"The enemy is here..."
As that thing rushed into the courtyard and pounced on the stake to gnaw at it, Hu Ma stood up.
But he did not move hastily; instead, he shouted in a deep voice.
This was something he had discussed with Zhou Datong and the others in advance. They had crafted this wooden stake because they knew that when the drought ba emerged, it would first target its own kin—those who had become its "enemies" in its current state.
So, the first thing it would do tonight after emerging would be to harm its own flesh and blood. Hence, they created this stake to confuse it for a moment. Of course, the stake was crudely made, and they hadn’t truly expected to fool it for long—merely to attract its attention.
As it pounced on the stake, it was time for Zhou Datong and the others to act.
Indeed, Zhou Datong had reacted the moment the creature entered the courtyard, even without Hu Ma’s reminder.
He leaped up abruptly, his palms sweating. But he waited until the thing pounced on the stake before shouting, then rushed out simultaneously with Zhao Zhu.
The two of them grabbed a net woven from straw ropes, lifted it from the ground, and cast it over the creature. Then, they both charged inward, one from the left and one from the right, crisscrossing to cinch the net and bind the creature to the wooden stake.
Without pausing, they circled the wooden stake several times, binding it tightly. Their feet planted firmly, they gripped the ropes, holding their ground.
At the same moment, Hu Ma, already holding a steel knife in his left hand and a Wooden Sword in his right, charged toward the stake.
The creature emitted a sound, somewhat like a voice, yet not seeming to come from its mouth—more like a sound squeezed from its chest.
It had realized the wooden stake was fake and struggled with such force that the net threatened to snap.
Zhou Datong and Zhao Zhu had both consumed Blood Food earlier, making them considerably stronger than ordinary men; each possessed the strength of two or three average adults. Yet, they were still being dragged forward by the creature’s struggles.
But just then, Hu Ma arrived. Wielding the steel knife, he struck its head with a move called "Mountain Opening."
The knife, infused with a column of his fiery energy, normally caused ordinary evil spirits to dissipate merely from its blade wind.
Unexpectedly, this slash only sank about three-tenths of the way into the creature’s skull before the blade became lodged in its bone.
In the next instant, as if enraged by the fiery energy in the blade, a burst of peculiar yin qi emanated from its body. This yin qi was extremely strange; the net, upon being soaked by it, seemed to touch sulfuric acid. It quickly withered and then slackened.
Zhou Datong and Zhao Zhu’s hands suddenly went slack, and they both stumbled and fell.
Meanwhile, the creature flailed its arms wildly, tearing the wooden stake to shreds. Its stiff limbs carried it forward as it clawed its way menacingly towards the house.
The lanterns in the courtyard still burned, and in their flickering light, its nails could be seen—pitch-black and sharp as blades.
Hmm? Hu Ma was startled; the knife was wedged in its skull, and he couldn’t pull it out. Seeing the shriveled claw reaching directly for him, knowing its strength could tear the wooden stake apart, it could surely gut him! He gritted his teeth slightly, suddenly letting go of the knife and extending his own hand.
As his left hand shot out, it transformed, becoming cold and stiff as if dead. It collided with the attacking claw with a sharp CLACK.
Their fingers intertwined in a death grip, impossible to separate.
The shriveled claw carried a heavy load of corpse qi and yin poison; ordinary people would be injured on contact, their flesh corroding instantly. The corpse qi would seep into their skin and muscles. But Hu Ma, whose hand had undergone a ’reincarnation into death’ transformation, felt no pain despite his skin and flesh being shredded. His hand, like a corpse’s, nearly matched the adversary’s.
Although the creature’s body was rigid and possessed astounding strength, Hu Ma, in his transformed state, also wielded formidable power.
As their hands, or rather, palm and claw, locked, Hu Ma’s living body astonishingly matched this stiff, frigid Corpse Monster blow for blow; neither yielded a single step.
Moreover, Hu Ma was alive and quick-witted. After a brief stalemate, he seized an opportunity, grabbing the creature’s fingers and twisting them forcefully outwards. With several sharp CRACKS, a few of the monster’s fingers snapped.
Yet, it seemed oblivious. Instead, a potent wave of yin qi, heavy with an intense stench of decay, suddenly billowed from it, rushing towards Hu Ma’s face.
But Hu Ma reacted swiftly. Since charging forward, he had feared inhaling corpse poison and had been holding his breath. He only exhaled when the creature unleashed its yin qi, loosing a True Yang Arrow forward, like a tangible Qi Sword.
This breath of pure yang directly dispersed the onrushing yin poison and struck the creature full in the face.
Having already completed the ’refining life’ process for his lungs and possessing high cultivation, how potent could this solid True Yang Arrow be?
Though it had transformed into a zombie with immense power, capable of standing unfazed even after a punch to the chest, this breath striking its face still staggered it backward several steps.
A considerable amount of its corpse qi was dispersed as well.
