Chapter 214

Chapter 214

Cheng Miao hadn’t expected Scabby to react so strongly. He shot backward and struck his head hard against the wall.

But he seemed unable to feel pain. Scrambling on hands and feet into the corner, he waved his hands in front of him to keep Qin Musong, still holding the bracelet, from coming closer.

Qin Musong tucked it into his clothing. After a while, Scabby calmed down again, though he still looked vacant and bewildered.

Cheng Miao crouched beside him. “What monster?”

Scabby didn’t even look at her. He kept hugging himself and rocking back and forth. After questioning him for ages without learning anything, Cheng Miao and Qin Musong came outside.

“He really does seem to be insane. When I was in the army, an old police officer taught me a few ways to tell.” Qin Musong spoke to Cheng Miao in a low voice.

She nodded gently. She believed it was genuine too.

For one thing, a normal person would be wary of two strangers entering their home without explanation.

Scabby wasn’t.

His movements and expressions hadn’t changed at all from when he was alone.

As Qin Musong told the others what had happened inside, Cheng Miao stood to the side, thinking.

There was definitely something wrong with the Tree Deity. Scabby, who had long since lost his mind, had still reacted so strongly when the grass bracelet appeared.

And he had said “monster.”

A monster…

Taking many people’s lives certainly fit the image of one.

Yet the Tree Deity really was a source of hope for the seriously ill.

Never mind this village. Even in their real world, there were incurable diseases and organs that couldn’t be cloned and replaced.

For people barely clinging to life, dying without pain could truly be their greatest wish.

From that perspective, it didn’t seem fair to condemn the deity either.

Cheng Miao found this instance very strange. There seemed to be plenty of information and plenty of directions to pursue, but every path led to a dead end.

On the way back, she noticed Freckles looking listless.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t sleep well?” Cheng Miao patted the girl. Her companion Yang Ke looked much more energetic.

“Yeah. I dreamed all night, so I haven’t had much energy this morning.” Freckles rubbed her eyes.

It was an entirely ordinary occurrence, yet alarm bells inexplicably began ringing in Cheng Miao’s mind.

She looked at Qin Musong and Lin Zhu walking behind them, her voice a little taut. “Did you two dream last night too?”

Lin Zhu nodded. Qin Musong patted Cheng Miao. “Isn’t that a bit of a stretch? Everyone dreams. Under enough stress, you can’t help it.”

Cheng Miao thought it was a little tenuous too. Besides, many people didn’t even remember having dreamed.

But in an instance this strange, with nothing clear, she had to be cautious.

To be safe, she returned to the courtyard.

Song Guoqiang’s group of three and Shi Biao were there, as were Tan Ge and Tan Wu.

Zu Gehan was there too. He might not even have risen from the straw.

Cheng Miao and her companions split up to question those who had received grass bracelets. Song Guoqiang and Zhao Jiangong recalled dreaming, but also mentioned that they often dreamed ordinarily.

Tan Wu, who was in poor health, couldn’t remember whether she’d dreamed that night.

She certainly hadn’t slept well, though. Her head had hurt all day, so she hadn’t gone anywhere.

Zu Gehan, on the other hand, said with certainty that he had dreamed.
“I don’t normally dream, so I remember last night very clearly.” Zu Gehan smiled at Cheng Miao and added, “I dreamed the night before too, but the impression was very faint.”

Cheng Miao carried a little folding stool over to the well and sat by herself. They had no clues now. Lin Zhu had left Mini Lin at the ancient tree again. All they could do was wait.

Not a single player had died in this instance so far, and they couldn’t find any rules.

The others returned around dusk. When asked, Chang Qing couldn’t remember. He was so jumpy now that Cheng Miao didn’t question him further, afraid of upsetting him.

After asking Fang Jing, Zhu Cong came over to tell Cheng Miao, “I don’t really remember, but Fang Jing definitely dreamed.”

Seeing Cheng Miao look thoughtful, Zhu Cong seemed entirely unbothered by having had his item confiscated. He asked as though they were old friends, “Have you found a clue?”

Cheng Miao looked toward Fang Jing in the distance. She still seemed strange and unsettled. “Has she become more jittery?”

Zhu Cong choked a little. The woman was still his teammate, after all, yet Cheng Miao asked him that so bluntly.

Still, he was an experienced player. He looked back at Fang Jing, who kept watching them, and considered it. “A little, I think. More suspicious and irritable than usual.”

Cheng Miao pursed her lips. “She wasn’t exactly normal to begin with. We can’t use her as a reference.”

Zhu Cong didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. After learning the possible clue that everyone with a grass bracelet had dreamed that night, he went back.

At bedtime, Cheng Miao and Qiudong lay on their sides, facing each other. She looked into his slightly pale eyes. “Am I really overthinking it?”

Qiudong patted her head. “We’ll know tomorrow.”

Lin Zhu seemed to have a dream. In it, he was in a spacious, quiet, secluded cave. The sound of trickling water reached his ears, and he walked farther inside without realizing it.

Inside stood an ethereally beautiful woman dressed in green. A rich, fresh fragrance surrounded her.

“Are you… the Tree Deity?” Lin Zhu felt as though his soul had left his body. He spoke, yet felt as if he were floating in the air.

“Yes. You who have received my protective grass bracelet, do you have a wish?” The woman spoke slowly and softly, her voice as clear as a mountain spring.

“I…” For some reason, Lin Zhu felt an innate trust in this woman.

“Don’t worry. No harm will come to anyone protected by my blessings, even… if you’re not from this world.” The Tree Deity winked playfully at him.

“How do you know?” Lin Zhu looked at her in surprise.

The woman smiled charmingly. “I am an all-knowing, all-powerful deity. Knowing that is hardly difficult.”

The Tree Deity walked toward him, her body surrounded by a layer of white light that made her look sacred and warm.

“Tell me, my follower. What is your wish?” Her words were like a gentle spring breeze, sweeping away the weariness of the past few days.

“I hope everyone on our team can clear the game and have their wishes fulfilled.” The words seemed to leave Lin Zhu’s mouth on their own. By the time he realized it, he had already finished speaking.

“Of course, my follower.” Smiling, the Tree Deity placed her hand on Lin Zhu’s head. He felt an immense warmth spread straight through every part of his body and gradually sank into sleep.

“Your wish will be fulfilled, my follower.”