Heroes' Prison

Chapter 706 - 677 The Origin of the Incident

The rain kept pouring down, splattering against the body of Huang Yi in sheets of blood-red water.

He just stood there in the rain, gazing in the direction where the woman had vanished.

She had left in a hurry, probably fearing that she would harm her child if she turned into a ghoul. But she couldn’t bear to truly leave, so she tricked the little boy into playing a game of hide-and-seek, enduring the long night with the hope of returning the next day to continue being his mother.

The inner struggle of a mother was laid bare before Huang Yi’s eyes.

Huang Yi shifted his gaze and immediately transformed into a Treasure-Sniffing Cat, slipping through the window into the wooden house and quietly hiding himself.

Meanwhile, his incarnation waited outside the town, anticipating the fall of night.

Time ticked by, second after second, as Huang Yi, now the Treasure-Sniffing Cat, roamed the house. The interior was dilapidated, with furniture scattered in disarray.

Then, on a table, Huang Yi came across a picture frame containing a photograph. In it was a man, a woman, and a child.

The woman and child were the very ones he had just seen. The man likely was the woman’s husband. Dressed in standard military armor, his face stern and eyes vivid, he seemed to be a soldier, exuding a valiant aura.

The picture frame was smooth and unblemished, evidently often cradled and caressed by someone’s hands. As Huang Yi paced back and forth by the picture frame in his little cat form, he suddenly discovered a letter hidden behind it.

Driven by curiosity, he reverted to human form, picked up the folded letter from behind the frame, and unfolded it to read—

"Dear Triss, I am doing well in the army, and I miss our child very much. It has been a long time since we had dinner together as a family!

Marshal Diego has led us to many victories, and soon we will occupy the Elemental Hills. Once we defeat those ghouls, we can return home triumphantly. I think of you every day, but all I face are endless ghouls. They are so disgusting, covered in rotten flesh and emitting foul stenches. At first, I couldn’t sleep at night because I was scared. But after battle after battle, I have become brave enough to mercilessly kill any ghoul I see.

I cannot comprehend why such vile creatures like ghouls exist in the world. I hope our child will grow up quickly and become a brave man who slays all ghouls.

Oh! By the way, a horde of ghouls recently headed south from Sunset Path. Our town is not far from Sunset Path, and I was quite worried for a while. However, the empire has organized forces to snipe them, and the military reports say that they’ve annihilated the group of ghouls. My dear, I should be home next week, just thinking about it makes me so happy; I can’t wait to return. Forever yours, El C. Dia..."

The lines of this letter brimmed with anticipation, as if the writer couldn’t wait to return home. The date of the signature was exactly a week ago.

Raindrops pattered outside the window, the desolate wind blowing through the broken window brought a slight chill.

"Sigh," after a long while, Huang Yi let out a soft sigh, refolded the letter, and placed it back in the far reaches of the album.

He then saw the family photo again in the album. The woman was leaning tenderly against the man, both holding the little boy’s hand, their faces revealing smiles of bliss.

However, such happiness was obviously no longer sustainable. According to the information revealed in the letter, the ghouls that had traveled south from Sunset Path hadn’t been completely wiped out; some had survived. Furthermore, they continued south and had come to this town, turning its residents into ghouls, including the woman he had encountered earlier.

When that man returned home, to find his beloved wife transformed into a revolting ghoul, it was hard to imagine how he would react.

Just then, the sky suddenly darkened as if a black veil had been drawn across it.

Huang Yi looked up, and as the sky had grown dark, night had finally descended.

He crept to the window, peeking carefully out at the town with just his eyes revealed.

The people moving about the town’s streets suddenly stopped in their tracks, all of them beginning to tremble.

Their bodies hunched over, as if they were turning into elderly folks, their skin writhing incessantly, darkening and rotting, splitting open to reveal masses of decayed flesh. Their faces caved in, some even burst holes through which bones were clearly visible.

In just a short time, they had transformed from normal humans into ghouls, the rapidity of the change shocking.

Once transformed into ghouls, their movements became erratic. Some howled as they ran frantically, while others floated about like Spectral Ghosts. In an instant, the town became a living Hell.

At that moment, Huang Yi spotted a ghoul heading towards the wooden house. He quickly executed Absolute Invisibility, concealing himself in the air – the whole house was suddenly empty, devoid of any human presence.

After reaching the window of the wooden cabin, the ghoul stretched out its decaying head to peer inside, seemingly in search of food. Its rotting, gray-white eyes stared straight at Huang Yi, who was in the midst of using "Absolute Invisibility."

