Well of God

"My good friend, we meet again."

Wu Heng walked over to Vinayak, who was lying on the ground bound like a silkworm chrysalis. With one hand, he hoisted him upright and leaned him gently against the edge of the well.

"Raghav, is this how you treat a friend? There is no treasure here; I am merely cleaning out the basement left behind by my ancestors."

Vinayak's gaze was filled with resentment, yet as he spoke, his eyes kept darting toward the well cover beside him.

He had long since viewed this temple as his ancestral home; he didn't need to buy the property to believe he owned this house of infinite gold.

To him, Wu Heng and his two companions were nothing more than robbers breaking into his private vault.

"Boss, this kid is being shifty. Look at his eyes."

"The treasure of Tumbbad is definitely in this well. Let's go down and find it quickly."

Yellow Braid said, unable to contain his impatience.

Hearing Yellow Braid's words, a glimmer of secret delight hid deep within the depths of Vinayak's angry eyes.

"Since you're in such a hurry, why don't you go down first and take a look? I'll stay here and catch up with my old friend."

"Take this and stick it to the very edge of the bottom of the shaft."

Wu Heng didn't refuse. He signaled to the Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man with his eyes, then handed Yellow Braid an adhesive wireless camera.

This device, along with the tracker, were small items from the Modern Technology Pack, which also included a pair of walkie-talkies, a mechanical claw, a small robot, and a series of other technological gadgets—the very reason Wu Heng had purchased the pack.

"O-okay."

Yellow Braid nodded eagerly. His heart was now so filled with greed and desire for the infinite gold that he even forgot to maintain a respectful tone.

The Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man quickly tied a rope around Yellow Braid's waist, opened the heavy metal well cover, and lowered him down.

"Aren't you going down to take a look? There might really be treasure. Be careful your subordinate doesn't hoard the gold for himself."

Vinayak said with a sneer, though deep down, a flicker of anticipation remained.

"My good friend, there's no rush for the treasure. After all, I'll need you to go down first in a little while."

"For now, let's talk about 'Hastur'."

Wu Heng had long since seen through Vinayak's transparent scheme to lure him directly into the Well of God. He called him out on it, having no patience left for further pretense.

"You actually know!" Vinayak exclaimed in shock.

"Of course I know. I just wanted to confirm it."

Seeing that Yellow Braid had already descended, Wu Heng turned on the display screen in his hand.

The interior of the Well of God was a bloody red, resembling the opened, hollowed-out abdomen of an animal, with fascia and blood vessels winding along the cave walls formed by flesh and blood.

Down below, Yellow Braid felt a sense of dread. Aside from the crimson expanse, there was nothing, yet he felt as though something hidden in the surroundings was watching him.

"Hakob, pull me up! There's nothing here."

Yellow Braid shouted urgently toward the top of the shaft.

"Boss?"

Hearing the voice, the Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man turned to look at Wu Heng.

"Don't panic. The gold is down there. I'll talk to Vinayak first about how to actually retrieve it."

Wu Heng spoke into the display screen, his voice clearly transmitting from the camera into the Well of God.

He then said to the Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man:

"Cover the well first. I have a few words to say."

The Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man hurried to comply, pressing the metal well cover down over the rope.

"Vinayak, why can Hastur eat dough, yet fear circles drawn in flour?"

Wu Heng asked the protagonist, who had been completely exposed and had lost all hope of escape.

"Raghav, you win. I'll tell you everything, but I want to cooperate. We can find the gold together—the gold is infinite."

"Fine."

"Alright, then I'll tell you. The Goddess of Prosperity saved Hastur and hid it in the Well of God, which also made it unable to receive the faith of mortals."

"Hastur monopolized the Goddess's wealth, and the other gods, mad with jealousy but unable to track it down, joined forces to curse it. It would be burned by food and forever suffer the torment of hunger."

"However, it still possesses a way to bypass the curse and alleviate its hunger: it can consume food offered to it by mortals."

"Flour scattered on the ground is ownerless and will burn Hastur, but the little dough figures are offerings made to it, so it can consume them."

Vinayak decided to spill everything at once, hoping that Raghav would honor the cooperation agreement for the sake of their "friendship."

"If one goes down without carrying food, will Hastur attack?"

Wu Heng felt that what he heard matched his own deductions. He observed the screen; Yellow Braid was frozen in terror at the bottom of the well, having heard strange, wheezing breaths.

Yet, despite the time that had passed, Yellow Braid remained safe at the bottom, and Hastur had not appeared.

"Usually, no. Legend says it is closely linked to the Goddess's womb and often falls into a deep sleep to alleviate its hunger. Only food can lure it into waking."

Vinayak recalled everything his great-grandmother, who had turned into a monster, had told him.

"Fine, then I'll have to trouble you once more, friend."

Wu Heng signaled to the Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man and instructed Yellow Braid on the screen to untie the rope, fasten it around Vinayak, who was bound like a silkworm chrysalis, and slowly lower him into the Well of God.

"Hurry, do you see this flour circle? Seal the gap!"

As soon as Vinayak hit the bottom of the well, he shouted urgently at Yellow Braid.

"Just because you tell me to seal it, I have to? You'd better start talking about where those gold coins are."

Seeing someone else had come down, Yellow Braid's courage returned, and his eyes filled with greed once again.

"Seal the flour circle, Shahu."

The voice came through the camera.

"Yes, Boss."

Yellow Braid quickly dropped his arrogant posture and filled in the gap in the flour circle.

The Dark-skinned Middle-aged Man followed him down to the bottom of the well.

Wu Heng held the monitor, watching for a while to confirm that Hastur showed no signs of appearing. He then pressed his ear against the passage of the outer well to listen; hearing no movement of outsiders, he slid down the rope into the well.

Although Hastur did not eat people in the movie, it would bite them. Anyone bitten by it would gain longevity.

However, they would also become riddled with festering sores, suffer from endless, agonizing hunger, and possess physical strength inferior to that of a normal person—much like a slug that had been half-melted by salt but refused to die.

Wu Heng tucked the ten Exorcism Talismans he had purchased in the Lighthouse for 200 survival points into his pocket. According to the Lighthouse's appraisal, they possessed a weak exorcism effect, but as a Cursed Disciple, he only felt a slight warmth from them.

Then, like a special forces soldier parachuting, he slid rapidly down the rope to the position of the camera inside the Well of God. The Lighthouse Mark on his hand transmitted a message:

[Completed Plot Mission 1: Enter the Well of God. Obtained 1000 survival points. Exploration progress and plot rating increased.]

Upon receiving this message, Wu Heng instantly clamped his feet around the rope and pulled with his hands.

He climbed back up toward the well opening at high speed, then tossed the rope into the well and slammed the metal cover shut.

Would you be willing to trade your collection, monthly tickets, and recommendation votes for two nail clippers from me?