Chapter 160

The gate before me was down to a fist‑wide gap, and behind me something stepped onto the ground with a boom—.

Even without turning around, I actually had a guess.

Behind us, if what's hidden inside the Buddha statue isn't a zombie, then it's only that cow‑like tiger‑like creature… Extreme Oddity!

Our earlier guess was that there might not actually be an Extreme Oddity on Ox‑Tiger Mountain, after all it's something that only appears in ancient myth; in real life whatever exists is just a Formation Array set up to match that myth.

So I'd rather believe that what's relentlessly approaching us from behind is a zombie refined to a high level.

At this moment I didn't even dare make a big move, fearing to trigger the zombie's hunting instinct.

But the closer it got, its breath seemed to be right above our heads.

I jerked my head up and happened to meet the face looking down at us.

That wasn't a zombie, but a huge……beast.

It looked like a tiger, but its body was huge, with a pair of horns on its head, and even more frightening, it had a pair of small flesh‑wings on its back.

I'm not sure those flesh‑wings could support its massive body to fly, but they're certainly not just for show.

It……is it really an Extreme Oddity?

If a true Extreme Oddity really exists in this world, then do the other three great ferocious beasts also truly exist?

I dared not think about it, nor dare to move, I could only hold the trembling Guo Zhen and stand there.

Just as I was at a loss, unable to find a chance to break the situation, a fan shot through the gate that was about to close completely.

The fan opened, and the blades hidden in its ribs swooshed out, piercing the giant beast's flesh.

A howl rang out above our heads, and immediately the heavy gate was pulled open from outside; a pure‑white fox leapt in, its seven snow‑white tails constantly dancing, a fluffy mass, full of power.

"Xiao Jiu, you take the people and leave first, I'll handle this here!"

Hu Yulin's voice sounded, and immediately a gust rose from the flat ground, flipping me and Guo Zhen out in one go.

Guo Zhen and I rolled outward several times; by the time I got up, the temple gate had been shut again.

From inside the gate came the beast's howls, fighting sounds, and bang‑bang impacts on the walls and the gate.

The ground shook violently; Guo Zhen managed to stand a few times but immediately fell again, and there were some wounded lying outside the temple.

"Xiao Jiu!"

Li Qingying and Hui Moqiong rushed up together; Li Qingying hoisted Guo Zhen onto her back in one motion, and Hui Moqiong was about to push the temple gate when I grabbed him.

I shook my head at him: "Liu Junyan told me to inform you to pull back personnel from Ox‑Tiger Mountain right away."

"Withdraw?" Hui Moqiong said without hesitation, "I, the Young Master, never play the deserter."

"No one's asking you to be a deserter." I said sternly, "The Extreme Oddity has manifested; wanting to stop both great formations at once without moving them is now impossible. Once the formation moves, staying behind would only make us cannon fodder."

Hui Moqiong isn't stupid; he glanced at the temple gate, angrily punched the wall, then sent a signal telling his disciples to withdraw quickly.

Li Qingying carried Guo Zhen, I guarded beside them, Hui Moqiong covered the rear, and the four of us prepared to withdraw.

The wounded lying on the ground wailed, crying for help.

But we paid no attention.

The ground shook violently, indicating that the Formation Array inside the mountain was operating rapidly; a huge change could happen at any moment—who could we save?

Moreover, the very fact that these people appear here is itself problematic.

To risk our lives to save them, only to end up rescuing an enemy—what's the point?

What's even more terrifying is that, as we ran down the mountain, while all the birds and beasts on the mountain were scrambling in panic to flee for their lives, quite a few people were still laying out Formation Arrays at the mountain's base.

They had come for the Dragon Qi, having lain dormant for years, finally waiting for this opportunity.

The more chaotic Ox Tiger Mountain became, the greater the tremors, and the more hopeful it was for them.

Hui Moqiong was practically going crazy at that moment: 'Ah, young master, my violent temper—what time is this, still thinking of stealing my family's Seventh Lord's luck? Die, all of you!'

He said that and then rushed forward.

I didn't pay him any mind, instead telling Li Qingying, 'Qingying sister, I still have to trouble you to send Guo Zhen back.'

'Her parents are waiting at the entrance to the town, they've been waiting half the night.' Li Qingying said, 'I'll take her there now and be right back. Xiao Jiu… you… you all stay safe.'

She said that, and unconsciously glanced at Hui Moqiong, who was beating people up.

I nodded in agreement and added, 'What Guo Zhen has gone through tonight is too hard for her to accept; I'll have someone go to her house to give her psychological counseling, you let her parents know, and besides, that false ascetic drained her essence blood—have her parents find a nutritionist to help her properly replenish her qi and blood.'

Guo Zhen's condition won't be made up for in a year or two; the key is that her psychological trauma is harder to heal.

Li Qingying noted everything down, then carried Guo Zhen away.

Right now the foot of Ox Tiger Mountain is too chaotic; even phone calls won't go through. After I return, I'll contact Master Hui Quan and ask him to go to the Guo household to perform a Buddhist rite for Guo Zhen, to help clear her mind.

Hui Moqiong finished beating that bunch, rolled up his sleeves and walked over, just about to speak when an earth-shaking howl nearly pierced our eardrums.

Immediately after, in the direction of the temple's main hall, a powerful Formation Array lit up in midair, then pressed downward inch by inch.

As the Formation Array pressed down, streaks of true qi, sharp as blades, pierced out from it and swiftly stabbed into the area below.

Howls filled the air.

That direction… was it Hu Yulin?

'The Nine-Tail Veil-Heaven Formation.' Hui Moqiong narrowed his eyes and gave a heh heh laugh, 'At least Hu Yulin still has a conscience.'

I asked, bewildered, 'The Nine-Tail Veil-Heaven Formation? I just saw his true form—he clearly only has seven tails.'

'That's right, he's only cultivated seven tails so far.' Hui Moqiong said, 'But seven tails among the fox clan is already as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns; using his seven-tailed body to activate the Nine-Tail Veil-Heaven Formation, he'll likely need to go into seclusion for a while—the drain is too severe.'

My heart gave a slight tremor.

Hu Yulin… isn't a bad person…

Bang!

A loud boom came from the direction of the temple; after the Nine-Tail Veil-Heaven Formation burst out with a blinding white light, it vanished instantly.

Something heavy smashed heavily onto the ground.

Immediately after, a heavy, lingering bronze bell sound suddenly rang out, continuously reverberating throughout the mountains and forests.

Hui Moqiong sucked in a breath of cool air, muttering: "The bronze bell has rung, but who struck it? Is it Seventh Lord? No, I have to go see."

He lifted his foot to charge up the mountain, just then a Golden Light suddenly flared, and I grabbed Hui Moqiong.

We stopped at the mountain base, looked up toward the temple.

That Golden Light was not fleeting like before; this time it shone for a very long time.

At the start of the Golden Light's flare, we could even see within that expanse of Golden Light the blood qi constantly drifting and slowly coalescing.

The blood qi condensed into droplets, and the droplets condensed into a sphere.

The blood sphere grew larger and larger, a chorus of ghostly wails and wolf howls roamed the mountains and fields.

Suddenly, the wailing and howling ceased abruptly; Hui Moqiong exclaimed "Holy shit!", grabbed me and ran…