Chapter 132: The Widow's Trigger Mechanism

***

Behind the blacksmith's shop, there were two large houses. The one on the right was the living area of the blacksmith, and on the left was the warehouse where iron tools were stored.

The middle-aged man led Li Xianzong and the others to the warehouse, pushing open the dusty doors, and a stale smell of rust and decay hit their noses.

Li Xianzong crossed the threshold and entered the warehouse, scanning it with a steady gaze. Inside, they saw various types of torture devices: razors, steel needles, torture chairs, branding irons, pillories, tiger benches, and more. 

Li Xianzong squinted, noting that these were not like the "torture tools" of the crazy woman in Ichiyama. These were real torture devices used to inflict pain on people. 

Most of them were covered in dust and rust, while others looked brand new, as if they had been recently manufactured. 

"Why would a blacksmith have so many torture devices?" one of the muscular young men, who had an ordinary face but a fierce demeanor, asked. It was clear he was not the type to shy away from a fight.

However, such a temperament was not exceptional among the evil classes. The only distinctive feature of this young man was his missing left ear, seemingly severed by a blade.

The middle-aged man explained, "Not only that, but if you look closely, these torture devices vary in age. Master Wang, the blacksmith, has been continuously forging these instruments of torture."

Li Xianzong reached a conclusion, "He's repeatedly forging these, meaningless, torture devices!"

The young man with the missing left ear furrowed his brow and asked, "What's the logic behind the behavior of this NPC? Or is it just a meaningless setting that we don't need to pay attention to?"

At this moment, a man in a suit and leather shoes exclaimed, "Look what I found!"

Everyone turned to look, and he was holding a dark red steel nail, about two inches long, with dried bloodstains on it.

Li Xianzong took the steel nail from him, and after a few seconds, a piece of information appeared:

- **Name: Nail of Curses**

- **Type: Consumable**

- **Function: Soul Erosion**

- **Description: This steel nail once pierced the heart of a powerful individual. In her dying moments, her resentment clung to the nail, forming a curse. Anyone wounded by the nail will have their souls cursed, leading to their demise.**

- **Note: I curse you to die a miserable death just like me.**

"A very powerful consumable," Li Xianzong commented with a smirk. "This makes sense, right? After defeating a powerful elite monster, we should get some powerful items."

He looked at his team and asked, "I'll hold onto this item; any objections?"

The team members shrugged.

Evil-class characters upheld strength and revered the powerful. Once someone's identity was confirmed, they had solid control. Those who resisted could challenge, but they had to be prepared to pay the price with their lives.

In lawful classes, it was necessary to vote, discuss, and obtain the consent of the discoverer.

Following this, Li Xianzong and his team carefully inspected every torture device and iron tool in the warehouse but found no more items or consumables.

They then left the warehouse and headed to the house where Master Wang lived.

"Squeak~"

Li Xianzong pushed open the wooden door and carefully observed the room. There was a brick-built bed against the window, a square table in the center, and a wardrobe facing the bed.

After searching around, they found a ledger inside a wooden chest where clothes were stored.

As the team leader, Li Xianzong opened the stitched book, glanced at it, and then looked at his teammates, asking, "Who can read traditional Chinese characters?"

The ledger was written in traditional Chinese characters, and the handwriting was messy. Li Xianzong realized that his cultural knowledge wasn't sufficient to read it.

The evil-class characters exchanged glances, falling into a momentary silence.

The man in a suit and leather shoes stepped forward and said, "Let me take a look."

Li Xianzong slightly relaxed and handed the ledger to him.

After examining it carefully, the man in the suit and leather shoes smiled and said, "This is the income and expenditure record of the blacksmith shop. I know who these torture devices were sold to. It's someone named Zhao Yuanwai."

He continued, "But the numbers in the ledger don't match what we saw. There are too many torture devices in the warehouse, far exceeding Zhao Yuanwai's orders."

Li Xianzong frowned at the discrepancy in numbers.

He had a hunch that this was information revealed to Lingjing Walkers by the dungeon itself.

Li Xianzong had experienced an A-level dungeon once before. It was how he earned the title of "genius." Higher difficulty dungeons tested the abilities of Lingjing Walkers more intensely. Many pieces of information needed to be discovered on their own.

Li Xianzong shared his thoughts with his teammates. The middle-aged man pondered for a moment and expressed uncertainty, "I have a guess, but I can't be certain. It seems like Master Wang, the blacksmith, might have been cursed. I sensed a hint of curse on him."

The middle-aged man explained further, "Curses are abilities of the Witch Doctor Saint level. I haven't reached that level, so I can't be sure. Besides, this is a faction-versus-faction dungeon, and it's normal to have curses."

"Curses," Li Xianzong summarized the information, "and he keeps forging torture devices?"

He didn't dwell on it for too long and declared, "Let's leave this place and find Zhao Yuanwai. He should be our next target. We need to complete the side quest before the Lawful faction does."

"Xiu'er, Xiu'er."

张元清 walked along the streets of the town's west side, shouting loudly, "My Xiu'er, where are you?"

