Chapter 14
My hands desperately grasped the slippery grass, but I still fell to the bottom.
I was already injured, and my entire body was in pain. I struggled to get up, but failed after two or three attempts.
Luckily, the thing didn't chase me down, or I'd be dead. It was pitch black now, and I couldn't see anything around me. Only the crickets chirped in the grass. I endured the excruciating pain and climbed to my feet, leaning against the hillside, gasping for breath.
The pain woke me up, and I squinted until dawn. This valley was better than up there; at least a few rays of sunlight could still filter through. I checked my body and found no major wounds, just superficial ones. But my feet were now so swollen that I could hardly walk. I limped, finding a branch to use as a crutch, supporting myself as I searched for a way out.
I was also lucky. As I was walking out of the valley, I happened to run into the search and rescue team looking for Zhang Yu. They sent me back to the county hospital, and Li Bin and I are now fellow patients.
After a week of searching, the search and rescue team still couldn't find Zhang Yu. But now I'm more worried about Mao Jianming and Zhang Song. They've been in there for so long, and there's been no news at all. I can't get through to them by phone.
Before coming to Eshan, I had never imagined encountering such a critical situation. I thought it was just a trip with a bit of adventure. Now it seems Eshan is rife with dangers. After a week of rest, I'm almost fully recovered.
Yesterday, Zheng Yunyun returned heartbroken. Now we all know she's probably in critical condition. The atmosphere in the ward was a bit depressing. Zheng Yunyun hugged her pillow and burst into tears. Li Bin's eyes were red, he was actually heartbroken over the loss of this good friend. I felt a little melancholy too. I hope Wang Jianming, Zhang Song and the others can return safely.
After another three or four days, I called them but still couldn't get through. I was very worried about their safety, so I had to call the search and rescue team again to look for them in Eshan. However, the search in the heart of Eshan was too difficult, and after searching for several days, they returned empty-handed.
We heard a legend from a local woman in Eshan, saying that there are monsters in Eshan that can bewitch people's minds. If a stranger trespasses into their territory, they will never return, and not even their remains will be found. They also said that the person we are looking for has been bewitched by the monster.
I was already very worried about them, and I had indeed encountered some unclean things. In the end, I had no choice but to call the Tianshi Mansion.
I first called Master Zhang. After he briefly understood the situation, he said he would send someone over and told me not to act on my own.
The people at Tianshifu were more professional in dealing with those unclean things. So, I waited in Eshan County for another four or five days.
When the people from Tianshi Mansion arrived, it was Erma who called me.
She brought Qingyun with her.
"Erma, why are you two here?" I asked her.
"Master asked me to come and help you, but he was worried about me alone, so he asked Qingyun to accompany me." Erma said excitedly.
Zheng Yunyun and Li Bin looked suspicious when they saw that Erma was younger than us.
Seeing that the two of them looked down on her, Erma just sneered.
I saw Erma was about to lose her temper, so I quickly tried to smooth things over by saying, "Erma is the last disciple of Master Tian, Master Zhang. She gave me this evil-repelling bead."
When they heard that Erma had such a high status, they immediately stopped looking down on her.
"Erma, now all our friends are missing in Eshan. Do you have any way to find them?" I asked her.
"Are they all ordinary people?" Erma asked.
"Yes, there are no people from the Xuanmen." I said.
"That's easier. Just follow me." Erma said.
When we heard Erma say that she had a way, the three of us were very excited. Counting the days, they had been in the mountains for almost a month and were probably in great danger now. The sooner we found them, the more hope we had of survival.
The first person to be found was Zhang Yu, whose condition was critical. Erma pulled a round compass from a box. The compass had two hands, one long and one short, like a watch. On the compass were engraved the directions: east, south, west, north, southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest. Under each direction was the word "life," and beneath "life" was the word "death."
Looking at this strange and bizarre magical instrument, I asked her, "How do I use this?"
As long as you think of the person you are looking for, you can use this pin to find their direction. After saying this, she bent her left thumb, index finger, ring finger, and pinky finger into a square, corresponding to the east, south, west, and north on the compass, and placed her middle finger between the four fingers to hold up the compass.
"Now hold my hand and think about the person you are looking for." Erma said to Zheng Yunyun.
Zheng Yunyun placed her hand doubtfully in Erma's. They both closed their eyes. As Erma chanted the incantation, the missing needle on the compass actually began to move. It was the short needle that moved, pointing northwest, the direction of Mount Eshan. At its tip, it rested on the word "death."
When I saw this scene, I knew that Zhang Yu was really dead.
Zheng Yunyun and Li Bin seemed unable to accept this reality. Li Bin was better, but he couldn't stop crying. As for Zheng Yunyun, she had fainted from grief.
Fortunately, Qingyun was quick and grabbed Zheng Yunyun.
Li Bin asked, "Are you sure?"
Erma said coldly: "Yes!"
I could tell Erma was angry, so I whispered, "They're very good friends, and it's understandable that they're upset. Don't take it to heart."
"Hmph, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't bother with them," said Erma.
When he heard Erma's words, he became so excited that he started to curse Erma, saying that she was heartless and that her scolding was very excessive.
Erma's face flushed with anger, and I hurried to stop Li Bin. He shook me off, snatched Zheng Yunyun from Qingyun's hands, and carried her away on his back.
I kept comforting Erma and told her not to be angry.
This was all my fault. Erma was so outspoken that Li Bin and the others couldn't accept it, and they started arguing. As the middleman, I felt a little awkward.
"Sister, who are you looking for?" Erma said.
Hearing her tone, I knew that although she was still angry, it had subsided a lot.
I held her hand, closed my eyes, and thought of Mao Jianming. I was terrified that I would get the same result as Zhang Yu.
When I opened my eyes, I didn't even dare to look at the missing person needle.
Erma said, "He is also in the northwest direction and is still alive."
Hearing her say that, I breathed a sigh of relief, a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. But the next words would have made my heart jump to my throat again.
"But he is in great danger now."
"Let's go and rescue them." I pulled Erma and ran towards Eshan.
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