True Form Finally Appears

Zhou Zhenguo scrambled to his feet after being slammed into the ground.

It had looked exaggerated and brutal just a moment ago.

In reality, the light screen that had now vanished had already blocked the vast majority of the damage.

It turned what should have been a fatal attack into nothing more than "being shoved hard and falling to the ground."

Zhou Zhenguo's "old bones" were still sturdy enough to handle a fall like that without any issues.

"What is that thing?"

Zhou Zhenguo looked toward the direction from which he had been sent flying.

There, a figure stood silently.

No, it shouldn't be called standing; it was "crawling" on the ground with its back toward the earth and its face toward the sky.

How does one crawl with their back to the ground and face to the sky?

First, one bends backward, bending further and further until the palms of their hands can touch the ground.

Then, the joints "break" and "twist" in a completely unnatural way.

They became like the limbs of an arthropod.

Just like the legs of a spider.

That wasn't all; the head, covered in shadow and featuring only three hollow voids, had rotated 180 degrees.

The hollows where the eyes should be were on top, and the hollow for the mouth was on the bottom.

It maintained a human-like physique, with iron-blue skin and a body covered in stitched-up wounds.

Some of the wounds were still torn open, exposing black organs inside that showed absolutely no signs of life.

The monster's hollow eyes stared at Zhou Zhenguo.

It waved its limbs, quickly leaving four shallow pits in the ground.

The only reason this twisted monster did not continue its assault on Zhou Zhenguo was because a person was standing next to it.

Tang Luo had one foot planted on the monster's chest, while his other hand held another monster of the same appearance.

Chu Chongtian sat slumped on the ground, his mouth agape, still shaken by the lingering fear.

A rustling sound drifted over—the sound of snow being trampled.

Behind the three of them.

The pit that Tang Luo had dug was already shrouded in a thick, black aura.

More of the same monsters were slowly crawling out.

Their hypothesis had been correct!

Jack the Ripper was indeed growing stronger.

With every resident of Small City it killed, Jack the Ripper grew a fraction more powerful.

From the initial fear of showing its face, to the later mass manipulation, and now to these twisted, powerful monsters.

Jack the Ripper.

Its current state of bizarre, terrifying power was enough to make one's blood run cold.

The twisted monster raised its head high and let out a silent howl.

Visible ripples spread out from its "mouth," yet there was not a shred of sound.

The shockwave struck the ground, sending snowflakes flying.

Zhou Zhenguo and Chu Chongtian both covered their ears, their faces contorted in pain.

They felt as if someone were stabbing their eardrums with needles.

Their bodies felt as though they were being slowly constricted by chains.

"You two go first; this monk will cover the rear."

Tang Luo tossed the monster in his hand, slamming it into the one that was howling to stop its incessant noise.

The two monsters collided, but it was not like before.

Under Tang Luo's hand, they were not even a match for a single blow.

They were dispatched with overwhelming, destructive force.

The two monsters tangled together, and the spider-like humanoid they were merging into became even more twisted and grotesque.

"Jack..."

A voice filled with malice emanated from its mouth, though it was a name devoid of any real meaning.

"Go."

Tang Luo spoke again, exerting force to stomp the monster beneath his foot completely into the mud.

"Master!"

Chu Chongtian shouted with emotion, then scrambled to his feet and ran without looking back.

Before running, he did not forget to toss Omen toward Tang Luo.

As for Zhou Zhenguo, he was a step faster than Chu Chongtian; he didn't even shout, simply bolting away.

This wasn't some melodramatic scene.

There was no need for stupid tropes like, "No, I won't leave, if we go, we go together."

If Tang Luo stayed to cover the rear, they could still get away.

Staying behind would only add to Tang Luo's trouble, serving no purpose other than throwing their lives away.

Watching Chu Chongtian and Zhou Zhenguo flee, Tang Luo withdrew his gaze and looked at the twisted, eight-legged monster, smiling.

The ground beneath his feet suddenly sank.

A shallow crater appeared, with a mangled, unrecognizable monster at its center.

