The next day, Xie Lian and Hua Cheng set out on their journey.

Hua Cheng held Xie Lian's hand and said, "Brother, next time you see Jun Wu, don't say a word to him, just turn around and run."

Xie Lian asked curiously, “Why?”

Hua Cheng said: "I know that every time he comes to you, it's not a good thing."

Xie Lian smiled and said, “How can you say that? This wasn’t the job he originally assigned to me.”

Hua Cheng said, "It's the same. Whether you go to Tonglu Mountain or help him manage the Heavenly Palace, which one is a good job? The Heavenly Palace is in a mess now, so let's disband it as soon as possible. What's the point of leaving such a mess to you? It's just a choice between committing suicide with a knife and committing suicide with a sword."

Xie Lian couldn’t help but laugh, and after he finished laughing, he said seriously, “However, I really didn’t expect that you would actually offer to accompany me to Tonglu Mountain. I’ve thought about it for a long time, and I think I still have to say it, Sanlang, you must not force yourself.”

He always felt that Hua Cheng took the initiative to ask to go with him because he knew what he was thinking. After all, Xie Lian really felt that it would be better to be locked in the furnace and killed than to go to the Heavenly Palace and do something he was not good at. But Hua Cheng said, "Brother, I have repeatedly promised not to force it, don't you believe me?"

Xie Lian said: "Of course not..."

Hua Cheng nodded and said, "Then don't worry, brother. I have my own considerations. Don't feel that you owe me a favor. Even if you were to stand completely on my side, I wouldn't mind stuffing him back before the new Ghost King is born."

In this matter, the existing ghost kings and the Heavenly Court have a common interest. There is only so much rice, and everyone wants to eat it. Now there is not enough to share, and if there are occasional fights, and if there are newcomers who want to share a piece of the pie, no one will be happy. And if this newcomer is a desperate person and goes crazy, no one will be able to eat it.

After listening to Hua Cheng's proposal, Jun Wu thought about it carefully for a long time. If Xie Lian went alone, he would definitely not be as likely to succeed as if he went alone. However, if Xie Lian was accompanied by a ghost king who had personally trained in Tonglu Mountain, this combination would be more likely to succeed than if he went alone.

Of course, Hua Cheng would not go there in vain, Jun Wu agreed to his conditions: before the next opening of the mountain, the entire heaven would have to go around the ghost market. In addition, the whole court would have to report the heroic deeds of the Blood Rain Scholar and sing his praises for a whole year... Xie Lian imagined that it would be something like "You stupid priests! Do you know who saved you!" - This was simply abusing the priests who were already quite afraid of Hua Cheng and had complicated feelings for him, stepping on their faces on the ground.

Hua Cheng smiled and said, "With me here, this trip will be much easier for you."

Pulling his thoughts back, Xie Lian said, “I still think that we should wait until your restlessness is over and you have recovered your original form before we go.”

Hua Cheng said: "Don't worry about that. It will be soon."

Xie Lian was startled and said, “Ah…”

Hua Cheng said: "What? What's that expression, brother?"

Xie Lian asked, “…So, San Lang is going to grow up?”

Hua Cheng said with his hands behind his back: "Yes. I have been holding back for a long time and I can't wait any longer."

Unexpectedly, just as he finished speaking, Xie Lian lifted him up, raised his hands high, and said with a smile, “That’s a pity! You won’t be able to hold me when I grow up. Hurry up and hug me more now, hahahahahahahaha…”

“…”

To reach Tonglu Mountain, they could not use the teleportation technique, so they had to walk. After dozens of days, they were finally far away from towns and people, and entered the mountainous area, an endless, lush and green forest.

The deeper they went into the forest, the more demons and monsters they encountered on the roadside. They were all strange, sneaky, and hurried. Xie Lian led Hua Cheng by the hand, whispering as they walked, "There are so many coming."

Hua Cheng said: "This time, there are indeed more ghosts gathered than in the past. Because the Heavenly Court did not stop them this time, many who originally did not plan to come have come."

Moreover, there were not only solitary figures, but also groups of people. After walking for a while, Xie Lian encountered a large group of tattered demons and ghosts with hideous faces. They formed an array and shouted as they walked:

"The world is the furnace, and all living things are the copper!"

"It's a hell of a lot, a hell of a lot!"

"The world is the furnace, and all living things are the copper!"

"It's a hell of a lot, a hell of a lot!"

