The little girl in the room huddled in the corner. Next to her was a bed where an old man was sleeping so soundly that his chest was barely visible.
After hearing what Fu Yin said clearly, her whole body trembled violently, as if she recalled something terrible. Her disfigured face twisted and became hideous uncontrollably, and the only eye left was deeply engraved with endless hatred.
Ling Ling had heard others say this before, and the villagers had also heard it and believed it, but their nightmare began from then on.
Anhe Village was once not as barren as it is today thanks to an underground river running south of the village. Backed by yellow sand, water was a scarce commodity, and this underground river made it easier to access. Life in Anhe Village wasn't particularly prosperous, but it lived up to its name, offering peace and tranquility.
Then suddenly one day, the underground river changed its course, and the water that the villagers had brought to the surface dried up. As time went on, the villagers living in Anhe Village had to find ways to survive. The easiest way was naturally to move away from Anhe Village.
Just when the villagers were hesitating, a group of strangers entered Anhe Village. Most of them spoke incomprehensible words. Only a girl whose whole body was covered with black gauze, leaving only a pair of eyes exposed, could speak the language of Dajin, and very fluently.
She said they were traveling merchants who got lost in the desert and walked for a long time before finding Anhe Village. They wanted to stay there for a few nights.
The villagers looked at the money they had prepared for their stay and agreed.
In the next few days, Ling Ling always saw a woman in black veil walking around the village, as if she was looking for something.
The day before they were about to leave, the woman found the village chief and said something. The village chief gathered the villagers together that night. Ling Ling, who loved to join in the fun, also mingled with the crowd and listened to the village chief speak.
The village chief said that the woman in black could save them and help them find a new water source. In return, they needed to help her dig something. As long as she was satisfied, she would pay the villagers.
The villagers were naturally very happy about such a good thing. Having found a new water source, they no longer had to leave their homes. They could make money and live a peaceful life as before after this group of people left. This was a rare opportunity for them.
Later, they learned that they were digging for a type of stone hidden deep within the mountains. The woman didn't explain what the stone was used for, so the villagers speculated it might be a gem. She designated a spot at the foot of a mountain about two miles from Anhe Village and had her men lead the villagers in digging.
When they dug out the stone that the woman in black needed for the first time, everyone was attracted by the dazzling gem.
People are selfish. Many of the miners took some away and hid them at home. Some even asked why they should give these stones away for free since they were clearly found here.
Just when the villagers were slowly wavering and wanted to drive away the woman in black and her people, many more people came to the village. They were also the woman in black's people. Among these people were miners like them, and there were also ferocious people holding whips. The most important thing was that they also had other weapons, such as bows and arrows, swords and the like.
At this time, the villagers discovered that the number of the other side was greater than the young and middle-aged people in their entire village, and an uncontrollable sense of fear rose in everyone's hearts.
After seeing the disparity in strength between the two sides, some villagers who wanted to resist decided to retreat, thinking that even if they could get paid for mining, the mine would eventually be exhausted and this group of people would eventually leave.
Unfortunately, imagination is always beautiful. After they gained the advantage in numbers and weapons, the woman in black disappeared. This group of people seemed to have taken off their masks and instantly changed into another look.
The villagers then realized that the whip was meant to whip them. The young and middle-aged men in the village were detained at the foot of the mountain and forced to work day and night. The harvest from the fields became less and less, and their lives became more and more difficult.
Not only that, the only way out for the entire village was also guarded by the people brought by the woman in black. They could not get out or escape, and could only watch as the entire village stepped into hell step by step.
For some unknown reason, the miners began to lose their hair, their faces turned black, and their exposed skin began to crack. Later, more and more people died, and even many of the people brought by the woman in black died. Later, that group of people all covered themselves with black veils.
When many people died, they also took the women and the elderly from the village to dig stones. At this time, the villagers no longer asked for anything, but just wanted to get some food from these people.
The accident happened after they dug out a large stone from the mountain. The weather was very hot that day. After the emaciated miners carried the stone out of the cave, the man in black veil asked them to put the stone in the sun. He approached the stone with enthusiasm in his eyes and was in a very good mood to ask everyone to stop working and admire it.
He spoke to the villagers in broken Dajin dialect, "If you can dig out another stone this big, you'll be free. You'd better be obedient, and then no one will stop you from leaving the village."
The scorching sun was baking the earth, and everyone stood silently around the stone that was emitting brilliant light. Only the person in black veil was saying something in an intense tone.
No one knew how long it had been before they heard a loud 'bang'. The next moment, something hot splashed on their faces and bodies, followed by endless pain and wailing that seemed to become one continuous sound.
Ling Ling's memory of what happened next was disjointed. She only knew that the man closest to her was the most seriously injured and died soon after. The remaining villagers ran towards Anhe Village desperately, and Ling Ling was carried back to the village by her grandfather.
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