"Is that all? That won't be enough to kill this monk," Tang Luo said with a smile.

The black aura rising from the tomb began to boil.

One monster after another began to struggle out from within, giving the impression that something entirely new was being gestured into life.

Tang Luo put Omen away, tossed his hat aside, cracked his neck, and walked toward the tomb.

A fierce, overbearing aura gradually began to radiate from him.

"Ha... ha..."

This was likely the fastest he had ever run in his life; it was definitely unprecedented, though perhaps not unrepeatable.

Chu Chongtian and Zhou Zhenguo were in the burial chamber they had arrived in.

Supporting their knees with their hands, they gasped for air.

The air they inhaled felt less like oxygen and more like burning flames.

It only circled in their throats, not even reaching their lungs.

"Ugh!"

After gasping for a few moments, Chu Chongtian couldn't help himself, leaning against the "coffin wall" to retch.

His right hand brushed against some indented markings—the carved names and dates of birth and death.

Only after vomiting until he was empty did Chu Chongtian feel slightly better.

Zhou Zhenguo walked to the iron gate leading to the surface and reached out to pull it.

"Hm?"

"What is it?"

Chu Chongtian asked, looking up.

"It's locked again," Zhou Zhenguo said.

"Didn't we... open it when we came in? Maybe... we need to push it?" Chu Chongtian's speech was still fragmented.

They didn't know how long they had been running during that mad dash.

They only knew the suffocating feeling of running for their lives.

Even with Tang Luo covering the rear, there were no monsters created by Jack the Ripper following them.

But who knew if Master Xuanzang could block them one hundred percent?

What if some slipped through the cracks?

When fleeing for one's life, one must hold their breath and charge forward without looking back.

Looking back was a recipe for disaster.

"No, I kicked it open," Zhou Zhenguo recalled. Back then, he had kicked the iron gate down.

Now, it seemed someone had reinstalled it—perhaps The Priest.

Pulling outward shouldn't have been an issue.

"Together."

Chu Chongtian stepped forward, gripped a bar of the hollowed-out iron gate, and they pulled outward with all their might.

For some reason, the iron gate wasn't cold; instead, it held a certain warmth.

But at this moment, neither of them had the heart to care about such an anomaly.

They only thought of opening this gate, returning to the carriage, and getting back to the real world to truly catch their breath.

"Why won't it budge!"

A minute later, Chu Chongtian stood before the iron gate, his face twisted in frustration.

Zhou Zhenguo was the same.

The two of them joined forces, pulling with the intensity of a tug-of-war, their palms already flushed a deep red.

It was a painful grip.

Yet, the iron gate remained completely unmoved.

"What kind of lock is this powerful?"

Inside the tomb chamber, moonlight could not reach, leaving only the "light source" from the doorway.

The area around the iron gate was pitch black, making it impossible to see exactly how it was locked.

It didn't even budge an inch.

Zhou Zhenguo reached out to feel around: "There's no lock, how can there be no lock?"

"Ah, is it a bolt or something?"

"There's nothing!"

Zhou Zhenguo's voice was laced with unconcealable terror.

"How is that possible!"

"Step back, let me try!"

Zhou Zhenguo grabbed the iron gate with both hands, a faint white light shimmering over his tightly clenched fists.

"Argh!"

He let out a roar and threw his body backward, having activated the skill Powerful Strike.

The force that erupted in that instant was enough to overturn a small car.

However, once Zhou Zhenguo's burst of strength faded, he lacked the energy to keep holding the gate and collapsed to the ground.

The iron gate, however, remained completely unmoved.

This iron gate, which was neither thick nor solid, had suddenly become an impassable chasm.

It stood as a boundary between life and death.

"Can't you open it?"

A voice that sounded like a heavenly melody rang out from behind them.

Tang Luo's shadow was cast upon the ground as he appeared at the doorway.

"I don't know why, but this iron gate won't budge." Zhou Zhenguo was now leaning against the "coffin wall," too exhausted to even lift his arm, leaving Chu Chongtian, who was in slightly better condition, to speak.

