Chapter 229: The Malevolence Underground

　　The dry branch moved very fast.

　　By the time the flashlight fully illuminated the area, it was already gone.

　　"What was that?"

　　No one saw it clearly. They exchanged glances and walked to where the dry branch had disappeared, pointing their flashlights at the spot.

　　Several beams of light converged, making the situation on the ground clearer.

　　Lu Fei squinted his eyes and noticed that the soil here was slightly looser than elsewhere, as if something had burrowed through it.

　　"There's something! Dig it out!"

　　Lu Fei made a decisive decision.

　　If they didn't get rid of this strange thing, it would definitely continue to cause trouble for them.

　　At the very least, they needed to figure out what it was.

　　Hu Zi immediately set down his heavy backpack, took out a foldable small shovel, and started digging into the ground with all his strength.

　　Meanwhile, Lu Fei and Jing Jian held their respective magical instruments, carefully on guard.

　　The small black dog leaned against Lu Fei's feet, its dark, spirited eyes fixed intently on the ground.

　　After Hu Zi dug a few inches, something that looked like a dry branch suddenly appeared in the light of the flashlight.

　　"It's this thing, get to work!"

　　Hu Zi and Jing Jian immediately swung their magical instruments.

　　But that thing reacted quite quickly, and in a whoosh, it burrowed into the ground, vanishing instantly.

　　The soil beside it moved slightly and bulged up.

　　Huzi immediately started digging there, but his digging speed was no match for the strange thing's movement speed.

　　This creature moved through the soil as freely as a fish swims in water, playing a game of whack-a-mole with them.

　　After all that hard work, Huzi was drenched in sweat, yet he hadn't even touched a hair of the strange thing.

　　"What the hell is this thing?"

　　Huzi leaned on his shovel, panting heavily, glaring at the soil pit on the ground with extreme frustration.

　　"There are many strange things in the mountains. Could it be some kind of spirit?" Jin Jian stroked his chin, speculating, "It looks like a branch, so it must be a tree spirit. What do you think, Lu Fei?"

　　"Would a tree spirit pop out from underground?" Lu Fei found it unlikely, "There are many unknown things in the mountains. To figure out what this thing is, we need to catch it first."

　　"But this thing keeps burrowing around, and we can't catch it at all," Huzi said, worried.

　　"Let's not worry about it for now. I don't think this thing is very powerful. At worst, we just need to be careful when we walk," Jing Jian said.

　　Lu Fei thought about it and realized that lingering here was not a solution.

　　"Alright, let's give it a try. If this thing doesn't follow us, then it's no big deal. But if it keeps following us, we have to find a way to get rid of it!"

　　The three packed up their things, took the little black dog, and continued deeper into the mountains.

　　This time they walked slowly, being cautious of their steps.

　　After only a few steps, they felt something emerging at their feet. When they looked down, the thing immediately retracted back into the ground.

　　This repeated over and over again, as if it were intentionally making things difficult for them, driving them mad.

　　"No way, we can't keep walking like this!" Hu Zi, in a fit of anger, threw his backpack on the ground and grabbed a shovel, "I, Hu Ye, refuse to believe that there's nothing we can do about this dirty thing!"

　　This thing wasn't very threatening, but it was incredibly annoying.

　　"Lu Fei, can we burn this thing? Let's light a fire and burn it as soon as it comes out!" Even Jing Jian couldn't take it anymore and vented his frustration.

　　"Setting a fire in the mountains, I think you're just looking to be fed by the state!" Lu Fei gave him a look and took out the thunderstruck jujube wood stick, "Huzi, start digging, let's try again."

　　"Okay!"

　　Huzi started digging where the soil was slightly raised.

　　After just a few digs, that twig-like thing appeared again.

　　"It's out!"

　　Lu Fei and Jing Jian moved as quickly as they could, but they were still a step too slow.

　　They tried this several times.

