The three who had left earlier continued discussing their earlier speculations as they walked along the road.
While looking down to avoid puddles, Shi Jinzhe said, "Every year, many companies do charity work because it's the best way to gain a good reputation. Some people do it out of genuine sincerity, some do it for fame, and some do it for profit."
Faced with these naive young girls, some people are bound to have wicked thoughts. Besides finding information about that girl, we also need to check if any other students have died, and we need to re-evaluate Shao Dong's role in all of this.
“There are more than two,” Shekh said abruptly. “There’s another one, also a girl.”
"You mean there are ghosts in this dungeon?"
She nodded and pointed to a path. "Go this way. Her soul is still in the mountains. Go find her; perhaps you can get some information."
Shehe was preoccupied with how to write her name; she wanted to leave this place as soon as possible because Shi Jinzhe was too dawdling.
"Okay." Shi Jin turned around and followed the directions she had given him.
Meng Chengxi looked up at the horizon, hesitated for a few seconds, and then walked into the forest with him, leading the way.
The thicket of branches became increasingly difficult to traverse as he went deeper into it. He carried a sharp dagger he had redeemed with points, making it extremely inefficient, taking three slashes for every step he took.
The trees cast shadows, blocking out the sunlight, and the mountain wind howls through the forest, sounding like weeping and lamenting, sending chills down one's spine.
Shekh was being held, and because of her high position, the branches above her head would often brush against her hair.
With her eyes covered by a black ribbon, she gazed into the distance, raised one hand, and snapped off the branch that was about to touch her.
Meng Chengxi was still chopping when the branches under his knife suddenly withered. He became alert and turned around to ask what was wrong, but then he saw Shehe holding a branch in her hand, and the bushes around her were rapidly withering.
Shekh's tone was completely flat. "It's just ahead. Keep going."
Meng Chengxi swallowed his words. Before turning back, he glanced at Shi Jinzhe. He could carry her for so long without complaint even on a road like this. She was just like a hardworking butler.
As they ventured deeper, the temperature around the three of them dropped lower and lower until they finally stopped at the edge of a ravine.
It was a very steep slope, covered with loose rocks and broken trees. If a person fell down, they would be crippled even if they didn't die.
Shekh was put down by Shi Jinzhe. He shook his tired arms and looked down into the ravine, only to find that he could not see anything.
He shook his head at Shekh. "No, I can't see it."
"Because only demons with sufficient strength can have their physical form seen."
In the ravine, a girl with a bloody, mangled head sat on a rock, staring blankly into the distance.
Noticing the long-absent gaze, she turned her head and saw a beautiful, blindfolded woman standing above her. The girl tentatively called out, "Help?"
Shekh nodded, and the girl was a little excited after receiving her affirmation. "You're the first person who didn't run away! Can you help me leave here? I still have things to do."
"explain."
The girl hadn't seen anyone for so long, and seeing Shekh now felt like grasping at a glimmer of hope; she blurted everything out.
"My name is Lin Xiaohe. I made a promise with the teacher to expose Shao Dong together, but I forgot how I fell down. Could you help me up? I haven't handed in the letter I wrote yet."
Shekh cut to the chase, "Where's the letter?"
"It's in my house, I hid it in..." Lin Xiaohe paused, inwardly annoyed at her own carelessness. She stopped herself, "How do I know if you can trust me?"
Shekh didn't answer the question. Instead, he turned his back and stretched out his arms in front of Shi Jinzhe, his whole body screaming, "Say it or don't, I'm leaving."
He seemed completely indifferent.
Lin Xiaohe quickly said "Hey!" twice, "Don't go, don't go."
She didn't know how long she had been trapped there. Every time there was a noise nearby, she would call for help, but no one ever came to her rescue. They either ignored her or ran away as fast as they could.
She finally ran into someone, and only after realizing it did she think to be more cautious, but this person didn't ask her a single question.
If I let her go, I don't know how long I'll be stuck here.
She conceded, "The letter is on the beam of my outbuilding. I wrapped it in a black plastic bag and hid it in the corner between two logs." Finally, she looked up at Shekh's untouched purple dress and asked again, "You're not from around here, are you?"
"no."
"Sure enough, you can't tell from here. Sigh... My house is the fourth one from the east in Xituozi, Shaojia Village. There's a persimmon tree in front of the door. If you find it, be sure to deliver the letter to them."
A look of melancholy appeared on Lin Xiaohe's blood-covered face. She could tell that Shekh wouldn't take her away, and her tone was somewhat downcast: "And please remember to find someone to pick me up."
"Hmm." Shekh turned to look at Shi Jinzhe: "Let's go, we've asked."
Shi Jin opened his mouth, then asked hesitantly, "Could you please ask her again if she knows of anyone else who has passed away in the past four years?"
He watched the whole thing and found that Sheikh only said seven words from beginning to end, and he had no idea what she heard.
"She doesn't know."
Sheh withdrew his gaze from Lin Xiaohe. She was the first of the three to die. The reason she was so naive and easy to talk to was because she hadn't realized she was already dead.
Hearing her resolute tone, Shi Jinzhe didn't dare to ask any more questions. "Then let's go."
Meng Chengxi wanted to ask more questions, but since he couldn't see, he had to give up.
The three of them retraced their steps along the path they had taken. As they emerged from the forest, Shekh handed the broken branch to Shi Jinzhai, saying, "Put it in the ground."
"Then hold on tight so you don't fall." Shi Jin squatted down and forcefully stuck the branch into the ground.
The path that had been cleared was suddenly overgrown with lush bushes, completely blocking the entrance.
The sun was no longer visible on the horizon, leaving only a faint orange-red afterglow.
Shehe relayed Lin Xiaohe's words to the two of them. Upon hearing about Xituozi, Meng Chengxi, who was standing to the side, said, "Then we can't go today. The villagers in this village are very scattered. Xituozi is almost thirty miles away from here."
He took out an inextinguishable oil lamp from his prop backpack and held it up to illuminate the area. "Do you have any speed-up items? If not, I'll go to Xituozi tomorrow, and you can gather information there."
"No."
There aren't even any decent items, let alone speed-up items.
He lingered his gaze on Meng Chengxi's back for two seconds, then abandoned his unrealistic idea and casually looked away.
When the three returned to the small building, it was already dark for a while. Shi Jinzhe pushed open the door and came in, ignoring the probing gazes, and sat down to feed Shehe.
"We found out something about volunteer teachers. Would you like to join the discussion?" Sherman remained as kind and unhurried as ever.
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