"Master, you—"

As Tang Luo drew closer, Chu Chongtian cried out in shock.

By the moonlight, he saw that Tang Luo's face was as pale as gold paper, with fresh blood at the corner of his mouth.

Not only that, but his gait was unsteady as he walked.

He had practically been supporting himself against the coffin wall the entire way over.

Master Xuanzang was injured!

And it looked like a very serious injury at that!

"Cough, cough."

Tang Luo coughed twice. "It is nothing, merely minor wounds."

"Master, please don't say that while spitting up blood!" Chu Chongtian was losing his composure. "What about Jack the Ripper? Did you kill him?"

"No, this poor monk did his best," Tang Luo said. "Had it been even a fraction stronger, this poor monk might have lost his life."

"Hurry, hurry!"

Chu Chongtian turned around and began pulling at the door frantically.

"There is no need to try, Benefactor Chu; it cannot be opened right now," Tang Luo said.

"You've got to be kidding me. Does that mean we have to kill Jack the Ripper to get out?" Chu Chongtian wailed.

"Here..."

At this moment, Zhou Zhenguo, who was sitting on the ground, suddenly spoke up. "On this, is that your name?"

"Huh?" Chu Chongtian was dumbfounded.

"On this wall, is that your name, Chu Chongtian!" Zhou Zhenguo shouted at him.

"What?"

Chu Chongtian walked over and crouched down.

Tang Luo stepped aside just in time, allowing the moonlight to fall upon the wall.

Chu Chongtian's gaze went blank; he clearly saw that near where Zhou Zhenguo's head had been, the name carved into the wall was indeed his own!

There was also a date of birth, but after a horizontal line, there was no date of death.

"What... is going on?"

Chu Chongtian instinctively looked toward Tang Luo.

"Sigh, if this poor monk has guessed correctly," Tang Luo said, "this place is the world of the dead. This tomb chamber belongs to us."

"We're dead?"

Chu Chongtian looked at the other "coffin."

The name inscribed upon it was none other than "Li Liang"!

Little Li, that salted fish who met with misfortune on the very first night, later became a lucky charm, but in the end, could not remain lucky forever.

Li Liang, who had vanished right under everyone's noses.

"Dead? We are certainly not dead yet," Tang Luo said.

Just then, the entire tomb chamber shook.

Debris fell from the ceiling, and the walls were struck from the outside.

Everyone looked up and saw several gargantuan, ash-white fingers "piercing" through.

As if grabbing a toy, the entity gripped the roof of the tomb chamber.

It tore the roof off completely, allowing moonlight to flood into the chamber.

"This is..."

Zhou Zhenguo and Chu Chongtian stiffened, unable to move a muscle.

It was like a frog encountering a viper, a rabbit meeting a vicious wolf, or a shut-in seeing their 2D waifu suddenly appear in the flesh before them.

This was a gap in absolute hierarchy.

Merely by looking at it, they were rendered paralyzed.

Outside the tomb chamber stood the upper torso of a massive humanoid figure.

Densely packed stitches covered its body, along with a wound that had nearly torn its chest wide open.

Intestines and a spinal column dragged out from within.

Its hands were as gaunt as withered tree branches, and its skin was an ash-white color.

It was identical to the black shadowy head seen in the graveyard earlier, with hollow, oval-shaped eyes and a mouth.

But this time, the hollows were no longer filled with a deeper darkness.

Instead, they were filled with souls that were entangled, twisted, and constantly wailing.

This was also true of the exposed organs.

Looking closely, one would realize that it was composed entirely of dismembered corpses and severed limbs.

This was the true form of Jack the Ripper, now appearing before the three of them.

"Very good, you've finally decided to show your true form to take a beating."

The feeling of weakness that had plagued Tang Luo vanished instantly; he stood up straight and looked up at the massive head staring down at them.

"It seems this poor monk's acting skills haven't rusted."

He splayed his fingers and stretched them out.

He clenched his fist!

Within the narrow tomb chamber, a shockwave erupted and surged toward the heavens!