Chapter 342: Dread
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
As the lid of the coffin was lifted, everyone instinctively took a step back, their faces pale with shock.
Inside, bloodstained handprints covered the wooden interior, a sight so gruesome it sent chills down their spines.
Even the coffin lid was smeared with crimson prints. She had tried to push it open.
But layers of packed earth weighed it down. How could she possibly break free?
“Look at her hands…” Xie Yu Zhou stammered, his voice trembling as he shivered behind Lu Chao Chao.
“The flesh is gone… her fingertips have been ground down to bare bone.” A shiver ran down Xie Yu Zhou’s spine, making his scalp tingle with fear.
The others turned their eyes toward the figure inside the coffin. Her fingers were soaked in fresh blood, and amidst the crimson, hints of white could be seen.
Bone.
She had clawed at the coffin with such desperation that even her bones had become exposed.
“How much despair must she have endured…” Xie Yu Zhou’s eyes welled up with tears.
“Who could be so cruel as to bury someone alive? Such monstrous brutality!” Rong Che’s brows furrowed, his voice laced with cold fury.
“Hurry, get her out,” Lu Chao Chao was the first to speak.
Rong Che cast her a strange look. The little one never interfered in matters like these.
The guards surrounded the coffin, their torches illuminating the eerie scene. A few soldiers leaped down, carefully lifting the woman out.
Her entire body was drenched in blood, her ten fingers mangled beyond recognition. A wave of horror passed through the onlookers.
“Is she still breathing?” Rong Che asked in a low voice.
The accompanying imperial physician knelt beside her, carefully checking her pulse and lifting her eyelids. After a moment, he let out a shallow sigh of relief.
“There is still a thread of life left in her. However…” The physician hesitated.
“The chances of survival are extremely slim.”
Even now, she hovered on the brink of death, her body in a state of near-death suspension, just moments away from ceasing to breathe entirely.
Rong Che studied the woman on the ground. She appeared aged and frail, her hands thin and calloused, the deep grooves of her palms caked with dried blood.
Her face…
His expression darkened.
“She was elderly to begin with, and before being buried alive, she suffered inhuman torment. Her entire face was scalded with boiling oil—aside from her eyes, everything has been burned beyond recognition.”
The physician gently pried open her lips and inspected her mouth, then shook his head slightly. “Her throat was also forced open with hot oil. Her vocal cords are likely damaged beyond repair. I cannot say whether she will ever speak again.”
“Her injuries are grave. Saving her will require a heavy price.”
Nan Mu Bai cast a brief glance at the woman before withdrawing his gaze. “I thought she was nothing more than a wandering ghost. Didn’t expect her to still be alive.”
“Just leave her here to fend for herself.”
“She’s an old mortal, now nothing but a cripple. What’s the point of saving her?” Nan Mu Bai scoffed, adjusting his grip on his sword before heading down the mountain.
“This place is remote, right at the border between two nations. If we hadn’t passed by, she would have surely perished here. Since fate has led us to her, we should at least try,” Rong Che said with a sigh. “Take her back. Have the physician tend to her.”
“She is a wretched soul indeed. Seeing her reminds me of Lady Ning’s years of searching for her lost child.” Rong Che exhaled heavily.
Ming Lang glanced at the woman’s ruined face.
“Lady Ning? She has lived in luxury since the emperor found her and brought her to the capital. Her suffering is in the past…” Ming Lang had never met Lady Ning. Ever since she arrived in the capital, she had been kept under strict protection, hidden away from prying eyes.
Lu Chao Chao remained silent, her gaze fixed upon the old woman, her small face solemn.
“Daddy, you carry her,” Lu Chao Chao murmured, her tone sluggish.
Rong Che was momentarily stunned before smiling. “Alright, alright. Our kind-hearted Chao Chao has spoken. Daddy will listen.”
The old woman was frail and light. Rong Che hoisted her onto his back with ease, carrying her down the mountain.
“Yu Zhou, can the old madam rest in your carriage? You can share mine.” Lu Chao Chao turned to Xie Yu Zhou.
Xie Yu Zhou’s eyes lit up. “Of course, dear little sister!”
“My carriage is lined with tiger pelts—soft and warm.”
Back at the camp, Shi Yun stood by the fire, rubbing her eyes.
Seeing Rong Che covered in blood, she shuddered.
“I’m not hurt,” Rong Che reassured her. “We found an old lady who had been buried alive. Carrying her down the mountain got me a little messy. Why are you awake? You’ve only slept for half an hour.”
Shi Yun sighed in frustration. “Once we reach the Southern Kingdom, I need to visit a temple. I must have been cursed.”
“In my dreams, I keep seeing a young man with red-rimmed eyes crying. He keeps muttering, ‘Why won’t you give it to me? Why won’t you give it to me?’”
“The whispers are constant. How can I sleep?”
Rong Che’s expression grew serious. “Later, ask Chao Chao for a protective talisman.”
Shi Yun nodded.
“Where is the old madam? I want to see her too,” she said with a soft smile. Rong Che helped her over to the carriage.
“Chao Chao, are you giving her water?” Shi Yun asked as she arrived, just in time to see the little one retracting her hand. Lu Chao Chao’s long lashes fluttered as she hid a small vial behind her back.
“Her lips are so dry. Chao Chao gave her a few sips,” the little girl said before quickly hopping down from the carriage and running away.
“Slow down! Be careful not to trip. What are you running for?” Shi Yun sighed.
As she climbed into the carriage, she had mentally prepared herself, yet the sight still shook her to the core.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
A sharp pain twisted through her heart, so intense she curled inward, her face tightening in agony.
Rong Che’s heart clenched. “Shi Yun… Physician!”
But Shi Yun raised a trembling hand to stop him. “Wait… I’m fine. Just a sudden pain in my heart…” The moment she had seen the old woman, it had felt as if her soul had been pierced.
“This is my fault. I knew you were too kind to bear such sights, yet I still brought you here,” Rong Che said with regret, intending to take her away. But Shi Yun sat firmly in place, simply staring at the old woman in a daze.
“What did the physician say?” Shi Yun asked, her voice soft. Though she was compassionate, she was not one to weep without reason.
Yet, looking at the old woman’s wretched state, she found herself unable to stop her tears.
Perhaps, she thought, it reminded her of her own mother.
“The physician has already administered acupuncture, but it’s uncertain if she will wake up. She’s suffered greatly—her face was burned with boiling oil, and her throat… she may never speak again.”
As Rong Che spoke—
Suddenly—
A hand, bound in bloodstained bandages, twitched. The woman shot up, trembling violently as she curled into the corner, her arms wrapped around her knees.
Terror radiated from her entire being.
“Ah… ah…”
Her voice was hoarse, barely more than a rasping croak, yet filled with sheer panic.
“Don’t move! Please, don’t move!”
“Your wounds are still bleeding. Don’t be afraid—you’re safe now. You’re safe…” Shi Yun took a step back, afraid of startling her further, her own eyes shimmering with tears.
“You are not in a coffin anymore. You’ve been saved!” Seeing the woman too terrified to even open her eyes, Shi Yun reached out and gently grasped her hand.
Rong Che worried the old woman, in her confusion, might lash out and injure Shi Yun.
“Look, this place is not scary. No one will harm you. Can you open your eyes?”
Shi Yun’s voice was soft, soothing.
The old woman’s breathing remained heavy, but gradually, she stopped trembling.
Yet, blood seeped through her bandages, her shattered fingers still raw.
And on her charred face, there was not a single patch of unharmed flesh.