092. Draw Again

The following day, Lu Ban arrived at the villa area, a 30-minute drive from Jiangcheng University.

Although this area is called a villa district, there aren't many wealthy people actually living here. Most of the villas are either rented out or overgrown with weeds. At the end of the year, university students from Jiangcheng University often come here to rent villas for the day and stay up all night.

Of course, even so, the villas here are very expensive, beyond what Lu Ban can afford right now.

"If you want to play video games, the game room here has all kinds of consoles and several computers, so playing together won't be a problem. There's a billiards room in the basement, and the kitchen is also free to use. None of the villas around here are occupied, so you can stay up all night without worrying about disturbing others."

The real estate agent for the short-term rental apartment explained the condition of the villa to Lu Ban.

"Is this swimming pool available?"

Lu Ban glanced at the empty swimming pool.

"Of course, if needed, we can arrange cleaning here. You'll just need to pay an extra cleaning fee."

The agent was taken aback, not expecting Lu Ban to have such a refined interest.

Swimming pools are inherently difficult to maintain, and generally no one comes to swim in a daily rental villa, so he never imagined that Lu Ban would have such a request.

"Okay, then I'll pay for two days directly, and have it cleaned by noon tomorrow."

Lu Ban was very generous; the daily rent for a room was only a little over three thousand, which was very cheap compared to his own life.

The next day at noon, he brought some things for the night to the villa, only to see the lights on in the neighboring house, with figures moving inside, seemingly college students having a party.

"The military training isn't over yet, and it's not even October. Are college students these days so leisurely?"

Lu Ban felt very confused.

He turned around to go back to his villa, but when he turned his head, he saw two Pale- faced girls who were startled.

"Ah!"

Under the bright afternoon sun, the two embraced, as if Lu Ban were some kind of ruthless demon.

"Are you from Jiangcheng University?"

Lu Ban asked a question, interrupting their impending screams.

Yes, yes.

The girl who answered was hesitant and quite wary.

"I have a pretty good extracurricular life. It's okay, I also rented a room for a short period of time, right next to yours."

Lu Ban pointed to the villa that was dark and looked particularly eerie.

Are you alone?

Another girl, speaking without thinking, asked out of curiosity.

"Everyone needs to give themselves a break."

Lu Ban didn't explain further, then said goodbye to the two, took out the key he got from the real estate agent, and opened the villa door.

He walked into the living room and turned on the lights. The villa was neat and tidy. Although it was broad daylight, it felt somewhat deserted and eerie. The huge space looked empty, but in reality, it seemed to contain a lot of things.

"Not bad."

He made a simple meal. His own kitchen only had a stove, but the villa had an oven and a barbecue grill. Lu Ban put a whole rack of lamb into the oven and set the timer. Then he changed into his swimming trunks and went to the swimming pool in the backyard.

The swimming pool has been cleaned and the water is clear. Although there is still a lingering smell of disinfectant, it's not a big problem.

Lu Ban stepped into the pool.

After swimming for a while using the swimming skills gained from [Underwater Breathing], Lu Ban reached the center of the pool. Just as he was about to dive down, he noticed that the window on the second floor of the villa next door was open, and it seemed that the pool could be seen from there.

"It would scare the kids if they saw us. Luckily, no one's around now. Let's finish this quickly."

He immediately redeemed the [Madman's Knowledge].

This time, what appeared in Lu Ban's palm was a jelly-like substance.

From this pale green, translucent jelly, one can vaguely discern the shape of a head that does not belong to a human, like a marine creature with a cartilaginous body, or somewhat like a jellyfish.

"I hope it's from Harmony Island."

With a soft thud, Lu Ban crushed the head.

The pale green gel instantly turned into water, flowing into Lu Ban's body through his nostrils, mouth, and ears.

"No problem, we have no problem at all. The shrine has already confirmed that the Poetry Festival will proceed as scheduled."

"Please rest assured, we are a professional team and will ensure that none of you encounter any danger."

"The pollution that has spread near Song Island has been brought under control, so please don't worry."

"I see it, I see it, my light of life, my fire of desire, my soul, my sins, please forgive me."

"That mist is poisonous, not a deadly poison, but a poison that drives people mad. They've all gone mad, they've all gone mad."

"We have reason to believe that his departure was merely a coincidence; ensuring the convening of the Poetry Festival is now the top priority."

Lu Ban's blood spread in the clear water of the pond, turning a deep black color under the sunlight.

But green plants quickly grew from Lu Ban's body, using his blood as nourishment and greedily absorbing the sunlight. Lu Ban was like a clump of seaweed, drifting with the current in the swimming pool.

Ten minutes later, Lu Ban had sunk to the bottom of the water, emerged from the surface.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—"

He breathed in the fresh air, feeling as if he had survived a disaster.

"As expected, the recovery ability is stronger under the sun. I was right."

Somewhat exhausted, Lu Ban swam to the edge of the pool and sat down, looking at the pool that had been stained red.

"This time it is indeed information about the Harmony Island."

"The wasteland is indeed a hunting ground, and those monsters have intelligence similar to humans, and they know how to make traps. Without heavy firepower to clear the area, they will probably be difficult to deal with."

"And the Harmony Island seems to lean more towards suspense. Hmm, the poisonous fog can drive people mad. This must be the [Sigh of the Unfixed Mist]. It can cause people to hallucinate, making them look like they've gone insane."

"Moreover, it seems the fog has already spread to the location of the Poetry Festival, but the Poetry Festival organizers don't intend to stop it and insist on continuing? That's a bit irresponsible; no wonder something bad happened."

"Moreover, besides the fog, there must be some mysterious thing bewitching people and corrupting the highly inspired artists. Perhaps this is the reason why the artists have disappeared."

"It seems that many people assured us that there were no problems on the Song Island, but an accident still happened. Was it a real accident, or were those people's assurances simply unreliable?"

"It feels more like a man-made disaster than a Song Island. Speaking of which, I wonder if there are any ghosts or monsters on the Harmony Island."

As Lu Ban pondered, he glanced at the window of the villa next door, hoping that no one had seen what he had just witnessed.

How embarrassing.

But when he looked at the open window, Lu Ban was shocked to find a young man standing there, wearing a coat stained with blood, his face Pale and bloodless, his eyes black with no whites.

He stared at Lu Ban.

*

The previous chapter wasn't saved properly by the author's assistant. The first one I drew was from the wasteland, but I've already edited it!