Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
The man seemed taken aback by the unexpected question. After a moment, he regained his composure and turned his face away.
Mu Xuanche and I did not rush him. After a while, the man suddenly spoke, slowly saying, "You are outsiders. Given that you don't know the situation in this village, it's best if you leave. Don't blame me for not warning you."
His expression was somewhat desolate, as if he were recalling some sorrowful past, and he lowered his gaze.
I nodded, my expression serious. "Since we are here, we are determined to uncover the truth. Just tell us what you know."
"The Demon God is in control," the man paused and suddenly let out a bitter laugh. "It's not just that old man; even my daughter has gone missing." He covered his face with his hand, closing his eyes in pain.
After a moment, he lowered his hand, revealing a face full of bitterness. "They have disappeared..."
His gaze fell, and it seemed that tears welled up in his eyes, slowly rolling down his cheeks. He lifted the hem of his clothing to wipe away the tears at the corners of his eyes. I was taken aback, unsure of how to respond.
After a brief pause, the man raised his head. "Even if you are police officers, there’s nothing anyone can do."
"What exactly happened?" I asked.
"Forget it, forget it. You young people always think that life won't easily vanish. But life is something that is constantly disappearing. If you truly experienced it yourself, you would understand how to cherish it... It's truly tragic; I don't know what kind of curse this village is under."
The man gritted his teeth as if wanting to say more, but Mu Xuanche shot him a cold glance that seemed more fierce and arrogant than before.
The man's heart trembled, and an inexplicable look of panic crossed his face. After a moment's hesitation, he lowered his gaze again. "Recently, there have been hauntings in the village. Every midnight, you can hear the sounds coming from that mountain in the distance—the Wailing of Ghosts and Howling of Wolves—it's just like the cries of a newborn child, accompanied by howling winds."
"Is it haunted?"
I was taken aback. Mu Xuanche remained silent, just bowing his head and listening.
"Many young adults in the village have disappeared. All that's left are us old folks..." The man's tone sounded particularly sorrowful, not like someone who was lying.
"I saw my daughter just the other day. She was lively and full of energy right under my nose, and now she's vanished without a trace. She's only in her twenties," he lamented.
"Besides that, a while ago, someone found many severed hands and feet in the drainage ditch. The blood had dried up, buried in the mud. That's something no human could do."
At this point, the man's expression became agitated, and suddenly all color drained from his face.
In a sudden burst, he grabbed my arm as if trying to squeeze the blood out of it, his eyes bloodshot. "You didn't see what I saw back then; it was terrifying enough to make anyone tremble. I've had nightmares for several nights, dreaming that ghosts were knocking on my door to take me away. If they want to take this old man in exchange for my daughter, I'd be willing!"
Mu Xuanche calmly reached out and brushed his hand off my arm.
The man lost his support and fell against the table, his lips trembling and his gaze shaking.
After a moment, he suddenly broke down in tears, gritting his teeth. "You're a police officer; can you save my daughter? It must be ghosts that took her! If you want to survive, you need to get out of this village quickly. What good is a police officer? Aren't you just human? Can you fight against demons and monsters?"
I was startled and quickly reached out to comfort his back. "Calm down; your daughter is definitely still alive. We will rescue her; don't worry..."
"What do you mean 'don't worry'?"
The man gritted his teeth and forcefully pushed me away. "I'm already half in the grave! Do you expect me to endure this situation where an old man sends his child to her death? You say that so easily; you've never lost anything! How can you understand what I'm going through?"
He suddenly threw himself on the ground, rolling around and crying out in despair, covering his face, unable to speak except for his choked sobs.
I was startled, still not fully processing what was happening when Mu Xuanche abruptly lifted me onto his shoulder and carried me away.
"What are you doing? Put me down!" I exclaimed, taken aback by his sudden strength gripping my waist tightly.
"Be quiet," Mu Xuanche said coldly.
