Urban Oddities: Soul Contract

Chapter 29 The Shadow of the Deserted Village

Da Mao Er Mao dug a few wild sweet potatoes in the vegetable field, roasted them in the yard and distributed them to everyone.

After Xiao Miao took care of the compressed biscuits, she sat down and ate sweet potatoes with everyone.

"Xiao Miao, eat so much, be careful of getting fat!" Ermao said.

"Eat more to be healthy." Lucy stuffed back the sweet potato that Xiao Miao had put down.

"Who said you lost seven or eight catties this month? Brother, do you remember who it was?" Er Mao asked.

Da Mao asked Xiao Miao: "Do you remember who it is?"

Xiao Miao looked up at the sky.

Lucy laughed and scolded: "You guys are enough!"

Xiao Miao's complexion has improved a lot. Apart from snoring at night, the increased appetite is also a side effect, right?

After Ermao finished eating the sweet potatoes, he took out a small bag from his pocket. Seeing Lucy staring at him brightly, Ermao turned his back to her.

"Hey, why are you hiding! Is there something not to be seen?" Lucy leaned over, just in time to see Ermao fish out a handful of soil from the small bag, and put it under his nose to smell it.

Lucy was curious: "Is it fragrant?"

Ermao nodded: "It smells like jasmine."

Lucy gave him a blank look: "That's my perfume!"

Da Mao tucked his terry into the crook of his arm, knocked his chin on his shoulder, and said with a smile, "What now?"

Er Mao turned his head and kissed Da Mao on the face: "It's manly."

"..." Lucy raised her forehead, what's wrong with big hair and two hairs, but they have learned a lot from the general Mo Xie!

"Da Mao and Er Mao have fallen, but fortunately the team leader is an unshakable straight man!" Having said that, Xiao Miao covered her face and watched happily.

Lucy nodded: "The team leader is such a good man, isn't it easy to find a girlfriend?"

"Every man thinks he likes a woman until he meets a man he likes." Da Mao directly quoted a famous Weibo quote.

Xiao Miao: "..." She covered her face.

Lucy: "...You guys are enough..."

Ermao rubbed the dirt, looked towards the gate of the courtyard, and murmured, "I wonder if they have arrived in the cave?"

The picture on the DV was distorted from time to time. As it approached the cave, snowflakes began to appear on the DV, and finally flickered a few times, and the picture went completely black.

"Strange?" Yan Shi patted the DV.

"No need to shoot, DV is fine, but the magnetic field here is too strong, everything is out of order." The compass turned quickly, and Chu Moxie put it back in his pocket after only one glance.

It was foggy and the mountain road was slippery. After finally reaching the halfway up the mountain, Huo Minghai and Yan Shi were exhausted, sitting on the ground and drinking water.

"There is no fork in the road, go down the stairs, pass a stone room, and walk a few more sacrificial pits to the end." General Chu Gan and Chu Moxie, who were exploring the way, walked out of the cave. Huo Minghai was not surprised, he had come here once in his dream.

"There is only one stone room?" Yan Shi asked suddenly.

"Yes." Chu Moxie pushed his glasses, "There are murals on the walls of the stone room."

Huo Minghai raised his hand: "Are the sacrificial scenes painted on the mural?"

Zheng Chuanchuan smiled: "So you still remember?"

"I saw it in my dream." Huo Minghai replied honestly.

Zheng Chuanchuan's eyes on the little white mouse fell on Huo Minghai again: "Have you ever thought that it is not a dream?"

Huo Minghai hasn't recovered yet, Yan Shi picked up the topic: "It's not a dream, what is that?"

"That was his memory before his resurrection!"

It was like a dream repeating itself. Not too far into the cave, I turned the corner and walked down the spiral staircase, and there was indeed a stone chamber.

The scene of sacrificing trees is engraved on the wall. I don’t know when it was left, but it has been preserved to this day, and it is still vivid.

The big spider turned its head towards the mural, and seemed to be looking at it seriously.

"Look, this painting is a bit strange, isn't it?" Yan Shi called them over, pointing to the mural and telling them to look at it.

Zheng Chuanchuan looked along his fingers. He also participated in the quarterly incense offerings. He passed by this painting countless times. If there was anything wrong, he would have noticed it long ago.

"Has the position of the branches changed?" Yan Shi said.

Looking at several paintings, the branches of the big tree have shifted.

