74: Chapter 74 The Harvest is Unbelievably Huge! A Group of Walking Dead Heads Towards the Taoist Temple
Lin Feng left that area of withered ancient trees, bringing Little Gold with him.
After stepping out of the dense fog, the view before him suddenly opened up.
A series of rolling hills stretched out, covered in lush green vegetation.
In the distance, several higher peaks could be seen, their summits shrouded in mist.
The air was incredibly fresh; every breath felt refreshing and invigorating.
"This Secret Realm... is quite large."
Lin Feng stood on a hill, gazing into the distance.
He was currently in an exceptionally good mood.
Eight hundred and fifty thousand Health Points!
Eight hundred and fifty thousand mana!
Earth Element Affinity alone was at 150%!
The other six elements were at 90%!
He even gained an Element Affinity Physique!
These gains were so massive he didn't even know how to describe them.
"Squeak, squeak!"
Little Gold chirped twice on his shoulder, pointing forward with its golden front legs.
Lin Feng looked in the direction it was pointing.
In the distance, a cluster of buildings could be faintly seen.
It looked like an ancient palace or a Daoist temple, situated on the mountainside.
"There's something over there too?"
Lin Feng's eyes lit up.
Little Gold nodded.
"Squeak, squeak!"
Excitement flickered within its tiny compound eyes.
As a Void Holy Beetle with a treasure-hunting Talent, its perception of treasures was much stronger than Lin Feng's.
Since it was this excited, there were definitely good things over there.
"Let's go!"
Lin Feng unfurled his Wind Wings and flew in that direction.
After flying for about ten minutes, he drew closer and closer to the buildings.
He could already see the outline clearly.
It was indeed a Daoist temple.
It was large in scale, covering at least tens of thousands of square meters.
Built against the mountain, it rose in tiers, extending from the foot of the mountain all the way to the mountainside.
Green bricks, gray tiles, upturned eaves, and bracket sets—it was a typical ancient Chinese architectural style.
But at this moment, most of those buildings were already in ruins.
Walls had collapsed, roofs were overgrown with weeds, and doors and windows were mottled.
Only the grand hall at the very summit looked relatively intact.
"Ancient ruins..."
Lin Feng murmured.
He was just about to land.
Suddenly, there was a movement below.
Lin Feng looked down and was stunned.
At the foot of the mountain, on a winding flagstone path, a group of people... was walking?
No, not walking.
It was... shuffling.
Those people were lined up in a single file, moving slowly toward the summit along the flagstone path.
Their movements were stiff and their pace was slow, like zombies from a movie.
But their attire was completely different from zombies.
Those people were all wearing ancient clothing.
The men wore long robes with their hair tied in buns.
The women wore traditional skirts and had their hair styled in buns.
Some were even carrying bundles or baskets, like ordinary people heading to a market.
But their faces...
Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and looked closely.
Their faces were as pale as paper.
Their eyes were pure white.
No pupils, no whites—just two white orbs.
Their expressions were dull, their mouths slightly agape, and saliva drooled from the corners of their mouths.
Like... the Walking Dead.
"What on earth are these?"
Lin Feng sucked in a cold breath.
He slowed his flight and landed silently on a large tree.
Hiding behind the leaves, he carefully observed the group.
There were about twenty or thirty people, including men, women, young, and old.
The youngest looked to be only in their teens, while the oldest was a white-haired elder.
They were lined up, shuffling toward the summit step by step along the flagstone path.
Their steps were in perfect unison.
The distance of every step was exactly the same.
It was as if they were being controlled by some invisible force.
"Could it be an illusion within the trial?"
Lin Feng frowned.
He recalled the prompt before entering—the trial would evoke one's deepest inner fears.
But he wasn't afraid of these people.
Moreover, with the golden tower soul guarding him, ordinary illusions couldn't affect him at all.
"It's not an illusion... they truly exist?"
Lin Feng's heart sank.
If these people were real, then what were they?
How could there be living people in this Secret Realm?
Wait, looking at them like that, they didn't seem like living people.
They were more like... some kind of controlled Puppets.
Lin Feng stared at the group, observing them closely.
He noticed a pattern.
Although their movements were stiff, their goal was clear—they were all heading toward that grand hall at the summit.
No one deviated from the path.
Even if there were stones blocking the way, they wouldn't go around; they would just walk straight into them.
