I Raise My Wife in a Supernatural Story (Infinite) - Chapter 7

The players’ first conversation after entering the supernatural story ended abruptly due to the bald man’s uncooperative attitude. Not only did he refuse to cooperate, but he also drove a wedge between the players.

Qi Yan secretly observed everyone, detecting a hint of concealed contemplation on each face even the young couple. For a moment, Qi Yan even felt that the two had subtly distanced themselves from each other.

Is the bald guy the real problem here? Qi Yan rubbed her chin, her brows slightly furrowed.

“Hey, can you tell who among them is the ghost?”

Qi Yan silently asked Bai Qing in her mind.

But after waiting for a long time, the fox spirit didn’t make a single sound, as if she were asleep and hadn’t heard.

Yet Qi Yan, connected to her by their bond, knew full well that Bai Qing wasn’t asleep she was just pretending not to hear, ignoring her on purpose.

“Stop pretending, I know you heard me!”

“Hearing doesn’t mean I have to answer.”

Qi Yan gritted her teeth. “Aren’t we bound by a contract? Even if I don’t fully understand what this contract entails, we’re supposed to be in this together, right? Shouldn’t you help me?”

Bai Qing replied lazily, “Little one, shouldn’t you say something nice when asking for help?”

So infuriating! Qi Yan felt utterly aggrieved. As a beginner, she couldn’t tell whether her drawn talisman was good or bad. It felt like she had started with a god-tier card, only to realize it might actually be useless or more accurately, she had somehow managed to summon herself a high-maintenance ancestor.

As a dedicated otaku, Qi Yan had played plenty of gacha games, but none as absurd as Bai Qing.

“What kind of nice words do you want to hear? And can you stop calling me ‘little one’? I’m already 22.”

Bai Qing chuckled. “22 is still a child. I’m over a thousand years old.”

Qi Yan sighed internally. “Fine, Ancestor.”

Seeing her frustrated expression delighted Bai Qing, who didn’t mind the nickname and finally answered properly, “These people are just like you, all reek of living humans. But that bald one, he carries an extra scent.”

Hearing her address the actual question, Qi Yan perked up and asked silently, “What scent?”

Bai Qing fell silent again. After waiting a while with no response, Qi Yan thought the ancestor was throwing another tantrum and was about to coax her when Bai Qing suddenly spoke.

“Hard to say. It’s a scent I’m not familiar with probably something unique to this story.”

By “this story,” she likely meant the current scenario they were in something exclusive to this place. Qi Yan pondered briefly, sensing that Bai Qing implied each scenario had its own unique elements, even distinct scents.

Qi Yan: “So, does that mean you exist on a higher level than this story? Those like you, summoned from talismans, along with items and skills are they all part of a higher-tier system within the storybook?”

Bai Qing had little patience for lengthy explanations, but one thing she cared deeply about. She emphasized sternly, “I do not belong to this storybook. I don’t belong to anything. Remember that, little one!”

Her tone was unusually serious. Qi Yan detected a clear resistance toward the storybook as if Bai Qing was drawing a line, separating herself from it entirely.

How strange. She had emerged from the divination slip, yet she was so resistant to the storybook… Qi Yan recalled her mentioning “seal” and “release.” It seemed she had been sealed within that divination slip, and by drawing it, he had broken the seal, subsequently forming a contract with her.

There must be more to this that he didn’t know… But Qi Yan understood she wouldn’t tell him now. Between them, there was nothing but the binding contract.

The newcomers’ conversation ended when the bald man left. Only after Qi Yan finished his silent exchange with Bai Qing did he realize he was alone in the room, the others had disappeared.

With less than twenty minutes left before the 1 o’clock meeting Sister Hong had mentioned, Qi Yan decided to stroll around the courtyard while waiting for her to assign the next task.

In the courtyard, only Huo Zheng and Tang Shanshan were present. Huo Zheng seemed to be inspecting something, while Tang Shanshan kept a few steps away. Qi Yan could tell, Tang Shanshan was too young and afraid of being left alone, and Huo Zheng’s reliable demeanor from the start made her feel safe enough to follow him.

Hearing footsteps, Huo Zheng turned first and nodded politely when he saw Qi Yan alone.

From Bai Qing, Qi Yan knew that aside from the bald man, the others posed no real threat, so he dropped his guard and prepared to exchange information about the storybook with Huo Zheng.

“That interruption earlier derailed things, but I still wanted to ask, how did you all end up here? Did you do anything unusual?” Since he was the one initiating the conversation, Qi Yan cut straight to the point.

“Unusual…?” Huo Zheng appeared to ponder, as if recalling his own experience, but Qi Yan knew he was just weighing whether to tell the truth.

Compared to the guarded Huo Zheng, Tang Shanshan was far easier to read. At Qi Yan’s question, her expression changed abruptly, and she began biting her nails.

Qi Yan gave her a curious look. “Did you think of something?”