Zheng Chuanchuan uttered a groan, and gave a flattering compliment: "Good eyesight, but what does that mean?"

In ancient times, there were no tools for copying, so it was impossible to draw perfectly.

"It's really not right." Chu Moxie, who has been observing the murals, said, "The paintings related to sacrifices are very particular, and the deviation of each stroke will not be too big. Like this one, the branch should be here, but the next one, the same branch However, it was moved to the top, making such a big mistake, in ancient times, it was a crime that should be executed, and it should be replaced and repainted!"

Zheng Chuanchuan pondered for a while, and had to admit that what they said was indeed reasonable. The pattern changes too much, and things are not unusual at all. If it can change the branches, unless...

"Wind?" Du Jiajun also thought of it.

"It's not the wind." Yan Shi moved the flashlight, "The clothes and hair of the crowd didn't blow up, what changed was just the branches!"

Speaking of this, he stopped suddenly, and the light of the flashlight moved upwards slowly. At the top of the giant tree, several branches stretched upwards. If you didn't look carefully, you might think it was a crack in the stone.

Zheng Chuanchuan's expression was very strange. In previous years, candles were burning on the walls, and the light was limited. He had never noticed that the branches extended to such an exaggerated height.

"The painter did not make a mistake." Yan Shi paused and concluded, "The tree is alive!"

Normally, his conclusion is very ridiculous. As long as the plant is not withered, of course it is alive, but now, everyone understands what he means.

Trees are alive.

It is conscious and can move on its own!

"Then how big is this tree? Just the branches..." A drop of sweat slipped from Zheng Chuanchuan's forehead. The tree is not scary, but the scary thing is that this tree has self-consciousness. He never thought that they have been The worshiper turned out to be such a monster!

"Go, go in and have a look." Yan Shi pointed the flashlight deep into the stone chamber.

The unattended sacrificial pit was like a rubbish dump, with table candles and offerings in a mess, Yan Shi seemed preoccupied, and he didn't recover until he was pulled by General Chu.

"It's the end." Chu Gan pointed to the front.

Among the materials left by Bu Qiankun, there is a stick figured map, the lines are roads, and the rectangles are stone chambers. The front part of the picture is no different from the ones he walked through, but...

Yan Shi sat down next to the wall and began to study the drawings carefully. Where they were, they would meet a huge rectangle further ahead.

But why is there no way?

Chu Gan plunged his long sword into the rock wall and shook his head: "The wall is solid, there is indeed no way."

Is the picture wrong?

When Yan Shi was puzzled, Huo Minghai was also touching the rock wall at the end. He knocked for a long time but found nothing. He leaned against the wall and sat down on the big rock. Before he had a few sips of water, he suddenly turned backwards...

Hearing the exclamation, everyone turned their heads to look. However, in just a few seconds, there was only a big empty rock in the corner, and Huo Minghai disappeared!

"Ming Hai——!!!" Du Jiajun rushed straight to the big rock, the rock was leaning against the wall, everything was clear at a glance, he was a big living person, how could he disappear if he didn't see it?

"What did he just do?!" Yan Shi said, sitting on the rock, "He just sat here, right? And then?!"

"Looks like... drink water?" Zheng Chuanchuan has always been very concerned about his little white mouse, and when Huo Minghai sat over, he even took a peek.

"Drink water?!" Yan Shi unscrewed the lid of the pot, took a sip, and then... nothing more...

Yan Shi drank half a pot of water in one breath, and in full view of everyone, he was still stuck to the stone as firmly as Mount Tai.

"He must have done other things." Chu Moxie pondered.

"When you're sitting down, what else can you do?" General Chu was also pondering.

Chu Moxie said: "There are many things that can be done."

"E.g?"

Chu Moxie lightly bit her younger brother's earlobe: "What do you think?"

The strict kettle was held up to his lips, and the two of them choked and rolled their eyes. Leaning against the rock wall, he was about to tease a few words when he suddenly rolled back...

"what------!!!"

Yan Shi didn't expect that there was a mechanism behind him, the head of the kettle was drenched in the face, the passage was extremely narrow, Yan Shi bumped and bumped all the way, and scolded the person who repaired the passage for being too stingy, he didn't even make the stairs, and dug the passage to the same level Like the intestines, the small intestine becomes the large intestine, going around all the way, Yan Shi felt that he was going to faint.

