The chomping sounds lasted for a long time. It was as if something was chewing very carefully, grinding everything down the very bones. The disturbing grating sounds of bones being crushed perturbed everyone, but everyone quietly endured until it all was over.
Eventually, the first rays of the morning peeked over the horizons, and the chewing sounds soon vanished. At the same time, the woman at the fence who had silently been staring at the group also disappeared.
Lin Qiushi didn"t know if it was merely a figment of his imagination, but he always felt as though the woman let out a slight burp before she disappeared…almost as if she was full from eating something.
The skies finally became bright. Lin Qiushi, who had been sitting in the courtyard for the entire night, seemed to be in a daze. He asked, "Is it over?"
Ruan Baijie didn"t give a clear answer; she only uttered, "Perhaps."
They chopped down trees, prayed in the temple and filled the well; all that was left to be done was to go to the carpenter"s place to retrieve the coffin.
Everyone"s faces were drawn and wan, but a hint of excitement and hope shone from beneath their exhaustion. This was the final step. As long as they obtained the key and found the iron gate, they could leave this dreadful world.
With their minds preoccupied with such thoughts, everyone"s pace became much lighter and faster.
In the daytime, this village wasn"t as eerie or horrifying as it was during the night. Rather, it was like a normal, small mountain village where simple and honest villagers lived, one where no ghosts appeared and no deaths occurred.
On the way to the carpenter"s place, they pa.s.sed by the area where w.a.n.g Xiaoyi died, but Lin Qiushi didn"t see anything there. Only pure white snow covered the ground, there wasn"t a single trace indicating something happened last night.
"Was her body eaten?" Lin Qiushi wondered.
"Probably." Ruan Baijie answered. "That thing seemed to have a big appet.i.te."
When they reached the carpenter"s house, they spotted the carpenter sitting near the door, leisurely smoking on his pipe. Lin Qiushi was the first to step forward. He then greeted the other and said, "Elder, we"ve come to pick up the coffin."
The carpenter didn"t speak. He merely pointed inside the house.
Everyone entered the house and saw a beautiful crimson coffin standing in the small room. The coffin was indescribably magnificent; it was exquisitely built, every detail was handled with care and precision, created to perfection. It certainly wasn"t a half-a.s.sed product that was made at the last minute.
Lin Qiushi kept getting the feeling that the paint on the coffin was a bit strange. He reached out and lightly stroked the coffin"s surface, only to discover that the paint didn"t just have a rather metallic odour to it, it also felt slimy.
Ruan Baijie reacted even quicker than he did and blurted out, "It"s blood."
"Seems like it." Xiong Qi remarked. "Where would you even find paint that"s like this?"
"Forget about it. What it"s painted with doesn"t matter right now, let"s take it back first." Ruan Baijie said. "Come on."
Lin Qiushi had originally thought this coffin would be extremely heavy, but who would"ve imagined that when he lifted it up, it was, unexpectedly, as light as a feather; two people could easily carry it.
Cheng Wen"s current state wasn"t looking too good, leaving just Lin Qiushi and Xiong Qi as the only members of this entire team competent enough to undertake this laborious task. One after another, the two of them lifted the coffin then headed towards their residence.
"What should we do next?" Lin Qiushi asked as he carried the coffin.
"We"ll first go back and check if there"s anything inside the coffin." Ruan Baijie stated. "I"m guessing the key"s in the coffin. As soon as we take the key out, all will be well, and we"ll be able to handle everything else from there."
Lin Qiushi silently hoped so in his heart.
When they arrived home, Cheng Wen woke up from his daze. He sat down in the hall, staring ahead lifelessly. He saw the others carrying the coffin in, but he didn"t even greet them. His expression resembled those who had mental r.e.t.a.r.dation; it was as if he lost all of his intelligence.
Lin Qiushi was a tad worried upon seeing him like this. In a low voice, he fretfully asked, "I didn"t make him stupid, right?"
Ruan Baijie: "Well…"
Lin Qiushi: "f.u.c.k my life, I only hit him a bit."
