Xiao Hua and her companions were playing hide-and-seek in the courtyard outside their room.
Xiao Hua was 'it,' looking for her little friends.
She wandered around the courtyard.
Nián Suì thought for a moment, then walked towards Xiao Hua.
"Xiao Hua, what are you playing? Can I join? I want to play too," Nián Suì said, her voice full of longing, looking as if she really wanted to join them.
Ā Mào, watching from the side: "..."
She was only a few years older than Xiao Hua, so it didn't feel out of place for her to want to join.
Nián Suì, unaware of his thoughts, played excitedly with Xiao Hua and the others for a long time, successfully blending into the group of children.
Even Hé Yuányuàn was shocked.
She had seen how Nián Suì interacted with Jiésēn and the others, and she didn't expect her to be able to blend in so easily with children. She had to admit, she was quite the seasoned hand!
Hé Yuányuàn gave her a thumbs-up in her heart.
"Xiao Hua, can I take you to play tomorrow, Sis?"
Xiao Hua thought for a moment, then said with some difficulty, "Tomorrow? No, we have a sacrifice tomorrow. It's a ritual that everyone in the village has to attend!" As she spoke, her expression involuntarily turned to reverence.
"What can Xiao Hua help with? Why don't you play with me instead?" Nián Suì asked casually.
"Everyone in the village has to participate! If you don't participate, you'll get sick!"
"Get sick?"
"Before, some people in the village wanted to leave the village during the sacrifice, and they all died in the end!"
"They didn't participate in the sacrifice?"
"They all died! They all died in agony!"
Xiao Hua's subsequent words became increasingly disjointed, as if she had fallen into some kind of terror, her expression gradually becoming ferocious and frightening.
Seeing that Xiao Hua wasn't quite right, her little friends gradually drew closer.
"Xiao Hua, what's wrong?"
"Are you okay?"
...The innocent and childish voices of the children could be heard, a mix of concern for their companion.
Nián Suì also showed a worried expression, "Xiao Hua, are you hungry? Aunt Chen is calling us back for dinner."
Saying that, she pulled Xiao Hua towards Aunt Chen's direction.
Ā Mào and Hé Yuányuàn followed closely behind.
Xiao Hua was led to the dining table in a daze. Seeing the fragrant food Aunt Chen had prepared, she instantly forgot about what had just happened.
"You've come. Just in time, I just finished cooking and was about to call you."
"Aunt Chen's cooking smells so good, we came as soon as we smelled it!" Hé Yuányuàn said with a smile, which made Aunt Chen beam with joy.
"Yuányuàn, you're such a good child at cheering me up. Come, sit down. Xiao Hua, go get a bowl."
...The meal was a warm and harmonious affair.
After they had eaten their fill, Nián Suì casually asked, "Uncle Chen, I heard you have a sacrifice tomorrow?"
The middle-aged man, who was looking amiable, paused his hand holding the pipe. "Miss, where did you hear that?"
"I saw everyone busy lately, so I asked casually. What, can't I ask?" The young girl's fair face showed confusion, and her voice was soft and sweet, making people lower their guard.
"It's not that. We'll be holding a sacrifice in our village tomorrow, and you'll have to attend too."
Have to?
The three of them keenly sensed that this seemed to be not voluntary?
"Well, what if we leave tomorrow?" Hé Yuányuàn interjected from the side.
"It's best if you don't leave the village casually. It's not peaceful outside the village recently, it's very dangerous."
Ā Mào, who was standing by, asked at the opportune moment, "When can we leave?"
"After the sacrifice," Uncle Chen replied without hesitation, as if he had rehearsed it many times.
The few of them exchanged glances, then changed the subject.
In the room.
Nián Suì slumped lazily in the chair, looking at Hé Yuányuàn and Ā Mào with a look of utter desolation. The reason was that she had vomited up everything she had just eaten. She had exerted too much force and vomited a bit too violently. Nián Suì had not eaten since yesterday. However, it was worth noting that she felt hungry but not weak. It seemed that not eating had no effect other than hunger.
"What did you hear last night?" Hé Yuányuàn asked directly. Nián Suì had told her about encountering him last night.
"This place worships a deity, and on the Day of Revelation, offerings must be made, otherwise the deity will bring disaster. However, I didn't hear what the offering was. Oh, and I saw that Village Chief holding a scepter. That staff looked very strange. You should be careful."
Nián Suì didn't hold back, "And then? Is that all the information for which they chased you for miles?"
Ā Mào clearly felt that this young girl held a grudge against him for leaving her behind last night, and felt a bit guilty. "Well, they don't know that I only heard these things, right?"
"..." Without replying, Nián Suì rubbed her stomach, which ached from hunger, and walked outside.
"Where are you going?"
"To take a look."
Nián Suì decided to go out of the village to see what dangers there were and find a place to test her current Supernatural Ability.
As soon as she came out, she clearly felt eyes constantly watching her. Based on years of experience and intuition, she realized that the villagers were secretly monitoring her. On the other hand, the group of people who had been guarding her last night hadn't appeared.
Nián Suì recalled the route she had taken the previous night and quickly shook off the villagers' surveillance, heading specifically for places where no one was.
Just as she was about to step out of the village, she felt a strong suppression of Spiritual Power. Using the word 'suppression' might not be accurate; it was more like a collision. That Spiritual Power rushed directly at her, and her own Spiritual Power naturally began to resist and counterattack. Although it was not as strong in comparison, it had the advantage of being inexhaustible and continuous.
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Therefore, she could resist for a while longer and wouldn't suffer direct brain damage.
Nián Suì retreated into the village, enduring the pain that felt like her head was about to explode. At that moment, the powerful Spiritual Power disappeared. Everything seemed to have been her illusion.
In the following time, Nián Suì and the other two scoured the village inside and out, even spending time improving their favorability with the villagers, and finally pieced together a general picture. This was Yunzhong Village. The village appeared peaceful and harmonious on the surface, and something seemed to be preventing them from leaving. The villagers held a sacrifice on the Day of Revelation, and everyone in the village participated. A successful sacrifice would bring blessings, and those who were blessed would be free from illness and disaster. Those who did not participate in the sacrifice would not have a good end. In the past, some people left the village without being blessed and later died for some unknown reason. The Food here seemed to contain some unknown substance that interfered with their Spiritual Power. Normally, everyone had to eat, but strangely, it seemed that not eating had no effect on bodily functions here. All three of them tacitly chose not to eat. The villagers were constantly monitoring them, but these villagers were surprisingly easy to shake off. Moreover, these villagers were gradually becoming agitated and irritable, increasingly approaching the instincts of beasts. This was evident in the once honest and kind Uncle Chen becoming quick-tempered and easily provoked recently, even shouting at Xiao Hua and Aunt Chen as if he had lost himself. After organizing the information, Nián Suì walked towards the edge of the village. The day of the sacrifice was approaching, and she decided to explore outside the village again during the coming night.