CH 86

Lou Fan opened his mouth to say something but the words rolled around in his mouth, and he swallowed them back. He originally wanted to bring Tong Fei with him, but then he remembered that everyone here is an intermediate spirit weapon holder. The 3 women don't look weak so their decision is not unreasonable. And so, the plan for the evening is finalized. Qin Tan and his team members will go to the woods, while Tong Fei and the other 2 females will stay back to look for other clues.

The daytime in Ghost Lake Village is gloomy even if it doesn't rain. The ‘people’ all stay in the house. Since they are ghosts, it makes sense that there is no trace of life. However, staying indoors all day is not an option, so Qin Tan arranged for everyone to go out for a walk to see if they found anything.

"Go in groups of two or three and walk around. If the villagers appear, you can try talking to them but be careful."

Lou Fan and Qin Tan went to the lake while Tong Fei and the females went to check in the direction of the woods. Wen Lang and the rest wandered around the village.

…

The lake water is black. Lou Fan stared at the lake with heavy eyes, not knowing what is under the lake water. The water is as calm as a black mirror. Lou Fan tentatively walked forward. He crouched down and reached out to touch the water.

"This water can't be touched casually." A slow and weak old voice sounded behind Lou Fan.

Lou Fan got startled. His body swayed a bit as his center of gravity is unstable from the squatting, and he looked back. He didn't hear any footsteps just now so when did the old man get behind him? Lou Fan saw Qin Tan also looking at the old man. It’s obvious that Qin Tan didn't hear any sound either, otherwise, he would definitely alert him.

The old man had his hands behind his back, his face is expressionless, and his eyes are fixed on the two of them. Lou Fan suddenly smiled and said to the old man, "Old man, I heard that this lake is called Ghost Lake, why is that?"

Lou Fan originally discussed with Qin Tan whether to talk to the NPC again. Although they were all ghosts, since the old man gave them information, he could be considered an NPC. They haven’t gone to the old man yet and he's already here.

"Ghost Lake is called Ghost Lake."

Lou Fan still smiling and asked, "Then, what's in that water?"

The old man who was staring at the water turned his head to look at Lou Fan. It makes Lou Fan wonder if the old man would break free from the human skin and chomp at him with a big mouth in the next moment.

The scene Lou Fan imagined did not appear. The old man only cracked his mouth and smiled stiffly, "The water is full of resentful ghosts. They want to be purified, but they can only linger at the bottom of the dark lake, waiting for redemption."

Looking at the old man’s stiff smile, Lou Fan felt that his teeth are sore. He wanted to reach out and help the old man to close his mouth.

After the old man said that, he turned around and is about to leave. Lou Fan asked behind him, "Old man, do you need us to save you?"

The old man only stopped and sighed faintly. Saying nothing, he continued to walk forward.

"Hey, such an inexplicable action. What does it mean?" Lou Fan is a little confused and turned to look at Qin Tan.

Qin Tan saw Lou Fan’s curious eyes and said with a smile, "You don't even know, how can you ask me?"

"I don't know doesn't mean you don't know."

Qin Tan: "No, if you don't know, most likely we don't know."

Lou Fan is speechless, how does one continue this kind of conversation?

"Why don't I go down and have a look?" Lou Fan suggested, "I brought both the fish scale suit and the small pearls. I'm not sure there are any clues in the water."

Qin Tan disagreed, "Didn't you hear the old man say that there are ghosts underwater? There's nothing to see, and it's too dangerous."

"But……"

Qin Tan interrupted Lou Fan, "Alright, can go down and see, but I'll go."

"No, it's too dangerous."

When Qin Tan said this, Lou Fan hesitated for a moment. It's so dangerous that there are all ghosts underwater, so this suggestion definitely won't work.

Qin Tan leaned over and kissed Lou Fan, "You worry about me, but isn’t it the same for me? Silly."

Hence, this suggestion is put on hold for the time being. Lou Fan felt that they should go to the woods to explore first. If there is no clue, it will not be too late to go into the water.

The two walked around the lake. Seeing that afternoon is coming soon, the weather became more gloomy. The wind is howling, causing heavy waves to appear on the lake. At the wooden house, everyone has already come back, and it seemed that they didn’t obtain any new information.

Tong Fei: "We went to the place where the forest appeared yesterday. There is nothing there, no trace. The forest is like an illusion."

Wen Lang and the rest also went around for a while, but they didn't get any results. The villagers they met didn't answer any questions. They are no different from dead people. They didn't pay attention to them at all.

Lou Fan sat down and took a sip of water before saying, "We met the old man by the lake and he said that the bottom of the lake is full of ghosts."

If Tong Fei ever wondered why Qin Tan's team could return to Lazuli smoothly every time before this, right now she finally understood something. Everyone went out to look for clues, but almost none of them found anything. The villagers didn't even respond to them when they asked. But for Lou Fan, they only went out and returned with clues, and it was the NPC who took the initiative to say it.

This is luck. Luck is also a type of strength, and she never doubts it.

Seeing that night is about to fall, several people are getting ready to go. Lou Fan asked Tong Fei again, "Sister Tong Fei, are you guys really not going with us?"

Tong Fei glanced at Feng Zhi beside her. Pursing her lips, she shook her head and said, "No, we'll just wait here so that there’s someone to support you when you guys come back."

Since Tong Fei insisted, Lou Fan stopped asking and only told them to be careful, not to worry about those ghostly things, and to wait for them to come back.

