Ghost Artifacts were gifts bestowed upon trial participants by the blood gate.
For that very reason, they were strictly personal possessions.
A person could lend their Ghost Artifacts to others within the same blood gate, but could not give them away. Once an owner died, all their Ghost Artifacts would be sealed, becoming utterly ordinary objects.
Only after everyone had left did the newcomer named Luo Yan cautiously open her door. Gritting her teeth, she fought back her fear and entered Tang Jiao's room.
She dared not look at the grotesque corpse on the floor. Trembling, she searched the room and eventually found three Ghost Artifacts in Tang Jiao's backpack.
Although she knew the rule, she packed up the three Ghost Artifacts anyway. Who knew whether they would work? What if they proved useful?
When people were desperate, they would cling to even the faintest hint of light!
Luo Yan was no exception.
But after putting the three Ghost Artifacts into her backpack, she suddenly froze just as she was about to turn and leave.
Her eyes filled with sheer terror as she stared at the floor before her, shaking uncontrollably.
The mangled corpse that had been strewn across the floor just moments ago... was gone!
Not only had the corpse vanished, but so had the bloodstains on the floor.
It was as though... no one named Tang Jiao had ever stayed in this room.
Luo Yan was terrified. She felt a sinister chill behind her, as though the dead Tang Jiao were watching her from somewhere. Without looking back, she rushed out of Tang Jiao's room, ran back to her own quarters, and locked the door...
At around ten that morning, the man with glasses and his two companions went out again to search for new clues. Bai Xiaoxiao, who had always been so diligent about looking for clues, had only just gotten up and finished washing.
Ning Qiushui brought out a chair and sat in the clearing, basking in the sun.
He did not seem to be in any hurry, either.
Neither of them was anxious, but Liu Chengfeng was.
"Buddy, what's going on with you two?"
"Aren't we going out to look for clues this morning?"
Ning Qiushui did not turn around. He rocked back and forth in his chair, his brow furrowed as though he were thinking something over.
"Clues? What other clues do we need to find?"
Liu Chengfeng strode over to stand in front of him.
"Isn't there still one attraction we haven't visited?"
"There might be a crucial clue there!"
Ning Qiushui shook his head.
"It won't help."
Liu Chengfeng did not understand what Ning Qiushui was thinking and let out a confused, "Huh?" Just as he was about to question him further, Bai Xiaoxiao's voice came from behind him:
"We already have the clues we need. If we risk our lives searching for more, all we'll find are the villagers' lies."
Liu Chengfeng still did not understand, so Bai Xiaoxiao continued:
"The villagers built these attractions. They're what they want us to see. Finding the truth through them... is simply impossible."
Liu Chengfeng grew anxious.
"Then what do we do? We can't just sit here waiting to die! The Temple festival starts in less than five days!"
Seeing him like this, Bai Xiaoxiao sighed softly.
"I know you're anxious, but calm down for a moment."
"Panicking won't help."
At that moment, Ning Qiushui, who had been sitting in his chair sunning himself all this time, asked the same question he had raised at the beginning:
"What role do you think the Ruan Clan plays in the hint the blood gate gave us?"
"Are they the kind ones who bled dry, or the Compassionate One who cut off his head?"
"Or... are they the innocent ones longing for life-giving rain and peace?"
Both of them could hear the deeper meaning in Ning Qiushui's words. Bai Xiaoxiao vaguely caught on to something and raised her eyes to look at him.
"Qiushui, what do you think?"
This time, Ning Qiushui turned to face them, his gaze sharper and clearer than ever before.
"The answer is... none of them."
Both froze.
"None of them?"
Ning Qiushui said:
"At first, I couldn't understand what the hint from this blood gate actually meant..."
"But now, I think I understand."
"Pay attention to the order of the hint."
"The kind ones bled dry and became life-giving rain; the Compassionate One cut off his head and bestowed peace... if that's the case, why are the innocent ones still waiting for rain and peace?"
At his words, both of them abruptly froze.
Ning Qiushui continued:
"Because they received neither the rain bestowed by the kind ones nor the peace bestowed by the Compassionate One!"
"Among these people, there's someone else... an evildoer!"
"That person made the kind ones bleed dry, made the Compassionate One lose his head, and left the innocent ones... with nothing!"
As they listened to Ning Qiushui, both felt their breathing quicken.
"Buddy, are you saying Spirit Medium Ruan is that evildoer?"
"But why would she do that... it doesn't make sense. They're all from the same village. They don't have any grudges against each other..."
While Liu Chengfeng was still struggling to understand, Bai Xiaoxiao spoke beside him with a smile that did not reach her eyes. Her words sent a chill down his spine:
"How do you make a spirit medium important in a village?"
"By making sure... the village is haunted, of course."
Boom!
As though struck by lightning, Liu Chengfeng stood rooted to the spot, his eyes wide.
"This... this..."
Seeing his disbelief, Bai Xiaoxiao sneered:
"Sometimes... people are far more frightening than ghosts!"
After a moment of silence, Ning Qiushui said:
"Yesterday at noon, there was a woman serving food in the cafeteria. When I asked her about the cafeteria's architectural style, she kept avoiding my eyes..."
"She must know something. But when I went to find her in the cafeteria this morning, she wasn't there. The staff said she wouldn't come until noon."
"We still have time. Let's wait a little longer. At noon, I want to speak to her alone... with Guangchuan's Memorial Tablet."
Both nodded.
If they could get the truth directly from someone who knew what had happened, that would naturally be ideal.
As soon as lunch service began, the three of them entered the cafeteria.
Yet when Ning Qiushui saw the person serving food, he frowned.
This person... wasn't the woman from yesterday!
A vague sense of foreboding crept through him.
"Hello, sir. Could I ask... why the woman who was serving food yesterday hasn't come?"
The old man serving food, his eyes cloudy, looked confused for a moment before he realized what Ning Qiushui had asked.
"Oh, her. I think she's feeling a bit unwell..."
P.S. At least two more chapters today.
Before you continue