Stranger Danger

Thanks to Six Fingers’ deadly demonstration, they were able to figure out the true danger that lurked within the paddy field. Even so, the trio did not dare to relax in the slightest as they slowly and carefully made their way toward the outskirts, all the while avoiding the scarecrows just in case they decided to come to life or something.

Thankfully, nothing bad happened. An hour later, the trio finally left the paddy field and arrived at a small path.

Upon arriving at the exit, the trio turned around and stared at the paddy field surrounding the small path on both sides for a moment. The paddy field stretched from end to end, the wheat shone like gleaming gold, and the scarecrows stood out like stars in the night sky. The scenery only looked even more gorgeous when a wind blew across the paddy field and caused the wheat to ripple like a golden sea.

This would’ve been a scenery to remember if they hadn’t witnessed Six Fingers’ transformation into a scarecrow.

Well, that wasn’t quite accurate. It was a scenery they would remember until they reached the end of their lifespan—just one that struck fear into their very heart and soul.

A short while later, Shangguan Hongjin finally looked away and gazed into the distance. “There’s a village up ahead. Do you guys want to check it out?”

“Why not? Lead the way.”

Ye Qing had spotted it as well. The village looked blurry from where they were because it was covered by a layer of mist.

The small path led straight to the village. With their speed, it took them almost no time to reach it.

The village was located before a cluster of small, green hills and surrounded by a river. It looked beautiful, peaceful, and tranquil. Unfortunately, it was also abandoned as evident from the dilapidated houses and overgrown weed surrounding the place.

“This village is surrounded by waters that looked like a blue dragon conferring a blessing upon it, and its rear is covered by a cluster of hills like a man sleeping on a bed of gold and jade. Even the air flows smoothly and vigorously. This is the type of place you want to build a home at!”

Pedant Earth could not help but praise when he saw the village, “The villagers must have had strong bodies and excellent relationships with their friends, family, and neighbors. They must have been blessed with good luck and a longer-than-average lifespan as well. Truly, this is a most auspicious place!”

“Perhaps, but it’s still abandoned in the end,” Shangguan Hongjin remarked before stepping toward the village.

Pedant Earth did not take her deflating comment to heart. He was too caught up in excitement and interest to be offended right now.

The village’s state of disrepair grew even more obvious after they passed through the gates. Everywhere they looked, there was only rubble, weed, and more rubble.

The village was pretty huge and laid out in an organized manner. Back in its prime, it must have been flourishing and full of people. The paddy field they just left must have belonged to the villagers as well. Considering the excellent fengshui of this village and the kind of food they ate, it was only natural that the villagers enjoyed a long, happy, and peaceful life.

Unfortunately, that was all in the past. Now, not a single soul lives in this place anymore.

“This village really had—has—excellent fengshui. What a shame! What a shame!”

Pedant Earth could not stop shaking his head. “Does anyone care to venture a guess why the village was abandoned? And where did you think the villagers disappeared to?”

“They’re probably dead,” Ye Qing answered after a moment of silence.

“Dead? And how would you know?” Pedant Earth looked surprised.

Ye Qing walked up to a pile of rubble and stomped the ground lightly. The rubble collapsed, and old, yellowish bones were exposed under the sunlight.

“This is the proof.”

“So, you’re saying that these bones belong to the villagers?” Shangguan Hongjin asked.

“Yes, but not all of them.” Ye Qing said slowly as he examined the pile of dead bones. “Some of these bones might belong to outsiders.”

“If you look at some of the collapsed houses, you might notice that they haven’t collapsed naturally. It looked like they were destroyed in a fight. See this? That’s obviously a blade mark.”

“Of course, there is the possibility that a civil war had broken out, and the villagers had killed one another. I don’t think it’s very likely though.”

Shangguan Hongjin nodded. “I agree. Some of these bones have spiritual qi in them. It’s clear that they were powerful warriors when they were still alive.”

Suddenly, Pedant Earth spotted a golden skull amidst the ruins and exclaimed in surprise, “Wait a second… this is a Buddhist’s Golden Lapis Lazuli Bone!”

The skull was as resplendent as gold and crystal clear like lapis lazuli. Not even the dirty soil it was buried in could cover up its splendor.

When a Buddhist monk had cultivated their body to a certain extent and forged a golden body of Buddha, their bones would transform into the so-called Golden Lapis Lazuli Bone. Without exception, any Buddhist monk who successfully forged a golden body and transformed their bones into lapis lapis lazuli was an enlightened monk.

Therefore, the owner of this Golden Lapis Lazuli Bone must have been quite powerful when he was still alive.