From the tone of their shouting, it seemed that they were not afraid, but rather very eager to go. Hearing their slogans, Hua Cheng's face turned slightly cold, and he said, "I don't understand what this sentence means at all, but you are shouting more vigorously than anyone else."

It seems that these many demons and monsters who have never seen it in person do not know the cruelty, and they think Cheng Jue is too easy, full of ambition, which makes those who have experienced it feel unhappy. Xie Lian asked: "Is it okay for them to come in groups like this?"

Hua Cheng said: "These people usually know each other a long time ago and plan to go into the mountains together. They agreed in advance to spare each other's lives. But no agreement can be counted. Because in the end, killing one more person will increase your strength, and killing one less person will reduce your chances of survival. And the easiest person to kill is, of course, the one who is closest to you and trusts you the most."

After saying this, he frowned slightly and covered his right eye, as if his headache was starting again. Xie Lian quickly took him to the side of the woods, squatted down, and said with a little worry, "Sanlang, we're about to enter the mountain, are you really okay?"

After calming down his frown, Hua Cheng said, "Don't worry, brother. It's normal. It will be fine soon."

How could Xie Lian be relieved? Hua Cheng said again: "Brother, come over here, I have something to tell you."

Xie Lian didn't understand what was going on, so he really moved his face closer. Hua Cheng held his face with both hands and gently rested his forehead against his. Xie Lian blinked and was stunned. When Hua Cheng let him go, he said, "San Lang, you..."

Hua Cheng smiled and said, "Okay. This place is full of ghosts, and my brother is a priest, so the smell will be very obvious in there, so this can cover it up a little."

It turned out that what he did just now was to inhale his scent onto Xie Lian. Xie Lian could not help but think of the previous situation when the two of them "transferred the magic and breath". He was afraid that Hua Cheng would also remember it and mention it again, so he hurriedly said: "Okay. Let's both disguise ourselves."

To blend in with the ghosts, they naturally had to disguise themselves. However, it was just a cloak. Many demons and ghosts also liked to wear masks or cloaks, so it was not uncommon. The two of them simply dressed up, and Xie Lian took Hua Cheng by the hand and walked forward slowly. After walking for a while, they heard a faint noise in front of them. Not knowing what was going on, Xie Lian asked, "Is there any landmark that tells you that you have entered Tonglu Mountain?"

Hua Cheng said: "Yes. But don't believe those things."

Xie Lian was about to continue asking when he heard the noise getting louder and louder. The two of them left the forest and found themselves in front of a steep mountain wall, where a large group of demons and ghosts were gathered. There were at least three or four hundred of them. However, this was only the tip of the iceberg of the gathering of thousands of ghosts.

"Why is the road blocked? Did we go the wrong way?"

"No way... Isn't it said that any road can lead to Tonglu Mountain?"

Perhaps because they had not yet entered the territory of Tonglu Mountain and the fighting had not officially begun, the ghosts were relatively harmonious at the moment. Xie Lian casually found a ghost nearby and asked, "Excuse me, what's going on up ahead?"

The ghost taunted, "You don't have eyes, can't you see for yourself? You're blocked by a mountain and can't get through."

“…”

Xie Lian looked at the ghost beside him. Half of its head had been shaved off. This was the real eyeless one. But he didn’t know what to say, so he just said, “Can’t you just go around it?”

At this time, several ghosts came over from the side, sticking out their long tongues and saying, "Damn, this mountain is weird! I ran for more than half an hour and still couldn't see the end! I ran for another half an hour before I got back!"

The ghosts said to Xie Lian, “No.”

Xie Lian asked again, “Can’t we climb up or fly over?”

As soon as he finished speaking, a seven-foot-tall bird fell from the sky with a whoosh, and hit the ground with a thump, seemingly dead on the spot. A ghost shouted, "Oh my god! The bird spirit was so tired that it couldn't even fly over!"

The ghosts said to Xie Lian again, “No!”

Xie Lian said again: “That can’t be…”

Before he could finish, the ghosts shushed him, wishing they could shut him up: "Don't ask any more questions! You have a bad mouth!"

Xie Lian said, “Okay.”

Hundreds of demons and monsters were blocked in front of this high mountain cliff that they could not bypass, climb over, or fly over. Various noises were buzzing and noisy, and it was very noisy. Some said, "I understand! This is not an ordinary mountain, but a barrier."

Some said: "Everyone, after crossing this mountain, there must be Tonglu Mountain behind. This mountain is probably the first test before entering the mountain. If you can't even pass this simplest test, don't even think about passing the rest. It's better to disperse!"

