Пьяные облака, слегка спящая луна

Глава 9

"If they sealed his primordial spirit, and only allowed his three souls and seven spirits to be reincarnated..."

"You mean his spirit is here, in this house?" Zheng Qi interrupted him hastily.

"Yes, right here, that's right. No matter how many times he reincarnates, his three souls and seven spirits will always seek out his primordial spirit and stay with him. Now that he has returned here, his primordial spirit has sensed his three souls and seven spirits, so he can remember everything here!"

Zheng Qi was stunned by Mo Han's words. After a long while, he asked again:

"So, according to this logic, he must have known the poems on the wall five hundred years ago."

“Yes! Maybe he carved it himself five hundred years ago!” Mo Han smiled at Zheng Qi as she said this.

Zheng Qi's face grew increasingly gloomy. Mo Han knew this was not the time for jokes, so she calmly offered her opinion:

“I examined the inscriptions closely. They were carved with the sharpness of a sword, so they must have been done by a martial artist. As for the plaster, I suspect that some people deliberately covered it up to prevent us from knowing about the poems carved on the wall for some reason.”

Hearing this, Zheng Qi couldn't help but touch the spirit pearl on his chest, a wave of indescribable sorrow washing over him. He sighed inwardly, "Spirit pearl, spirit pearl, what should I do?"

Under the moonlight, everything before him was so peaceful and serene. Ling Bing and the others were already fast asleep. Tomorrow, who knew what kind of scene awaited them? At this moment, Zheng Qi felt an indescribable sense of oppression and pain. If Ling Bing was really as Mo Han said, then he was truly at a loss!

Another night passed, and as dawn broke in the east, everyone woke up.

Looking around, I was relieved to see that everyone was there.

After a full night's rest and adjustment, and with Yu Xue having cleaned the dust off his face and brushed the dirt off his sleeves, Ling Bing looked more energetic and refreshed. However, his eyes remained blank and lifeless as he sat there staring blankly at the ground, ignoring anyone who spoke to him.

Zheng Qi glanced at him and instructed Yu Xue and the others not to disturb him for the time being, to let him stay alone quietly. Upon hearing Zheng Qi's words, Yu Xue looked at Ling Bing, who was expressionless and seemed like a fool, and couldn't help but start to cry softly. Meng'er saw this and quickly stepped forward to comfort her. Seeing Ling Bing's distraught appearance, and then being soothed by Yu Xue's crying, everyone's slightly relieved mood couldn't help but become heavy again.

Ye Feng, with a look of fear on his face, pulled Zheng Qi aside:

"Uncle Gu hasn't come back yet, what do you suggest we do?"

Zheng Qi pondered for a moment and said:

"Don't panic. We don't know the exact situation of Uncle Gu yet. I'll go out and find out later."

Ye Feng lowered his head and thought for a moment, then said:

"Alright, so what about us? What should we do now?"

"Given the current situation, we should refrain from making any rash moves. Let's all stay here and wait for Mayor Wanggen and his team to come and rescue us."

"When will we have to wait?" Ye Feng asked anxiously.

"I don't know either. There's no other way but to wait!"

Zheng Qi sighed and looked up at the sky. Ye Feng looked at him and thought that Zheng Qi was right. What else could they do besides waiting for Mayor Wanggen and the others to come to their rescue?

"What about Ling Bing? Is he... is he possessed by a ghost?"

Ye Feng lowered his head and mumbled softly. This problem had troubled him all night, and he felt really frustrated right now.

Zheng Qi glanced at Ye Feng's flustered and slightly pale face, then looked back at Ling Bing. Ling Bing's matter couldn't be discussed yet. Whether he was a descendant of the World Lord or not, it couldn't be revealed until things were clear. Otherwise, it would cause panic among everyone. Besides, this was merely speculation between him and Mo Han. If it were revealed now, it might complicate matters further, making things difficult to manage. Everything could only be dealt with one step at a time; it absolutely couldn't be brought up unless absolutely necessary. Thinking this, he patted Ye Feng's shoulder reassuringly.

