I fabricated myths to guide the revival of spiritual energy.

The mud kicked up by the wheels finally jammed the drive shaft completely.

Five kilometers from the target location, the armed Mengshi vehicle let out a final, muffled roar and stalled.

It was pitch black all around, with only the deafening sound of the torrential rain pounding against the roof of the vehicle. There was no road left, not even a trail for animals. The dense primeval forest stood like a thick, black wall, completely blocking these intruders from entering.

"Get off the bus and walk."

Zhao Feng pushed open the car door, his military boots plunging into the ankle-deep mud. Icy rainwater instantly seeped in through his collar, carrying a chilling sensation, as if the rain came not from the sky, but from some cold, underground river.

The twelve team members quickly assembled. They were the elite of the 749th Bureau's Operations Division, each with experience in handling "abnormal events." But at this moment, even these tough guys, who were used to seeing strange things, couldn't help but tense up.

Because it's so quiet here.

Apart from the sound of the torrential rain, there were no birdsong or insect chirps.

The Ten Thousand Mountains of western Hunan have been a forbidden land for the living since ancient times. Not only are there poisonous insects and miasma, but also countless bizarre legends that defy scientific explanation. And at this moment, these mountains seem to have come alive, watching them with a hostile silence.

"Everyone, put on your gas masks," Zhao Feng ordered. "Turn on your tactical flashlights and maintain triangular formation. Remember, no matter what you see, do not fire without orders."

Beams of powerful flashlights pierced the darkness, but in the thick fog, the light could only illuminate a few meters ahead.

The team began to make a difficult advance through the mud.

After walking for about half an hour, the technician in the team suddenly stopped, his voice trembling slightly: "Captain, look at the compass."

Zhao Feng leaned over and took a look.

The specially made military compass was now spinning wildly, its needle almost flying out of its socket.

"The magnetic field is messed up." Zhao Feng said calmly, tapping the compass. "Don't trust this stuff. It seems the 'thing' ahead doesn't want us to find our way."

"So, how do we get there?"

Zhao Feng raised his head, his nostrils twitching slightly.

Amidst the heavy smell of earth and rotting leaves, the eerie fragrance of peach blossoms grew stronger. It was like an invisible thread, drawing them in the darkness.

"Follow the scent." Zhao Feng sneered.

The procession continued onward.

As they ventured deeper, the surrounding vegetation began to appear strange.

What should have been bushes was now overgrown with dark red vines. They resembled skinned snakes, coiled around the tree trunks. As the flashlight beam swept across them, the vines seemed to be wriggling slightly.

"Don't touch those vines!" Zhao Feng shouted. "Those are 'Devil's Bane,' their sap is highly poisonous, and it will cause your skin to rot if it gets on it."

One of the young team members couldn't help but swallow hard: "Captain, does such a thing really exist in this world?"

As Zhao Feng used his machete to cleave through the thorns blocking his path, he touched the Tiger Warrior sword at his waist and said with a brooding look in his eyes, "You'll see soon enough."

Just then, the vanguard at the front suddenly raised his fist, signaling to stop advancing.

"Captain, there's something ahead..."

Everyone immediately raised their guns, and more than a dozen infrared laser beams converged under a large tree in front of them.

It was a huge ancient locust tree, its trunk so thick that it would take three people to hug it. But halfway up the trunk, something was hanging from it with a rough hemp rope.

That's not a corpse.

It was a doll made of straw.

The puppet was dressed in tattered Miao ethnic clothing, and wore a hideous wooden Nuo mask on its face. The eye sockets of the mask were empty, with two lines of dark red paint flowing down, like tears of blood.

On the doll's chest was a wooden plaque with eight large characters written on it in blood-stained paint:

[The gods are here; the living must not enter]

These eight characters were written crookedly, exuding an air of madness.

"Playing tricks." One of the team members sneered and was about to step forward to pull the puppet down.

"Stop!" Zhao Feng roared.

But it was too late.

The moment the team member's hand touched the scarecrow, something unexpected happened.

"whee……"

A sharp, childlike laugh suddenly rang out in everyone's earpieces.

Immediately afterwards, the scarecrow's head, which had been drooping, suddenly lifted up without warning!

The empty eye sockets behind that wooden Nuo mask seemed to have real vision, staring intently at the team member in front of him.

"boom!"

A cloud of pink smoke suddenly exploded inside the scarecrow.

Caught off guard, the team member, despite wearing a gas mask, was thrown backward as if electrocuted by a highly concentrated hallucinogen, as if struck by lightning, and crashed heavily into the mud.

"Enemy attack! Scatter!"

Zhao Feng pulled the trigger instantly.

"Bang bang bang!"

Three large-caliber bullets struck the scarecrow's head with pinpoint accuracy. Wood chips flew everywhere, and the eerie doll was shattered by the immense impact.

However, as the doll shattered, even more laughter echoed around the woods.

"Hehe...hehehe..."

The voice was no longer singular, but hundreds and thousands. It was as if every tree and every vine in the forest had come alive at that moment, emitting mocking laughter.

"That is..."

One of the team members pointed in horror at the surrounding tree trunks.

Under the flashlight beam, the outlines of human faces emerged from the rough bark of the surrounding trees. Some were crying, some were laughing, and some were screaming in agony.

[System notification: An intruder has triggered the scene's defense mechanism—[All Trees Are on High Alert].]

Fear level +200... +200...

Hiding in the shadows, Gu Qing looked at the data reported by the system and gently shook his head.

"This is just an appetizer."

In the woods, Zhao Feng yanked his fallen teammate to his feet and roared at the surrounding area, "Don't panic! This is mass hallucination! Turn on the high-powered flashlights! Illuminate these ghostly things with the highest lumens!"

"Sizzle—!!!"

All team members simultaneously activated the strobe mode of their tactical flashlights.

In an instant, the dark forest was illuminated as if by daylight by a high frequency of intense light. The eerie faces faded rapidly under the stimulation of the light, and the laughter turned into a kind of sharp scream before falling silent.

Only the shattered remains of the scarecrow remained, burning silently on the ground, emitting the stench of burnt feathers.

The team member who had fallen to the ground was coughing violently, and the filter canister of his gas mask had turned black.

"Captain... I saw it..." He grabbed Zhao Feng's arm, his pupils unfocused. "That cave... it's so beautiful... so many flowers..."

Zhao Feng examined his pupils and his expression turned grim.

"Number One is incapacitated, Number Two will be responsible for carrying him." Zhao Feng gritted his teeth and looked up at the path that had reappeared ahead.

The ground, which was originally all mud, had somehow developed a thick layer of something.

Those are peach petals.

In the torrential rain, these petals did not rot or get washed away; instead, they formed a vibrant pink path that led straight into the deepest part of the mountains.

This is not just a road, but also an invitation.

A malicious invitation from "that thing".

"It wants us in." Zhao Feng stared at the flower-lined path, his voice as cold as iron. "Then so be it."

"Change to armor-piercing rounds."

"Remove the suppressor (silencer)."

Zhao Feng drew the old dagger from his waist and slashed his palm, blood gushing out instantly and staining the blade red.

"This place is eerie; let's use some of the old methods from our ancestors."

He made a bloodstained slashing motion in the air, his eyes turning murderous.

"When Bureau 749 handles a case, even gods and ghosts give way."

"Let's go! Let's go meet it!"