The wooden figure exhaled a puff of demonic breath from its mouth, and Shi Pengpeng swiftly flew a talisman onto its back.
Confirming that it was subdued, Bai Wanmu blew a sharp whistle, recalling the leading gu insect.
The mountain-like accumulation of insects and ants retreated like a tide, disappearing back into the depths of the dense forest’s withered branches and fallen leaves.
There were so many that some even crawled past the feet of the three of them.
Although Shan Ren was Bai Wanmu’s teammate, he couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine: “Amitabha, mercy, mercy.”
Shi Pengpeng also rubbed his arms and raised a thumb in admiration:
“As expected of the king I support, the soldiers you lead are truly formidable.”
“You flatter me,” Bai Wanmu replied with a complex expression, sincerely saying, “I think you have a greater talent for using gu than I do. With just one command from you, I would abdicate my position to you at any moment!”
Bai Wanmu’s family had been gu masters for generations, and she had been learning to refine and use gu since childhood.
However, decades of expertise still seemed slightly immature compared to Shi Pengpeng’s quick wit.
Shi Pengpeng chuckled: “Your Majesty is too kind.”
The three of them approached the wooden figure, which had now revealed its true form a woman’s appearance.
Like the severed wooden hand, the wooden figure was also coated with two layers of paint, but the craftsmanship was rough, making it look neither new nor old.
Parts of it had been gnawed away by insects, giving it a tattered and increasingly shabby appearance.
However, the most bizarre part was its lower face, which had been smeared with a circle of black ink by someone, explaining why it had a beard when it transformed into a human form.
Shan Ren sighed: “I never expected that this thing almost took us all down.”
“What do you mean?” the wooden figure grumbled indignantly, “Do I not look impressive? I am the essence of ten thousand trees…”
Shi Pengpeng thrust her fist in front of it: “Hmm?”
The wooden figure shuddered and quickly corrected itself: “Eek, I overstepped. There is only one king in Biannan.”
Bai Wanmu:”….”
Shan Ren:”….”
“You better remember that,” Shi Pengpeng said with a cold smile, lowering his gaze, “Now, confess, what exactly are you?”
The wooden figure shrank its shoulders, its eyes darting around: “I’m just a small, insignificant wood spirit.”
“Is that so?” Shi Pengpeng said noncommittally, kicking it down with one foot and pressing his index and middle fingers to its forehead, “Reveal the hidden demon, show your true form.”
“Ah!” The wooden figure trembled violently as an ominous force surged out.
Shi Pengpeng followed the aura with his fingers, stopping at the wooden figure’s chest.
“Found it.”
He immediately pulled out a yellow talisman and slapped it down.
The wooden figure screamed in terror: “No!”
Shi Pengpeng paid no heed, and the cinnabar on the talisman glowed.
With a “crack,” a large fissure split open on the wooden figure’s chest, revealing a small, crimson object inside.
It was a blood pearl the size of a pigeon’s egg.
Shan Ren and Bai Wanmu’s eyes widened in shock, and Bai Wanmu exclaimed: “Heart’s blood!”
Inanimate objects that gain sentience are usually weak because they lack a natural body and spiritual awareness.
But this wooden figure actually had a drop of heart’s blood, indicating that it had reached a significant level of power, which explained why it was so formidable.
“This isn’t blood it cultivated on its own,” Shi Pengpeng said coldly, “This is a drop of cursed blood placed inside it by someone.”
Bai Wanmu and Shan Ren also noticed the overwhelming aura of blood and resentment emanating from the cluster, which carried an intense miasma of sin and malice.
Shi Pengpeng demanded sharply, “Where did this drop of blood come from?”
At this point, the wooden creature dared not hide the truth any longer and stammered, “It… it was given to me by the Grand Preceptor.”
Bai Wanmu frowned, “Are you from the Longevity Island ?”
It wasn’t surprising.
Over the past two years, most of the malevolent entities that had appeared in the southern border regions had originated from the Longevity Island.
“Yes,” the wooden creature replied.
It was originally just a low-level entity mass-produced by the Longevity Island, devoid of any consciousness.
But by chance, the Grand Preceptor had dripped a drop of cursed blood into its heart, transforming it into a true wood spirit.
“The Grand Preceptor saw how powerful I had become and appointed me as the Guardian Spirit Tree of the Nation, tasked with protecting the imperial mausoleum,” the wooden creature said with a hint of pride.
