Starting to Gain Experience from Push-Ups

Chapter 1351: Chapter 653: Ghoul Army

At that moment, the body lying on the ground let out a painful groan:

"Fang Cheng..."

Hearing this familiar voice, Fang Cheng instantly stopped his pursuit and turned around.

Cheng Jiashu slowly opened his eyes.

Now the eerie green light in his eyes had completely faded, returning to a human clarity, though his gaze held weakness and exhaustion.

His voice was dry, and he called out with difficulty, then struggled to prop himself up and said:

"Don’t chase after him, be careful of an ambush; that old ghost still has tricks up his sleeve..."

Upon hearing this, Fang Cheng immediately dispersed the Protective Golden Flame around him and quickly walked over to crouch beside Cheng Jiashu.

"How are you, can you stand up on your own?"

He grabbed his friend’s arm and pulled him up from the muddy blood.

Cheng Jiashu shook his head with a bitter smile and, with Fang Cheng’s support, barely managed to stand, spitting out blood-stained saliva:

"I’m not dead, but it feels like the spirit in this body has almost been drained dry."

Fang Cheng frowned, surveyed the dilapidated environment, and asked:

"How did you end up provoking Jiang Chen alone? Didn’t we agree last time to act together if we found any clues?"

Cheng Jiashu sighed, fear flashing in his eyes:

"It’s a long story. I recently gathered some clues about this old ghost in West Mountain and planned to verify them before notifying you to join in the action."

"But I didn’t expect this old ghost to be so cunning. He deliberately left a flaw to trap me."

He paused, frightened, then took a breath and continued explaining:

"I let my guard down and fell for it; my consciousness was dragged directly into this nightmare constructed by my subconscious. If you hadn’t arrived in time, I might have been completely devoured and assimilated."

"But, speaking of which..."

Cheng Jiashu looked up, staring at Fang Cheng with a face full of confusion:

"How did you know I was in trouble? Also, how did you manage to break into my subconscious domain?"

Fang Cheng’s lips slightly curled as he casually replied:

"If I said I opened a cross-server connection VIP hack, would you believe me?"

Cheng Jiashu was momentarily stunned upon hearing this.

The tense nerves were slightly eased by this joke, and he rolled his eyes helplessly:

"At a time like this, you still have the mood to joke."

As the two caught up in their conversation.

The surrounding temperature suddenly dropped sharply, and a bone-chilling wind swept up from the ground.

From the crevices of the bluestone slabs in front of the hall, a thick black fog, like boiling asphalt, surged from underground.

Both became aware of the anomaly, immediately looking around, surprised to find the scene before them rapidly collapsing and distorting.

Although the temple had suffered damage from war, it was still relatively intact.

At this moment, under the erosion of the black fog, the red paint peeled off, beams and columns decayed and broke.

In an instant, it turned into a ruin overgrown with weeds, a sight of desolation.

Those old monks and novice monks who were originally sitting on the cushions, their bodies turned to ash as if weathered, dissipating into the black fog.

"Horr... Horr..."

Creepy and bizarre sounds continuously emerged from the dense black fog around.

Fang Cheng squinted and looked toward the source of the sound.

He saw those Yu Dynasty soldiers who had been knocked down or buried under the ruins undergoing terrifying transformations.

Their bodies convulsed violently, bones cracking with explosive sounds.

The spine arched high like a taut bow, forcefully tearing the armor on their backs.

Exposed skin quickly withered and blackened, showing a deathly gray cadaverous color.

Even more terrifying was their face.

The soldiers’ jawbones tore open at a non-human angle, extending all the way to their ear roots.

Sharp jagged fangs grew within their mouths, and foul saliva dripped to the ground, releasing an acrid white smoke.

Their fingertips, where nails fell away, were replaced by several inches long, hook-like black claws.

What froze the heart was their abruptly raised heads, where the original pupil part of their eyes completely vanished.

Replaced instead by twin clusters of flickering green ghost flames, emitting a bloodthirsty glow.

Dozens, hundreds, thousands...

In the thick black fog, the dense dots of green light resembled ghost fires in a graveyard, glaringly forming into one cluster.

"It’s the Ghouls!"

Cheng Jiashu’s face changed drastically, blurting out in alarm.

Upon hearing this, Fang Cheng’s gaze swiftly swept across the surrounding ruins.

Thousands of monsters that had transformed into Ghouls were converging from all directions, encircling the Great Hall where the two stood.

