“Whirr…”

The Stone Horse Town, which had just been enveloped in deep night and was pitch black, was illuminated by more and more lights, one after another, like a resurrected red dragon, bringing the town and its people back to the human world.

The people on the long street awoke as if from a dream, feeling it was a heavy and extremely uncomfortable dream, but as they slowly opened their eyes, they saw the altar moving again. The Lantern Blessing Assembly began anew, and the atmosphere was even more fervent than before.

The red lanterns on the altar emitted a faint red glow, but compared to before, it was as if countless gods and guardians were protecting it. The bright red light dispelled the haze over the town.

The Dharma Kings standing at the four corners of the altar looked even more solemn than before, sprinkling drops of holy dew on the surrounding people.

The sounds of gongs and drums rang out again, the sounds of prayer and worship rose up, and the sounds of chanting scriptures resounded.

The liveliness had returned to this street, and the breath of the living had returned as well.

The largest and most bustling Lantern Blessing Assembly in history was beginning on this street, as if bringing something long absent from this world back to the human realm, right before the eyes of the people.

…

…

Outside the town, however, it was sinister and terrifying. Countless figures flickered, rushing out of Stone Horse Town from all directions, howling strangely, carrying a dense demonic aura and elation, and meeting the various hall officials who were approaching the town with unfriendly expressions.

Iron Steed, the great hall official, in his flesh and blood, seemed to put less pressure on the town than the mysterious and terrifying methods of the Meng family’s young master. However, as he mounted his tiger-hide toad horse and led the iron-clad warriors behind him, he rushed forward with increasing speed.

From afar, all that could be heard was the sound of falling rocks, as if a devastating earthquake was approaching from a distance.

At the other locations, the four lesser hall officials were also leading their troops to attack, their shouts shaking the heavens, and their rolling killing intent also put the town in dire peril.

"Short, big-headed Iron Steed, don't be so arrogant..."

But in the face of this sinister and dangerous situation, the Undernourished Ox demonic figures who emerged from the town seemed to possess only evil energy. As the two sides rapidly approached each other from the forest, before they even directly clashed, someone shouted loudly.

A giant figure, twice the size of an ordinary man, holding a single-horned copper mace, strode out from the crowd, shouting wildly and uttering filthy words:

"Brothers, step aside, let me, the Giant Spirit God of the Eastern Sea, meet him. I have fought with this Year-Keeping great hall official for a long time."

"We won't bully him; we'll follow the rules of the martial world..."

"..."

As he shouted, his body seemed to be constantly expanding, and rolling soul light appeared above his head. Suddenly, he took a deep breath, as if the air within a radius of ten zhang was swallowed into his belly, and his enormous body abruptly raised his weapon above his head.

"Whirr..."

When he slammed it down with force, gusts of wind swept all around. It wasn't just the Iron Steed great hall official who was in danger.

It seemed as if even the iron-clad guards beside the Iron Steed great hall official would be smashed into meat paste by this blow.

"Hmph!"

Facing this powerful and heavy strike, the Iron Steed great hall official, riding on his horse, also darkened his expression. He didn't even glance at the demonic figure's foul-mouthed ranting.

He raised his broadsword, and with a loud bang, the sword collided with the giant's single-horned copper mace. The movement seemed minimal, but it actually knocked the single-horned copper mace flying into the air.

Even the giant was sent flying several zhang, somersaulting in the air and smashing down a tree as thick as a man's embrace.

"My goodness..."

The giant rolled twice more on the ground before sitting up, wiping his face. His face wasn't red, and he wasn't out of breath. He picked up his weapon from the ground again, pointed at the Iron Steed great hall official, and shouted, "Brothers, I've already tested out this big-headed ghost's abilities for you!"

"There's no need to talk about rules with these Ten-Surname dogs; let's all attack together and kill him!"

"..."

"Chih..."

The Iron Steed great hall official still didn't look at him, and didn't even slow his horse. After knocking him away with one strike, he continued to charge forward. But immediately, strange hooked chains suddenly extended out, aiming to wrap around his neck.

Just as the giant was about to have his neck entangled and be dragged under the horse, a girl who looked too small suddenly jumped down from a tree on the side. With a flick of her small hands, she sent the hooked chains flying back.

She giggled and said, "I knew Junior Brother Peng wouldn't succeed. You've been fighting with the Li family of the Ghost Gate for years; you've neglected your skills against the living!"

Along with her delicate laughter, figures kept rushing out from the trees beside her and from deep within the forest. Some stood by and watched their jokes, laughing strangely, while others stood on the branches of nearby trees and waved their sleeves, using some unknown magic.

"Whoosh..."

In that instant, the surroundings suddenly became filled with flying sand and stones, and dark clouds covered the sky. The strange horse under the Iron Steed great hall official was extremely brave, and the iron-clad guards following behind him were even more courageous and fierce. Facing these demonic figures, they showed no fear whatsoever.

But at this moment, they couldn't help but rein in their horses. Some even reached out to cover their mounts' eyes, and when they looked ahead again, their eyes couldn't help but show some astonishment.

