"A monster?" Hearing this, Liu Haiping couldn’t help but shrink her neck.
Yang Xiao sneered silently in his heart, this was clearly a performance the villagers put on for outsiders like them, playing good-cop-bad-cop. It might fool soone like Liu Haiping, but seasoned players like Cheng Cha, Tong Han, and Sui Chengguo remained unfazed. Tong Han just kept his head down and continued eating his porridge as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
Following the normal course of events, they should expect to be ensnared in a trap next.
However, to Yang Xiao’s slight surprise, the Du Family Patriarch didn’t explain further but instead gestured with his hands, urging them to finish their al and leave quickly, adding that it would be too late if they delayed.
The villagers below seed to hold great respect for the Patriarch; after he stated his position, though they were reluctant, not a single person dared to object.
After speaking, Patriarch Du left, walking alone towards the depths of the residence, his stooped figure looking incredibly forlorn. From beginning to end, Yang Xiao and the others hadn’t caught sight of the Patriarch’s daughter, who was supposedly troubled by the monster.
With the Patriarch gone, the onlooking villagers also dispersed, leaving only the dark-skinned man who had led them into the village. He occasionally pulled sothing from the cloth bag hanging on his body and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing incessantly like soone chewing betel nuts.
"The Patriarch has spoken, so it’s not good for us to keep you. Rest here awhile, and in half an hour, I’ll find soone to escort you out of the village. Head north once you leave the village, and after about an hour’s walk, you’ll co upon Mangjia Village," the dark-skinned man said as he chewed, his mouth full of the scent of herbs, a very strong odor.
Yang Xiao recalled that many in the village seed to have a habit of chewing this substance; quite a few of them had a similar sll about them.
"Big Brother Du, we saw a coffin by the river earlier; what was that about?" Tong Han asked sweetly, his expression as naive and innocent as could be.
Unexpectedly, the dark complexion on the man’s face furrowed, and his tone beca imdiately harsh, "Don’t ask what you shouldn’t. If you’re told to go, then go quickly. The Patriarch is kind-hearted and thinks of your well-being."
Having said that, and seemingly worried that Yang Xiao and the others would continue to pester him, the man with the surna Du also turned and left, leaving them with a ssage to rest up quickly, as they would be trekking through mountainous roads later.
With the man’s departure, the scene was left with just Yang Xiao and their group. They cautiously gathered together after a quick check of their surroundings, ensuring no one was eavesdropping. Unknowingly, Yang Xiao, Tong Han, Cheng Cha, and Sui Chengguo had beco the de facto leaders of their team.
"What do you all think?" asked Cheng Cha first.
"Sothing’s not right. At first, I thought those folks wanted to trap us, to do everything possible to keep us in the village. But Patriarch Du’s reaction was strange; he seems really eager to get rid of us," Sui Chengguo spoke in a hushed tone, his small eyes cautiously scanning around.
"Maybe it’s a deliberate act for us to see, or there’s so secret in the village they don’t want outsiders to know about," analyzed Tong Han.
Cheng Cha nodded, "Based on our past experiences, this Du Family Village should be the location for our mission, and this so-called monster is the Ghost."
After finishing, Cheng Cha turned to Yang Xiao and politely said, "Chu, do you have any thoughts?"
"Similar to yours, but I have an immature suggestion. It’s safer but also riskier; we need to divide our forces," Yang Xiao stated frankly.
Cheng Cha seed to have thought of it too and sighed slightly, "We’ll split into two groups: one will stay to investigate the monster in Du Family Village, and the other will leave for Mangjia Village to the north to gather information."
This plan wasn’t exactly good; after all, rashly dividing their forces before understanding the Ghost’s thod of killing ant the two groups would be out of touch, and that risked unforeseen events.
"I’ve calculated it, if we leave in half an hour, as long as we don’t delay too much on the way, we should be able to get back before it gets completely dark," said Yang Xiao directly.
All four of them were decisive people. After weighing the pros and cons, they decided that they had to go to Mangjia Village, after all, they couldn’t completely trust the words of just the Du Family Village, and the "Ghost carrying a coffin" from last night was definitely not normal–there must be big secrets hidden in Du Family Village.
Rembering the way the Du Family Villagers looked at them, Yang Xiao suspected that these people were coveting sothing they had, but he couldn’t say exactly what it was.
If it weren’t for the ancient setting, Yang Xiao would have even suspected that these people were organ traffickers, looking to make off with their kidneys, as apart from organs, it seed there was nothing else of value they possessed as they fled.
The team going on the journey needed to be physically strong, as a six-hour return trip on the mountain roads was no joke. Moreover, the mountain people were accustod to mountain roads, and one couldn’t generalize their pace; for them, three hours would most likely not be enough.
"I’ll go, who’s coming with ?" asked Sui Chengguo.
Yang Xiao had a good impression of this straightforward judo coach. He was rough but attentive to detail and would step up in the face of danger, not pushing the responsibility onto others, a valuable trait in Nightmare World.
Cheng Cha smiled, "Sui, I’ll go with you."
Yang Xiao and Tong Han inadvertently t each other’s eyes. Tong Han imdiately made her stance clear, "We can’t let you take all the risks, I’ll go with Sui."
She and Yang Xiao had to understand the full situation of both teams to prevent being deceived; the most prudent approach was to have one on each side. Yang Xiao was worried about Tong Han’s leg injury, but when their eyes t just now, Tong Han gave him a reassuring look.
Tong Han was not an impulsive person, so the matter was settled. Yang Xiao also suggested that Tong Han and Sui Chengguo take Quan Doufeng with them, pointing out that he was physically strong.
"How could soone who screens web content be in good physical shape?" Sui Chengguo glanced at Quan Doufeng squatting in the corner, clearly puzzled.
"That’s where you’re mistaken, Sui," Yang Xiao explained with a laugh, insisting that they take Quan Doufeng along, "These people are so energetic they hardly sleep at night. Just write sothing inappropriate and post it, and by 1 a.m. they’ll have it blocked imdiately. You tell if they are in good shape or not?"
It was settled in the end. The team going included Tong Han, Sui Chengguo, Quan Doufeng, and Lu Youcheng, four people in total. The remaining six had to figure out a way to stay behind.
There was no ti to lose, and to get permission to stay, they needed the Du Family Patriarch’s approval. Yang Xiao and Cheng Cha left the others waiting where they were and headed in the direction where the Du Family Patriarch had disappeared. They crossed through a courtyard and suddenly slled the scent of burning incense; soone was burning incense.
Following the fragrance, they arrived at a slightly dilapidated side yard where the paint on the wooden door was flaking, and a woman’s cry could be heard faintly from inside.
"What are you doing here!" Suddenly, a low growl ca from behind, startling both Yang Xiao and Cheng Cha. They quickly turned around. Yang Xiao imdiately assud a defensive stance, while Cheng Cha instinctively reached for his waist as he stepped back.
Not far away, the Du Family Patriarch was staring at them, his cheekbones protruding, his face so thin it was almost skin and bones, and at first glance, it was quite disturbing.
"Patriarch Du, we ca to find you. We talked it over, and so of us really want to stay. Please give us a way out," said Yang Xiao with a pained expression, appearing quite pitiful.
Cheng Cha fell to his knees with a "thump," tears and snot streaming down his face, "Patriarch, please take us in!"
Yang Xiao: "???"
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