Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 788 Missing Villagers

The next morning, the Old Task Force waited until the sun completely rose before leaving the campsite and returning to Linhe Village in the jeep.

Apart from the soil under the old pagoda tree having traces of being dug up, this place was no different from before dark yesterday. These traces were left behind when Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong buried Du Shaochong’s corpse.

Jiang Baimian sized it up for a while and said to her team members, “Let’s enter the village.”

After taking a few steps, Shang Jianyao suddenly exclaimed.

Just as Jiang Baimian suspected that this fellow had another episode again and was hesitating about asking, Shang Jianyao took the initiative to ask, “Do you think the remains buried under the old pagoda tree are still there?”

How can it not be here? We just buried it yesterday! Long Yuehong muttered inwardly.

Although he said that, he couldn’t help but think about the possibility of them really being gone.

This was very horrifying and terrifying! Jiang Baimian calmly replied to Shang Jianyao’s question. “I just observed the soil’s condition; it’s no different from when we left last night. Besides, since we won’t attempt to dig out the skeleton now, what’s the difference between whether it’s there or not? It’s not like you can confirm it. When we are away from the company in the future, we’ll do another inspection when Old Ge is with us.”

For some reason, a scene surfaced in Bai Chen’s mind when she heard her team leader’s last sentence: They, as carbon-based humans, hid a few kilometers away, holding binoculars and watching Old Ge-a smart bot-shovel the soil.

“Alright…” Shang Jianyao was very disappointed that the horrifying development he came up with hadn’t been recognized.

The Old Task Force continued forward and arrived at the entrance of the village.

Shang Jianyao turned his head and cast his gaze at the spot where Xiaochong had taken the children to pee.

“Wipe that thought from your mind!” Jiang Baimian gave sufficient warning and stopped him in advance.

Shang Jianyao sighed. “That’s a Holy Ruin!”

… Long Yuehong was momentarily at a loss for words. After a few seconds, he muttered, “Those patches of soil are called Holy Relics then?”

Jiang Baimian didn’t give Shang Jianyao a chance to discuss this matter and directly ordered, “Enter the village!”

She led the way and walked into Linhe Village.

Bai Chen and the others followed closely behind.

Through the relatively intact glass windows, they sized up the situation in the houses by the side of the road.

Swamp Ruin 1 had never been discovered, so it seemed like this place had never been visited by Ruin Hunters to this day. Be it high-end items like televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners, and cars or normal stuff like tables, chairs, instant noodles, and canned food, they sat quietly in their original spots. They had not moved for decades.

Long Yuehong suddenly felt that something was amiss. Something is missing here!

The next second, Bai Chen said, “Where are the villagers?”

No matter what the villagers encountered when the Old World was destroyed, people would eventually die, and there would be remains. However, there were no corpses in Linhe Village!

Shang Jianyao smiled. “Maybe they were fine back then and survived the Old World’s destruction. Then, the entire village moved elsewhere. That’s how it is with a Kalendaria’s protection.”

He spoke with certainty as if he had seen it with his own eyes.

Jiang Baimian glanced at him and said concisely, “It’s impossible for an entire village not to bring the food along during a mass migration.”

In particular, canned food and instant noodles that were easier to carry.

Long Yuehong tried to guess. “Maybe some people contracted the Heartless disease, and others were forced to evacuate in a rush. Yes, the Heartless chased after them and never returned.”

Bai Chen disagreed. “If some people really become Heartless when the Old World is destroyed, some of the rest will definitely die. When the survivors evacuate in a rush, they won’t leave behind any portable food if they still have time to bring the corpses with them.”

This was experience from the things she had heard and seen over the years. Once a large group of people suddenly became Heartless somewhere, there would definitely be people around them that couldn’t react in time and would be hunted. If there weren’t many Heartless in Linhe Village and the villagers were able to mount a defense, the survivors wouldn’t have to rush to escape without bringing any food. “That’s right.” Long Yuehong nodded.

He raised another possibility. “They all became Heartless and went elsewhere to search for food…”

Long Yuehong’s voice gradually softened as he spoke because the Heartless also knew how to use simple tools, open canned food, and tear packaging.

This was confirmed in many city ruins.

Jiang Baimian looked around and thoughtfully said, “What the Kalendaria provides might not be a blessing. Do you still remember Tai City’s situation?”

Bai Chen and Long Yuehong recalled the Tai City citizens’ conditions: They had all instantly died when the Old World was destroyed!

“Could it be that the people in Linhe Village died when the Old World was destroyed?” Long Yuehong muttered to himself in confusion. “But if they died, where did the corpses go?” Shang Jianyao smiled when he heard this. He suppressed his voice and said, “They became zombies… They’re hiding somewhere, looking at your neck…”

Although Long Yuehong knew that this fellow was telling a ghost story, he didn’t dare deny the possibility after experiencing so many abnormalities.

Jiang Baimian deliberated for a moment before saying, “Continue searching and see if there are any clues.”