"Ling Bing is temporarily disoriented due to fear, but she'll be fine in a while, so don't worry about it!"

Although Ye Feng was skeptical of Zheng Qi's words, seeing Zheng Qi's attitude, he felt embarrassed to say anything more. So he gave a stiff smile and went along with Zheng Qi's suggestion:

"That's good, then we won't think about it anymore!"

Everyone had only eaten something at noon yesterday, and it was Ye Feng and his team's terribly shoddy cooking. They had been starving for almost 20 hours, so when they woke up this morning, they all felt dizzy and weak. They looked at Zheng Qi with embarrassed expressions, their lips twitching, and none of them dared to bring up the issue.

Zheng Qi looked at everyone's pale and listless faces, and then thought about himself. He felt that he was also a little weak. So he instructed Mo Han and Ye Feng to keep an eye on Meng'er, Yu Xue, Ling Bing and the other two, while he, Cheng Jin and Li Fan went outside to find something to eat and also to look for Uncle Gu.

Before long, Zheng Qi and Cheng Jin returned with some wild fruits from the mountains in their arms.

"I don't have Uncle Gu's skills, I can only pick some wild fruits, you guys just have to make do with these!" Cheng Jin scratched his head, blushing as he said to Ye Feng and the others.

When Meng'er and the others saw Cheng Jin's shy expression, they couldn't help but laugh.

"Hunting pheasants is too much trouble, and besides, we don't have the skills. Let's just make do with some wild fruit for now and fill our stomachs!" Zheng Qi said, a little embarrassed.

"It's alright, as long as there's something to eat, that's enough. I can't even pick wild fruit myself! Anyway, this is much tastier than Ye Feng's roasted pheasant yesterday!" Meng'er quickly comforted Zheng Qi and Cheng Jin, and then gave Ye Feng a nudge. Ye Feng was embarrassed by Meng'er's teasing and lowered his head in embarrassment.

Upon seeing this, Zheng Qi grinned, and the previously oppressive atmosphere immediately eased considerably.

To be honest, given the current situation, nobody really cares about what to eat. As long as they can fill their stomachs, that's enough. The key question is when they can leave this haunted house. That's what everyone is really concerned about.

Ye Feng quietly tugged at Zheng Qi's sleeve and asked, "Have you found Uncle Gu yet?"

Zheng Qi shook his head with a solemn expression. Ye Feng's heart sank. It seemed that Old Gu had indeed disappeared.

The group picked up wild fruits and ate them in twos and threes. Yu Xue took a fruit and came to Ling Bing:

"Ling Bing, have something to eat. Are you hungry?"

Ling Bing neither accepted the wild fruit nor answered Yu Xue's question, remaining seated motionless with her head down.

"Ling Bing, please say something! Eat something, I'm begging you, okay?"

Yu Xue pleaded with Ling Bing through her tears. But Ling Bing remained blank and unmoved.

"Yu Xue, forget it, let Ling Bing stay here by herself!" Zheng Qi came over and advised.

"But..." Yu Xue hesitated, unable to bear seeing Ling Bing continue to torment herself like this.

"Ling Bing is alright, don't worry, she'll be fine in a bit!" Zheng Qi comforted Yu Xue. At this moment, he didn't know when Ling Bing would recover, or perhaps she would never recover. But no matter what, this was all he could say to Yu Xue, and this was all he could say to comfort everyone's fearful and uneasy hearts.

Just as everyone was halfway through their meal, Ye Feng suddenly felt like someone was missing and shouted at Zheng Qi:

"Where's Li Fan? Why didn't he come back with you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zheng Qi stopped eating the wild fruit, startled, and looked at Cheng Jin, then at Ye Feng and the others, saying:

"I ran into Cheng Jin at the gate of the house. The three of us split up to pick the fruit. I thought that way we could pick more quickly. I thought Li Fan would be back soon!"

