Li Tianqing's heart was racing, but he quickly calmed down, standing still like a porcelain figure among the other porcelain figures, eyes open, not moving a muscle.
Jin Hongying had wanted to escape, but knowing her injuries were severe and one leg was lame, she couldn't run. So, she stood among the porcelain figures too. One leg could bear weight, but the other couldn't, making her stance unsteady.
At her feet, Heiguo looked like a porcelain dog, head stretched forward, left front leg lifted as if walking, tail tilted back, as if frozen mid-hunt. It was so lifelike that Jin Hongying admired it.
"Am I really worse than a dog?" she thought, gritting her teeth to endure.
The ground shook more and more as the Evil Bodhisattva got closer. The three people and one dog held their breath, hearts pounding.
The Evil Bodhisattva lifted its massive legs, its huge body passing over their heads.
Boom! The evil creature sat down in the middle of the village, dust rising all around. Even sitting, it was taller than the houses.
In the past, the kiln factory had a Spirit Realm, created by this evil creature. But now, the Spirit Realm had turned into a demon domain, affecting everything for miles around, much larger than before. Although the range had expanded, its power was weaker.
So, as the Evil Bodhisattva passed by, Chen Shi and the others weren't turned into porcelain. But if it noticed them, they would be turned to porcelain in an instant, just like the villagers.
The three people and the dog became even more cautious, not daring to make a sound.
Suddenly, there was a scraping noise from the Evil Bodhisattva's belly, and its navel opened like a round door. A tall, thin kiln worker crawled out, dragging a porcelain figure.
The kiln worker placed the porcelain figure neatly on the street with the others, then returned to the Evil Bodhisattva's belly to bring out another one.
It repeated this several times, dragging porcelain figures out and arranging them neatly. Chen Shi and the others realized that all these porcelain figures were the work of this kiln worker. "What is it doing with so many porcelain figures?" Chen Shi wondered.
Remembering how the kiln worker repaired the Evil Bodhisattva's broken porcelain pieces, Chen Shi suddenly understood. "It's using these porcelain figures as raw material to repair the Evil Bodhisattva's body! Everyone here is just raw material!"
The kiln worker finally finished moving the porcelain figures and began counting them one by one.
"Oh no, it's counting!" Chen Shi felt cold sweat on his forehead. Counting was a basic skill, but this kiln worker wasn't human; it was a ceramic figure, yet it could count!
If it could count, it would surely notice the extra three people and a dog!
That would be dangerous.
Li Tianqing and Jin Hongying were also sweating, trying to see the Evil Bodhisattva's movements by shifting their eyes.
The Evil Bodhisattva sat solemnly, its four faces and eight eyes closed, looking sacred and dignified.
"Could we run away if we suddenly sprinted?" they both wondered but quickly dismissed the idea. There was no time to escape.
The kiln worker counted them and continued.
After counting, it stood still, fiddling with its fingers, as if unsure about the numbers.
It scratched its head, puzzled, and walked towards the Evil Bodhisattva, then stopped halfway, turning back to look at the porcelain figures.
It walked over again.
Jin Hongying's sweat dripped down her neck, soaking her collar, feeling like ants crawling all over.
She wobbled slightly, her injured leg trembling more and more.
The kiln worker seemed to notice her and walked straight towards her.
Jin Hongying struggled to stay still, but couldn't.
She gritted her teeth, and small paper figures slipped silently from her sleeve, creeping towards the kiln worker. This kiln worker was responsible for repairing the Evil Bodhisattva. Jin Hongying and her group of four had almost defeated it once, but the Evil Bodhisattva swallowed it, allowing it to hide inside and repair its damage.
That battle was lost, not because they couldn't defeat the Evil Bodhisattva, but because of this kiln worker!
Jin Hongying was determined to take the kiln worker down with her, even if it meant her life.
"But trading my life as a Divine Mechanism Battalion officer for a porcelain figure is a huge loss!"
Her paper figures reached the kiln worker, climbing silently up its legs, ready to attack.
Just then, the kiln worker reached the porcelain figures, about to inspect Jin Hongying closely, when a loud noise erupted behind it.
It turned to see the Evil Bodhisattva lifting its eight arms, gently twisting its head off with a loud snap!
The Evil Bodhisattva remained seated, placing its head aside.
The kiln worker ignored Jin Hongying and the others, grabbing two porcelain figures and heading towards the Evil Bodhisattva's head.
Chen Shi noticed a kiln opening where the Evil Bodhisattva placed its head, probably built recently, used only a few times.
The kiln worker put the porcelain figures into the kiln, climbed onto the Evil Bodhisattva's head, and lifted an eyelid. Intense flames burst from the Evil Bodhisattva's eyes, instantly melting the porcelain figures!
The molten porcelain dripped into a clay pot below, glowing red.
