Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Ailao Mountain is a famous forbidden zone for humans in China.

Aside from a few small areas on the periphery that have been developed into tourist attractions, the vast majority of the region consists of dense primeval forests.

It is shrouded in thick fog year-round.

Every year, various expedition teams go missing within its depths.

According to the information I found, the northwestern foothills of Ailao Mountain-where Duoji Village is located-is a massive stretch of no-man’s-land.

To say I wasn’t nervous would be a lie.

But there are some things that simply must be done. At worst, I would just hire a few more local guides; surely we wouldn’t all get lost in there.

After getting off the high-speed train, I hired a car to take me toward Ailao Mountain.

“Driver, is there a village called Duoji near Ailao Mountain?”

“Never heard of it.” The driver shook his head.

Having received the expected answer, I didn’t lose heart, though my chest tightened with a hint of trepidation.

Perhaps because it was a long drive, the driver couldn’t keep his mouth shut and struck up a conversation.

“Young man, what are you going to the northwestern foothills for? That place is incredibly eerie.”

I gave a non-committal laugh and asked back, “Does it have a history, then?”

“About three or four years ago, I had a Laobiao who went in there to gather herbs. Five men went in, and he was the only one who came back.” The driver sighed.

I was startled. “Was there an accident?”

“No one knows what they encountered.”

The driver’s expression shifted slightly, and he couldn’t help but shudder. “My Laobiao was already insane by the time he came out. We couldn’t get a word out of him.”

“In less than three days, the flesh on his entire body melted away. He looked like a puddle of black sludge.”

At this point, he added with lingering fear:

“We buried him later, but not only did the burial mound split open in a bizarre way, the ‘remains’ inside the coffin vanished without a trace.”

“Someone passing by at the time said they saw a massive Black Moth crawling out of the grave!”

Without realizing it, I had broken out in a cold sweat.

I pressed further, “Was there anything else strange?”

“Anything else…” The driver thought for a moment. “If there was anything else, it’s that he spent every day bowing and praying to Goddess Nüwa, muttering about wanting to go back to the Holy Village or something.”

I keenly caught the keyword. “Holy Village? Where is that?”

After a long while, the driver didn’t respond.

So, I leaned forward and reached out to pat the driver’s shoulder. “Sir, your Laobiao…”

Before I could finish, I recoiled as if I’d been electrocuted.

The sensation beneath my hand was cold and slimy, as if something were wriggling under his skin!

*Crack.*

The driver slowly twisted his head around.

With a bang, a prickling fear exploded across my scalp!

On the man’s deathly pale face, his eyeballs bulged and burst like crushed grapes, and two hideous snake heads thrust their way out!

Then came the mouth, the ears, the nostrils…

I let out a scream, threw open the car door, and tumbled out.

*Thud! Thud!*

I finally got a clear look at my surroundings; I was in some kind of tunnel.

Chunks of concrete were constantly falling from the ceiling.

I looked up, and my pupils suddenly constricted.

“Is this… flesh?!”