Me? I was transported into a book? And I became a vicious villain?

The afterglow of the setting sun fell on the ancient mountains, covering them with a layer of golden gauze. However, this golden light could not dispel the cold and gloomy atmosphere deep in the mountains, but made them even more weird.

Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen climbed up the rugged mountain road in silence. Since leaving the cave, the mysterious voice disappeared, leaving only the whistling wind in their ears and the lingering uneasiness in their hearts.

"Something... feels wrong here." Chu Mengmeng tightened her coat and said in a low voice.

Xiao Yichen nodded and held her hand. The warmth of his palm conveyed a sense of reassurance. His sharp eyes swept around. The towering trees blocked out the sun, leaving only mottled spots of light. The vines were entangled around the tree trunks like a tangled python, adding a bit of gloom. The air was filled with a nauseating smell of corruption.

"Be careful and follow me closely." Xiao Yichen said in a low voice, with a hint of solemnity in his tone.

As they continued to move forward, the trees around them became denser and denser, and the light became dimmer and dimmer. The road under their feet became rugged and difficult to walk on, covered with gravel and thorns. Chu Mengmeng accidentally tripped over a stone, and Xiao Yichen quickly supported her.

"Are you okay?" he asked with concern.

"It's okay, it's just..." Chu Mengmeng raised her head and her eyes fell on an open space not far ahead, "Look there!"

In the open space, several stone pillars stood crookedly, with strange patterns carved on them, like some ancient words, or some mysterious symbols, which looked particularly weird in the dim light.

"What is this place?" Chu Mengmeng asked in a low voice, the feeling of uneasiness in her heart growing stronger and stronger.

Xiao Yichen did not answer. He slowly walked to the stone pillar and carefully observed the pattern on it. Suddenly, he seemed to have discovered something, his face changed slightly, and he pulled Chu Mengmeng up and whispered, "Go!"

"What's wrong?" Before Chu Mengmeng could react, he pulled her and started running.

"It's too late to explain," Xiao Yichen said as he ran, "We might..."

Before he could finish his words, he heard a creepy voice coming from behind him...

Before he finished speaking, he heard a creepy roar from behind him. Chu Mengmeng looked back and saw a group of black shadows emerging from the depths of the dense forest, rushing towards them at lightning speed.

"Be careful!" Xiao Yichen protected Chu Mengmeng behind him, and at the same time drew out the sword from his waist. With a flash of cold light, he rushed towards the group of black shadows.

With the faint light, Chu Mengmeng could clearly see the appearance of those dark shadows - dry and twisted bodies, pale faces with only a pair of blood-red eyes, and sharp claws emitting a faint cold light, like evil spirits from hell.

Xiao Yichen's swordsmanship was sharp, and each of his moves hit the vital points directly. However, those dark creatures were fearless and kept rushing forward one after another, as if they knew neither pain nor fear.

"What are these?" Chu Mengmeng asked while dodging the attack.

"I don't know," Xiao Yichen gritted his teeth and said, "but they are controlled by some kind of force and have no rationality at all."

They stood back to back, struggling to resist the attacks of the dark creatures. However, there were too many of them, and their attacks became more and more fierce. Gradually, both of them felt exhausted.

At this moment, Chu Mengmeng noticed that in the eyes of those dark creatures, besides the bloodthirsty madness, there seemed to be a trace of...pain? Chu Mengmeng was protected by Xiao Yichen behind her, her heart was beating violently, but she forced herself to calm down. She carefully observed those crazy creatures. Besides the bloodthirsty killing, there seemed to be a trace of pain and struggle hidden in their eyes.

"They... seem to be in pain..." Chu Mengmeng murmured to herself.

Xiao Yichen paused slightly when he heard this. He also noticed the struggle flashing in the eyes of those creatures. He remembered the murals he had seen in the cave before, which depicted some people shrouded in black mist, their bodies twisted in pain, their eyes full of despair.

"Could it be..." Xiao Yichen's heart moved, and a bold guess came to his mind, "Are these creatures controlled by some evil force?"

Thinking of this, Xiao Yichen decided to give it a try. While swinging his sword to block the attack, he separated a trace of spiritual power and injected it into the sword. In an instant, a dazzling golden light appeared on the sword, and a powerful wave of power spread out.

Those dark creatures felt the fluctuation of power and let out painful roars. Their originally crazy attacks also became slow.

"It really works!" Xiao Yichen was delighted. He increased the output of spiritual power, and the golden light on the sword became more dazzling.

"Ah..." The dark creatures let out shrill screams and retreated one after another, trying to escape from this force that caused them immense pain.

“Don’t let them run away!” Seeing this, Chu Mengmeng also plucked up the courage, picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at the dark creatures.

Xiao Yichen took the opportunity to swing out a sharp sword energy, killing all the remaining dark creatures.

Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen both breathed a sigh of relief as they watched those dark creatures disappear into the depths of the dense forest.

"It's finally over..." Chu Mengmeng sat on the ground weakly, her whole body aching.

Xiao Yichen also felt weak, but he still forced himself to walk to Chu Mengmeng and asked with concern: "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine..." Chu Mengmeng shook her head and looked up at Xiao Yichen, her eyes full of gratitude, "Thank you for saving me again..."

Xiao Yichen smiled slightly, stretched out his hand and pulled her up, "There's no need to thank me between us."

They smiled at each other, feeling lucky to have survived the disaster. However, just when they thought they were safe, a huge dark figure appeared in front of them...

"Roar--"

The deafening roar echoed in the forest. Before Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen recovered from the joy of victory, they were enveloped by a powerful pressure. They looked up in horror and saw a huge dark figure slowly walking out from the depths of the dense forest, and every step seemed to step on their hearts.

The figure was three people tall, and was wrapped in thick black mist. It was impossible to see its specific appearance, but only a pair of huge scarlet eyes could be vaguely seen, flashing a cold and bloodthirsty light. Every step it took, the ground would tremble slightly, and the trees seemed to be unable to bear the pressure and groaned in pain.

"What is that thing?!" Chu Mengmeng asked with a pale face and a trembling voice. She subconsciously hid behind Xiao Yichen, her heart beating violently as if it was about to jump out of her chest.

Xiao Yichen tightly grasped the sword in his hand, stared at the huge figure with a serious expression, and said in a deep voice: "Be careful, this aura is much stronger than those dark creatures before, I'm afraid..."

Before he finished speaking, the dark figure suddenly moved! It pounced forward at an astonishing speed and arrived in front of them in the blink of an eye. Xiao Yichen reacted quickly, pushed Chu Mengmeng away, and waved his sword to meet it.

"clang--"

A sharp metal collision sounded, and Xiao Yichen felt an overwhelming force coming, and the sword in his hand almost slipped out of his hand. He groaned, and took several steps back before he stabilized his body. He felt a sharp pain in the palm of his hand, and blood dripped down the hilt.

"Xiao Yichen!" Chu Mengmeng exclaimed and wanted to go forward to help, but was frightened by the terrifying aura emanating from the dark figure. She could only watch it pounce on Xiao Yichen again.

Xiao Yichen took a deep breath and forced down the surging blood in his body. A look of determination flashed across his eyes. He held the sword with both hands and poured all his spiritual power into it. The sword suddenly burst into a dazzling light, illuminating the entire dense forest.

"break--"

He roared and swung his sword towards the dark figure...