Starting from The Witcher, he slaughtered his way across the world.

As the night grew colder, the only sound in the mountains and forests was the constant footsteps of the procession; otherwise, there was an eerie silence, not even the slightest sound of beasts or birds.

Luo Fan silently followed the group, trying his best to calm his chaotic thoughts.

Are all the forests in the world this quiet at night?

His gaze swept left and right, and he felt that the surrounding silence was terrifying.

The eight-person team stopped every so often to check for bandits. They had been traveling through the mountains and forests for several hours without stopping, and by now it was already late at night.

Luke, at the forefront, held a torch and scanned every visible spot by the light.

Suddenly, his gaze froze, and he immediately raised his left hand to signal everyone to stop: "There are people ahead!"

The seven torches immediately stopped in place, and everyone placed their hands on the short swords at their waists, their bodies filled with vigilance.

Eight pairs of eyes looked ahead and saw two thin legs sticking out from behind a tree. They were wrapped in cloth trousers and were not moving. It was clearly a person.

"Who's up ahead!"

Luke shouted sharply, then hesitated to approach, fearing an ambush.

After waiting for a long time without any response, and without the other party making any move, everyone began to have doubts.

Luke mustered his courage, holding a torch and drawing his short sword. He slowly approached, and when he circled behind the tree, he suddenly screamed and took a step back in fright.

"Dead, a dead person?"

Upon seeing this, the others quickly gathered around, all stunned and speechless.

"This, this is..."

"Is this even human?"

"It seems so."

"Who killed him? Why did he die like this?"

The group hesitated and began to whisper among themselves.

Luo Fan stepped forward, his gaze suddenly freezing as he stared blankly at the corpse behind the tree.

Or rather, a dried-up corpse!

The corpse before me seemed to have had all its blood drained away; its skin was shrunken and black, devoid of any color, tightly wrapped around its jagged bones, with flesh stuck to the bones, and its eye sockets sunken into two black holes, resembling a withered and shriveled piece of dead wood.

The hideous and terrifying face of the demonic corpse flashed through Luo Fan's mind. The corpse in front of him, while not exactly similar to the demonic corpse, was at least six or seven parts similar. It was practically a corpse that was about to become a demonic corpse.

Almost as if by instinct, Luo Fan moved the torch forward without hesitation. The flame touched the cloth, and the body was instantly ignited.

"What are you doing?!"

A furious shout came from the side; it came from a henchman named Langdon.

"Burn it."

As Luo Fan watched the flames gradually spread to the dried corpse, a pungent stench immediately filled the air, and everyone quickly moved away.

The flames continued to burn, but the dried corpse remained motionless. Seeing this, Luo Fan breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Even if this corpse had the potential to transform into a demonic corpse, now that it's been burned like this, that possibility is probably gone.

"I'm asking why you burned it!"

Langdon stepped forward angrily, staring at him with cold eyes.

Luo Fan looked up and quietly gazed at him: "Because this corpse is dangerous."

"What a joke! What danger could a corpse pose?"

Langdon immediately sneered, his eyes filled with disdain.

"If you're scared out of your wits, just say so! I think you're just trying to obstruct our investigation!"

Seeing this, Cody advised from the side, "Landon, calm down, he must have a reason."

Luke, as the team leader, stepped forward and looked at Luo Fan with a cold expression: "Give me an explanation."

Although he was initially startled by the corpse, he realized that any clues related to the bandits had been burned by Luo Fan.

As all eyes turned to him, Luo Fan remained unfazed and said:

"I know of a kind of being called a demonic corpse, which is formed from the corpse of a dead person. It is very powerful and invulnerable to blades and spears. It is at least six or seven parts similar to the dried corpse we just saw."

"I once had a near-death experience."

He wasn't a witcher, and he had no reservations about what he couldn't say. Since these people wanted an explanation, he would tell them the truth.

"Demon corpses?" Harrison thought for a moment. "I've heard similar rumors, about some kind of corpses that come to life and attack humans."

Luke frowned and pondered for a moment.

These kinds of rumors have been circulating quite a bit lately, but hardly anyone believes them.

Cody looked at Luo Fan with some surprise: "You've encountered this before?"

Luo Fan nodded: "On my way to Shigu City, I was attacked by demonic corpses. Later, I was rescued by a passing knight and learned about these events."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at him with surprise and doubt.

"ridiculous!"

Langdon surveyed the expressions on everyone's faces and let out a sneer.

"You guys aren't really fooled by those two sentences this kid just made up, are you?"

"A dead person can come back to life? That's utterly absurd! I, Langdon, have killed people before, and I've never seen a corpse rise from the dead!"

"Kid, we have a mission to complete. What are you trying to achieve by spouting this nonsense?"

He stared at Luo Fan with an unfriendly expression.

The others were also skeptical, as the idea of ​​a corpse coming back to life was too incredible.