"No, he hasn't come back yet!"

Everyone put down the wild fruit they were holding, no one had the appetite to eat anymore, and they couldn't help but worry about Li Fan.

Zheng Qi couldn't help but blame himself for being too careless, so he frowned and said:

"You all wait here and don't go anywhere. Mo Han, take good care of them. I'll go outside and look for them!"

After saying that, he casually threw away the fruit, stood up, and strode towards the gate of the house.

"Be careful!" Mo Han shouted at Zheng Qiyuan's retreating figure, a vague feeling creeping into his heart that something was starting to go wrong.

Time passed slowly, the sun was high in the sky, and it was almost noon, but there was still no sign of Li Fan, and now even Zheng Qi was nowhere to be seen. Ye Feng couldn't help but feel anxious for Zheng Qi and the others. What would he do if something really happened to Zheng Qi? Meng'er and Ling Bing were either weak or sick, and Cheng Jin was like a child, unable to help him at all. And Mo Han—whether he was friend or foe was still unclear. However, it seemed that Zheng Qi trusted him quite a bit, entrusting him with taking care of them when Zheng Qi was away. It seemed he could be trusted, but who could know if this seemingly aloof and cold guy had bewitched Zheng Qi? After all, they had only known him for two or three days. Thinking of this, he felt both fear and anxiety. When they saw Zheng Qi's figure appear at the gate, everyone, including Mo Han, breathed a sigh of relief. Only Ling Bing remained in a daze, completely oblivious to what was happening before her eyes.

But when they saw that only Zheng Qi had returned, everyone's heart sank.

Ye Feng, with a disappointed look but still somewhat unwilling, asked:

"So, have you found Li Fan yet?"

Zheng Qi shook his head weakly, his face filled with exhaustion and sorrow, his eyes bloodshot and faintly stained with tears. Ye Feng thought to himself, "Zheng Qi has been running around all morning, it must have been tough for him. Add to that the uproar over Li Fan's disappearance, anyone would feel terrible in that situation. Even the toughest man couldn't withstand that kind of ordeal!" Seeing his haggard and sorrowful face, Ye Feng felt a pang of sadness.

Seeing Zheng Qi return alone and dejected, everyone felt a pang of pain in their hearts. Meng'er and Yu Xue were already sobbing softly.

Two days ago, four of the eleven people who came together had already disappeared right before their eyes. If the first three missing people were from their own Guhua Town, they could at least feel a little relieved, since they were just three people they had just met as guides, and it didn't seem to have much to do with them. But now, their classmate and close friend Li Fan, with whom they had lived for so long, had disappeared. This was a truly devastating blow to them. From Ling Bing's madness to Li Fan's disappearance, they wondered who would suffer the next misfortune. At this moment, everyone began to feel uneasy and restless.

The weather was getting hotter and hotter. It was past noon, and the sun was blazing down on the ground, the sunlight almost blinding. The house was already spacious and well-ventilated, and its location nestled in a mountain valley made it even cooler and more shady. Now, this series of unexplained blows had filled everyone in the house with unease and fear, as if terror was creeping closer every second, and a strange chill was slowly seeping into their surroundings.

Yu Xue sat silently next to Ling Bing, with Meng'er beside her. At this moment, the two of them had stopped crying and sat there lost in their own thoughts.

Yu Xue looked at Ling Bing with tears in her eyes. He seemed like a completely different person in just two short days. She wondered if he would ever get better. He looked like a precious jade that had lost its magic jade, so silly and dull. What should she do in the future?

Meng'er sighed and inwardly berated herself for being nosy. She shouldn't have suggested exploring this dilapidated house. Now look what's happened—Ling Bing has gone mad, Li Fan has disappeared, and who knows what will happen next? All of this was caused by her curiosity, and Meng'er felt an intense hatred for herself.