The kiln worker closed the eyelid, slid down, picked up the hot clay pot, and entered the Evil Bodhisattva's belly through the navel.
It was probably going to repair the Evil Bodhisattva from the inside.
Chen Shi blinked, thinking, "Now that the Evil Bodhisattva's head is aside, eyes closed, and the kiln worker is inside, it's the best time to leave."
He quietly moved to Jin Hongying, supporting her, and signaled Li Tianqing. Li Tianqing understood, and the three of them carefully moved towards the village outskirts.
Heiguo was already leading the way, moving silently.
Surrounded by porcelain figures, they had to be extremely cautious. Any noise could alert the Evil Bodhisattva!
Outside the village, the sound of flowing water and the idyllic scenery was beautiful.
But inside the village, the three were sweating, moving inch by inch.
Just as they were about to leave the village, there was a thud as the Evil Bodhisattva's navel opened again, and the kiln worker came out.
The three people and the dog froze.
The kiln worker dragged two more porcelain figures to burn.
As the two figures melted, the kiln worker seemed to remember something and looked back at where Jin Hongying had stood.
It was confused; there had been a porcelain figure there, but now it was gone.
Jin Hongying and Li Tianqing were extremely tense. Jin Hongying almost moved her paper figures, but Chen Shi squeezed her hand, stopping her.
She didn't know the kiln workers well, but Chen Shi often visited the kiln factory and knew their traits.
These kiln workers weren't smart. They could only identify moving objects, not still ones.
Some enchanted pots and jars in the kiln factory would hide motionless in corners to escape the kiln workers. Running away meant certain death.
Chen Shi had narrowly escaped capture many times by pretending to be a porcelain figure.
And the kiln workers couldn't think deeply.
They could spot problems but couldn't understand why they happened.
Sure enough, the kiln worker didn't find Jin Hongying and turned back, sliding down from the Evil Bodhisattva's head, picking up the clay pot, and returning to repair work inside.
The three people and the dog continued towards the village outskirts, finally leaving the village. They sighed in relief.
Just then, Jin Hongying sensed something and looked back. One of the Evil Bodhisattva's faces had opened its eyes, staring coldly at them!
"Not good!" Jin Hongying's scalp tingled. "Run!"
Chen Shi saw it too, picked up Jin Hongying, and ran without hesitation. "Hongying, the paper figures!"
In his arms, Jin Hongying realized and activated the paper figures inside the Evil Bodhisattva's belly.
The paper figures, which had been lying still on the kiln worker's back, sprang into action, attacking with knives and swords!
The kiln worker wasn't easy to deal with. It splashed the hot liquid from the clay pot onto its back.
Being porcelain, it wasn't afraid of the heat, but the paper figures, despite Jin Hongying's power, caught fire instantly!
Other paper figures jumped to avoid the liquid, kicking off the Evil Bodhisattva's belly walls, springing up to attack the kiln worker.
Their paper knives and swords were incredibly sharp, cutting through the kiln worker's hard ceramic surface with ease!
Inside the Evil Bodhisattva's belly, the kiln worker and paper figures fought fiercely. Meanwhile, the Evil Bodhisattva reached for its head, lifting it. Its strong legs pushed its body up, standing slowly.
"Slowly" was relative; its massive body seemed slow but was actually quick.
At the same time, the head's four faces showed excitement, anger, cruelty, and bloodlust. One face's eyes shot flames towards Chen Shi, Li Tianqing, and the others!
Li Tianqing activated the Armored Horse Talisman on his legs, running like the wind to escape the Evil Bodhisattva's gaze.
Just then, a shadow shot past him, moving several times faster, with a sound like thunder.
He was startled, looking closely—it was Heiguo.
The black dog had Armored Horse Talismans on its legs too, moving so fast it seemed to fly!
And Chen Shi, carrying Jin Hongying, was even faster!
Li Tianqing remembered a joke from a book: when a tiger comes, two brothers run for their lives. One says, "Stop running, we can't outrun the tiger." The other replies, "I don't need to outrun the tiger, just you."
"I'm the slowest; I'll be the first the Evil Bodhisattva catches."
As he thought this, the paper figures in the Evil Bodhisattva's belly took the chance to decapitate the kiln worker!
The paper figures clashed inside, trying to destroy the Evil Bodhisattva from within!
The Evil Bodhisattva ignored Chen Shi and the others, lifting its head. Its eyes shot fierce flames into its body, turning all the paper figures to ashes.
But this delay allowed Chen Shi, Jin Hongying, Li Tianqing, and Heiguo to escape its sight.
Chen Shi's Armored Horse Talisman activated, and he dashed to the small river in front of the village, running on the water's surface, wind lifting him. Holding Jin Hongying, he sped away.
Ahead, the dog ran even faster, water splashing like explosions.
Thanks to Taixuan Yunqi and the chubby little butterfly for their generous support! There's still more to come tonight at eleven!