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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 05: End of the Demon Realm (Part Two)
“Ghost?” Qin Shuying took a cautious step back. “The people my father brought back from outside are ghosts, and ghosts steal hearts.”
“How could that be? I wouldn’t steal hearts; I’m a good person…” As soon as I said that, I regretted it. The people from Decayed Village had just eaten a good person. Seeing her suspicious expression as she stepped closer, I hurriedly forced a laugh and said, “Actually, I’m a bad person here to steal hearts.”
Upon hearing that I was a heart-stealer, Qin Shuying’s face changed, and without another word, she turned and ran.
“Hey, don’t run!”
Damn it, I thought being a bad person meant I wouldn’t get eaten; turns out being a bad person is even worse. I scared away the only person who could help me. What bad luck! Dejected, I leaned against the wall and looked out blankly.
It was so quiet outside.
“You’re done for.” The sudden voice startled me. I turned around to see what appeared to be a person sitting in the dark corner. Due to the lack of light, I couldn’t make out their features. However, I remembered that I was alone in this room before; when did another person show up?
In confusion, I asked sharply, “Who are you?”
“Who I am isn’t important; what matters is that you won’t die and you won’t be eaten.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s going to be a Happy Event in the village.” The figure in the dark corner slowly stepped into the light, and I found myself stunned. This person wore a dark red trench coat and jeans, exuding an air of cool arrogance. He could be described as dashing and imposing, with red lips and white teeth—truly an enviable handsome man.
“Qin Ye…”
“Who’s Qin Ye? Who are you calling?” The man in the trench coat looked puzzled at my calling him Qin Ye, then frowned slightly and muttered, “Qin Ye… that’s a nice name. Since I don’t have a name anyway, let’s just use this one.”
“Hey, how can you just use someone else's name when you don’t even know who they are?” Seeing he was serious made me think; Qin Ye was an Underworld official. If this guy used his name, wouldn’t that cause chaos?
“It’s nothing; I just think this name sounds good. Shouldn’t you thank me?”
“Damn it, no need…” Before I could finish my sentence, someone arrived carrying a bamboo basket that seemed to contain food. The newcomer squatted down and took out the food: a bowl of rice and a bowl of stewed meat. It didn’t look like much but smelled delicious.
This food server was too stingy; with two people here, who was going to eat just one bowl of rice and one bowl of stewed meat?
I never expected that when I picked up my meal to find someone, the strange person who had just been asking for my name was nowhere to be seen.
"Hey, Zisuan, you're lucky. There's a Happy Event happening in the village today, so you get to enjoy a good meal before heading out to work tomorrow." Work? I, Ma Qi, had never done any labor in my life except for dealing with the dead. How could someone like me, who had never even held a hoe or planted grains, possibly do any work?
I ignored the speaker and carefully surveyed the small dungeon. The strange person was truly gone, and when I turned back, the one who had brought my food had already left. Looking at the rice and stewed meat, I realized I was actually a bit hungry.
What a mess this was! I had originally set out to rescue Bone Jade but ended up imprisoned in Decayed Village. Qin Jian was missing, and Bone Jade's whereabouts were unknown. Counting on my fingers, it felt like life or death; the day of Hell Gate was drawing nearer.
No way; I couldn't let myself starve and do nothing. But could I eat this?
Holding my stomach, I thought it over. Finally, reluctantly, I picked up the bowl of rice and said to myself, "I will eat this rice." As for the stewed meat—thinking of Qin Shuying's words made me feel nauseous.
The rice was surprisingly fragrant. After finishing a bowl, I still felt unsatisfied. With lingering reluctance, I glanced at the stewed meat and forced myself to close my eyes, resolutely resisting its temptation. I decided to rest; whatever happened could wait until tomorrow.
Just as I was falling asleep!
Someone else arrived. I opened my eyes; the dungeon door hadn’t opened. A figure stood at the window, crying sorrowfully.
I reached out to grab the window bars and whispered, "Hey, who are you? Why are you crying at this hour?"
"I... I'm called Yu. I've been kidnapped by traffickers. Tonight they want to marry me off to an old man. I ran away but got lost and don't know how to escape."
Wait a minute—Yu? Could she be Bone Jade? I thought for a moment but dismissed it; there were many people named Yu in this world. The Bone Jade I knew had long since died; how could she still be here getting married? Besides, her age didn’t match either. "Sister, how could you end up in a place like this? Do you even know where you are?"
"What place is this?"
"A dungeon. I'm in a dungeon."
"This isn’t a dungeon; it’s a Cellar where they store food and keep sweet potatoes fresh."
"Cellar! How did I not know that?" Foolish me—I had never seen a Cellar before and mistook it for a dungeon. I silently laughed at myself, feeling embarrassed.
At that moment, Yu seemed in no hurry to leave. She stood at the window pointing me in the right direction: "You should backtrack; there should be an exit behind you." Hearing her words was like a light bulb going off in my head—the strange person had entered from behind! I thought I had made a mistake.
I turned and ran toward the back when suddenly I jolted awake. Damn! I was still in the Cellar; no one was at the window anymore. Looking outside through the window revealed an eerie sense of mystery that felt long forgotten. Decayed Village was preparing for the Happy Event, along with the crying bride from my earlier dream.
I stood up and reached out to touch the wall. It was made of mud, and as I brushed my hand against it, my fingers were covered in gray dust. Perhaps it was due to the dream, but I firmly believed that there should be another exit besides the window. I persisted, feeling my way inch by inch.
Finally, I found a flaw and pushed hard against it.
With a creaking sound, a door disguised as part of the mud wall opened.
In my urgent search for Qin Jian and Bone Jade, I couldn't afford to hesitate any longer. It was time to loosen my muscles and escape through the door. Outside was pitch black, and in the distance, I could hear the sounds of Rooster Crowing and Dog Barking, along with drums and music. I ran blindly, stumbling as I went. Strangely enough, no matter how fast I ran, I could never seem to break free; it felt like I was trapped in a circle, starting from one point and inevitably returning to where I began.
Exhausted, I collapsed onto the ground.
My mind was filled with thoughts of Qin Shuying's braised meat. If I got caught, would they cook me up for dinner? No, I absolutely couldn't let them find me. I had to quickly find a place to hide. Looking around, everything was shrouded in darkness until suddenly my gaze locked onto a moving beam of light.
Rather than being a moving light, it seemed to be seeping from a house somewhere, visible through countless leaves of plants that I had stumbled upon. Cold and tired, what I needed most right now was a warm place where I could rest peacefully for a while before gathering my strength to plan how to escape from Decayed Village.
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