The sounds of the ghost mountain魈 scrambling for the soul-guiding incense behind me gradually faded. I knew the incense was burning out. For so many ghost mountain魈 to be feeding on it simultaneously, it had lasted quite a while.
While the ghost mountain魈 were fighting over the incense, the leader of the mountain魈 had not charged forward, which had temporarily saved me from danger.
Without the soul-guiding incense, the ghost mountain魈 once again pressed towards me, their ferocious expressions replaced by greed. Their scarlet eyes were all fixed on my backpack, as if they were certain the soul-guiding incense was inside.
I unbuckled my backpack from my chest and, like a matador, waved it in front of the ghost mountain魈. As expected, all their gazes locked onto the backpack, but none dared to snatch it.
This was because a ghost mountain魈, the largest and bearing a scar across its face, stood at the very front.
Seeing this, I took out a well-packaged compressed biscuit from my backpack, feigned a throw, and tossed it out. Only a few smaller ghost mountain魈 rushed forward to fight for it. However, the larger ones that were closer to me did not move. They merely turned their heads to glance, then bared their fangs at me, as if to say my little tricks were useless against them.
This made me feel a headache coming on. I hadn't expected it to ignore my lure and remain fixated on the incense in my bag. Although there was indeed incense left, it was only a short stub. If I lit it, it would definitely cause them to fight for a while, but this wouldn't solve my escape problem.
Because in such a short time, I couldn't run very far. The end result would still be death. Was I destined to be bitten to death by these ghost mountain魈?
Just as I was preparing to light the remaining soul-guiding incense, the agonized cries of the mountain魈 leader echoed from the valley. This caused the ghost mountain魈 surrounding me to crane their necks and look towards the valley.
Squeak—
The few mountain魈 in front of me cried out anxiously. One of them was particularly eager to return to the valley but was blocked by the largest ghost mountain魈, the one with the scar running across its face.
Looking at this scarred ghost mountain魈, it was likely the leader of these ghost mountain魈. Without its command, these mountain魈 probably wouldn't obey the mountain魈 leader.
The mountain魈 leader might be in trouble now, otherwise, it wouldn't be crying out in pain. The only way for me to escape was to deal with the scarred ghost mountain魈 in front of me. Once it was dealt with, the other mountain魈 would naturally head to the valley for rescue.
With a plan in mind, I reached into my backpack again, casually took out the remaining stub of soul-guiding incense, which was only as long as a chopstick, and lit it under the greedy gaze of the scarred-faced mountain魈.
Roar roar—
At this moment, the mountain魈 leader's cries came again, its voice urgent, as if facing a formidable enemy. The mountain魈 pack, hearing the summons, became somewhat flustered.
Some ghost mountain魈 that had been perched on trees heard the summons and decisively left, leaving only five or six ghost mountain魈 around me, greedily eyeing the soul-guiding incense in my hand.
The ghost mountain魈 closest to me, upon smelling the scent, quickly extended its claws and swiped at my face.
I had been prepared for this. While the mountain魈 were fighting for the soul-guiding incense, I had already grasped the rope. I had originally intended to slide into the cave along the rope, which would have bought Zhang Dabiao more time to escape.
Now, all I could do was grab the rope and jump off the cliff. I leaned back, narrowly dodging the mountain魈's claws.
I felt the wind whistling past my ears, then my arm tightened, and my body stopped with a "swish." Instantly, my entire right arm felt as if it were being torn apart by five horses.
I quickly curled my body as much as possible, adjusted my position, and prepared to use my foot to push off the mountain wall as I neared it, to avoid crashing into it. If I knocked myself unconscious, the trouble would be immense.
Although I had made all preparations, I still overestimated my physical condition. My mind intended to use my feet to land and cushion the impact, but the result was that my back hit the mountain again.
Fortunately, the fall distance this time was short, and I was already prepared. I only felt a slight dullness in my chest and a sweetness in my throat. Fortunately, I wasn't knocked unconscious.
As soon as I had stabilized myself, before I could even breathe a sigh of relief, I saw several dark figures rapidly climbing down along the vines from above.
"Damn it, these damned things didn't jump with me." I was somewhat annoyed. These ghost mountain魈 were smarter than I had imagined. I thought they would follow me down after I jumped with the soul-guiding incense, but who knew these creatures would climb down the vines instead.
Holding the rope with my left hand, I wrapped my right hand around it a couple of times to loosen the knot, then quickly slid down the rope. As soon as my feet touched the ground, I swiftly took out the useful items from my backpack, then pinched off the burning end of the incense, and threw the bag along with the burnt incense head off the cliff.
I crouched down and slipped back into the cave. The bonfire had extinguished, leaving only faint embers. I couldn't afford to care about anything else now. I stomped on the embers a couple of times, then rolled on the ground to eliminate my scent.
Then, I moved several human-head-sized stones from the innermost part to the cave entrance, just enough to completely cover the opening, but leaving a gap half a meter high.
With everything prepared, the mountain魈 had also descended to the cave entrance. I held my breath and, through the gap between the stones, could see the scarred-faced mountain魈 sniffing around. When its eyes landed on the cave, my heart leaped into my throat.
I withdrew my gaze and prayed to my ancestors for protection. Please, don't let it find me. I didn't know if my prayer worked, or if the stub of soul-guiding incense I had thrown off the cliff had played a role.
With a series of squeaks and clamors, their sounds actually disappeared from the front of the cave. I quickly peeked through the gap and saw the last mountain魈 jumping down along the vines.
I breathed a sigh of relief. The immediate danger had passed, but I couldn't go out yet. With my current condition, if they caught me, it would be certain. Su Dan Novel Network.
Now, I could only take advantage of their absence to quickly recover my strength, lest I encounter an unexpected situation later. I took out the remaining compressed biscuits and mineral water from my pocket and quickly ate them.
As soon as I finished eating and took a couple of breaths, I heard the calls of the ghost mountain魈 outside the cave. Judging by the sound, they seemed to be heading towards the cave.
This made my relieved heart tense up again. The cave entrance was piled with stones, but in reality, it was just a "paper wall." With the strength of the ghost mountain魈, they could easily smash through the stones.
Through the gap, I could see the scarred-faced mountain魈 cautiously probing its way towards the cave, its scarlet eyes filled with confusion.
As the scarred-faced mountain魈 brought its eyes close to the stones, my heart tightened again. Rolling in the bonfire had eliminated some of my scent, but it couldn't completely remove it.
Seizing the opportunity, I aimed at the spot where the ghost mountain魈 was peeking and thrust fiercely. I felt as if I had poked into an egg, and then I heard the ghost mountain魈's pained cries.
Squeak—