Stronger with Crimson Modifier

Chapter 314 - 310: Shen Kan (1)

"There are people here! Let’s go check it out. Maybe we can even stay the night."

Seeing the scene before them, a look of joy instantly flashed across Shen Ling’s face.

She was the most lightly dressed of the group. She felt waves of cold wash over her, her body trembling involuntarily.

Hearing Shen Ling’s words, the rest of them had no objections and walked together toward the source of the light.

But just as they reached the village entrance,

Luo Xiaomeng, who was walking at the back, suddenly spoke up.

"Oh no, I think I left my camera where we ate earlier. You guys go on ahead. I’ll go back and get it. I’ll be right back."

With that, she took her flashlight and jogged off in the direction they had come from.

"Forget it. Don’t worry about her. Let’s just go in."

Shen Ling said, her face slightly pale, as she wrapped her arms around her shoulders to try and warm herself up.

Hearing this, Cao Fei and Lü Yi didn’t give Luo Xiaomeng another thought. The three of them entered the village together.

However, the three of them were completely unaware.

Luo Xiaomeng, who had supposedly left, had returned at some point and was now hiding quietly behind a tree.

Her gaze was cold as she watched the three of them enter the village, as if she were looking at dead people.

...

「Meanwhile.」

Atop a massive rock on the summit of Fox Tail Mountain.

Hu Qi, who had been sitting perfectly still in a meditative posture, suddenly snapped his eyes open.

He raised his gaze to the horizon.

As the red sun gradually approached the horizon, its light softened.

It was no longer as scorching and blinding as before, instead casting a soft halo.

Once the sun had completely sunk below the horizon, the orange-red afterglow held no warmth at all.

Instead, it resembled the cold color of diluted blood, exuding a strange eeriness.

Hu Qi’s gaze shifted downward to the slopes of Fox Tail Mountain, where a thin layer of fog had begun to form.

At first,

the mist rose in wisps, like delicate threads.

But in the blink of an eye, it spread rapidly in all directions.

Before long, it was like a giant, grayish-white gauze net, shrouding and concealing the mountain.

Soon after, when the last glimmer of light was mercilessly swallowed by the endless darkness,

the entire world was instantly enveloped in darkness and cold, and the fog grew even thicker.

The rustling animals and insects in the mountain forest seemed to have been hit with an Immobilization Spell.

They all fell silent.

The entire mountain became deathly still, with only the thick darkness spreading in silence.

Seeing this, Hu Qi stood up, walked to the side, and scanned the area below.

He soon locked onto a specific location.

It was a spot on the mountainside where specks of flickering light had unexpectedly appeared.

However, because the fog rising from the forest was too thick, his vision was severely obstructed, making it impossible to see the situation clearly.

Seeing this,

Hu Qi extended his senses.

In an instant, every minute change in his surroundings became clear to his perception.

He keenly detected an anomaly.

Upon discovering this, a smile spread across his face.

’So, it has finally appeared?’

According to the Security Bureau’s files, the Nightmare incidents here followed a certain pattern and didn’t occur every night.

’I was originally prepared to stake this place out for a few days.’

’But I didn’t expect it to show up on the very first night.’

The next moment,

a cold wind suddenly swept through the forest, howling as it sent dry leaves scattering into the air.

But on the rock where he had stood, Hu Qi’s figure had already vanished as if he had never been there, leaving only the biting wind to ravage the mountainside.

...

With his speed, it didn’t take long for Hu Qi to rapidly approach the source of the light.

Sure enough, a village came into view.

Just as he was about to step forward and approach, there was a CLACK as a stone flew over from the side.

Putting aside the fact that someone of Hu Qi’s skill could never be hit by the stone, the person who threw it didn’t seem to be aiming for him anyway. The stone landed right in front of him.

Hu Qi heard the sound and turned to look.

He saw a figure squatting behind a tree.

Although the light was quite dim, Hu Qi recognized the person at a glance—it was one of the four people from the group he had encountered earlier.

’I actually sensed Luo Xiaomeng’s presence long ago. I just didn’t expect her to proactively warn me.’

"Don’t go near that village. It’s dangerous. People who go in die."

Seeing Hu Qi look over at her, Luo Xiaomeng’s expression was exceptionally grave as she warned him in a low voice.

Recalling Hu Qi’s words and actions from during the day, she felt he wasn’t a bad person, which was why she spoke up to warn him.

"Oh? And what about your friends?"

Hu Qi asked, his gaze flickering slightly.

"They went in! But they deserved it!"

Luo Xiaomeng said coldly.

As she said this, a trace of hatred flashed across the face of this normally quiet girl.

Clearly, she had a story.

Hu Qi didn’t comment on this.

Under normal circumstances, he might have asked a few more questions.

But with a Nightmare incident right in front of him, he naturally wouldn’t waste any more time here.

"I know what’s going on here.

As for you, don’t stay here. Just because you don’t enter the village doesn’t mean you’re safe."

After saying this, Hu Qi walked straight ahead.

Luo Xiaomeng stood where she was, quietly watching Hu Qi’s receding back, wondering about his identity.

But after a moment’s thought, she didn’t linger and turned to leave.

’I’ve said what I needed to say. Whether he lives or dies is none of my business.’

...

Before long, Hu Qi was standing at the village entrance, the uneven stone path beneath his feet.

Faint slivers of light seeped out from the low-slung houses all around.

Though dim, the light added a touch of worldly life to the otherwise gloomy mountain forest.

Hu Qi looked at the scene before him. He didn’t sense the presence of any living people inside these buildings.

So, he let out a loud shout.

"Is anyone here?"

Hu Qi’s voice was so loud that the roof tiles on the surrounding houses rattled, looking as if they might fall off at any second.

The moment his voice faded, the entire village seemed to spring to life as if it had suddenly been injected with vitality.

Shadowy figures began to move back and forth inside the windows that had been glowing with light.

Immediately after, sounds came from within the houses, and one wooden door after another began to open.

The wooden door closest to Hu Qi was slowly pushed open, and an old woman in her sixties or seventies emerged.

The old woman wore coarse linen clothes covered in patches, looking simple and worn.

She looked up at Hu Qi standing outside her door, a hint of displeasure instantly appearing on her face as she opened her mouth to speak.

"Young man, what are you yelling for in the middle of the..."

However, before she could finish her sentence, there was a POP! as a sound like the air being violently ripped apart suddenly erupted.

Immediately after, a horrifying scene unfolded: the old woman’s upper body exploded, splattering blood and gore everywhere.

Only her legs remained, standing there forlornly. They wobbled twice, then fell to the ground with a THUD.

This sudden and incredibly gruesome scene left the villagers who had already opened their doors frozen in place.

"Alright, I don’t have time to play house with you lot. Come at me, all of you!"

Hu Qi’s gaze, as sharp as a physical blade, slowly swept over the villagers, who all exuded an eerie aura.

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, revealing a cold and savage smile.

’I don’t know which one is the real host of the Dream Eye, but a small problem like this is hardly going to stop me.’

’Can’t tell them apart?’

’Then I’ll just kill them all.’