All eight members of the Eight-Person Investigation Team exhibited the same symptom.
Their souls were lost.
More precisely, it’s called Soul Separation Syndrome.
Humans have Three Souls and Seven Spirits; if frightened, the souls can leave the body, causing the person to fall into a coma.
However, these eight people only retained one soul and one spirit inside their bodies.
The other two souls and six spirits were missing.
It seemed that this Wujincun really held some mysteries.
Lin Wushui said, “Tomorrow, we’ll enter the village to take a look. Arrange a driver and a guide.”
Dizhonghai hesitated, “Finding a guide might be difficult. Ever since this incident happened, although it hasn’t escalated, word has spread locally. No one dares to enter.”
“Then prepare a map,” Lin Wushui said without pressing the matter.
Having a guide along might interfere with his plan.
Dizhonghai hadn’t expected him to be so accommodating and agreed immediately.
He then drove the two of them to the hotel to rest.
The hotel was booked in advance—two rooms with large beds.
Lin Wushui glanced coolly at Dizhonghai, lips pressed into a straight line.
He was somewhat displeased; if he had known earlier, he would have booked the hotel himself.
Dizhonghai felt a chill from that gaze.
He had initially underestimated Lin Wushui, thinking he was just a young man going through the motions, lacking real ability.
But the imposing aura of this cold-faced young man made Dizhonghai feel like a wild beast was watching him.
His tone became more polite as he handed over four hotel buffet vouchers.
“The hotel offers a buffet. If you two don’t like the hotel’s buffet, you can keep the receipts when eating outside, and we can reimburse you. We’ll arrange a driver to pick you up from the hotel tomorrow morning. What time are you planning to leave?”
“How far is Wujincun from here?”
Lin Wushui asked.
“An hour by car, and then about another hour on foot to enter the village.”
Lin Wushui thought for a moment before turning to Zhang Xianyu.
“The round trip takes too long. We might not solve the problem in one day. How about we bring tents and stay overnight in the village?”
Zhang Xianyu agreed.
He also thought that spending four hours just traveling would be a waste, and some things might only become apparent at night.
Lin Wushui then told Dizhonghai, “We’ll stay overnight in Wujincun. Prepare camping gear, five days’ worth of food and water, and wireless radio communication equipment.”
“Isn’t that too risky?”
Dizhonghai was surprised by their boldness.
After eight people got into trouble inside, they still dared to stay overnight in Wujincun.
“It’s fine. We can handle it. Just make sure the supplies are ready,” Zhang Xianyu said.
Seeing their insistence, Dizhonghai could only leave with a worried expression.
He promised to pick them up at eight the next morning.
After Dizhonghai left, Zhang Xianyu and Lin Wushui went down to the first floor for the buffet, then returned to their rooms to rest.
Lin Wushui watched Zhang Xianyu enter the room next door and pondered for a long time but couldn’t find a reason to share a room.
In the end, he frowned and returned to his own room.
After all, it was only for one night.
Early the next morning, Dizhonghai arrived to pick them up.
The driver was in an off-road vehicle, with tents and sleeping bags in the trunk, plus two backpacks filled with water and food.
Lin Wushui checked everything carefully.
Once satisfied, the group set off.
There was no traffic in the morning, and they arrived at Bingsi Island after exactly an hour.
Bingsi Village shares its name with the island.
It was actually a coastal peninsula with jagged rocks and preserved natural ecology.
The only road into the village was a narrow mountain path.
Because their plan was to stay in the village for at least three days, they brought quite a bit of equipment.
They clipped wireless walkie-talkies to their waists, each carried a bulky backpack, and hoisted tents and other gear, preparing to land on the island.
Lin Wushui said, “If anything happens, I’ll contact you.”
Dizhonghai nodded repeatedly and watched as they walked onto the island.
He pressed his hands together in a gesture of prayer, hoping the situation could be resolved without further incident.
The heavy loads did not slow their pace.
They actually arrived ten minutes earlier than expected.
Wujincun was indeed remote and desolate, but it had one advantage: being far from the city meant fresh air.
Standing at the village entrance, they saw old houses covered in vines.
These silent buildings stood by the sea, resembling delicate Chinese brush paintings—so beautiful that it almost felt wrong to disturb them.
Beyond them stretched the deep blue coastline, with the salty sea breeze carrying a refreshing scent.
“Let’s go in,” Lin Wushui said.
They walked slowly along the stone path.
The gravel underfoot crunched softly, the sound amplified in the quiet, empty village.
They took a round through the village.
It was clear many houses hadn’t been lived in for years.
Walls were covered with plants, interiors pitch-black and hidden from sight, thick moss clinging to them.
After a long search with their heavy loads, they finally found a relatively clean house.
The house was on higher ground and faced the sun.
Only half the back was covered in vines.
