The Flower Of The High Mountain Turns Into A Cat And Is Picked Up By A Human Chapter 51
byThe first to speak was Qiu Dongyang.
Qiu Dongyang gave a wry smile, which quickly turned resolute.
“I want to know exactly what caused me to fall victim to this, so I choose to continue forward.”
Bai Chendeng glanced at him with slight surprise, his lips curling almost imperceptibly, and stated his opinion: “Continue forward.”
Che Deze’s brow had not relaxed: “Continue forward.”
Shen Lezhi looked at Shi Hong.
Shi Hong flicked the disconnected camera on his chest: “Field reporters never retreat. I choose to continue forward.”
Shen Lezhi shrugged: “I don’t think I need to say it, Captain Sang.”
Sang Qiwei nodded slowly, looking at everyone, unable to hide his admiration.
“Although this isn’t the first time I’ve seen a situation like this, every time I’m reminded that there are no cowards in our Administration.”
He distributed the fruit liquid to everyone. They looked at the crimson, blood-like juice with solemn expressions.
Shen Lezhi spoke: “I’ll take it first. If something goes wrong, it won’t catch us completely off guard.”
Sang Qiwei didn’t argue: “Good.”
Shen Lezhi swallowed the red liquid directly.
The taste was a complex mix of sour, sweet, and astringent, no different from ordinary wild fruit.
“How do you feel?”
Shen Lezhi sensed carefully: “I don’t feel anything… huh?”
He looked around: “Something seems wrong.”
“What?”
In Shen Lezhi’s field of vision, the surroundings had completely changed.
Strands of golden thread appeared on the dark tree trunks, and some leaves had been dyed gold. On the ground, the golden threads spread everywhere, like mycelium.
He pulled up Qiu Dongyang’s trouser leg and saw that fine golden threads had already climbed onto Qiu Dongyang’s legs and feet.
Shen Lezhi: “There are golden threads everywhere—on the trees, on the ground, and on Dongyang’s legs. Hand me the mirror.”
Sure enough.
“These golden threads have appeared inside my mouth too.”
“What the hell is this thing!”
Qiu Dongyang looked bitter: “I was passively infected, so I can’t see the golden threads. Do I have to be actively infected to see them?”
“It seems so.”
After waiting a few minutes, no further abnormalities appeared on Shen Lezhi. Shi Hong swallowed hard and drank the liquid as well.
Golden threads appeared in his mouth, just like Shen Lezhi’s, and presumably in his stomach too.
“We’re essentially taking poison voluntarily.”
Sang Qiwei patted his shoulder: “Don’t worry, truly poisonous things wouldn’t be this gentle.”
Soon, all five people saw the reality.
Except for Bai Chendeng.
Bai Chendeng held the red liquid tube, looking hesitant.
Oh no, the Great Demon’s passive rejection mechanism was at work; this method wouldn’t work on him.
Sang Qiwei circled him once, his gaze seemingly radiating heat, making Bai Chendeng slightly uncomfortable.
“Mr. Bai, I might have a solution.”
“Go ahead and use it.”
Having received approval, Sang Qiwei took a packet of talismans and a capsule-shaped shell from his bag.
“Mr. Bai, if I may ask, what food do you like to eat?”
Bai Chendeng blinked: “What?”
Sang Qiwei smiled: “Don’t mind me. This method requires you to recall the taste of your favorite food from the bottom of your heart. The more you like it, and the more detailed the memory, the better.”
As he spoke, he placed talismans on Bai Chendeng’s throat, chest, and abdomen, and lightly pressed several acupoints on his body with his fingers.
Bai Chendeng was confused by this series of actions but chose to trust him, opening his mouth to say: “I like… light, light flavors…”
Sang Qiwei interrupted him: “Mr. Bai, it’s best to succeed on the first try. You must think clearly.”
Bai Chendeng fell silent.
He closed his eyes, his eyelashes trembling slightly: “I like the food he cooks. It doesn’t have overly strong spices. Whether it’s soup, rice, dishes, or desserts, I like it all…”
Sang Qiwei handed the capsule containing the liquid to Bai Chendeng. Bai Chendeng put it in his mouth and surprisingly found that the capsule had transformed into the taste of the food he was thinking of.
Sang Qiwei prompted: “It’s best to focus on one specific food, Mr. Bai, quickly!”
Bai Chendeng resignedly said: “Pudding, sweet. I like it very much.”
So, sweet pudding appeared in his mouth, soft, fragrant, and sweet, sliding down his throat.
Bai Chendeng closed his eyes, feeling the sweetness continue to spread in his mouth, and unconsciously exhaled a fragrant, sweet breath.
When he opened his eyes again, everything around him had changed.
He pursed his lips: “It worked.”
Sang Qiwei was delighted: “Good, I’ll take the talismans off now.”
As he put the items back into his backpack, Shen Lezhi quickly winked at him and jutted out his chin.
The implication was—you didn’t tell him he didn’t need to speak out loud, just think it in his mind?
Sang Qiwei gave a knowing smile—teasing the cat was quite interesting.
Who was this “he” referring to?
Everyone present knew the answer.
They had long heard that Captain Heng was an excellent cook. It seemed to be true, since even a Great Demon couldn’t forget his cooking.
Tsk, what good fortune. There were benefits to keeping a cat, like having him travel thousands of miles to rescue you when danger struck.
The golden threads were rooted in every visible plant and the soil.
They continued forward, guided by the golden fuzzball.
