Chapter 494 Who is the Bait?
"Gu?" Guan Xuefen was stunned for a few seconds before she realized what Ye Wanxi was talking about.
"Is it that... Gu, often mentioned in period martial arts dramas?"
"Um."
"So this thing really exists!" Guan Xuefen exclaimed in surprise, then her face paled slightly as if she had just remembered something.
That's why we say reality and illusion should be kept separate.
In the virtual world, when I see handsome young men and beautiful young women practicing poison and killing people without leaving a trace, I excitedly shout, "So handsome and cool! I want to have your babies!"
If you actually encountered that in real life, all you would do is scream and yell, "Don't touch me! Get the hell away from me, you son of a bitch murderer!"
Ye Wanxi noticed Guan Xuefen's fear and reached out to pat her head.
Guan Xuefen was stunned for a moment, her anxiety and fear instantly replaced by the joy and relief of her idol patting her head.
Hehehe, Xiao Yezi patted her head! She must be the first fan in the world to have Xiao Yezi pat her head!
She hasn't washed her hair for a month! Once this is resolved, she'll go back to school and brag about it.
This is the head that Xiao Yezi touched; it has a built-in sparkling golden light effect. Who knows, you might win the lottery if you buy a ticket when you get back!
Ye Wanxi: Are you sure it's shimmering with gold, and not just shimmering with oil?
Fortunately, Ye Wanxi was unaware of what she was thinking, otherwise, who knows what indescribable expression she would have worn.
"The Gu they raise can help them with chores and bring them good fortune. They also help them tidy up their houses, but they rarely appear in public. They are just like a Gu version of the Snail Fairy."
Guan Xuefen was slightly taken aback. Because of what the vegetable-selling aunt at the village entrance had said, she focused all her attention on the Cui family after entering the house and didn't notice their family situation at all.
Now, thanks to Ye Wanxi's reminder, Guan Xuefen belatedly realized that although the house looked simple and unadorned on the outside, it was beautifully decorated inside.
It was much more luxurious than the mud houses they had seen in the village before.
"But nothing in this world comes without a price."
Guan Xuefen's heart skipped a beat, and she nervously swallowed: "What price?"
"This kind of poison eats one person every few years."
Even though Guan Xuefen was mentally prepared, she still felt a chill run down her spine upon hearing this.
"So...so all those missing people were eaten?"
"Hmm." Ye Wanxi's expression was also somewhat unpleasant. "According to that aunt, the most recent victim should be the small business owner from four years ago. Because two of their relatives got into trouble one after another, no one in the village was willing to associate with them anymore, and no one dared to come to their house easily, so they had no choice but to extend their reach to outside the village."
“That small business owner was their target, and you…” Ye Wanxi turned to look at her, “are their second target.”
Guan Xuefen's face turned pale: "Are they crazy? Doing this kind of thing will be discovered sooner or later. Just for money and enjoyment, they're willing to harm innocent people. Aren't they afraid of being found out and facing retribution?"
"Isn't it because it hasn't been discovered yet? This kind of Gu has the ability to automatically erase traces. As long as someone enters this house, they will be eaten up, leaving not even bones. Once you get lucky, twice you get lucky, three or four times and it will become commonplace and you'll get used to it."
Guan Xuefen felt like she was about to vomit: "Those are people, living people, some of them are even their blood relatives."
Ye Wanxi let out a long breath: "Once a person's greed is stirred, how easy is it to stop? Moreover, the more evil something is, the harder it is to control. They have been raising this Gu for more than ten or twenty years, and the thread that holds them together has long become very fragile. If they don't feed it now, it will turn on its master."
"Backlash...?"
"Even if we eat their whole family, do you think if it really comes to that, who among the four of them would be the first to be pushed out?"
Guan Xuefen paused for a moment, pondered, and then asked uncertainly, "Yuezhen?"
"Did she invite you here, or did you come on your own whim?"
"She invited me, but it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing on my part."
Thinking back, a month ago, Cui Yuezhen had frequently mentioned her family to her, described the environment near her home, and invited her to go home with her during her vacation.
It was because of Cui Yuezhen's frequent nagging that Guan Xuefen decided to come here.
Now that she knows the truth, Guan Xuefen feels a tightness in her chest, so uncomfortable that she almost vomits.
It's pitiful that she became a sacrifice for her parents' selfish interests, but her life is her life, and isn't your own life also your life?
"Little Leaf, what should we do now?"
"We need to lure it out first."
"Lure them out?"
"Hmm." Ye Wanxi's expression was solemn. "Don't underestimate this thing just because it's a small, insignificant insect. It's actually very clever and knows how to avoid danger. The reason I stopped you from leaving was twofold: first, because they went to great lengths to bring people into the house, and they wouldn't let us leave easily; second, I was worried that if we clashed with them, the Gu would sense the danger and leave the house. And once it gets too far from its owner and the connection is broken, it can easily go out of control."
What would happen if it got out of control?
Ye Wanxi's eyes narrowed slightly: "It will indiscriminately attack prey that is close to it, and grow stronger as quickly as possible."
Guan Xuefen understood. The inhabited area nearby was the village they had come from. If the Gu worm escaped, the villagers would not be as capable of protecting themselves as Ye Wanxi and the others, and their chances of survival would be slim.
"Are you scared?"
Guan Xuefen pursed her lips and shook her head, saying, "Don't worry, with Xiao Yezi here, I know I'll be fine. Speaking of which, I'm the one who dragged you all into this, I'm sorry."
Ye Wanxi laughed: "Protecting your fans is a required course for artists. Instead of worrying about that, we should think about how to lure that little thing out."
What should I do?
“I don’t need you.” Ye Wanxi met Guan Xuefen’s questioning gaze with a slight smile. “Someone will ‘voluntarily’ act as the bait.”
A skilled hunter often appears as the prey, while the real prey often lacks awareness of being prey.
For example, right now, Ye Wanxi's most qualified baits are gathered together discussing how to send the lambs into the tiger's den.
"Are we really going to do this? There are too many of them. What if..."
“There’s no such thing as ‘what if’.” Under the dim yellow light, Mr. Cui’s expression looked even colder and more sinister, eerie and frightening.
"We can't wait any longer. The end of the year is just around the corner. If we don't keep them here, are we really going to send Yuezhen to her death?"
Cui Yuezhen, who had been sitting in the corner of the sofa, silent and empty like a puppet, only turned her eyes after hearing the name, her face full of indifference.
(End of this chapter)
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