"Come out. Since you're already here, what's there to hide?"
the Old Monk said in a low voice.
His three companions were nowhere nearby. He did not know whether they had not been pulled into the Ghost Domain or had been sealed away in another area of it.
"Hahahaha! I've long admired the name of Master Kongxin, yet I've never had the chance to meet you. That has truly been one of life's great regrets. I never expected to encounter you today in this remote corner of the Northern Territory. What great fortune!"
A sinister laugh rang out.
A man appeared on the third-floor corridor railing.
The man looked down at the Old Monk, wearing a strange smile.
"Who are you? I don't know you."
The Old Monk frowned. The man looked completely unfamiliar; he had never seen him before, as far as he could remember.
"Heh heh."
"I've always stayed in the Northern Territory, so of course Master doesn't know me. But it doesn't matter. After today, you'll know me—if you can leave here alive." The figure gave a sinister smile.
The next moment, his body twisted, and he vanished from where he stood.
But less than a second later,
the man appeared again at the first-floor stairwell.
"Master's body is in excellent condition. There isn't even a trace of Supernatural Erosion. It seems you really do have a chance of reaching the Sixth Tier."
"I'm not so lucky. I can only cling to life."
"It truly makes one envious."
The man wore a white tank top and dark shorts. His exposed skin was covered in various sores and swollen lumps, giving off a nauseating stench of decay.
Yet strangely, his face was smooth and fair, with the glossy, delicate skin of a baby.
"I have no grudge against