Cats

This is genuinely horrifying—a different kind of horror from supernatural occurrences. Zhang Yuanqing silently muttered to himself as he looked at the skinned cat corpses hanging from the ceiling beam. Whether someone had snuck in or something had snuck out, neither boded well. Everyone exchanged silent glances, their eyes flickering with wariness and gravity. Only Lili Yuanshangcao broke from his quiet, melancholy demeanor, his face flushed with rage as he lowered his voice. "Such brutal slaughter of animals is unforgivable. I'll make her pay for this. Everyone, let's just kill Granny Wang directly." Zhang Yuanqing gave him a look and said, "Don't be rash. Granny Wang clearly has a storyline tied to her. Let's watch quietly and wait for the quest to trigger. Heh, speaking from my experience clearing two S-rank dungeons, thinking more and doing less is the secret to survival. "Because in S-rank dungeons, the margin for error is razor-thin. A single careless move could easily cost your life." Please Call Me Queen turned toward the Wood Demon youth, the two silver hoops on her earlobes swaying as she spoke. "The captain is right. The higher the rank of the dungeon, the fewer the hints, and danger lurks at every turn. It's not like the C-rank or D-rank dungeons we've run into before, where the quest requirements and rules are laid out plainly. "In a high-difficulty dungeon like this, one wrong step could wipe out the whole team." Li Chunfeng pondered for a moment, then said, "The opposite could also be true. Maybe killing Granny Wang right now would let us resolve an incident smoothly. Heh, it's just like Schrödinger's cat." Huode Xingjun paused, bewildered. "Who's Schrödinger? Did he like abusing cats too?" The knowledgeable Li Chunfeng froze, his mouth opening with an odd expression. After a brief struggle, he abandoned the idea of giving a lecture and said, "Something like that..." Huode Xingjun nodded, glanced at the room across the skywell, and seeing that Granny Wang had not yet emerged, whispered, "Have you guys thought about why cat corpses are hanging there instead of chickens, ducks, geese, sheep, or dogs? If it were those, maybe we could've grabbed a bite here." His question implied that there had to be a reason for hanging cat corpses—perhaps a clue provided by the dungeon. Speaking from the perspective of a Night Wanderer, Zhang Yuanqing offered his view: "These cat corpses carry yin attributes; they are yin-aligned materials. Drawing out their yin energy can nourish yin spirits, and they can also be used to refine zombies." Li Chunfeng added, "They can also be used to craft items, perform special rituals, conduct witchcraft, and so on." As they were speaking, the wooden door creaked open. Leaning on her walking stick, Granny Wang stepped out with a hunched back, carrying a brightly glazed white porcelain teapot in her hand. *** Meanwhile, Li Xianzong led his teammates along the roadside. Beside them ran a small river crossing the ancient town, spanned by slab bridges built from bluestone blocks. "What kind of godforsaken dump is this? Not a single person in sight, let alone pretty girls," grumbled a gaunt, middle-aged man, looking left and right. In one of the multiplayer Spirit Realms he had experienced in the past, the setting had been a midnight hotel where a cold-blooded serial killer was hidden, and the dungeon quest was to find and kill that powerful criminal. Many Commoners had lived in that hotel as well, completely indistinguishable from real people. While carrying out the quest, the middle-aged man had played around with many of the women staying there. Not a single Morality Point had been deducted. For evil professions, Spirit Realm dungeons were not only opportunities to level up and grow, but also havens to indulge wicked desires. They could do anything they pleased inside without paying any price. "Yinyang Town is a competitive Spirit Realm, not one exclusive to our professions, so there's no way it would offer an environment where you can do whatever you want," a bald, burly man said, sizing up the gaunt middle-aged man with a chuckle. "Before becoming a Witch Doctor, were you a rapist or something?" The gaunt man grinned lewdly. "Let's just say those security officers were too incompetent. What about you?" The bald, burly man said indifferently, "Murder! Li Xianzong, we've already spent eight minutes. If we still can't find the blacksmith shop, we're all done for." *Clang! Clang! Clang!