As the saying goes, it is a blessing, not a curse, but a curse cannot be avoided.
The three of them moved forward among the hills in this area. Just after noon, I saw smoke rising from behind the hills ahead.
"There is no village here, right? The old man said it." Ling Huan stopped and did not dare to step forward.
"Even in the village...the cooking smoke is white. Why are these smoke columns so dark?"
While Han Chang was thinking about it, Xie Zhe's face darkened. He stared for a long time, but couldn't explain why. So Han Chang spoke for him:
"You want to say that this ghost thing is abnormal at first glance, but it doesn't have any evil spirit, right? At least you can't feel it here."
"...Indeed. If you want to know better, you have to get closer."
The two of them nodded in unison as they spoke. Ye Linghua stood there, his eyebrows twisted together.
"I feel like it's very bad there... Is this the so-called trace of the village? Maybe it's just a place where it burned down."
They could hear the hesitation in the girl's words. Hanshang just said that wildfire smoke is not like this.
He continued: "And it's not necessarily the so-called... ghost village. The terrain in this area is relatively open and the resources are quite abundant. It is normal for a few more households to be spread out."
"Then what is this smoke?"
Ling Hu asked. To be honest, Xie Zhe looked like traces of war.
"War? But it's so peaceful here..."
"Ah, it's just wooden houses, straw and other things. When they burn, there's this kind of black smoke." Hanshang explained.
"So since there is no evil spirit - is anyone in danger?"
At this moment, Ye Lingyu was a little worried. This possibility cannot be ruled out, but neither Xie Zhe nor Han Zhang moved. They couldn't come to a conclusion that convinced each other. Ling Huan looked around for a while, looked at their reactions, and then made up his mind and said:
"...Then, let's go take a look."
Zhongli Hanzhang was indifferent, and Xie Zhe was considered a good helper. Of course, it was most important to understand the situation first. He can't be suspicious all day long just because someone else said a few words, and he won't save anyone who is really in danger. This is obviously not the principle of his conduct in the world. So the three people climbed towards the top of the hill. Ling Huan was the first to reach the highest point. The moment she saw something, she suddenly stopped and let out a short exclamation.
"oops--"
Xie Zhe quickened his pace and came to her side immediately, followed by Han Shang. They soon understood what Miss Ye was marveling at.
Compared with "traces", this is obviously a ruin, a wreckage, something more real than that light and shallow thing. This is a real village! At least it used to be... Looking from the heights to the flat ground below, there are at least forty or fifty households on this scale. But it had been destroyed, with almost no buildings left intact. The black smoke also came from some fire courtyards or stoves.
It is not a magical phantom, but a real village that has just experienced a catastrophe.
After a brief daze, Xie Zhe and Ye Linghua rushed down the hillside almost at the same time. Han Chang reacted and followed closely.
Save people.
A part of his hand was exposed under a pile of collapsed timber. Xie Zhe lifted the heaviest wooden stake with all his strength. But there are too many things, and his power is like a cricket shaking a tree. Ling Huan had no one to help, so he lay down and shouted to the people inside.
"Hello! Can you hear my voice? Hold on, let's..."
Ling Huan reached out his hand and tried to hold the pale arm. The moment he pulled it, Ling Huan suddenly let out a harsh scream, which startled Xie Zhe. He lost strength in his hand and smashed the wood down.
Han Zhang pulled Ling Huan back and helped her stand up straight. She was frightened because when she held the hand, she felt "loose", as if it were independent of the body. Rather, it is independent from the outside of the body. Xie Zhe bent down and pulled out the amputated arm with a little force.
He was stunned for a moment and immediately threw away the severed hand.
"Alas -" Han Chang's lament was deliberately loud, "Thanks to you claiming to be an experienced Onmyoji, don't you think there's anything wrong?"
"Eager to save people. And I didn't find anything unusual about this village - at least there's no evil spirit. I guess it's possible that bandits robbed the village."
Xie Zhe honestly admitted his recklessness, and his point of view was indeed the most tenable. Han Chang was helpless. He put his hands on his hips and educated the two people in front of him who were in trouble as if scolding a junior.
"I rushed forward without any worries at all. It's really...don't you think it's strange that there's no sound at all here?"
That's right. Although the village had no idea what was going on, it was eerily quiet. There were no cries for help, just some vague burning sounds. All human sounds can't be heard here at all, as if all the people who could be rescued have been evacuated, leaving only a pile of hopeless corpses here.
"Don't be careless." Han Zhang said sternly, "Although there is no evil spirit here, it does not mean that there is no danger! Besides, there are some things that you cannot see at a glance. You are an expert, so forget about your mistakes. Don't treat Miss Ye like Take it into the ditch too.”
