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墨書 Inktalez
He leaned closer to Lin Dahe's ear and whispered, "I heard that Cui Hunter's daughter often visits you? Be careful, that girl is tough; she has caused the deaths of two previous suitors..."
"Bang!"
Lin Dahe slammed his fist against the door of the grain shop, abruptly cutting off the conversation. Zhou Liangzhang was not offended; he smiled and bowed in farewell, the mouse cage in his hand swaying back and forth, while the red string had mysteriously disappeared.
As the sun reached its zenith, Lin Dahe finally shook off the dizziness. He squatted in his yard, rummaging through grain bags that had been ravaged by mice, when he suddenly spotted a few grains of moldy millet in the corner of the wall—gray-green mycelium had spread across the husks, emitting a pungent earthy smell.
"This isn't ordinary mold..." He pinched a grain and rubbed it open, revealing an eerie pinkish endosperm inside. Suddenly, a warning popped up from the system: [Detected a mutated strain of Aspergillus flavus; contact may lead to delirium symptoms.]
The sound of hurried footsteps interrupted his thoughts. Cui Xiaoman burst into the yard, sweat glistening at her temples. "Aunt Ma went to the old cave to the west, carrying such a big bundle—" She gestured with her hands to indicate a size about that of a rice basket. "My father said that cave leads to an ancient silver mine; it should have collapsed long ago..."
Lin Dahe grabbed a handful of dried chili peppers and stuffed them into his pocket. "Let's go check it out!"
Under the pretense of gathering herbs, they made their way to the foot of the western mountain. The entrance to the abandoned cave was overgrown with weeds, and the inscription "Sealed in the Third Year of Xuande" was barely legible on the rock face. Cui Xiaoman pushed aside thorns and squeezed inside, suddenly exclaiming, "This chain has been tampered with!"
A rusty iron chain hung loosely from the door ring, and fresh grease remained in the keyhole. As Lin Dahe touched the cave wall, his fingertips became coated with something slick—it was saltpeter! The deeper they went, the more densely sparkling crystals glimmered on the rock walls like countless pairs of watchful eyes.
"Be careful!" Cui Xiaoman suddenly grabbed him. In front of them stood dozens of bulging burlap sacks; one at the top had torn open, spilling out that same pink moldy grain!
"Government warehouse seal..." Lin Dahe used a stick to pry open the bag's mouth, revealing a faded Yan Zhou Wei lacquer stamp. The system screen flashed wildly: [Danger! Spore concentration exceeds safe levels in enclosed space!]
Cui Xiaoman stumbled slightly. "I feel so dizzy..." A strange flush crept across her face as she reached for a cluster of crystals on the rock wall. "Look at these stars..."
Lin Dahe hurriedly covered her mouth and nose with his clothing but then heard a soft click from the cave entrance. Zhou Liangzhang's voice came through the stone wall, sounding oblivious: "Hand me the torch; you two guard the entrance."
The chaotic footsteps grew closer, and the torchlight cast distorted shadows along the corridor. Lin Dahe pulled back with the dazed Cui Xiaoman when his back suddenly hit a loose section of rock—Mad Old Woman's song about finding water flashed through his mind:
"Three stars on blue stone..."
Frantically searching along the rock wall, he finally felt a depression at the third crack. Pressing hard, an entire stone slab silently turned inward!
"Boom!"
Zhou Liangzhang's torch just happened to illuminate the grain storage cave as a wave of air sent mold dust swirling like thick fog. The last thing Lin Dahe saw was Aunt Ma covering her mouth and nose while screaming in retreat, her waist adorned with a floating red string identical to that on a mouse's tail...
The chilling sensation jolted Lin Dahe awake. He found himself lying in an underground river, with Cui Xiaoman gently wiping his face with a damp cloth. In the dim light filtering through crevices above them, countless tiny crystals sparkled overhead.
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