Xishuangbanna Valley of Horrors

Chapter 23

It was that thing from the nightmare that had been haunting me for the past four years—the grinning Buddha statue!

For the past four years, that grinning Buddha statue has been a constant presence in my dreams, an image that I can't shake off, which has only fueled my growing aversion and fear of it. Now, seeing these things covering the entire mountainside and walls, I suddenly feel a surge of unease and panic.

Section 190: Thirteen Pitfalls of Resentment (14)

I said to Su Yan, trembling, "They're just paintings, don't... don't worry about them, let's go." Then I reached out to pull her up.

With our hearts pounding wildly, we ran uphill and soon spotted light. Undoubtedly, the exit of the stone path led to the top of this cliff. We emerged from the path as if we'd crawled out of a cellar.

The scene outside the stone path was truly breathtaking. A silent crescent moon hung on the distant mountainside, its soft, watery light illuminating the surroundings. All around us were trees and weeds, their outlines indistinct, rustling softly in the wind… Ah, exactly as I had imagined the exit!

I was overjoyed. It seemed I had escaped alive! Now, all I had to do was find the mountain path down the cliff to my car, and I could go back first thing tomorrow morning! What made me even happier was that Su Yan was with me! Haha! What a perfect ending!

Suddenly, I forgot about Ye Min completely.

After a moment of delight, I noticed even more the rugged stone path inside the mountain: it did not end when I reached the exit, but instead, it extended all the way out of the cliff and into the dark forest in the distance.

The road down the mountain?

It seems so! I was overjoyed! Haha! Even the Yellow River has its day of clear water, so how can a person never have their lucky day?! This way, we don't even have to spend time looking for the way down the mountain! I was still happy when Su Yan took my hand and said anxiously, "Let's follow this path!" She checked the time and urged me on.

"Of course!" I exclaimed, overjoyed, and then followed her along the winding stone path, running happily. But then, in my excitement, I suddenly remembered something, and my running steps stopped, the smile fading from my face. Su Yan, who had been holding my hand, let my sudden stop cause my hand to slip from hers. She stopped too, turning to look at me with a puzzled expression.

"W-what's wrong?"

With a pained expression, I whispered to her, "I didn't see your boyfriend the whole way... I'm sorry..." I had to say this, so that even without makeup, she would think I was more responsible and trustworthy.

She paused, stunned. "I don't have a boyfriend?"

"Huh?" This time I was stunned. "Then Lü Fang?"

"We're just friends," Su Yan said to me earnestly.

Section 191: Thirteen Pitfalls of Resentment (15)

I suddenly felt sorry for Lü Fang.

"Oh... I see... I misunderstood. Let's find them and come back in to find them after I get you out safely." I never expected Su Yan to say that, and I was speechless for a moment, but I quickly realized what she meant.

I gave a simple "hmm" and was about to continue walking when she unexpectedly asked me, "What about you and Sister Ye Min?"

"Huh? Ye Min?" I suddenly remembered her name, as if I hadn't heard it in over ten years. Right, Ye Min. Hearing Su Yan ask, I could only feign nonchalance and say, "We...we're just colleagues, what's wrong?"

Su Yan seemed a little incredulous: "Really? Then how come you and her..."

"What? We're very close, that's why we're so intimate," I insisted.

Upon hearing what I said, Su Yan immediately broke into a mischievous and adorable smile: "Then let's keep going."

After this conversation, I feel... this girl, Su Yan, seems to have quite a bit of a crush on me too... She and Lü Fang are clearly a couple, so now that she's said this... isn't that obviously giving me a chance...? If not... then what is it?

I was secretly delighted, hehehehehe...

But before I could even feel smug, my smile froze.

We were supposed to follow this narrow path down to the foot of the mountain, but the winding stone path suddenly disappeared. I realized we hadn't reached the foot of the mountain, and what I saw at the end of the path filled me with doubt.

What place is this?

As the stone path ended, another open space appeared before me. Unlike the open spaces behind Diaohu City Gate and Zhilei Temple, this place felt eerie and terrifying. The moonlight was bright, and although the open space was empty, it wasn't very large, so I could see everything, big and small, at a glance.

The heavy feeling that had been weighing on my heart suddenly resurfaced.

This seems to be...

