Chapter 412: Chapter 376: The Change of Black Tai Sui
The idea of using an Earth Ghost to deal with the Story Chain Group is a good one, but Sang Que doesn’t have any clues on how to implement it.
The existence of the Story Chain Group is somewhat like a system in the novel, even harder to capture than a ghost, as its entity is likely dependent on the data stream of networks and electronic devices.
Standing in the woods, Sang Que thinks that with so many debts, she’s not afraid of more. She wants to see if she can make a wish for the Earth Ghost to resolve the Story Chain Group, and whether a shen kan of the Earth Ghost will appear here.
After waiting for about five minutes, there was no movement around.
This left Sang Que puzzled; could it be that after reaching a deal with the Earth Ghost, what the Earth Ghost left behind was actually something like a curse?
The ghostly shadow she could see in the corner of her eye wasn’t the Earth Ghost itself, nor could it be called a Ghost Slave, but more like a Curse Ghost? Does it exist by depending on her?
The things in the spirit world are bizarre and not everything has a clear answer, so Sang Que decided not to think about it for now.
"Let’s go, Little Chan, time to go home."
"Coming~"
Xia Chan released the snake she had caught earlier and quickly caught up with Sang Que. The two instantly teleported back to the urban area of Yu City, where Sang Que took Xia Chan to the supermarket to buy some ingredients for hot pot.
Once home, the three of them plus a cat and a dog gathered around the table for a delightful meal.
The TV in the living room was on the whole time, broadcasting news about the upcoming World Games at the beginning of next month.
Sang Que listened intently for a while; she originally planned to use the backdoor of the research institute to participate in the archery project of the World Games, to bring glory to the nation and collect incense in the process.
It’s the most reliable and fastest way for her, as with her current abilities, archery is something she can easily handle.
After dinner, Sang Que called Zheng Xuan. During her time in the Deceit Dynasty, Ye Changqing had informed her that Zheng Xuan would be in touch with her afterward.
Zheng Xuan is now the captain of one of the research institute’s mobile teams, and Sang Que’s application to join the team and subsequent training arrangements also need to be coordinated by Zheng Xuan.
Besides, Sang Que and Zheng Xuan are well acquainted, so having him guide her is most fitting.
As soon as the call connected, even before Sang Que could express her thoughts, she heard Ye Changqing’s voice, and after some whispering, Zheng Xuan told Sang Que that they were currently at Lishi Mountain and that the Black Tai Sui had shown abnormal activities recently. If convenient, Sang Que could report directly to Lishi Mountain.
Due to the construction of a branch of the research institute at Lishi Mountain, the mobile team was already recruiting new members, and the subsequent training for newcomers would also take place near Lishi Mountain.
Additionally, apart from Ye Changqing, several heavyweight professors from the research institute, including Professor Qin Zhixian from the asylum whom Sang Que had met last time, were all at Lishi Mountain, but specific matters couldn’t be discussed over the phone, according to Zheng Xuan.
This time, Sang Que did not bring Xia Chan or Xuan Yu; she took special transport and flights and arrived at Lishi Mountain in just four or five hours.
The former Wu Family Village had been completely leveled, with a high-voltage fence erected along the lake and mountain, and the outlines of various buildings inside already built, especially the area where the Black Tai Sui resides, encircled by high walls, guarded meticulously.
Zheng Xuan personally came to the base entrance to welcome Sang Que, driving a jeep straight into the mountains.
Having not seen each other for just over a week, Zheng Xuan looked weary, with a scraggly beard, as if he hadn’t had time to shave.
Noticing Sang Que’s gaze, Zheng Xuan drove one-handed, touched his chin, and smiled, "These days have been crazily busy; getting three or four hours of sleep each night is considered good, so there was no time to shave."
"What’s wrong with the Black Tai Sui?" Sang Que went straight to the point.
Zheng Xuan replied with difficulty, "With my rank, I can’t access much information, but you definitely can. When you meet Professor Ye and the others, they’ll inform you."
After a series of complex identity verifications, passing through six checkpoints in total, Zheng Xuan delivered Sang Que to the temporary base located in the mountains.
The formal base had only its foundation excavation completed, clearing a woodland area, preparing to build it near the secret space occupied by the Black Tai Sui.
Though the temporary base consisted of mobile homes, it was not at all primitive, boasting all necessary facilities and security measures.
Upon entering, Sang Que saw five people, three men and two women, seated around a conference table, focused on the screen projected by a projector.
"Sang Que, you finally made it." Ye Changqing remained amicable and kind, standing up to welcome Sang Que at the door.
Qin Zhixian also stood up from his seat, nodding and smiling gently at Sang Que.
The other three continued seated, curiously examining Sang Que.
Ye Changqing briefly introduced the other three to Sang Que; the eldest, already with white hair, was an expert in folklore.
Among the two women, the older one was Zhuo Wenli, a renowned figure in the recent medical field, enjoying international fame.
The other young and vibrant-looking woman was Su Yun, with a bulky camera beside her, resembling a reporter, responsible for photographing and documenting the Black Tai Sui’s changes this time.
No excessive courtesy was exchanged; once seated, Ye Changqing went straight to the point, taking up the remote to project a photo onto the screen.
Sang Que looked over and found the photo resembled black holes she’d seen in science fiction films, unsure how it was captured; the photo’s colors bore fluorescent blue, swirling like a vortex.
Ye Changqing bypassed the professional jargon, explaining simply to Sang Que, "This is an internal structure image of the Black Tai Sui obtained through special imaging equipment by the research institute. Doesn’t it look like the black holes in science fiction movies?"
Sang Que nodded; Ye Changqing pressed the remote control again, displaying ten additional images, where Sang Que noticed the center of this ’black hole’ was actually expanding, and the fluorescent blue image was gradually shifting towards red.
Ye Changqing continued, "This was captured in the past ten days; some kind of change has occurred within the Black Tai Sui. Yesterday, during the peak of this change, the entire Lishi Mountain’s surrounding ten kilometers had severely affected power systems."
Qin Zhixian supplemented, "At the peak, some ghosts I brought from the asylum, based on the rankings you provided, should be classified as first-level evil spirits; they advanced to second-level in one night, indicating a rapid strengthening of dark forces, also affirming your previous hypothesis that this Black Tai Sui likely is a source of dark power."
Ye Changqing nodded, glancing at the images, "The current issue is why the Black Tai Sui suddenly changed, and what’s at the depths of this ’black hole’?"
Everyone turned to Sang Que, knowing she was a direct lineage descendant of the Wu Family, and all the information about the Black Tai Sui came from her, they felt only Sang Que could provide answers.
At this moment, Sang Que’s mind was in turmoil; she had suspected the Yunmeng Marsh mentioned by the Chu State’s Witch might be the current Deceit Dynasty.
Could this Black Tai Sui, persistently existing on Lishi Mountain for over two thousand years without disappearing, truly serve as the ’gate’ connecting the modern and Yunmeng Marsh?
Or, is the Black Tai Sui actually the Nine Nether Abyss?
Moreover, the internal changes in the Black Tai Sui began over these past ten days, coinciding with the ascension dispute between Zuo Jinye and the Class Leader in the Deceit Dynasty during the same period.
Could it be their conflict opened the gate within the Black Tai Sui, allowing dark forces from the Deceit Dynasty to permeate into the modern age?
If that’s true, once people and ghosts from the Deceit Dynasty deepen into the Ninth Layer of the Nine Nether, they might completely break open this passage from their side.
Upon thinking this, a chill rushed from Sang Que’s spine to the top of her head.