Seizing the opportunity, Hu Ma advanced. As the creature, having stumbled back, lunged forward again, he utilized its momentum, executing a Banlan Hammer move. He allowed it to grab his arm, then used its own force to pull it forward.
The creature’s limbs were already stiff and its movements clumsy. Pulled by Hu Ma, it immediately toppled and sprawled on the ground.
With a flick of his toe, Hu Ma sent the Wooden Sword he had just dropped jumping back into his hand. Simultaneously, he infused it with his body’s stove fire energy.
Aiming at the back of its head, he thrust downwards decisively.
He knew accuracy was crucial at this moment.
A Wooden Sword, though sometimes surprisingly effective against evil spirits, was not as sturdy as iron. To deal with this creature effectively, he had to strike its weakness. If he hacked at bone, this old item might be ruined.
Given that this endeavor had already cost one Blood Food Pill, losing the Wooden Sword as well would be too much.
So, he aimed this strike with particular care.
However, before the Wooden Sword could pierce the nape of its neck, a sudden FWOOSH! was heard, and an explosive burst of corpse qi erupted.
This creature hadn’t fully matured yet; it had been prematurely forced out by Hu Ma’s tactics, which was why Hu Ma dared to confront it at night.
However, because it wasn’t fully matured, the corpse qi nurtured within it wasn’t consolidated. After enduring Hu Ma’s True Yang Arrow and a series of heavy blows, the corpse qi inside it exploded like a balloon.
This turn of events truly caught Hu Ma off guard, and he reflexively retreated.
Yet, observing closely by the diminishing firelight, he saw what seemed to be a strand of yin qi, almost animate, rushing straight for the house behind him.
Hu Ma instantly understood.
Evil spirits, regardless of their type, defied all reason.
In life, blood relatives were closest. But once such beings died and ’matured’ into these creatures, their own families became their first targets.
The reason was unknown, but this phenomenon undeniably existed.
Now, with the creature’s cultivation effectively destroyed, only a final breath of resentment remained, still yearning to enter the house and harm its dearest kin.
I take their money, I solve their problems!
With no time for further thought, Hu Ma executed the Ghost Ascending Stairs technique, his feet finding purchase on the vertical wall as he propelled himself upwards, landing stably before the door of the house.
At that moment, the men Old Master Zhao had arranged nearby began to stir, awakened by the commotion. They were eager to see what was happening, but encountering the corpse qi could spell disaster for them.
It wasn’t just a matter of one or two deaths; if a plague broke out, the consequences would be enormous.
Therefore, at this critical juncture, Hu Ma hesitated no longer. He fiercely bit his tongue and spat a spray of blood towards the lingering corpse qi.
Since learning this dharma method from the Second Master, only two entities had ever received this ’treatment.’
One was Cui Xie’er, who had been possessed by the mountain demon.
The other was this drought ba, relying on its final breath of corpse qi.
The corpse qi was the most potent essence within the drought ba, but it instantly dissipated upon encountering Hu Ma’s Blood Yang Arrow. Any remaining wisps of corpse qi released from the creature’s body were also dried up by a vigorous fiery intent, rapidly evaporating.
Once the black mist that obscured vision vanished, only a half-decayed, white-haired corpse remained on the ground, its body still trembling.
"Burn it, burn it to death!"
At that moment, Zhou Datong, who had been knocked aside earlier, seized the chance and jumped out.
Seeing Hu Ma battling the creature, he wisely chose not to add to the chaos. Instead, he fumbled to light a torch and shouted to Zhao Zhu. Then, the two of them rushed forward, torches in hand.
From another direction, Zhou Liang emerged. He had also been prepared. Seeing an opportunity, he rushed over carrying a jar filled with potent alcohol mixed with black oil ointment and doused the creature with it.
When the potent alcohol drenched the creature, Zhou Datong and Zhao Zhu thrust their torches forward. With a SWOOSH, flames erupted, engulfing its body.
As if fueled by some evil demonic power, the flames burned with an indescribable intensity.
The entire courtyard was illuminated by the eerie, crackling flames, and a cloud of dense black smoke billowed into the sky.
Initially, a fingernail-sized crescent moon hung in the clear sky. But as the black smoke ascended, it was as if ink were staining the heavens black. Dark clouds gathered heavily, enveloping the lonely moon and obscuring the surrounding stars. Then, a bolt of lightning flashed, seemingly splitting the night sky in two.
Subsequently, fierce winds howled, making the trees in the village sway violently, and then, pattering raindrops began to fall.
The flash of lightning startled Hu Ma. He looked down at the creature, now burned to a blackened crisp, then lifted his head.
A few raindrops struck his face, gradually pulling him back to reality from the fierce intensity of the battle.
He opened his eyes wide, watching the countless raindrops descend from the sky, a sense of slight amazement washing over him.
In the distance, an excited shout echoed, quickly followed by more cheers that engulfed the village, their sound even surpassing the roar of thunder.
"It’s raining! The drought is over!"
"We’ll have a good harvest this year!"