Huh? Isn't this an adventure kingdom building game?!-Chapter 52 Side Quest - Stone House

Jiang Yuan was stunned after hearing this and looked towards the direction of the voice; Wan Mingchuan suddenly remembered that his master had mentioned seeing a corpse in the wilderness before, and he hurriedly looked over as well.

There was an old woman on the opposite bank.

Due to their location being a small river valley with many large stones on both banks, the river flowed swiftly but was only about a meter wide, so her questions from across the river were heard clearly.

The old woman was hunched over, looking at least sixty years old, her face full of wrinkles without a trace of blood, dressed in dark brown and navy blue cotton clothes, which made her expressionless face look even paler.

She held a cane in her right hand, her murky eyes staring straight at them.

"Master..." Wan Mingchuan felt a bit uneasy, always feeling that the other person had no living aura.

Jiang Yuan patted his shoulder, indicating for him to relax.

Seeing the old woman, the system immediately gave a prompt; indeed, it was a side quest where he needed to find the deceased’s relative.

"Did your son go out at night?" He took out the Ironwood Ring from his storage bag, thankful that he had organized his supplies before setting out today and decided to bring the ring. If he hadn’t, going back to retrieve it would have been too time-consuming.

The old woman’s cloudy eyeballs moved slightly, confused as she said, "I don’t remember, I just remember he was going to pick herbs. The herbs at home are running out..."

After muttering a few words, she extended her equally pale, bloodless left hand, weakly beckoning them, "Come, come sit at my house. You’ll have to ask my daughter-in-law for specifics."

[Subquest: Relics]

[Task 1: Follow the old woman home and return the Ironwood Ring to the deceased’s family. Reward: Yin Wood X10]

[Trigger follow-up tasks for rich rewards]

Wan Mingchuan instinctively felt very afraid of the old woman, but seeing his master leap over the stones to the opposite bank, he could only muster his courage and follow.

The old woman trembled as she walked with her cane, but her pace was not slow, and before long, she had led the two near a stone house.

"You, your smell is unpleasant, do not come inside." She suddenly turned and pointed at Wan Mingchuan, saying, "Our family does not welcome you."

Wan Mingchuan: ???

Unpleasant smell? He hurriedly lowered his head to sniff himself, thinking that maybe he smelled bad after working up a sweat today, making the old woman uncomfortable, and his face turned slightly red.

"He’s my disciple, and I don’t feel comfortable leaving him alone here." Jiang Yuan also stopped, patiently explaining, "He can stay outside but must remain within my sight."

Even though it was a system-verified side quest, he knew nothing about who the deceased was or what had happened. Encountering a sinister old woman halfway who wanted to separate him from his disciple was alarming.

Moreover, inviting strangers home upon first meeting and then refusing entry right at the door was very bizarre in the remote wilderness.

The old woman waved her hand, "He absolutely cannot enter the house; he’s cultivating a fire attribute magic technique, which will clash with the celestial family."

Both master and disciple were surprised. Could she tell at a glance that Wan Mingchuan was cultivating a particular technique? So, was the old woman a human cultivator? And what did she mean by celestial family?

Jiang Yuan thought that maybe she had some cultivation skills, which made her bold enough to casually invite two unfamiliar young men home, hence they must be more cautious!

After walking a few more steps, the old woman raised her hand and clapped three times in the air, unlocking the guardian divine power of the courtyard, and pointed to a spot casually, "You stand over there, don’t move; if you anger the celestial family, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Xiang’Er! Xiang’Er, come quickly!"

As they stepped in, the map updated, showing a small courtyard named Stone House next to the Ancient Mine Cave.

Wan Mingchuan did not understand but obediently stood where the old woman pointed, not daring to move; while Jiang Yuan took the chance to glance around the perpetually cold and damp courtyard at the foot of the mountain.

Behind a grove of fruit trees was an old stone house covered in moss; it wasn’t particularly tall but had a rather large base, and the doors and windows were elegantly carved, suggesting a good economic condition.

Previously, his disciple mentioned a shadow standing by a window, which had since fallen, obscuring whether anyone was inside. Behind the stone house, there was a plot of land, its growth unknown, but the entire courtyard gave off a cold, damp feeling.

The strong scent of moss mingled with a faint fragrance, reminiscent of incense burning in a temple.

"Squeak~"

As Jiang Yuan was curiously observing his surroundings, a woman emerged from the house, dressed in a red skirt and green jacket, with a powdered white face, her hair styled in a black bun, adorned with golden and jade ornaments, looking very opulent; her silk garments embroidered with flowers were clearly expensive.

She wore intricate makeup like a wealthy young mistress from a bustling city, with pearls adorning her red embroidered shoes, walking out silently, first looking at Wan Mingchuan, frowning slightly and covering her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, then turning her gaze to Jiang Yuan, "The old woman is muddled, how can she let an outsider in?"

"I couldn’t find Changgui; it’s rare to meet these two people, so I brought them back in a hurry for you to ask." The old woman stood beside her, unmoving with her cane.

Deep in the mountain forest, a moss-covered stone house, an almost breathless old woman standing in the dark, and a beautifully dressed young woman devoid of expression, their matching pale faces under the gloomy, heavy background were like the main screen background of a horror game.

For a moment, Jiang Yuan looked at them and recalled the paper figures he had seen in paper-mache shops as a child.

The eerie, spooky atmosphere was well executed, but Jiang Yuan, having played many horror games and often startled by sudden scares, was not fazed, only feeling a regret in his heart for the game lacking a screenshot function.

"My husband went out five days ago and hasn’t returned yet. He’s about your height but slightly plumper; he was wearing the beige linen shirt and dark gray trousers he usually wore for work, with a black ring on his left hand when leaving. Did you see him while traveling in the forest?" The woman’s gentle tone was devoid of any trace of a living person’s vitality, sending chills down one’s spine.

In the game, to trigger more plotlines, you typically have to patiently chat with NPCs to uncover their background settings.

The system hadn’t hinted at any threats, and currently, there was just a spooky atmosphere without real danger. Jiang Yuan asked, "Did your husband go out after the wilderness descended? I indeed encountered a man resembling him in the wilderness, but..."

Before the woman could speak, the old woman’s eyes lit up, exclaiming, "Yes! I remembered! My son went out to pick wild herbs as a catalyst, Xiang’Er, didn’t Changgui leave at night? No wonder, no wonder the celestial family didn’t intervene, he must have gone too far, the wilderness can’t be watched over everywhere..."

"My husband hasn’t returned, and the old woman becomes more muddled; don’t blame us." The woman’s deep eyes stared at him, "May I ask, when and where did you see my husband?"

Jiang Yuan pondered the clues revealed by the old woman; gathering herbs as a catalyst, should he probe deeper to trigger follow-up tasks?

"I didn’t see those features you mentioned, but could you see if this is your husband’s ring?" He pretended to pull something from his chest, and the Ironwood Ring lay quietly in his palm.

The woman stared blankly, then suddenly tears of blood flowed from her eyes, she stepped forward, flipping her right hand to grip his wrist, clenching her teeth as she said, "So you are the one who killed my husband!"