Chapter 1 Nightmare

Ripping open the bright red wedding gown, Yao Shunyu was so shocked by the scene before him that he couldn't speak. Two small handprints had surfaced on the man's stomach, pressing outward with all their might, even tearing the skin. Blood and foam spewed from the man's mouth and nose, his body convulsing in agony. It was a horrifying sight.

Ordinary babies wouldn't be so fierce. What kind of monster was this?

A ghost fetus?

This couldn't help but remind Yao Shunyu of the resentful infant they had encountered during the Marquis of False Words mission. But the resentful infant was formless and immaterial. This ghostly thing before him was clearly not. The most urgent matter was that if he continued to let it be, it would probably burst out of the man's body soon.

When that happened, not only would the man die, but he himself would probably be unable to save his own life.

Kill me, kill me...

The man's hands clutched desperately at his stomach, which was about to be torn open. His bloodshot eyes stared fixedly at Yao Shunyu, his mouth opening and closing rapidly.

But an even more terrifying scene unfolded at that moment. The laughter of a child echoed from the man's throat.

The laughter grew sharper, like a pair of scissors constantly tormenting Yao Shunyu's heartstrings. Even blocking his ears was useless.

"Creak—"

Yao Shunyu, his eyes bloodshot, immediately turned around. He heard it, he heard the sound of a door being pushed open, right behind him!

Judging from the sound, it was a very old wooden door, so old that even the doorjambs had rotted. But clearly… clearly the door behind him hadn't moved!

In the next second, a horrifying thought seized his mind. It was… it was the painting in the hall!

The door in the painting was being pushed open!

The temple gate of that wild temple.

Countless complex thoughts flooded his mind. He had never been so at a loss as he was now. All sorts of voices kept ringing in his ears, Jiang Cheng, Li Bai, and Wang Fugui…

"Shut up! All of you shut up!" Yao Shunyu forced himself to calm down. "It's all fake, it's all an illusion!"

The man's struggles grew weaker and weaker, only twitching every few seconds. The light in his eyes was fading little by little. Yao Shunyu gritted his teeth, picked up the stone, and said, "Brother, bear with it, I'll send you on your way!"

He brought the stone down, and blood splattered into Yao Shunyu's eyes, dyeing the world before him a blood red.

Once, and again, Yao Shunyu seemed to descend into madness as he smelled the scent of blood.

He didn't know how many times he struck. In any case, the man soon stopped moving, and the man's body calmed down after he completely lost his vitality.

In the final moments, Yao Shunyu seemed to hear a shrill scream. He only cared about smashing the man's head over and over again, smashing it to a pulp. He couldn't be sure if the scream was an illusion or if it was real.

After everything had settled, Yao Shunyu dropped the stone, took a few steps back, and then collapsed to the ground.

He gasped for breath, as if he had just crawled back from the gates of hell. After catching his breath, he wiped his face a couple of times and stumbled towards the outside.

This was no place to stay for long, and besides, Li Bai and Li Maochun were still waiting for him at the foot of the mountain.

He had to tell Li Bai what had happened to him here. Killing and arson are a golden path, but it didn't mean there were no dangers.

Just as he stepped out of the wooden house, Yao Shunyu suddenly felt a chill for no reason. He turned his head sharply, only to see that the painting on the wall had changed again. The half-open temple gate was now two-thirds open, and a pitch-black, fat, giant hand stretched out from inside, grabbing onto the doorframe.

Yao Shunyu ran as fast as his legs could carry him, never daring to look back, until he reached the foot of the mountain, where Li Bai and Li Maochun had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing Yao Shunyu's distraught appearance, Li Bai frowned inwardly. This was not in line with what they had thought earlier.

After hearing Yao Shunyu's account, Li Maochun was even more frightened and couldn't speak properly, his whole body trembling like a sieve. "There's… there's a ghost in the painting? There's also a ghost in the man's body? Mother, how can we possibly survive this!"

At this moment, Yao Shunyu took the water bag that Li Bai brought and took a few big gulps of cold water, and only then did he slowly calm down.

Li Bai gave Yao Shunyu a look, and the latter understood. Li Bai hadn't discovered any problems with Li Maochun during this time.

"There is a way to survive, but remember, just do your best to complete the tasks assigned by the villagers, don't go looking for trouble, and don't be a busybody." Yao Shunyu warned based on his own experience. Originally, in the end, Yao Shunyu had the idea of cutting open the man's body to take a look, but he forcibly suppressed it.

Yao Shunyu's mission was over, and next, it was Li Bai's turn.

The group walked through the muddy path and returned to the village. It was quiet along the way, and the surroundings were shrouded in a gray light. The night here seemed like another world.

People like Li Bai and Yao Shunyu were already used to it, but Li Maochun was very uncomfortable. Yao Shunyu walked at the back, constantly observing. Li Maochun's steps were unsteady, looking extremely frightened, and it seemed like he hadn't received any training.

"We're here."

Li Bai, who was walking in the front, stopped. Standing before the three of them was an old residence. The courtyard was very old, and it looked like it hadn't been cleaned for a long time. An entire wall was covered with plants.

The surrounding walls were relatively high, and it was night, so they couldn't see the scenery inside for the time being.

"You guys stay away and wait for me. I'll come find you after I come out."

After leaving those words, Li Bai walked towards the dilapidated old courtyard. She didn't rush in, but first walked around the courtyard.

The courtyard was square and very regular. Moreover, whether it was in terms of area or scale, it was one of the best in Heishui Village. From this, it could be inferred that the family who once lived here had an unusual status in the village.

The first thing Li Bai thought of was the mysterious village chief of Heishui Village. Moreover, according to the villagers' unintentional revelations, the house in front of them was very evil, which was why they wanted to burn it down.

While circling around, she finally arrived at the gate of the residence. She gently pushed it with her hand, and the heavy, dark courtyard door opened to the back. Even though she had already prepared herself mentally, the scene that appeared before her still made Li Bai shudder.

The courtyard was very large and very empty. There was only one relatively large house in the center. The house was pitch black, not because of the night, but because it was this color by itself.

This was a rare stone house in the village. The reason why it was black was entirely because the house had been burned in a fire, and it could be seen that it was a very rapid and fierce fire, and cracks had been burned into the walls.

However, what was strange was that the doors and windows of this stone house were still there, and they were relatively new, forming a sharp contrast with the burnt black walls.