Queen Guan and her team followed him silently.

While observing her surroundings, Queen Guan quietly asked her half-blooded companion, "Is he always this eccentric?"

She had been intensely curious about the legendary "Yuan Shi Tianzun."

After a brief interaction, she found that this renowned individual lacked the arrogance and aloofness often associated with prodigies. He wasn't overly humble or mild either.

He was talkative, lively, and could engage in conversations with anyone.

She didn't mind this personality trait at all.

Queen Guan chuckled, "He just joined the Five Elements Alliance a week ago and is already very friendly with his colleagues, you know, Fu Qingyang."

"Of course, I know him. He's a true prodigy." Queen Guan touched the silver earring on her earlobe and smiled, "They say he's handsome but aloof, challenging to get along with. Among those who admire him, there aren't many, but they are very loyal."

Queen Guan glanced at her strikingly beautiful female colleague and added, "Even with someone like Fu Qingyang, people like to hear what Yuan Shi has to say when he's around. Fu Qingyang talks more when he's with Yuan Shi."

Queen Guan raised an eyebrow, "So, is this what they call prodigies appreciating each other?"

"No, Fu Qingyang just enjoys hearing Yuan Shi compliment him."

At this point, Fire Deity Military expressed impatience, "Is Widow Xu really living nearby? Could it be that Wang Po is tricking us?"

They had been searching for half an hour, and Zhang Yuanqing's throat was getting hoarse. Still, there was no sign of the legendary Widow Xu.

"Maybe we missed some information?" Li Chunfeng leaned against the old white wall, fanning himself with his hand, and asked if they had overlooked something.

Hmm, not feeling it. If I trigger my old ailment, I should be able to recall all the details, but it's not worth it.

Queen Guan leaned against Zhang Yuanqing and pondered for a few seconds before saying,

"No, we haven't missed any crucial clues. Information about Widow Xu has only come up twice, once when Wang Po mentioned her address and the other time with the scarecrow. But this doesn't seem related to the current predicament," explained the round-faced young man.

He then furrowed his brows and continued, "The weather is quite hot, and it's making me restless. I'm thirsty; how about you guys?"

"I'm thirsty too," Zhang Yuanqing replied and looked at the queen, saying, "Your Majesty, would you kindly provide us with some refreshments?"

"What kind of refreshments are you talking about? Your words sound strange," the queen muttered.

If you were dealing with Guan Ya, I would have stared at your chest while saying that! Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself. Accommodating Guan Ya's interests was the way to go; she loved such playful banter. However, using the same approach with other girls would make him seem creepy.

This queen, judging by her appearance alone, was a mature beauty, and her summer attire emphasized her well-proportioned figure.

But unlike Guan Ya, who enjoyed driving, she was somewhat "clumsy" when it came to certain matters.

"The Water Spirit can manipulate water, but it can't create water out of thin air," she said. Seeing her teammates suffering from the heat, she thought for a moment and suggested, "I'll go to the river and bring back some water for you. Even dirty water, after purification by our Water Spirits, can be safe to drink."

Guan Ya reminded her, "Don't go too far."

The queen didn't look back and said, "Don't worry; we won't encounter the Evil faction before we complete the side quest."

Zhang Yuanqing watched her elegant figure receding into the distance and then turned his gaze back, saying, "I believe we need a specific method to trigger finding Xu Xiu'er. However, the information provided so far is too scarce to deduce that method."

Guan Ya suggested, "Maybe we should start from the character's background."

"Starting from the character's background," Li Chunfeng pondered and said, "She's a widow, likely cursed Wang Po's son, probably a Witch Doctor? Wang Po's son must have harmed her, most likely by breaking into her place at night."

"But there's a logical flaw here. If he's a Witch Doctor, how could an ordinary man harm him?"

"Of course, we can't be sure whether Wang Po's son is really an ordinary person. However, this isn't closely related to our current predicament."

"What are you talking about? You've analyzed a lot but don't seem to have a point. Scholars like you love to overthink," Fire Deity Military complained.

"This matter is straightforward," he continued, "Wang Po's son had a romantic encounter with her, and she cursed him. That's why she dislikes men."

"Dislikes men, so she's avoiding us? Makes sense," the slightly plump individual nodded.

"It does make some sense!" Left Grass by the Riverside added, "But didn't the previous Lingjing Walkers go through this storyline? Weren't there any men among them?"

"Well, uh," the round-faced individual couldn't find a response.

Guan Ya pondered and said, "No, Fire Deity Military's guess is reasonable. I have a theory. What if, what if this stage requires a female walker to trigger it?"

Her words caused the faces of everyone present to change.

The queen is an outlier!

(End of this chapter)

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

PS. Has anyone watch this adaption Chinese Drama? 

Hidden Love

It's really good! And touching and you'll be jealous every episode haha. 

Ohh, it's originally from manhwa called 'Hidden Love / My Secret Crush' which I am currently reading in (ManhwaTop) 

Must read the manhwa before watching the adaption because there's a lot of changes but everything is good.