CH 21

It is unrealistic to find a sunken ship in such a large lake, and it is no better than finding a needle in a haystack. Back in the temple, everyone felt a little tired in their heart. Tomorrow is already the 5th day so the team planned to look for it again tomorrow. But it really doesn't work, they can only go to the small fishing village first and maybe ask the weird village chief. Maybe they can find a clue or something. At night, the team slept with the heavy-moving sound of the monster again but Lou Fan actually slept soundly. He never woke up at night and slept until the next day without any problems.

The watch showed that it is 8.00 am. Lou Fan is gnawing on the bread and saw the little Taoist dusting the statue. He grabbed the boy and handed him a piece of bread, "Children need to eat more to grow taller."

The little Taoist squinted his eyes and took the bread, his smile showing a row of white teeth.

Lou Fan rubbed the boy’s head. Turning to look at the mural on the wall, he sighed again.

"There will be a way, don't sigh." Qin Tan's comforting voice came from behind.

"Big brother, what's wrong with this ship? You don't like it?" Sun Hai has been very proficient in speaking after talking to Lou Fan these past 2 days. He blinked and looked at Lou Fan in confusion.

Lou Fan: "I like it, but I don't know where it is. I want to find the ship."

Sun Hai thought for a while before gently pulling Lou Fan's sleeve, and whispered, "Big brother, I know where it is. Come with me."

Hearing that, Lou Fan's heart instantly felt like it’s being held. His heartbeat is incredibly fast. He turned his face and called out to Qin Tan, even his pitch is different. The two followed Sun Hai walking past twists and turns, and quickly reached a side hall. This side hall is very small, but there is a large god’s statue, which occupies almost the whole hall. The little Taoist priest walked behind the statue. There is only room for people to enter sideways. He walked in and pushed open the secret door behind the statue.

Lou Fan: "..."

No wonder they can't find it. The key information is actually hidden here?

Inside the hidden space, it's not the same as Lou Fan expected. There is only one stone monument there and no collections of books or scriptures. And the stone monument recorded exactly the information regarding the Shenzhou they are looking for.

The paragraph of literary words translated as follows: Shenzhou sailed on the emperor's order. When passing through the waters of Lao Ye Temple, they encountered strong winds, waves, thunder, and lightning. Then, they are attacked by fish monsters. Only 1 of the 3,000 people on the ship survived. Shenzhou sank about 30 miles southwest of the center of the lake. There are countless rare treasures in the ship and hereby recorded. If someone comes to find it one day later, you can tell them about this.

After reading it, Lou Fan had only one thought. This is indeed a parallel world. If there are so many rare treasures on the ship, wouldn't the emperor send anyone to salvage it? Or is it because of the monster fish in the lake? In addition to a stone monument, there is also a one-piece suit like fish scales on the stone platform next to it. Lou Fan walked over and picked it up to look at it. Touching the suit lightly with his hand, it really feel like fish scales to Lou Fan.

"It looked similar to the fish monster's scales but much smaller." Qin Tan said.

Lou Fan wondered, "Is this left by the person who wrote the stone monument?"

Both of them looked at the little Taoist priest. The little Taoist was looking at them so seeing they turn to him, the boy pointed to the fish-scale clothing and said, "I will give it to you."

Lou Fan is overjoyed, "Really giving it to me?" The little Taoist nodded.

Lou Fan accepted it without hesitation and said, "Sun Hai, thank you so much."

Unexpectedly, not only did they find a clue, but Lou Fan also got a piece of equipment. Qin Tan told Lou Fan to keep the suit away. Lou Fan understood and put it in his backpack. This kind of stuff doesn’t need to be shared with everyone.

Lou Fan copied the words on the stone monument, and the three of them withdrew from the status. Lou Fan walked to the front and bowed three times to the statue before leaving.

In the yard, Chen Shuyang, Wen Lang, and Zhang Xue showed up one after another. When they saw Qin Tan and Lou Fan, they said in unison, "Where have you guys been? We haven't seen you for a long time and thought you got dragged away by the monsters."

Lou Fan smiled mysteriously, "Guess what we found?"

Wen Lang's eyes widened, "Frck, it won't be what I thought, right?"

Lou Fan smiled meaningfully and shook the little book in his hand. Qin Tan also smiled. Chen Shuyang and Wen Lang quickly stepped forward and snatched the little book in his hand. Zhang Xue walked over, and the three of them read the notebook together. Lou Fan copied all the text on the stone monument. Although it is written in ancient Chinese characters, it is not much different from the vernacular characters. After reading it, the three of them looked at Qin Tan and Lou Fan with surprise.

"Where did you find it? We have been searching for it for so long, so why did you guys suddenly find it today?" Chen Shuyang looked at the notebook 3 times.

Lou Fan raised his chin and pointed to the little Taoist priest, "It's all Sun Hai's credit. He led us to find it. Otherwise, I think we might not be able to accomplish this task."

When Lou Fan finished talking about how to find it, Wen Lang's eyes bulged out from the shock, "I've never seen someone so lucky like you. Do you have a cheat code or something?"

Lou Fan shook his head, "If we look hard for it, we will definitely find it. Just that it won’t be so smoothly as now. Lazuli won't let us die in a situation without a solution."

Logically it’s correct, but even Zhang Xue looked at Lou Fan with envy. She thought in my heart that next time, she must have a good relationship with the NPCs. This is the role of the key NPC. Who knows, she may unexpectedly be able to get the key clues. She must not be careless.

