Kelly's death was not related to old William?
Who killed her?
Jiang Baiyan was even more confused and asked, "What happened later?"
"I went to the woods to look for someone - I got lost - there were so many trees - I didn't know - that cave - the white cave..." Old William kept talking in his sleep, his words were unclear, "Why did I go there? Oh, it was an owl - a big owl..."
Strange memories came to his mind.
Old William saw himself when he was in his teens. At that time, he was a player on the rugby team, a big man in the school, and very popular with girls.
Kelly was tall and beautiful, and many boys liked her. He spent a lot of effort and said so many sweet words to coax her to be his girlfriend.
However, Kelly was too proud.
She was not like other girls who always followed him around. His friends always laughed at him, saying that he couldn't handle Kelly and maybe she was having an affair with another man behind his back.
He was very angry, so he made a bet with them that Kelly would listen to whatever he said.
At that time, he was in contact with some gangsters and sold things from the border in the school. A few days ago, his uncle who was a policeman seemed to notice it and warned him several times.
He didn't want to be caught by his uncle, but if he took the goods without paying, his life would be in danger, so he simply asked Kelly to help him pass it on.
The transaction took place in the forest.
For some reason, the police rarely patrolled the forest, so it was very safe. But no matter what he said, Kelly refused to agree.
"There is something in the woods that makes me creepy." She always said so.
But William didn't listen at all, he just felt angry.
He had already spread the word that if Kelly didn't do it, he would be laughed at by everyone for the rest of his life. So he threatened Kelly that if she didn't go, she would have to wait for him to collect her body.
Kelly gave in.
She went to the woods in the evening.
When night fell, William didn't wait for her for a long time, so he was laughed at by his friends. He got drunk and heard that Kelly didn't go home until the next day.
On the first day, he didn't take it seriously and thought she broke her promise and hid away, but on the second day, the third day... she really disappeared.
Reed came over angrily to question him, looking like he was going to beat him to death. He didn't dare to say it was his fault, and he insisted that he didn't know.
Fortunately, he was in the bar that night, and many people could prove his innocence, otherwise Reed might have really shot him.
But besides that, there was another thing that worried him.
Money.
The money was with Kelly, and he couldn't get a few thousand dollars in a short time. But if the money wasn't sent over, people wouldn't care whether the money was with his girlfriend or not, or whether she was dead or not, at least they would have to cut off his two arms.
The money must be found.
You can't go to the woods during the day, or you will be discovered. On the tenth night after Kelly disappeared, he went into the woods alone, not only to look for Kelly, but also to get the money back.
Then, his life changed completely.
What happened that night?
His mind became confused, and he could only vaguely remember a few scenes: he got lost, and while walking, he suddenly saw a cave, and there was a faint sound coming from inside.
Then... he walked in... and called Kelly's name...
The sound echoed, and red light flashed. The memory became fragmented and broken, intermittent, and stuttered.
The perspective suddenly spun, and he fell to the ground - he fell down - legs, strange bird legs, feathers, brown feathers with yellow spots.
Looking up, an extremely huge owl was looking down at him.
"Ah--!" Old William burst into a terrible roar.
The next moment, he suddenly broke free from the intoxicant, his eyes bulged out of their sockets, and his bulging eyeballs stared at Jiang Baiyan.
Jiang Baiyan turned around and ran away.
"In ghost stories, it is always said that someone drowned and became a water ghost, trapped in the river, and must pull someone down to get out." In the underground space, Jian Jing directly exposed Qi Tian's past, "You lured me into a trap, do you want me to be your scapegoat?"
Qi Tian sneered and admitted, "So what?"
He was very confident in his methods, and exchanging lives was his specialty. As long as he trapped her here, he could get away and live his original life again.
However, Jian Jing also held a trump card.
"If you want to harm me, I will fight you to the death, and then neither of us will be able to escape." She turned on the trust card to make her argument more convincing, "Why don't we work together to solve it first, and then settle the accounts separately."
He didn't answer but asked, "How are you going to solve it?"
Jian Jing pretended to think, "It's afraid of fire, so we might as well burn it with fire."
"Do you think I haven't tried it?" Qi Tian sneered, "Back then, I burned so many places with fire, but it just made it weak."
Jian Jing suggested again, "Then, what about using a bomb? I don't believe that a bomb can't kill a tree."
Qi Tian's face twitched, "What a waste of resources! This is a real immortal tree. Its amazing healing ability alone is enough to become a miracle in the history of human medicine!"
Jian Jing laughed.
All Qi Tian wanted was to get rid of the giant tree's control, but he didn't want to destroy it. He coveted its ability, hoping to make a fortune in the outside world after solving the problem.
He must not be allowed to succeed.
"So, we can't negotiate anymore." Jian Jing stalled for time, calling the system in her heart.
There were no bombs in her storage compartment, so she had to draw now.
System, draw a card.
The screen in front of her flashed, like a stuck computer screen.
System draw a card!!
[System: ******]
Sporadic fragments flashed by, as if returning to the previous white cave.
System, draw a card quickly!!!
