I transmigrated to a chaotic world and became the sole player.

The torrential rain poured down, the only sound in the world being the relentless crashing down, drowning out all other subtle noises. Lu Zhao, like a shadow blending into the night, left the silent house and returned to the rain. He didn't immediately venture into the heart of the village, but instead activated [Dragon's Hibernation] and [Breath Concealment Technique] again, suppressing his aura to its absolute limit. Like a stone washed by the rain, he silently circled the village's perimeter, carefully probing once more.

This time, he no longer relied solely on his mental perception, but also maximized his eyesight and hearing, combining them with the perception amplification brought by the [Refining Spirit Technique] to carefully search for every anomaly.

The sound of raindrops pattering on the eaves, the ground, and the leaves provided natural cover. Lu Zhao moved even more nimbly than a cat, hugging the base of the wall and using the shadows of the houses to his advantage. He started with the old locust tree at the village entrance. This locust tree, its age unknown, had gnarled and twisted branches that looked like a menacing ghost in the rainy night, yet it exuded no unusual aura. Beneath the tree were several stones, whitened by the rain, seemingly a place where villagers usually rested, nothing particularly special.

He turned towards the east end of the village, where several collapsed mud-brick houses stood, their walls crumbling—the most dilapidated place in the village. His spiritual energy slowly probed inside, sensing an extremely faint, almost vanished life force, along with a faint stench of decay. They were dead, and not just one. Lu Zhao didn't enter; he simply silently memorized their locations.

The rain poured down harder, plunging the world into darkness. Only the occasional flash of lightning illuminated the village's outline for a fleeting moment. Lu Zhao stopped in the center of the village. There was a small open space there, paved with bluestone slabs, washed clean by the rain. In the center of the open space stood a well, constructed of stacked stones.

The well was ordinary, with a small opening covered by a thick stone slab, leaving only a small hole exposed. A wooden stick stretched across the hole, from which a wooden bucket hung. In remote mountain villages, such wells were the source of life and the most commonplace things.

But Lu Zhao's brows furrowed tightly the moment he saw the well. Not because of the well itself, but because of the well cover.

On that seemingly ordinary stone slab well cover, a twisted, serpentine rune was drawn with some kind of dark red pigment, which appeared to be a mixture of cinnabar and something else! This rune was extremely similar to the ones he had seen in the plague mother's lair in Beiling Village and on the walls of the missing children in Lijia Village, only more complex and twisted, with an indescribable sense of evil and madness in the strokes!

"It's that symbol again!" Lu Zhao's heart skipped a beat. He immediately held his breath and pushed the [Refining Spirit Technique] to its limit. His mental power, like the most delicate tentacles, cautiously reached out towards the well.

The moment the mental energy touched the manhole cover, an extremely subtle yet cold, viscous mental fluctuation, carrying despair, pain, and madness, slithered out like a venomous snake along with the feedback from the mental energy! This fluctuation, though weak, was of extremely high quality, filled with pure malice, sharing the same origin as the aura emanating from the Plague Mother and that evil sorcerer's apprentice, but even more ancient, profound, and eerie!

[Abnormal mental fluctuations detected! Warning: Mental pollution!]

[Target: The contaminated/cursed well]

[Status: Emitting faint mental pollution; the source of the pollution is located inside the well. Pollution characteristics: malevolent, corrosive, nightmarish, drains life force.]

[Danger Level: Moderate! Prolonged exposure to or consumption of well water will lead to mental deterioration, loss of vitality, causing melasma, hallucinations, nightmares, and ultimately death from exhaustion.]

[Related: Suspected to be linked to an unknown evil god/demon ritual.]

Found it! The root cause lies in this well! Or rather, it's something in the well!

Lu Zhao immediately withdrew his mental energy, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead. The mere instant of contact had caused him a wave of dizziness; a chilling, nauseating aura seemed to be seeping into his mind through his mental energy. Had he not possessed the dual protection of the [Refining Spirit Technique] and [Dragon's Hibernation], and had not had mental attributes far exceeding those of ordinary people, he would likely have already been eroded!

