Seeing Xu Ying freeze and stare unblinkingly into the well, Huang Siping, Wei Chu, and the snake demon, Yuan Qi, all peered down as well.
One human, one god, and one demon made eye contact with the massive eye deep in the shaft. Their gazes instantly dulled, locking onto that enormous eye.
It was as if that eye held a bizarre power, making it impossible to look away once a glance was cast.
Suddenly, a deafening toll of a bell rang out, shaking Xu Ying and the others awake.
The two humans, one god, and one demon focused their vision and were horrified to discover that their hands and bodies were drenched in blood. They were gripping the thick iron chains in the well, hauling them out with all their might!
Lacking hands, the snake demon, Yuan Qi, had coiled his tail around the chain to drag it upward!
They had already pulled dozens of zhang of chain from the well. Near the end, the surfaced links were coated in foul, black blood, giving off a nauseating stench.
Dragged up alongside the chains were more than a dozen human skeletons!
A chill ran down everyone's spine.
They had no idea when they had lost their minds, what manner of thing had seized control of their brains, how long they had been hauling, or what was chained at the bottom!
All they felt was the chain's immense weight, growing heavier by the second as though anchored to something colossal below.
Down in the well, the giant eye had vanished. In its place churned a surge of bloody water, bubbling furiously and rising higher and higher until it reached the well's brim!
Xu Ying and the others hastily released the chains. The bell tolled once more, and the chains rattled noisily as they plummeted back into the depths. The bloody water receded along with them.
Suddenly, a faint, delicate sigh drifted up from the well. It was melodious and hauntingly sweet, sounding like a maiden lamenting her tragic fate and her failure to break free.
Yet the sweeter the voice sounded, the more their hair stood on end.
Xu Ying stood by the edge and looked down. As the bloody water drained away, he saw a coffin bound by the chains, plummeting straight down along the inner wall.
A moment later, the coffin struck bottom.
At the base of the well, a sharp, triangular mouth lined with razor-sharp fangs opened wide, swallowed the coffin whole, and gulped it down. The chains trailed from the sides of the behemoth's mouth like whiskers.
Xu Ying's heart pounded wildly. After swallowing the coffin, the behemoth slithered directly beneath the vertical shaft and opened its maw.
Xu Ying immediately yanked his head back, grabbed Yuan Qi's tail, and bolted!
Huang Siping and Wei Chu were bewildered, but an earth-shattering roar erupted from the well mouth. The blast struck them so violently that both grunted in pain, blood leaking from their eyes, ears, noses, and mouths!
Down in the well, the behemoth was utterly enraged at failing to deliver the coffin to the surface. Its furious roar tore through the air, shaking even the great bronze bell like a willow branch tossed in a tempest!
The entire rocky hill trembled violently with deep, rumbling booms, as if on the verge of shattering to pieces!
Although Xu Ying and Yuan Qi had avoided the direct brunt of the roar, the shockwave from the roar colliding with the bronze bell still hurled them several zhang through the air, slamming them to the ground!
At the same time, the Nai River outside the ruined temple turned frantic. Its waters surged higher and higher, as though some colossal monstrosity within the river was churning up stormy waves to batter the bell-shaped barrier of light!
Assaulted from both within and without, the great bell in the pavilion dimmed, and the bell-shaped light barrier sheltering the rocky hill grew increasingly thin and faint!
Xu Ying pushed his vitality to the limit, surging his qi and blood to resist the roar while dragging the snake demon toward the Mahavira Hall with every ounce of his strength!
His qi and blood churned so fiercely beneath his skin that tiny beads of blood seeped through his pores, staining his clothes crimson!
The snake demon, Yuan Qi, had already been knocked unconscious by the shockwave.
Xu Ying gritted his teeth, blood trickling from his eyes and warm, coppery liquid flowing from his nostrils!
The roaring from the deep well never ceased. Blood leaked from Xu Ying's ears as well, his heart thumping like a drum as if ready to burst at any second. Leaving a trail of bloody footprints, he dragged himself toward the Mahavira Hall.
With grueling effort, Xu Ying pulled himself onto the hall floor and collapsed in exhaustion.
Inside the Mahavira Hall, the roar was considerably muffled, finally giving him a chance to catch his breath.
Crack!
A flash of cold light gleamed in the sky like an edged weapon of staggering size, carving a clean breach into the bell-shaped barrier of light!
The waters of the Nai River immediately cascaded through the opening.
Xu Ying struggled to his feet and peered outside. Along the river, towering, majestic silhouettes faintly emerged around the barrier. Resembling humans yet inhuman, they wielded titanic weapons, striking the light barrier to tear open even more gaps!
