An Xiaoning was rather appalled and frightened by such a mindset. It seemed as if women here were just slaves to their husbands.
“Sis Fei Niao, could you tell me about what’s going on in this town?”
Fei Niao stood up to lock the door before sitting down again. She then said softly, “We’re locals who were born and bred here. No one dares to spout any nonsense about what’s going on in this town, but those guardians that I told you about earlier, they don’t eat food at all.”
“What do they eat, then?” An Xiaoning asked.
“Blood. Nothing else except blood. Several people end up losing their lives on the guardians’ territory every month. I was thinking that your mother is probably dead by now. You, your husband, and your brother should stop trying your luck. I’m only telling you this on account of the money you’ve given me. Furthermore, I don’t want the three of you to die here either. Sis, stop searching and go home.”
“Sis Fei Niao, could you tell me why those guardians choose to drink blood?” An Xiaoning asked further.
Noticing how puzzled and curious she was, Fei Niao answered, “They’re different from us. I heard from my grandmother that people of their kind have existed ever since she was a child. There are also some who said that the guardians have spread the word about the treasure map in order to attract more people to this town, so that they could kill them and drink their blood. After all, our town is sparsely populated.”
“Does that mean that the treasure map doesn’t exist at all and is just a sham that was leaked on purpose?”
Fei Niao nodded and said solemnly, “None of us locals think that it actually exists. Sis, they rarely harm the locals. Most of the people who fall prey to their acts of cannibalism are foreigners. You’d better leave with your husband and brother as soon as possible. It’s terrifying.”
An Xiaoning nodded and said, “I’ll take your words seriously, Sis Fei Niao. Thank you so much for being willing to tell me these things. However, I have another question for you.”
“What is it? Speak up. I’ll tell you as long as I know. After all, you gave me enough money to cover the living expenses of my family for at least two years.”
“They’re so daunting and they even survive on blood. Are they all capable of witchcraft? The family members of the victims they’ve killed would have definitely come here to seek revenge, wouldn’t they?”
Fei Niao thought that An Xiaoning was thinking of avenging her “mother.”
Fei Niao sighed and said, “Sis, forget about taking revenge. I’ve heard of people coming here to seek revenge before but they’ve all been killed. No exception was made at all. It’s not that easy to kill the guardians. I once witnessed with my own eyes a man stabbing one of the guardians in his stomach. However, the guardian was completely unscathed. My grandmother said that those people can only be killed by being burned alive or beheaded. Otherwise, there’s no other way to kill them at all. Furthermore, stabbing them in their throats or chests will only numb them temporarily. There won’t be any fatal effects at all. I’m speaking nothing but the truth. Sis, heed my advice and leave this place as soon as you can.”
“I’ve heard your words, Sis. After hearing your words, I find them to be really terrifying too. We’re unarmed and helpless. We’ll definitely die if they try and kill us,” An Xiaoning said with a look of horror.
Fei Niao emphasized, “That’s right, Sis. Hurry and go home with your family.”
“We can’t leave now that they’ve sealed the town.”
“Wait a few more days, then, and it should be fine.”
An Xiaoning chatted with Fei Niao for a while longer and only returned after confirming that there was no other information she could find out from her.
“Based on what Fei Niao said, it’s very likely that the treasure map doesn’t exist at all,” said Xiao Bai.
An Xiaoning said, “However, if a lie could be passed around for more than a few decades, that just means that it’s not simply a lie. Besides, Fei Niao is a local of the town. She probably only knows a few things based on how they seem on the surface. We ought to dig deeper to find out more.”
She paused to glance at Fan Shixin before continuing, “The money spent today was worth every cent. After all, we now know how to kill those people. Besides burning them alive, we can also kill them by chopping off their heads. From now on, each of us has to bring a couple of daggers with us. Stabbing them in the throat or chest is only going to knock them unconscious temporarily.”
“Well then, shall we brave up and barge into the Second Brother’s den tonight?”
“Yes. But I’ll go alone,” said An Xiaoning, staring at Fan Shixin.
“No, how can I let you go alone? I’ll go with you,” Fan Shixin objected worriedly.
Shaking her head, An Xiaoning countered, “They’ve been stricter with the screening lately. We’ll be attracting unwanted attention if both of us go there. You shall stay here with Xiao Bai. If you want to know my whereabouts, contact your subordinates in S Nation and check my exact location on the GPS system. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
“I won’t allow you to go alone. How am I supposed to explain it to Young Sir should anything happen to you? Besides, I may not be as skilled or capable as you are but I’ll try my best not to become your burden,” Fan Shixin insisted, refusing to let her go on her own.