Under the bright moonlight, I spotted a long, raised platform in the center of the clearing, resembling a coffin, as tall as a ten-year-old child. It sat there coldly and silently, nestled amidst the misty, rustling trees and the vast, gloomy night. I wanted to go and see, but after taking only two steps, I stopped—I noticed something else on either side of the clearing, between the platform and the trees.

Section 192: Thirteen Pitfalls of Resentment (16)

Centered on the long platform, there are many large, deep circular pits lined up on both sides, but that doesn't mean we can't see anything about them. We walked around and found that the deep pits on both sides formed a huge and strange shape around the platform, like the English letter "M".

The long platform is located right at the very top of the tail of this "M".

For some reason, this place gave me a sense of unease. I wanted to call Su Yan and leave quickly, but I found her standing in the middle of the letters, in front of the deep pit at the very top of the altar, staring intently downwards, completely absorbed. I found it strange; was there something wrong? So I ran over to see what was going on.

The wind whistled softly through the jungle...

As I passed the long platform in the middle of the open space, I took a quick glance at this thing: the platform was completely charred black, and I couldn't see anything on it. There was a small jar on the platform, and around the jar, there were a lot of hair and other things scattered around.

Suddenly, I was horrified to recall the blood-stained murals on the inner walls of the stone passage—an altar?!

This speculation sent chills down my spine. Could it be true?

While I was still unsure what to do, I had already reached Su Yan's side. Seeing her staring silently at the deep pit at her feet, I was a little puzzled: "What are you looking at?" I asked as I bent down and peeked in.

The pit was some distance from the ground, and I couldn't estimate its depth from this angle, but it didn't seem bottomless. The bottom was shimmering, likely due to years of being left like this, and the pit had likely accumulated water. I looked around but couldn't see anything amiss, which only deepened my confusion. "There's nothing there? What are you looking at?"

She only answered me after I asked her twice, even though she was talking, her eyes never left the bottom of the cave.

"These pits are actually a kind of prison, didn't you realize?"

A prison? Uh… that’s true, that’s possible. Digging a hole and throwing prisoners in… that’s not a bad way to imprison them, but… “Hey, how did you know that?”

Su Yan then turned her gaze away and said to me with a smile, "These are basic common sense tips, and we all keep them in mind."

What...what? What common sense? What basics? I was a little confused about what she meant. Just then, Su Yan suddenly covered her mouth with her hand, stared at the bottom of the pit, and exclaimed in surprise.

Section 193: Unexpected (1)

"ah!"

"What's wrong?! What is that?!" I hurriedly peeked out, but before I could finish speaking, I suddenly felt a strain on my back, and I stumbled. Before I could even shout, I fell to the ground.

This tactic is called distraction.

Meanwhile, in a clean but cramped stone chamber, a girl sat quietly on the ground, smiling, while in front of her was a pale, withered face dripping with black sewage.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Unexpected

As the figure drew closer, its true form gradually became apparent on the stone path through the forest—

Thin lips, well-defined features, sharp eyes, and long, flowing hair neatly styled into a bun on top of her head. Her brightly colored clothes were covered with strips of brightly colored cloth, which fluttered wildly around her like a mad dance of demons when the wind blew.

1 Awakening

2 bloodline

3 Origins

Chapter Twenty-Three: Unexpected

1 Awakening

"Ha, it's done."

Su Yan looked at Yang Feng, who had fallen into the pit-like prison and fainted, and clapped her hands happily. Then she walked back to the altar and began to tidy up the miscellaneous items on the altar, humming a song as she did so.

The melodious singing echoed through the dense forest on the cliff top, sounding so sweet and warm.

Su Yan busied herself excitedly for a while, unaware of something slowly appearing on the stone path in the woods in front of the altar—white clothes, a gaunt face…

here we go again.

The surrounding air suddenly changed, becoming increasingly cold and damp.

Su Yan sneezed, looked up, and found that the old ghost woman who had been following her was standing less than ten meters away, staring intently at her as she was busy working!

"Wow!"

Su Yan screamed, but immediately patted her chest and stuck out her tongue: "Wow, that's really scary! Here it comes!" she shouted at the ghost old woman.

The old hag then let out a series of terrifying, bell-like laughs, which rustled the leaves around her. After the laughter subsided, the old hag slowly disappeared. Then, a dark but familiar figure gradually appeared on the stone path.

