Chapter 4: Earthbound Spirits

The parking lot on the second basement level was vast.

Li Yi walked alone on the muddy ground, his whole body tense and alert to his surroundings.

"Knowing full well that this place is haunted and many have died here, these people still insist on acting alone. It looks like they've already decided to bet their lives on this. That crow really knows how to dangle a carrot. Who can resist that?"

"Initially, they just wanted to take a chance to earn a few thousand bucks, but now they're willing to risk their lives. Even I can't resist the urge to search for extraordinary items under these circumstances."

"After all, such opportunities might only come once in a lifetime. Everyone is desperate to improve."

As Li Yi wandered around, lost in thought, he used his flashlight to search the area.

The flashlight's beam was limited, and the search was further complicated by the abandoned buildings and load-bearing pillars blocking his view.

The most crucial issue was that Li Yi didn't even know what he was looking for.

Because he didn't recognize extraordinary items.

"While there's no immediate danger, I'll take a casual look around and then head back. I shouldn't go too far and get lost. Earning some money this time is enough for me. I'm not going to risk my life for an uncertain extraordinary item. What others do is their business."

Li Yi calmed down a bit and slowed his pace.

After walking a little further, he felt he had covered enough ground and decided not to go any deeper.

He swept the flashlight around; if there was nothing unusual, he would head back.

But soon, Wei Li's voice came from the darkness not far away.

"I think I've found something over here. I don't know what it is, but it feels unusual. If you're interested, come over here."

"You found something? Great, I'm coming," Wang Hu responded.

Zhang Kaiwen added, "Wait for me, I'm on my way."

Several beams of light began converging in one direction from the darkness.

"They're not far. I'll go check it out. If I don't get any intel, I probably won't get paid." Li Yi thought for a moment and, out of curiosity, moved closer.

Soon, the group converged in one area.

Although they were all far apart, their flashlights were pointed in the same direction.

It was a slightly raised burial mound, but it seemed to have been dug up long ago. Fragments of gravestones were scattered around, along with some sacrificial items. The damaged grave was peculiar, not something of this earth, more like—

"Is that just my imagination?"

Li Yi shook his flashlight towards the mound and noticed a halo surrounding it. But when the flashlight beam moved away, the halo vanished into the darkness.

"It's not an illusion; something is definitely different there."

His heart, which had calmed down, started pounding again.

Could that be the extraordinary item they mentioned?

He wasn't sure.

But it wasn't far, and a closer look would reveal the truth.

However, he wasn't the only one with that thought.

At that moment, everyone tacitly refrained from acting rashly because Wei Li's flashlight wasn't pointed at the mound but at the surrounding ground.

Around the mound, eerie, mud-covered arms of the dead emerged from the ground, twisted and deformed, looking extremely eerie. The closer one got, the more numerous they became. Even more horrifying was the vague sight of something—

"No wonder Wei Li didn't dare go forward."

Li Yi's heart tightened. He had a premonition that if they stepped into that area, they would face unimaginable terrifying attacks.

If an accident happened, their survival chances as ordinary people would be very slim.

So Wei Li wasn't kindly notifying them but needed others to test the danger.

"The way is right in front of us. The risk is high, but so is the reward. It's up to you how to choose."

Wei Li, while wiping his glasses, said slowly, "If you turn back now, getting the remaining hundred thousand shouldn't be a problem. Just think carefully before making a choice."

The group fell silent, each lost in their thoughts.

The tall woman was standing in an abandoned room, eyes closed, motionless.

She had maintained this posture for some time, and now a faint smile appeared on her lips. "They've indeed safely reached the core area. I can determine their location from the disturbances I sense, and so far, not one of the five has died, which means they haven't attracted the attention of any vengeful spirits."

"Since they haven't activated their medium abilities, they can't see the vengeful spirits, so they won't be attacked. For those of us who have stepped into the realm of cultivation, our eyes can see many things ordinary people cannot. As soon as we enter the first basement level, we are assaulted by numerous vengeful spirits, and if we recklessly charge into the second basement level, we'd meet a terrible fate," said the Crow in a low voice.

"Just thinking about the countless fierce spirits lingering around those five makes my hair stand on end. Yet, sometimes I envy them. If you can't see it, it doesn't exist; if it doesn't exist, there's no fear. Otherwise, they wouldn't have reached the core area so easily—they'd have been scared off long ago," the tall woman continued. "Avoiding unseen vengeful spirit attacks is just the first step. However, the things there are not simple; they've already formed earthbound spirits. Getting close will result in a gruesome death."

"These people are very savvy and cautious. They won't recklessly approach. They'll probably just take a look from a distance and then leave after snapping a photo," Crow mused.

"That works. With just one photo, I can pinpoint the exact location. Then I'll gather a few friends and make a swift move to retrieve the item," the woman said. Suddenly, she let out a surprised sound.

"What is it?" Crow asked.

The woman abruptly opened her eyes and said, "Damn it, Wang Hu is trying to snatch something from the earthbound spirit. His actions have triggered a violent reaction from all the souls in the area. We can't stay here any longer. We need to leave this building, or we'll be affected too."

"Those five are as good as dead," Crow's face changed slightly.

The two quickly evacuated the danger zone, instructing their subordinates to keep their distance.

Meanwhile, on the second basement level of the parking lot.

Wang Hu charged forward, leaping and landing precisely on a spot. Normally, his body would have sunk into the mud, but it didn't because he landed on a car buried under the mud.

The car became his stepping stone, allowing him to approach the lonely grave quickly.

Even though he had thought of this method, his actions triggered a series of terrifying reactions.

"Ah! Ah!"

Painful wails began to echo in the darkness. Twisted, grotesque corpses started writhing in the soft mud, their mouths open in agony, creeping towards Wang Hu. The muddy arms started swaying like weeds in the wind.

"What the hell are these things?"

The scene was terrifying.

Wang Hu leapt forward again, avoiding a horrible arm reaching out from the mud. This time, his luck ran out; he landed in an empty parking space with no car beneath the mud.

Half of his tall body sank into the mud instantly.

His movements slowed, and the corpses in the mud wriggled and struggled towards him. Within seconds, Wang Hu was surrounded by these terrifying things, seemingly about to be dragged into the mud and completely swallowed.

"Move, damn it, move!"

He roared, muscles tensing as he summoned unimaginable strength driven by a powerful survival instinct.

Wang Hu broke free from the mud's grip, quickly climbing onto a nearby car's roof.

But the danger wasn't over. More corpses were converging on him.

At this moment, Wei Li moved. He stepped through the soft mud as fast as he could towards the lonely grave.

The corpses in the mud were all drawn to Wang Hu, giving him an opportunity.

"My life is worthless. If I don't fight now, when will I?" Zhang Kaiwen immediately took off his shoes, trying to cross the dangerous ground ahead.

The three of them were gambling with their lives.

"Go or not?"

Li Yi was thinking rapidly. He was tempted because the path ahead had cars as stepping stones, and the corpses in the nearby mud were drawn away by others.

He was confident he could cross the dangerous area and reach the lonely grave.

But that was it.

He didn't know if there was more danger in the grave, if there was an extraordinary item, or if he could return safely. He didn't think about it.

Because the next moment, he also rushed out.

"I want to improve too!"