Startled, Tang Shanshan bit her lip and stammered, ” I felt something was off the moment I heard this place was called Supernatural Storybook. Yesterday, I… I accidentally picked up a book with the same title, Supernatural Storybook. But, but…”

Qi Yan pressed, “But what?”

Tang Shanshan looked dazed. “But that book didn’t have a single word in it…”

Qi Yan nodded in understanding. A glance at Huo Zheng’s identical expression confirmed he’d likely had the same experience.

“So, our situations are probably similar?” Qi Yan volunteered, “I also flipped through a book called Supernatural Storybook.”

Huo Zheng rested a hand on his chin. “Same. Yesterday, I was at a bookstore and happened to see a copy on the shelf. I was curious about the contents, but when I opened it, there were no words.”

This Supernatural Storybook seemed to be everywhere, and everyone had encountered it differently yet all by sheer coincidence.

Qi Yan desperately wanted to know where this book had come from. His great-grandfather had kept it locked in a box… What was the deal with that? Why had his great-grandfather stored it away? There were other things in that box, too things Qi Yan hadn’t had the chance to examine yet.

There are too many unknowns and questions. Right now, she knows too little about this “Supernatural Storybook,” and it seems she’ll have to slowly uncover more truths in the future.

The most pressing matter at hand is clearly how to survive and escape this story alive.

Qi Yan saw Sister Hong stroll out leisurely, still holding that small red flag in her hand.

“Oh, you three are quite eager,” Sister Hong said as she stopped in front of them, stretching lazily. “Five more minutes, and we’ll set off on time.”

Huo Zheng carefully measured his words and took the initiative to ask Sister Hong, “What’s our itinerary for today?”

Since tourism was the main premise of this story, Huo Zheng’s question was undoubtedly within safe bounds. Sister Hong waved her little red flag and said, “We’re going to the folk culture street in town.”

Tang Shanshan looked up at the sky and cautiously asked, “With such heavy fog… we’re going shopping?”

“Yeah, why not?” Sister Hong smiled at her. “Because of the fog, we’ll just visit the folk street today. Tomorrow, we’ll start hitting other attractions. Hopefully, the fog will thin out by then otherwise, this trip would be a real letdown for you.”

Sister Hong had eerie eyes. When she stared at someone, her pupils seemed to turn completely black. Tang Shanshan only glanced once before lowering her head in fright.

Qi Yan stood quietly to the side, doing her best to minimize her presence.

Five minutes later, the remaining three arrived, the young couple still arm in arm as usual, while the bald man came out yawning alone.

Sister Hong raised an eyebrow and lifted her little red flag. “Alright, everyone’s here. Let’s get going.”

“Today’s first stop is the folk culture street of Baishui Town. Though it’s a commercial street, it includes a few important local landmarks, the Drum Music Altar, the Lu Family Ancestral Hall, and the Hanging Wooden Bridge.”

The six of them followed Sister Hong out of Cuilan’s guesthouse. Qi Yan glanced back and saw Cuilan sitting on a small stool in the shade, picking vegetables without even sparing them a look.

Baishui Town wasn’t particularly small. They had taken a shuttle bus when they arrived in the morning, and this time was no different. The six of them didn’t need a large vehicle, yet riding the shuttle in this town made their group seem pitifully small.

Their group of six felt more like a private tour, yet none of them knew each other, they had been haphazardly thrown together.

The shuttle bus took them from Cuilan’s place to the entrance of the folk street. Sister Hong led them inside.

The thick fog obscured their vision, and it wasn’t until they got closer that they could see the scene inside the street. To Qi Yan’s surprise, it was actually quite lively.

Though visibility was low, there were indeed many people, and it seemed like other tour groups were present as well. Qi Yan spotted more than one person holding small flags of various colors, some even wearing group hats likely for easier identification.

Only after entering this folk street did, they finally feel like they were here to “tour.” Qi Yan turned to look at the dense fog behind them, feeling as though the folk street and the world beyond the fog existed in entirely separate realms.

The ring on her left hand was eerily silent. Since Sister Hong had led them out, Qi Yan hadn’t heard Bai Qing speak for a while. The usually chatty person had suddenly gone quiet, which Qi Yan found rather strange, it almost seemed as if Bai Qing had truly gone to rest.

This folk street was clearly different from the outside world, filled with too much dissonance and an eerie atmosphere. Qi Yan instinctively clenched her left hand. She had to admit that Bai Qing was someone she had drawn from the novice summoning when she first arrived here. Though there were still many unanswered questions about Bai Qing, at this stage, she was Qi Yan’s only source of reliance. Whenever fear crept in, Qi Yan naturally sought her out for comfort.

She even felt the urge to touch the ring to soothe herself, but the thought that Bai Qing was sleeping inside it made the gesture seem too intimate. So, she simply tightened her fingers quietly, feeling the texture of the ring to draw solace from its presence.

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