Chapter 1: The Haunted Yōlin (Part 1)

  The Thunder Beast is enormous in size, but its speed is astonishingly fast.

  With that thunderous roar, in the flash of lightning, the Thunder Beast's massive claws were already pouncing towards Ding Lingdang's face. The claws shone with electricity and emitted a series of crackling sounds, its power terrifying to behold.

  This blow caught Ding Ling off guard, let alone summoning demons, he didn't even have time to make a defensive move before being smashed by this giant claw. He only felt a burst of electricity all over his body, and his entire person was knocked into the water pool. A pungent smell filled his nostrils.

  Perhaps it was because of the Thunder Beast's roar, the originally precarious cave top collapsed even more violently at this moment. The cave top had already leaked countless water columns, and the accumulated water in the cave had stopped seeping down, with the water level starting to rise continuously.

  The Thunder Beast pounced again, but before it could make an attacking move, it stumbled and almost fell. A surge of water burst out from the top of its head, and rocks came crashing down, hitting the Thunder Beast with a loud crash, but then bursting out instantly, creating a massive electrical arc that shot up into the air. In an instant, large-scale cracks appeared on the ceiling and walls of the cave, and countless larger and more turbulent water columns burst out, causing the cave to shake violently like an earthquake, and a terrifying tremor occurred inside the cave, even the accumulated water inside seemed to be jumping.

  Guo Mohan saw Ding Lingxiu fainting in the water, biting her lip with some hesitation, but she was very clear that at this moment, every second of delay could lead to a collapse of the entire rock wall.

  "Lei Beast, run fast!" Guo Mohan shouted at Lei Beast.

  Lei Beast heard and ran back to Guo Mohan's side in an instant, leaving a trail of light and electricity.

  Guo Mohan wrapped his arms around the Thunder Beast's neck and flipped over to ride on its fluffy back. The Thunder Beast's massive body transformed into a whirlwind, relying on its incredible speed to gallop like lightning. In an instant, all that could be seen was a string of crackling electrical sparks flashing across the dark stone steps before they escaped to the stone platform outside the demon cave. Guo Mohan heard the sound of rushing water behind him and realized that the demon cave had completely collapsed. He turned his head back to look, and the underground water's momentum was unusually turbulent, flooding the entire demon cave in an instant and continuing to rise along the stone steps.

  At this time, the sky was already dimly lit, and the morning glow had shot into the cave through that ventilation window. Through this small ventilation window, you could see the deep and white sky outside, with a few stars scattered about. The ground was pitch black, while the sky was all white. The wind rustled through the grass, making a soft humming sound, and the cave was shrouded in an air of mysterious dawn.

  Guo Mohan's expression was solemn and his eyes were fixed on the demon cave that was gradually being submerged in water, with an unpredictable look on his face that was shrouded in a mysterious aura.

  Lei Beast scratched his big head and smiled foolishly at Guo Mohan:

  "What's wrong with Big Sister? Can't bear to kill that little handsome boy?"

  Guo Mohan didn't respond, and Lei Shou muttered in a low voice:

  "Hey, what did this young man do to offend the master? He doesn't seem like a bad person either."

  Guo Mohan gave Leishou a slanted glance, his voice cold as usual:

  "It would be great if all the bad people in this world could be seen through. I'm not reluctant to part with him, but I'm thinking about how to get back the Qinglong Baigui painting."

  "Qinglong Bai Gui Tu?" The Thunder Beast was shocked and lost color, rubbed its hands, seemed to become excited, the six lightning-shaped tails behind it also made a more intense crackling sound. "Could it be that legendary book that can guide demons to the Holy Domain, one of the true Hundred Ghosts Pictures?"

  Guo Mohan nodded slightly, his eyebrows furrowed tightly, with a hint of disappointment in his tone:

  "It's just a pity that all this happened too quickly, and there was no time to grab anything. For now, we can only wait for the water to stabilize and look for an opportunity to sneak back."

  Lei Beast was delighted to hear that Guo Mohan was preparing to seize the Bai Gui Tu, because if he could borrow the power of the Bai Gui Tu to return to the Sacred Domain, not only would his demonic powers increase greatly, but he would also no longer be confined to living in a space as small as the Ling Que Palace lamp every day. However, although he was eager, he couldn't help Guo Mohan with his plan to dive underwater to seize the Bai Gui Tu.

