Font Size:
Wei Lan and Liu Mingyi passed through the dense fog of the Bewitching Forest and finally reached the heart of the woodland, a grove of linden trees.
As the last rays of the setting sun were swallowed by the thick foliage, the linden forest plunged into deeper darkness. A sense of foreboding surged in Liu Mingyi’s heart, and his palms began to sweat involuntarily.
However, Wei Lan seemed oblivious to the dangers around her. She was entirely focused on searching for ginseng within the forest, driven by a single thought: to find the legendary ginseng hidden in this mysterious woodland.
After some searching, her gaze was caught by a vibrant green plant. Underneath a linden tree, she spotted the ginseng’s leaves—a unique plant from the Araliaceae family, with compound leaves serrated at the edges, its veins distinctly visible.
Carefully, she brushed aside the fallen leaves and decayed soil, revealing the ginseng’s stem. It was short and thick, with a few small leaves growing from it—an essential indicator for harvesting ginseng.
Following the method Liu Mingyi had taught her, Wei Lan used a small knife to gently carve a circle around the ginseng, then slowly dug into the soil, taking care not to damage the delicate roots. Her movements were precise and gentle, afraid that the slightest mistake would ruin this precious medicinal herb.
Just as she reached out to pluck the ginseng, something strange happened—the ginseng’s leaves vanished before her eyes, as if enchanted, slipping through her fingers like a mischievous spirit.
It happened so quickly that Wei Lan stood frozen in place, but she quickly shook her head, certain her eyes weren’t deceiving her.
Meanwhile, Liu Mingyi was warily scanning the surroundings when his attention was drawn to movement near a pond in the distance—two young wild boars were playing carefreely.
A surge of alarm shot through him. The presence of boar cubs usually signaled that an adult boar was nearby. And adult wild boars were notoriously aggressive, especially when they sensed their young were in danger.
Liu Mingyi furrowed his brows and lowered his voice, urgently whispering, “Miss Wei, we shouldn’t stay here any longer. We must leave at once.”
But Wei Lan had already spotted the ginseng again. She was unwilling to abandon it now and was determined to capture it. “I found the ginseng! Just a little more time.” Excitement filled her voice, as if she had unearthed a hidden treasure.
This time, Wei Lan was even more cautious. She carefully observed her surroundings before locking onto the elusive ginseng once more. Determined not to let it escape again, she swiftly lunged forward with both hands, firmly grasping its stem.
But at that moment, the ground suddenly collapsed beneath her, revealing a hidden pit.
“Ah!” Wei Lan let out a startled cry as she lost her balance and fell into the hole, taking the ginseng with her.
Liu Mingyi’s heart pounded with fear. He rushed to the edge of the pit and called down anxiously, “Lan! Are you alright?”
Inside the pit, darkness enveloped her. Wei Lan felt dizzy from the fall but quickly steadied herself and checked on the ginseng. Thankfully, it was intact, its roots unbroken. Her voice, though slightly shaken, was steady: “I’ve reached the bottom. I’m fine. The ginseng is safe too.”
Liu Mingyi exhaled in relief, but his worry was far from over.
“I’ll find a rope and pull you up.”
He knew time was crucial. Scanning the area, his eyes landed on a thick vine wrapped around a nearby tree—strong and flexible, an ideal makeshift rope.
He swiftly took action, drawing a sharp knife from his waist and carefully cutting several lengths of the vine.
Meanwhile, Wei Lan gazed up at the pit’s opening. Liu Mingyi’s figure hurriedly disappeared, obviously in search of a way to rescue her. As his footsteps faded, an unsettling loneliness crept over her. She had secured the ginseng, but now she was left alone to face the unknown.
The pit was pitch black and so cramped that even turning was difficult. She felt herself sitting on something cold and smooth. Curious, she pulled it out from under her and brought it up to examine.
At first, she thought it was just a strangely shaped stone. But as her fingers traced its surface, she felt uneven ridges, a peculiar texture. Her fingertips brushed over two symmetrical indentations, followed by a series of small holes.
A chill ran down her spine.
She lifted the object closer, straining to see under the dim light filtering in from the pit’s opening.
Her breath caught in her throat.
It was a skull.
“Ahh!” Wei Lan shrieked and flung it away instinctively.
The skull clattered against the ground, its hollow sound echoing through the pit.
Although she was a medical student accustomed to handling human anatomy, encountering a skull in such an eerie, confined space sent her heart racing and her breathing ragged.
A terrifying thought crossed her mind: Had others also fallen into this pit while searching for ginseng, only to meet their end here? The more she dwelled on it, the more her body trembled uncontrollably.
Hearing her scream, Liu Mingyi’s heart clenched. He dropped the vines and rushed back to the pit’s edge, shouting, “Lan! What happened?”
Wei Lan’s voice was shaky but firm. “I’m okay! Just hurry and get me out of here!”
Liu Mingyi reassured her, “Don’t worry, I’m pulling you up now.”
With swift movements, he wove the vines together, securing them with strong knots to extend their length. He wrapped one end around a sturdy tree trunk and tossed the other end into the pit.
“Lan, grab the rope!” he called out.
Wei Lan reached up and firmly grasped the vine rope.
“I’ve got it! Pull me up!”
Liu Mingyi took a deep breath and began hauling her up. His muscles tensed, each pull requiring immense effort.
Just as he was about to pull her out, he heard a rumbling sound—the ground trembled slightly, and rustling noises echoed through the trees, accompanied by the low growls of a beast.
His blood ran cold.
A fully grown wild boar was charging toward them.
The mother boar, alerted by their commotion, felt her territory threatened. Her furious roars echoed through the forest, sending shivers down Liu Mingyi’s spine.
His heart pounded as he quickly secured the vine at the pit’s edge to keep Wei Lan from falling back in.
“Lan, don’t move or make a sound,” he whispered urgently before turning to face the imminent danger.
He scanned the area, searching for any advantage in the trees and underbrush. His heartbeat thundered in his ears as he gripped his dagger tightly, fully aware that he stood no chance against a wild boar in direct combat.
But he couldn’t run.
Because he couldn’t leave Wei Lan behind.
The wild boar burst from the thicket, eyes bloodshot, bristling with fury, and charged at him like an unstoppable force.
Liu Mingyi narrowly dodged the attack, but the boar’s tusks grazed his clothes, leaving a deep tear.
As the boar wheeled around for another charge, a piercing whistle cut through the air.
From the distance, a hunting dog named Jiabao came sprinting toward them, barking furiously, followed closely by a hunter named Dan.
Dan took a steady breath and drew his bowstring taut.
In the dim light, he had only one shot.
As Liu Mingyi struggled to fend off the beast, Dan released the arrow.
The arrow streaked through the air, striking the boar’s soft flank with deadly precision.
The boar let out an agonized roar, hesitating for just a moment.
Seizing the chance, Liu Mingyi, despite his injuries, picked up his fallen dagger and aimed for the boar’s weakest spot—between its eyes.
In the pit, Wei Lan heard the chaos above. Desperate, she clawed her way up the rocky walls, ignoring the pain of her torn hands.
At last, she pulled herself over the edge.
What she saw made her heart drop.
Liu Mingyi lay motionless in a pool of blood.
She couldn’t tell if it was his blood or the boar’s.