A three-year-old child dragged his sister's coffin and cried out for justice in the military re

Without Old Smoker as a reliable map operator, the team's progress slowed down significantly.

The trail of bloody footprints disappeared completely after extending into the woods for several hundred meters.

It wasn't covered by snow.

But when we got here, the snow on the ground suddenly disappeared.

Instead, there was a thick layer of rotten fallen leaves and black mud.

The surrounding temperature did not seem to rise, but the snow melted, turning into wisps of white mist that permeated the forest.

This fog is strange.

It wasn't a light, fluffy mist, but rather a thick, sticky substance that seemed to have a life of its own, clinging to one's ankles and lingering there.

Visibility is extremely low.

Even with a tactical flashlight on, the beam of light seemed to hit a white wall, illuminating less than five meters away.

"Everyone hold on tight to the rope, don't get separated!" Qin Xiao walked at the front, holding a military knife to clear the way.

A climbing rope connected the five people together.

"This place is really weird." Chu Kuang walked at the back, looking at the GPS locator spinning wildly in his hand, cursing, "All electronic devices are malfunctioning, even satellite phones have no signal. There must be a huge source of magnetic interference here."

"Disordered magnetic fields are one of the characteristics of Guigu." The shadow walked in the middle, his voice calm, "which means we're on the right track."

"But this tree... it's growing way too haphazardly, isn't it?" Since Shen Wansan wasn't around, Chu Kuang could only complain to Gu Bei.

indeed.

The trees here completely defy the laws of plant growth.

They don't grow towards the sunlight; instead, they twist and coil, like pythons struggling in pain.

The bark was black, covered with dark red moss, like patches of festering wounds.

The branches were bare, stretching out in all directions with menacing claws, casting hideous silhouettes in the mist, like vengeful ghosts with outstretched arms trying to embrace passersby.

"Don't touch those trees."

Sui Sui, who was lying on Qin Xiao's back, suddenly spoke up.

Her voice was soft, with a slight tremor.

Although she couldn't see, her other senses were amplified infinitely.

She could sense that the trees were "alive".

The liquid flowing from the tree trunk was not sap, but some kind of foul-smelling liquid.

"What's wrong, Sui Sui?" Qin Xiao immediately stopped in his tracks.

"There's something in the tree." Sui Sui's little hands gripped Qin Xiao's shoulders tightly. "They're watching us."

"Looking at us?" Chu Kuang got goosebumps and shone his flashlight around wildly. "Where's anyone? Don't scare Third Uncle!"

"Not human." Sui Sui shook her head.

Gu Bei walked up to a huge, ancient black tree.

Instead of touching it directly with his hands, he took out a dagger and gently scraped away the moss on the tree trunk.

"hiss--"

Beneath the tree bark, a grayish-white object was revealed.

It's not wood.

That's... a bone.

Or it could be some kind of bone-like calcification.

Gu Bei's pupils contracted slightly, and he continued scraping.

As the moss peeled away, a clear pattern was revealed.

It was a man-made totem.

The lines are bold and ancient, as if they have existed for many years.

At the center of the design is a two-headed snake coiled around a skull.

The snake's body twisted into a bizarre "∞" symbol.

Infinity.

eternal life.

"This is..." Chu Kuang leaned closer for a look, then gasped, "The symbol of the Eternal Life Society?!"

"Not entirely," Gu Bei calmly analyzed. "The current symbol of the Eternal Life Society is a simplified double-helix serpent staff. But this..."

Gu Bei pointed to the skull.

"There is a flower carved in the eye socket of this skull."

"What kind of flower?"

"The Red Spider Lily".

Gu Bei's fingers gently caressed the pattern.

"This is the totem of the 'Yellow Springs Cult,' the predecessor of the Eternal Life Society."

"The Yellow Springs Cult?" Qin Xiao frowned; he had never heard of this name before.

"I saw incomplete data on that masked man's computer." Gu Bei spoke quickly. "Decades ago, a group of mad scientists came to Changbai Mountain. They believed it was the boundary between life and death and wanted to find the secret to bringing the dead back to life."

"Later, they did find some things."

"But it also awakened some things that shouldn't have been awakened."

"This base was later abandoned, and the group moved abroad and changed their identity to become the current Eternal Life Society."

Gu Bei looked up at the twisted trees around him.

If I'm not mistaken.

"This is the abandoned first-generation experimental base from back then."

"These trees..." Gu Bei plunged a dagger into the tree trunk, and a dark red liquid flowed out, emitting a strong smell of blood. "They're probably experimental waste from back then, planted here to cover up the evidence."

"Using corpses as fertilizer to plant trees?" Chu Kuang felt a churning in his stomach. "These bastards are truly fucking creative!"

"Shh!"

The shadow suddenly made a shushing gesture.

He crouched down, pressing his ear to the ground.

There's some noise.

Everyone's hearts jumped into their throats.

In the mist, besides the sound of the wind, there seemed to be a faint rustling sound.

It's like having countless feet crawling rapidly on the fallen leaves.

Moreover, they were surrounded from all directions.

"Are the wolves back?" Chu Kuang picked up the flamethrower.

"No." The shadow shook its head, its expression grave. "Lighter than a wolf, more than a wolf."

"What is that...?"

Chu Kuang hadn't finished speaking.

"Click".

A crisp metallic click came from beneath the shadow's feet.

The shadow's body suddenly stiffened.

He stepped on something.

"Don't move!" Qin Xiao shouted.

The shadow remained in that position, not daring to move.

He looked down.

Beneath his feet, fallen leaves were pushed aside, revealing a rusty iron object.

It looks like a bear trap.

But the serrated jaws did not close and bite his leg.

Instead, in the center of the clip, there is a red indicator light that is flashing wildly.

"Drip... drip... drip..."

The voice grew increasingly urgent.

"This isn't a bear trap." Cold sweat beaded on Shadow's forehead, but his voice remained calm. "This is a trigger mine."

"And it's been altered." Gu Bei took a closer look, his expression changing drastically. "It doesn't contain explosives."

"It's a high-pressure gas cylinder."

"Poison gas mine!"