As Zhong Li had predicted, the sedan chair paused briefly in the woods. Under her cover, Zi Er had already escaped towards the south.
Zhong Li, now disguised as Zi Er, sat on the couch, serving as the sacrificial offering for the Moon Goddess Cult this month.
The leading cult members were cautious. They ensured the person inside the sedan chair was still there before continuing their journey.
Zhong Li peeked through a gap in the sedan chair’s curtains. She recognized the location as the place where the Goddess had previously bestowed medicine.
Half an hour later, the sedan chair turned at the next intersection and headed towards a spot in the woods illuminated by candlelight. Zhong Li secretly tossed out some items she had prepared along the road.
“The person has been brought?” a voice inquired from outside as the sedan chair landed.
“Yes, they are inside.”
As soon as the reply finished, the curtain of the sedan chair was suddenly yanked open. Zhong Li was momentarily blinded by the incoming firelight and instinctively shielded her eyes.
“The usual spot! Everyone is ready, just waiting for the sacrifice.” The person inspecting the sedan chair pointed to a small hill behind him.
“Alright!”
As soon as the acknowledgment sounded, the sedan chair was lifted again and carried towards the direction the person had indicated.
Zhong Li counted the time, estimating it had been about the duration of a tea ceremony. Suddenly, she felt a chilling gust of wind blow into the sedan chair, causing her body to instinctively shiver.
She quickly pulled aside a corner of the sedan chair’s curtain to look outside.
She hadn't noticed until she looked.
Upon looking, before she could even get a clear view of the scene ahead, a familiar exotic fragrance assaulted her senses.
She recognized the scent; it was the same as the bowl of water the Goddess had given her.
Zhong Li knew in her heart that she had reached their lair.
“Miss, we’ve arrived. Please proceed!” As the sedan chair settled, a voice sounded from outside.
Zhong Li glanced at the clothes she was wearing and touched the fake face she had made to resemble Zi Er earlier in the sedan chair. Assured that there would be no mistakes, she lifted the curtain and stepped out.
Simultaneously, two cult members, who had been waiting to her left and right, saw someone emerge from the sedan chair. Without a word, they each seized Zhong Li’s hands and escorted her towards a stone cave opposite.
Zhong Li did not resist, allowing herself to be led. As she entered the cave, the bright candlelight revealed a completely different scene.
However, this scene held no surprise, only horror. The exotic fragrance intensified at this moment, faintly accompanied by a pungent stench.
Zhong Li’s gaze fell upon a large pool within the cave. The pool was half-filled with corpses. All the bodies had been disemboweled, and the exotic fragrance emanated from the pool.
She then recalled the bowl of clear water the Goddess had bestowed upon her in Yuxian. She suddenly felt a churning in her stomach. Fortunately, she hadn’t drunk it.
“Scared?” one of the cult members escorting her asked, seeing her gaze fixed on the pool. He bared his teeth and sneered, “Don’t be afraid. Soon you’ll be one of them. Although… that’s a little way off.”
“What do you mean?” Zhong Li had barely finished asking when, as she drew closer to the pool and the corpses within became clearer in her sight, she realized that these corpses had all been turned into tanned corpses.
“Hurry up!” The person escorting Zhong Li pushed her forward.
Zhong Li’s thoughts were entirely consumed by the tanned corpses. Her footing faltered, and she stumbled, falling to the ground.
Coincidentally, a tanned corpse leaning against the edge of the pool had its head close enough to stare her in the eye.
“Ah!” She feigned a scream and tried to get up. However, perhaps her legs had gone weak, she flailed several times but couldn’t rise. She even fell more awkwardly, with one hand already submerged in the pool, stirring its contents.
“Quickly pull her up! This pool is not for living people to touch!” The person closest to Zhong Li saw this and immediately warned the one near her.
That person reacted, hauled Zhong Li up, and said, “Stupid woman, be careful!”
After speaking, the person did not linger, half-carrying Zhong Li deeper into the cave.
The mountain cave was vast, with winding paths and multiple forks.
Zhong Li saw the person choose the rightmost path. Instantly, a strong smell of blood assailed her.
She frowned slightly, her expression looking unwell. Others might not have been as vigilant as her, but she knew only a slaughterhouse would have such a smell.
Red light flickered intermittently in the distance. Zhong Li felt that after only a few steps, another cave-like secret room appeared before her.
The walls of the secret room were carved with many ledges, densely packed with sealed jars and bottles. She recognized the jars; the internal organs of the Jin Cheng female corpse were also stored in such containers.
“We have business?”
As she surveyed the surroundings of the secret room, a voice sounded from the darkness.
Zhong Li snapped back to attention and looked towards the source of the sound.
A figure slowly emerged into the candlelight. The person wore a mask and a waxed cloth garment. The garment was covered in bloodstains, which seemed to have coagulated too much to be cleaned. Beneath the red, a yellowish hue appeared. Zhong Li knew it was human fat and decaying flesh.
“We’re here. Old man, the upper levels said you need to work faster. You haven’t dealt with last month’s person, and we’re short on medicine!” The person finished speaking and gave Zhong Li a forceful push.
Zhong Li fell to her knees in response.
“I know, I know! Always rushing, always rushing! Are you trying to hasten my death?” The masked man’s tone carried a hint of impatience, and he added, “After this job is done, I must ask the Cult Master for more money. I don’t even have money for wine.”
After speaking, he watched the two people who had escorted Zhong Li leave. He licked his lips, squatted in front of Zhong Li, and examined her closely. “Alas… another beautiful young woman, a true beauty. What a pity.”
He reached out to touch Zhong Li’s face.
Zhong Li gently turned her head away, dodging his hand.
The masked man’s movement paused. He then reached down towards Zhong Li’s chest.
Zhong Li again dodged easily, evading him.
“Heh heh!” Two strange chuckles emerged from behind the mask. The masked man slowly stood up and, looking down at Zhong Li, said, “Don’t worry, we’ll put on a show in a bit. Then you’ll know that if you want to live a few more days, you should learn to… be compliant!”
With that, the masked man turned and walked back into the darkness.
Zhong Li didn't know what he intended to do. She tried to look into the darkness with all her might, but the interplay of light and shadow rendered her efforts futile. It wasn't until a heart-wrenching woman’s scream echoed from the darkness that she finally saw everything before her.
The masked man, dragging a woman by her hair, slowly appeared in the light. The woman was naked and screamed, struggled, and begged for mercy. Tears had soaked her chest, washing away the blood and mud clinging to her.
“Please, let me go, let me go!” The woman was violently thrown to the ground. The stones beneath scraped her skin, but she paid them no mind, desperately crawling to the masked man’s feet to beg for mercy.
The masked man let out a wild laugh. The empty cave was instantly filled with his voice.
He crouched down, grabbed the woman’s hair again, forcing her to look him in the eyes and adopt a pitiful, fawning expression like a slave. Then, he turned to Zhong Li and said, “Watch. Women must learn to be obedient!”
As he finished speaking, his rough palm reached for the woman’s chest. With a piercing scream, the two began their most primal dance.
Bastard!
Zhong Li cursed inwardly. Her fingertips slid out the dissection knife she had hidden and began to forcefully saw at the ropes on her wrists.
The meteorite iron was exceptionally tough, but in an instant, the rope was cut. Zhong Li seized a pair of iron tongs hanging on the wall and charged towards the masked man.