After hearing Jing Minghe's explanation and looking at the small pile of shredded paper on the table, You Mi pursed her lips and nodded heavily. "Minghe, don't worry. I'll piece them together as quickly as I possibly can."
"Then, I'll leave it to you, Sister You Mi."
"No need to be polite," You Mi said with a serious expression. "You're entrusting this to me, and I certainly won't disappoint you."
Jing Minghe still said "Thank you," and then added, "If I'm not mistaken, the thatched cottage should be the safe zone for this instance. After we leave, you must remember to stay inside the cottage and absolutely do not go out. No matter what you hear, do not open the door."
He paused and added, "Oh, and if anyone other than Brother Hao or myself actively comes to talk to you, just pretend you don't hear them and try not to respond."
You Mi asked with confusion, "Why?"
"I don't know, it's just a feeling," Jing Minghe said with a smile. "I hope Sister You Mi is willing to trust me."
"What are you saying?" You Mi smiled indulgently. "If I don't trust you, who else can I trust? You go ahead and do what you need to do. My trust in you is one hundred percent."
"Thank you, Sister You Mi."
"Alright, if you say any more, I'm going to get angry."
"Ha, fine, I won't say any more," Jing Minghe stood up and used the wooden box that held the candles to hold down the pile of shredded paper. "They should have rested enough. Let's go out."
You Mi reached out to support Jing Minghe, and the two of them walked out of the thatched cottage. Before leaving, Jing Minghe left Da Lang inside the cottage.
"You stand here for a moment. I'll go call them out."
You Mi called out everyone who had returned one by one, then walked back behind Jing Minghe.
Jing Minghe cleared his throat and said to everyone, "Now, let's go find that mass grave together. If I've guessed correctly, we'll definitely find it soon."
With that, Jing Minghe extended his hand. "Come, Wuwen, help me and lead the way."
Ke Wuwen ran to Jing Minghe's side excitedly. "Idol, are we leaving now?"
"Yes."
Jing Minghe replied, then turned and leaned closer to Ke Wuwen, whispering, "Keep an eye on Lin Ling. If she's not following us, you must tell me."
Although Ke Wuwen was very confused as to why Jing Minghe wanted him to pay attention to Lin Ling, he knew this was not the time to ask questions. Moreover, in his heart, whatever his idol said, even if he had doubts, he had to obey.
"Okay, I understand," Ke Wuwen deliberately lowered his voice and answered solemnly.
Chi Hao, who was restraining Lu, who had possessed Guan Wei, felt the cold aura around him intensifying. He wanted to ignore the two people whispering next to him, but he couldn't move his eyes away.
"Let's go," Jing Minghe said. "Follow the path forward."
Tong Zheng looked bewildered and asked, "Isn't this path leading to the village?"
Jing Minghe smiled slightly. "Brother Tong doesn't believe me?"
"No, no," Tong Zheng smiled awkwardly. "Alright, you say to go which way, and we'll go that way. We'll listen to you."
With that, Tong Zheng turned and took the first step.
Lin Ling turned to look at You Mi beside Jing Minghe. You Mi immediately went over and took Lin Ling's hand, following closely behind Tong Zheng.
Ke Wuwen supported Jing Minghe and caught up with You Mi and Lin Ling. Chi Hao followed behind with Lu, not too far and not too close.
Not long after they set off, Jing Minghe whispered a few words to Ke Wuwen. Ke Wuwen called out to the front, "Sister You Mi, the idol has something to tell you. Come here for a moment."
"Okay," You Mi agreed and switched places with Ke Wuwen.
---
Jiang Zheng and Yan Xiaoqian were hiding in the main hall of the Dragon King Temple, while the ghosts outside kept banging on the doors, trying to break in.
Yan Xiaoqian cowered in the corner, trembling. Thinking back to what happened before dark, she couldn't help but feel like crying. If Jiang Zheng hadn't rescued her in time, she would probably be dead by now, and might even be hunting Jiang Zheng along with the ghosts outside.
Zhang Yu was actually a ghost! Just as they were about to reach the village entrance, he suddenly opened his bloody maw and tried to eat her!
Jiang Zheng had intervened in time to save her, and the two of them had desperately tried to run towards the village entrance, but they were still blocked by a group of ghosts. They had no choice but to run back to the Dragon King Temple, a place where they had safely hidden from the ghosts the night before.
Yan Xiaoqian couldn't understand why Zhang Yu was a ghost. When did he die? During the day, he was clearly still human.
If Zhang Yu was a ghost, then would Jiang Zheng, who was not far from her, also be a ghost? Was he saving her not out of a desire to save her, but to have her all to himself?
"It's safe here," Jiang Zheng said, looking at the terrified Yan Xiaoqian. "They couldn't get in last night, and they won't be able to get in today. If we can survive tonight, we'll go back to the thatched cottage tomorrow morning and find the others."
Yan Xiaoqian was about to nod when she heard the sound of the yellow cloth tied to the door bolt tearing. She let out a scream.
How could this be? It held up last night, and they had tied even more and stronger cloth than Chi Hao had done earlier!
Jiang Zheng also looked incredulous, but his instincts told him that now was not the time to panic. Before the ghosts outside broke in, Jiang Zheng pulled Yan Xiaoqian up and they hid behind the statues of the Four Dragon Kings, asking Yan Xiaoqian, "Tell me, the 'underneath' you mentioned earlier, is it in this Dragon King Temple? Where is the entrance? How do we get down?"
Yan Xiaoqian blinked before answering, "There are two entrances. One is under the large rock behind the main hall, and the other, Mr. Jing said, is behind the statue in the Star Lord Hall."
Jiang Zheng looked up. There were no windows in the main hall leading to the back. After a moment's hesitation, he said to Yan Xiaoqian, "If they break in later, we'll go out to the Star Lord Hall and go to that 'underneath'."
Yan Xiaoqian shook her head desperately. "No! How can we get out? There are so many ghosts outside! And that 'underneath' is also very dangerous. What if they follow us down?"
"We have to try," Jiang Zheng said sternly. "It's better than staying here and waiting to be torn apart by the ghosts! Yan Xiaoqian, you have no choice. You either run with me, or you wait here to die."
With that, Jiang Zheng returned to the divine statues, picked up the candlestick from the offering table, and held it in his hand as a weapon. Seeing Yan Xiaoqian run over, he took down another candlestick and threw it to her.
"Follow me closely later. Chi Hao and Jing Minghe have already demonstrated that these ghosts are not invincible."
Yan Xiaoqian held the candlestick and trembled. "But I..."
Jiang Zheng interrupted her sternly. "Listen, I will only protect you if my own safety is guaranteed. Whether you live or die, that's up to you."
With a bang, the main hall door was forced open.
"Charge!"
Jiang Zheng roared, waving the candlestick in his hand and desperately breaking through.