Chapter 1233: A Tiger In The Plains Doesnt Provoke

In the blink of an eye, dawn had arrived.

Wu Tao had been busy all night, and now, looking at the talismans scattered all over the floor and bed, he stretched contentedly.

"Ah..."

But halfway through his stretch, his smile froze.

He stared at the talismans, and a look of unease crossed his face.

He quickly grabbed one to examine it closely.

After checking several more, he sighed in frustration, rubbing his forehead.

"Ugh..."

"I forgot! Most of my cultivation is unusable due to the laws here. Making talismans purely by drawing won't work—I need spiritual energy from heaven and earth!"

"Spiritual energy, spiritual energy..."

After pacing back and forth for a few minutes, Wu Tao's eyes suddenly lit up.

"That's it! If I use some pure, untouched red clay to draw the talismans, it should work!"

With that thought, Wu Tao quickly dressed, gathered everything he needed, locked his door securely, and hurried out of the city.

This place was filled with industrial development.

Even though it looked run-down in many areas, the worldly atmosphere had tainted everything, leaving no trace of natural spiritual energy. Even some dilapidated Taoist temples had lost their sanctity.

The only solution was to head to the wilderness outside the city to find the red clay!

Fortunately, Wu Tao was familiar with the surrounding area and had always been prepared for emergencies. Finding his way out of the city was easy, and he had a rough idea of where to find the red clay.

Before dusk even arrived, he had already reached a hillside outside the city and was digging vigorously at the base of the hill.

Shovel after shovel!

This manual labor felt unusually motivating today. Even though he felt the hardship of it, the thought of soon being able to create a doppelganger and live a stable life filled him with energy, and his perspective instantly broadened.

With another shovel, he naturally shouted out:

"Eighty!"

"Eighty!"

The small entrenching tool wasn't just digging up dirt—it was digging up a pile of doppelgangers!

Each shovel meant eighty more lives. If only he had better tools and a bigger bag, he could have flattened the entire hillside!

As his bag was nearly full, Wu Tao finally stood up, satisfied, ready to take a short break.

But as soon as he stood up, he realized something was wrong. It wasn't just that it had gotten dark—there was a red ghost floating beside him, staring at him intently!

Eyes locked.

Wu Tao suddenly felt a sense of dread.

He grabbed his bag and prepared to run!

The ghost reacted just as quickly, its face twisting into a狰狞 expression as it lunged at him with its claws!

The attack was fierce and terrifying, its expression horrifying!

Whether in terms of the danger of the situation or the psychological impact, this ghost was no ordinary foe—it was even more formidable than a blood spirit!

This was an old monster from the start!

Luckily, Wu Tao had plenty of experience escaping danger. He hoisted the bag onto his shoulder, sidestepped slightly, and deftly dodged the ghost's claw strike.

After one exchange, the ghost grew even angrier, its twisted face contorting like a wrung towel, letting out a roar in the night that was far more terrifying than Sadako!

Wu Tao was also feeling the pressure, carrying a bag of life-saving dirt.

He never expected to encounter such a crisis so soon after arriving in this world!

And it was a one-in-a-hundred-million kind of crisis.

Without hesitation, Wu Tao slung the bag of talisman dirt over his back and took off running, constantly reminding himself:

"Run!"

"Endure for a moment, and the storm will pass; take a step back, and the sea will open up!"

"Killing it might be easy, but if it has a whole family of descendants seeking revenge, the disaster would never end!"

"I can't afford that risk!"

Before the monster could react, Wu Tao was already sprinting away, his feet practically smoking—he was a master of escape!

Seeing the human about to get away, the ghost finally gave chase, flying through the night sky, the cold wind howling as it closed in on Wu Tao.

"Hiss... hiss..."

Hearing the ghost's hisses behind him, Wu Tao ran even faster.

His legs were practically spinning, but he still couldn't shake the ghost. Frustrated and angry, he cursed loudly, his voice echoing through the wilderness.

"Damn it!"

"The laws of this world are so weak! I can only use so much power, or the world might collapse! I'm running as fast as I can, and you're still chasing me? What grudge do you have against me?!"

Wu Tao felt more and more humiliated, as if he were being chased by a pack of wild dogs.

The ghost grew angrier too!

No human had ever been this slippery—clearly running away at top speed, yet still yelling nonstop!

As Wu Tao continued to curse, the ghost's face twisted even more grotesquely. It suddenly let out a howl into the night sky, like a wolf's cry.

After a few howls, ghosts of all kinds began emerging from all directions, like groundhogs popping out of their holes, all chasing after Wu Tao. The dark figures floated in the air, and Wu Tao felt as if the moon had suddenly turned black.

He glanced back and nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Holy crap!"

"Are you guys having a ghost convention or something? What's with this marathon chase? We have no past grievances, no recent conflicts—I'm just digging up some dirt! Why are you chasing me?!"

Wu Tao's words were a tactical attempt to placate them, but his feet never stopped moving!

The ghosts flew through the air, chasing relentlessly, eating dust all the way through the outskirts.

He had said plenty of nice things, but in the end, it was all useless!

Instead, the ghosts only grew more ferocious, their howls attracting countless more shadows. Before Wu Tao could even escape the outskirts, there were already thousands of dark figures behind him, like a tidal wave of beasts!

And so, a man carrying a bag of dirt sprinted desperately, with a sea of darkness chasing him like a tsunami.

...

As the night deepened, perhaps due to yesterday's cleanup, there was no sign of any spirits today. The patrol members on the city walls relaxed slightly, and some even began chatting quietly.

On the city gate, Captain Xu Rong stood silently, gazing into the distance, her eyes calm and unwavering.

Only when she heard Li Weiwei's frustrated account did she show a hint of surprise, turning her head slightly.

"You're saying he not only survived but also installed eight or nine iron doors, locking himself inside?"

Li Weiwei nodded.

"Exactly! That guy is so infuriating. We went out of our way to help him, and he's so ungrateful. But at least he seems to care about his own safety. It's a bit excessive, but it's not entirely a bad thing."

Xu Rong nodded lightly.

"Hmm."

"As long as he's safe, that's what matters. If we can protect the citizens, we can rest easy."

Li Weiwei smiled respectfully.

"Captain, as long as you're at ease, that's what matters. The fact that there's been no activity tonight must be a reward from the heavens for your concern for the citizens!"

Her lighthearted remark eased the tension slightly.

Xu Rong's expression softened slightly, a rare occurrence.

She looked out into the distance again, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

But the next second!

Her eyes suddenly trembled, and her expression turned grave.

Such a serious look rarely appeared on the captain's face, and Li Weiwei was startled, following her gaze.

What she saw was...

Outside the city, a rolling black fog filled the sky, with countless malevolent spirits swarming like a tidal wave!