Chapter 161 - 122: Vengeful Spirit, Corpse, NPC

After leaving the small island, Li Miao continued to sail along the channel marked out by the Dark Boundary.

The number of monsters appearing along the route didn’t decrease in the slightest—in fact, it was gradually increasing. Though they posed no real threat to him, they were endlessly annoying.

Fortunately, Li Miao hadn’t been sailing for long before he spotted a second island. The guidance of the Spirit Candle reappeared, pointing the way forward for him.

After reaching the island and once again lighting the Milestone Spirit Candle, Li Miao stood up, intending to explore this new place.

But as soon as he got to his feet, he froze, and his heart sank.

A figure was standing silently on the island’s shore, facing him.

Due to the pitch-black surroundings, he couldn’t make out the figure’s face at all, but thankfully, the game provided an information prompt.

[Island Vengeful Soul]

[Tier: Residual Ash]

[Level: 5]

[Talent: Soul Body]

[Skills: ?]

[Explanation: A vengeful soul born of congealed resentment that refuses to dissipate. It wanders this lonely island, gazes upon the living, and resents the injustice of its fate.]

After seeing this information, Li Miao actually breathed a sigh of relief.

’Gave me a scare. So it’s just a mob. I thought it was a real ghost!’

...Who knows what he considered a "real ghost" to be.

Seeing this, Li Miao grew a little bolder and walked right up to it.

The Island Vengeful Soul remained motionless, just standing there silently. Its grayish-white eyes were fixed on Li Miao, making his skin crawl.

"Have a taste of my lance!" Li Miao snorted.

He raised his lance, and a cold light flashed.

The Island Vengeful Soul’s spiritual form seemed to be affected by the cold aura. It flickered, then was forced to dissipate.

But even as it dissipated, its eyes remained locked on Li Miao.

[You have slain the Island Vengeful Soul]

[Acquired: Resentful Index Finger]

[Resentful Index Finger]

[Type: Special Item]

[Effect: Always points toward a mysterious location.]

[Explanation: Hatred and resentment have congealed into an index finger that points toward a certain location.]

’A Special Item? It’s probably something like a quest item.’

Li Miao pondered for a moment, then glanced at the index finger in his hand.

It was a cold, grayish-white, severed finger. The break was jagged, suggesting it hadn’t been cut, but ripped off a living hand.

In Li Miao’s hand, it seemed to have a life of its own, twitching and squirming until it pointed in a specific direction and fell still.

Li Miao placed it on the ground and turned it, but the finger moved again, reorienting itself to point in the same direction as before.

While finding it interesting, Li Miao also felt a chill run down his spine.

’This route is already oppressive enough, and now I have to deal with this crap...’

"Let’s just see how deep your resentment runs."

Li Miao muttered, picking up the finger and heading in the direction it indicated.

The finger was still pointing to a location on this same island. Li Miao quickly pushed through some dry, low-lying shrubs and arrived at his destination.

Illuminated by his Candlefire, Li Miao looked at the scene before him and frowned.

A desiccated, mummy-like corpse was tightly bound to a carefully crafted rack. Its body was covered in agonizing wounds, its fingers and toes had all been torn off, and its mouth had been crudely sewn shut with a needle and thread... The torturer seemed to have a particular loathing for the victim’s mouth.

Even so, the extreme agony of its final moments was still visible on its frozen face.

Its attire resembled that of a church cleric.

Furthermore, there were traces of other people’s activity all around. Some of the sand, bearing footprints, had even "solidified"—whenever Li Miao tried to disturb it, it would instantly return to its original state.

This was the place the Resentful Index Finger had been pointing to.

Li Miao recalled the appearance of the Island Vengeful Soul and realized the two were indeed very similar.

It seemed the Island Vengeful Soul had come from this very corpse.

"What is this... Don’t tell me it’s another one of those cult sacrificial rituals."

Li Miao wondered.

Just then, the index finger in his hand stirred again. It suddenly flew from his grasp, darted underneath the corpse, and after rummaging through the tattered clothing, it fished out a torn scrap of paper.

Li Miao stepped forward and picked it up.

[Acquired: Torn Paper Scrap (1)]

A scrap of paper, not only torn but also crumpled.

The vengeful finger soon began to move again.

It led Li Miao on a chase across the nearby beach.

Finally, after he had found eight scraps, the finger came to a halt, pointing toward a spot out at sea.

’Was the whole point of the finger just to lead me to these things?’

Li Miao was a bit surprised. After a moment’s thought, he laid the fragments out on the ground, preparing to piece them together.

But just then, the unexpected happened again. A voice rang out of nowhere.

"Hello there, mighty Knight..."

The speaker was using this world’s native tongue. Their voice sounded cheerful and hearty, but the tone held a hint of sleaze, creating a bizarre impression.

