CHAPTER 4: Guardian of the Golden Lake

 

Early in the morning, sunlight filtered through the cracks in the trees’ shade and transformed into swaying patches of light on the wooden house. The warm temperature roused all the survivors from their dreamy slumber.

 

Everyone gathered in the living room, stretching and yawning, displaying signs of severe sleep deprivation.

 

Zhou Wu rubbed his eyes, his dry eyeballs making squelching sounds. Heavy eye bags and dark circles hung under his lifeless face, giving him the appearance of having stayed up all week without sleep.

 

Fang Hao and Li Mingfeng who had spent the night in a confined space, felt as if every bone in their bodies had been squished. They were almost paralyzed as they slept in a dark and heavy sleep

 

Only Zhuo Yu who remained seated in his wheelchair, looking refreshed as ever. He even opened the wooden door in a good mood, allowing the chirping of birds and a refreshing breeze from the forest to sweep away the eerie and horrifying atmosphere of the previous night.

 

“Why are you so lively?” Li Mingfeng struck up a conversation with Zhuo Yu.

 

Zhuo Yu shrugged. “I found some interesting toys last night that helped me relax. I played with them for a while and ended up falling asleep soundly.”

 

Li Mingfeng pursed his lips, not believing Zhuo Yu’s words.

 

“What about Mu Ying?” Zhou Wu strained his senses, scanning the surroundings but failing to locate their teammate. “Is she still not awake?”

 

The sound of the door opening and closing dispelled his doubts.

 

Mu Ying approached the group slowly, wearing pajamas and a luggage strap. Her gait, on the other hand, appeared unusual no matter how you looked at it. It was as if she were a patient with muscular weakness. Her limp arms swung with each step, but her pace remained stiff.

 

“Hungry… so hungry…” Mu Ying murmured, sitting up straight beside Zhou Wu.

 

Zhou Wu scratched his head and thoughtfully retrieved the snacks they had prepared for camping from the RV, as well as the canned food they had scavenged from the wooden house. He placed them in front of the woman.

 

Mu Ying’s slightly clouded eyes brightened instantly, and she reached for a can of meat. Greasy soup dripped from her fingers and onto the sofa. She ate the food like a hungry ghost, swallowing it mouthful by mouthful. Her movements were too quick, however, and she choked on a greasy piece of meat, causing her eyes to roll back.

 

Just as Zhou Wu was shocked and about to pat her on the back, Mu Ying suddenly convulsed a few times, and with a “pu” sound, she vomited out everything she had swallowed. At the same time, she vomited a large puddle of fishy-smelling liquid, even tangled seaweed and partially digested small fish with scales.

 

Fang Hao and the others were startled and immediately retreated a great distance.

 

“It’s not fresh! Not fresh at all!”

 

Mu Ying shouted for a while before finally calming down. She stared at her teammates in a daze and said, “I was so thirsty last night, I drank some lake water. Do you want to try it?”

 

“What?!” Fang Hao glared at Mu Ying with disgust. “Is something wrong with your brain?”

 

“It’s very sweet. The water from Golden Lake is very sweet,” Mu Ying rambled incoherently. “You should try it too. We’ll all be together…”

 

Li Mingfeng pulled Fang Hao aside, cautiously looking at Mu Ying. However, Zhou Wu didn’t sense anything wrong with Mu Ying and continued to show care, even embracing her.

 

Li Mingfeng was washed over by a wave of darkness, and his breath became stuck in his throat. How did Captain Zhou come to be this way? There was no vigilance at all! Had he damaged his mind by falling in love? Then there’s Fang Hao, who is also unreliable. He promised that the two of them would each watch for a few hours at night, but Fang Hao instantly fell asleep.

 

Li Mingfeng felt he had truly taken on the role of “Bonnie,” resentful of his cousin, Zhou Wu, who had dragged him to Golden Lake.

 

This type of person, who relies solely on physique and force and lacks intelligence, what qualifications does he have to be captain?

 

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and he subconsciously looked at the last person left in the hall, Zhuo Yu, who had joined the team halfway.

 

Zhuo Yu sat in his wheelchair near the door, arms folded, watching the scene with bated breath. There was no sign of anxiety or fear in his eyes; he appeared to be more of an audience member than an actor.

 

For some reason, Li Mingfeng suddenly felt a chill and quickly averted his gaze, no longer paying attention to Zhuo Yu.

 

[Pre-mission: Successfully complete the first night of camping.Achievement unlocked.]