If they tripped, they got back up and continued walking.
Like machines with pre-set programming.
"That grand hall at the summit... what's in there?"
Lin Feng looked up toward the summit.
That grand hall was the only one in the entire building complex that remained well-preserved.
Green bricks, gray tiles, red pillars, and carved beams; the doors were tightly shut.
Two massive stone pillars stood before the door, carved with complex runes.
Those runes were faintly emitting a weak glow.
"Squeak, squeak!"
Little Gold suddenly cried out.
It stood up on Lin Feng's shoulder, its golden front legs pointing at the group and then at the grand hall on the summit.
Its expression seemed to say—there's good stuff!
"You mean those people... are also related to the treasure?"
Lin Feng asked.
Little Gold nodded.
"Squeak, squeak!"
Lin Feng was lost in thought.
He thought for a moment and decided to follow them and see.
But following that group directly was too dangerous.
Who knew if they would suddenly attack?
He unfurled his Wind Wings and flew at a low altitude, circling to the side of the group.
He maintained his distance and followed from afar.
The group didn't notice him at all.
Or rather, they didn't have the concept of "noticing" at all.
They just mechanically walked, and walked, and walked.
Lin Feng followed them along the flagstone path, slowly moving toward the summit.
Along the way, he saw more things.
There were fallen stone tablets by the roadside, carved with ancient script.
There were abandoned medicinal fields, overgrown with weeds, but some withered medicinal herbs could still be seen.
There were collapsed houses, empty inside except for some broken pottery jars and furniture.
And also...
Corpses.
Lin Feng's pupils contracted.
Under an old tree by the roadside, two corpses were leaning.
No, not corpses, they were... mummies?
Those two mummies were wearing modern clothes.
A man and a woman, looking very young.
They were leaning against the tree trunk, their heads bowed; they had been dead for a long time.
Their skin was shriveled and tight against their bones, as if all moisture had been drained out.
But their expressions were peaceful, even carrying a hint of a... smile?
"Are these Explorers who came in before?"
Lin Feng's heart tightened.
He walked closer to take a careful look.
The equipment on both of them was standard Explorer gear.
The badges on their chests showed they were C-rank Explorers.
The time of death was likely between a week and half a month ago.
But there were no external injuries on them.
No signs of a struggle.
No signs of poisoning.
It was as if... they had fallen asleep and simply never woken up.
"Getting lost in an illusion and then starving to death?"
Lin Feng guessed.
He sighed and bowed to the two of them.
Then he continued following the group upward.
The further up he went, the more mummies there were on the path.
Three.
Five.
Ten.
Some were collapsed by the roadside, some were leaning against walls, and some were sprawled on the steps.
All were wearing modern clothes.
All were Explorers.
All had smiles on their faces.
It was as if they had died in a beautiful dream.
Lin Feng's mood grew heavier and heavier.
This Secret Realm was even more sinister than he had imagined.
The group continued to walk mechanically.
They stepped over those mummies as if they weren't even there.
As if those mummies were just stones by the roadside.
Finally.
They reached the summit.
The grand hall was just fifty meters ahead.
Lin Feng hid behind a giant boulder and peeked out.
The group had already reached the entrance of the grand hall.
They lined up and, one by one, walked into the open doors.
They vanished into the darkness of the hall.
Lin Feng stared at that door.
It was pitch black inside; he couldn't see anything.
But he could faintly sense that some kind of... thing was inside.
"Squeak, squeak!"
Little Gold chirped again.
This time, its cry carried a hint of urgency.
It pointed its golden front legs toward the grand hall, then at itself, and then made an "eating" motion.
"You're saying there's a treasure inside and you want to eat it?"
Lin Feng asked.
Little Gold nodded vigorously.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"
Lin Feng fell silent.
He looked toward the grand hall.
The dark doorway was like the maw of a giant beast.
Those Walking Dead walked in one by one and never came back out.
What would be inside?
He didn't know.
But he knew that anything that could make Little Gold this excited was definitely a good thing.
Besides, since he had already come this far...
"Let's go for it!"
Lin Feng gritted his teeth and stepped out from behind the boulder.
He took a deep breath and walked toward the grand hall.
His steps were firm.
Behind him, the sun was setting.
Golden sunlight spilled over the ancient building.
The runes on the two stone pillars in front of the door began to glow faintly.