Golden Bell Shield, First Layer

"Heh heh... ha ha... hee hee..."

The bone-chilling laughter echoed beside Chu He's ears.

Chu He abruptly stamped his foot and scanned his surroundings, only to find that everyone else seemed to turn a blind eye, mechanically carrying Zhang Li onward.

"Hey, you—"

Whoosh—

Everyone turned their heads toward Chu He in unison. Even those with their backs to him twisted their heads a full one hundred and eighty degrees, necks snapping as they did so. Pairs of bloodshot crimson eyes stared fixedly at him.

Chu He swallowed the words he had been about to say. A chill shot straight from his spine to the crown of his head, and beads of cold sweat slid down from his temples.

"Little He, come here! Come to your master!"

A kindly smile appeared on Hong Shou's lips as a large hand covered in calluses beckoned to him. Yet his reddened eyes stared at Chu He like venomous snakes, filled with malice on the verge of overflowing.

The moment he heard those words, Chu He's mind grew heavy and muddled.

Perhaps the previous owner of this body would have been influenced by the bond and memories between master and disciple, stopping in hesitation. But Chu He had never lived through any of that.

"Shut the hell up!"

With a furious roar, Chu He viciously bit the tip of his tongue. The pain jolted his mind awake, bringing clarity in an instant. His legs rapidly retreated. He did not dare look around again and lowered his head as he fled outside.

As he ran, he suddenly realized that not only was he failing to get farther from Hong Shou and the others, he was actually getting closer and closer to Hong Shou.

"You're becoming more and more disobedient toward your master!"

Hong Shou's face darkened, no longer concealing the surging killing intent within him.

"Disobedient disciples must be punished!"

As he spoke, Hong Shou's large hand clamped toward Chu He like an iron pincer.

"Get lost!"

Veins bulged on Chu He's forehead, and a vicious glint flashed through his eyes. He activated the Golden Bell Shield he had only just begun to learn. A thin layer of golden light wrapped around his hands as he smashed toward Hong Shou's vital point.

Thud!

Amid a dull impact, the golden light around Chu He's hands was scattered by a single slap from Hong Shou's palm, and he himself was sent flying.

After scrambling back to his feet, Chu He felt all over his body, surprise written across his face.

It didn't seem to hurt?

What is this place? Could it be an illusion?

"Heh heh... ha ha... keh keh..."

The bizarre, terrifying laughter rang out again. This time, it was closer to Chu He. An eerie chill gradually seeped through the fibers of his clothes and swept across his entire body, while numbness and stiffness welled up in his heart.

Tap tap tap—

Dense footsteps suddenly rang out.

Chu He looked up and froze in astonishment. The villagers around him, like walking corpses, began madly surging toward him. They raised their hands, imitating Hong Shou as they reached to strangle him.

The string of maddening upheavals had kept Chu He on the verge of an emotional eruption. Now, the sight of the villagers charging at him like zombies to kill him shattered his limit.

"Damn it! You want to harm me? Then all of you can go die!"

Terror turned into rage. Chu He struck wildly at the villagers approaching him. These villagers were nowhere near as strong as Hong Shou, and quite a few were actually knocked to the ground by his wild turtle-fist punches.

But as more and more people flooded toward Chu He, he gradually began to struggle. Looking around, he saw people packed against people, bodies piled atop bodies, like a tidal wave carrying an oppressive force that drove one toward collapse.

Watching this scene, Chu He eventually lowered his hands in helplessness and allowed arms reaching from every direction to tear at his body.

He had a feeling that if he died here, he might truly die. Yet in such a desperate situation, there was indeed nothing he could do.

"So this nightmare is finally going to end... No!"

Chu He murmured, when a flash of inspiration suddenly struck his mind.

A blue panel abruptly appeared before his eyes.

[Chu He]

[Martial Art: Golden Bell Shield (Beginner) ↑]

[Energy: 1]

The Martial Arts Modifier could actually appear inside an illusion?!

