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墨書 Inktalez
Living Funeral
After we finished, we immediately took action without any delay. We tore off the Actress's clothes, but once we did, there was nothing inside, as if the garment was wrapped around air. Could it be that it was just air performing? After thinking for a moment, I felt that didn't seem likely.
However, even after we stripped the Actress of her clothing, the sound of singing continued.
This time, though, the singing sounded different; it resonated right beside us.
I quickly realized that the sound was coming from the clothing itself. I turned to Hu Qingming, who said, "It really seems so."
It appeared that there was something wrong with this outfit. I suggested to Hu Qingming that we should burn it. At that moment, each of us held a piece of clothing. I took out a lighter and set the costume ablaze. Before long, the entire outfit was engulfed in flames.
At first, the singing continued as the fabric burned, but after a while, screams erupted. Hu Qingming and I quickly reacted and tossed aside the burning costume. The screams were much louder than the previous singing; earlier, the singing had been quite melodious. I cursed under my breath; my mouth still stung a bit. I said to Hu Qingming, "You really dealt a deadly blow just now."
Hu Qingming replied, "So did you."
I countered, "Not me! You were possessed just now; do you realize that?"
After my words, Hu Qingming suddenly made a sound of acknowledgment but didn’t say much more. Instead, he reached up to wipe away tears from his eyes. Seeing him like this made me think that perhaps the earlier singing had indeed reminded him of past sorrows.
I told Hu Qingming to let bygones be bygones.
He responded, "I can't let it go. Next time we go to Yin-Yang Ghost Path, I'll make them pay."
"Who?"
Hu Qingming said, "You'll know when the time comes."
Since Hu Qingming was unwilling to elaborate further, I didn’t press him for more details. Nian Chen handed me a tissue. I passed it to Hu Qingming, who wiped away the blood from his face and looked somewhat dejected. I said that since we needed to find the last location, we should hurry up.
We moved forward and soon encountered several blocking Demon Gods. However, we managed to defeat them all at a significant cost. Both Zhang Xun and Nian Chen bore injuries.
There are only seven Demon Gods that have appeared, not forty-nine. The last one was the most powerful, and I paid a great price for it; my arm was pierced through, nearly rendering it useless. After enduring these setbacks, we still managed to reach the summit.
Upon reaching the top of the mountain, the air turned cool, and the night breeze felt chilling to the bone.
From the peak, we could see the stars. The mountain was so high that from the summit, you couldn't see the base at all. A thick layer of mist enveloped the middle, obscuring our view.
There was a lake up here, and the water was quite cold.
However, there was no building. I asked Zhang Xun about it, but he said the time wasn't right yet. Nian Chen suggested we eat something first. Nian Chen gathered some firewood and started a fire to roast our dry rations. After a few bites, we saw the sun climbing over the mountain's edge—daybreak.
A streak of red instantly painted the sky, mingling with some black remnants of night. The morning breeze swept through, refreshing our spirits. Perhaps this is what distinguishes night from day, offering two different sensations.
The flames flickered gently in the wind as Nian Chen remarked, "This sunrise is truly beautiful!"
I nodded in agreement and said, "Yes! It's stunning!" It was breathtakingly beautiful. Zhang Xun and Hu Qingming joined us. The four of us stood in a line, soaking in the morning atmosphere.
The sun grew larger, but the thick mist below still hadn't dissipated.
Hu Qingming said, "We'll have to wait until nightfall. When night comes, the water in this lake will recede, and then that building will appear."
I asked, "Is the building submerged in water? How has it not decayed?"
Hu Qingming replied earnestly, "I don't know who to ask about that. I can't explain why it hasn't rotted away; all I know is that it's still well-preserved."
Curiosity stirred within me about a wooden building submerged underwater. I turned to Nian Chen and Zhang Xun and asked, "Have you both been inside?"
Nian Chen and Zhang Xun replied together, "We've been inside once."
I inquired further, "What was inside?"
Zhang Xun said, "There are things inside that we don't know about, but we just entered and then came out. People have died in there, more than one."
I thought to myself, another place filled with the dead. If I could complete the final Awakened here, that would be best! If I had to tread the path between life and death again, then so be it!
I asked Zhang Xun, "Who did you come with back then?"
Zhang Xun replied, "You and Jiang Changsheng. We just didn't know he was Jiang Changsheng at the time. But I think you knew back then, even if you didn't say anything. Chen Fei, I feel like there's a reason you came with Jiang Changsheng."
I nodded, thinking there must be a reason. If Jiang Changsheng and I had a falling out over the secret scroll, how could it end up in Hu Qingming's hands later? But now Hu Qingming seemed like a closed book, holding no secrets.
I firmly believed I could unravel all the mysteries!
I reached the lakeside. The water was clear, yet it resembled a mirror, reflecting the deep blue above while concealing what lay beneath its surface.
I estimated that the lake must be quite deep. Would such a deep lake really recede by nightfall? My curiosity mingled with concern; we had experienced too much since leaving the funeral home. Nian Chen approached me and said, "Fei, why don't you rest for a bit? Otherwise, you might not have the energy tonight."
At that moment, we were both injured. Nian Chen had several red scratches on her face, and her hair looked somewhat disheveled. As the wind blew, her hair fell across her face. I reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear. Nian Chen gazed at me without moving.
