Chapter 150

The shout echoed through the forest, causing the leaves to rustle and the withered grass to sway. But after a long wait, there was no response.

Hu Ma frowned. The others around him felt their hearts sink as they looked at the forest ahead. The silence was unsettling, and a sense of unease crept into their hearts.

They had only just entered the mountains and hadn't even met the people from the mine yet, let alone harbored any grudges. Yet, they had already encountered the deadly Gu dog. Shouting loudly was a way of showing respect in the martial world, hoping that if the other party was nearby, they would hear.

But the silence was deafening. What did the other party mean by this? Were they unwilling to even talk?

Old Suanpan took out a map and whispered, "According to this, we should have arrived long ago. I just used my Xiao Kanyu (small geomancy) to calculate, and we haven't gone in the wrong direction, nor is this a ghost wall."

"But why can't we see anything here?"

Following his gaze, the others looked ahead. All they saw was a dense forest, and not a trace of the blood-food mine.

The silence was absolute, as if they had wandered into an uninhabited wilderness.

"Perhaps, we have already arrived."

Hu Ma observed the surroundings and took a deep breath. "This clearing seems unnatural. It must be the remnants of logging and construction by the mine."

"Maybe we'll reach our destination after we pass through that forest."

Hearing him say this, everyone took another look around. They vaguely felt that he was right, but when they looked ahead, the forest seemed no different from what they had passed through so far. Vines intertwined, and trees towered, making it impossible to see even a hint of a path.

Hu Ma wasn't in a hurry to speak. He turned to Old Suanpan and said, "Old brother, we haven't offended anyone, and we followed Jianghu etiquette by shouting. So whatever we do next, it can't be considered impolite, right?"

Old Suanpan immediately nodded. "Of course. In this world, shouldn't everyone have the right to reason?"

"That's good."

Hu Ma took a deep breath and took Zhou Datong's eerie serrated saber from the donkey's back. He held it under his arm and slowly walked forward, reaching the edge of the clearing. He looked at the dense forest ahead, where vines intertwined like tentacles.

Then, he suddenly took a deep breath and swung the saber. His blood and Qi erupted, faintly carrying a Yang-energy that wards off evil. He struck the gnarled roots of a towering tree at the edge of the forest with all his might.

"Boom!"

As the saber struck, everyone heard a shrill cry that made their eardrums vibrate. The entire forest seemed to sway in panic, and eerie shadows scurried away in all directions.

When the commotion subsided, they stared blankly ahead, and saw that a path had appeared in the forest where there had been only intertwined vines.

There were tracks on the path, indicating that it was frequently used.

"The blood-food mine is really up ahead!"

Old Suanpan couldn't help but jump off the donkey cart, take a look, and show his delight: "I knew my Xiao Kanyu (small geomancy), bought with two blood-food pills, must be the real deal!"

"You really found the place?"

Zhou Datong and the others rushed over, overjoyed. But Hu Ma quickly stopped them, picked up a small stone from the ground, and threw it forward.

A light mist lingered among the trees inside, and the branches swayed. From the front, the trees looked wide and green, with nothing unusual. But when the stone hit them, the leaves flipped over, revealing a colorful, poisonous insect hidden on the back of each leaf. They fell to the ground.

The excitement that everyone had felt just moments ago vanished, and they looked at each other, unable to imagine what it would be like to go inside.

"This forest is full of traps!"

Hu Ma took a deep breath and said to Old Suanpan, "It seems it's not some Wuren (shamanic people) blocking our way, but the people from the blood-food mine who aren't welcoming us."

"First the Gu dog, and now this forest full of Gu insects..."

Old Suanpan's face turned green as he looked around. "The people at this mine aren't reasonable. They have a fierce attitude."

Hu Ma carefully examined the forest and said, "Old brother, do you know how to dispel Gu?"

Old Suanpan looked troubled. "Years ago, a Wuren wanted me to be his son-in-law. If I had become his son-in-law, he would have taught me, but I was too proud at the time and didn't agree to the marriage."

"Not much skill, but plenty of talk."

Hu Ma cursed inwardly, but he also felt a headache. He didn't know what was in this forest, or even how many strange things were hidden here. Even with his Shou Suiren (grave guardian) skills, which made him immune to ordinary poisonous insects, he didn't dare to barge in.

But he had come here excitedly to take over the blood-food mine. Was he supposed to give up halfway and turn around?

As he was thinking, he suddenly heard a snort. It was the horse that had been obediently following them all along. Now, it raised its head excitedly and looked at the depths of the forest.

Then, without a word, it quietly lifted its hooves and slowly walked forward.