When Huo Minghai came down, he fell heavily, and was dizzy for a while. After finally getting up, he was crushed to the ground again by the tightness that slipped out of the passage...

Huo Minghai was awakened by the sound of a horn, and raised his head in a daze, and saw Du Jiajun holding the steering wheel.

Hey, Du Jiajun!

The words came to his lips, but turned into a whimper.

"Ah, you're awake?" Du Jiajun's eyes flashed with surprise.

"I... thirsty..." Huo Minghai heard a tender child's voice coming from his throat.

The car stopped on the side of the road, and Du Jiajun handed him a thermos.

"Can I drink it myself?" Du Jiajun asked.

Depend on!The young master has hands and feet, why can't he drink by himself?Huo Minghai wanted to reach out, but...

Huh?

Why is my body limp and unable to exert myself? !

Du Jiajun unfastened his seat belt, hugged him into his arms, opened the thermos cup and brought it to his lips. Huo Minghai was really thirsty, and as soon as he touched the tea, he couldn't wait to sip it. He drank too fast and choked. Out of breath.

"Slow down." Du Jiajun stroked his back. At this moment, Huo Minghai felt that Du Jiajun really looked like a gentle and handsome big brother.

Thinking of this, Huo Minghai heard himself open his mouth: "Shu Shu..."

"Hey, call me brother."

"Big brother……"

"Well, good."

A big warm hand touched Huo Minghai's head.

"Mom... where's mom?" His stomach growled, Huo Minghai was hungry, and he looked around, trying to find his mother.

"She's waiting for you in the city." Du Jiajun put him back on the passenger seat.

After waking up, Huo Minghai was very naughty. He swung his legs and played. Tired of playing, he lay on the car door to watch the scenery. Du Jiajun dragged him back by his collar.

"Sit down obediently and don't move."

A piece of plum candy was stuffed into his hand, Huo Minghai peeled off the candy wrapper, and ate it with relish.

"Is it tasty?"

"Wow! Sweet and sour is so delicious!"

"Oh? You like sweet and sour things?"

Stomach: Gululu.

In the service area, Du Jiajun ordered a children's set meal for Huo Minghai. The side dishes were sweet and sour pork ribs and tomato eggs, and he also gave him an extra ham sausage.

Huo Minghai played with his chopsticks and hadn't eaten a bite for a long time.

"Hurry up, the food is getting cold." Du Jiajun urged.

"Where's Mom?"

Du Jiajun touched the tearful Huo Minghai: "Your mother went to the city to find a job. She is very busy. I can see her tomorrow morning."

"Really?"

The child's temper changed as soon as he said it, and Huo Minghai's clear eyes were shining brightly.

"Hmm." Du Jiajun looked at the little boy, and only thought of the innocent and kind deer in his mind.

"Let's pull the hook!" The little boy stretched out his little finger.

"Okay, let's pull the hook."

The little fingers were entangled, and Du Jiajun's voice rang in his ears.

"Ming Hai!! Ming Hai!!"

Huo Minghai wondered, isn't he just sitting here, does he need to shout loudly?

"Ming Hai!! Ming Hai!!"

With the shouting, the fast food restaurant gradually disappeared, and the eyes finally became blurred. In the hazy vision, the outline of Du Jiajun gradually became clear.

"Hmm..." Huo Minghai was half asleep, "Where's the ham?"

Du Jiajun couldn't laugh or cry: "I ate it."

Chu Gan touched his chin and looked at Chu Moxie thoughtfully.

Chu Moxie pushed the glasses: "Do you want to eat?"

"I still don't want it." Chu Gan blushed, and he knew that his brother had no intentions.

There was a smile on Chu Moxie's lips: "There is a barbecue restaurant in the city center, the most famous one is the honey sauce ham sausage, I wanted to take you there, but if I don't, forget it."

General Chu: "Hmph!"

Chu Moxie turned his younger brother's face back, and said with a smile, "Oh, are you angry? Blame me?"

Yan Shi: "Ahem."

The big spider couldn't stand it anymore, and turned away.

The electromagnetic interference in the cave was extremely strong, the phone couldn't be turned on, the DV tossed a few times, and Yan Shi finally put it in the bag resignedly.

After turning a few turns and going down a staircase, a stone door appeared in front of us.

Yan Shi pushed, but the door remained motionless.

