novelraw Chapter 626: The Finger in the Salt Shaker
Chapter 626: The Finger in the Salt Shaker
Chapter 626: The Finger in the Salt Shaker
Jie Ming did not act in haste.
He opened the private channel on his magic network terminal and pulled up the map, carefully studying the suspected areas marked by Austin.
Hundreds of red dots densely covered the map, scattered across every corner of the plane.
He needed to choose a suitable entry point.
There could not be too many wizards. With too many eyes around, no one would be polite when it came time to fight over spoils.
The more wizards there were, the drastically lower the chance of obtaining any loot.
He also could not choose a location that was too remote.
If the Strange phenomenon was truly that dangerous, venturing alone into an unknown area, even for him, required careful consideration.
Jie Ming’s finger slid across the map. His gaze finally locked onto one position. The red dot was marked at the edge of a forest, a considerable distance from the nearest other red dot.
The map notes indicated that abnormal villager deaths had recently occurred in that area.
“This is the one.”
Jie Ming put away the map. His figure turned into a streak of flowing light and vanished toward the horizon.
Along the way, to avoid affecting the plane too greatly with excessive flight speed, Jie Ming maintained a relatively low and steady velocity.
He ensured he flew at only twenty times the speed of sound in the high skies, his form trailing a faint streak of light beneath the amber-colored heavens. Although this miniature glass garden plane was exquisite like a toy, its actual area was not small.
From the teleportation platform where he started to the target area, his current speed meant it would take about twenty minutes.
This time was enough for him to do many things… such as observing his competitors.
His spiritual power silently spread outward, extending in all directions with him at the center.
The spiritual power boost from a Void Refinement Realm consummate true body was astonishing.
Before his advancement, although his spiritual power coverage already far exceeded that of wizards of the same rank, it still had a clear boundary.
Now, that intangible perceptive force felt more like an ever-expanding body of water with no definite limit, only gradually thinning concentration. Although detection capability would decline in the overly “diluted” periphery, it was still sufficient for emergencies or alerts. Within this “water domain,” he could clearly perceive the presence of other spiritual bodies.
Eight were heading in his direction.
Jie Ming frowned slightly.
Although the number was a bit high, exploring one area together with this many wizards was still within his acceptable range. After all, there were over a hundred suspected areas marked on the map.
While many red dots had ten or even twenty wizards rushing toward them, there were even more locations with only single-digit numbers of wizards.
In terms of quantity, the number of wizards heading to this point was in the upper-middle range. The competition pressure was considerable, but safety would naturally be higher as well. While flying, Jie Ming once again opened his magic network terminal and re-examined the notes for that red dot.
Austin’s administrative androids had been stationed in that area the whole time, and the terminal would update the intelligence they gathered in real time.
He tapped open the information page.
[Point Number: 017]
[Administrative Android: Old Herman]
[Latest Intelligence Update: Three standard hours ago]
Eyewitness Report Summary:
In the past two weeks, continuous abnormal phenomena have occurred in this town and surrounding villages.
Multiple residents reported finding something that should not exist inside seasoning bottles in their own kitchens—a human finger.
All eyewitness descriptions were highly consistent: deathly pale skin covered in age spots, with an unnatural moist state perpetually present in the nail crevices.
It did not appear in obvious positions but hid inside seasoning bottles, especially salt shakers.
Only when someone opened the salt shaker to take salt would they discover an extra finger that should not be there.
This finger would not actively attack or move (at least not in front of the eyewitnesses), but it would simply remain there.
Even if removed with tongs, thrown into fire or water, or if the salt shaker was replaced entirely, it would reappear the next time someone opened the salt shaker.
Death Case Summary:
Currently confirmed deaths: 47 people.
All victims shared one common point: within the 24 hours before death, they had consumed food cooked in a kitchen where the finger had appeared.
Common symptoms among the deceased: the food tasted “salty to the point of bitterness,” yet testing revealed sodium content in the food was not excessive.
Several hours after consumption, victims experienced intense thirst and dehydration, which then progressed to whole body edema, ultimately resulting in death from acute kidney failure. Conventional medical methods (including low-level healing sorcery) could not alleviate or reverse the symptoms.
Administrative Android Notes:
“This is not ordinary salt poisoning. I examined the corpses of the deceased—their kidneys had been ‘pickled’ at the cellular level. It was as if their bodies had been immersed in massive amounts of salt and forcibly turned into salted meat.”
“That finger is quite ‘playful.’ It did not kill everyone in the town at once, but went family by family. Each time it only affected one kitchen, only letting that one household eat food salty enough to be fatal. Once that family was wiped out, it would move to the next.”
“I believe it is enjoying the process.”
Jie Ming closed the information page. His expression did not change, but his eyes darkened slightly.
Forty-seven lives.
In this garden plane meticulously protected by an eighth-rank great wizard, ordinary people lived peaceful, secluded lives.
Then one day, they opened the salt shaker, discovered a finger that should not exist, and were startled.
After finally calming from the fright, the whole family sat down to eat together, thinking today’s dishes were a bit too salty and paying it no mind.
A few hours later—thirst, dehydration, edema, death.
And that finger would quietly watch it all, then move on to the next household.
“Playful.”
The evaluation given by the administrative android regarding this Strange phenomenon surfaced in Jie Ming’s mind.
Now, it seemed the word was used with a precision that made one deeply uncomfortable.
He continued flying forward.
Twenty minutes later, Jie Ming landed on a small hill at the edge of the town.
From the high vantage, the town was larger than he had imagined.
Buildings of varying heights were distributed along both banks of a small river. Stone slab paths connected every household, chimneys emitted cooking smoke, and in the distance, children chased and played in the alleys.
Everything appeared normal.
Yet Jie Ming’s spiritual power had already captured a subtle “wrongness” in the air.
It was a feeling that was difficult to describe…
Like a single drop of ink mixed into originally clear water. The amount was tiny, not enough to change the water’s color, but you knew it was there.
He turned around and looked toward the figures landing one after another behind him.
Eight people.
Six men and two women. From their energy fluctuations, they were all sixth-ring wizards.
Their attire varied. Some wore refined wizard robes, some wore form-fitting clothes convenient for movement, and one wore what looked like a laboratory white coat, probably having just come straight from the lab.