They saw that right in front of them, what was originally just a gentle slope in the mountain forest, which they could have easily ridden over, had inexplicably turned into a cliff with steep walls and bizarre rocks. Dark clouds surged within, and they could hear the sounds of ghosts crying and wolves howling.

The horses under them were startled, and dared not charge forward at the sight of the abyss in front of them. Even the iron-clad guards on horseback frowned and tried hard to see through the illusion, but they could perceive nothing.

If they could see through the illusion, then it was just an illusion. But if they couldn't see through it, then it was real.

"Whirr..."

At the same instant, accompanied by strange laughter, one evil ghost after another crawled out from the cliffs, grabbing at the Iron Steed great hall official and the iron-clad guards behind him. Their sinister aura seemed to drag them all into the abyss.

The lesser hall officials who were charging forward were all greatly shocked and stopped, not daring to act rashly for a moment.

On the Iron Steed great hall official's side, looking at the rolling black smoke in front of them, the path ahead that had instantly turned into a dangerous and high cliff, and the countless ghostly hands and vines that stretched out from within the cliff, the iron-clad guards behind him and their mounts were already somewhat flustered, and their formation was somewhat unstable.

But the Iron Steed great hall official in front suddenly furrowed his brows, and treated the treacherous cliff and the evil ghosts as if they were nothing, and suddenly swallowed a mouthful of air.

The next moment, he suddenly opened his mouth and roared, spitting out a gust of wind that darkened the sky and covered the earth. Sand and stones flew everywhere, blurring the vision, and even the surrounding trees were snapped.

Whether it was the abyss in front of him, or the ghostly energy that stretched out from the cliff, or the ghostly mist that filled the mountain, it was all blown away by his breath. Vaguely, it seemed as if even the mountain in front of him had been blown down.

In the haze, one could even see countless figures of demonic figures being blown away by this gust of wind, accompanied by strange cries and extremely astonished and panicked sounds.

When the gust of wind passed, all that could be seen was that the area in front of them was clean, with hardly any stones left. There were no dangerous cliffs or ridges; it was still in that forest, with a winding path leading straight to the town.

But before this path, stood three figures: one standing with his hands behind his back, one crouching in a half-squatting position, and one hanging upside down from a nearby tree with one hand.

Among them, standing in the center was the troupe leader of the opera troupe, his face still smeared with greasepaint. Crouching was a man in a straw hat, and hanging from the tree was the girl who had attacked earlier. It seemed that only the three of them could withstand the gust of wind just now.

"We're all old acquaintances..."

Facing the Iron Steed great hall official, the troupe leader of the opera troupe, Jin Chen'er, even seemed to be at ease, smiling and saying, "Brother Iron Steed, why are you being so impolite? You attacked as soon as you saw us. Don't you even have any interest in greeting an old friend?"

"You are demons from the Undernourished Ox, and I am a hall official of the Zhou family guarding the Western Ridge Road."

When the Iron Steed great hall official saw them, he slowly raised his hand, signaling the others behind him to stop. He sighed softly while on horseback and said, "You and I are now serving different masters. What is there to say?"

"Or are you saying that you think you can take advantage of my Year-Keepers' skills with your opera troupe's tricks?"

"..."

The opera troupe leader Jin Chen'er smiled and said, "Everyone says that Year-Keepers are the bane of opera, so it's nothing new for you to say such arrogant words in front of my opera troupe. But if the opera troupe can't suppress you, don't you even put the Undernourished Ox in your eyes?"

Hearing this, the Iron Steed great hall official suddenly fell silent. Clearly, even he couldn't say that he didn't put the Undernourished Ox in his eyes.

"Everyone is a sensible person, so why make things so difficult?"

The opera troupe leader smiled and said, "Brother Iron Steed, if you forcibly attack our altar, our Undernourished Ox won't be afraid, but whether you succeed or not is another matter. Your Year-Keepers' swords are fierce, but quite a few of your lesser hall officials and lackeys will probably die at our hands."

"We're all old acquaintances, and we're just doing errands for those above us. This isn't worth it. So, let's all cool down and not fight with our heads down. How about we make a bet?"

"..."

Iron Steed was slightly startled and said grimly, "What kind of bet?"

"We'll bet on whether you have the ability to rush to Stone Horse Town within the time it takes for three incense sticks to burn!"

The opera troupe leader laughed loudly and said, "If you have that ability, you won't have to make your lackeys risk their lives. I'll hand over Stone Horse Town and the Undernourished Ox disciples to you."

"If you don't have that ability, don't swing your sword and kill indiscriminately. Go back to your Year-Keeper master and kowtow to him!"

"Of course, since we're proposing this bet, we have to show some sincerity. My sincerity is that during the time it takes for those three incense sticks to burn while you're rushing to Stone Horse Town, I'll guarantee on behalf of our eldest brother that he won't personally attack you. How about it?"

"..."

The Iron Steed great hall official on horseback nodded slightly, roared, and charged out, "I am the Year-Keeping Executioner great hall official, and I'm only here to execute the rebellious bandits. Who wants to make a bet with you demons?"

"Men, listen to my command! Protect me and watch how I kill these demons..."

(End of this chapter)
Chapter 1 The Beginning