The Unorthodox Tomb Raider

Fang Yun glanced into the distance and indeed spotted what appeared to be a small hill a few miles away. This hill wasn't deserted; the trees on it had been sparsely felled, and some houses could be seen at one point.

Therefore, there must be people living on this small hill; it must be a small village. The man then plunged into this small village.

"How are we supposed to search now? We can't possibly break into every house one by one, can we?"

Wang Hai glanced at Fang Yun, unsure of what to do next.

"Don't worry, let's go up the mountain and check the situation first. Some mountain villages only have a few households, so it's not hard to find them. Besides, since this person went up the mountain, they must have left some traces. We can just follow those traces down the mountain."

After saying this, the two didn't say anything more and headed straight for the small mountain village. The road to the village was very steep, and the flagstones were covered with moss, making it easy to slip and fall if you weren't careful.

It seems that not many people usually walk this path. If many people walked this path every day, the moss would not be so lush.

When Fang Yun arrived at the mountain village, he found that although there were many old houses, most of them looked like they had been uninhabited for a long time.

Even if you can occasionally hear people talking inside a house and hear some smoke coming out of a chimney, most of the people inside are elderly.

Fang Yun understood this phenomenon very well, since many young people had left the mountains and were unwilling to stay in this desolate place.

However, leaving these elderly people here alone has created many problems. While living conditions are also important, for example, transportation here is very inconvenient, and they often go without supplies.

If there is a severe drought or heavy rain, the crops will not yield a good harvest, and it may even lead to famine in this area.

Of course, many older generations have already experienced this situation; they would build granaries in the village to prepare for unforeseen circumstances. As for modern needs, they never experienced nature before, so they don't have those needs now.

What troubles these older generations most is probably loneliness, because they can't find many younger people to confide in. Even if these younger generations do come to the village, it's likely only once every few years...

So whenever Fang Yun saw this situation, he felt great sympathy for these older people. Many of them had never even left these mountains in their entire lives, and had given all that they had earned in their lives to their children.

It's like dedicating your entire life to others. Even though this person is a family member, the sacrifice is far too great.

At this moment, Fang Yun suddenly noticed a figure leaning on a cane in front of him, who seemed to be an old man, so he quickly walked forward.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a man in his fifties.

"Young man, you're not from our village. You've gotten lost."

The middle-aged man also saw Fang Yun, smiled, and asked.

It was rare for an outsider to come to the village, and this uncle was very interested in chatting with Fang Yun.

"Yes, I'm looking for someone. He seems to have just walked into this village. I don't know if you've seen him."

Although Fang Yun was still asking questions, he already knew the answer. The man's clothes were too flamboyant, and he was wearing a mask and carrying a long knife. Anyone who saw him would probably be frightened.

In other words, even if I didn't ask, the uncle's expression would probably tell me something.

However, the uncle remained calm on the surface, but after hearing the question, he showed a hint of thought.

"I didn't see that. How about I go ask about it for you?"

"Uncle, we're not familiar with this village. Please show us around."

Fang Yun said politely.

Chapter 734 Searching for People

"You want to visit our village? Sure. I might not be familiar with other places, but I know our village very well."

"Of course, don't think that just being familiar with our village is a big deal. I can tell you that our village was originally built on a feng shui Bagua formation. If a stranger came here, they could very well get lost."

The old man clearly became interested at this point and began to introduce the village's culture and geography.

Fang Yun was also amazed upon hearing this. There were indeed some extraordinary people and events in ancient times who could transform terrain into formations. Sometimes, these formations, when used for defense, were more effective than an army.

Sure enough, once inside the village, Fang Yun noticed that the layout was a bit strange, with many small paths and side roads crisscrossing the area. If it were truly his first time in this village, he really wouldn't know which path to take.

Under the guidance of this leader, Fang Yun and Wang Hai avoided some wrong turns. As they walked, they observed the surrounding houses, looking for anything unusual.

Of course, this kept Fang Yun on his guard. The old man had just said this place was arranged according to feng shui principles; did that man also know the secret of this place when he fled here?

Or perhaps their accomplices and hideout were already here. In that case, if Fang Yun didn't understand these things, he would really have a hard time finding this person.

"Uncle, do you know everyone in this village?"

Upon hearing Fang Yun's question, the uncle immediately smiled.

"Of course, I don't know any outsiders, but I've known these old folks in our village for countless years. If I didn't know them, I would have lived all these years in vain."

Fang Yun nodded, then suddenly asked, "Have any strangers come to the village in recent years? People who weren't originally from this village but have settled here. Of course, they don't have to stay, but they come here from time to time."

Upon hearing Fang Yun's question, the old man's expression changed.

"Now that you mention it, I do remember someone like that. We all call her Xiao Hong. Anyway, she came to our village a few years ago and wasn't very old. We used to wonder why a perfectly healthy young woman would come to a mountain village like ours. Wasn't that a waste of her prime years?"

"But Xiaohong said that this is the perfect place for her to cultivate herself. Xiaohong was tired of city life, so she wanted to come to the countryside to find some leisure and tranquility."