Hearing the sudden voice, Li Miao shot to his feet, brandishing his Frost Riding Spear as he warily scanned for the source.

He saw a person dressed in a wandering Warrior’s attire slowly walking toward him, half their face concealed by a hood.

"Who are you?"

Li Miao narrowed his eyes.

He couldn’t see any information on the fellow before him, just a single [?].

’...An NPC?’

’He couldn’t be with that Pottery Man, could he?’

This made Li Miao frown.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa... Easy now, mighty Knight, don’t get excited." Seeing Li Miao poised to strike with his Frost Riding Spear, the newcomer quickly raised his hands in a placating gesture. "I’m not your enemy, and I’m not a monster. There’s no need for any conflict between us..."

Although the newcomer’s voice was very strange, Li Miao found that he could unexpectedly understand him, which only made him more curious.

As he spoke, he lowered his hood, revealing a strikingly handsome and noble-looking face.

However, when combined with his slightly sleazy aura and manner of speaking, the effect was undeniably bizarre.

The man offered Li Miao a friendly smile.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Le Ti, and I’m a Firewood Gatherer." Without waiting for Li Miao to respond, he continued with an overly familiar enthusiasm, "You must be a Firewood Gatherer too, right? To think we’d run into each other here. It must be fate..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the information above his head changed from a question mark to [Le Ti].

Now, Li Miao was completely certain that the fellow before him was indeed an NPC.

However... Li Miao didn’t let his guard down.

This wasn’t the first time an NPC had appeared in Spirit Candle, and players had already discovered that not all NPCs were the same.

Some were weaklings like Ryan, some were dangerous like the Pottery Man, and others could even chat with players for extended periods, making everything feel incredibly real.

So, not all NPCs were necessarily friendly.

The last encounter with the Pottery Man had served as a wake-up call for all players.

After that player was remade, although their Level and stats didn’t change, they had lost most of their equipment—a devastating blow.

Li Miao, of course, had not forgotten this.

Therefore, his guard had been up ever since this NPC appeared.

For now, though, the guy didn’t seem intent on attacking. Either that, or he was plotting something.

"I am. How did you know?" Li Miao said impassively, lowering his Frost Riding Spear.

’When you’re out in the wilds, you make your own identity,’ he mused. ’Never mind just claiming to be a Firewood Gatherer; if I had a pot right now, I’d slap it on my head and call myself a Pottery Man.’

Seeing Li Miao seemingly relax his guard, Le Ti beamed. "On this dark road, warriors are always drawn to one another..."

"By the way, I don’t believe I’ve caught your name, esteemed Knight."

"Brother Wei," Li Miao said.

"Brother Wei? A strange name..." Le Ti’s smile faltered for a second but quickly returned. He pointed at the corpse. "Since we’re both Firewood Gatherers, I suggest we work together. What do you say?"

"This place is incredibly dangerous. One wrong move and you could die. It’s terrifying..."

Le Ti said.

"What kind of cooperation?" Li Miao asked.

"I suggest we share information and help each other through the hard times. How about it?"

’So he finally shows his true colors.’

Li Miao snarked internally. ’Looks like this guy is probably after my recent discovery. I wonder how long he was watching from the sidelines before showing himself.’

’This guy... he really doesn’t seem like a good person!’

But as a player, Li Miao wasn’t particularly afraid. He was more interested in seeing what kind of storyline this [Le Ti] might unlock.

"Is that so..." Li Miao stroked his chin, speaking as Le Ti watched him with an expectant gaze. "And what if I refuse?"

Le Ti’s expression froze for a moment, but he quickly resumed his smile. "Of course. You have every right to do so, Mr. Wei."

Li Miao smiled to himself. "Alright then," he said. "I agree. Let’s cooperate."

Le Ti was overjoyed at this. He was just about to offer a few pleasantries when he saw that Li Miao had already crouched down to examine the paper scraps.

Although the scraps were torn, they weren’t shredded to bits. Li Miao quickly pieced them together, matching the torn edges.

[Acquired: Shattered Advice Book]

[Shattered Advice Book]

[Type: Letter]

[Content: ...That well should never have been opened. Its blessing is a lie. In truth, it is an ill omen, a source of calamity that will lead to the destruction of the Kasa City State. Run, all who live in the Kasa City State...!]

[Explanation: A shattered book of advice, symbolizing a disagreement that has been taken to extremes.]

’Well... blessing... ill omen... Kasa City State...’

Li Miao mentally listed the keywords, thinking this was likely related to the situation on the peninsula.

"Excuse me..." Le Ti said, rubbing his hands together expectantly. "May I see what it says?"

Pulled from his thoughts, Li Miao looked up and nodded. "Sure."

With that, he stepped aside.