I Raise My Wife in a Supernatural Story (Infinite) - Chapter 14

Qi Yan and the other two wandered through the various stalls of the folk culture street, but the useful information they gathered was largely the same mostly about the Final Mountain Deity and the Drum Music Altar.

Having explored enough and feeling like they couldn’t extract any more information, the trio decided to head back to the altar for another look.

Qi Yan lowered his gaze in thought and said, “It feels like the NPCs are bound by some scripted restrictions. No matter how we rephrase our questions today, they only give us similar answers. We can’t get anything more out of them.”

For example, when Qi Yan asked them what exactly the Final Mountain Deity was, they would all dodge the question.

“The Final Mountain Deity well, the Final Mountain Deity is. Oh, by the way, would you like to buy one of our bronze deer talismans?”

Qi Yan had carefully observed the expressions of all the NPCs when they answered. Some of them clearly weren’t ignorant, they would stiffen for a split second upon hearing the question, as if forcibly corrected by some underlying rule, then awkwardly change the subject. It was so obvious that anyone could tell they were being controlled.

Others, judging by their natural reactions, genuinely didn’t know. In those cases, they would straightforwardly admit their ignorance. Most of these people weren’t descendants of the Lu clan but outsiders who had migrated here over time.

Tang Shanshan said, “Maybe it’s because it’s only the second day, and the NPCs can’t reveal too much information? Like in a game, where certain quests are locked until a specific time.”

Qi Yan nodded in agreement and added, “It’s also possible that our progress is too slow, and we haven’t unlocked the later restrictions yet. Either way, we need to hurry and push the plot forward. About the Drum Music Altar, we’ve gathered some useful information especially that altered line of poetry from the Lu clan descendants: ‘After parting like floating clouds, the sun shines overhead at its zenith.’”

The other two nodded solemnly.

They had heard this line while chatting with a few stall owners. Those who knew it were likely descendants of the Lu family, and the poem probably held some connection to the altar’s secret.

Qi Yan continued, “This line points to the timing of each ritual. From what the stall owners implied, ever since the altar was built, the Lu clan’s priests have strictly followed the guidance of this poem.”

Huo Zheng said, “It’s been five hundred years since the altar was constructed. We don’t know if the Lu clan existed before that or why they built this altar five centuries ago.”

Tang Shanshan muttered, “It couldn’t have been on a whim. They keep emphasizing how important this altar is, there must be some extraordinary history behind it.”

“The ‘eye’ and ‘heart’ of this world, we still have no leads on either of these,” Huo Zheng frowned, looking troubled. “These are the only two ways to leave this place. It’s already the second day; we have to speed up.”

Everyone knew that advancing the script’s plot was urgent, but they were all novices with little experience. Even though each of them had a reward from the beginner’s pool, they had no idea what kind of dangers they might face.

Qi Yan instinctively touched the ring on her ring finger. Though she had the protection of the Nine-Tailed Demon King, the unease in her heart didn’t lessen much. Bai Qing had a peculiar temperament and was somewhat lazy. Qi Yan couldn’t quite pin down her moods. Even though Bai Qing had promised to protect her because of their spiritual contract, Qi Yan still wasn’t sure if she would truly follow through. Moreover, Bai Qing had been sealed away for a hundred years and appeared weakened in spirit. It was hard to say whether she could handle the powerful enemies they might encounter, like those in the legends.

The road ahead was uncertain, and it felt like it was full of pitfalls.

But they had already set foot on this path. Turning back wasn’t an option, this world wouldn’t even bother asking for their consent.

“Stay calm. Let’s take it slow. We still have time,” Qi Yan said.

Huo Zheng glanced at her, thinking this young woman was surprisingly dependable. In critical moments, she was the one who could keep her composure best.

The bronze deer platform looked no different from yesterday, still towering over the square, its golden base gleaming brilliantly.

The three of them ascended the steps one by one. Qi Yan looked up at the sky, where sunlight broke through the clouds and shone down.

“The town is covered in thick fog, yet the sun still reaches this folk street.”

Tang Shanshan also looked up, shielding her eyes from the sunlight with her hand. “It’s almost as if the sun is deliberately shining on this altar.”

Qi Yan froze, immediately recalling that line of poetry. It seemed the hint was quite obvious now.

“After parting beneath the floating clouds, the sun shines overhead.” Qi Yan tilted her head back to look at the deer’s head on the bronze statue, stepping back to find the right angle.

Unable to find a suitable position beneath the bronze deer, Qi Yan quickly descended the steps and searched the small square until she stopped where the sunlight illuminated the deer’s antlers. “From this angle and position, you can see the sunlight shining right on the antlers!”

Qi Yan lowered her gaze to the ground. This spot was on the right side of the altar square, where the sunlight cast a shadow. Right by her feet was a square stone slab, neither too large nor too small.

“Come quick! There’s a hidden passage!”

The three of them worked together to lift the slab. Whatever material it was made of, it was incredibly heavy. It took all their strength to pry it open.

Huo Zheng, the only man in the trio, was drenched in sweat, while the two girls were panting heavily.

