Nightmare Apostle

Chapter 1246: Chapter 828: Hidden Ghost Cave

Yang Xiao jumped in shock, spinning 180 degrees on the spot, but no matter how he looked around—left, right, behind, or near his shoulders—there was nothing there.

Yet, the sensation and the aromatic mist wouldn’t deceive; there definitely was something, just something invisible to the naked eye.

His thoughts raced quickly; in this mission, the Ghost typically used shadows to kill, so Yang Xiao immediately looked at the walls and floor to check the shadows.

Unfortunately, the environment was too dark to see anything clearly, and there was no time to worry about the female ghost outside. Boldly, Yang Xiao took out a candle and lit it.

As soon as the candle lit up, everything became crystal clear. The shadow appeared, and it made Yang Xiao gasp because his shadow had grown considerably, as if two people were overlapping.

A fat, swollen shadow was riding on the shoulders of his shadow.

Yet the candlelight had an unexpected crucial effect; the bloated ghostly shadow was forced to retreat, jumping off Yang Xiao’s shadow.

Seeming to have discovered something, Yang Xiao approached the ghostly shadow with the candle experimentally, pushing the ghostly shadow into a corner; it attempted several times to break free but was pushed back by the candlelight.

Yang Xiao realized the ghostly shadow wanted to escape, towards the direction of the door.

While confining the ghostly shadow with candlelight, Yang Xiao returned to the back of the door and peered outside through the gap; the female ghost continued her previous posture, but her face seemed a lot grimmer, and she was drenched.

Through the confrontation with the ghostly shadow, Yang Xiao also discovered some patterns: though candlelight could restrain and force back the ghostly shadow, it couldn’t destroy it.

Moreover, as the candle approached the ghostly shadow, its burning speed would increase.

Aside from the half-stick of candle he was holding, Yang Xiao had a full candle. Fortunately, he had prepared ahead; during a previous mission, he took an extra stick, knowing most teammates only had one stick or half a stick of candle.

Burning out the candle means death, so breaking out now offers a sliver of hope. Plus, Yang Xiao was quite curious about the appearance of the female ghost outside, as if her soul had been extracted, leaving only an empty shell.

Yang Xiao summoned his courage and opened the door, subconsciously holding his breath. After a few seconds, he finally exhaled in relief; his guess was correct; the female ghost outside didn’t react at all and still stood in place.

And as the candlelight shone, Yang Xiao noticed the female ghost left no shadow on the ground.

Then it was clear—the ghostly shadow trapped in the room by the candlelight was actually the female ghost’s shadow.

Taking it further, these ghosts all used shadows to kill, and once a shadow leaves the body, the body becomes an immobile shell.

Yang Xiao approached the female ghost’s body, shocked to see her appearance had changed; her face was bruised, her lips purple, and sticky black foam spilling from her mouth showing clear signs of poisoning.

These village people weren’t drowned by flood; they were poisoned! freewebnovёl.ƈom

Yang Xiao immediately linked it to the tavern boss who delivered wine, realizing that someone had poisoned the wine in advance. It was unlikely to be the tavern boss who did it; it should be the so-called "High Monk."

To kill all the people in the village, these "High Monks" first poisoned the beverages, killing the villagers, and then stole the murderous ghost, Painted Woman.

Finally, they blew up the earth dam, using the flood to cover up all their sins; what a cunning ploy.

As for the sole witness, the tavern boss obviously couldn’t be left alive; Yang Xiao reckoned the "High Monks" also killed him to silence him.

This place was not safe to stay long; Yang Xiao held the candle and left the woman’s house. He first watched through the back door for a moment, confirming there were no abnormalities nearby, then he opened the door and left.

Before leaving, Yang Xiao made some preparations. He broke off the candle he was holding, leaving a small piece that could burn for several minutes, and lit it, leaving it at the door of the room.

With the candlelight holding it in check, the ghostly shadow trapped in the room wouldn’t break free for a while, allowing Yang Xiao to escape during this time.

Leaving the woman’s house, Yang Xiao clearly knew his direction. After briefly distinguishing his bearings, he immediately ran towards the back mountain.

That was the direction the female ghost had repeatedly forbidden, saying there was a Demon Cave in the back mountain, being the lair of those ghostly entities.

Yang Xiao didn’t believe it. He knew the back mountain certainly held a secret, very likely linked to the murderous ghost, Painted Woman. What the female ghost truly worried about was this.

He didn’t have any other destinations now, so he might as well go to the back mountain and try his luck, perhaps he could find his two teammates, Datu Supa.

Speaking of these two, Yang Xiao was angry; these two guys were too disloyal, seeing him in danger, they ran off without a word.

If it were Yang Xiao, at least he would try to think of a way to help. After all, there’s only three of them; losing one means one less, and every life is precious.

And maybe they didn’t know, Yang Xiao was spiteful; if he were really killed by Aisha, the ghost he becomes would certainly chase and kill Datu and Sopa mercilessly, even more diligently than the Painted Woman.

Yang Xiao chose some concealed routes to walk, avoiding the village.

This place seemed dead silent but given the encounter with the female ghost, perhaps every household here had "people" within, and he should avoid them if possible.

On the way, to avoid exposure, he didn’t light the candle, choosing routes with slightly better lighting where he could see the shadows on the ground.

Looking up, the sky here was gray, without starlight; only a cold moon hung in the night sky.

The moon seemed very fake at first glance, like a paper-cut painting forcibly pasted in the night sky, and at this moment the nearby fog gathered, leaving only a corner of the moon.