During the journey through the forest, we encountered countless small demons, fighting them all the way.
When all six of them were tired, a small village with wisps of smoke rising from its chimneys finally came into view along the riverbank.
Then, they first saw rows of crude thatched huts, and then some villagers who were dressed in rough clothes and looked emaciated.
Upon seeing them, the other party immediately showed fear and terror, squeaking and running back into the house.
"There really is someone here?"
The tamed ghosts didn't need to follow the group at all times. To ease the villagers' hostility, Cheng Shuang carried fried rice with eggs, while the remaining ghosts temporarily went into hiding.
Si Hai left behind the strongest vampire to be Cheng Shuang's bodyguard.
Ono and his two companions only had Hanako on their side. Although Hanako looked young, she was quite adept at dealing with humans.
Sihai and the police officers found the village chief and used a bag of steamed buns and a few sausages to dispel his wariness. They invited him into the best thatched hut in the village to rest and asked him for directions to the Ghost Gate.
In the villagers' mouths, it shouldn't be called the Gate of Hell, but rather the Realm of the Gods.
The village chief sang a folk song in a mystical tone: "Passing through a swampy forest, the castle of the great demon under the moon, the soldiers in the castle blow their horns, leading the messengers of ghosts and gods to their destination. The messengers of ghosts and gods will surely reach the realm of the gods."
Not only could he sing this folk song, but even the children in the village could sing it.
The child wasn't afraid of people and always clung to the door of the thatched hut, looking at Cheng Shuangxiao, while completely ignoring the gloomy-looking Hua Zi.
The police officer couldn't help but joke, "Can such a young child even distinguish between beauty and ugliness?"
Yamei glared at him. "We women are only beautiful, not ugly. It's just a matter of being cute or pretty!"
The police officer nodded quickly, adopting a good-natured attitude of "you're right, I'll shut up."
Ono covered her cheek, "This dog food for single people is too hard to swallow!"
Si Hai laughed and said, "Maybe it's because there aren't many children his age!" He waved his hand, took out a bag of biscuits, and the child stared at it longingly without touching it.
Cheng Shuang took out a bag of beef jerky and opened it.
The child immediately crawled inside.
The village chief did not stop him, but after he snatched the bag, he chased him out again.
"Let the guests rest and not cause trouble!"
The child was obedient and left with the beef jerky in his mouth.
After the six people rested for an hour, the village chief sent out a hunched young man who was said to be very familiar with the swampy area to lead the group into a misty forest behind the village.
Because of the swamp's reputation, Ono and his two companions took out a piece of equipment for walking in swamps and fastened it to their shoes to prevent being swallowed by the swamp.
The young man stared blankly at their feet. Ono chuckled and said, "If you obediently lead the way and find the great demon's castle, I'll give you this thing!"
Anyway, they prepared a lot.
The young man immediately beamed with joy, grinning and showing his yellowed teeth in gratitude.
As they entered the depths of the swamp forest, the fog became so thick that they couldn't see their own hands in front of their faces. But the young man became cheerful, pointing to the indistinct distance, "We've arrived at the great demon's castle!"
He urged, "Let's hurry, the Great Demon's temper is at its best before the moon rises above the castle." Then he ran forward quickly.
"Wait a minute!" the officer shouted, but the next second, the young man's figure was swallowed up by the fog.
The group quickly followed the spot where he had stepped.
However, just as they passed through the fog, a dark, ancient castle stood before them.
The castle is located at the bottom of a valley at the foot of a slope, surrounded by dense forests shrouded in fog. Yet, the fog seems to adhere to the forest's boundary, not venturing even half a step beyond it.
Now, the moon is rising over the ancient castle, there are no stars or clouds, only a gentle breeze.
"It's very quiet," Cheng Shuang said.
Yamei nodded, glancing around uneasily. "It's too quiet!"
The young man who had been waiting nearby walked over, rubbing his hands together and looking at Ono with a longing expression.
Ono chuckled, took off her swamp shoes, and tossed them to him.
The young man bowed repeatedly in gratitude, then, clutching his shoes, turned and disappeared into the forest.
This was agreed upon by their village chief and Cheng Shuang and the others; the young man was only responsible for leading the way to the outside of the great demon's castle.
"Let's go!" Sihai popped a blue pill into his mouth and looked up at the sky. "The moon is almost over the castle."
The six men quickly descended to the bottom of the valley and circled the castle. Finding nothing, the police officer knocked on the door, which slowly opened.
Inside the dark reception hall, pairs of candles hanging on pillars flickered and lit themselves, casting an eerie glow on the path beneath their feet. The blood-red floor carried an ominous aura.
Everyone silently took out their weapons and stepped inside. As the last person entered, the door slammed shut.
The wall lamps around the room lit up, revealing the entire reception room in full view of them.
In the center of the reception room was a long table with knives, forks, bowls, and plates, but the dishes were empty. Instead, about twenty men and women, young and old, sat at the table. Two of them were familiar to them: the village chief and the young man who had led the way.
The villagers were all here, watching the maintainers enter the castle with smiles that were both satisfied and eerie.
Cheng Shuang curled her lips and sighed, her words carrying a double meaning, "So it's simply impossible for anyone to be here."
"Come on!" Yamei brandished her crescent halberd. "Twenty-nine ghosts, and we'll take fourteen."
"Alright, I'll let you have one next time." Sihai nodded, waved his hand, and sent out five vampires. Before Cheng Shuang could give any orders, the egg fried rice in his arms jumped off her and pounced onto the dining table.
It bared its small, sharp teeth, and its body gradually grew larger. In the black shadow, the tail that had been wagging as it prepared to hunt turned into two.
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