Even if they had heard similar rumors, they mostly treated them as entertainment, since none of them had actually seen them.

Luo Fan met Langdon's gaze: "Whether you believe me or not is none of my business. I just don't want to risk my safety."

He couldn't understand where Langdon's malice came from.

But I couldn't be bothered to care.

They're all just grunts, except for Luke, the captain, who's a bit higher up. Who's afraid of whom?

If this dried corpse really turns into a demonic corpse, none of us here will survive.

Some people felt that Luo Fan wasn't lying because his expression was too serious.

This included Luke, who spoke after a moment's thought:

"Let's drop this matter and not mention it again. Chasing down the bandits is our top priority."

"Moreover, this corpse is indeed strange in every way. There are no signs of a fierce battle around it, so why did it die here?"

"I see you didn't even think before using fire. Is it because these so-called demonic corpses are afraid of fire?"

Luke is capable of being appointed captain, which means he has some brains.

He did indeed find something strange about the corpse; for no other reason than that the manner of his death did not seem to be man-made.

If it were a fight among bandits, there would definitely be bloodstains and signs of battle, but this corpse died here, its blood drained, yet there wasn't a trace of blood.

How exactly did they manage to do that?

Subconsciously, he actually believed what Luo Fan said to some extent.

In response to Luke's question, Lofan nodded again:

"Newly born demonic corpses are extremely vulnerable to fire, but they will be immune once they get past this stage."

These people in front of him were a matter of life and death for him, so Luo Fan was not going to hide anything and told them everything he knew.

As the group followed the trail of evidence on the ground, they listened to him recount stories of demons and monsters.

The only person present who didn't believe it at all was Langdon. He followed behind the group with a cold face and his eyes full of disdain.

The group had traveled less than a hundred meters when they discovered a second, similarly dead, dried corpse. This time, there were some dried bloodstains on the ground, and traces of a battle could be seen around it.

This time, Luo Fan didn't rush to burn it, but instead asked Luke to come forward and check.

"This body doesn't look like it's been dead for long. Like the previous body, all the blood has been drained. The signs of a battle around it are faint, so he must have escaped here before dying."

Luke frowned and stepped forward to examine the body, not daring to touch the dried corpse. After thinking for a moment, he held the torch closer and set the body ablaze.

Seeing this, Langdon immediately spoke up: "Captain, do you really believe this kid's scare tactics?"

"Believe it or not, it's always good to be safe. What difference would it make if we burned these bodies?"

Luke stood up, frowning, and said, "Everyone, scatter and spread out, don't go too far, and see if there are any similar corpses nearby."

At his command, everyone immediately complied.

Luo Fan took a few steps and suddenly realized something.

Who exactly caused these mummified corpses?

He remembered witnessing the demonic corpses take action; those killed by the demonic corpses died in a gruesome manner, like toys being manipulated.

But these mummified corpses had simply had their blood drained.

He was so worried that these corpses would turn into demonic corpses that he overlooked who created them in this mountain forest.

Thinking about this, he felt a vague sense of unease.

"There's one more here!"

A loud shout came from afar, interrupting Luo Fan's thoughts.

The group rushed over and found a third corpse with the same death posture.

"This is the third one. If these corpses are those of the bandits, did they all die here? The traces left by the bandits when they fled are completely messed up here."

Luke picked up a handful of discarded ears of wheat from the ground. This was the grain that poor families had worked hard to grow, and it had undoubtedly been stolen by those bandits.

The identity of the corpse can now be confirmed; it was one of the dozen or so bandits.

What happened to them that caused them to frantically throw away the food they had painstakingly seized, and ultimately die?

What about the other bandits?

Did they escape, or did they die?

He never expected that a bandit suppression mission would encounter such a situation. If one dried corpse was an accident, then three in a row was definitely not an accident.

The third corpse was set ablaze, and everyone retreated to a distance, watching the flames leap up.

The rest of the team were also puzzled and wondering about this strange situation.

Luo Fan spoke up: "Captain, I suggest we retreat first."

Before Luke could respond, Langdon, who had been keeping a cold expression, seemed to have found an opportunity to jump out:

"Withdraw? Do you know how much time we spent getting leads on these bandits?"

"Who will take responsibility for retreating now?"

"You're such a coward. You're scared by just three corpses. Wouldn't it be better if those who got in through connections just stayed quietly in Shigu City?"

Langdon's words were sarcastic, almost to the point of verbally abusing Luo Fan.

In his eyes, Luo Fan was someone who got in through connections; he had toiled in the camp for a year before getting a chance to go on a mission.

This guy arrived just two days ago and already got caught up in it.

Who among those present didn't spend more than six months before getting this opportunity?

Why is this guy allowed to come up with them?

This kid is clearly here to slack off; in his eyes, he's nothing more than a burden.

"Are you the captain?"

Luo Fan glanced at him, too lazy to say anything more.