Xie Zhe wanted to retort, but in the end he didn't open his mouth to speak. After all, what this guy said was good, but the way he scolded people like an elder was a bit dissatisfying. Think about it again, the old fox has lived for hundreds of years, so he will be punished. But this way, they were not so anxious. The three of them walked side by side on the not-so-wide street, looking around at the dilapidated scenery. Ye Linghua was caught in the middle of them. If he encountered someone who looked like... a dead person, he would use his body to block her so as not to scare the girl. Fortunately, Miss Ye's eyes were not very sharp, and her attention was mainly focused on the trees on both sides. The trees were also burnt and black, looking extremely desolate at a time when all their leaves had fallen.
What's even more desolate is that it's snowing.
The snow was so small that when I stretched out my hand, the snowflakes would melt and evaporate in my palm. But when the white dots fall, it still makes people feel sad. I'm afraid that the fierce fire has passed long ago. After all, the corpses seen along the way are all black, and the most serious ones are almost charred, making it impossible for ordinary people to recognize them at a glance.
"well."
Ling Hu let out a soft sigh and exhaled a small cloud of white mist from his mouth.
"What could happen here?" Han Chang was also confused. "It doesn't look like a war. After all, there are no traces of weapons. But it doesn't look like a simple fire. Otherwise, how could the whole village..."
"But it seems that it's not a monster. Even if a long time has passed since the monsters were swept away, there should still be traces of magic here. But so far, I don't see anything wrong. What about you?"
"I...haven't either. But you are probably like me, because you can't find a reasonable explanation, so you feel something is wrong. However, it's just the extent of feeling something is wrong. There is too little information to deduce anything. The only thing we know and confirm It's... it's late. That's all."
"It's too late."
Ye Linghuan looked at Xie Zhe and then at Han Shang, showing undisguised worry.
"Are you really not looking carefully? What if, what if there are still people alive? If we fail to save them, it would be too..."
"We don't know if we can't save him." Han Chang smiled.
Xie Zhe didn't like this about him. This kind of cold black humor is too cruel, even cruel to the point where Miss Ye can only detect the surface and feel dissatisfied with it - such as Zhongli's personal ruthlessness. On a deeper level, she might not have thought of it for a while, but both the person and the event itself were too cold.
"Wait!" Ye Lingyu suddenly stopped and pointed forward, "Look! Is that there..."
Most of a house collapsed, and the jagged walls revealed a lone figure. Because he was a little far away, the man seemed to be kneeling or sitting there. They immediately ran forward and realized that it was not an adult, but a child. The child just stood here blankly, standing upright, but his eyes were dull. Even if the three of them approached, there was no reaction.
Is this a... girl? Or a boy? They are a bit difficult to tell, and the appearance of the gender at this age often makes it difficult to tell at a glance. The child looked to be about ten years old, couldn't be older. It may also be that he is malnourished and not tall, so it is difficult to judge. The child's hair was cut neatly, and the sideburns were connected to the length of the back of the head, as if they had been cut flat with a knife. The bangs are also neat, revealing a pair of confused eyes. It is this kind of hairstyle that blurs gender, because regardless of whether it is a boy or a girl, many places give children this kind of hairstyle that is easy to take care of and looks very well-behaved. A long time ago, people thought that their body and skin were influenced by their parents and they were unwilling to cut their hair, but now there are not so many rules. No matter the upper-class nobles or common people, everyone no longer sticks to this troublesome tradition.
Then again, this kid... is actually still alive.
Ye Linghua thought - or at least thought he was a brat. The child's gender certainly had no bearing on what she did next. She immediately lifted up her clothes, stepped on the short wall and climbed over. Although the other two people were worried, they quickly stepped forward. Ye Lingyu discovered that the child was indeed alive, but... he seemed to be frightened and just stood there. Ling Huan squatted in front of him and grabbed his arms with two arms. The child still had no reaction.
"Hey kid, wake up."
Han Chang gently shook the child's shoulder, but the child didn't react much. But at least he knew that someone was by his side at this moment to rescue him from this predicament. The child's slender neck turned stiffly, and his gaze slowly moved from the distant sky to the face of the person in front of him. It seemed a little difficult for him to focus his eyes, but after a long struggle, Ye Lingyu's shadow was finally reflected in his eyes.
The child's face was a little dirty and stained with a lot of dust, as were the linen clothes. However, his clothes were mainly dark red and dark blue, and they were very old. He is thin and small, and besides the gray on his face, he still has a voluptuousness that has not faded at this age. But this is due to age and has nothing to do with nutrition. I'm afraid if he gets older, he will become like most children from poor families, with sunken cheeks due to lack of food.
He looks cute and pitiful.
The remaining fire around them was about to spread, and the child was unaware of it. They need to get him out of here first.