* Just as he spoke, they faintly heard the sound of iron being hammered. Li Xianzong looked ahead, the corners of his mouth curling upward. "Aren't we already here?" His teammates were overjoyed. "You really guessed right! It's on this very street." "Guessed?" Li Xianzong mocked. "Use your pig brains. A blacksmith shop open for business wouldn't be hidden deep down an alley. High-temperature smelting requires proper ventilation, so deep courtyards and large compounds can be ruled out too. Quenching requires a massive amount of water, making the riverside the best choice. "Searching along the main road by the river was bound to turn it up." As he spoke, they halted before the blacksmith shop. A burly figure two meters tall stood with his head lowered, swinging an iron hammer to strike a piece of raw iron stroke after stroke. Li Xianzong scrutinized the man and asked, "Are you Blacksmith Wang?" The blacksmith slowly raised his head, revealing blood-red eyes. *** "Thank you, Granny." Zhang Yuanqing held his teacup, glancing at the Wood Demon youth. Lili Yuanshangcao took a gentle sip, then nodded slightly. Relieved, Zhang Yuanqing took a sip of the herbal tea. As a recovery caster, a Wood Demon was extremely sensitive to toxins. If there had been anything wrong with the water, it would not have escaped his notice. Guan Ya and the others either moistened their throats with a sip or cautiously refrained from touching their cups, contemplating how the next step of the plot would unfold. Then they heard their captain, Yuanshi Tianzun, ask with easy familiarity, "Granny Wang, why is there nobody in town? We walked all the way here without seeing a single soul." Granny Wang's aged voice spoke slowly: "The town used to be very lively. A few years ago, an incident occurred, and people gradually moved away from Yinyang Town." "Oh? What happened?" Zhang Yuanqing asked at once. *The plot is triggered...* Everyone immediately perked up. "Well..." Granny Wang seemed somewhat hesitant, pausing for a moment before saying, "Many years ago, out of the blue, the townsfolk began dying one after another. Their hearts and livers were carved out. Everyone was terrified, saying an evil entity haunted the town. The wealthiest man in town, Squire Zhao, went outside and hired a master. "Not long after arriving, the master caught the culprit. It turned out to be the descendant of Yinyang Sanren, secretly harming the townspeople and using their hearts and livers to refine pills. The villagers banded together with the master to eradicate the wicked woman. "Before dying, she cast a curse on the townsfolk, declaring that everyone would turn into cats." *A descendant of Yinyang Sanren...* Zhang Yuanqing exchanged a look with his teammates, then asked, "And then?" Granny Wang sighed. "At first, nobody paid it any mind. But gradually, more and more people went missing, and more and more cats appeared in town. Only then did everyone grow afraid. No one dared to stay in town any longer, and they moved away one after another." *This guy is quite good at striking up conversations.* Queen smiled as she glanced at Zhang Yuanqing, picking up the thread. "Then why didn't you leave, Granny?" Granny Wang shook her head. "I'm old. I didn't want to leave my home. With one foot already in the grave, I have nothing to fear from such things." The Wood Demon youth looked up at the skinned cat corpses hanging from the beam and asked in a deep voice, "Then why are you hanging these cats here?" Granny Wang said unhurriedly, "That was a method left behind by the master. He said hanging skinned cat corpses in the house would ward off the curse." The Wood Demon youth let out a cold snort. *Just a moment ago, she claimed she wasn't afraid of the curse.* Zhang Yuanqing asked again, "Granny, who was this Yinyang Sanren, and why did his descendant carve out people's hearts and livers to refine pills?" Granny Wang said with emotion, "Yinyang Sanren was an accomplished master of the Dao, said to be a godlike figure. Not long after founding this town, he ascended to become an immortal. That's what this old woman heard from her elders growing up, though I don't know if it's true or false. "His descendant remained in this town. Out of respect for Yinyang Sanren, everyone treated her with great deference. Who could have imagined she would commit such atrocities?" Zhang Yuanqing lowered his eyes in thought. *Why were Ming dynasty cultivators all so wicked? The temple master on Mount Sandao slaughtered his disciples, and Yinyang Sanren's descendant harvested people's hearts and livers to make pills.