https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-34-Portable-Bag-and-Hunting-Journal/12973727/
Chapter 35: Early Winter in the Bell Tower
Chapter 35: Early Winter in the Bell Tower
Back inside the church, Hong Yue retrieved a Bloodstone from the basement and used it to heal Linsey's chest wound.
Unlike the previous time when she treated his cold, Linsey's chest wound healed at an astonishingly rapid pace, and the cold Essence within was simultaneously expelled.
The Bloodstone lost its redness completely, transforming into a rough, grayish-black, solid stone.
Hong Yue didn't say much but instructed Linsey to rest immediately.
She was well aware that after a long day of hunting and two life-and-death chases, anyone would be mentally and physically exhausted.
Her disciple needed rest above all else.
As soon as Linsey lay down in his bed, he closed his eyes and swiftly fell asleep.
...
Six hours later, Linsey's biological clock, maintained by the Life Essence, was remarkably punctual.
Before midnight, he woke up and got out of bed.
First, he checked his chest wound. After sleeping, the blood scab had hardened, and its rigid edges didn't match the softness of his skin, causing it to lift slightly.
Linsey reached out and touched it.
"Ow—"
"Forget it, I won't pick at it."
Linsey resolutely abandoned his previous action, displaying his decisiveness and courage.
Then, he got dressed, tied a piece of cloth to resemble a portable bag, and transformed it—
The bag instantly vanished, and Linsey sensed his spatial equipment.
Since it was just a simple cloth bag, his Portable Bag currently had only eight slots, and its carrying capacity was affected only by Linsey's attributes, providing a decent limit of 80kg.
Linsey tried to stuff his bedding into the bag.
Swish—
The bedding on the bed disappeared, and one of the bag's slots was filled.
In its place appeared an icon of a rolled-up bed.
Linsey then moved around the room, testing his speed and agility, which felt perfectly normal.
"The weight in the portable bag doesn't affect my physical body at all."
Linsey paused to think, then took the bedding out of the bag.
The bedding was the same when he put it in and when he took it out.
He walked over to the cabinet by the bed and took out a few copper coins, activating the automatic pickup function of his Portable Bag.
Swish—
The copper coins in front of him vanished, and the bag's slots displayed the copper coin icon, with the quantity shown in the bottom right corner.
Linsey took the coins out and tested the automatic pickup function in different locations.
The Portable Bag's automatic pickup function was straightforward.
If the target was within reach, on the ground, or within arm's length, the automatic pickup would work; otherwise, if Linsey couldn't physically reach it, such as when it was too far away, inside a sealed container, or worn by someone else, the automatic pickup wouldn't function.
"It's like a simplified version of my picking up actions."
Linsey sighed.
After completing the ability test, he left his room, fully dressed, and entered the chapel.
The timing was just right.
Rez's body had been brought to the chapel, along with a few others.
Linsey silently stood at the back of the chapel, observing his surroundings.
Rez's sister, a girl of about 1.6 meters tall, wearing a yellow cloth dress, stood guard by the body, quietly sobbing.
Apart from her, Linsey also saw Lord An Rui and Dan, standing a bit further away, their expressions equally somber and serious.
After about a quarter of an hour, Hong Yue finished her prayers.
She waved Linsey over and whispered to her disciple, "First, we prepare the body for burial."
"The deceased's family usually hires a seamstress to make a black burial robe for the dead. We paint our school's emblem on it to show respect and mourning for death. The inside of the coffin is lined with fabric and straw, providing the deceased with a comfortable final resting place."
As Hong Yue explained, she placed the straw and fabric beside the coffin.
Linsey immediately joined her, helping to lift Rez's body and lay it in the coffin.
Hong Yue continued, "After placing the body in the coffin, we prepare a piece of sturdy wood, like oak, and carve the deceased's name and significant life events on it as a memorial."
"However, in times of limited resources, a cloth strip can be used instead, and the information can be written on it with paint."
Given the urgency, Rez's sister obviously didn't have time to find a suitable piece of wood.
So, Hong Yue took a piece of curtain fabric from the corner of the chapel and brought it over. Rez's sister couldn't write, so Hong Yue wrote down some of Rez's personal information based on her dictation and placed it on the deceased's chest.
"Now, we close the coffin."
Hong Yue and Linsey closed the coffin, hammering seven nails around it. Then, she circled the coffin, tapping each nail and reciting a prayer.
After completing this ritual, she explained to Linsey, "The seven coffin nails symbolize the seven days of the week, representing the deceased's complete separation from the living world."
After that, the concept of death was collected using the Bloodstone, and the location of the nail was also used for this purpose."