“Guardian Spirit Tree of the Nation? And an imperial mausoleum?” Shi Pengpeng couldn’t help but laugh.
“What, does the Grand Preceptor really think he’s some kind of ruler? Is he planning to establish his own kingdom?”
She glanced at Bai Wanmu and teased, “The southern border is truly a land of extraordinary people. Even in the 21st century, we still have so many self-proclaimed emperors and generals.”
Bai Wanmu: “…”
Bai Wanmu sighed in shame, “I never imagined that such treacherous individuals existed under my rule. They must all be executed!”
Shan Ren: “The mental state of the students at the Twofold Academy is truly something else, isn’t it?”
“I’m not sure about that,” the wooden creature said pitifully.
After becoming the Guardian Spirit Tree, it had been stationed at the imperial mausoleum and knew little about other matters.
It added that not long ago, the Grand Preceptor had suddenly received word that the Longevity Island was in danger.
He had decided to lay low elsewhere, leaving only a powerful ghost to oversee the mausoleum.
“Your Majesty, please understand, I had no intention of harming anyone. The overseer ordered me to capture people for a blood sacrifice. He’s incredibly powerful-he can summon wind and rain, and he wields a sword that can traverse the realms of yin and yang. I truly didn’t dare disobey…”
Shi Pengpeng’s eyes lit up, “The Ziguan Sword?!”
“Master, you’re truly wise! Nothing escapes your notice!” the wooden creature quickly flattered her.
Indeed, everything had been part of a scheme orchestrated by the Longevity Island, starting with the Ziguan Sword.
Shi Pengpeng turned to Bai Wanmu, “Senior Sister, please plant a gu in the cursed blood within this rotten wood’s heart.”
Gu sorcery couldn’t control ordinary wooden creatures, but with the cursed blood, it was different.
The gu worm could directly parasitize the blood, controlling the creature’s life and death.
The wooden creature panicked, “What are you planning to do?”
“Don’t worry, as long as you cooperate, we won’t take your life,” Shi Pengpeng said coldly.
“Take us to the imperial mausoleum.”
With the wooden creature leading the way, the group quickly made their way out of the dense forest.
“This is the Forbidden River of the imperial mausoleum. Once we cross it, we’ll reach the mausoleum’s main hall,” the wooden creature said, pointing ahead.
The three of them looked up and saw a full moon hanging high in the sky.
Beneath its pale light stretched a black river.
The river was vast and eerily calm, shrouded in a layer of gray mist.
The other side was invisible, and it was impossible to tell how wide the river was.
“How are we supposed to cross this?” Bai Wanmu looked around, but there was nothing-no boats, rafts, or any other means of crossing.
The wooden creature waved at them and waded into the water from the riverbank.
Ripples spread across the surface, but the water only reached its calves.
“There’s a bridge here,” the wooden creature said, leading the way.
It turned out the bridge was built underwater.
The wooden figure walked several meters ahead and, seeing them still hesitating, urged, “Why aren’t you coming? Follow me quickly. The Forbidden Water is deep, so be careful not to step into a void.”
Shan Ren, reassured by the wooden figure’s safety, said, “I’ll go first.”
“Wait,” Shi Pengpeng cautiously stopped him and flicked a talisman forward.
The talisman flew and attached itself to the wooden figure.
“Paper Talisman Substitute.”
The substitute talisman could confuse low-level yin creatures, making them mistake the wooden figure for Shi Pengpeng.
As the cinnabar glowed, the calm water surface suddenly began to boil, bubbling with a “gurgling” sound.
Soon after, a series of “pfft pfft” noises erupted, and something shot out from the water, wrapped in mist like transparent pellets, hurling toward the wooden figure.
“Ow ow ow!!” The wooden figure was struck by the pellets, scurrying around in panic and nearly losing its balance.
Bai Wanmu and Shan Ren were startled.
Shan Ren recognized the thing and exclaimed, “Ghost Bullets!”
So-called Ghost Bullets are formed from the accumulated corpse poison and resentment in the water.
Water accompanies yin, and when it meets corpses, it turns toxic.
If decaying corpses pile up in water, they pollute the source, and anyone who enters it will fall ill or even die, leading to epidemics.
If the water source happens to be in a cursed place, the corpse poison and resentment gather over time, forming an invisible monster.
