Fang Ming stepped into the maze, immediately followed by a dizzying sensation of the world spinning. When his mind cleared, the surrounding scenery had completely changed.
He found himself in a woodshed. The familiar sight caused his heart to skip a beat.
"Nannan? Number One?" Fang Ming called out tentatively, but there was no response from the two.
"I've returned here again..." Fang Ming calmed himself, carefully observing his surroundings. There was no mistake; this was Bai Mu Village! This woodshed was the very one where Zhao Xue had been held captive.
Fang Ming looked down at his body. It was his original form, not Zhao Xue's. However, just like before, he was now bound tightly.
"Is it an illusion?" Fang Ming stared at the window, speculating about his situation.
If he had somehow returned to Bai Mu Village, he wouldn't have been bound here in his original body. The village was ruthless towards hostile outsiders, especially men, and would have dealt with him decisively, certainly not by tying him up here.
So, the problem now was: at what point in time was this illusion set? Zhao Xue had been locked in the woodshed twice, so it was crucial to determine which instance it was.
"Tsk tsk tsk, this illusion is really not rigorous at all," Fang Ming said, looking at his own tentacles and shaking his head in disappointment at the illusion's capabilities.
It simply pulled people into a past event without suppressing their abilities. Anyone with even a little growth could detect the disparity between their abilities and the surrounding environment.
"Crack, crack, crack..." Fang Ming easily broke free from the ropes binding him. To his current self, they were no different from paper.
Brushing the dirt off his body, Fang Ming sauntered to the window and peered out. The scenery outside reminded him of the current time.
"It's the time when Zhao Xue was just captured?" Fang Ming chuckled in disbelief. This meant he could tear open the roof and see the "fool" transform into the two-headed monster.
He had been severely plagued by this two-headed monster back then. Now, reliving the memory, Fang Ming had no intention of letting it off the hook so easily!
With that, Fang Ming leaped onto the haystack and, transforming his tentacles into scale swords, hacked at the roof, easily tearing open a hole large enough for him to crawl through.
"Eyes... eyes..." A multi-eyed monster immediately noticed the disturbance from the roof. Smelling human flesh, it scrambled frantically towards the opening.
"Swoosh!" A figure leaped out from the hole in the roof. Accompanied by a flash of cold light, the multi-eyed monster was instantly cleaved in half, its mangled remains twitching and writhing on the ground.
"This thing scared me half to death back then?" Fang Ming nudged the corpse of the multi-eyed monster with his scale sword and sneered. With his current power, as long as the Ancient Huai Malevolent didn't appear, he was practically unstoppable. The only significant malevolent spirits in the village were likely Bai Po and Uncle An.
He felt like a max-level player duking it out in a beginner's village, to put it in one word: exhilarating! No wonder so many max-level players enjoyed grinding in beginner villages; the feeling of facing former formidable enemies and now effortlessly mowing them down was incredibly satisfying.
"Human... flesh and blood..." The surrounding monsters also noticed Fang Ming. Their vacant eyes instantly turned bloodthirsty as they lunged at him ferociously.
In the distance, the hulking two-headed monster also spotted Fang Ming and charged towards him with excited strides.
A cold smile slowly curved Fang Ming's lips. He swung the scale sword on his right arm and charged towards the monsters...
The next day.
"Murder!" A scream echoed throughout Bai Mu Village. The villagers, who had been inside their homes, rushed out to investigate. However, when they arrived at the woodshed where Fang Ming had been held, they witnessed a scene that would haunt them for life.
Broken fingers and dismembered limbs littered the ground, along with shattered skulls and severed organs. Blood pooled on the ground, forming small, congealed streams. The stench of blood permeated the air, and the vacant eyes of the deceased stared at the villagers who had come to investigate.
"Ugh~" Some villagers couldn't help but retch. While some of them had killed before, it was usually by drowning or sinking bodies into wells. They had never witnessed such a gruesome scene.
"Son!"
"Second Uncle!"
...
Some villagers recognized their relatives among the dead, breaking down in sobs and wailing while clutching severed limbs.
The village chief, hearing the commotion, also rushed over. Seeing the scene before him, his body trembled with anger. While the villagers were clueless, he could roughly guess what had happened. These villagers had clearly met their end during the night, when they all transformed into malevolent spirits.
"Someone actually killed them all during the night?" The village chief found it unbelievable. In this world, who could possess such ability? For ordinary people, the attributes of malevolent spirits were almost superhuman. How could such a situation arise?
"Clap, clap, clap..." A round of applause suddenly rang out. A figure emerged from the shadows.
"I never thought you would have moments of grief," Fang Ming sneered, his gaze chillingly fixed on the murderous villagers before him.
Honestly, Fang Ming felt nothing special about killing the malevolent spirits at night. However, these malevolent spirits, who reverted to human form by day, felt a slight discomfort. He was still somewhat resistant to killing his own kind.
"Who are you?" the village chief asked, his brow furrowed, looking at this unfamiliar man. He was certain he had never seen him before. Could this be the killer?