"etc!"

"Waiting for what?"

A voice asked in confusion: "Why do I... smell a very strange smell?"

"What's that smell? Is it because the dead meat you brought with you to eat on the road has gone bad?"

The voice said, "No, no. It's not dead human flesh, it's living human flesh! No, no, no, that's not right! ... It smells a bit like... a priest!!!"

As soon as these words came out, a thousand waves were stirred up. The ghosts shouted, "What?! Stop talking nonsense. How can there be a priest?"

"Ah wait! That... I smelled it too!"

"I didn't have any?"

"If you put it that way, it seems like I'm a little... Could it be that a priest has sneaked in?!"

"That's impossible... Which priest is so bold as to come to a place like this?"

After more than a dozen sentences, people from all directions were in an uproar. Xie Lian was a little nervous, but his face remained calm.

Hua Cheng had clearly covered up his human scent just now, so how could there still be a smell? It couldn't be that someone had discovered that he had sneaked in.

Hua Cheng held his hand and whispered, "Brother, be careful. Something is muddying the waters and taking the opportunity to create chaos."

Xie Lian said, “It’s also possible that, besides me, there really are other priests who have sneaked in.”

At this time, the ghost who first mentioned the human smell jumped onto a big rock and said, "Everyone! Who knows, the death officials in heaven may send people to Tonglu Mountain to ruin our event when they see that they can't stop us on the road this time. I suggest that those who wear masks, cloaks, and those who wear too much clothes take them off first. In this way, if anyone has spiritual light, they will be discovered immediately. Everyone, report your names one by one, and don't give them a chance to sneak in!"

The ghosts cheered, and the ghost continued, "I'll go first! I'm the 'Fatal Swift Knife Demon', a executioner's beheading knife. I only use one knife to kill people and behead them!"

“…”

According to Xie Lian's experience, generally speaking, the more exaggerated and straightforward the title, the more it likes to include words such as "peerless", "Thousand Hands", "invincible", "death", etc., the easier it is to be killed, usually with one move, and sometimes one move can kill three people. At the moment, at least hundreds of names were reported randomly, and he shook his head as he listened. Suddenly, a ghost next to him bumped him with his elbow and said, "Hey, why don't you take off your cloak? What are you?"

This statement was not meant to be disrespectful, but if it was not a person, then it seemed nothing wrong to call it a "thing". In fact, there were many other ghosts who had not taken off their cloaks or masks. There was one near Xie Lian, who was looking at them with his arms folded. But Xie Lian was the first one to be named. Seeing that everyone was looking at him, he had to admit that he was unlucky. He slowly took off his cloak and said in a gentle voice: "I am a puppeteer."

The ghosts all gathered around and said, "I see! No wonder you look like a human. This is the first time I've seen a puppeteer!"

Xie Lian smiled but said nothing. Puppet masters are a type of demon with very weak evil spirits. Because they want to make perfect puppets, they will look for all kinds of materials to experiment with, so it is not surprising if they are stained with the aura of anything. Because they prefer human skin materials, they have a strong aura of people. The dream of puppet masters is to pluck hair from the heads of priests and make wigs for their puppets. Some of them are so daring that they will actually try it, so it is not surprising if they are stained with the aura of priests.

A ghost asked: "Where is your puppet doll?"

Xie Lian looked around, then bent down and picked Hua Cheng up.

The ghosts all exclaimed: "Wow, how exquisite!"

"What material? Wow, it's quite realistic."

"I feel like he'll be a formidable competitor..."

"It's not realistic at all. I think it looks a bit fake. The skin is too white. And how can a child's eyelashes be so long?"

Although Hua Cheng folded his hands and had no expression on his face, many female ghosts were still moved by his appearance and their hearts, which had already stopped beating, said: "Oh my god, what a handsome doll!" "Master, are you taking orders? Can I order the same one from you? The price is negotiable." Some even couldn't help but reach out and touch him. Xie Lian quickly took Hua Cheng back and hugged him in his arms. The ghosts booed: "How stingy! You treasure him so much, but you won't even let me touch him."

Xie Lian hugged Hua Cheng tighter with his left hand, stroked his hair with his right hand and said, "Of course, this is my doll. And he has a bad temper. No one except me can touch him, otherwise he will be very angry."

Hua Cheng raised his eyebrows in his arms, and the ghosts laughed: "Oh, he can raise his eyebrows, so impressive!"

At this moment, a voice suddenly said: "I don't think so."