Nightmare Apostle

Chapter 1186: Chapter 797: River Immortal Village

"Run!" Imam Musa shouted, turning around and running, while Yang Xiao had already run over ten meters and was still accelerating.

The paper boat placed into the lake brought back a boatload of ghosts, which no one had expected. Everyone ran frantically, cursing their parents for not giving them extra legs.

"Don’t run randomly, don’t... don’t scatter!" Adila’s voice rang out, but as the Ghost Ship appeared, the scene was completely out of control.

By the time Yang Xiao had run a few hundred meters and looked back, there were no silhouettes behind him, only a messy forest shrouded in mist.

Faint rustling sounds came from afar, possibly teammates who had scattered while running, but it couldn’t be ruled out that it was the ghosts following them. Yang Xiao didn’t dare to gamble.

This batch of teammates was just barely competent. Even though they were scattered, no one shouted for a meeting.

After all, no one knew if what came to meet them would be a person or some ghostly thing.

Under such circumstances, everyone going their own way was the safest option, and to call out would only expose their location.

For his own safety, even if Yang Xiao really encountered a teammate, he would immediately flee.

Fortunately, though Yang Xiao was frightened by the Ghost Ship, he hadn’t panicked enough to run blindly. He roughly remembered the direction from which they came.

By identifying the scenery along the way, Yang Xiao returned alone to the starting point, climbed the ridge, and found another team that had stayed behind.

By then, someone had returned before Yang Xiao; it was Adila.

During the escape, Yang Xiao remembered Adila was almost at the back, but surprisingly, he was the first to return. This person indeed had some skill.

Soon after, two more people returned one after another: Musa and Aisha.

Now only the newcomer Shari had no news, and what Aisha said next almost foretold Shari’s fate.

"Those things came ashore. I tried to run with Shari, but she was too panicked and accidentally rolled down the slope. I couldn’t save her."

Aisha recounted calmly, without a trace of emotion, but these words sounded different to Yang Xiao; he suspected Aisha had caused Shari’s accidental fall.

It’s unrealistic for one to outrun a ghost; one can only abandon a pawn to save the king. At a critical moment, Aisha pushed Shari down the slope and escaped herself.

"You need not blame yourself. Allah will bless that poor child," Imam Musa said timely, easing the awkward atmosphere.

Abandoning a novice to save an experienced player was a profitable exchange; no one objected, except Shari herself.

Adila picked up a thick tree branch, broke off the extra twigs, and made a hiking stick to probe the way, "Save the chatter for later; those ghostly things are still in the mist. Let’s leave here first."

Shari was abandoned, and the group of 11 quickly set off, moving away from this place of trouble.

The direction Adila chose was purposeful, heading toward where the people carrying the paper boat had come from.

Those people were probably nearby villagers. Following the direction they came from, they could find the village.

But contrary to their wishes, enshrouded in mist, they soon lost their sense of direction, and Adila had no choice but to lead the group to camp on a mountain top.

The mountaintop was cold and inconvenient for lighting a fire for warmth, not an ideal resting place. Along the way, they passed many caves that were sheltered from the wind and convenient for lighting a fire, but everyone ignored them.

No other reason, they feared encountering those ghosts, trapped inside and slaughtered. freeweɓnøvel.com

Leaving a few people to keep watch, the others took turns resting; it was destined to be a sleepless night.

Yang Xiao, Adila, and the others, having just survived a near-death experience, were given priority to rest. Yang Xiao chose a spot with a good view, leaning against a large tree. He didn’t dare to sleep but closed his eyes occasionally to rest, ears perked, constantly attentive to nearby movements.

Frames of images kept appearing in his mind. The villagers were strange; looking at them running after putting down the paper boat, they knew danger would soon follow, that the paper boat would bring back a boatload of fierce ghosts. Yet, they insisted on doing so. What was their motive?

Also, what was that isolated island in the lake, and how was it related to the Painted Woman?

The mission had just begun; with too few clues, there was no point in overthinking. Yang Xiao breathed deeply, adjusting his state.

Recently, he had been too tense, and his body had not fully recovered to its peak.

He didn’t know how long had passed when Yang Xiao, in a half-asleep state, was awakened by a commotion. When he opened his eyes, he saw everyone getting up, looking in the direction behind him. Yang Xiao startled awake, almost jumping up on the spot.

However, when he followed everyone’s gaze, he realized it was already dawning. The mist was being slowly dispelled, revealing a village at the foot of the mountain.

No, it wasn’t a village. As the mist receded, the extent of the buildings at the mountain’s base continued to expand.

This was a town. The buildings, though old and dilapidated, covered a large area, and at the town center was an oddly pointed building like a temple.

Once they saw people moving in the town, Yang Xiao and the others descended the mountain. Judging by the direction, that group carrying the paper boat had departed from this town.

Yang Xiao and the others were guests invited by the Worldly Alms Bowl, likely related to the temple in town.

To minimize unnecessary losses in the early stages of the task, Yang Xiao generously shared some of the information he had learned.

Indeed, upon discovering the usefulness of this outsider Yang Xiao, everyone’s attitude towards him became considerably friendlier.