The blood slanted across the lawn and dripped onto the roof. Hongjun clasped his hands together and leaned against the wall, signaling for Lu Xu to come over. Lu Xu stepped onto Hongjun's hand and jumped onto the roof. Hongjun then flipped onto the roof.
"Why is it that the more I look at it, the less it looks like a ghost?" Lu Xu muttered to himself. "Have you ever heard of ghosts eating people?"
Hongjun said, "I've never even seen a ghost before."
Although ghouls that died in battle had the word "ghost" in their name, they were not truly ghosts. They were zombies and could barely be considered members of the demonic race. Hongjun had never heard the Chong Ming mention ghosts since he was young. The only source he knew about them was the folklore books that Qing Xiong had brought to him. Lu Xu had never seen one in his entire life, let alone a ghost that ate people.
"Perhaps Emperor Taizong was hungry and came out to eat supper in the middle of the night?" Hongjun and Lu Xu stood on the roof and looked towards the entrance of the Zhaoling Mausoleum.
Lu Xu replied, "It can't be that bad. Why would he stay here instead of reincarnating after death? I don't think there will be any ghouls here. "
As they spoke, Lu Xu gently pressed his hand to his forehead and looked over. Hongjun suddenly raised his head. In this dusk, Lu Xu's body emitted a strange power. Perhaps because the antlers had been cut off, they had weakened a lot and were not visible. However, the invisible antlers emitted a faint light, like two streams or antennae that connected to the veins of the heavens.
And under his feet, the power was briefly connected to the veins of the earth!
"Wow, what kind of magic is this?!" Hongjun said in astonishment.
Lu Xu closed his eyes and frowned deeply. His body emitted a sacred white light, and the side of his face was very handsome. It was as if, in that instant, he had become a god that controlled all life in the world.
"The Dream Realm is the power that connects to the Reincarnation Path of Heaven and Earth."
Lu Xu closed his eyes and said in a low voice, "If a person is unwilling to reincarnate after death, they will wander around the world. Living people can occasionally see them in their dreams. There are no lingering ghosts here, only traces of souls that died a few days ago. Look."
As he spoke, Lu Xu placed his other hand on the back of Hongjun's neck. The scene in Hongjun's eyes instantly changed. Heaven, earth, mountains, and rivers were covered in a pulsating, silk-like light screen. Within the light screen, the Heavenly Veins and Earthly Veins emitted colorful light and spun brilliantly.
Outside the imperial mausoleum, a few wisps of white smoke-like light were slowly rising into the sky. They were the souls of the people who had died not long ago.
Lu Xu retracted his hand, and everything returned to normal.
"Can we ask those ghosts?" Hongjun asked.
Lu Xu shook his head and replied, "I don't know how to communicate with spirits, but as you can see, there are no powerful ghosts in the imperial mausoleum."
Thus, after a simple discussion, the two of them were almost certain that the imperial mausoleum was not haunted. The most likely thing that existed was most likely a demon, and a flying demon at that. This was because the blood had dripped onto the roof.
Hongjun followed the blood trail and arrived in front of the Zhao Mausoleum. The mausoleum's stone door was tightly shut. Blood was smeared all over the ground outside the door, but there were no signs that the door had been opened. Looking at the situation, it was as if something had grabbed a dead person, slammed into a stone wall, and then directly passed through it.
Hongjun used all his strength to push the door. Lu Xu went forward. The two of them pressed against the door, but no matter how hard they tried, they could not push it open. Hongjun combined the four flying knives, weighed them, and said, "Cut it open?"
Lu Xu reminded from the side, "This door seems to open from top to bottom. Look at both sides, it's like a mechanism."
Hongjun, "…"
This was the Broken Dragon Stone at the entrance of the imperial mausoleum. On both sides, there was an iron mechanism that was as tall as a person. When the emperor of the Tang Dynasty entered the mausoleum to pay his respects, he had to form a team of forty people. Two teams would insert a dedicated iron pillar into the mechanism, and then work together to pull it up. Only then could the Broken Dragon Stone slowly rise up.
Hongjun emitted a five-colored divine light and threw it into the bottom of the mausoleum. He used all his strength to pull it up, and the Broken Dragon Stone immediately rose up with a rumble.
Immediately after, he threw the five-colored divine light outwards and pulled it back. He dragged a huge rock over and instantly stuck the Broken Dragon Stone.
The two of them rolled on the ground at the same time and rolled inside.
