Chapter 85: The Forgotten Beginning
"Is... this really Cemetery Village?"
Shen Yu slowly swept his gaze across the peaceful surroundings.
The village looked nothing like the cursed place they had heard about.
Sunlight bathed the narrow stone paths in warm golden light.
Children’s laughter drifted through the air.
Smoke curled lazily from chimneys.
Chickens wandered through the courtyards, pecking at scattered grains, while ducks splashed in shallow puddles left by the morning dew.
Everything radiated peace.
Everything felt... alive.
Yet that only made it more unsettling.
According to every report collected by the Bureau, Cemetery Village was a place where investigators disappeared one after another. Entire squads had entered without leaving behind a single survivor.
Nothing about this tranquil countryside matched those horrifying records.
Luxian looked around cautiously before stepping beyond the courtyard gate.
"How about we look around first?"
"No matter what’s going on, standing here won’t give us any answers."
Mohan nodded.
"Agreed."
Then, almost instinctively, he turned toward Shen Yu.
"Shen Yu."
His voice carried an unusual warmth.
"You’re coming with me."
Shen Yu raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
Mohan folded his arms proudly.
"Your talent rank is the lowest among us."
"I’ll personally protect you."
"You’ll be safest staying by my side."
Luxian stared at him in disbelief.
"...You?"
"Protecting Shen Yu?"
"When did the two of you become so close?"
Even Taishan glanced at Mohan strangely.
Everyone present remembered one thing clearly.
Ever since entering the simulation, Mohan had looked down on Shen Yu.
He mocked his E-rank talent.
Questioned every decision he made.
He had never once treated Shen Yu as an equal.
Yet now...
He was practically inviting Shen Yu onto his team.
Mohan ignored their suspicious looks.
Instead, he impatiently waved toward Shen Yu.
"Hurry up."
"I’m your superior."
"Do you think just anyone gets my protection?"
His chin lifted proudly.
On the surface, he appeared as arrogant as ever.
Only Mohan himself knew the truth.
He was afraid.
Terrified.
Without Future Echo...
He had suddenly realized just how ordinary he really was.
But although he had lost the memories inside the village, one detail stubbornly remained.
Every simulation.
Every future fragment.
One voice had always continued until the very end.
Shen Yu’s.
No matter what happened...
That voice never disappeared.
Which meant only one thing.
If anyone survived...
It would be Shen Yu.
Following him now represented the greatest chance of survival.
Even Taishan’s strength couldn’t provide the same sense of security.
Shen Yu looked at Mohan thoughtfully.
Something about this sudden change felt strange.
He remembered discussing Mohan’s mysterious talent with Yang Jin before.
They had concluded that Mohan’s ability likely relied on gathering information from the future before making decisions.
But now...
His talent had supposedly disappeared.
So why was he suddenly clinging to him?
"...Interesting."
Shen Yu silently filed the thought away.
Without responding, he began walking toward the courtyard entrance.
Just then—
"Giddy-up!"
"Giddy-up!"
"Faster!"
The childish shouting echoed from inside the main house.
Everyone turned simultaneously.
A thin, dark-skinned little boy burst out of the doorway.
He couldn’t have been older than eight.
He was laughing loudly.
Beneath him...
Another child crawled on all fours.
A little girl.
She wore a faded floral dress that had once been beautiful.
Now it was torn in several places.
Mud stained the fabric.
Her knees were bruised purple.
Fresh blood trickled from scraped elbows.
The little boy sat comfortably on her back as though riding a horse.
In one hand he held a thin willow branch.
Crack!
The branch lashed across the girl’s shoulder.
"Hurry!"
"You’re too slow!"
The girl whimpered softly.
Tears had long since dried into streaks across her dirty cheeks.
Her small body trembled from exhaustion.
Even so...
She obediently continued crawling.
"Move!"
Crack!
Another strike landed.
This time the willow branch snapped across her face.
The sharp tip scraped her nose.
Blood immediately flowed.
"Waaah..."
"Daddy..."
"Mom..."
The girl cried hoarsely.
"I want Daddy..."
"I want Mommy..."
Her voice was so weak it barely sounded human anymore.
The little boy showed no sympathy whatsoever.
"If you don’t crawl faster..."
"You won’t get any food tonight!"
He raised the branch again.
This time...
Shen Yu moved.
Enough.
His figure blurred.
In a single stride he crossed the courtyard.
Bang!
Before anyone realized what happened,
Shen Yu crossed the courtyard in a single stride.
Without hesitation...
He grabbed the boy by the collar.
Then threw him violently to the ground.
The child flew several meters backward.
He crashed against the stone doorstep with a miserable scream.
Two front teeth broke free instantly.