Ruan Baijie comforted him. "If he"s stupid, then he"s stupid. Both ways, no one will blame you. Besides, at least as a fool, he isn"t afraid of ghosts anymore. As a matter of fact, didn"t you technically help him since this just benefitted him the most? If you think about it, you"re actually his greatest benefactor!"
Lin Qiushi: "…” Ruan Baijie, just where in the world did you learn to be like this, ah?
Because of Cheng Wen"s behavior yesterday, no one wanted to deal with him. Xiong Qi and Xiao Ke simply gave him the cold shoulder, pretending they didn"t notice him.
"Open the coffin," announced Xiong Qi once he set the coffin down.
"Okay." Lin Qiushi nodded. With him holding onto one side and Xiong Qi holding onto the other side, the two forcefully pulled the lid off.
With a loud creak, the coffin finally opened. The scent of damp wood hit them directly in the face. Xiao Ke was the most anxious of them all. As soon as she saw the lid come off, she promptly dashed over and stuck her head in, wanting to see if there was anything inside the coffin.
"Found it!!! The key!!!" In that very instant, Xiao Ke"s ecstatic voice was heard. Her eyes glistened with tears of joy, she was beyond elated. "It"s really here! It"s really here!"
Lin Qiushi looked at the thing in Xiao Ke"s hand, only to find an old-fashioned bronze key. The key was simple, rather plain and with a hint of age. The handle of the key was stained with crimson liquid. If this was before, Lin Qiushi probably would"ve thought that was paint, but now, he felt as though that red smear couldn"t be anything other than a person"s blood.
"We finally have the key! We have the key!!" Xiao Ke hugged the key tight. Heavy tears streamed down her cheeks, and she looked as if she was on the verge of collapsing.
Although she appeared very calm on regular days, she too couldn"t endure the pressure of death in the end.
"The gate should"ve appeared. We can start searching for it now." Xiong Qi"s voice was heavy with weariness. He urged, "We have to hurry. We only have a few people left."
"Where do the gates normally appear?" Lin Qiushi was completely new to this matter.
"They"re usually somewhere in the vicinity, near where we live, so they"re not that difficult to find." Xiong Qi added, "But I"ve also never experienced a world with thirteen people, so…I"m not too sure either."
"I see." Lin Qiushi looked back at the key in Xiao Ke"s hands and thought to himself at least they found the key.
Ruan Baijie, on the other hand, didn"t show as much excitement. She said, "What about the key? Who"s going to keep the key safe? I won"t be at ease if it"s her."
Rage swept across Xiao Ke"s whole face at being challenged, and she angrily countered, "What are you trying to say? What do you mean by you won"t feel at ease? Don"t tell me you"ll only be at peace if it"s in your hands?"
Ruan Baijie directed a superficial smile at her. "This isn"t just about me. If you lose the key, we"ll all die inside this gate. Are you sure you want to keep it? You might want to consider it carefully."
Xiao Ke"s face turned from green to white. She looked like she wanted to retort, but at that moment, Xiong Qi pressed down on her shoulder with his palm. "Qiushi, you take care of the key."
Lin Qiushi was stunned. He had absolutely no idea this key would fall into his own hands and become his responsibility. He was just about to protest, but Ruan Baijie also approved. She leaned over and softly whispered into Lin Qiushi"s ear, "You should keep it."
Lin Qiushi frowned. "But this is my first time entering these gates. I don"t have any experience…"
"It doesn"t matter." Xiong Qi expressed. "We"ll all be at ease if you"re the one holding onto it."
"Okay." Lin Qiushi had no other choice but to accept it.
Lin Qiushi reached for the key, took it and studied it closely. If he had to speak frankly, this thing in his hand felt like an ordinary copper key to him, nothing overly special.
Xiong Qi suggested that since everyone was exhausted tonight, they should first get something to eat, then discuss the location of the gate. Lin Qiushi agreed.
Thereupon, Xiong Qi and Xiao Ke went to the kitchen to cook something up, while Lin Qiushi and Ruan Baijie sat in the living room, keeping a watch on Cheng Wen.