Scratch, scratch—

Sharp claws scraped against stone slabs, producing a piercing sound.

An overwhelming sense of oppression and a pungent stench of decay assaulted his senses.

"Fang Cheng!"

Suddenly, an extremely chilling voice came from the depths of the dense fog.

It was Jiang Chen, who had just escaped in a flash of light, speaking.

"When I roamed the world, creatures like you didn’t even have the privilege of becoming my blood food!"

"Back then, you colluded with the army to ambush and destroy my physical body, and today you ruin my plans again. Intolerable!"

"I want to skin you alive and turn you into a human skin lantern, to be carried by my side and eternally tormented without hope of liberation!"

Jiang Chen roared furiously, his tone laced with murderous intent and resentment.

Then, as if frustrated by their incompetence, he scolded:

"And you, Cheng Jiashu! How could the Cheng Family produce such a treacherous ungrateful wretch?"

"Not only do you resist my will, but you also join forces with outsiders to betray your own teachers and ancestors! Today, I will have you die by your ancestor’s hands as a warning to others!"

Upon hearing this, Fang Cheng raised an eyebrow sharply, turning his head in surprise towards Cheng Jiashu.

Ancestral ties? Ungrateful descendant?

Could there be a blood relation between Cheng Jiashu and Jiang Chen?

Faced with this explosive family secret, Cheng Jiashu could only respond with a bitter smile.

He spat out a mouthful of blood-tinged saliva, then looked up to retaliate towards the darkness:

"Stop trying to boost your own ego! The Cheng Family has been upright for generations, we don’t have any vampire-like zombies eating human flesh as ancestors!"

"If you want to kill me, stop hiding in the shadows, come out and try it."

"Insolence!"

Jiang Chen was utterly infuriated, his furious roar causing the ruins to tremble and shed dust:

"Tear them apart for me!"

With this command, the throats of thousands of Ghouls erupted in a frenzy of howls.

They lunged on all fours like a pack of Evil Wolves scenting blood, trampling over broken stones towards the two standing on the steps.

The momentum was so great that the entire courtyard shook violently.

"Retreat into the hall."

Fang Cheng shoved Cheng Jiashu into the Great Hall behind them.

He then took a great stride forward, standing like an iron tower in the broken doorway.

"Hmph, overestimating yourself!"

Seeing this, Jiang Chen’s cold laughter echoed again in the fog-covered ruins:

"I want to see how you alone can hold back my army of thousands of Ghouls!"

Fang Cheng didn’t reply, gazing calmly at the swarming horde of monsters.

He twisted his neck, causing his joints to crack loud and clear.

The next moment, he took a deep breath, and the power within him ignited like a barrel of gunpowder.

"Boom!"

Spectacular golden flames surged from his body, dispersing the chilling air instantly.

The flames coiled around his fists and legs, spitting long tongues of fire.

The four fastest Ghouls rushed up the steps first, their sharp claws aiming for Fang Cheng’s face and chest.

Instead of retreating, Fang Cheng advanced, taking a step forward with his left foot while his right arm shot out like lightning,

a penetrating jab accurately striking the nose bridge of the Ghoul in the center.

Amidst the sound of shattering bones, the Ghoul’s body tilted back, its head exploding with a roar.

Immediately after, Fang Cheng didn’t pause, twisting his right shoulder forcefully, channeling power through his waist and hips.

A powerful heavy punch struck another Ghoul fiercely in the chest.

"Bang!"

With a tooth-aching thud, the Ghoul’s chest bones instantly caved in and shattered.

The True Sun Fire followed his punch into its body, penetrating straight through its chest from behind.

The Ghoul didn’t even have time to scream before it became a burning fireball hurtling backward.

The Ghouls on the left and right seized the chance to leap forward, clinging tightly to Fang Cheng’s arms, ready to bite him with their gaping maws.

Fang Cheng’s eyes were cold, unmoving from his spot.

Instead, his muscles bulged instantly, breaking free from their grip.

Then, he grabbed the napes of both creatures, pulling his arms inward forcibly.

Bang!

Like ringing a bell, he slammed the hideous heads of the creatures together fiercely.

With a crisp "crack," red and white brain matter mixed with dark blood splattered everywhere.

Fang Cheng released his grip, allowing the two headless bodies to collapse to the ground.

By now, the rest of the Ghoul army surged like a black tsunami to the foot of the steps.