100 - Dungeon Growth Log

Withered Bamboo Village. An eerie village, filled with an aura of ghostliness and the stench of blood. Upon pushing open the door of a thatched hut, the sight of bloodstains covering the ground becomes evident. The ashes in the stove, still warm, are tinted with spots of dried black blood. The pot lid is half-open, revealing a layer of congealed sweet potato porridge inside. Four pairs of dishes and cutlery are set on the table, along with a few plates of side dishes, partially eaten. The bowls of sweet potato porridge are also half full. No sign of life, only a dreadful scene of blood. As if the family was in the middle of a meal when suddenly ambushed, caught off guard. "This is... truly horrifying," Li Liu sighed softly after entering the house and witnessing the grim scene. Chu Yao ordered, "You three, go search the village and see if there's anyone left." "Yes," Ye Ze, Li Liu, and Chang Nian responded and left to follow the order. Part of the disciples had gone to other villages with 【Const blue】 to search for traces of the evil ghost tide and to see if there were any survivors, while another part followed Chu Yao to Withered Bamboo Village for the same reason. After the three left, Chu Yao looked outside towards Gu Pei Jiu, who had not entered the house but was staring at a certain point not far away, her brows furrowed. Chu Yao came out of the house and followed Gu Pei Jiu's gaze, noticing a blood-stained white flag lazily hanging in front of a house's door. The door had white mourning strips pasted on it, indicating a funeral that had previously taken place. Gu Pei Jiu withdrew her gaze after a while. Soon, the disciples who had gone searching returned and shook their heads at Chu Yao. "Go check outside the village to see if anyone didn't make it back," Chu Yao instructed. The three obeyed and left again. "Once they return, we will head to other villages to regroup with 【Const blue】's team," Chu Yao said, glancing at Gu Pei Jiu. Gu Pei Jiu nodded, "You go ahead; I'll stay a bit longer here." "There's no one left here," Chu Yao paused, "What do you intend to do, Senior Sister?" Though Chu Yao was the prospective chief disciple, Gu Pei Jiu was the official chief disciple, so she addressed her as 'Senior Sister.' Gu Pei Jiu took out a yellow talisman, "To pacify souls." "The evil ghost tide consumes the flesh and blood of the living, turning their souls into evil spirits that follow the tide," said Chu Yao, squinting her eyes, "Is there even a soul left for you to pacify here, Senior Sister?" Her words carried a hint of provocation. Gu Pei Jiu glanced at her, and unexpectedly smiled faintly. "Only the human souls are gone, but the garment souls remain uneasy." "Garment souls?" Before Chu Yao could respond, as if aware of having been exposed, the distant blood-stained white flag suddenly moved! It shot up from the mud, multiplying from one into two, two into four, and with a surge of rage, countless blood-stained white flags soared into the sky, surrounding the entire Withered Bamboo Village in an instant! Chu Yao drew her sword, its blade like autumn water, and her voice turned cold, "Is it a garment wraith?" The accompanying disciples also drew their swords, "What's that!?" The white flags formed a formation in the sky, then descended rapidly. Many disciples could not evade in time and were impaled by the white flags! "Ah—" The disciples struck by the white flags instantly froze, their eyes slowly turning blood-red, grasping their swords and attacking their unsuspecting companions! "Clang!" Chu Yao intercepted a disciple's sword single-handedly, severed the white flag attached to him, and kicked him away, "Open your eyes! Who are you attacking!?" The disciple, dazed and seeing stars from the kick, regained his senses after a while, looking bewildered, "What... happened to me?" The white flags had the power to control minds! "I will find the formation core; manage the scene here," Gu Pei Jiu said, evading the swarming white flags. The Heavenly Execution Silk unraveled, ensnaring those disciples controlled by the white flags. Holding a yellow talisman in one hand and the Heavenly Execution Silk in the other, she flew towards the formation of white flags! However, many disciples were under control. Chu Yao, tending to the chaotic scene below, severed the white flags on each controlled disciple. She clicked her tongue, and with a flick of her sword, commanded, "Scatter!" The flying sword split into hundreds, shielding Gu Pei Jiu and slashing through the incoming blood-stained white flags. Gu Pei Jiu quickly broke through the formation and spotted the core at a glance. Yet upon seeing the core, her hand holding the yellow talisman paused. The core was supposed to be a white flag, but instead, it was a blood-stained white garment, billowing within the core with fierce energy. It was the very garment wraith she had previously destroyed in the black market, Huoming! "You cannot kill me," it seemed to whisper. Gu Pei Jiu's eyes narrowed, and she flung the yellow talisman forward! The