Death Spiral [Infinite Flow] - Chapter 98

Chapter 98 – Without a Key 10

Xu RenDong knew that the thing in the dark would not hurt him immediately. But if he made a wrong move then he would die here.

After all, this time, Lian Qiao couldn’t come to save him.

Xu RenDong stabilized his mind and began to adjust the order of the tablets. With his  previous experience, this time he moved much faster. It’s just that the last time he came during the day but this time it was at night. The light in the ancestral hall was much dimmer.

The candle flames in the incense burner also seemed to be shaking extremely violently. Xu RenDong stared at the tablet for a long time and felt that his eyes were a bit blurry. He could try to perk himself up to the best of his ability and force himself to concentrate all his attention.

As time went on, the darkness in the ancestral hall became more and more intense. This actually felt very strange: the darkness was obviously an insubstantial thing but once Xu RenDong was within it, he could really feel the weight of the darkness on his body.

It was a feeling of depression that almost got inside his pores, making people extremely uncomfortable.

What’s more, he was still in the rain. At this time, his clothes and pants were all wet, cold and damp against his body. He suddenly had the illusion that he was in the lair of some kind of cold-blooded animal. His body’s instinct made him want to escape immediately but he couldn’t.

He must be calm, rational and arrange the eighty-one tablets according to their seniority. He had to place them in the correct positions, one by one.

While sorting out the relationship of seniority in his mind, Xu RenDong adjusted the order of the tablets swiftly. The faint scent of sandalwood penetrated into his nose. When he first entered the ancestral hall, he felt the smell was a little pungent. Now he was getting used to it.

He subconsciously reached out to the incense burner, trying to smother the sandalwood. His heart suddenly froze— he heard the snicker from above his head again.

This time the sound seemed to be different from the previous one. It was a dull old man’s voice previously but now it sounded much younger. This is by no means a good sign, because it means that there is more than one ‘thing’ hiding in the ceiling.

… It could even be eighty-one ‘things’ or even ninety-nine.

This scene suddenly appeared in Xu RenDong’s mind: Eighty-one ghosts were crowded on a small area of the ceiling. They were usually locked inside the ancestral hall, lonely as snow and now finally a stranger came in. Now all the creatures were lining up. One would so “Ho!” and the other would say “Ha!” Taking turns to scare him.

It’s kind of funny to think about it that way.

…Wait, at such a critical moment, why am I still thinking about humorous things?

He was really spoiled by Lian Qiao.

Xu RenDong couldn’t help raising the corners of his mouth and the tight string in his heart relaxed a little. Once he relaxed, he suddenly noticed that the sandalwood in the incense burner had only burned to a small amount.

He thought to himself: Should he add more incense?

In addition to fruit, tobacco and alcohol, there is also a small bundle of sandalwood on the incense table. He took out three sticks from it and bowed devoutly to the tablet three times.

Every time he bowed, he felt the invisible pressure on his shoulders lessen. When he inserted three sticks of sandalwood into the incense burner, the suffocating feeling in the ancestral hall disappeared.

Obviously the light did not change but Xu RenDong felt that his heart suddenly brightened. Even the air started to flow again. The strong wind wrapped in rain blew in from outside the door, which was cool, but unexpectedly gave Xu RenDong a sense of security.

It seems that placing incense here is the right move.

Xu RenDong breathed a sigh of relief and refocused on the tablets.

Without the repression of that invisible pressure, his rhythm of adjusting the tablet positions also sped up a lot. Before long, all the tablets were back where they were supposed to be.

When Xu RenDong stood on tiptoe and put the last ancestral tablet on the top of the incense case, he heard a disappointed sigh from above his head. It was followed by a “click” sound, as if it had triggered some kind of wooden mechanism.

Before Xu RenDong could react, something hit him on the head.

“Hee hee…”

Xu RenDong covered his head and glanced at the ceiling helplessly. Then he picked up the wooden box that fell on the ground.

He opened it and inside was a silver… oval ring?

It was really difficult for Xu RenDong to describe what this thing was. It is roughly an oblong oval shape, with one end slightly raised and the other end twisted into a triangle. There is also a small handle at the back of the triangle, presumably for ease of holding.

However, what is the use of holding this thing?

Xu RenDong was scrutinizing it carefully when suddenly his ankles went cold. He was startled and subconsciously raised his foot and kicked outwards, trying to throw the thing away. However, the thing was wrapped around his ankle and he couldn’t get rid of it.

Xu RenDong took out the crowbar without hesitation and was about to swing it, but suddenly saw that what was wrapped around his ankle was a snow-white snake.

The snake was as white as jade and if it wasn’t for the red mouth open and hissing, it would definitely be regarded as a lifelike jade sculpture.

The little white snake wrapped around his ankle coolly but did not climb up. Even when Xu RenDong looked at it in astonishment, he slowly let go and slipped off the back of his feet.

This snake looked a little familiar… 

The little snake was crawling slowly on the ground and suddenly turned around, staring at Xu RenDong with a pair of black eyes. Xu RenDong felt that the snake didn’t mean to hurt him and suddenly thought: Does it want me to follow it?

So Xu RenDong followed it. The little snake stopped from time to time and turned around to confirm whether Xu RenDong was keeping up. It didn’t take long for Xu RenDong to come to Shi JianChuan’s room.

 This snake was indeed sent by Shi JianChuan.

The black Tang suit embroidered with the dark silver snake pattern appeared in front of Xu RenDong’s eyes. It’s no wonder that Shi JianChuan wanted to wear it even when it hadn’t dried yet. It turned out that this thing has such a magical effect.

It must be a hidden tool.

Xu RenDong thought so, and reached out and pushed open the door. Suddenly it was dark. He couldn’t help being surprised, and instinctively took two steps back, only then did he see what was shaking slightly in front of him.