 

[Main mission update: Please enjoy Golden Lake’s attractions before nightfall]

 

Li Mingfeng became even more upset upon hearing the system’s voice. He knew there was no use trying to persuade the others, so he chose to distance himself. Zhuo Yu followed him back to the room.

 

Suddenly, Li Mingfeng stopped in his tracks. “Do you smell that strange odor?”

 

“What? Did Mu Ying vomit?” Zhuo Yu asked.

 

“No.” Li Mingfeng shook his head, suspiciously eyeing Zhuo Yu’s room. “A rotten smell. Forget it, this damn place…”

 

Zhuo Yu watched him enter the house and then entered his room.

 

He wheeled his wheelchair towards the bed and lifted the sheets that were hanging on the floor. There was something white lying at the bottom of the wide four-poster bed. Zhuo Yu grabbed one of its limbs, turned the wheel forcefully, and pulled it backward. What came out was the ghost’s corpse from last night.

 

Under the hot sun, the smell of fish combined with the stench of decay almost choked him. The body lay motionless on the ground, its head tilted and splayed. Its swollen skin peeled away in large chunks, exposing pink flesh beneath. Only the protruding dead fish eyes retained a hint of reluctance before death.

 

The Yin Corpse had tightened its grip on its neck, breaking the bones. It’d taken its own life.

 

“Who told you to look into my eyes?”

 

Zhuo Yu had known from a young age that whenever people were restless, just by looking into his eyes, they would unconsciously calm down. He had used this trick to deceive and avoid unnecessary trouble many times.

 

Last night, he wanted to calm down the Yin Corpse and keep it away from him. The Yin Corpse was momentarily stunned, as if in a state of madness. It raised its hand and broke its neck, truly “keeping its distance” from him in a cruel manner.

 

He hadn’t expected this talent to be so effective in a real situation. He felt that it must be a skill brought by the “unknown character” he was playing.

 

Zhuo Yu took out a sharpened fork, pierced the soft belly with its sharp end, and opened the entire abdominal and chest cavity.

 

Due to long-term paralysis of the lower limbs, Zhuo Yu consciously exercised his upper body. Although he appeared to be a frail scholar, his upper body strength was likely stronger than Zhou Wu’s. Luckily, the Yin Corpse was highly decomposed, so he was able to disembowel it with little effort.

 

Last night, he had meticulously dissected the Yin Corpse, and the results matched his expectations. The mouth, nose, and respiratory tract of this creature were covered in pink foam, evidence of liquid entering the bronchi and lungs, causing the mucous membranes and blood vessels to rupture. The spots all over its body also had a slight reddish hue, characteristic of death by drowning. The corpse hadn’t been thrown into the Golden Lake after death.

 

There was a lot of sand and seaweed in the creature’s stomach and between its nails, indicating that it had suffered greatly before its demise.

 

The information provided by the system was correct, but Zhuo Yu still wanted to verify it himself to avoid being deceived.

 

“So… how did Mu Ying come back to life?”

 

A normal person would die after losing 1,200 milliliters of blood. He recalled the events of last night, and the amount of blood that had flowed from the room was far greater than that figure. Mu Ying had no chance of survival.

 

However, the system did not announce Mu Ying’s death last night, which meant that she was currently “surviving” in some other form, whether human or not.

 

“The Yin Corpse was just an appetizer; the real dungeon boss hasn’t appeared yet.”

 

Zhuo Yu pondered for a moment. If the Yin Corpse hadn’t crossed his path last night, Mu Ying would not have been the only one dead. That creature would have bled them dry one by one… like an old wolf that has entered a flock of sheep

 

 

And this is not even a boss.

Zhuo Yu shook the wheelchair and pushed the Yin corpse back under the bed. Before he could breathe a sigh of relief, there was a knock on the door. It was Zhou Wu’s voice.

He yelled out to everyone who was resting and muttered: “Although I suspected that we might encounter monsters, but nothing ever happened at night. Instead of finding fault with us, why not just enjoy the attractions as the system intended? I don’t want to get burned by fire.

 

Zhou Wu pondered for a while in the living room before and felt that since the system had released such a new task, perhaps it was to let them follow the plot design and continue camping here.

In the school bully Jack’s memory, they intended to come here to swim, fish, and even hunt, followed by a barbecue party. Of course, the most important thing was to make love to his girlfriend and hit home run a few times.

 

Zhou Wu’s mind began to wander, and he began to rummage through the trunk of the RV. Sure enough, he discovered many good things, all brought by the characters themselves.