"If we don’t come back in 3 days, you guys try to find a way to go to the holy lake. There must be clues there," Qin Tan instructed.

Tong Fei nodded, "That's what we planned. If you don't come out, we'll go to the holy lake and maybe find a solution. So you can rest assured to find clues and try to get Gao Yi and the others back along the way."

Tong Fei is not a sheltered flower in a greenhouse at all. Lou Fan thinks he may be just overly worried.

Thick fog rises from the lake, and those beings ripped open their skin and sink into the lake. After the fog enveloped the village, the woods at the back appeared.

The females are very curious about the forest so they followed over to take a look and touched the tree trunk with their hands. After realizing that the sensation is real and not a hallucination, they tutted a few times. The wood is real, but it only appears when the fog comes out, which is really strange.

Standing in front of the woods, Lou Fan is just a step from entering it. He thought about something and then took out a few amulets from his carry bag. He handed them to Tong Fei. "Sister Tong Fei, take it. You all be careful."

Tong Fei smiled and didn't take it, "Okay now, I'm not a child. I've never noticed that you are such a long-winded person. Didn't you already give me a few amulets? That's enough."

Lou Fan didn't allow Tong Fei to reject it and forced them to her, "The three of you don't have enough spells at hand. Take these for backups, we still have more. In case we don't get back in time, you have to continue to do the task."

Tong Fei couldn’t refuse and accept it. Then, she started herding them, "Go now, else the fog will disperse soon."

Wen Lang cheekily wailed, "Sister Tong Fei, are you despising us and trying to drive us away?"

Tong Fei said without guilt, "Hurry up and go, what are you being so slow?"

Lou Fan acknowledged with a smile, and the 6 people walked into the foggy woods. Tong Fei watched from behind with a worried look in her eyes and muttered, "I don't know if they can find the clues smoothly."

Hearing that, Feng Zhi's cold eyes had a hint of a smile, "Your friends are very good. Since you are worried about them, tell them."

Tong Fei shook her head, "I’m just saying it, there isn’t any problem with their strength."

Feng Zhi snorted and laughed, "Tsk, ‘a dead duck’s beak is sure tough’ (stubborn)."

The remark caused Tong Fei to be furious and she glared at Feng Zhi. At the side, Jiang Rou covered her mouth and laughed, her shoulders shaking. Tong Fei ignored them and divided the amulets she got among them 3. Feng Zhi took it and looked at her with a surprised look. Looking at her expression, Tong Fei finally found some comfort and explained, "It's that amulet you thought. It came from their hands, and it is said that it works well."

Feng Zhi raised her eyebrows. These amulets are not only said to ‘work well’ in Lazuli, it has been blown out of proportion. The amulets are very popular, and as soon as it is listed, it is sold out. Big organizations have long been watching, so ordinary people can't get it at all.

Tong Fei carried her sword and glanced at the deserted forest. Then she turned around and walked to the shore, "Let's go, go to the lake to stand guard."

…

The group of 6 people stepped into the woods. After walking a few steps and then looking back, they cannot see the females outside anymore. There is fog all around, mixed with tree shadows, they can't tell the right direction at all.

Qin Tan took out the compass exchanged in Lazuli and found that the pointer on it kept spinning. "The magnetic field is disordered, and the compass is useless."

Wen Lang is not in a hurry at all. He rubbed his hands together, a little excited, "Brother Lou, it's time for you to show off your style again."

Lou Fan looked at Wen Lang with a smile and crossed his hands. He said, "Oh, you are treating me as a lucky item, don't you?"

Wen Lang hehe-ed twice, "Ain’t it because Brother Lou, you are so lucky? Your light shines in all directions, and you are the hope of our entire team."

"Okay, stop flattering." Lou Fan interrupted Wen Lang, "Let’s go now and pay heed to the time. Hold each other firmly, don't get lost."

They only gotten slightly further in, and Lou Fan can't judge their position at all. If he really randomly points the direction, he might direct them to a cliff/ditch. Then he won’t have time to regret it.

Jiang Dong pulled a bundle of rope from his bag and handed it out, "Tie the rope around yourself. The fog is too thick here, and it's easy to get lost. In case some supernatural beings appeared, you won't even know you are holding the wrong person."

Wen Lang try to imagine that in his mind and his body shook. Instantly, he tied the rope around his waist without saying a word. After that, he leaned over and whispered to Jiang Dong, "Hey, take good care of me. If I disappear, you are so dead."

Jiang Dong chuckled, "Isn’t it better if I’m gone? Then you can go to find a better one. You don't like me anyway."

Just listen to that aggrieved tone, Wen Lang immediately retorted righteously, "Nonsense, who doesn't like you? If I don't like you, I won’t let you do… that thing?" His cheeks became hot after he said that.

Jiang Dong leaned over and said, "Hehe, for your sincere confession to me, I will hold you firmly."

Wen Lang glared at Jiang Dong angrily. This man's face is getting thicker and thicker. He doesn't have the temperament of an ‘angel in a white coat’ at all (doctors and nurses).

When the rope is fastened, a group of 6 people looks like grasshoppers tied on a rope. Fortunately, the rope is long enough to move freely. Otherwise, they might stumble against each other.

"Is there someone lying down in front?" Nie Feng held Chen Shuyang beside him and pointed the other hand to a tree not far away.