The rock outside the mausoleum was extremely hard granite. It just happened to leave a gap for one person to enter and exit at a time. After entering, Hongjun snapped his fingers. Flames burst out from between his fingers, illuminating the surroundings. In the middle of the mausoleum was a bottomless tunnel. There were oil lamps hanging on both sides. The flames flew out and lit the oil lamps. There was air circulation in the mausoleum, and it became spacious and bright.
The mausoleum was very clean. The bloodstains spread all the way to the deepest part of the mausoleum. Lu Xu gestured for Hongjun to look down. Hongjun nodded and protected Lu Xu behind him.
Low breathing sounds came from inside the mausoleum. It was as if the wind was blowing, or as if some monster was breathing in the dark. On both sides of the tunnel, the oil lamps gradually dimmed, and then silently went out.
Hongjun was startled. He almost threw out his flying knife.
Lu Xu said, "Don't be nervous … I didn't add enough oil to the oil lamps."
Hongjun switched to the five-colored divine light to illuminate their faces.
"This place is too strange," Hongjun said.
Lu Xu was also a little creeped out. He said, "I don't like it here either."
Hongjun asked, "Do you want to go back first?"
Lu Xu didn't say anything. Hongjun blocked in front of him. He kept feeling that there was something at the end of the tunnel eyeing the two of them covetously. After taking a few more steps forward, Lu Xu reached out and grabbed Hongjun's sleeve. Hongjun almost cried out. He hurriedly turned around to look at Lu Xu. Lu Xu's previously calm and composed manner was gone. He was actually a little scared.
Hongjun slowly led Lu Xu forward. Lu Xu said, "We can't fight here …"
Hongjun whispered, "Let's see if there's anything … then we'll go back."
The imperial mausoleum was filled with an extremely uncomfortable atmosphere. Ever since they stepped in, Hongjun felt a chilly wind blowing behind him. And the closer they got to the end of the tunnel, the clearer the wheezing sounds became.
"There's a monster hiding inside." Hongjun hissed. "It seems to be sleeping?"
"Put away the Five-colored Divine Light," Lu Xu replied softly.
Lu Xu looked at Hongjun's side with a nervous expression. Hongjun leaned to the side, ready to deal with any monster that rushed out. He squeezed his back against the tunnel of the tomb.
A voice suddenly rang out in the darkness:
"Why is it so dark?!"
"Wah —!" Hongjun was startled and screamed.
"Who's there?!" Lu Xu was also startled.
"What is this place?!" the Carp Demon cried out in panic. "A ghost!"
Hongjun had completely forgotten about the Carp Demon on his back. Lu Xu also forgot about it. The carp Demon had been sleeping all the way. Now that it woke up, the three of them were scared out of their wits. Lu Xu missed a step and almost fell down. He hurriedly grabbed Hongjun. Hongjun staggered and slipped on a step. He shouted, "Lu Xu! Where are you? "
Lu Xu: "I'm here, I'm here!"
The two of them ran a few steps in panic. Hongjun hurriedly said, "It's Zhao Zilong! Zhao Zilong! "
"Where is this place?!" the Carp Demon shouted. "Why am I blind?! Hongjun! Hongjun, where are you?! "
Lu Xu hurriedly said, "Shut up! Shut up! "
After a while, Hongjun explained to the Carp Demon that it was too dark, not that it was blind. The Carp Demon was relieved. Hongjun said, "Should I put you down?"
"Don't!" the Carp Demon hurriedly shouted.
"Where is this place?" Lu Xu said.
The wheezing and rumbling breathing stopped. There were even faint echoes around them, as if they were in a spacious hall. It was quiet all around. The terrifying atmosphere surged again and surrounded them.
High up in the hall, there were two green fluorites that seemed to be decorations on the ceiling. However, they were too far away, so the light couldn't illuminate their surroundings.
"I think we should leave," Lu Xu whispered.
Hongjun also felt the danger. The demon's breathing had stopped, which meant that it had discovered the intruders. The next step was likely to be an attack.
"I'll light the lamps. Once the surroundings are lit up, we'll immediately retreat," Hongjun said. "Forget it." Soon after, flames erupted from his palms. With a whoosh, they flew in all directions. The meteor-like flames searched everywhere for flammable materials. In an instant, they lit up the sixteen braziers in the hall of the underground palace.
