Terror of Ghost Cry Ridge: Old Ghost's Miserable Plight

After passing through the territory of Clear Wind Mountain, they entered the sphere of influence of Ghost Cry Ridge.

The lush vegetation and vibrant spring scenery from before had completely changed here.

The grass and trees were withered and decayed, the sky dim, and gray mist filled the air, as though they had entered a gloomy, terrifying world of hell.

"Caw... caw..."

Crows let out chilling cries from the dead trees.

Xiao Lian's expression remained unchanged. She had been born into this world and was long accustomed to such sights.

Ning Chuan, on the other hand, felt the hairs rise along his spine, his face turning slightly pale as a fear rooted in his bloodline welled up within him.

Though he had already obtained formidable strength, he was still a sixteen-year-old boy.

Moreover, Ning Chuan came from Blue Star. His fear of ghosts had taken root so deeply that it had become an instinct carved into his genes.

No matter how powerful he became, such instinctive things could not be completely eradicated in an instant.

"Madam, why is Ghost Cry Ridge like this?"

Ning Chuan gripped Xiao Lian's hand tightly, his palm faintly sweating as nervousness rose in his heart.

His other hand clasped an iron lump tightly, ready to unleash the hidden weapon Meteor Chasing the Moon at any time!

Seeing Ning Chuan's nervous appearance, Xiao Lian smiled at the corner of her lips, seemingly delighted to have found his weakness.

"Well, well, well. The little thief who fears neither heaven nor earth actually has something he's afraid of!"

"Big Sister happens to be free today. Watch this young lady play ghost and scare him!"

A teasing thought rising in her heart, she said aloud:

"According to legend, Ghost Cry Ridge was an ancient battlefield where countless experts were buried. Its yin energy is extremely heavy, and fierce ghosts roam about. Ordinary martial artists would not dare enter!"

"But one kind of martial artist is an exception: evil cultivators. The bandits of Ghost Cry Ridge cultivate heretical techniques, and here they are like fish in water!"

Hearing Xiao Lian say that fierce ghosts roamed here, Ning Chuan's scalp prickled. Feeling as if something were watching him, he instinctively turned to look behind him.

It was an instinct cultivated in his previous life.

"Madam, are there really ghosts in this world?"

Xiao Lian lightly tightened her hold on Ning Chuan's large hand, smiling as she said:

"Of course there are, and there are very many. Look, there's one right ahead!"

Ning Chuan panicked. Without even thinking, golden light flashed in his hand, and an iron lump whistled toward the direction Xiao Lian pointed.

The iron lump shone with blinding golden light, dragging a long trail of flame behind it. In a flash, it vanished into the boundless gray fog.

It was precisely the Nine into One form of Meteor Chasing Moon—a single hidden weapon fired alone, with eighteen times the power.

Ning Chuan had launched it with the strength of the 190th level of the Body Tempering Realm, making its power all the more terrifying.

Just how powerful was it? Even Ning Chuan himself had no idea!

"Giggle, giggle, giggle..."

Xiao Lian covered her mouth and laughed, utterly delighted.

Only then did Ning Chuan realize that Xiao Lian had been teasing him.

His face darkened, and he pulled Xiao Lian into his arms, his large hand vigorously kneading her perky rear.

"Ah!"

"Little thief, let Big Sister go!"

"Gah gah gah! Madam Xiao Lian, watch your husband's Dragon Claw Hand!"

Inside the main hall of Ghost Cry Ridge,

Old Ghost stood atop the empty platform with his hands behind his back, looking down at the several hundred bandits below. His heart was brimming with pride.

Within the hall, the bandits pressed their foreheads to the ground in extreme reverence and humility, wildly showering him with flattery.

"Old Ghost's divine arts are unmatched! Killing a mere Ning Chuan would be like slaughtering a chicken!"

"Bullshit! Old Ghost's power knows no bounds. Would killing a tiny Ning Chuan even require the effort of slaughtering a chicken? I'd say it would be like crushing an ant!"

"Your bullshit is even worse! Would Old Ghost need to crush him to kill a mere Ning Chuan? I'd say that as long as Old Ghost wanted Ning Chuan dead, Ning Chuan would die on his own!"

Old Ghost sighed inwardly.

