Chapter 29: A Thirty Percent Chance of Survival, Ghost Hand
“So this is the power of an evil spirit?”
Lu Sha stood just a few meters from the twisted, rotting corpses, his expression dark.
Though he had witnessed many grand spectacles in his previous life, this was a sight he had never seen before.
Those of a weaker constitution would likely have collapsed in terror on the spot.
“What’s wrong? Are you scared?”
Cao Meng looked at Lu Sha, a half-smile on his lips.
This time, he had brought Lu Sha here precisely to let him witness the terror of evil spirits.
A Demon Warrior could not rely on strength alone; he also needed an unbreakable will and a heart that would never falter.
Otherwise, when faced with the bizarre and horrific evil spirits, even half one's strength would be difficult to muster.
...
Lu Sha studied the mutated corpse village before him, his voice low.
“I just didn’t expect the evil spirits to be capable of such things.”
Cao Meng’s face grew grave.
“This is nothing,” he said heavily. “As time passes, the whole of Wuling County will be transformed.”
“The power of evil spirits twists and changes everything nearby.”
“That’s how Death Zones are born.”
“This little village is only the beginning.”
“The terror of evil spirits—you have seen but the tip of the iceberg.”
“Care to guess what chance we have of leaving here alive?”
Lu Sha considered for a moment before venturing, “Seventy percent?”
Cao Meng and White Wasp seemed relatively at ease, so perhaps they had a reliable way out.
But Cao Meng shook his head.
“Fifty percent?” Lu Sha guessed again.
Cao Meng shook his head once more.
A sinking feeling crept into Lu Sha’s heart. “Could it be only thirty percent?”
This time, Cao Meng finally nodded.
“About that. At most, no more than thirty percent.”
Lu Sha was stunned.
“With only a thirty percent chance of survival, you still dared to come in?”
“What of it?” Cao Meng grinned, then his expression turned stern as he fixed his gaze on Lu Sha.
“Even if there was only a ten percent chance, I’d still come.”
“What else? Hide away like a turtle?”
“Do you think the Demon Spirit Pills you took came easily?”
“The power of evil spirits contained within them was won by our predecessors at the cost of their lives!”
“A Demon Warrior has no path of retreat. Death is a constant companion.”
“Today, I’ve brought you here and told you all this so you’ll understand your situation, and the weight behind the words ‘Demon Warrior.’”
“If you want power and your life, you have to fight for both.”
“See this village? If we can figure out which evil spirit is behind all this, our chances of survival will be higher.”
“Come on. Hope lies within danger.”
With that, Cao Meng glanced at White Wasp.
White Wasp understood. He brought his hands together before his chest, and a torrent of black flames erupted, scorching the corpses and writhing flesh on the ground.
Under the searing black fire, the half-melted corpses twisted in agony and let out piercing shrieks.
The sound was not unlike nails scraping against a blackboard, making Lu Sha uncomfortable.
Fortunately, it took only a short while for White Wasp’s black fire to reduce a swath of corpses and flesh to ash.
“Hurry!” Cao Meng ordered, and the trio slipped through the opening into the heart of the village.
Once inside, Lu Sha noticed that the corpses and flesh outside quickly regrew.
...
“These mutated things are all the evil spirit’s doing. Unless the spirit is destroyed, this place will never return to normal.”
“By the way, if you encounter a situation like this, never try to fly over. It could be even more dangerous.”
As he spoke, Cao Meng produced a rat from his pocket and tossed it over the village’s border.
The moment the rat crossed the boundary, it exploded into a lump of rotten flesh, which was then dragged down by an unseen force and absorbed into the writhing meat below.
“See?” Cao Meng looked at Lu Sha.
“Yes,” Lu Sha replied.
It was clear that Cao Meng was doing everything he could to train his junior, letting him understand evil spirits and forbidden zones as much as possible.
But with the help of the Hundred-Eyed Ghost, Lu Sha could see even more.
A layer of invisible power hung over the village like an upturned bowl.
Only the three of them, being Demon Warriors, had some resistance to the power of evil spirits.
Ordinary people who entered would be immediately corrupted.
...