They slowly walked forward. From time to time, they would open a door and enter to conduct an inspection.

The situation in these houses was rather similar. They existed in normal day-to-day living before suddenly freezing in time. Therefore, the Old Task Force saw cutlery on some families’ tables. The food had long rotted and evaporated, leaving only some bones and stains. Some families’ mops were lying in the middle of the living room as if they had only completed half the work…

This was increasingly similar to Jiang Baimian’s guess.

When the Old World was destroyed, the people here instantly died no matter what they did. But the problem was that their corpses were gone. “How is it?” Shang Jianyao looked at Long Yuehong and smiled. “A real ghost story.”

“There must be a reason behind this,” Long Yuehong replied stubbornly. “That’s right. The reason for that is that the corpses were reanimated…” Shang Jianyao deliberately made his voice sound creepy. Jiang Baimian retracted her gaze and looked not far ahead. “According to my knowledge of folklore, that should be the village’s ancestral hall. We might discover something interesting if we go over and take a look.”

For example, a tablet with Du Shaochong’s name written on it.

“Alright.” Bai Chen didn’t want to listen to Shang Jianyao tell a ghost story here.

The Old Task Force continued forward, circled around a house, and arrived at Linhe Village’s ancestral hall.

This ancestral hall had the style of the Old World’s ancient times, but be it the eaves or arches, they were made of cement.

At this moment, the black wooden door to the ancestral hall was tightly shut.

“Shall I open the door?” Shang Jianyao cracked his knuckles and volunteered, his Berserker assault rifle slung across his chest. Jiang Baimian nodded. “Go. Be careful.”

Shang Jianyao excitedly quickened his pace and walked to the ancestral hall’s entrance.

He listened for a while before closing his eyes to sense the area for a while. He then put on his gloves and pushed open the door.

After all, Jiang Baimian had told him to be careful.

A creaking sound echoed in the clearing in front of the ancestral hall as the door opened. The situation inside was also gradually revealed to the Old Task Force members.

Long Yuehong raised his binoculars due to the distance.

Bai Chen had undergone the corresponding genetic modification, and Jiang Baimian had very good eyesight. She still relied solely on her eyes.

They soon saw grayish-white grave mounds.

These grave mounds weren’t large. They were densely packed in the ancestral hall’s impluvium and filled every spot.

“Wow!” Shang Jianyao exclaimed. He turned around and shouted at Jiang Baimian and the others, “This place has become a mass grave!”

Not only was the impluvium filled, but even the side, back, and altar area of the ancestral hall seemed to be filled with mounds.

Jiang Baimian stared at it for a while and muttered to herself, “The missing corpses in the village?”

The dead are buried in the ancestral hall? Long Yuehong was shocked.

“Probably.” Bai Chen felt that it was impossible. She then pursed her lips. “But who buried them?”

Survivors? Long Yuehong guessed inwardly.

However, he quickly overturned this possibility. This was because the survivors wouldn’t have not taken away the canned food and instant noodles or not exhausted themselves.

Shang Jianyao stuck his head past the ancestral hall’s door and sized it up for a while. Only when Jiang Baimian and the others walked to his side did he say with a respectful expression, “Back then, a few people should’ve survived and buried the entire village’s deceased in the ancestral hall.”

This was the same as Long Yuehong’s guess, but the subsequent development was completely different.

“They also lost the confidence to live. They dug their own grave and buried themselves.”

A terrifying and sad development… Long Yuehong muttered.

He didn’t retort because this was a possibility.

Jiang Baimian tersely acknowledged his words and tried to walk into the ancestral hall.

There were only a few places to land her feet between the grayish-white grave mounds. It was rather difficult for the Old Task Force members to enter the hall that worshiped ancestors without stepping on someone’s tomb.

This place was still filled with small grave mounds. Only a few places with tablets weren’t occupied.

Jiang Baimian looked around carefully and realized that the names here all had the Du surname, but there was no Du Shaochong.

She deliberated and said, “Du Shaochong wasn’t dead before the Old World was destroyed, or the news of his death wasn’t sent back.”

She then looked at the grayish-white grave by her feet and hesitated for a moment. “Let’s dig one out and take a look. I keep having the feeling that these tombs are too small. They don’t look like they can bury a person unless they are buried vertically.” “Alright!” Shang Jianyao volunteered. He led Long Yuehong out of the ancestral hall as if he were singing a nursery rhyme and quickly brought back two shovels.

Before long, they dug up a grave.

The corpse wasn’t buried deep. Just a little below, all the bones were piled together.

They had clearly not been buried in a normal manner.

“Chopped up before burying? That saves space.” Shang Jianyao ‘came to a realization.’

Perverse… Long Yuehong only had this thought.

Jiang Baimian shook her head. “These bones were likely picked up for burial. They were buried here after their corpses rotted to bones.”

“Then, who buried them?” Bai Chen frowned.

This definitely wasn’t done by the survivors.