Along the way, the number of glittering golden leaves increased, while green and dark brown gradually diminished. The golden light was so pervasive it almost dazzled their eyes.
Bai Chendeng suddenly stopped.
Che Deze quickly asked: “What is it, Mr. Bai?”
Bai Chendeng extended a finger, pointing toward a dense cluster of golden plants to the front left.
“There.”
Sang Qiwei frowned and went to investigate. He pushed aside the grass and leaves, revealing what lay beneath.
It was a shriveled, golden corpse.
Sang Qiwei paused, and a wave of sadness washed over him.
“Zhu Yongfeng, confirmed dead.”
Shen Lezhi stepped forward and pulled out the lush grass and leaves that had grown by absorbing nutrients from the corpse. He said in a hoarse voice: “Little Zhu, rest well.”
Zhu Yongfeng—a member of the second missing team.
After marking Zhu Yongfeng’s body, they continued onward.
At some point, the trees gradually decreased, and strange flowers and exotic grasses noticeably increased.
“Medicinal herbs, mushrooms, flowers… everything is here. It’s like a paradise, if it weren’t all golden.”
“It’s too cluttered.”
Che Deze frowned, trampling the overly dense flowers and grass underfoot, which surprisingly made the sound of hard material shattering.
Sang Qiwei comforted them: “Since we can see these things now, we’re not far from finding the missing teammates and discovering the culprit. Be extra careful, and don’t let down your guard.”
“Yes!”
Silence.
Every living thing here had turned golden. There was no wind, no sound.
They encountered the body of the second missing person.
After marking it, they continued forward.
The third body.
The fourth body.
The fifth body.
“They are all bodies from the second missing team.”
Che Deze frowned: “There are no signs of a struggle. They were trapped and killed alive.”
Sang Qiwei’s tone was flat: “I’m afraid that from the moment communication was cut off, it was already too late for us to leave.”
Shi Hong’s eyes dimmed.
“I wasn’t talking about you. Don’t take the blame yourself.”
“Understood.”
Bai Chendeng suddenly said: “Quiet.”
Qiu Dongyang was a beat too slow and nearly bumped into Che Deze.
No one asked why. Almost as soon as Bai Chendeng’s words fell, everyone stopped talking and moving.
Bai Chendeng cocked his ear to listen, his eyes emitting a golden-red light.
This entire space seemed frozen, with gold as the only dominant color.
He sensed carefully, then looked to the front right, startled for a moment, and said: “Over there, there is the aura of a living being.”
Shen Lezhi was surprised: “Is it friend or foe?”
Sang Qiwei urged: “We’ll find out. Go!”
Bai Chendeng led them to move quickly.
Soon, they found the source of the movement. It wasn’t an enemy, but an injured missing team member, barely clinging to life, with golden-red blood flowing from the wound on his chest.
Che Deze exclaimed: “It’s Jiang Xian! One of Captain Heng’s team members! From the first group that went missing!”
Rushing over, seeing that he still had a breath left, Che Deze’s face was a mix of joy and sorrow, like he was split in two.
The joy was that the person was still alive, and there was hope.
The sorrow was that his life was like a candle in the wind, about to be extinguished.
At this moment, facing the many colleagues who had come to rescue him, Jiang Xian, whose consciousness was restored after being fed the best medicine, opened his mouth and said: “Zzz…”
“What?”
—Go.
He meant to say go.
Bai Chendeng tried to move Jiang Xian’s arm and met no resistance. He didn’t believe that a person would be placed here without any restrictions, so he said to Che Deze: “Lift him up and see if there’s anything underneath him.”
Everyone present was too worried to think clearly.
After being reminded, they all exerted force, one person on each arm and leg, carefully lifting Jiang Xian. They found that his wound was a penetrating injury, and a thick root was connected beneath the wound.
They couldn’t act rashly. Jiang Xian was practically a living dead man, and his physical condition was too poor. Cutting the root and taking him away would only hasten his death.
The cruel truth was laid bare, leaving everyone speechless, filled with grief and indignation.
Bai Chendeng sighed.
“Killing the mastermind might bring a turning point.”
Sang Qiwei was the first to agree, pulling himself out of his sorrow: “Yes, now is not the time for lamentation.”
Shi Hong wiped the corner of his eye: “Even like this, he’s still thinking of telling us to leave. I really… sigh, I can’t hold it in.”
Qiu Dongyang patted his shoulder, offering silent comfort.
In this golden world, they discovered traces of human activity.
Perhaps left by Jiang Xian, or perhaps by other team members. In any case, following these traces, they tracked them down. After traveling for half an hour, Bai Chendeng sensed an anomaly.
He was not skilled in Earth遁 (Earth Evasion), but he had a clear perception of things underground. This was due to his uniquely clear Dao Body, which was half-restored to its innate state, making him a natural nemesis for spiritual entities.
Bai Chendeng remained calm, secretly listening to the breathing of the five people behind him. There was no abnormality, so he knew that perhaps only he had detected this spiritual entity.
The thing was moving through the soil like a swimming fish, with no movement on the surface.
The mist-like miasma returned.
Invisible, silent, gloomy, it swirled in everyone’s minds.
Their steps grew heavier, and the soil became softer.
Was there an anomaly?
No.
They were just tired.
So tired.
So tired.
So tired.
Just lie down and rest.
Bai Chendeng felt a strange aura climbing onto his legs and feet—the external manifestation of the Golden Stone Plague.
However, he allowed himself to be invaded by the thing.
He was waiting, waiting for an opportunity.
An opportunity to defeat this thing in one fell swoop.