Chapter 228: Wish Stone |
Xiao Wei pulled the hood of her Traveler's Cloak over her head. She was a sentimental person, grieving for every lost life. If a magical puppet could shed tears, she would undoubtedly be weeping profusely right now.
Adai brought back Ashi's belongings. These two sisters always stayed together, no matter where they went.
When Bai Mu saw those belongings, he froze for a moment.
They were neatly folded candy wrappers, along with the plastic boxes and outer packaging of compressed biscuits.
Bai Mu had never imagined that these things would be her final mementos. To modern people, the paper shells used to wrap candy and the plastic bags for biscuits were nothing more than useless trash. Even children wouldn't treat such things as treasures; their parents would tell them that garbage belongs in the trash can. A modern person finishing a piece of candy would simply crumple the wrapper and toss it away. Yet, Ashi had collected and cherished these items like precious treasures.
She had never seen "candy" or "biscuits" before. She only knew they were gifts from the "Divine Envoy." When her village was attacked, when she and her sister were pinned under a collapsed house, helplessly watching that massive wild boar charge at them, it was the "Divine Envoy" who had pulled her back from the brink of death.
Adai lowered her head and whispered, "Ashi asked me to return these things to you."
She cupped the candy wrappers in both hands. These pieces of plastic, which were incredibly cheap to anyone from the modern world, now seemed to sparkle as if they truly were priceless artifacts. Bai Mu silently accepted the wrappers. Tucked beneath the plastic was a carved stone bearing a human portrait. The facial features on the stone bore a striking resemblance to Bai Mu.
The young girl's face suddenly flashed before his eyes. In truth, Bai Mu hadn't spoken many words to her. First, there was a language barrier; second, Ashi was a shy and timid girl. While her sister was full of wild ferocity, she was like a well-protected little white rabbit. She always kept her head bowed and never made eye contact with him. Yet, she constantly lingered by Bai Mu's side. She and Adai had served him like personal handmaids. However, Adai had quickly taken up a blade and donned armor, leaving Ashi as the only one who remained a delicate servant, bringing him water and meals, always at his beck and call.
[Name: Wish Stone]
[Type: Special Item]
[Quality: Rare]
[Effect: Can block one fatal attack for the holder. The item will be destroyed upon activation.]
[Note: The innocent girl did not know why she carved a face onto the stone. But whenever she thought of that person, her reflection in the lake would break into a smile.]
Bai Mu hadn't completed any Side Quests related to Ashi, yet he had still obtained a Special Item that could be taken out of the Script.
Bai Mu couldn't help but wonder: 'When Ashi faced death, did she hate me?'
'Did she regret listening to my orders and going outside the cave to set those fires?'
However, these questions would never be answered. Ashi had returned to the earth, returning to nature. She would never again stand quietly by his side. All she left behind was this stone, along with those plastic candy wrappers and biscuit packaging.
Adai pressed these items against her chest. The plastic still held a faint trace of body heat, as if the girl were still alive. Bai Mu collected the plastic wrappers. Every single candy wrapper had been smoothed out and folded perfectly, and there were even two bags of compressed biscuits that remained unopened. He placed the Wish Stone into his inventory, let out a long breath, and looked toward the approaching giant.
The widespread arson had left the giant with no life force to absorb. It was moving toward populated areas. It seemed that unlike the Mountain Evil Gods formed from wild beasts, it didn't need to aimlessly search for life; instead, it could inherently sense the presence of living beings.
There wasn't much life left on this land.
The Script had only its final day remaining. In less than twenty-four hours, by this time tomorrow night, Bai Mu would complete the Main Quest.
But the giant's movement speed was faster than anyone had imagined. When it began to move, a single stride could cross hundreds of meters. The fluid comprising its body once again corroded the ground, spreading in all directions.
At this rate, it would arrive here in a few hours and eventually catch up to the group.
Bai Mu led the remaining survivors away, returning to the cave. The people who had been hiding there were gone, but Adai found a mark left behind by the Shaman.
To avoid the Mountain Evil Gods, the Shaman had led the others away from the cave and headed toward the mountain peak.
They had luckily evaded the frenzied Mountain Evil Gods. The final madness of those creatures hadn't reached this area. The remaining survivors supported one another, hiding out on the summit. To survive, they had slaughtered their horses, set fire to the mountain, drank their own urine as water, and gnawed on tree bark and leaves. Despite their miserable struggle, they had held on until the twenty-ninth day.
But the distant giant was now marching in their direction. Under the moonlight, its body emitted a faint fluorescence, looking like stars sparkling within, or perhaps like a mass of deadly, toxic quicksilver.
Over the past few days, Bai Mu had ridden Tuya to thoroughly scout the surrounding terrain. He had Lucy use her doodle divination skill to help him choose the location with the highest success rate out of three pre-selected spots.
Lucy drew a dried-up lake on her drawing board, so Bai Mu led everyone toward that lake.
Bai Mu knew the giant would definitely follow them. It would track the footprints of the living, going wherever life went. Only when there was no life left would its footsteps finally stop.
Before dawn broke, everyone gritted their teeth and arrived at the lake.
The surroundings consisted of barren, scorched earth. The air was thick with the smell of burning and the choking scent of charcoal.
The dried-up lake was a sunken, soft depression, resembling an oversized bowl.
When Bai Mu arrived and conducted another survey, he finally understood why Lucy's divination had chosen this place. Beneath this stretch of land was a hollow underground river tributary.
The surface water had dried up, but the soil was still moist. Groundwater gurgled and flowed through the massive subterranean channels. Although the water had become foul and murky, it still flowed endlessly, waiting for the day it would become clear once more.
And the giant had already closed the distance, looming just four or five kilometers away from the group. It would take at most ten minutes for it to catch up.