This was truly terrifying, a different kind of terror than the supernatural.
Zhang Yuanqing stared at the skinned cat carcass hanging from the rafters, silently muttering to himself.
Whether someone had slipped in or something had slipped out, neither boded well. The group exchanged silent glances, their eyes flickering with caution and solemnity.
Only "Grass on the Plain," who had been quiet and melancholic until now, suddenly erupted with fury. Lowering his voice, he said, "Such brutal animal cruelty is unforgivable. I'll make her pay. Let's kill Granny Wang right now, everyone."
Zhang Yuanqing glanced at him and replied, "Don't be impulsive. Granny Wang is clearly a key character in the plot. Let's observe and wait for a quest to trigger. Heh, based on my experience clearing two S-rank instances, the key to survival is to think more and act less.
"S-rank instances have zero margin for error. A single misstep could cost you your life."
"Call Me Queen" turned to the Wood Spirit Youth, her silver hoop earrings swaying with the motion. "The Captain's right," she said. "The higher the instance's rank, the fewer clues you get, and danger lurks everywhere. This isn't like the C-rank or D-rank instances we've faced before, where the objectives and rules were clearly laid out.
"In these high-difficulty instances, one wrong move could lead to total annihilation."
Li Chunfeng pondered for a moment, then said, "The reverse is also true. Perhaps if we eliminate Granny Wang now, we can resolve this incident smoothly. Heh, it's like Schrödinger's cat."
Huode Star General blinked in confusion. "Who's Schrödinger? Did he also enjoy torturing cats?"
The erudite Li Chunfeng froze, his mouth agape with a strange expression. After a moment of internal struggle, he abandoned his attempt to explain and simply said, "More or less."
Huode Star General nodded, glancing at the room across the courtyard. Seeing that Granny Wang hadn't emerged yet, he lowered his voice and asked, "Have you considered why they're hanging cat corpses instead of chickens, ducks, geese, sheep, or dogs? If it were any of those, we might even have a meal here."
His question implied that the cat corpses must have a specific reason, perhaps a clue provided by the instance itself.
Zhang Yuanqing, speaking from his Nightwalker perspective, offered his insight: "These cat corpses are Yin materials. Extracting their Yin energy can nourish Yin Spirits or be used to refine Zombies."
Li Chunfeng added, "They can also be used to craft Items, perform special rituals, or practice Witchcraft, among other things."
As they spoke, the wooden door creaked open. Granny Wang emerged, leaning heavily on her cane, her back hunched. She carried a white porcelain teapot with vividly glazed patterns.
Li Xianzong led his team along the roadside, a small river flowing beside them. A stone bridge made of green stone slabs spanned the waterway.
"What a dump! Not a soul in sight, let alone any pretty girls," the gaunt middle-aged man grumbled, looking around.
In one of his previous Multiplayer Spirit Realm experiences, the setting had been a midnight hotel. Hidden within its walls was a cold-blooded serial killer, and the instance's objective was to find and eliminate the formidable criminal.
The hotel was also inhabited by numerous "Civilians," indistinguishable from real-world people. During the mission, the middle-aged man had indulged in exploiting many of the women staying there, without incurring any Morality Value penalties.
For those in Evil Classes, Spirit Realm instances weren't just opportunities for leveling up and growth; they were also paradises for indulging their dark desires. They could do anything without consequence.
"Yin-Yang Town is a PvP Spirit Realm, not an exclusive playground for our kind," the bald, muscular man said, sizing up the gaunt man with a sneer. "There's no way you'll find an environment here where you can do whatever you want."
"Were you a rapist before becoming a Witchcraft Master?" the bald man added.
The gaunt man chuckled lewdly. "Let's just say those Security Officers were too incompetent. What about you?"
"Murder," the bald man replied flatly. "Li Xianzong, we've already wasted eight minutes. If we don't find Blacksmith Wang's shop soon, we're all doomed."
Clang! Clang! Clang!
As they spoke, the faint sound of metal being hammered echoed in the distance.
