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墨書 Inktalez
The trees have withered, and the village lies in ruins.
A gust of fierce wind howled through, swirling up a sky full of fallen leaves. The cold wind was mixed with Death Qi, and at this moment, there was only one feeling: cold! The ground was icy!
The village chief told us last night that the corpses of the villagers had been examined by forensic experts brought in by the police. The news that came back was that there were no wounds; the bodies found showed no signs of injury! It was as if they had vanished into thin air. Therefore, the police ruled out the possibility of death due to external harm, and everything remained a mystery, leaving only the option to persuade everyone to evacuate.
As I pondered this, I noticed the scattered yet clustered houses. The abandoned roads were overgrown with weeds, devoid of any people or sounds—a complete silence, as if it were a dead zone.
"My God, this place is so eerie," Xiao Xiao said, gripping Tong Qi's arm, her face showing both excitement and fear. The coexistence of joy and pain seemed to apply to some people here.
"Look, there are no signs of a struggle here; everything is neatly arranged. It seems the villagers were harmed while in a state of unconsciousness," Li Hui pointed at the house and said.
Indeed, whether inside or outside the houses, there were no traces of a fight. The entire village had quietly met their end, as if caught in a conspiracy, with an unsettling atmosphere permeating everywhere.
"Let's disperse, Fairy! Let's go check that way~" Snow Princess exclaimed as she pulled Xianxian towards the interior of the village. The remaining people exchanged glances before some followed her while others went off in different directions.
Tong Qi and Xiao Xiao were among them; they were drawn to any place that seemed lively. The more thrilling and dangerous it appeared, the more excited they became. So, without heeding anyone's pleas to stay back, they ran off hand in hand in search of excitement.
I turned around to call Rophie to join me when suddenly someone approached and grabbed Rophie's arm, saying with a smile, "Faye, let's go." Without even looking at me, they walked away together.
Rophie gave me a helpless glance before smiling and following Sun Lan.
I felt a surge of frustration but decided to let it go. I glanced at Lime but saw he had no reaction, so I headed further inside.
The brick houses and some mud huts were simple and sparse; there was a little distance between each household. They seemed small at first glance, but as I walked through them one after another, I realized they were layered and scattered like a maze—easy to get lost if one lacked a sense of direction.
House after house opened up before me; Death Qi hung heavily in the air. It felt like an abandoned village yet exuded an aura of danger everywhere.
The air was cool; if I focused closely enough, I could almost detect a faint Blood Stench—barely perceptible. As I calmed my mind and took careful steps forward, I unknowingly found myself at the foot of a mountain. Before me loomed towering peaks shrouded in dark clouds. Looking around, I saw no one; perhaps it was just my imagination, but I felt that this area’s Blood Stench was slightly stronger.
After searching for a long time without any clues, I decided to look for Rophie and the others. Although Li Hui was with me, they were powerless and it would be problematic if we encountered something unsavory.
Just a few steps in, I suddenly caught a whiff of a stronger Blood Stench than before, fleeting yet distinct. I stopped and focused my Consciousness to locate the source of the smell, sniffing as I walked. When I reached a patch of weeds, I halted. The ground was covered in weeds, or rather, this entire area was overgrown, reaching halfway up my legs.
Feeling that something might be off here, I moved left and right, stopping intermittently. Just as I was about to give up, it seemed I stepped on something. There was a faint "crack" sound; it was very quiet, but being alone in this moment made me sensitive to any noise.
I looked around again and saw no one. Crouching down, I quietly took out my dagger and carefully searched the ground. Sure enough, I found a spot that felt different from its surroundings! My heart leaped with joy as I quickly pushed aside the weeds and discovered that beneath a thin layer of soil lay a stone slab!
After some effort, I finally pried the slab open. Light poured in, revealing that the bottom was nearly two meters above the ground. Without thinking twice, I jumped down.
In the dim light, I realized that this was actually an underground granary! It was dark and dry inside, with hard walls all around and a flat floor. Aside from some grains, there was nothing else. No, there was something else—an invisible and transparent presence: resentment! I could feel the heavy resentment here; it was chilling enough to make my hair stand on end.
Why would someone build a granary in this place? It felt like it was meant for concealment.
I knocked on the surrounding walls; indeed, they were solid with no findings.
While looking down, I accidentally noticed an inconspicuous bump beneath my feet. The ground seemed flat; how could there be a bump? Tentatively, I stepped on it, only to feel the ground tremble slightly as the bump sank into the mud…
Oh no, could there be some kind of mechanism? Suddenly, I heard the sound of gears turning. When I turned around sharply, I saw a wall moving to reveal an opening. Inside the opening was darkness that resembled a beast ready to devour. Above the entrance was an embedded stone tablet with traditional characters reading "Three Yellow Cult."
Three Yellow Cult?
That sounded familiar…
Suddenly realizing, wasn't this the cult that the Village Chief mentioned?
The Village Chief had said that the Three Yellow Cult worshipped Mountain Ghosts and specifically captured people for sacrifices to Mountain Ghosts. Their method of sacrifice seemed to involve draining blood from people before taking them into the mountains.
Draining blood…
Blood Stench...
No way! Could it be that the villagers' blood is stored in Village and right there? With curiosity and seriousness, I walked towards the cave entrance. Entering through the opening led to a very dark Passageway, with thick walls exuding a chilling aura. I turned on my flashlight and saw that the cave walls were rough, marked with obvious shovel marks.
As I continued forward, suddenly there was a loud noise, the sound of dirt being pushed aside. I looked up sharply and saw a head poking out from ahead. Startled, I quickly calmed down as the person looked towards me with a hint of caution in their eyes, then their expression changed to joy as they quickly crawled out of the cave, brushing off the dirt from their clothes. They grinned cheekily and said, “Little Phoenix, where did you pop up from?”
“Over there,” I replied, pointing behind me and recounting how I discovered the granary.
Upon hearing this, Xianxian stared at me with a resentful look that made my scalp tingle; I really wanted to punch them. With a face full of grievance, Xianxian exclaimed, “Why are you always so lucky? Look at me, all covered in dirt!”
It turned out that Xianxian had also caught a whiff of Blood Stench and had dug a Tomb Hole right there. Coincidentally, it connected to this place, and when they poked their head out, they saw me holding a flashlight.
“So, you should stick with me from now on; I guarantee you'll have good luck all the time.” I teased while walking ahead.
Xianxian immediately followed behind, muttering, “Who wants to stick with you? We’re in this together, okay?!”
...
“Shh.” I don’t know how long we walked, but suddenly I caught a faint yet strong Blood Stench. As we moved slowly, the stench grew more intense.
Finally, a spacious Underground Plaza appeared before us. What caught my eye were two massive statues; their heads were quite strange, resembling both humans and birds. The body was human-like; one hand held a Stone Hammer, while the other curled like a Bird's Claw. The sharp fingertips emitted a cold aura, and the legs were thick and sturdy, looking quite intimidating. The other statue was similar but held a Spherical Object instead of a hammer.
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