Chapter 34: Opening the Village Gates

The village was small, and the news that Yun Qing could purify food quickly spread among some of its people. Naturally, her hunting team soon heard of it as well. Before Yun Qing’s arrival, they had already discussed whether she might remain at the relief station instead of returning to the hunting team.

Though Yun Qing was not particularly strong, she was the team’s only general helper now that Ye Mingyu had become a half-soul and could no longer assist them.

Ye Tao, a burly man with an honest face, said, “Yun Qing, I knew you’d come back.”

Yun Qing smiled and replied, “Of course, I would come back. I’m part of the hunting team. However, my abilities are limited. I wonder if there’s any suitable work for me?”

Ye Wenjing whispered, “This time, during the Dark Night, a total of eleven people didn’t return, including the soul corpses killed by the Celestial. So far, we know that thirty-six have died, three have become half-souls, and many villagers are injured—the exact number is hard to count.”

Having seen Ye Mingyu’s family’s condition, Yun Qing felt her heart grow heavier with each number Wenjing reported. Every figure represented a broken family; there could even be families who lost several members at once.

Now Yun Qing understood why, every day before leaving the village, the team leaders registered each departure, and upon return, they registered again. The Dark Night could descend at any time; by keeping records, they would know who had not made it back.

If all eleven who didn’t return had perished, together with the thirty-six already dead, then forty-six people had died in this calamity alone. Assuming the village had 1,500 residents—about five people per household, totaling three hundred families—so many deaths meant that perhaps 15% of the families lost loved ones in this Dark Night.

Yun Qing’s mood was somber, but fortunately, none of her closer acquaintances had lost family members; only Ye Mingyu had become a half-soul.

Ye Tao explained quietly, “Many villagers joined the cleanup crew overnight. The village interior is nearly cleared. Next is the farmland and fish ponds outside the village, but we must open the gates to do that, which is dangerous. Yun Qing, you haven’t reached the Post-Heaven realm yet—stand farther away later.”

Yun Qing nodded, “Alright!”

By ‘inside the village,’ Ye Tao meant within the protective formation that shielded them during the Dark Night; ‘outside the village’ was beyond that barrier. The land for ten miles around was planted with crops and had all been covered by the Dark Night, making the situation far worse than within the safety of the formation. The cleanup would not be easy.

At the village gates, over a hundred villagers had already gathered, most of them Post-Heaven martial artists. Their weariness was plain to see; none had rested since the Dark Night began.

“Post-Heaven martial artists, line up in front and ready your weapons!” At the very front, Captain Ye Wei of the guard, his voice hoarse, organized the villagers for the dangerous task of opening the gates.

Yun Qing, who had retreated to the back of the crowd, noticed many villagers standing atop the wall as well.

“Yun Qing, let’s go up and take a look.” Following the clear voice, Yun Qing saw Ye Qiu Yue, her face clouded with worry, beckoning her over.

Ye Qiu Yue had been part of Yun Qing’s first herb-gathering team when she began working outside the village, and was one of the most beautiful girls in the village.

Down below, nothing was visible, but Yun Qing was curious about what lay beyond the gates. She nodded, “Alright.”

The two girls supported each other as they climbed the wall. From that vantage, they could see the scene outside the gates much more clearly.

Yun Qing had expected the situation at the gates to be much as it was in the replica world, but she was shocked to see several soul corpses dressed as villagers wandering outside.

Above their heads, red letters flickered: Soul Corpse, Level Unknown.

From their clothing, it was clear these had once been villagers from Ye Family Village—villagers who had failed to return before the Dark Night fell. The words above their heads confirmed what had happened: they were dead.

She counted twelve in all. Judging by their figures, they seemed even more dangerous than the ‘Artificial Idiots’ she had faced within the village. One particularly tall soul corpse still gripped an axe in its hand.

Ye Wenjing had just said that eleven people hadn’t returned, yet here were twelve soul corpses. That meant at least one was from another village.

Ye Family Village had appeared in a replica world; perhaps other villages had not been so fortunate. But no, the final Light Mirror had dispelled the unnatural darkness, so the other villages should have been saved at that moment too.

Yun Qing glanced at Ye Qiu Yue, who stood beside her. Her face was deathly pale, her teeth biting her lip, fists clenched so tightly her whole body trembled.

Some of the soul corpses outside the gate looked so familiar to Yun Qing, but she couldn’t recall their names. She had depended too much on the system: now, with no names displayed, she couldn’t recognize them. For Qiu Yue, who had lived in Ye Family Village all her life, there were probably no strangers. It was only natural to be shaken at the sight of familiar faces turned into soul corpses.

Looking again outside the gate, Yun Qing saw not only human soul corpses, but also other creatures with red-lettered names wandering nearby.

Soul Corpse Snake, Level Unknown.

There might be other soul corpse animals hidden in the grass as well.

Yun Qing called out to Ye Xiao Lang, who was queuing not far away, “Little Wolf, be careful, there are other soul corpse animals!”

Ye Xiao Lang waved his spear, “Got it!”

The Ye Family Village guard team was no stranger to such threats; they were well aware of the dangers posed by soul corpse animals.

At the village gate, dozens of Post-Heaven martial artists stood ready, weapons in hand.

Captain Ye Wei stood at the very front, wielding a long blade. He cast a sharp glance at those gathered atop the wall and rasped, “Don’t fall! If you do, no one will be able to save you.”

He then raised his blade high and shouted, “Open the gate!”

At once, four Post-Heaven martial artists moved to follow his command. With a rumbling sound, the village gate slowly opened.

No sooner had the gate cracked open than a black hand shot through the gap. The razor-sharp claws, each over an inch long, gleamed in the sunlight, dazzling and cruel. The hand lunged straight for the heart of the foremost guard.

So fast! Yun Qing’s heart leaped in alarm.

A piercing scream rang out beside her—it had to be Ye Qiu Yue.

Yun Qing didn’t look at Qiu Yue; her eyes were fixed on the gate. She saw Captain Ye Wei swing his blade just as the gate opened, severing the black hand at the wrist.

The hand fell to the ground, but the soul corpse outside seemed unaffected, not even bleeding. It unleashed a rasping sonic attack, even as its other hand struck at Ye Wei.

“Roar… Roar, roar, roar…”

Several soul corpses bellowed in unison, their sound waves carrying far, affecting even the villagers on the wall.

The distance lessened the effect for Yun Qing, and she felt only mild discomfort. Suddenly, she sensed someone grabbing onto her. Turning, she saw Qiu Yue’s face white as a sheet, clearly affected by the sonic assault.