Seeing that his body was about to be torn into pieces, Chu He had no time to think about why. With the mentality of treating a dead horse as if it were alive, he tapped the "↑" symbol representing improvement.

Hum—

The number representing energy rapidly dropped to zero.

At that moment, Chu He, who had long since been swallowed by the sea of people, erupted with dazzling golden light. A blurry golden bell, though already taking shape, appeared over the surface of his body. After bursting with golden light, the bell let out a violent chime. Invisible sound waves spread outward, blasting everyone around him away.

What followed was an abrupt sound of shattering.

Light returned to his eyes. Seeing that Hong Shou was only a foot away from him, he instinctively threw a punch at the man's head.

The wind from his fist howled, its afterimage streaking like a rainbow.

That punch carried at least five hundred pounds of force!

And yet...

Smack!

Such a fierce punch was casually caught by Hong Shou. He raised an eyebrow, and a trace of delight appeared at its tip.

But in the next instant, Hong Shou's tiger eyes widened, and he cursed, "You little brat, you've grown capable, have you? The moment you wake up, you dare lay hands on your old master?"

Chu He froze upon hearing this. He looked up into Hong Shou's eyes. The black and white were distinct, crystal clear and pure, without the bloody red glow from before.

But before he could inspect his surroundings, a piercing pain shot through his wrist. It hurt so badly that he bared his teeth and sucked in cold air.

"Hurts, hurts, hurts! Master, I was wrong! I was wrong! I won't dare do it again!" Chu He repeatedly admitted his mistake. How could he not realize that he had escaped the illusion and returned to reality?

"Hehe, you lucky brat." Hong Shou released Chu He's hand and vigorously rubbed his head. "You even turned misfortune into a blessing and broke through to the first layer of the Golden Bell Shield. Not bad..."

A strange feeling rose in Chu He's heart. He pushed aside Hong Shou's hand, which was making a mess of his hair, and asked in confusion, "Master, what happened to me? How did I end up here?"

Looking around, he saw that the two of them were in a temple courtyard. The ground was paved with blue stone, and both sides were empty. Only directly ahead stood a ten-foot-tall statue of a bearded old man, molded from clay. Fruits were laid out on the offering table before it, while wisps of smoke lingered above the incense burner, refusing to disperse for a long while.

Chu He remembered this place. It was the Land God Temple of Earthhead Village!

He fixed his gaze on the kindly old man's statue before him. For some reason, it always gave him a bone-chilling feeling.

"Did you see something unclean while opening the door?" Hong Shou asked instead of answering, his expression grave.

"Yes. I did see a woman's human skin drifting out of the mist." Chu He did not hide anything and answered honestly.

"So it was that thing."

Hong Shou nodded, revealing an expression of sure enough. "You were invaded by evil qi and afflicted with delusions. On the way back, I could tell you were muddleheaded. I brought you to the Land God Temple to drive out the evil, but it seems that won't be necessary now."

Hearing this, Chu He's face fell silent. He believed that falling into the illusion was not simply because he had seen that human skin.

At this point, he recalled Zhang Li's strange behavior.

"Master, Zhang Li—"

"You are not to mention Zhang Li's matter again. The village chief and I know what we're doing. There's nothing for you here anymore. Go back."

For some reason, Hong Shou suddenly changed his tone and turned his back on him.

Chu He wanted to offer a warning, but judging by Hong Shou's manner, Zhang Li seemed to be entangled in something deeper. Chu He had never wanted to get too deeply involved in the first place. With Hong Shou and the others blocking it, Chu He was more than happy to let them handle it.

"Oh, right. Since you've broken through the first layer, ask your senior brother for the incantations for the second and third layers of the Golden Bell Shield, as well as the Red Line Fist Manual."

Just as Chu He was about to leave, Hong Shou spoke indifferently.

"Yes, Master."

Chu He answered respectfully. As he stepped out through the gates of the temple courtyard, he glanced back at the Land God statue fading into the darkness and suddenly asked, "Master, is this Land God... also something strange?"