Young’s instructions. The ox had been force-fed plenty of liquor; drunken and groggy, it lay limp on the ground. Sam Choi had also cut two precise slits—one on its chest and one on its back—with a sharp blade. Blood trickled steadily from the inch-long wounds, mingling with the strong scent of alcohol, and the night wind quickly carried the bloody aroma into the valley, right to the edge of the Necromancer’s Hollow.
After finishing, Sam Choi hurried away as Shawn Young had told him. Though he was curious about the legendary Chibaku, Shawn warned him it was vicious and could leap out to attack at any moment. Since Shawn couldn’t protect him, Sam Choi chickened out—he was just an ordinary guy, after all.
Shawn Young hid behind a rock near the bleeding ox, holding several talismans drawn with cinnabar to ward off evil and control corpses in one hand, and a sealed pouch of black dog’s blood in the other—a classic Taoist tool for banishing spirits and subduing monsters. He focused his mind and waited.
An hour passed with no movement. Another half hour went by, and still nothing. Shawn was starting to get restless, wondering if he’d picked the wrong spot for the Necromancer’s Hollow.
Just as he was lost in thought, a faint noise echoed through the valley—a rapid heartbeat, growing closer: "thump-thump—thump-thump—" The sound shifted and mingled with the crunch of stones and earth being disturbed.
It's here! The Chibaku has appeared!
Shawn recalled what the Codex of Ascension said: After the Nether Wyrm inside a corpse devours all the nutrients from the internal organs, it gathers at the brain and heart, controlling the corpse’s movements. The heart, in particular, is where the Nether Wyrm secretes and evolves, so when the Chibaku rises, its actions are marked by a distinct heartbeat sound.
Soon, a swift shadow flashed before Shawn Young’s eyes. It darted through the rocky valley, zigzagging with bizarre speed and movements. Most unnervingly, its body moved at a strange angle, almost glued to the ground, nothing like a normal human.
Suddenly, the Chibaku stopped a few meters in front of the yellow ox. Its blood-red eyes flickered warily as it glanced around, raising its exposed jawbone in the moonlight—a truly terrifying sight.
Hiding behind the rock, Shawn finally got a clear look at the Chibaku by moonlight—though its host was humanoid, it no longer looked remotely human. Its face was riddled with holes, the muscle on its cheeks devoured by the Nether Wyrm, and only those blood-red, eerie eyes remained. Bits of tattered camouflage still clung to its shoulders, but its exposed skin was knotted like stone, veins bulging in a spiderweb pattern, now a dull crimson under the moonlight. Its limbs and body had swollen far beyond their original size—it must have evolved!
After scanning for danger, the Chibaku braced its legs and, like a cannonball, launched itself at the bleeding ox.
"Moo—" The poor ox struggled instinctively, but the Chibaku’s strength was terrifying. With one grab, it flipped the several-hundred-pound beast over and lunged at it, baring two rows of evolved, razor-sharp fangs like whale baleen, sinking them deep into the ox’s neck.
"Moo—moo—" The ox made its final desperate struggle, but its neck was quickly torn open by those vicious fangs. Blood gushed out, the Chibaku’s eyes flashed, and it let out an excited screech—"Jie—jie!" Then it opened its mouth wide, and its blood-red tongue, now evolved into a crimson straw with a tiny mouth at the tip, stabbed deep into the ox’s wound, sucking hungrily.
The ox writhed in agony, its body convulsing as its blood drained away, legs flailing mindlessly in a last, dying struggle. The empty valley echoed with the Chibaku’s eerie slurping sounds.
Seizing the moment, Shawn sprang from behind the rock and attacked the Chibaku from behind. He hurled the sealed pouch of Black Hound’s Blood—"whoosh"—straight at the monster’s back. The Chibaku sensed something and turned, but—"smack!"—the pouch burst against its back, splattering blood everywhere!
"Sss—sss—" White smoke rose from its back as the Black Hound’s Blood did its work. The Chibaku let out a piercing howl—"Awoo—"—then leapt two meters into the air before landing, its body trembling. It clawed frantically at its own back, ripping off chunks of foul, rotten flesh in agony!
This chapter isn’t over yet ^.^, please click next page to continue reading!
Shawn was thrilled—he knew the Chibaku would be slowed by the Black Hound’s Blood. Without hesitation, he summoned his true energy, raised the Corpse-Binding Talisman, and shouted as he hurled it forward.
The Chibaku sensed danger, arched its body, and kicked off the ground like a drawn arrow, dodging just in time to avoid the talisman’s attack!
"Damn! This thing is even trickier than I thought!" Shawn muttered, quickly focusing his energy to cast a spell.
The Chibaku shrieked, twisting its body as it lunged at Shawn, claws bared and face twisted in rage—it clearly hated him!
But Shawn was ready. He snorted, "Bring it on!" and sprang back several steps. His hands formed the Radiant King Seal, and he chanted: "洞慧交徹，五气腾腾，金光速現，覆护真人，风火雷电，玄冥明王，急急如律令——破！"
"Whoosh—" A red beam shot from Shawn’s body, surging with energy as it blasted toward the charging Chibaku. Sensing danger, the monster tried to dodge, but Shawn willed the beam to split into countless red threads midair, dazzling like fireworks. They wrapped around the Chibaku, binding it tightly and piercing into its body!
"Awooo—awooo—" The Chibaku howled in agony, crashing wildly through the valley. Its massive body smashed rocks and cliffs to pieces, but as the red light burrowed into its flesh, it quickly collapsed, thrashing on the ground in a desperate struggle. Its blood-red eyes suddenly fixed on the full moon, mouth gaping—
"Boom—" The Chibaku’s entire body exploded, spraying foul black blood and chunks of flesh everywhere. It was utterly destroyed.
But Shawn soon noticed a faint wisp of soul energy rising from the monster’s remains. Without his Oracle Vision and opened third eye, he would never have spotted it.
He watched as the Chibaku’s soul energy swiftly gathered in one direction within the valley. Shawn was startled—someone was using a rare soul-capturing spell! There was another person hiding in the valley, and they were a practitioner of dark magic!
"Who are you? Who’s in there? Show yourself now!" Shawn rushed into the valley, following the direction of the drifting soul. He didn’t know what that person wanted with the Chibaku’s soul, but he was sure it wasn’t anything good!
"Jie—jie—jie—Stinky brat! Not bad, you’ve got some skills! Heh heh—" A yellow figure appeared a short distance in front of Shawn.
Recommended: Check out my friend’s new novel on Century TopLit, "The Shameless Landlord and His Lovely Tenants"
Synopsis:
"He’s a devil—a ruthless killer!" That’s the only impression people offended by Qin Feng have of him. He slaughters for the sake of his beautiful tenants!
"He’s the only real man!" Any woman who’s witnessed Qin Feng’s strength would say so, blushing with admiration. He protects his precious tenants, winning the hearts of countless beauties.
"I’m already keeping a low profile!" Qin Feng could only shrug at their mixed opinions. "I’m just protecting the beauties on my turf!"
Personal recommendation: This novel is super wish-fulfilling, with a tightly packed plot. It’s an unmissable urban romance! The author told me it’s already got half a million words in reserve—crazy, right? On launch day, there’ll be a 50,000-word update, and after that, daily updates of over 10,000 words. That’s way faster than my own uploads! So please support and bookmark it—your support is the author’s greatest motivation and passion! Bookmark now!
filesartilei "The Shameless Landlord and His Lovely Tenants"