The game comes true, starting with the wandering spirits and gods.

You have retrieved the "Broken Everlasting Bronze Lamp".

A broken, eternally burning copper lamp

[Quality: Deteriorated]

[Conditions for use: Both hands must be able to lift the item]

[Effect: When lit, it brings peace of mind; suitable for placement in areas with incense burning and people.]

[Introduction: From the very beginning of the construction of the village temple, an ever-burning lamp was lit, ensuring the continuous flow of incense offerings and the eternal existence of the lamp.]

The game doesn't have a storage backpack, so you can only carry it in your hand.

He simply turned it on.

After struggling for a few moments, the wick slowly began to burn, and a warm yellow halo spread in the small space, which did indeed give people a sense of tranquility.

Although it is of poor quality, its effect is not negligible.

However, when placed within this game's context, the effect is somewhat lackluster.

Upon receiving it, I couldn't help feeling somewhat disappointed.

I thought that in such a building with special significance, I could find some useful small equipment for smaller dungeons.

But it's better than nothing, since it was free.

He comforted himself with this thought.

"Take it."

Zhang Wenhao then tossed the bronze lamp into Zhaocai's hand.

Zhao Cai eagerly came forward, holding it up with its little hands as if receiving a royal decree.

Clearly, it has naturally assumed the role of the incense bearer.

That's more like it. The girl only has one equipment slot in both hands right now. It would be a bit awkward if she were to carry something else.

Before transforming into a weasel, the girl A-Yun was still stronger on paper.

Leaving the temple and walking further ahead, you'll find the tall notice wall at the entrance of the village.

Upon closer inspection, the wall was covered in cobwebs, and countless sheets of rice-paste manuscript lay on the ground, exposed to the wind and sun, making it impossible to read what was written on them.

You have arrived at Cangling Village.

Nestled against sandy mountains and standing on loess soil, this place was so remote that even the most prosperous dynasties of the past did not send officials to the countryside to build roads.

Over time, apart from the occasional passerby, it became virtually isolated from the world.

Recently, you, the ancient deity with the green lamp, have begun to receive frequent offerings and prayers from the villagers.

You have collected one "Cangling Village Map"

A flash of light appeared, and the girl held an ancient-looking parchment scroll in her hand.

Several clearly defined paths divide the village into different areas.

The grid-like plots at the west end connect to form fields.

The center is the ancestral hall, and the east side is mainly occupied by mills and blacksmith shops.

Have you ever been to this village before?

Zhang Wenhao looked down and asked the weasel at his feet.

Zhao Cai held a copper lamp, his round little eyes staring straight ahead.

"My lord, ever since the medicine man appeared, no one in this village has raised chickens anymore, and I haven't been able to raise any either."

Upon hearing this, he frowned thoughtfully.

If the map is completely unfamiliar, you have to be careful when exploring it.

......

Blacksmith shop, kitchen.

The old man stood stiffly beside the stove, watching the flickering flames.

Wait until the iron block inside is red-hot before taking it out.

The sledgehammer fell.

Ding ding ding—

He pounded down with the hammer, without any technique of restraint or deflection, giving his all with every strike.

If it were an ordinary elderly person, they would probably be panting and collapsing to the side after just a couple of swings.

But he didn't.

He didn't even wipe his sweat, letting the sweat dripping down his face as the sparks burned it.

A balloon is suspended from a long copper wire on the right arm, resembling an IV drip in modern society.

Inside are imprisoned souls.

He didn't know what tiredness was.

In his mind, the scene of saying goodbye to his son that year kept replaying over and over again:

The robust eldest son picked up the burlap sack, his face beaming with joy.

"Dad, I'm going to the provincial capital to find work. I'll come back for you when I've made a lot of money!"

His resolute tone was not only a promise to his elderly father, but also a way of encouraging and inspiring himself.

The old blacksmith, leaning on his cane, was overcome with tears, feeling both proud of his son growing up and reluctant to see him leave.

The combination of these two emotions creates a bittersweet feeling.

Such intense emotions became the sole refuge of his soul.

After he was drugged and turned into a drug-addled human, this one memory remained in his mind, constantly looping and replaying, a self-deceptive consolation for his soul trapped outside his body.

Over and over again...

Huhuhu~

The stiff, wooden old blacksmith's body suddenly trembled, and he turned his head with a creaking sound.

The door was opened.

A gentle breeze carried fallen leaves in, stirring up sparks in the room.

Suddenly, a girl appeared behind him.

The girl seemed to have descended from the sky, her gaze sharp as a knife.

He scanned the room, his gaze finally settling on the zombie-like blacksmith.

Beside her feet was a weasel holding a copper lamp, looking rather comical.

"you......"

[You used the "conversion" technique on the old blacksmith (the medicine man)]

She stretched out her finger and touched the old blacksmith's forehead from a distance.

[A solitary lamp guides the soul, a return from the sea of ​​suffering]

In fact, his son never came back.

Only he, leaning on his cane, waited in the cold wind year after year.

May your ravaged body rest in peace, surrounded by the earthy scent of soil.

The hammer slammed heavily onto the ground.

[Ding! The drug addict has been exorcised (2/20)]

[Incense Power +10]

【Spirit +1】

As soon as the words were written, Zhang Wenhao felt his spiritual sense become even stronger.

The previously dim world became even brighter.

Upon opening the panel, I found that "Temple God's Blessing" had indeed returned to 10.

Even with long-distance reduction, it can still return to its original value; the improvement in mental strength is truly comprehensive.

Zhang Wenhao was still sighing inwardly.

Now, the living, breathing villagers have been turned into cold, hard numbers.

Before my eyes, the ever-present smile on the blacksmith's face finally faded, and his stiff body slowly collapsed.

Thick, stagnant blood flowed from his seven orifices, a dark reddish-black color like ink mixed with water.

This is a typical case of internal organ damage.

It seems that even if one becomes a drug user, it cannot completely strengthen an ordinary person, but rather depletes the elderly person's remaining vitality in an alternative way.

puff!

The balloon suspended in mid-air burst, and the tangled souls slowly dissipated, merging into this world.

He has fallen into the cycle of reincarnation once again.

For him, this was both a pain and a relief.

In this way, Zhang Wenhao had a general understanding of the fully-formed drug human:

They were still ordinary people and did not gain extraordinary powers from taking the medicine.

Moreover, they retain some biological instincts, such as instinctively turning their heads when they hear the wind rustling through the grass.

From this perspective, they're not that difficult to deal with.

Zhao Cai stared blankly as the soul dissipated like a ghost, then suddenly sniffed.

"My lord, the stench of medicine is coming from all directions."

"So many people have come to take medicine!"

It looked warily toward the doorway, its whole body hunched over, poised to pounce.

If you ignore the mouthful of broken teeth, it's quite intimidating.

Zhang Wenhao narrowed his eyes.

It seems the village chief has the means to detect that he has converted the drug addict.

It is not appropriate for me to reveal my identity as a young girl right now.

withdraw!

He immediately clicked "Pick up".

Zhao Cai felt a sudden jolt at the back of his neck, and then he was lifted up.

Come again?

Zhang Wenhao pressed "Backtrack".

The girl, along with the object in her hand, transformed into a wisp of human-shaped green smoke.

Then, Qingyan completely repeated the girl's actions.

It's just a reversed backtracking.

Blacksmith shop, village entrance, ancestral temple, stone tablet...

The path we once walked, now everything is going against the current.

It's as if the reversal of time only happened to her.

She returned the way she came, until she reached the ancient temple.