* "Was she the only descendant of Yinyang Sanren?" Zhang Yuanqing took another sip of tea. "Yes. Most of Yinyang Sanren's descendants died young. It was said that because one person ascended, the family's fortunes were entirely exhausted," Granny Wang said. *Yet in reality, Yinyang Sanren never ascended; his quest for eternal life failed... Could his descendant harvesting organs to refine pills be related to longevity?* As Zhang Yuanqing was pondering, he heard Guan Ya ask: "Granny, aside from us, have outsiders ever visited the town before?" Granny Wang looked at her and said eerily, "Yes." "Then what did they do here?" Guan Ya asked with a smile. Granny Wang hesitated. "This old woman doesn't remember..." The others did not understand why Guan Ya asked this, but Zhang Yuanqing and Queen froze, sinking into thought. They had read several walkthrough guides, none of which mentioned a curse. Furthermore, according to those guides, Yinyang Town had not been completely deserted—otherwise, how could players solve cases at the inn? *Is it because the dungeon constantly changes, offering different branch quests to each batch of Spirit Realm walkers?* *If so, will I still encounter the hidden quest mentioned by the Demon Lord? The branch he experienced must have been different from mine...* *If the hidden quest only triggers on one specific branch, that would be terribly frustrating and unfair.* *Never mind the hidden quest for now. What is the branch quest we triggered from Granny Wang? Breaking the curse?* With that in mind, Zhang Yuanqing probed, "Granny, is there anything you need our help with?" Granny Wang shook her head. Li Chunfeng, the Scholar, covered any missing angles and asked, "Granny, besides you, are there any other people in town?" Granny Wang considered it, then answered in her aged voice, "Besides this old woman, there are five others: Widow Xu on the west side of town; Squire Zhao, who lives in the town center in the largest mansion; Blacksmith Wang; "and the master hired by Squire Zhao, though I'm not sure where he lives." Chi'ou, the round-faced youth, blinked. "That's only five. Who's the other one?" Granny Wang looked at him and said, "The last one is this old woman's son..." Chi'ou said in surprise, "Your son? Where is he?" Granny Wang looked back toward the room she had just stepped out of, saying eerily, "He's right inside..." With that, she turned back toward the group. A bizarre smile spread across her wrinkled old face. "You'll see him very soon." For some reason, Zhang Yuanqing felt his heart sink instinctively. Immediately after, a terrifying scene unfolded before his eyes. Huode Xingjun, sitting opposite him, saw his pupils shrink into vertical slits, turning into emerald cat eyes. Thick, pitch-black fur sprouted across his cheeks, neck, and the backs of his hands. His mouth and nose pushed outward, and pointed cat ears grew atop his head. Within seconds, Huode Xingjun had transformed into a black cat fifty centimeters long. "Yuan... Yuanshi..." Zhang Yuanqing heard Guan Ya's trembling voice. Turning to look, he saw Guan Ya's face pale as she stared at him with an odd expression. *What is it...?* The words rose to his lips instinctively, but when the sound reached his throat, what came out was a high-pitched, drawn-out meow. A chill ran through him. He looked down at himself and saw hands covered in cat fur. An unspeakable terror surged within Zhang Yuanqing. He had not sensed anything wrong with his body at all. At the same time, the Wood Demon youth, the Earth Monster Chi'ou, and the Scholar Li Chunfeng underwent drastic transformations. Fur of various colors sprouted from their pores, their lips and jaws protruded, cat ears emerged from their heads, and their bodies rapidly shrank. Then came Guan Ya and Queen. "Meow, meow~" Meows rose and fell in succession. All seven had turned into cats of varying coats. Leaning on her walking stick, Granny Wang stood in the shadows, looking toward the room. In a raspy voice, she said, "Outsiders have finally arrived. Son, you couldn't wait any longer, could you?"