The Punisher Monk charged into the flock like a fierce tiger. With both fists unleashed, his punches were like mountains, and one by one, the ghastly spirits were annihilated before his attacks.
In less than a minute, over a dozen ghastly spirits were dispatched. However, this time, neither the quantity nor the quality of the ghastly spirits was satisfactory.
"What's wrong, Master Punisher? You seem displeased."
"Amitabha, Brother Ling Tian. To be frank, I didn't manage to break through this time. If there were a few more ghastly spirits like these, I would have been able to."
Ling Tian rolled his eyes.
"Master, you've already wiped out all the ghastly spirits in this village river...
Besides, you've already broken through three realms. It's not that easy to break through again."
"Amitabha, I am attached to form..."
Ling Tian rolled his eyes again, thinking to himself, 'Is it attachment to form, or is it greed?'
The two waited for over an hour. During this time, only two or three ghastly spirits appeared sporadically, and then there was no further activity.
Just as Ling Tian and the Great Monk thought the night would pass uneventfully, several figures suddenly descended from the mountain.
"Master, be careful, something's coming!"
Ling Tian used his secret sound transmission technique to quickly warn the Great Monk.
The Punisher Monk immediately activated his Wrathful King Kong Dharma form, his large eyes, like light bulbs, illuminating the darkness!
This sudden change also attracted the attention of the figures, and they charged directly towards Ling Tian and the Punisher Monk.
"Amitabha, what is this? A monkey?"
Ling Tian shook his head. "This is no ordinary monkey. I think these are Mandrills!"
The largest primates in the monkey family, they have large heads and long faces. On both sides of their nasal bones are bony protrusions with longitudinal ridges and grooves, covered in green skin. The ridges are bright red.
Male mandrills have about six main grooves on each side, with the red parts extending around the nasal bones and muzzle. This brightly colored, special pattern resembles a monster, hence the name Mandrill. These animals primarily inhabit Africa.
However, in reality, thousands of years ago, Mandrills also existed in the land of China.
The *Classic of Mountains and Seas: Inner Regions of the Sea* records such a creature: "In the south, there are Gan Giants, with human faces and long arms, black bodies covered in hair, and heels facing forward. If they see people, they laugh, and their lips cover their faces before they flee.
The Mandrills in China were very ferocious. Although they were omnivores, they had a strong preference for meat and would often attack other animals, such as primates, and even humans.
"Amitabha, Brother Ling Tian, haven't these creatures been extinct for hundreds of years? How have they reappeared?"
"Let me see..."
As Ling Tian spoke, his true essence circulated within him, and a large amount of true essence surged into his eyes.
His spiritual power scanned the Mandrills and he immediately made a discovery!
"Hmm, interesting..."
Ling Tian discovered that these Mandrills were not living creatures. In fact, they were macaques from the mountains. However, after these monkeys died, their corpses were influenced by the Yin Sha within the Yin Gathering Great Array, transforming them into half-living, half-zombie monsters.
Originally, these monsters were only the size of ordinary monkeys. But after death, their corpses were modified by a large amount of Yin energy. Coupled with their consumption of raw blood, these monsters had now grown to a size close to that of silverback gorillas.
Ling Tian counted them. There were twelve Mandrills that appeared before them.
And these twelve Mandrills were looking at Ling Tian and the Punisher Monk with greedy eyes.
Here, both the abundant Yin Sha energy from the Yin Gathering Array and the two vibrant, blood-filled meals were what their instincts craved.
At this moment, the two leading Mandrills lunged directly at the Punisher Monk. The Punisher Monk swung his fists, and two volleyball-sized balls of starlight shot towards the two Mandrills.
However, these creatures seemed much more agile than the ghastly spirits. They dodged the Monk's attacks with swift movements and quickly closed the distance.
Seeing his attacks miss, the Great Monk was undeterred, his Wrathful King Kong Dharma form appearing even more ferocious.
He slammed a punch towards the nearest Mandrill.
The Mandrill also extended its sharp claws, reaching directly for the Punisher Monk's throat.
"Crack!"
The Monk's fist collided fiercely with the Mandrill's claw, emitting a loud crack.
Immediately after, both the Punisher Monk and the Mandrill were shaken back two steps.
At this moment, another Mandrill pounced, its claws raking towards the Punisher Monk's lower body.
The Punisher Monk unleashed a kick, directly striking the Mandrill's chest. The kick was powerful, yet the Mandrill was merely knocked to the ground. It staggered to its feet again!
"Brother Ling Tian, be careful. These things are very strange, incredibly strong and resilient..." The Punisher Monk, fearing Ling Tian might be at a disadvantage, quickly warned him.
Then, the Monk suddenly extended his hand, and a Vajra Gall flew towards the nearest Mandrill.
"Crack!" The Vajra Gall struck the Mandrill's chest fiercely. Ling Tian saw that the Mandrill's chest even caved in. A large amount of golden light was released from the Vajra Gall, enveloping the Mandrill. The Mandrill rolled on the ground, struggling for a long time before it finally stopped moving. An energy emanated from the Mandrill's body and was absorbed by the Punisher Monk.
At this moment, the Mandrill's originally massive body began to shrink rapidly, as if ice were melting, eventually reducing to the corpse of a monkey-sized creature!
Ling Tian frowned. He saw that the Punisher Monk's Vajra Gall had fallen to the ground, dull and lifeless, its energy completely drained!
This single, full-power strike from the magical artifact had only managed to kill one, indicating how resilient these Mandrills were.
Just then, the Punisher Monk shot out the remaining two Vajra Galls. Due to the close distance and the Monk's internal energy, the Vajra Galls flew like cannonballs. The two Mandrills couldn't dodge and were immediately killed on the spot.
As the Great Monk let out a sigh of relief, over ten more Mandrills ran from the distant woods. These Mandrills, however, surrounded Ling Tian and the Great Monk but dared not attack.
After all, their three companions had just been dispatched by the bald monk, and they instinctively sensed danger.
They were probing. Once the two opponents showed any sign of weakness, they would swarm them and tear them to shreds!
Soon, the Mandrills had an idea. One Mandrill lunged directly towards Ling Tian.