Tang Shanshan complained about how heavy the slab was. Huo Zheng crouched by the exposed opening, too out of breath to speak.

Qi Yan slumped to the ground, seemingly exhausted, but in truth, she was secretly arguing with Bai Qing in her mind.

“Why didn’t you come out and help? We almost died from exhaustion!”

Bai Qing’s lazy voice drifted out faintly: “The three of you weren’t completely incapable of moving it. There was no need for me to intervene.”

Qi Yan: “And if we couldn’t move it?”

Bai Qing: “Then I would have stepped in.”

“If you could help, why make me suffer like this?!”

“It’s not like you were going to die from exhaustion.”

Qi Yan was so angry she almost laughed. This so-called “golden card” she had drawn felt more like summoning an ancestor.

The two of them were bound by a spiritual contract, and their hearts were connected. If Bai Qing wished, she could sense Qi Yan’s emotions at any time.

She picked up on Qi Yan’s exasperation and anger but couldn’t care less, yawning lazily. “My spiritual power hasn’t fully recovered yet. Unless it’s absolutely necessary, I’d rather not waste it on something as trivial as lifting a stone slab for you.”

“What counts as a critical moment? That time when Baldy was rude to me?”

Bai Qing shook his head. “That was just me disliking him. Since we’ve formed the spiritual contract, you belong to me. Who does he think he is, daring to overstep his bounds with you?”

Qi Yan: “…”

At the end of the day, this fox demon still saw her as his possession.

Qi Yan took a deep breath and casually asked, “How do you recover your spiritual power? Just by cultivating inside the ring every day?”

“Cultivation is naturally important, but there’s also the rules of this script. Since the spiritual contract binds us together, we share fortune and misfortune. If you can clear the levels and reap benefits from the script, I’ll naturally benefit as well.”

Qi Yan’s eyes lit up as she seized the key point. “Then you should help me clear the levels! Since my success benefits you, stop being so lazy.”

She really had no way to deal with this lazy fox.

The lazy fox said nothing, silently retreating. Qi Yan felt a surge of frustration stuck in her chest, but with other matters at hand, she couldn’t afford to keep arguing with the fox.

Huo Zheng pulled out a flashlight and shone it down the hidden passage. “The stairs are pretty long. Should we go down?”

Qi Yan stared into the pitch-black tunnel, her heart torn with hesitation. She had never done anything this dangerous in her life, the passage looked undeniably perilous, and under normal circumstances, she would never set foot in it.

But, in this script, to find a way out, she had to take the risk.

Instinctively gripping the ring on her finger, Qi Yan comforted herself with the thought that she at least had a trump card. No matter how lazy the fox usually was, he certainly wouldn’t let her die.

With that in mind, Qi Yan mustered some courage and said firmly, “We have to go down. We need more clues.”

The three of them fell into silence. None of them wanted to descend, and they all knew the unknown dangers lurking below. But they had no choice, it was necessary for a better chance at survival.

So, Tang Shanshan took two more flashlights from her backpack, handing one to Qi Yan and keeping the other for herself.

“I brought these from the guesthouse. I thought they might come in handy.”

Though young, Tang Shanshan was very meticulous. Qi Yan nodded in gratitude.

Meanwhile, Huo Zheng pulled a military knife from his small crossbody bag, testing its weight in his hand. “I got this from the beginner’s pool. Not sure if it has any special functions, but it’s sharp enough to cut through iron. I’ll take the lead, I’m older than both of you, and I have a weapon.”

Qi Yan glanced at the cold glint of the knife and nodded. “Alright, I’ll take the rear. Shanshan, stay in the middle.”

Once the order was settled, the three of them entered the hidden passage one by one.

The tunnel was long, spiraling deep underground. They moved cautiously by flashlight, carefully stepping on each stair, wary of anything that might suddenly appear on either side.

Fortunately, the journey was quiet, and none of the imagined horrors materialized.

What surprised Qi Yan, however, was that as they descended further, the light seemed to grow brighter.

Huo Zheng, leading the way, noticed it too. He glanced back at the two girls behind him, and after a brief exchange of tense looks, their unease deepened.

Qi Yan clenched the ring on her finger, silently repeating in her mind, “Ancestor, please don’t slack off now. If there’s any danger later, you have to save me!”

Bai Qing, annoyed by her incessant mental chatter, snapped impatiently, “I know, I won’t let you die.”

Though Qi Yan was confident Bai Qing would protect her at critical moments, she couldn’t help feeling nervous. Bai Qing clearly hadn’t fully recovered her spiritual power, what if their opponent turned out to be even stronger?

With no real assurance, Qi Yan could only take things one step at a time.

At the front, Huo Zheng had already reached the bottom, where the steps gave way to level ground. After taking a few more steps forward, they seemed to have entered an underground plaza, a vast space filled with numerous artifacts.

Before they could examine the items scattered around, Huo Zheng froze, his feet seemingly nailed to the spot.

Behind him, Tang Shanshan let out the first scream.

Qi Yan shone her flashlight ahead and saw the bald man impaled by a massive bronze sword, pinned against a towering drum.

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