This monster usually lurks in the water, but when it moves, it makes sounds as if it’s throwing something.
If it hits a tree, the tree breaks; if it hits a person, the person is struck dead.
Hence, it’s called a Ghost Bullet.
However, Ghost Bullets typically only appear during years of great epidemics.
Due to the vastness of flowing water and its self-purifying ability, the occasional corpse is far from enough to pollute the water source.
Only during calamities like floods or wars, when large numbers of lives are unjustly lost and bodies are dumped into the water, can Ghost Bullets form.
The depth of this Forbidden Water was unknown, but its surface was so vast that it should have diluted many things.
Ghost Bullets shouldn’t have appeared here.
Mountains of corpses and seas of blood, resentment breeding epidemics.
Shi Pengpeng gazed at the pitch-black river surface with a look of compassion.
“Amitabha.”
Shan Ren clasped his hands together, “Such sin, such sin.”
Bai Wanmu gritted her teeth in anger, “The Longevity Island has truly done every evil deed.”
Looking back at the wooden figure, the spots where it was hit by the Ghost Bullets had turned black, with wisps of dark miasma rising.
Fortunately, it was a wood spirit with a sturdy body; if it were ordinary wood, it would have been shattered long ago.
The wooden figure cried for help, “Madam, it’s not my fault! Please, take back your magic!”
Only then did Shi Pengpeng make a hand seal, and the substitute talisman floated away from the wooden figure, self-igniting and dissipating in the air.
The Ghost Bullets vanished, and the surface of the Forbidden Water returned to calm.
The wooden figure scrambled back, terrified, and Shi Pengpeng punched it to the ground, “Still trying to play tricks?”
“Wah wah, I wouldn’t dare!” The wooden figure almost hugged her leg, “I really don’t know what happened. I usually come and go this way, and Ghost Bullets have never appeared before.”
The wooden figure’s heart blood was controlled by a gu worm, so Shi Pengpeng believed it wouldn’t dare to lie and let it go.
Bai Wanmu said, “This Forbidden Water probably has a restriction set on it.”
Shi Pengpeng had also realized that the Forbidden Water wasn’t just a natural barrier but a specially designed boundary.
Any outsider who touched the Forbidden Water would attract the attack of Ghost Bullets.
Only the items from the small imperial tomb could pass through the bridge and enter or exit normally.
Shan Ren: “This is quite troublesome.”
The power of the ghost bullets is extraordinary, and they are highly toxic.
It’s absolutely impossible to withstand them directly.
The best approach is to break the barrier and dissolve the resentment in the water.
But this forbidden water is so vast and deep, with countless corpses submerged beneath.
Even with the combined strength of the three of them, it’s likely impossible to dispel such overwhelming sin.
“It’s manageable. Alright.”
Shi Pengpeng looked relaxed, glancing at the wooden figure out of the corner of her eye.
“Isn’t there still an insider here? Let it take us across, won’t it?
Outsiders only trigger the ghost bullets when they touch the forbidden water.
In other words, as long as they don’t come into contact with the water, they’ll be fine.
“?”
Shan Ren and Bai Wanmu exchanged glances.
Bai Wanmu suddenly realized and clapped her hands.
“Oh right, we can have the Guardian Sacred Tree carry us across.”
Guardian Sacred Tree:”….”
Shi Pengpeng shook her head.
“No, that’s too slow. Besides, we don’t know what’s on the other side. It’s dangerous to go separately.”
The Guardian Sacred Tree immediately nodded.
“Yes, yes, I can only carry one person at a time. This isn’t ideal…”
Before it could finish, Shi Pengpeng kicked it into the water.
“Since it’s just wood, lie flat and act as a boat.”
As a wood spirit, the wooden figure had plenty of strength.
As long as there was enough space to stand, it could easily carry all three of them.
Bai Wanmu and Shan Ren: “???”
Wooden Figure: “???”
“Plop “
The wooden figure fell into the water and, sure enough, floated.
It drifted for a couple of seconds before resigning itself and spreading its limbs into a “big” shape on the surface.
“Come on up, everyone, glug glug…”
Shi Pengpeng was the first to leap onto the wooden figure’s back, and sure enough, no ghost bullets appeared.
Seeing this, Bai Wanmu and Shan Ren also jumped on.
Shi Pengpeng stomped her foot like starting an engine.
“Alright, let’s set sail.”
Wooden Figure: “….”