At dawn, the stone castle gradually lit up. Outside, there were loud noises. Hongjun's Rainbow Light enveloped Mo Rigen's body. After it was withdrawn, Mo Rigen gasped for breath and opened his eyes.
"This is …" Mo Rigen looked around.
"You need to rest." Hongjun carried him to the bed and said, "How did you get caught?"
Mo Rigen grabbed Hongjun's wrist and said, "After I woke up, I looked everywhere for you and met a group of guards …"
Outside, there were shouts in Shiwei language. The footsteps were getting closer and closer. Hongjun turned to look at the door and said to Mo Rigen, "Can you move?"
Mo Rigen tried to sit up, but said, "My heart … hurts a lot."
Mo Rigen cast a spell. There was a strong flash of light and he turned into a Grey Wolf. His legs could not help but tremble.
The sound of the search was getting closer and closer. Hongjun said, "You've been poisoned for too long. The remaining poison hasn't been removed. Rest for a while."
Hongjun pulled the bedsheet and covered the Grey Wolf's back. The Grey Wolf wanted to say something, but Hongjun had already waved his hand. He turned and opened the window. In a flash, he jumped out.
At the end of the corridor, the guards were opening the doors of the stone castle one by one, looking for Mo Rigen and Hongjun's hiding place. The female shaman followed closely behind, giving orders in Shiwei language.
Hongjun flipped through a few rooms outside the stone castle. When he heard the sound approaching, he entered one of the rooms. He pulled the Demon Binding Rope and faced the door, waiting for the Shiwei guards to come in.
As expected, as soon as Hongjun appeared in the corridor, someone discovered him and shouted loudly, "Don't let him escape." Hongjun immediately turned and ran. In a flash, the guards swarmed through the corridor, ignoring Mo Rigen's room. Immediately after, the Demon Binding Rope lit up and suddenly shot up from the ground. It wrapped around the ankles of the guards and tripped a large group of pursuers.
This magic weapon was too useful! As Hongjun ran, a thought flashed through his mind. He retracted the Demon Binding Rope and released it again, knocking down another large group of people. He only wanted to lead the pursuers away as soon as possible. After rushing out of the long corridor, he leaped onto the roof of the long corridor that connected the two ends of the stone castle. The moon was dark and the wind was strong. Hongjun leaped onto roofs and vaulted over walls, running as far as he could. He was getting further and further away from Mo Rigen.
At the same time, the Grey Wolf lay on the ground, gasping for breath. A golden light shone from its heart, as if it had pierced through its body. The Devil Qi that An Lushan had planted in the deepest part of its heart was burning fiercely, burned to nothing by the golden light.
It howled, and its fur, which had once been dyed grayish-black by An Lushan's Devil Qi, gradually faded into a pale blue color. In the middle of the night, the low howl of the wolf swept across the grassland like a gust of wind. It traveled far into the stone castle.
In the dark forest, countless green lights suddenly lit up. They flickered in the shrubbery one after another, like a river of stars, surrounding the entire stone castle.
At the top of the stone castle, shouts could be heard everywhere. Shiwei guards with torches in their hands surrounded the central tower. Hongjun stood tall on the tower, surrounded by guards in all directions. Hongjun gathered his Mo Sword. Holding it in his right hand, he wrapped the Demon Binding Rope around his wrist with his left hand, searching for a suitable area to swing over. However, in the middle of the night, the surroundings were pitch-black. The Shiwei guards had already drawn their bows and nocked their arrows, aiming at the lone Hongjun at the top of the tower.
As long as he activated the Five-colored Divine Light, ordinary arrows would not be able to harm him. However, Hongjun's plan was to leave the stone castle as soon as possible. He wanted to lead this group of people in a circle and disappear into the night. He would then take the opportunity to come back and take away Mo Rigen.
At this moment, he saw a flash in the distant corridor. There was a wooden stake there. If he used the wooden stake to swing out of the city and land on the city wall, he would be able to shake off his pursuers!
In the blink of an eye, Hongjun threw out the Demon Binding Rope. With a whoosh, he flew across the night sky. Using the wooden stake as a fulcrum, he drew a perfect arc in the air. When he reached the highest point, he put away the Demon Binding Rope and leaped toward the city wall. Immediately after, a person flew in the air and came face to face with Hongjun.
It was a female shaman with black crow wings. In that instant, Hongjun could not dodge in time and directly crashed into her!
"Good child, come with me," the female shaman whispered in Chinese. Then, she stretched out two fingers and tapped Hongjun's forehead.
With a loud bang, black flames scattered all over Hongjun's body. His demonic aura actually wildly overflowed and exploded in all directions. Like a meteor burning with demonic flames, he crashed down with a loud bang. Where he landed, the residential buildings instantly collapsed. Before the Shiwei people inside could escape, they were already ignited by the black flames. Their skin split open and their flesh lacerated, turning them into rampaging monsters!
The female shaman, Mo Luo, slowly descended. The roaring monsters rushed forward, but with just one palm, they were smashed to the side and turned into fine powder. The Shiwei guards around her came forward. Mo Luo only coldly threw out a sentence.
"Take him back."
