Hearing the hurried footsteps, Chuanliu suddenly looked up.
A emaciated, grotesque corpse was staggering toward him. Though its steps were unsteady, its speed was not slow, as if it were carrying endless malice and madness.
Upon seeing this, Wu Fangming and Zhuiming felt a chill run down their spines.
They were still quite a distance from the river, and even if they sprinted at full speed, it seemed unlikely that they could reach the river before the corpses attacked.
A wave of helplessness washed over them as they watched the corpse approach step by step, their hearts filled with anxiety and despair.
"Girl!"
Wu Fangming shouted, a hint of pain and determination flashing in his eyes.
He couldn't accept losing the person he wanted to protect again; the helplessness and despair pierced his heart like a sharp blade.
However, at this critical moment, the girl suddenly moved.
The dagger in her hand drew an elegant arc in the air, and with a slight force from her elbow and wrist, the dagger shot out like an arrow released from a bow.
Under the moonlight, the dagger gleamed with a cold light, its gleam sharp and piercing, as if it could penetrate all darkness.
Before the corpse could even react, the dagger had already pierced its forehead accurately.
The whole process was so fast it was astonishing; before the blood could even spill, the corpse collapsed to the ground as if struck by a heavy hammer.
For a moment, the surroundings fell into a brief silence.
Wu Fangming and Zhuiming stood frozen in place, staring at the corpse lying on the ground, a profound and indescribable shock welling up within them.
They never expected that this seemingly frail girl would possess such strength and skill.
Chuanliu stared at the fallen corpse, having no time to savor the urgency of what had just happened.
She gasped for breath, pulled the dagger from the corpse, and gripped it in her hand again.
Wu Fangming and Zhuiming finally snapped out of their shock and rushed toward Chuanliu, their eyes filled with concern.
"Girl, are you alright?"
Wu Fangming asked anxiously, looking Chuanliu up and down, afraid that she might be harmed in the slightest.
Chuanliu shook her head, indicating that she was alright. Although her face was slightly pale, her breathing had become even.
Perhaps trying to ease the tense atmosphere, Zhui Ming jokingly said:
"I didn't know you had this trick up your sleeve."
"It was just a coincidence."
The girl wiped the dagger in her hand and answered calmly.
But Zhui Ming knew that the girl's ability to kill the corpse man with a single flying knife was definitely not due to a sudden burst of potential or sheer luck.
He just didn't expect Chuanliu to be able to hide it so well; he couldn't tell at all that she was a martial arts expert.
In fact, Chuanliu is not a martial arts master at all; his traditional tricks, such as throwing knives, are just a type of magic.
Having practiced these skills since childhood, she has a good grasp of the precision, accuracy, and force of throwing knives.
She was able to kill the corpse in one move because it was already in a state of barely surviving, had never seen sunlight, and had much lower bone density than a normal human due to insufficient nutrition.
Therefore, it is reasonable for her to feel that it was just a "coincidence".
"We need to get out of here right away."
Zhui Ming looked around warily and said.
He knew that the wasteland at night might hide even more dangers.
The three didn't linger long and immediately searched for another place to stay so they could spend the long night.
They tried their best to conceal their movements in the darkness, and immediately hid when they spotted the corpses, taking each step carefully and trying not to make a sound.
Danger seems to be everywhere.
As the three ventured deeper, the surrounding vegetation gradually became more abundant.
A rustling sound came from all directions, and a gust of wind blew by, making the leaves rustle.
After wandering through the woods for a long time, a dilapidated temple appeared before them.
The dilapidated temple's exterior appears silent and weathered, as if it has withstood the test of countless years. The painted decorations on the temple gate have long since faded and peeled away, leaving only mottled traces, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.
The temple is constructed of bluestone and wood. Over time, the bluestone surface has become pitted and uneven, while the wood has rotted and broken, revealing the marks of time. The roof tiles are incomplete, and in some places they have even collapsed, exposing the dark wooden beams.
The courtyard gate was tightly closed, and the courtyard could not be seen from the outside.
The three hid in the bushes in the distance, carefully observing the situation of the dilapidated temple.
Three or five corpses were gathered outside the dilapidated temple, staggering as if searching for a way in. However, the tightly locked gate was like an impenetrable barrier, keeping them out.
The corpses pounded on the gate, emitting low roars, but the gate remained unmoved.
They seemed somewhat anxious, but helpless, and could only linger outside the dilapidated temple.
The three observed in the shadows for a while and, seeing that there were indeed no other corpses in the temple courtyard, decided to take action.
They crept closer to the dilapidated temple and found a section of the courtyard wall that was easy to climb.
Wu Fangming and Zhuiming scaled the wall one after the other, trying to make as little noise as possible when they landed.
Chuanliu followed closely behind, and with his agile movements, he nimbly leaped over the courtyard wall using a railing as a cover.
Having successfully entered the courtyard of the dilapidated temple, Wu Fangming first looked around.
The dilapidated temple was surrounded by weeds and vines, with some withered branches and leaves scattered in front of it, adding to the sense of desolation.
Under the moonlight at night, the outline of the dilapidated temple was faintly visible, like an ancient ruin forgotten by time, exuding an indescribable sense of vicissitude and mystery.
Only after confirming that it was safe did they dare to relax their vigilance slightly.
However, when Chuanliu looked at the tightly locked door, he couldn't help but frown.
Inside the temple gate, a rusty lock was fastened, and the chain was tightly wrapped around the door several times.
The gate was locked from inside the temple.
The girl immediately realized what was happening.
There are people in the temple.
She silently gestured to the two pursuers with her lips, and they immediately understood.
The three remained silent and quietly walked towards the tightly closed temple gate.
The heavy wooden door was slowly pushed open.
With a creak, a beam of bright moonlight shone through the crack in the door, illuminating the dim temple.
To the three's surprise, the interior of the temple was not as dilapidated as its exterior. Although the air was still damp, the floor was relatively clean, without much debris or dust.
There were no offerings on the altar, but the dust on it had been swept clean; the murals were somewhat damaged by the erosion of time, but the figures in the paintings could still be vaguely discerned, as if they were telling distant stories.
A majestic statue of Guan Yu stands in the very center of the temple. He is clad in armor, wielding the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, his eyes blazing, his expression solemn.
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