"This well is the source of the plague in the entire village!" Lu Zhao instantly understood. The villagers, through drinking and using the well water, had been gradually corrupted by this strange source of pollution, contracting the bizarre "black spot disease," suffering from nightmares, and having their life force slowly drained away! Were the runes on the well cover a form of suppression? Or a mark? Or... some kind of evil magic array?

He suppressed his shock and carefully observed his surroundings. Around the well, several clumps of withered yellow weeds grew in the cracks of the bluestone slabs. Lu Zhao squatted down and carefully parted the weeds. In the cracks of the stone slabs, he discovered some dark red powder, like dried blood, and several black, tough scales that emitted a faint fishy smell! These scales were somewhat similar to the [Black Snake Sheath] he had obtained before, but their color was darker, and their aura was even more sinister!

It's a snake! Or rather, some kind of snake-like evil creature! There's something in this well! And it's probably connected to the snake-shaped runes, the Plague Mother, and that evil sorcerer! It might even be related to the "Black Fiend Cult"!

"The Black Fiend Cult... serpentine runes... a life-draining curse... Is this well a 'ritual node' for them? Or is this entire village a sacrifice they use to collect some kind of 'thing'?" Lu Zhao's mind raced, cold sweat instantly soaking his back. If that were the case, then Huai Mountain Village was a colossal trap! An altar providing "nourishment" for evil gods or sorcery! And the villagers were the sacrifices!

"This well must be destroyed, or sealed!" Lu Zhao immediately decided. Otherwise, the plague would continue, and might even spread! Moreover, the contents of the well must be determined!

But he didn't act immediately. The thing in the well, emanating such a sinister aura, was likely of a high level. Moreover, the runes on the well cover were clearly a seal or suppression; recklessly breaking it might unleash something treacherous. Furthermore, if this was truly a scheme orchestrated by the Black Fiend Cult, triggering it could immediately alert the mastermind. With his current strength, dealing with even a single "Poison Claw" would be difficult, let alone something of greater power.

"We can't force it. We need to figure out the situation in the well and the principle behind these runes first." Lu Zhao calmed down. He circled the well, examining it carefully. The well cover was thick, seemingly carved from a single piece of bluestone. The runes on it were somewhat blurred, but one could still sense a faint yet undeniable sealing power within it, completely opposite to the sinister aura in the well. These runes were meant to suppress the evil spirits in the well! But it seemed that due to its age, or some other reason, the suppressing power was weakening, causing contamination to leak out.

"Someone set up a seal to suppress the evil spirit in the well, but the seal is incomplete or has fallen into disrepair, causing pollution to leak and harm the villagers. Who set up the seal? Was it an enemy of the Black Fiend Cult? Or... did their own seal malfunction?" Lu Zhao speculated. But right now, the most important thing is to stop the pollution from spreading further and save the surviving villagers.

He thought for a moment, then took out three [Exorcism Talismans (Ordinary)] from his pocket, along with a small packet of realgar powder, and sprinkled them evenly on the cracks around the well cover and on the stone slab. Then, he carefully affixed the three [Exorcism Talismans] to three different locations on the well cover, forming a simple triangular talisman array. He dared not activate it directly, but instead used his mental power to guide the talismans' exorcism power, transforming it into an invisible barrier covering the well cover, strengthening the seal, and simultaneously purifying the surrounding polluted atmosphere. This was only a temporary solution, not a cure, but it could at least temporarily slow the spread of pollution and perhaps alleviate the villagers' symptoms.

Having done all this, he quietly retreated, finding a secluded spot under the eaves nearby to observe silently. Rainwater washed over the well cover, but the realgar powder and talismans on it remained unmoved. He could sense that the sinister aura beneath the well cover seemed to be slightly suppressed by the talismans' exorcising power, its outward dissipation slowed a fraction. However, the deep, unsettling fluctuations within the well persisted, like a sleeping venomous snake, poised to awaken at any moment.

"I must find a way to address the root cause, or at least, find a way to completely seal it away," Lu Zhao pondered. His own strength was limited. Perhaps he could try using the [Exorcism Talisman] to attack the well cover, forcibly opening the seal to see what was inside? But the risk was too great; if things got out of control, the consequences would be unimaginable. Or, should he go to town to find help? But there might not be anyone in town who could handle it, and it would easily alert the enemy.