The mausoleum in the center of the underground palace lit up. Hongjun discovered that he had actually followed the passageway and stairs down to the main hall of the mausoleum for worshipping the emperor! Once the braziers were lit, the entire underground palace shone brilliantly. In the center, there was a coffin that was nearly three feet tall. In the center of the coffin was a jade coffin. Around the jade coffin was a huge black snake.
The eyes of the giant python were the wheel-sized green fluorites that Hongjun had seen before!
"We meet again, Hongjun — —"
The giant python raised its head, revealing a horn on top of its head that was filled with demonic aura. It looked at Hongjun, opened its bloody mouth full of sharp teeth, and flicked its forked tongue in the air.
Hongjun's eyes suddenly widened. The demonic aura in the hall of the mausoleum was reflected. The hall was filled with demonic aura. With the giant python's horn as the center, the demonic aura rolled out and spread wildly, completely surrounding the two of them!
"Xie Yu?!" When Hongjun heard the giant python's voice, he suddenly remembered that night in the Mogao Cave, when the Hei Jiao appeared from the heart demon!
"Run!" Lu Xu immediately shouted.
"It's too late." Xie Yu let out a wild laugh and opened its mouth toward Hongjun. With a loud bang, black fog spewed out. Lu Xu shouted, "Hongjun!"
Hongjun subconsciously held up the Five-colored Divine Light, but it could not resist the invasion of the demonic aura. In an instant, it was submerged in the black flames in Xie Yu's mouth. Lu Xu rushed forward and wanted to knock Hongjun away. However, Xie Yu turned around and slammed Lu Xu away with its huge snake tail!
It was like a repeat of the nightmare in Dunhuang. Endless sadness, pain, and anger surged madly. In front of the golden-armored guard, there was the pain of his dead parents being burned by the golden flames and his blood bursting out. The unfamiliar and familiar pain of life instantly stimulated the demonic seed in his chest!
Xie Yu let out a hoarse roar. The horn on top of its head spewed out an endless stream of black gas, forming an obvious line of black flames that connected with the demonic seed in Hongjun's chest. However, at that moment, Hongjun's pupils suddenly shrank.
"Say you like me, Hongjun."
A familiar voice sounded in his ears. Sadness, pain … all the memories were shattered. Hongjun felt as if he was in a white light. In front of him appeared Li Jinglong's warm embrace and a gentle but scorching kiss.
In the blink of an eye, a light flashed from Hongjun's chest and bounced off Xie Yu's black flames.
"Get lost!" Hongjun released a monstrous roar of anger and released four flying knives that shot out like meteors!
Xie Yu let out a scream, rolled on the high platform, and rushed down. Lu Xu's figure flashed. He grabbed Hongjun and shouted,
"Are you okay?!"
Hongjun shouted, "Get out of here! Don't worry about me! "
The two retreated into the passageway. Xie Yu flipped onto the empty wall of the hall and looked at Hongjun. He hissed, "This is your thousand-year fate — why do you still not understand!"
Demonic Qi swept out. Hongjun and Lu Xu turned around and rushed up the stairs. Hongjun hurriedly turned around and called back his flying knives, turning them into Mo Swords. The Carp Demon screamed, "Don't cut! The mausoleum is about to collapse! "
Hongjun suddenly remembered that they were underground, so he did not dare to use his knife. He immediately set up the Five-colored Divine Light. At that moment, Xie Yu's flood dragon body swept over in an earth-shattering manner, fiercely colliding with the Five-colored Divine Light and sending Hongjun flying. Lu Xu quickly ran up the wall and carried Hongjun in the passageway.
"Get out of the way!" An angry shout.
An arrow like a blazing sun pierced through the darkness with a whoosh. It carried a dazzling white light and a trail of flames as it whistled through the air. Hongjun shouted, "Jinglong!"
Li Jinglong had arrived!
Hongjun grabbed Lu Xu with a backhand, stepped onto the ceiling of the passageway, and spun in a big circle. The two spun above their heads and below their feet, just in time to avoid the arrow. Immediately after, whooshing sounds swept past. It was Mo Rigen's Nailing Seven Arrows!
In the darkness, Li Jinglong's arrow, which was condensed with the power of the Mind's Lamp, shot into the center of the rolling Demonic Qi. A wild roar erupted from the depths of the mausoleum. As soon as Hongjun landed on the ground, Li Jinglong slid to his side. He grabbed Hongjun's arm and shouted, "Let's go!"