A hanged corpse.

It was the corpse of the maid who was ordered to commit suicide by Shi JianChuan.

The female corpse hung upright on the beam and seemed to have been dead for some time. The moment Xu RenDong opened the door, the strong wind rushed into the house wrapped in rainwater and shook the female corpse.

A pair of small feet pointed down and there was a kicked stool on the ground. Xu RenDong raised his head and saw the maid with her head tilted, her charming face had turned pale, her bright red tongue was sticking out and a faint smile still hung on the corner of her mouth.

Lightning and thunder rang out outside the house, illuminating the female corpse as a terrifyingly pale white. It was supposed to be a terrifying scene but Xu RenDong’s mood was a bit complicated.

 There was a burst of laughter not far away. Xu RenDong heard that it was Shi JianChuan’s voice. He immediately closed the door and hid.

Shi JianChuan and the old lady with little feet walked up to him, chatting and laughing. When she came to the door of the ancestral hall, the old lady seemed to notice something and suddenly pushed the door inwards.

“Who came in?!” The old lady looked around in the ancestral hall and found no clues. She ran out angrily and cursed on her hips, “Who stole the treasure in the ancestral hall!”

Shi JianChuan pretended to be surprised: “What? There are treasures in the ancestral hall?” 

The old woman reacted. Her dry claws moved like lightning and grabbed Shi JianChuan’s neck: “Yes! It was you!”

Shi JianChuan frowned slightly and before he made any obvious movements, the old lady screamed and let go.

“How can you have such a thing!” the old lady screamed, shaking her wrist desperately. There was a small white snake wrapped around her arm and the sharp snake teeth bit deeply into her wrist, just at the tendon. As a result, her entire palm could not move and  even the skin around her wrist quickly festered.

Shi JianChuan sighed: “You just lost something so I know you’re in a panic.” He raised his eyebrows, his long and narrow phoenix eyes no longer provocative but flashed a dangerous golden color, “But how can you suspect an honored guest? Have you forgotten who you are?”

“You, you…” The old lady clutched her wrist, frightened. She couldn’t stop backing away, watching in horror as the purple-red patch on her wrist rapidly expanded, spreading up her entire arm.

In the blink of an eye, her entire forearm was festering and rotten, her flesh turned into dark red blood and it fell wetly. Even the bones inside were stained black!

The old lady let out a desperate scream. Shi JianChuan sighed again. His voice was still lazy, as if he had no energy: “Okay, don’t waste your time here. Since you’ve lost something, go find it elsewhere.” 

After speaking, he raised his hand and hooked his fingers at the snake. The little snake let go, raised his head and glanced back at Shi JianChuan. Then it turned into a faint light and disappeared suddenly.

At this time, if someone had excellent eyesight, they would definitely be able to see that light flying towards Shi JianChuan, turning into the dark silver serpentine pattern on his black Tang suit.

It was a pity that there was no third person present in the corridor at this time except Shi JianChuan and the old lady with bound feet.

The old lady clutched her broken arm and stumbled away. Shi JianChuan stood by the railing, watching the storm outside. He suddenly stretched out his hand and spread open his palm flat, as if to catch the rain.

It was raining heavily. Almost instantly, his entire palm was filled with rainwater, and even his sleeves were completely soaked.

Shi JianChuan glanced at the palm of his hand thoughtfully, then flicked his sleeves and walked neatly towards his room.

Xu RenDong, who was waiting in the guest room, naturally did not see those scenes. All he heard was that the door was opened with a “squeak”, followed by a scolding.

“Fuck!”

In an instant, a silver light burst out. Several silver rays of light flew towards the female corpse on the roof beam and in the next second, a snow-white giant python appeared out of nowhere, wrapped around the female corpse and bared its fangs. It opened its mouth and bit her neck!

While Xu RenDong was shocked, he quickly calmed down. He said coldly: “She is already dead, you don’t need to kill her again.”

Standing at the door of the room was naturally Shi JianChuan. He was stunned for a moment, stroking his chest and still in shock. Hearing what Xu RenDong said, he frowned and looked at the female corpse in front of him and then he understood what was going on.

 “…I thought she would cut her wrist or something.” Shi JianChuan said angrily, “Who would have known she would make such a big show.”

Xu RenDong: “…” He really really still wanted to hit him over the head with a brick.

“Speaking of business.” Shi JianChuan pushed the female corpse away and sat calmly in front of Xu RenDong, “What did you find in the ancestral hall?”

The giant python wrapped around the female corpse faded away and quickly turned into a mist. It disappeared without a trace. Xu RenDong looked away from the female corpse and briefly explained what he had just experienced. Then he took out the silver object and showed it to him.

“Just this one? Nothing else?” Shi JianChuan stroked the silver object with his fingertips and the expression on his face was unpredictable.

Xu RenDong said: “Just this one. Do you know what this is?”

“…” Shi JianChuan was silent for a moment, then reluctantly said, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know what this is.”

Xu RenDong was instantly disappointed. He thought that a real Nine Level Boss would be super powerful, but it turned out to be nothing much.

He wasn’t even as good as Lian Qiao.

Shi JianChuan noticed his disdain and his expression became a little embarrassed. He suddenly remembered something and changed the subject: “By the way, where is your friend?”

“He’s in the room.” Xu RenDong said, “I tied him up, it’ll be fine.”

 “Which floor do you live on? “

The third floor.”

“Oh, then you’d better go down and see him.” Shi JianChuan turned on the folding fan with a snap and his tone became calm again, “The tulou has no drainage outlet, and the rainwater has all accumulated in the yard. When I went down just now, the stagnant water had backed up onto the second floor.”