Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 950 - 943: Haunted Tomb

Chapter 950: Chapter 943: Haunted Tomb

"I’m not blaming you," Luo’er said with a bitter smile, waving his hand before continuing to ask, "Was there really no one at the camp when you went down for reconnaissance?"

"Yes," Fulajie’er responded.

"Did you check the tents?" Luo’er asked.

"No," Fulajie’er answered, hesitating a little guiltily before honestly replying, "I just took a round through the campsite and then came back to report. I didn’t go inside the tents because, because..."

"Because what?" Luo’er noticed her voice seemed to tremble more and more.

"I was scared..." Fulajie’er said, losing her composure.

"Scared, why?" Luo’er was puzzled, not understanding what could scare Fulajie’er, being a spirit body, like this.

"I can’t explain it, it just feels terrifying, and the closer to the entrance of that crypt, the more my heart races..." Fulajie’er said aggrievedly.

"Are you just afraid of the crypt? Don’t be scared, there’s nothing inside that can hurt you," Luo’er reassured her.

"No, that’s not it," Fulajie’er said urgently, "There is something, something inside, I can feel it, it’s terrifying..."

Her voice became more and more indistinct, and finally ended with a sob, then she didn’t speak anymore.

"Strange, Fulajie’er isn’t usually like this, what’s going on with her today?" Luo’er murmured to himself, looking down.

Baiyue listened quietly to their conversation, peering through the binoculars to survey the campsite. The covering of snow made the visibility quite good even at night, not so dark that nothing could be seen.

She noticed that the campsite seemed chaotic, the ground was full of horse hoof prints, and several horses lay in the snow, though through the binoculars no visible injuries could be seen on them.

The entire campsite looked like it had recently been inhabited, as a campfire was still smoking, a mug was placed on a bench in front of it, and several rifles were leaned against each other, forming a tower-like stack.

She put down the binoculars and thought carefully about Luo’er and Fulajie’er’s conversation. Suddenly, she seemed to think of something, then turned her head to ask Luo’er, "Luo’er, do you remember the scene when Fulajie’er first encountered Feng?"

"Uh, it should be..." Luo’er furrowed his brows, hesitatingly said.

"On the transport plane," Baiyue reminded him.

"Right, right, now I remember," Luo’er said, his brows furrowing even tighter, "Fulajie’er said it felt like there was someone on the ground nearby, and later it turned out to be Feng. Her domain is quite wide, so even before the plane landed, Fulajie’er’s domain had already intersected with hers..."

At this point, Luo’er’s expression became solemn and he looked at Baiyue, "You mean..."

"Yes," Baiyue nodded, "Through her domain, Fulajie’er can actually sense some strange things, things we mortals cannot feel. So I think if she is so scared, it might be because she sensed something unclean."

At her analysis, Luo’er took a sharp breath, involuntarily taking a cold gasp. After much thought, he turned to Axia and asked, "Aunt Axia, what do you know about this crypt?"

"Hmm, of course I do," Axia nodded, then calmly said, "That crypt is haunted."

"Haunted?" Hearing her words, both Luo’er and Baiyue widened their eyes, looking at her in surprise.

"Don’t underestimate the ghost in that crypt; it’s not benevolent. This creature is a killer. Since ancient times, who knows how many have died at its hands." Axia continued.

"How do you know there’s a ghost?" Luo’er asked curiously, he didn’t really believe in ghosts, to be honest.

"A piece of advice from an elder," Axia shrugged, "A Snow Elf elder was lucky enough to escape from here and shared his experience with us. Everyone with him died, only he made it back. After he shared his experience with us, he died under mysterious circumstances the next day."

"How did he die?" Luo’er pressed.

"You may not believe this, but he died from Magic Power Erosion," Aunt Axia shook her head, speaking with a grave expression, "Strange, isn’t it? A Snow Elf succumbing to Magic Power Erosion, given that the Elf Race has the highest tolerance for magic."

What Axia referred to in terms of tolerance to magic likely meant Magic Resistance, a facet of magical aptitude. The lower the resistance, the less damage the flow of magic caused to the body.

"In other words, during his lifetime he must have experienced a flow of magic through his body that was too much to bear, leading to severe Magic Power Erosion," Baiyue analyzed with a furrowed brow.

"Which means, this ghost could possibly use magic!" Luo’er nodded and said.

"With that in mind, its form becomes clear," Baiyue looked toward Luo’er and said, "Don’t forget, Fulajie’er fits such a description quite well."

"You mean to say, there might be a ’god’ like Fula inside that tomb?" Luo’er asked.

"I can’t be certain," Baiyue shook her head, then continued, "But if this speculation holds, then that ghost indeed could use magic to kill, because Fulajie’er learned her magic post-birth."

"Looks like we need to conduct a close-range reconnaissance," Luo’er said, frowning as he stared down at the camp below.

"Try not to go down now," Axia spoke up.

"Why not?" Luo’er asked.

"Because right now is when that fierce ghost is active, going down there is courting death," Axia said coldly.

"It can come out of the tomb?" Luo’er paused before asking incredulously.

"Of course," Axia nodded, then added, "Originally, one of my elders’ companions was killed outside. He was lucky to hide away and spent a whole day and night figuring out the ghost’s active period, which allowed him to luckily escape. Although, in the end, he didn’t survive."

"What do you think?" After hesitating for a moment, Luo’er turned and asked Baiyue.

"Better to believe it and be wrong than not believe and be right," Baiyue said calmly, "I know what you’re thinking, but if entities like Fula exist in this world, then it’s not strange for ghosts to exist either. Do not treat these matters as mere superstitious nonsense."

"Alright, I understand. I agree with you. Everyone, retreat and we will conduct reconnaissance after sunrise," Luo’er nodded and said.

"Yeah, let’s go," Baiyue nodded, then took a final look back at the entrance to the tomb, feeling an inexplicable sense of panic.

"Fula, scan the surroundings, ensure there are no anomalies, and then report back," Luo’er continued his orders.

"Understood," the voice of Fulajie’er came into his mind, still sounding very soft and sweet—as if she was still frightened.

"Don’t get too close to that camp when scanning. We’ll come back to investigate it ourselves tomorrow," Luo’er said considerately.

"I’m not scared!" Fulajie’er said with feigned toughness, clearly touched by Luo’er’s concern.

"Alright, alright. I know you’re not scared. Just focus on ensuring our safety; there’s no need to force yourself to go near the entrance of that tomb or the camp," Luo’er waved his hand, comforting her.

"I understand. Thank you, Luo’er," Fulajie’er’s voice conveyed gratitude.

The group returned to their own camp and briefly shared what they had discovered. Hearing the report of the three, Tangmo gave a "wow" and threw herself into Luo’er’s arms, speaking with a hint of panic, "Don’t scare me like that, ghosts and all, there are no such things as ghosts in this world."

"We also didn’t believe in ghosts, but considering Fula’s situation, so this ’ghost’ is very likely to be an existence similar to Fula," Luo’er soothed as he gently patted her head.

Watching the two being affectionate, Baiyue felt a bit uncomfortable, stepped forward to tug on Luo’er’s sleeve, then said in a quiet, aggrieved voice, "I’m scared too..."

"Er..." Luo’er wore an awkward smile, then stretched out his other hand to rub her head.