Just as he was hesitating, at the edge of his mental energy, he suddenly caught a very slight, discordant sound.

Footsteps! Very light, very careful, seemingly trying to hide, but they were still impossible to miss under Lu Zhao's spiritual perception. The footsteps were coming from the direction of the village entrance, approaching the well! And there was more than one person!

Lu Zhao felt a chill run down his spine and immediately concealed himself completely in the shadows. He activated the [Dragon's Hibernation] technique to its maximum, reducing his breathing, heartbeat, and body temperature to the lowest possible level, making him as still as a real stone.

A moment later, two thin figures, wearing straw raincoats and bamboo hats, crept furtively from the village entrance along the wall towards the well. They moved slowly and cautiously, glancing left and right frequently, as if hiding from something, or perhaps... afraid of something.

By the occasional flash of lightning, Lu Zhao could make out the face of one of the men—it was the old man who had opened the door earlier! The other man was a middle-aged man who was also thin and bony, with dark spots on his face. He was weak and listless, but his eyes held a sickly fanaticism.

What are they doing at the well? It's the middle of the night, and it's raining so hard.

The two men approached the well, first cautiously looking around to make sure no one was watching. Then, the old man took a small, black, roughly made clay jar from his robes and tremblingly handed it to the middle-aged man. The middle-aged man took the jar, his eyes burning with even more fervor. He walked to the well, carefully pushed open a corner of the well cover, revealing a gap just large enough for the jar to pass through.

Instantly, a nauseating, cold, and foul stench, several times stronger than before, mixed with water vapor, emanated from the well! Even though Lu Zhao was still some distance away, he felt dizzy and almost had his mind overwhelmed by the aura! He quickly activated the [Refining Spirit Technique] and [Dragon Sleep] to barely stabilize himself.

The middle-aged man seemed accustomed to this, or perhaps blinded by fervor. Without hesitation, he aimed the jar at the crack, muttering incantations, as if in prayer or a spell. Then, he abruptly tilted the jar, pouring out a dark red, viscous liquid with a strong, foul odor into the well!

It's blood! Fresh blood! And it carries an... ominous aura!

"They're...performing a ritual? Feeding the creature in the well with blood?!" Lu Zhao was horrified. No wonder the old man dared not reveal the truth! This village wasn't just passively victimized; someone was actively feeding the evil creature in the well with fresh blood! They were performing some kind of wicked ritual!

As blood dripped into the well, the sinister aura within seemed to stir for a moment, as if greedily sucking it in. The serpentine runes on the well cover also seemed to glow slightly before dimming again. The middle-aged man bleeding instantly turned even paler, his body swaying as if he could barely stand, but the fanaticism in his eyes burned even brighter.

The old man watched from the side, his body trembling even more violently, his eyes filled with fear and... numbness.

The ceremony ended quickly. The middle-aged man covered the well, carefully put away the empty can, and exchanged a glance with the old man. Both of them had deep weariness and fear in their eyes. Then, they tiptoed back along the same route.

Lu Zhao hid in the shadows, watching their departing figures, his heart filled with turbulent emotions.

This Huai Mountain Village is far more complex than he imagined! An evil entity dwells in the well, suppressed by runes, but the seal is broken, leaking contamination. The villagers are corrupted, contracting strange illnesses. And yet, some in the village are secretly using blood sacrifices to feed the evil entity! Is it out of necessity? Or are they being controlled? What kind of blood are they using? Human blood? Or…?

"We must stop them! And we must find out what's in the well!" A cold glint flashed in Lu Zhao's eyes. This village couldn't be left unattended any longer, but they couldn't simply leave either. If left unchecked, it would eventually become a second Beiling Village, perhaps even worse! Moreover, this was very likely related to the Black Fiend Cult; perhaps they could find clues about them!

He glanced at the well that had been re-covered, then looked in the direction the old man had left, and made up his mind.

"Let's go back to that room first and see how much that old man really knows, and what he's hiding!"