The rain washed the raw meat on the ground, and the smell of blood filled the air, greatly affecting the appetite.
The village chief's eyes, reflected in the blood, looked brutal. But when he raised his head again, he looked respectful again: "You're joking, everyone. It's hot and dry here, and there are no bees."
As an excellent student with a penchant for liberal arts, Suer rejected this claim. After disseminating his knowledge, his attitude suddenly changed: "God's messenger is understanding. If it's truly troublesome, we won't force it."
Li Zicang reiterated: "But we must provide enough fruits and vegetables."
Although they were very dissatisfied with their behavior of not eating raw meat, compared with the picky demands such as honey and dew, vegetables were within the acceptable range.
Sur turned to look at Wanyi and gave him orders.
Wan Yi understood, pushed Su Tangyi, and said in a bad tone: "You, go cook!"
The village chief quickly said, "Just let us do this rough work."
Trillion: "The food we eat has to be washed 9981 times, and the seasonings have to be exact. It's impossible for ordinary humans to do that."
"…"
The village chief's mouth twitched, and his attention was focused on Su Tangyi... She was petite and thin, as if she could be blown away by a gust of wind.
Compared to the others, the girl looked harmless and easy to be bullied. After a moment of hesitation, she said to a young man, "Take this messenger to the kitchen."
A full hour passed and the rain was about to stop before Su Tangyi returned.
The village chief glared at the young man, unhappy that he had been gone for so long.
The young man was helpless.
Who could have imagined this girl actually washing a few leaves eighty-one times, only gently stroking them with her fingertips each time, claiming she was worried about ruining the nutrients? There were times when he nearly burst into tears. If she was so worried about ruining them, couldn't she have cleaned them a few times less?!
The green vegetables served on the table, placed next to the bloody pig's head, were a real treat.
Su Er slowly ate a piece of vegetable leaf in his mouth and picked up a piece for Ji Heng: "The treatment here is different from that in heaven, so just make do with it."
Ji Heng's movements were more graceful. He said softly, "The village chief was about to scold you, but he held back."
Soul: "Scold me?"
"From the way he lip-synced, it seemed he wanted to denounce the 'troublemakers.'"
Sur curled his lips slightly, very dissatisfied, because he was clearly a messenger of God.
Seeing that he had completely immersed himself in the role, Ji Heng couldn't help but find it a little funny.
Feeling that continuing to stay together would shorten his lifespan, the village chief's tone turned slightly colder: "Are you full?"
Soul gave up the provocation and nodded.
"The people in this village are simple and honest, and they leave their doors unlocked at night. I hope you can follow the local customs."
After the village chief said this, the villagers began to clear the tables.
The children were of no help, chasing each other and laughing. After being scolded by the adults, they pout and go home reluctantly.
After paying attention to the children's movements for a while, Sur ignored the busy villagers and went back to his room with his hands behind his back, as if he was just a boss.
The sound of people packing up outside could be heard from time to time, and the players gathered in the same room to discuss things.
Li Zicang took out a mirror and placed his hand on the now calm heart of the peach tree: "Whenever there is a life-or-death crisis, the heart of the peach tree will beat, which is like a crisis early warning device."
After three life-and-death crises, you can get away alive. Excluding the call for help in the desert, there are only two left now.
"Based on this inference, the village shouldn't be in much danger."
Yet, everyone felt something was amiss. Even a novice could sense the village's strangeness.
Wan Yi looked at Su Tangyi and asked, "Did you notice anything when you went to the kitchen?"
Su Tangyi shook her head: "Everything is normal."
With so little information, they couldn't come to a conclusion and dispersed. Yizhu walked last. Before leaving, her eyes lingered on Suer and she said with a smile, "The village chief specifically reminded us not to lock our doors at night. Don't break the rules so easily."
Su Er shuddered and turned his neck stiffly: "God said he would pick us up in three days. We must hurry and go out to collect clues."
Ji Heng smiled and said nothing.
Thinking of Yizhu's look before she left, Su Er pinched his brows in confusion: "Don't girls like the type that brings a sense of security?"
Among the male players, he was the only one who was completely dissatisfied with this.
"Resonance." Ji Heng said calmly: "Yizhu hates the constraints of worldly etiquette, and cannot understand the bond between parents and children."
Su Er was stunned for a moment. The two of them were indeed similar in this respect.
The game arranged a false and perfect life for them, but it was useless.
Seeing him silent, Ji Heng changed the subject: "Premature love is not good."
Su Er was just thinking about his experience in the Wudu dungeon, but unexpectedly the topic changed unexpectedly: "Huh?"
Ji Heng: "I'll ask Yao Zhiduo to pay attention."
The subtext is that if your next math test score drops, it will be because of premature love.
"..." Su Er almost swore an oath: "I don't have any feelings for Yizhu at all."
Since ancient times, people have always sympathized with others, but rarely have they fallen in love with each other. Because people tend to seek out the parts of themselves that they lack in their partners, Su Er is no exception, preferring the mature and stable.
The commotion outside gradually died down. He went out to check and found that all the banquet tables and chairs had been moved away. When he returned, Suer lowered his head and thought, "The village isn't particularly short of water."
