Chapter 499: Midnight Invitation
The temperature in the surroundings rose.
It was not a natural change.
A faint flame appeared between Lu Zhen’s fingers, illuminating his cold expression.
Several villagers stepped back instinctively.
Chief Gao’s pupils contracted.
He had known Lu Zhen possessed a storage space, but he had not expected him to possess another ability.
Dual ability users were rare.
A dual ability user whose second ability was fire could not be provoked carelessly.
The village chief’s attitude changed immediately.
"You misunderstood me. I was only concerned for your safety."
Did the Village Chief take them for fools? Who would believe such a lame excuse?
"We can protect ourselves," Lu Zhen said.
Chief Gao looked at the others.
They appeared relaxed, but their positions were deliberate.
If his villagers attacked, they would probably be defeated before reaching the doorway.
He had underestimated these travellers.
They were clearly trained or have faced other similar situations before.
"Very well." His smile returned, although it no longer reached his eyes. "If you insist on remaining here, I won’t force you."
He turned towards the villagers.
"Let’s go."
The group slowly dispersed.
Before leaving, Chief Gao looked back at Leng Pan.
"You should not wander outside tonight. The village is not as safe as it appears."
"Thank you for the warning," she replied.
Chief Gao walked away.
The young woman who had warned them glanced over her shoulder, but the man holding her pushed her forward.
It appeared not everyone in this village was inhumane, but some were forced to partake in their deeds through force or threats.
Once everyone had returned to their homes, Leng Pan restored the barrier.
Old Chen reappeared from behind the wall.
"He knows," he whispered.
"He is only suspicious for now," Lu Zhen corrected. "If he knew you were here, he would not have left."
"What do we do now?"
"You should return home."
Old Chen’s eyes widened.
"But..."
"Your granddaughter is alone," Leng Pan reminded him. "If Chief Gao discovers you missing, she will be the first person he uses against you."
Old Chen looked conflicted.
"Will you help her?"
"I need to examine her first. We will visit your house once we understand what is happening."
"Thank you."
Old Chen bowed repeatedly. Even though he had wronged them, he was still using his old face to beg for help for his granddaughter’s sake.
Leng Pan created a thin mist around him to conceal his movements.
"Do not approach the well or Chief Gao’s house. Go directly home."
Old Chen slipped outside and disappeared into the darkness.
The room fell into silence again. Now they were sure that there was something wrong with that house.
Moreover, this village was probably more dangerous than they had anticipated.
Even for them, they had to be extra careful. No matter how powerful they were, they couldn’t be complacent.
"Should we investigate now?" Vanish asked.
"Yes," Lu Zhen replied. "But not as a group."
He looked towards Sonny and Vanish.
"You two have the best concealment abilities. Inspect the house beside Chief Gao’s residence. Do not engage whatever is beneath it. Retreat the moment you detect danger."
"I’ll go with them," Ouyang Jin offered.
"No," Sonny replied. "More people will make detection easier."
Vanish nodded.
"I can conceal both of us for a short time if we maintain contact." Indeed, this ability of Vanish was very useful. Coupled with Leng Pan’s mist barrier, it could conceal them better.
Most humans would not be able to detect them.
Leng Pan walked towards them and released two threads of mist.
The mist settled against their clothes and disappeared.
"This will help conceal your scent and energy fluctuations," she explained. "It will also allow me to sense your location."
"Can you protect us from those parasites?" Sonny asked.
"Only temporarily. If you encounter the creature from the well, retreat immediately."
Both men agreed.
Vanish placed his hand on Sonny’s shoulder.
Their bodies gradually faded until nothing remained.
The barrier opened briefly, allowing them to leave.
The rest of the group remained in the house, monitoring the village.
Sonny and Vanish moved silently between the buildings.
Vanish concealed their bodies while Sonny suppressed their presence.
Even if someone looked directly at them, they would not notice anything unusual.
Chief Gao’s courtyard remained quiet.
The lights inside the two-storey house had been extinguished.
However, several villagers guarded the nearby paths.
Sonny and Vanish avoided them easily and reached the empty guest house.
The door was unlocked and they easily slipped inside.
The interior looked exactly as Little Vine had described.
There were several beds, clean blankets, and a table beside the wall. Nothing indicated that travellers had disappeared there.
Sonny crouched and touched the stone floor.
"No blood," Vanish whispered.
"It was cleaned."
"How do you clean blood from stone so thoroughly?"
"An ability. Or something consumed it."
They searched the walls and furniture but found no mechanism.
Sonny closed his eyes.
His ability was not related to hearing, but years of training had taught him how to notice the smallest changes in his surroundings.
He placed his ear against the floor.
At first, he heard nothing.
Then came a faint sound.
Thump.
He held his breath.
Thump. Thump.
More sounds followed.
They resembled heartbeats, but the rhythm was wrong.
Some were extremely fast, while others paused for several seconds before beating again.
Sonny’s face changed.
"What is it?" Vanish asked in a whisper.
Sonny raised one finger, signalling for him to remain silent.
He concentrated once more and listened carefully.
The heartbeats did not belong to one creature. He could also tell that they were not human. Or at least, no longer human.
There were dozens.
No. Hundreds.
All of them were moving beneath the stone floor.
Something scraped against the underside of the foundation.
Then every heartbeat stopped at the same moment.
Sonny froze.
A voice emerged from below.
It was faint, wet, and distorted.
"You... are... not... asleep."
A thin crack appeared across the stone beneath Sonny’s hand.