"Of course, we've seen some city people like that before, bringing their families along, just to experience life here. But these people usually only stay for a few days at most before leaving, while Xiaohong has been living here for several years."

Upon hearing this, Fang Yun immediately sensed something was wrong; there was definitely something wrong with this Xiao Hong.

"Uncle, could you take us to see Xiaohong? After all, we're all young people, and I'd like to talk to her and see why she chose to live here."

The uncle didn't say anything and continued to lead the way.

Although the mountain village isn't very large, its winding paths made it quite a long walk. So, it would be very easy to hide someone here.

After walking several more miles, Fang Yun and his companion arrived at a small building. Although the building was not particularly exquisite and even somewhat old, it had a sizable courtyard in front of it, where some vegetables and wheat were grown.

“That little red girl lives here. If you want to talk to her, I can call her for you.”

The older man sized up Fang Yun, and the two of them figured he wasn't a bad person, so they went up to him and called out in front of the building.

After calling Xiao Hong's name several times, a young woman suddenly appeared on the balcony of the second floor of room 023. As soon as she appeared, she glanced at Fang Yun and his companion before quickly disappearing from sight.

"Oh, it's Uncle Li. What brings you here?"

"It's nothing much, it's just that these two young men came to our village today. I'm not thinking about Xiao Hong, you yourself used to be from the city, and over the years, there haven't been many people in your family who could keep you company and relieve your boredom. Perfect, these two young men can chat with you."

Xiao Hong smiled faintly upon hearing this.

"Thank you, Uncle Li, but I'm not the kind of person who chats with just anyone. And I'm not actually that bored. I'm quite fine here on my own, so please don't worry about me anymore."

Uncle Li wanted to say a few more words, but Fang Yun stopped him.

"Uncle, you don't need to say anything more. We understand your kindness."

Chapter 735 New Discovery

Fang Yun sensed something was wrong the moment the woman named Xiao Hong came out.

Because this person didn't glance at the uncle surnamed Li at first glance, but instead glanced at Fang Yun and the other person several times.

When Uncle Li suggested that Fang Yun chat with him, the woman's fake smile was very obvious. She was clearly resistant, a stark contrast to a polite refusal.

Moreover, Fang Yun found no trace of the appearance of someone who had come to cultivate their mind on this person.

If many people are tired of the hustle and bustle of city life and come to small towns to live a peaceful life, that is true, and quite a few of them do.

However, this woman didn't give off that feeling. In fact, Fang Yun could sense a very strong hostility emanating from her very core. She seemed quite afraid of Fang Yun walking towards her, and clearly loathed him.

Therefore, Fang Yun concluded that there must be something fishy about this person.

Just then, Fang Yun suddenly noticed a huge axe lying under a large tree nearby. The axe clearly looked very heavy; it was definitely not something a girl could lift.

"Uncle, you just told me that this little red girl lives here alone, right? That is, there is no one else here."

"Yes, I just feel sorry for my daughter, all alone. I often bring her some food."

Uncle Li seemed quite concerned about the girl's life. This was, of course, a unique characteristic of human relationships in this small village. After all, there were only so many villagers; everyone saw each other frequently, so naturally, mutual help was expected.

As for the girl's strange temper, everyone just thought that since she came from the city, she was bound to be a little different, so they got used to it and didn't take it seriously.

At that moment, Fang Yun suddenly walked into the courtyard. And intentionally or unintentionally, he walked towards the tree where the huge axe was placed.

At the same time, Fang Yun also glanced at the expression on the face of the girl named Xiao Hong.

Sure enough, when she saw Fang Yun walk in, Xiao Hong's expression immediately changed, and she seemed very serious.

"Who are you? How dare you just walk into someone's yard without their permission?"

Xiao Hong angrily rebuked.

"Excuse me, but this uncle just told me that it must be inconvenient for a young lady like you to live alone in this place. It just so happens that my brother and I are passing by today and would like to help you with some chores."

As Fang Yun spoke, he took a few more steps towards the tree. At this moment, Xiao Hong suddenly became anxious.

"No need. I can handle my own affairs. I don't need you outsiders to worry about me. I advise you to leave immediately. I don't need any of your help."

The girl named Xiaohong said with a very unpleasant expression. It was as if Fang Yun and the other person hadn't come to help her, but rather to cause trouble.

Seeing her behavior, Fang Yun couldn't help but sneer inwardly, thinking that there was definitely something wrong with Xiao Hong.

"Little Red Girl, since you are so independent and don't need anyone's help, I won't presume to ask you any more questions. But before I leave, I want to ask you a question."

"what is the problem?"

"Is that huge axe under the tree yours? I doubt you're strong enough to lift it."

As expected, when Fang Yun asked the question, the woman named Xiao Hong's expression changed drastically. She glanced at the giant axe, and a clear look of panic flashed across her face.

Xiao Hong probably didn't expect to put the axe in such an obvious place. Of course, she also didn't expect that Uncle Li would bring several strangers to her house at this time.

It's important to know that Xiaohong's house is located in a remote part of the village. In other words, ordinary people wouldn't come to this place because it's too far away.

But what Xiao Hong didn't expect was that Fang Yun would come over.

At this point, Xiao Hong naturally kept urging them on.