Chapter 17: Escape from Yuxi Village

The hammer traced an arc through the air, crashing into the Death Sacrifice Stele. A faint, splintering sound immediately followed.

To Eagle Eye, however, the scene looked entirely different. He watched Qian Cangyi swing the hammer, only for it to freeze in mid-air halfway through the motion. On the open ground, the silhouette of the shadow began to tremble, its edges fraying with distinct, jagged static.

"It’s working! Keep going!" Eagle Eye shouted, grabbing a hammer and rushing forward.

Qian Cangyi raised his hammer, took a deep breath, and prepared to strike again. Suddenly, the shadow in front of him stood up, as thin and vertical as a sheet of paper. The upright shadow lunged and embraced Qian Cangyi, who felt his strength instantly drain away. He mustered his final ounce of energy to swing the hammer, but—to his horror—it simply slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

"What!" Qian Cangyi’s face went pale. The hammer hadn't slipped from his grip; it had fallen straight down from above his head, passing directly through his body. The shadow’s attack forced him to collapse onto the ground.

In the script of the first scene, this was exactly the attack Bian Zhe had suffered.

Qian Cangyi felt as though every scrap of vitality had been sapped from his limbs. Driven by a desperate will to survive, he forced his eyes open and reached for the hammer beside him, but his hand passed straight through it. He could no longer touch the weapon, as if he and the hammer existed in different worlds.

It’s over...

Qian Cangyi tried again, but the result was the same.

Nearby, Eagle Eye had sprinted over, only to be intercepted by the shadow. Since the Death Sacrifice Stele had been struck, the shadow’s movements were noticeably hindered. The figure that had attacked Qian Cangyi vanished, and the remaining shadow seemed to be in a state of recovery, taking a full second before sliding toward Eagle Eye.

Seeing the shadow closing in, Eagle Eye stomped his right foot against the ground and launched himself into the air. That brief moment of suspension was crucial; the shadow could not reach him. Eagle Eye closed his eyes and brought the hammer down with all his might.

A crisp chime echoed across the clearing, and the Death Sacrifice Stele seemed to fracture further. Qian Cangyi looked around; the shadows encircling Eagle Eye began to shudder violently, more intensely than before, to the point where they could no longer maintain their human-like form.

Yet, the shadow had already been waiting at the landing spot. As Eagle Eye touched the ground, he attempted to dodge, but after a roll, he too collapsed. Just like Qian Cangyi, his strength had been siphoned away.

"Just a little more... just a little more!"

Qian Cangyi tried to scream, but the sound seemed stuck in his throat. He reached for the hammer once more. This time, his fingers found purchase. The flickering flame of hope reignited, but he had no strength left—forgetting how to swing the hammer, he couldn't even manage to stand.

"Is this the end..."

Qian Cangyi stared at the shadow, which was slowly reforming, and tightened his grip on the hammer.

Suddenly, a pair of feet appeared before him—the feet of a child. Qian Cangyi looked up to see a young, innocent face. It was the face of Li Ling. Behind Li Ling, more and more figures emerged. The villagers of Yuxi Village appeared around him one by one, then reached out their hands.

With the help of the villagers, Qian Cangyi stood up. The strong, sturdy villagers then lifted his hands, which were still clutching the hammer. He understood: the villagers could not hold the hammer themselves because they could not touch it, but because of the Death Sacrifice, they could touch him.

"Thank you for your help."

Qian Cangyi closed his eyes. By all logic, he should have seen only darkness, but that was not the case. The cracked Death Sacrifice Stele appeared before him, surrounded by countless swirling, indecipherable symbols. With the shattered stele as the center, light and shadow split the world in two. The villagers standing on Qian Cangyi’s side were light; the shadows on the side of the stele were darkness.

The next second, the light and shadow began to rotate and interweave, like a spinning black-and-white dartboard. The boundary between life and death blurred at that moment.

Qian Cangyi did not hesitate. Aided by the villagers, he swung the hammer with all his might at the stele.

"Shatter!"

The black hammer struck the Death Sacrifice Stele with unerring precision, delivering the final blow.

*Clang.*

The stele crumbled completely, unable to maintain its form, collapsing like a ruined house. Simultaneously, the villagers of Yuxi Village vanished into thin air. Deprived of their support, Qian Cangyi collapsed back to the ground, the hammer falling beside him.

"Did I survive?"

Qian Cangyi asked himself, though he did not know the answer. Ahead, the true form of the shattered stele was revealed: the top half had broken into small fragments, while the bottom third remained largely intact. In the distant horizon, the last shred of twilight flickered out.

Total darkness descended.

The strength that had been stolen began to return to his body. A look of joy crossed Qian Cangyi’s face as he pushed himself up with both hands. Eagle Eye stood up as well.

In the sky, a bolt of red lightning streaked across, illuminating the night. The shattered pieces of the stele began to shift; the intact portions gradually coalesced into a pitch-black human figure, resembling a mannequin from a department store. The black entity formed and began to walk toward them, though it swayed from side to side, as if struggling to adapt to its new body.

"What is that?" Qian Cangyi’s eyes were filled with terror.

"Run!" Eagle Eye shouted, sprinting toward the entrance of Yuxi Village.

At that moment, the black entity turned to face Qian Cangyi, revealing a white, crescent-shaped smile. The instant he saw that smile, Qian Cangyi felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss.

Eagle Eye grabbed Qian Cangyi’s arm and dragged him toward the village entrance. Qian Cangyi snapped out of his trance and tried to match Eagle Eye’s pace. Although his strength had returned, the exhaustion in his legs had not dissipated. He felt as if his feet no longer belonged to him.

They ran for a while, and suddenly, Qian Cangyi felt a chill on his back. He accelerated instantly; the sensation of being touched against his back broke him out in a cold sweat.

Another flash of red lightning cut through the sky. Qian Cangyi took the opportunity to glance back—the black entity was right behind him. Eagle Eye noticed this as well and shouted to him:

"If this continues, you will definitely die."

"We must separate. I will lure the monster away and take the long road to the village entrance. You take the shortcut and leave as fast as you can."

"Even if the monster turns to chase you, I will not come back to save you. You must rely on yourself for the rest of the way."

"Take care of yourself."

With that, Eagle Eye picked up his pace, practically dragging Qian Cangyi along. Qian Cangyi felt that as long as he didn't trip, he could sprint all the way to the village entrance.

A fork in the road appeared ahead, leading left and right. The left path led upward, while the right path led downward. Eagle Eye pulled Qian Cangyi toward the upward path; the left fork was the long way around. During their investigation, they had walked almost every path, which was why they could recognize the forks so quickly.

The return trip was different from the investigation. The investigation required checking every room, but now they were heading straight for the village entrance, which would shorten the distance significantly.

"Understood," Qian Cangyi nodded.

There was no point in saying anything else. As long as they escaped Yuxi Village, they would live. The question was, could they?

Qian Cangyi did not know. Eagle Eye could not explain it to him now.

The black entity born from the Death Sacrifice Stele followed closely behind them, in relentless pursuit. A red lightning bolt tore through the sky once more, illuminating the path ahead—the path to survival.