"We still don't know what her motives are..."
Bai Xiaoxiao glanced casually at Ning Qiushui.
He had his head lowered and said nothing, as though something was weighing on his mind.
"In any case, we'll have to gather the clues ourselves."
"We still have plenty of time, so let's visit the farthest place first. That'll take some pressure off the next few days."
Following the signs through the dense forest, the three of them arrived at the Everlasting Well.
The well stood in the Emerald Dense Bamboo Grove. Moss covered its rim, and weeds grew thick around it. Aside from a wooden sign planted beside the well, there was nothing else.
It looked as though no one had come here in a very long time.
The inscription on the wooden sign described the well's long history, making sure to briefly recount the events of the great drought as well.
The events involving Ruan Kaihuang and Guang Xiu.
"These villagers certainly remember their benefactors..."
Liu Chengfeng spoke admiringly as he walked over to the well and peered into the water.
Ning Qiushui and Bai Xiaoxiao stood on either side of the wooden sign, studying it for a long time.
"What do you think?"
Bai Xiaoxiao asked.
She was very interested in this newcomer, Ning Qiushui.
His mental fortitude... even among veterans who had entered blood gates four or five times, he would rank among the very best.
"I have a pretty grim theory..."
Ning Qiushui's tone was grave.
"Do you remember when we first met Hou Kong? He told us we could go to Spirit Medium Ruan in the village if we encountered anything strange."
Bai Xiaoxiao looked thoughtful.
"You mean... Ruan?"
Ning Qiushui nodded.
"Yes. The same surname. Spirit Medium Ruan could very well be a descendant of Ruan Kaihuang."
"What happened in the village back then definitely wasn't as simple as the records make it sound. These villagers must have concealed some crucial... truth."
"Remember the clue the blood gate gave us? A kind person bled dry, becoming life-giving rain... What if, and I mean what if, Guang Xiu, the man who was hacked to pieces, was actually a good person?"
He was about to continue when he caught sight of Liu Chengfeng out of the corner of his eye. His expression changed abruptly. He rushed to the well, seized Liu Chengfeng just as he was about to jump in, and dragged him backward!
"Liu Chengfeng, have you lost your mind?"
Ning Qiushui shouted.
But Liu Chengfeng seemed not to hear him. His eyes were vacant, and his hands gripped the well's rim tightly. As he struggled to force his way inside, he kept mumbling:
"I'm so thirsty... so thirsty..."
"Let me have a sip... just one sip..."
Ning Qiushui was far from weak. Years of intense exercise had given him astonishing physical strength, yet even he could barely slow Liu Chengfeng's plunge into the well. He couldn't stop him!
Just as Liu Chengfeng's upper body was about to slip into the Everlasting Well, Bai Xiaoxiao's voice came from behind:
"Qiushui, hold on a little longer!"
"Okay!"
Ning Qiushui clenched his teeth, practically turning his own body into a human rope as he held on to Liu Chengfeng, who was frantically trying to crawl into the well!
Even that was no use!
Ning Qiushui felt that if this continued, Liu Chengfeng would drag him into the well too!
Had it been anyone else, Ning Qiushui would have let go long ago.
But in the previous blood gate, when the Red-Clothed Female Ghost had caught him in the third-floor hallway, Liu Chengfeng had risked his life to come out and save him!
So Ning Qiushui didn't let go.
He clenched his teeth so hard they nearly cracked. His normally delicate features flushed crimson as he pushed every muscle in his body to its limit!
Just as Liu Chengfeng was about to fall into the well, Bai Xiaoxiao finally pulled out a battered Bloodstained Bronze Mirror. She darted forward and aimed it into the ancient well!
"Aaaah-"
A horrifying, piercing wail rose from the pitch-black depths of the well. At the same time, Liu Chengfeng screamed:
"Holy shit!"
"Buddy! Buddy, pull me up!!"
Freed from the mysterious force restraining him, Liu Chengfeng was now subject to Ning Qiushui's tremendous strength. Ning Qiushui wrapped his arms around his waist and practically flung the eighty-kilogram man out of the well!
He rolled several times across the ground before coming to rest among the fallen leaves, panting heavily, his face deathly pale!
Seeing that Liu Chengfeng had broken free, Bai Xiaoxiao put the bronze mirror away.
As she did, Ning Qiushui's keen eyes caught several cracks that had appeared on the already battered mirror.
"Sorry..."
He spoke.
Bai Xiaoxiao brushed it off.
"That's how it is inside a blood gate... One careless moment and you're caught. That's why, the further people progress through the blood gates, the more they prefer to travel in groups of two or three. If something goes wrong, someone can help in time."
At that, her eyes dimmed slightly.
She hid it again in an instant.
But Ning Qiushui still noticed.
He knew Bai Xiaoxiao had probably thought of her best friend, who had died for love.
In the Mist World, anyone close enough to become a best friend or a sworn brother must have shared life-and-death experiences.
The sudden loss of such a companion would inevitably deal the survivor a devastating blow.
But Ning Qiushui said nothing more. He simply looked at Liu Chengfeng, who lay on the ground nearby. He seemed to have returned to normal, though his face was still bloodless and his eyes filled with terror.
"Big Beard, what exactly happened to you just now?"
Liu Chengfeng slowly turned his head, his face covered in cold sweat.
"I... I only glanced inside. At first, it was just stagnant water, with nothing in it. But then... dead people's faces started appearing in the water!"
"I wanted to run, but I couldn't move at all!"
"Then they crawled up from the bottom of the well, grabbed my hands, and dragged me inside!"
A cold breeze rustled through the bamboo grove, sending a chill down all three of their backs.
"But..."
Liu Chengfeng's expression shifted slightly.
"Something seemed to burn them afterward. When they let go, I saw one of the dead people holding something that was glowing, so I grabbed it and pulled it out with me..."
The other two brightened at his words.
"What was it?"
Liu Chengfeng opened his hand, revealing a damaged wooden tag tied with a red cord. He casually wiped the disgusting grime off it with his clothes, exposing a large character written on its surface: "Ruan"!
"Ruan?"
"What the hell is this?"
"And here I thought it was something important..."
Liu Chengfeng looked disgusted.
Bai Xiaoxiao, however, smiled.
"It is important..."
"Getting hold of this confirms one of the theories we were just discussing."
Liu Chengfeng looked bewildered.
"What theory?"
Neither of them answered him.
"Looks like there really is something seriously wrong with Spirit Medium Ruan..."
As Ning Qiushui spoke, his gaze suddenly swept across the depths of the bamboo grove. His expression changed, and he said quietly:
"Quick!"
"Someone's coming. Hide!"
PS: I'll try to post four updates today. The remaining two will be up a little later.
Before you continue