"Ah, life... truly lonely as snow!"

Just as Old Ghost was sighing with emotion, a golden light flashed from the mountain.

Like a meteor chasing the moon, it shot toward the main hall.

Old Ghost focused his vision, trying to see what exactly that mass of golden light was.

But in the blink of an eye, the golden light had flashed to the mountainside. A great terror suddenly surged in his heart.

A thought flashed through his mind.

"That golden light is aimed directly at me!"

It was the instinct of a Martial King expert.

Old Ghost was horrified. In an instant, he drove the Ghost God True Scripture to its limit, about to shoot into the sky and evade the golden light.

The moment the thought of escape rose within him, the golden light flashed past beneath his crotch.

Old Ghost lowered his head to look. For a moment, he stood dumbfounded, the smug expression on his face instantly freezing as he was left utterly at a loss.

Both of his lower legs, from the knees down, had vanished.

The wounds were smooth and even, seemingly scorched by extreme heat, giving off the stench of burnt flesh.

Then, with a slap, his upper body dropped down, the stumps of his thighs braced against the ground.

Old Ghost's already short body had become another foot shorter out of thin air.

When the wounds on his thighs hit the ground, piercing agony shot through him. Old Ghost sucked in a sharp breath and hurriedly circulated his cultivation technique to heal his injuries and dull the pain.

"Th-this... what exactly was that thing?!"

"That golden light just now looked like a meteor. Could I really be so unlucky as to get hit by one?"

Old Ghost was horrified beyond measure. He had no idea what that golden light was, yet it was so terrifyingly powerful.

"I'm too unlucky! I'd barely emerged from seclusion, and I ran into a meteor!"

Looking at his empty lower legs, he wanted to cry but had no tears.

He absolutely could not believe that this meteor had merely been a hidden weapon someone casually fired by accident.

Faced with the great terror of the unknown, even though Old Ghost was a Martial King, fear rose in his heart, and he was about to flee without a trace.

Just then, a bandit raised his head. Seeing Old Ghost kneeling on the ground, he thought Old Ghost was truly kneeling and immediately panicked.

"Old Ghost, you absolutely must not! You absolutely must not! We brothers are not worthy of a kneel from you, Elder!"

The others heard this and raised their heads. Sure enough, they saw Old Ghost kneeling on the ground, and they were overwhelmed with emotion.

"Old Ghost!"

"Old Ghost!"

"Old Ghost is truly a model for our generation! So humble and respectful of worthy men that he actually kneels to return our salute!"

For a moment, all the bandits' impressions of Old Ghost became incomparably warm.

What gloomy, terrifying Old Ghost? He was practically a kind old man next door!

"This is our good Old Ghost!"

"Old Ghost, we misunderstood you before!"

"Old Ghost, please accept my resounding kowtow!"

Below, the bandits were moved to tears.

Above, Old Ghost's face was covered in dark lines, and he ground his teeth in fury.

"Damn it, you little brats! Am I kneeling to you? My fucking legs are gone!"

Old Ghost wept inwardly, but he cared immensely about appearances. Even with both lower legs gone, he still had to keep up a strong front.

He suppressed the fear in his heart. He could not let these younger fools look down on him.

He silently encouraged himself.

"Don't be afraid. This was only a coincidence. I refuse to believe it can happen again!"

Old Ghost forced out a faint smile and said gently:

"Brothers, this kneel of mine is for the brothers of Bishui Dock, and for all the chieftains who died at Ning Chuan's hands!"

"I swear that I will personally slay Ning Chuan and avenge all our fallen brothers!"

As Old Ghost spoke, the smile gradually faded from his face, replaced by a grief-stricken expression. Finally, he became impassioned, his voice shaking the entire hall.

"Old Ghost is mighty! Old Ghost is mighty!"

The bandits below shouted in unison, then slammed their foreheads neatly against the ground and began to kowtow loudly.

The bandits' fervor seemed to heal Old Ghost's fear over losing both lower legs.

Pride could not help rising in Old Ghost's heart again, and for the moment, he forgot about fleeing.

And it was at that moment,

Golden light flashed from the mountain again.

The smile on Old Ghost's aged face froze as a great terror rose in his heart.

"Damn it, the meteor is back!"