Wen Xiang Yuan quickly lowered her head. "That Luo Liu is an NPC. We're in the same club, just students interested in folklore."
"We're taking advantage of the summer break to follow Luo Liu to his hometown. I heard his village has very unique customs and sacrificial rites."
Nan Yue didn't react much. This was practically the standard opening for a horror movie.
She didn't understand why people would go to such a desolate place to see strange rituals.
"You guys... know each other?"
Wu Zicheng looked like he really wanted to strike up a conversation with Wen Xiang Yuan, but Nan Yue gave off such a cold vibe that it made him a bit afraid.
Wen Xiang Yuan flashed a harmless smile. "Are you entering the mission alone, Big Brother? This mission looks a bit dangerous."
Wu Zicheng felt his heart flutter at Wen Xiang Yuan's smile. "No, there are many of us. Our leader is here too. If you're scared, you can come with us."
Wen Xiang Yuan blinked and tilted her head. "Your leader?"
Wu Zicheng lowered his voice, looking mysterious. "Our leader is Huo Fuyu, ranked top 20. You know him, right?"
Wen Xiang Yuan let out a small, cooperative gasp of surprise, satisfying Wu Zicheng's vanity.
He looked up at Nan Yue and then at Shang Xi. "Our leader is very kind-hearted and can't stand to see girls get hurt. If you're willing, I'll introduce you when we get out of the car."
Wen Xiang Yuan thanked him politely and then steered the conversation away.
A hint of a smile flashed in Nan Yue's eyes. Wen Xiang Yuan certainly knew how to use her advantages.
However...
She looked outside at the dense forest. If they had to force their way out of the village later, it would be very troublesome.
After another twenty minutes of driving, the cars stopped. Everyone got out to stretch their bodies, only to find they were parked in a clearing bordering the forest. Their destination lay ahead.
Antswamp Village.
It was a village isolated from the world. If it weren't for a local like Luo Liu leading them, no one would have been able to find this place.
Nan Yue took out her phone to check. As expected, there was no signal. The phone provided for this mission had become a useless object.
A tall man was already waiting for them in the clearing. He wore a white top with a multicolored belt tied around his waist, and his lower body was covered by a floor-length straight skirt rather than trousers.
His hair was braided into many plaits hanging behind him, and he wore a strange hat on his head. It was also woven from multicolored threads, but the top was twisted into two short, antenna-like points.
But the most striking thing was his appearance. His skin was very dark, his features were extremely flat, and his mouth was excessively large. His lips were so thin that against his skin tone, it looked like a slit had been opened in his face out of nowhere.
His eyes were large and round, and notably, there was very little white visible. His pitch-black pupils occupied most of the sockets, making people feel somewhat uncomfortable.
It was dusk when Nan Yue and the others arrived. Under the blood-colored sunset, everyone was so startled that they stood frozen for a moment without stepping forward.
"Suoda!"
Luo Liu ran up happily and stood before the strange man. The two of them began chattering in a language the others couldn't understand.
"Is that... a person?"
Upon getting out of the car, Wu Zicheng stood next to He Jiang. Nan Yue watched coldly as she noticed four or five people around He Jiang, who seemed to have entered together.
But He Jiang ignored Wu Zicheng, instead acting extremely sycophantic toward another tall, thin man.
That man looked somewhat frail, with long black curly hair resting softly on his forehead. His skin was very pale, but his lips were very red. He had natural upturned corners of his mouth, making him look like he was smiling even when he was expressionless.
This person must be the one Wu Zicheng mentioned, the top 20 player, Huo Fuyu.
Nan Yue had some impression of the name because he was known for his benevolence and forging good ties.
However, seeing He Jiang by his side, Nan Yue immediately dismissed any thought of cooperating with him.
Someone who associated with people like He Jiang couldn't possibly be someone with principles or a bottom line.
Huo Fuyu was also sizing up the scavengers. He Jiang's constant, nagging flattery in his ear was making him a bit impatient.
It was obvious that He Jiang's small group was overexcited to find themselves in the same mission as him.
Huo Fuyu felt a flicker of annoyance, but his gaze swept through the crowd and stopped on the tall woman.
That woman... was strong.
This was Huo Fuyu's first impression. However, among the high-level players he knew, none looked like this. Was she a newcomer?
Huo Fuyu walked toward Nan Yue, wearing a harmless smile.
"Hello, I am Huo Fuyu, ranked top 20. If you need anything during this mission, you can come to me."
Huo Fuyu narrowed his eyes. "After all, we're supposed to help each other, aren't we?"
Hearing Huo Fuyu's words, the other scavengers sized up the man. Many whispered among themselves with their teammates.
Seeing Huo Fuyu staring directly at her, Nan Yue gave him a slightly cold nod but didn't offer much of a response.
Huo Fuyu's smile deepened.
"This is our village head, Suo Qisi."
Suo Qisi nodded stiffly to everyone and raised a hand as large as a palm leaf fan. "Hello... everyone. Antswamp... Village Head, Suo Qisi."
Luo Liu explained that Antswamp Village was isolated and used a local dialect. Only the village head and the spirit medium knew a bit of the common tongue.
Suo Qisi beckoned to everyone and pointed at a circle of black marks on the ground.
The marks weren't very clear against the soil. Everyone only saw them after Suo Qisi pointed them out.
"What is this?"
Suo Qisi explained with some effort, "Insect repellent. Don't step on it."
It turned out to be used to prevent venomous snakes, insects, and rats from the forest. Many primitive tribes used plants and flowers to make natural insect repellents.
Everyone carefully stepped over the repellent ring, which was as thick as a forearm. This marked their formal entry into the village.
Antswamp Village was larger than they had imagined. It was located in the heart of the forest on a large stretch of flat land, with a small river behind it.
Based purely on the geographical location, it wasn't surprising that a village would exist here.
The houses in the village were all built of stacked stones, each one square and quite distinctive.
However, a small moat was dug around the outside of every stone house, filled with clear water.
Luo Liu explained from the side, "Antswamp Village takes many precautions to prevent insects and ants. This is one of them."
Everyone nodded after hearing this. A sharp-faced man following He Jiang suddenly asked, "Do these houses have no windows?"
Luo Liu nodded. "The houses in the village don't have windows, but they have ventilation holes."
He pointed them out to everyone. There was a basketball-sized hole at the bottom of the walls of each stone house, with openings on all four sides, so there was no need to worry about air circulation.
"Why not just put in windows?"
The sharp-faced man's expression wasn't great. Everything here was strange, making him feel inexplicably uneasy.
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