Chapter 384 - 258: Ruins

"Yeah, that’s right, we’re in the Luojin Mountain Range right now, heading up the mountain! Hey, isn’t this my dad’s phone...? Oh, he’s busy writing..."

While balancing his phone to talk with Wang Sujuan, Su Zhi walked with Shen Chuqing along a path in the woods.

After passing through a dense forest of Golden Chunting Trees, the vegetation ahead grew shorter, and the village ruins came into view in the distance.

The moonlight was beautiful tonight, making the few ruined walls at the village entrance stand out with particular clarity. The bright moonlight scattered across the marble flagstones of the village path, but nameless flowers and grasses grew wild in the cracks, dappling the moonlit ground.

Su Zhi recognized the path. He had seen it before in a painting at the Alliance History Hall.

At the crossroads a short distance away, the Alliance Member named Tuoba Jing had lowered his saber before his Thunderbolt War Falcon.

The place where refugees once knelt and pleaded was now overgrown with weeds.

Compared to the barren, flattened desolate village in the painting, the ruins before them had a vibrant, lively feel, completely different from the style Su Zhi remembered.

Flowers and grass rested in the cracks between the flagstones, and unknown vines played across the broken walls. The abandoned lamp posts had long lost their lamps; instead, a type of glowing plant twined around them as it grew. Its grape-like fruits sporadically cast a faint yellow glow, like Starfire.

"Hundred Rivers Lamp Fruit," Shen Chuqing explained. "They glow when they perceive sound. This is the yellow variety. There are cultivated ones, too. I have one in my bedroom that I use as a night light."

Su Zhi opened his mouth. "But I remember the records saying the environment here was harsh and unsuitable for living..."

"It was unsuitable for humans, yes. But the humans have moved away now."

Shen Chuqing said, perhaps to Su Zhi, perhaps to herself, "My granduncle told me that the earth has a spirit of its own. When it doesn’t welcome you, it will find all sorts of ways to drive you away. The moment you leave, it immediately changes."

Su Zhi nodded, moved by the thought.

He actually wanted to say something too, but the thought slipped his mind as it reached his lips.

’What was it I wanted to say again...?’

As he pondered, a hysterical voice came from behind them. "Hey, would you slow down a little..."

"..."

’Oh, right. We forgot about Senior Gou Yu.’

·

"This is the village ruins. Everything west of here was expanded in the modern era. The original site from before the end of the Classical Era is preserved east of this road. The documents don’t record the village’s name, so later, to commemorate that Beast Tamer named Tuoba Jing, the Common Defense Alliance named this place Tuoba Jing Village."

The three of them reached the village entrance. Gou Yu plopped down on the ground, panting like a bear as he explained things to the other two.

"This walk nearly killed me! I really don’t know what you two get out of suffering through a place like this."

"Ahem, it’s for a research mission."

Su Zhi took out his phone, casually snapped a couple of photos, and uploaded them to Luo Sen. With that, his task for the project team was complete.

Now, it was time to explore.

"Woof." Without waiting for a command, Yu Bao excitedly darted into the village on its own.

Shen Chuqing watched Yu Bao thoughtfully. "Getting so active all of a sudden? It seems the Energy concentration here is indeed quite good."

’No, he’s always like this...’ Su Zhi started to say, but held his tongue and followed them into the village.

Starting from the west side of the village, the group began their exploration, moving from west to east.

In terms of cultural observation, there was indeed little to be found.

The residents had moved out more than a decade ago, taking everything they could carry. What couldn’t be moved was mostly worthless and had been left here to fall into ruin.

Su Zhi saw a half-collapsed room that looked like a living room. On a platform resembling a cabinet sat a bulky old television.

The uncertainty was understandable, as the entire room was almost completely covered in vegetation. Only the television was still recognizable for what it was.

"Chirp?" Out of curiosity, Shan Bao hopped closer and poked the power button with its little foot.

FWOOSH! The already shattered screen suddenly burst open, and a plant-like mouth covered in sharp, backward-facing barbs shot out, swallowing Shan Bao whole except for its feet.

CRACK!

A crisp, snapping sound.

The television stopped moving.

Shen Chuqing frowned. "A Wood Element Low Level Extraordinary Beast, a Spider-eating Flower. Sometimes birds can trigger their hunting instincts!"

Su Zhi jumped in fright. "Shan Bao!?"

"Chirp— Chirp—" came Shan Bao’s reply from inside the television.

The screen opened again. The mouth extended, trembling, and spat Shan Bao out onto the ground. All the barbs on its inner wall were broken.

Then, the mouth retracted into the screen, seeming to go completely limp.

Shen Chuqing: "..."

Su Zhi: "..."

"Chirp chirp."

"Shan Bao says, ’Sorry to have troubled you.’"

The television turned itself away, clearly wanting nothing more to do with them.

"Woof!"

Yu Bao’s call came from not far away, and the group jogged over to it.

Yu Bao was sitting in front of a section of a broken wall, staring thoughtfully at its corner.

"I think I recognize this place too..." Su Zhi slapped his fist into his palm as if remembering something. "According to the description in *The Last Beastmaster*, the three Beast Tamers rested against this wall for a night!"

"You’re thinking of the holographic recording from the Alliance History Hall, right?"

Shen Chuqing sighed. "That was a recreation based on archeological findings. It can’t perfectly replicate the original scene, but it’s probably more or less accurate."

Gou Yu shook his head. "That may be so, but the reliability and validity of the Divine Strategy Alliance’s tracing technology are quite high. There are trace amounts of shadow residue on this wall, which indicates the three of them likely rested here often. And look, the outer surface of the wall also has marks from being hit by explosives. That means a fierce battle must have taken place nearby."