Chapter 30: The Missing Corpse
Chapter 30: The Missing Corpse
"Cough! Cough, cough..."
As Linsey walked, he couldn't help but let out a few coughs.
The two wounds on his chest were emitting a chilling aura, and the 'Essence - Frost Erosion' on his attribute panel indicated that this was no ordinary external injury.
But at this moment, Linsey couldn't help but feel grateful for awakening his Life Essence.
Although he had just cultivated his essence and had yet to experience the many wonders of this ability, it had already proven its worth.
When faced with the enemy's essence erosion, this power helped him resist a certain amount of damage, preventing his body from deteriorating rapidly.
"This is just as Dan said."
"Ordinary people encountering beasts, one small mistake and they're done for. I was truly lucky the first time..."
A few minutes later, Linsey's stamina bar, which had been depleted, had already recovered significantly.
He had made his way to the frozen river surface.
Then, he saw Jucai's figure.
The boy was holding three arrows, carefully feeling his way across the frozen ice, heading towards the opposite shore.
Behind him, the ice boar Linsey had shot dead was now silent.
"This..."
Linsey's expression froze.
This child hadn't hidden behind the safe cover of the corpse but instead waited for a few minutes.
He ventured out, concerned about Linsey's condition, and explored the riverbank.
He even carefully collected his arrows.
Linsey's nose twitched, and a surge of indescribable emotion filled his heart.
The boy in front of him, worried about his safety, had taken a risk.
This concern touched Linsey more deeply than even his victory over the three ice boars!
"Brother Linsey?"
At that moment, Jucai, standing on the ice, spotted Linsey emerging from the forest.
He shouted and rushed towards him, wanting to embrace Linsey. But upon seeing the wound on his chest, he immediately stopped:
"You, your chest..."
Jucai's voice trembled.
But Linsey didn't dwell on his injury. Instead, he spoke sternly:
"Jucai, you should stay behind."
"It's dangerous here."
Jucai met Linsey's gaze, his voice tense but his attitude resolute:
"I saw those three beasts chasing you. I...I was worried!"
"..."
Linsey couldn't help but relent as he looked into Jucai's trembling, concerned eyes.
"Thank you." He took his three arrows from Jucai's hand, then grabbed the boy's hand and headed back towards the town on the opposite shore, "But you can rest assured, everything's fine now."
After taking a few steps with Linsey, Jucai couldn't contain his curiosity and asked:
"What about the other two ice boars..."
Linsey nodded affirmatively:
"I managed to deal with them somehow."
"But as you saw, I'm injured now, and I'm afraid I can't wait here for Dan any longer. I need to return to town to treat my wound."
Linsey and Jucai conversed as they made their way back to town.
Having slain three ice boars that had appeared out of nowhere, today's hunting lesson could be considered a 'perfect success'.
Everything should have ended there.
But shortly after leaving the frozen river, as they stepped onto the snow-covered ground, Linsey noticed a crucial change.
The birch tree they had dug out from the snow, under which they had placed the corpse for Jucai's cover, was now empty.
—The corpse was gone.
Linsey's steps faltered, and he hurriedly asked:
"Jucai, did you just move this corpse?"
He couldn't believe the words that had just left his mouth.
"Ju, how could a child possibly hide an adult's body in such a short time?
Besides, why would he do such a thing?"
At that moment, Ju's attention followed Linsey's voice to the birch tree, where he also noticed the bare ground beneath it.
His reaction mirrored Linsey's confusion:
"Huh? It was just here a moment ago."
"I only left for a few minutes..."
Linsey's instincts kicked in before he could finish his sentence.
"Let's go, we need to leave right now!"
Gripping Ju's hand tightly, Linsey endured his discomfort and sprinted forward, an alarm blaring in his mind.
Within minutes, the body had suddenly vanished.
And it had been buried in the snow for an entire day, a frozen adult corpse as hard as granite.
Even scavengers would likely turn their noses up at such a meal.
What on earth was going on?
Linsey's peripheral vision caught the area beneath the birch tree, but he had no desire to investigate.
He didn't want to approach it recklessly.
Perhaps he could find some clues in the snow about the body's disappearance.
But right now, all he wanted was to get Ju safely back to town. This was no time for adventuring.
Linsey's reaction alerted Ju, who also sensed the danger.
He wriggled free of Linsey's grasp and moved to the front.
Although Ju was still a child, he took his role as Linsey's protector seriously, scanning their surroundings for any potential threats.
"..."
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Linsey was about to protest, but the icy chill in his chest forced him to cough a few times, swallowing back the words he had prepared.
They took a few more steps.
The surroundings seemed eerily quiet, with no signs of disturbance.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a dark figure burst out from the nearby forest, charging directly at Ju.
Linsey didn't even have time to shout a warning.
He shoved Ju forward and drew a dagger, colliding with the dark figure.
Bang! Both Linsey and the figure fell backward.
Linsey felt like he had collided with a solid block of iron, his entire body aching from the impact.
Before Linsey could complain, he scrambled to his feet and saw a human figure standing before him, its face frozen white by the snow.
"A resurrected corpse?"
Linsey's mind flashed with images of classic monsters from movies and games.
Zombies, ghouls, wraiths...
He couldn't quite categorize the reanimated corpse before him.
But the impact he had just felt told him this was no ordinary foe, definitely not in the same league as the Ice Boar.
Linsey scanned his surroundings.
Ju, pushed aside earlier, climbed to his feet and turned to see the astonishing sight.
Meanwhile, the resurrected corpse also rose again.
Its head bobbed like a water drum, turning away from Ju and focusing on Linsey.
Linsey got a clear view of its face.
The frozen expression was devoid of emotion, the eyes sunken in their sockets, and the eyeballs themselves were further sunken with fine cracks visible. There was only a silent deathly intent, no other emotion.
"..."
"Ju, run to town and get help quickly."
Ju hesitated for a moment, understanding the risks and benefits. Without further delay, he sprinted towards town.
(End of Chapter)
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