Chapter 750: Phantom Pig (2)

The Zhang Shuxue in my memory was full-figured and curvy, but the corpse now lying in the rainwater was little more than a layer of shriveled skin draped over a skeleton.

Her blood and fat had been drained, her internal organs destroyed.

Lifting her disheveled clothes, I found a shocking wound across her chest and abdomen.

Roughly the size of a palm, it looked like a laceration. The edges were highly irregular, as though she had been gnawed on by a ferocious beast.

'A wild beast will shake its head after biting its prey, tearing at the flesh and skin. The wound on Zhang Shuxue perfectly matches this.' Standing in the rain, I let the torrential downpour batter my body as my five senses spread outward on high alert.

'Those peculiar footprints were left behind in the corridor. Could the thing that dragged her corpse be the owner of those tracks?'

The Red Building Tenants had strung her corpse up at the corridor entrance to bait something in. Now, it seemed their intended prey was the owner of those footprints.

'Why would a bunch of lunatics dominated by obsessions want to hunt a wild beast? They even used their companion's body as bait. What's the reason?'

Yin energy washed over me. Beneath the mask, my expression shifted unpredictably. I scanned my surroundings. Hidden within the curtain of rain connecting heaven and earth was a faint, nearly imperceptible killing intent.

The rainwater had washed away most of the tracks. I had no idea where the monster had hidden after draining the corpse's blood, but my intuition told me it hadn't gone far.

Amid the howling wind and pouring rain, a short, dark figure hid behind me. He didn't dare approach Zhang Shuxue. Clutching a spherical object, he constantly turned his head to look at the buildings on either side.

Something faintly shifted inside the pitch-black corridor. I summoned the Fate Ghost, signaling it to protect Junsheng, then walked alone toward the other two buildings.

True qi surged into the acupoints behind my ears. Operating Breath Listening and the Judging Eye simultaneously, not a single rustle of wind or twitch of grass within dozens of meters could escape my notice.

'I already searched these two buildings once. How could something still be hiding inside? Did it slip in after I left, or did I miss something earlier?' Stepping forward slowly, just as I was about to enter the corridor, a massive dark shadow suddenly darted out from behind the dilapidated Apartment Building.

It was nearly two meters long and incredibly fast. My Judging Eye could barely capture its figure. Pivoting on one foot, I forcefully twisted my body and dodged to the side.

'What is that?'

The dark shadow rushed past me, splashing water. Its speed didn't decrease in the slightest—it charged straight toward Junsheng!

"Fate Ghost!"

The Fate Ghost and I were mentally linked; the moment I shouted, countless black hairs swept out to form a barrier between the dark shadow and Junsheng.

Strangely, the black hair formed of malevolent yin energy had absolutely no effect on the figure. What puzzled me even more was that the moment the Fate Ghost's hair touched it, the dark shadow actively absorbed the strands—as if it were the true master of the hair.

It was my first time seeing such a bizarre sight. Along with my surprise, a few doubts arose. This thing was actually somewhat similar to an obsession—it didn't fear malevolent yin energy or ghostly entities.

My mind raced. I pushed off with my legs and formed hand seals, letting a thick bloody aura shroud my arms.

Having devoured nearly a hundred obsessions, the Blood Fox Killing Intent had gained no less benefit than I had. If its own obsession were fully unleashed, it could definitely pierce the dark clouds and make heaven and earth change color.

"Stop right there!" A thumping sound echoed from my Heart Aperture like a beating war drum. Moving later but arriving first, a red light flashed in the depths of my eyes. Without overthinking it, I spread my arms and tackled the dark shadow head-on!

A piercing pain shot through my arms, as if they had been penetrated by densely packed needles. My murderous nature hadn't been completely worn away yet. Stimulated by the pain, not only did I refuse to let go, but the madness I had just suppressed rushed to my head once again.

"You're courting death!"

My fingers pierced the dark shadow's body like sharp knives. The sensation transmitted from my fingertips was very strange; it didn't feel like flesh and blood, nor was it like an obsession. It felt as if I had plunged my hands into mud.

A bizarre squeal echoed from beneath me, sounding like a cross between a pig and a horse. Before I could distinguish it clearly, the sound of tearing wind rushed past my ear, and a long whip viciously lashed across my back.

"Crack!"

The sound was crisp and loud, overpowering the thunder. I felt half my body go numb and sluggish; I didn't even need to look to know the flesh on my back had swollen high.

The Fate Ghost and Junsheng were just a short distance ahead. I didn't let go. Planting my feet firmly, I forcibly dragged the dark shadow to a halt.

