There's a big problem with dreams in this world.

When the other person saw Lu Qing obediently come out, he breathed a sigh of relief, and his muscles relaxed considerably.

However, the next moment, he straightened his face again and said seriously:

"Whose child are you? Haven't your parents ever told you that you can't go there?"

"Forehead."

Hearing the other person's words, Lu Qing was taken aback for a moment, then quickly reacted and said:

"No, no, I just came to this town from somewhere else. I didn't know I couldn't leave there..."

"From outside?"

The man carefully examined the girl in front of him for a while, and then a look of realization appeared on his face.

He had seen people walking around in that square earlier, but he was too anxious and only now noticed the girl's appearance.

Judging from her delicate skin, she is definitely not a resident of the town. You know, girls in the town have to work from a young age, so their arms and legs could not possibly be so thin.

Moreover, the girl's clothes didn't look cheap. At the very least, in the eyes of this old hunter, the leather on the girl's body was genuine high-end stuff.

"Phew, anyway, it's good that you've left. Just be careful not to walk in that square next time, it's dangerous."

After hesitating for a moment, the middle-aged man said:

"Be careful these next couple of days. Although nothing seems to be happening now, something could still happen later."

The middle-aged man in front of us seemed to be recalling something as he spoke. If you ask him carefully, you might be able to get some clues...

The notebook recorded the event once again, and even if the notebook hadn't said anything, Lu Qing would have asked about it herself.

This wasn't just a matter of curiosity; in fact, Lu Qing felt that it might be related to the props she had just acquired.

"Has anything happened there before?" Lu Qing asked.

"You want to know?" the other person asked in return.

"Mm." Lu Qing nodded.

Looking at Lu Qing's expression, the middle-aged man hesitated for a moment before saying:

"Since you want to know, I might as well tell you. After all, there's thick fog outside right now, and I can't leave the town to hunt. If you want to hear it, come with me."

"Hunting, uncle, are you a hunter?" Lu Qing asked, following behind the man.

"Yes, I am a hunter in this town. I usually sell leather or wild animal meat, but unfortunately the fog outside has sealed off the entire town. I'm afraid I won't be able to go out until the fog clears."

The hunter nodded.

"Where are we going now?" Lu Qing asked.

"church."

"church?"

Lu Qing paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered what the blacksmith had told her. She looked up at the sky and asked in confusion:

"Isn't group prayer supposed to wait until the evening?"

“I don’t usually participate in group prayers, but you can try if you want. It’s somewhat effective, especially since you just went to that square,” the hunter said, walking ahead.

"Is that square really that scary?" Lu Qing asked.

The hunter had repeatedly emphasized the plaza's location since seeing her, making it seem as if she might be in danger at any moment...

"Danger, it must be very dangerous. Let me tell you, that square wasn't always like this."

A hint of reminiscence appeared in the hunter's eyes as he said:

"That square used to be a place where the town's residents would hold banquets during festivals. The reason it became like that goes back to three years ago."

"Among the children in the small town at that time, there was a little girl named Anna. She was lively, cute, and very brave, and curious about everything..."

Upon hearing the name Anna, Lu Qing's attention immediately focused. She hadn't forgotten what had just happened; the tear she found in the pile of rubble had clearly written on it.

The name of those tears is "Anna's Heart"!

"We adults don't really know the specific details of the matter. We only remember that once, Anna took some of her friends out to play, but when they came back, their personalities had all changed drastically."

The hunter continued, and soon, before even reaching the church, Lu Qing already knew what had happened three years ago.

Not long after the children returned, several of them committed suicide one after another, while Anna, the only survivor, would sometimes go crazy and often talk nonsense.

Shortly after Anna's incident, a group of well-equipped knights arrived in the town, claiming that there was an evil aura there.

Some townspeople didn't want to hand over Anna, so they remained silent for a while. But even if they didn't speak up, someone else would.

Within an hour, the knights received accurate information, stormed into Anna's house, and subdued her.

But soon, the knights discovered that they could not kill Anna with melee weapons, even with weapons that had been doused with holy water.

So they held a ceremony and burned Anna alive at the stake, which is why that piece of ashes was left behind.

The townspeople had tried to clean the area, but strange things would happen every time they tried, and the smell was unbearable. Eventually, no one wanted to go there anymore.

