In all records of it, the wisteria tree's actions had always been gentle.
The logbooks wrote that it filled the excavated earth and stone with its vines, doing so repeatedly, but there was never any record of it harming a single laborer.
Even when it was ultimately set ablaze, it made no resistance, quietly allowing itself to be burned down.
“I'm thinking,” Bai Ci finally spoke. Her voice wasn't loud, yet everyone's eyes converged on her. “Is what we're facing really the Mountain God?”
“If not, then what else?” Zhou Caiwei chimed in instinctively.
“It has to be. Didn't you all say earlier that there are so many wisteria vines on the train, and those vine monsters chasing you? If it's not the Mountain God, who else could it be?”
She paused, then continued along her line of thought, adding, “It must be because it was burned so badly back then, so it grew to hate humans after its death. Coupled with the resentment of so many laborers fueling it, it turned into this terrifying monster.”
“After all, if it were me, being burned to death by someone and then plagued by so much resentment, I'd go mad and seek revenge too.”
Zhou Caiwei's words sounded perfectly reasonable. Even Vigi, who was reluctant to believe such things, nodded slightly, clearly agreeing with this speculation.
But Bai Ci shook her head and pressed further, “But if it really is the Mountain God, that burned-down wisteria tree, then what is that pit next to the wooden cabin?”
“Is it the mark left behind after the wisteria tree was burned?”
“But if that's true, why was the wooden cabin meant for escaping the curse built right next to it?”
“The Mountain God was burned by humans and holds deep resentment. If it truly became the source of the curse, how could it allow a safe house meant to evade it to be built right next to its own remains?”
Vigi stood to the side, his face already pale. Hearing Bai Ci's words, he looked as if he had been struck hard by something, stumbling a step backward.
His back slammed heavily against the dilapidated wooden desk behind him, causing the scrap papers on it to slide off.
He muttered to himself, “That's right... Why... Why was the safe house built there...”
He repeated these words over and over, the last slivers of hope in his mind crumbling away. A terrifying thought welled up uncontrollably, growing clearer and clearer, until it finally broke into a tearful cry.
“So... from the very beginning, they never intended for me to live.”
Vigi's voice was filled with utter despair. “They treated me like a lamb sent to the slaughter! The so-called safe house, the so-called escaping the curse—it was all a lie!”
“They just wanted to send me right next to the Mountain God's remains, to make me atone for my father's sins, to make me die there!”
He finally understood.
The reason the station staff had been so evasive, not telling him how long he would stay or if there would be food, and why they had put his details on the duty roster...
...was because they knew he would willingly come to this mountain forest and step into this pre-arranged trap for the sake of his father's manuscript.
From start to finish, he was merely a sacrificial offering used to appease the resentment.
Seeing Vigi break down, Zhou Caiwei felt a bit sympathetic but didn't know how to comfort him. “Well, look at it this way. Maybe you were just an afterthought. You're not that important, so don't take it too hard.”
Rounding it up, it could barely pass as a word of comfort.
Yan Zheng pinched the bridge of his nose. “Now is not the time to break down. Calm down first, we still have a chance.”
“Let's go back first and bring Mr. Violita with us,” Bai Ci suggested. She wasn't particularly interested in whether Vigi had been set up, nor did she feel any sympathy.
“If the area near the cabin is truly dangerous, we absolutely cannot leave him there alone. He's still very weak and had a high fever. He has no way to protect himself.”
Since Bai Ci brought this up, and they had gathered almost all the information from the surveying station, none of the players opposed the suggestion.
As Zhou Caiwei took off her apron and oversleeves, she grumbled, “I'm so tired. Even though we found a lot of clues, we still have no idea how to deal with that Mountain God or break the curse.”
“Fire.”
Arbiter suddenly spoke, her tone carrying a hint of certainty as she responded to Zhou Caiwei's words.
“The wisteria perished in flames, and the laborers of the past were also buried in a sea of fire. Their towering resentment was born of fire, and perhaps only fire can completely sever this karmic bond of destiny.”
“Therefore, we shall depart immediately. First, we will regroup, and then we will incinerate the wisteria's burial ground with raging flames to put this to the test.”
Yan Zheng pondered for a moment and nodded. “We can give this method a try. We don't have a better option right now. No time to lose, let's go now before things get worse.”
The group delayed no further. They packed up the logs, record books, and other clues they had found, stuffing them into the cloth bag Yan Zheng had brought, and walked toward the exit of the surveying station.
Just as they stepped out of the surveying station, they realized the rain had stopped outside.
The drizzling rain had quietly ceased at some point. The thick layers of clouds were swept away by the wind, and shafts of sunlight pierced through, spilling over the mountain forest.
“The rain actually stopped?” Zhou Caiwei looked up at the sunlight overhead. “This weather changes way too fast. It was pouring just a moment ago.”
Bai Ci was also somewhat surprised. She looked up at the sky. The sunlight was warm, yet it brought an inexplicable sense of unease to her heart.
This unease grew stronger and stronger. At a certain moment, she felt it.
The ring on her middle finger suddenly pulsed with a searing heat.
“Everyone, be careful,” Bai Ci warned. The ring's temperature was terrifyingly hot, nearly burning her skin.
This meant that whatever was approaching was absolutely no ordinary entity.
From the surrounding forest, a rustling sound echoed. It grew closer and denser, as if something was rapidly surging out from the depths of the woods.
Everyone instantly went on high alert. Yan Zheng and Arbiter shielded the others, their eyes locked onto the direction of the sound.
In the next second, countless black vines suddenly burst from the soil, growing and spreading wildly as they swept toward them.
Those vines were completely different from the wisteria vines they had seen before. They were pitch-black, their surfaces covered in sharp thorns, looking hideous and terrifying.
But upon closer inspection of the structure of the vines and leaves, one would realize that this thing was also wisteria.
But a blackened, thorny version of it.
“With this kind of commotion, did we trigger a boss fight? Wait, we didn't even do anything, did we?” Zhou Caiwei muttered quietly, shifting her stance to shield the two NPCs.
“Filthy creatures, how dare you act so insolent,” Arbiter cold-snorted. “My servant, Yan Zheng! Show your true power before me! In the name of Magical Girl Arbiter, release the seal—”
“Witness with your own eyes the supreme, mighty power of this fated bond!”
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