Newbie Guardians

The seven arrived at the lottery booth. Jin Jun drew the Dragon Spear; Liu Hanqin drew the Heavenly Silkworm Armband; Cheng Ziyu drew the Lightning Cloak; Mu Lingshan drew the Chiwen Bracelet; and Iris had incredible luck and drew the Legendary Summoning Necklace, which increased the attributes of all summoned creatures by 10%.

Finally, Hannah drew Assassin's Willow Leaf Twin Blades - which has a built-in armor-piercing effect; and Assassin's Ink Lotus Soft Armor - which is immune to poison. She has collected both pieces and activated the set passive: Dark Strike - attacks from behind cannot be dodged and are guaranteed to be critical hits.

Hanna gave all the points to Huang Xin, but Huang Xin couldn't use them himself. After some discussion, the two decided to give all the points to Elise, because Elise was always protecting Huang Xin's safety. The stronger Elise became, the safer Huang Xin would be.

Elise didn't hold back, spending 6,000 points to buy an extremely rare, growable vine ring that could summon three vines, each with a one-second binding effect. Since it had little offensive power and was a support skill, it was a good deal.

That evening, the academy received news that dozens of mummified corpses of Daohua Village villagers had been discovered on the roads leading to Heifeng Town and Lingshui Town, all of them decapitated.

The academy considered this a continuation of the first mission and again assigned Teacher Liu to lead the team, dividing Huang Xin and the other seven into two squads. The first squad consisted of Liu Chuanqi, Liu Hanqin, Cheng Ziyu, and Mu Lingshan; the second squad consisted of Jin Jun, Huang Xin, Hannaer, and Elise. This arrangement was considered reasonable, with both sides having tanks and healers, as well as fifth-tier experts providing support.

The two off-road vehicles set off together, but parted ways along the way. The second team, driven by Jin Jun, headed towards Qishan Canyon.

Elise was in the passenger seat. She was worried about Huang Xin sitting in the front, fearing they might be ambushed on the road.

Huang Xin felt that something was not simple, but his mind was not up to the task and he could not figure it out, so he had to tell his teammates his thoughts.

Jin Jun replied:

"I also felt something was amiss, but I couldn't figure it out no matter how long I thought about it."

As it turns out, Jin Jun is also a simple-minded person.

Elise pondered for a moment, then turned to look at Huang Xin, a sly smile on her face:

"My dear husband, quickly call me 'my darling wife' in a sweet tone, and I'll tell you if you make me happy!"

Hannah instantly lost her temper and angrily rebuked:

"Elise, have you no shame! Huang Xin, ignore her, let's analyze this together."

"I can't figure it out!"

"Then hurry up and shout it out! You'll get an answer as soon as you shout it out, isn't that a great deal?"

Hannah reached out and turned Huang Xin's head to look at her, then slowly spoke:

"The villagers fled in two groups, undoubtedly hoping that at least one group would be able to leave safely."

"Hmm! That makes sense!"

Huang Xin nodded repeatedly.

"However, they all died on the road, and judging from their characteristics, it did not seem like they died under a curse."

Why?

"Because they were all dried up and their heads were cut off, it's obvious they were drained of blood first and then beheaded. If they were cursed to die, their deaths should have been gruesome."

"Yes, yes, that makes a lot of sense!"

"The villagers are already dead when their blood is drained, so why bother cutting off their heads?"

"Is it a hobby?"

"I suspect it's more likely a ritual, such as a sacrifice to a powerful deity!"

"Such a bloody sacrifice must be from an evil god!"

"There are two more questions. First, how did they know the villagers' escape route? Second, the methods of killing were exactly the same; could the murderer be the same person?"

Huang Shen scratched his head, and Jin Jun wanted to scratch his head too, but he had to drive, so he could only pretend to be focused on the road.

Elise exclaimed:

"Excellent! No wonder she's the rightful wife."

Hannah ignored her and continued her analysis:

"Actually, there are still many questions that remain unanswered, such as why the village chief didn't run away but instead committed suicide. Was hanging his own choice, or was he forced to do it?"

"I don't know!"

"One last question. Was the village chief's body drained of its life force and his head chopped off?"

"No way! The man's already dead, and they still won't let him go?"

"Weren't those villagers beheaded after they were already dead?"

"How can you be sure he was beheaded after he was already dead?"

"Because the head is also sunken, didn't you notice that in the photo?"

Huang Xin suddenly realized that it made perfect sense.

Meanwhile, Teacher Liu and the other three arrived at the scene and, after inspecting the site, reached a similar conclusion. Just as they were about to leave, Mu Lingshan, who had been preoccupied with something, spoke up.

"There are forty-eight corpses here, all of them adults."

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed that it was indeed true and couldn't help but admire Mu Lingshan's meticulousness. They all turned to look at her, waiting for her to continue.

"If Jin Jun's side has fifty-two, then that somewhat matches the legendary hundred-person sacrifice ritual. It's an extremely insidious evil technique that can transform corpses that have been dead for less than twelve hours into very powerful monsters."

Mu Lingshan paused for a few seconds before continuing:

"This ritual requires the sacrificers to be virgins, which is why there are no children in Daohua Village—the villagers are forbidden from marrying for life. Guarding the Liu family's ancestral graves is their duty; if the graves are dug up, they will be sacrificed. After the sacrifice, a monster no less powerful than a century-old zombie will be created."

Everyone thought it made a lot of sense, but none of them knew what to do. Teacher Liu was the same; he was a man of few words, like a tank. Mu Lingshan had no choice but to continue her analysis:

"The current clues point to the Liu family's ancestral graves. We should first meet up with Team Two and then go there together to investigate."

At the mouth of the valley, Huang Xin and the others carefully examined the remains. Elise, with her extensive experience, counted fifty-two corpses, all adults, not a single child. She echoed Mu Lingshan's opinion; in fact, when Elise was serious, she possessed a remarkable leadership quality. Everyone agreed and drove towards the first group to rejoin them.

Soon, the two groups met and exchanged information. Both were enveloped by a vague unease; there was definitely something more to the Liu family's ancestral tomb.

When the two off-road vehicles arrived at the village entrance, it was already 9:30 PM. The bright moonlight hung high in the sky, illuminating the desolate wilderness in a stark white light. The eight men, equipped with their gear and each wearing a powerful flashlight and a hat, hurried towards the Liu family ancestral graves. Sure enough, they found a long trail of deep footprints. Following the footprints for half an hour, they came upon a large, chaotic graveyard. The entire field of vision was filled with densely packed mounds of graves; its scale rivaled that of a burial ground.

Jin Jun walked in front, Huang Xin followed closely behind, and Teacher Liu brought up the rear. Suddenly, Jin Jun stumbled, his toe snagged on something, and he almost fell flat on his face. A long bone was caught and flew into the grass.

Then, a skull emerged from the cracked tomb, its bony index finger pointing at Jin Jun, its mouth opening and closing as if cursing loudly.