Li Xianzong gazed ahead, a smirk playing on his lips. "We're almost there."
His teammates cheered. "You were right! It's on this street."
"Guess?" Li Xianzong scoffed. "Use your pig brains for once. A blacksmith's shop wouldn't be tucked away in a deep alley. High-temperature smelting requires good ventilation, so large, enclosed courtyards are out. Quenching needs plenty of water, making the riverside the obvious choice.
"Just follow the main road along the river, and you'll find it."
As he spoke, they stopped before the blacksmith's shop. A towering figure, easily two meters tall, stood hunched over, swinging a hammer rhythmically against a glowing-hot iron billet.
Li Xianzong studied the man. "Are you Blacksmith Wang?"
The blacksmith slowly raised his head, revealing eyes as crimson as blood.
"Thank you, Granny," Zhang Yuanqing said, holding his teacup and glancing at the Wood Spirit Youth.
Grass on the Plain took a small sip and nodded slightly.
Zhang Yuanqing immediately relaxed and drank some of the cool tea.
As a Recovery Sorcerer, the Wood Spirit was highly sensitive to toxins. If there were any problems with the water, he would have detected them.
Guan Ya and the others either drank cautiously or avoided the water altogether, pondering their next move in the unfolding scenario. Just then, their captain, Primordial Heavenly Venerable, asked Granny Wang with casual familiarity:
"Granny Wang, why is the town so deserted? We haven't seen a single soul since we arrived."
Granny Wang's aged voice spoke slowly, "Yin-Yang Town used to be bustling. But a few years ago, something happened, and people gradually began to move away."
"Oh? What happened?" Zhang Yuanqing asked eagerly.
The plot has been triggered, the team members thought, immediately sharpening their focus.
"Well..." Granny Wang seemed hesitant, pausing before continuing, "Many years ago, people in town started dying one after another. Their hearts and livers were being taken. Everyone was terrified, saying there was an evil presence in town. Squire Zhao, the wealthiest man in town, hired a sorcerer from outside."
"The sorcerer arrived and quickly identified the culprit: a descendant of the Yin-Yang Wanderer who had been secretly harming the townspeople, using their organs to refine elixirs. Together, the townspeople and the sorcerer eradicated that demonic woman."
"Before she died, she cursed the town, vowing that everyone would turn into cats."
A descendant of the Yin-Yang Wanderer, Zhang Yuanqing and his teammates exchanged glances. "And then what happened?"
Granny Wang sighed. "At first, no one paid much attention. But gradually, more and more people disappeared, and the number of cats in town kept growing. That's when fear set in. People were too afraid to stay and began moving away one by one."
"This fellow is quite the conversationalist," Queen remarked with a smile, glancing at Zhang Yuanqing before continuing, "Then why didn't you leave, Granny?"
Granny Wang shook her head. "I'm old and don't want to leave my homeland. I've got one foot in the coffin already, so I'm not afraid of such things."
The Wood Spirit Youth looked up at the skinned cat carcasses hanging from the rafters and asked in a deep voice, "Then why are you hanging these cats here?"
Granny Wang replied calmly, "This is a method left behind by that Daoist priest. He said that hanging skinned cat corpses in the house would ward off curses."
The Wood Spirit Youth scoffed. Just now she said she wasn't afraid of curses.
Zhang Yuanqing pressed further, "Granny, who was this Yin-Yang Wanderer? And why would his descendants dig out human hearts and livers to refine elixirs?"
Granny Wang sighed. "The Yin-Yang Wanderer was a highly enlightened master, said to be almost divine. He founded this town and ascended to become an immortal shortly after. That's what the elders told me when I was a child, though I can't vouch for its truth.
"His descendants remained in the town, and everyone respected them because of the Yin-Yang Wanderer's legacy. Who would have thought she'd do something like this?"
Zhang Yuanqing lowered his gaze in thought. Why were all the Ming Dynasty cultivators so twisted? The Temple Steward of Sandaoshan slaughtered his disciples, and the Yin-Yang Wanderer's descendants harvested human organs to refine elixirs.