The rain swept over us. When the sound of the tearing wind came a second time, I ignored the mud and rolled on the spot, positioning myself between the dark shadow and the Fate Ghost. With a cold gaze, I stared at the monster before me.

Its long, dark brown fur resembled steel needles standing on end. A half-meter-long tail whipped the air, producing a series of sharp cracks. Its powerful limbs pressed against the ground, its slender, elongated toes firmly gripping the gravel and mud.

A livid face, protruding fangs, and a pig's snout—at first glance, it looked like a wild boar out of the mountain forests. But a closer look revealed the differences. This monster had an emaciated frame with protruding ribs. Its eyes were cloudy and lacked pupils, filled instead with black, dot-like substances.

'This is the Red Building Tenants' prey?' My back tingled. The monster possessed immense strength, but what was even more troublesome was that, just like an obsession, it was entirely immune to yin energy. I could only rely on the Blood Fox Killing Intent to damage its body.

My eyes narrowed slightly. There were a few clearly visible bloody holes on the monster's thigh—the marks left by my fingers piercing its body.

'The texture is vastly different from flesh and blood, yet this thing isn't an obsession taking physical form. It shouldn't be an ordinary wild boar or livestock.' My Heart Aperture throbbed, pumping surges of fresh blood throughout my body, clearing the meridians and blood vessels that had been blocked by the whip strike. Before long, the swelling on my back had subsided significantly, and I regained feeling.

'Every acupoint has its wondrous uses. My livestream schedules have been too tight in the past, so I've rarely had time to explore these things. Once this broadcast is over, I definitely have to sort out everything I possess and maximize my combat strength!'

The monster and I stood off against each other in the middle of the courtyard. Although this beast had a pig's snout, it seemed much more cunning than a pig.

'When it darted out from behind the building, it ignored me and immediately tried to kill Junsheng.' My hands continuously formed finger seals as I drew the Blood Fox Killing Intent from the spirit platform in my sea of consciousness, while simultaneously pondering: 'The obsessions, the Red Building Tenants, and now this monster all want to get their hands on Junsheng. What exactly does the little guy have on him that's worth fighting over? Could they be after the Mirror Fragment too?'

I shook my head, unable to figure it out. I decided to change my train of thought. A vicious aura churned over my hands. Since I couldn't find the answers anyway, I might as well keep it simple and slaughter my way through.

After all, as long as I protected Junsheng, I was standing in an invincible position.

In the darkness of the night, a bolt of lightning struck across the sky without warning. Just as my gaze was drawn to the flash, the beast lowered its head, raised its fangs, and charged right at me.

"You really think I can't deal with you?"

The Ghost Art Fifth Layer gave me the confidence to engage in head-on combat, but it wasn't my strongest trump card at this stage.

Thrusting my fingers into my chest to dig out my heart's blood, I surprisingly didn't feel much pain.

Memories flashed through my mind; the scenes of being possessed by Xue Zhuo at the Bridge No. 3 Crematorium resurfaced.

Matching the hand seals he had formed back then, I dipped my fingers in my own blood. Pushing my yin energy and accumulated bloody aura to their absolute limits, I drew a talisman in midair!

"Xue Zhuo in the mortal realm, nine tails split the heavens!"

Nine blood-red fox tails erupted from behind me like soaring dragons, blasting toward the rapidly approaching monster.

A bloody aura filled the sky. Following a thunderous boom, the raindrops were forced away, and the situation on the battlefield completely shifted.

The aggressive monster had been pierced through by the nine fox tails. This killer move I had secretly learned from Xue Zhuo was even more terrifying than I had imagined.

Unleashing it just once consumed more than half of the Blood Fox Killing Intent, but its power left me extremely satisfied.

The blood-red fox tails absorbed something from within the monster's body. Perhaps receiving a signal from Xue Zhuo, they burrowed back into my sea of consciousness before I could get a closer look.

I paid no mind to the Blood Fox, nor did I bother with Junsheng, who was trembling behind me, ready to flee for his life. Walking up to the monster alone, I grabbed its tail and dragged it into the corridor of the main building.

'This is the thing the Red Building Tenants wanted to hunt. What's so special about it?' I calmed my vitality and took out my Live Show Phone, aiming the screen at the monster on the ground. "Master Tianxin, are you there? Do any of you recognize this thing?"

I waited for a long time before I finally spotted a bullet comment from Master Tianxin: "I wasn't certain earlier, but seeing this guy, I am one hundred percent sure. This place is definitely connected to the Animal Realm."

"Why do you say that, Master?" I shifted the screen, filming the entirety of the monster.

Master Tianxin: "With the snout of a pig and the body of a beast, this creature is called a Phantom Pig. It is formed when a sinner violates the nine precepts and reincarnates into the Animal Realm..."