Langdon glared at him angrily: "Even if I'm not the captain, I can still teach you a lesson. How long have you been in the camp? How dare you talk to me like that?"

"Quiet!"

Luke gave a cold shout, and seeing Langdon quiet down, he frowned and began to ponder Luo Fan's suggestion.

At this point, even he felt that this place was a bit strange, and a faint thought of retreating began to sprout in his mind.

But having chased those bandits for so long, retreating now would mean all our efforts were in vain.

The arena fell silent as everyone waited for Luke to make his decision.

In this quiet environment, Luo Fan heard strange noises.

It didn't come from the outside world, but from inside his mind.

Is this tinnitus?

Before Luo Fan could react, the tinnitus in his ears grew louder and louder.

What began as a faint, thread-like tinnitus quickly became unbearably piercing within seconds, like a sharp thorn piercing his mind and blocking out all external sounds.

Immediately following the stinging pain and dizziness in his mind, Luo Fan suddenly felt a strange sensation between his brows, as if his sixth sense was telling him something.

His expression immediately changed, and he looked around, sensing some kind of evil aura approaching.

"All personnel on alert!"

Without hesitation, he shouted and drew his weapon.

The commotion startled everyone.

Langdon's anger flared instantly: "Kid, are you out of your mind?"

Luke immediately sensed something was wrong from Luo Fan's tense expression and gave the order without much hesitation.

"All personnel, form ranks and prepare for battle!"

At his command, everyone quickly moved closer and formed a circular formation.

"What did you discover?"

At this moment, Cody couldn't help but ask.

"They're here."

Luo Fan's expression was solemn.

He didn't know why he had this feeling, but he could vaguely sense that evil aura was getting closer and closer, and goosebumps rose all over his body.

Even if you wanted to run now, it probably wouldn't be easy.

"So where's the enemy? Am I crazy or are you crazy, kid? Are you going to waste our energy like this?"

Langdon was even more annoyed with Luo Fan at this moment. He was the only one standing still, unmoved, and his voice was full of disdain.

"Captain, how can you just believe his nonsense?"

Upon hearing this, Luke looked at him, his tone becoming more forceful: "Form ranks, Langdon. I am Lord Sean's appointed captain. Are you going to disobey orders?"

Luo Fan's tense demeanor didn't seem feigned. Although he hadn't observed this newcomer closely, he didn't appear to be a coward.

Moreover, what they encountered tonight was indeed very strange; he felt fear the moment he saw the dried corpse.

He had never seen a corpse so badly killed.

Moreover, they encountered three in a row, as if they had been deliberately placed there.

In any case, he would rather waste some time believing Luo Fan's story than take the risk.

"You're the captain, I'll obey your orders."

Langdon snorted and joined the ranks.

The eight men stood ready, their eyes scanning their surroundings warily. It was completely quiet outside; not a sound could be heard.

Under the moonlight, the eight people seemed to be the only creatures abandoned in this mountain forest.

Just as everyone began to doubt whether what Luo Fan said was true or false, rustling footsteps sounded from all directions, very light and slow.

Everyone's hearts immediately jumped into their throats!

"Not a demonic corpse?"

Luo Fan looked around at the torchlight, which vaguely illuminated several figures. In the sparse moonlight, these figures blended with the shadows of the crooked branches, creating an eerie atmosphere.

He was certain that these figures were not demonic corpses.

After the demonic corpses appear, the air temperature will only drop lower and lower, affecting the flames in their hands.

At the same time, the demonic corpse makes no sound and moves extremely fast, unlike those that move so slowly.

Thankfully, it wasn't demonic corpses. Luo Fan was relieved; if it were that many demonic corpses, they would probably be wiped out here.

Then Luo Fan frowned again.

If it's not a demonic corpse, then what other kind of demonic entity could it be?

Luo Fan only learned from Calvin that demonic spirits were created by heaven and earth, so he figured there couldn't be only one kind of demonic corpse.

If it's a demon or monster you've never seen before, then things are just as bad.

He only knew that newborn demon corpses feared fire, and knew nothing about the weaknesses of other demons.

In other words, Luo Fan currently has no means to deal with the demonic forces.

Is this Murphy's Law?

Luo Fan felt bitter inside.

Before setting off, he kept thinking about avoiding demons and hoping to complete his mission smoothly, but he still ran into them.

"Are these the bandits? Is there really an enemy attack?"

Luke watched warily as the figures slowly approached them, noticing that they carried a variety of weapons.

Spears, short swords, hand axes, shields...

The figures came from all directions, subtly surrounding them. There were about ten of them, and they seemed to be the band of bandits.

Are these bandits planning to ambush them here?

Luke glanced at Luo Fan beside him and noticed that Luo Fan's brows were furrowed and his complexion was not good.

At the same time, Luke was still puzzled as to how Luo Fan had anticipated that these bandits would ambush him here.