Su Yan didn't stop what she was doing, and when she saw the figure, she smiled even more happily: "Sister, hurry up, hurry up."

Section 194: Unexpected (2)

As the figure drew closer, the true form of the figure on the stone path in the forest gradually became apparent—

Thin lips, well-defined features, sharp eyes, and long, flowing hair neatly styled into a bun on top of her head. Her brightly colored clothes were covered with strips of brightly colored cloth, which fluttered wildly around her like a mad dance of demons when the wind blew.

"Wow! Sis, you look absolutely gorgeous!" Su Yan clapped her hands and smiled, her eyes shining. "This is the first time I've ever seen you wear this robe!"

The person who came was Ye Min, who had been abandoned by Yang Feng in the small stone room.

However, she looks completely different from before.

Ye Min, who was usually stern and unsmiling, did not show any vanity in her smile when she heard Su Yan mention it. Instead, she quickly walked up to her and bluntly asked, "How did it go?"

Seeing Ye Min's fierce expression, Su Yan curled her lips in boredom, glanced at the deep pit behind her, and said, "Look, she's in there. It seems she wasn't very lucky and fell unconscious."

Ye Min then revealed a smile that seemed to be one of relief but was devoid of any warmth. "He's always had bad luck." After saying that, she turned around, took out a small cloth bag from her body, and handed it to Su Yan. "It's almost 1-3 AM. Let's get ready to begin."

As she spoke, her brow furrowed slightly, and her expression became extremely complex.

"Tick-tock—tick-tock—"

Water droplets splashed on my face, and after what seemed like an eternity, I awoke from my unconscious state.

My head throbbed with pain. After a while, I regained consciousness and realized I had fallen into that deep pit—or rather, that dungeon pit. The walls were covered in green moss and were soaking wet. I struggled to sit up, and in the dim light, I could glimpse a pale crescent moon overhead. I knew in my heart how far away it was. I hadn't expected to fall in; it was foolish, but undeniably true.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!"

Standing at the edge of this pit before, I had already estimated its approximate depth. Like the countless crimes committed by those hardened prisoners, it was unfathomable. Below, there was only despair, absolutely no hope. And now, that despair enveloped me tightly. Of course, this wasn't the only reason I couldn't breathe; she was also a factor.

Why did she do this to me?

Section 195: Unexpected (3)

I tried hard to recall everything that happened before I fainted, and something was wrong. Thinking back on the events before and after the fall, I was completely baffled, and filled with a burning hatred. Whatever her reason, I would make her pay!

I gently moved my arms and legs; it hurt, but I could still move them, thankfully! This gave me a sliver of relief; it seemed my arms and legs weren't broken or fractured, if I could still get out…

After struggling to my feet, I grabbed the wall and began to assess my situation. Now, at the bottom of the pit, I could see clearly that the deep dungeon I had fallen into was at least five meters below the ground. Its shape was quite irregular, almost circular. It had just rained and was flooded, making escape a pipe dream.

That's true. Such a stupid question should have been solved by the rulers of that time thousands of years ago... If you could just crawl out, there would be no need to build these dungeons, which are practically useless.

I gave a wry smile.

The feeling of leaning against the wall was strange; there seemed to be something unusual about it. However, because it was dark and had rained, the surroundings were not only damp but also extremely gloomy. Without thinking much of it, I brought my face closer to take a better look. Upon closer inspection, my breathing instantly became unusually heavy and rapid. There were clearly scratch marks on the wall!

Clearly, it was man-made.

Realizing it was caused by human fingernails, the wall before me instantly became clear. Countless shocking scratches, imbued with heavy resentment, were deeply embedded in the wall. Touching them sent a chilling, desperate fear coursing through my body. I suddenly understood that she was right; these pits were indeed prison-like facilities used to hold criminals long, long ago. It wasn't hard to imagine how profound the despair etched on the walls of these pits must have been.

Touching the marks of struggle, looking at them, I felt dizzy. The densely packed scratches in the cramped space were already suffocating me, and then my sense of smell returned, bringing with it a cacophony of strange, pungent odors that nearly made me gasp for air. My thoughts began to race, and my consciousness started to blur…

Wait...wait! What is this?!