sharp yellow talisman pierced through numerous white flags, aiming at the blood-stained garment. However, with a mere flick of its sleeve, a powerful black wind vortex appeared, swallowing the talisman, making it vanish! As Huoming acted, the surrounding white flags' assault intensified. Chu Yao's flying sword wavered, indicating it might not hold for long! Gu Pei Jiu's eyes turned icy, "Is the evil ghost tide your doing?" The blood-stained white garment did not respond, merely waving its sleeve, causing the small wind vortex to abruptly expand, unleashing a massive suction force, hard to resist! Gu Pei Jiu released the Heavenly Execution Silk binding the disciples below, then wrapped it around a nearby wutong tree, pulling herself back to resist the vortex's suction! The vortex, eerie and exuding terrifying ghostly energy, prompted Gu Pei Jiu to draw a ghost-dispelling talisman from her sleeve, letting it fly into the vortex. As the talisman entered the vortex and dispelled the ghostly energy, a divine aura emerged, indescribable yet holy, exuding purity akin to divine mercy. ... Divine? Only a true deity's presence could leave behind such pure divinity... A sense of foreboding filled Gu Pei Jiu's heart. The vortex continued to expand, its suction growing stronger! Chu Yao's flying sword struggled. Gu Pei Jiu glanced at the disciples below, then took out a scroll, and whispered a voice transmission. "Take the disciples to 【Const blue】's location!" This vortex... held a sinister secret! Chu Yao, barely recovering from the command, felt a powerful heavenly light descend, filling her vision with blinding white. When clarity returned, her sword had fallen aside, and she was no longer in Withered Bamboo Village. They found themselves in a desolate field, with no one in sight. Gu Pei Jiu had used a random large-area teleportation scroll. As the disciples regained their senses, one timidly asked, "Master Chu, just now..." Chu Yao picked up her sword, recalling the eerie white garment and vortex seen before the light, and looked at the surrounding disciples, her brows tightening, "Where's Ye Ze, Chang Nian, and Li Liu?!" The disciple, startled by her tone, glanced around, "It seems you sent them to check outside the village, but they didn't have time to return." Chu Yao gripped her sword tightly, "You all, use your swords to fly to Li Family Village nearby and meet up with 【Const blue】! I will return to Withered Bamboo Village to retrieve them!" Moreover, Gu Pei Jiu mustn't be left alone! However, the random teleportation scroll appeared to have a broader range. By the time Chu Yao returned to Withered Bamboo Village, the scene before her made her eyes widen, her breath catching— The once village was now a deep crater. It was as if the entire village had been uprooted and consumed by the vortex! And all the people... were gone. = = The foot of the mountain was in chaos by the time Xia Ge arrived. Sword Peak disciples were already battling demonized puppets and members of the demonic sect, and several Alchemy Peak disciples were helping to evacuate the elderly, women, and children to the mountain. Xia Ge put away her puppet and blended into the crowd, posing as an assisting Alchemy Peak disciple. Amid the chaos, she encountered Lu Qie. "Hey, junior disciple, you're here to help too?" Lu Qie, unaware of the treachery, was aiding an elderly man and greeted her with a smile. "Mm... Senior Brother, have you seen a junior sister who looks like me?" Xia Ge urgently asked, pushing two people aside and stepping back, "Be careful, Senior Brother!" "Whoosh—" An arrow shot past where Lu Qie had been standing, embedding itself into the wall, surrounded by ghostly energy. Xia Ge inspected the arrow and felt the sinister ghostly energy, having opened her spiritual aperture. Lu Qie, supporting the old man, saw the arrowhead and his face changed, "It's soul toxin!" Xia Ge was startled, "This arrow carries soul toxin?" Lu Qie replied, "I haven't been fighting, so I don't know if all their weapons carry soul toxin! Junior disciple, take the people and withdraw quickly!" Xia Ge assessed the situation; the overwhelming disorder was evident, with arrows flying wildly, and Sword Peak disciples gradually retreating. She couldn't help but ask, "Where is the chief disciple of Sword Peak?!" Lu Qie responded, "I don't know!" Where was Mao Qing... "Senior Brother, you take the people; I need to find someone!" Xia Ge said urgently. The Sword Peak disciples who had been pursuing Xia Ge were equally confused by the chaos. Xia Ge drew her scythe and searched each house amid the upheaval. This wave of attacking puppets was all C-level, relatively harmless, but the soul poison was truly terrifying. Soon, the siege became overwhelming, making it difficult to evade the onslaught. Xia Ge decisively used Soul Reap to summon two puppets to guard her. After searching for a while, Xia Ge finally found Mao Qing in the candy shop. Ordering the two puppets to watch the entrance, Xia Ge entered the candy shop. The shopkeeper had long since