Mo Rigen flew over and grabbed Lu Xu's wrist, dragging him out. Lu Xu's speed was even faster than his. In a flash, he was already in front. Mo Rigen couldn't catch up for a moment and almost staggered from being dragged by Lu Xu. He shouted, "Wait!"
The four ran to the entrance of the passageway. At the same time, they passed each other and drilled out from under the Broken Dragon Stone. As soon as they left the mausoleum, it was all water outside. Unexpectedly, it was raining again. Hongjun's feet slipped and he was already supported by Li Jinglong to stand up. Immediately, Li Jinglong immediately turned around. Holding the Wisdom Sword, he stared closely behind the Broken Dragon Stone, ready to attack at any time.
Everyone was silent for a moment. Xie Yu unexpectedly didn't make any more noise.
Hongjun said, "Just now, I …"
Li Jinglong immediately made a shushing gesture, indicating that they should keep quiet. After waiting for a while, there was still no movement from inside the mausoleum. Xie Yu didn't chase after them. There was also no demonic aura spreading from under the Broken Dragon Stone.
"Let's go in and take a look?" Mo Rigen said.
Li Jinglong pointed at the original spot, indicating that Hongjun and Lu Xu shouldn't go in. He also raised his hand and made a gesture of hitting Hongjun's head, meaning that he would settle the score with them after they came out.
"You guys be careful." Lu Xu said.
Li Jinglong and Mo Rigen entered the mausoleum. Hongjun and Lu Xu nervously listened outside the Broken Dragon Stone. Not long after, the two people came out again. Mo Rigen was holding an arrow in his hand. He and Li Jinglong looked at each other in dismay.
"It's gone?" Hongjun said in surprise.
Li Jinglong spread his hands and frowned at Hongjun. "Why did you come out like this?! You made me so worried! "
Hongjun acted as if he had gotten into trouble. Li Jinglong called him to the side and scolded him. Mo Rigen squatted on the fence of the mausoleum and said to Lu Xu, "Hongjun likes to play. You should also play with him."
Lu Xu said impatiently, "We can work! We're not rice worms. You can't run as fast as me! "
Hongjun explained what had happened. Li Jinglong was stunned when he heard this. "You blocked its demonic aura?!"
"En … Oh." Hongjun answered. "I think so. I don't know …"
"You can't come out alone in the future!" Li Jinglong scolded again.
"I was with Lu Xu and Zhao Zilong!" Hongjun said. "I didn't come out alone."
"That's right." The Carp Demon protested behind Hongjun's back. "Why do you care?"
Li Jinglong originally wanted to say that he couldn't be with anyone. However, no matter who he was with in the Exorcism Division, he couldn't be at ease. In the end, he could only blame himself for not guarding properly today, so he didn't scold him anymore. Li Jinglong patted his head and thought for a moment. Seeing Hongjun's blank face, he couldn't help but laugh.
"I'll deal with you when we go back tonight." Li Jinglong said casually.
"That … You can't run around like this in the future." Mo Rigen scolded Lu Xu. "Although you run fast …"
Lu Xu stared at Mo Rigen. The two of them looked at Li Jinglong and Hongjun. They saw Li Jinglong kissing Hongjun.
Mo Rigen: "…"
Mo Rigen didn't dare to imitate him. Otherwise, Lu Xu would probably kick him into the Broken Dragon Stone of the Zhao Mausoleum.
When Hongjun heard this, he knew that Mo Rigen wasn't angry. He asked, "But why is Xie Yu gone?"
Mo Rigen said to them from afar, "I think it's a trap."
Li Jinglong replied, "Let's check again. We'll talk when we get back."
Thus, Mo Rigen and Lu Xu went in again. When they reached the deepest part of the Zhao Mausoleum, the brazier was still burning, but the demonic Qi had disappeared without a trace.
"It can't be in the coffin, right?" Mo Rigen said.
Lu Xu replied, "That's impossible. How could such a big snake hide in there?"
The two of them looked around for a mechanism, but they couldn't find any. The demonic Qi had completely dissipated. When they came out, they told Li Jinglong that there was nothing inside.
The Carp Demon said, "What the hell? How could it be gone?"
Li Jinglong was too excited last night and couldn't sleep. Today, he had been running around and was very tired. He signaled for Hongjun to remove the granite that was holding the Broken Dragon Stone. Mo Rigen transformed into a Grey Wolf and carried the three of them away from Mount Jiuyi, heading towards Chang 'an City.