The sunlit side was still bright enough to set up a tent and rest temporarily.
The ground floor’s main door had rotted away, but the second-floor room doors were still intact.
Zhang Xianyu opened all the windows to air the room before they set up the tent together.
Although the house seemed structurally sound, it was unknown what kinds of snakes, insects, or pests might be hiding after so many years of vacancy.
Sleeping inside a tent felt cleaner.
“Let’s just set up one tent,” Lin Wushui said suddenly as they finished pitching the first one.
“Two tents would be too cramped.”
One tent could just fit two sleeping bags side by side.
Zhang Xianyu looked around the small second-floor room and didn’t object, placing the two sleeping bags next to each other.
After setting up the tent, they used the portable gas stove to make a simple breakfast.
Zhang Xianyu then used Fulu to seal the room’s entrances and exits before he and Lin Wushui went out to investigate the village.
As they left, the vines behind the house rustled slightly, but soon fell silent again.
Lin Wushui’s gaze swept over the lush green vines as they departed.
Using the map, they spent the entire morning surveying the village.
There were over a hundred houses in various states—some new, some old.
This suggested the villagers had gradually moved away.
They then visited the spots where the eight comatose people had been found.
The eight were not unconscious in the same place but scattered in different locations, some with bruises and scratches, as if chased and separated by something.
The armed police who had previously searched the village had found no living beings besides those eight.
After a full day of searching, they found nothing unusual.
Zhang Xianyu was puzzled.
“Nothing abnormal.”
Despite the eerie atmosphere, the village was actually quite clean.
Lin Wushui smirked slightly but was in no hurry.
“Let’s wait until night. For now, let’s go back and eat. There’s plenty of dehydrated food; we can make a hot pot.”
So, they returned to their lodging to prepare dinner.
“Don’t you feel something’s off?”
Zhang Xianyu narrowed his eyes, a flicker of light shining in his pale eyes.
He walked to the living room window and peered out at the green vines.
The vines swayed gently in the breeze.
There was nothing abnormal.
Zhang Xianyu checked the Fulu he had left behind; there were no signs they had been disturbed.
He thought maybe he was just being overly cautious.
Lin Wushui had already started a fire to boil water.
Remembering the hot pot plan, Zhang Xianyu took out three packs of instant noodles, threw the seasoning packets into the boiling water, then added dehydrated vegetables and meat.
The water bubbled vigorously, releasing a rich aroma.
Once the ingredients were cooked, he added the noodle blocks to boil, ready to slurp noodles while enjoying the hot pot.
Focused on cooking, Zhang Xianyu didn’t notice a small, furry head silently appearing behind the window, its golden eyes gazing longingly at the steaming pot.
Two pointed ears twitched.
Lin Wushui glanced sideways.
A faint wisp of Black Mist drifted toward the window, and the furry head immediately retreated cautiously, disappearing without a trace.
After dinner, night had already fallen.
Lin Wushui went to the village well to fetch water.
They washed up slightly, then entered the tent.
The tent’s curtains were drawn.
Outside was pitch black.
Zhang Xianyu instinctively glanced at Lin Wushui beside him and smiled slightly.
Both stayed still, sharing a tacit understanding.
After dark, the wind seemed to pick up.
The sound of waves crashing against rocks came faintly.
Zhang Xianyu waited silently, watching the time on his phone tick slowly.
At exactly midnight, the wind’s sound changed.
It remained strong, howling against the old buildings, but if listened to carefully, other faint sounds mixed with the wind.
Outside the house came the noise of something crawling.
Zhang Xianyu pulled out a Mingmu Talisman and a Concealment Talisman, whispering softly, “Shall we go check?”
Lin Wushui lightly replied, “Hmm,” but instead of turning into Black Mist as before, he suppressed his aura and followed Zhang Xianyu out of the tent.
Outside, rain had begun to fall.
The storm masked their footsteps and the crawling sounds.
They each hid behind the window, peering out sideways.
This window faced the sea, with an unobstructed view of everything below—
In the dark blue sea, countless Corpses writhed and crawled toward the shore with twisted movements.
Their bodies were swollen and white from soaking in water, some missing limbs.
Yet they all stared with wide, empty black eyes, using hands and feet to climb onto land, heading for the village.
The shore was about eight or nine hundred meters from the village.
Within moments, the Corpses had already crawled into the village, walking on all fours with bloated bellies dragging on the ground, heads raised high, searching like wild beasts.
Even Zhang Xianyu, who had seen many terrifying scenes, felt a chill at the sight of so many bloated Corpses crawling en masse into the village.
He gestured to Lin Wushui and took out a set of Fulu, preparing to seal the entire second floor so the creatures couldn’t find them.
Just as he was placing the talisman on the living room window, a black shadow dashed in with bristling fur, letting out a sharp, mournful meow.