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墨書 Inktalez
As a few people ran to the thatched hut, thunder rumbled through the heavens, and the wind swept through the trees, causing them to sway. After a flash of lightning illuminated the entire forest, darkness quickly swallowed it again.
The wind was a bit chilly, and the roof of the hut rustled with some dry grass. A group of five took shelter inside, and soon after, raindrops began to fall, drenching the world in an instant.
Huddled in the hut, they looked outside as raindrops hung from the eaves, cascading down like a continuous line.
"Looks like this rain won't stop anytime soon," said Second.
The heavy rain drowned out his voice, and as they watched the torrential downpour outside, everyone fell silent.
After another flash of lightning, Seven remarked, "It's going to thunder." Sure enough, a deep rumble followed.
"That's not right," Third suddenly interjected.
"What do you mean?" Second asked. Before Third could respond to Second's question, he shouted, "Get out of the way!"
The others reacted quickly but were still a moment too late. From the swirling black clouds above, a bolt of lightning shot down towards them.
There was no escape; they were struck in an instant. The world seemed to fall silent again, leaving only the sound of rain in their ears.
The thatched hut had collapsed around them, burying them beneath its debris. The night transformed rapidly as the sun began to rise slowly.
The sounds of rain, thunder, and lightning all faded away. Only the morning light remained as the trees stretched their branches. A bird landed on a branch and chirped a few times while insects awoke from their slumber, clinging to the branches but unable to escape before being pecked by the bird.
A Rabbit emerged to forage cautiously, sniffing around a pile of scattered grass nearby.
The suddenly quiet grass pile shifted slightly, and Rabbit, alert, pushed it aside. It stared at the pile for a moment before slowly approaching, scratching its face with a paw.
In an instant, the grass pile was overturned. Like a startled bird, Rabbit darted into the forest, disappearing without a trace.
Xin Shui Su slowly got up from the ground, rubbing her head as a wave of pain coursed through her. Shaking her head vigorously helped clear her vision of the surroundings.
She felt weak in her limbs, and her calves trembled a bit, but she quickly adjusted. Looking down, she noticed several people still pinned beneath the grass.
A low-lying area nearby had formed a puddle.
She hurriedly cleared away the grass, feeling anxious as she muttered to herself, "He won't be in trouble." When she unearthed Third, she tested for breath, and only then did her racing heart settle.
Next, she pulled out the other three in turn; Since was fine but had fallen into varying degrees of unconsciousness.
Sunlight began to filter through the dense trees, casting rays down. Xin Shui Su fed an unresponsive person a pill, built a small fire to dry their clothes, and moved them closer together.
Afterward, she leaned against a tree trunk in silence, gazing up at the sky. White clouds drifted by as blue skies cradled a few birds flying low.
A nameless wildflower, nourished by yesterday's rainstorm, slowly began to bloom. Xin Shui Su captured all of this in her gaze.
As the wildflower gradually opened its petals, a smile appeared at the corner of Xin Shui Su's mouth.
At that moment, Third woke up and couldn't help but say, "You have a beautiful smile."
Upon hearing the sound, Xin Shui Su's smile immediately faded. She glanced at Third, her expression devoid of any emotion, leaving Third feeling as if he were in an ice cellar. He had no choice but to remain silent.
Xin Shui Su said calmly, "Are you alright?" After getting up, Third sat by the fire and replied, "I'm fine."
The sun was shining brightly, and the excess rainwater had evaporated. A gentle breeze rustled through the forest, causing the flames to flicker slightly.
Suddenly, Third attempted to stand up. It was as if Xin Shui Su anticipated his intentions when she said, "They are fine."
Still uneasy, Third got up to check on them. After confirming that everything was alright, he finally felt at ease.
Third remarked, "Fortunately, we all survived yesterday's incident."
Xin Shui Su responded, "Yesterday was not an accident."
Third looked up at her. Xin Shui Su produced a piece of metal and said, "This attracted the lightning."
Taking the metal from her hand, Third noticed it had turned completely black. He understood now; this was deliberate.
Yet inside it felt heavy. Could it be that someone had predicted this heavy rain and set a trap knowing a few would come here? Or perhaps this incident was merely a coincidence? It was more likely to be the latter, Third speculated in his mind.
Time passed quickly as the sun began to set in the west. The other three gradually woke up.
They all felt a bit of pain in their heads and soreness in their bodies. Thankfully, aside from these discomforts, they were otherwise unharmed.
However, after a day without food, hunger suddenly struck, leaving their stomachs empty. Without further ado, several of them went outside to search for something to eat. As the aroma wafted through the air, they soon enjoyed a hearty meal.
The haystack had nearly burned down as they used it for firewood. When the last small pile of dry grass was moved away, Seven was taken aback to discover a hole emerging from the ground, one that had been opened by lightning.
