Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
**Chapter 0: Crested Serpent**
In the midst of a patch of weeds, there stood a stone tablet half-buried in the ground, about a foot high and difficult to notice. The words "Ten Li Slope" were engraved on it.
Upon seeing "Ten Li Slope," both Qin Jian and I were puzzled. After our vehicle left the city and entered the hilly outskirts, we had been driving for three hours toward the direction of Black Water River. It felt as if we had completely entered a blind spot; there was no cell signal, no signs of habitation, and it was as if we had arrived in a desolate area devoid of human presence. And yet, here we were, encountering a stone tablet rooted in the wild grass.
Qin Jian pulled out a local map, but there was no indication of "Ten Li Slope" anywhere on it.
The car moved slowly forward, its headlights sweeping across the terrain. Suddenly, something white flashed past us. Both Qin Jian and I clearly saw it—a real white shadow darting across the front of the car and crossing the road.
Qin Jian didn’t have time to hit the brakes; the car surged forward with momentum. It felt like we had run over something, causing the vehicle to bounce violently. "Damn..." Qin Jian shouted as he slammed on the brakes, producing a sharp screech that echoed in the stillness. The headlights illuminated a patch of green leaves, glaringly bright.
"Did you see that?" Qin Jian asked nervously, his hand trembling as it hovered above the door handle.
"I saw it, but it seems like there are no houses around here. It shouldn’t be a person; maybe it was just an illusion—nothing really happened," I tried to reassure him. However, deep down, I knew something had crossed the road; it felt like we had hit something. This thought stubbornly rooted itself in my mind—on one hand denying it, while on the other wanting to get out and check, yet fearing what I might actually see.
Qin Jian gripped the steering wheel tightly, his eyes fixed ahead in a daze. Following his gaze, I looked through the windshield—there was nothing there!
"Ma Qi, I have this strange feeling that I can’t shake off. This place feels familiar yet foreign to me. I can’t remember when I was last here, but there’s this awareness that resonates with everything around me—it’s like fitting into a puzzle."
"You must be mistaken."
"Let me have a smoke."
"Shouldn’t we check it out first?"
"Yeah."
Qin Jian and I got out of the car one after another. Crouching down, we examined the area; aside from some mud on the tires, there were no traces of blood or signs that someone had been run over. It wasn’t until Qin Jian leaned down to look under the axle that he spotted something caught there. He slowly reached out to pull it free.
My heart raced, fluttering anxiously, and my throat suddenly felt dry. An inexplicable tension gripped me; I was terrified yet compelled to see what that thing was.
Qin Jian grasped the tail of something, slowly pulling it out bit by bit. I gasped; what he revealed startled me as well—it was long and red.
Seeing Qin Jian's face turn pale in shock, he nervously tossed the thing aside and stumbled backward, nearly stepping on me. "Damn..." Qin Jian discarded what he had just pulled out, noticing the sticky substance on his hand that seemed to be some viscous liquid. Instinctively, he rubbed his hand vigorously against his pants leg.
I asked him, "What is that?" then leaned forward to get a better look.
"A snake..." Qin Jian's irritated tone frustrated me. I had clearly seen a flash of white; how could it be a snake? Snakes don’t walk or stand upright. Besides, if a snake crawled on the road and got run over by a car, it could easily get caught under the axle. But what about that shadow?
In my entire life, I had never seen a completely red snake before. Its body twisted and coiled, with a fleshy bump on its head resembling a chicken's comb. Ignoring Qin Jian's protests, I reached out to touch it; the bump felt cold yet fleshy. I looked up at Qin Jian in surprise and exclaimed, "Qin Jian, look at this snake—it has a comb!"
"No, I don't want to look! Just throw it away!" Qin Jian took a deep drag from his cigarette, looking thoughtful as he added, "Why isn’t this place marked on the map? This seems related to an ancient legend."
"What legend?"
"They say there was once a village hidden deep within the dense forest, far from human habitation—Decayed Village. The village had about a hundred residents who clung to old traditions and never left. Outsiders didn’t even know its exact location; whether Decayed Village still exists is unknown..."
I thought Qin Jian was being overly dramatic. Many legends are embellished over time; while they might have some basis in reality, there’s no way such a place like Decayed Village could still exist! I waved my hand and laughed heartily, "Your story isn’t convincing. Perhaps it's just a historical tale—the people from that village have long since left and merged into the larger population."
"I'm not telling a story; I genuinely feel that this village still exists. Otherwise, why would this snake suddenly appear?" Qin Jian's eyes were filled with fear as he nervously glanced at the snake.
Seeing him like this made me half-believe him too. My heart trembled involuntarily as I instinctively withdrew my hand and scrutinized the strange snake. It was entirely red—the scales blood-red and its body also blood-red. This snake was indeed peculiar.
I feigned nonchalance despite feeling uneasy inside: "This snake is quite lucky; it seems to be alive..." I had never seen a Crested Serpent before but had heard stories from the older generation that it was an incarnation of dragons—a so-called divine creature.
As for which kind of divine creature it belonged to, that was unclear. To see such a rare Crested Serpent in such a remote area was hard to believe. While Qin Jian wasn’t paying attention, I pretended to toss the snake away but secretly wrapped it in a cloth and quickly stashed it in my backpack.
Qin Jian looked around nervously, his face pale as he said in an off-key voice, "Ma Qi, let’s not linger here; this place feels really eerie."
Hearing Qin Jian like this, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. Since I met him, I had never seen him so scared. Just now, when I put the snake into the bag, Qin Jian really didn't notice. I pretended to clap my hands and said, "What's there to be afraid of? I'm just dealing with dead people. This snake is indeed a bit strange; it got stuck under the axle and didn't die from the pressure. It's still alive?"
Qin Jian seemed particularly terrified of the snake, standing far away without even the courage to come closer. Seeing me pity the snake, he said, "The Crested Serpent is a venomous snake. You shouldn't get involved; tonight is really unlucky to have run over something like this."
"Right, right, let's go." I lifted my backpack, feeling its weight confirming that the Crested Serpent was indeed inside, and then we both got into the car. Once inside, we tacitly fell silent, as if we had both suddenly become mute, neither willing to break the silence.
The car swayed like a drunken old man, struggling along the road. The wheels made unpleasant sounds as they rolled over the uneven ground, and the road became increasingly difficult to navigate—bumpy and full of potholes. It was so late at night that we couldn't see clearly what was around us.
Qin Jian stopped and refused to go any further. He looked ahead from inside the car and said, "This is bad; it seems we've taken a wrong turn." The screeching sound of emergency brakes filled the air, startling the wild birds resting in the grass. The flapping of their wings gradually faded away as it was too dark to see where they went.
"Should we get out and take a look?" I asked for Qin Jian's agreement before we both stepped out of the car. It was cold outside; we hugged our arms and glanced around, feeling increasingly uneasy.
I asked, "What is this place?"
Comment 0 Comment Count