fled, leaving only Mao Qing standing there, looking somewhat bewildered. “What are you doing here? You should head up the mountain immediately! It’s too dangerous here!” Despite everything, Xia Ge felt relieved seeing that Mao Qing was unharmed. She stowed away her scythe and went forward to grab her, intending to leave quickly. However, as soon as she grabbed Mao Qing's hand, a handful of cherry blossom candies cascaded out, scattering all over the ground. Xia Ge: "..." Did the teacher send you down the mountain to buy candy?! "Xia Wuyin," Mao Qing suddenly smiled as she looked at her, "Your eyes are so beautiful." Instinctively covering her eyes, Xia Ge then realized her mistake and quickly lowered her hand. After upgrading her Soul Reap, her eyes would only retain the purple hue for three minutes. Given that more than three minutes had passed since she used Soul Reap, Mao Qing must have been genuinely complimenting her eyes. Awkward much. "Thank you," Xia Ge said a bit awkwardly, "But we need to hurry and leave." “One piece of candy wasn’t enough,” Mao Qing, however, did not move and only explained as she continued to look at her, “So I came to get more.” Xia Ge: "..." Did you really need to explain that? “How about I buy you three jin after the demonic sect retreats? Let’s go now, please,” Xia Ge urged, recalling that Mao Qing had previously bought three jin but didn’t give them away. Looking at the scattered cherry blossom candies on the ground, Mao Qing remarked, "They’ve fallen." Xia Ge felt as though a donkey had kicked her in the head. Hastily, she picked up the candies and stuffed them into Mao Qing’s pocket. “Alright, now they haven’t fallen.” Mao Qing innocently said, "But I didn’t pay for them." Xia Ge: "..." You are quite something. Outside, demonized puppets were attacking. The two puppets Xia Ge summoned with Soul Reap probably wouldn’t hold the entrance for long. The puppeteer controlling the demonized puppets operated too many at once, dulling their effectiveness, only capable of mass attacks. Xia Ge’s puppets were absolutely obedient but couldn’t hold out for long. Placing a spirit stone on the uninhabited counter as "payment," Mao Qing suddenly spoke, “There seem to be people guarding outside. Are they yours?” Xia Ge, while fabricating the truth and pulling her along, replied, “How could they be mine? They’re Sword Peak senior brothers helping out. Now that the candies are picked up and the money is paid, can we leave?” In truth, it was her puppets holding the line. Mao Qing asked, "Aren't you afraid?" Xia Ge responded, “The senior brothers from Sword Peak will protect us.” "But I don't trust them," Mao Qing said, "I'm really scared." “If you protect me, then I won't be afraid.” Xia Ge addressed her: "Mao Qing." Mao Qing looked at her. Xia Ge: "Why do I feel like you’re acting sick today..." There was something off. The old Mao Qing would never say such bizarre, skin-crawling things to her. Maybe the demonic sect scared her silly, making her trust familiar faces more? Xia Ge wasn’t sure how Mao Qing usually reacted, but her instincts told her that Mao Qing shouldn’t be acting like this. Mao Qing averted her eyes slightly, her long eyelashes casting a shadow, and quietly said, "I just don't particularly like the Sword Peak people, that's all." “Oh, I see.” Xia Ge casually asked, “Do you still want to become a Heaven-grade Alchemist? I told you before that you could do it.” A puzzled expression crossed Mao Qing's face, "Heaven-grade Alchemist? No, I said I wanted to be Earth-grade." ...Is it that time of the month? “Ah, guess I remembered wrong,” Xia Ge said, “But if you don’t trust the senior brothers, I’ll protect you. For now, let’s get going.” This time, Mao Qing didn’t stand in place. She whispered, “Okay.” Xia Ge dragged her out of the candy shop, discreetly shielding Mao Qing in front while the two puppets cleared the way. Outside, the fight was intense. Not far away, brilliant beams of light radiated as a young man in blue, radiating spiritual energy, fiercely resisted the onslaught. Surrounding disciples formed a formation. Xia Ge looked overjoyed, “It’s Const blue! I’ll take you over there—” The sharp whistling of an arrow pierced the air. Xia Ge’s expression became steely as she pulled Mao Qing aside, but Mao Qing, previously compliant, now didn’t move. Instead, she wrapped her arms around Xia Ge from behind, whispering, “I protect you too... right?” “You...” “Shhh—” The sound of an arrowhead piercing flesh, terrifying and cold. Xia Ge's pupils contracted slightly. She stiffened, turning to see Mao Qing holding her neck, resting her head on Xia Ge’s shoulder, lips turning purple, a feathered arrow protruding from her left abdomen, blood spreading, a horrifying sight. “Mao Qing!!!” The arrow was poisoned! Author's Note: Where did I ramble this time? I felt like I was advancing the plot (balding). Senior Sister temporarily exits; now we’ll have daily interactions with you-know-who (looking skyward). ...Can you guess who? = = My precious readers, thank you for the love and support!