"Why did they give this key to me?" Lin Qiushi still couldn"t wrap his mind around this.
"Because these keys aren"t a good thing." Ruan Baijie explained, “Most of those who held onto a key died very fast." She chuckled, then lifted her hand and flicked Lin Qiushi"s forehead lightly. "Of course, you don"t have to worry about a single thing."
Lin Qiushi paused, "Huh?"
All of a sudden, Ruan Baijie lowered her head and gently nipped Lin Qiushi"s earlobe, before softly whispering, "I found the gate."
Lin Qiushi"s eyes turned wide in an instant. "What?"
Ruan Baijie: "Shh, lower your voice."
Lin Qiushi immediately shut his mouth. Trying to keep his voice low, he croaked, "What are you talking about? You mean you found the location of the gate?"
"Yup." Ruan Baijie beamed brightly. She seemed to be particularly interested in Lin Qiushi"s ears. Her fingertips slowly trailed along the shape of his ear, kneading gingerly, poking lightly, making Lin Qiushi feel somewhat itchy. "Do you want to know where it is?"
If this were any other day, Lin Qiushi surely would"ve placed all of his attention on both of Ruan Baijie"s hands, which just wouldn"t stop playing with his ear for some reason. However, whatever Ruan Baijie said right now was too astonishing that he didn"t even have the spare time to focus on anything else. "Since you know where the gate is, why not just say—eh??"
Lin Qiushi flinched at the abrupt pain that shot through his earlobe; he sharply sucked in a cool, startled breath. "What are you doing?" He reached out and touched his ear, only to find that Ruan Baijie had firmly pierced his ear with a stud earring.
"Nothing." Ruan Baijie"s face was a picture of pure innocence. "You know, you look quite fine with this earring on."
Dumbstruck, Lin Qiushi cautiously touched the earring with his hand. For a moment, he didn"t know whether he should ask about the gate first or if he should ask about the earring first, but Ruan Baijie didn"t even give him the chance to react, for she continued on with the previous subject matter, "The gate is very close to us. We can go back at night."
"What about Xiao Ke and Xiong Qi?" Lin Qiushi inquired.
"Them?" Ruan Baijie seemed to have a terrible impression of the two. "Take a look at my expression right now."
Lin Qiushi hesitated, "If it"s possible…let"s also go back with them." Although Xiao Ke was somewhat ill-tempered, Xiong Qi still treated them rather well. If not all, they had gone through so much together.
"You," started Ruan Baijie, "You"re just too soft." She smiled delightedly. "But I quite like you like this."
Lin Qiushi unexpectedly blushed pink at her words, and he pouted, "Don"t tease me."
Ruan Baijie grinned, but no longer spoke.
Having been interrupted by Ruan Baijie, Lin Qiushi immediately forgot to ask her about the earring. His whole mind was possessed by thoughts of the coming night. It wasn"t until Xiong Qi returned and asked how he got the piercing on his ear, did he suddenly realize he had been tricked by Ruan Baijie.
"Doesn"t it look good?" Ruan Baijie said. "Why are you so adamant about having nothing to do with me? Don"t tell me you have other women?"
Lin Qiushi: "…Stop causing trouble and being so unreasonable."
Once again, Ruan Baijie began emitting those G.o.d-awful wailing sounds of hers. "I can"t believe you actually said that I"m causing trouble and being unreasonable. You"re just too much, wah wah wah!"
Lin Qiushi, who"s never had a single girlfriend in his entire life, exposed a hopeless expression.
Author"s Comment:
Ruan Baijie: First, mark your own things, then get down to business later.
Utter bewilderment swept across Lin Qiushi"s face: Things? What things?
Ruan Baijie: Tasty things.
T/N:
So, something"s come up in real life so I"ll disappearing on you guys for a while sometime soon. I"m not sure for how long I"ll actually be gone, but that does not mean I"ve dropped any projects. I just wanted to give you all a heads up, just in case you don"t hear from me in over a month. I"ll try my best to get to Chapter 21 or so of KoD before I go AWOL on you guys, but no promises.