From the blueprints, the largest stone chamber is the place where sacrifices are made to the sacred tree once every five years. When Yan Shi thinks that there is a huge tree waiting inside the door, Yan Shi feels chills down his spine.

"There may not be trees inside." Chu Moxie said, "If there is something that cannibalizes people, wouldn't even the priests be unable to get out of those who enter?"

"Well, it makes sense." Yan Shi nodded and asked Zheng Chuanchuan, "How?"

Zheng Chuanchuan spread his hands, he had never been to this place.

Everyone looked at the big spider in disbelief. The big spider, which was playing with a small stone, stopped and raised its head...

Ten minutes later, Yan Shi, who stood in the stone room, patted the big spider on the head and praised angrily: "Zhu Lang is really amazing!"

A hole was forcibly dug out of the thick stone door, and the industrious big spider got a piece of candy. It scratched the wrapping paper with its claws and gnawed happily.

"Hey, there's one more, it's cheaper for you." Du Jiajun stuffed plum candy into Huo Minghai's hand.

Yan Yan walked around the stone room. The stone room was very large, the walls were covered with totems, and there were decorative bows and arrows and scimitars in the corners.

What about the sacred tree?

There is no tree, at least there is a sculpture, otherwise what is the sacrifice?Is it to worship the wall full of totems?

The stone chamber was clean, not even a trace of blood could be seen.

Offering a living sacrifice to the sacred tree, without blood or bones, so where did the sacrifice go?

Yan Shi sat down and spread out the documents one by one on the ground. The last one on the drawing was this big stone room. The totem described in the document was exactly the same as the one on the wall, but there was no detailed description of the sacrifice. Even Zheng Chuanchuan I don't know how to use it as a sacrificial person.

When the put down paper hit something, the thing made a slight noise and rolled several times along the floor.

The flashlight moved over, illuminating a stick of black coal and a strange pool of ash.

Yan Shi picked up Heitan, gestured with his hands, and suddenly let out an exclamation.

"Here!! So that thing is here!!!"

"What?" Zheng Chuanchuan saw that Yan made a gesture at Heitan with his hand, and immediately realized it!

The black charcoal in a Y shape corresponds exactly to the groove of the box!

This carbon is placed in the box and enshrined by Bu Qiankun!

"This thing has been used." Du Jiajun's voice suddenly sounded, "It should be off-white, but after use, it turned black."

Zheng Chuanchuan instantly understood: "You saw it with your own eyes! Who gave it to..." Halfway through the sentence, he swallowed it back, and Zheng Chuanchuan suddenly realized that this sentence was simply a big nonsense.

Huo Minghai knelt in front of the ashes, holding a silver ring in his hand.

It was specially made to order, with the names of the couple engraved on the circle of the ring.

Huo Minghai endured the great pain, and silently pulled the ashes together.

"Let me do it."

Du Jiajun took out a thick courier bag and put the ashes into it bit by bit. As the ashes decreased, a buried courier slip was exposed.

Du Jiajun skillfully packed the ashes and put them in his backpack.

"Don't worry, I will take her out safely..."

Twenty years ago, Du Jiajun said to a woman who was about to die: "Don't worry, I will take him out safely."

In the column of the contents of the consignment, the recipient wrote three words: Huo Minghai.

Du Jiajun's handwriting.

Tears slid down his face, dripping onto the courier slip.

Du Jiajun hugged the trembling Huo Minghai into his arms.

"Ming Hai." Du Jiajun murmured in his ear, "Your mother, it's time to leave this year."

With strong obsession, Mother Huo actually accompanied her son for 20 years in the state of her soul.

From the moment Huo Minghai was resurrected, he possessed a peculiar ability to see ghosts.

At first, she was able to appear by her son's side for a long time, but as time passed, the energy of her soul became weaker and weaker. Huo Minghai could see ghosts. He was dull and kind-hearted and often couldn't tell ghosts from people. She knew that one day she would Disappeared, she was gone, at least, she had to find someone who could trust her sincerity to take care of him.

A few years ago, Huo Minghai even sent her to the station, but the last time we met, Huo's mother couldn't even go down the short distance down the stairs.

"She can't last long... This year is her last... chance to cross the bridge."

Hades has already told Po Meng that this soul will come and send her across the bridge immediately.

"Ming Hai, whether she is human or not, you just need to know...she loves you very much." Du Jiajun gently stroked Huo Minghai's face, and pressed a kiss on his forehead.

"Me too."

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