Night!
The silvery moonlight bathed the earth, and besides a few insect chirps, the forest was silent.
Drip!
Suddenly, a sound so faint it was almost undetectable reached the ear.
A creature with a terrifying form hunched its body, stealthily prowling through the night.
With the appearance of this creature, a sinister aura began to spread through the nocturnal forest.
It was an Alien Ghost, a robust and muscular one, over three meters tall.
Its nostrils flared slightly as if catching a whiff of something special. It became incredibly excited and ran swiftly toward the south side of Niu Jiao Ridge, its heavy body hitting the ground nearly silently.
After covering several thousand meters, the Alien Ghost raised its head, its crimson gaze confirming something through the darkness.
A few hundred meters away stood a wooden house, its faint light barely piercing the gloom.
The Alien Ghost slowly opened its mouth, scenting the air for the living; its primal hunting instinct, encoded in its genetics, activated.
It crouched lower, approaching the wooden house in a bizarre posture.
...
Atop the roof of the wooden house, a Ghost Ridge Palace Disciple was on lookout duty – one of Meng Dongge's followers.
The night wind blew, prompting a yawn. He tightened his clothes around him, cursing under his breath, "Damn this ghostly weather, not even winter yet and it's already this cold."
The Disciple failed to notice that as he complained, a grotesque and eerie Alien Ghost had silently climbed up the exterior wall of the wooden house and was now behind him.
Its huge mouth, split to the ear, opened wide, each sharp tooth like a small dagger, drool dripping steadily.
The Disciple touched his head and grumbled to himself, "Is it raining? Just my luck."
But the next moment, as he instinctively looked up, all he saw was a gaping maw swiftly closing in on him.
With a single bite, the Disciple's head vanished, chewed up and swallowed by the Alien Ghost.
The headless corpse spurted blood meters into the air, like a blood-red firework blooming in the night, adding another layer of horror to the already terrifying scene.
The smell of fresh blood was distinct. Within the wooden house, some sleeping Disciples were sensitive to blood because of their poisonous insects, which were already alerting their hosts.
"There's a disturbance."
"Such a strong scent of blood."
"Not good, something's happened."
Voices of alarm rose from within the wooden house as lamps were lit, weapons in hand, and Meng Dongge, accompanied by four Ghost Ridge Palace Disciples, rushed out.
No sooner had they exited the wooden house than a massive figure leaped down from the rooftop.
"It's the Alien Ghost."
The Disciples were utterly terrified, their cries of fright piercing the sky.
Meng Dongge's face darkened, and he clenched his teeth, "Don't be afraid, there are five of us, enough to kill this beast."
A few Ghost Ridge Palace Disciples called forth swarms of poisonous insects, knowing they had no choice but to face the threat head-on.
"Attack."
With a loud shout, Meng Dongge knew the night would likely not end well.
This wasn't like the previous times, setting ambushes for Alien Ghosts; the one in their presence was in peak condition.
Clashing head-on, who knew how many would perish.
Meng Dongge was irritated by his bad luck tonight, having actually encountered a roaming Alien Ghost.
From beginning to end, Meng Dongge had never imagined that the Alien Ghost had been lured there by someone.
...
At the southern foot of Niu Jiao Ridge.
With the tree tops swaying slightly in the night breeze, Su Jie sat cross-legged among them, watching the flames and explosions light up from the distant wooden house, listening to the furious roars of the Alien Ghost, the wails of humans in their last moments before death, and clicked his tongue, "Impressive! Even Fire Poison Cockroaches self-detonate, it's an all-in fighting style."
Standing under the tree, Gu Weonian rubbed his arms, which were prickling with nervous goosebumps, and couldn't help but ask, "Brother Su, when do we make our move?"
"Don't rush, with an Alien Ghost, I believe Meng Dongge and his team can handle it. It's not yet time for both sides to suffer."
Su Jie was in no hurry at all, letting the Alien Ghost wear itself out a little more.
"Good riddance, let them taste what it's like to be slaughtered by an Alien Ghost."
Compared to Gu Weonian's anxiousness, Chen Yun was exceptionally excited, her face bearing a crazed smile that never ceased.
The battle was longer than imagined, almost twenty minutes passed before the distant conflict finally ceased, returning to tranquility.
"It's our turn to enter the scene."
Su Jie jumped down from the treetops, unhurriedly leading Gu Weonian and the other person forward.
Merely seven or eight hundred meters ahead, the burning wooden house, fallen bodies, and countless dead insects were scattered everywhere.
What was once a team of six from Meng Dongge, now only four remained, and they all bore injuries.
One disciple was critically injured; his lower body was severed at the waist, blood and entrails flowing freely, his upper body still struggling and crawling on the ground, not yet having succumbed.
This disciple also knew his fate was sealed, casting a pleading look towards Meng Dongge.
"End his suffering quickly."
Meng Dongge shook his head, about to put an end to the disciple's agony, when he suddenly heard abnormal sounds and abruptly turned his head shouting, "Who's over there, show yourself!"
Rustling crawling sounds emerged from the forest, several pale corpse hands wriggled out of the darkness, their bases raised high, fingers spread to crawl like spiders, entering Meng Dongge's field of view.
The half-severed disciple was closest and was immediately caught by several pale corpse hands that twisted his head around, rotating it a full 360 degrees on the spot.
The sound of breaking bones was particularly distinct in the dark and silent surroundings, bringing an end to his suffering.
"Enemy attack."
Meng Dongge's expression turned vigilant, and using the moonlight that pierced the dark sky, he witnessed a hair-raising scene.
Su Jie, Gu Weonian, and Chen Yun emerged from the darkness, surrounding them in an encircling manner.
"Mr. Meng, we came here to kill you, no need to be nervous."
Su Jie wore a friendly smile as several pale corpse hands moved swiftly, climbing up his trouser leg, eventually disappearing into the wide sleeves of his robe.
"Mr. Su, what is the meaning of this? What have I done to offend you to warrant such a ruthless attack?"
Meng Dongge's eyes were filled with confusion and bewilderment, seemingly completely unaware of any grievance.
"Stop pretending, Meng Dongge, you caused the death of my brother and husband, and today I demand that you go down and accompany them."
Chen Yun stared at Meng Dongge with an intense venomous hatred, her disheveled hair wild and with a hideous scar stitched across her face, like a terrifying female ghost clawing her way back from Hell.
"The one who killed your brother and husband was the Alien Ghost, what does that have to do with us? I even tried to save you yesterday."
Meng Dongge hastily defended himself, unwilling to admit to the accusations, and even called out to Gu Weonian, "Mr. Gu, don't you believe me either?"
Gu Weonian's eyes held a complex look as he said, "Mr. Meng, we have already discovered something about the Gentiana. The reason you encountered the Alien Ghost tonight is that I buried the Gentiana near your location."
Upon hearing this, Meng Dongge fell silent for several seconds, then his expression calmed down as he countered, "When did you find out?"
Meng Dongge no longer feigned innocence, for his secrets had been laid bare, continuing the charade was pointless.