Chapter 47: Despair

The bodies of Wang Ming and the other three, along with the knife they hadn’t had time to pick up, proved that the Big Rock Camp had definitely encountered that eerie entity before.

Finding only four corpses doesn’t mean only four people died at the Big Rock Camp.

After suffering heavy losses from the eerie entity, Shi Qing must have gone north to seek aid from Huang Zhao and Da Chuan, or even Luo Ge’s camp.

That’s why, during this time, no one from the Big Rock Camp was seen on Redwood Ridge.

But the plea for help clearly failed; only Shi Qing and another returned, and they brought back only one sack of crystal fruits.

Given the eerie entity’s cunning nature of rarely appearing in person, it likely controlled the corpses of the Great Xia lumber team and attacked Shi Qing and his group.

It must have been this way—only then could it explain why Shi Qing looked so utterly desperate when surrounded by us just now.

He must have seen the fake Xia Ding and believed the Great Xia Camp had already been destroyed.

Upon suddenly seeing Xia Hong and the other eleven young lumbering-stage cultivators, Shi Qing probably thought we were all eerie entities, hence his utter despair.

But when Shi Dong revealed our identities and realized none of us were eerie entities, the despair on Shi Qing’s face vanished instantly, replaced by relief.

The fact that he clearly knew eerie entities could assume human forms further confirms that Shi Qing had indeed dealt with them before.

Shi Qing’s behavior from start to finish was entirely normal.

He didn’t recognize us, so he mistook us for eerie entities.

But how did Shi Dong recognize us?

Shocked by Xia Chuan’s words, Xia Hong suddenly realized that Shi Dong’s entire behavior had been too normal—unlike Shi Qing, who showed constant emotional shifts—and precisely this was the greatest abnormality.

More crucially, he had voluntarily spoken up to identify us, clearly fearing conflict with us and wanting to avoid delaying his return to camp with Shi Qing.

“The real Shi Dong is almost certainly dead; the one Shi Qing brought back must be an imposter.”

As Xia Hong sprinted furiously toward the direction Shi Qing and the other had fled, his suspicion grew firmer in his mind.

Too bad Shi Qing had left long ago; even though they sprinted at top speed, they still couldn’t catch up, and by the time they reached Tashan, where the Big Rock Camp lay in the distance, they still hadn’t seen the two figures.

Xia Hong kept accelerating his pace, his expression growing ever more grim:

“The Big Rock Camp is likely doomed!”

………………

Under Tashan, Shi Qing and the other reached the eastern side, found the vines with ease, and quickly climbed up the summit.

The summit was still covered in snow as when they had left; Shi Qing walked straight to the center and cleared away the snow.

Beneath the snow lay a five-meter-wide square wooden plank.

Beneath the plank was the Big Rock Camp’s encampment.

Seeing no marks on the plank and feeling warmth beneath his touch, Shi Qing confirmed no anomalies had occurred and finally relaxed.

He didn’t notice the faint, sinister smile that appeared on Shi Dong’s face the moment the plank emerged.

Shi Qing immediately opened the plank and jumped down through the three-meter-wide opening; Shi Dong followed, pulling the plank shut behind him.

As soon as they landed, several people rushed forward with joyful expressions.

“Leader, you’re finally back!”

“The camp’s crystal fruits are gone; if you hadn’t returned, we were going to send people out tonight.”

“Why are there only two of you?”

“Where are the other three?”

Hearing their questions, Shi Qing’s face twisted with pain.

Just as he was about to tell them what had happened at Luo Ge’s camp—

Shhhhh…

Shi Dong, standing behind him, suddenly raised his hand and shot out a nearly transparent white thread.

The thread pierced his shoulder blade like a fine needle, then, as if alive, slithered through every part of his body.

In an instant, Shi Qing was completely bound by the white threads.

Before he could even cry out, his body froze, collapsing sideways to the ground.

“Leader, what happened to you?”

“Shi Dong, what did you do?”

The people who had just rushed forward were utterly confused; some tried to lift Shi Qing, others demanded answers from Shi Dong.

“Gggggg…”

Shi Dong said nothing, only lowered his head and emitted a dry, grating, cruel laugh like wood shavings scraping together.

The laugh was chilling, monstrous, and sent shivers down the spine.

Hearing this familiar, terrifying laugh, Shi Qing, still lying on the ground and not yet lifted, suddenly turned pale and whipped his head around to stare at Shi Dong.

“Thanks to you for bringing me here—otherwise, where would I find so many people? Ggggggg…”

Shi Qing instantly realized: this Shi Dong was fake.

The fourth time—when Wang Rui and Sun Xinzhu chased Shi Dong—yes, that was it.

Everyone had assumed only Wang Rui and Sun Xinzhu had been replaced, but even Shi Dong had been replaced back then.

The eerie entity had staged a cruel ruse: deliberately creating the scene of Wang Rui and Sun Xinzhu chasing Shi Dong, then slipping in as Shi Dong to get close to him.

Does that mean everything we discussed in the Luo Ge Camp hall—how to lure and ambush it—was known to it in full detail?

Poor Luo Ming and the others are still following Yang Ning and Li Hu, trying to lure the wooden puppet eerie entity out again.

The enemy had already infiltrated us from within.

It’s over. All is lost!

“Run! Run! Everyone, run now!!!”

Shi Qing whirled around, face crimson, screaming hysterically toward the campfire where the others stood.

He didn’t know how the wooden puppet eerie entity had controlled Shi Dong, but he was certain: he himself couldn’t move a muscle.

Over three hundred people in the camp—all of them would die, without exception.

Run, run, all of you run together—there might still be a sliver of hope.

With this thought, Shi Qing tried to shout again, urging everyone to flee—but as soon as he opened his mouth, the white threads pierced his lips and sewed them shut.

“Ooooomm… ooooomm…”

Unable to speak, Shi Qing watched the others still standing confused and clueless; his face flushed crimson, his pupils filled with bloodshot panic.

But “Shi Dong” had already moved.

He lunged forward and smashed his fist into the skull of the nearest man.

Before the man could cry out, his head exploded like a watermelon, spraying yellow and white matter everywhere—grotesquely bloody.

And this wasn’t over.

“Shi Dong”’s face twisted with malice; he grabbed two men trying to flee, his fingers clenching with force and plunging deep into their necks, nearly to the roots.

These two, too, couldn’t even scream—they bled from all seven orifices and collapsed dead.

“Jjjjjjj…”

As the stench of blood spread, “Shi Dong”’s grin grew wilder and more grotesque—as if slaughtering these people was his greatest pleasure.

In the blink of an eye, three lives were gone.

The others, who had stood frozen in confusion by the campfire, now understood: this thing before them was no Shi Dong—it was a demon.

“Aaaaaa…”

“Shi Dong has gone mad.”

“Run! Run!”

“Leader, save us!”

…………

The crowd’s terror acted like a stimulant to the eerie entity; it charged into them, slaughtering with brutal, twisted savagery—and even found a stone axe nearby, deeming fists too slow.

Watching his wife, children, friends, and all the people of the camp slaughtered senselessly, Shi Qing, lying on the ground, was consumed by rage, his eyes bulging as if about to burst.

But now, he couldn’t move—not even speak.

He could do nothing.

Seeing his wife die before his eyes, Shi Qing wept uncontrollably.

Overwhelming agony slowly turned into profound despair.

(End of Chapter)