Suddenly, Nian Chen said, "Fei, do you know? Even now you still haven't remembered who I am?"
After she said this, I froze. My mind felt like a container missing the part that belonged to Nian Chen. I told her, "Thank you for everything along the way."
Nian Chen replied, "Fei, what I need isn't thanks."
I fell silent, unsure of how to respond. Since everything had begun, there would inevitably be an outcome. Just like Buddhism teaches, all actions have their consequences.
At that moment, Nian Chen spoke again. "Fei, I was too impatient just now." I told her I understood. I didn't have many words; if I felt too much for Nian Chen right now, it would surely be insincere.
We all began to rest. Just like that, we slept until darkness fell.
Around six or seven o'clock, the lake was still eerily quiet, and I began to doubt whether the water would truly vanish.
"Don't worry, everything that needs to happen will happen. Let's eat something first," Hu Qingming said.
I nodded, and we started to eat. After finishing our meal, we waited for several more hours. Finally, as we approached midnight, a commotion erupted. The mountaintop, which had only been filled with the sound of the wind, suddenly resonated with a loud "swish swish" noise.
The sound was overwhelming. Upon hearing it, I quickly looked over and saw a whirlpool forming in the lake. The water rushed toward it at an incredible speed, creating a circular area of about one or two hundred square meters.
Watching so much water drain away so rapidly was breathtaking.
I was stunned and asked, "What is happening?"
Hu Qingming replied that he wanted to know too but had no answers. Perhaps there was a pump at the bottom of the lake; who could say? I shot him a glance and continued to wait for over an hour until the water completely disappeared.
Then I saw a perfect wooden tower appear before my eyes, flawlessly presented. It was more accurate to call it a tower than a building.
With the lake drained, there must have been at least forty or fifty cubic meters of water gone. This tower seemed to be around twenty or thirty meters tall. I initially wanted to ask how we would get down but thought better of it when I noticed the staircase. Since there was a staircase, we could surely descend.
Perhaps because the water had just receded, a chilling air emanated from below.
This coldness pressed down on me, making my heart feel heavy. I turned to Zhang Xun and asked if we could go down now.
Zhang Xun replied that we could.
Hu Qingming, however, seemed unbothered by any caution and boldly strode down the stairs first. The staircase was narrow, allowing only one person at a time. Hu Qingming went first, I followed second, and Zhang Xun brought up the rear. The further down we went, the colder it felt inside me.
After about fifteen minutes of descent, we reached the bottom of the lake. Instead of mud, the lakebed was made up of polished stones stacked together. There were no holes beneath us; I glanced around but saw no openings for flowing water.
Yet there was no sign of where the water had gone; it seemed to have vanished without a trace.
At that moment, Zhang Xun had already come downstairs. Nian Chen had filmed a video here before, so I asked him, "Where did the water disappear from?"
Nian Chen replied, "I don't know either."
The tower was truly over twenty meters tall, and standing beneath it made me feel somewhat insignificant.
Suddenly, Zhang Xun called out to me. I asked, "What's wrong?"
Zhang Xun said, "Come over here and take a look." He was standing under the tower, and we quickly gathered around him. Zhang Xun pointed and said, "Look at this." There was a wooden post in front of the tower with a sign attached to it, which had several lines of text written on it.
The tower had a total of nine floors.
Zhang Xun read the words aloud: "It says here, 'Do not go to the Ninth Floor.'"
That was the most important message. Do not go to the Ninth Floor. This was clearly a warning sign! Nian Chen remarked, "When we came here years ago, we didn't see this warning sign."
"Could it have appeared recently?"
Do not go to the Ninth Floor. What kind of significant secret could be hidden there?
It certainly seemed very likely now.
I said, "Let's go inside."
However, Hu Qingming interjected, "There must be a reason why it warns us not to go to the Ninth Floor."
"He?"
Hu Qingming replied, "Isn't this his place? Although we don't know who 'he' is."
I: ...
I asked Hu Qingming, "Can you be more reliable?" Hu Qingming replied, "Of course! You'll see soon." The tower didn't have a name; it was just a tower standing there. At that moment, the door of the tower was closed, and as we pushed it open, a cloud of dust rose up, swirling in the light. We covered our mouths and noses with our hands; it seemed like no one had been here for quite some time.
As we entered the tower, a sudden "clang" echoed, and the door quickly shut behind us. I glanced back and asked Hu Qingming, "Is everything alright?" He suggested we head upstairs.
I asked, "Aren't we going to check downstairs?"
Hu Qingming replied, "No need. Let's go to the fourth floor first."
Hearing Hu Qingming's tone, it seemed he had a clear purpose. We made our way up to the fourth floor, but just as we reached the first floor, we saw someone lighting a fire.
The flames flickered like candles, one by one being lit. The person lighting the candles moved slowly and reverently, stepping back as he ignited each one. The glow illuminated the first floor, and I was taken aback; I had thought this place was deserted, so seeing someone here surprised me.
Zhang Xun and Nian Chen were equally astonished.
Hu Qingming called out, "Who are you?"
After a long pause without an answer from the person, Hu Qingming added, "Don't mind him; let's keep moving."
I thought to myself, is that really okay?
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