“Is that… a Dustless Jade Bone?!”

It was at this moment Pedant Earth dug out another bone. It was a hand bone, and it was smooth, flawless, and cold like actual jade.

When a Taoist warrior had reached a certain level, their body would become free of all impurities, and their bones would take on a jade-like quality. That was what they called the Dustless Hade Bone. It was pure and naturally resistant toward most Stranger powers.

“First, an enlightened Buddhist’s bone, now an enlightened Taoist’s bone…?” Ye Qing rubbed his nose thoughtfully.

Boom!

Suddenly, a loud boom interrupted his train of thoughts. When he looked, he saw Shangguan Hongjing blowing a pile of rubble and the bones within it away with a palm strike. When the dust settled, he saw a broken sword.

The broken sword was covered in blood and emanating a terrifying killing intent. As soon as it appeared, its killing intent crushed the dead bones still flying through the air into fine powder.

Shangguan Hongjin extended an arm, and the broken sword flew into her hand. As soon as she grasped its hilt, the sword began ringing and shaking violently as if it was trying to struggle free, the sword qi it unleashed drawing deep marks on the ground.

Unfortunately, it was unable to break out of Shangguan Hongjin’s grasp no matter what it tried. Eventually, it settled down.

“You’ve found quite the treasure, Miss Shangguan. Its sentience is still present, and it is overflowing with sword qi.”

Pedant Earth moved closer to Shangguan Hongjin with bright, curious eyes. “Hmm, it looks like this sword was forged using Taibai Gengjin Metal. It’s definitely a Phenomenon-class Strange Artifact—an outstanding one no less—before it broke.”

“A shame. If it wasn’t broken, it could have been upgraded into a Disaster-class Strange Artifact.”

“A shame. A shame.”

Pedant Earth was proving that he was an expert tomb raider without even knowing it. He had more or less identified the material and the class of the broken sword in one glance.

“This is mine.”

Shangguan Hongjin ignored the covetous look in Pedant Earth’s eyes and threw the broken sword into her Nature’s Shell.

“Please don’t misunderstand, Miss Shangguan. I’m just—” Pedant Earth was going to explain himself when he was cut off by a sudden burst of energy. They both turned to look and saw Ye Qing stepping out of a half-collapsed building while carrying an oil lamp with one hand.

The oil lamp was black and rugged in appearance as if it was forged from stone. It was covered in oil stains and, at first glance, looked no different from an ordinary oil lamp.

Shangguan Hongjin and Pedant Earth could sense a strange, indescribable energy from it though. It was clear that it was anything but ordinary.

“It looks like a lot of treasures are buried in this village,” Ye Qing commented while staring at his new spoil.

Pedant Earth’s eyes lit up at the remark. Without hesitation, he dashed toward the nearest house.

Shangguan Hongjin also gave Ye Qing a nod before walking off in a different direction. She wasn’t stupid after all.

Ye Qing did not try to stop them. The entire reason they entered this place was to seek fortune after all, not to mention that they were strangers who got together purely for the sake of survival. He neither had the right nor the reason to stop them from seeking out their own fortune.

A few breaths later, Pedant Earth emerged from the house with a broken palm-leaf fan in his hand. Judging from the happy look on his face, it was clear that the fan was extraordinary despite its broken state. Ye Qing could tell that the fan had mysterious runes engraved on its surface, and it was constantly surrounded by a gust of yin wind. Its anomalous aura made it clear that it was some sort of Strange Artifact.

Having scored his first Strange Artifact, Pedant Earth did not hesitate to rush off toward another house. Meanwhile, Shangguan Hongjin walked out of her building with an impressive-looking stone mill in her hand.

Instead of scouring the place for treasure like Pedant Earth and Shangguan Hongjin, Ye Qing slowly made his way deeper into the village. He was also deep in thought.

So far, all the loot they obtained—barring the bones, of course—all looked like ordinary household items. They most likely belonged to the villagers.

Power and wealth come hand in hand. The villagers had been wealthy enough to occupy such an excellent location, own a ludicrously vast spirit paddy field, and even use Strange Artifacts as household items. Naturally, they must be powerful warriors in their own right.

Judging from the bones and the signs of battle, the villagers had most likely been killed by outsiders. This meant that the outsiders were even more powerful than them.

Unless he was gravely mistaken, the owners of the Golden Lapis Lazuli Bone and the Dustless Jade Bone most likely belonged to the outsiders.

This brought up a question. Why had these outsiders attacked and killed the villagers?

Was it because of vengeance?

Was it because of greed?

Or was it for something else?

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