 

Zhuo Yu watched him busy himself by tossing fishing rods, charcoal, kitchen utensils, and even pistols/guns on the ground. As expected of a big guy who likes campus bullying, he really knows how to collect dangerous props.

Zhou Wu slipped the gun into his trouser pocket before announcing everyone’s task, telling everyone to do what they should do as long as they don’t leave the wooden house too far.

When Zhuo Yu turned his head to see, Fang Hao was also holding the rod in tears, and his whole body began to tremble again. Everybody is well aware that Golden Lake may have problems, and no one wants to be near it.

“…” Zhuo Yu took the fishing rod without hesitation and walked away. Fang Hao could only grit his teeth and look for a suitable location to begin fishing.

Time flies, and the days in Golden Lake are fleeting. The sky began to darken around four o’clock in the afternoon.

 

Fang Hao sighed and took a small bucket with a few fish scattered in it, just in time to see Zhuo Yu return, and seeing Zhuo Yu’s hands empty made him feel much better. Fang Hao sighed and took a small bucket with a few fish scattered in it, just in time to see Zhuo Yu return, and seeing Zhuo Yu’s hands empty made him feel much better.

Fang Hao laughed and said, “You don’t need legs to fish, so why didn’t you catch any?”

Zhuo Yu gave him a strange smile and hooked his fingers. When Fang Hao approached, Zhuo Yu said softly: “Did you miss Mu Ying’s appearance? Aren’t you afraid that you won’t be able to leave after eating the fish here?”

 

Fearful, the baby-faced college student spilled the bucket in his hand. The fish jumped around on the floor: “You, you! Why didn’t you say it before?”

 

Zhuo Yu was taken aback: “Did you truly believe it? I’m just joking!”

 

Zhuo Yu threw the fishing rod beside the car and left before Fang Hao could recover. After a while, Fang Hao came back to his senses and yelled at the person who had taunted him.

Of course, Zhuo Yu didn’t care about this minor incident; he didn’t go fishing with the fishing rod, but instead took the time to survey the terrain near Golden Lake for new clues.

 

He ignored Zhou Wu and the others who were busy with the barbecue and returned to the house by himself.

 

Zhuo Yu’s room was situated near the back door, which overlooked the lake. He gazed out the window at the seniors outside and couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh. If he had the freedom, he probably wouldn’t choose to join a team. Sometimes, having a large number of people is not an advantage but rather a hindrance.

 

As he lifted the sheet, he discovered that the body that had been lying beneath the bed had vanished.

 

Zhuo Yu raised an eyebrow and hurriedly made his way to the back door, following the winding watermarks. To his surprise, the moon had already ascended the hillside, slowly rising to the middle of the lake, and the Yin Corpse was nowhere to be found.

 

“You can survive broken bones, so let’s try burning next time,” Zhuo Yu muttered.

 

He turned his head and left the wooden house, contemplating how to obtain Zhou Wu’s flint and steel. However, not far away, a pair of lifeless eyes were concealed within the lake, filled with fear.

 

The surviving Yin Corpse wasn’t very intelligent; its sole memory was crashing into the black pupil of a human, after which it couldn’t feel anything. It felt a bit uneasy and dove deeper, swimming toward the center of the golden lake.

 

The Golden Lake had informed it that there was a different entity capable of resolving its immediate troubles.

 

The Yin Corpse swam deeper and deeper, passing countless shattered corpses at the lake’s bottom. On a boulder with a dagger lodged in it, it spotted a dormant guardian.

 

As if encountering a savior, the Yin Corpse let out a piercing howl, catching the attention of the slumbering guardian. With claws and gestures, the Yin Corpse swam alongside him, leading him out from the depths of the lake.

 

Under the shroud of night, the rippling disturbance near the river embankment went unnoticed.

 

A dark silhouette emerged, disrupting the shimmering reflection of the full moon on the golden lake. Half of the figure’s body submerged into the chilly waters, fixating its gaze upon the alluring, fresh prey in the distance.

 

Six figures were dimly illuminated by the flickering firelight, and one of them appeared rather peculiar, sitting in a wheelchair.

 

The man was taken aback.

 

“Ho ho… ho ho… retribution!” the Yin Corpse recounted the situation on the shoreline to him. As soon as the words escaped its mouth, its cheeks throbbed with pain, and its head clenched tightly. Applying a little more force would surely result in a familiar burst, akin to a watermelon.

 

Don’t make a fuss, thought the Guardian of the Golden Lake.

 

—Let me quietly observe him once more.