Water Release, Water Guga Bullet Technique!

Tang San's pupils dilated.

Could this be the spirit beast the grown-ups talked about? If he absorbed its spirit ring, his Mysterious Heaven Skill might just break through!

"Prepare to die!"

He raised his blade and slashed toward the head of the penguin before him.

"Clang!!"

The sound of clashing metal exploded, and the kitchen knife in Tang San's hand snapped cleanly into two halves.

The flying half grazed his cheek and plunged straight into the doorframe, vibrating slightly.

At that moment, Thief Guga was holding a baseball bat and maintaining a home-run posture.

Tang San raised a hand in disbelief to touch the blood on his face, then looked at the kitchen knife that was now only half a piece.

What was going on? Where had the penguin pulled that stick out from?

It was taller than the penguin itself!

Spirit beasts were truly terrifying!

Tang San dared not be careless again, hastily activating the Purple Demon Eye and the Mysterious Jade Hand to prepare for an all-out hunt of this—

Wait?! Where was the penguin?!

It had clearly been right here a second before!!

He vigilantly turned and searched everywhere, his gaze sweeping across the corner of the wall, the pile of firewood, and the roof, but he didn't see even a trace.

If the wound on his face hadn't been giving off a dull ache, he would have thought it was just an illusion!

"Did it escape, I suppose? Ah... what a pity... I should just go back and cook for Dad..."

Tang San sighed in disappointment and prepared to turn back toward the room.

"Thud!!"

A muffled sound rang out.

Tang San's vision darkened, his body staggered, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud, a bun-sized bump swelling up on the back of his head.

Until his body fell, Thief Guga, who had been standing right behind him all along, finally revealed itself, still holding the baseball bat high in the air.

"Hehe~ That'll teach you to want to eat me, Guga!"

Thief Guga put away the baseball bat and dragged Tang San's foot with one hand as it walked toward the temporary encampment.

Rip—

Rip—

Tang San's entire face rubbed closely against the ground, his head bumping against small stones along the way from time to time.

As for why Tang Hao hadn't come out to stop it?

Funny enough, he had no idea Tang San had been captured.

As everyone knew, thieves wouldn't be noticed by others when stealing things; that made total sense, right?

Kucha—

Kucha—

"Guga, we need to add some water so it's harder to break free, Guga."

"Pat the dirt down firmly!"

Amidst his daze, Tang San seemed to hear the sound of shoveling dirt, along with the voice of that penguin from earlier.

"Hiss..."

The moment consciousness returned to his body.

A piercing, throbbing pain surged from his head.

He struggled to pry open a slit of his eyelids, his vision dim and everything appearing with double images.

"Guga! This guy is awake!"

Thief Guga #2 stood to the side, its small hands on its hips, staring down condescendingly at Tang San on the ground.

Tang San's brain hadn't fully rebooted yet, and he subconsciously wanted to rub the back of his head.

Yet his body refused to obey at all, unable to move even slightly.

He opened his eyes abruptly and looked down.

He discovered that he had been buried in the ground like a radish, with only his head exposed!

His gaze was filled with terror.

"You... what are you people doing?"

"Clang, clang, clang!"

Thief Guga #2 took an iron shovel and patted Tang San on the forehead several times.

"Doing what? Interrogating you! Where is the back mountain of Holy Soul Village, Guga?!"

Tang San's head was buzzing, and he almost passed out again.

"The... the back mountain? What do you want with the back mountain?"

"Cut the crap! Tell us the location, Guga!"

Thief Guga #2 raised the shovel again, making a motion as if to strike him on the head once more.

"Stop, stop, stop! I'll talk! You follow the main road straight ahead, turn right at the intersection, and when you see a pigpen, keep walking left and you'll be there!"

Tang San gritted his teeth, a foul breath bottled up deep in his heart.

A gentleman takes revenge ten years later, and it's not too late.

You stinking penguins, you just wait for me! Today's humiliation, I, Tang San, will definitely return a hundredfold!

"Guga, sisters! Move out! Destination: Holy Soul Village back mountain!"

Thief Guga, the leader, waved its little hand and walked forward with small steps.

Nearby, Thief Guga #3 quickly reminded it in a low voice.

"Sister Gazi, you're walking the wrong way."

Thief Guga paused its steps, executed a smooth direction change, and spoke righteously.

"I know! I did it on purpose; this is a test of your sense of direction. Only by doing this can you become a great master thief like me, Guga!"

"Oh!! As expected of Sister Gazi! You understand so much!"

The crowd of Gugas suddenly understood, trotting happily behind it and quickly disappearing from sight.

Tang San anxiously stretched his neck and shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Hey! Don't leave! Dig me out before you go!!"

Yet in the empty little woods, only his echo resonated, with not the slightest response whatsoever.

In the little forest of Holy Soul Village's back mountain

Thief Guga #1 stood on a protruding mound of earth and stone, holding a luopan compass in its two small hands, constantly turning the directions, its head swaying left and right with an extremely solemn expression.

"Seeking dragons and dividing gold relies on following the mountain trails,

Each layer of winding trails is a barrier of its own.

Even if breaking the gates holds eightfold peril,

None escape the Yin-Yang Guga form! Walk this way, Guga!"

" Wow, Sister Gazi, you even know tomb-robbing techniques? I only know how to pick locks."

"Of course! At the peak of the Dao, overlooking the mortal world, where Sister Gazi is, there is the heavens—how else could I be your big sister?"

Thief Guga #1 proudly put its hands on its hips.

Back in the day, it had stolen everything; let alone tomb-robbing, it had even stolen the mummies inside to sell them.

Though it got caught afterward.

Yet with the help of someone named Doro, it successfully broke out of prison multiple times!

Just as it was sharing its exploits with the other Gugas, the rushing sound of a waterfall drifted over from not far away.

"Guga! Found it, Guga!!"

The little Gugas excitedly ran toward the sound.

Passing through the final patch of dense forest.

A breathtaking valley came into view.

A broad waterfall rushed headlong down from a towering, steep cliff, the water smashing into the pool below with an incessant, thunderous roar, and mist filling the surrounding air.

"This place is so pretty, Guga~"

Chef Guga tilted its head up, gazing at the surging curtain of water, and couldn't help letting out an exclamation.

Thief Guga #1 couldn't appreciate the scenery; its mind held only the theft ordered by the boss. It raised a hand and pointed toward the heavy water curtain.

"The cave the boss mentioned should be right behind that waterfall! Ninja Guga!"

"Message received, Guga!"

Ninja Guga leaped heavily, landing steadily on the water's surface with its small hands behind its back, its body leaning forward as it sprinted toward the waterfall in a ninja-running posture.

At the same time, its hands continuously formed hand seals.

"Water Release, Water Guga Bullet!"

With a shouted command, the lake water beneath its feet surged violently, a large volume of water rapidly gathering and swirling.

Before long, a giant water Guga formed, carrying the rushing sound of water as it crashed directly into that thick curtain of waterfall spray!

Boom!

Splashes of water burst across the sky, and mist instantly filled the entire valley.

The immense impact sent layers of giant waves churning across the surface of the pool, and the cascading water of the waterfall was forcibly halted mid-air by the water Guga.

It revealed a cave located about 120 meters above the water's surface.

"Sisters! Follow me, Guga!!"

"Guga!!" ×9

The Thief Gugas stood on the round rocks at the bottom of the waterfall, all holding flying grappling hooks and spinning them in their hands to build momentum.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!"

One flying grappling hook after another flew straight toward the cave.

"Clack!"

The grappling hooks quickly locked tightly onto the edge.

The Thief Gugas uniformly climbed up the ropes toward the cave entrance step by step.