Qin Tan stopped everyone from talking and said, "Pack up. We will go back to the village to kill the fish monsters."

Everyone immediately stopped chatting and went to pack their own things one after another.

Knowing that they are leaving, the little Taoist followed Lou Fan all the way, his expression sad. Lou Fan can only touch the boy’s head, silently comforting him. Lou Fan can't do anything else as he's just a passerby. Lou Fan and his team left some food for the little Taoist priest and told him that when they returned to the village, they will get the village chief to bring him more food. The little Taoist nodded silently, without any superfluous expressions, as if he didn't care about whether the village sent him food or not.

The team separated from the little Taoist outside the temple. When they reached halfway down the mountain, Lou Fan could still see the little Taoist standing in place when he turned his head. At this moment, Lou Fan felt that Sun Hai is no longer an NPC, but a real person.

Returned to the village, the team rested in the hut by the lake. They did not see Lin Man Man and Gong Yi.

"Where did they go?" Chen Shuyang put down his backpack and looked around. There are still some things about the two people in the house. Obviously, they still live here.

"The village is not big. We'll look for them later, maybe they'll be back soon." Before Wen Lang finish his words, he saw Gong Yi coming out of the village. Gong Yi smiled immediately when he saw them and ran over.

"Brother Qin, Brother Lou, you guys are finally back." Gong Yi’s smile revealed a row of white teeth, and he looked pretty good. Pointing to the village, he continued, "Lin Man Man will be back soon."

Lou Fan asked curiously, "What are you two doing? Aren't you afraid of the people in the village?"

Gong Yi smiled bitterly, "I'm afraid, but I still have to help out and inquire about the news in the village."

After they exchanged a few words, they saw Lin Man Man running out of the village. Seeing that everyone is there, she looked very happy. "Brother Lou, is everything going well for you guys?"

Lou Fan smiled like an amiable elder, "You already dare to ask for the information alone, not bad." When they first came to the village, Lin Man Man is still afraid and even hides behind him.

Gong Yi and Lin Man Man glanced at each other, and they both smiled bitterly. They are indeed scared at first, but they found it difficult to stay in the hut by the lake all the time. It's better to go to the village to inquire for news so that they can help a little. At first, they went together and would take a detour when they met strange villagers. But later, they discovered that the villagers are just looking scary and would not attack them, so they became bolder.

Lin Man Man is quite concerned about the pair of mother and daughter. She stayed outside the door on the 1st day. From time to time, she will lean in to talk to the girl and praise her skill in weaving fishing nets. Unexpectedly, the girl is willing to talk to her when she came back the next day. When the topic comes to sacrifices, the girl told Lin Man Man that she is one of the sacrifices. The small fishing village uses young boys and girls as sacrifices every year. This time, it is their turn. But truth to be told, there are actually no more children left in the village. The villagers have to count in the Sun Hai who went to the Lao Ye temple since he was young to get a total of 5 children. Lin Man Man has gotten the names of the other 4 children, and the girl's name is Shan Hu. In other words, there will be no sacrifices to offer next year.

"She also said that one of the boys came to her, saying that he had a plan. He will come to find Shan Hu in 2 days." Lin Man Man told the team all she knew.

While Lin Man Man is drinking water, Gong Yi also added, “Outsiders are not allowed to stay in the village. We tried to talk to the village chief but the answer is still no and can only stay in the hut by the lake. At night, we didn’t dare to sleep at all. We waited until the villagers are all asleep before running into the village to hide. Then, after the fish monsters have retreated into the lake, we will return to the house. By the way, the lake will start to fog at night when the fish monsters appear."

Unexpectedly, these 2 newcomers not only inquired about the news but also noticed the differences. For a newcomer, they have shown a strong psychological quality. Both of them are very happy to receive praise from the team of 5 people. But Lin Man Man looked sad again, "I searched everywhere, but I didn't see Xiao Yu. I don't know where she went."

Lou Fan helplessly comforted, "Man Man, everyone only needs to be responsible for their own life. They are responsible for the choices they made."

Lin Man Man nodded. She knew the truth, but Xiao Yu was her good friend after all. She just felt a little regretful and wondered if she could find Xiao Yu again to persuade her.

When there are just Gong Yi and Lin Man Man before, they are always feeling worried. Now that the team of 5 people is back, Gong Yi and Lin Man Man felt a lot more at ease. Even the small house seemed a little more secured.

Qin Tan also gave his admiration for Lin Man Man and said to her, "If Shan Hu comes into contact with another boy, you'd better go together and find out what they are going to do."

Lin Man Man nodded, "I have already told Shan Hu. She will take me with her."

Lou Fan fully affirmed Lin Man Man’s diplomatic skills, "Man Man, if your diplomatic skills are used by the Black Scorpion team, it will be a great help for them."

Speaking of the Black Scorpion team, Lou Fan and the others did not see them again. Lin Man Man and Gong Yi also said that they had not seen them in the village. The team wondered where they are now, and whether they found a way to complete their task.

"Since Lin Man Man and Gong Yi have collected so much information, we should have a good rest in the afternoon. There will be a battle to be fought in the evening." Qin Tan issued an order.

Realizing that the team is going to kill the fish monsters, Lin Man Man and Gong Yi exclaimed in surprise, "What?! You guys still want to kill the fish monsters?!"