When Ji He opened her eyes again, she indeed arrived at the place where the photo was, which was—the Fengxian Village they had mistakenly entered before.
But it was obvious that compared to the Fengxian Village they had entered before, this place seemed to be much older, filled with the remnants of the old society.
Even though it has a sense of history, even in a backward society, Fengxian Village still looks quite closed and conservative, much like what Ji He and the others had seen before.
It's hard to imagine that in such a rapidly developing and ever-changing era, there is still a place that has remained basically unchanged after so many years of development.
It must be said that Fengxian Village is quite remarkable to have achieved this, seemingly completely isolating itself from outside development.
After Ji He entered, she observed her surroundings discreetly. The road was still the same as before, with men of all ages walking around.
When Ji He saw a little boy wearing open-crotch pants running towards her with a small windmill in his hand, she felt a pang of panic.
When she instinctively tried to dodge, she suddenly realized that the little boy running towards her didn't even glance at her, as if she didn't exist at all.
Just as Ji He was stunned by this discovery, the little boy ran over without dodging, crashing directly into Ji He's body and then running away.
'What, what's going on...'
Ji He was stunned. She subconsciously looked down and found that the place in the center of her body where the little boy had hit her was a huge hole, but there was no flesh or blood inside, but rather something like mist.
After a pause of a second or two, Ji He watched as the mist condensed back into her body, completely intact and without any abnormalities. The only difference was—
She looked down at her hands. Her fingertips, which had been solid, now had a faint translucent luster, as if they had faded.
Realizing this, Ji He immediately reacted, her expression turning slightly grim: "We can't afford any more problems. If it really fades to the point of being transparent, then... I'm afraid I'll just die!"
Ji He originally thought that the Fengxian Village she entered was just a reenactment of the past, used to convey clues about Jiang Shihe, but—she didn't expect it to be full of danger everywhere.
Only after confirming that there was nothing wrong with her body did Ji He immediately rush to the courtyard she had visited earlier, the place where she had first found the strange altar.
...
When Ji He arrived at the courtyard, the houses that had been empty in the previous side quest, "Tales of Fengxian Village," were now completely packed with people.
The bustling crowd was full of young adults, all crammed into the family's courtyard. The leaders, in particular, were cursing and swearing, as if they wanted nothing more than to break down the door.
As Ji He got closer, she could finally hear the discussion in the crowd: "The Jiang family is really despicable. The woman we captured together was given to them!"
"Yeah, that woman was gorgeous, and it's such a shame that this cripple got her! It's infuriating!"
"Who told that woman's husband to be so mentally ill, choosing such a cripple to be with his woman? Otherwise, such a beautiful woman would be mine."
Hearing the chatter of the crowd, Ji He's expression turned strange. She quickly recalled the clues she had obtained here, especially the experience of the starving ghost...
The more Ji He listened, the more puzzled she became. Soon she avoided the crowd and came to the Jiang family's courtyard. After climbing over the wall, she finally saw what was happening inside—it was a traditional Chinese wedding.
Everything was arranged rather simply, as if they were in a rush. The bride was wearing an old and patched wedding dress, and her exposed hands had skin as smooth as cream, but were bruised and purple from being beaten.
The groom beside her looked quite ordinary. He was probably the Jiang family cripple that the crowd outside had been talking about. He was thin and short, probably in his thirties, with a pointed face and monkey-like features.
Even Ji He, an outsider, could sense that the two were quite mismatched...
But the wedding continued, and the process was even going very fast. The groom was very happy, but the bride was like a puppet, numb and stiff, only following the movements half a beat behind.
'This woman, she must have been kidnapped, right? This family's surname is Jiang, which wasn't mentioned in the dungeon, so this is probably Jiang Shihe's home.'
'But... what's with this woman's man? Is it related to that couple I found out about?'
Ji He lowered her head and pondered for a moment, then quietly left the main hall of the wedding and went to the back of the courtyard, the place where she and Xia Changhong had found the starving ghost, which was probably used to imprison people.
When she finally found the small house made of bricks and tiles based on the layout of the side quest, she indeed heard a faint whimpering sound, which sounded like a man's voice.
Ji He was startled. Before she could open the door, she saw the old man who had been sitting in the main hall walking over shakily—he must be the father of the Jiang family's cripple.
Ji He quickly hid to the side, secretly watching the scene unfold before her.
The old man removed the iron lock, opened the door, and soon a man bound with hemp rope and covered in wounds stumbled out.
He was decked out in expensive luxury goods. In an era where even eating was becoming increasingly difficult, this young man was among the wealthiest people. Yet, at this moment, he looked as pathetic as a stray dog.
The young man's legs had been broken, and he knelt directly in front of the old man. His face was covered in snot and filth, yet he was still desperately begging for mercy.
"I know you don't want money, I know..."
"But I already gave you my girlfriend, please let me go... I beg you, please let me go..."
The man, who was clearly tall and strong, was now crying with tears streaming down his face, like a maggot crawling on the ground, begging desperately. His head was hitting the ground, and his whole body was trembling.
Just then, the old man's aged voice came: "I said, you can leave as long as you give your woman to my son as a wife."
"Thank you, thank you all—"
The young man didn't dare to look up; his handsome face was contorted with tears, and his voice was full of relief. He completely ignored his girlfriend, who had been humiliated and forced into the wedding ceremony...
But before he could feel happy, a metallic scraping sound came from the ground. He froze for a moment, then instinctively looked up, but—
A burst of reflected light entered his field of vision, and then the man saw his own body.
What... what's going on?
With a 'glug' sound.
The young man's face was covered in snot and filth, so dirty it was disgusting. His eyes were wide open, and a head rolled far, far away.
Ji He stood not far away, looking at the old man carrying the axe and the headless corpse in front of him, and couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine.
Whether it's the swift and decisive slaughter of their own kind by the people of Fengxian Village, or the cold-blooded ruthlessness of this man who traded his girlfriend for a chance to live...
She couldn't help but swallow, and just as she was about to look up again—suddenly, the environment in front of her changed once more.
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