Hongjun was in unbearable pain. In the torment of the black flames, Lu Xu's seal had completely gone out of control. Countless sorrowful complaints were about to burst his chest. Meanwhile, the nightmares that he had absorbed in Dunhuang in the past also emerged one by one, wreaking havoc in a frenzy.
The guards did not dare to touch Hongjun. In the place where he landed, the area within a radius of several zhang had been completely polluted. Just like the place where An Lushan had passed, it was the corrosion of demonic aura. The Shiwei guards could only use iron chains and iron hooks to lock Hongjun's wrists and drag him to the stone castle.
Mo Luo came to a dark room. She cast spells with both hands and muttered an incantation. A shadow appeared on the wall and slowly circled.
"I've caught him." Mo Luo said.
"Man proposes, God disposes." The low voice slowly said, "He actually fell into my hands at this time … Let me see …"
Chang 'an, Daming Palace.
Everyone was in a state of panic. The entire city was shrouded in an atmosphere of unease and fear. In the underground palace of Daming Palace, black fog spread out. Yang Guozhong stood in front of a ball of flames. Behind him were four monsters formed from demonic aura.
"Let me see …" Yang Guozhong muttered.
The flames parted, revealing Hongjun lying on the ground, motionless. Mo Luo slightly turned her body, allowing Yang Guozhong to see what was going on.
"Where's the other one?" Yang Guozhong asked.
Mo Luo replied, "Slowly interrogate, you'll get the answer eventually."
Yang Guozhong walked into the flames. The flames dissipated. In the stone castle, the coiling dragon-like shadow took human form and walked out of the wall. The demonic aura gathered to form Yang Guozhong's body, but it appeared extremely weak, as if it would dissipate at any time.
"Lord Xie Yu?" Mo Luo could not help but take half a step back. He was instantly shocked. This was the first time Xie Yu had been summoned and had personally descended.
"You are our final ambush." Yang Guozhong said, "Do you remember what I said?"
"Unless it's necessary, do not expose yourself." Mo Luo whispered.
Yang Guozhong approached Mo Luo. They were thousands of kilometers apart. His strength was almost unable to support this conversation.
"Listen, Mo Luo." Yang Guozhong placed a hand covered in black aura beside Mo Luo's face and whispered in her ear, "An Lushan is powerful, I urgently need demonic aura. Now, the final moment is near. Bring back the Three Thousand Worlds Nightmare and the evil aura of the entire Shiwei Clan … I need to confirm that you are safe. At the same time, hide it from everyone, don't let anyone know …"
As he spoke, Yang Guozhong once again turned into black mist and returned to the wall of the dark room. Mo Luo raised her head and looked at the wall. There was a mural on the wall. There was a huge black snake coiling around a strange white beast with patterns all over its body.
Mo Luo turned and walked towards Hongjun. Hongjun's breathing became heavy as he lay unconscious on the ground. Mo Luo muttered, "Then … come."
Immediately, Mo Luo stretched out a hand and Hongjun floated into the air. A thick black aura appeared from his chest and was sucked into Mo Luo's body. Hongjun instantly woke up and let out a painful cry!
The cry almost tore apart the night sky of Shiwei. In the darkness, the Grey Wolf heard the cry and tried its best to prop itself up. The golden light on its chest quickly expelled the demonic aura.
Hongjun's eyes widened. He could only feel the demonic aura and nightmare on his body being sucked away by the female shaman. He didn't know what happened. He raised his hand with difficulty, but his treasures had already been taken away. Mo Luo's face was ferocious, as if she was being attacked by the demonic aura.
"You are …" Hong Jun saw a strange silhouette appear behind Mo Luo. The silhouette of this silhouette was vaguely familiar to him from the Demon Subduing Record.
"How can you …" Hongjun said with a trembling voice.
"Don't move." Mo Luo said in a low voice, "Don't move … be good, it will be over soon …"
"You are … a tapir." Hongjun's eyes suddenly widened. He thought of an ancient legend — the Dream-Eating Tapir!
The demonic aura was quickly sucked away from Hongjun's body. After the initial pain passed, Hongjun felt his body lighten. He raised his hands and his hands glowed with a five-colored divine light. In its place, the meridians in his body became clear and bright!
"Why?" Hongjun felt the nightmare being sucked away. The demonic aura in his body was sucked away by the demon. He said, "Why did you risk your life to save me?"
Mo Luo, "…"
Mo Luo was almost unable to control the demonic aura. He let out a painful cry. Hongjun shouted, "Stop! You will die! "
Mo Luo gritted his teeth and stared at Hongjun. In the next moment, all the nightmares were sucked away. In front of Hongjun appeared a pitch-black giant beast! The giant beast was like a pig and an elephant. After swallowing all his nightmares, it let out a trembling roar!
In a corner of the stone castle, the bricks collapsed, revealing the blackened giant tapir. Hongjun was almost thrown out. When he summoned the Demon Binding Rope, the giant tapir had already rushed out of the dark room. It broke through the stone castle's long corridor and rushed towards the main castle.