After explaining to Linsey, Red Moon turned to Lei Ze's sister.
"Go and inform the others in town, the final mourning can begin."
Lei Ze's sister's eyes were red, and her body was so weak from crying.
But she shook her head firmly, refusing Red Moon's suggestion:
"It's too late, let everyone rest well, and let my brother find peace quickly."
Red Moon nodded slowly.
"Death has arrived, but it is not the end."
"Souls return to slumber, and flesh returns to essence."
"The deceased should bid farewell to the world of the living, and the living should silently bid farewell to the deceased."
"Rest in peace..."
"May you be free from the abyss, may you not get lost in the Dead Sea, may you accept a new beginning..."
After completing the final prayer, she called An Rui and the female hunter.
The two strong Awakened lifted the coffin, and the group walked out of the chapel, heading towards the cemetery at the back.
With Lord An Rui present, the speed of digging the grave was swift.
They lowered the coffin, and at this moment, Red Moon took out a small candle, placing it above the coffin before instructing the other two to fill the grave with soil.
The burial was completed quickly.
After setting up the gravestone, Lei Ze's sister began to cry quietly by the grave.
Red Moon gently caressed the girl's back.
She didn't say any words of comfort, only using her actions to soothe the other's grieving soul.
After a while, she spoke to Linsey:
"Linsey, Finn is old, and we didn't inform him about what happened today."
"Could you please go and inform him early in the morning?"
Linsey, of course, had no objections:
"I'd be happy to."
Red Moon reminded her:
"There's a book on my table, it's for you, you can practice reading."
Linsey nodded in understanding and returned to the house.
He found the book in Red Moon's house - "The Burial Book of the Cemetery."
It recorded the burial rituals of the Death Sect for the deceased, as well as some variations for different situations, along with related burial stories.
Linsey sat down to read, and time quietly passed.
Unbeknownst to him, dawn arrived as the shadows crept beneath his feet.
"Huh? Is it morning already?"
He saw the morning light shining at his feet.
Linsey quickly put away "The Burial Book of the Cemetery" and hurried to town, informing the plant scholar about yesterday's events.
Red Moon and An Rui were checking the forest's condition, and they wouldn't be back early today.
After leaving Finn's house, Linsey became idle.
The weather today was a bit gloomy.
Linsey recalled everything he experienced yesterday and started jogging around town, accumulating experience points for his basic attributes.
Unbeknownst to him, he had reached the westernmost lighthouse bell tower of the town.
Except for the bell ringer, there were no guards on duty here.
Linsey was curious, so he pushed open the door and walked in, following the wooden spiral staircase to the top of the lighthouse bell tower.
On the side facing the town, there was a bell tower.
A massive metal bell hung here, with a wooden hammer suspended below, its surface smoothed by the passage of time.
Turning to the side facing away from the town, there was a semi-circular observation deck.
Inside a silver vessel resembling a searchlight, a piece of yellowish crystal was embedded, as if it was the light source for this searchlight.
"..."
Linsey silently observed this device.
Although he was just a beginner Awakened, at this moment, with it right before his eyes, he could sense the surging essence within the crystal.
He had a strong feeling.
As long as he dared to reach out and touch it now, the power within this crystal would instantly turn him into ashes!
This was the lighthouse prepared for the explorers to return home.
Only it could illuminate the vast emptiness at the edge of the world, providing the only beacon for humanity!
Linsey shrugged, not taking any unnecessary risks.
He turned to the side of the bell tower and sat down.
At this moment, Linsey felt his forehead dampen, and when he looked up, the sky happened to be filled with falling snowflakes.
Reaching out, the tiny white particles fell into his hand, then melted into water.
Looking forward again.
The quiet dawn, the town's silhouette enveloped by the surrounding snowy landscape. The forest, covered in snow, shimmered silently with crystalline light, like a kingdom of elves.
The morning light extended from the distant east, piercing through the clouds, creating a peaceful and gentle melody.
The soft light swept across this snow-covered world, forming a striking contrast between the golden sunlight and the pure white snow, as if playing a tranquil and beautiful tune.
In the quiet morning, the town's chimneys released plumes of smoke, blending with the snowy scenery to form a beautiful sight.
Everything was bathed in this serenity.
Time seemed to have paused its steps.
Whoosh—
A cold gust of wind blew.
Linsey sat atop the bell tower, slowly closing his eyes.
He still had a long life ahead in this town, and his expectations for the future, all drifted away with the falling snow of early winter, towards the distant horizon.
【Seeking Collections and Votes!】
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
