Bright golden sunlight poured down.
The village of Baiqiu, surrounded by dark green mountains, stood out like a piece of dark chocolate in a green cake.
The village lay on a large expanse of grayish-white hills, perched at the top of the hilly terrain.
It was scattered with more than thirty tile-roofed houses.
At this moment, outside the western edge of the village, a pale-faced man walked slowly, glancing around nervously from time to time.
The man wore a gray T-shirt and yellow leisure pants, both dirty and wrinkled, clearly long overdue for washing.
His hair was matted and styled in a mohawk-like manner due to sweat and grease.
On his feet were gray, worn-out sneakers that barely revealed their original color, stepping awkwardly on the muddy ground as he walked.
Around Baiqiu village, there were no sounds of insects or birds, only the faint sound of the man’s footsteps on the soft earth.
“It’s been about fifteen minutes.” Yu Hong took out his old phone from his pocket.
This outdated device, which he had hesitated to replace before coming here, had unexpectedly become a vital tool.
He had lain in bed for several days; if it had been a smartphone, the battery would have died long ago.
But this old phone had a small screen, a long-lasting battery, and could remain on standby for over a week.
It was also tough, resistant to drops and water.
In this crucial moment, it provided him with considerable psychological comfort.
The phone screen clearly displayed the date and time: March 5, 2024, 15:32.
Sighing softly, Yu Hong realized that this was the time before he arrived in this place, which now felt meaningless.
Looking up at the bright sunlight, he bent down and made a mark in the earth with a few stones, stacking them into a small triangle.
This was a marker to prevent him from getting lost.
It had been fifteen minutes since Dr. Xu and the stuttering boy left, and he had been walking around the village for a while.
Unfortunately, he was disappointed to find that, apart from the three of them, there seemed to be no other living beings around.
“Maybe the others are hiding. After all, even during the day, there could be great dangers.” Yu Hong sighed internally, his hand always gripping the reinforced white stone.
His previous experiences had taught him that in this place, the white stone was his only guarantee of safety.
According to Dr. Xu before leaving, there would be no dark insects during the day, and at most, only a few strange apparitions might appear.
These apparitions were not much of a threat during daylight as long as he had the white stone, for it seemed that their power was greatly diminished when the sun was out.
Yu Hong was confident in this belief; otherwise, the stuttering boy and Dr. Xu would not be so daring as to keep going out.
Focusing his thoughts, he turned back to check the markers he had made, confirming they were still there, and continued forward.
Silence.
An eerie stillness surrounded him, broken only by the sound of his feet crushing the grass.
Even the wind was barely perceptible.
After more than ten minutes, Yu Hong finally completed a full circle around the village.
He stood at the original gravel path, wiping the sweat from his forehead, while recalling some important locations he had discovered.
The most critical of these was the well.
Earlier, he had seen a well dug in the yard of a distant house.
The edge of the stone well was marked with many footprints, indicating it was a rare source of drinking water for the few living here.
However, from afar, about ten meters away, he felt an icy chill radiating from the well.
Even the sunlight could not dispel it.
Sensing something was off, he did not approach, only remembering its location.
“How strange. A small village on a hill has a well at such a height.” Yu Hong wondered.
Normally, wells were dug in lower places, as water flows downward.
But this place was different.
Standing on the gravel path, he looked around again.
The area surrounding the village was a vast expanse of dark green forests, resembling a sea of trees.
There were no birds or visible creatures, and even the dark green trees and grass gave an unsettling feeling.
Yu Hong's expression was numb as he stared at the only old road leading out of the village for a long while before turning back.
Nothing happened on the way back to the stuttering boy's home.
It wasn't until he closed the wooden door that he let out a sigh of relief.
“This place is too eerie.” The thought of living here without knowing how long it would be filled him with despair.
“Earlier, I noticed there were no cars, but there were wheel tracks on the ground, indicating vehicles had been here before but were later taken away.”
Yu Hong took a piece of charcoal from the corner of the room and began to sketch a map of Baiqiu village on the wall.
It was a simple map consisting of basic lines and small squares to represent houses.
The well, the old road leading out, and the stuttering boy’s home were all marked.
The three locations formed a perfect triangle.