The villagers were dressed simply but neatly, with no peculiar smell on their bodies, proving that they washed and brushed their teeth normally.
"But when it rains during the day, they become more excited than each other."
Ji Heng quipped sarcastically, "Perhaps the real joy lies in the arrival of the divine messenger."
Glancing at the sky outside the window, he patiently waited for a while. When the world was completely silent, Ji Heng stood up and said, "Go out and take a look."
The village chief was not deliberately making up his mind about not locking doors at night. The two men stood in the dark and observed for a while. As far as they could see, every house had its doors open, not even the basic method of half-locking them.
Su Er whispered, "Maybe this village is full of zombies. At least those kids are not normal."
Ji Heng didn't know where he got this judgment from.
Soul: "The door is wide open, so there must be no nightlife. If there is no nightlife, where would the children come from?"
"…"
It sounds ridiculous at first, but upon closer inspection, it's logically sound. Ji Heng sighed and said, "Very thoughtful."
Su Er's perspective was unique: "So we should start by checking the houses with children."
At lunchtime, he was surprised to see only seven or eight children. The village was not populated, but it was impossible for there to be only so few children.
When the banquet was over, Sur paid special attention to the children's movements and pointed to the west side and said, "There is a family with children in the two rows of houses in the back."
The moment he took a step, he was stopped by Ji Heng. He vaguely heard some movement coming from behind him, and Su Er quickly held his breath.
Ji Heng gestured to go over and take a look.
Walking all the way back from the hidden place, they met each other on a narrow road and found that it was Su Tangyi and Yizhui.
Su Tangyi whispered, "We're going to the village entrance."
The villagers surrounded them during the day, but relaxed their supervision at night, as if they were sure they could not escape.
Su Er also confessed his whereabouts and offered his theory on nightlife. After listening to him, Su Tangyi looked at him with a very subtle look. Yizhu beside him lifted her hair and said, "It's hard to find a soulmate."
Su Er laughed stiffly and changed the subject: "What about trillions?"
Su Tangyi: "I went to the well with Li Zicang."
Huh——
Just as they were about to go their separate ways, a sudden voice made them all stop at the same time.
Listening intently, I could only hear the occasional rustle of wind. No one moved without permission; for a full five minutes, they stood still, as still as statues. Before my patience ran out, the strange sound reappeared, a hoarse, dry sound that made me feel like I was being scratched by a cat.
Ji Heng and Su'er looked at each other, bent down and peeked in through the window, while Su Tangyi and Yizhu were responsible for keeping watch.
The person in the room curled up and rolled around in pain. The bed was too narrow and his movements were too large, causing him to fall directly onto the hard floor.
"Water." After falling heavily, the man did not cry out in pain, but just kept clamoring for water.
He crawled to the table, struggled to support himself, bit the spout of the kettle and poured water into his throat. The kettle was empty in the blink of an eye, but the man's thirst was not relieved at all.
In the moonlight, Suer could see his skin clearly. It was severely wrinkled and his lips were cracked and bleeding.
It was very uncomfortable to bend over for a long time. After watching the man's painful struggle for a while, Su Er took a step to the left, straightened up, and gently pounded his waist. Suddenly, he ran to the house across the street.
The same scene was playing out inside the house, with a couple clamoring for water.
About half an hour later, the homeowner's wrinkled skin returned to normal. He got up from the ground, brushed off the dirt, and stood with his hands hanging at his sides, head bowed. Su Er stared at him for a few seconds, and when he saw the man's shoulder move, he immediately dodged to the side and pressed against the wall.
Almost at the same time as he dodged, the husband turned his head abruptly. The window was empty except for the swaying shadows of trees.
"What are you looking at?" asked the wife.
Husband: "It seems there is someone."
Wife: "It might be a mouse... Go change into clean clothes, the prayers are about to begin."
Suer didn't dare to stay any longer and retreated very carefully.
The location I had spied on before was empty.
Looking around, he finally found an arrow on the wall. He followed it and saw Ji Heng and others standing under an ancient tree not far away.
"It's not a coincidence," Suer said as they walked. "It seems that people here become thirsty and almost dehydrated at night, and they even say they want to pray."
Hearing the word 'prayer', Ji Heng's expression changed slightly: "Then wait a little longer."
This wait took another twenty minutes.
The moon climbed higher and higher, and a dark cloud floated over, blocking most of the moonlight.
In the middle of the night, people came out of every household. Without saying a word to each other, they walked silently in the same direction.
Sur discovered that there were no fat people in the village; all the villagers were thin. They were not noticeable during the day, but now the night wind blew through their baggy clothes, making them look like ghosts wandering in the night.
"Should I go with him?" He was a little undecided for a moment.
The other side has more people and more power. Once they are discovered and fall out, they are likely to suffer losses.
Ji Heng: "My situation isn't very good either, let's go and take a look."
Following closely, everyone observed cautiously.
"There are no children among these people." After following for a distance, Ji Heng glanced at Su Er and said, "Your inference is probably correct."
The clue gap must be opened from the children in the village.