Brain-Eating Ape, Summoning Spirits to Achieve Merit

Seeing Li Qing's behavior, everyone was slightly taken aback.

Wang Kuohai, the head escort of the All-Under-Heaven Escort Agency, felt a sudden jolt in his heart as he watched Li Qing prepare to leave.

He stood up immediately and spoke to the two men beside him.

"Forget the goods, we're leaving at once!"

With that, he turned and headed toward the exit.

But just then, a cold, murderous intent struck from behind.

Already on high alert, Wang Kuohai slashed his blade backward.

A flash of steel brought with it a spray of black blood and a strange, anomalous head.

It was one of the three burly men who had been sitting at the table nearby.

The other two lunged forward simultaneously, their faces twisted into distorted smiles, their skin riddled with rot.

Seeing this, the two escorts beside the head felt their scalps prickle.

They raised their hands and hacked at the two lunging figures.

"Roar..."

A man and a woman at the second table also charged forward, their faces green and their fangs bared, their skin turned a deathly shade of cyan.

Wang Kuohai's expression shifted, and he drew a deep breath.

A glint of killing intent flashed in his eyes as he swung his long blade in a peculiar arc, slicing past the two monsters in a blur.

Two heads flew into the air, and black blood surged forth.

Outside, the escort team erupted in screams; a terrifying black shadow was perched atop one of the escort wagons.

It was a gaunt figure with the face of an ape, its body covered in dark gray fur, wearing the uniform of a shop waiter.

Its left hand gripped an escort's neck, while its right hand had already pried open his skull.

It was slurping away, enjoying its meal.

A pair of eerie, pitch-black eyes, devoid of any emotion, were locked firmly onto Li Qing.

Li Qing's entire body stiffened, feeling as though he had been targeted by death itself.

A suffocating sensation rose from the depths of his heart.

Behind him, the few who had turned into monsters had already been cut down by the head escort and his men.

The head escort had reached Li Qing's side, blade in hand, watching the monster on the wagon with a mix of vigilance and fury.

The escorts beside the wagon were all pale with fear, their hands trembling as they gripped their blades while staring at the creature.

The monster's gaze shifted away from Li Qing and toward the rest of the escort team.

Suddenly, its figure flickered, and another shrill scream pierced the air.

An escort didn't even have time to react before his skull was peeled open; the monster snatched a mass of red and white matter from within and shoved it directly into its mouth.

"Roar... delicious..."

The monster let out a terrifying roar, accompanied by strange, inhuman speech, sending a chill from the heads to the toes of everyone present.

"A monster..."

"Run!"

Several escorts, unable to bear the terror any longer, cried out for their parents and fled in all directions.

A look of disappointment crossed the head escort's face; he knew that the faster they ran, the sooner they would die.

A pitch-black figure flashed in an instant, and the fastest-running escort already lay on the ground.

His skull had been peeled open, and his brain was nowhere to be found.

The black shadow landed on the ground, flickered again, and when it reappeared, it was already behind another fleeing man.

Head Escort Wang Kuohai let out a furious roar, "Attack together!"

"We can't outrun it!"

Having said that, he charged forward like an arrow released from a bow, covering several meters in a few strides.

Veins bulged across his body as a cold light exploded from his hand, cleaving toward the terrifying monster.

Seeing their leader strike, the other escorts gritted their teeth and rushed forward as well.

Li Qing's expression was uncertain as he watched the battle ahead.

With a group of people surrounding the monster, it seemed like the perfect time to escape.

Should I run?

No, these people are absolutely no match for this monster; it's only a matter of time before they're all slaughtered.

Once they're dead, the monster will definitely come after me—it was staring at me so intently just a moment ago.

Thinking this, he hesitated no longer. Gritting his teeth, he muttered, "Time to gamble."

He pulled out the Spirit Summoning Tablet and poured all his vital energy into it.

"Moo!"

A roar, sounding much like a dragon's cry, erupted instantly as a spectral dragon silhouette surged forth from the tablet.

It lunged toward the monster that was currently wreaking havoc.

With a massive, muffled thud, the head escort Wang Kuohai spat blood and flew backward.

The steel saber in his hands had been struck by the monster's claw and shattered into fragments; his face was etched with despair.

The immense force landed on his body, sending him flying through the air, injured.

In that very instant, the mysterious dragon silhouette had already pounced before the monster.

The monster let out a shrill cry, "Roar!"

It swung both claws at the dragon silhouette, the strikes tearing through the air with a terrifying whistle.

Swish, swish, swish.

An astonishing thing happened: all of its attacks missed.

The dragon silhouette had no physical form; like a phantom, it instantly lunged into the beast.

A twisted, distorted ape-like phantom was ripped out from within the monster's body.

The Flood Dragon phantom tore the twisted ape phantom it held in its jaws into shreds.

With a slight flick of its tail in mid-air, it flashed back into the Spirit Summoning Tablet in Li Qing's hand.

The monster, having had its phantom ripped out by the Flood Dragon, began to collapse in a bizarre fashion, its body falling to the ground like heaps of pulverized meat.

Everyone's gaze fell upon Li Qing, their faces filled with shock.

The head escort standing to the side also looked at Li Qing with a horrified expression.

He realized he had encountered an extraordinary person.

At this moment, Li Qing met their gazes, maintaining a calm expression to make himself look like an expert.

Although he had saved this escort team, it was hard to say whether these people might harbor ill intentions toward him.

After all, in storybooks and novels, it wasn't unheard of for escort agencies to rob their own clients.

It was difficult to predict what their attitude toward a passerby like him might be.

Head escort Wang Kuohai, having just climbed up from the ground, walked over with a look of gratitude and solemnity.

He cupped his hands and bowed deeply to Li Qing, "Wang Haikuo, Chief Escort of the All-Under-Heaven Escort Agency in Jade City, thanks you for your life-saving grace, Excellency."

At this, the other escorts also came to their senses and bowed one after another to express their thanks.

"Many thanks to your Excellency for saving our lives!"

In these few short breaths of time, they had lost three of their companions.

The team of fifteen was now reduced to twelve; the danger they had faced left them shaken.

Li Qing felt a slight sense of relief, They seem quite upright; they might be worth interacting with.

Hiding the Spirit Summoning Tablet in his sleeve, he assessed his vital energy; he should be able to use it at least one more time.

He smiled slightly and said, "You are all too polite. It was merely a matter of convenience; after all, this Anomaly was dangerously beyond imagination."

At this, Wang Kuohai hurriedly asked, "May I ask how to address you, Excellency? And what should we do next?"

Li Qing looked at Wang Kuohai, his expression turning slightly strange.

Why ask me? How would I know what you should do! he muttered to himself.

Still, Li Qing replied, "I am called Qin Wuming."