"Is she the only descendant of the Yin-Yang Wanderer?" Zhang Yuanqing asked, taking a sip of his iced tea.
"Yes," Granny Wang replied. "Most of the Yin-Yang Wanderer's descendants died young. It's said that when one of them ascended, it drained the family's fortune."
But the truth was, the Yin-Yang Wanderer never ascended. His quest for immortality failed. Could his descendants' practice of extracting hearts and livers to refine elixirs be related to their pursuit of eternal life? Zhang Yuanqing was pondering this when Guan Ya suddenly asked:
"Granny Wang, have any outsiders ever come to this town before us?"
Granny Wang glanced at her and replied somberly, "Yes, there have been others."
"And what did they do here?" Guan Ya asked with a smile.
Granny Wang hesitated. "This old woman can't remember."
The others didn't understand why Guan Ya was asking these questions, but Zhang Yuanqing and Queen exchanged startled glances before falling into deep thought.
They had read several walkthroughs of this instance, none of which mentioned a curse. Moreover, the walkthroughs indicated that Yin-Yang Town wasn't deserted; otherwise, how could they solve the case at the inn?
Could it be that the instance's dynamic nature meant each group of Spirit Realm Walkers received different side quests?
If that were the case, would I still encounter the hidden quest the demon lord mentioned? The side quests he experienced must have been different from mine.
If the hidden quest only triggers through one specific side quest, that would be incredibly unfair and frustrating.
Forget about the hidden quest for now. What's the objective of Granny Wang's side quest? Breaking the Curse?
With this thought, Zhang Yuanqing cautiously asked, "Granny, is there anything we can help you with?"
Granny Wang shook her head.
Scholar Li Chunfeng, ever thorough, added, "Granny, besides you, are there any other residents in this town?"
Granny Wang pondered for a moment before answering in her aged voice, "Besides this old woman, there are five others. Widow Xu lives on the west side of town. Squire Zhao resides in the largest mansion at the town's center. Then there's Blacksmith Wang.
"And there's the Daoist priest Squire Zhao hired. I'm not sure where he's staying."
Chi Ou, the round-faced youth, blinked in surprise. "Only five? What about the sixth?"
Granny Wang glanced at him and replied, "The last one is my son."
Chi Ou exclaimed, "Your son? Where is he?"
Granny Wang turned to gaze at the room they had just exited, her voice tinged with melancholy. "He's right in there."
Turning back to face the group, her wrinkled face twisted into an eerie smile. "You'll meet him soon enough."
For some reason, Zhang Yuanqing felt an instinctive chill run down his spine.
Immediately, he witnessed a terrifying transformation. The Huode Star General sitting across from him had pupils that narrowed into slits, turning into emerald-green cat eyes. Thick, jet-black fur sprouted from his cheeks, neck, and the backs of his hands.
His mouth and nose protruded outward, and pointed cat ears sprouted from his head.
Within seconds, the Huode Star General had transformed into a fifty-centimeter-long black cat.
"Y-Yuan, Primordial..."
Zhang Yuanqing heard Guan Ya's trembling voice.
Turning his head, he saw Guan Ya's face pale, her eyes fixed on him with a strange expression.
What's wrong? he instinctively blurted out, but when the sound reached his throat, it emerged as a thin, sharp meow.
A chill ran down his spine. He glanced down at himself and saw his hands covered in cat fur.
An unspeakable terror surged through Zhang Yuanqing. He hadn't noticed anything amiss with his body until now.
At the same moment, the Wood Spirit Youth, the Earth Fiend Chi Ou, and the Scholar Li Chunfeng underwent similar transformations. Cat fur of various colors erupted from their pores, their lips and jaws protruded, cat ears sprouted from their heads, and their bodies rapidly shrank.
Then it was Guan Ya and the Queen's turn.
"Meow, meow~"
A chorus of meows rose and fell as all seven of them transformed into cats of different colors.
Granny Wang, leaning on her cane, stood in the shadows, gazing into the room. Her voice rasped, "Finally, outsiders have come. My son, you must be impatient."