"Drip-drop, drip-drop!" Some rainwater fell from the eaves, drenching the ghoul completely, and some blood mixed with the water seeped into its eyes, making the rotting flesh there appear somewhat redden.

The ghastly visage of the ghoul made Huang Yi feel slightly nauseous; no wonder the man had written in his letter, wishing the little boy would grow up quickly so they could eradicate the ghouls together. These creatures indeed did not elicit the slightest bit of affection.

After searching for a while and seeing no living creatures inside the cabin, the ghoul turned and left the area, apparently off to find food elsewhere.

Huang Yi finally breathed a sigh of relief. He continued to hide in the corner of the wooden cabin, deciding to brave through this night here.

Outside the cabin, the sounds of movement were intermittent as the slow, heavy steps of the ghouls trampled through the rainwater, creating waves of "swooshing" sounds. Some ghouls even knocked on the doors and windows, trying to see if there were any people inside, but ultimately they all left without success.

Gradually, the rain stopped, and the moonlight resumed its cast over the small town.

At this moment, Huang Yi’s incarnation was flying high above the town, looking down upon the ground below.

He saw many ghouls coming out from the town, wandering like lost souls. Some headed towards farms outside of town to snatch cattle and sheep, feasting on their blood and flesh. Others made their way into the mountains nearby, and soon after, the sounds of roaring wolves, jackals, tigers, and leopards could be heard, only to stop abruptly soon after.

However, Huang Yi’s attention was fixed on a female ghoul. She was in a farm outside the town, grasping a lamb by the throat, and gulping down its blood.

The lamb struggled continuously, its piteous cries piercing the sky, but to no avail. After a desperate struggle, its hind legs kicked a few times before it became still.

This female ghoul was the same woman Huang Yi had seen before, who had left the little boy and run towards the outskirts of town. As soon as night had fallen, she transformed into a ghoul, losing her daytime consciousness and becoming no different from the other ghouls.

Finally, having seemingly satiated her hunger, she let go of the lamb. She inadvertently looked up at the starry sky, observing Huang Yi with his wings flapping.

She bared her teeth and let out a howl at Huang Yi, with crimson blood still dribbling from the edges of her lips. The pallid moonlight reflected on her gray-white eyes, revealing a ferocious glare that sent shivers down one’s spine.

Soon, all the ghouls in the vicinity began to howl as they spotted Huang Yi gliding in the sky, all of them howling in his direction.

Some of the ghouls even bent down to grab stones from the ground and threw them fiercely at Huang Yi. They displayed incredible strength as each stone shot through the air like bullets, emitting a sharp sound as they struck Huang Yi, causing his Health Points to rapidly decrease.

Huang Yi hastily flapped his wings and flew away from the area, daring not to linger any longer. Should he fall, the countless ghouls swarming him would lead to a most brutal end.

...

Slowly, the long night passed.

The first rays of morning light shone through the window of the cabin, bringing a hint of warmth.

Huang Yi’s true body had been here all night. He turned to look out the window to see the ghouls undergoing change: rotting flesh retracted back into their bodies, skin turned pale again, and complexions regained their rosy hue, as they transformed back into the appearance of normal humans.

They continued their lifeless existence, with some walking on the streets, while others returned home, all seeming no different from usual.

"Tap, tap, tap!" Before long, Huang Yi heard the sound of hurried footsteps outside the cabin. He immediately transformed into the form of a Treasure-Sniffing Cat and used the "Void Skill" to vanish into thin air.

Soon, the door of the cabin burst open, and light flooded the room. A woman covered in dirt appeared at the threshold, her expression agonized, tears streaming from her eyes, and traces of blood still visible at the corners of her mouth.

She straightened her clothes, wiped off the traces of blood and tears from her lips, and after making herself look presentable, she eagerly cleared aside the cabinet covering the cellar entrance, lifted the lid, and rapidly climbed down as if she was in a rush to find the little boy.

"Mommy!" Soon, Huang Yi heard the boy’s voice coming from the cellar, "I hid all night and you just found me, I win, right?"

With a bittersweet smile in his heart, Huang Yi thought that the boy had no idea his mother had become a ghoul and still innocently thought they were playing hide and seek. The fate of this child was uncertain.

"My dear! I am back!" Just then, Huang Yi felt a shadow at the door as a figure burst in, with a voice filled with utmost excitement. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Starting Point (qidian.com) to cast your Recommendation Tickets and Monthly Tickets; your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)