Seven called out, and the other four gathered around, staring into the dark hole that seemed bottomless.
Second remarked, "How did we not notice this hole when we entered the hay shed?"
After inspecting it, Seven replied, "This hole was previously sealed with cement; it was opened by lightning. Look at the charred marks around it."
Second leaned in for a closer look and nodded in agreement with Seven's assessment. Wang Er Gou crouched down to peer inside; natural light only illuminated a depth of about one or two meters, beyond which it was impossible to see.
Seven ran off to grab a stone and threw it into the hole. As the stone hit the bottom, a resonant sound echoed back, and Seven's expression froze.
He murmured, "It must be over ten meters deep."
Second pressed for clarification, "How deep exactly?" Seven responded, "About fifteen or sixteen meters deep; it's a deep pit." After a moment's pause, he added, "But there's no water inside. If there is any, it would be rainwater accumulated from last night. The sound echoing back is strong and clear; it's likely sealed with cement, so there can't be any water source leaking from underground."
Second nodded in partial understanding. Seven continued, "Based on my experience, this could be an ancient tomb."
The group fell silent; another ancient tomb! Third asked, "Are you sure?" Seven did not nod but said, "I can't make a definitive judgment, but this definitely cannot be naturally formed. Look at all the cement and bricks surrounding it. It must be man-made. The only thing that could be sealed like this is a tomb."
Wang Er Gou stood up and said, "It doesn't resemble a tomb. The feng shui position here completely deviates from traditional burial practices. Even if it were a tomb, it wouldn't be dug this deep. In recent years, I've helped many families assess feng shui—wealthy households and poor ones alike. While we don't conduct grand burials like ancient royalty anymore, the burial customs passed down from our ancestors still apply; generally, pits are no deeper than ten feet. Beyond that depth is considered too heavy with yin energy and can lead to corpse deterioration."
After Wang Er Gou finished speaking, Seven was at a loss for words. Indeed, which family would dig a pit several meters deep just to bury someone? However, none of them were professionals and couldn't distinguish these oddities.
Second said, "Hearing you all talk about this so ominously, let's not meddle in this matter. Let's help Er Gou with the main issue first."
The others remained silent, indicating their agreement. Second continued, "Pack up your things and let's leave this place."
Seven crouched down to look into the pit, shining a flashlight inside. He could only see about seven or eight meters down. Just as he was about to stand up, he felt a cool breeze blowing from below.
While the others were packing up, Seven excitedly called out, "Come over here!"
Thinking something had happened, they hurried back. Seven exclaimed, "There's wind blowing out from inside." After he spoke, Second also crouched down and indeed felt a cool breeze accompanied by moisture. Second wiped his face and sensed something was off; it felt like his face had suddenly become damp.
Second quickly stood up and vigorously wiped his face, saying, "This is strange."
Wang Er Gou looked at Second as he kept wiping his face and asked, "Brother Cao, what's wrong?"
Second replied, "Water is coming out from inside." Hearing this, Seven also wiped his face and found that it was indeed damp. However, when he touched it with his hand, it felt somewhat sticky. Realizing this might not be water, Seven voiced his thoughts aloud, and Second noticed that his hands felt sticky too.
"Let's go," Xin Shui Su said at that moment. Seven and Second quickly got to their feet.
However, Xin Shui Su didn't wait for them this time; after saying that, he simply vanished without a trace.
The four of them were left bewildered, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
But who could blame others for being capable?
After Xin Shui Su left, there was a lingering sense of something missing. They quickly discussed their next move and decided not to linger here any longer. Gathering their belongings, they set off.
The entrance to Sunlight's cave was exposed to the air once more. Faint sounds could be heard emanating from within.
As they made their way back up the mountain, they continued to climb higher. At some point, Xin Shui Su had returned to the original spot.
By now, the sunlight had completely faded. The tranquility of the day was at its most evident.
They trudged forward, and at that moment, Wang Er Gou spoke up, "We're almost at the summit."
Wang Er Gou was a native of this mountain range, having lived a humble yet peaceful life in his earlier years, never daring to venture into these deep mountains before.
However, ever since that incident, he had ventured into the depths of the mountains several times. Things had changed; many familiar faces were gone, yet new troubles seemed to arise one after another.
Suddenly, Third halted and said, "Let's not go up just yet. We should assess the situation first." The others felt a sense of alertness; there might already be people on the mountain, and rushing up could lead to unnecessary trouble.
They concealed themselves in the forest again. If they were to ascend the mountain, it couldn't be through this main path; they would have to take a detour and navigate through layers of obstacles.
Seven voiced her concerns, "The path upwards is getting steeper. If we don't take this main road, other routes could be fraught with danger."
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