Zhou Datong and the others were shocked and hurriedly tried to stop it, but Hu Ma's heart stirred. "Just follow it."

Old Suanpan and the others were full of confusion, but they saw that Hu Ma had already followed behind the horse. The others quickly followed, and even the donkey, which had already become alert, tucked its tail in and quietly followed behind.

"Chi chi chi chi..."

Following the horse into the depths of the forest, everyone became increasingly astonished. The appearance of the forest seemed no different from the outside, but as the horse walked forward, stepping through the grass and kicking away the vines, it was as if it had poked a hornet's nest.

From the swaying branches on both sides, poisonous insects or strange powders constantly popped out, attaching themselves to the horse's back and biting and stinging it painfully.

In the dim light, they saw thumb-sized scorpions, coin-sized spiders, thin, long snakes with black and white rings, and so on.

At first glance, these things were completely invisible, hidden on both sides. But now, they suddenly jumped out, swarming the horse like angry hornets, making everyone who followed behind feel their scalps tingle.

The horse was clearly in pain, its body constantly trembling. But its pace became lighter, and it even let out two joyful whinnies, as if celebrating something.

"This horse..."

The poisonous insects on both sides were frightening, but the horse's behavior was even more frightening.

Old Suanpan, Zhou Datong, and the others already felt their scalps tingle. This horse was acting abnormally crazy.

"This old fellow has finally made it through."

Hu Ma followed behind, not without feeling a little frightened himself. But he only sighed softly, as if fulfilling a certain entrustment.

Miss Red Wine had given him this horse so it could die.

It wanted to die, but it didn't want to kill itself through the hands of others, so it could only wait for its death tribulation to arrive. Miss Red Wine had asked him to bring it because her estate didn't have enough danger to satisfy it.

Now, it was clearing the Gu formation for him, dying from the evil poison, which meant it had finally found its own fulfillment.

Hu Ma wouldn't kill it himself, nor would he deliberately send it into a deadly situation. But since it had found its own opportunity, he wouldn't stop it.

And so, with the horse clearing the way, the others followed behind, and little by little, they passed through the forest and saw the lights ahead.

When they finally came through, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The poisonous insects on the horse's body suddenly stiffened and fell to the ground with a rustling sound. Its body was already swollen and blue, its hooves unsteady. It suddenly collapsed heavily.

"Careful!"

Hu Ma rushed forward and used his skill to neutralize the poison, preventing it from spreading. Then, he supported the horse's chest, letting it slowly kneel on the ground.

Looking into the horse's hollow eyes, he could see its contentment. Hu Ma simply nodded to it, not intending to explain its background or the reason for doing this to anyone else. It was enough for him to know.

But as he watched the horse slowly kneel and quietly lie in the grass waiting to die, Hu Ma turned his head and glanced coldly at the forest behind him. Whoever had set up this Gu formation, whatever their purpose, he had remembered this.

Next to him was a simple wooden gate, with a tattered red lantern hanging on it. There was no light inside, and it swayed helplessly in the wind.

Hu Ma glanced at it and understood the blood-food mine's attitude towards the Red Lantern Society.

The red lantern was the symbol of the Red Lantern Goddess. Hanging a red lantern meant that this place was the Red Lantern Goddess's territory. Although it was hung here, it wasn't filled with oil or repaired, allowing the red lantern to be exposed to the wind and sun, not like a symbol, but like a joke hanging here.

Further in, he saw a valley, lit by bonfires and torches, illuminating everything.

In the valley, countless people holding knives and spears, with fierce expressions, were sitting there around the fire, roasting meat. When they suddenly saw Hu Ma and the others, they were startled and rushed over.

Their eyes were unfriendly as they shouted, "Who are you? This is the blood-food mine! Barging in here, do you not want to live?"

"Miners?"

Hu Ma glanced at this group of ragged, unfriendly-looking people, but he didn't pay them any attention. Instead, his gaze skipped over them and looked into the depths of the valley. He suddenly took a deep breath and shouted:

"Where's the person in charge here?"

"I am a Qingxiang disciple under the Red Lantern Goddess. I'm here to audit the accounts. Mine chief, come and see me at once!"

The shout shocked the miners in front of him, and they couldn't help but retreat. The weapons in their hands clattered to the ground.

The horse beside him, poisoned by countless toxins, had slowly lowered its massive head, welcoming the arrival of death. Even its consciousness had become blurred, as if it was about to sink into endless darkness...

Then it was abruptly awakened, and it gave Hu Ma a resentful look: "The feeling I had just built up was ruined by your shouting."

(End of Chapter)