Colors suddenly intertwined, distorted light flashed in my mind, my head suddenly felt heavy, my temples swelled, and my stomach churned violently. In extreme discomfort, the illusion of the giant statue gradually faded.
A sense of weightlessness came.
Jian Jing found that she was actually hanging upside down on the tree trunk. The soft and flexible branches tightly gripped her, like a flytrap catching a fly... Ugh!
She shook her head to make herself more awake.
Now, she could finally see the system notification clearly.
[System: Please choose the card drawing method]
Jian Jing: Ordinary card
[Card drawing (courage value x2)]
[Drawing completed]
[Name: Item card·Time bomb (3/3)]
[Content description: High explosive, powerful, only for this mission]
[Note: Special item, can consume 5X2 special value points for timed remote control]
Jian Jing was overjoyed.
She took out the hidden dagger with her backhand and cut off the roots entangled on her body. Without the blessing of illusion, these roots are just ordinary plants no matter how strong they are.
Her body fell, she rolled to relieve the impact, and placed a bomb on the tree trunk.
"Don't even think about running!" Qi Tian roared angrily.
Jian Jing raised her head. Unlike her, Qi Tian was not trapped on the tree trunk by the roots, but half of his body was "swallowed" by the tree.
His lower body was submerged in the amber substance secreted by the trunk. At first glance, he looked like a giant insect parasitic on the tree.
In this way, it seems that the tree has gained some of the wisdom of living things, or in other words, humans and trees have reached some kind of wonderful cooperation.
The roots twisted wildly.
Jian Jing turned and ran, and spent special contribution points to start the timer of the first bomb.
Tick, tick, tick.
Qi Tian saw the countdown of the timer clearly, and his pupils suddenly shrank. The amber substance began to melt, like heated chocolate, gradually melting into a semi-liquid fluid.
The body fell slidably.
Countdown: 00:01
It's too late!
In a panic, he could only stack the tree roots in front of him to avoid being attacked.
The next moment, the bomb exploded.
A huge amount of energy gushed out, and the flames ignited, igniting the tree roots. They quickly lost their vitality and turned into dry and fragile charcoal, rustling down.
Although they are afraid of fire, they are very tough. Qi Tian, who was hiding behind them, was spared, but his ears were ringing due to the aftermath of the explosion, and there was a dull "buzzing" sound in his ears.
"Cough." He spat out blood and his eyes were sinister.
At this moment, if you still don't know that Jian Jing didn't eat the roots, it would be too stupid. Any creature that eats the roots will become an addict and will be completely unable to resist the breath of the giant tree.
He is an exception.
Because he didn't eat the roots, but the fruit.
The original fire burned all the disguises in the forest, and the ordinary trees died. The roots that survived the fire led to this white cave.
He took advantage of its weakness and picked the fruit that was strictly protected by the aerial roots.
After taking it, the skin that was damaged by the fire regrew, and the new skin and the old skin merged perfectly together, with no trace of repair.
The body that had aged with the passage of time also recovered to the prime state of the twenties.
People who have never aged will not understand the value of youth.
However, as long as you leave Dusk Town for 24 hours, you will undergo abnormal changes, your heart rate will accelerate, your head will be dizzy, and your limbs will be weak and sore. If you don't return to the forest within 36 hours, you will lose your mind or even die.
He was found fainted in the toilet of a gas station. Fortunately, the person drove in the direction of Dusk Town, otherwise he might become a madman and be imprisoned in a mental hospital forever.
Qi Tian was unwilling to be controlled by a tree.
It took him ten years to find a solution.
The fruit and the roots have different functions. The fruit is the "child" of the tree, with strong healing effects. It can restore youth and heal injuries instantly. At the same time, it is most dependent on the giant tree. The roots are different. They are like the tail of a gecko. It doesn't matter if it breaks off, so the dependence is not strong.
He just needs to spit out the fruit and let another person eat it, and replace himself as the target of the giant tree. Then take a certain amount of roots and take them every day to maintain youth.
The only tricky thing is that not everyone can swallow the fruit.
He caught a homeless man and a woman who was in a car accident, but they died suddenly after eating the fruit.
Qi Tian guessed that the giant tree has special requirements for the host it parasitizes, and not everyone can do it.
Women are better than men.
Young people are better than old people.
The strong are better than the sick.
He had tried to find a suitable target in Huanghun Town, but most of the young people in the town went to big cities, and it was difficult to make a move on the remaining ones.
After waiting for a long time, he finally got Jian Jing.
She was a foreign traveler, and no one would care about her. She was young and strong, and she also ruined his plan. It was perfect for her to be a scapegoat.
Qi Tian slowly got up and took out a talisman paper and a bunch of hair.
The talisman paper had her birth date and eight characters written on it. She was a celebrity, and any information about her could be found with a simple search. The hair was cut off when she was not paying attention during dinner.
For a master of sorcery, these two things are enough.
Give me your life in exchange.
He muttered something, and the talisman paper he was holding suddenly caught fire. Strangely, it was not the yellow paper that was burning, but the words written in cinnabar.
The flame burned out crooked black runes.
Then, it went out.
It went out at the birth date part.
Qi Tian was shocked and blurted out: "How is it possible? Dead?"