"Me?" Fang Ming chuckled, "I am an emissary sent by heaven to judge your Bai Mu Village. You can call me... an angel."
The village chief snorted angrily, recognizing Fang Ming's taunt. "Bastard! You're seeking death!"
"Whether I live or die is uncertain, but you will definitely not live today," Fang Ming's gaze turned cold. "Not a single person from your Bai Mu Village will leave today!"
As soon as he spoke, the tentacles on his right arm transformed, followed by the formation of a scale sword.
The surrounding villagers watched Fang Ming in terror. "Monster! It's a monster!"
The village chief's pupils contracted at the sight. The familiar sensation made him recognize at a glance that the person before him was a malevolent spirit!
But why could he transform even during the day?
"Run!" the village chief shouted loudly to the surrounding villagers. He knew the abilities of malevolent spirits and how they were beyond the capabilities of ordinary people!
The surrounding villagers scattered and fled. The village chief, without looking back, joined a few other villagers in their escape.
Fang Ming let out a sneer, leaped up, and caught up to two lagging villagers. A sweep of his sword severed their heads, and suppressing the discomfort in his heart, Fang Ming continued to pursue the others.
One, two, three...
Villager after villager fell at Fang Ming's hands. The area of Bai Mu Village was not large, and the villagers had nowhere to escape. Even those hiding in corners were easily found by Fang Ming and killed with a single sword strike.
Fang Ming felt like a cold-blooded executioner, but he kept reminding himself that this was just an illusion. He didn't know how to break free from it, so he would destroy the entire illusion!
The slaughter continued until afternoon. Nearly a hundred people in the entire Bai Mu Village had almost all perished at Fang Ming's hands.
Fang Ming pushed open the gate of a familiar courtyard and walked in. Inside, an old man was calmly eating. Seeing Fang Ming covered in blood, his eyes showed no fear.
"You've arrived," Uncle An stopped his chopsticks, looking at Fang Ming calmly. He gestured, "Sit."
"You know me?" Fang Ming sat down, picked up the chopsticks Uncle An had prepared, and took a bite of a dish.
"I don't," Uncle An shook his head. "But I have a strange sense of familiarity with you."
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" Fang Ming put down his chopsticks and looked at Uncle An.
Uncle An remained silent, simply smiling. After a moment, he said, "Thank you for your trouble."
Fang Ming sighed and stood up.
A cold light flashed, and Fang Ming left the familiar courtyard alone.
Fang Ming understood Uncle An's wish. He had always wanted to save Bai Mu Village. While his current actions might not achieve salvation, they had, in a way, prevented Bai Mu Village from continuing its wicked deeds. For Uncle An, wasn't this also a form of redemption?
After leaving Uncle An's courtyard, Fang Ming immediately headed to Bai Po's house. However, Bai Po was not there at the moment.
"Has she hidden?" Fang Ming guessed. Bai Po must have heard the commotion and hidden, likely in the ancestral hall.
"Forget it, whether she hides or not is irrelevant now." Fang Ming turned and left, heading straight for the town square.
It seemed that simply killing the villagers of Bai Mu Village wouldn't break the illusion. The key to breaking free must lie with the two formidable spirits. He would release the Old Well Malevolent and let it fight the Ancient Huai Malevolent. If the illusion still didn't break after defeating the Ancient Huai Malevolent, then Fang Ming would be helpless and could only wait for Nannan to rescue him.
"Hello? Is Second Mother there? I have something important to discuss with you!" Fang Ming called out, crouching by the mouth of the old well.
Unexpectedly, this time, before Fang Ming could unleash his "ultimate move," the female corpse appeared.
"How do you know my name?" A face formed from well water floated to the surface of the well, asking in a chilling tone.
Fang Ming realized with a start why she had appeared so quickly this time: it was because he had spoken her name.
"That's not important," Fang Ming waved his hand. "I've come to ask for your help in dealing with the Ancient Huai Malevolent. I will immediately remove the artifact suppressing you. Once you are free, you will fight the Ancient Huai Malevolent. Its power will be immense due to the Reservoir of Grudges. I will immediately go and destroy that pool..."
Fang Ming chattered through a series of plans to the female corpse, leaving her stunned and full of question marks.
She had been imprisoned for so many years. Suddenly, someone tells her they will free her and even help her defeat her enemy. Who wouldn't find this like a fairy tale?
"Do you think it will work?" Fang Ming asked.
The female corpse, still not fully comprehending, instinctively replied, "Yes."
"Okay, then prepare yourself. It will take about half an hour to free you." With that, Fang Ming immediately ran off to dig up three graves and destroy the suppressing artifacts within them. He then went to the fountain and began to violently dismantle the entire structure.
What had once been a monumental task for Fang Ming was now easily accomplished.
"Boom!" The entire fountain collapsed with a roar. Next was the female corpse's grand entrance. Fang Ming had no mood to watch it again and immediately headed towards the ancestral hall.