After passing through the outer barrier, the three entered the village.
The layout was chaotic, with similar houses and narrow paths—easy to get lost if one was unfamiliar.
Some walls were already overrun with large patches of writhing flesh.
The corruption was spreading from the outside in.
This village might not last much longer.
They circled once but found no open doors; every house was tightly shut, deathly silent. Whether anyone was still alive was unknown.
Just then, Lu Sha’s stomach growled.
He had spent the whole day training and had been dragged here before he could even eat dinner. He was genuinely hungry.
“Big brother, would you like some bread?”
As Lu Sha rubbed his stomach, a timid voice called out from a corner of one house.
The three looked over and saw a small hole in the wall, through which a little girl of about seven or eight, with braided pigtails, poked out half a piece of bread.
She was chewing, her rosy cheeks filled with reluctance, but her outstretched hand did not withdraw.
“I’m not hungry, you eat it,” Lu Sha said, squatting down with a smile. “But could you open the door and let us in?”
“Niuniu, come back!” A panicked woman’s voice called out before the girl could answer.
A pair of rough hands snatched the child away.
Seeing this, Lu Sha hurried to the door and knocked, lowering his voice to call inside, “Ma’am, we’re lost and wandered into the village by accident. Could you tell us what’s going on?”
“Once we understand, we’ll leave right away. Please, help us!”
He knocked once, but there was no reply.
The three exchanged glances—then decided to force their way in.
No matter what, they had to find out what was happening in this village.
These two—a mother and her daughter—were the only living people they had found so far.
...
They did not expect that just as Cao Meng was about to act, the wooden door creaked open by itself.
A young village woman stood there, though her face was lined with exhaustion and fear, making her look older than she was.
Hiding behind her was the same little girl who had offered Lu Sha bread.
“Come in, quickly, before the village chief sees you!” the woman urged, panic-stricken.
If she hadn’t glimpsed Cao Meng’s towering figure through the crack in the door, she would never have opened it.
At her urging, the three hurried inside and closed the door behind them.
“Miss, what happened to your village? How did things become like this?”
Cao Meng and White Wasp—one as strong as a bear, the other masked and cold as ice—were not the negotiating type.
So the task fell to Lu Sha, whose handsome features and sunny disposition made him appear trustworthy.
Hearing the question, the woman covered her face in pain.
“I don’t know, I really don’t know. Everything was fine… and then it all turned into this, I don’t know why…” she sobbed.
“Mother!” Seeing her mother cry, the little girl’s eyes reddened, and the two clung to each other, weeping.
Lu Sha quickly tried to comfort them.
“Please, calm down. The three of us have some skill—maybe we can help you.”
“If you know anything, tell us now. It might save your lives!”
As he spoke, Lu Sha shot a glance at White Wasp.
White Wasp, though speechless, extended his palm, where a ball of black fire flickered.
The woman was stunned by this display of power, her grief momentarily forgotten.
After a moment, hope flickered in her eyes. She asked timidly, “Can you really save us?”
Lu Sha nodded solemnly.
“Yes, we can. As long as you tell us everything you know about the village.”
“All right, I’ll tell you.”
Under Lu Sha’s persuasion, the woman finally began to speak.
“The evening before last, the village chief suddenly summoned everyone to the ancestral hall. He made us worship the ancestors and said some strange things.”
“After that night, everything started going wrong.”
“Rotten flesh began growing from the ground, and at night there were strange noises.”
“We tried to escape, but… the people at the front were all dragged down and slaughtered by those monsters!”
“So many died. Even Niuniu’s father is gone…”
Tears threatened to fall again.
Lu Sha seized on the key point and pressed urgently, “And after that? Did the village chief do anything else?”
The woman wiped her tears and forced herself to continue: “The next day, all three of the chief’s sons died mysteriously. Their bodies were kept in the ancestral hall.”
“Some say the chief’s sons were already dead before all this happened.”
“They say the disaster happened because he tried to bring them back…”
Before she could finish, the ground beneath her feet began to writhe and turn to bloody flesh.
Before anyone could react, two rotten, ghostly hands burst from the floor and seized the woman’s legs.