When the car stopped, Luo Yan saw a murmuring stream. A small river flowed beneath a wooden bridge, and at the far end stood a stone archway bearing the words "Niushou Village."
They had arrived!
This was the third day since leaving Great Wall Base. Luo Yan had traveled day and night and finally reached his destination at noon.
He surveyed his surroundings. There was a flat stretch of grass beside the road. In spring, its lush green slopes would certainly have been refreshing.
But now, frost covered the grass, and the plants looked bleak.
It was the season when frost withered all vegetation. The meadow was utterly lifeless.
The river had not yet frozen over. Fish could occasionally be seen swimming beneath the surface, while things resembling river snails were faintly visible between the stones along the bank.
Luo Yan parked the car by the roadside. Clearly, this wooden bridge, which probably had not been used in who knew how long, could hardly withstand a vehicle crossing it.
He took the long sword Dragon Elephant from the car and slightly adjusted the Spirit Suit Sky Strike Ring on his finger before striding toward the bridge.
The moment he stepped onto it, the bridge creaked loudly. Still, it was fairly sturdy. Aside from several planks in the middle that had broken and rotted, the bridge remained largely intact.
At least it carried Luo Yan to the other side of the river. He passed beneath the stone archway, then spotted a corpse in a pile of grass beside the road.
The corpse wore a military overcoat and had clearly been dead for a long time. Only a skeleton remained. A lizard crawled out of one of its empty eye sockets, then quickly slipped into the collar.
"Luo Yan."
A crisp, lively