------------

Chapter Seven: The Old Priest

"Because of this incident, many townspeople are now spreading rumors that Anna's spirit has come seeking revenge," the hunter said.

"Oh."

Lu Qing followed behind the hunter, feeling as if she had caught something, but upon closer examination, she couldn't think of anything.

This situation was clearly caused by insufficient information. Thinking this through, she stopped dwelling on it and instead asked:

"Uncle, what are you going to the church for?"

"Children shouldn't ask so many questions. You just need to participate in the group prayer at night, and the God of Light will bless you," the hunter said, glancing at Lu Qing.

"What the hell, treating me like a child..." Lu Qing thought resentfully.

If the God of Light is that powerful, then you should have Him blow away the fog in the town already.

Although she was speechless, Lu Qing couldn't do anything about it. This was just how this body looked; it appeared very fragile.

Ah, no, actually she is very weak.

Suddenly remembering her character attributes, Lu Qing felt somewhat discouraged.

"Ha, what do these NPCs know?" That was the only thought she could use to comfort herself.

After all, no matter how powerful the characters in these dreams are, she is still the one responsible for resolving the dreams. Thinking of this, Lu Qing couldn't help but feel a sense of superiority.

"Ah, if I didn't think of it that way, I would have almost forgotten that this is a dream. The people in it feel so real..." the girl thought to herself.

"Alright, stop sulking, we've arrived."

The hunter walking ahead, not hearing the girl's voice behind him, assumed that he had said something that displeased her.

While finding it somewhat amusing, he couldn't help but pat the girl's head.

"Oh, so being tall is a big deal?"

Lu Qing touched her hair; she didn't feel any shame or anything like that about being touched on the head.

After being patted on the head, I subconsciously glanced at the other person's height.

Because she wasn't very tall in her previous life, she had an inexplicable concern about her height.

The hunter had no idea what Lu Qing was thinking. He walked ahead of Lu Qing and climbed the steps toward the interior of the church.

Perhaps because it was still daytime and there was still a long time before the collective prayer, the church was quite quiet.

Only two male apprentices dressed in teaching uniforms could be seen sweeping the ground with brooms.

"As expected, all those beautiful nun sisters were just a lie. It's clearly a dream, so why does it feel so real?" Lu Qing thought to herself.

Upon entering the church, one sees an elderly priest with gray hair standing before a statue, holding a book and with his eyes closed, seemingly praying something.

Seemingly hearing footsteps behind him, the old priest closed his book, turned around, and looked at the hunter, and...

Lu Qing followed behind the hunter.

"I heard the sound of leather boots on the ground just now. It really is you, old friend." The old priest said with a familiar expression, then turned his gaze to Lu Qing.

"Have you taken on a student?"

Before Lu Qing could explain, the hunter spoke first:

"Open your eyes and look carefully again. Hunters don't wear clothes that are unsuitable for hunting."

"I'm not a hunter, how would I know?" the old priest retorted casually upon hearing the hunter's words, and then asked:

"So, you brought her here because there's something you need?"

"What else could it be? Besides the fog outside, what else is important happening in the town right now?" the hunter rolled his eyes.

"Of course, such as tonight's collective prayer."

"This is indeed a rather important matter..."

The hunter stroked his chin, then looked at Lu Qing and said:

“I met this child when I arrived. She came from somewhere else. When I saw her before, I noticed her walking around in that square.”

"This is terrible." The old priest's expression changed, and he drew something on his chest with one hand, then closed his eyes and said:

"Poor kid, you've run into this on your first visit here, and you've even been targeted by that guy in the square. You'll have to stay at the church for now. With the protection of the God of Light here, you'll be fine."

"Um, thank you, Father." Lu Qing hesitated for a moment before replying.

Although she didn't know whether the protection of the God of Light would actually work, she was going to attend group prayers every night anyway, so staying in the church for the time being didn't matter.

Moreover, if she leaves here, all the clues she has gathered so far will be lost.

"John, come here for a second!"

The old priest beckoned to an apprentice in the distance and said:

"I'll leave this little girl in your care for now. Find her a room to rest."

After speaking to the apprentice, the old priest turned to look at Lu Qing and said:

"You can rest here for now. The one in the square won't dare to come here. I'll have John call you when the collective prayer begins tonight. May the God of Light protect you."

As the old priest spoke his last words, he traced a few lines on his chest with his hand once more.