Those towering forms possessed an awe-inspiring presence akin to heavenly deities, completely distinct from straw-headed deities or demon gods. A single glance caused chaotic thoughts to flood one's mind, inspiring an urge to fall to one's knees in worship!
A ghastly pale hand reached in from the Nai River, slipping through a breach into the sky above the ruined temple. Each finger stretched dozens of zhang in length as it swept over the Mahavira Hall.
Xu Ying hurried to the rear of the hall and saw the pale hand reach into the pavilion, grasping the bronze bell in an attempt to pluck it down.
Clang—!
The bell resonated with a mighty toll. The massive hand shattered to pieces, flesh and blood flying in every direction. One severed finger hurtled toward Xu Ying and plunged through the Mahavira Hall with a loud thud, nailing into the temple doors!
Flames flickered across the weathered doors, revealing strange script twisted like writhing insects. Imbued with wondrous energy, the script set the pale finger ablaze!
While Xu Ying was still marveling at the script on the doors, another whip lashed in from the river, whistling past his head. With a sharp snap, it wrapped around the suspension loop of the great bronze bell and yanked outward with tremendous force.
The pavilion sheltering the bell was instantly ripped to pieces!
The bronze bell was dragged away from the well mouth, and the roaring below grew even more frantic.
Xu Ying looked up at the whip sweeping past overhead. Its segments were formed from stern human faces, each unique, and all of them with eyes tightly shut.
Carrying the bell along, the bizarre whip swept through the Mahavira Hall like a coiling dragon.
More strips of white silk flew in from the Nai River, darting straight down into the well!
Witnessing this, Xu Ying's mind stirred. *Perhaps the Nai River's detour was no accident.*
This spectacle looked far more like someone had deliberately diverted the Nai River to suppress the temple's bronze bell and rescue the coffin in the well!
*Someone didn't hesitate to orchestrate mass casualties just to free the coffin in the well! Who on earth is buried inside it?* Xu Ying wondered.
As if provoked, the bronze bell suddenly chimed furiously, shattering the whip and flying out of the ruined temple.
Outside, the crash of surging waves and the toll of the bell mingled into a deafening clamor.
Xu Ying looked up to see shadows moving across the light barrier. Suddenly, the head of one inhuman figure exploded, obliterated by the bronze bell's force!
Another figure swayed gracefully, only for its flesh and blood to melt away in an instant, followed by its skeletal shadow on the light barrier crumbling into dust!
Xu Ying watched with a thumping heart. Those beings felt profoundly powerful and unfathomable to him, like Mount Sumeru or the abyssal Netherworld!
Yet beneath the assault of the great bronze bell, they died effortlessly—more cleanly than crushing ants!
The torrential waters of the Nai River poured down from all directions, already reaching the Mahavira Hall. Xu Ying could not afford hesitation; grabbing Yuan Qi, he vaulted through a hole in the hall's roof and landed on the tiles above.
Looking down into the rear courtyard, he saw Stone Mountain God Huang Siping balancing on one leg atop his Hundred-Refined Horse-Chopping Saber, which was embedded in the ground. The river water had already lapped at the soles of his feet.
Blood stained Huang Siping's eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, and despair was written across the demon god's face.
Earlier, he and Wei Chu had reacted too slowly and took the full brunt of the roar from the well, suffering severe internal injuries. By the time they regained their senses, the river water had already flooded the courtyard, cutting off their retreat to the Mahavira Hall.
Now, the Nai River was still rising!
As the water washed over the sole of his foot, the flesh and skin vanished, leaving only bare white bone!
The river water crept up his left leg. Before long, his entire limb would be stripped to the bone!
And it would not be long before the river swallowed him whole!
Perched on a withered old willow tree in the rear courtyard, Warden Wei Chu was faring no better. The rotting willow had lost its branches, leaving only the trunk. Like Huang Siping, he balanced on one leg, enduring the agony of sacrificing a limb to preserve his life.
Yet the willow shook precariously beneath the torrent, on the verge of being uprooted at any moment. When that happened, no burial ground would await him!
Even more terrifying, he was shorter than Huang Siping; even if the willow held, he would drown before the mountain god did!
Xu Ying turned his gaze toward the deep well. Strips of white silk wrapped around the chains and hauled them upward. From within the shaft, a black coffin rose steadily, already reaching the well mouth.
*They succeeded after all!* Xu Ying thought.
The bronze bell had been lured away, and the black coffin had reached the surface!
Just then, a ray of sunlight shone down, bathing the youth's face in warmth.
Xu Ying looked up. The rising sun climbed in the east, illuminating his features and gradually casting its glow over his entire body.
The cascading waters of the Nai River faded, the raging river grew faint, and the tolls of the bell drifted farther away. With the rising of the sun, the river of the underworld vanished without a trace!