In the darkness, the giant tapir released a thick black aura that turned into millions of wriggling black snakes. They roared wildly. The stone castle was like a dead city. Almost no one woke up. Hongjun suddenly remembered that this was the action of being completely controlled by the nightmare! He couldn't help but recall how he had sucked away the nightmare power from his inner demon in Dunhuang. However, when he chased after it and tried to capture the black aura, he couldn't do anything.
After obtaining the Three Thousand Worlds Nightmare in Dunhuang, Lu Xu had used the Dream Seal to temporarily seal the nightmare power. Then, Li Jinglong used the Mind Lamp to strengthen the seal forcefully. Now that the Dream-Eating Tapir had swallowed all his nightmares for no reason, no matter how powerful its demonic power was, it could not withstand the nightmare's control for the time being.
Hearing the Nightmare Tapir's shrill shriek, Hongjun chased it to the stone castle's main hall. Almost half of the main hall's walls had collapsed. The Nightmare Tapir was sitting on King Wei's throne in the high room. It stared at Hongjun with black flames burning in its eyes.
"You can't do this!" Hongjun said in a panic, "You'll be controlled by the demonic aura!"
Until now, Hongjun still had no idea why the Nightmare Tapir was doing that. However, the demon had lost control. The black snakes it released filled the entire city. It could start a massacre at any time!
Hongjun activated the demonic seed in his body in an attempt to snatch the demonic aura from it. However, the Nightmare Tapir roared and released a shockwave that sent Hongjun flying backward!
It was dead silent in the city. The Shiwei people had fallen asleep. The black snakes had sneaked into thousands of homes, entangling the people who were in dreamland. The Grey Wolf staggered and squeezed its way out of the house. It came to the collapsed corridor and howled while sobbing.
"Woo … Awoo …"
The wolf howls came and went on the plains. The sound waves were getting louder and louder. Subsequently, the color of the Grey Wolf's fur faded. It turned into an indigo color that shone like silk. It inhaled hard and let out a ferocious roar that shook the night sky from its chest!
Hongjun struggled to stand up as the wolf howled. He shook off the Demon Binding Rope and stared at the Nightmare Tapir. He saw the black aura from all directions gathering towards the Nightmare Tapir's body. Hongjun controlled the demonic seed in his body. When he wanted to suck it over, the Nightmare Tapir pounced on him and attacked him in a frenzy. He could not focus.
"Mo Rigen!" Hongjun shouted, "Come and help me!"
The Grey Wolf turned around and charged. At the same time, the wolves rushed into the Shiwei Stone Castle. They spread like a tide and went from house to house. They dashed across the streets and pinned down the black snakes that were wandering around. They lowered their heads and bit them.
Hongjun controlled the Demon Binding Rope with both hands. However, the Nightmare Tapir was as fast as lightning. It was getting faster and faster. Subsequently, Hongjun lifted his modao to block the Nightmare Tapir. As the Nightmare Tapir pounced on him, a loud bang came from the door behind Hongjun. Mo Rigen kicked down the wooden door that weighed close to 100 kilograms. Mo Rigen then roared, "Lie down!"
Hongjun immediately lay down facing the sky. Mo Rigen shook his left hand and a golden light bloomed. The Lunar Eclipse Bow appeared. Subsequently, he pulled the bowstring and pulled the bowstring. With a 'buzz', the bowstring was released. The seven Nailhead Arrows on his back broke through the quiver and shot towards the black Nightmare Tapir!
The Nightmare Tapir was hit by the Nailhead Arrows. It roared and rolled to the side. Hongjun leaped up again and shook his modao away. Mo Rigen chased after him and shouted, "What's that?! "
"What's that?" Hong Jun noticed the golden bow that Mo Rigen used.
"Don't ask!" Mo Rigen shouted. "What do we do?"
"Catch it!" Hongjun said, "It sucked all the Demonic Aura away!"
Hongjun was confused. He did not understand what had happened. However, this fella obviously did not know how to use the Demonic Aura after absorbing it. It did not turn into a powerful monster either.
"What?" Mo Rigen saw the Nightmare Tapir break the wall again and crash out of the stone castle. He quickly chased after it and shouted at Hongjun, "Where did the Demonic Aura come from?!"
"It's from my body!" Hongjun said, "It sucked all my nightmares away!"
Mo Rigen was speechless.
Hongjun was speechless.
After being stunned for a while, the two of them seemed to understand what had happened.
"Is there such a good thing?" Mo Rigen said in disbelief, "Does that mean your Demonic Aura is gone?"
"That's right …" Hongjun was still thinking about how to use the Demonic Aura to suck the nightmares back. He said, "I don't know what it's trying to do …"
Mo Rigen seemed to recall countless things. After a short silence, Hongjun said, "We have to get the Demonic Aura back. Otherwise, it'll be bad if it's brought to An Lushan!"
"Kill it," Mo Rigen said, "No matter what, don't suck the Demonic Aura back into your body!"
Hongjun said, "But …"
Mo Rigen said, "No buts! I'm in charge here! "
Mo Rigen immediately reached out and patted Hongjun's head. He turned around and leaped, transforming into a Grey Wolf. He carried Hongjun and chased after the Nightmare Tapir.