“Elder Bai,” Zhou Rong turned around and asked with interest, “Which path do you suggest we take?”
Bei Qian walked with a cane given to him by the village head. The cane had intricate wooden carvings. The top was a rare money toad. He smiled, “Since Mr. Zhou has already come to a decision, why ask? I’m too old. Tomorrow belongs to young people like Mr. Zhou who is great at everything…”
Jiang Cheng deliberately coughed twice and touched his throat. He made him seem like his throat was uncomfortable. Bei Qian ignored him.
The group reached a scenic spot. They could see a winding river circulating around the village. The river was clean and clear. Fishes swam through the stream. It was beautiful. Bei Qian studied the scene before him casually as if he had forgotten about the dangers of the mission. Zhou Rong was the same. He looked down the distance. The boundary between the forest and the mountain blurred. Everything was a verdant delight. The tension melted away. This became a nature appreciation journey.
Zhou Rong and Bei Qian were secretly fighting. It was as if the person who appeared more cavalier and at ease would have a better chance of surviving.
Bei Qian commented on the place's feng shui. According to the undulating mountains, there had to be an important grave in the valley. Even if it didn’t belong to an emperor, it would at least belong to a general. Then, he shared his experience journeying around the world with his mentor. He had seen many places, but there were not many that could compare to the picturesque nature of this place.
Zhou Rong smiled thinly, “It sounds like Elder Bei hasn’t been to many places then. This is nothing compared to the true treasures of the world.”
Bei Qian didn’t take the bait. He leaned the cane by the bench and stood on the slope. His silvery hair fluttered in the wind. “The young only see the woods and mountains for what they present, but at my age, you’ll see them as manifestations of the origin of the world.” Bei Qian stood against the wind. It was as if he was the only one awake in a slumbering world.
The two started this as a joke, but eventually, they got into a real competition. Just as they were about to start a forum based on this, they were interrupted by a strange sound. It was the sound of liquid splashing into the water.
Jiang Cheng looked at them and then gasped. He leaned forward, looked around carefully and whispered, “Do you think I’d be fine for that?”
When they left, the sun was at its zenith. The sun baked them warmly. The three unanimously chose a path that would lead them away from the village to return to the courtyard. That way, they wouldn’t run into Chen Xiaomeng’s group. Of course, no one shared their intention.
When they returned to the familiar yard, the three headed to the abandoned building, and the strangeness of the building became more pronounced. The three stood under the building. Even when the sun shone on them, they felt no warmth. If anything, there was a constant chill. Zhou Rong shivered.
Ben Fu, who died on the first night, disappeared around this building. Yesterday afternoon, Jiang Zhongyi died after he entered this building. Based on Bei Qian’s testimony, the tanned man entered this building after delivering the ‘food’ and didn’t show up again.
For now, all the clues pointed to this mysterious building. They were waiting for the sun to be fully up before exploring this place. Even though it was still risky, they had to do something. The mission this time was different from before. It had no clear time limit. From a different angle, it exposed the difficulty of this mission. Plus… this mission didn’t have any newbies. The possibility of a group wipe was real. These forced them to explore this building. They were ready to sacrifice one person. As for who that was… it depended on themselves.
They didn’t work with the three women due to an unspoken reason. Based on the current clues, the ghost only targeted the guys. Even Lee Lu, who was injured and had been left alone multiple times, was still alive.
Therefore, if they called along the women, the women wouldn’t share the men’s risk, and they would even get to have the clues they found… it was unfair.
Zhou Rong’s face was stern. He asked, “Are you ready?”
“Yes.” Bei Qian nodded coolly.
“Hmph!” Jiang Cheng huffed.
Then, the three chose the window that was furthest from the window Jiang Zhongyi used to enter the building. They used Bei Qian’s cane to clean the splinters around the window. The three jumped in one after another.
Zhou Rong was surprisingly agile. He landed without sound.
After that, it was Bei Qian. Ultimately, he was older. With Zhou Rong’s help, he still managed a rather smooth landing. However, when the two planned to grab Jiang Cheng, they realised he was gone.
The two panicked. Bei Qian reached his neck out the window. After a while, he found Jiang Cheng curling up silently under the window.
“What are you doing?” Bei Qian was angry, but he didn’t dare to shout. His face was red from suppressed anger.
Jiang Cheng was silent. He only stood up about ten seconds later. He scanned the space inside the window. After he ensured everything was normal, he brushed away the dust on his clothes and leapt through the window.
As he landed, he told the two who were glaring at him. “I was afraid that the ghost might show up to block our exit. So, I waited to make sure that didn’t happen. You are welcome.”