Xu Ying gazed into the distance. Far off, the Nai River was also growing faint and fading away, leaving behind only the riverbed it had gouged through the mountains.
Within that riverbed, not a shred of life remained. Withered, rotting trees stood everywhere, looking charred and blackened.
On the exposed riverbed nearby, piles of washed-up white bones lay heaped together.
"Where is the bell? What about those towering giants?"
The youth looked around. Not only was the Nai River nowhere to be seen, but the great bronze bell had vanished as well. Even the god-like figures that had besieged the temple and clashed with the bell were completely gone!
Not a single drop of water remained in the courtyard. Even the campfire had stopped glowing green, burning with ordinary flames once more.
Xu Ying steadied his mind and looked down into the courtyard. The pavilion over the well had collapsed, and the shaft had returned to calm, silent and still.
A young woman in white sat at the well's edge with her back turned, slowly combing her loose hair.
She turned her head to look back, her eyes meeting Xu Ying's gaze. A radiant smile touched her lips, making Xu Ying feel as though the world and the sunlight were suddenly filled with warmth and beauty.
When the sunlight touched the rear courtyard, the girl vanished, leaving only a coffin standing by the well.
Beside the coffin lay several black iron chains.
Suddenly, the coffin took flight, tore free from the chains, and shot through the sky!
*The entity suppressed in the well managed to escape after all.*
Recalling the maiden's features, Xu Ying thought, *She was quite pretty, though. God-father and Grandfather would definitely love a daughter-in-law like that. Pity she's a ghost.*
Suddenly, with a dull thud, Warden Wei Chu tumbled from the withered tree and crashed to the ground, unconscious.
His entire right leg had been stripped down to ghastly white bone, without a single shred of flesh remaining!
On the other side, Stone Mountain God Huang Siping leapt down from his Hundred-Refined Horse-Chopping Saber. He stumbled, his expression dark and grim; his left calf had also been stripped clean of flesh, leaving only bare bone!
Fierce and ruthless by nature, he was equally harsh on himself, enduring the agony without uttering a sound.
Huang Siping tilted his head back, glaring up at Xu Ying atop the Mahavira Hall.
Facing east, Xu Ying was circulating his guiding technique. Under the sunlight, the floating motes of light grew increasingly distinct, swirling into a small tempest that flowed into his body with each breath!
Thunderous rumbles echoed within the youth, while his qi and blood coalesced into a radiant sun. Working in tandem, they tempered his physique, purging the fouled blood left behind by the previous night's injuries.
Now that the crisis of the Nai River had passed, the danger Xu Ying faced was no longer the river, but the hunt led by divine masters and officials!
Huang Siping took a deep breath, steadying his respiration as he circulated his own guiding technique to harvest solar essence.
His injuries were far more severe than Xu Ying's; aside from internal trauma, he had lost his lower left leg. Fortunately, as a demon king, his cultivation in qi and blood remained intact. As long as he suppressed his wounds, he could strike with thunderous force and finish Xu Ying off!
Now, human and god silently regulated their breath, each striving to suppress their injuries and recover most of their strength before the other to seize the initiative!
"Xu Ying, you could have left earlier,"
Huang Siping said flatly while adjusting his breathing. "You were sharp enough to dodge the roar from the well, so your injuries are light. I've lost a leg; if you had run, I wouldn't have caught you. You had no reason to stay."
Facing east, Xu Ying drove the Taiyi Guiding Technique, the vortex of light particles around him growing fiercer.
Bathed in the morning sun, the youth carried an imposing presence, steady as a mountain overlooking a chasm. He said, "My friend is unconscious. How could I just walk away?"
Huang Siping's eyes flickered as he tightened his grip on the horse-chopping saber. "Friend? You consider a snake demon a friend? Have you forgotten that you are a snake catcher? You and snake demons are mortal enemies! Strange snakes have killed your fellow catchers, and you've killed strange snakes!"
"That doesn't stop us from being friends!"
Xu Ying suddenly let out a long cry and stomped his foot down hard. With a thunderous boom, he crashed through the roof into the Mahavira Hall.
The rear hall blasted apart!
Qi and blood surged through every part of Xu Ying's body, coalescing into an Elephant God fiend body behind him. Throwing his shoulder forward, he slammed into one of the rear hall's bronze pillars, toppling it.
Xu Ying wrapped his arms around the ten-thousand-jin bronze pillar, hoisted it up, and swung it straight toward Stone Mountain God Huang Siping!
He had to end this fight swiftly, cut down Huang Siping, and carry the unconscious snake demon away before the other divine masters and officials arrived!
Chapter 8