Blood poured from his mouth.
"You..."
The boy stared at Shen Yu in disbelief.
"You hit me?"
He burst into loud sobs.
"Dad!"
"Mom!"
"Someone bullied me!"
Ignoring him completely...
Shen Yu crouched beside the little girl.
She was still kneeling on the ground.
Her tiny shoulders shook continuously.
Only now did Shen Yu notice something strange.
Floating above the girl’s head...
A familiar pink heart-shaped icon pulsed gently.
Target Identified
Yun Han
Current Favorability: 30
Shen Yu froze.
"...What?"
He blinked several times.
Then looked again.
The notification remained.
"...System."
"You’ve got to be kidding."
His expression became wonderfully complicated.
"So you wanted me to win over a ghost bride."
"I accepted that."
"But now..."
He looked at the crying little girl before him.
"You’ve turned her into a child?"
The absurdity almost made him laugh.
The system remained perfectly silent.
No explanation.
No response.
Only the steadily beating heart icon above Yun Han’s head.
Shen Yu sighed helplessly.
"...Fine."
"If this is really Yun Han..."
"Then everything makes sense."
The girl continued sobbing quietly.
Without hesitation, Shen Yu gently lifted her into his arms.
She was frighteningly light.
Far too light for a child her age.
Her tiny hands instinctively clutched his clothes.
"It’s alright."
He softly stroked her tangled hair.
"No one’s going to hurt you anymore."
"I’m here now."
"You don’t need to be afraid."
His voice carried none of the teasing tone he often used.
Only sincerity.
The little girl’s crying gradually weakened.
She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes.
For just a brief moment...
Those eyes overlapped perfectly with the ghost bride lying beside him inside the coffin.
Shen Yu’s heart tightened.
"So that’s how you looked..."
Before she was buried.
Before despair swallowed everything.
He gently brushed the dust from her messy hair.
"It’s okay."
"You’re safe now."
His voice was extraordinarily gentle.
"No one will hurt you anymore."
The little girl looked up at him timidly.
Her swollen red eyes blinked several times.
"...Really?"
Shen Yu smiled.
"I promise."
"I’m your big brother now."
"You don’t have to be afraid anymore."
Yun Han stared at him quietly.
For the first time...
Fear slowly disappeared from her eyes.
Meanwhile...
The little boy finally climbed back to his feet.
His face twisted with hatred.
Blood dripped from his lips as he pointed furiously at Shen Yu.
"You..."
"You dared hit me?"
"You stole my wife!"
The words stunned everyone.
"...Your wife?"
Luxian stared in disbelief.
The child couldn’t have been older than eight.
Yet he screamed with complete conviction.
The boy shouted proudly.
"When I grow up..."
"I’m going to marry her!"
"You stole my wife!"
"You’re finished!"
"I’m telling my parents!"
"I’ll call my uncle too!"
"They’ll beat you to death!"
"They’ll smash your heads open with shovels!"
The viciousness pouring from such a young child sent chills through the courtyard.
Shen Yu’s expression turned icy.
No child was born saying things like that.
Someone had taught him.
Someone had convinced him that another human being could become property.
That violence was normal.
That cruelty deserved praise.
Before Shen Yu could respond—
Mohan suddenly stepped forward.
He silently patted Taishan’s shoulder.
"Taishan."
"We’re helping."
Taishan looked confused.
"...Helping?"
"I thought you didn’t like children."
"I don’t."
Mohan answered honestly.
"I just dislike him more."
Without another word—
Bang!
Mohan sprinted forward.
His foot shot out.
The kick landed squarely in the boy’s stomach.
The child screamed as he flew backward.
Crash!
He smashed through the doorway of the main house, overturning a wooden table before collapsing beneath scattered chairs.
The impact left him gasping for air.
He couldn’t even cry properly anymore.
Only muffled whimpers escaped his mouth.
"D...Dad..."
"...Mom..."
Taishan watched silently.
Then looked at Mohan.
"...That’s enough..."
Mohan shook his head.
"No."
He narrowed his eyes.
"If Shen Yu chose to protect that little girl..."
"Then there’s definitely a reason."
"I don’t know what it is yet."
"But until I figure it out..."
"I’m standing on his side."
Taishan scratched his head.
"...I still don’t understand."
"But..."
"If we’re already doing this..."
He bent down.
Picked up a heavy wooden bench with one hand.
Then calmly walked into the house.
Boom!
The bench came crashing down onto the floor beside the terrified boy with enough force to splinter solid wood into pieces.
The child shrieked in terror, scrambling backward until his back slammed against the wall.
For the first time in his life...
The one who had always bullied others...
Had become the one trembling in fear.