For some reason, I felt he was particularly indifferent today. Ever since we entered this village, he had grown more distant, and I couldn't tell if it was because he had discovered something.
I froze, clutching the back of his shirt tightly, suddenly at a loss for words. I felt powerless and confused about what he was up to. After a while, seeing that we had moved far from that house, Mu Xuanche set me down.
"What are you doing?" I questioned him.
"You can't give him an answer right now; it's more important to focus on the task at hand," Mu Xuanche replied with a blank expression. Before I could react, he suddenly crouched down and picked up a handful of dirt.
"What is going on...?"
I frowned as I watched Mu Xuanche sniff the dirt in his hand, lightly wrinkling his brow. He didn't say much to me and walked straight ahead. I followed him closely.
The trees along the way seemed to have withered, and there were no crops in the fields. After walking for a while together, we reached the edge of a river.
The water stretched endlessly in both directions, and the trees along the riverbank were all dead. The weeds were also decayed. Mu Xuanche glanced around and suddenly said, "There’s a strange smell in the mud of this village."
I was taken aback and bent down to grab a handful of mud, bringing it close to my nose. Indeed, there was a faint metallic scent of blood. Shaking my hand, I glanced around and felt that the smell of blood in the air was unusually strong.
Nervously, I took two steps forward. Before I reached the end, a wave of foul odor hit me.
Something felt wrong, and I instinctively covered my mouth.
Bending down, I pulled out a patch of weeds. The tips of the grass were yellowed, but the roots were unusually lush.
After examining it closely for a moment, I turned my head and saw Mu Xuanche walking away with his hands in his pockets, seemingly searching for clues elsewhere.
I sighed and began to search the riverbank carefully again. Besides the scattered stones on the ground, there was nothing else to be found.
Just as I was about to turn and walk over, I suddenly felt my feet slip. The mud was wet, and before I could scream, I found myself sliding down as if being dragged into the water.
A wave of putrid water rushed into my throat. In pain, I closed my eyes and instinctively waved my hands, trying to grip the muddy bank. My hands were slick and slippery, and I couldn’t help but slide further down.
“Mu…” As I coughed up some water, half-opening my eyes, I suddenly felt something slowly crawling up my leg—slimy and cold.
Large bubbles rose from my mouth. Looking down, I saw a vague figure floating beneath the water. Gritting my teeth, I kicked down with both legs.
The thing underwater seemed even more entangled, climbing up like a snake. As I looked down, I vaguely saw clumps of black hair floating near my feet.
A wave of nausea washed over me as I desperately tried to free myself from whatever it was. Gripping a branch that floated nearby, I swung it downward, but that mass of hair wrapped around my waist with increasing force as if trying to snap me in half.
My face flushed red; half-closing my eyes, when I regained my senses, I suddenly locked eyes with a pair of crimson ones.
Blood glimmered, and the pupils burst forth, long hair sticking densely to the face, looking exceptionally fierce and terrifying.
A chill surged through my heart as I was startled. That "water ghost" suddenly grinned at me, its teeth sharp and menacing, like blades exuding a cold aura even underwater.
I gritted my teeth, suppressing the deep-seated dread within me.
I told myself not to panic at this moment. Struggling, I reached for my backpack behind me. A large amount of water had already filled my throat. I unzipped it, and a pile of items slowly floated up with the change in pressure.
The ghost grinned as it crawled right in front of me, its long hair binding my lower body tightly.
Finally managing to pull out my gun, I didn't hesitate too much. My finger firmly pressed the trigger, but not aimed at the "water ghost"; instead, it was directed at my left arm.
The "water ghost" seemed to sense my intention. Its long hair surged up, binding my hands and dragging me down.
I gritted my teeth and fiercely kicked my legs, but my fingers gradually lost strength. Just as I felt overwhelmed, perhaps due to struggling too violently, the long hair began to leave a trail of blood on my arm.
Comment 0 Comment Count