“Yes, Sis, let Brother-in-law go with you. I’ll be more assured that way.”
An Xiaoning had no choice but to concede.
They decided to carry out their plan that night.
“Whatever, let’s just stay here for a few days. If that rascal really can’t give us any useful information, we’ll head back home straight,” said An Xiaoning.
The two men were appalled to hear her words.
“If you can’t find the treasure map, you and Young Sir…”
“I think the mastermind of these cannibals is far more terrifying than Tuoba Gucheng.”
She was right.
Not long after, someone came knocking on their door.
“Who’s there?”
“Nainai, there’s a letter for you,” said Fei Niao.
An Xiaoning immediately stood up to answer the door.
Fei Niao handed her an unopened, yellow-colored envelope and said, “A postman wanted me to hand this to you.”
An Xiaoning immediately smelled a rat. How could there be a postman when it’s pouring heavily outside?
“What were his exact words?” An Xiaoning asked.
“I went downstairs to dispose of some garbage and saw him there. He pointed at your window and told me to hand it to you.”
“What did he look like? Was he tall?”
“He’s one of our locals and he was of average height.”
“Alright, thanks.”
After closing the door, An Xiaoning sat cross-legged in front of the two of them and opened the yellow envelope to discover that there was a mobile phone inside.
As soon as she unlocked the screen of the mobile phone, she received a sudden text message.
The number of the sender was blank and hidden. Clearly, it had been tampered with.
The message read: “What do you take me for? You’ve come to stir trouble on my territory. I know Tuoba Gucheng sent you. Seems like he wants you to die here. None of his elite soldiers or special agents have ever stepped out of here alive. Do the few of you really think you can snatch the treasure map away from me? I’m giving you three days to go back to where you came from. Otherwise, you shall become fertilizers for our local soil.”
The three of them turned pale the instant that they read the message. Seconds later, they received another message: “Hua Jin, you got to become human in both lifetimes, yet you’re still as silly as ever. You don’t even know that you’re being used.”
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
An Xiaoning was rather appalled and frightened by such a mindset. It seemed as if women here were just slaves to their husbands.
“Sis Fei Niao, could you tell me about what’s going on in this town?”
Fei Niao stood up to lock the door before sitting down again. She then said softly, “We’re locals who were born and bred here. No one dares to spout any nonsense about what’s going on in this town, but those guardians that I told you about earlier, they don’t eat food at all.”
“What do they eat, then?” An Xiaoning asked.
“Blood. Nothing else except blood. Several people end up losing their lives on the guardians’ territory every month. I was thinking that your mother is probably dead by now. You, your husband, and your brother should stop trying your luck. I’m only telling you this on account of the money you’ve given me. Furthermore, I don’t want the three of you to die here either. Sis, stop searching and go home.”
“Sis Fei Niao, could you tell me why those guardians choose to drink blood?” An Xiaoning asked further.
Noticing how puzzled and curious she was, Fei Niao answered, “They’re different from us. I heard from my grandmother that people of their kind have existed ever since she was a child. There are also some who said that the guardians have spread the word about the treasure map in order to attract more people to this town, so that they could kill them and drink their blood. After all, our town is sparsely populated.”
“Does that mean that the treasure map doesn’t exist at all and is just a sham that was leaked on purpose?”
Fei Niao nodded and said solemnly, “None of us locals think that it actually exists. Sis, they rarely harm the locals. Most of the people who fall prey to their acts of cannibalism are foreigners. You’d better leave with your husband and brother as soon as possible. It’s terrifying.”
An Xiaoning nodded and said, “I’ll take your words seriously, Sis Fei Niao. Thank you so much for being willing to tell me these things. However, I have another question for you.”
“What is it? Speak up. I’ll tell you as long as I know. After all, you gave me enough money to cover the living expenses of my family for at least two years.”
“They’re so daunting and they even survive on blood. Are they all capable of witchcraft? The family members of the victims they’ve killed would have definitely come here to seek revenge, wouldn’t they?”
Fei Niao thought that An Xiaoning was thinking of avenging her “mother.”
