Inside Shuisheng Village.
Whenever Shuisheng Village is mentioned, one word is often unavoidable.
Underworld.
Whether it was the original version or the mutated version, even now, it's still the same.
"Bah!"
Qin Jie spat out the mud in his mouth and struggled to stand up from the dried riverbed.
The Sakura Dragon didn't lie to him; there was indeed a reservoir leading to Shuisheng Village, but that reservoir had been dry for ages, and half the riverbed was parched. He had just rolled down from halfway up the mountain like a ball.
"Hmph."
Qin Jie, covered in mud, looked around, clicking his tongue in wonder.
At this moment, Shuisheng Village was even more like the Underworld than the Underworld itself.
Shuisheng Village was now littered with the corpses of Magikarp Derivatives, and the remains of bodies gnawed on by Magikarp Derivatives.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Shuisheng Village a mass grave at this point. It probably wouldn't be long before the residents of Shuisheng Village turned into vengeful spirits, and then Shuisheng Village would likely become an even more infernal sight.
Shuisheng grand stage, come if you dare.
After looking around and confirming there were no survivors, Qin Jie took out a 5-liter bucket of fresh water and immediately began to rinse himself on the spot, as the feeling of being covered in mud was truly uncomfortable.
It must be said, showering next to a pile of corpses felt a bit strange.
Strangely cold—"Wow, Your Excellency, you have a really good physique."
Xing Li in the soul box looked at Qin Jie with an appreciative gaze.
"You're about to have your Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering; you're still thinking about appreciating?"
"Isn't it precisely because I'm about to die that I should appreciate?"
Qin Jie shrugged and didn't reply.
After cleaning his body, Qin Jie took out new clothes and put them on. It was only then that he vaguely heard a sound.
"Help, help—"
The sound was very faint; if Shuisheng Village hadn't been so quiet at the time, Qin Jie might not have heard it.
Following the sound, he saw a man in a long robe leaning weakly against a tree amidst a pile of corpses.
The man was wearing a white robe, but it was stained by the corpse pile. He had originally been unconscious, but after hearing Qin Jie's movements, the man was startled awake and thus cried for help.
Compared to the other villagers of Shuisheng Village, this man looked somewhat human and seemed to be one of the few who could communicate.
"Your Excellency, do you have anything to eat? Please save me, I am the priest of Shuisheng Village. If I survive, I will definitely repay Your Excellency."
Shuisheng Village priest?
If the other party hadn't revealed his identity, Qin Jie might have given him some food, but after he did, Qin Jie felt there was no need to waste words with him. The fact that Shuisheng Village had turned into this ghastly state was not unrelated to this priest.
Thinking of this, Qin Jie suddenly smiled slightly and handed him a bottle of wine.
"Wine? Your Excellency, don't you have any food or anything—"
Before he could finish speaking, the priest's eyes widened instantly.
A fatally attractive aroma of wine wafted out. As soon as the priest smelled it, he trembled and said,
"Is it Capital Water?"
Before Qin Jie could reply, the priest reached out directly to snatch it.
Capital Water
Quality: Blue
Type: Consumable
Origin: Sekiro
Effect: After consumption, one can transform into a living corpse, possessing the characteristic of immortality.
Rating: 38
Description: An imperial wine bestowed by a nobleman. Unexpected changes will occur after consumption.
Note: This item has an unexpected attraction for certain people and can be used for negotiation.
Price: 5100 paradise coins
—Upon seeing the Capital Water, the priest, who had originally been quite articulate, immediately lost his mind. His eyes were fixed on the wine in Qin Jie's hand.
It seems this item indeed had a fatal attraction for people like the Shuisheng Village priest.
However, Shuisheng Village was basically nothing left now, so this Capital Water wouldn't be of much use. He might as well use this bottle of wine to send the other party on his way.
After drinking the wine, not long after, the Shuisheng Village priest kicked his legs and immediately passed away. His corpse seemed to twitch a couple of times, appearing to have transformed into a living corpse. Qin Jie merely used one sword strike to send him to his end.
Unexpectedly, after killing the Shuisheng Village priest, an item dropped.
[Dropped Diary Fragment · 4]
[Completed Side Quest · Regret]
[Obtained 10000 paradise coins.]
Only then did Qin Jie remember that he had previously triggered a side quest, the content of which was to collect all the diaries. Now, it seemed, Qin Jie had already collected all four diary fragments.
Qin Jie had already read 1 and 2. Having nothing else to do, Qin Jie decided to read the remaining 3 and 4.
Diary 3 seemed to be from another person's perspective.
"Ever since the nobles from Fountainhead Palace arrived, I've had a strange feeling that something is amiss."
"Recently, my stomach has been inexplicably swelling, and I occasionally experience inexplicable cramps. After consulting a doctor for some medicine, it was still useless; my stomach still hurts terribly."
"I really couldn't bear the pain anymore. This morning, my wife told me something very frightening."
"Last night, someone seemed to have entered our house. The kitchen was turned upside down, and all the food was stolen."
"But the door was clearly locked, and there were no traces of anyone entering or leaving."
"However, my stomach has become even more distended."
"I'm clearly a man, but I'm like a pregnant woman, it's truly detestable!"
—Next was Diary 4.
"It's over, everything is over."
"Ever since I listened to the village chief and started putting fish eggs into the water every day, the entire village has started to feel wrong."
"But, but, only by doing this can I marry the fairy wife from Fountainhead Palace."
(Diary interrupted for a few lines)
"Heavens, I was wrong, I shouldn't have coveted a fairy wife."
"Today, Grandma Hua went to the river to wash clothes and suddenly fainted."
"I went to help her up, but as soon as I lifted her, her neck had completely rotted away, ah ah ah ah ah ah!"
"I saw it, a fish with human legs emerged from Grandma Hua's neck."
(Diary interrupted for a few lines.)
"It's not just Grandma Hua; fish are starting to emerge from everyone in the village!"
"The village chief and they lied to me, I was deceived by them."
"There's no such thing as becoming a nobleman, and the fairy wife is also fake."
"They told me that after placing the fish eggs, everyone in the entire village would receive the blessing of the Fish King."
"I was deceived!!!!!"
(The diary showed a large amount of red, twisted, and densely packed "I was deceived.")
In a small corner at the very end, a line of text was written.
"I am wrong, I deserve to die, I want to commit suicide."
"At the end of the village river, there's a tree used to hang heretics. I heard that the Souls of those hanged by that tree will be defiled. I think that tree should be my final resting place."
The diary ended here, and Qin Jie frowned.
He always felt that this side quest was not as simple as it appeared on the surface.
The information contained within this diary not only represented someone's repentance.
It was more like a treasure map, marking a location.
What would he encounter if he followed the river? Should he go and see?