Chapter 234: Do Not Speak of Ghosts at Night

　　The bonfire crackled and burned.

　　The small bonfire was like a firefly in the dark ocean of night.

　　Lu Fei found a blanket for warmth from his bag and shared one with Zhao Fengchun.

　　"By the way, Old Zhao, are there still zombies in these mountains?"

　　"Zombies?" Zhao Fengchun looked at Lu Fei in surprise, "You even know about this?"

　　"We're going into the mountains to gather herbs, so we naturally have to inquire about many things beforehand. An old senior who came to the mountains to gather herbs a few years ago encountered zombies," Lu Fei smiled.

　　"It's said that there's a general's tomb deep in the mountains, and there are zombies inside, but we mountain guards have never seen them because we never go that far," Zhao Fengchun said.

　　"Is the general's tomb close to the dilapidated temple?"

　　"I don't know, I've never been to the dilapidated temple." Zhao Fengchun looked at Lu Fei with concern, "A zombie is not an ordinary evil spirit. My father said that even the most capable people from the mystic sects may not be able to deal with it. Brother Lu, they say there are a lot of treasures in the general's tomb, but you mustn't..."

　　"Don't worry, old brother, we're just here to collect herbs. We'll leave after getting the medicines, and we're not interested in anything else."

　　Lu Fei offered a few words of comfort.

　　Zhao Fengchun then lay down, wrapped in a blanket, followed by Jingjian, and soon a faint snore could be heard.

　　Lu Fei added a few dry branches to the bonfire, making the flames burn more vigorously.

　　It was already quite late, and after a day of travel, he was feeling somewhat tired.

　　However, there were many evil spirits in the mountains, and he was not very comfortable leaving Hus to keep watch alone. He decided to help out for a while, and if nothing happened, he would go to sleep.

　　Hus kept looking in the direction that Jingjian had pointed out, feeling increasingly uneasy, and took the pot spoon out of his bag, holding it close to him.

　　"Boss, without gongs and drums, a pot should work too, right?"

　　"When Grandma Xiong comes, you can give it a try," Lu Fei said with a chuckle.

　　"No way, no way!" Hu Zi flailed his hands in panic. "Boss, as you said, don't talk about people during the day and don't talk about ghosts at night. Let's not mention that stuff, or we might really summon one."

　　"Then stay alert and keep a good watch! Whether it's real or not, it's always better to be cautious,"

　　After Lu Fei finished speaking, Hu Zi immediately opened his eyes wide, scanning the surroundings like a searchlight, on high alert.

　　The campfire crackled, making the mountains seem even more silent.

　　Seeing that everything was temporarily calm, Lu Fei cradled the small black dog, closed his eyes to rest, and thought about the words Zhao Fengchun had said.

　　What kind of temple would only appear at night?

　　Is there a connection between the general's tomb and the temple?

　　If a zombie really appears, how should we deal with it?

　　This Da Yin Mountain is truly full of strange occurrences...

　　Time ticked by, second by second.

　　By the warm campfire, the small black dog had long since fallen asleep, and Lu Fei was gradually becoming more and more drowsy.

　　Huzi, holding a pot and spoon, was yawning nonstop, but still forced himself to say, "Boss, if you're sleepy, go ahead and sleep. I'll hold on for a bit longer and then wake up Jian..."

　　They were no strangers to staying up late, but they didn't know why they were so sleepy tonight.

　　Lu Fei felt like his eyelids were about to close on their own.

　　In his daze, he felt the small black dog in his arms suddenly move, followed by a sharp bark.

　　"Woof!"

　　Lu Fei jolted awake, his drowsiness fading significantly as he opened his eyes to look at the small black dog.

　　The little guy had stood up, its dark eyes warily focused in one direction.

　　Lu Fei turned his head to look.

　　In the darkness, there seemed to be a vague figure standing sinisterly behind the bushes.

　　"Boss, is it Old Bear Lady?" Hu Zi was full of tension, holding a pot in one hand and a spoon in the other, ready to start banging at any moment.

　　Lu Fei thought for a moment, then woke up Jing Jian.

　　"Brother Jing, you stay here and guard the camp. We'll go check it out."

　　"Be careful!"

　　Hearing that something was coming, Jing Jian rubbed his eyes, immediately becoming alert, and drew his peachwood sword.

　　"Hu Zi, let's go."

　　Lu Fei left the small black dog at the camp, took out his lightning-struck jujube wood stick, and walked towards the vague figure with Hu Zi.

　　Jing Jian stoked the bonfire and watched the two of them intently as they walked away.

　　Lu Fei shone his flashlight bit by bit forward.

　　The figure was hiding behind the big tree, with parts of their tattered clothes visible. The body swayed with the mountain breeze, light and oddly eerie.

　　Huzi's hair stood on end, his heart pounding like a drum.

　　Lu Fei, his face calm, held the lightning-struck jujube wood stick tightly and approached step by step with a flashlight.

　　"Who are you?"

　　To their surprise, the person did not dodge or flinch.

　　Such composure left Lu Fei uncertain about the situation.

　　He exchanged a glance with Huzi, and they positioned themselves to the left and right, surrounding the figure.

　　The flashlight beam fell on the figure, and its true appearance was about to be revealed.

　　Huzi raised the ladle in his hand high, his heart in his throat.

　　And then.

　　In the next moment, Lu Fei and Hu Zi were both stunned.

　　It turned out to be a dummy!

　　A human coat was draped over some dry branches, leaning against the back of a large tree. In the darkness, at first glance, it looked like someone was hiding there.

　　However, the dummy was made very crudely. The coat on it was faded, tattered, and covered in leaves and dirt, as if it had just been dug out from underground.

　　"What's going on?!"

　　Feeling fooled, Hu Zi kicked the dummy to pieces with one foot.

　　"Could it have been left by someone who came into the mountains before?"

　　"No!" Lu Fei shook his head.

　　For no reason, how could a dummy suddenly appear?

　　Woof woof woof!

　　At that moment, the sound of the small black dog's urgent barking came from the direction of the camp.

　　"Not good! It's a feint!"

　　Lu Fei's heart tightened, and he immediately ran towards the camp, with Hu Zi hastily following behind.

　　The bonfire crackled and burned brightly.

　　Zhao Fengchun lay still, sleeping deeply.

　　Jing Jian held the peachwood sword, stretching his neck, eagerly watching Lu Fei and Hu Zi.

　　They were completely unaware of a tall, dark figure that had appeared behind them.

　　The dark figure approached silently, with two sharp claws reaching out towards Jing Jian's back.

　　However, before the claws could get close to Jing Jian, the small black dog burst into a shrill bark.

　　"Xiao Hei, what's wrong?"

　　Jing Jian was taken aback, and then felt something odd on his back. He turned around, nearly losing his balance.

　　In the flickering firelight, a strange old man's face, half-lit and half-shadowed, looked down at him from above.

　　The large, cumbersome body covered in black hair loomed over him like the shadow of death, with sharp claws as big as Jing Jian's entire head.

　　"Xiong Jiapo?!"

　　Jing Jian was terrified and instinctively waved his peachwood sword to drive it away.

　　The monstrous figure showed no fear and a sharp palm swung through the air with a whoosh.

　　Jing Jian did not dare to block it directly and hastily rolled to the side, dodging the terrifying strike and putting some distance between himself and the monster.

　　"Jing Jian!"

　　At this moment, Lu Fei and Tiger's tense voices came from behind.

　　"Quickly, Xiong Jiapo is here!" Jing Jian shouted.

　　The monster looked at them with its glowing red eyes, ignoring Jing Jian, and used its sharp claws to hook the sleeping Zhao Fengchun.