Fei Niao sighed and said, “Sis, forget about taking revenge. I’ve heard of people coming here to seek revenge before but they’ve all been killed. No exception was made at all. It’s not that easy to kill the guardians. I once witnessed with my own eyes a man stabbing one of the guardians in his stomach. However, the guardian was completely unscathed. My grandmother said that those people can only be killed by being burned alive or beheaded. Otherwise, there’s no other way to kill them at all. Furthermore, stabbing them in their throats or chests will only numb them temporarily. There won’t be any fatal effects at all. I’m speaking nothing but the truth. Sis, heed my advice and leave this place as soon as you can.”
“I’ve heard your words, Sis. After hearing your words, I find them to be really terrifying too. We’re unarmed and helpless. We’ll definitely die if they try and kill us,” An Xiaoning said with a look of horror.
Fei Niao emphasized, “That’s right, Sis. Hurry and go home with your family.”
“We can’t leave now that they’ve sealed the town.”
“Wait a few more days, then, and it should be fine.”
An Xiaoning chatted with Fei Niao for a while longer and only returned after confirming that there was no other information she could find out from her.
“Based on what Fei Niao said, it’s very likely that the treasure map doesn’t exist at all,” said Xiao Bai.
An Xiaoning said, “However, if a lie could be passed around for more than a few decades, that just means that it’s not simply a lie. Besides, Fei Niao is a local of the town. She probably only knows a few things based on how they seem on the surface. We ought to dig deeper to find out more.”
She paused to glance at Fan Shixin before continuing, “The money spent today was worth every cent. After all, we now know how to kill those people. Besides burning them alive, we can also kill them by chopping off their heads. From now on, each of us has to bring a couple of daggers with us. Stabbing them in the throat or chest is only going to knock them unconscious temporarily.”
“Well then, shall we brave up and barge into the Second Brother’s den tonight?”
“Yes. But I’ll go alone,” said An Xiaoning, staring at Fan Shixin.
“No, how can I let you go alone? I’ll go with you,” Fan Shixin objected worriedly.
Shaking her head, An Xiaoning countered, “They’ve been stricter with the screening lately. We’ll be attracting unwanted attention if both of us go there. You shall stay here with Xiao Bai. If you want to know my whereabouts, contact your subordinates in S Nation and check my exact location on the GPS system. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
“I won’t allow you to go alone. How am I supposed to explain it to Young Sir should anything happen to you? Besides, I may not be as skilled or capable as you are but I’ll try my best not to become your burden,” Fan Shixin insisted, refusing to let her go on her own.
“Yes, Sis, let Brother-in-law go with you. I’ll be more assured that way.”
An Xiaoning had no choice but to concede.
They decided to carry out their plan that night.
“Whatever, let’s just stay here for a few days. If that rascal really can’t give us any useful information, we’ll head back home straight,” said An Xiaoning.
The two men were appalled to hear her words.
“If you can’t find the treasure map, you and Young Sir…”
“I think the mastermind of these cannibals is far more terrifying than Tuoba Gucheng.”
She was right.
Not long after, someone came knocking on their door.
“Who’s there?”
“Nainai, there’s a letter for you,” said Fei Niao.
An Xiaoning immediately stood up to answer the door.
Fei Niao handed her an unopened, yellow-colored envelope and said, “A postman wanted me to hand this to you.”
An Xiaoning immediately smelled a rat. How could there be a postman when it’s pouring heavily outside?
“What were his exact words?” An Xiaoning asked.
“I went downstairs to dispose of some garbage and saw him there. He pointed at your window and told me to hand it to you.”
“What did he look like? Was he tall?”
“He’s one of our locals and he was of average height.”
“Alright, thanks.”
After closing the door, An Xiaoning sat cross-legged in front of the two of them and opened the yellow envelope to discover that there was a mobile phone inside.
As soon as she unlocked the screen of the mobile phone, she received a sudden text message.
The number of the sender was blank and hidden. Clearly, it had been tampered with.
The message read: “What do you take me for? You’ve come to stir trouble on my territory. I know Tuoba Gucheng sent you. Seems like he wants you to die here. None of his elite soldiers or special agents have ever stepped out of here alive. Do the few of you really think you can snatch the treasure map away from me? I’m giving you three days to go back to where you came from. Otherwise, you shall become fertilizers for our local soil.”
The three of them turned pale the instant that they read the message. Seconds later, they received another message: “Hua Jin, you got to become human in both lifetimes, yet you’re still as silly as ever. You don’t even know that you’re being used.”
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
