Chapter 32

Until the sun was setting and the miasma in the forest had dissipated, Yan Xing finally called everyone to continue on their journey. After resting for most of the day, everyone packed up their belongings and followed Yan Xing's lead. After walking for two hours, the sun had completely set, and the night sky enveloped the entire forest. Occasionally, the rustling sounds of insects could be heard, making the surroundings seem particularly quiet.

"Brother Xing, there's no signal."

Huang Tianshi held his phone, gesturing as he spoke. Earlier, everyone's phones still had some signal, but GPS and other functions were unusable. The eight phones were each showing different locations, indicating that the magnetic field here was somewhat chaotic, causing some instruments to malfunction. Although the network signal was weak, it wasn't completely gone, and they could barely maintain some communication. Some people had even spoken in the group chat. However, the deeper they went into the forest, the worse the signal became. Now, it was completely cut off, leaving the phones with only single-player functionality.

"That's normal. If there was still a signal, that would be truly bizarre."

Ma Ruixi spoke up. He was the oldest in the group, in his forties, but he was also the least noticeable due to his small stature and sleazy demeanor.

"Shut up!"

Yan Xing turned and shouted at Ma Ruixi. Although Ma Ruixi was about ten years older than Yan Xing, Yan Xing didn't give him any face. "Do you know where we're going and what we might encounter? If you keep talking without restraint, I'll ask you to leave the group and go on your own, so you don't drag us down!"

Ma Ruixi's face turned red and then white. He had indeed mentioned the word "ghost," which was taboo. However, the less noticeable a person was, the more they wanted to be noticed. Although Ma Ruixi didn't dare to retort, a flash of resentment appeared in his eyes, but in the darkness, no one noticed.

In the group, Yan Xing led the way, followed by Huang Tianshi, Zhao Zhu, and Wang Ye. Li Liangjian and Ma Ruixi were in the middle, while Xiao Ge and Shi Chong brought up the rear. Around midnight, Yan Xing waved for everyone to stop.

"There's a light ahead," Huang Tianshi said after checking with his binoculars.

Wang Ye also stepped forward, took the binoculars from Huang Tianshi, and looked. "The light is a bit scattered and not moving. It looks like a village in the distance."

"Brother Xing, do we have to go through that village according to the map?" Huang Tianshi asked.

Yan Xing nodded. "The village is right at the entrance of the mountain pass. The ancient tomb we're heading to is deep inside the pass. Unless we take a detour and climb over the mountain, we have to go through the village."

"I have a bad feeling about this," Wang Ye said.

Zhao Zhu laughed and took out a box of xylitol, sharing it with everyone. "If it's a blessing, it won't be a curse; if it's a curse, you can't avoid it. Whether the village is inhabited by people or something else, we can't avoid it. If we take a detour, we won't have enough time, and failing the side mission will cost us 500 points. I can't afford to lose points."

Huang Tianshi and Wang Ye nodded, clearly in the same situation. They had used up all their points preparing for this mission.

Yan Xing frowned slightly, sensing that the yin energy around them had become more intense. He waved for the group to continue and silently took out a duster, holding it in his hand.

Zhao Zhu noticed this and quietly held two talismans in his hand.

The group continued forward. About half an hour later, a small village appeared before them. It wasn't an ancient deserted village with thatched cottages. The houses in this mountain village looked poor, but they clearly weren't isolated from the outside world.

"Is this not that kind of village?" Huang Tianshi asked.

"Let's go in and see."

Yan Xing led the way into the village, and the others followed. In the village, whispers, children's cries, women's laughter, and men's drinking games could be heard, but strangely, they didn't see a single villager, even after passing through most of the village. The sounds seemed to come and go quickly, making it impossible to trace their source.

"No one, but there are sounds. What's going on?" Huang Tianshi asked, somewhat fearfully.

"Don't talk, keep your head down, and get through the village first," Yan Xing said, waving his duster and quickening his pace.

The others followed him, heading for the other exit of the village.

The sounds grew louder, as if the "villagers" around them were speaking directly into their ears. Zhao Zhu felt his head buzzing, and he stumbled, falling to the ground. When he hurriedly got up, he bumped into someone, and they both fell.

"You damn kid, what are you rushing around for?"

Zhao Zhu looked up and saw an old man in a liberation uniform holding his waist, scolding him angrily.

Zhao Zhu was stunned. Looking around, he saw women washing clothes and chatting, men returning with firewood and game, children playing, sheep in the pens, and an old yellow ox resting in the corner. He saw the sources of the sounds, but he felt no joy from this discovery. He knew he had fallen for something.

Almost instinctively, Zhao Zhu stuck the two talismans in his hand onto the old man. However, the talismans remained unchanged. The old man tore them off and said, puzzled, "You damn kid, what are you doing, sticking this stuff on me?"

Zhao Zhu remembered Xiong Zhiqi's words: There are only two reasons why a talisman might be ineffective. One, the ghost in front of you is so powerful that it can ignore the talisman, like how you wouldn't feel a mosquito bite. The other reason is that you've stuck it on the wrong person. You've stuck it on a living person, not a ghost or a malevolent spirit. Of course, it might not be a living person, but at least it's not a ghost.

"What's going on?"

Zhao Zhu felt confused. If the old man was a living person, then everyone around him should also be living. But why had he inexplicably separated from the group and ended up here?

"Hmm? You're from outside the mountains, right?" The old man got up and helped Zhao Zhu to his feet. "If you're from outside, it's not surprising. People generally don't dare to enter this forest at this time."

"Why?"

"Because once you enter, you'll inexplicably forget who you are. This forest is very strange," the old man said, patting his pants. "Meeting is a form of destiny. Come, let's have a drink at my place?" The old man invited him warmly.

"I... " Zhao Zhu didn't know what to say or how to react. The contrast was too great, but his feet naturally followed the old man, and his mouth watered with a sudden craving for alcohol.

However, at that moment, Zhao Zhu felt a sharp pain in his ear. The pain became clearer, and someone was shouting in his ear. Zhao Zhu felt dizzy and nauseous, and he squatted down, vomiting violently.

Buzz!

After vomiting, a cool breeze blew, and Zhao Zhu felt much cooler. When he looked up, the old man was blurry, and the children and women around him were also indistinct. Zhao Zhu shook his head and rubbed his eyes, but his vision became even more blurred until he could no longer see anything.

Bang!

A heavy blow to the back of his head knocked Zhao Zhu to the ground. The blow made him see stars, but when he looked up, he saw Yan Xing holding a duster, not the old man who had invited him for a drink.

"You've left the village, but your soul was still there. Fortunately, I noticed in time, or you would have been in serious trouble."

Page break for AD start

Page break for AD end