Ye Feng sat down and stood up again, thinking that what was done was done and there was no point in doing anything about it. The key issue now was to get out of here as soon as possible, but why hadn't Mayor Wanggen and the others come to rescue them yet? Were they really going to just ignore this group for the past two or three days? Could it be that all of this was premeditated? Thinking about this, he felt even more agitated and uneasy.

Cheng Jin picked up a twig and started drawing lines on the ground haphazardly. At that moment, he decided to leave everything to fate!

Zheng Qi gave Mo Han a wink, and Mo Han understood. She and Zheng Qi quietly slipped away from the crowd and went to the small garden behind the hall.

"I found Li Fan's body in the bushes not far from this house!"

Zheng Qi said in a hoarse voice, with tears glistening in his eyes.

Mo Han was taken aback and looked up at him abruptly. Had they already begun their operation?

"How did Li Fan die? Were there any wounds on his body?"

Mo Han quickly calmed himself down and pressed for an answer. If they could find any clues on Li Fan's corpse, it might actually help them eliminate this monster.

"No!" Zheng Qi lowered his head and said quickly.

"Have you checked carefully? Is there nothing there?" Mo Han asked seriously, somewhat unwilling to give up.

Seeing Zheng Qi immersed in grief, Mo Han didn't want to press him further, as it was indeed difficult for Zheng Qi to bear. However, this matter concerned the safety of everyone still alive in the house, and he couldn't ignore the bigger picture at the moment.

How could Zheng Qi not know Mo Han's thoughts? But his lively and cheerful classmate, who had come with him, was now a cold corpse, forever separated by life and death. How could he analyze the situation as calmly and rationally as Mo Han?

"He's been dead for two or three days!" After a long pause, Zheng Qi suddenly blurted out these words with grief and indignation.

"What? What did you say?"

Mo Han's eyes widened, and the veins on his forehead bulged. He grabbed Zheng Qi's collar and asked urgently.

"His body had already begun to decompose, and he looked like he had been dead for almost two or three days."

Zheng Qi didn't want to recall what he had seen; he felt a little nauseous.

"You mean he died the day he arrived in Guhua Town, or that he was already dead before he came to this house?"

Zheng Qi nodded weakly, closed his eyes in pain, and a tear rolled down his cheek, shattering and scattering.

"So who have we been seeing these past few days? Could it be that he's possessed by a ghost?"

Zheng Qi shook his head. He really didn't know what was going on, and he couldn't explain it at the moment.

"Didn't your spirit pearl detect anything?"

"My spirit pearl has been burning brightly on and off all the way to Guhua Town. I thought it was just because the yin energy in Guhua Town was too heavy. Who would have thought..."

At this point, Zheng Qi couldn't help but feel remorse. If he had noticed sooner, perhaps Li Fan wouldn't have been killed by the demon and possessed. For a moment, he hated himself for being so careless and forgetting his master's advice. He was filled with shame.

Seeing Zheng Qi's remorseful and sorrowful expression, Mo Han felt embarrassed to blame him. Gazing at the lush green weeds in the garden, he pondered, "Who is behind this? Could it be those two masked men? But who are they? What is their relationship with Ling Bing? If Ling Bing is truly the descendant of their Lord, then tonight, by uniting Ling Bing's past life's spirit with his present three souls and seven spirits, they are essentially resurrecting Ling Bing's past life? What kind of terrifying monster will we be facing? Could that monster's descendant really be Ling Bing?" Mo Han suddenly felt a heavy weight on his heart, a nameless fear beginning to gnaw at him.

"What do you plan to do next?" An indescribable grief slowly tightened in Zheng Qi's heart. At this moment, pain, hatred, and anger were urgently intertwined in his heart.

"I think they killed Li Fan and possessed him in order to find out our whereabouts and gather information about us. Today is July 14th, and there are less than 12 hours left until Li Ziye. They should have already started their operation."

"And what about us? Are we just going to sit here and wait to be killed one by one?"

Zheng Qi could hardly suppress the resentment in his heart.

"Calm down, I think we should find Ling Bing's primordial spirit as soon as possible!"