Chapter 1978: Visitors from the Dark World

Xueli stopped abruptly, her brows locked tightly together; what Chen Yu had said caused her to fall into deep thought.

"What you said is not impossible; we cannot rule out that the rift in the Black Wind Forest leading to the Abyss has grown larger," Xueli said.

"Where is the rift? Perhaps we can go over and take a look," Chen Yu proposed.

"In the very center of the Black Wind Forest, there is an Earth Fire Rift, but there is something neither human nor ghost guarding it; he is Shiyueke."

"Neither human nor ghost?" Chen Yu asked in confusion, "What kind of existence is that?"

"Many years ago, he was once human, but for some reason, he suddenly turned into a bloodthirsty mad demon," Xueli said. "After he changed, he has been guarding that Earth Flame Rift in the middle of the Black Wind Forest ever since."

"No one knows what he is waiting for, but the rift in that place is the path to the Abyss; sometimes, Dark Creatures escape into our reality from that very spot."

"Interesting, how long has Shiyueke been guarding there?" Chen Yu asked.

"Many years; he has an immortal body, and he has been there for over a hundred years," Xueli said. "Moreover, his temperament is extremely eccentric, and he does not allow anyone to approach."

"He doesn't think there is some treasure he wants in that place, does he?" Chen Yu smiled slightly.

"Treasure?" Xueli was puzzled. "What kind of treasure would be worth him guarding it for over a hundred years?"

"I don't know, let's go over and take a look; perhaps we can get some clues from him," Chen Yu said with a smile.

"Alright." Xueli nodded, and then she and Chen Yu changed direction, heading toward the very center of the Black Wind Forest.

Along the way, Chen Yu saw many things peeking and prying, monitoring their movements; these Little Demons from the Abyss were the eyes and ears of that Shiyueke.

"These little things are not harmful, and they are kept by someone," Xueli said. "If I'm not mistaken, the master of these things is Shiyueke."

"It seems he still has great hostility toward outsiders; otherwise, he wouldn't keep these little things. His purpose in keeping them is to monitor people who break into the Black Wind Forest," Chen Yu said, staring at the Little Demons.

"Yes, he is a person with a very strong desire for control, but no one knows what he actually wants to do," Xueli shook her head. "He is also a very strange person."

"Perhaps it's because of his reclusive nature," Chen Yu thought for a moment and said. "Perhaps he is afraid that someone coming will take away the treasure he has been guarding."

"What kind of treasure could there be in the rift of the Abyss?" Xue Wei asked, puzzled.

"What kind of treasure it is depends on what his obsession is," Chen Yu smiled slightly.

"Obsession?" Xueli felt this term was quite novel.

"Yes, it is the thing one is fixated on," Chen Yu explained. "It could be something he needs, or it could be something he lacks."

"In any case, we need to see what kind of existence Shiyueke really is."

The settlements of Little Demons in the surrounding area became more and more frequent, and some even grew bold enough to approach the two and look them over.

"Scram." Chen Yu turned his head abruptly, emitting Primordial Qi.

A series of panicked squeaks immediately erupted in the surroundings; these Little Demons fled toward the periphery at an extremely fast speed, then watched Chen Yu from afar, as if testing his strength.

Chen Yu turned his head to stare at these Little Demons: "Don't provoke me if you have nothing better to do, otherwise, I will leave you all without a place to be buried."

His voice carried the Taoist Exorcism Sound, scaring the Little Demons so badly they wet themselves; they stood up on their hind legs one after another, then fled without a trace.

"These things cannot harm people, but they can serve as Shiyueke's eyes and ears, spread throughout the entire Black Wind Forest. By now, Shiyueke should already know we have come," Xueli pondered for a moment and said.

"Knowing is knowing, it's not a big deal anyway," Chen Yu said with a slight smile. "We are heading straight for him this time."

"You don't seem to be afraid of that guy at all," Xueli said. "He is a monster that is neither human nor ghost, and he is narrow-minded and extremely jealous. As long as you are targeted by him, he will make things very difficult for you."

"That is why he evolved from a human into a monster. What is this kind of thing called in your West?" Chen Yu asked.

"There is no name; strictly speaking, he counts as a type of monster, but one thing is certain: he has a human heart," Xueli said with a smile.

"What does it matter if he has a human heart? He has a human heart but lacks human thinking, guarding himself before the Earth Fire Rift for a hundred years; this kind of person is actually a tragedy," Chen Yu shook his head and said.

"You Eastern Cultivators seem to have very strict requirements for one's state of mind," Xueli said, looking at Chen Yu.

"It is indeed quite strict," Chen Yu said with a slight smile. "Because for me and those who follow the Law, the greatest hurdle is the state of the heart."

"If you cannot even overcome this hurdle of the state of mind, then how could you possibly step into cultivation in the future? How could you cultivate the Heavenly Great Dao?"

"Alright, our systems are truly too far apart," Xueli shook her head slowly, and the two continued to walk into the depths of the Black Wind Forest.

After bypassing an area overgrown with wild grass, a massive Mountain blocked the path of the two.

"Strange, there shouldn't be a Mountain in the Black Wind Forest. Where did this Mountain come from?" Xueli stopped; she looked at the Mountain before her with some strangeness, her brows locked tightly together.

"This is not a Mountain," Chen Yu said with a slight smile. "This is an Appearance."

"This is also an illusion?" Xueli was startled; she looked at the giant peak before her, then shook her head. "I can't tell."

Previously in Hell, Chen Yu said it was an illusion, and she could understand that.

But the Black Wind Forest was not that mystical; the Mountain before her, whether viewed with the naked eye or touched by hand, was truly and solidly there.

She could not understand what Chen Yu meant by illusion.

"It seems this monster Shiyueke understands the human heart," Chen Yu walked forward and touched the body of the Mountain. "He knows that what people fear most is actually difficulty. As we head to where he is, he creates many difficulties to block us, with the goal of making us retreat in the face of difficulty."

"Is that so? Then his wishful thinking might be wrong; these difficulties don't count as any major difficulty for us," Xueli raised her hand and touched the Mountain peak.

She only felt that the place she touched was ice-cold, and the tactile sensation was no different from a real Mountain.

"This thing is quite realistic; if it were an ordinary person, they might really have been fooled by him," Chen Yu said with a smile. "But unfortunately, the person he encountered is not so easily fooled."