‘What should I do now?’ Yu Hong looked at the map, forcing down the looming despair, pondering his path forward. ‘I can’t rely on the stuttering boy forever; I have to learn to face these dangers on my own while also figuring out how to find food and shelter.’
Sitting cross-legged on the floor, he drew and wrote on the wall with the charcoal piece.
He then lifted his hand to inspect the dark mark on the back.
‘And this mark.
If I don’t want to be discovered, I must choose to live alone.
Otherwise, in such a dangerous environment, letting others know about my abilities would be incredibly dangerous!’
While it was still unclear if others might have similar abilities, Yu Hong was certain that the stuttering boy and Dr. Xu did not, which he had noticed in subtle ways.
“First, I need to learn how to find food and water, then move out!” Yu Hong quickly came to a decision.
With determination, he rose and returned to the bedside, planning to rest a bit longer while waiting for the stuttering boy to return.
Knock, knock, knock.
Suddenly, there was a rhythmic knock at the door.
Yu Hong swallowed, looking toward the wooden door.
He remained silent.
This kind of knocking felt off.
Yet he chose to ignore it, gripping the reinforced white stone tightly, taking a deep breath, and lying down quietly to rest.
Knock, knock, knock.
The knocking continued, one knock after another.
But Yu Hong remained silent, pretending he didn't hear.
He lay on his side, eyes fixed on the door, hand grasping the white stone, muscles tensed and ready to react at any moment.
Fortunately, the knocking ceased after seven rounds, replaced by the sensation that someone was peeking through the window.
In the gap of the sealed window, a figure appeared, attempting to look inside.
A chill ran down Yu Hong's spine, and he turned to glare toward the window, breathing heavily.
A wave of intense danger surged through him, adrenaline flooding his body, making his heart race and face flush with color.
He didn't know how long it took.
The shadow outside seemed to lose patience and quietly left.
Light returned to the window, restoring normalcy.
Yu Hong held tightly to the white stone, feeling the sweat pooling in his palms.
Lowering his head, he took a deep breath to steady himself.
He stood up again and picked up a piece of white stone, this time one that hadn’t been used.
He looked at the number displayed on the stone: 2 days.
‘It only takes two days to strengthen an unused one?’ He let out a breath of relief.
As he listened to the sounds nearby, he silently confirmed that he would begin the strengthening process.
In an instant, the digits on the surface of the white stone vanished, enveloped in a layer of slick oil, beginning the process of strengthening the dark mark.
Yu Hong didn’t even look at it, stowing it away in his other pocket.
He then lay down, narrowed his eyes, and set an alarm on his phone before drifting into a light sleep.
This time, he didn’t sleep long or soundly and awoke soon after.
‘The stuttering boy isn’t coming back tonight.
This means I’ll be alone in this house tonight.’ Yu Hong looked at the faint sunlight filtering through the window’s crack, feeling a bit heavy-hearted.
He got up and filtered some water to drink, feeling his stomach grumble once more.
Although he had consumed all of the stuttering boy's food yesterday, enough time had passed that his stomach was empty again.
Stepping outside, he took advantage of the sunlight and started wandering around the gravel road again.
This time, he walked down the old road for a bit, trying to find edible plants or insects.
However, he found nothing; not a single insect was in sight, and he didn’t recognize any of the plants.
None of the plants here resembled anything he had seen before.
Even the most common wild flowers like daisies and dandelions were nowhere to be found.
Fortunately, shortly after, the stuttering boy and Dr. Xu returned.
With a huff, the stuttering boy placed a large bundle on the ground, clearly straining under its weight.
Then he untied the bundle.
Inside, there were packages of dried meat, dried mushrooms, and dried insects.
Yu Hong leaned in to help, discovering that the dried meat was largely dark bits: he couldn’t tell which animal they came from.
The dried mushrooms were also broken and indistinguishable in variety.
And then there were the dried insects.
“Is that a... cockroach??” Yu Hong’s face shifted slightly in surprise.
“It’s delicious.” The stuttering boy shook his head, correcting him.
Then, he casually plucked up a thumb-sized piece of dried cockroach and popped it into his mouth.
“Delicious!” He gave a thumbs up, chewing rapidly and making crunchy sounds as his eyes widened with delight.
Yu Hong was left speechless.
(End of Chapter)