West of Hua Country, Kunlun Mountain.
Outside Xueyin Valley.
Ye Ling, wearing a thin windbreaker, and Feng Ke, wrapped in a thick down jacket, stood in the wind and snow, looking at the valley ahead, which was covered by heavy snow.
This was the depths of the Kunlun Mountain range, perpetually snow-covered and rarely visited, with only occasional visits from snow wolves.
"This... is Xueyin Valley?"
Ye Ling looked at the valley buried by snow and couldn't help but ask Feng Ke.
Guided by Feng Ke, Ye Ling brought her here from Dao City, taking less than fifteen minutes.
Most of the time was spent on Feng Ke changing her clothes.
Feng Ke was also a bit dazed. She had just been in Dao City, and the next moment she was back in Kunlun Mountain. This almost instantaneous speed left her soul lingering in Dao City.
No wonder Ye Ling asked her to change clothes...
She had been wondering if Ye Ling wanted to torment her.
After a long while, Feng Ke came back to her senses and said to Ye Ling, "Xueyin Valley is sealed by heavy snow from time to time, and there is no way to enter."
"I didn't expect to be back so soon... I miscalculated the time."
She had originally planned to take a green-skinned train back to Kunlun and then hike into the mountains.
This way, their journey would take two days in total, just in time for the opening of Xueyin Valley.
But she didn't expect Ye Ling to be so fast, and her plan was completely disrupted.
"Sealed valley..."
Hearing Feng Ke's words, Ye Ling scanned the Xueyin Valley with his divine soul and found that the spiritual energy inside was extremely chaotic, and even space was distorted, making it unsuitable for entry.
Even if he could forcibly take Feng Ke into the valley, in that distorted space, Feng Ke would probably not be able to find Su Xue'er's notes.
Giving up the idea of forcing entry, Ye Ling asked Feng Ke, "When is the opening day?"
Feng Ke said, "In two days. Let's temporarily stay in a nearby small town for these two days. It's only fifty kilometers away, and I remember there's a small inn."
"Okay, that's fine."
Ye Ling nodded, agreeing to Feng Ke's suggestion, and led her towards the nearest small town.
...
At the foot of Kunlun Mountain, Fulong Town.
This was a remote town in western Hua Country, sparsely populated. The townspeople had lived here for generations, with little contact with the outside world.
Ten years ago, with the government's efforts, Fulong Town finally had a road.
The townspeople got electricity and internet, gradually integrating with modern society.
However, it was precisely because Fulong Town had a road that the young people in the town saw the prosperity of the outside world and all left Kunlun Mountain for larger towns.
In ten years, the number of young people in Fulong Town decreased, and today, only the elderly remained.
Perhaps in a few more years, when the elderly were all buried, Fulong Town would completely disappear from the river of history.
Feng Ke walked ahead of Ye Ling and pointed to the town not far away, saying, "That's Fulong Town I mentioned. Although there are few people in this town, the facilities are very complete, especially the Mountain Snow Hot Spring in the town, which is superb. I used to sneak out to soak in the hot springs here every time the valley opened."
"You must try it later!"
Ye Ling looked at the small town ahead and frowned slightly, "Something's wrong."
Seeing Ye Ling's expression, Feng Ke was stunned and stopped, asking in surprise, "What's wrong?"
Ye Ling said in a deep voice, "This town has too much death energy, and resentment fills the air above. It has become a place of great inauspiciousness."
"This place of inauspiciousness hasn't been formed for long. It's likely that a massacre occurred here a few days ago."
"Massacre?" Hearing Ye Ling's words, Feng Ke's expression changed instantly, and she rushed towards Fulong Town.
When she reached the entrance of the town and saw the empty town, a sense of foreboding arose in her heart.
"No, it can't be like this..."
Feng Ke panicked and quickly stepped into the town.
But before she could take two steps forward, the atmosphere of the town changed drastically!
The streets were adorned with lanterns and colorful streamers, and the streets were bustling with people, lively and extraordinary.
"This is?"
Seeing the townspeople in yukatas and slippers, with beaming smiles, Feng Ke was stunned, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Hot Spring Festival?
The Hot Spring Festival was a traditional festival unique to Fulong Town. For the people of Fulong Town, the Hot Spring Festival was as important as the Spring Festival.
On this day, every household would hang lanterns and colorful streamers, people would bathe and change, wear yukatas, and go to the Hidden Dragon Spring on the mountain to soak in the hot springs and worship the Kunlun God who had once slain the evil dragon.
However, since Fulong Town had a road and the entire town was connected to electricity and the internet, a large number of young people came into contact with the outside world and went out to explore, and the population of Fulong Town became smaller and smaller.
The town lacked young people and labor, and the Hot Spring Festival could not be held. This festival had been abandoned for many years.
But now...
Feng Ke looked at the lively town ahead, feeling extremely unreal.
She had only seen such a lively scene ten years ago!
Moreover, when she was outside the town just now, Fulong Town was clearly lifeless, completely different from its current liveliness.
"These are all dead people."
Ye Ling's voice sounded in Feng Ke's ear, startling her.
"Dead people?" Hearing Ye Ling's words, Feng Ke quickly looked at Ye Ling, "What exactly is going on?"
Ye Ling walked to Feng Ke's side, glanced at the townspeople ahead, and said, "Someone must have massacred all the townspeople of Fulong Town, and then performed some evil sacrificial ritual, imprisoning the souls of those townspeople here, blocking their memories, and forcibly creating a paradise."
"And that sacrificial ritual seems to be guided by bloodline. As long as they are townspeople of Fulong Town, no matter where they are in the world, their souls will be imprisoned here, which is why the town looks so lively."
"How could this happen..."
Feng Ke stared blankly at the lively gathering ahead, her body trembling slightly. She couldn't imagine how depraved someone would have to be to do such a thing!
"I want to avenge them! To set them free!"
Endless rage surged in Feng Ke's eyes, and she clenched her fists, about to rush in, but was pulled back by Ye Ling.
"The people who performed the ritual are not in this town. If you run around blindly, aren't you afraid of alerting the enemy?"
"But they!"
Feng Ke's eyes turned red, and she looked at Ye Ling with tears in her eyes, extremely sad. "I've been coming to this town to soak in hot springs since I was a child. Many uncles and aunts were very kind to me. They... they..."
Ye Ling sighed slightly, "No matter how sad you are, you must maintain basic rationality. Recklessness will only allow the culprit to escape justice and be meaningless."
"Their memories have been severed, and they don't realize they are dead. If you rush in like this, it will only cause them more pain."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Feng Ke also calmed down.
She said in a low voice, "I'm sorry... I was a bit impulsive."
Seeing that Feng Ke had calmed down, Ye Ling continued, "Since we have two days of free time, let's investigate this town thoroughly and uncover the hidden secrets behind it."
"When the murderer is punished, I will take care of the matter of transcending the townspeople."
Feng Ke nodded, then bit her lip tightly and looked up at Ye Ling.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Ling asked, full of confusion.
Feng Ke suddenly stepped forward and hugged Ye Ling!
Ye Ling was stunned, "You?"
Feng Ke: "Thank you..."