　　Huzi and Jing Jian were so anxious they were stomping their feet.

　　But Lu Fei made a discovery. He rummaged in his backpack and pulled out a bottle of rooster blood.

　　"Don't use the ritual tools anymore, use this. This stuff only burrows into the ground when something gets close. We are always one step behind with the ritual tools, but with liquid, it's different."

　　"Hu Zǐ, keep digging. As soon as that thing comes out, I will immediately splash the chicken blood."

　　"Okay!"

　　Jing Jian put away the peachwood sword and held two flashlights for illumination.

　　Hu Zǐ started digging where the soil was raised.

　　Lu Fei unscrewed the bottle cap, holding the chicken blood ready to use.

　　After digging a few spots, that withered branch-like object finally reappeared.

　　"Boss!"

　　Before Hu Zǐ could shout, Lu Fei had already splashed the rooster's blood at it in the first instant.

　　By the time the withered branch sensed something coming, it was already too late, and the blood droplets splattered on it.

　　There was a sizzling sound.

　　Black smoke suddenly rose, and the withered branch trembled and twisted, unable to burrow into the ground anymore.

　　"Huzi, quickly dig this thing out!"

　　Huzi hurriedly swung his shovel and dug the withered branch out of the soil.

　　Lu Fei splashed more rooster blood over it.

　　The withered branch struggled a few times and soon stopped moving.

　　The black smoke dissipated, and what was left was not a withered branch, but a human hand!

　　The skin was dirty and tattered, revealing the white bones inside, giving off a putrid stench.

　　"How did it turn into a human hand?"

　　All three were stunned.

　　If it weren't for the blood on the palm, Huzi would have thought he had dug something else.

　　"It might be some kind of ghost in the earth, similar to a water ghost," Lu Fei speculated.

　　"Is this thing dead?"

　　Jing Jian took out his peach wood sword and poked at the decaying palm, but there was no response.

　　Confirming that the malevolent spirit was indeed thoroughly dead, all three of them breathed a slight sigh of relief.

　　"Whatever it is, as long as it's dealt with! Now we can travel with peace of mind..."

　　But at that moment.

　　The little black dog suddenly started barking loudly and urgently at something behind Hu Zi.

　　"What's wrong?"

　　Lu Fei shone his flashlight in that direction and was immediately shocked.

　　Hu Zi's backpack was moving on its own in a bizarre manner!

　　"Whoa! The backpack has come to life?!" Hu Zi shouted in shock.

　　"It's not that the backpack has come to life, something is pulling it! Hurry and pull it back!" Lu Fei quickly realized and dashed forward.

　　Hu Zi's backpack was the heaviest, with many useful items inside; they couldn't afford to lose it.

　　Jing Jian closely followed behind.

　　The backpack was moving quite fast. In the flicker of the flashlight, Lu Fei saw a long, slender shadow coiling around the backpack, dragging it away into the distance.

　　In a few quick strides, Lu Fei grabbed the backpack strap and held it back.

　　Unexpectedly, the long shadow, whether it was a snake or a vine, had incredible strength and was actually pulling Lu Fei along with the backpack.

　　"Come and help!"

　　Jing Jian arrived shortly after and joined Lu Fei in grabbing the backpack.

　　Both of them dug their heels in, leaning back and using all their strength to keep their grip on the backpack.

　　The small black dog bit onto Jingjian's clothes and started pulling as well.

　　Everyone worked together, finally managing to slow down the movement of the backpack, holding their own against the long shadow.

　　"Huzi!"

　　With Lu Fei's loud shout, Huzi rushed forward, raising his shovel high and bringing it down with a strong swing on the thin, elongated shadow.

　　A loud thump.

　　The long shadow bounced slightly but did not break.

　　"How tough is it?"

　　Huzi was astounded. Looking at the long shadow again, he saw that it was a thin, black line, like a withered vine.

　　"Huzi, use the ghost-head saber!"