  The Thunder Beast sauntered to the entrance of the cave and muttered to itself:

  "Master, look at the water, it's going to be very difficult for us to get in for a while. Why don't we leave first? After all, that Hundred Ghosts Painting won't be washed away or discovered by others."

  Guo Mohan shook his head, pursed his lips tightly and replied coldly:

  "No way, this Qinglong Bai Gui painting has been coveted by countless people in this world for a long time. Even if it's submerged in the water or deeply buried underground, someone will definitely dig three feet to uncover it."

  The Thunder Beast swung its six flashing electric tail and said stupidly:

  "What's the young master going to do? You don't have any swimming demons, do you?"

  "Hmm...hmmm..."

  Guo Mo's cold laughter echoed a few times, her long hair fluttering everywhere with the strong gust of wind from the air vent, veiling her face.

  Her long, raven-black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and she slowly gathered her disheveled locks, securing them with a pink hair clip into a simple bun.

  Guo Mohan didn't know if it was because of her weak body or other reasons, but her beautiful face had almost no blood color at this moment, as white and pure as snow. She furrowed her brow, seemingly making a big decision, then put down the handbag she was holding, slowly taking off her windbreaker to reveal her jade-like arms underneath.

  The Thunder Beast suddenly realized something and said in surprise:

  "Hey...? Young master, are you going down yourself?"

  Guo Mohan glanced at it and replied coldly:

  "It's better to rely on yourself than others; if you don't take action yourself, what else can be done?"

  As they spoke, Guo Mohan had already taken off her long pants and boots, revealing her icy skin and bones as well as her exceptional figure. With her clothes removed, Guo Mohan was like a lotus flower emerging from the water, an extraordinary beauty. The only flaw was that her skin seemed to lack a layer of blood color, appearing pale and sickly, although the morning glow outside cast a golden light on her face, it still didn't bring out any color, making her look even more ethereal and otherworldly, as if she didn't eat or breathe the same air as ordinary people, truly beautiful, pure, and cold to the extreme.

  She pulled out a pair of goggles from her backpack, wearing only a black tank top and underwear.

  Lei Shou was startled and hastily stopped Guo Mohan, saying:

  "Little master, absolutely not! We just barely escaped, and you're actually thinking of swimming back? Do you know how deep the water is in that cave right now? And with all that sand and rocks and water rushing in, it's almost pitch black in there. Even if you could find the demon cave by following the stone steps, at such a great depth, if you couldn't find your way back, it would be certain death!"

  Guo Mohan turned his head to look at the Thunder Beast, stroking the soft fur on its belly, and stiffly smiled, saying:

  "Alright, I know you're doing it for my own good, but who in this world doesn't risk their life to get the Hundred Ghosts Painting? Just now, I chose to escape because the impact of the waves was too great, and if I didn't run, I would have been knocked unconscious by the turbulent water. Now that the water has calmed down, it's completely possible to swim in. As for not being able to find the way back, that's almost impossible - if I can't even remember such a simple route, then I'd be too ashamed of the Guo family."

  Guo Mohan finished speaking and didn't wait for Leishou's response. She raised the Lingying Palace lantern and took it back.

  In fact, she was also anxious and uneasy in her heart. Not to mention that it was impossible to tell the direction in this water, and breathing was a problem at such a depth. She couldn't explain why she still wanted to do so.

  Perhaps, Hyakki Yagyo is a magical power that stimulates people's desire for possession.

  Perhaps, humanity's pursuit of power itself is enough to stir up many unimaginable courage within.

  Guo Mohan took out four talismans and a high-powered flashlight from his bag before getting into the water.

  Guo's family was not good at using talismans to suppress demons, so these four water-avoiding talismans were also bought from an old Taoist priest. Because they had been placed for a relatively long time, they were about to lose their usable period. Now, at most, they can only maintain five minutes of use.

  Guo Mohan mentally calculated that she would need at least twenty-five minutes to make a round trip underwater, and even if she found Ding Lingxiu immediately after arriving at the expected location, it would still take her twenty minutes. However, these water-avoiding talismans could only last for a maximum of twenty minutes, and adding the three minutes she could hold her breath underwater, she only had this three-minute insurance time. If within these three minutes, she couldn't find Ding Lingxiu, then she would have to turn back. Moreover, the talismans were limited, and she only had one chance; if she failed, she could only give up.

  Guo Mohan gazed at the water that had gradually calmed down, no longer hesitating, and slowly walked down along the stone steps.